Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 258: The Five Elements

Wukong made up his mind. Since Guanyin urged him to retrieve the scriptures, he had decided to delay it, but now was not the right time for that—he still needed to pretend to be eager to complete the task.
In the Country of Black Chickens, he met the Second Grand Sage surnamed Qin. Wukong began to think about how to lure out the Nine-Headed Worm so that his journey wouldn’t be in vain. But in his haste, he had no idea yet; he would just take things as they came.
He provoked the Grand Sage with words, saying that if he dared to boast, he would challenge him—surely he could defeat a ninth-rank celestial being like him.
Hearing this, the Green Lion Spirit showed a smug expression, tilted its head, and refused to answer Wukong.
The King of Black Chickens interjected, “Young monk, my Grand Sage is a celestial being who attained enlightenment on Wudang Mountain. Over the past few years, he has worked tirelessly to ensure favorable weather, protection from disasters, and freedom from poisonous insects. I’ve never seen such abilities in my life.”
Wukong covered his mouth and laughed, his laughter growing louder until he fell to the ground from laughing.
The King frowned and said, “Young monk, you are being rude. What I said is true. Why do you laugh?”
Wukong replied, “You, as king, really haven’t seen a celestial being. The ability to control wind and rain is the easiest to learn—anyone who knows how to read spells can do it.”
Wukong waved his hand and called Wu Hui over, then pointed at the king and said, “This child is only six years old. Let me teach him to spit fire for you to see.”
Seeing nothing special in the hall, he stretched out his hand, summoned the sword at the warrior’s waist, and said to Wu Hui, “Take out the one you usually disdain using the most and show this king what true skill looks like!”
Understanding Wukong’s intention, Wu Hui secretly channeled his mystical power and spat out a green flame. The steel sword instantly caught fire like a wooden stick dipped in oil, and in moments, it melted into molten steel on the ground, leaving only the hilt in Wukong’s hand.
The King of Black Chickens was stunned. After a long while, he exclaimed, “How… how was that fire hidden inside his stomach?”
Qin Wuxian realized that the fire was truly created by the boy himself. At such a young age, his magical powers were incredibly advanced—far beyond his own. He said to the king, “Your Majesty, this is no trick. It’s the power of a celestial being. This child’s abilities far surpass mine. Even the Grand Sage would likely not be able to create such fire.”
The Green Lion Spirit, who knew nothing about fire, said, “I practice the great art of stabilizing the nation. Such trivial tricks are merely for entertainment—what good are they to the people?”

His words suited the king’s temperament, and the King of Black Chickens praised, “The national advisor cares for the country and its people; indeed, there’s no need for him to learn such trivial skills.”
Wukong was slightly surprised—this Green Lion Demon was quite intelligent. He had thought the demon didn’t know how to avoid battle, but with just a few words, it shifted the focus and even elevated itself a bit.
In Wukong’s mind, the Green Lion Demon was mostly based on the one from Lion Camel Ridge in Journey to the West, who was easily swallowed by Sun Wukong and tormented to death. He put aside his contempt and, upon thinking again about the Green Lion Demon in the Kingdom of Black Chickens, realized that this lion wasn’t stupid at all. It could manipulate the king and seize power for three years without anyone noticing. How could such a person be foolish?
As for the Second National Advisor, Qin Wuxian, though willing to help, didn’t have any good plans at the moment. After some thought, Wukong said, “Master, since the royal seal of the Kingdom of Black Chickens is sealed, let’s return to the inn and rest for now.”
Although Tang Seng was anxious, he had no good solution either, so he bid farewell to the king and left the palace.
Zhu Bajie said, “That First National Advisor isn’t a good person!”
Wukong asked, “Why do you say he’s not a good person?”
Zhu Bajie replied, “He hid the royal seal and made things difficult for Master—of course he’s not good!”
Wukong said, “Not necessarily. At least the people had a few more peaceful years. Whether he intended to or not, he still did a good deed.”
Tang Seng said, “Wukong makes sense. Things in the world are unpredictable. Even those with malicious intentions may do good—should it be considered a good outcome or a bad one?”
Zhu Bajie said, “Whatever intention one has, that’s what the outcome will be—definitely bad.”
Wukong naturally knew the origin of the Green Lion Demon and said, “It’s not necessarily malicious. At most, it’s unintentional kindness.” The quest for the scriptures was inherently uncertain, so it was hard to judge the Green Lion Demon’s intentions as good or bad. Wukong’s words were fair.
The Kingdom of Black Chickens wasn’t large, so they arrived at the inn after a short walk. Everyone settled in, and they had a day off to rest properly.
Upon arriving at the inn, Wukong comforted Tang Seng, telling him not to worry, as he would surely find a way to get the King of Black Chickens to hand over the royal seal. Though he said this, he really didn’t have any good plans yet. The king obeyed the Green Lion Demon’s orders and, considering the country’s fate, would unlikely give up the seal easily.
But Wukong wasn’t too anxious. If Qin Wuxian truly represented the Guanyin faction, he would surely inform the Nine-Headed Worm. Then, it might depend on the conflict between Guanyin and Manjushri to see who would prevail. In that case, it should be Guanyin who was anxious, not him.

At that moment, Wukong remembered the words of the monk official and suddenly recalled that this national advisor surnamed Qin was not alone but belonged to a so-called “wealthy family.” Those who practiced immortality often sought solitude, so it was rather strange why this Qin would bring his family here. Since that was the case, why not go to his house and take a look?

Wukong set off right away. He asked Wuhui to watch over Tang Seng while he used a teleportation spell to leave and search the city.

In the capital, there were indeed many wealthy families, as well as many people who practiced magic. Wukong couldn’t immediately identify which house belonged to National Advisor Qin. As he pondered in the air, he saw a man coming out of the palace gates, followed by several attendants—it was none other than National Advisor Qin!

Qin Wuxian, having left court, naturally wanted to go home. As a cultivator, he disliked riding horses or sitting in palanquins, and it was not appropriate for him to use magic in the city, so he walked home step by step. Along the way, many people he knew greeted Qin Wuxian.

When he arrived at a large courtyard, Qin Wuxian went straight in. Wukong immediately realized this must be his home.

Wukong had remained in the air, having briefly scanned the city earlier but not noticing this courtyard. Only after Qin Wuxian entered did he realize how peculiar this courtyard really was.

Seen from above, the entire courtyard resembled an enormous altar. What was even more strange was that it was paved with colored soil—distinct colors for each direction: green in the east, red in the south, white in the west, black in the north, and yellow in the center. Wukong didn’t understand any formations, but an ordinary family would never build their house in such a way.

Wukong concealed his presence and entered Qin’s courtyard, passing through corridors and pillars. He became increasingly convinced that this courtyard held many mysteries. Ordinary families built corridors and pavilions with twists and turns, either for aesthetic reasons or to ward off ghosts. Ancient people believed that ghosts only walked in straight lines and wouldn’t turn, so they made the corridors winding to prevent ghosts from finding the entrance.

But Qin’s corridors were not just twisted—they were like a maze, with turns so complex that they were mind-boggling. Even when one seemed to be close to the entrance, they would turn back and circle all the way to the main gate, taking countless unnecessary detours.

There wasn’t a single mortal in the courtyard; even the gatekeepers had the cultivation level of human immortals, with several more at the back garden holding guard at the highest cultivation level—celestial immortals. As Wukong observed these celestial immortals carefully, he saw an acquaintance—Yun Juanshu, the second leader of the Dao Seeking Sect in the three realms.

Back on Dao Seeking Peak, Wukong had captured him and forced him to confess about the Dao Seeking Sect’s ancestors collecting people with pure Yang energy of the five elements.

Therefore, it was related to the Great Five Elements Spirit Blood Array. Wukong still remembered it vividly. Although he didn’t recognize the people beside him, they might also be from the Dao Seeking Sect. It seemed that Qin Wuxian was still active in this world, plotting something. His actions were likely instigated by the Nine-Headed Worm.
When Wukong saw Qin Wuxian enter the back yard, Yun Juanshu and the others greeted him, saying, “Sect Master!”
Qin Wuxian waved his hand, telling them to sit down, then asked, “Have you made any progress these past few days?”
Yun Juanshu replied, “Sect Master, we’ve gathered twenty-three so far.”
Qin Wuxian’s furrowed brows relaxed as he said cheerfully, “I was away for just half a month, and you’ve already found three?”
Yun Juanshu nodded, “Exactly. The Wuji Country has been thoroughly searched, and not a single person with a Pure Yang Five Elements body was found. These three were found by my subordinates who went far to the Cheti Country in the west.”
Qin Wuxian praised, “Well done. Sect Master Yun, you’ve worked hard.”
Yun Juanshu replied, “How dare I claim such credit? Tomorrow, Luo Xuan and I will search further. If we’re lucky, we can gather all twenty-five within a month.”
Qin Wuxian sighed, “Indeed, this world is the legitimate one. Back in the Realm of Slaughter, it took hundreds of years of effort yet we still couldn’t gather enough people.”
Yun Juanshu said, “Hmm. These past few days, I keep thinking of those two kids from the Realm of Slaughter.”
Qin Wuxian asked, “Are you referring to Chi Huo and Hei Shui, the ones you met during Shadow’s marriage quest?”
Yun Juanshu nodded, “Exactly. If they were here, the Great Five Elements would be complete!”
Wukong heard clearly that they still needed to gather twenty-five people. The purpose of the Great Five Elements was to set up the Great Five Elements Spirit Blood Array. That was strange. Back in the Realm of Slaughter, the Nine-Headed Worm had wanted to find a way out of that realm and thus set up the array. Now that he had left, why set it up again?