Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

In the Spiritual Platform's Three-Star Cave Heaven, on Mount Fangcun under the slanted moon, a whole hundred years had passed since Sun Wukong had been promoted to Earth Immortal.

Ever since Sun Wukong had triggered the Doomsday Thunder Disaster outside the Three-Star Cave Heaven, the Puti Patriarch had issued an order to seal the mountain. For a hundred years, entry and exit were forbidden. The Puti Patriarch, with his Great Divine Powers, concealed the entrance to the Three-Star Cave Heaven. The entire mountain had disappeared, and even the masters from the Western Buddhist Nation had come to investigate the vicinity of Mount Fangcun, but they found nothing.

During these hundred years, Sun Wukong had followed the Puti Patriarch in rigorous training. The Puti Patriarch had spared no knowledge this time, designing a series of Divine Skills specifically suitable for Sun Wukong's Heavenly Demon Body without any reservation.

Sun Wukong was initially perplexed — was it simply because the Puti Patriarch had spotted his Heavenly Demon Body and taken a liking to his talent? This reason seemed a bit far-fetched. Sun Wukong always felt that the Puti Patriarch was hiding something from him, but as a disciple, he felt it wasn't his place to ask, so he simply buried his doubts and devoted himself to his cultivation.

"Master, I can now use the Somersault Cloud and Shrinking Earth into Inches at the same time!"

With a somersault, he ascended into the sky on a cloud and in less than the time it took an incense stick to burn, Sun Wukong had fetched an Ice Lotus from the Thousand Island Lake in East Victorious Divine Continent, presenting it to the Puti Patriarch with a face full of accomplishment.

The Somersault Cloud was the most powerful cloud soaring skill, while Shrinking Earth into Inches was a form of travel used by the great Divine Skills users. Sun Wukong had never imagined that these two different travel methods could be used at the same time. On the Somersault Cloud using Shrinking Earth into Inches, his body seemed to turn into a beam of light, traveling tens of thousands of miles in a flash, several times faster than using the Somersault Cloud alone, almost reaching the ultimate speed in the world!

"Hmm, not bad, you have made some progress,"

The Puti Patriarch nodded. Indeed, Sun Wukong possessed exceptional talent. Although a Heavenly Demon Body did not offer much advantage in cultivation, it was uniquely gifted in the comprehension and mastery of mystical Divine Skills.

The issue with cultivation was that, as long as one lived long enough, anyone could accumulate it. However, cultivation merely indicated the amount of Primordial Force within the body; ultimate strength also depended on one's Divine Skills, magical treasures, and their understanding of the Great Dao. The Heavenly Demon Body could be regarded as the strongest combat body.

The Puti Patriarch had initially planned to teach only the Somersault Cloud to Sun Wukong. However, it didn't take long for Sun Wukong to master it, constantly wheedling before him with cheeky smiles, demanding more powerful cloud soaring skills. Left with no stronger cloud soaring skills to teach, the only Divine Skill the Puti Patriarch could teach Sun Wukong was Shrinking Earth into Inches.

Divine Skills differed from spells; spells merely required the activation of Primordial Force, being primarily a matter of proficiency. Divine Skills, on the other hand, required an understanding of specific laws. Shrinking Earth into Inches demanded an understanding of the Space Law. Originally, the Puti Patriarch didn't expect Sun Wukong to master it, but unexpectedly, Sun Wukong had learned it in just fifty years — a Divine Skill many Daluo Golden Immortals couldn't grasp! If this news got out, those Daluo Golden Immortals would be so ashamed they'd want to die by smashing their heads on tofu!

"Just not bad? Minor progress?"

Sun Wukong pursed his lips. The Puti Patriarch had previously said he might take several hundred or even a thousand years to learn it, but he had mastered it in only fifty years and had managed to use it simultaneously with the Somersault Cloud in less than twenty years, greatly increasing his speed. And this was just considered "not bad"?

"Master, actually, smiling occasionally and praising others wouldn't really hurt your dignity, really! You might try it, embrace your nature... forget I said anything!"

Having said half of it and noticing the Puti Patriarch's displeased expression, Sun Wukong immediately stopped, "Uh, I suddenly remembered there's something very important I need to do, yes, very important! Well, I'll come back later to listen to Master's teachings..."

Leaving behind those words, Sun Wukong instantly used Shrinking Earth into Inches to make a quick escape. If he stayed any longer, he probably would have been punished by the Puti Patriarch. Speaking of which, he had been disciplined frequently these past hundred years, with the Puti Patriarch calling it a test of his progress. Having such a master who liked to express his affection by hitting him on the head was truly a sad ordeal!

Come to think of it, he had never noticed in his past life that the Puti Patriarch had this peculiar habit.

"This sly little monkey!"

Watching Sun Wukong's figure disappearing from sight, the Puti Patriarch's stern face suddenly softened, a fond smile emerging at the corner of his mouth before quickly fading away as he, too, used Shrinking Earth into Inches to leave the back mountain.

The hundred years of mountain sealing had ended. Sun Wukong stepped out of the gate of the Three-Star Cave Heaven. The previous trip to Thousand Island Lake in East Victorious Divine Continent to fetch the Ice Lotus had been through a temporary passage opened by the Puti Patriarch. This was the first time in a hundred years that he had left through the main gate.

Sun Wukong left the Three-Star Cave Heaven for a simple reason: he needed a place to break through, one far from Western Cattle Gift State, to avoid involving the Puti Patriarch and his fellow disciples.

Puti Patriarch had always been avoiding someone, and Sun Wukong could guess this from his decision to close off his mountain for a hundred years. Combining memories from another space-time within the Time-Space Life-Death Talisman, Sun Wukong could almost be sure that Puti Patriarch was avoiding the Western Heavenly Buddhist Sect, or rather, evading the scrutiny of the Tathagata Buddha.

Puti Patriarch was none other than Zhun Ti Daoist, the second hierarch of the Western Sect during the Era of the Divine Enthronement, which Sun Wukong had ascertained over the years through indirect inquiries compared with memories from another space-time. Moreover, he was certain that there was a deep feud between Puti Patriarch and Tathagata Buddha, because every time he casually mentioned Tathagata Buddha, Puti Patriarch's expression would fluctuate, and the deep-seated hatred in his eyes was crystal clear to Sun Wukong.

Yet, as to what exactly the grudge was, Puti Patriarch never uttered a word about it; perhaps he felt the time was not ripe. Sun Wukong did not feel it appropriate to pry further.

During this century, Sun Wukong had dedicated most of his energy to learning various Spell Divine Powers. He had not deliberately cultivated his cultivation, but even so, the abundant spiritual energy in the Three-Star Cave Heaven had still pushed his cultivation to the pinnacle of Earth Immortal. He had been suppressing it for a long time, and if he did not find a place to make a breakthrough, the Great Sun Fire Disaster would come seeking him.

Normally, after surviving the Doomsday Thunder Disaster, the Great Sun Fire Disaster should arrive five hundred years later, but five hundred years was the limit. If the cultivation reached the breakthrough point prematurely, the three disasters would also arrive early.

"Where should I break through?"

Sun Wukong scratched his head; he had told Puti Patriarch that he needed to go out for a while to find a place to evade disaster and make a breakthrough. Puti Patriarch simply nodded without giving any other opinion. That meant he was left to make his own choice.

Western Cattle Gift State was not an option, Southern Continent was too densely populated, and there was frequent interaction between it and Western Cattle Gift State. The power of the Western Buddhist Sect was also spreading to the Southern Continent, and the East Victorious Divine Continent was directly managed by the Heavenly Court. For now, Sun Wukong did not want to get involved with the Heavenly Court, so that left only one choice, the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing!

"Somersault Cloud!"

With a thought, Sun Wukong leaped into the air with a somersault, instantly gathering a cluster of auspicious clouds under his feet. Using the Shrinking Earth into Inches Divine Skill, he and the cloud flashed through the sky, racing toward the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing.

The Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing, among the four major continents, was the only place where the forces of the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist Sect could not touch. It was the homeland of the Barbarian Race.

The Barbarian Race, inheriting from the Ancient Witch Race, was the offspring produced after the decline of the Witch Race intermarrying with the Human Race and the Demon Clan. Their bodies were as robust as those of the Demon Clan, and they were innately able to communicate with elemental energy, but their internal meridians were cluttered, making it impossible to channel qi into their bodies for cultivation. They could only release spells by communicating with the elemental energy through their spirit sea. Neither Taoist Cultivation Techniques nor Buddhist Cultivation Methods, nor the Method of Cultivation of the Demon Clan, were of any use to the Barbarian Race.

The average lifespan of the Barbarian Race was longer than that of the Human Race, around five hundred years, with the oldest not exceeding eight hundred years. The Barbarians of the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing were open and pugnacious, their most distinct traits. They did not believe in gods or Buddha and were extremely exclusive to outsiders, yet they respected the powerful. Simply put, to gain the recognition of the Barbarians and survive in the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing, one had to be strong enough!

Sun Wukong had read about these facts in the ancient books introducing all things about Zhou Tian, found in the Scripture Pavilion of the Three-Star Cave Heaven, but coming to the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing was his first time, whether in his previous existence or this one. After crossing the Western Sea and the Northern Sea, Sun Wukong descended from the cloud in a mountainous region, landing by a valley lake.

"Is this the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing? The spiritual energy here is no less than that of Mount Fangcun!"

Sun Wukong exclaimed, yet he found it somewhat strange. This was just the edge of the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing, merely a random valley and not a Cave Heaven and Blessed Land, but the richness of the spiritual energy was already comparable to Mount Fangcun. One could imagine what the Cave Heaven and Blessed Lands of the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing would be like. Such a place, neither the Heavenly Court nor the Western Buddhist Sect dared to reach into, truly puzzled Sun Wukong.

Forget it, don't think too much. First, make the breakthrough and evade the disaster. After avoiding the Great Sun Fire Disaster and advancing to Heavenly Immortal, then I will explore the Northern Continent of Cattle-grazing properly.

Finding a secluded rock by the lake, Sun Wukong sat down cross-legged and began to operate the Eight-Nine Profound Skill, releasing the suppression on his cultivation. His aura suddenly surged, sending an invisible wave spreading in all directions. Animals within several miles were startled by this wave, instinctively fleeing in all directions.

The momentum grew stronger and eventually reached a critical point, then suddenly broke through. At the moment Sun Wukong's cultivation reached the critical point, an immense pressure descended from the sky. A round red sun emerged in the sky, formed from the Power of the Heavenly Dao Principles. Unlike the original sun in the sky, this red sun made it seem dim and dull.

The size of the red sun initially appeared to be only the size of a palm, but it quickly expanded into a huge fireball. Tiny flames danced on the surface of the fireball, and the next moment, they transformed into specks of fire that shot towards Sun Wukong.

The Great Sun Fire Disaster had begun!