Subodhi and his companions continued their Journey to the West.
Before long, they stepped into White Bone Ridge.
The place remained as grim and terrifying as ever.
A thick, ink-like fog churned ceaselessly, and piercing, eerie shrieks echoed one after another, sounding like countless resentful spirits wailing in agony, making one's hair stand on end.
"This place is reeking of malevolent spirits. Disciples, you must keep your guards up to the absolute maximum!"
Subodhi's expression was grave, his gaze like lightning as he vigilantly scanned the surroundings.
Wukong gripped the Ruyi Jingu Bang, the staff blazing with a brilliant golden light while golden beams shot from his eyes, and roared angrily:
"Hmph! No matter what kind of demon god or monster it is, my Old Sun's Ruyi Jingu Bang will surely turn it to ashes!"
Bajie shouldered the Nine-Toothed Rake, his chubby face filled with tension. He glanced sideways at Tang Seng and muttered:
"Back in the day, we went through all sorts of trials and hardships right here. Who knows what kind of ordeal we're walking into this time."
Shaseng silently tightened his grip on the Monster-Subduing Staff, its cold gleam shifting back and forth, and said in a deep voice:
"Caution is paramount; we must not lower our guard."
Tang Seng pressed his palms together, his gaze profound and resolute, and sighed:
"When we passed through here before, this poor monk was ignorant and clueless. Now that I have attained numerous awakenings, I will certainly not be so easily seduced by monsters again."
The group proceeded with the utmost caution.
Suddenly, an extremely chilling gale swept past, and the surrounding scenery instantly shifted.
Wukong found himself transported to a dreamlike wonderland, where an exquisitely beautiful woman stood gracefully before him—none other than Bai Jingjing.
"Wukong, do you still remember me?"
Bai Jingjing's eyes rippled with tender affection, her voice as crisp and pleasing to the ear as an oriole's.
Wukong froze instantly, a strange surge of emotion welling up in his heart as he thought to himself, "Could this really be little Bai?"
Meanwhile, Bajie and the others discovered that Wukong had vanished into thin air, and instantly panicked.
"Where on earth has this monkey run off to?"
Bajie looked around anxiously, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.
Shaseng knitted his brows tightly and said in a deep voice, "I'm afraid he has fallen for that monster's insidious trick."
Over here, Wukong and Bai Jingjing accompanied each other intimately in the illusion, deeply in love as if caught up in a lingering, passionate romance.
"Wukong, wouldn't it be as blissful as being immortals if we stayed here together forever, far away from the troubles of the mortal world?"
Bai Jingjing parted her rosy lips, her tenderness as smooth as water.
Wukong felt a violent jolt in his heart, instantly realizing something was amiss, and roared:
"How could my Old Sun be so foolish as to almost be bewitched by this illusion! Little Bai is already gone."
With eyes blazing with fury, he let out a thunderous shout as his Fiery Eyes of Truth flared with blinding radiance, and the illusion instantly shattered and dissolved like broken colored glass.
As it turned out, this entire episode was a vicious conspiracy orchestrated by the White Bone Demon God.
"Abominable to the extreme! What kind of fiend dares to use such despicable tricks to toy with my Old Sun!"
Wukong was consumed by rage, golden flames raging around his entire body like a scorching sun of dazzling brilliance.
Upon seeing this, Bajie could not help chuckling teasingly, "Monkey brother, there actually comes a time when even you get so dizzy and disoriented."
Wukong glared fiercely at Bajie and snorted coldly:
"You idiot, spare us your sarcastic remarks and watch how I deal with this monster!"
Seeing that the scheme had been exposed, the White Bone Demon God thought to itself:
"This unruly monkey woke up so fast. We were just a hair away from acquiring the Great Dao Soul, just a hair away..."
The demon god instantly flew into a rage from humiliation.
Waving both hands, it chanted incantations under its breath. In an instant, the resurrected White Bone Spirit and a swarm of lesser bone minions surged forward like a tidal wave, baring fangs and brandishing claws as they lunged at the group.
Subodhi rapidly formed hand seals with both hands, chanting incantations as a brilliant golden rune, dazzling like a river of stars, roared outward.
Wherever it passed, the lesser bone minions instantly turned to fine dust and vanished without a trace.
The light was supremely dazzling, as if trying to illuminate the dark world.
"Miserable little demon god, how dare you act so insolently before this Patriarch!"
Subodhi's voice boomed like a bronze bell as he gave a majestic shout.
The sound echoed like rolling thunderous peals, shaking the entire White Bone Ridge.
The White Bone Demon God stared with wide, furious eyes and spat out a stream of pitch-black, ink-like poisonous fog.
The toxic mist writhed and slithered like a venomous snake, spreading rapidly.
Wherever the noxious fog reached, the vegetation withered instantly and the earth turned charred black.
The group hurriedly cast spells to evade it.
"Watch my Old Sun shatter this poisonous fog of yours!"
Wukong shouted loudly and whipped the Ruyi Jingu Bang through the air.
A violent hurricane suddenly generated, instantly blowing the toxic fog away.
The fierce wind howled like an enraged dragon, carrying a majestic momentum.
Seizing the opportunity, the White Bone Demon God flashed its figure, attempting to escape.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Shaseng moved like lightning, lunging forward in a single bound.
The Monster-Subduing Staff in his hand burst forth with a biting, bone-chilling gleam, blocking the White Bone Demon God's path of retreat.
The cold light was like frost, icy and biting to the bone.
Tang Seng transformed into a six-winged golden cicada, bathed in Buddha's light as he chanted scriptures.
The scriptures turned into golden light to envelop the lesser demons, shooting like a meteor toward the White Bone Demon God.
Gonggong danced with both hands, causing the surrounding moisture to instantly condense as he executed the Water-Control Technique.
A surging, overwhelming torrent appeared out of thin air, rushing toward the White Bone Demon God with a momentum capable of destroying everything.
The torrent surged furiously, as if intending to swallow the heaven and earth itself.
Taotie opened its cavernous maw and spewed a torrent of intensely scorching flames.
The flames raged like an unbridled dragon, inflicting heavy injuries on the White Bone Spirit while burning the lesser minions completely to ashes.
The flames burned fiercely, consuming everything.
The group surrounded the White Bone Demon God tightly, their formidable imposing aura causing the surrounding space to tremble slightly.
Realizing there was no escape, the White Bone Demon God suddenly burst into wild laughter:
"Ha! Do you fools really think you can defeat me so easily?
Wukong, did you know that this Bai Jingjing shares a predestined romantic affinity with you?
She was originally a little white rabbit from your Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, accompanying you as you grew up from childhood, harboring deep and devoted feelings for you.
Yet now, you two are turning on each other to the death!"
Upon hearing this, Wukong felt as though he had been struck by lightning, and flashes of past memories raced through his mind.
In an instant, the little Bai from his memories overlapped with the heavily injured White Bone Spirit before his eyes.
Right at the moment when Sun Wukong was distracted, the White Bone Demon God suddenly vanished, reappearing behind Wukong to condense dark energy into a gigantic demonic maw in an attempt to swallow him whole.
Seeing this, the heavily injured White Bone Spirit lying on the ground somehow erupted with astonishing strength, leaping forward to shield Wukong with her body.
"Wukong, watch out!" Bai Jingjing cried out with all her might.
With a miserable shriek, the White Bone Spirit instantly suffered catastrophic injuries and collapsed to the ground, hanging on by a single breath.
Wukong snapped out of his trance and caught Bai Jingjing tightly in his arms.
"Little Bai!" Wukong was consumed by overwhelming grief, tears streaming down like rain and dripping onto Bai Jingjing's pale face.
Bai Jingjing's eyes brimmed with tears: "Wukong, being able to see you again means I have no regrets. Even dying in your arms is a form of happiness."
Subodhi instantly flew into a berserk rage: "Chaos Art, World-Extinguishing Strike!"
A beam of chaotic light erupted from his hand, shattering space wherever the radiance reached.
The body of the White Bone Demon God shattered instantly, leaving only a remnant soul.
That fleeing remnant soul was intercepted by the berserk Tang Seng—now transformed into the six-winged golden cicada—who opened his mouth and swallowed its divine soul whole.
From that moment on, a generation of demon gods perished utterly, leaving not even a chance of reincarnation or transmigration.
Suddenly, the heavens and earth changed color, and a torrential downpour began to pour, the universe mourning together.
The fall of a Heavenly Dao Realm powerhouse caused the entire world to tremble.
Subodhi flashed over to Wukong's side, hastily producing a primordial spiritual fruit, the Bodhi seed, and infusing it with powerful magic power.
The spiritual fruit transformed into a gentle ray of light that merged into Bai Jingjing's body, pulling her back from the brink of life and death.
Bai Jingjing slowly opened her eyes and embraced Wukong passionately.
"Wukong, I finally remembered you, I finally found you.
The day you went to war with the Heavenly Court and never returned, I searched for you for hundreds of years. When I returned to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit and saw a host of immortals burning it down with fire, I fought to the death yet still failed to guard the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit for you...
Kungkung, can we never be separated again, okay?"
Bai Jingjing wept aloud, her voice filled with endless longing and attachment.
Wukong held her tightly in his embrace and nodded resolutely, his eyes brimming with deep affection and tenderness.
Subodhi sighed and said, "Since that is the case, Bai Jingjing shall accompany us on our Journey to the West."
And so, the group took Bai Jingjing along and continued once more onto the journey of unknown trials and challenges that was the Journey to the West.
However, before they even had a chance to let down their guard, another low rumble, sounding like muffled thunder, echoed from the distance, as if even more formidable demons were lying in wait for them.
"It seems the troubles at White Bone Ridge don't end here..."
Subodhi furrowed his brow deeply, his gaze profound and anxious.
Exchanging glances, the group wore grave expressions as they maintained their guard, preparing to meet the new and arduous challenges ahead.