The Eastern Emperor of all Heavens did not wish to become a Buddha.

Chapter 48 Shedding Mortal Form
'Shed your mortal form!'

A thought popped into Zhong Xu's mind, and he felt a wave of relief wash over him, as if he had been reborn. His primordial spirit and physical body underwent subtle adjustments and transformations, becoming different from before.

Within his Sea of ​​Wheels Secret Realm, the Yin-Yang Taiji Diagram operated more and more naturally, and the Tathagata's golden body and the Reverse Buddha Demon Body of the Yin and Yang poles seemed to have been baptized, becoming more solid.

The layers of celestial phantoms above the Bitter Sea carried a touch of true immortality, making the figure of the emperor who reigned above everything even more ethereal.

The Demon Buddha Mystic Art activated automatically, reducing the barrier between the Buddha and Demonic intentions and making Zhong Xu's aura more harmonious.

As he focused his mind into his body, Zhong Xu felt as if his flesh, bones, internal organs, and meridians had undergone a reorganization, becoming increasingly light and natural, and more in harmony with the laws of heaven and earth.

This is a truly natural transformation, from the inside out.

His bones were as white as jade and incredibly hard, making them a veritable treasure and sharp blade.

His internal organs and meridians were flawless and pure, without a trace of impurity, giving him an ethereal and otherworldly quality.

His flesh and blood were also crystal clear and lustrous, shimmering with a warm light, like the skin and bones of an immortal.

This is the wondrous use of Lingyun Ferry, which allows people to shed their mortal form and greatly enhance their own aptitude.

Normally, in the cultivation system of the One Lifetime Law, only by attaining the Dharma Body can one completely shed the mortal body, achieve the immortal body, and cultivate a Dharma Body containing various laws of heaven and earth.

This is why the Dharma body is also known as the distinction between immortals and mortals.

Now, thanks to the wondrous function of Lingyun Ferry, Zhong Xu has shed his mortal body ahead of schedule, giving his body a hint of the Dharma body, which can be considered one of the greatest gains from this trip to Mount Ling.

Even though his transformation was not like that of Tang Sanzang and his disciples in Journey to the West, who went through eighty-one tribulations and crossed the river on a bottomless boat, and was far from the true Dharma body, it was still a true rebirth for him.

After consuming the sacred fruit of the Nine Wonders Elixir of Immortality, Zhong Xu's aptitude had already been greatly enhanced. After shedding his mortal form, his aptitude became even stronger, and his body subtly revealed an immortal aura, making him increasingly otherworldly and ethereal.

Just then, Zhong Xu suddenly felt a stirring in his heart and looked towards the downstream of the river as if he had a premonition.

Several 'corpses' were seen floating downstream, heading towards an unknown place. These were the 'corpses' of Zhong Xu, Meng Qi, and the others.

"this?"

Upon seeing this, Zhang Yuanshan and the others looked surprised.

Zhong Xu clasped his hands together and smiled slightly: "Congratulations to all benefactors. This journey has allowed you to shed your mortal bodies and undergo a complete transformation. Your future path of cultivation will be smooth sailing."

Meng Qi understood what was going on, but looked at his vanished 'mortal body' with a touch of emotion.

I never imagined that one day I would enjoy the same treatment as Tang Sanzang and his disciples.

Although Zhang Yuanshan and the others did not know the details in Journey to the West, they felt the change in their aptitude and understood the benefits that shedding their mortal bodies had brought them. Their faces showed undisguised joy.

Soon after, the plaque of the Great Thunder Temple floated to the opposite side, and everyone jumped down one by one.

Zhong Xu flew directly to the other side with the plaque of the Great Thunder Temple, allowing Jiang Zhiwei and the others to cross the river on the plaque.

Zhong Xu tried crossing the river again, hoping to exploit a bug, but unfortunately, nothing changed this time, which made him realize that he could only shed his mortal form by crossing the river once.

After Jiang Zhiwei and the others had crossed the river, Zhong Xu put away the plaque of the Great Thunder Temple, and the group continued forward.

Along the way, although the entire Lingshan Mountain was shrouded in Buddhist light and its peaks were beautifully arranged, it also carried a sense of desolation and death, with no trace of life.

The legendary sacred mountain now seemed to have transformed into a deathly place, and walking through it, everyone couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts.

This also made everyone realize that Lingshan is no longer the legendary Buddhist holy site it once was.

After walking for a while, the group finally saw a cluster of buildings.

It was a magnificent stone gate, covered in signs of destruction, and on the verge of collapse.

But this dilapidated stone gate was like a solid seal, firmly blocking out everything behind it and cutting off all sights, sounds, and breaths.

Zhong Xu's Heavenly Eye could only see this far; he couldn't see anything beyond the stone gate.

"The place ahead should be the Buddha's residence on Mount Ling, the Great Thunder Temple. Everyone be careful."

The moment he finished speaking, Zhong Xu silently visualized the golden Buddha in the ocean of his mind, and stepped through the stone gate. Boom!

Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and Zhong Xu felt as if he had stepped into a completely new world.

Looking around, all that could be seen were dark, shattered spatial cracks. The laws of heaven and earth had ceased to exist, the primordial energy of heaven and earth was in chaos, and the gale had transformed into a raging dragon, constantly swirling and flying, destroying everything in the world.

In the heart of this sacred land, however, lies a scene of destruction akin to the end of the world.

Zhong Xu's gaze shifted slightly, and with his Heavenly Eye activated, he could vaguely see an iron rod at the highest point of Mount Ling that stretched from the sky to the earth.

This iron rod is larger than the vast mountains, like a pillar supporting the heavens and the earth, with faint traces of a golden hoop.

Around the iron rod, streaks of lightning danced, and blue lotus flowers bloomed and withered.

Each flash of lightning, each lotus flower, seems to contain a universe, a world.

Countless bolts of lightning and endless blue lotuses merged into one, forming a vast and boundless cosmic cluster, bringing with it an indescribable sense of awe.

bang
Amidst the thunderous roar of the storm, a furious shout echoed continuously, seemingly emanating from the endless past, reverberating through countless ages:

"I, Old Sun, will not cultivate for the next life in this one!"

The roar shook the heavens and the earth, repeating itself over and over again. Even the sound of the storm could not drown it out, and it echoed clearly in everyone's ears.

"This is... the Great Sage."

A look of excitement appeared on Meng Qi's face. Could he really run into his childhood idol this time?
Is Sun Wukong, the Monkey King, still alive?

This Great Sage should possess the complete "Eight-Nine Arcane Arts." If I could gain his favor and have him impart his wondrous techniques to me, then I could transcend the Three Realms and the Five Elements, becoming a true immortal and reaching the pinnacle of life.
With too many thoughts swirling in his mind, Meng Qi was momentarily overwhelmed.

As Meng Qi was lost in thought, Jiang Zhiwei recalled the background information of this mission and frowned slightly: "Could that voice be the Monkey King, Sun Wukong?"

Zhong Xu snapped out of his daze from the thunderous roar that echoed through the heavens and earth, and nodded.

Looking at the golden cudgel at the highest point of Mount Ling, shrouded in boundless gales, surrounded by endless thunder, and enveloped in blooming blue lotuses, Zhong Xu's mind was filled with information about Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, from all the heavens.

To be honest, among all the heavens, this monkey can be considered exceptionally blessed.

His origins are related to the Demon Emperor. He became a disciple of the ancient Buddha Bodhi, was valued by the Heavenly Venerable of Morality, and was also the candidate chosen by the Heavenly Venerable of Primordial Beginning to seek emptiness through reduction. It can be said that he was favored by many ancient beings.

In this realm of heavens, those on the other shore are also known as the will of heaven, let alone the ancient ones among those on the other shore.

Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, who was favored by many divine beings from the other side of the world, was naturally blessed by the divine will and was a true trendsetter of the times.

This monkey, along with Yang Jian, the True Lord of the Pure Source and the Wondrous Way, are considered to be the most likely beings in this era to reach the other shore.

Unfortunately, no matter what world it is, the Monkey King is always unruly.

In the battle where the demon race attacked Mount Ling, Ananda reversed the Ten Thousand Buddhas Formation, turning life into death. Not only was the Buddhist sect almost completely wiped out, but the demon race also suffered heavy casualties.

Sun Wukong, already severely injured by the reversed Ten Thousand Buddhas Formation, used all his strength to break through Mount Ling and suppress the remaining demons below with his golden cudgel, thus finding a glimmer of hope for their survival. However, he himself almost perished, completely losing the possibility of reaching the other shore in this era.

During the battle at Mount Ling, Bodhi Buddha also gave Sun Wukong a choice, using the Buddhist body of Yuanshi Tianzun and the remains of a holy Buddha as bait, persuading him to reincarnate and cultivate again, thereby breaking free from the limitations of his innate body and increasing the possibility of reaching the other shore.

But this also means that he needs to give up the demon race and completely devote himself to Buddhism.

The Great Sage Equaling Heaven is, after all, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven. Like the Human Emperor in the past and Meng Qi later, he is someone who is unwilling to give up what the will of Heaven considers to be a dream or an illusion, and is unwilling to compromise for it.

That's why he shouted this to the Bodhi Buddha:
'I, Old Sun, will not cultivate for the next life in this one!'

As Zhong Xu pondered, everyone looked at him: "Zen Master Fahai, shall we continue to delve deeper?"

Just then, Zhong Xu's eyes flickered slightly, and he looked towards the distant sky and earth as if he had sensed something, a hint of doubt appearing in his eyes.

'Buddha?'

After a long pause, he nodded slightly: "Let's go, since we're already here, it's good to go and take a look."

(End of this chapter)