Heaven-Defying Rebel Sage-Chapter 30 - The Four Quarters Converge at Heaven

Kong Xuan meant to say that the Great Peng was too impetuous, but, given the Great Peng’s volatile nature, it wasn’t advisable to state it outright.

Steadying himself, the Golden-Winged Great Peng exclaimed indignantly, “What is this Heavenly Emperor, to dare slap me?”

His face still bore a palm print, being utterly unsightly, as if his dignity had been thrown to the ground.

“Those who insult the Heavenly Emperor shall be slain. Yet, heaven treasures the virtue of cherishing life; considering this your first offense, you will not be punished,” Di Jun stated coldly.

Even the fiercely proud Golden-Winged Great Peng dared not make a sound. That streak of golden light that struck him earlier moved at an incomparable speed, almost as if it could reverse time itself, so fast that not even his ninety-thousand-mile wing span could evade it! Not to mention himself, even if the demon master Kunpeng were here, he wouldn’t dare to fly and would have to obediently walk up one step at a time.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng declared, “I will go first!”

Having said that, he proceeded to climb the ladder but was stopped by Guanyin.

Guanyin cautioned, “The prohibitions on this ladder are extremely formidable; with each step, the force magnifies by fifty thousand jin, and it further increases by several hundreds of thousands with each subsequent layer! Moreover, there is chilling wind above the tenth step, weak water above the twentieth, and Sun Essence above the thirtieth… You are injured; it’s best not to be overconfident.”

The Golden-Winged Great Peng too recalled Di Jun’s awe-inspiring power and felt some trepidation, yet he did not wish to lose face.

Kong Xuan offered him a way out by saying, “Allow me to go first.”

The few on the heavenly platform watched coolly as Wukong, having used the Hongmeng Purple Qi to heal the damage to his spiritual platform, stood up.

“Hehe, I, old Sun, have always looked up to the Bodhisattvas and Buddhas. Today, it’s their turn to look up to me! Truly exhilarating!” Fearless of both heaven and earth, even amidst powerful enemies, Wukong remained utterly undaunted.

Do you think this Ladder to Heaven is so simple to ascend? Had Wukong not cultivated his Golden Core and received the Dao of Di Jun, he might have been brushed off long ago.

Kong Xuan was a figure nearly at the level of a Sect Founder, incredibly powerful, battling Jiang Ziya and his cohorts during the Deification War to a standstill, overturning groups with his Five-Colored Divine Light. Even when Burning Lamp intervened, his Magical Treasure was taken, and it was only with Zhun Ti’s intervention that they finally subdued him.

Kong Xuan, mighty as he was, dared not defy the rules established by the Heavenly Emperor, and began to ascend step by step.

By the time he reached past the twentieth step, he began using his Five-Colored Divine Light to sweep upwards.

He zealously swept his way through; no substance could withstand it, even the Sun Essence couldn’t resist his several sweeps, and soon he arrived at the fortieth step.

“Western Religion speaks of cause and effect, and so does Taoism, but what is cause and effect?” inquired the magnificent and merciless voice of Di Jun, full of resolute authority.

Kong Xuan replied, “Actions from the past life result in fruits in this life, or from this life to the next life.”

His answer, not much different from Guanyin’s yet including this life and the next, showed that his comprehension was a layer deeper. The Buddhist Family emphasizes the past, present, and future lives.

“Correct, proceed to the next level,” stated Di Jun impassively.

Kong Xuan stepped onto the forty-third step.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

“What falls outside the scope of cause and effect?”

Kong Xuan answered, “The Heavenly Dao transcends cause and effect.”

Di Jun responded, “That answer is acceptable.”

The forty-fourth step.

“Where does the heart reside?”

He answered, “The heart lies in one’s own eyes.”

The response came, “Acceptable.”

The forty-fifth step.

The Heavenly Emperor inquired, “What is the Dao?”

Kong Xuan replied, “The absence of Dao is itself the Dao!”

“Most wonderful!” the Heavenly Emperor exclaimed.

The forty-sixth level.

“Without Dao there is Dao, but what then is Dao?” the Heavenly Emperor asked.

This question truly posed an extreme difficulty. Just now, Kong Xuan had answered that without Dao there is Dao, which was a very good answer. But if one were to say Dao is also without Dao now, then it seemed that they would be brushed down by a golden light. Some questions and answers are not relative. After a moment, Kong Xuan finally said, “Dao… What is Dao? I do not know.”

Having spoken, he himself rose with Five-Colored Divine Light and descended, but Di Jun did not brush him away with golden light.

Kong Xuan could not help but wonder aloud, “Who is this Heaven-Defying Taoist? He was actually able to pass the Heavenly Emperor’s nine divine questions and reach the summit.”

Guanyin, however, disdainfully said, “He has learned the Heavenly Emperor’s Divine Skills, seems to share the profound truths of the Great Dao; Di Jun did not trouble him, allowing him to ascend directly.”

However, at this moment, Emperor Chen said, “You must not speak nonsense, the Heaven-Defying Taoist Master ascended with each question and each answer! If you are outmatched, stop wagging your tongue in vainly, to think you are a Bodhisattva, are you not afraid of inciting anger?”

Guanyin, in fact, was so angry that her Three Corpse Gods were jumping madly, but her face remained unusually calm.

Kong Xuan said, “This Heavenly Ladder is extraordinary; I fear even the Buddha Ancestor may not ascend it. The Heaven-Defying Taoist will likely become a figure like a Sect Founder.”

At that moment, the four Vajra had finished deploying their net and had ascended to the top of Heaven Pillar Mountain only to see Kong Xuan stumped, so they had no desire to go up and make a spectacle of themselves. They stood by to watch.

Kong Xuan’s and the Golden-Winged Great Peng King’s presence in the Eastern Lands had naturally drawn the attention of countless people. As they moved, the Thousand-Mile Eyes of the Heavenly Court instantly noticed, and in no time, Nezha the Third Prince, the True Lord Yang Jian, Heavenly King Li Jing, the Nine Luminaries Star Lords, and other Heavenly Court masters hurried over, with even the Lord of Salvation joining them.

“Hmm, such swift action!” the Golden-Winged Great Peng King could not help but snort.

“What, has this Forty-Nine Heavenly Ladder stumped the Bodhisattva Protectors?” asked the Lord of Salvation, his face expressionless.

Kong Xuan, nevertheless, remained unaffected and said, “My fellow Daoists might as well give it a try.”

Who was Kong Xuan? Even he had been stumped, so naturally, the old and cunning of Heavenly Court would not climb up to seek their own doom.

Wukong, seeing the crowd gathered beneath the ladder, laughed heartily, “Damn it, I really do have quite the face, for the Heavenly Court and Buddhist Sect to dispatch so many figures for me!”

At this moment, the situation had indeed become extremely dire. So many masters gathered that any one of them would give Wukong a good fight, let alone so many. Yang Jian, standing below, already had fire blazing from his eyes, and without hesitation, he strode onto the staircase, climbing eighteen levels in one go!

It wasn’t until the thirtieth level that he used his Profound Skills, swinging the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Sword, extinguishing all the enveloping flames.

By the thirty-sixth level, the true essence of the sun was burning down!

Yang Jian’s face changed dramatically, and choosing not to resist head-on, he quickly retreated, cursing, “If you have the guts, come down and fight!”

Wukong, however, said, “Your grandpa has the skills to ascend, if you cannot, then spare yourself the fight.”

Hong Hai’er, seeing the crowd and intending to embarrass Guanyin, laughed loudly, “Guanyin, you bitch, don’t you want to catch me? Hurry up and come face me, the great king!”

Yang Jian and Guanyin were both choked by the remarks of these two.

The crowd only then realized that there was a child on the high platform—was that not Sudhana from under Guanyin’s tutelage? Their gazes suddenly became mocking and surprised; Guanyin, having been provoked by Hong Hai’er, was of course greatly embarrassed and, snorting disdainfully, left alone on her lotus platform.

“Haha, haha!” The childish laughter of Hong Hai’er followed; Guanyin found it exceedingly irritating to her ears.

Li Jing said, “How about we set up a Formation together, shake Heaven Pillar Mountain, so we won’t have to ascend?”

Kong Xuan nodded and telepathically said to Guanyin, “Please trouble the Bodhisattva to summon Manjushri, Samantabhadra, and Ksitigarbha together, so we can set up the Formation to shake Heaven Pillar Mountain.”

Guanyin simply replied, “I understand, I will go at once.”

The Golden-Winged Great Peng King sighed, “If not for this staircase as an obstacle, I could have captured everyone here alone!”

The Lord of Salvation scoffed, “That’s quite the claim.”

Li Jing said, “Nezha, go to the Heavenly Court and summon Emperor Gou Chen, he is very familiar with Heaven Pillar Mountain and will surely have a method.”

Therefore, Nezha, obeying his father’s command, rushed towards the Heavenly Court.

On Kong Xuan’s side, he summoned the forces of the Buddhist Sect, the Dragon Kings of the Eight Divisions, various Bodhisattvas, and many Buddhas… The Heavenly Court called forth Emperor Gou Chen, along with those famed warriors who had made their mark during the Investiture of the Gods War.

“What a grand display of force!” Hong Hai’er was also taken aback; here were gathered the core strength of both the Buddhist Sect and the Heavenly Court.

Emperor Gou Chen looked upwards, feeling greatly irritated in his heart, thinking that the Sun-Shooting Bow and arrows had probably been gained by them. These two Magical Treasures posed a great threat to him! His murderous intent grew stronger; those two treasures could only end up in his hands, or else they would be endless trouble for him.

Wukong sat cross-legged; he had considerable faith in the Heavenly Ladder set up by Di Jun. This Forty-Nine Heavenly Ladder subtly conformed to the Heavenly Dao and was protected by Di Jun’s Divine Sense—it was very secure!

After conferring for a moment, the people of the Heavenly Court and Buddhist Sect decided to set up the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Skyshaking Great Formation!

Thereupon, they each took their positions, sitting cross-legged around the ladder, with Kong Xuan leading them.

Kong Xuan raised his hand and summoned the Five-Colored Divine Light, which penetrated Heaven and Earth, enveloping the ladder, laying the foundation of the grand formation.

Then, each master brought out their Magical Treasure, inserting them into the formation’s nodes.

This Formation took a full three days and three nights to set up!