Man in the heavens, wins by lying down to prove the truth

Chapter 332 The Monkey King Stirs Up Trouble in the Great Universe, The True Man Subdues the Great Sage with His Wish-Fulfilling Power

Meanwhile, in the celestial realm, some time ago, the Monkey King learned that the position of弼马温 (Bima Wen, a minor official in charge of horses) had no rank. Overwhelmed with resentment, he immediately rebelled and descended from heaven.

The Heavenly Court immediately mobilized its troops to punish the Monkey King, who then used his great supernatural powers to subdue 108,000 heavenly soldiers and awe hundreds of thousands of divine generals, shocking all the worlds of the Three Realms.

Even the Three Great Gods of the Sea Assembly, and Nezha himself, were no match for them. It was said that when the Victory in Battle technique was unleashed, it truly commanded the heavens and earth, and could overcome any obstacle. Then, wielding a Ruyi Jingu Bang (a magical staff), he struck down all the gods and ghosts, causing them to wail and cry.

After defeating the heavenly soldiers, the Monkey King became even more arrogant. He put on an ochre-yellow robe and raised a dragon banner inscribed with: Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

This blatant act of rebellion terrified the gods and saints of the Three Realms, and caused all the great beings of the world to change color.

Fortunately, the Great Heavenly Venerable showed mercy and took pity on the monkey's original nature, bestowing upon him the title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven, granting him an official position but no salary, and ordering him to manage the Peach Blossom Pure Land. This has been the case for over a hundred years.

For the past hundred years, Sun Wukong had nothing to do, so he spent his days visiting friends and palaces, making friends and forming sworn brotherhoods. He would wander east one day and west the next, without any sense of freedom.

If you see the Three Pure Ones, address them as "Old One"; if you meet the Four Emperors, address them as "Your Majesty".

As for the Star Lords, Heavenly Kings, True Lords, Marshals, and others, they were all treated as brothers and addressed each other by their titles. The rest of the people were all regarded as juniors.

Upon hearing this, the Great Celestial Venerable sighed and said, "This monkey does not cultivate his mind and will cause trouble sooner or later. Since his mind is like a restless monkey that cannot be tamed, let him take a shortcut and first subdue a wooden mother."

With a sigh, the Great Heavenly Venerable decreed that the monkey should temporarily guard the Pure Land of Peach Banquets to help him subdue his desires for gluttony, pleasure, and laziness.

The Monkey King accepted the decree, gave a loud "yes," and happily took office.

Upon entering the peach orchard, one sees the trees laden with blossoms and fruit weighing down the branches. Instantly, one feels a surge of heat in the heart, a rush of saliva to the mouth, and an irresistible urge to eat.

Barely suppressing his inner turmoil, the Monkey King used a spell to summon the local earth god and asked, "How many fruit trees are there here?"

The local deity immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty, there are 3,600 trees in the Pure Land, which is the same number as the heavens. Each tree has three grades and colors, and their wonderful uses are different."

The Monkey King nodded repeatedly, his eyes gleaming as he looked at the purple-veined peaches. He couldn't help but ask, "May I have a taste of these spiritual fruits?"

Upon hearing this, the local deity was so shocked that he kowtowed repeatedly and pleaded in a pitiful voice, "Great Sage, Great Sage, you mustn't! The Heavenly Laws are strict and cannot be violated! You mustn't violate them!"

The Great Sage is all-powerful. If he breaks the heavenly rules, he may be able to save himself, but the poor little earth spirit will surely suffer the consequences and his soul will be scattered.

Seeing this, the Monkey King repeatedly said to give up, but he was still unconvinced.

"What heavenly laws and regulations? If the Heavenly Court can do anything to me, why did they bestow upon me the title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven? Hmph, let's find an excuse to eat a few of those things."

Several days passed in this way. One day, while patrolling the garden, the Monkey King used a magic trick to have a hearty meal in the purple-striped peach grove, feeling very comfortable.

More than half a month passed in this carefree life. Since the initial conferment of the title of Great Sage Equal to Heaven, a full 180 days had passed, which would be equivalent to three Jiazi in the mortal realm.

On this day, the seven fairy maidens came to pick peaches in preparation for the Peach Banquet, which startled Sun Wukong.

"Stay on!"

The Monkey King shouted sharply, startling the seven fairies so much that their branches trembled, their eyes filled with fear, and they were at a loss for what to do.

"Why have you entered the garden without my permission, Old Sun?"

The seven fairies hurriedly said, "Greetings, Great Sage! Please forgive us, Great Sage. We have come on the orders of the Queen Mother to find ripe peaches and prepare a grand peach feast."

The Monkey King immediately became interested and asked, "Is there a seat for me at this Peach Feast?"

The Seven Fairies shook their heads: "The invitations to today's grand gathering have not yet been sent out, so we are unaware of them. As for the old rules, they are as follows..."

As they spoke, the Seven Fairies read out the list of powerful figures from all sides who had attended the last grand gathering.

Upon hearing this, Wukong's mind became agitated, and he angrily said, "I possess supernatural powers that rival the heavens, astonishing cultivation that amazes the world, and an official rank that is supreme. Why didn't you invite me, Old Sun? You all stand there for now. I, Old Sun, will go and ask the Jade Emperor for an explanation before we discuss whether the Peach Banquet will be held or not!"

Now, the good monkey, using the initial great technique, leaped into the golden light and headed straight for the Jade Pool. Realizing he hadn't been invited, his three corpses throbbed violently, smoke billowing from his seven orifices. This caused his mind to turn over, his will to break free, and he continued his demonic ways.

First, he stirred up the Jade Pool, and all the fine wines, delicacies, and rare foods ended up in the belly of the good monkey. Then, drunk and staggering, he entered the Tushita Heaven.

Since there was no one to guard the Tushita Heaven, they used up all kinds of golden pills.

Regardless of what kind of pills they were, they swallowed them all without distinguishing them, and the number was unknown.

Now, this Laozi Golden Elixir is truly extraordinary. Three cycles bring enlightenment, five cycles bring longevity, seven cycles bring supernatural powers, and nine cycles bring primordial chaos.

Great Sage, you devoured it like eating fried beans, thus fulfilling your destiny, stabilizing your origin, achieving countless supernatural powers, and reaching out to pluck the Primordial Dao Fruit.

At this point, the restless mind was exhausted, the wandering thoughts returned to their resting place, and the two spirits of consciousness and desire ceased to cause trouble. The good monkey finally came to his senses and was immediately filled with fear.

"Disaster, disaster! How did I manage to wreak havoc on the Tushita Palace? Just as my master said, I have caused a calamity higher than the sky. What should I do?"

Overwhelmed with fear, the Monkey King abandoned his high position as the Supreme Being in Heaven and fled to the mortal realm.

……

The next morning, at the Heavenly Court's morning court session, in the Lingxiao Palace, the Seven Fairy Maidens prostrated themselves to apologize and recounted the whole story of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

Before the Great Celestial Venerable could speak, four Grand Celestial Masters came forward to report: "The Supreme Dao Ancestor has arrived."

"All of you, quickly follow me to welcome the Dao Ancestor!"

After the Great Celestial Venerable finished speaking, he, along with the Queen Mother, led all the heavens to appear and jointly overthrow Laozi.

Laozi bowed respectfully and said, "In my palace, I refined some Nine-Turn Golden Elixir to serve Your Majesty at the Pill Refining Ceremony, but it was unexpectedly stolen by a thief. I am hereby informing Your Majesty of this."

Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor's expression changed drastically, and he was even filled with fear!

The Nine-Turn Golden Elixir, also known as the Primordial Golden Elixir.

A single Golden Core undergoes nine cycles, which leads to a Primordial Dao Fruit.

What is the Primordial Great Power? It is being one with the Dao, it is following the myriad Daos at will, it is universally observing the universe.

Those who possess the Primordial Chaos shall not be punished.

Because a primordial being enters Nirvana, if they die, they are truly dead.

If one attains Nirvana in the midst of annihilation, then one transcends to the highest level.

Therefore, Hunyuan cannot be punished.

If it were just about feeding the monkey the Nine-Turn Golden Elixir, that would be fine.

But if the monkey were to give that Nine-Turn Golden Elixir to someone else, who knows how many Primordial Chaos Great Powers would emerge in the world?

On the throne, the Jade Emperor's face was neither happy nor sad. He glanced at the Thirty-Six Heavens of the Sacred Realm, and then looked towards the Taiyi Heaven beyond the Yama World.

The Nine-Turn Golden Elixir was stolen?
The Jade Emperor was so angry he almost laughed, and finally felt a hint of murderous intent towards the Monkey King.

But considering that the Three Pure Ones were the embodiment of the Dao, and thinking of the great beings beyond the mortal world in the Taiyi Heaven, the Jade Emperor remained silent.

For a moment, the atmosphere in Lingxiao Palace was frighteningly oppressive.

After a long while, the Jade Emperor's voice rang out again: "Dao Ancestor, please take your seat first. I was momentarily distracted and made a mistake. Please forgive me."

"How dare I? Your Majesty may decide for yourself." Laozi sat calmly in the chief seat.

The Jade Emperor nodded and spoke again: "Hear my decree, dispatch the Four Heavenly Kings, together with Li Tianwang and Prince Nezha, to mobilize the Twenty-Eight Constellations, the Nine Luminaries, the Twelve Earthly Branches, the Five Directions, the Four Duty Officers, the Eastern and Western Stars, the Northern and Southern Gods, the Five Sacred Mountains and the Four Rivers, and all the constellations of the heavens, totaling 100,000 heavenly soldiers, to set up eighteen layers of heavenly nets and capture the demon monkey alive!"

Upon hearing this, the gods looked at each other in bewilderment.

That demon monkey ate Laozi's Nine-Turn Golden Pill and became a Hunyuan Great Power. Although he took a shortcut, he was far inferior to a true Great Virtue Hunyuan. But among them, who could do anything to him?

And the Great Celestial Venerable is to be captured alive?
But the gods dared not say more, and only ordered him to kowtow and accept the decree, leave the Heavenly Palace, and go down to the mortal world.

In the blink of an eye, a day in the sky passes, and spring and autumn turn on earth.

On the throne, the Jade Emperor looked at the Supreme Dao Ancestor at the head of the table and said softly, "That demon monkey is indeed extraordinary. Even with all the heavenly gods from all directions present, he is no match for it. What should we do?"

Laozi laughed and said, "It's just a monkey that cultivates life but not nature. Even if it lives as long as heaven and earth, it's still a fool. Even if it has eternal Dao energy, how can it escape the net of heaven and earth? Great Heavenly Venerable, please be patient." The Jade Emperor seemed to be praising the monkey's power, but in reality, he was hinting that he would take action himself.

Laozi said that the monkey demon was nothing and that the Great Celestial Venerable didn't need to take action. He told Laozi to just sit still.

Upon hearing this, the Supreme Celestial Venerable closed his eyes halfway and said no more.

"Your Majesty, the Bodhisattva of the Sea and a host of celestial beings have come to pay their respects."

A celestial attendant entered the Lingxiao Palace, bowed, and announced the arrival of the attendant.

Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor finally smiled and said, "Please invite the Bodhisattvas and all others inside."

"This humble monk greets the Great Celestial Venerable."

After Guanyin Bodhisattva finished her homage, the Great Heavenly Venerable hurriedly said, "Please, Bodhisattva, take a seat first."

After taking their seats, the Bodhisattva asked, "This humble monk was invited to the Peach Banquet, why am I not present at the grand gathering?"

The Jade Emperor feigned a sigh and said, "This year's grand gathering has been disrupted by a great demon, a celestial monkey, who has ruined all the peaches in the Pure Land. Therefore, it has been cancelled."

Upon hearing this, the Bodhisattva feigned surprise, then calculated with his fingers and laughed, "The Great Heavenly Venerable knows that an invitation has been sent to the Taiyi Heaven beyond the mortal realm, so the demon monkey will naturally be subdued."

"Oh, what do you mean by that?"

How could the Jade Emperor not know? But some things cannot be said outright.

The Bodhisattva of the Sea said: "In the past, this demon monkey once caused trouble in the underworld. At that time, the Great Virtue Master was discussing the Dao with Ksitigarbha. Seeing that this demon monkey was being presumptuous, he said that they came from the same school and personally took action to subdue him."

The Jade Emperor laughed and said, "It turns out that the Great Virtue Master Chu Chu was not strict enough in disciplining him. Where is Tai Bai? Take my invitation and go straight to Taiyi Heaven to ask the Great Virtue Master Chu Chu to come down from the mountain, teach this monkey a lesson, and investigate his crime of theft."

They disrupted the Peach Banquet and stole the Nine-Turn Elixir.

What heinous crime?

In the Jade Emperor's eyes, it was a "crime" of theft.

It was just a mistake, not even a crime.

Some troubles have a history, so even if you cause them, you'll be fine.

If they hadn't established themselves, they would have been wiped out long ago.

Do you really think the Jade Emperor didn't see the monkeys causing trouble at the Peach Banquet? He just couldn't be bothered. He used that as an excuse to let them off lightly and even gain a favor.

Only those who manage to steal the elixir from the Tushita Palace are truly unseen by the Jade Emperor.

Even the Jade Emperor wouldn't dare to spy on the Supreme Daoist Temple in the Great Crimson Heaven.

……

Now, let's talk about the Taiyi Grotto Heaven, the place where the Dharma is preached.

A great and virtuous master sat on the Dharma platform, expounding the Great Way, while a multitude of wise men lined up on both sides to listen to the wondrous Dharma.

Suddenly, golden light descended from the sky, and Venus shone brightly, as if a star deity had come to see them.

"I, Li Changgeng, humbly request an audience with His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor."

"Why is it Li Bai who came here?"

As Zhou Cheng finished speaking, the old star lord kowtowed repeatedly and said, "Today, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven of Flower Fruit Mountain is causing trouble. He is stealing peaches, wine, and pills in the Heavenly Palace and disrupting the grand gathering. We have deployed 100,000 heavenly soldiers and 18 sets of Heavenly Nets to surround the mountain and subdue him, but we have not been able to win."

"Now that we have heard that the Great Sage is a disciple of His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor, we request His Majesty to come down from the mountain and instruct the Great Sage so as to expose his faults."

As soon as Venus finished speaking, the hall erupted in uproar.

How could Wukong commit such a grave crime?

"Disaster, disaster."

"..."

Even though the group of sages had all achieved some level of spiritual cultivation, they were all horrified when they heard that their former junior brother had committed such a heinous crime.

How could this person commit such a heinous crime?
"quiet!"

Yi Feizi raised his whisk and, with a solemn expression, began to admonish his fellow disciples.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Cheng remained expressionless and looked at Yi Feizi, saying, "In that case, Yi Feizi, go and capture that rascal and hand him over to the Great Heavenly Venerable for judgment."

Upon hearing this, Yi Feizi rose and bowed, saying, "I will respectfully obey my master's decree."

After saying this, Yi Feizi's whisk transformed into a Ruyi scepter, and his words became law: "I have the ability to capture the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong."

As soon as he finished speaking, a clear light rippled, and all the Daoist paths were forced back. A Daoist Heavenly Venerable sat there, startling the old star lord so much that his expression changed drastically.

Immediately, the Legalist sage raised his hand and made a sweeping motion, causing ripples throughout the universe. He and the old star lord disappeared from the spot.

Now, outside Flower Fruit Mountain, above the clouds, outside the camp of the gods.

Then the Dharma Flower Circulation appeared, and two figures emerged: Yi Feizi and the old Venus.

"This is a military camp, stop immediately."

The five guardian deities immediately stepped forward, holding their long spears to block Yi Feizi and Old Venus.

Seeing this, Old Venus stepped forward and solemnly said, "You all should quickly report that the Great Master of the Great Virtue Sect has come by imperial decree to capture the demon monkey."

The guardian general was one of the Five Sacred Mountains Generals. Upon hearing this, he immediately reported it.

In a short while, the drums beat, the conch shells sounded, the tents opened, and Li Tianwang led a host of gods to welcome the Great Immortal Ya Yifei.

"I was unaware of the arrival of the Great Master. I am ashamed to have come to greet you. Please forgive me." Li Tianwang hurriedly bowed and apologized.

Yi Feizi remained expressionless and said, "The Heavenly King's gift is too generous for me, as I have neither merit nor reward to accept."

"Where is that demon monkey now? Let's capture him."

Upon hearing this, Li Tianwang realized that the person in front of him was a cultivator who did not concern himself with trivial matters or etiquette. He immediately stopped talking and said, "I am in that camp. I just started cursing a battle not long ago."

"To my shame, we have suffered defeat after defeat and dare not go out to fight."

"If a true immortal were to subdue this monkey, what kind of assistance would he require?"

Yi Feizi shook his head and said, "There's no need for that. Just watch me take him down."

Having said that, Yi Feizi held up the jade ruyi and issued a decree: "I hereby summon the Great Sage Equal to Heaven to come and see me at once, as the law commands!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of blue light appeared, and a four-foot-tall figure dressed in an ochre-yellow robe instantly appeared in front of Yi Feizi.

"Big, Senior Brother!"

The good monkey was still holding a wine cup, making a drinking gesture, when he was suddenly brought here. His expression changed drastically.

Little did anyone know that the monkey, Li Tianwang, and all the other gods were utterly horrified upon seeing this.

Even if a Primordial Great Power attains enlightenment through unorthodox methods and the Golden Elixir, resulting in a lack of wisdom and spiritual dissatisfaction, they are still a Primordial Great Power.

Such a powerful being was treated like a mere local deity before this mysterious immortal, commanding him at will. How could they not be astonished?

"I'll hold you for this moment!"

The monkey, which was about to escape, heard this sound and immediately felt its primordial spirit become clouded, its supernatural powers dissipate, its great path vanish, its magical power become dormant, and it was unable to move its entire body.

(End of this chapter)