Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

Heavenly Court, Glycyrrhiza Garden.

Several exquisitely beautiful fairies were tending to the vegetation in the Glycyrrhiza Garden.

In this garden, thousands of plant species were cultivated, each remarkable and extraordinary, making it a favorite place for the Empress to stroll in her leisure time. Therefore, many fairies were assigned to take care of it.

At that moment, several fairies had finished their tasks and each had picked a peony from the garden. The flowers varied in color, but all were dressed splendidly.

"Hehehe, Sister Hongxia, your red peony is truly delicate and festive. The Empress will surely love it!"

"Sister Qingxia, your peony is also extraordinary, giving off a feeling of aloofness and elegance. The Empress will certainly like it too!"

"Sisters, recently the Empress has been very fond of peonies. I wonder whose flowers will be more to her liking and win the first prize?"

...

The fairies, each holding their carefully adorned peony, discussed and appraised the flowers, seemingly complimenting each other. Naturally, they were also competing.

After all, there were many fairies, but each one wanted their flower to stand out and win the Empress's affection and praise.

"Hey, Zixia, aren't you going to offer your flower to the Empress today?"

As these fairies whispered among themselves, suddenly, one of them addressed a woman in a purple dress standing nearby.

Unlike the other fairies busy preparing peonies to please the Empress, this woman, after completing her own tasks, was just sitting quietly to one side, staring blankly at the horizon.

"You all go on," Zixia Fairy calmly replied, turning her head back.

"Such a strange one, she has been immortal for several years already, but she always prefers to daydream. Let's not bother with her. Let's go!" said the other fairies softly after giving a glance at the notably independent Zixia Fairy. Then, they left the Glycyrrhiza Garden together.

"Sigh..." Watching the fairies leave, Zixia sighed softly, and the garden quieted down for a moment.

Sitting alone in the Hundred Grass Garden, Zixia quietly reflected on her past life where she too had been a cultivator in the Returning Void Realm, but fell during a demon banishing mission, and her spirit entered the Underworld.

King Yama told her that she had done many good deeds and saved countless lives during her lifetime, and her merits were sufficient for becoming an immortal. Therefore, she was sent to the Heavenly Court to become a fairy.

Initially, Zixia felt extremely excited about the prospect of being judged after death in the Underworld, especially, since her merits were recognized for becoming an immortal, a joyful event by any measure.

However, after spending several years in the Heavenly Court, Zixia found that everything was completely different from what she had imagined.

She had thought that becoming an immortal would give her freedom, as throughout history, countless people had coveted immortality, which had always been portrayed as a wonderful existence.

But after arriving in the Immortal Realm, Zixia realized that the immortal hierarchy was even more rigid than in the Mortal Realm.

In the Mortal Realm, you might climb the ladder by striving hard to improve your status, but in the Immortal Realm, this possibility was minimal, almost impossible.

Take the fairies just now, all rushing to prepare a single peony flower to present in front of the Empress, all hoping to catch a favorable glance from her.

And for this chance at receiving a favorable glance, they all engaged in a bout of sycophancy.

"Sigh..." Having been in the Immortal Realm for several years, Zixia reflected on what she had seen and experienced there and could not help but sigh in her heart.

Perhaps her purpose for coming to the Immortal Realm was just to spend hundreds of years in the company of flowers, becoming nothing more than a slave to flora?
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If that was the case, what was the point of her immortality? It was better off in the Mortal Realm where she could at least enjoy some freedom.

Rustle rustle.

Just as Zixia sat alone in the Glycyrrhiza Garden, deeply reflecting on her life in the Immortal Realm, she suddenly sensed an irregular vibration among the surrounding plants.

"A thief!?" Hearing the sound, Zixia quickly gathered her thoughts and sharpened her gaze.

She stood up silently and carefully approached the direction from where the noise had come...

Most of the Immortal Maidens and Divine Power Warriors in the Immortal Realm had passed through Hell's judgment with some merit, and it was for this reason they had been sent to the Immortal Realm, where merit was valued over cultivation level.

Zixia, in her lifetime, had been a cultivator in the Returning Void Realm, which placed her cultivation at a high level within the Heavenly Court, incomparable to that of ordinary Immortal Maidens.

As Zixia approached quietly, she soon actually saw the culprit. It turned out to be a palm-sized yellow-furred mouse, stealthily eating the exotic herbs in the Glycyrrhiza Garden.

"Who is this fellow who dares to steal!" Seeing this scene, how could Zixia stand idly by? She exclaimed and reached out to grab the mouse.

However, almost at the same time, the yellow-furred mouse transformed into a man with a deer's head and rat's eyes, dressed in a yellow robe, who also raised his hand to meet her.

After their palms collided, Zixia was sent flying out.

"What a powerful demon creature! You've reached the Demon Immortal Realm!?" After being sent flying with a single palm, Zixia could feel the gap in cultivation levels between her and her opponent and gazed in horror at the rat demon that had been stealing from the Glycyrrhiza Garden.

"Hmm? Interesting!" Similarly, the rat demon looked at Zixia with surprise and said, "A fairy in this Glycyrrhiza Garden has such cultivation? You could actually find me!"

This rat demon indeed felt surprised as, with his cultivation, the fairies in the Glycyrrhiza Garden should not have been able to discover him, yet unexpectedly, there was a fairy with exceptional cultivation, which greatly exceeded his expectations.

"Someone, come quickly..." Knowing she was no match, Fairy Zixia shouted loudly.

As the Glycyrrhiza Garden was a beloved garden of the Empress, it was not only Fairy Zixia and other immortal maidens taking care of the plants, but there were also some Heavenly Soldiers and Generals guarding it. Hearing Zixia's cries, a Heavenly General, leading a dozen Heavenly Soldiers, rushed in.

"This is bad!" Seeing these advancing Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, the rat demon felt a twinge of anxiety.

Although he was unconcerned about a few Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, defeating them would not be an easy task. If a real fight broke out, the more Heavenly Soldiers and Generals arrived, the less likely he would be able to escape.

Whoosh!

Taking a deep breath, the rat demon suddenly blew out a strong gust filled with sand towards the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals.

The fierce wind momentarily threw the Glycyrrhiza Garden into chaos, and the vigorously attacking Heavenly Soldiers and Generals were blown about haphazardly, even clutching at their eyes and shouting.

The wind, mixed with sand, blinded the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, naturally preventing them from acting.

With a divine wind, the rat demon temporarily trapped the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, then leaped next to Fairy Zixia, grabbed her by the neck with a menacing look, and said, "You, fairy, who tends to the plants in this Glycyrrhiza Garden, must be very familiar with everything here. Let me ask you, is there any chili pepper in this garden!?"

"Whimper..." With her neck grabbed, Zixia whimpered, trying to speak, but unable to articulate clearly.

As the rat demon spoke, the divine wind he had blown out naturally dissipated quickly.

Seeing the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals rubbing their eyes and picking up their weapons again, the rat demon quickly grabbed Zixia and, turning into a streak of light, fled toward the distance.

"Chase, do not let him escape!" Rubbing his eyes and seeing the mess the rat demon had made in the Glycyrrhiza Garden and that he had abducted someone, the Heavenly General shouted loudly.

Following his command, naturally, the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals chased in the direction the rat demon had fled.

...

In the Lower Realm, Jiang Liu and his companions had left the Wuzhuang Temple about a month and a half ago.

During these days, Jiang Liu cultivated daily and occasionally fought monsters. His days were rather leisurely, and he had already accrued more than 110,000 of the 115,000 Experience Points needed for his next level.

In a few days, he would be able to level up again, raising his level to 34.

"Indeed, after the Ginseng Fruit improved my physique, my cultivation speed has increased, and my leveling speed has quickened as well!" Jiang Liu looked at his character panel, delighted that a level-up was soon due.

Noticing the dawn, Jiang Liu got up to freshen up, only to find Sun Wukong and the others playing Fight the Landlord.

This darkened Jiang Liu's expression somewhat, as their addiction to Mahjong and Fight the Landlord seemed to be growing over these days.

"Alas, it's no wonder Master Zhenyuan, even after offering nine Ginseng Fruits, insisted on sending us away!" Watching his disciples' severe gambling addiction, Jiang Liu shook his head, understanding Master Zhenyuan's previous decision more fully.

It had been quite some time since he left; the Wuzhuang Temple must have returned to its former tranquility, right?

After silently reflecting, Jiang Liu decided to check on Black Bear Demon and others, whom he hadn't monitored for some days, and took out the Mystical Mirror, silently reciting an incantation.

Well, at this time, Black Bear Demon was still asleep, snoring heavily, not yet awakened.

Shaking his head, Jiang Liu thought for a moment and then looked in another direction.

He wondered how the Yellow Wind Monster's search for chili peppers was going after these few months.

Soon, Jiang Liu clearly saw that the Yellow Wind Monster had abducted a woman and was fleeing rapidly.

Looking behind him, dozens of Heavenly Soldiers and Generals were rising on clouds, chasing him!