Volume 1: Unsayable Chapter 93: Narrow Path of the Buddha’s Hand

In his past life, Wukong held a favorable impression of Guanyin Bodhisattva, believing her to be truly a compassionate being who cared deeply for all sentient beings. But after meeting Wu Zhiqi at the Great Sage Zen Temple and learning that the Grand Sage National Teacher, King Bodhisattva, viewed sentient beings merely as means to an end and showed no hesitation in sacrificing lives, his admiration for her as a Bodhisattva diminished somewhat.
During today’s battle, seeing Guanyin skillfully using her long sleeves to stir up chaos and then employing subtle magic to capture the Bull Demon King, he began to harbor resentment toward her.
Grumpily, he said, “Immortals have their celestial realms, and Buddhas have their Western worlds. As demons, we live on flesh and blood, exposed to wind and rain. Just occupying a mountain already counts as a crime?”
Seeing Wukong’s defiance, Guanyin remained calm and continued smiling, “Who said you’re guilty? I was just asking. You monkey, you’re full of resentment. Just now you tried to stop me from capturing that old ox—how bold of you!”
Wukong’s goal was the Tathagata. He only needed the Tathagata’s words to confirm certain things, so his attention wasn’t on Guanyin. He replied, “Since you’ve captured my brother, I naturally won’t agree. Today, with more of you surrounding fewer of us, aren’t you afraid it will tarnish your reputation as a noble Bodhisattva?”
Guanyin retracted the willow branch into her pure vase, out of sight of anyone. The emerald-green waves inside the vase subsided slightly, filling her heart with sorrow.
Guanyin smiled and said, “You monkey are quite eloquent. Now that the Buddha himself has arrived, do you still harbor any illusions?”
Wukong replied, “I don’t care about your Buddha or your deities. Everything ultimately obeys the law of reason. What wrong did Flower-Fruit Mountain do? The celestial court sent troops repeatedly to suppress us, trying to eradicate us completely. Where was your compassionate Buddha then? Why didn’t you come to uphold justice?”
By bringing up the Buddha in her speech, Guanyin avoided directly confronting Wukong. Arguing with this monkey in front of all the immortals was truly beneath her status.
Sure enough, the Buddha spoke slowly, “Do you know, you monkey, that the Jade Emperor is the ruler of all heavens? All heavens, gods, and things are under his control. What ability do you have to defy him? Better surrender now and join my Buddhist sect. All sins can be forgiven. Staying here will only cost you your life and ruin everything—what a shame for your true nature.”
Hearing the Tathagata speak, Wukong remained silent for a while, pondering the deeper meaning behind these words. In Journey to the West, when the Tathagata addressed Wukong, he had said, “You wretch are just a monkey turned into a spirit… Surrender early and stop talking nonsense! Otherwise, you’ll meet a cruel end, and it will be a shame for your true nature!”

At that time, the reckless and impulsive Sun Wukong, who had no sense of reality and only aimed to seize control of the heavenly realm, ignored these words. But upon closer reflection, Buddha already had the intention of subduing him; if Sun Wukong had submitted to Buddha at that moment, he would not have had to suffer under the Five Elements Mountain for five hundred years. The first sentence, “You wretched monkey,” might seem like nonsense, but would Buddha say such trivial things at such a critical moment? It was meant to tell Wukong that Buddha could see through his true nature at a glance. Coupled with the follow-up sentence, “What a shame about your true form,” it further made it clear that Sun Wukong was by no means an ordinary monkey—almost as if Buddha were about to say, “You are indeed a divine monkey.” Yet it seems Sun Wukong did not understand Buddha’s words. He had not experienced what Unzhiqi had gone through, and likely no one had told him about the legend of the Seven Divine Monkeys. Even though Buddha spoke so plainly, Wukong still refused to submit. One can only imagine how frustrated Buddha must have been. Under everyone’s gaze, even if he wanted to take Wukong with him, he could not simply bring him to the Western Heaven. There were many powerful beings in the heavenly realm, and it would be awkward if they discovered his plan. With no other choice, he had to use the quest for the scriptures as a pretext to gradually bring Wukong under his control. What a complicated scheme!

At this point, Buddha first said, “All heavens, gods, and things are under the rule of the Supreme Lord. What ability do you have to defy him?” It seems Buddha had certain ideas about the emperor’s supreme position. These words clearly indicated that his own status was lower than that of the emperor, and he had no choice but to go at the emperor’s invitation. Yet even so, as long as Wukong submitted to him, his life could be spared.

Buddha mentioned “true form” again, suggesting that he wanted to possess this uniquely created body for some great purpose. The more insistent Buddha became, the less willing Wukong was to submit. Compared to the direct confrontation in the heavenly realm, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the Western Heaven seemed gentle and compassionate, but who knew if they weren’t actually ruthless.

After much thought, Wukong realized that even if Buddha did not kill him, living in the Western Heaven as a Buddha, reading dull scriptures day after day and reciting praise, would mean living forever in a life devoid of joy.

Once his thoughts were settled, Wukong became calm. Just one battle, just one life—what was there to fear?

So he calmly replied, “My true form lies within my heart. Who could know it better than I do? I understand what the Buddha means. He just wants to overpower me without reasoning.”

When the Tathagata heard the words “One’s true nature lies within the heart,” he opened his long-closed eyes and glanced at Wukong carefully, his gaze filled with both approval and a hint of regret.

The Tathagata said, “Good. If you refuse, I won’t force you. Since you dare to cause trouble in the Heavenly Court, you must have some skills. How about we have a bet?”

Wukong smiled and said, “You’re quick to threaten. I came here only to see if the gods and Buddhas in heaven have any sense of fairness. Now I have my answer. If I dare to take risks alone, why fear death? Draw out your rules—today, I’ll stick around to the end.”

The Tathagata nodded slightly, his face showing a look of regret, and said, “Tell me what skills you have. I’ll choose the most formidable one to fight against you.”

Without hesitation, Wukong realized he couldn’t defeat the Tathagata with his Heavenly Armor Transformation, nor could he win through brute force. Thinking that even the Bull Demon King, who had refined his life treasure into a true form, couldn’t beat Venerable Anuo, why should he put himself at risk? After careful consideration, he realized he only had the Cloud Jumping Skill, which might give him a sliver of a chance.

So Wukong said, “Do you know why I dare to go to the Heavenly Court? It’s because I possess the Cloud Jumping Skill—one leap covers 108,000 li. If I want to leave, can you stop me?”

The Tathagata thought to himself, This monkey is clever, but he’s narrow-minded, like someone who only sees the world from the bottom of a well. He said, “Good. Let’s bet on your Cloud Jumping Skill. If you can leap out of my palm, I’ll have the Jade Emperor admit his mistake. From now on, no gods or Buddhas in heaven will dare to disturb your Flower-Fruit Mountain, how about that?”

Wukong replied, “What a clever monk! Make sure you keep your word—don’t back out!”

The Tathagata smiled and said, “There are countless gods here as witnesses. How could I ruin my reputation?”

Wukong smirked and said, “Can you really control the Jade Emperor?”

The Tathagata was taken aback and said, “I can’t, but I certainly won’t lose to you.”

Wukong laughed heartily, “You empty-handed monk! Luckily, I asked one more question. Otherwise, you would have deceived me. In short, you’re still betting with nothing but empty promises. How can I trust you?”

At that moment, a voice came from the Brightness Hall: “I can!” It was the Jade Emperor himself. His voice was neither happy nor angry, cold and devoid of any emotion, which made the Tathagata feel uneasy as well.

The Tathagata had no time to think further. He had been waiting for this moment to capture the monkey quickly. He said, “Do you hear? The Jade Emperor has approved this.”

Wukong nodded and said, “Since the Jade Emperor is willing to yield, I’ll take your bet!”

Seeing that Wukong’s words became more and more outrageous, Buddha’s expression darkened. He spread out his huge hand—six feet tall—and its size was only about that of a lotus leaf, just enough for one person to stand on. Wukong leaped up, shouted in mid-air, “Buddha, don’t try to deny it!” and landed right in the palm of Buddha’s hand.