Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 384: Summoning Yin and Yang

It was naturally Guanyin Bodhisattva holding the pure vessel. It seemed that Wu Ping, the old turtle, wasn’t slow at all.
The Bull Demon King immediately grew displeased and snapped, “Can’t even drink in peace!”
Zhu Rong stood up and said, “You go drink by yourselves; I’ll drive her away!” Zhu Rong had long wanted to compete with Guanyin—not out of hatred, but due to the innate hostility between women.
Wukong stopped Zhu Rong and said, “That’s not right.”
Zhu Rong replied, “We’re all from the Qitianling clan—what’s wrong with that?”
Wukong said, “That’s not it. My elder brother, the Old Bull, and the Great Peng are all demons. If we capture Tang Seng, we can still find other excuses. But if you go out directly, Buddha will surely think it’s Qitianling deliberately stirring up trouble!” What Wukong really meant was that although the Nine Spirits Sacred Ones were quite powerful, they were considered second-generation figures in Qitianling. If trouble arose, they still had room to maneuver. But Zhu Rong, Jumang, and Rushou were different—every word and action of theirs could represent Qitianling’s actions.
Zhu Rong thought for a moment and said, “Alright, then let you three deal with it.”
Wukong said, “Guanyin is extremely powerful. To be safe, it’s better if all three of you go together.”
The Nine Spirits Sacred Ones stood in the middle, leading the Great Peng and the Bull Demon King out of the cave in a fierce manner. They saw Guanyin standing atop the clouds, looking down, with two strange beasts behind her—Yingzhao and Taifeng.
Upon seeing them, the Great Peng immediately raised his eyebrows and cursed, “You two good-for-nothings! How did you betray Qitianling?”
Yingzhao and Taifeng kept their heads down and said nothing. Guanyin rebuked, “Great Peng, why did you capture Tang Seng?”
The Great Peng replied, “I capture who I want and release who I want. What can you do to me?”
Guanyin was truly troubled. In the past, she would have immediately used her powers to fight without hesitation. But recently, she had heard something that shocked her deeply, leaving her in a state of confusion. That’s why Wu Ping had to ask her to come to help.
Hearing the Great Peng’s harsh words, Guanyin didn’t get angry but smiled instead and said, “The people of Qitianling only know how to scheme behind the scenes. Do they not realize that this might be the idea of the Qilin or a trick by Dayu?”
When the Nine Spirits Sacred Ones heard Guanyin mention the Qilin, they couldn’t help but say, “It’s me who wants Tang Seng’s flesh—this has nothing to do with others! A noble Bodhisattva like you daring to guess recklessly—aren’t you afraid it will harm your reputation?”
The Bull Demon King laughed and said, “Nonsense! In Buddhism, all four elements are empty—where is there any reputation to speak of?”
Guanyin’s expression darkened, and she shouted, “Capture this old bull for me!”

Ying Zhao and Tai Feng did not hesitate. The two rushed forward together to attack the Bull Demon King. The Bull Demon King cursed, “You two are so bold!” As he spoke, he moved swiftly, blocking their attacks with his fists, and shouted again, “Even if you both attack at once, I’m not afraid!”

As the battle ensued, the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint transformed into a nine-headed lion-like creature, floating in midair. With a voice like thunder, he said to Guanyin, “Let me experience the great power of Goddess Guanyin!”

Guanyin felt a shock in her heart. She hadn’t seen the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint in hundreds of years, and his cultivation had advanced so rapidly—he was now nearly at the later stage of Hunyuan. Guanyin drew out a willow branch and said solemnly, “Hand over your weapon!”

The Nine Spirit Primordial Saint replied, “I never use weapons.”

Guanyin glanced sideways. The Bull Demon King and Ying Zhao and Tai Feng were fighting further and further apart, now even in the sky. With such a formidable enemy before her, she paid it little attention. Her willow branch transformed into a green long whip, which swirled toward the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint.

The Nine Spirit Primordial Saint opened his mouth and spat out a fireball, which hit the whip. He knew that wood could produce fire, and fire could burn wood. But he didn’t expect Guanyin’s willow whip to be made of water—it passed straight through the fireball without any hindrance and struck the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint.

As soon as the whip circled once, the leftmost head of the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint bit onto the end of the whip. Guanyin pulled it back, leaving a bloody mark on the saint’s mouth.

The Nine Spirit Primordial Saint paid no attention. He shook his head and flew toward Guanyin. All nine heads opened their mouths—some spewing smoke, some yellow sand, some poisonous fire, and some emitting earth-shattering noises. Even Guanyin, surrounded by them, felt the situation was dire. Her already unstable meditation mind showed signs of wavering, so she quickly retreated far away and shouted, “Wait!”

Seeing the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint forcing Guanyin back, the Great Roc was also amazed. This was genuine skill, not won through any magical artifacts or techniques. While admiring the Nine Spirit Primordial Saint’s extraordinary talent, he also felt a competitive spirit and resolved to find an opportunity to compete with him properly.

The Nine Spirit Primordial Saint asked, “What more does the Goddess want?”

Guanyin replied, “I have matters to attend to today and cannot engage in a fight with you. But capturing Tang Seng has only brought disaster upon yourselves. Listen to me—let him go and continue his pilgrimage.”

The Great Roc said, “There’s no need for the Goddess’s advice. The demon race acts based on momentary whims, without much thought.”

Guanyin sighed secretly and said, “Very well. Then where has that ox taken Ying Zhao and Tai Feng?”
The Great Roc laughed and said, “How should I know?”

Guanyin got up and searched everywhere. The Nine Spirits Sacred One also knew he couldn’t stop her, so he let her go. She looked around and saw three more figures approaching from the east. The Bull Demon King fought against two opponents yet still held his ground, but Guanyin could tell at a glance that their fight seemed too fake. However, thinking further, she realized that Yingzhao and Taifeng had lived on Qitian Ridge for many years and had some affection for the Bull Demon King, so it was understandable that they were fighting feigningly.

Guanyin stepped forward and shouted, “Let’s go!” But Yingzhao and Taifeng ignored her words and continued to fight against the Bull Demon King at a leisurely pace. Displeased, Guanyin began reciting the Tightening Spell. As soon as she started, Yingzhao and Taifeng clutched their heads in pain. In moments, the two powerful divine beasts in the sky tumbled to the ground.

The Bull Demon King was stunned and demanded, “What kind of dark magic are you using?” Guanyin was too busy chanting to pay him any attention. At that moment, the Nine Spirits Sacred One and the Golden-Winged Roc attacked like a storm. Together, one was as fearsome as a mountain and the other as swift as wind and thunder. After resisting for a while, Guanyin had no choice but to stop chanting and focus on fighting back.

The Bull Demon King landed, pulled up Yingzhao and Taifeng, and said, “Why run around aimlessly? Come back with me!” Then he took the two divine beasts back to Shituo Ridge.

Guanyin grew anxious. Over the past year or so, she had worked with Yingzhao and Taifeng on many great Five Elements formations. Believing that the two headbands would allow her to control these two divine beasts firmly, she had acted rather recklessly. If Yingzhao and Taifeng returned to Qitian Ridge, it would be like releasing tigers back into the mountains. If the people of Qitian Ridge learned the secrets of the Five Elements formations, how could they not try to disrupt them? If this failed again, how could Buddha spare her?

But her anxiety was useless. The Nine Spirits Sacred One and the Golden-Winged Roc trapped her tightly. Only then did she realize that the Golden-Winged Roc’s cultivation was no weaker than that of the Nine Spirits Sacred One, and combined with its shadowy movement style, it was even more troublesome than the former.

Guanyin sighed inwardly. The forces in Qitian Ridge had grown strong—not only were those like the Qilin and Dayu formidable, but even their descendants could stand on their own. The more she fought, the more desolate she felt. She simply used a movement technique to leap out of the battle arena and head straight back to the South Sea.

Seeing that they had driven away Guanyin Bodhisattva, the Golden-Winged Roc laughed heartily and said, “Guanyin Bodhisattva is just this much after all!” The Nine Spirits Sacred One replied, “Not exactly. Guanyin truly had matters to attend to today; I could see she was a bit distracted.”

The Golden-Winged Roc snorted and said, “When he sees me as stronger, he likely focuses all his strength on me, so your pressure naturally decreases.” He had intended to provoke the Nine Spirits Sacred One, but the latter was extremely calm and simply said, “My brother makes a good point.”

Dapeng was speechless and embarrassed. The two returned to Shitaoling, where Wukong was carefully observing Yingzhao and Taifeng. He asked, “You two are really seeking trouble for yourselves. Why go and provoke Guanyin for no reason?”
Yingzhao said with a pained expression, “It was all Fengtong’s idea.” Wukong thought to himself that Fengtong might not even know how many constraints Guanyin had; perhaps it was the Three Pure Ones causing trouble again.
Wukong said, “Since it was his idea, let’s go find him to lift these two constraints.”
No sooner had he spoken than a figure drifted in from outside the cave, light as down. It was none other than Fengtong. Upon seeing him, Wukong was stunned and said, “You… how did you come here?” Tang Seng was still in Shitaoling, but Fengtong was not like himself—he was already an awakened divine ape. What brought him here?
Fengtong replied, “How can I not come?”
He went over to Yingzhao and Taifeng, used magic to dissolve the formations around their constraints, and drew out two thin threads of yin energy from creation—something only Wukong and he could see.
Wukong quickly pulled Fengtong over and asked in a low voice, “Aren’t you afraid of that Tang Seng—”
Fengtong said, “To be honest, I don’t know the full details either. My master simply told me to come here immediately, and I didn’t dare refuse. I had no idea you’d be here.”
Yuan Shi? Why would he send Fengtong to Shitaoling at this time? If it were just for Yingzhao and Taifeng, that didn’t quite make sense. Though those two divine beasts were rare, they still didn’t stand out in Yuan Shi’s eyes. Fengtong must have come for Tang Seng. Sending him to meet Tang Seng now—was it to awaken the Yin and Yang divine apes?
Fengtong said, “Since I’m here, it must be for that purpose.” He didn’t need to say it outright; Wukong understood clearly.
Wukong asked Jiu Ling Yuan Sheng, “Elder brother, where did you put Tang Seng?”
Fengtong replied, “There’s no need to ask the elder brother. I already know.”
He led Wukong into a cave nearby. The caves in Shitaoling had been painstakingly dug by Dapeng and his group, with intricate layouts that could truly confuse people. Though it was Fengtong’s first time here, he knew most of the world’s formations by heart. Such a small stone cave couldn’t stump him.
Relying on his connection with Tang Seng, he walked for a while before arriving at a very hidden cave, where the White Dragon Horse was tied at the entrance. The cave was spacious, with precious pearls embedded in the ceiling, making it extremely ornate. In the middle of the cave stood a table filled with vegetarian food prepared by the little demons—clearly, Jiu Ling Yuan Sheng knew Tang Seng was no ordinary person and needed to be treated well.
But Tang Seng thought he had been captured by demons and couldn’t bring himself to eat a bite. He was restless on the bed when he saw Wukong enter the cave, accompanied by a little monkey with white hair on its forehead.

When Tang Seng saw Fengtong, his originally clear eyes gradually grew confused. Eventually, he rolled his eyes back and fainted.
Wukong was alarmed and asked, “Are you okay?”
Fengtong shook his head and said, “The Yin-Yang Divine Ape will wake up soon. This incident has been too shocking for him; it’s fine if he faints.”
Wukong thought to himself that Buddha had done everything in his power to prevent the Yin-Yang Divine Ape from meeting other divine apes, but how could such a thing be prevented? Now that Tang Seng had returned and remembered his past life, he would naturally hate Buddha deeply. The quest for the scriptures was likely over.