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

Chapter 414 Invitation, the Next Tribulation Will Be Centered on Guangxin
Now, let's talk about the Southern Continent, specifically the Wudang Mountain area.

When Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie arrived at this place, a spirit official came and asked them why they had come. Sun Wukong told the spirit official what had happened.

Lingguan instructed Sun Wukong to wait here, while they went to inform the Xuan Emperor that he was not in Taihe Palace but had gone to Penglai Island overseas.

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong stopped the group of spirit officials and said, "There's no need for you brothers to go. Since the Xuan Emperor is on Penglai Island, we two will go to Penglai Island to find him."

Upon hearing this, the spirit officials and others bowed and said, "We are troubled by the Great Sage's personal presence."

Sun Wukong then said no more to the spirit official and others, and rode the clouds and mist with Zhu Bajie towards the overseas sea.

Pigsy, riding on the clouds, asked, "Brother, Master taught us to invite guests from all directions, so why did you come to the Xuan Emperor's place first?"

Sun Wukong said, "You fool, why ask so many questions? You don't need to come along on this trip. Why do you want to go with me?"

Pigsy laughed and said, "I'm used to getting along with you, Brother Monkey. Now that you're traveling, I'll naturally go with you."

Sun Wukong laughed and scolded, "What kind of stupid fool is this, complaining to me in front of my senior brother?"

Pigsy said, “Brother, let’s keep things separate. The matter of Brother Monkey bluffing me is a thing of the past. This matter involves inviting people from all directions, so it is naturally different.”

Sun Wukong said, "You have a lot of twisted logic. Of all the places we invited, only the Xuan Emperor and Guanyin Bodhisattva are the most precious. However, the Xuan Emperor is the farthest from us, so we invited the Xuan Emperor first. But we did not expect that the Xuan Emperor is on Penglai Island. Therefore, we have to rush there."

Pigsy said, “Perfect timing! I’m looking for some jujubes from that old man who’s longevity to satisfy my craving. I should head there.”

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "But since you are not the work of the Wood Mother, you may eat the fire dates if you wish."

Pigsy patted his belly and said, "Brother, you can rest assured. Although I don't have any great cultivation now, I can still control the Wood Mother. I will definitely not let her cause trouble, just to satisfy my cravings."

Sun Wukong said, "If that's the case, I'll personally ask you for some fire dates."

Pigsy was overjoyed and repeatedly bowed to Sun Wukong to express his gratitude, praising his kindness.

Sun Wukong waved his hand, saying nothing more.

The two headed towards Penglai Island.

Half an hour later.

The two arrived at Penglai Immortal Island. After speaking with the boy guarding the island, they were welcomed into the island.

On the island, Emperor Xuan and the Three Stars both appeared to welcome Sun Wukong.

After exchanging greetings, the Three Stars asked, "Great Sage, what brings you here today? If not, you may have a drink here before you leave. We are currently playing chess with the Xuan Emperor. You may watch for a while, but as the saying goes, 'one should not speak while watching chess,' so please refrain from making a sound."

Sun Wukong said, "We can talk about the wine later. The reason I've come here today is to find the Xuan Emperor."

The Xuan Emperor, standing nearby, heard Sun Wukong's words and, not understanding their meaning, asked, "Great Sage, what business do you have with me?"

Sun Wukong said, “Your Majesty, you may not know this, but I have come here on the orders of the True Man. My eldest brother will be establishing his own residence in forty-nine years, so he sent me to invite Your Majesty. You may come at that time. My eldest brother will personally go to invite Your Majesty, but he must wait for the right opportunity in his residence and cannot act rashly. Therefore, he had no choice but to send me. If there is any rudeness, please forgive me, Your Majesty.”

Pigsy also spoke up, saying respectfully, "We originally went to Taihe Palace to find Emperor Xuan, but we couldn't find him there. We heard from the spirit official that Emperor Xuan is here, so we came here."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Xuan was surprised and said, "I never expected that the True Man would be the one to establish his own residence. I was grateful for your presence and your kind words. Now that I know, you two may go and report back to the True Man. I will personally visit him in forty-nine years."

Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie both responded.

Samsung stepped forward and said, "Great Sage, the three of us also wish to go and congratulate you, Master. Is it permissible for us to go?"

Sun Wukong laughed and said, "If the three of you want to go, I will be overjoyed. But I'm afraid you three won't have the time. If you want to go now, I will definitely tell you when I report back, so that you will be happy."

Samsung responded and thanked Sun Wukong.

Sun Wukong walked over, grabbed the God of Longevity, and said with a smile, "God of Longevity, I'm feeling a bit craving something today. I know you have some jujubes. I wonder if you could share some with me?"

The God of Longevity said, “If the Great Sage wants some jujubes, I certainly have them. I will have some boys give the Great Sage about ten catties of them so that the Great Sage can satisfy his craving.”

Sun Wukong clasped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you, thank you."

The birthday celebrant smiled and shook his head, saying there was no need for thanks.

After finishing his conversation with the Xuan Emperor, Sun Wukong took the fire dates and left with Zhu Bajie, heading towards Mount Luojia in the South Sea.

On their journey, Sun Wukong gave the fire dates to Zhu Bajie.

Pigsy grinned and said, "Brother Monkey must have a lot of influence to be able to get that old man of longevity to give you more than ten catties of fire dates. In my opinion, there should be more than twenty catties of fire dates here."

Sun Wukong said, "You should satisfy your cravings and not say any more. Let's hurry to the place of Guanyin Bodhisattva in the South Sea."

The two then said no more and headed towards Mount Luojia.

……

The story takes place at Lingtai Fangcun Mountain, near the Xieyue Sanxing Cave.

The True Man was in a quiet room, taking out paper and pen, pondering carefully how to write a letter to Laozi.

Laozi is no ordinary person. As a junior, he had to carefully consider his words when he went to invite Laozi.

Jiang Yuan pondered for a long time before putting pen to paper. He wrote for a long time before finally completing the book.

The paper reads: "Your disciple Guangxin, bowing deeply, respectfully presents this letter to the Venerable Master Xuanyuan, the Great Sage and Virtuous Supreme Lord Laozi."
I humbly submit that the heavens reveal their signs, and the Great Dao shines forth in radiance. Your disciple, Guangxin, is deeply grateful for your compassionate guidance, Master, in imparting to me the profound Dao of Elixir; I am deeply moved by your boundless virtue, which has opened the door to the Golden Elixir within me. Though my light is but a firefly's faint glow, it truly depends on the forging in the great furnace; though my substance is but a speck of dust, I am fortunate to be bathed in the profound grace of your compassionate teachings…

Today, by the grace of Heaven, your disciple Guangxin, inheriting the Dharma lineage of my master, establishes his abode at the Xieyue Sanxing Cave on Lingtai Fangcun Mountain in Xiniu Hezhou, to guide those destined to follow the Dharma. Respectfully choosing this forty-nine-year anniversary, I humbly prepare these humble offerings to solemnly conduct the abode-opening ceremony…

With a pure and cleansed heart, I bathe and burn incense. With utmost sincerity, I respectfully submit this short petition. I humbly beseech the Holy Teacher's compassion to pity my earnest devotion and cherish my foolish and fervent hopes. I earnestly request that you temporarily depart from the Tushita Heaven and descend to this mortal realm. May your crane-borne chariot descend, causing the clouds to part and auspicious clouds to clear; may your compassionate countenance grace me, causing golden lotuses to spring from the earth. Your disciple, with boundless heart, gazes upon the Holy One in heaven, yearning for your guidance and longing with utmost anticipation!
Sincerely,

Your disciple, Guangxin, bows deeply and prostrates himself in reverence.

He carefully placed the letter and pondered how to deliver it to Laozi.

Before he could think for long, a gentle breeze came and blew open his room door.

The patriarch entered the room.

Jiang Yuan rose and bowed, saying, "Master, how did you come? This disciple was unaware of your arrival and did not greet you."

The Patriarch shook his head and smiled, "You are busy today, there is no need for such formalities. I know you have something to worry about. You don't know how to send the invitation to Laozi. I can go there for you."

Jiang Yuan was greatly alarmed and said, "How dare I ask Master to go with me? I dare not, I dare not. Please rest, Master. If I were to ask Master to go to such lengths for me, I would have no face to show the world."

The Patriarch smiled and said, “There’s no need for that. You’re busy right now. If you want to invite Laozi, no ordinary person can do it. You can’t go, so I will go instead. You have inherited my mantle, and now your magical power is becoming increasingly profound. You will become a great master. I have nothing more to teach you. The only way I can help you is this.”

Jiang Yuan remained unwilling. For a disciple to order his master around was disrespectful and unfilial; he truly did not wish for such a thing. He was about to voice his refusal...
The patriarch refused, and with a flick of his sleeve, a gust of wind arose, swirling the invitation into his hand. With another flick of his sleeve, immense magical power erupted, pressing the true man into the futon, rendering him immobile.

The Patriarch smiled and said, "Don't say any more. Just stay here in the manor. I will talk to Laozi about this matter. Laozi is currently in Xiniu Hezhou. If you send him to the Heavenly Court, it will cause trouble. Don't worry, boy, I'm going."

Say it.

The patriarch turned and left.

The master placed him on a meditation cushion in a quiet room and troubled him for a long time before he could move. He couldn't help but marvel at the profound power of the patriarch. Even though he was about to achieve great power, he was powerless against the patriarch's magic.

He got up and went outside, intending to find the patriarch, but when he looked around, he could not find the patriarch anywhere. How could he not know that the patriarch had already left?

The master was somewhat helpless, but could not say anything. He bowed deeply in the direction where the patriarch had left, and then entered the quiet room to meditate and wait for the right opportunity, so as to further understand the principle of 'transcendence'.

……

After leaving Lingtai Fangcun Mountain, the Patriarch soon arrived at a mountain in Xiniuhezhou. This place was very close to Nanzhanbuzhou. From the top of the mountain, one could see Nanzhanbuzhou in the distance.

When the patriarch reached the mountaintop, he saw white cranes hovering in the air, surrounded by auspicious clouds, and purple aura coming from the east, which was an omen of the descent of a sage.

As soon as he entered the area, laughter came from a pavilion.

"Bodhi, what brings you here?"

When the patriarch arrived outside the pavilion, he saw Laozi leaning against the side of the pavilion.

The Patriarch stepped forward and said, “I have come to seek Laozi. Why do you ask so many questions, Laozi? You know why I am here.”

Lao Jun laughed and said, "I knew you had come, but I didn't know why you came. Bodhi, you must have come to see me about something important. Is it related to Guangxin?"

The Patriarch sat beside Laozi and said, "It is naturally related to Guangxin. Since you speak like this, can you guess what Guangxin's matter is?"

Laozi pointed to the Patriarch and said, "You Bodhi, how could you play such a trick on us? We are all enlightened beings, how could we not know what is going on? Since it is a matter of Guangxin, Guangxin must be about to achieve great magical power and open his own palace, is that so?"

The Patriarch smiled and nodded, handing the invitation to Laozi, saying, "Guangxin cannot come in person, and I fear that others coming would be disrespectful to you. So I have come in person to give you this invitation."

Lao Jun accepted the invitation, opened it, and read it carefully. After a long while, he finished reading it, put the invitation down, put it in his sleeve, and said, "Guang Xin is very polite. I will accept this invitation. When Guang Xin establishes his own household, I will go to offer my congratulations."

The Patriarch laughed and said, "I knew you would say you were too busy to go and would send a celestial boy in your place, but I never expected you to go in person."

Lao Jun puffed out his beard and glared, saying, "No matter what Guangxin says, he can still be considered my disciple and can be called my teacher. He is about to achieve great magical power and will be opening his own residence. He has invited me with a sincere invitation. How can I not go? Don't say anything more, just tell Guangxin that I will definitely go in person."

The Patriarch said, "In that case, we will trouble Laozi to go in person."

Laozi took a chessboard and said, “I was originally going to Jambudvipa to ferry a disciple to the Western Paradise. Now I have come here to visit the old place. Knowing that you have come, I am waiting for you here. If I did not need to wait for you, I would have returned to Tushita long ago. Since you have come, you do not need to leave so quickly. Let us play a game of chess here.”

The patriarch said, "Since Laozi has invited you, I shall play a game with you."

Laozi put down the chessboard, clearly distinguished the black and white pieces, and placed the black piece next to the ancestor. He looked towards the Southern Jambudvipa and sighed, saying, "The Southern Jambudvipa truly produces many outstanding individuals. Guangxin was born there in the past, and now he is about to achieve great magical power. I have met Guangxin many times, and each time I have felt that I have overestimated him. However, each time I have realized that I have underestimated him. To achieve great magical power in a single eon, what a heart of the Dao, what a loyal heart."

The Patriarch smiled and said, “I am no different. When I first met Guangxin, he came for the sake of longevity. I originally intended to pass on the unorthodox teachings to him, but he insisted on cultivating the Golden Elixir. Once he cultivated it, he gained great magical power and inherited my mantle.”

Lao Jun said, “You are blessed. Your disciple Guang Xin is destined to have great magical power, and his great momentum has been achieved. As for your second-generation disciple, Zheng Wei, I have seen the golden road since I descended to the mortal world. After carefully following it, I know that your second-generation disciple has the ability to inherit the mantle. Your disciples are so many outstanding people, which is enviable.”

The patriarch said, "It is because of the predestined Dharma that the second generation of disciples are all talented individuals, but what will happen after that is unknown, so there is no need to be envious."

Laozi pointed to the ancestor and said, "You have two generations of disciples, yet you are still not satisfied. If I am not mistaken, if your grand-disciple has good fortune in the future, he will surely become a Golden Core cultivator. None of my grand-disciples have yet achieved anything. My other disciples are all somewhat lazy."

The patriarch smiled and said, "The fate of destiny is hard to predict. Throughout history, countless people have been ruined by fate, which is why it is so difficult to say."

Laojun waved his hand and said, "You scoundrel, your humility is just like Guangxin's. I won't say any more to you. Now Guangxin is about to open his own domain to achieve great magical power. If this tribulation is over, Guangxin will be the master in the next tribulation. What do you think?"

The Patriarch pondered for a moment before saying, "Laojun, if you truly believe that Guangxin is capable, then of course it is. However, Guangxin is still young, and I fear he may make some mistakes."

Lao Jun laughed and said, "You are by his side, and I am by his side. If he really has something he doesn't understand, or if he really makes a mistake, are we just going to sit idly by and do nothing?"

Upon hearing this, the Patriarch no longer refused and said, "Just as Laozi said, the next calamity will be led by Guangxin. With your and my guidance, I believe Guangxin will not go astray."

Lao Jun smiled and nodded, saying, "That's settled then. This calamity is still some years away, and Guang Xin has plenty of time to learn various things, so there's no need to worry too much."

The two then stopped talking and began their fierce battle on the chessboard.

(End of this chapter)