Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 604 - 603: Trapping and Killing the Little Dragon Shrimp

Chapter 604: Chapter 603: Trapping and Killing the Little Dragon Shrimp

He found a spacious and secluded area, considering even the safety of villagers who seldom ventured outdoors.

The location was neither close to mountains nor water and lacked any woods nearby, essentially, it was just right.

Once he found the spot, Tian Peng took out the Nine-toothed Rake and began to dig. Despite being a rake, it was no less effective than a spade.

The moment Spiritual Power was poured into the Magic Artifact, the Nine-toothed Rake transformed beyond a mere tool. In merely the duration of an incense stick, a pit twenty people deep and five wide was ready.

Simultaneously, Sun Wukong had just brought some rotting flesh to throw into the pit.

But this alone wasn’t enough; Sun Wukong cast spells to intensify the stench of the rotting flesh, ensuring it could spread for ten miles around.

Creatures naturally have a more developed sense of smell than humans who could only detect a faint stench, whereas for the Strange Insects it was quite a strong aroma.

As time passed, more and more Strange Insects were lured by the scent of the flesh, scurrying towards it, only to fall into the pit.

Fortunately, these insects weren’t particularly intelligent— even after falling into the pit, they were still fixated on the rotting flesh.

Existing solely to feed and reproduce, a growing number of Strange Insects crawled from all directions into the pit.

Sun Wukong didn’t need to venture as far as Flame Mountain to seek the Bull Demon King; these creatures could be destroyed with ordinary fire, as long as he had a Magic Artifact capable of producing flames.

Soon, the pit was half-filled, a dense mass of writhing Strange Insects.

Seeing this, Tian Peng’s scalp tingled. He scratched his head vigorously before saying, "Mr. Monkey, perhaps this is enough? Why don’t we burn them now, and then wait for the next wave?"

"What, are you scared?" Sun Wukong looked at the pit brimming with red, squirming Strange Insects. The pit was half full, but many more were still crawling outside, appearing as if it would soon overflow.

The sight of this vast pit was particularly alarming, even more terrifying than lava that devours people.

The notion of falling inside was horrid; one might be slowly torn apart by the insects’ pincers, a fate more dreadful than death by a thousand cuts.

"I, I’m not scared."

Tian Peng feigned bravery, knowing that admitting fear would only lead to loud mockery from Sun Wukong.

He quickly denied his own fear, "These creatures do have rather formidable claws. In fact, some of the Strange Insects have started climbing out of the pit. Maybe we should burn half of them first."

Sun Wukong agreed; indeed, the grip of the insects’ claws was impressive. Possibly, the claws had barbs that clung to soil particles, allowing them to climb out of the pit.

Sun Wukong retrieved a Magic Artifact from the Silken Pouch and tossed it into the pit.

Immediately, flames burst out from the pit. The creatures, engulfed by fire, writhed violently but were utterly powerless—they couldn’t escape or shake off the fire consuming them.

Though it was an ordinary fire, the Magic Artifact’s flames burned slightly more vigorously than regular worldly fire.

Soon, the entire pit was ablaze with roaring fire, a spectacular scene to behold.

After being burned, the Strange Insects appeared even redder, bearing a slight resemblance to the magma of Flame Mountain.

As the creatures burned, Tian Peng began to sense an unusual odor, "Mr. Monkey, do you smell that?"

Sun Wukong naturally also smelled the scent, it was fragrant, rich in aroma, and faintly revealed a delicious smell.

But no matter how delicious, upon seeing the appearance of that strange insect, all appetite vanished.

A dish is all about the harmony of color, aroma, and taste, but with so many legs and those two pincers for feeding, not to mention the sharp head, it completely put one off the idea of eating it.

"So what if you smelled it, do you actually feel like eating that thing when you see it?" Sun Wukong said, "If you really want to eat it, you should grab a couple now while they seem just cooked and not burnt."

"Not at all," Tian Peng quickly denied, "It smells good, but that thing is too terrifying. Just looking at it makes me feel uncomfortable all over, let alone eating it."

Sun Wukong also thought it smelled nice, but he didn’t say it out loud.

The smell might be enticing, but it was genuinely repulsive. Anyway, having seen it, he felt no desire whatsoever to eat it.

After burning for a while, the pleasant smell disappeared, and a burnt scent began to spread.

After about the duration of an incense stick, these things had all turned into black charcoal.

Sun Wukong packed away the Magic Artifact, and Tian Peng came forward with the Nine-toothed Rake to crush the ashes, and the pit was empty again.

Sun Wukong threw another piece of rotten meat into the pit and cast spells to spread the scent, waited a while, and the strange insects entered the pit slowly, just as before.

All in all, the strange insects moved quite slowly. After filling and burning two pits full, it was essentially nightfall.

Sun Wukong didn’t think much of it, but Tian Peng, now in a mortal body, couldn’t work for extended periods and needed to rest. So Sun Wukong returned to Chaos Residence with Tian Peng for a break.

Just as they returned to Chaos Residence, Chen Nuo was standing in the courtyard picking tea leaves. Hearing the noise at the gate, he turned around and saw his senior apprentice and the apprentice-to-be walking over.

"Oh, you’re back?" Chen Nuo said.

"We’re back." Tian Peng felt a warmth in his eyes upon seeing Chen Nuo, as if he hadn’t seen him for so long.

Now seeing him treating him just as before, Tian Peng had the illusion that he hadn’t been banished to the mortal realm and was still selling milk tea.

"What happened, did you encounter something in the mortal realm?" Chen Nuo gathered the tea leaves he had picked and casually asked.

"I passed through a village, and when I arrived, I heard there were strange insects in the village, so I wanted to see what they were. Before I could check, I encountered the strange insects while sleeping at an inn at night," Tian Peng began to recount.

Chen Nuo didn’t want to listen to this lengthy explanation, turning his gaze to Sun Wukong, suspecting Tian Peng had already shared the whole affair with him.

Sun Wukong immediately picked up on Chen Nuo’s hint and replied, "When Tian Peng was passing by the village, the Local Deity recognized him, but didn’t know he had become a mortal and begged for his help. Tian Peng decided to solve the problem for him in exchange for his silence."

After hearing Sun Wukong’s words, Tian Peng tried to interject but couldn’t find an opening. When Sun Wukong finished describing the whole incident, he nodded in agreement, "Yes, that’s what happened."

"What kind of strange insect?" Chen Nuo, puzzled by the mention of the strange insects, wondered if this could be the work of a demon.

"It’s this insect with a red shell that’s somewhat green-tinted, many legs, and two pincers resembling those of a crab. It’s not big, only this small," Sun Wukong gestured to Chen Nuo.

"This thing doesn’t look too disgusting, but the numbers are the problem; they are difficult to deal with. Tian Peng and I spent a day in the village taking care of them, and still, it wasn’t done," he said.

Listening to their description, Chen Nuo felt the strange insects seemed familiar but without a picture or anything, he couldn’t guess precisely, "So how did you deal with them?"