Volume 2: The Path That Can Be Told, Chapter 100: The Realm of Laojun

Although Wu Kong had his suspicions, this confirmation from Meng Ke still filled him with astonishment. It was indeed Laozi! The one Meng Ke met was Laozi! The Supreme Lord of Morality! The Great Old Lord Laojun!
That wasn’t important. The Great Old Lord Laojun had brought Meng Ke to his realm—most likely to prove his path. That had nothing to do with Wu Kong. What mattered was why he had taken Wu Kong into his realm and what his intentions were.
Had he realized that Buddha would be harmful to him and wanted to protect him? Or, like in “Journey to the West,” to train him in the furnace to make him stronger? Or had he noticed Wu Kong was different from others and intended to test him?
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Wu Kong came up with many possibilities, but none provided an answer. For the first time, he felt exposed in front of others. Back when he was in Buddha’s grasp, no matter where he went, he could sense eyes watching him closely. Now, knowing the master of this realm was the Great Old Lord Laojun, that feeling grew even stronger.
In “Journey to the West,” the Great Old Lord Laojun seemed calm, unconflictual, and even weak, but Wu Kong never believed a being among the Three Pure Ones could be ordinary. A mere Green Ox Spirit descending to the mortal world could leave many immortals at a loss—there might be even more immortals and demons causing trouble at his instigation.
Wu Kong suppressed his turbulent emotions, maintaining a calm expression, and said to Meng Ke, “How can this be considered being confused? Could it be that Master Meng regrets it now?”
Meng Ke sighed and said, “Elder Immortal, from your words, it seems you already know who this person is. I also know who he is. If I had known it was him, why would I have made such a bet?” Meng Ke was a great scholar. Pursuing knowledge was no different from seeking the Way among immortals—his resolve was as firm as rock. But from the moment he was brought into this realm, he realized that the one who had once told him, “Heaven and Earth show no kindness, treating all things as mere straw dogs,” and who possessed such incredible powers, was none other than the legendary Great Old Lord Laojun. His desire to compete had weakened greatly. Coupled with irregular meals here, the disturbances from the Three Tiger Strength Immortals, and the long-standing corrupt practices in the country of Qixin, Meng Ke’s desire to seek the Way nearly vanished. He no longer cared about winning or losing; he just wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.
Wu Kong smiled and said, “One must remember that there are ranks among people, but no hierarchy in the Way. If one firmly believes in their own path, how can they retreat just because of external pressures?”
Hearing Wu Kong’s wise words, Meng Ke’s eyes lit up. He said, “If the Elder Immortal doesn’t mind, shall we return to the thatched cottage for a longer discussion later?” Wu Kong naturally agreed.

Wukong had been using the technique of transforming his form for some time now, feeling his magical energy rapidly depleting. Frowning, he realized that if he revealed his true form at this moment, Meng Ke might become suspicious. He glanced at the three immortals—Huli, Luli, and Yangli—and suddenly remembered something, so he shouted sharply, “You three, lift your heads! I have one more question. If you answer properly, I’ll let you go; if not, I’ll kill you all!” The three hurriedly raised their heads, staring at Wukong without daring to blink. Wukong said, “There is not a trace of natural energy in this world. How do you replenish your magical power? Speak quickly!” Luli’s heart stirred—he realized this supreme immortal was new here and didn’t even know this. In that case, he would run out of power eventually, and then he wouldn’t be a match for them. It would be fine to capture him then. He quickly replied, “Your Excellency, we rely on mortals to accumulate natural energy—” “Nonsense! How many mortals are there here? You need to cultivate and use supernatural powers at the same time—how is that possible? Watch this!” Wukong drew out his Golden Cudgel and lightly struck Luli’s leg. Luli couldn’t dodge and let out a painful scream as his bones broke. Yangli quickly crawled a few steps forward and pleaded, “Your Excellency, spare our lives! Please, your supreme excellence, spare us! We actually… we still have another method.” Seeing that he was speaking with difficulty, Wukong pointed at Huli and said, “You speak!” Seeing Luli’s miserable state, Huli hurriedly said, “Your Excellency, there’s a misunderstanding. My brother hadn’t finished speaking. Besides relying on mortals to accumulate natural energy, there’s also a method of chanting scriptures to generate it. Once natural energy is created, there’s no need to worry about lacking magical power.” Wukong asked, “Chanting scriptures? I’ve never heard of it. What scriptures are they?” Huli took out a small golden-threaded pouch from his bosom, carefully removed a scroll from it, and handed it to Wukong, saying, “It’s this scripture. The three of us have cultivated using this scripture—there’s no lie in it.” Wukong took the pouch, guessing that these three wouldn’t dare lie, and said, “Go!” The three felt as if they had been pardoned. Huli and Yangli helped Luli up, not daring to use any supernatural powers, as they stepped down from the platform one by one. Meng Ke said, “Your Excellency, please come to my humble home for a chat.” The two returned to the town. Meng Ke’s house was no different from those of others—it was a low-eaved earthen house, but quite spacious. Inside, there were tables, chairs, and desks, all finely crafted. Meng Ke opened a cabinet, boiled water in the kitchen, and soon prepared a cup of fragrant tea for Wukong.

Wukong was delighted to find tea here. He picked up the ceramic cup and took a gentle sip, experiencing a strange fragrance he had never tasted before. Mencius said, “Apart from grains, everything else grows vigorously here and is of top quality. It’s truly strange.”

Wukong took another sip, smacked his lips, and said, “Food is the paramount necessity of the people.” Mencius nodded and said, “Though this tea is excellent, I dare not drink too much for fear of feeling hungry. Today, with the help of the immortal, I’ve obtained plenty of white rice, so I can afford to drink a few more cups.”

Seeing Mencius’s drunken-like state as he raised his cup, Wukong felt a strange sense of sorrow in his heart. Wukong asked, “Apart from those three Taoists who have been here, have you seen any other unusual people?” Mencius replied, “No. Since I can’t even fill my stomach, I only interact slightly with the people in the town, let alone those in other provinces.” Wukong asked, “Are there other provinces? How far away?” Mencius said, “I’ve only heard it said that they are hundreds of miles away. This Qixin Country itself spans a thousand miles. If I were to teach the people within it, it seems hopeless for my lifetime.” Wukong laughed and said, “There’s no need to rush.”

Mencius suddenly said, “You mentioned unusual people. I recall there was a monkey that was beaten to death by others, yet its body disappeared without a trace. That’s also a strange incident.” Wukong laughed and asked, “You just said this realm is a place for enlightenment, where killing never occurs. Then why was that monkey killed?” Mencius replied, “‘Never killing’ refers to humans. Though that monkey could speak and act and possessed human-like qualities, it was still just an animal. We can’t generalize.” Hearing this, Wukong felt uneasy but didn’t argue with Mencius. He asked instead, “What if killing does occur?” Mencius was stunned and said, “It is said that if someone harbors murderous intent toward their own kind, a ‘prohibition against killing’ voice will ring in their ears. If they refuse to change, they will be severely punished. I’ve never had such intentions, so I don’t know if it’s true or not.” Wukong nodded. He remembered Fengtong once telling him that in the art of formations, there was a type called a restriction, which was a restraining technique that surpassed ordinary formations. From what Mencius said, this ‘prohibition against killing’ seemed like a restriction governing this realm. There should be more than one such restriction; the difficulty in growing grains might also be one of them.

Mencius asked Wukong, “Why did you come to this realm?” Wukong replied, “I don’t know either. I just came in in a daze.” Mencius sighed and said, “Time passes slowly here. I no longer know how long I’ve been here.” Wukong asked, “Having been here for so long, have you heard of anyone leaving?” Mencius shook his head and said, “No. I don’t know how others leave, but I know how to leave myself.”

Wukong asked, “So, can this heartless country be transformed into one of benevolence and righteousness?”
Meng Ke replied, “Exactly!” He took a sip of tea and continued, “When I first arrived, I was full of ambition, believing that everything in the world depended on human effort. But now, hehe, I no longer have the same aspirations as before.”
Wukong smiled and said, “This isn’t difficult.”
Meng Ke was both surprised and delighted. “Could it be that you are an immortal…”
Wukong said, “Calm down for now. Let me sleep for a while before discussing this in detail with you.”
Meng Ke wondered, “There are no days or nights in this realm—there’s no need to sleep, nor do people feel tired.”
Wukong laughed heartily and said, “Even if there’s no universe, I have the sun and moon in my heart.” Without further ado, he went into the inner room and lay down on the bed.
Meng Ke remained seated, pondering those words—“Even if there’s no universe, I have the sun and moon in my heart.” Sometimes his face showed joy, sometimes deep thought, and sometimes worry…
Wukong wasn’t really going to sleep. His internal energy had been depleted, so he wanted to find a place to meditate and seek the technique to harness creation energy. He opened the golden silk pouch given to him by the Tiger Strength Immortal. Unfolding the silk scroll, he saw it covered in tiny seal script characters. Fortunately, Wukong had excellent eyesight; otherwise, it would have been hard for him to read them.
At the top of the scroll were three larger characters—“Mystical Pearl Records,” a little-known Taoist scripture. “All dharmas in the ten directions can be expressed in words. Yet all such expressions are illusory; even the unexpressed dharmas are part of this illusion…” Wukong recited the text silently. Though he didn’t fully understand its meaning, he felt a faint purple glow of creation energy begin to spin in his dantian. Delighted, he realized that the Tiger Strength Immortal hadn’t deceived him. With this technique to create energy, he could freely wield his powers without worries.
However, the creation of energy was extremely slow. After half an hour of reciting, only a trace of his energy had recovered. Frustrated, he tossed the scroll aside.
An idea struck him. If reading scriptures could generate creation energy, why not try reading the “Tao Te Ching”? So he sat cross-legged, focused his mind, and began to recite silently, “Heaven and Earth are impartial, treating all things as mere straw dogs…” As soon as he began reciting, the glow of creation energy spun like a top, growing much faster than in the Water Curtain Cave of the Flower-Fruit Mountain. Wukong suddenly understood that this realm belonged to Laozi, and reading his “Tao Te Ching” here would yield twice the result with half the effort, naturally aligning with the fundamental principles of this realm.
How could he miss such an excellent opportunity to improve his cultivation? Wukong stopped thinking about anything else and devoted himself entirely to practicing.