Volume 2: The Path That Can Be Told, Chapter 143: The Great Calamity Ends

After Da Yu finished speaking, Wukong smiled at him and said, “Now that you’ve finished, you can sit down.” At first, Wukong saw that both Chi Songzi and Da Yu possessed profound cultivation levels and were ancient deities, which instilled in him an unconscious sense of reverence. But after hearing Da Yu’s account of the story—far more tragic and realistic than what Wu Zhiqi had said—and learning of the once exalted status of the Seven Divine Apes, he unconsciously began to regard Da Yu and Chi Songzi as peers. Da Yu and Chi Songzi, in turn, seemed surprised and honored by this treatment.

Once leaders of humanity, they had pursued and killed the divine apes relentlessly. Now, upon meeting Wukong, they no longer sought forgiveness but only hoped to meet the Seven Divine Apes and tell their story thoroughly, thereby resolving the greatest burden of their lives and living without regret. Seeing Wukong’s kind demeanor toward them, Chi Songzi said, “Lingming, um, these titles like ‘divine ape’ and ‘other divine ape’ are rather awkward. May I ask… do you have a name?” Wukong replied, “My master gave me a name—my surname is Sun, and my name is Wukong. You may just call me Wukong.”

Chi Songzi said, “Then that would be presumptuous. Wukong, I wonder what you plan to do with us?”
Wukong was slightly surprised and asked, “Do with you? Where did that come from?”
Da Yu said, “Doesn’t Wukong consider us criminals?”
Wukong pondered for a moment before asking, “What is a ‘people’?”
Hearing this question, Da Yu replied immediately, “The people are the foundation of the world.”
Wukong asked further, “If you understand this principle, why do you neglect the foundation and focus on trivial matters?”
Da Yu admitted, “To be honest, at first, when I eradicated the divine apes, I also aimed to save the people. But later, I saw that the people became displaced and suffered greatly. By then, it was hard to stop. I only hoped to complete my mission soon and rebuild society.”
Wukong looked at Da Yu and sighed, “It’s not that you lack kindness, but wisdom.” These words filled Da Yu with shame.

Wukong asked, “How many people followed you here?”
Da Yu replied, “Besides the two of us, Ru Shou, Hou Yi, Ju Mang, and Zhu Rong are here too.”
Wukong asked, “Have all of them killed divine apes?” Da Yu nodded.
Wukong said, “Good. Then call them here.”
Da Yu, uneasy, exchanged a glance with Chi Songzi. Chi Songzi said, “I’ll go right away.” With that, he used a teleportation technique and soared into the sky.
Wukong said, “I don’t know how to extract their essence and blood. You’ll have to do that for me.”
Hearing this, Da Yu was astonished, his mouth falling open in shock, before exclaiming excitedly, “You really intend to repay hatred with kindness?”

Wukong shook his head and said, “It can’t really be called resentment. Why bother dwelling on it? Everything that happened back then had its reasons, and few of those people from then still live today. It’s fortunate to see each other again, but alas, this moment is fleeting!”
Dayu’s gratitude was evident in his words. Wukong’s words had already calmed his mind. Dayu laughed loudly three times, and suddenly his appearance changed. His originally hunched back straightened, his white hair gradually turned dark blue, and the wrinkles on his face faded away. A dying old man transformed into a handsome young man.
Wukong was amazed and asked, “What kind of magic is this?”
Dayu replied, “Please forgive me, Wukong. To be honest, ever since I entered the Kunpeng’s belly, I felt remorse. Everything has its cause and effect. Since I committed countless acts of killing, I ought to pay with my life. But I tried to escape, only to be blocked by the Kunpeng time and again, claiming that our promise wasn’t fulfilled. With no other choice, I dispersed my spiritual energy and severed the life force in my heart, intending to end my own life. Yet the spiritual energy inside the Kunpeng was so strong that even doing so only caused me to age slowly. After tens of thousands of years, I ended up looking like that. I already knew it was all the Kunpeng’s doing. Even if you hadn’t come, I probably wouldn’t have died. But the taste of guilt and remorse is a hundred times worse than death. Now that I’ve seen you again, I no longer wish to destroy myself. Instead, I’ll keep this useful body and be willing to serve as the Divine Ape.”
Wukong smiled and said, “Enough, enough. You’ve suffered greatly over these tens of thousands of years. Consider it atonement. From now on, don’t mention that matter again. It’s pointless and only brings sorrow.”
At that moment, five figures rushed from the sky. From afar, they heard a woman’s voice shouting, “It really is the Divine Ape! Don’t try to deceive me!” Then they heard Chi Songzi say helplessly, “Zhu Rong, you’ve asked along the way already.”
A woman in red rushed forward first, landed on the ground, ignored Wukong, and exclaimed in shock, “Dayu, you—” Dayu smiled at Zhu Rong and said, “I’ve been reborn. Have you come to congratulate me?”
Zhu Rong then looked at Wukong and asked, “So this is the Divine Ape? Why doesn’t it look like it?”
Dayu replied, “I know whether it’s real or fake.”

Wukong glanced at Zhurong, his heart stirring slightly—Zhurong was truly stunningly beautiful. Her oval face featured arched sword-like eyebrows, large eyes with distinct black and white pupils, a clear and joyful gaze that left no room for distractions. Yet the slight downward tilt at the corners of her eyes added a hint of arrogance. Her lips were as red as cinnabar, her neck long and fair, and her figure tall. A red robe wrapped around her graceful form, and as she spoke and laughed, two phoenix feathers atop her head trembled erratically, making her resemble a young girl in her budding years. Her fiery red hair further enhanced her wild charm.

Zhurong blinked her big eyes and asked Wukong, “Are you the Spirit Ape?” She was straightforward by nature but didn’t even know how to say a polite phrase. Wukong nodded. “Yes.”

Seeing Wukong admit it, Zhurong didn’t know what else to say. She pursed her lips and glanced at Dayu. Dayu understood Zhurong’s intentions and deliberately turned to look at the distant mountains, ignoring her. Zhurong shot Dayu a glare before asking Wukong, “Will you save us?” Wukong smiled and nodded. “Yes.”

Zhurong jumped up happily and said, “He said he’ll save us! Dayu, did you hear that?” As Zhurong moved, Wukong felt the surroundings suddenly heat up, as if he were by a sea of molten rock. Dayu quickly grabbed Zhurong’s arm and pulled her aside, whispering, “How many times have I told you not to act impulsively? You’re made of fire—who can withstand that?”

Zhurong stuck out her tongue and said, “I won’t do it next time.”

Wukong thought to himself: Zhurong had lived for tens of thousands of years and married earlier than Gonggong—why did she still act like a child? By then, Chisongzi, along with Jiumang, Houyi, and Rushou, had also arrived but stood at a distance. Jiumang was the God of Wood in the East, and Rushou was the God of Metal in the West; both feared the Fire God Zhurong and usually avoided her.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Dayu said, “I invited you all here today because of an important matter. I’m sure Chisongzi has already told you…” While Dayu spoke, Wukong took a close look at each of them.

Needless to say, the one with a giant bow on his back must be Houyi. He exuded a strong, masculine aura, with long black hair falling over his shoulders, thick eyebrows, a straight nose, and a square mouth. The giant bow behind him was even taller than he was. His quiver at his waist contained only three arrows, each with red, white, and black feathers—unknown to Wukong, their purposes.

To his left stood a man of tall stature, thin build, pale green complexion, and a dull expression. Yet his expressions could suddenly become lively, giving the impression of a withered tree coming back to life. Wukong guessed this must be the God of Wood, Jiumang.

The man on Hou Yi’s right had a human face and tiger claws, covered in white hair about an inch long, yet it couldn’t conceal his bulging muscles. Two short axes with a bluish glow were planted at his waist, clearly not ordinary weapons. The Golden God Ru Shou truly exuded divine might.

Dayu recounted what had happened earlier. Except for Chi Songzi, all four of them showed expressions of disbelief. Could it be that easily? Had the Creative Divine Ape spared them?

Ru Shou was the first to step forward. With a deep voice, he said, “Hearing that the Divine Ape has arrived, I am filled with fear and uncertainty about what punishment may be imposed. Yet it turns out that those born of creation are indeed stronger than us. Your magnanimity truly makes me, Ru Shou, bow in admiration!” After saying this, Ru Shou actually knelt down, ready to pay his respects.

Wukong hurried to stop him, but Ru Shou was incredibly strong. Despite using all his strength, he couldn’t move Ru Shou’s broad shoulders. He had no choice but to step aside to avoid being caught in Ru Shou’s bowing, shouting, “Stop this!”

Seeing Wukong’s fierce tone, the others were confused. Dayu stepped forward and pulled Ru Shou up. Wukong said, “Gentlemen, don’t do this. The cause and effect of this matter are already clear. It’s true that the Seven Divine Apes were killed by you, but ultimately, it was someone else who did it through them. You and the Seven Divine Apes are both pawns in this scheme. The real culprit is the one manipulating the pieces!”

After a pause, seeing that most of them were filled with anger and cold fury, Wukong continued, “Now is the time to unite against our common enemy and find the real mastermind. Engaging in such formalities here is not the behavior of true men!”

After saying this, Dayu clapped his hands and laughed loudly. “Well said! We were indeed too shortsighted. If that’s the case, let’s not mention this matter anymore. I’ve made up my mind—once we’ve overcome this calamity caused by creation, I’ll leave this place with Wukong to find that hidden culprit!”

Chi Songzi and the others said, “Of course! We’re at your disposal!”

Wukong asked, “Let’s talk about tomorrow’s matters tomorrow. Is it difficult to extract the essence blood?” Dayu replied, “It’s very simple. Since you are the essence of creation, the so-called essence blood is actually just ordinary blood. But when the blood flows, Wukong must have a forgiving heart for it to work.” Wukong laughed, “This is quite mysterious.” Dayu said, “It was Kunpeng who told me. Otherwise, how would I know?”

Wukong did as he was told. He pricked his fingertips with his nails, rose into the air, and dropped six drops of blood into each of their mouths. When it came to Zhu Rong, Wukong glanced down accidentally and saw only snow-white scars. His heart was stirred. Zhu Rong’s beautiful eyes were tightly closed, showing a rare look of peace and devotion. Wukong felt ashamed and completed the task honestly.

Six people received the Blood of Creation from Wukong, and nothing unusual happened. Chi Songzi asked with a smile, “I wonder if this method will work or not?” Dayu replied, “The Kunpeng has always regarded itself as embodying the will of heaven—how could it lie?”
Wukong laughed and said, “Life is truly unpredictable. I never expected my drop of blood to serve as a key.” Everyone was stunned, then burst into laughter. Without Wukong’s blood, they would have remained trapped in the Kunpeng’s belly—wasn’t that the case?
Dayu said, “My concerns are finally resolved, but there’s still one thing to discuss.”
Wukong asked, “What is it?”
Dayu asked, “Have you studied the ‘Secrets of the Mysterious Sky’ by the Nine Heavens’ Mystic Maiden?”
Wukong nodded and exclaimed in surprise, “How do you know that?”
Dayu didn’t answer. Instead, he said, “I see a slight gap between your eyebrows—seems you’ve reached the second level of practice.”
Wukong confirmed, “That’s right.”
Dayu said, “I haven’t studied this skill myself, as I lack the five elements. But I do know a bit about it. If you can’t grasp the essence of the third volume, it will naturally be difficult for you to succeed.”
Wukong agreed, “Exactly. The third volume is all about the five elements. I truly don’t understand its subtleties. Is there any way to learn it quickly?”
Dayu replied, “The shortcut is right before your eyes.”
Right before his eyes? Wukong glanced at the people present—the Fire God Zhu Rong, the Gold God Ru Shou, and the Wood God Ju Mang—all smiling at him. Suddenly, he realized and said, “Do you mean to teach me the art of the five elements?”
Dayu said, “I dare not claim to teach you. Consider this a reward for you giving us one of your drops of Creation blood.”