Journey to the West: Beginning with the Apprenticeship of Bodhi Patriarch

Chapter 227: The two great saints fight, and the outcome is hard to determine
In the Huaishui Water Palace, the Water Ape Great Sage welcomed the immortals and their group into the water palace, set up a banquet for them, welcomed the immortals to sit in the main seat, served them spiritual fruits and fragrant tea, and worshiped them devoutly.

Jiang Yuan sat at the table, smiling broadly, and asked, "Great Sage of the Ape, have you really protected the peace of this place today?"

The Water Ape Great Sage bowed before the throne and said, "I have received great kindness from the Immortal, and I dare not break my promise. Since the Immortal left, I have devoted myself to guarding the water veins, protecting the peace of this place, and cultivating my mind."

Jiang Yuan stood up and helped him up, saying: "I have seen what you did when I came here. I am very happy that you can return to the right path and practice cultivation to protect the whole world."

The Great Sage of the Ape bowed again and said, "If the True Man had not forgiven me, I would never have returned to the right path."

Jiang Yuan smiled and shook his head, then helped him to sit down and asked, "How is your practice today?"

The Water Ape Great Sage replied, "Before the Immortal left, he once said to me, 'One thought can give rise to a hundred demons, and cultivation is the most painful, what can we do about it?' I should talk less, do less, and cultivate with all my heart. Although I have not made great progress, I have gained the advantage of having a peaceful mind, and spiritual images are born naturally."

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "Just cultivate your mind and your magical power will come naturally. There is no need to rush."

The Great Water Ape Sage nodded and said, "Master, I now understand and will never forget. If there is a flood in the Nine Provinces, I will go along the waterway to help the people."

As he was speaking, he suddenly saw Sun Wukong, so he asked, "Master, I don't know who this person is? He is a monkey like me."

Jiang Yuan replied: "He is my fellow apprentice Sun Wukong, you must have heard of his name."

As Sun Wukong listened to what his eldest brother said, he stood up and looked towards the Water Ape Great Sage.

At this moment, the Water Ape King also looked at Sun Wukong. When their eyes met, they naturally felt the desire to fight.

The Great Sage of the Aquarius bowed and said, "I have heard of it. In the past, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven caused a great disturbance in the Heavenly Palace. There were few monsters in the world who did not know his name. There was once a gossiper who called him the greatest monster in history. Who could not know this? I heard that the Great Sage Equaling Heaven later converted to Buddhism and recently achieved enlightenment, and was named Fighting and Victory Buddha."

Sun Wukong responded by saying, "I don't deserve the title of the greatest demon in history. I have also heard of the name of the Great Sage of the Aquatic Ape, but I have never had the chance to come and meet him."

The Aquatic Monkey King laughed and said, "I've heard that the Great Sage Equaling Heaven is unruly, but I didn't expect him to be so polite."

Sun Wukong shook his head and said, "In my early years, I practiced cultivation but not my mind, so I was rebellious. Now that I have finally practiced, I will never be like I was before."

The Great Ape Sage looked at Sun Wukong with a sharp gaze and suddenly asked, "Great Sage, I have heard of your name a long time ago. You and I are both apes. Would you be so kind as to challenge me to a duel?"

Sun Wukong showed his fighting spirit and said, "Of course I can do it."

The two men turned around and bowed to the Immortal, asking for his approval.

The Immortal naturally agreed and asked the two men to go out of the Huai River to fight.

The two men took the order and headed towards the Huai River.

The Bull Demon King stepped forward and said, "Master, we have to go out and watch."

Jiang Yuan nodded and said, "You come with me."

He then looked at Zuo Liang and said, "Zuo Liang, do you want to join us?"

Zuo Liang stood up and saluted, saying, "Sir, I would like to go with you."

Jiang Yuan nodded and headed towards the Huai River.

The Bull Demon King came with the wind, carrying Zuo Liang, and walked out with the Immortal.

The group walked to a high mountain beyond the Huai River. The immortals waited there, looking down from afar. At this time, Sun Wukong and the Water Ape Great Sage were in the forest in the mountains and had not yet fought.

The Bull Demon King looked around for a long time and asked, "Master, who do you think is better, this brother or the Water Ape Great Sage?"

The Immortal shook his head and said, "In terms of martial arts, the Water Ape Great Sage is slightly better, but in terms of magical powers, Wukong is better. It's hard to say in a fight like this."

The Bull Demon King was somewhat surprised and asked, "How can the Water Ape Great Sage be so powerful? My dear brother Wukong has become a Buddha now, and his skills have greatly improved compared to the past. I am still no match for you, how can the Water Ape Great Sage be able to defeat you?"

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "Didn't you defeat the Water Ape Great Sage in the past?"

The Bull Demon King shook his head and said, "Master, it is a little different. I have been practicing with you for a long time. My skills are far better than before. I am still no match for you, which shows how capable you are."

Jiang Yuan said: "You can still practice, and so can the Water Ape Great Sage."

The Bull Demon King said, "I heard what the Water Ape Great Sage said just now, that my practice has not made much progress. Could it be that he is deceiving me?"

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "If he said that his practice had not grown, then that meant that his practice had not grown. If he said that his practice had not grown, then that meant that his practice had improved greatly."

After hearing this, Bull Demon King pondered for a long time and said, "Master is right. I was wrong."

Jiang Yuan said: "Just watch carefully, the outcome of this fight is hard to predict."

The Bull Demon King responded and looked at the mountains and forests.

……

In the forest, Sun Wukong put on his armor, swung his golden cudgel, looked at the Water Monkey King, and said, "Water Monkey King, I am taking my armor. Do you have any treasures? If so, please take one of them."

The Aquatic Ape Great Sage shook his head and said, "I don't have as many treasures as you do."

Sun Wukong hesitated for a moment and said, "In that case, I will take the armor away. It would be unfair for me to fight you with the armor."

The Great Ape Sage laughed and said, "No need, no need! You can just use your skills to fight me. No matter what treasures you have, I am not afraid."

After saying that, the Great Sage of the Water Ape soared into the air, swinging a fine iron spear, with a fierce and powerful momentum, his roar was like thunder, his feet were running like a rolling wind, he was truly a Tai Sui God on earth.

Seeing the great momentum of the Water Ape Great Sage, Sun Wukong felt relieved, roared, and waved his Ruyi Jingu Bang. He was covered in golden armor, and divine light appeared in his mind, and thousands of Buddha lights illuminated the hall.

Sun Wukong said: "In this case, Great Sage Aquatic Ape, be careful!"

The Ape Great Sage laughed and said, "I should return this to the Great Sage Equaling Heaven."

Without saying a word, the two men started fighting. Sun Wukong flew into the air on a cloud, swung his golden cudgel, and hit the Water Ape King in the face.

The Great Sage of the Ape-Water turned around and swung his iron spear, holding the golden hoop stick, and fought against Sun Wukong. The two fought, and it was a fierce fight. The Great Sage of the Ape-Water and the Great Sage of the Heavenly King, the golden hoop stick and the fine iron spear collided with each other. The rays of light were like lightning, the cold air was chilling, and the dark clouds covered the ridges. The Great Sage of the Ape-Water was a spirit of heaven and earth, who had learned the correct way from Fangcun, and was now a Buddha with strong abilities. The Great Sage of the Ape-Water was a monster in the river, who had done evil by mistake, but fortunately he was converted and showed his magical powers. Both families had the desire to compete, and they were determined to win. The fight was so fierce that the sky was dark and the earth was dark, and the ghosts and gods were frightened. The sun was dim and the smoke was thick, and the dragon and the tiger fought.

The two monkeys fought for more than thirty rounds. Sun Wukong's martial arts were slightly inferior to that of the Water Ape King, but he had great endurance. No matter how the Water Ape King fought, he could not be defeated.

Sun Wukong said: "Brother, you have great martial arts skills. Now look at my magical power!"

He swung the iron rod, plucked out a handful of hair, threw it into his mouth, chewed it into pieces, and blew it into the air. He shouted "change", and then tens of thousands of monkeys appeared and attacked the Water Ape Great Sage.

The Ahuizotl Great Sage laughed and said, "Well done!"

The Water Ape Great Sage shook his body, revealing a three-headed, six-armed being. How could he be afraid of these monkeys? No matter how the monkeys rushed at him, he would kill them all.

Upon seeing this, Sun Wukong threw away his golden cudgel, which turned into thousands of iron rods and attacked at the same time.

The Water Ape Great Sage just swung his iron spear like a spinning wheel, flying there, and no matter how powerful the golden hoop was, it could not hurt him.

The two men were fighting with great enthusiasm, and each used his magical powers.

Just as the immortal said, in terms of magical powers, the Water Ape Great Sage is inferior to Sun Wukong and can only defend. However, it is extremely difficult for Sun Wukong to defeat the Water Ape Great Sage with magical powers.

On the top of the mountain, all the immortals saw this exquisite fight and praised the abilities of the two.

The Bull Demon King exclaimed: "Master, this fellow and the Water Ape Great Sage are truly amazing."

Jiang Yuan said: "Just concentrate on your training. Sooner or later, your abilities will be as good as Wukong and the Water Ape Great Sage."

The Bull Demon King laughed and said, "Master, I have realized it. There is no difference between those who are superior and inferior to those who have heard the truth, only between those who come first and those who come later."

Jiang Yuan said: "Just as you said."

Zuo Liang was a little shaky, and he stepped forward and asked, "Sir, this kind of magical power is really shocking."

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "I didn't want to ask you to come, but you wanted to follow me."

Zuo Liang shook his head and said, "It would be a pity if I didn't come with you."

Jiang Yuan said nothing more and reached out to support Zuo Liang.

Zuo Liangjiao was helped by the Immortal Master, and his vision became clear. He was frightened and realized that it was the Immortal Master who was helping him. He bowed to the Immortal Master and watched the fight between the two men at ease.

The Bull Demon King saw the fight in the forest and asked, "Master, now that the fight has come to this point, who do you think will win?"

Jiang Yuan hesitated for a moment and said, "Wukong."

The Bull Demon King asked, "Master, what do you mean?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, "It's hard to tell who will win between the two of them now. If we can only wait for a stalemate, Wukong will surely win. Niu'er, can you ever see when Wukong gets tired?"

Upon hearing this, Bull Demon King suddenly realized what was going on and said, "It is just as Master said. Brother Wukong has never been tired. Once I cannot hold Brother Wukong down and we are in a stalemate, then Brother Wukong will be the winner."

Jiang Yuan smiled and nodded, saying, "That's right. Wukong was created by heaven and earth, and there are very few people in the Three Realms who can surpass him in strength."

The Bull Demon King said: "If what you said is true, my dear brother will win."

Jiang Yuan said: "Let's wait and see. If the Water Ape Great Sage can react, there will still be hope."

Everyone then watched the battle situation.

Under the gaze of everyone.

The battle between the Ahuizotl and Sun Wukong continues.

It is difficult for the Aquatic Monkey King to win, and it is also difficult for Sun Wukong to defeat the Aquatic Monkey King.

After fighting for a long time, the two were unable to match their magical powers, so they turned to fighting to see who was better in martial arts.

Relying on his magical power to move mountains and hills, and his martial arts, Sun Wukong rushed forward recklessly. However, the Water Ape King was a master in this field, and it was difficult to determine the winner after the two fought in martial arts.

This fight lasted for more than two hundred rounds, with the sky changing from dark to light and from light to dark. The two men fought for two or three days, but in the end there was no winner, and they fought with each other using spears and sticks to show their strength.

However, during the fight, the Water Ape Great Sage was gasping for breath, while Sun Wukong became more and more courageous. There was a difference in endurance here, and the Water Ape Great Sage was far inferior to Sun Wukong.

Upon seeing this, the Water Ape King had no choice but to end the fight. He admitted that he was no match for Sun Wukong, and they all waited until the fight was over before returning to the Huai River Palace.

(End of this chapter)