Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 723 - 722: The Real and Fake Sun Wukong Meet
Xiong Daoren looked at Sun Wukong’s mischievous smile and instantly felt a headache coming on. Sun Wukong, please don’t cause trouble at his Buddhist Robe Assembly.
"Wukong, is everything okay in the shop?" Xiong Daoren hinted frantically.
"Nothing’s wrong. The master has gone back, and with Big Head taking care of things, what could possibly happen to me?" Sun Wukong said with a laugh.
Xiong Daoren felt helpless, I have a problem, though.
Sun Wukong saw Xiong Daoren’s downcast expression and knew what he was worried about. He patted Xiong Daoren’s shoulder, "Come on, don’t look so glum. What are you afraid of? Surely you’re not scared that I, old Sun, will stir up trouble?"
Xiong Daoren quickly shook his head, "No, that’s not it. I didn’t—I mean, it’s great that you can stay, Wukong."
"There you have it." Sun Wukong said with a smile, then changed his appearance.
Xiong Daoren had wanted to tell Sun Wukong not to confront Six-Eared Macaque head-on, knowing the latter had backing. He hadn’t expected Sun Wukong to have already changed his appearance, which relieved him somewhat.
He was worried that having Sun Wukong and the Six-Eared Macaque with the same appearance would lead to a clash, which definitely wouldn’t be a good thing, and certainly not what he wanted to see.
"Wukong, you’re always so thoughtful," Xiong Daoren said, looking as if he had never thought of this himself, "Only someone as incredible as you could change their appearance so easily. The enemy is in the light, and we are in the dark; this is really good."
"Alright," Sun Wukong gave Xiong Daoren a look, "Don’t tell me you didn’t know this could be done. Stop with the flattery; it’s not needed in front of me. Go greet the guests, and don’t wait until they’re at the door and you’re still not out."
Xiong Daoren chuckled and rubbed his hands together as he headed towards the entrance.
Xuanzang and the Six-Eared Macaque stood at the entrance to Xiong Daoren’s cave abode. Xuanzang was still a bit fearful, hesitating to move forward, scared that he might encounter a room full of demons upon entering.
"Wukong, if there are lots of demons inside, you must remember not to stray far from me. You have to protect me if anything happens," he said.
The Six-Eared Macaque reassured Xuanzang with a look of confidence, "Master, don’t worry. With me here, I’ll definitely not let you fall into such a situation. There’s no need to be concerned. As soon as we enter, I’ll be right by your side, never leaving your sight. Does that sound good?"
Xuanzang nodded, "Just remember what you’ve told me."
While the master and disciple were talking, the door opposite them suddenly opened and Xiong Daoren stepped out with a mortal.
"Why have you come so early? Not all guests have arrived yet." Xiong Daoren smiled politely. If one were only to listen to his voice and not look at his appearance, they might really think he was a mortal.
But appearances truly made a big difference; after Xuanzang nodded in greeting, he dared not make any further move.
The Six-Eared Macaque smiled and greeted Xiong Daoren, "We live quite close, so my master and I thought we’d come over a bit earlier."
"Is that so." As Xiong Daoren ushered the master and disciple pair into the cave abode, he introduced them, "This is my friend; he also practices asceticism."
Sun Wukong said with a smile, "Talking about ’practicing asceticism’ is a bit much—I’m just interested in it and practice for fun."
Can one really practice for fun?
Xuanzang and the Six-Eared Macaque exchanged glances, with Xuanzang speaking first, "If you practice asceticism, then we are friends. Immortals and Buddhists are all one family."
Sun Wukong laughed heartily, "Yes, exactly right."
Xuanzang looked at Sun Wukong. Although he did not recognize this man and was certain he had never seen him before, for some reason, he felt very familiar with him, as if he had met him somewhere.
From the moment he saw this man, he always felt a nameless sense of kinship.
Before Jin Chanzi was reincarnated, Sun Wukong’s relationship with him was also quite good. Even if he was somewhat annoyed by the Six-Eared Macaque, his attitude towards Xuanzang was still quite favorable.
"Don’t just stand there, take a seat. These dishes have been brought from far-off places, and the cook, oh, his culinary skills are absolutely superb; you must give them a try." Since his identity wasn’t Sun Wukong now, he laid it on thick while praising the cook.
Xiong Daoren felt somewhat helpless; the cook was clearly right there, yet he insisted on pretending it was someone else, apparently seeking to praise himself.
As soon as the Six-Eared Macaque came in, he had already noticed the dishes, yet although he noticed, he forced himself not to look.
Having always operated under the name of Sun Wukong, he naturally stayed as far away as possible from anything related to Sun Wukong. He inherently detested Sun Wukong, even though he was always chasing Sun Wukong’s footsteps.
"Sorry, as an ascetic, I must abstain from meat and strong flavors," said Xuanzang. "So I cannot eat these dishes."
"What are you saying, what’s wrong with being an ascetic? Are ascetics not human? They still have to be picky about food? There’s no need for such troublesome matters. Are you saying you don’t want to eat?" Sun Wukong began to be unreasonable.
Xuanzang hastily denied, "It’s not that I don’t want to eat, no, I don’t want to eat, and I do not consume meat or strong flavors."
For most people, this would just be a question of whether to eat or not, but for Xuanzang, it had become a significant issue.
He could not say he wanted to eat because he was an ascetic, and he couldn’t say he didn’t want to eat because that would be impolite.
Xuanzang, flushed and embarrassed, ultimately could only claim he did not eat meat or strong flavors.
The Six-Eared Macaque frowned as he watched the mortal talk to Xuanzang, always feeling that his tone seemed familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere, similar to that very annoying monkey.
When he thought of Sun Wukong, he naturally excluded himself.
He believed that he was completely different from that Sun Wukong; he was going to achieve Buddhahood in the future, unlike that monkey, who could only ever circle around the stove.
The fragrance of the food slowly drifted over, and the Six-Eared Macaque swallowed salivary, then thought bitterly to himself, even if the cooking was delicious, he was a cook, and that’s all he would ever be.
"Hey, a little bit won’t hurt, right?" Sun Wukong, unaware of what the Six-Eared Macaque was thinking internally, continued to speak with Xuanzang.
"In this cave abode, aside from you and your disciple, there is only me and this bear. What are you afraid of? We won’t tell anyone."
"Donor, it is not a matter of telling or not telling," Xuanzang refused to say.
"You monk, why so rigidly adhere to rules? It doesn’t get you any benefits," Sun Wukong pouted. Anyway, he had said the same thing in his previous life, and later he still ate meat. Meat is so tasty; there’s no need to be a sheep chewing grass.
"Donor, ascetics cultivate both body and mind. Ascetics are to do good; as long as one can face oneself with the things they do, that is all that matters, not the faces of others," Xuanzang said.
"Fine, whatever you say goes," Sun Wukong shrugged. "But I, cough cough, I see that there seems to be vegetarian dishes inside. The cook must have also thought of someone like you who doesn’t eat meat and prepared a vegetarian meal specially. You can eat that."
Xuanzang had thought that by attending the Buddhist Robe Assembly, he would have to just sit at a table and watch them eat, but it turned out there was also food for him.
"If that is the case, then all is well."
