Chapter 749: Wukong Ascends Heaven Again, Bodhi Sits in the Lotus Pond

Chapter 750: Wukong Returns to Heaven, Bodhi Sits by the Lotus Pond

The word "scram" brought a smile to Saint Jieyin's face for several hours, his mood suddenly cheerful. "Even the Heavenly Dao has its day!"

Li Changshou watched the ever-changing scene in the cloud mirror, his face filled with worry, his attention naturally on Sun Wukong. Yet, deep down, he was secretly pleased. "These two youngsters show no martial ethics! How could they be so aggressive towards a revered messenger of the Jade Emperor?"

When the impostor Grand Pure One appeared, intending to stop the great battle between Nezha and Wukong, he was met with a scolding, yet the old man's expression remained unchanged.

Nezha and Sun Wukong, fighting with genuine fury, clashed in the air, leaving trails of afterimages. The ghosts and gods of the ten directions were startled, and the eyelids of veteran powerful beings twitched. Li Jing, reacting swiftly, immediately summoned his pagoda and issued commands, ordering dozens of heavenly generals behind him to join the fray.

The heavenly generals deployed the Heavenly Dipper Grand Formation, forcibly separating Sun Wukong and Nezha. However, the attacks launched by both combatants caused their blood and qi to churn and their souls to become unstable. Nezha glared at Sun Wukong, and Sun Wukong glared at Nezha, but both were pushed back into the air and underground by the formation. Their stances suggested that one of them had to fall that day.

After some commotion, the heavenly soldiers and demon soldiers each withdrew their formations.

Sun Wukong, carrying his iron staff, his monkey fur stained with blood and his chainmail dark red, fixed his gaze on Nezha, who was surrounded by heavenly generals in the air. His lips twitched slightly. "Little brat."

Nezha, who had just calmed down, immediately flared up in anger, his hair disheveled as he cursed, "You stinky monkey! Try calling me that again!" Sun Wukong sneered and said calmly, "We'll fight again next time." "Afraid of you?" Nezha snorted, put away his six-armed dharma body and various magic treasures, and flew on his wind-fire wheels towards the East Heaven Gate, not even returning to the military camp.

Although Nezha couldn't understand why the Heavenly Court, which could clearly annihilate the demons here, insisted on pacifying this stinky monkey, he felt that the monkey wasn't bad after today's battle. He was quite strong.

The heavenly generals dared not say much about Nezha's 'willfulness'. Nezha wasn't foolish; he knew that as soon as the 'Jade Emperor's Messenger, Grand Pure One' appeared and prepared to read the Jade Emperor's decree, the prolonged battle would end, and he would lose his chance to fight.

Sun Wukong's aura quickly returned to its peak. He looked at the immortals and gods in the sky, spat out a mouthful of blood, shouldered his Golden-Hooped Staff, and turned to walk towards the demons.

Above the clouds, Li Jing watched the Grand Pure One, his brows tightly furrowed. "Personally appointed by the Jade Emperor, Great Sage Equal to Heaven..." This title was far too grand. Did the Heavenly Court lack a master like Sun Wukong? Clearly not. Perhaps there was some scheme or strategy at play that he, a general commanding troops, could not comprehend the necessity of.

"All armies, withdraw!" Li Jing said in a deep voice, and the generals behind him responded in unison. The 'Grand Pure One' transmitted a message to Li Jing: "Marshal Li, please withdraw the great army to the East Heaven Gate. The fighting here is temporarily halted." Li Jing pondered for a few moments, looking as if he wanted to speak but then wisely chose to remain silent. He bowed to the 'Grand Pure One' and began issuing orders for the heavenly soldiers to return to the East Heaven Gate. However, Li Jing did not order a full retreat; he still had the army encamp outside the East Heaven Gate, ready to move to Flower-Fruit Mountain at any time.

As the heavenly soldiers above began to retreat, the demons of Flower-Fruit Mountain erupted in excitement. However, many old demons who had previously thought they understood the Heavenly Court's plans were bewildered. They had originally believed that the Heavenly Court was using the Seven Great Sages of the Demon Race as bait to lure all demons into a trap. Now, they were proven utterly wrong. The Heavenly Court had actually issued an edict to pacify Sun Wukong and legitimize his title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven. What was the meaning of this? Had the Heavenly Court suddenly found the demon race appealing, deciding that it should incorporate more demonic elements, and thus sought to recruit Sun Wukong, a young demon king with immense potential? Was this rational? This was preposterous! Far too preposterous! What had all those days of fighting been for then? Just to set the mood and make a name for Sun Wukong?

Most of the powerful beings observing this place harbored similar doubts, unsure what the Heavenly Court was up to.

On Spirit Mountain, in Jieyin's humble abode, Li Changshou watched the cloud mirror as the fake Grand Pure One descended towards Flower-Fruit Mountain, seemingly to discuss pacification. He sighed inwardly. "The Dao Ancestor is indeed a 'script controller'." If there wasn't enough pressure, he would resolutely follow the established path, and not even eight oxen could pull him back.

Li Changshou grumbled silently for a moment, then saw a new disturbance on Flower-Fruit Mountain displayed in the cloud mirror. The fake Grand Pure One arrived on a cloud, surrounded by streams of immortal light, and called out from a distance to Sun Wukong, who was surrounded by demon kings: "Great Sage! Great Sage!" "Hmm?" Sun Wukong turned his head to glance at the old man. With a command, he ordered a group of monkeys and their descendants forward to tie up the old man and hang him on a tree near the celebration banquet.

This sight truly shocked many Heavenly Court immortals and gods, and also struck fear into the heart of a certain ox demon who knew the fake Grand Pure One's true origins. This ox demon was none other than Sun Wukong's sworn elder brother, the leader of the Seven Great Sages of the Demon Race, and the culprit who made Lord Laozi ride only Golden and Silver when going out — the Bull Demon King.

The Bull Demon King watched as the monkeys, with many hands, hung the white-robed old immortal on the tree, momentarily speechless. "Good heavens, the will of the Heavenly Dao, the Dao Ancestor's clone, just got tied up like that?"

The Bull Demon King approached Sun Wukong, his thick eyebrows and large eyes gleaming slightly, and whispered, "My virtuous brother, think twice, my virtuous brother. This is a chance to resolve the situation for Flower-Fruit Mountain. Don't be disrespectful to this Grand Pure One." Sun Wukong merely grunted, waving for his sworn brothers to come drink and eat peaches, not directly addressing the issue. He was clearly annoyed. The Bull Demon King didn't press the matter, instead being surrounded by demons who went to drink and boast, no doubt praising his seventh brother's bravery.

The old man hanging in the tree was quite awkward but maintained a smile.

On the high platform throne in the Hall of Divine Mists, the Jade Emperor's lips curved into a faint smile.

Above Flower-Fruit Mountain, in the heavenly soldier encampment that had not yet retreated, a heavenly general suggested going to rescue the 'Grand Pure One', but Li Jing stopped him. Li Jing said, "This lord surely has his own plans. Let us not make arbitrary guesses." So, the generals could only watch from a distance.

In the saint's dwelling on Spirit Mountain, Daoist Jieyin also wore a benevolent smile, watching the scene before him with interest. He even introduced the identity of the fake Grand Pure One to his beloved disciple, 'Void Bodhi'.

Li Changshou feigned surprise: "This is a clone of the Heavenly Dao's will? I originally thought it was just a puppet." "The Dao Ancestor deployed this clone merely to supervise His Majesty the Jade Emperor," Jieyin said. "The Jade Emperor has grown too close to that forbidden entity, to the extent that the Heavenly Dao has become wary of him. Bodhi, what do you make of this matter of the Heavenly Court, or rather, the Heavenly Dao, inviting Wukong to the Heavenly Court to become the Great Sage Equal to Heaven?" "It appears to be a good thing, but there must be other calculations involved," Li Changshou mused, then slowly continued, "The Dao Ancestor previously discussed this matter with me beside the stone embryo. The Dao Ancestor seems to intend for Sun Wukong to become famous as an example of a being who defied heaven but was eventually tamed by it, thus warning future generations. Besides that, it also concerns the flourishing of Buddhism." "Excellent," Daoist Jieyin sighed faintly. "The Dao Ancestor's plans are precisely as you've described. Thus, there's no need to worry much about Wukong's safety."

"Teacher," 'Void Bodhi' whispered, "when you calculated Wukong's fate just now, did you foresee any calamities or tribulations?" Jieyin spoke slowly, "Indeed, there are tribulations. The heavenly secrets reveal that he has a destined calamity of imprisonment, and later, a great calamity of life and death." "A great calamity of life and death?" Li Changshou's eyebrow twitched slightly. Could it be the true and false Monkey King? Buddhism deceiving heaven? At this time, what Saint Jieyin calculated was merely what the heavenly secrets revealed, the most probable direction according to the Heavenly Dao's deductions, not a predetermined future. Li Changshou didn't dwell on it much. If his later duel with the Dao Ancestor ended in victory, then there would be no need to worry about Sun Wukong's so-called fate.

The cloud mirror continuously displayed the scene: on the left, the 'Grand Pure One' was hanging from a tree, being teased by a group of monkey spirits, which was quite humiliating; on the right, Sun Wukong was drinking and celebrating with the demon kings.

Jieyin's smile never faded. This 'Grand Pure One' was not only a manifestation of the Heavenly Dao and a representative of the Dao Ancestor, but also appeared in the form frequently used by the former Second Heavenly Emperor, a sworn enemy of Western Buddhism. Triple the joy!

Li Changshou, however, felt no schadenfreude about this; if the Dao Ancestor were to stoop to arguing with a monkey, it would be beneath his dignity. He was observing the demon kings around Sun Wukong and, through the cloud mirror, listened to their conversation.

The demons were persuading Sun Wukong to go to the Heavenly Court and become the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. The Bull Demon King was drinking alone in a corner, and Sun Wukong's other sworn brothers weren't speaking at the moment. Instead, several older, more experienced demon kings kept urging Sun Wukong: "Great Sage, the Heavenly Court doesn't want to expand the war; they want us to give them a way out. Great Sage, consider this: if all the heavenly soldiers and generals were to descend, even if they could ultimately win, they would surely pay a price of a sea of blood and mountains of corpses, a price the Heavenly Court cannot bear. Moreover, if the title 'Great Sage Equal to Heaven' is recognized by the Heavenly Court and praised throughout the Three Realms, in the future, you will be the absolute best in heaven and earth!"

Sun Wukong glanced at the old pigeon demon's wagging thumb, grunted, and continued to peel his banana with boredom.

"Great Sage, this is a truly great opportunity! The Great Sage Equal to Heaven title bestowed by the Heavenly Court is completely different from the one we call ourselves. You'll be appointed to enjoy blessings in the Heavenly Court, and we will take care of Flower-Fruit Mountain, ensuring that your monkey descendants suffer no grievances!"

"Great King!" an old monkey cried out, "The Heavenly Court deceived you last time; this time, there might be some trick too!" Sun Wukong nodded in deep agreement, saying, "Hmph, let's not try to outwit these Heavenly Court immortals; they're very cunning."

Another old monkey spoke up, "Great King, there's actually no benefit in defying the Heavenly Court. These continuous battles have caused heavy casualties to all our forces. Although we've repelled the heavenly soldiers each time, every Great King's army has lost at least thirty percent of its troops, while the heavenly soldiers haven't suffered many casualties. Moreover, there are hundreds of righteous gods in the Heavenly Court, and Nezha is just one of them. Nezha's father, Li Jing, hasn't even acted yet, and there are many more experts to come. The Three Realms are all under the Heavenly Court's governance. If we continue to resist... it will truly be a dead end."

"You old monkey!" A great demon rose and cursed, "What nonsense are you spouting here! Guards! Drag him down and throw him into the oil pot!" The old monkey trembled, about to kneel, but it instinctively saw a flash of light. The fierce great demon flew backward, a large, juicy peach stuffed in his mouth, and his sharp teeth instantly broken. Sun Wukong snorted, not even looking at the demon. He sat in his stone seat, slightly lost in thought, his face somewhat gloomy. The celebration banquet instantly fell silent.

Suddenly, Sun Wukong said, "Bring the Grand Pure One over." The monkeys assented, took the fake Grand Pure One down from the tree, and carried him towards Sun Wukong. Many demon kings lowered their heads, silent, fearing the old man would see their faces, and some even left their seats, temporarily avoiding the area.

At this moment, the fake Grand Pure One, like a mortal elder, used no magic power and showed no aura of intimidation. He was carried by his limbs by the monkeys and brought directly before Sun Wukong. The monkeys pushed together, causing the old man to stumble before he managed to steady himself. He looked up, only to see Sun Wukong's face right before him, his thunder-god mouth baring sharp teeth, and the Golden-Hooped Staff resting on his shoulder, as if he might strike at any moment. The 'Grand Pure One' quickly called out, "Great Sage, don't be rough! Don't be rough! This humble old man is here by His Majesty the Jade Emperor's command to deliver an edict. Please put down your iron staff, put down your iron staff."

Sun Wukong snorted and said, "What? Is the Heavenly Court scared of fighting?" The 'Grand Pure One' gave an awkward smile and replied, "Great Sage, you speak incorrectly. The Heavenly Court has not yet shown its full strength. It's just that all living beings in the Three Realms are subjects of the Heavenly Court, and His Majesty the Jade Emperor is benevolent and unwilling to unleash widespread slaughter. Furthermore, because of the Great Sage's extraordinary bravery, His Majesty the Jade Emperor is pleased to specially bestow upon you the title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven, allowing you to enjoy emoluments in the Heavenly Court. Great Sage, you previously complained that the Keeper of the Horse rank was too low, but you don't realize that the positions of righteous gods in the Heavenly Court are already full, making it impossible to bestow a ranked righteous god position. However, this time, when you ascend to heaven, you will receive the treatment of a third-rank righteous god and wield the authority of a third-rank righteous god. Cultivating and attaining enlightenment in the Heavenly Court, receiving merit, and realizing the path of Grand Unity early—wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Oh?" Sun Wukong's eyes darted, and he released the fake Grand Pure One's collar. "Then what about my Flower-Fruit Mountain?" "Flower-Fruit Mountain... Flower-Fruit Mountain," the fake Grand Pure One chuckled, "Flower-Fruit Mountain will henceforth be the Great Sage's domain, personally allocated by the Heavenly Court. If the Great Sage accepts the appointment, the Heavenly Court will no longer pursue or suppress the demons within Flower-Fruit Mountain."

Sun Wukong sat back on his stone seat, slightly hesitant. Another demon king nearby spoke up, urging Sun Wukong to comply with the Heavenly Court's decree and also to make a good impression on the Jade Emperor's messenger.

Soon, Sun Wukong looked towards the Bull Demon King hiding in the corner and called out, "Brother Ox, what do you think?" The old ox inwardly groaned, but looked up, his mouth greasy, and chuckled. He cast a somewhat guilty glance at the fake Grand Pure One and said, "Virtuous brother, if you accept the appointment, it will be good for Flower-Fruit Mountain, good for the demon race, and good for yourself. Just don't forget us brothers when you become successful." "Alright," Sun Wukong said, looking at the Golden-Hooped Staff before him, weighing it a few times in his hand. He then stood up and said, "Then I'll trust the Heavenly Court one more time."

The old ox felt the fake Grand Pure One's gaze and quickly offered a fawning smile. A faint light flickered in the 'Grand Pure One's' eyes, but he only smiled gently, not speaking to the old ox.

Thus it was: The Heavenly Court appointed a Great Sage, yet his heart was unwilling; Wukong put away his staff, peace returning to his side.

"There's likely a scheme." In Jieyin's humble abode on Spirit Mountain, Li Changshou, disguised as Void Bodhi, slowly uttered these words. Saint Jieyin nodded with a smile, showing his approval.

Jieyin said, "The Dao Ancestor's calculations are beyond what you and I, master and disciple, can fathom. Do not meddle further in this matter. Since you have returned to Spirit Mountain this time, why not stay here for a while? Once Wukong's affair is settled, I can naturally unlock the shackles on your Dao realm." 'Void Bodhi' showed delight on his face, stood up, and said, "Many thanks, Teacher."

Jieyin asked, "Where do you wish to cultivate?" "My previous dwelling seems to have been occupied," Li Changshou sighed, looking out the window at various places. Spotting a distant lotus pond, he said, "I shall cultivate by that pond, and also act as a guardian for Teacher."

Daoist Jieyin showed a slight smile of satisfaction, raised a hand, and pointed, creating a crack in 'Void Bodhi's' Dao realm shackles. He whispered, "Cultivate diligently, and do not make a fuss." Li Changshou bowed in acknowledgment, almost laughing aloud.

A moment later, he sat quietly by the lotus pond, closed his eyes, and with his immortal consciousness, locked onto Golden Cicada, who was merely a pond's distance away. It was effortlessly done.