Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 516: Searching for Tian Peng

"No way, did you give me just plain, room-temperature water? How come I can’t taste anything at all?"

Actually, he could taste a little, but there was no helping it; the rabbit head was just too spicy, and he drank too fast, gulping it down without chewing.

Only after he finished the entire cup did the flavor of the milk tea slowly rise from his throat—just like a drop in the bucket, hardly of any use.

"I knew you would say that, here, try this one." The Great Roc produced another cup, "This one has pearls and pudding added, give it a taste."

"Pearls?" Xiaotian Dog thought of those large, round, white pearls in clamshells, and nearly jumped in shock, "Are you trying to choke me to death?!"

"Not those pearls, these are edible pearls. Just give it a try. This pearl milk tea is the best-selling item in Mr. Monkey’s shop. If you don’t like it, I’ll twist off my head and let you kick it like a ball."

Xiaotian Dog rolled his eyes at the Great Roc, "I have my ball, what do I need your head for."

"It’s just a metaphor, you’re taking it so seriously. Hurry up and try it. If you dawdle any longer, Tian Peng might have aged another year by now!" Roc Demon King urged.

Actually, Xiaotian Dog himself was very eager to drink it; he was just scared by the reputation of pearls.

Hearing the Roc Demon King’s urging, he took the cup and sucked a little—pearls followed the straw and entered Xiaotian Dog’s mouth one by one.

There was also the squishy pudding that slurped right into his mouth—smooth, soft, and fragrant, sliding down his throat with the milk tea without even a chew.

Xiaotian Dog held the pearls in his mouth without daring to chew too hard, worried about damaging his good teeth.

When his teeth touched the pearls, they weren’t as hard as he had imagined but rather springy. With a gentle touch, they even bounced his teeth back.

The texture was really strange, and Xiaotian Dog was fascinated as he ate several more pearls.

"How strange. I never knew pearls could be eaten this way," Xiaotian Dog remarked. "What kind of pearls are these? Black pearls? Are there such soft black pearls? It must take a lot of effort to collect a whole cup."

"It’s not much trouble, just a few buckets of powder and some brown sugar." Xiong Daoren had seen Sun Wukong make pearls and answered Xiaotian Dog’s question.

"Huh?" Xiaotian Dog was puzzled, "Aren’t these pearls?"

"They are pearls, but not the kind that come from giant clams," Xiong Daoren explained, "Those pearls are really hard and can’t be eaten like this."

"If they aren’t the pearls that come from clams, then what kind of pearls are these?" Xiaotian Dog thought about how he’d just reacted and figured these Three Demons were surely laughing at him.

"Your logic is flawed. Should they put a wife in the wife cake for you, or put a whole fish in yuxiang pork slices, or should they kill two people for the husband and wife lung slices? They’re just names, why take them so seriously?" Xiong Daoren commented.

His point was somewhat justified, so Xiaotian Dog stopped arguing and continued drinking his milk tea, alternating sips of pearls and tea until it was finished.

Then he tossed the cup aside with flair, "Alright, tell me, how can I help? I’m in a much better mood now, I might just be able to help with whatever you have."

"What else but helping us find Tian Peng? Your keen dog nose must be able to pick up his scent." Xiong Daoren said.

Xiaotian Dog initially wanted to retort since the words sounded like an insult, but upon reflection, he realized they were fairly accurate.

Indeed, what he had was a dog’s nose; other people might take that as a slight, but he took it as a compliment.

Pleased with the reality, Xiaotian Dog nodded, "Alright, so you want me to track down Tian Peng, leave it to me. If I can’t find him, then I surely don’t deserve the name Xiaotian Dog."

Xiaotian Dog focused his thoughts then envisioned the scent of Tian Peng in his mind, and took a deep breath.

Thousands of scents streamed through his nose and into his mind; Xiaotian Dog analyzed the myriad of odors in his brain.

There were the smells of both the living and the dead, freshly butchered pork, newly prepared lotus seed soup, and all sorts of miscellaneous scents overlapped together.

He stood still, carefully discerning whether there was any trace of Tian Peng within a hundred miles.

After sniffing around to no avail, Xiaotian Dog turned to look at the Three Demons, "Do you know where he descended to the mortal realm from?"

"How would we know? We’re not Immortals; we’ve never even been to the Heavenly Court, let alone know where Tian Peng could have been cast down."

"That makes sense. Let me have a good look," Xiaotian Dog started to communicate telepathically with Yang Jian in his mind.

There are actually several places where an Immortal Official could descend to the mortal realm; an interrogation platform could lead directly to downfall to dust.

Whether it’s the Fallen Immortal Well or the Dust-Questioning Cauldron, each spot where one is cast down to the mortal realm is different; this will truly be difficult to search for.

Therefore, we must first know from where he was cast down, and only then can we find the approximate location.

After communicating with Yang Jian, Xiaotian Dog came to realize that all the places he had initially thought of were incorrect; Tian Peng was actually thrown down directly from the Immortal Pond.

The Jade Emperor must really detest Tian Peng; he didn’t even provide a decent place, but cast him down directly from the Immortal Pond.

Those cast down from the Immortal Pond are unable to be reborn into auspicious circumstances, and for three lifetimes, their destiny cannot be changed—for nothing but a life of hardship.

To rise above others, there was only one path to choose, and that was to cultivate immortality and inquire the way.

Xiaotian Dog trembled as this thought struck him; it seemed he knew how the Jade Emperor intended to deal with Tian Peng, yet he also truly did not understand what the Jade Emperor was thinking.

Tian Peng was already an Immortal, and not just any minor official, but the Marshal Tian Peng who oversaw the Milky Way.

What exactly was the Jade Emperor thinking, to intend for Tian Peng to become an Immortal, yet also toss him down? Did the Jade Emperor want Tian Peng to ascend or not?

Xiaotian Dog couldn’t comprehend what the Jade Emperor was thinking; as he pondered over this, his face, affected by his thoughts, grew increasingly worried.

The Three Demons watched anxiously—what was going on? Could it be that Tian Peng’s whereabouts were that hard to find, causing Xiaotian Dog such distress?

"How is it going? Can you find him or not?" Roc Demon King couldn’t hold back and asked anxiously.

"Oh oh, easy to find, easy to find, follow me," Xiaotian Dog led the Three Demons to a place a hundred miles away.

"Is Tian Peng in this direction?" Roc Demon King asked.

"Hmm, those thrown from the Immortal Pond are generally located around here. Wait a moment, let me search a bit more before I tell you," Xiaotian Dog replied, then closed his eyes to concentrate on finding Tian Peng’s aura.

The aura was relatively easy to locate; within a moment, he had found a specific place.

Xiaotian Dog opened his eyes and said to the Three Demons, "I know where he is now, follow me."

"Isn’t this quite easy to find? Then why did you look so troubled just now?" Great Roc couldn’t help asking, "You almost turned from a Doberman into a Shar Pei; I thought the Jade Emperor had utterly obliterated Tian Peng."

"It’s not that excessive; no matter what, he is Marshal Tian Peng, and the Jade Emperor wouldn’t lose such a great general," Xiaotian Dog said.