The Battle in Journey to the West
Chapter 106 - 104: Inescapable for Five Hundred Years

Chapter 106: Chapter 104: Inescapable for Five Hundred Years

Great Emperor Zhenwu summoned the Ancient Buddha from Mount Meru and together they entered the Western Celestial Gate to visit the Celestial Palace.

Great Emperor Zhenwu inquired of a Heavenly General, "Where did that monkey head go?"

"Reporting to the Protective Sage True Lord, that monkey head is formidable. He beheaded your subordinate, Wang Lingguan, and hung his head on his belt. He then rushed to Yao Pond where a master from there engaged him in battle," the Heavenly General explained hurriedly upon seeing Great Emperor Zhenwu, and then he noticed Tathagata arriving and quickly paid his respects.

Tathagata said, "No need for formalities; let this young general simply lead us there. I will personally subdue that Demon Monkey."

Upon seeing Great Emperor Zhenwu nod, the Heavenly General then led Tathagata and him toward Yao Pond.

Before long, they arrived and saw Wukong wielding the Jingu Bang in a fierce battle with Huang Tuqiu. However, Huang Tuqiu was unable to overcome him; after all, Huang Tuqiu had spent many years in reclusive cultivation and was not used to combat, while Wukong possessed numerous Magical Treasures, managing to suppress Huang Tuqiu, who was otherwise more powerful in Mana.

Tathagata shouted, "Stop your hand, Demon Monkey!"

Seeing Tathagata arrive, Wukong could not help but laugh and said, "Tathagata, do you still remember Old Sun?"

In the North Sea, due to demons disguising themselves as Tathagata and using his Mana in the profound, the thoughts entered Wukong’s dreams and slew the demons. He obviously recognized Wukong, but pretended not to know him and simply shook his head.

Seeing Tathagata pretending, Wukong did not elaborate further, only saying, "Old Tathagata, your memory is truly poor!"

Tathagata maintained a calm expression and said, "Demon Monkey, you were born from a Crystal Stone left by Nu Wa. You should have been exceptionally favored by fate itself, but instead you destroyed your own potential, killed the Heavenly Official, and caused Havoc in Heaven."

The Celestial Palace was once a splendid sight with its jade towers and pavilions one after another. However, Wukong sent down a blaze and wielded Jingu Bang and his twin whips, causing palace after palace to collapse, destroying a whole area of palaces at the very center of the Celestial Court. Many Heavenly Generals are still busy extinguishing the fire. The blaze set by Wukong, the Purifying Purple Flame, is not easily put out; it requires collecting water from the Ruoshui River and then refining it with Mana to extinguish.

Wukong then said, "This Jade Emperor is incompetent; it should be I who rules as the Lord of Ten Thousand Heavens!"

Tathagata then said, "I have heard that you possess a Divine Skill known as VLOOKUP(A1025,[1]Sheet1!$A:$B,2,0), that can travel eighty thousand li in one leap. How about we make a bet?"

Wukong thought to himself, "The real play begins! I indeed want to fight this Tathagata, but I surely cannot beat him, and I must even let him suppress me beneath the Five Elements Mountain. That way, the Daoist Equal to Heaven’s safety is ensured. Fortunately, I can seek advantage in the chaotic era of The Three Kingdoms." He thought thus but then said aloud, "Tathagata, what skill do you have that you wish to bet with Old Sun?"

Tathagata, maintaining his dignity, naturally would not stoop to fighting the Demon Monkey. Winning or losing was trivial; what mattered most was reputation, and deploying a Spell for a Demon Monkey was somewhat diminishing. This bet with Wukong was to demonstrate grace and prevent criticism; after all, he is the Respectful Ruler of the Buddhist sect.

Tathagata extended his palm and said, "Stand in the palm of my hand. If you can leap out with one VLOOKUP(A1025,[1]Sheet1!$A:$B,2,0), you win! If you cannot, then you lose."

Wukong said, "This palm of yours is only as large as a lotus leaf; how could Old Sun not get out?"

Tathagata merely smiled faintly, and Great Emperor Zhenwu just watched coolly from the side, eager to see Tathagata’s skill.

Having studied the Sutra of the Other Shore, Wukong was aware of the concept "One Sand One Buddha Kingdom, One Leaf One World," encapsulating Sumeru within a mustard seed, transforming a vast space into a small one, discernible only to those who enter it. Tathagata’s Divine Skill was "Buddha Land in Palm," aptly naming turning his palm into a world, not much different from the description in the Sutra of the Other Shore.

Great Emperor Zhenwu thought to himself, "This Tathagata is quite confident. If Sun Wukong escapes, it will be interesting to see how he handles it!"

Wukong secretly marveled, thinking, "What a great ability this Tathagata has! Now that I am a Daluo Golden Immortal, he still intends to use this Buddha Land in Palm skill to capture me? How profound must his cultivation be? I wonder if he has attained Becoming a Saint."

Tathagata laughed and said, "If you manage to escape, I will no longer interfere in this matter; if you cannot, it is only fitting for you to endure a tribulation to atone for your sins."

Wukong called out, "Well said, well said! Tathagata, since you are so confident, but if you lose, do not deny it!"

Tathagata replied, "A monk’s words are as reliable as nine tripods, especially since True Martial Demon Conqueror is watching; you do not need to worry about me reneging."

As one of the patriarchs of Taoism, Great Emperor Zhenwu was revered, and with him as a witness, there was no concern. However, with Tathagata so full of self-assurance, Wukong felt certain that he would be suppressed beneath the Five Elements Mountain. But he consoled himself that at least, if another Daoist Equal to Heaven could strategize on the outside, there was no need to worry too much.

Those past five hundred years spent beneath Five Elements Mountain were lonely and sad. Thinking back, it was rather frightening. Tathagata was always the person Wukong most feared.

"See—let Old Sun now see your skills!" Wukong shouted and leapt into the palm of Tathagata’s hand.

Huang Tuqiu sneered from the side, "Sun Wukong, you contend with the Ancient Buddha, but you have only the portion of the defeated."

Wukong cursed, "I have already committed your face to memory, old man! I will leave your head here for now but will come to claim it myself later!"

In this battle, Wukong killed countless people, among them the most formidable were the Four Heavenly Kings, Wang Lingguan, and the Thirty-Six Thunder Generals. The number of minor deities and Heavenly Generals he wounded was too many to count. His ruckus in the Celestial Palace turned many palaces into dust, making it uncertain how long their restoration would take.

Seeing Tathagata prepare to intervene, Huang Tuqiu spoke no further. He had heard of Tathagata’s vast abilities and doubted that Wukong could escape from Tathagata’s palm.

It was inevitable that Tathagata would intercede, starting from the moment Wusheng incited him to seek treasures at the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace. Probably, Wusheng never liked him in his previous life, hence many things were not disclosed to him because Wukong had been too mischievous in the past, which displeased Wusheng. Thus, it was other little demons who later told Wukong to go and fetch treasures from the Dragon Palace. Those who came to take his soul from Yama’s Palace did so on the orders of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Regardless of the reason, Tathagata had ample justification to capture Wukong.

Laojun had already told Wukong not to harbor any hopes of escape; he was definitely going to be captured by Tathagata!

Tathagata spoke indifferently, "Are you ready then?"

Wukong nodded and said, "Then please be prepared, old Tathagata!"

Tathagata then said, "Just keep flying. If you manage to escape from the palm of my hand, you can consider me defeated."

Tathagata was about sixty feet tall, and his palms were as large as lotus leaves, providing Wukong with just enough space to stand firmly.

Although Wukong was prepared, he couldn’t help but feel a deep resentment, but he did not lose heart. A Daluo Golden Immortal wasn’t enough for Tathagata to take seriously, then what about a Mixed Yuan Golden Immortal? He didn’t believe there wouldn’t come a day when he surpassed Tathagata! Wukong decided that this lifetime would be different from his last; he was determined to transcend Tathagata.

"Hey! I’ll be going first then!" Wukong exclaimed and somersaulted out of his palm, riding the clouds away.

Tathagata muttered to himself, "This Cloud Somersault is indeed swift!"

However, his palm suddenly expanded, emitting a glow that promptly enveloped Wukong, an action clearly seen by Great Emperor Zhenwu and Huang Tuqiu.

This intervention happened in a split second, and the Wukong within Tathagata’s palm was still oblivious, focused solely on pushing forward.

Suddenly, he activated his Flaming Eyes and looked down only to see, beneath layers of mist, a vast expanse of sandy land filled with countless Buddha Kingdoms, each filled with countless Buddhist disciples chanting in low voices, channeling Incense Power and Wishes into Tathagata.

Wukong felt extreme hatred toward Tathagata and formed the Whirlwind and Return Fire spell, releasing a swath of Purifying Purple Flame that fell onto those Buddha Kingdoms, instantly killing hundreds of thousands.

Wukong mentally lamented, "My sins, my sins! But you are being kept by Tathagata like cattle and sheep; better to be freed from this bondage."

Feeling a pain in his palm, Tathagata looked and saw it was on fire. Fury overwhelmed him, and chanting an incantation, a heavy rain extinguished the flames. Meanwhile, Wukong continued to set fire to the Buddha Kingdoms, intending to burn all the disciples that Tathagata had corralled.

This time, he must have killed millions. At the same time, he silently recited the "Sutra of the Other Shore." This scripture, a Saint’s labor of love, was extraordinary. As he invoked it, bits of Karmic Force were dissolved. To kill one is sin, to slay a million is valor, but to kill nine million is supreme valor! In the era of Qin, there was the god-slayer Bai Qi, who entered the Dao through killing, yet he did not survive the Three Calamities and Five Tribulations.

With his massacre, Wukong instantly killed a million!

These Buddhist disciples, like cattle and sheep, only knew the daily rhythm of chanting scriptures and eating, unaware of what it felt like to be human and were no more than puppets.

In slaying so many, Wukong amassed tremendous karmic sin, but it was inevitable that some merit was also involved, for many indeed yearned for transcendence.

If these slain souls could be reincarnated and cultivated anew, the Heavenly Dao might issue a killing calamity, inevitably meeting these reincarnated beings to resolve their karmic debts. However, the Purifying Purple Flame, being the foremost flame under heaven formed by the first wisp of purple light since the creation of the world, meant that those burnt could no longer reincarnate but were reduced to ashes.

Thus, although Wukong had slain so many, he need not worry. With the "Sutra of the Other Shore" to dissolve the Karmic Force, he need not fear retribution by the Heavenly Dao. Tathagata dared to corral millions of disciples, having them chant endlessly to provide him with Incense Power, without fearing karmic forces because he surely had a secret technique for resolution.

Enraged, Tathagata found this monkey’s audacity too great, daring to slaughter disciples within his Buddha Kingdom. He flicked a spell, striking Wukong on the back of his head, causing him to tumble down in pain and confusion, nearly vomiting blood.

"Hmm? This monkey’s physical body is indeed very robust!" Tathagata thought to himself. He had assumed that his strike would leave Wukong unable to rise, yet it only resulted in a big somersault.

Wukong climbed up from the ground, and looking up, even his Flaming Eyes could not penetrate the surroundings. He could only see a web of tight lines linked together, apparently trapping him in this realm.

What will become of Wukong’s life? Please tune in next time.