The Battle in Journey to the West
Chapter 124 - 121: Bodhisattva Descends the Mountain to Meet Zhuangzi_2

Chapter 124: Chapter 121: Bodhisattva Descends the Mountain to Meet Zhuangzi_2

Guanyin could only swing the rattan in her hand, creating a barrier so dense not even water could penetrate, nor fire enter, ultimately keeping countless swords at bay.

"Are you the Zhuang Zhou of the Daoist Sect?" Guanyin asked loudly.

"It is indeed I." Zhuang Zhou answered, but his hands continued to not let her go, commanding Kunpeng to claw at the Bodhisattva.

This was the first time Guanyin had faced someone who had become an immortal through studying the principles of the Human Sage. She hadn’t realized their might before, but now she had learned it firsthand. She had heard that Confucius had once beaten the Buddha of Immeasurable Life so badly he fled Luoyang City in a disgraceful state, a story she hadn’t quite believed, but now she believed it almost entirely.

Zhuang Zhou was also a scholar who had transcended the worldly, his achievements no less than Confucius. But to study was to continually question, so he had recently been inquiring into the teachings of Confucius from Confucianism.

Behind Guanyin, a giant Buddha rose to protect her, but Kunpeng’s sharp claws struck down, shattering the Buddha’s Dharma Body. Guanyin had to block it, but how could she withstand the immense power of Kunpeng? With one blow, she felt a sweetness in her throat, internal organs injured, and she was sent flying.

"Buddha Ancestor, save me!" Guanyin cried out, in a moment of grave danger, not caring whether Tathagata could hear her.

No sooner had the words left her mouth than a huge Hand Seal came down, repelling Kunpeng with a single strike, its wings flapping like a hurricane.

The one who intervened was not Tathagata, but Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, the chief of the Four Great Bodhisattvas. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, riding Di Ting from afar, called out, "Zhuangzi, hold your hand! This is my sect’s affair."

Seeing another from the Buddhist sect who seemed no less powerful in mana than himself, Zhuangzi stayed his hand, asking, "And who might you be?"

"I am Ksitigarbha King Bodhisattva, and this is the greatly compassionate and merciful Bodhisattva Guanyin, who alleviates suffering and distress. There might be some misunderstandings with Zhuangzi, so please do not take offense," Ksitigarbha King said with a smile.

"Ah! I have heard somewhat of your fame, ’Hell is not empty, I swear not to achieve Buddhahood,’" Zhuangzi nodded and said.

"Wherever Zhuangzi wishes to go, just proceed, and we will return to Mount Meru to explain to the Buddha Ancestor," Ksitigarbha King said.

Zhuangzi was not the kind of person who would hold onto his point of view to the detriment of others. Apart from the sage experts of Legalism and Militarists, most of the Holy Sages of the Human Path were quite generous in spirit, generally not killing without a cause. Had the visitor been a legalist sage like Han Feizi or a military sage like Sun Wu, Guanyin might not have escaped unharmed.

Zhuangzi said, "Where I am going, I shall not tell you, since this is a misunderstanding, you go and report back to that World Honored One!"

Zhuangzi would not be foolish enough to explain his whereabouts to them—wasn’t that just waiting for them to come and hunt him down?

Ksitigarbha King breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that Zhuangzi, if in the right, would not let it go. But seeing that he was also willing to cease hostilities, he grabbed Guanyin and together they rode the clouds away.

"How did you manage to provoke such humanely enlightened beings? Although they are not as formidable as a Sage of the Heavenly Dao, they are still quite difficult to deal with. If I hadn’t arrived just in time, you might have already lost your life. Zhuang Zhou, relying on a scroll of ’Free and Easy Wandering’ to cultivate the Dao of Immortals, has connected with the will of Kunpeng, and is not easy to deal with!" Ksitigarbha King whispered.

"Ah... I came by the order of Buddha Ancestor to fetch him, for he has slain Ananda and Kasyapa, two venerable ones. Buddha Ancestor is quite furious!" Guanyin said with a bitter smile.

Ksitigarbha King said, "I will accompany you to Mount Meru to see Buddha Ancestor, and explain the matter. If he learns that you were defeated by the Human Sage, he, too, will not blame you."

Guanyin said with a bitter smile, "It might also add some laughter for them. Buddha of Immeasurable Life has been beaten by the Master, losing great face, and here I am defeated by Zhuang Zhou."

"Don’t worry! As long as your life is not lost, everything is negotiable; otherwise, a million years of cultivation would just be a pie in the sky, now that would be a real joke!" Ksitigarbha King reassured.

Guanyin nodded and departed with Ksitigarbha King for Mount Meru.

Zhuang Zhou, seeing that they did not persist, reassured himself, activated his Escape Technique, and rushed directly to the Thirty-Three Heavens, thinking to himself: "What grudge does this Buddhist sect have against me that they must bother me time and again? I don’t even know the caliber of the two I killed."

The Dao of Immortals values tranquility and naturalness; Zhuang Zhou naturally embodies this. He hardly heard much about the affairs of the Buddhist sect, and even if he did, he would likely forget it soon after. However, he did know of Ksitigarbha King, for indeed, the great vow made by Ksitigarbha King was all too astounding.

Daoist Equal to Heaven sure has great fortune, to have such a Human Sage take the blame for him, otherwise, he would have been in significant danger this time.

To find out what happened next, please follow the next part of the story.

PS: This book blends the backgrounds of "Divine Enthronement" and "Journey to the West"; it is not the traditional "Journey to the West," after all, the backdrop of "Journey to the West" is too restricted for expansion, hence the integration with "Divine Enthronement." Also, some people have been asking why in the original "Journey to the West," Laojun appears so inferior, yet I wrote him to be more formidable than Tathagata?

Firstly, we need to discuss Wu Cheng’en, this damn author. Born during the Zhengde Era, he experienced four emperors. By estimation, "Journey to the West" would have been written during the Jiajing Era, and completed during the Wanli Era. Emperor Jiajing’s reign was inherited from Zhengde; he delighted in Taoist arts, was obsessed with alchemy chasing longevity, and let Yan Song and his son wreak havoc, leading to a chaotic Ming Dynasty. Hence the saying arose: Jiajing, Jiajing, every household is clean, all are spotless, showing the enormity of grievances.

From "Journey to the West," it is evident that it subtly promotes Buddhism over Taoism, also a political perspective of the time. Wu Cheng’en harbored deep resentment towards Emperor Jiajing’s constant indulgence in alchemy. The satirical tones in "Journey to the West" also reflect this, causing the book’s bias towards Buddhism.

Indeed, in the orthodox view, Laojun is the junior among Three Pure Ones, yet he’s the eldest in "Divine Enthronement," and "Journey to the West" supports this with poetry - Laojun is inevitably influential, being credited with cosmic creation. His power surely cannot be considered inferior to Tathagata’s, right? The reason he appears more respectful towards the Jade Emperor is because the Jade Emperor is the Great Heavenly Master, whom even Tathagata must salute. Laojun’s eminence is not less than Tathagata’s; after all, he is the forebear of the Taoist sect. Saying Laojun didn’t exist in ancient times is far-fetched; if Buddha can reincarnate as Gautama to spread the Buddhist law, why couldn’t Laojun descend to propagate his Way of Dao?

The Taoist sect is the orthodox sect of China. The Buddhist sect is but a foreign path from the Western Regions; many of their principles were lifted from Taoist texts. As Master Zhu Xi rightly said, Taoists ignorant of reading Lao-Zhuang books were robbed entirely by the Buddhists, who then revered Buddhism like a rich child scavenging through stolen remnants.

Moreover, the Buddhist hypocrisy is detestable; this "Huahu Scripture" is just one instance. They even went so far as to pin this falsehood onto the Taoists, claiming it was fabricated by Taoists to slander them. Due to the Han people’s xenophobia at the time, if they didn’t proceed this way, they couldn’t have made any headway. They later claimed that the Taoists competed against them in displaying divine skills and lost, at a time when the Daoist sect hadn’t even formed a cohesive sect. Such nonsense is truly unbearable. These, I heard from a Buddha-revering elder, then I went to verify for myself, and the results contradicted what he said, although he was using this assertion that Buddhism is superior to Daoism to lecture me, totally different from my findings. When it comes to history, one should view it with a correct perspective, not just read a few online novels or hear something and think they possess sufficient knowledge; that would be a huge joke.

The novel has a strong personal touch; if a Daoist priest were writing "Journey to the West," perhaps it’d have a completely different feel, probably having Monkey subdue Tathagata. My "The Battle in Journey to the West" naturally contains my personal color and thoughts. Those who resonate can continue reading, those who think I’m just spouting nonsense can skip it; just laugh it off. About what is supposed to happen in the Year of Wuyin and what is being satirized, perhaps some friends have already guessed, but I’ll leave it as a cliffhanger for those still in the dark.

In conclusion, I welcome friends to raise meaningful questions and suggestions... As for those boring and ignorant, I just ignore them, directly unseen, unheard, like how the Sword Array of Immortal-slaying should only have three swords, how can the Three Pure Ones be so weak; it’s all too tedious to discuss.