Chapter 59: Chapter 59: The World Awaits the Return of the Great Saint [Seeking Collection and Recommendation Tickets]_1
Li Bai’s avatar flowed with eloquence.
Sun Wukong, however, was dumbfounded. Had he ever said such things!? Wasn’t the Five Finger Mountain supposed to press down only on his body? How did it also press on his mind!?
Seeing Sun Wukong’s puzzled face, Li Bai’s avatar seized the moment, saying, "Great Saint, these words are yours. You might have forgotten, but the world has not."
"There’s a song in praise of you. Listen to it; it embodies the voice of the people. You must continue to fight."
Sun Wukong asked, "There’s a ballad too?"
Li Bai’s avatar replied, "Indeed there is. Listen to me sing it for you."
"’Monkey Brother, Monkey Brother, you’re truly amazing! The Five Elements Mountain can’t hold you down... COUGH, COUGH, my mistake, let me start over.’"
Sha Chen realized this song seemed to spoil too much and decided not to sing it.
"’Moonlight splashes across the Milky Way; a long and winding road. The smoke of battles has cleared, yet a solitary shadow stands forlorn. Who made me so skilled in battle? Who made me torn between love and hate, to be utterly heartbroken in the end? ...In rage, in sorrow, in madness! Am I man, ghost, or monster? It’s nothing more than a heart indebted to demons. Crying out to Buddha offers no shore of return. Kneeling to one as a master has nothing to do with life or death. Good and evil in this fleeting, illusory world, true and false distinctions... Worldly ties scatter and gather, unclear and hard to sever. What use do I have for this iron rod? What good are these transformations to me? Still restless, still deeply troubled...’"
Li Bai’s avatar sang "Wukong" with such expressiveness that Sun Wukong, already stirred, teared up with emotion.
A surge of fervor rose within him. His eyes filled with anger at the heavens’ unfairness, and his fists clenched as if he were ready to burst out and wreak havoc.
Li Bai’s avatar said, "Great Saint, the world awaits your return—defiant against the Heavenly Court, fearless before gods and Buddhas."
Sun Wukong grasped Li Bai’s hand and said, "Good brother, thank you for telling me so much. Thank you."
Then he added, "Just the other day, I almost forgave Tathagata. But now, my resolve is firm. I will never submit!"
Li Bai’s avatar was profoundly moved and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he said, "Great Saint, listen. Tathagata has you trapped here purely to coerce you into Buddhism. Are you willing?"
Sun Wukong harbored a bone-deep hatred for Buddhism, especially after Sha Chen’s song had stirred his resentment.
Naturally, he gritted his teeth and said, "I am not!"
Li Bai’s avatar went on, "’So, Buddhism intends to torment you and scare you into submission. Then they’ll appear, all sanctimonious, and coax you to join them. They’ll talk about having you escort a pilgrim to the West to acquire scriptures, ultimately achieving Buddhahood through merit.’"
Sun Wukong said furiously, "Buddhism is too deceitful! I’d rather die than chant sutras and be a vegetarian!"
Li Bai nodded. "Once you achieve Buddhahood, there are many things you won’t be able to do. You can’t drink wine, you can’t eat meat, and you’ll have to turn the other cheek to insults. Great Saint, can you endure that?"
Sun Wukong roared, "I can’t endure it! I, Old Sun, swear I will never become a Buddha!"
Li Bai nodded, satisfied, and said, "Great Saint, you must remember your words today and keep your resolve firm. Don’t become disheartened. Cultivate diligently."
Sun Wukong became troubled again. "I’m pinned under Five Finger Mountain. Even eating is a problem, let alone cultivation."
"’Not to hide it from you, brother,’ he said, ’I even have to relieve myself where I am. Cultivation is a luxury now.’"
Li Bai’s cheek twitched. Was he that unhygienic!?
But he still smiled and said, "Don’t worry, Great Saint. I’ll bring you food and drink every so often."
"You have consumed so many Immortal Pills and flat peaches that you probably haven’t digested much. Use this time under the Five Finger Mountain to cultivate well, and I’ll find an opportunity to help you break free."
These weren’t empty words from Li Bai; they were based on Sha Chen’s understanding and analysis of the Journey to the West.
When Sun Wukong first emerged from under Five Finger Mountain, he seemed weaker, initially unable to defeat even ordinary demons.
In reality, his power had regressed while he was suppressed, but he later recovered quickly and grew even stronger.
Later, he even became sworn brothers with Zhenyuanzi, which shows how formidable his strength was by then.
Zhenyuanzi was the ancestor of earth immortals, touted as the strongest below the Saints.
Zhenyuanzi’s willingness to become sworn brothers with Sun Wukong, aside from his desire to align himself with Buddhist destiny, was also a recognition of Sun Wukong’s strength.
Furthermore, Sun Wukong later fought the Buffalo to a draw with weapons, which also demonstrated his formidable strength.
The Buffalo was the sage Laozi’s mount and was at least a Quasi-Saint.
Sun Wukong’s power in his later stages became outrageously strong. This was due to his slow digestion of the stolen Immortal Pills and flat peaches, as well as his own formidable destiny and improvement.
The Journey to the West only spanned several decades, while Sun Wukong was suppressed under Five Finger Mountain for five hundred years.
If he used this time to refine the power of the Immortal Pills and flat peaches within him, his strength might have become heaven-defying even before he was freed.
The stronger he was, the harder it was for Buddhism to let go of him, and the more it troubled them.
A powerful Sun Wukong would not be easily controlled.
Therefore, Sha Chen had his avatar Li Bai come here to reinforce Sun Wukong’s resolve to resist Buddhism and the Heavenly Court, and to encourage him to cultivate diligently so he would have the ability to resist Buddhism’s suppression.
Sun Wukong said, "But with the Six-Syllable Mantra on Five Finger Mountain, I can’t cultivate."
Li Bai laughed, "That’s not a problem. The Six-Syllable Mantra only suppresses the Cultivation Technique you’re currently using. If you switch to a different technique, wouldn’t that solve the issue?"
Sun Wukong asked in surprise, "What do you mean?"
Li Bai replied, "If you abandon your Great Celestial Secret, I can teach you the Eight-Nine Profound Art. Then you’ll be able to rebuild your cultivation base, right?"
Sun Wukong exclaimed, "’Old Li, your idea is ingenious!’"
"’If this works, you’ll be like a new parent to me. After I get out, if anyone bullies you, they’ll be bullying me, Old Sun!’"
Li Bai smiled and urged Sun Wukong to quickly abandon his Cultivation Technique. Then, he imparted the Eight-Nine Profound Art to him.
Sun Wukong was thorough. He discarded not only his Cultivation Technique but also his 72 Polymorphic Transformations.
Li Bai was on a mission. He transmitted the Eight-Nine Profound Art, a new set of 72 Transformations, and even parts of the 36 Transformations to Sun Wukong.
It had to be said, Sun Wukong’s talent was the strongest Sha Chen had ever seen; he mastered the new arts in just one month.
Then, he began frantically refining the immense power of the Immortal Pills and flat peaches accumulated inside him, and his strength grew by leaps and bounds.
Li Bai hadn’t even left the cave when he sensed Sun Wukong’s cultivation break through to the Greater Primordial Golden Immortal realm, and he sensed Sun Wukong was still getting stronger.
He marveled. Such talent is truly enviable. Compared to his own body, which has been strengthened countless times, this is countless times more monstrous. It’s beyond envy.
Li Bai left. He planned to send food and drink every so often, which he would buy from cities thousands of miles away.
Sun Wukong would occasionally stick out his head to eat some bronze pellets, but it was just for show, to deceive the Heavenly Court, at Li Bai’s behest.
Cursing the heavens was also part of the act. With that, Sun Wukong had the chance to cultivate properly.
But later, he became more perfunctory, spitting out the bronze pellets after a few bites, and his shouts against the "damned old heavens" would die down.
He earnestly dedicated himself to closed-door cultivation, and his strength advanced mightily.
The Heavenly Court was overjoyed, assuming Sun Wukong had finally submitted. They passed the news to Lingjiu Mountain, telling them to come and collect their prize.