Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

As soon as Wukong spoke, Leng Xuan's expression drastically changed. A flash of astonishing killing intent passed through his eyes, quickly hidden, but not so quickly that it escaped Wukong's notice.

"You really are a half-demon!"

Wukong laughed. Leng Xuan appeared to be of the human race, but under the scrutiny of the Void-Breaking Divine Eye, the subtle flow of demonic qi in his body revealed his half-demon nature, similar to Wukong's Heavenly Demon Body, yet somewhat impure.

It could be said that the half-demon physique was the closest to the Heavenly Demon Body, possessing both the human race's meridians and the demon clan's robust physical body. However, both the strength of the meridians and the physical body were somewhat weaker than those of the Heavenly Demon Body.

Even so, it was stronger than the average demon clan member, but likewise, it was also feared and ostracized by them.

Seeing Leng Xuan's demeanor, he probably also suffered ostracism due to his half-demon identity. Otherwise, he wouldn't have traveled the world disguised as a human, nor would he have unconsciously revealed such killing intent when Wukong uncovered his identity.

"How did you figure it out?"

Leng Xuan's expression darkened. He had masked that slight half-demon aura well, walking the world for many years without anyone discovering his identity. How had Wukong seen through him at a glance?

"There is no one born who can escape the gaze of dear old me, nothing special!"

Wukong waved his hand, not wishing to explain further. His Void-Breaking Divine Eye was an innate divine ability, and he still had many great powers he hadn't yet uncovered. Moreover, there was no need to say more. Shifting his gaze, Wukong looked intently at Leng Xuan and said, "If I didn't hear wrong, you volunteered to help us at Flower-Fruit Mountain. Tell me, what is your purpose?"

"Purpose..."n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

A cold gleam flashed in Leng Xuan's eyes as he looked up and stared steadily at Wukong. "If I tell you, will you help me achieve it?"

"That will depend on what it is."

Wukong shrugged, "If it's within my capabilities and I happen to be interested, then helping you is no problem..."

"I want revenge!"

A deep-seated hatred shot from Leng Xuan's eyes. "I want those clan members who look down on me to pay! I want them to know my mother was not a criminal of the Nine-Tailed Fox Tribe! She was framed!"

"Your mother? The Nine-Tailed Fox Tribe? Are you from the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Clan? Who is your mother?"

Wukong's brow furrowed, things seemed to get interesting, involving the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Clan, there certainly was no minor issue.

"My mother is Bai Mei, from the Qingqiu Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Tribe's Mount Tu line. You might have heard her other name, Su Daji."

"Holy moly! The demon fox Su Daji from the Divine Enthronement War? She's your mother? Didn't she die during that war?"

Wukong almost jumped up; goodness gracious, Leng Xuan was Su Daji's son! So, Su Daji's real name was Bai Mei, a legitimate descendant from the Qingqiu fox tribe's Mount Tu family. Since they were known for the White Fox, changing the surname to Bai made sense. But wait, wasn't Su Daji, no, Bai Mei, supposed to have died in the war?

"My mother merely shed the human guise she wore, her soul returned to the Xuanyuan Grave to reunite with her body; she did not die!"

"Oh, she didn't die? Well, that's good news! So what's got you so sorrowful here?"

Sun Wukong grabbed a peach and bit into it. Most of what he knew about the Divine Enthronement War came from memories of an alternate space-time and was not very detailed. Everyone said Su Daji had died, but now Leng Xuan claimed that only the body Su Daji had possessed had died; the soul of Bai Mei had returned to her own Celestial Fox body within the Xuanyuan Grave.

This seemed to be a good thing; there was nothing wrong with it!

"My mother didn't die during the Divine Enthronement, but she was sealed by those damned old immortals of our clan and expelled from Qingqiu. She had to watch my father die in battle formation. Powerless to help, she gave birth to me and then died of grief. It was all those bastards' fault! I, Leng Xuan, swear to make those involved in my mother's framing pay the price in this life!"

Leng Xuan growled lowly, his eyes filled with bloodshot veins and a crimson hue. All members of the Demon Clan within Water Curtain Cave Heaven felt the grief and indignation at the injustice of the Heavenly Dao emanating from him, and were deeply moved.

Sun Wukong also sobered up from his playful demeanor, his expression turning grave. The grief and hatred emanating from Leng Xuan now, wasn't it just like the time he was plotted against at the summit of Spiritual Mountain by Buddha?

Sun Wukong felt a sense of shared suffering well up inside him. He filled the wine cup in front of him and handed it to Leng Xuan, "Tell old Sun properly, how was your mother framed?"

Leng Xuan took the wine cup, drank it in one gulp, and the blood in his eyes slightly receded. In a pained and low voice, he began to narrate. Sun Wukong listened, and his expression gradually grew somber. Who would have thought that the Divine Enthronement War, reputed to reward the good and punish the wicked, had so much corruption hidden behind it?

This kind of war, was it really acting on behalf of the Heavenly Dao or justice? Nonsense!

From Leng Xuan's account, Sun Wukong learned about the unknown dark side of the Divine Enthronement War. The so-called tyranny of King Zhou of Shang and Goddess Nuwa sending Bai Mei in the guise of Su Daji to bewitch King Zhou in Chaoge was merely superficial. In reality, it was a conspiracy plotted by the Primordial Heavenly Venerable, the Western Cult Sect Leader, and Guiding Daoist.

During the Xia Dynasty, the Witch Race ruled the world. After a great war between witches and demons, the Xia Dynasty was overthrown, and the Shang Dynasty rose with the Human Race replacing the Demon Clan and the Witch Race as the rulers between heaven and earth.

At this time, although the people of the human-centered Shang Dynasty revered heaven and earth, they did not venerate spirits or the divine. They were keen on seeking immortality and querying the Dao, but only to enhance their own power, without any fixed faith.

The Primordial Heavenly Venerable and the then Heavenly Venerable of Morality, now known as the Supreme Grand Elderly Lord, persuaded by the two sages of the Western Cult, decided to instigate the Divine Enthronement War to spread the belief in the Dao throughout the world.

Emperor Xin of King Zhou of Shang, originally a sovereign of both literary and martial prowess with exceptional talents and unparalleled bravery who also aspired to expand his territory and glorify his ancestors' legacy, yet angered Goddess Nuwa with a blasphemous poem about her in the Nuwa Temple.

Nuwa then sent Bai Mei, under the identity of Su Daji, into Chaoge of the Shang Dynasty to bewitch King Zhou and ruin his foundation.

After meeting Emperor Xin, Bai Mei realized he was not the licentious tyrant as described. During their conversations, she learned that Emperor Xin also found his actions in the Nuwa Temple baffling, but as a proud man, he chose not to delve into it, to avoid losing face.

Bai Mei was a member of the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox Tribe, extremely adept in the art of bewitching. She immediately understood that King Zhou could have been subjected to the Soul-Enchanting Technique inside the Nuwa Temple, hence his great abnormality. There might be some major conspiracy at play.

After multiple corroborations, Bai Mei finally confirmed that it was the Guiding Daoist who was meddling from behind the scenes. He had his disciple, the Flying Bear, reincarnate as Jiang Ziya and under the guise of a disciple of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable from the Jade Void Palace's Chan Sect, he infiltrated Chaoge City.

In the Nuwa Temple, he used the Soul-Enchanting Technique to bewitch King Zhou into composing licentious poetry, infuriating Goddess Nuwa.

However, knowing this did not change the fact that Bai Mei's task was to bewitch King Zhou and subvert his kingdom. As for the actions of Jiang Ziya, she could only turn a blind eye, especially given the support of both the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and the Western Cult's Sect Hierarch standing behind him.

The Soul-Enchanting Technique used by Jiang Ziya was concocted using the filthy aura of his true Flying Bear form, which would gradually corrupt a person's heart if not expelled. Under the influence of the enchantment, King Zhou's temperament grew increasingly tyrannical and merciless, eventually provoking public outrage.

Great Zhou seized the opportunity and, with the support of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and the two Sect Hierarchs of the Western Cult, launched the Divine Enthronement War.

During the Divine Enthronement War, the Primordial Heavenly Venerable managed to eliminate many true immortals of the Tongtian Sect, leading to the downfall of Jie Sect and the rise of Chan Sect. The two Sect Hierarchs of the Western Cult also took the opportunity to coax many into joining the Western Cult.

It can be said that the biggest beneficiaries of the Divine Enthronement War were the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and the Guiding Daoist. Yet they blamed Bai Mei, claiming that King Zhou's licentiousness was a result of being beguiled by Bai Mei's incarnate, Su Daji.

After the war, people including King Zhou, either became deified or ascended as immortals, but Bai Mei received no reward. Instead, she was scapegoated, and her cultivation was sealed by Jiang Shang, together with the newly established immortals of the Heavenly Court.

Furthermore, the elders of the Qingqiu Nine-Tailed Fox Tribe, without seeking the reason, blamed Bai Mei for the difficulties the fox tribe faced from Heavenly Court, and expelled her from the tribe.

Deprived of her cultivation and ousted from her tribe, Bai Mei wandered the world alone. She later met Leng Xuan's father, Leng Zi'ao, but tragically, not long after their marriage, Leng Zi'ao was drafted into the army and died in a great battle.

Bai Mei watched from a distance; if she had her cultivation, she could have saved him, but she was forced to watch helplessly as Leng Zi'ao was killed by a barrage of arrows.

Leng Xuan was born out of Bai Mei's profound despair and yearning for death. Being half-demon, he possessed intelligence and physique far superior to those of regular human children from the moment of his birth, allowing him to acutely feel his mother's despair and pain.

Leng Xuan watched his mother, Bai Mei, die of a broken heart in front of him. Before she passed, Bai Mei broke through the seal imposed by the heavenly gods and transferred all her remaining cultivation to Leng Xuan, elevating him to Earth Immortal Realm. Over the years, Leng Xuan traveled far and wide, dedicating himself to his training in hopes of gaining enough strength to avenge his mother.

Yet the reality was that, despite having achieved the Realm of Taiyi Scattered Immortal, comparable to Sun Wukong's cultivation, confronting all the celestial immortals, gods, and demons to avenge his mother still seemed like a fool's dream!

He needed allies! Strong allies to help him fulfill his desire for revenge!

"So, you hope that I, old Sun, can help you seek revenge, is that it? What makes you think I am capable of helping you? Or rather, why should I be willing to help you?"