Volume 4: The Revelation Revealed Chapter 528: The Bird in Water

Wukong understood Pangu’s intentions—he had to save this world. Pangu knew the origin of this world; it was nothing but a furnace. Yet he treated all things in it as his own creations. Every living being in this world exuded the essence of creation, and Pangu couldn’t bear to see any of them perish!
After all, the master was the master. Pangu kept in mind the words, “If the Divine Ape eats twelve Immortal Peaches, this world will endure forever.” He was tasked by his master to guard Buddha, so he naturally didn’t want Buddha to escape. But after careful consideration, he valued the survival of this world even more. Thus, he sacrificed all the essence of creation, betting it on Wukong!
Wukong said solemnly, “I promise you—I’ll save this world and trap Buddha!”
Pangu finally showed a relieved expression, closed his eyes, and seemed to fall asleep.
Leaving Pangu, Wukong realized that Buddha’s plan would not work! Pangu was now weak, likely only at the level of a sage. If Buddha truly emerged from beneath the earth, Pangu wouldn’t be able to stop him. But after giving so much, how could Wukong bear to sadden him further? So, Wukong would never agree to Buddha’s plan—the Divine Ape would not participate in Buddha’s escape from heaven! As for whether Buddha had another plan, that depended on his own abilities.
The path through the River of Heaven was possible! But first, he had to conquer the Mother Tree’s Immortal Peaches! Wukong decided that this time, he would go to heaven on his own!
Pangu had said to go find the Peach Ancestor in three days. There were only three days left. After that, he would leave this world. Leaving was for the sake of salvation!
Wukong could no longer contain his eagerness to leave heaven. If he could go, he couldn’t wait even a moment. But what could he do in these three days?
He was on good terms with figures like Dayu, Hou Tu, Ksitigarbha, Zhenwu, and the Three Pure Ones. But at this moment, it seemed there was nothing to say. If he could save this world, there would be plenty of time to talk later. If not… what good would talking do?
With a change of heart, Wukong headed west. The Kunpeng said he had awakened, but Wukong had only seen three scenes. There was no one to ask about this, so he decided to visit the Dragon Maiden, perhaps she could offer some insight.
Upon arriving at the Spirit Mountain and landing on Mount Luojia, the Dragon Maiden saw Wukong and lowered her beautiful eyes, as if meeting a stranger.
Wukong said softly, “Dragon Maiden, after waking up, my memories are scattered. Why is that?”
Without lifting her head, the Dragon Maiden asked, “You’re awake?”
Wukong replied, “I am.”
The Dragon Maiden said, “Since you’re awake, why do you still have questions for me?”
Wukong said, “I’m awake, but I can’t remember anything.”

The Dragon Maiden pondered for a while before saying, “All I know is limited to your past life. Can’t you even remember your past life now?”
Wukong nodded. Since he awakened, he had only wandered in the heavens and seen three inconclusive scenes; he couldn’t recall anything about the first seven epochs within the Cosmic Furnace at all.
The Dragon Maiden said, “In that case, come with me.” With that, Wukong followed her to the lotus pond. As they walked, she said, “Ever since I met you in your past life, I often felt as if in a dream. But since you last saw me, I haven’t had that feeling again.”
“Last time?” Wukong remembered that he hadn’t felt anything unusual the last time he saw the Dragon Maiden. Why was that?
Suddenly, Wukong recalled that after parting with her at the Spirit Mountain, he had entered the mortal world. At the foot of the Spirit Mountain, he met Monk Longshu at the Dale Joy Zen Temple… Monk Longshu must be him—the one who caused the Dragon Maiden to lose that strange feeling. And Monk Longshu was actually Bodhisattva Longshu? How strange! Longshu was Wukong’s past life; chronologically, one came before the other. Only one of them could exist—this was an unbreakable truth. So how could Wukong still be alive while Longshu also appeared in the world? Recalling the moment he met Longshu, Wukong remembered having examined Longshu thoroughly. That Monk Longshu had no trace of magical power, nor any aura of the Divine Ape. Therefore, Wukong concluded that Monk Longshu was merely an ordinary man!
If he was just an ordinary man, yet he still affected the connection between him and the Dragon Maiden—where did this influence come from?
At that moment, the Dragon Maiden led Wukong to the edge of the lotus pond and pointed at a fish in the water, saying, “Look at this fish.” Wukong took a look. The fish wasn’t anything special, possessing only slight magical powers. What was the Dragon Maiden trying to show him?
The Dragon Maiden asked, “The fish is in the water, right?”
Wukong nodded, still not understanding her intention.
She pointed with her hand, and a parrot in front of Avalokiteshvara’s lotus throne flew up and swept over the lotus pond. “The bird is in the air, right?”
Wukong nodded again.
The Dragon Maiden said, “When the bird flies in the air, it can see its reflection in the water. But the fish swims in the water; when it looks up, it sees no reflection of itself in the air, right?”
Wukong replied, “Exactly. Are you saying that since I’m in the water now, I can’t see the past?”
The Dragon Maiden didn’t answer. Instead, she continued, “When people are awake, they can remember dreams. But when people are in a dream, can they see reality clearly?”
Wukong suddenly had an epiphany. Did she mean that he was being deceived? But if he were to believe that his experiences in the Western Journey world were just dreams, he would never agree—how could there be such a vivid and real dream?

Have I reached a place beyond the heavens, where everything will become clear? The essence of heaven sought in water can never be found. In any case, one must go out!
Wukong said solemnly to the Dragon Girl, “Thank you for your guidance. What’s called ‘flowers in a mirror, moon in water’ may not necessarily be false; it’s just that ordinary people can’t enter the mirror or the water, while I must retrieve those flowers and moon.”
The Dragon Girl raised her head and glanced at Wukong, saying, “If you want to accomplish such great things, I can’t help much.”
Suddenly, Wukong had an idea and asked the Dragon Girl, “Do you want to meet Nagarjuna?”
The Dragon Girl trembled and exclaimed in shock, “What… what did you say?”
Wukong asked, “Do you miss Monk Nagarjuna?”
She nodded firmly twice and said, “Yes! I miss him every moment!”
“Good! Then I’ll take you to see him!” This idea came to Wukong suddenly. He was certain that the person in question was Bodhisattva Nagarjuna, but this Nagarjuna was not the reincarnation of the Divine Ape of Creation. And what the Dragon Girl truly loved was not the Divine Ape of Creation at all—she only liked Nagarjuna!
At that moment, Guanyin appeared from behind the mountain, scolding, “Wukong, what nonsense are you up to?” When she saw Wukong, confusion appeared in her eyes as she asked, “What’s going on here? Has something happened?”
It turned out that Wukong’s cultivation had reached a state of spiritual clarity, yet he still appeared ordinary. There were no fluctuations of power around him, and his divine aura was subdued, returning to simplicity. At first glance, Guanyin thought Wukong had suffered severe injuries.
Wukong said, “Great Lady, I’m fine. Nothing has happened.”
Guanyin replied, “Nagarjuna is dead. Why go to such lengths to deceive the Dragon Girl?”
Wukong smiled and said, “Do you think I’m a liar?”
Guanyin said, “I understand your intentions. You saw the Dragon Girl in distress and felt pity, so you wanted to create a fake Nagarjuna to comfort her? Hmph! If you treat her as just an ordinary woman, you underestimate her greatly.”
Wukong shook his head and said, “How could I do such a thing? Whether it’s real or fake, it’ll be clear at a glance.” Wukong waved his hand, got up, and left. He had left a mark on Nagarjuna, and soon he found Nagarjuna in Jambudvipa.
In an unnamed Taoist temple, Nagarjuna was holding a wine pot, playing chess with an old man. To Wukong’s surprise, the old man was none other than Mencius!
Mencius from the three realms hadn’t been seen for thousands of years, yet he still seemed full of energy!
He hadn’t seen Nagarjuna in decades, yet his appearance remained unchanged, with only long black hair now. At that moment, his clothes were half-unfastened, and his face was red, clearly drunk.
In this game, Nagarjuna played black while Mencius played white. Wukong knew a bit about the rules of chess, so he hid and watched from the air.

Ancient chess emphasizes placement rules, with black and white each occupying two corners, and white moves first. Without hesitation, Meng Ke placed his first stone on a side of the board. Wukong was slightly surprised—go emphasizes “gold corners, silver edges, and a grassy center”; to maximize the effectiveness of one’s stones, the first move is usually to defend or occupy a corner. As a well-learned scholar, Meng Ke should understand such basic principles. Placing the first stone on a side was truly unheard of. Then Long Shu said, “Since you’ve guessed you’ll go first, you should take advantage of it. By placing your stone on the side, are you trying to hinder me?” Meng Ke replied, “A single advantage isn’t enough to win the game.” Long Shu moved his stone straight to the center and said, “Then let it be!” Placing the first stone in the center is also extremely rare, but Meng Ke seemed unimpressed and simply placed a stone in a corner. Unaware of this, Wukong learned that Meng Ke and Long Shu got along well and had played countless games together. Long Shu’s moves were often unconventional, seemingly defying logical principles. It wasn’t until the middle of the game that they realized one of the seemingly useless stones Long Shu had placed early on turned out to be extremely valuable. The two played back and forth swiftly; within just over fifteen minutes, the board layout became clear. Black and white each controlled two corners, and the battle was settled. It was Meng Ke’s turn to move, and he naturally aimed to capture the central area. Long Shu’s stone in the center posed a serious challenge. After much thought, Meng Ke came up with a brilliant move. Placing his stone on the board, he said with slight satisfaction, “He who advances swiftly also retreats quickly. Young man, you’re being too hasty.” Long Shu took a sip of wine, thought for no moment, and made a move right next to Meng Ke’s stone. Black and white stones interlocked, creating a tense struggle, while the surrounding positions were hard to judge—the game seemed to be heading toward chaos. After much deliberation, Meng Ke made a slow move. Long Shu pressed forward step by step without attacking directly. The white dragon fled in panic, struggling hard to return to its base, while Long Shu gained significant advantages from his attacks. It seemed black was destined to win. Meng Ke laughed, conceded defeat, and said, “Your chess skills far surpass mine. There’s no need to continue this game.” Long Shu picked up the stones one by one and said, “Your playing style reflects your character—no deceptions, no unreasonable moves. In close combat, you retreat without fighting. How can you win like this?” Meng Ke didn’t disagree and smiled, saying, “It’s my nature; it’s hard to change.” Wukong thought to himself that Meng Ke always believed in the idea that the benevolent are invincible. He couldn’t even bear to sacrifice stones, yet go involves constant attacks and battles. Thus, Meng Ke was naturally unsuited for playing chess.

But what Wukong was concerned about was not this. Meng Ke was someone he had met in the three realms; having lived until now, he must be over a thousand years old. Yet Wukong saw that Meng Ke didn’t possess much magical power—how could he have lived so long?
Longshu also amazed him. It had been forty or fifty years since their last meeting, yet Longshu still had a youthful face. Had these two taken elixirs of immortality?