The Battle in Journey to the West
Chapter 107 - 105: Taming the Mind Monkey Beneath Five Elements Mountain

Chapter 107: Chapter 105: Taming the Mind Monkey Beneath Five Elements Mountain

Wukong entered the Buddha Land in the palm of Tathagata, where he killed millions of Tathagata’s nurtured Buddhist disciples with the Purifying Purple Flame.

In a rage, Tathagata knocked him to the ground with a single blow. Wukong, summoning his Flaming Eyes, looked around and saw countless silk threads densely packed together, twisting into a sphere and weaving into this world.

Wukong thought to himself, "These silk threads must be the rules that only a Second Heaven of Daluo Golden Immortal can wield!"

Wukong reasoned, "In my previous life, I flew forward only to end up in the palm of his hand. Now that I am in his palm, I should be flying backward... behind me is his wrist."

With that thought, Wukong turned around and rode his cloud towards the back. His cloud somersaults were extremely fast, and Tathagata had to keep enlarging the world in his palm to trap him. Wukong’s flight backwards took Tathagata by surprise. In an instant, Wukong reached the edge of his palm and spotted a streak of light.

"This might be where the Buddha Land within his palm originates," Wukong thought to himself, ready to take a gamble.

The source of light suddenly extended far away, and Wukong, chasing it on his cloud, could not keep up. He was inwardly shocked, "Tathagata has incredible abilities indeed!"

Tathagata too was taken aback, not expecting that the monkey had nearly deciphered the mystery of the Buddha Land in his palm and almost escaped. That would have been a considerable loss of face, and even he did not know how to end the predicament. However, Tathagata’s mana was far greater than Wukong’s, and once again he expanded the Buddha Land in his palm. Wukong could no longer escape from his wrist and fell back into the center of his hand.

Wukong had no choice but to fly forwards, and as expected, when he reached the five fingers, he left a message saying, "The Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong, was here," though of course he didn’t take a leak to vent his frustration, and turned to fly back.

On his way through the Buddha Land, he scattered more fire, but Tathagata was already prepared and extinguished it instantly.

With a flash of light, Wukong reappeared in Tathagata’s palm and said, "Tathagata, I’ve already reached the far corners of the world, yet you’re still here?"

Tathagata raised a finger and said, "You see, where have you reached?"

Wukong saw the words he had written on his finger and exclaimed, "Impossible! Great Emperor Zhenwu, you saw clearly, please offer your judgment."

Great Emperor Zhenwu was also secretly alarmed at Tathagata’s mana, which was difficult to assess, and knowing that Wukong was always trapped in the palm of the Ancient Buddha, he said, "Sun Wukong, you have never actually leapt out of the Ancient Buddha’s palm. You have just been hopping around in it. You have lost this bet!"

Wukong knew the truth, but still pretended ignorance, for that would serve his future scheming, and he cried out, "Impossible, impossible! Tathagata, let Old Sun take another look before we conclude."

However, Tathagata sneered, flipped his hand, and trapped Wukong, pressing him down to the Lower Realm. They fell to the Southern Toad Continent, where the five fingers shattered into huge stones. Wukong swung his Jingu Bang but couldn’t break a single one. He unleashed the God-Beating Whip and the Great Year Whip along with other magical treasures, all to no avail. Tathagata pressed him down with the stones, which piled higher and transformed into a thousand-zhang tall mountain, from which sprouted five peaks, each representing one of the Five Elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

Great Emperor Zhenwu witnessed Tathagata’s incredible feat, feeling secretly amazed. Such skill to turn a palm into the Five Elements was not something an ordinary person could wield.

Wukong was suppressed by Tathagata beneath the Five Elements Mountain, repeating his previous life’s fate.

The Three Pure Ones watched intently, each shaking their heads. Laozi said, "Though this monkey has great ability, for Tathagata to capture him was merely like observing the patterns on the back of his hand."

Yuan Shi Immortal Monarch laughed, "Had this monkey realized sooner and flew in reverse right from the start, maybe Tathagata would have been the one losing face!"

Leader of Heaven-Penetrating said, "This monkey is indeed clever. Let’s discuss it again after five hundred years."

For these great mystics, time was no more than running water—a mere five hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

In the Ancient Times, each of the five great annihilations lasted for fifty-six billion years of reincarnation. These beings had already lived for hundreds of billions, or even perhaps over a hundred billion years. What was five hundred years to them?

"When tumultuous times arise, another scheme will unfold. We shall see who has the last laugh!" Laozi said indifferently.

As Tathagata suppressed Wukong and sensed that others were discussing him, a slight movement in his heart told him it must be the Three Pure Ones. He smiled faintly and brought his hands together in prayer.

Great Emperor Zhenwu bowed and said, "Thank you, Ancient Buddha, for taking action to subdue the Demon Monkey, thus ridding the Heavenly Court of a great plague!"

Tathagata, however, chuckled and said, "I do not deserve such praise! This Demon Monkey is a product of Goddess Nu Wa’s Crystal Stone; he cannot be killed, but must be suppressed for five hundred years to polish his temperament. Only then can he attain True Fruition."

Great Emperor Zhenwu replied, "Yes, yes."

Even Great Emperor Zhenwu could not fathom the extent of Tathagata’s abilities—so he put aside the thought of contesting their strengths for the time being. After all, with such cultivation, even if Great Emperor Zhenwu used his Instant Killing Supernatural Power, it would likely be difficult to harm the Tathagata. The only ones capable of contending with Tathagata probably would be a Saint, or perhaps Ancestor Minghe, who hadn’t appeared in the world for a long time.

Ancestor Minghe was known as the strongest under the Saints. Great Emperor Zhenwu felt that Tathagata’s mana was probably not as strong as a Saint’s, but he wondered who would be stronger or weaker between Tathagata and Ancestor Minghe?

On one side, Tathagata had used the Five Elements Mountain to suppress Wukong; Huang Tuqiu immediately entered Yao Pond and reported this joyous news to both the Queen Mother and the Jade Emperor.

Upon hearing the news, the Jade Emperor and Queen Mother couldn’t help but be overjoyed. The Queen Mother, who had been worried about capturing Wukong and had considered sending more experts, was also afraid that it would leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Now that they had heard Huang Tuqiu’s report, they both felt reassured, as if a huge weight had been lifted off their shoulders.

"The Lingxiao Palace has collapsed, and any other palace would be too shabby to entertain the Ancient Buddha. Why not invite the Ancient Buddha to Yao Pond? What do you think, Your Majesty?" the Jade Emperor asked.

"Let’s proceed as Your Majesty has decided! To be rid of this Demon Monkey is truly a delight," the Queen Mother said.

"Your Majesty, the Ancient Buddha did not kill the Demon Monkey," Huang Tuqiu hurriedly said.

"Hmm? What happened?" asked the Queen Mother.

Huang Tuqiu explained, "The Buddha Ancestor simply used magical powers and spells to suppress the Demon Monkey in the Lower Realm of Southern Toad Continent, saying it was a punishment to refine his spirit so that he might achieve True Fruition in the future. After all, the Demon Monkey is a transformation of Goddess Nu Wa’s Crystal Stone; perhaps that’s why the Buddha Ancestor showed some restraint."

The Jade Emperor thought to himself, "It seems like the Three Pure are all shielding this monkey head. It would be surprising indeed if Tathagata could kill him! Well, at least we have managed to suppress the Demon Monkey, averting a disaster, despite losing face for the Heavenly Court." He then said to the Queen Mother, "Your Majesty need not be upset. The Ancient Buddha’s actions must hold some deeper principle. Let us go welcome the Ancient Buddha without further delay, lest we neglect proper courtesy."

The You Yi Ling Officer immediately left Yao Pond, using the Traverse Through Earth Golden Light to approach Tathagata and said, "Ancient Buddha, please halt, His Majesty is on his way from Yao Pond to receive you."

Tathagata nodded his head with a smile, and his Six Zhang Golden Body slowly shrank to the size of an ordinary person. After all, the Jade Emperor was the Lord of Ten Thousand Heavens, and even if Tathagata met him, he would have to show due respect.

This move by Tathagata to suppress Wukong under the Five Elements Mountain made one wonder if it would bring about any unexpected variables.

As for Wukong, after being suppressed beneath the mountain, he remained still, thinking to himself, "I can spend these five hundred years delving into scholarly pursuits and principles."

Suddenly, a flash of green light appeared before his eyes, and Wusheng appeared in front of him. Wukong quickly said, "Great Sister, please forgive me for not being able to greet you properly."

Wusheng glanced at him and said, "You, monkey, have indeed caused a catastrophic disaster, haven’t you? No wonder you went to seek help from Master—it was a clever plan."

Wukong just giggled mischievously and replied, "To see me in such distress without offering comfort and only scolding me seems rather heartless of you, Great Sister!"

Wusheng reprimanded, "You mischievous monkey, do you think I don’t know you? Outside, you still have another identity as the Daoist Equal to Heaven."

Wukong hastened to say, "Great Sister is truly wise; nothing can be hidden from you."

Wusheng laughed and tapped him on the head, saying, "Just stay put under the Five Elements Mountain and behave yourself!"

Wukong then asked, "I wonder what brings Great Sister here? Could it be you’ve come to ridicule your Junior Brother? I have been outwitted and have also brought shame to our Master’s reputation. Why don’t you go and challenge Tathagata instead, and see whether our Three Stars Sect is stronger or Buddhism is more profound?"

Wusheng, finding the monkey’s nonsensical words amusing, hit him hard and replied, "I am here on Master’s orders; do not speak further."

"I wonder what exactly Master intends by sending Great Sister now! It seems he must have a close connection with the Three Pure, even if he isn’t Laojun, to be so in sync with them," Wukong pondered to himself.

The purpose of Subhuti sending Wusheng remains unknown. Please listen for further explanations in the next episode.

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