Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong-Chapter 519: Set the Plan, Westward Conspiracy (First Release!)
"Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures?"
The Jade Emperor's pupils shrank slightly, and his brows furrowed. Of course, he knew what the Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures meant!
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But the greatest beneficiary of the Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures was the Buddhist Sect. What did that have to do with the Heavenly Court?
"Your Majesty, do you perhaps think that the Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures doesn't bring much benefit to the Heavenly Court?"
Tathagata Buddha saw what was on the Jade Emperor's mind, and his eyes slightly narrowed.
"Isn't that the case? Journeying to the Western Heaven to seek scriptures and disseminate them in the Eastern Land will expand the influence of the Western Heavenly Buddhist Sect to the East Victorious Divine Continent, and the number of disciples will substantially increase. But for the Heavenly Court, it brings no benefits. Instead, we would have to share disciples with the Buddhist Sect, resulting in no gain but rather harm. If I were the Ancestral Buddha, would I agree to such a proposal?"
The Jade Emperor looked at Tathagata Buddha, speaking indifferently.
"Your Majesty, you are mistaken!"
Tathagata Buddha waved his hand and said, "The Buddha Dao originally came from the same source. Now, the Demon Clan is powerful, and the fate of the Heavenly Dao has already shifted. The emerging struggle between Buddhism and Dao during this third Immeasurable Calamity might evolve into a competition for supremacy among Myriad Races. Under such circumstances, does Your Majesty still wish to prioritize small benefits and let the Demon Clan grow stronger?"
"This..."
The Jade Emperor furrowed his brows more tightly. The words of Tathagata Buddha indeed made sense, but it was still somewhat hard for him to simply agree to the Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures.
"The Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures, after all, is a plan that was agreed upon long ago, and now we are merely implementing it ahead of schedule. Why the hesitation?"
Primordial Heavenly Venerate spoke up, "Your Majesty, when choosing the lesser of two evils, are you still unclear about what decision to make?"
During the Battle of Divine Enthronement, two Sect Hierarchs of the Western Cult, Guiding Daoist and Zhun Ti Daoist assisted the Chan Sect to break the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation and define the Divine Enthronement. This allowed the Heavenly Court to be established, seeding past causes. The Heavenly Dao is cyclical, and during this third Immeasurable Calamity, it was Buddhism's turn to flourish, which could be considered a repayment of the past due. Although the current Western Heavenly Buddhist Sect was seized from Amitabha by Tathagata Buddha, it is deemed a legitimate succession, and thus the karma is naturally accounted on the side of the Buddhist Sect.
If it were not for Sun Wukong defying Heaven to be reborn, changing the course of fate imperceptibly, the flourishing of Buddhism through the Journey to the West was destined by fate. Now that Tathagata Buddha broaches this matter, it is merely bringing forward the accomplishment of this destined event. In the eyes of the Primordial Heavenly Venerate, it does not bring much more harm to the Heavenly Court, and there is truly no reason to hesitate!
"Alright, since it is already destined, I will no longer speak much on this. I shall agree to this matter!"
The Jade Emperor finally nodded his agreement, letting the Buddhist Sect benefit. This was a rivalry between two major religious factions of the Human Race. Even if the interests of the Heavenly Court suffered somewhat, it would not damage the foundation. But if the Demon Cult were allowed to rise, it might end up not just a rivalry between sects but a conflict between Races, then it would be questionable whether the Heavenly Court could even sustain itself!
Primordial Heavenly Venerate was right, when assessing which of two dangers is lighter, there is no need for hesitation!
"Thank you, Your Majesty! The one to seek the scriptures has already been decided by me, it is Golden Cicada Child, who has entered the cycle of reincarnation. After ten lifetimes accumulating enough merit, he will be ready to journey west to seek scriptures. What we now lack is a defender of the scriptures!"
Buddha's eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he spoke slowly, "The three individuals remain unchanged; they are still the chosen ones according to the trajectory of fate—General Rolling Curtain, Marshal Tianpeng Zhu Tianpeng, and the Western Sea Dragon King's Third Prince Ao Lie. However, these three lack the strength to deter the Demon Clan. Along the way, there must be someone of extraordinary talent and powerful mana to suppress demons and protect Golden Cicada Child in his tenth reincarnation to Western Heaven Spiritual Mountain, allowing the eighty-one tribulations to be fulfilled. Thus, the great undertaking of the Journey to the West to Seek Scriptures can be completed, and the Demon Clan can be suppressed once again!"
"The Buddha sure schemes well. So, if I refuse, am I just making things difficult for myself?"
The Jade Emperor laughed, finding the Buddha's choices for the scripture seekers quite interesting. General Rolling Curtain was the commander of the Imperial Guards in the Heavenly Court, Marshal Tianpeng Zhu Tianpeng was the commander of the Heavenly River's naval forces, and Ao Lie was the Dragon Race's crown prince. By participating in the Journey to the West, they would inevitably receive immeasurable merit bestowed by the Heavenly Dao, with the bulk going to the Western Heavenly Buddhist Sect and the remainder divided between the Heavenly Court and the Dragon Race. Unless the Jade Emperor was foolish, he would never refuse such terms!
"May I know who the Buddha has in mind as the person of extraordinary talent and powerful mana?"
Primordial Heavenly Venerable asked.
"Star Lord of the Four Wastes, Yuan Hong!"
Buddha said solemnly, "Yuan Hong was originally a powerful demon monkey with great divine skills. After dying in the Divine Enthronement War, he was appointed as the Star Lord of the Four Wastes in the Heavenly Court. Over the years, limited by the Investiture of the Gods, his strength has gradually declined, having lost all his arrogance! If Your Majesty agrees to lift the restrictions of the Investiture of the Gods on him, allowing him to undergo reincarnation under a contract, he will surely be grateful and wholeheartedly protect the scripture seeking. With Yuan Hong's abilities, the power of the Demon Clan along the route can also be eliminated, weakening their strength. What does Your Majesty think?"
"This indeed makes sense!"
The Jade Emperor and Primordial Heavenly Venerable exchanged glances. Buddha's choice was truly well-founded and justified. Indeed, Yuan Hong was the most suitable candidate!
Yuan Hong's true form was that of a Through-Arm Ape Monkey, a naturally born and nurtured spiritual monkey. He also practiced the Eight-Nine Profound Skill, mastered the seventy-two transformations, and at the peak of combat power during his realm, he could contend with Erlang, the Manifestation of the Sacred Yang Jian, although not as formidable as the demon monkey Sun Wukong, he was still quite remarkable!
Had it not been for the suppression by the Investiture of the Gods and his declining strength, Yuan Hong would not have held a menial position in the Heavenly Court. As long as the Jade Emperor agreed to remove the limitations of the Investiture of the Gods, allowing him to regain his freedom, he would definitely agree to sign a contract to become the scripture defender in the Journey to the West!
"Fine, I can agree to let Yuan Hong be the scripture defender, but the contract must be signed between him and me. After the success of the scripture seeking, all the merit force on him will belong to the Heavenly Court. How about that?"
The Jade Emperor slightly narrowed his eyes and clenched his fist as he made the decision, his gaze intensely focused on Buddha while also shifting across the face of Ran Deng Ancient Buddha.
"Your Majesty is both wise and courageous. I admire you! Let it be agreed then!"
After exchanging a glance with Ran Deng Ancient Buddha, Buddha nodded, and a burst of triumphant laughter echoed in the hall, sealing a conspiracy against the Demon Clan for the Journey to the West!
Outside the Thunder Sound Temple.
Samantabhadra Bodhisattva and Guanyin Bodhisattva each pressed their ears against a terra cotta tube, listening to the sounds coming through, their eyes gleaming with a strange light.
This was a method thought up by Guanyin for covertly listening to the conversation between Buddha and the three others. They had learned it from the Mortal Realm; it involved making two listening devices out of paper, connected in the middle by a cotton string. One end was placed inside the hall of the Thunder Sound Temple, and the other end extended outside through a crack in the ground with the string. This way, the voices of Buddha and the others would be transmitted seamlessly.
This method was extremely simple, yet extremely effective: the paper and string device emitted no spiritual energy fluctuations, remaining undetected by Buddha and others, and was unaffected by sound-blocking barriers. Now, during the Third Immeasurable Catastrophe, with fate in chaos and the predictive abilities of Heavenly Dao Saints impeded, Buddha and his peers would never have expected someone to eavesdrop on their conversation this way!
