Volume 2: The Path That Can Be Told, Chapter 130: Avoiding the Six Ears

The vast sky was endless, with a drifting cloud moving slowly with the wind. Three monkeys sat atop it, motionless like meditating monks.
Tongfeng was initially surprised, but upon thinking of Wukong’s status as a wise and divine monkey, he found it not so remarkable. It was only logical that, after Laojun deduced the identities of the Three Pure Ones, he could also guess the ruler of the three realms. Seeing Wukong in deep thought, he sat quietly, not daring to disturb him.
Wukong sat there for a whole day, until the sun set below the sea and the bright moon hung high in the sky before he finally regained his senses. Upon opening his eyes, he saw the vast expanse of silver light rippling on the sea’s surface—a truly spectacular sight.
With a hint of apology, Wukong smiled at King Tongfeng and said, “I was lost in thought for a moment. Please forgive me.”
Tongfeng sighed, “It’s truly remarkable that you could guess who rules this realm. If my master had known of your existence earlier, he would have told me specifically so that I could reveal my identity to you openly, without any concealment, hoping only for your trust.”
Wukong frowned. What did “hoping only for trust” mean? He had no connection with the Primordial Lord, nor had he ever interacted with him in “Journey to the West.” Only once, when he went to Wuzhuang Temple, was Zhenyuanzi invited by the Primordial Lord to heaven to listen to lectures on the Dao of Hunyuan, and then did he hear the Primordial Lord’s name. Could it be that the Primordial Lord had deliberately moved Zhenyuanzi aside to give him a chance to steal the Ginseng Fruit? All those past events could no longer be revisited; in this life, one could only speculate, not assume.
Since Tongfeng said so, it seemed they would often interact with the Primordial Lord from now on, and it would be impossible to avoid it. Wukong nodded and said, “Our bond is far stronger than that between brothers. If you trust me, I will naturally trust you!”
Tongfeng was overjoyed, his expression filled with emotion.
Wukong smiled and said to Wang Yu, “King Yu, when will your master allow me to see his true face?” Hearing this, Wang Yu immediately showed a bitter smile and said, “I really can’t decide that. My master’s status is no less than that of the Primordial Lord. Wukong, please don’t put me in a difficult position.” Wukong exclaimed, “How many people can compare to the Primordial Lord? Buddha, the Jade Emperor, Ran Deng, Maitreya…” Wukong listed five or six well-known names, but seeing Wang Yu just shaking his head, he sighed, “I’m just a frog in a well making random guesses. There are probably many capable people in the world who are stronger than us, but they simply don’t like to draw attention.”
Tongfeng said, “My master once said that when one’s fate arrives, there is no escape. No matter who you are, when it’s time to appear, you can no longer hide.” Wukong replied, “And when it’s not time, no amount of effort will bring you forth, right?”
“Exactly!” Tongfeng and Wang Yu said in unison.

At this moment, the cloud on which the three of them were sitting had unknowingly moved out of the sea, and below, dark mountain ranges could be seen undulating. Wukong said, “I’ve just arrived in this realm and still don’t know its geography. Should we go around and explore?”
Tongfeng replied, “I’ve been here a few times in my early years, but only stayed for short periods. This realm is quite small. If you want to see around, let’s go together!”
The three of them used their supernatural powers to fly low along the mountain peaks. Compared to the Realm of Slaughter and the Realm of Good and Evil, this realm was indeed much smaller. By the time dawn broke, they had already explored it thoroughly.
There was one mountain, one sea, one plain, one island, and one city—nothing else.
Wukong remembered the surge of fate he had experienced when first entering the Realm of Slaughter and asked Tongfeng about it. Tongfeng clapped his hands and laughed loudly, saying, “That was the moment when Wang Yu and I entered this realm. We both felt the same as you. It’s only now, upon your question, that I understand. So that’s how it is—there are connections between the many portals between these three realms.” Wukong found Tongfeng’s explanation reasonable.
Then, he remembered another important matter and recounted his encounter with the Six-Eared Monkey in the Realm of Slaughter. Tongfeng showed no surprise upon hearing this. He said he had long known there was a strange divine monkey in the Realm of Slaughter, but the Primordial Lord had instructed him not to reveal his identity, so he had to obey.
Wukong thought about the Six-Eared Monkey’s actions in “Journey to the West” and, combined with what the Primordial Lord had done, concluded that the Six-Eared Monkey must be a pawn placed by the Three Pure Ones. He said, “The Lord’s actions must have some hidden purpose. You just follow his orders.” But in his heart, he thought that if the Six-Eared Monkey was indeed sent by the Three Pure Ones to obstruct the pilgrimage, then it had actually failed.
Not to mention that the Buddha had exposed the Six-Eared Monkey’s true identity, it was likely that the Buddha had also guessed who was behind him. Otherwise, why would the Buddha, in the subsequent battle at the Flaming Mountains, act contrary to his usual habits by sending the four great guardianVajra of Buddhism to assist, capturing the Bull Demon King and the Rakshasi and sending them to the Western Heaven? This was probably a display of defiance and retaliation against the Three Pure Ones. Clearly, the Taoists lost this battle completely. Thinking of this, Wukong sighed, realizing that these battles among the gods were no different from those in the mortal world—only the powerful ones planned from behind the scenes, while those of lower status had to face the battles firsthand.
Tongfeng, of course, didn’t know Wukong’s thoughts and continued to tell him about the interesting things in the three realms. Wukong, however, was distracted. As he listened, he thought that since Tongfeng had come to this realm, he surely had important matters to attend to, so he asked, “Did you come to this realm for some important task?”
Tongfeng replied, “Of course. But since we’ve just met after the calamity, let’s enjoy each other’s company for now.”

Wukong was immediately speechless. Fengtong had always seemed steady and strategic, and it was hard to imagine he had such a mischievous side. It seemed that though they had known each other for only a short time, their bond had deepened over these years. Grateful in his heart, he said aloud, “It’s still the important matters that matter.” Wukong had no idea that his performance in this realm had already won Fengtong’s admiration; he respected and admired Wukong deeply. Seeing Wukong eager to discuss serious matters, Fengtong said, “We came to this realm solely to escape our predicament. Even if this plan fails, in a time of crisis, my master will surely step in to rescue us. But if that’s the case, wouldn’t it be humiliating? Our priority now is to find a way to leave this realm.” Wukong nodded—his guess was correct. The Three Pure Ones had created this realm as an experiment to predict the calamities facing the original realm of Journey to the West. People like himself, the Nine-Headed Worm, the Six-Eared Monkey, Fengtong, Wang Yu, and many others in this realm were likely subjects chosen by the Three Pure Ones for the experiment. Even figures like the patriarch of the Daoist sect had unknowingly fallen into this scheme, unaware that they would be killed by the Nine-Headed Worm. Given his special status, even if this realm perished, the Three Pure Ones would not stand idly by; they would surely help him escape. But that would indeed be as humiliating as Fengtong had said. Compared to Fengtong, Wukong had considered one more aspect: the original realm of Journey to the West. If it was impossible to escape even the calamities of the Three Pure Ones’ realm, how could they hope to resolve the crises in that realm? Therefore, this mission could only succeed—failure was not an option. Wukong said, “Since we’re going to do this, we must succeed. Only then can we prove the uniqueness of my divine ape. You may rely on being Yuan Shi’s disciple, but I believe that whether as disciples or friends, we must not let others look down on us. Even if it’s the Three Pure Ones themselves, what does that matter?” Hearing Wukong speak so firmly, Fengtong and Wang Yu also became serious, with no trace of frivolous thoughts in their minds. Wukong asked, “Do you two have any ideas?” Fengtong replied, “Not yet.” So Wukong told them about the Nine-Headed Worm and naturally mentioned the “Great Five Elements Spirit Blood Formation.” Upon hearing this, Fengtong’s expression changed. He said, “I know this formation too. If we could set it up… No, it’s impossible. It simply can’t be done.” Wukong pressed, “What if we could? And why is it impossible?” Fengtong replied, “If it could be done, it would have the power to turn reality into illusion.” “What does ‘turn reality into illusion’ mean?” “The ancient formation texts say so, but I don’t quite understand it either.” “Then why is this formation so difficult to set up?”

“The so-called Great Five Elements require a number of five multiplied by five. These twenty-five people are no ordinary folks; they possess pure Yang energies of the five elements. Though such purity is rare, combining the large and small five elements is even more difficult. How can this be achieved?”