Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

"Get out of my way!"

Channelling all his mana, Sun Wukong tried to pull his hand off the green stalk, but not only did he fail to pull it away, his other hand got stuck upon it as well, and the essence blood and origin power within him flowed toward the green stalk at an even faster rate.

Oh, come on? How could the struggle make it suck even harder?

Sun Wukong braced his feet against the green stalk and strained to pull his hands free, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get them off. When he tried to put his feet down, he found that his feet were stuck too!!

"It's over!"

Feeling essence blood and origin power draining from his body at a terrifying pace, Sun Wukong was filled with despair. To die in such a frustrating way, dying before achieving his goals, forever would a hero shed tears under such circumstances!

As his essence blood and origin power continued to drain, Sun Wukong began to feel waves of dizziness wash over him. His once robust body visibly withered away rapidly, turning the proud Beautiful Monkey King into nothing but skin and bones. Fortunately, it seemed that the green stalk had absorbed enough essence blood and origin power and gradually slowed its pace, but Sun Wukong could hold on no longer and his eyes rolled back as he fainted.

The future Great Sage Equalling Heaven, a being who could make all gods and Buddha tremble, was knocked out by a green stalk at this moment!

However, after Sun Wukong fainted, the green stalk completely stopped draining his essence blood and origin power. It turned into a beam of green light and entered his body directly from his right palm, Sun Wukong's previously withered body inflated like a ballooning up, and the drained essence blood and origin power returned to him, fully restoring him to his original state as if they had never been drained.

Half a day later, Sun Wukong woke up from his stupor, slightly dazed as he opened his eyes: "I'm not dead… not good!"

Suddenly, as if remembering something, Sun Wukong leaped up only to hit his head on the top of the tree's central cavity. He staggered, seemingly unfazed, and quickly checked the status of the Time-Space Life-Death Talisman in his Spiritual Platform. Upon seeing it, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, I didn't use up the chance to save my life! If I had unwittingly used up one of the Divine Talisman's life-saving opportunities, that would have been too costly! Eh, where did that stalk go?"

Looking up, Sun Wukong noticed the green stalk had vanished. Looking over his body, there wasn't any sign that his essence blood and origin power had been drained, as if everything that had happened was just an illusion.

"No, it definitely wasn't an illusion! Where did that stalk go?"

Sun Wukong's eyes gleamed with golden light as he scanned every corner around the big tree, but he could not find any trace of the green stalk and grew even more puzzled. How could the green stalk have disappeared without a trace?

Wait, could it have entered my body?

A thought suddenly flashed through Sun Wukong's mind, and he quickly closed his eyes to look inside himself. To his shock, the green stalk indeed had entered his body and was floating quietly in his Qi Sea, emitting a faint mist of chaos. Had he not looked inside, he would never have noticed its presence.

Although the green stalk entered his body, Sun Wukong could not control it at all— even sensing it was incredibly faint. If it weren't for his internal vision, he wouldn't have realized it. When he tried to command his primordial force near the green stalk, the mist it emitted kept it out of reach.

Well, I've really brought in a big boss here!

Sun Wukong shook his head self-mockingly, having exerted so much effort and nearly losing his life, and yet he still didn't know what kind of treasure the green stalk was or what abilities it possessed. It really felt like a loss.

Forget it, it was a serendipitous discovery after all, who knows when it might come in handy. Let's just leave it inside.

Turning into a fine droplet, Sun Wukong followed the veins of the tree from the roots and drilled out, transforming back into a pangolin to burrow out of the ground, then back to his original form and headed towards the front hall of the Water Curtain Cave Heaven.

Among his fellow monkeys, some were cultivating while others, unable to bear the solitude of cultivation, were playing in the Water Curtain Cave Heaven and outside by the waterfall. Watching them, Sun Wukong shook his head, "The master leads the way, but cultivation is up to the individual." He had already provided the monkeys with cultivation methods, but whether they could persevere was beyond his control.

Letting the playful monkeys gather everyone, Sun Wukong spoke, "I have decided to go out and seek a master to acquire more profound skills, achieve eternal youth, and ascend to immortality. Then I'll return to teach all of you, so that our lives may be as long as the heavens itself!"

The crowd of monkeys reacted with joy, scratching their heads and clapping their hands in praise.

"Great, great, we will pick some fruits and food tomorrow, and host a banquet to send our king on his quest for immortality!"

Next morning, the monkeys on Flower-Fruit Mountain gathered various fruits and fine wines and neatly arranged them in the Water Curtain Cave Heaven to honor Sun Wukong, where they feasted for an entire day. On the third morning, Sun Wukong set out to sea on a bamboo raft made for him by his fellow monkeys and headed straight into the depths of the ocean.

Sun Wukong had already decided to seek tutelage under the Puti Patriarch again; in his previous life, he learned all his skills from him. Moreover, Sun Wukong always felt that the Puti Patriarch was profoundly inscrutable, much like the feeling he had when facing the Tathagata Buddha. He was certain he could still learn a great deal more from him!

He thought it was time to make up for the shortcomings of his previous life. Sun Wukong didn't want to be dismissed with a slap by the Tathagata Buddha as if he were swatting a fly again.

Initially, Sun Wukong could have simply ridden his Somersault Cloud to the Western Cattle Gift State, but he thought better of it.

The realm of the Tathagata Buddha was that of a Heavenly Dao Saint, and the Puti Patriarch, he presumed, wasn't far behind. Such high-level beings could just count on their fingers and know everything under the Zhou Tian; the Puti Patriarch probably wouldn't predict that he was reliving his life through time travel, as few understood the Space-time Law, especially the Time Law. However, if he rode on the Somersault Cloud to seek apprenticeship, the Puti Patriarch would most certainly foresee it!

How would he then explain?

He would already know what the Puti Patriarch had yet to teach him, and that was something not even a hundred mouths could explain away!

Better to just row the bamboo raft to the Western Cattle Gift State earnestly!

In his previous life, before heading to the Three-Star Cave, Sun Wukong had been delayed on his route in the Southern Continent for more than a decade. This time, he didn't want to take a circuitous path.

Time was of the essence; reaching the Three-Star Cave a day earlier would afford him more time for cultivation and learning. Sun Wukong remembered that according to the records of Yama King, his lifespan totaled only 342 years and hadn't changed even after he reached the Heavenly Immortal Realm. He assumed it would be the same this time, and inevitably another uproar would occur. Before that, he absolutely had to master all the skills!

Sailing across seas, directly from the Eastern Sea to the Western Sea, took two months, after which Sun Wukong finally arrived in Western Cattle Gift State. Without delay, he changed into suitable clothing and headed straight for the Spiritual Platform and the Three-Star Cave at the Three-Star Cave Mountain. Two days later, he reached the territory of the cave, pretended to ask for directions, and then followed the path to the entrance of the Three-Star Cave.

Just as he remembered, the area was surrounded by lush mountain peaks, thousands of pines and bamboos, the calling of cranes, and whispers of emptiness. Three-Star Cave was located by a stunning cliff, on top of which stood a stone stele, thirty feet tall and eight feet wide, that read "Spiritual Platform Three-Star Cave, Three-Star Mountain covered by the Slanted Moon" in ten large characters.

Sun Wukong didn't even knock; he simply jumped onto a pine tree next to the stele, picked a large handful of pine nuts, and began tossing the shells toward the cave entrance while munching, the continuous tinkling sound filling the air.

Disturbed by Sun Wukong's commotion, the cave door soon opened, and an Immortal Boy emerged. He looked somewhat different from the Immortal Boy in Sun Wukong's memory, resembling more an older senior brother from his past. Oh right, this time he arrived three hundred years earlier than in his previous life to seek apprenticeship, so that senior brother would still be just a little Immortal Boy!

"Who is it that dares to strike my mountain gate with pine nuts?"

The Immortal Boy, seeing the scattered pine nut shells, slightly furrowed his brows and spoke with a somewhat annoyed and crisp voice.

Sun Wukong immediately jumped down from the tree and walked up to the Immortal Boy, bowing with his hands clasped and said, "This Immortal Boy, excuse me. I am called Sun Wukong, and I have heard that this place is the abode of a true Immortal who has attained the Dao. I have come to seek truth and guidance. Please inform your master of my arrival."

"You are here to seek the Dao?"

The Immortal Boy sized up Sun Wukong, noting his handsome appearance despite the extra hair and an additional tail compared to ordinary humans, which indeed made him nod in approval.

"Indeed! Could it be that your honorable master already anticipated my arrival to seek apprenticeship? Truly fitting of a true Immortal. I must say, I came to the right place this time!"

With those flattering words, and seeing the smile spreading on the face of the Immortal Boy, Sun Wukong knew his words had taken effect.

"You have a discerning eye! Come with me, and my master is indeed expecting you!"

Sun Wukong nodded, straightened his clothes, and followed the Immortal Boy into the Cave Heaven, through pavilions and towers, until they reached underneath the magnificent terrace where the Puti Patriarch sat with an air of divine dignity, looking every bit the part of an enlightened sage, just as he remembered. Sun Wukong immediately knelt down and addressed him as Master.

"Who below there calls me 'Master'?"

The Puti Patriarch lifted his eyes to glance at Sun Wukong, noting that although he was of the Monkey Tribe, he had a handsome face, and sensing his aura, which had already peaked at the Human Immortal level, he seemed exceptionally gifted, which immediately ingratiated him. This disciple of fate appeared to be quite promising indeed!

"Disciple is from the Water Curtain Cave of Flower-Fruit Mountain in the Aolai Kingdom of the East Victorious Divine Continent, named Sun Wukong, earnestly here to seek the Immortal Dao. Please accept me as your disciple!"