Li Miaoci turned and ran, but a gust of wind caught up from behind, tightly binding her.
She felt only a whirlwind of sand and stones, the sky darkening as the earth shook.
When she awoke again, she found herself in a brightly lit mountain cave.
She was firmly tied up and thrown on the ground.
Struggling to sit up, she saw Tang Sanzang bound to a stone pillar not far away.
“Hehe, Master.”
Tang Sanzang looked down, disbelief filling his eyes. “Amitabha, you’ve been captured too.”
“What a coincidence.”
If she had known finding her master would be this easy, she wouldn’t have wandered around the mountains like a headless fly all day.
“Don’t be afraid, Master. Our senior brothers will come to rescue us,” Li Miaoci comforted him.
He closed his eyes to rest, though fear lingered on his face, he forced himself to remain calm.
The cave was damp and chilly, the stones icy cold. Li Miaoci lay slumped against a rock, feeling as if her heart might stop beating.
Outside, torchlight flickered, and busy lesser demons went about their tasks.
It was already late at night—by this hour, humans should have long been asleep—yet the lesser demons with their meager magical power were still hard at work.
Damn capitalist demons.
Through the rocks, she could hear faint weeping from a distant part of the cave.
It seemed to be Bai Huaxiu crying.
The Yellow Robe Monster was ferocious in speech and appearance, hideous to behold, and, most importantly, had violent tendencies.
At the slightest disagreement, he would abuse Bai Huaxiu, only to pick her up and comfort her once she was weeping pitifully, tears streaming like pear blossoms.
Naturally, when it came to matters of intimacy, he paid no heed to her feelings—whenever he desired, the princess had to endure his torment.
According to the lesser demons, the Yellow Robe Monster treated the princess quite well most of the time, pampering her endlessly. Except for not allowing her to leave the cavern abode, he indulged her in every way inside the cave.
And the princess had always been gentle and obedient…
Li Miaoci almost laughed at this thought. Those who weren’t obedient would have long been beaten to death.
But according to the plot, Bai Huaxiu would release Tang Sanzang and have him carry a letter to the Precious Elephant Kingdom to deliver news.
Thinking of this, she finally felt somewhat at ease.
She hoped that when the princess freed their master, she would also release her as well.
Meanwhile, Sun Wukong and Nezha arrived at Penglai Immortal Island, originally intending to share drinks with the Three Immortal Friends of Fortune, Longevity, and Prosperity. However, upon reaching the immortal island, they did not see the three immortals—only two young lads at the entrance.
The immortal lads told them that the three immortals had gone wandering and their return date was unknown.
Sun Wukong felt a faint sense of strangeness but said nothing more.
After all, he and Nezha had come out merely to seek some leisure, not to abandon protecting the monk on his scripture retrieval journey.
Thus, the two stayed only a short while before hurrying back.
But a moment in the immortal mountains was over ten days in the mortal world.
By the time they returned, they found their master missing, and their junior sister also nowhere to be found.
Searching along the way, they only saw a horse tied to a tree.
In the Wave Moon Cave.
The Yellow Robe Monster was speaking with a man wrapped in a black robe.
The black-robed man concealed himself completely, revealing only a pair of eyes. His voice was cold and gloomy, as if emanating from the depths of hell.
“Now that Tang Sanzang is in your hands, why haven’t you dealt with him yet? What are you hesitating for?”
The Yellow Robe Monster replied, “After all, he is the reincarnation of Golden Cicada, a good man cultivated over ten lifetimes. Besides, his disciples are not to be trifled with. If I truly eat him, I fear my life will be in danger.”
“Have you forgotten who rules heaven and earth now?” the black-robed man rebuked him.
The Yellow Robe Monster chuckled with a hint of mockery. “To whose advantage? Didn’t both sides fail to gain much? If the one you mentioned truly possessed such vast divine powers, why would you need to use my hand to deal with the Scripture Seeker?”
“You!”
The man in black robes rose angrily, his gaze falling upon a mortal figure hidden deep within the cavern abode. “Don’t forget, though you are a deity who descended to the mortal realm, your wife is merely a mortal…”
The Yellow Robe Monster’s expression shifted slightly, and he gritted his teeth. “Rest assured, I know what must be done.”
The man in black robes transformed into a swirl of dark mist and vanished.
Sitting on his stone throne, the Yellow Robe Monster was flooded with unwelcome thoughts. He did not know whether the mysterious man’s words were true or false.
Yet he himself was originally a celestial star who had descended to the mortal realm, and he was well aware of the matters concerning the Scripture Seeker.
But he had never imagined that the Scripture Seeker would become the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Erlang True Lord, and Third Prince Nezha.
Did the unexpected turn of events on the journey to the west confirm that the mysterious man’s words were true?
“Great King, is it true that consuming Tang Monk’s flesh grants immortality?” a lesser demon fawned as he stepped forward to ask.
The Yellow Robe Monster scoffed, “Indeed.”
“Then why don’t we devour Tang Monk? Great King, you could lead all of us brothers to share in eternal life!” The lesser demon’s eyes gleamed with greed. They had toiled in cultivation for centuries, only to become underlings under the Great King.
In another thousand years, with luck, they might occupy a small mountain and become great demons in their own right.
But to achieve immortality, aside from encountering extraordinary fortune, one could only rely on tens of thousands of years of arduous cultivation.
Now, immortality was right before their eyes—what demon would not be tempted?
After a long silence, the Yellow Robe Monster finally made up his mind. “Very well, today we shall feast on Tang Monk’s flesh together!”
“Woo-hoo! Woo-hoo!”
The lesser demons below cheered in unison.
Bai Huaxiu, hiding inside, overheard their conversation. Before the demons could react, she quietly slipped away toward where Tang Sanzang was bound.
Tang Sanzang was startled by the sudden appearance of a person. Bai Huaxiu hurriedly explained that she was human and begged Tang Sanzang to deliver a letter to the Precious Elephant Kingdom for her.
Tang Sanzang agreed.
She untied the ropes binding Tang Sanzang and then freed Li Miaoci as well.
“Both of you, follow this small path from the back mountain to escape. Please be careful,” Bai Huaxiu said, her hands trembling and her voice tinged with sobs.
Without a second thought, Li Miaoci grabbed Tang Sanzang’s robe and ran.
Tang Sanzang thought about propriety between men and women… but alas, survival came first.
The two walked for a long time and finally reached the exit at the back mountain.
Just as they breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they had escaped, a ferocious lesser demon suddenly appeared before them.
Li Miaoci recognized this demon—it seemed to be the eldest son of Bai Huaxiu and the Yellow Robe Monster.
“You dare to escape!”
Though young in years, the demon was taller and more imposing than an adult.
Seeing him approach step by step, Li Miaoci instinctively tried to bolt for the door.
But with Tang Sanzang standing in front of her, the only way to run was to push him aside.
She shoved Tang Sanzang out abruptly, but as she tried to flee, the demon grabbed her by the hair and flung her violently back.
She was hurled against the stone wall and then crashed to the ground.
Her bones cracked audibly, and her internal organs felt as if they were about to burst.
“Master, save me… cough, cough.”
Tang Sanzang turned back to rescue her, only to hear her hoarse voice cry out what seemed to be, “Master, run!”