Chapter 010: Not Strong Enough

However, in this world, Zhu Ganglie's origin had been altered. He became, like Sha Seng, an ordinary person, and moreover, a lovesick fool.

Only his appearance was like that of a pig, and in the eyes of ordinary people, he was an extremely ugly man.

But interestingly, even such an ugly man had a wife.

Zhu Ganglie was meticulous in his care for his wife. After all, for someone like him to have found a wife was already the greatest fortune; how could he possibly find fault with her?

But unfortunately, not everyone could perceive his heart.

Zhu Ganglie's wife despised his ugliness, so she fell for a handsome man. After all, humans are visual creatures—many are the same in this regard.

However, Zhu Ganglie's wife was a ruthless woman. After spending some time with the handsome man, she grew even more disgusted with Zhu Ganglie's appearance, so she conspired with her lover to kill Zhu Ganglie with the nine-toothed rake.

Thus, Zhu Ganglie turned love into hate, and his resentment festered into demonic nature, transforming him into the pig demon he is today.

Moreover, he set himself a small goal: to kill all women in the world who adored handsome men.

In this way, the Zhu Ganglie of this world was different from the Zhu Bajie of the orthodox Journey to the West. The gap between them was like heaven and earth, utterly incomparable.

Wang Bo guessed that if the orthodox world's Zhu Bajie knew that his parallel-world self was such a sorry sight, he would probably strike this world's Zhu Bajie dead with his rake, to avoid disgracing himself.

After entering the restaurant, Wang Bo saw a handsome, fair-skinned man sitting before the stove, applying rouge.

This man was none other than Zhu Ganglie.

After Zhu Ganglie turned into a demon, he became even more hideous. The appearance before him was merely a form he had conjured.

Now it was nearing noon, and a few tourists, both men and women, sat in the restaurant.

The female guests secretly stole glances at the oily-faced Zhu Ganglie, for the form he had taken was indeed handsome—a rare beauty of a man.

Wang Bo saw this and grew somewhat interested.

He had just thought: since Zhu Ganglie in this world was an ordinary man who had become a demon through accumulated resentment, where had he learned the art of transformation?

An ordinary person wouldn't know such a skill.

Especially when Zhu Ganglie finally met Sun Wukong, he appeared terrified, clearly recognizing him. This suggested the man had a background too.

Wang Bo walked over with interest, sat down opposite Zhu Ganglie, and cupped his hands, saying, "Brother Pig, pardon the interruption. I have a question I'd like to ask you."

Zhu Ganglie ignored him, holding up a mirror and admiring his handsome face.

Wang Bo was unfazed and continued, "Brother Pig, do you know a man called the Crow's Nest Zen Master?"

Zhu Ganglie remained unmoved.

Wang Bo reached out and grabbed Zhu Ganglie's right hand, which was about to apply rouge. "Brother Pig, do me a favor and answer my question."

Zhu Ganglie tried to pull his hand back, but after two tugs, he suddenly found that the other's grip on his wrist was like iron, immovable.

Zhu Ganglie immediately realized this man was not to be underestimated.

He exerted more force, but still couldn't shake Wang Bo's hand or pull his wrist free. Instead, he felt the other's grip tightening, and his own bones, hard as iron, seemed unable to withstand the pressure, faintly emitting a mournful creak of strain.

"Brother Pig, do me a favor?" Wang Bo said with a smile, continuing to apply pressure.

Zhu Ganglie grew anxious, his eyes twitching several times as he forced out a few words: "Don't, know, you!"

"Brother Pig really doesn't know the Crow's Nest Zen Master."

"Don't know him."

"Then who taught Brother Pig his transformation arts? Quite exquisite." Wang Bo recalled that in the orthodox Journey to the West, Zhu Bajie was not skilled in transformations; when he used them, he often couldn't hide his ears or belly.

But this Zhu Ganglie's transformation was remarkably refined, completely turning himself into a handsome man, concealing all his main features.

From this, Zhu Ganglie definitely hadn't learned it on his own.

Zhu Ganglie seemed reluctant to discuss the matter. He looked up at Wang Bo, pulled out his nine-toothed rake with his left hand, and swung it directly at Wang Bo's head.

Clang!

The nine-toothed rake struck Wang Bo's head, producing a shower of sparks.

Zhu Ganglie looked closely and was startled. Where did this fierce guy come from? He had swung his rake with nearly full force, yet hadn't even broken the other's skin or knocked off a single hair.

This was too fierce, almost on par with that monkey.

The next second, Wang Bo punched Zhu Ganglie in the face, sending him flying.

"Courtesy demands reciprocity. Since you chose to fight, let me have some fun with you." As Wang Bo finished speaking, Zhu Ganglie could no longer maintain his transformation; his face split open, turning directly into a pig's head.

This sight made all the diners scream in terror.

The female patrons who had been secretly admiring Zhu Ganglie were horrified to see the man they adored suddenly turn into a pig's head, their beauty fading.

One of them even fainted on the spot.

Wang Bo's figure flickered, appearing before Zhu Ganglie and reaching for his face. Since Zhu Ganglie refused to talk, he would have to resort to soul-searching.

Zhu Ganglie barely blocked the attack with his rake while kicking out, trying to send Wang Bo flying.

Wang Bo effortlessly dodged Zhu Ganglie's strike. Zhu Ganglie seized the moment, swinging his rake and attacking Wang Bo. In an instant, the restaurant hall was filled with afterimages of the nine-toothed rake.

These afterimages filled the air, raining down on Wang Bo's head from all directions.

Wang Bo snorted coldly, flicking his wrist. Invisible sword qi burst from his fingertips, dozens of strands intertwining to form a dragon soaring in the sky, easily shredding the countless afterimages.

Then the dragon swept across the void, its tail flick sending Zhu Ganglie flying into the wall, dust raining down.

Wang Bo couldn't help but sigh, "Brother Pig, you're not up to it."

In the orthodox Journey to the West, Zhu Bajie's strength was no less than Sun Wukong's. The two had fought upon first meeting at Gao Laozhuang, from the second watch until dawn.

In modern terms, that would be from around nine in the evening until five or six in the morning.

This shows Zhu Ganglie's true strength.

But in this world, Zhu Ganglie was captured by Sun Wukong in a single encounter.

And that Sun Wukong was still in a sealed state at the time.

Thus, it's clear that in this world, Zhu Ganglie's strength is truly lacking.