Volume 4: The Revelation Revealed Chapter 531: The Way Endures

Wukong thought for a while and suddenly realized he was being too pedantic. Anyone could handle this task for him; why bother straining his mind? So he sent a message to Xuan Nu, saying a few words. Though Xuan Nu was somewhat surprised, she realized it must be important since it was Wukong’s instruction, so she agreed right away.
Wukong bid farewell to everyone, telling Yin and Yang to protect the Five Elements Divine Apes and be wary of Buddha’s last-ditch efforts. Then he set off for Flower-Fruit Mountain.
Upon arriving in the Country of Cheti, he saw two green figures flying in the sky. Upon seeing Wukong, they rushed toward him. Upon closer inspection, Wukong recognized one of them as Qingqiu, the nine-tailed fox, while the other man was handsome and also belonged to the fox clan.
Qingqiu was overjoyed to see Wukong and pointed at the man, saying, “This is my husband, Qinglin. We’ve come to thank you for saving his life.” With that, Qingqiu bowed deeply, and Qinglin followed suit. Wukong quickly used a magic spell to lift them up, saying, “What merit do I have? There’s no need for such gratitude.”
Qingqiu replied, “After we parted at Qingqiu Mountain, you promised to save my husband. I thought it was just an empty promise, but Buddha actually sent people from the Buddhist hell to release him.”
Oh? Wukong examined Qinglin carefully. He saw that Qinglin was unharmed, his cultivation intact—apparently he hadn’t suffered much in the Buddhist hell. So Wukong asked, “What did Buddha make you do after capturing you?”
Qinglin replied respectfully, “At first, he only made me read a scripture. Later, my consciousness gradually lost control, and I could only follow Buddha’s orders. I don’t even know what I did. After the great battle between the Divine Apes and Buddha, all the confusion in my mind vanished, and Buddha released me.”
Wukong nodded. He remembered that Buddha had sought out all things with nine heads and tails in the world, but this matter seemed to have no conclusion. Now that Qinglin had been released, it was clear he was no longer useful.
Wukong said, “This isn’t my achievement. Besides, the Bull Demon King is my sworn brother—we’re all one family. There’s no need for thanks.” The couple exchanged a few more words before bidding farewell to Wukong and continuing their journey.
Wukong was naturally happy for the couple. Qingqiu had waited so long for Qinglin—truly a devoted person. It was wonderful to see them reunited.

In no time, they reached the territory of Aolai Country. Wukong recalled how he had gathered weapons from this land years ago, as if it were just yesterday. Roughly calculating, he realized he had been in the Journey to the West world for a thousand years. The once-great Sage Equal to Heaven had now become the sole being of wisdom in this world. It seemed this could be considered success. Yet, this achievement was limited to this world alone; if he did not leave, the calamity of the Yuan era would hang over him like the sword of Damocles.

Upon arriving at Flower-Fruit Mountain, he saw that the scenery was even more beautiful than before. Since the fall of the Heavenly Court, no one had disturbed this place again. Now, Flower-Fruit Mountain had become a paradise for demons and beasts. Among the Three Pure Ones, Lingbao always favored teaching without discrimination, so he did not impose restrictions, only telling them not to enter the Peach Garden. In truth, Laojun guarded the Peach Garden extremely strictly, treating its treasures as his own most precious possessions and refusing to allow others to enter at will.

Seeing Wukong, Laojun was overjoyed and said, “I heard that you destroyed the Buddhist hell. This time, you have achieved a great victory.” Wukong replied, “Laojun is well-informed. I wonder how the peaches are growing.”

Upon hearing this, Laojun’s face turned stern, and he said, “All of them were picked last time. Now not even half are left!”

Wukong laughed and said, “It’s okay if there aren’t any now. They’ll be ready in three days!”

“How can that be so fast? It will take at least three years!” Laojun retorted angrily.

Wukong asked, “Laojun, how about we make a bet?”

“What kind of bet? I won’t bet!” Laojun said.

“I bet that these peach trees will bear ripe peaches in three days. Do you believe it?” Wukong asked with a smile.

“What? Peach trees? They probably won’t ripen even in three thousand years!” Laojun said.

“Then will you bet or not?” Wukong asked.

“I won’t bet. Whether they ripen or not, these peach trees are created by the divine ape. They have nothing to do with me.” Laojun glanced at Wukong and said, “You monkey, your cultivation must be unmatched now, right?”

Wukong replied, “Laojun, you spend your days tending to fruits, but you haven’t stopped cultivating either.”

Laojun said, “Not at all. Have you really come here for the peach trees?”

With that, the two walked under the peach trees. The branches were lush and leafy, even taller than they had been in the Heavenly Court. Wukong praised, “Laojun, you’ve worked hard.”

Laojun said, “Look at these peach trees. There isn’t even a single bud right now. How could they ripen in three days?”

Wukong said, “We can check again in three days.”

Laojun nodded and said, “I really want to see what magic tricks you can perform. It’ll be interesting to see.” He pointed around Flower-Fruit Mountain and said, “Indeed, it’s a blessed land. If I don’t believe it, just look at all these immortal fruits. In another hundred years, all these little demons here will grow strong.”

Wukong nodded, but in his heart he thought that if the calamity of the End of Eons had not come, this world would indeed be perfect. Yet, things in the world are unpredictable—how could everything go as one wishes? Could those twelve peach fruits truly ensure the eternal stability of this world?

Wukong said to Laojun, “It’s been a long time since I last visited this place. I’ll go for a walk on my own.”

Laojun laughed heartily. “This place belongs to you after all. Do you still need to ask me?”

“Just showing respect to my elder, haha.” Wukong left the Peach Garden and headed straight to the entrance of Water Curtain Cave. The green stones outside the cave were still covered in moss. Back when he fought for control of Flower-Fruit Mountain, he had almost slipped on those stones. Fortunately, fate had intervened and saved him from disaster.

Fate… Once, he too believed in the existence of divine will in the world, but as time passed, he realized that fate was actually determined by humans.

With a leap, Wukong entered Water Curtain Cave.

There was a simple formation at the entrance to prevent outsiders from entering. Of course, this formation posed no obstacle to Wukong. He walked slowly across the stone bridge, and it seemed as if the voice of the master was echoing in his ears. At the end of the bridge, the stone stele still stood tall, with the ten characters “Holy Land of Flower-Fruit Mountain, Heavenly Cave of Water Curtain” inscribed on it, reminding Wukong that this was the sacred place where the wise divine ape was born.

Just then, a voice suddenly came to Wukong’s ears: “Wukong, my disciple, you’ve arrived.”

Overjoyed, Wukong realized it was Ran Deng’s voice!

He knelt down abruptly and shouted loudly, “Master! I’m here! Where are you?”

Ran Deng replied, “I’m not here yet.”

Not here? Then who was speaking?

Wukong asked, “Master, don’t deceive me. If you’re not here, then who is talking to me? You know how much I miss you—”

“At your level of cultivation, can’t you even overcome the pain of separation?” Ran Deng sounded somewhat displeased.

Wukong asked, “Then when will you return?”

Ran Deng replied, “Though my body has left, my spiritual essence remains. When I’ll return… I don’t know, whether it’s far or near.”

“Alright, as long as you can return, that’s fine!”

Ran Deng said, “There’s no need to worry about me. Let me ask you—are you planning to leave?”

Wukong replied, “That’s right!”

Ran Deng said, “There’s a great secret about this world. Do you know it?”

“What secret?” Wukong asked eagerly. Since Ran Deng was speaking so cautiously, it must be something important. But his next words disappointed Wukong somewhat: “It’s just a guess of mine.”

“That day, I fought against Ni Li and died by self-destruction. I thought my soul would be completely destroyed and I could never be reborn.”

“What happened after that?” Wukong asked.

Ran Deng said, “Later, I don’t know how long it was in silence, but suddenly a trace of the Dao thought arose without any origin. That’s when I realized that in this world, the Dao thought is imperishable!”
The Dao thought is imperishable! The Dao thought is imperishable!
Wukong understood why the phoenix could be reborn from ashes, why Tathagata could not be killed no matter how hard he tried, and why Nagarjuna could rise again after death… It turned out that the Dao thought is imperishable!
Yet not everyone is qualified to achieve this miracle; one must comprehend the Great Dao first!
Like Nagarjuna, not every being of the Yuan era exists. In this life, he is merely a reincarnation of the wise spiritual ape. But within these few hundred years, Nagarjuna achieved his own Dao thought. The existence of the Dao thought has nothing to do with cultivation level—even ordinary people can attain the Dao!
Wukong realized that Meng Ke’s long lifespan might also be related to the Dao thought!
In the previous Yuan era, Ran Deng was formed from the essence of Pangu. But in that era, Ran Deng was destroyed along with the downfall of that Yuan era, which shows that he had not yet attained the Dao at that time.
In this life, Ran Deng was accidentally chosen by Tathagata to become the ancient Buddha Ran Deng. He transformed from evil to good and even mastered the Buddhist Great Dao—truly turning misfortune into fortune!
As for why the Divine Ape of Creation could never be killed, it probably also relates to the Dao thought. As the name implies, the wise one represents the beginning of the Great Dao. Though not awakened, the Dao thought still exists in the heart. And the Divine Apes of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements each have their own Dao.
The Kunpeng possesses the Dao of freedom and ease, enduring forever!
But Wukong couldn’t help but think deeper: Who decides who attains the Dao and who does not? Are it the laws of the world, or those from beyond the heavens?
Recalling that those from beyond the heavens forbade the Dragon Maiden from meeting Nagarjuna, Wukong gradually became convinced that those from beyond the heavens place great importance on Nagarjuna’s Dao. If they valued it so much and wanted Nagarjuna to continue his pursuit of the Dao, then surely they wouldn’t allow him to meet the Dragon Maiden!
Wukong couldn’t help but say, “Master, you’re right! It’s not just you— the Dao thought is imperishable! It’s a truth of the world!”
Ran Deng said, “With just these words, you may go.”
Wukong called out a few more times, but Ran Deng gave no response. He felt greatly relieved—Ran Deng would indeed return. At that moment, Wukong remembered the task he had entrusted to the Xuannv. As Ran Deng said, it showed that those from beyond the heavens valued Nagarjuna’s Dao greatly. Was what he had done wrong after all?