Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 379: The Transformation of Pangu

Seeing that Vimalaprabha Bodhisattva was playing riddles with him, Wukong’s tension gradually eased, and he said with a smile, “It’s already quite good to guess half of it.”
The Bodhisattva replied, “The peacock, as the eldest son of the phoenix, possesses remarkable cultivation. If not for the restrictions on it, how could it be controlled by Tathagata? By sending out male and female peacocks, he must have discovered something in the Buddhist hells.”
Wukong asked, “Aren’t the Ancient Buddha and Bodhisattva Nili each in charge of half? Why doesn’t the Buddha Mother go to seek the Ancient Buddha?”
The Bodhisattva said, “You don’t know. It’s true that each is in charge of half, but the realm of Bodhisattva Nili is one where one can enter but not exit.”
Only then did Wukong understand that while it was possible to go from the Ancient Buddha’s side to Nili’s side, those from Nili’s side could never come to the Ancient Buddha’s side. Tathagata’s plans were truly meticulous.
Wukong asked again, “Is this also due to some formation?”
The Bodhisattva nodded and said, “At the pinnacle of formation magic, one can harness the power of heaven and earth. Tathagata is extremely skilled in this art; no one in the world can surpass him.”
Wukong blurted out, “What about Yuan Shi?”
Vimalaprabha Bodhisattva replied, “Yuan Shi’s formations were all taught by Tathagata. Now… I haven’t seen him for many years; I don’t know if he has made any progress.”
Wukong asked further, “Where is that male peacock now?”
The Bodhisattva said, “Those two peacocks weren’t hurt by the king of Zhu Zi Country. In my opinion, someone in the Buddhist hells must have discovered that the male and female peacocks had escaped, pursued them to Zhu Zi Country, and, coinciding with the king’s hunt, framed him for it. That Taoist girl, Yang Chan, didn’t know better and dared to spread Taoism in Zhu Zi Country. Tathagata took the opportunity to send Guanyin to give her a light punishment. I haven’t seen those two peacocks either; they’re likely already dead.”
Wukong thought for a moment and said, “It’s somewhat plausible that Guanyin attributes this to the Buddha Mother. After all, no one can see the Buddha Mother, so it’s impossible to verify the truth. But the Bodhisattva just said the male and female peacocks can’t reach the Ancient Buddha’s side—so how did they come out of the River of Mother and Child?”
Vimalaprabha Bodhisattva smiled and said, “When did I say they came out of the River of Mother and Child? It was clearly Earthly Mother who broke through Bodhisattva Nili’s realm, and the Buddha Mother’s peacocks took advantage of the chaos to slip through.”
So that’s how it was! The origin of this story in Zhu Zi Country actually lay with Earthly Mother—this was truly unexpected. This must be what people later referred to as the butterfly effect.
And although Vimalaprabha Bodhisattva wasn’t present in person, she seemed to have witnessed many things firsthand, which was even more astonishing.
Wukong said, “The Buddha Mother’s actions are extremely risky and unlikely to succeed, yet she insists on doing this—it’s truly hard to understand.”

Bilampa Bodhisattva glanced at Wukong and asked, “Have you ever experienced a time when life seemed worse than death?”
Wukong was stunned. After pondering for a moment, he shook his head and smiled, saying, “The joys of life are everywhere.”
The Bodhisattva sighed and asked, “Have you ever seen people for whom life is worse than death?”
Wukong immediately lost his smile. The first ones that came to mind were Prince Zhang and those who suffered endless torments in the netherworlds and Buddhist hells. If that were indeed the case, it would be better to end their suffering with a single strike.
The Bodhisattva continued, “Although the Buddha Mother isn’t at that extreme, the darkness and ugliness in hell make each day feel like years. If there’s even a sliver of chance, she would want to give it a try.”
Wukong said, “Since those two peacocks have been brought back by the Buddhist hells, that line of connection is severed.”
The Bodhisattva replied, “Even so, at least we now have an extra reason to be cautious.”
Wukong asked further, “How much does Guanyin Bodhisattva know about this? I’ve already tried to turn Guanyin against the Buddha. I wonder if it will work.”
The Bodhisattva was slightly surprised but thought for a moment before saying, “Are you planning to reveal to her the secrets of yin and yang, so that she may hate the Tathagata?”
Wukong confirmed, “That’s right.”
The Bodhisattva said, “It might yield some results, but it depends on opportunity.”
Wukong asked again, “Does the Bodhisattva know about King Bodhisattva, the Great Sage’s advisor? He lost all his memories when he was rescued from Mount Ling by Yu the Great and others. Could he have also been in the Buddhist hells?”
The Bodhisattva replied, “I’ve heard of this. You’re right.”
Wukong asked, “Is there any way to help him regain his memories?”
The Bodhisattva shook her head and said, “This is a very serious matter. The original memories were removed from his soul. Once the root is severed, not even Pangu reborn would have the means to restore them.”
Wukong suddenly remembered something. To remove memories from the soul, it must be related to the principles of yin and yang. Could the Tathagata also understand these principles? He asked, “Is the Tathagata proficient in the art of creation?”
Bilampa Bodhisattva replied, “If we say he’s proficient, then indeed he is. He knows everything about creation, far more than we do. But he truly isn’t part of the creation lineage.”
Wukong asked urgently, “Then how does he know all this?”
The Bodhisattva said, “When the crisis of the last cycle came, I guessed that the Tathagata might have existed in the cycle before that.”
“Ah!” Wukong was shocked. Could this Tathagata be immortal? Or had he long ago discovered a way to survive such crises?
Wukong thought for a while and said, “Could he have already mastered the art of creation and had a thorough understanding of it over two cycles, or even more? That’s why he knows how to refine the essence of creation.”

“Oh?” The Bodhisattva’s eyes showed surprise. “You could guess the essence of creation?”
Wukong was overjoyed to be praised by Bodhisattva Pilanpa—more precisely, by the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden.
The Mystic Maiden said, “It took me a long time to figure out the purpose of refining heaven. I never expected that in just a few thousand years in this life, your wisdom would reach such a level.”
Wukong replied, “It was just a guess. Fortunately, Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha explained the essence of creation to me in detail, which led me to this idea.”
The Mystic Maiden sighed. “In this cycle, I have just acquired a body of creation and am gradually understanding its nature. All those related to creation are inherently pure and naive, yet they are gradually forced to scheme for survival.”
Wukong said, “Creation has no inherent nature, but it cannot be at the mercy of others either. You say you belong to the creation lineage only in this life. I’m curious then—in the previous cycle, who were the three ones responsible for creation: the Seer, the Judge, and the Listener?”
The Mystic Maiden replied, “Good question!” Then, very solemnly, she said word by word, “In the previous cycle, there were no such three people at all!”
This answer was utterly unexpected. Wukong was shocked for a long time before quickly asking another crucial question, “So that means the Tathagata doesn’t know that the Mystic Maiden, Ksitigarbha, and the Listener belong to the creation lineage. Perhaps… he also doesn’t know that the Primordial Great Heavenly Venerable has obtained a trace of Pangu’s essence of creation?”
The Mystic Maiden nodded firmly and said, “He doesn’t know!”
Ever since Wukong met the Kunpeng in the three realms, the story of Pangu creating the world and the Kunpeng clearing the heavens had taken root in his mind. The Kunpeng had said, “Many times, Pangu split the heavens and earth with an axe, then lay down in peace…” If that was the case, splitting the chaos must not have been a one-time event. When the calamity of each cycle arrived, all things in the world perished, but the elements of creation were born from the chaos. When Pangu revived and created the world again, it marked the beginning of each cycle…
But as the Mystic Maiden said, Pangu in this cycle had undergone tremendous changes. As the one who created the world, he should, like the Kunpeng, remain uninvolved in worldly affairs. Why then did he share part of his essence of creation with the Primordial Great Heavenly Venerable and pass on his three powers of creation—sight, hearing, and judgment—to the Mystic Maiden and the other two?
Ksitigarbha, the Mystic Maiden, and the Listener were enemies of the Tathagata. Was this a coincidence, or did Pangu do it on purpose? Could it be that Pangu also saw through the Tathagata’s schemes and wanted to stop him from causing chaos in the world? If so, how great must the Tathagata’s schemes be?

Thinking of the Kunpeng, one naturally thinks of the realm within its belly. Wukong pondered silently: The Kunpeng thought it was staying out of worldly affairs, but in reality, it hid people like Dayu inside its belly and wrapped itself around them with its long whiskers. Isn’t that also a form of getting involved? If one were to investigate further, the Kunpeng could be credited with playing a crucial role in the growth of the Qi Tian Ling faction!

Just like Pangu, the actions of the Kunpeng also seemed to point indirectly at the Tathagata.

After thinking for a while, Wukong said, “So, after Pangu created the world, he didn’t disappear from it… or rather, he didn’t die?”

Xuan Nu replied, “Pangu may be gone, but the forces of fate itself never die.”

Wukong asked, “What’s the difference between this cycle and the last one that allowed Pangu to make such a huge change?”

Xuan Nu said, “What Pangu does is the choice of fate itself, so it surely can’t be wrong.”

Wukong continued, “If the calamity of this cycle persists, will there still be someone like Pangu to create the world in the next cycle?”

Xuan Nu’s gaze turned melancholic as she said, “Unless the four of us return the essence of fate, Pangu will never awaken.”

Wukong fell silent. What Xuan Nu said was quite straightforward—the four of them had obtained Pangu’s essence of fate, granting them extraordinary powers or divine abilities. With the Furnace of Fate, overcoming the calamity of this cycle wasn’t difficult. But if they succeeded, Pangu wouldn’t awaken. If Pangu didn’t act, who would create the world? Thus, the next cycle wouldn’t exist.

In that case, it was pointless for Xuan Nu and the others to overcome the calamity of this cycle; they could only drift in chaos along with the Furnace of Fate… What a dilemma!

Xuan Nu’s expression brightened as she said, “Since Pangu has confidence in us, he surely can’t be wrong.”

After saying that, she stood up, walked a few steps, then turned back. Her face was no longer as stern as before—it had transformed into that of an extremely beautiful woman, dressed in a gold-threaded robe that gave her an air of noble dignity, making it hard to look directly at her.

Wukong examined her closely. Her appearance was 70% similar to Chang’e’s and 30% different. Chang’e was indeed beautiful, but compared to Xuan Nu now, she seemed softer and less magnificent.

Wukong blurted out in admiration, “How beautiful!”

Xuan Nu wasn’t shy or annoyed, but slightly surprised. “Judging from your desire to enter the world, I really don’t think you’re the Divine Ape of Fate.”

Her casual remark startled Wukong. Since arriving in this world, Xuan Nu was the first to doubt his identity.

Wukong replied, “Beauty is beauty. Does fate not distinguish between beauty and ugliness?”

Xuan Nu nodded. “Right and wrong, good and evil, beauty and ugliness, wisdom and foolishness—fate has its own standards. What you say isn’t wrong. But this appearance isn’t mine either.”