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Chapter 97 This black bear is very abnormal
The black bear demon's giant, fan-like hand, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, with its five hook-like fingers, instantly enveloped Chen Guangrui's crown.

The shadow of death suddenly descended!
Chen Guangrui's hair stood on end. Before the palm strike even arrived, the terrifying pressure was like an invisible iron clamp, binding him firmly in place and depriving him of even his breath.

He had no way to mobilize the power within him; before this absolute power, he was as insignificant as an ant.

"Come on!"

At the critical moment, it was Yuan Shoucheng's roar that broke Chen Guangrui's stiffness.

The shrewd and worldly old Taoist priest's eyes were now bloodshot, unleashing an unprecedented survival instinct. He practically scrambled forward, one greasy, mud-covered hand grabbing Chen Guangrui's arm tightly, while the other hand rapidly formed an earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a type of magic spell), muttering indistinctly, "Earth 遁!"

hum!
Just as the earthy yellow light emanating from Yuan Shoucheng was about to illuminate, the entire space of the tent seemed to be squeezed and frozen by an invisible, enormous force!

The black bear demon's descending hand didn't even pause for a moment; the sheer, terrifying demonic aura emanating from its body completely crushed the faint escape light.

Yuan Shoucheng felt as if his magical power had crashed into an impenetrable wall, instantly dissipating and backfiring. He groaned, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his face ashen white.

His secret earth-遁术 (earth-遁术, a technique he had used countless times to escape) was completely ineffective against the black bear demon. The old bear demon's methods were clearly extraordinary, giving the two of them no chance to escape at all.

"It's over!"

Yuan Shoucheng felt a chill run through him, filled with utter despair. He clung tightly to Chen Guangrui, his eyes brimming with fear. He couldn't let Chen Guangrui die! At least not now! The entire clue to the Third Prince of the West Sea Dragon King lay with Chen Guangrui.

Just a split second before the black bear spirit's fingertips were about to touch Chen Guangrui's hair,

"boom!!"

A tremendous sound of water exploded.
It's Chen Guangrui!

Under the oppressive, almost tangible killing intent of the Black Bear Demon, and in the despair of Yuan Shoucheng's earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a technique that allows one to escape through magic or magic), Chen Guangrui's survival instinct overwhelmed everything.

With his last ounce of strength, he suddenly lifted Yuan Shoucheng, who was still clinging to him and was limp, up by the waist, and then slammed his body into the tent fabric next to him like a stone being thrown!

"Tear!"

The coarse linen, already stained with blood, tore open with a snap. Chen Guangrui, holding Yuan Shoucheng, tumbled into a ball and fell straight into the bottomless Black Wind River outside the tent!
The icy river water swallowed them instantly. The immense inertia carried them rapidly downwards, the biting cold penetrating their bodies, leaving only the muffled roar of the rushing water in their ears.

Wow!

Inside the tent, the black bear demon's hand missed its target and slammed down hard on the spot where Chen Guangrui had just been standing.

"boom!"

A burst of violent energy exploded out, and the sturdy marching tent shattered into pieces like an eggshell struck by a giant hammer!
The tattered cloth, the supporting wooden poles, and the dirt and gravel on the ground were all pulverized by this force, leaving only a deep pit and dust flying everywhere.

Several soldiers on guard nearby were thrown to the ground by the shockwave and looked in this direction in horror, only to see smoke and dust everywhere.

The elite soldiers in the distance were startled by the sound and immediately assembled, preparing to rush towards the location of the incident.

The figure of the black bear spirit appeared in the smoke and dust.

He charged straight towards the Black Wind River, gripping it tightly, ready to pursue and kill the two. But he instantly sensed something was wrong; a tremendous force erupted from the riverbed, blasting the Black Bear Demon away!
That's the dragon pearl of the Old Dragon King of the Jing River exerting its power!
The black bear spirit was not good at water combat. Feeling the pressure, it stopped chasing and retreated to the other side of the riverbank.

He looked at the surging, inky black river, and his dark face quickly regained its simple, almost honest calm.

The cold, sharp golden light in his narrow eyes slowly faded, and he became somewhat wooden again.

He didn't seem to be furious at the prey's escape; he merely frowned almost imperceptibly.

The river was deep, dark, and swift, with surging waves that carried a natural air of danger.

"Humph."

Finally, a soft, unintelligible hum escaped from his nose. He didn't pursue; with a flicker, he silently disappeared into the darkness, as if he had never been there.

……

The icy river water stimulated my nerves, and the feeling of suffocation was like a giant hand gripping my throat.

Chen Guangrui held onto Yuan Shoucheng tightly, using the water-controlling power of the Dragon Pearl to remain submerged. After an unknown amount of time, feeling it was safe enough, he led Yuan Shoucheng out of the water.

"puff!"

The two men burst out of the water almost simultaneously, only to be slammed by the surging black waves onto a gravelly beach far from the military camp.

Thanks to the Dragon Balls, only their clothes were wet. However, the Black Bear Demon's initial attack had exhausted most of their strength, and they were now staggering on the shore.

The chill of surviving the ordeal and the lingering fear made Yuan Shoucheng tremble like a leaf.

He collapsed to the ground, coughing and choking, and it took him a long time to catch his breath. His face was covered in mud and saliva, making him look utterly disheveled.

"Luckily he didn't die, otherwise how could I, the Third Prince of the Dragon, have saved him?"

He raised his sleeve and wiped his face hard. Just as he was about to complain about the damned river, he saw Chen Guangrui studying the dragon pearl.

Yuan Shoucheng knew that if it weren't for this dragon pearl, the two of them would either have drowned in the river or been killed by the black bear spirit.

"Old Yuan, your calculations aren't accurate either!"

This was Chen Guangrui's first encounter with another person after obtaining his divine status—or rather, after transmigrating.

Although he was no match in strength, he managed to escape with the Dragon Pearl of the Jing River Dragon King, which represented half of the Dragon King's abilities. In a good mood, he began to mock Yuan Shoucheng.

"Aren't you supposed to be a fortune teller, known as a 'living god'? You could foresee the demons in Black Wind Mountain, and even the cat demons, dog demons, and other small fry, so how come you couldn't foresee that this black bear spirit would take action and turn on you so quickly?"

This was practically an insult. Yuan Shoucheng made his living by fortune-telling, and being spoken to like this immediately enraged him. He had never suffered such a loss before; he had almost been minced meat and fed to the fish.

"I counted! How could I not count?" Yuan Shoucheng retorted sharply, his neck stiff, spitting out a mixture of saliva and river water.

"When you mentioned last time that you were going to follow Li Jing's army through Black Wind Mountain, I felt something was off, and I started counting on my fingers right then and there!"

He stretched out his dirty hand, with river mud still clinging to his fingers, and started counting on his fingers.
"I figured out that this bear was not to be trifled with, and I also figured there was a very high chance he would make a move, which is why I came all this way to warn you. Do you think I'm just doing this for no reason?"

“But they never intended to do anything in the first place,” Chen Guangrui laughed.

“If you hadn’t interrupted, this matter would have been over. It was your fault for bringing up the Thirty-Three Heavens and Laozi. It would have been better if you hadn’t said anything, because as soon as you did, he started to attack.”

These words struck a nerve with Yuan Shoucheng. His chubby face stiffened, his confidence instantly waned, and his voice lowered, muttering with a hint of regret and lingering fear.
"I...I just wanted to add an extra layer of insurance! Didn't you negotiate with him quite well later? He seemed pretty reasonable, admitting his mistakes and accepting punishment, even killing his own subordinates. What a humble attitude! It seemed like he really wanted to settle things peacefully..."

Yuan Shoucheng's voice trailed off, his eyes darting around, "I... I just wanted to bring that person up... to stabilize the situation... who knew that the Black Bear Spirit would explode faster than a firecracker the moment it heard that person's name..."

"Why are you so rude!" Chen Guangrui was so angry she almost choked. Yuan Shoucheng knew he was in the wrong, so he just grumbled and didn't reply. While wringing the water off his Taoist robe, he sighed and looked distressed. "This isn't my fault. Who knew your man would lose so much face in Black Wind Mountain?"

Chen Guangrui took a few deep breaths, suppressing his turbulent emotions. Now was not the time to talk about these things. He looked around; the night was deep, and he didn't know how far away Li Jing's camp was.

"As for Li Jing's side... his army should have already set off according to plan and is approaching the Black Wind Mountain territory. Old Yuan, hurry up and calculate whether that Black Bear Demon really didn't try to stop them?"

Although Yuan Shoucheng was in a sorry state, he still had the ability to earn a living. He forced himself to stay alert and pulled out a few wet copper coins from his damp sleeves. Muttering to himself, he dipped his fingers in the river water and quickly drew them across the cold, pebble beach, performing a calculation.

The copper coin landed and bounced a few times.

Looking at the divination results, Yuan Shoucheng first breathed a sigh of relief, but then his face showed deep confusion.

"They really didn't try to stop them... The calculations show that the army has successfully passed through the Black Wind Mountain area without a scratch."

He calculated it again, and the result was still the same.

Upon hearing this, Chen Guangrui's tense nerves relaxed slightly, but the doubts in his heart grew even heavier, weighing heavily on him.

"They actually... let us through?"

He muttered to himself, his brow furrowed, as if speaking to Yuan Shoucheng, or perhaps trying to sort out his own chaotic thoughts, "This matter... is too strange!"

He looked at Yuan Shoucheng with a serious expression. Yuan Shoucheng also fell silent; he, too, could tell that something was amiss.

Chen Guangrui thought for a moment,

"Think back to when we first met him. He seemed honest and humble, readily admitting his mistakes and even killing his subordinates on the spot without hesitation to show fairness and sincerity. Would other demons, let alone demons, or even mortals, act like that?"

Seeing Yuan Shoucheng shake his head, he continued, "Until you mentioned Laozi, everything was moving in the direction of... peace talks. His abilities are such that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he could easily wipe out everyone, but he really didn't make a move. Even after we escaped, he didn't harm anyone else."

“Yes! That’s it!” Yuan Shoucheng nodded vigorously, his small eyes filled with confusion and lingering fear. “When he heard us talking about that person, he turned on us in an instant. The speed at which he changed his attitude was faster than turning the pages of a book, as if he had some grudge against the Tushita Palace.”

Chen Guangrui rubbed his cold fingertips and said in a deep voice, "Is it enough just because he heard the name of Laozi? What are the consequences of his actions? It's like directly slapping Laozi in the face. No matter how powerful the Black Bear Spirit is, isn't he afraid of offending the one in the Thirty-Three Heavens?"

"Yeah!" Yuan Shoucheng slapped his thigh, splashing water everywhere. "I just can't figure it out! He's a demon. Who is Laozi? How dare he disregard Laozi's authority? He's got some nerve!"

Chen Guangrui nodded, recalling the somewhat convoluted words the black bear spirit had just spoken, which seemed to have some connection to Buddhism, but he said nothing.

At this moment, Yuan Shoucheng suddenly remembered something and said urgently to Chen Guangrui,

"Quick, think about it again. Why is he so insistent on finding out the whereabouts of the other cat demon? Why does he want to take it back and deal with it? Even... even at the cost of turning against us because of it. At first, he also wanted to take that evil demon back, but when he saw that you didn't respond, he just killed it. I feel like he's trying to silence you."

Chen Guangrui immediately understood Yuan Shoucheng's implication, "What do you think... that cat demon possesses?"

Yuan Shoucheng nodded vigorously, then shook his head with a bitter expression.
"But I can't figure it out. There's something fishy about this. It might be quick for a master in our lineage to figure it out, but if it's me, it will probably take some effort. I'm physically weak, so I don't dare to figure this out."

It turned out to be so complicated; this was the first time Yuan Shoucheng had expressed his frustration with the situation.

"Then let's ask the local earth god," Chen Guangrui thought of the local deity. "He'll always know something."

After saying this, he felt a little embarrassed, "I don't know if a Taoist priest like me who only cooks fires can command the local earth god."

"No! Please don't!" Yuan Shouchang nearly jumped up in fright, waving his hands repeatedly, his small eyes scanning his surroundings warily, and lowering his voice.
"My dear Scholar Chen, are you trying to kill me? This place! The local earth gods and mountain spirits around Black Wind Mountain, do you think they're the same as the leisurely earth gods in Chang'an City? Have you forgotten about Five Elements Mountain?"

His voice carried a hint of apprehension, as if he knew the inside story.

"Which of these minor deities hasn't already established connections with Buddhism? The Five Directions Protectors, Mountain Gods, and Earth Gods who guard the monkeys in Buddhism are all in cahoots. Do you think the others around here are safe? They're all neighbors; they might have already been in cahoots. If you rashly invite them, you're sending a message to Buddhism. Do you want to die?"

These words completely blocked the path to finding land.

The two fell silent. The river flowed ceaselessly in the night, and the icy chill seeped into their bones through their soaked clothes.

Chen Guangrui raised his eyes, looking at the blurry outline in the direction of Black Wind Mountain, and then looked back at the direction where Li Jing's army had gone.

I'm also glad that the black bear demon didn't make a move.

They couldn't go back to the military camp. If they did, and that cunning black bear spirit learned they were still alive and full of questions, he might harbor evil intentions towards Li Jing's army again, dragging the entire camp into utter ruin.

Should we go to Eagle's Sorrow Gorge?

Yuan Shoucheng had been eyeing that place for so long, but to no avail. Even if they went there now, they couldn't do anything.

Five Elements Mountain... Thinking of the monkey trapped under that mountain, and the guard who mysteriously disappeared before... Chen Guangrui shook his head decisively.

The waters there are too deep, the implications are far greater, and he simply can't get in a second time. The last time he was able to get in was purely because the guards all slipped away in a panic; it was a once-in-a-lifetime loophole that couldn't possibly happen again.

All the routes seemed to be blocked.

"We can't go back... Eagle's Sorrow Gorge is out of the question... Five Elements Mountain is also out of the question..."

Chen Guangrui muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping through the darkness. A place name suddenly came to mind: the place where the Golden Furnace and Silver Furnace Boys went, the place where Pigsy "ran" back.

There is also a monster from Black Wind Mountain there, and the only way to find the answers to some of the questions is to ask him.

He looked at Yuan Shoucheng, a resolute glint in his eyes.

"Right now, there's only one place that's temporarily safe... and it also gives us a reason to settle down."

Chen Guangrui's voice carried a calmness born of exhaustion.

Yuan Shouchang immediately understood, his small eyes lighting up; he seemed to have known something all along.
"You mean... Gao Village?"

It's quite a distance from Black Wind Mountain, and most importantly, Pigsy is there. There's more to it than meets the eye.

Chen Guangrui nodded, stood up despite his damp and cold body, and looked in the direction of Gao Laozhuang.

Now, the only option is to go to Gao Lao Zhuang.

There were two boys there, and many magical treasures.

There, too, is that little monster who wasn't killed...

"Gao Village. Pack your things and leave quickly. Staying here any longer is dangerous."

The night wind howled, like the black bear spirit's ambiguous groan as it departed, seemingly saying nothing, yet also revealing everything.

(End of this chapter)