Volume 4: The Revelation Revealed – Chapter 399: The Eight Bodhisattvas

Tongfeng was ordered by Wukong to guard Tang Seng’s body. Seeing no one approaching him, his attention was entirely on the battle. As Qitianling fell at a disadvantage, he grew increasingly anxious and had no time to pay attention to Tang Seng. He never expected Tang Seng to rise from the dead and seize him.
With Tongfeng’s cultivation, he no longer needed to breathe constantly, and having his throat squeezed caused only superficial pain. Yet Tang Seng, seemingly drawing strength from somewhere, seemed determined to twist his head off. Tongfeng summoned his magic to protect his body but could no longer speak.
Wukong and the others thought Tongfeng was in grave danger and were terrified. At that moment, the Ling Mountain forces launched a relentless attack, and even the Buddhas and saints who had been watching from afar joined the fight. No one could escape.
Tens of thousands of Yakshas formed a protective ring around them, but Qitianling’s group was like a small boat in a storm, on the verge of capsizing at any moment.
The Medicine Buddha said, “This time, only two people are needed. Sun Wukong and Tang Seng were originally my Buddhist disciples. Whether alive or dead, they belong to Buddhism!” Hearing this, Wukong thought to himself, “They want us two this time. Who will they want next?”
Only one person remained on Qitianling’s side—Hou Yi, the master archer. With his skills, he could easily control Tang Seng. But he also knew this monk was different from others and hesitated, not daring to harm him.
Looking around, he saw another Buddha advancing from behind on Ling Mountain. The monk had his eyes closed, muttering words. Hou Yi wondered if this was the Corpse Buddha. If he could keep this monk occupied, the Buddha would have no chance to control those corpses.
Hou Yi adjusted his bow and aimed at the Corpse Buddha of Vairocana. Just then, a voice came from the sky, right beside his ear: “Under no circumstances shoot him!” It was Laozi’s voice. Hou Yi asked, “Why?”
Laozi replied, “He is the Corpse Buddha of Vairocana. His skill in controlling corpses is extremely powerful. His greatest strength lies in his own ability to become a corpse. You cannot kill him with an arrow.”
Hou Yi was skeptical. Could there really be such a sinister magic in the world? But since it was Laozi who said so, it must be true. He exclaimed, “Laozi, why don’t you come to help?” But Laozi didn’t respond again.
Hou Yi snorted. If he wouldn’t help, why come and give orders? Ignoring Laozi’s warning, he decided to test whether the Corpse Buddha of Vairocana could withstand his arrow.
At that moment, a figure descended from the sky and rushed toward the Corpse Buddha of Vairocana, delivering a palm strike. The Corpse Buddha of Vairocana didn’t dodge but instead met it head-on, as if inviting death.

To his surprise, the man instantly changed his palms into fingers and, in the blink of an eye, struck Vairocana countless times. Vairocana’s entire magical power instantly froze, leaving him completely immobile. Opening his eyes, he showed extreme terror and asked, “What kind of spell is this?”
The man replied coldly, “Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand!”
Hearing this voice, Wukong was overjoyed. “Nine Heavens Goddess, you’ve finally arrived!” Yet amid his joy, he also felt some resentment—why hadn’t the Nine Heavens Goddess and the Primordial Lord come to help sooner, seeing that Qitianling was at a disadvantage in the fierce battle?
What he didn’t know was that the Nine Heavens Goddess had weighed her options for a long time before deciding to intervene. She knew that once she stepped in, this conflict would no longer be just her own affair. The Longhua Sect would be completely separated from the Buddha faction, and Ratna, Maitreya, along with many other Buddha elders, would part ways from Lingshan. From then on, any future disputes would leave no room for mediation.
Even more profoundly, it would affect the division of realms in the Buddhist hellworld—Ratna would likely be unable to interfere in matters related to the Buddhist hell anymore, as the Bodhisattva of the Mud Pit ruled there, and no one could shake his hold!
But if the Nine Heavens Goddess didn’t act now, the people of Qitianling would surely suffer heavy losses, and Wukong and the others would be in grave danger. In such a crisis, she couldn’t afford to hesitate.
In fact, the Primordial Lord had earlier summoned Zhenwu and Ziwei to the Jade Pure Palace, but after considering it, Zhenwu and Ziwei realized that the two of them alone could hardly turn the tide of the battle. Left with no choice, the Nine Heavens Goddess had to intervene personally.
With a single move, the Nine Heavens Goddess subdued Vairocana, and the three corpses immediately fell to the ground. Tang Seng also immediately released his hands, closed his eyes, and slumped forward. Fengtong rushed to hold him up, fearing he might fall.
The Nine Heavens Goddess understood the principle of capturing the leader first. She soared upward and headed straight for the Medicine Buddha. The Six Medicine Buddhas hurried to meet her, while the Sun and Moon Bodhisattvas also threw their precious vases at her.
With a flash, the Nine Heavens Goddess landed behind the Medicine Buddha. Strangely, at that moment, there was a sense of spatial distortion—the Six Medicine Buddhas and the Sun and Moon Bodhisattvas repeated their previous actions once again!
The Nine Heavens Goddess stretched out her delicate hand and, without much force, pressed it against the Medicine Buddha’s back.
A series of loud cracks were heard as countless cracks appeared on the Medicine Buddha’s glass-like body. It seemed that just one more touch would shatter it into pieces.
The Nine Heavens Goddess demanded, “Can you withstand my second strike?”
The Medicine Buddha dared not answer. Countless medicine halberds chanted scriptures in unison, their voices shaking the heavens. After a while, the Medicine Buddha’s head gradually returned to its normal state, and only then did he dare to speak, saying, “Stop!”

As the Medicine Buddha spoke, all the Buddhas and saints stopped fighting and stepped out of the combat area. Looking at the people on Qitianling, almost everyone was covered in wounds. The most severely injured were Rushou and the Bull Demon King. Both were accustomed to close-quarters battles, charging into tight encirclements. Though they got their fill of fighting, they also took many blows from weapons and fists. Fortunately, their strong physiques allowed them to hold on.

The Qilin shone brightly today, defeating two sacred Buddhas to the point of breaking their bones, with them still shouting that it wasn’t enough. The Nine Spirits Sacred One had his head covered in blood after being attacked by the Qilin, who also scolded him.

Xuan Nu intervened twice, settling the battle, and both sides stood apart.

Without waiting to recover from his injuries, the Medicine Buddha sighed and said, “The World-Honored One said that if Bodhisattva Virupa intervenes, we should stop fighting immediately.” Xuan Nu replied, “Tathagata naturally knows me.”

The Medicine Buddha added, “But Sun Wukong and Tang Seng must come with me to the Western Heaven!”

Xuan Nu frowned slightly. What was the Medicine Buddha talking about? Clearly, he couldn’t defeat her—why then try to be tough?

Before the Medicine Buddha could speak again, there was a sound of wind and thunder, and a figure suddenly appeared at the front of the battlefield. When Wukong saw it, it was the Golden-Winged Roc. The Bull Demon King shouted, “You foolish bird, are you trying to run away from battle?”

Ignoring the Bull Demon King, the Golden-Winged Roc came to Wukong’s side and whispered, “I suddenly sensed my brother’s presence earlier, so I searched for him for a long time. Now they’ve arrived!”

“Ah!” Wukong was shocked. His brother—the Golden-Winged Roc—must be Bodhisattva Peacock Great Bright King. The Peacock Mother had always been in the Buddhist hell, yet the Golden-Winged Roc said, “They’ve arrived!” Could it be that Bodhisattva Wubian had emerged from the Buddhist hell?

Xuan Nu clearly heard this and her expression changed slightly. Bodhisattva Wubian had never left the Buddhist hell. It was certainly not a coincidence—he must have been arranged by Tathagata.

Wukong asked the Roc, “How many people have come?”

The Roc was stunned and replied, “Only eight, including my brother.”

Wukong noticed bloodstains on the Roc’s wings and asked, “Did you fight them?” The Roc nodded and said, “When I saw my brother, I naturally wanted to find out where he had been all these years while I wasn’t on Ling Mountain.”

“To my surprise, my brother attacked me without saying a word. How could I fight back? I just took a hit.”

The Bull Demon King laughed and said, “Don’t exaggerate. If you can’t fight back, can’t you at least dodge?”

The Roc snapped, “Haven’t you heard that an elder brother is like a father? Even if I dodge, it would be unfilial!”

Xuan Nu smiled and said, “Though the Golden-Winged Roc is swift, he still can’t escape the Peacock’s grasp.” Realizing Xuan Nu knew what had happened, the Roc blushed. The Bull Demon King laughed and scolded, “I should’ve known you were just boasting!”

Dapeng unhesitatingly faced the disdainful gaze of the Bull Demon King and replied, “At this moment, you are nothing but a bloody ox—how dare you mock me?”
Wukong ignored them both. Hearing the name of the Boundless Bodhisattva, he felt slightly worried, but seeing Xuan Nu’s calm expression, he relaxed.
At that moment, dark clouds rose below, and eight figures stood atop them. With a quick glance, Wukong recognized the Peacock Great Brightness King Bodhisattva. This bodhisattva exuded an aura of purity, standing out sharply from the other seven. Though his splendor was slightly less than that of the Phoenix, it far surpassed Dapeng’s.
Once the eight figures stood firm, Venerable Kasyapa hurried over to pay respects. The eight bodhisattvas did not return the gesture but focused their gazes on Tang Seng. Wukong observed carefully. Although these eight bodhisattvas came from the Buddhist hell realm, they were not much different from the bodhisattvas and Buddhas on earth. Yet their cultivation levels were truly formidable, with abundant spiritual energy surrounding them. Indeed, the Buddhist hell realm was rich in such energy, and each of these eight was a sage.
As Wukong looked at the eight bodhisattvas, a shadow passed over his heart. If the Boundless Bodhisattva was so renowned in the Buddhist hell realm, there must be many of them. Even if not all were sages, just twenty or thirty more would still pose an extremely terrifying force.
Xuan Nu stepped forward and reached out to take Tang Seng, but Fengtong stepped back and glanced at Wukong. Wukong said, “It’s fine to hand him over to the senior.”
Only then did Fengtong hand Tang Seng to Xuan Nu. Holding Tang Seng in her arms, Xuan Nu said to the Medicine Buddha, “Tang Seng is in my hands. I wonder how you plan to take him away!”
The Medicine Buddha did not reply. Instead, the eight bodhisattvas formed a formation, their sixteen jade-like palms joined together as they chanted spells in unison.
Wukong was puzzled. Could chanting spells from afar truly counter Xuan Nu? He used his secret technique to observe closely and was shocked to see that the essence of spiritual energy from Tang Seng’s dantian was gradually escaping and flying toward the eight bodhisattvas.
Xuan Nu seemed stunned, standing motionless as she watched. Wukong grew anxious. Although he could absorb this essence of spiritual energy, it contained the three souls and seven spirits of the Yin and Yang divine apes. He feared that any mistake could affect Tang Seng’s rebirth. So he reminded Xuan Nu, “Senior, what’s wrong?”
Xuan Nu replied, “These bodhisattvas are certainly not of the essence-type. How can they be so familiar with this essence? I couldn’t figure it out for a moment, so I got distracted.” Wukong said, “The Buddhist hell realm exists solely to gather this essence of spiritual energy, so naturally, they have specialized techniques to deal with it.”
Xuan Nu naturally understood what Wukong meant. She murmured, “So this is how this spell is used.”

At this moment, the essence of creation had drifted to the center of the two camps. Unfazed, Xuan Nu handed Tang Seng’s corpse to Wukong. He leaped forward to retrieve it, while the eight bodhisattvas, seeing Xuan Nu approaching, sped up their incantations. The essence of creation instantly became several times faster, leaving Xuan Nu’s attempt to catch it in vain.

Only Ksitigarbha, Dityan, and the other divine apes could understand what was happening in this battle of magic. The rest could only see Xuan Nu and the eight bodhisattvas performing rituals in midair, unsure of what they were fighting over.

Xuan Nu was greatly shaken. She leaped again, and the eight bodhisattvas sped up their incantations even more, their words so fast they were almost unintelligible. The essence of creation moved like lightning, seemingly about to slip into the palms of the eight bodhisattvas.

Suddenly, Xuan Nu felt disheartened. The essence of creation was no ordinary thing—it needed to be handled with care. If it were an iron ball, she could have captured it with any spell she used, but now she was powerless. Though this battle seemed to be between her and the eight bodhisattvas, she knew she was actually losing to Tathagata.

When Xuan Nu spoke with Wukong, she had humbly claimed to have average talent, yet her path to immortality was smooth and unobstructed. Eventually, she became one of the rarest individuals with extraordinary talent. Most people think that talent and intelligence are innate, but they don’t realize that hard work can also change everything. Many who were dull as children, mediocre in youth, or only moderately talented in their teens often achieve great things. What counts as talent or intelligence should really be judged by success or failure.

Those who succeed are considered excellent in everything, while those who fail, even if they possess extraordinary wisdom, are often labeled as clever in a superficial way.

Since following Tathagata, Xuan Nu had held immense admiration for his wisdom. Although her spiritual path differed from his, she couldn’t help but follow in his footsteps on her own cultivation journey.

Back then, Tathagata perceived the peril of the essence of creation, while the Three Pure Ones remained unaware. Only Xuan Nu kept a close eye on Tathagata, gradually unraveling the mystery. When Tathagata mastered the art of the Three Bodies, a technique unique in the world, Xuan Nu imitated it and figured out its essence. When Tathagata established the Buddhist hell realms and assigned the Bodhisattva of Mire to cultivate using the essence of creation, Xuan Nu secretly did the same. That’s why, upon seeing the eight bodhisattvas using spells to control the essence of creation, she was deeply moved and seemed to gain something new.

Yet there were unforeseen variables in these spells, something she hadn’t anticipated. Before she could regret it, she began thinking about how to remedy the situation.

Just then, a sudden change occurred!

As the essence of creation was about to fall into those sixteen jade-like hands, darkness suddenly enveloped everything, and a violent gust of wind blew down from the sky.

There was no one in sight, nor anything to be seen. Everyone in the air, from those below the level of sages to all others, found it impossible to stand firm; they didn’t know where they had been blown off to. The remaining people staggered around, confused—how could bodies of sages not even withstand a gust of wind!

Suddenly, bird calls were heard in the air, followed by a voice filled with authority: “Seizing control of fate? I detest this!” The essence of fate in the hands of the eight bodhisattvas, as if summoned by their master, flew straight back and re-entered Tang Seng’s forehead. Wukong suddenly lost control of Tang Seng’s body and couldn’t help but let go of him.

The lifeless Yin-Yang Divine Ape drifted upward into the sky, disappearing in an instant without a trace.

Everyone looked at each other in confusion, unsure of who this mysterious being was. Only Wukong was both shocked and delighted—he had never imagined that the Kunpeng would participate in this struggle!