Volume 4: The Revelation Revealed Chapter 527: Not a Blessing

Tathagata did not answer but instead asked, “Do you know who you are?”

Wukong replied without hesitation, “Who am I? I am the Intelligent Divine Ape, the leader of the Creative Divine Apes!”

Tathagata said, “Have you ever thought about why, since that person set up this prison, he still left a door? Isn’t he afraid I might escape through it?”

Wukong had never considered this at all. Upon hearing Tathagata’s words, he fell into deep thought. Tathagata was right. That person outside the heavens not only left a door to escape but also a key—this key was the Heaven’s Secret Staff!

It was strange. Anyone who sets up a prison knows the better it’s sealed, the better, striving to leave no flaws. Yet that person deliberately left a door to the heavens. For whom was this door meant?

Wukong suddenly realized he had just come out through that door. Could it have been meant for him? He had left together with Yin and Yang. That person had said, “Huh? It’s actually the two of you?” He thought that person wasn’t waiting for Wukong and Yin and Yang. Now it seemed Yin and Yang shouldn’t have left with him. If he were alone, would that person still throw him back?

Tathagata said, “How could I not know that the Heaven’s Secret Staff is the key to this door? But in the whole world, only you can use it. What good would it be for me to take it? Leaving it with you won’t allow you to uncover the mysteries of the River of Heaven, so it poses no threat to me.”

Wukong thought to himself that Tathagata was far too confident. He didn’t realize that Wukong had already left the heavens once.

Wukong asked directly, “What if I use the Heaven’s Secret Staff to take you out of the heavens?”

Tathagata shook his head and smiled silently.

Seeing Tathagata’s evasive attitude, Wukong asked, “Why not?”

Tathagata replied, “Once we leave the heavens, we’ll reach the top of the furnace, where that person is. I’m not sure I can defeat him now.”

Wukong asked, “If not from the top, then from below?”

Tathagata gave Wukong a deep look and sighed, “You seem to know everything.”

Wukong was speechless. He had just guessed casually, yet it turned out to be correct.

Tathagata said, “To be honest, I’ve figured out the array outside the heavens. I can leave through any place.”

“If you can leave, why didn’t you go earlier?”

Tathagata shook his head and said, “Leaving from the bottom of the furnace is the safest route. But as you know, there’s a stubborn Pangu at the bottom.”

Wukong suddenly remembered the seven empty spots in the Creative Furnace and said, “I see. You want the seven Divine Apes to be in front. Only then will Pangu not block us!”

Tathagata nodded and said, “Exactly. In the lineage of creation, one must not harm oneself—that’s not a rule I set.”
Wukong couldn’t help but admire Tathagata’s clever planning. Most furnaces were grounded below, never floating in the air, which was also the easiest part to overlook. The beings from beyond the heavens had ordered Pangu to guard the bottom of the furnace, likely to prevent Tathagata from escaping through there. By putting the Divine Ape of Creation into the Furnace of Creation and having Pangu block it, Tathagata was essentially preventing himself from using the furnace.
But Wukong said, “You also know that those in the lineage of creation cannot harm themselves. Precisely because of that, the Divine Ape of Creation will never agree to your request.”
“Oh? Don’t you want to ascend to the heavens?” Tathagata asked.
“That’s right. I do want to ascend, but I’ll just leave after crossing the River of Heaven. Why go to the trouble of becoming an enemy of Pangu?” Wukong replied.
Tathagata smiled and said, “You’re lying to me. You tricked me into giving you the method to ascend, then you abandoned me.”
Wukong also smiled and said, “So what?”
Tathagata shook his head and said, “It doesn’t matter. It was within expectations.”
Wukong stood up, waved at Tathagata, and said, “There’s no way up to the heavens, no exit below. I originally wanted to kill you, but now it seems leaving you alive in this world will cause you far more pain than killing you.” With that, Wukong leaped away.
Tathagata wasn’t angry at all. Instead, a smile appeared on his lips as he murmured, “Lingming is indeed a clever man.”
Before leaving, Wukong deliberately angered Tathagata, but as he soared into the heavens, he couldn’t help but start thinking. If what Tathagata said was true, then that path to ascend the heavens was indeed meant for him.
When Tathagata asked him that question, it seemed his identity wasn’t just that of the Divine Ape Lingming. Everyone in the world stopped at the realm of Heavenly Saints, with only Yin and Yang able to advance slightly further. Yet he could stride straight into the realm of Lingming—could this be a coincidence? Was that path to the heavens a bright road or a trap?
Originally, Wukong wanted to try the path to the heavens alone, but now he felt he needed to be more cautious. After thinking for a moment, he dived straight down into the earth.
Right, he had to find Pangu!
The vast layers of solid earth passed by in an instant. The last time Wukong came to the underground world, it was the Three Pure Ones who brought him there. This time, he found Pangu effortlessly.
Pangu… Was this really Pangu? Why had Pangu become so weak?
Sitting on the ground was a middle-aged man. His complexion was sallow, his cheeks gaunt. He leaned against a huge rock, his eyes slightly lowered, as if too lazy to open them.
“Pangu?” Wukong called out gently.
“Lingming, you’ve come?” Pangu’s voice sounded slightly excited.

The last time Wukong came, he held Pangu in the highest regard, but this time, he felt he was facing a weak old man, a feeling that pained Wukong somewhat. Pangu’s deterioration must be closely related to the extraction of the essence of the five elements. Since the creation of the world, Pangu’s essence of creation had continuously nourished all things, and even with just a third of that essence, it was hard for him to sustain himself for long. “How… did you become so weak?” Wukong asked. Pangu did not answer but said, “In three days, go find the Peach Ancestor.” The Peach Ancestor? Could it be… “Did you give all your essence of creation to the Peach Ancestor?” Wukong asked in shock. “That’s right! Do not leave the heavens without seeing the Peach Ancestor!” Pangu said. Wukong suddenly understood—Pangu knew everything he had done! He knew Wukong was leaving the heavens! It was because Wukong had been sent back by someone from beyond the heavens that Pangu sacrificed his essence of creation, infusing it into the Peach Ancestor to force the ripening of the peaches, thereby helping Wukong advance in his cultivation. Since Wukong had already reached the realm of spiritual clarity, what was there for Pangu to worry about? Wukong remembered those words: “By eating twelve peaches from the Peach Ancestor, this world can endure forever!” What did that mean? According to the Tathagata, Pangu was a servant of someone from beyond the heavens. By doing this, wasn’t Pangu betraying that person? “I am tired,” Pangu said softly. “Tired, weary, disgusted. Do you know what that feels like?” Wukong found it inconceivable. Pangu was a servant of someone from beyond the heavens, and since that person had entrusted Pangu with guarding the Tathagata, it must mean Pangu was absolutely trustworthy. Yet Pangu said he was “tired”?! “The happiest days for me were when I woke up from chaos each time—the moment of creating the world was the most unforgettable!” “I am Pangu. I command life, not death!” “With each cycle, I watch helplessly as the calamity of that cycle approaches. It seems that since the creation of the world, all I can do is wait for death. For 129,600 years, I’ve been waiting for death. Do you know what that feels like?” “I am even worse off than the Tathagata. The Tathagata, while alive, still has hope in his heart. But what about me?” “All things in this world were born because of me, yet I must watch them perish in an instant. The calamity of each cycle is merciless!” “Whenever pain strikes, I am powerless—unable even to protect myself!” “I can no longer bear this unstoppable pain. That’s why I am tired.” Wukong asked, “Did that person impose restrictions on you?” Pangu shook his head. “No! He is my master and understands my nature.” “What is your nature?” Wukong asked.

“Mindset? He calls it… the virtue of cherishing life! But he doesn’t realize that the hardest thing to endure under the virtue of cherishing life is death!” said Pangu.
Wukong asked again, “What will happen if one eats twelve peach fruits?”
“The universe will endure forever. I heard this before entering this great furnace of the universe, and it should be true. Since the beginning of the seven ages, no divine ape has ever achieved this. Go and give it a try!”
Wukong couldn’t help but say, “Your master… did he choose the wrong person?” After saying this, Wukong became uneasy, fearing he might offend Pangu.
Pangu smiled bitterly. “No, he didn’t choose the wrong person. But he forgot one thing—people can change. My master… is very stubborn.”
The Tathagata said those from beyond the heavens are foolish; Pangu said he was stubborn. Wukong felt a little relieved, as long as it wasn’t some trickery.
“He trusts me, which is why he let me rule the universe. And he also knows that I hate the Tathagata and would never let him go!”
Wukong asked, “If the Tathagata wants to join forces with the Divine Ape of Creation to escape from the bottom of the furnace, is that possible?”
Pangu wasn’t surprised and replied calmly, “Tell the Tathagata that leaving the heavens is not a blessing!”
Oh? Leaving the heavens isn’t a blessing? Then it must be a disaster!
“Then… should I really leave the heavens?” Wukong asked.
“You’re different from the Tathagata. If you don’t leave the heavens, who will save this universe?” Pangu said solemnly.
“This universe is just a furnace…”
“For that person, it’s just a furnace. But for all beings in the universe, this is the universe itself!”