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

Chapter 228: Chongyang's Confusion in Cultivation
It tells the story that after the battle between Sun Wukong and the Water Ape King, everyone returned to the Water Palace.

The Water Ape Great Sage treated the Immortal and his group with courtesy in the Water Palace and entertained them for several days. After several days, the Immortal finally set out to leave.

The Great Sage Water Ape accompanied the Immortal out of the Huai River and walked to a mountain path. It was the third autumn here, and the scenery was as beautiful as winter. The old pines had jade stamens, and the withered willows were covered with silver flowers.

The Water Ape Great Sage led the white deer and walked along the road. He looked at the Immortal again and asked, "Is there anything I am not doing well in terms of etiquette? I have not read all the Confucian classics, so I don't know. If there is anything I am not doing well in, please let me know."

Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, "You are very polite and have never been impolite in any way. Why do you ask such a question?"

The Great Water Ape Sage said, "Master, since I have been so polite, why don't you stay for a while longer? If you leave after just one or two days, it will seem that I don't know etiquette, which makes me ashamed."

Jiang Yuan said, "It's not that I don't want to stay for long, but I have something important to do."

The Great Water Ape Sage asked, "Could you please tell me what this is? Then I can help you."

Jiang Yuan said: "This matter has nothing to do with you, why bother yourself."

The Water Ape Great Sage shook his head and said, "You can't say that. I have received great kindness from the Immortal, so I should help him and preserve his kindness."

Jiang Yuan said: "But if you protect the people here and guard the water veins, that will be your repayment. No need to think too much."

The Great Water Ape Sage had no choice but to agree, saying, "Master, I will definitely protect this place and prevent the Huai River from flooding. If there is a flood elsewhere in the Nine Provinces, I will rush there as soon as possible and will never break my promise."

Jiang Yuan agreed with a smile, and then he and the others said goodbye to the Water Ape Great Sage, got on the back of a deer, left the Huai River, and headed for Qingzhou.

The Water Ape Great Sage watched the Immortal leave, and had to turn back to the Huai River to guard it.

……

But the immortals and their group went to Qingzhou, with Sun Wukong leading the way with his golden cudgel.

Sun Wukong cleared the road ahead, turned around and said, "Big Brother."

Jiang Yuan rode on the white deer and asked with a smile: "Wukong, what do you have to say?"

Sun Wukong pondered for a long time and said, "Big Brother, I fought with the Water Ape Great Sage for a while, but my martial arts were not much better than his. However, I now have both hardness and softness, but I don't know where I can improve myself."

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "Why are you asking me this? Your martial arts are much better than mine."

Sun Wukong said: "My eldest brother is more advanced than me, he has a keen eye and should be able to see it."

Jiang Yuan said, "Wukong, there is nothing wrong with your practice, but you lack some skills. In terms of maturity, you are not as good as the Water Ape Great Sage. This is your lack of martial arts skills. You can make up for it in the future. With your talent, it will take no more than two to three years."

Sun Wukong seemed to be thinking about something, so he said, "Big Brother, if that's what you mean, how should I practice now? Should I focus on martial arts?"

Jiang Yuan reached out and patted the monkey's head, saying, "Wuxu, do you know how many years the Water Ape Great Sage has been practicing and honing his martial arts? How many years have you been practicing martial arts?"

Sun Wukong had never deliberately learned martial arts, and he only practiced martial arts seriously for two or three years. After that, he mostly made up for the shortcomings.

Sun Wukong thought about this and said with a smile: "Big Brother, I understand."

Jiang Yuan said: "Wukong, although you are now the Fighting Buddha, you still have one step to go before you can truly become a Buddha. Do you know why?"

Sun Wukong bowed and said, "Big Brother, Master once told me that the meaning of Fighting and Victory Buddha is to fight against 'I want, I think, I hate, I fear' and win, so that there will be no opposition and we can enjoy peace forever."

Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "It's good that you understand."

Sun Wukong suddenly understood something, bowed to Jiang Yuan, and then led the deer eastward.

The group headed eastward, heading towards Qingzhou.

……

But in the Sanxing Immortal Cave, in a quiet room, Chongyang sat cross-legged in the inner room, practicing for a long time, and slowly opened his eyes.

There was a hint of loss in Chongyang's eyes. He had practiced for a long time but still could not gain any understanding. His master once said that with five people in his body, he didn't even know where his mind was.

Chongyang thought to himself, "Could it be that I really have no affinity with this righteous path?"

Chongyang had distracting thoughts in his mind, which disturbed his practice, but he didn't know what to do now. He was unwilling to give up this righteous path.

But when he reads books on the right path, he feels happy. If he is asked to abandon the right path and learn other things, he will be absolutely unwilling to do so.

Chongyang was extremely confused and had to walk out of the quiet room and walk around the mansion. He saw a lot of dust on the ground, so he took a broom and started sweeping the floor with peace of mind.

However, the more he swept away the accumulated dust, the more it piled up, just like his heart, which became more and more confused the more he thought about it, and he couldn't stop for a moment.

Just when I was at a loss on Double Ninth Festival, a voice came to my ears.

“Double Ninth Festival.”

Chongyang came back to his senses and looked towards him, but he saw that Zhenjian was not far away from him.

Chongyang bowed and said, "Disciple Chongyang, I pay my respects to my uncle-master."

Zhen Jian walked up to Chongyang, helped him up, and said, "Chongyang, is there something you don't understand about your cultivation?"

Chongyang said, "No, I dare not bother my uncle."

Zhenjian saw a copper basin beside him. He took it and waved the leaf fan in front of the basin, and water came out of the basin.

Zhenjian placed the basin in front of Chongyang and said, "Chongyang, look at yourself in the water and see how you look."

Upon hearing this, Chongyang looked into the basin of water. He saw that he looked rather ferocious with red eyes. When he saw his reflection in the water, he was so frightened that he fell down. How could this be his appearance?

Zhen Jian said: "Chongyang, can we see it?"

Chongyang was shocked and asked, "Uncle Master, what happened to me?"

Zhenjian shook his head and smiled, "You have practiced incorrectly, so it is like this."

Chongyang asked: "Uncle Master, what should I do now?"

Zhenjian pointed to the direction behind the Yaotai where Patriarch Bodhi was, and said, "You are cultivating the golden elixir path, and I can help you with very few questions. You can go and pay a visit to the master. The master is in the mansion now, and he will definitely be able to answer your questions."

Chongyang's heart was moved, and he bowed and said, "Uncle Master, I am afraid that I might disturb the Grandmaster."

Zhen Jian smiled and said, "Why should you be alarmed? You are the eldest disciple of the senior brother. The master loves you so much that he cannot wait to protect you. If you go to listen to his practice, the master will only be happy and will not be alarmed at all."

Chongyang asked, "Uncle Master, is it true?"

Zhen Jian said: "It is true! You can go with peace of mind."

Chongyang pondered for a moment, bowed to Chao Zhen, and then walked towards the Yaotai.

Zhenjian saw Chongyang leaving and said, "How can the Golden Elixir righteousness be so easy to cultivate? The more you practice, the more you realize how difficult it is. In the past, my elder brother had an unwavering heart and practiced hard for many years. Only then did he have the opportunity to achieve enlightenment. Now Chongyang wants to practice the Golden Elixir righteousness again, but it is really difficult."

"It's not like Junior Brother Wukong. Learning the Golden Elixir Way is like reading a wordless book. Junior Brother Wukong is really enviable. He can cultivate the Golden Elixir Way in a few years. However, Junior Brother Wukong also had to overcome many difficulties in the future."

Zhenjian said this and walked towards the quiet room.

(End of this chapter)