Great Demon Sun Wukong

Hearing Tang Sanzang's anxious voice, Sun Wukong was momentarily stunned before a wave of ecstasy flooded his heart. Struggling to retreat, he used the last of his mana to quickly scan his body. Suddenly, as Wukong was stepping back, his body halted, and in that brief moment, he was toppled over by the overwhelming aura emanating from Tang Sanzang.

Yet, it seemed as if Sun Wukong felt nothing of this because his mind was completely short-circuited by the bizarre sight within him.

Inside Sun Wukong, there were two stones—one black and one yellow, one large and one small, irregularly shaped—rotating and floating in a yin-yang pattern.

Surrounding them were a pair of Wind Fire Wheels, a fiery red Magical Silk Ribbon, a gleaming Qiankun Ring, and a pitch-black Nine-Toothed Rake, along with his own Ruyi Jingu Bang, all revolving counterclockwise in sync with the stones' rotation. Sun Wukong was so astonished that he couldn't speak for a while. How did Nezha's weapons and Bajie's rake end up inside him?

And what was that rake in my ear just now?

Thinking of this, Sun Wukong, disregarding that he was lying on the ground, hurriedly reached into his ear and pulled out a golden needle and a pitch-black rake that appeared in his hand. Staring at the two weapons in his hands, Sun Wukong was speechless for a long time. Could it be, there are two Jingu Bang staffs, two Nine-Toothed Rakes? How is that possible?

Driven by curiosity, Sun Wukong tossed the Jingu Bang into the air and chanted, "Grow, grow, grow." Soon after, the Jingu Bang slowly grew to its usual size. Then, Sun Wukong threw the Nine-Toothed Rake out and chanted, "Grow, grow." Strangely enough, the rake grew as well, becoming as large as when Zhu Bajie usually wielded it.

Sun Wukong then retrieved the two weapons and delved his consciousness into his body, focusing on the floating Jingu Bang. The Jingu Bang inside him remained unresponsive, continuing to float and rotate on its own. Then he attempted to communicate with each of the other weapons in turn, and all of them, without exception, were indifferent to Sun Wukong's mental guidance.

Having no choice, Sun Wukong decided to put aside these matters and began to inspect his injuries. He was taken aback yet again. It seemed that the day had brought more oddities than his entire lifetime. The injuries inside Sun Wukong had almost completely healed, and every part of his body—muscles, bones, organs, blood, and skin—was renewed.

The most noticeable change was his blood, which had turned from its fresh red color to a dazzling golden, like molten gold.

Sun Wukong knew he had turned misfortune into a blessing. Not to mention anything else, just the power contained within the golden blood was already three times more than before. Furthermore, his muscles, bones, and flesh had all been strengthened as if he had undergone an evolution.

Although he was now extremely weak from the depletion of his mana and physical strength, Sun Wukong believed that once he fully recovered, his abilities would definitely increase to double or even triple the original amount.

However, upon reflection, he realized the losses were overwhelming. The benevolent and malevolent manifestations that he had struggled to eradicate with immense effort, and which he had lost in the battle against the Jade Emperor, had filled Sun Wukong with a sense of despair. Without them, his path towards enlightenment had become impossible. Ah, he had been too impatient.

If only he had waited a bit longer, waited until he had cut down the three corpses to become a saint, until the Demon Clan had gathered more strength, until he was more certain of victory, maybe the outcome would have been entirely different.

Unfortunately, there were no ifs. He had lost, thoroughly lost. Flower Fruit Mountain was gone, the Demon Clan was gone, and even elder brother Sha, Bajie, and the little White Dragon were all gone. At this thought, Sun Wukong's nose soured, and tears flowed down his cheeks. Just then, he felt someone lifting him up, and he turned to see it was his master, Tang Sanzang.

At this moment, Tang Sanzang was in a tattered Taoist robe, covered with bloodstains. What was more heart-wrenching was that master's eyes had gone blind! Sun Wukong, already brimming with sorrow, could no longer hold back his tears, and he threw himself into Tang Sanzang's arms, crying bitterly like a child.

"Master, master. Woo-hoo, it's my fault, all my fault. I've killed Bajie, I've killed Sha, and I've also killed everyone on Flower Fruit Mountain and countless members of the Demon Clan. Master, I've even caused you to lose your sight. It's all my fault, woo-hoo, all my fault. Master, I'm sorry, so sorry!" he said, crying even more heartbreakingly.

Groping around, Tang Sanzang touched Sun Wukong's head. Hearing Sun Wukong's cries of woe, Tang Sanzang simply stroked his head quietly, letting him cry his heart out. After a while, Sun Wukong, exhausted from weeping, fell asleep in Tang Sanzang's arms. Only then did two tears trickle from the corners of Tang Sanzang's eyes.

One hand gently patted Sun Wukong's back, while the other tightly clutched the soil, so much so that his fingernails were filled with blood, yet it went completely unnoticed.

"Tathagata, you will pay the price someday. You, Tathagata, no longer deserve to be the ancestor of all Buddhas. One day, I will show you what it truly means to be Buddha."

As if sensing Tang Sanzang's words, the two strange stones and the multitude of weapons inside Sun Wukong vibrated in unison. At the same time, a blood-red flower floated gently from the top of Tang Sanzang's head, orbiting slowly around the master and his disciple.

As it spun, it cast a cascade of verdant light, and inside Sun Wukong, the depleted spiritual energy began to replenish itself at an unbelievable rate.