Journey to the West: The gods and Buddhas panicked when the monkey was trapped inside him.

Inside the Tushita Palace.

Laozi sat cross-legged on a futon to the side, his eyes reflecting the scene of the Imperial Horse Stables in the mortal realm.

From the moment Sun Wukong followed Taibai Jinxing into the Southern Heavenly Gate, Laozi's attention never left Sun Wukong.

Over the past few days, Sun Wukong has behaved very well and obediently, without causing any trouble whatsoever.

Aside from making an inspection of the stables every day, he spends the rest of his time meditating and cultivating in the quiet room.

The entire Imperial Horse Stable was calm and peaceful, and no abnormalities were found at all.

Only today has the quiet room of the Imperial Stables finally been filled with unusual activity.

A smile appeared on Laozi's lips as he spoke to himself in the void before him.

"That mischievous monkey is quite clever; its vigilance is really strong."

"After arriving in this Heavenly Court, I endured for several days until I had completely figured out the surrounding environment."

"Only after confirming that no immortals were secretly watching us could we feel safe enough to awaken that anomaly."

"If Bodhi hadn't come to my Tushita Palace beforehand to give me a heads-up and explained the matter of this otherworldly soul clearly..."

"Even I, an old Taoist priest, would find it difficult to discover that there is another person hidden in the monkey's sea of ​​consciousness."

Laozi stroked his white beard, his eyes becoming deep and profound.

This way of being, which completely avoids the perception of the secrets of the Three Realms, is truly astonishing.

Lao Jun withdrew his gaze, his tone filled with intense anticipation.

"Since Bodhi has placed all his hopes on the two of you, you must not disappoint me."

"The Three Realms have been peaceful for far too long, and the Heavenly Dao is lifeless and utterly devoid of any ripples."

"All the gods and Buddhas in the heavens are trapped in this lifeless Heavenly Dao, with no hope of breaking through."

"This deadlocked game needs an external force to break it completely. My Great Dao bottleneck, which has remained unbroken for millions of years, is now entirely dependent on you two as variables!"

At this point, a hint of regret flashed in Laozi's eyes.

"However, this monkey's current cultivation level is really not up to par."

"A mere Taiyi Golden Immortal is more than capable of dealing with those insignificant demon kings in the lower realms."

"If we were to face the truly powerful beings of the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist sect, this level of cultivation would be utterly insignificant."

"How can such meager cultivation be enough to truly enliven the Three Realms?"

After a moment's thought, Laozi made a decision.

"It seems I, the old Taoist priest, will have to secretly lend you a hand."

Laozi's lips moved slightly, and an invisible voice transmission instantly traversed through countless palaces.

They landed steadily in the Tianhe Navy's camp.

Inside the Tianhe Navy camp at this time.

Marshal Tianpeng was sprawled out on the armchair, dozing off.

Suddenly, an extremely authoritative voice boomed in his mind.

"Tianpeng, come to the Tushita Palace to see me immediately."

Marshal Tianpeng suddenly sprang up from his armchair.

He scratched the back of his head, looking puzzled.

Aside from refining elixirs, the Grandmaster rarely concerned himself with the various trivial matters of the Heavenly Court.

Why would they suddenly summon me today?

Tianpeng was filled with doubt, but dared not delay for even a moment.

He quickly straightened his marshal's armor and hurriedly rode a cloud straight to the Thirty-Third Heaven.

Upon seeing Laozi sitting cross-legged in front of the Eight Trigrams Furnace, he immediately knelt down respectfully and paid homage.

"Grand-disciple Tianpeng greets Grandmaster!"

"Rise, there's no need for such formalities."

Marshal Tianpeng stood up, his face beaming with smiles.

"I wonder what instructions the Patriarch has given me in summoning me here today?"

Lao Tzu did not speak, but simply waved his hand.

A purple-gold gourd flew down from the alchemy stand next to it.

The gourd landed steadily in front of Marshal Tianpeng.

The strong medicinal fragrance emanating from the gourd made Marshal Tianpeng feel his magical power surging violently throughout his body.

"This gourd contains a whole pot of the finest Nine-Turn Golden Elixir."

The voice of Laozi slowly echoed in the main hall.

"Find a suitable opportunity and give it to Sun Wukong, the newly appointed supervisor of the imperial horses."

Upon hearing this, Marshal Tianpeng froze on the spot.

He stared at Laozi in utter astonishment, completely unable to believe his ears.

"Grandmaster, what did you just say?"

"You want me to deliver elixirs to that stable boy?"

"That monkey was a pawn that the Western Buddhist sect had already predetermined for their westward journey!"

"Grandmaster, why would you use such a top-grade Nine-Turn Golden Elixir to actively help the Buddhist sect cultivate its pawns?"

Tianpeng truly couldn't understand what his ancestor was up to.

The Taoists have always remained neutral in matters concerning Buddhism.

Now, our grandmaster is actually going to use such a precious Nine-Turn Golden Elixir to support a pawn of Buddhism. What is he after?

Laozi glanced at him indifferently, his tone completely calm.

"When have I ever needed to explain myself to you when I do things?"

"I know better than you whether he is a pawn of Buddhism."

"Just do as I say and deliver the pills safely."

"Remember, you must find a plausible reason!"

"We absolutely cannot let anyone notice the slightest flaw!"

"You must hand over this pot of golden elixir to him discreetly, understand?"

Marshal Tianpeng inwardly vented his frustration.

He was the commander of the Heavenly River Navy, a proper high-ranking general of the Heavenly Court.

If his colleagues found out that he was sending a gift to a lowly stable boy, what would become of his reputation?

But when facing Laozi, he didn't dare utter a single word of rebuttal.

"Grandmaster, if you really wanted to help that monkey improve his cultivation, you wouldn't need to use such a precious treasure!"

"Although this Nine-Turn Golden Elixir is pure, it is ultimately slow to take effect."

Marshal Tianpeng smacked his lips and came up with what he considered to be a brilliant idea.

"Don't you still have that Nine-Turn Great Rejuvenation Pill?"

"Eat one of those things and you'll instantly achieve the Great Luo Golden Immortal status."

"Why don't you just give that monkey a Nine-Turn Great Rejuvenation Pill? His cultivation level will skyrocket immediately, saving us a lot of effort!"

Upon hearing this, Laozi immediately grabbed the banana leaf fan from the jade table and tapped Marshal Tianpeng on the forehead.

"Nonsense!"

"Don't you even know what that Nine-Turn Great Rejuvenation Pill is?!"

"Those pills can forcibly raise one's cultivation level, but they offer absolutely no insight into the Great Dao!"

"That monkey is a naturally born spiritual being nurtured by heaven and earth. If it were to consume that kind of opportunistic elixir, it would severely damage its foundation for cultivation!"

Lao Jun's expression became very serious as he spoke.

"A path not cultivated step by step through hard work is ultimately just an empty shell!"

"It's nothing but a castle in the air; it will crumble at the slightest calamity!"

Marshal Tianpeng covered his forehead and responded with a wronged expression.

He still couldn't understand it.

Among all the gods and Buddhas in the heavens, who doesn't know that the monkey is the key figure in the Journey to the West calamity, and that everything is part of the schemes of Mount Ling?

Since they are merely tools of Buddhism, what does it matter whether their foundation is good or bad?

As long as he can get things done, that's enough. Why is Grandmaster so worried about that monkey's future?

Not only did they try every means to improve his cultivation, they also carefully protected his foundation.

This is hardly the attitude one would show to a Buddhist pawn; it's more like showing care than one would show to a Taoist disciple!

Isn't that monkey just a tool used by the Buddhists to retrieve scriptures?

Tianpeng couldn't understand the intricacies of the situation.

However, he was a smart man and knew that there were some things in Heaven that he shouldn't inquire about.

Since our master has given the order, we should do as he says.

He quickly and carefully tucked the purple-gold gourd into his bosom and loudly obeyed the order.

"My grand-disciple understands!"

"Don't worry, Master. I'll go back and think it over carefully and make sure I find a perfect reason."

"We must deliver this pot of golden pills to that monkey without raising any suspicion, absolutely without arousing anyone's suspicion!"

After Marshal Tianpeng finished speaking, he prepared to get up and take his leave from the Tushita Palace.

"Wait a minute."

Laozi suddenly called out to him.

Marshal Tianpeng quickly turned around, his face full of respect as he awaited instructions.

Laozi looked at his grand-disciple and sighed deeply.

"Tianpeng, you were too lazy back then and coveted shortcuts in cultivation."

"You secretly took the Nine-Turn Great Rejuvenation Pill without telling your master, Xuandu."

"Although you have now obtained the position of Marshal of the Heavenly River Navy, your cultivation level is unlikely to improve by even the slightest bit."

Upon hearing these words, Marshal Tianpeng's face immediately showed a look of shame.

The thing he regretted most in his life was that he had greedily eaten that Great Rejuvenation Pill.

This has caused his cultivation to stagnate completely, leaving him only able to loaf around and wait to die in the Heavenly Court.

Seeing his appearance, Laozi softened his tone slightly.

"However, the Great Dao is fifty, and the Heavenly Cycle is forty-nine; there is always a glimmer of hope in everything."

Laozi looked at Marshal Tianpeng with a meaningful expression.

"Your reincarnation and renewed cultivation will allow you to take advantage of the great calamity to resolve your stagnation in cultivation."

"This is a tremendous opportunity to reshape the foundation of the Great Dao."

"Once you reach the lower realm, you mustn't be as lazy and slack off as before!"

"Don't waste this incredible opportunity."

Marshal Tianpeng was stunned when he heard this.

He had never understood why the Heavenly Court had arranged for him to participate in this Journey to the West calamity, and had even complained about it in secret.

Now, after receiving personal guidance from the patriarch, he finally understood.

What seemed like a dreadful task of being banished to the mortal realm was actually an unparalleled opportunity to help him reshape the Great Dao!

He even has the opportunity to completely get rid of the drawbacks of the Nine Revolutions Great Rejuvenation Pill through this reconstruction and to once again touch the realm above the Great Luo Golden Immortal!

Marshal Tianpeng was so excited that he trembled all over. He immediately knelt down and kowtowed three times to Laozi.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master!"

"This time, my grand-disciple will absolutely turn over a new leaf and will never waste this hard-won opportunity to rebuild our lives!"

Laozi waved his hand slightly, indicating that he could leave.

Marshal Tianpeng quickly stood up and left the Tushita Palace with gratitude.

Marshal Tianpeng stroked his chin.

"That monkey is now in charge of the Imperial Horse Stables, and my Heavenly River Navy is in dire need of a few fine heavenly horses as mounts."

"Using the pretext of going to the Imperial Stables to select a heavenly horse, I naturally made contact with him."

Marshal Tianpeng thought about it more and more and felt that the idea was brilliant.

"Yes! Let's do it!"

"When we're looking after the horses, we'll try to get on his good side and become his buddy."

"Let's have a little wine, and then, taking advantage of the situation, present this pot of golden elixir as a gift!"

"I, Tianpeng, am simply a genius!"

Marshal Tianpeng laughed triumphantly atop the clouds, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Inside the Tushita Palace.

Laozi looked in the direction where Marshal Tianpeng had left and shook his head helplessly.

This grand-disciple is as unreliable as ever, but it's not unsuitable to let him handle this matter.

After all, Tianpeng was usually a reckless person in Heaven, so his befriending that demon monkey wouldn't arouse too much suspicion from the gods.

The Supreme Lord Laozi's gaze pierced through layers of clouds and mist, landing once again in the direction of the Imperial Horse Stables.

"Sun Wukong, this old Taoist priest has plenty of good stuff here. It just depends on whether you have the ability to take it."

"Next, you'd better make a big scene in Heaven."

"If it's not lively enough, this old Taoist priest won't be happy!"