C180: Journey to the East?
Inside Arnold's mind, Izzy sat stunned on her velvet seat.
'Wait, I shouldn’t be confused over this. After all, the title is incorrect.'
That book had been famous in Izzy’s original world. But the title should have been ‘Journey to the West’, not East. It was a renowned classical literature about the Monkey King and his companions escorting their master on a sacred pilgrimage.
In all honesty, the earlier conversation regarding Yi and Yan had already planted seeds of suspicion within Izzy's mind.
On the other hand, she told herself that even though this was a different world, she ought to expect certain similarities.
After all, this world, despite bearing different names for its geography and history, had still undergone an Industrial Revolution, complete with trains and various other modern machines. Therefore, she should not be too surprised to encounter familiar-seeming book titles in this place.
Moreover, she had barely explored this world at all; she had only seen a tiny fraction of it, confined to that forest and the remote village.
Arnold swallowed his saliva and asked again, maintaining a calm voice.
“Let me guess. Is it… a tale of four brothers escorting a monk traveling to the Eastern Regions to retrieve some sacred sutras?"
"?" Davis shook his head. "It is not that at all. Junior, ya truly possess quite an expansive imagination. I had not struck ya as that type of reader."
Arnold sighed in relief.
‘So it was just my imagination.’
"But, eh, actually, now that ya have reminded me of it, the tale is actually quite similar in structure."
"?"
"It concerns four brothers and sisters, junior. They escort their master on a pilgrimage, precisely as ya described."
Arnold’s smile darkened slightly. “And?”
"Em, should I truly say more? I don’t believe revealing the plot constitutes good reading etiquette, junior."
"Feel free to speak your mind. I’m never going to read them anyway." Unlike Davis, Izzy had very little interest in reading purely for entertainment.
"Very well," Davis nodded, appearing visibly upset by Arnold's dismissive attitude toward literature. But his expression quickly recovered.
"Those four people escort their Master to the east, to a place called Heaven, junior. Along their journey, they face numerous tribulations, encountering monsters who wish to devour the master in order to gain immortality through his flesh."
"He... Heaven? Immortality?"
"That is correct, junior. I know not where this Heaven lies, since the story itself does not elaborate on it extensively. But judging from the narrative tone, it must be an important place?"
"..." Arnold's smile cracked slightly at the edges, but he did not interrupt the man as he recounted the tale with such passion.
"The most surprising element about this story is that none of it is related to any Path at all! Merely pure magical adventure!" Davis nodded to himself with satisfaction. "I suspect this is the reason it has spread so widely, because it contains no relation to any Stagefarer secrets that would invite suppression."
“Is there anything in that book that you found particularly interesting?”
The original book from Izzy's past life, Journey to the West, she had only experienced through film and television adaptations.
It had never truly resonated with her or left a deep impression, so her memories of the work were rather vague and fragmented. Even the Book of Memories within their mindscape had not preserved that many episodes.
However, something—a certain intuition—told her this book was not as simple as it appeared.
The fact that it resembled that book from her old world, while also introducing terms like junior and senior, was enough to arouse suspicion.
After all, given the current era and geographical location, the very existence of such a book here was strange.
Izzy suspected that another transmigrator might be involved.
"Interesting?" Davis contemplated the question for a long moment, his brow furrowing in concentration. "Everything within it is interesting, junior. I find myself unable to select a single favorite element.
"Much of the journey revolved around how they overcame each trial, and through those trials, they gradually grew stronger. I suspect these challenges were likely inspired by our real-world Curses." Davis nodded to himself. "Although, I must admit, they are very creative.”
"That reminds me, there is one section that I remember quite clearly.” He answered after further reflection.
"At one point, one of the female juniors was separated from her group. If my memory serves me correctly, she was pursued by a fearsome monster, sustaining several injuries, before finally being cornered within a small village. The villagers helped orchestrate her escape, but in the end, the entire village was swallowed by the pursuing monster, paying the price on the woman's behalf."
“?” Izzy narrowed her eyes.
There was something about this story... she experienced a sense of déjà vu regarding this specific plot development.
"Do ya feel the reason why that section is so memorable?"
"The village... Winterin?"
"Indeed, Junior!" Davis said with bubbling excitement. "Ya don’t know how surprised I was when I first discovered this! That episode bears such similarity to the legend of our own village!"
Davis shook his head.
"There are only a few differences. Our village was not swallowed by the monster; instead, we successfully defended ourselves and drove the vile beast away. And that woman did not flee, either. She generously bestowed her power upon our villagers—the power of the Moon Maiden—before continuing on her journey."
‘Wait a minute.’
Izzy’s memory drifted back to the black monument. Written clearly upon it was something Mary had told Arnold during their meeting in the previous iteration.
[
“This is Winterin Village, our village reveres the Moon Maiden.”
“Our Maiden personally escorted and protected Her Majesty when she was attacked by the vile beast!”
“In return, Her Majesty gifted our Maiden a portion of her divine power! A blessing filled with her will to protect children and maidens alike!”
]
But according to Izzy's deductions across multiple iterations, it appeared more likely that the village had, in truth, been swallowed by that monster.
After all, even now, the monster is still roaming the forest. It had killed her in the previous iterations.
“Can I take a look at that book?”
"Certainly, junior. However, I must first fetch it back from my home. I shall bring it to ya first thing tomorrow."
Izzy nodded. She understood now why Davis seemed so excited about discussing books.
In this entire village, perhaps he was the only one truly obsessed with novels and literature. Naturally, upon finally finding someone with whom he could discuss the written word, his enthusiasm soared well beyond its usual level.
‘Journey to the east.’
An unusual book.
If Izzy's historical recollection served her correctly, this was still an era where books and novels were only just receiving widespread public appreciation, so the existence of a story like that here was quite unusual.
The primary driver behind this was the Industrial Revolution. Printing had become cheaper through mechanized processes, which caused literacy rates to skyrocket across all social classes.
Along with that came a surge in entertainment options and reforms of working conditions and hours, giving the common populace something they had rarely possessed before: leisure time.
Take Sherlock Holmes, for example. That thrilling crime literature, centered on the brilliant detective, achieved widespread popularity during a period of growing social unrest, providing entertainment through the unraveling of mysteries.
Arnold fell into silence.
Beside him, Davis continued talking. He misunderstood Arnold’s silence as intense concentration, so he happily continued.
“By the look of it, junior, it seems ya really are interested in books. Lemme tell ya, I have read through the entire published series, up through its very latest volume.
“Ya know what the single most odd portion? The plot twist appears near the end of the story, junior." He said with a puzzled, intrigued tone.
“Near the end of the journey?”
“That’s right! Near the conclusion of the journey…” Davis deliberately slowed his voice to build anticipation.
This dramatic pause, combined with the deepening night and the cold wind brushing through the trees, created such an atmosphere that left Izzy marveling at Davis’s storytelling prowess.
"The four disciples... betrayed their beloved master and murdered him in cold blood!"
"What?"
What kind of insane revision was this? Izzy blinked in confusion.
"It is completely unexpected, is it not? I still remember the first time I read that passage. It felt as though I’d been betrayed.” Davis clenched his fist, as if trying to contain his rage.
“But at the same time, deep down, a sense of anticipation began rising within me."
“What happened next?”
Izzy could no longer contain her curiosity and asked without any reservation or pretense this time.
“Then… it became gruesome, junior. The dying master curses those four treacherous disciples, and they find themselves unable to resist continuing their sacred journey regardless, pressing onward toward Heaven itself in desperate hope of dispelling that terrible curse."
"And then?"
"After that, at the journey's very end, they finally come to realize..."
"..."
Izzy’s eyes filled with anticipation, grabbing the armrest tightly, her composure slipping.
"They finally realize..." Davis paused once more, and at the precise moment Arnold's patience wore thinnest, he shouted the revelation aloud:
“Heaven… did not exist!
“At the end of their journey, what they found, was Despair!”