Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 380: Heaven Fulfills Its Promise

Most people remember others at first sight, but Wukong was no exception when it came to the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden. Though he had first met Bodhisattva Virupa, the Lamp-Burning Buddha had said that the Mystic Maiden resembled Chang’e to some extent. Thus, in Wukong’s mind, Virupa was merely an illusion created by the Mystic Maiden to deceive others, with a stunningly beautiful face hidden beneath her aged appearance.
Seeing her now, with her breathtaking beauty, Wukong naturally assumed this was her true appearance. Chang’e’s appearance was similar to that of the Mystic Maiden at this time, likely intended to deceive the Tathagata. Yet the Mystic Maiden said, “This appearance isn’t mine either.” Could it be that she too had ordinary people’s vanity and wanted to make herself more beautiful?
Since the Tathagata knew the Mystic Maiden resembled him, did he not know her true appearance as well?
Seeing Wukong’s confusion, the Mystic Maiden said, “You should know that it’s easy for immortals to change their appearance. With the help of potions, it’s not difficult to maintain youth for thousands of years.”
Wukong nodded and said, “These are all ordinary supernatural powers. Immortals all possess an ethereal aura, and among the celestial maidens, not a single one is plain-looking—this is already incredible. It would be strange if they didn’t fake it.”
The Mystic Maiden asked, “Do you know why?”
Wukong was momentarily stunned. Was there really a reason? Everyone loves beauty—it’s natural, right? So he smiled and said, “It’s just for beauty’s sake. What else could be the reason?”
The Mystic Maiden nodded. “Unfortunately, there is indeed more to it.”
Wukong was puzzled. “Appearance… it’s such a trivial matter. What else could there be?”
The Mystic Maiden said, “You don’t know. During the last cycle, the Tathagata told me that if he ever founded a sect, it must consist of handsome men and beautiful women, so that ordinary people would feel reverence at first sight and aspire to join them.”
“Oh?” Hearing it was the Tathagata’s idea, Wukong became more attentive.
The Mystic Maiden continued, “Potions for maintaining youth were extremely rare in the last cycle. Speaking of this, it’s a long story.”
She sat back down, waved her hand, and teapots and cups flew over to the table on their own. After pouring two cups of tea, she began to talk about the potions for maintaining youth.
“As a child, I was just an ordinary woman—my appearance, talents, and cunning were only above average. I was able to enter the realm of immortals thanks to luck.”
Hearing this, Wukong was greatly surprised. By his guess, the Mystic Maiden was by no means an ordinary immortal. In this cycle, in terms of cunning and cultivation, aside from the mysterious Tathagata, she was likely second to none. But he never expected her to be just an ordinary woman.

Xuan Nu continued, “I still remember when I first entered the sect, it was called Da Hong Men.”
Wukong burst into laughter. Was it a clothing wholesale market?
Xuan Nu also smiled and said, “That name is rather vulgar. The leader of Da Hong Men was Wang Da Hong, and all its members were women. Though the sect’s name was crude, it was extremely powerful. Oh, back then, as a newcomer, I naturally thought it was incredibly strong. The leader, Wang Da Hong, had the cultivation level of a Earth Immortal. I stayed there for fifty-one years but found nothing more to learn, so I fled Da Hong Men.”
Wukong was puzzled by Xuan Nu’s brief mention of Da Hong Men and didn’t understand her intention. Xuan Nu said, “In Da Hong Men, I reached the eighth rank of immortals, which was truly unique among my peers. Even the best among others only reached the fifth rank. Such a cultivation level is quite astonishing, isn’t it?”
Wukong did some calculations. It was unbelievable that someone could rise from an ordinary person to the eighth rank of immortals in just fifty-one years. He couldn’t help asking, “So… does Xuan Nu have any secret techniques?”
Xuan Nu replied, “Of course there are secret techniques. Otherwise, how could I progress so quickly?”
Wukong became excited. If he could learn these techniques, he would surely pass them on to the demons of Qi Tian Ling. With Xuan Nu’s cultivation insights, wouldn’t their strength improve even further?
Xuan Nu then said, “The secret lies in two words: focus and diligence!”
“Ah!” Hearing the answer, Wukong felt greatly disappointed. After all, it was just the old cliché. Who didn’t know that focus and diligence were the fundamentals of cultivation? Even someone as accomplished as Xuan Nu seemed to follow conventional wisdom.
Xuan Nu said, “Wukong, do you think focus and diligence are easy to achieve? Everyone knows this principle, but how many can actually put it into practice?”
Wukong began to doubt. Could really just focus and diligence lead to the eighth rank of immortals in fifty-one years, with no other factors involved?
Seeing Wukong’s doubt, Xuan Nu said, “To be honest, at first, I thought I was better than my peers because I believed I had the aptitude for cultivation. This belief persisted for a long time until my cultivation advanced significantly, reaching the level of Hun Yuan Jin Xian. Only then did I realize my aptitude was actually average. It wasn’t until this current era that I became part of the Creation lineage and understood a truth.”
Wukong asked, “What truth?”
Xuan Nu replied, “Creation never fails those who strive!”
Wukong scratched his head. “Yeah, isn’t that a simple truth?”
Xuan Nu couldn’t help giving Wukong a disdainful look and said, “You were born with the essence of creation. How can I compare to you? But since you say it’s simple, then explain it to me—what does it mean that Creation never fails those who strive?”
Wukong thought for a moment and said, “Well… you reap what you sow. Hard work brings rewards.”

Xuan Nu smiled and said, “The first sentence is fairly accurate, but the second one is wrong.”
Wukong asked, “How is it wrong? Could it be that one reaps what one sows?”
Xuan Nu shook her head and said, “That’s not the case. Most people focus only on the results when doing things, unwilling to put in any extra effort, right?”
Wukong thought for a moment and said, “More or less.”
Xuan Nu continued, “Take cultivation as an example. Inside the Great Red Gate, the sect leader shows no favoritism—everyone practices the same techniques. Some meditate for three or four hours a day, some for five or six, and others for seven or eight…”
Wukong suddenly asked, “How many hours do you meditate each day?”
Xuan Nu replied calmly, “I never rest.”
Wukong was greatly shocked—never rest? Could she have an iron heart? Wukong knew that cultivation was about the heart; the techniques were well-known to all, and it came down to whether one could sit still. Having been able to enter seclusion like a deity right from the start of her cultivation journey showed an extraordinary state of mind.
Xuan Nu added, “At that time, I was muddled and only knew that if I did something, I had to do it well. So aside from eating and using the restroom for the first few months, I spent all my time meditating. Later, after starting to fast, I didn’t leave for years.”
“In the ninth year, I had mastered the first set of techniques. I went out only to exchange it for a higher-level set from the elders in the sect, then returned to my cave. Another eight years passed before I went out again to get a third set of techniques—”
Wukong asked urgently, “What? You mean you mastered the second set faster than the first? That doesn’t make sense!”
Xuan Nu said, “You know it doesn’t make sense. According to the sect members, it takes fifteen or sixteen years to master the first set, and thirty years for the second. It’s understandable if I mastered the first in nine years, but mastering the second in eight shocked even the sect leader, who immediately gave me three fine pills to help my cultivation.”
Wukong asked, “Is this what you mean by ‘fortune favors the hardworking’?”
Xuan Nu replied, “It’s more than that. I realized that in the path of cultivation, the stronger one gets, the stronger they become. I put in twice as much effort as others, and the rewards were more than ten times greater. By the time I reached the rank of Taiyi Golden Immortal and returned to the Great Red Gate, my senior sister who entered the sect with me was still stuck at the fourth rank among immortals.”

“Actually, in terms of qualifications, she is no weaker than me—she’s even stronger. Yet the huge difference between us lies in my refusal to waste even a single moment. Fate and time… there must be some connection between them. I roughly understand that cherishing time means cherishing fate. That’s why I never stop practicing, so that fate will favor me, allowing me to progress smoothly step by step. Do you understand this?”
After hearing this, Wukong was deeply shocked. Every word spoken by the Mysterious Lady was surely true—her words were truly precious advice. If someone could understand this principle from a young age, it would be a treasure for life.
Wukong nodded and said, “Fate truly rewards those who strive—now I understand!”
The Mysterious Lady replied, “I mentioned the Great Red Gate not just to explain this principle. You are originally a Divine Ape of Fate, and your path of cultivation is completely different from that of all immortals and demons. You don’t need to meditate or endure hardship—fate will naturally accompany you.”
Wukong asked, “Is there some secret hidden within the Great Red Gate?”
The Mysterious Lady smiled and said, “Wukong is used to exploring secrets. What secret could a small sect like the Great Red Gate have? I mentioned it because I heard a sentence there.”
“What sentence?”
The Mysterious Lady said, “When I went to receive the third set of cultivation techniques, the sect leader was in the room looking at herself in the mirror. When she saw me enter, she talked to me for a while before sighing, ‘How wonderful it would be if a woman could keep her beauty unchanged.’”
“That was just an offhand remark. I didn’t pay much attention at the time. Immortals age slowly anyway, and since I was focused solely on cultivation, I didn’t care about my appearance.”
Wukong laughed and said, “You might not have cared at first, but maybe later?”
The Mysterious Lady replied, “You do understand women’s thoughts. By the time I reached the rank of Taiyi Golden Immortal, I was indeed old and frail. Though I was born with a youthful face and could live forever, I wasn’t as beautiful as I used to be. Then I remembered the sect leader’s words. By then, I had also learned some alchemy skills, so I began trying to create an elixir to preserve beauty.”
“Before this, such an elixir didn’t exist in the world. I’m afraid I was the first to create it. At first, I just wanted to give it a try—success or failure didn’t matter. But alchemy turned out to be quite interesting. Once I got involved, I couldn’t stop. After many years, I finally succeeded in creating this beauty-preserving elixir.”
Wukong thought to himself that this Mysterious Lady was truly a fanatic about cultivation. With such dedication, if she couldn’t achieve even greater things, it would indeed be unfair fate.
The Mysterious Lady continued, “I had long dreamed of having a certain appearance in my mind. In my mind, that appearance represented the most beautiful woman in the world—oh, it’s the appearance you see before you now.”

Wukong nodded and said, “It is indeed a beautiful thought.” Although in Wukong’s mind, Chang’e might not be the most beautiful in the world, if Xuan Nu thought so, then that was enough. Everyone has their own aspirations, and the same goes for aesthetics.
Xuan Nu suddenly asked, “Do you know why the Tathagata took me as his disciple?”