Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything
Chapter 846 - 846: Allowed to Lose, Not Allowed to Win

For Jiang Liu, killing a 78-level Bodhisattva was certainly a lucrative deal.

However, if his guess was correct, and there was someone even more powerful manipulating everything from the shadows, then eliminating the mastermind would be the real jackpot, right?

This Bodhisattva was already at level 78, with the cultivation of a Taiyi True Immortal.

Therefore, the mastermind behind the scenes must be at the Great Luo Golden Immortal level, correct?

Whether it's an Immortal or a Buddha, if one could eliminate a presence at the Great Luo Golden Immortal level, it would be a huge gain, right!?

It's like when Manjushri and Samantabhadra, two Great Luo Golden Immortals, were killed previously, it immediately caused a stir in the entire Three Realms.

Whoosh!

As Jiang Liu's thoughts raced, the old monk acted even faster, his iron rod appearing in front of Jiang Liu in an instant.

"Master!"

The Little White Dragon naturally couldn't just stand by. His face changed slightly, and he immediately stood in front of Jiang Liu, raising a brilliant long sword to block the attack.

Bang!

The Little White Dragon was the weakest in the Journey to the West Pilgrimage Team, and he was no match for this mysterious old monk.

With one swing of the rod, the Little White Dragon was sent flying, and his health bar dropped by about one-third.

Seeing the Little White Dragon's decreasing health bar, Jiang Liu's mind tightened, and he quickly gathered his thoughts.

Immediately, he waved the Brahma Heart Lotus in his hand towards the Little White Dragon, casting the Guanyin Mantra on him.

The skill restored 30% of his maximum life value, which was quite substantial healing.

The Little White Dragon, who had lost about a third of his health, quickly saw his health bar nearly fully restored.

The old monk, seeing the Little White Dragon's renewed vigor after his attack, was puzzled.

"I've heard that the Scripture Seeking Team has divine medicine that can quickly heal injuries, but I didn't expect Xuanzang's healing divine skills to be even more powerful!"

Witnessing the healing effect of the Guanyin Mantra, the old monk thought to himself in disbelief.

Despite his astonishment, the old monk did not stop. He raised his iron rod again and swung it directly at Jiang Liu.

Although he knew the strength of the Scripture Seeking Team, he believed the most important means were in the hands of Sun Wukong and the other three disciples.

Having used the tactic of luring the tiger away from the mountain to draw them away, he thought capturing Xuanzang would not be a problem.

Swish!

The Little White Dragon's attack was swift as well. With a flash of his sword, he struck at the old monk.

Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao!

If the old monk insisted on attacking Jiang Liu, the White Dragon's sword would certainly strike him instead.

Confident in his own power, the old monk ignored the White Dragon's attack. However, his blood-red kasaya suddenly inflated, making him look like a round ball.

The White Dragon's attack sank into the kasaya as if it had hit cotton, and all his strength was dissipated.

Meanwhile, the old monk's powerful iron rod struck Jiang Liu, sending him flying and causing him to spit blood. The injuries were clearly severe.

"Xiaobai, we must lose this battle!"

Despite losing about 15% of his health bar and suffering injuries, Jiang Liu sent a message to the Little White Dragon through the team chat list.

Seeing his master injured, the Little White Dragon was anxious. But the sudden notification sound made him pause slightly.

When he opened the chat panel and saw his master's message, he was momentarily stunned.

"Master is saying we must lose this battle?" Seeing his master easily being knocked away and injured, the White Dragon roughly understood what was going on.

Though the White Dragon's attacks remained swift, his strength was hardly effective against the old monk.

The level gap was too big!

Jiang Liu, intentionally wanting to lose, refrained from using skills like Silencing Zen, Sheep Transformation Technique, and Healing Holy Hand.

After fighting for a while, both Jiang Liu and the White Dragon's injuries became more severe.

Thinking the timing was right, the old monk swept the White Dragon away with a swing, then ignored him, directly grabbing Jiang Liu by the chest.

Golden Sanskrit characters from the old monk's palm spread over Jiang Liu's body, immobilizing him.

After restraining Jiang Liu, the old monk lifted him and flew away, quickly disappearing into the distance.

"Master!" Seeing Jiang Liu being carried away, the White Dragon half-heartedly shouted.

He even transformed into his Dragon Clan form to pursue, but he couldn't match the old monk's speed.

Jiang Liu, immobilized by the restraining power, didn't resist, letting the old monk carry him away.

Just fine, it was a chance to see who was behind this plot.

To send a 78-level Bodhisattva, the mastermind must be a Great Luo Golden Immortal.

Could it be a Buddha from the Buddhist Sect?

Could it even be Maitreya Buddha?

Having resurrected for a while, was Maitreya Buddha finally starting to plan the 81 trials again?

The old monk, unaware of Jiang Liu's thoughts, continued flying at high speed.

After flying for thousands of miles and ensuring the White Dragon wasn't following, the old monk landed on a picturesque mountaintop.

He then set Jiang Liu down, the golden Sanskrit characters retracting into his palm, giving Jiang Liu freedom.

"Maybe he thinks he has me entirely in his grasp, so setting me free isn't a risk?" Realizing the restrictive force had been lifted, Jiang Liu understood the situation.

"Xuanzang, have you made up your mind? This place, as your burial site, is quite scenic; it's worthy of you, isn't it?"

Freeing Jiang Liu, the old monk gazed at the beautiful surroundings and spoke to him.

"Amitabha, this place indeed makes a fine burial site," Jiang Liu replied calmly after examining the area, without showing any fear.

Of course, Jiang Liu didn't say the rest of his thought.

Whose burial site it would be was still uncertain!

"Oh? Are you really unafraid of death?" Seeing Jiang Liu so calm in the face of death, the old monk was somewhat surprised.

"Why mourn life? Why fear death? Even in death, it's but shedding this mortal shell and reincarnating," Jiang Liu remained serene, seemingly enlightened.

Besides whether the old monk could kill him, being a member of the Buddhist Sect, his aim was simply to add more trials, not to take Jiang Liu's life.

So why should he fear?

"Good, good. With such a state of mind, I understand why Bodhisattva Guanyin chose you for the Journey to the West," the old monk, unaware of Jiang Liu's true thoughts, admired him, nodding slightly.

"Old monk, since I'm near death, may I have some clarity on my doubts?" Jiang Liu asked with a casual demeanor.

The old monk wasn't surprised, nodding, "Doubt? You wish to know why I want to kill you? As I said, I'm filled with resentment, so..."

"No..."

The old monk hadn't finished when Jiang Liu shook his head, "That's not what I want to ask!"

"Not that? Then what do you want to know?" The old monk was taken aback by Jiang Liu's words.

"I want to know, who's behind you?" Jiang Liu gazed at the old monk and asked directly.

The question made the old monk's eyes narrow, almost retorting, "How did you know!"

But he caught himself, remained silent, and then denied vigorously, "No, you're mistaken. There's no mastermind!"

"Oh, if you don't want to say, there's no need to deceive me!" Jiang Liu sighed, evidently not believing the denial.

The old monk felt a bit awkward.

Being caught lying was indeed embarrassing for a monk.

"Xuanzang, why do you think there's someone behind me?" After a brief silence, the old monk asked.

Though the old monk didn't admit it, his question indirectly confirmed Jiang Liu's statement.

"Isn't it obvious?"

Jiang Liu explained logically, "Before you appeared, my three disciples had left one after another. It couldn't be a coincidence; someone must have used the Lure the Tiger Away from the Mountain strategy!"

With a slight pause, Jiang Liu continued, "For instance, Sun Wukong being lured away by the Local Deity. Clearly, someone who could use this strategy must have immense power and the ability to mobilize the Mountain Gods and Local Deities. This means the mastermind must be from the Immortals and Buddhas!"

Jiang Liu looked at the old monk, "Old monk, are you of the Immortals and Buddhas? If not, there must be someone behind you plotting all this!"

As someone hiding his identity, the old monk naturally wouldn't admit being one of the Immortals or Buddhas.

Based on Jiang Liu's analysis, not admitting was as good as admitting there was someone else behind him.