Volume 2: The Path That Can Be Told, Chapter 169: The Call from Laojun

The Jade Emperor sat in his imperial carriage and soon arrived at the Moon Palace. The Lord of the Moon greeted him and politely invited the Jade Emperor inside.
The Jade Emperor loved watching Chang’e dance in the Guanghan Palace, a fact known to everyone in heaven. Chang’e was of unparalleled beauty, born with an appearance befitting a deity, inspiring reverence and forbidding any thought of disrespect. At first, some immortals whispered that the Jade Emperor wanted to make Chang’e his consort, but after tens of thousands of years with no such overstepping, the rumors ceased.
The Lord of the Moon led the Jade Emperor into the Guanghan Palace. As soon as they entered,Wind-Ear whispered to the Jade Emperor, “I just heard that someone is causing chaos in the Demon Hunting Garden—it’s a monster from the mortal world.”
“Is that so?” The Jade Emperor lowered his foot and turned to leave, ordering, “Hurry and have the Tower-Bearing Heavenly King lead troops to capture the monster!”
Wind-Ear rushed off to carry out the order, while the Jade Emperor sentQianliyan to look from a high place. After a short while,Qianliyan returned and reported, “Your Majesty, this monster is an old acquaintance—a monkey from Flower-Fruit Mountain who invaded the Tongming Hall four hundred years ago and was captured by Laojun!”
The Jade Emperor nodded, thinking, “Laojun, I know you would never dare kill this monkey, but why did you let it go? Do you really want chaos to reign throughout the world before you’ll stop?”
The Jade Emperor ordered to return to the Tongming Hall. Sitting in his carriage, he pondered deeply—this monkey was almost certainly a manifestation of fate. What should he do now?
Before long, the Tower-Bearing Li Heavenly King rushed into the Tongming Hall, his helmet askew and armor crooked, shouting, “That monkey is even more fierce than before! Even numerous heavenly soldiers and generals can’t surround it!”
The Jade Emperor’s expression shifted, and he finally said, “Summon the Eastern Extreme Qinghua Emperor and the Western Extreme Gouchen Emperor. We must capture this monkey alive!”
While Li Heavenly King went to seek help, the Jade Emperor summoned Youyi Lingguan and secretly instructed him to report the matter to Buddha in the Western Heaven. Youyi Lingguan was of average ability, only at the fifth rank of immortals, but he excelled at the spell “Golden Light That Soars Across the Land,” allowing him to travel thousands of miles with a single spell.
He returned in no time and reported to the Jade Emperor, “Buddha said, ‘Killing it will bring disaster. Just drive it into a corner.’” The Jade Emperor nodded slightly and said, “Hurry and order those two emperors to drive it back to the mortal world!”
At that moment, Wukong was showing off his power in the Demon Hunting Garden, destroying the beautiful garden beyond recognition. Many heavenly soldiers and generals surrounded him from afar, too afraid to approach. Suddenly, a path opened through the crowd of soldiers. A Taoist priest, holding a feather duster, floated gracefully toward them—none other than the Great Lord Taiyi, the Savior of Suffering.

When the Heavenly Venerable Who Relieves Suffering saw Wukong, he was shocked: “What a fierce monkey! It still wreaks havoc in the world!” Wukong laughed and said, “Even Laojun’s Eight Trigrams Furnace couldn’t trap me. Do you really think you can surpass him?”
The Heavenly Venerable Who Relieves Suffering replied, “Laojun has always been kind and righteous, but I fear no demons!” With that, he waved his dust whisk and charged forward, engaging Wukong in battle. Having seen the Heavenly Venerable Who Relieves Suffering fight against the Nine Spiritual Saints, Wukong knew he was formidable. He focused his energy and swung his iron rod skillfully, attacking the Heavenly Venerable.
The Heavenly Venerable blocked a few strikes but felt the immense force of Wukong’s rod and found it hard to cope. Filled with fear and shock, he realized the monkey’s powers had grown greatly. Would he have to suffer humiliation in front of everyone today?
Seeing that forceful combat wouldn’t work, the Heavenly Venerable scattered his dust threads, sending streams of silver threads toward Wukong. Knowing the power of these threads, Wukong quickly used the spell “Flames Illuminating the Sky,” filling the Demon Hunting Garden with white flames that scared the heavenly soldiers and officials to retreat hastily.
Although the Heavenly Venerable wasn’t afraid of ordinary flames, his dust threads were extremely vulnerable to fire. Seeing that Wukong could control fire, he quickly retracted his threads, his expression growing even darker.
At that moment, a thunderous shout was heard: “Fierce monkey! Let me capture you!” Hearing this, the Heavenly Venerable was overjoyed—it was the Great Emperor of the Western Pole, Gouchen. The Great Emperor governed the Divine Thunder Jade Palace and was most powerful in the arts of fire and metal. If he intervened, the monkey would surely be captured.
Just then, the Official Youyi rushed over and said, “The Jade Emperor has ordered that the monkey be banished to the mortal world for further decision!” Everyone was shocked by this order; even Wukong hadn’t expected the Jade Emperor to be so lenient.
But since the ruler of all heavens had given his word, none of the heavenly soldiers dared defy him. They stepped aside to let Wukong pass first. Wukong, fearing it was a trick, pretended to be suspicious and said, “Don’t try to deceive me. Who doesn’t know your double standards—different behavior in front of others and behind their backs?” The Official Youyi replied, “It is indeed the Jade Emperor’s order. How would I dare forge an imperial decree? If you don’t leave now, you might not be able to leave soon.”
Wukong said, “Fine, I’ll go!” With that, he strode out of the Demon Hunting Garden, turning back and saying, “I’ll come back in a few days. I must avenge burning my Flower-Fruit Mountain!” Then he leaped into the air and disappeared.
The Great Emperor of Gouchen stamped his foot in anger and said, “We were about to capture him—how could he get away again? I’ll go see the Jade Emperor!”
The Official Youyi replied, “The Jade Emperor has ordered both of you to go to the Brightness Hall.”
In front of the Brightness Hall, almost all the heavenly soldiers and officials had gathered. When the Jade Emperor saw the Great Emperor of Qinghua and the Great Emperor of Gouchen enter, he ordered them to take their seats.
The Great Emperor of Gouchen asked, “Jade Emperor, we surrounded the monkey just now—why did you let him go?”

The Jade Emperor said, “Do you still remember the great battle in front of the Tongming Hall last time? That demon monkey was extremely bold, destroying the jade pillars of the hall—how rampant! Now that he’s come to cause trouble again, though I hate him, I’ll tolerate him once more, learning from past mistakes.”

The Great Emperor of Gouchen asked, “Are we just going to let the tiger return to the mountains?”

The Jade Emperor replied, “Of course not. Though the world is vast, where else could he escape? Heavenly King Holding the Pagoda, receive my orders!”

The Heavenly King stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

The Jade Emperor said, “Seeing that this demon monkey has come alone, he must be abandoned by all. Heavenly King Holding the Pagoda, I order you to lead the Four Great Golden Immortals, Prince Nezha, and the Twenty-Eight Stars to descend and capture him. Can you do it?”

When Li Jing heard he had to capture Wukong, he hesitated and couldn’t guarantee success. The Jade Emperor laughed and said, “Never mind. I know that demon monkey is fierce. Just keep him occupied. Our heavenly court has many people and great strength, while he’s alone. From now on, pursue him day and night without rest. Once he’s exhausted, there’s no need to worry about capturing him alive.”

The Heavenly King Holding the Pagoda said, “Your servant accepts the order!”

At this moment, the Great Emperor of Gouchen asked again, “That demon monkey said he must return to the heavenly court to avenge the burning of Flower-Fruit Mountain. We need a preventive measure.”

The Jade Emperor was stunned, not knowing who had burned Flower-Fruit Mountain and framed him. After some thought, he said, “Thousand-Eye and Wind-Ear, receive my orders! I command you to assist the Four Great Golden Immortals in guarding the South Heavenly Gate at all times, ensuring no more demons from the mortal world can enter!”

Everyone praised the Jade Emperor’s clear plans and shouted, “Long live the Emperor!”

※　※　※

After leaving the Great Luo Heaven, Wukong continued to ponder the Jade Emperor’s intentions. Lost in thought, he wandered aimlessly and soon returned to Flower-Fruit Mountain. Standing on the mountain top was none other than the Bull Demon King.

Wukong exclaimed, “Brother, why are you here?”

The Bull Demon King asked, “Why did it take you so long to come down?”

Wukong replied, “I destroyed the Demon Hunting Garden, so naturally, there was a fight.”

The Bull Demon King said, “Do you realize that fight lasted fifteen years?”

Wukong slapped his head. “I forgot! One day in heaven equals one year in the human world. Did anything important get delayed?”

The Bull Demon King replied, “Nothing much on earth, but something happened with my master.”

Wukong said, “Good! Then let’s go!”

By now, the three realms had become utterly empty. The Three Pure Ones and Yu the Great, along with others, had spent fifteen years using the power of the Primordial Lord’s Eight Directions Universe Array to scatter the beings in the realms across the four great continents.

At present, the eight of them sat in various places in their own realm, resting and recovering. After fifteen years of non-stop effort, they had indeed exhausted much of their magical energy.

The Bull Demon King led Wukong through the Qingwei Heaven Array and entered their own realm.

As the two stepped in, Laojun opened his eyes and said, “I am beneath the Locking Demons Tower in the City of Honest Hearts.”
Wukong was even more anxious than the Bull Demon King. With a somersault, he arrived before Laojun and asked, “Why have you summoned me, Laojun?”
Laojun replied, “Originally, there was no reason. But after bringing you here to live with these five people, I’ve grown somewhat worried.”
Wukong asked, “What’s wrong with those people?”
Laojun said, “These five possess cultivation skills not inferior to mine. That Qilin is probably even stronger than me, on par with my senior brother, the Celestial Treasure Taoist. If they cause trouble, it could lead to great chaos in the world.”
Wukong asked, “What does that have to do with me?”
Laojun smiled and said, “Don’t try to deceive me. Who doesn’t know you have a grudge against them?”
Wukong replied seriously, “That’s not right, Laojun. How could I be someone who uses grudges to manipulate others?”
Laojun said, “That’s not what I meant. I assume you’ll spend a lot of time with them in the future. If you could give them some advice when the time comes, that would be very kind.”
Wukong thought for a moment and said, “It’s still the same old principle: stay true to one’s heart, so that others can also stay true to theirs. It’s fine for me to advise them, but I won’t impose my will on them.”
Laojun said, “I hope you remember—the Divine Ape values creation above all. Among all living beings in the world, which one isn’t a product of creation?”
Wukong replied, “But Laojun has forgotten—creation has no inherent nature, yet humans can be divided into good and evil.”
Laojun said, “Enough, enough. It was just a fleeting thought of mine. After all this moving around, I’ve come to realize how hard life is, and thus I feel compassion.”
Wukong smiled and said, “This is what they mean by ‘Heaven and Earth are heartless, treating all things as mere straw dogs; sages are heartless, treating the people as mere straw dogs.’ If Laojun wants to be a sage, he’d better stay out of such trivial matters.”
Laojun gave Wukong a disdainful look and laughed, “That’s a far-fetched interpretation. If the fate of my Taoism remains intact, all beings will naturally be free from worries.”
Hearing him mention fate, Wukong quickly asked, “I’ve also thought a lot about this. Does the Calamity of the Cosmic Cycle really exist, or not? Is fate truly that important?”
Laojun replied, “It does exist! The fate of the whole world converges into one, and creation gradually becomes unified. Originally, it was ‘one gives birth to two, two give birth to three, and three give birth to all things.’ But now it’s ‘one gives birth to two, and two become one.’ Do you understand?”
Wukong nodded and said, “I understand, but it’s still extremely mysterious.” Then, glancing at the Locking Demons Tower behind Laojun, he suddenly remembered something and said, “Oh, are there still five giant dragons beneath the Locking Demons Tower? Why haven’t they been released? Are you planning to sacrifice them along with the three realms?”
Laojun was stunned and said, “My senior brother forbids it.”
Wukong asked, “Why?”
Laojun replied, “When the three realms were first created, my senior brother ordered the five dragons to enter and balance yin and yang. But those five evil beasts turned the realms into chaos, so my senior brother became angry.”

Wukong said, “This is imposing one’s own faults on others. I’ll go find the Great Heavenly Venerable!”
Laojun did not stop him. Instead, he turned to the Bull Demon King and said, “Your child is now refining the Three Flavors in the Realm of Calamity. It seems the time has come. As a father, you should go and check on him.”
The Bull Demon King sighed, “I indeed should go. But as soon as I enter the Fire Cloud Palace, I feel uncomfortable all over. That banana fan—” Laojun took out a small fan from his bosom and pretended to be angry, saying, “Take it, then!”
The Bull Demon King happily took the banana fan and bowed, saying, “Thank you, Master!”
Wukong asked, “Brother, shall I go with you?” The Bull Demon King glanced at Laojun, who pretended not to notice by closing his eyes. Then he said, “That would be perfect!”