Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

"Your Majesty, if that Demon Monkey fails to break out, wouldn't it save the effort of conscripting him and simply dispatch troops to annihilate his lair and thus prevent future troubles? Isn't that better?"

Great White Golden Star lowered his head, yet a hint of dark brilliance flickered in his eyes, which the Jade Emperor failed to notice. Hearing this, he nodded in strong agreement, "Well said!"

"My beloved ministers, you have all heard the suggestion from Great White Golden Star. I find it feasible. Do you have any other suggestions?"

Any other suggestions?

What does His Majesty the Jade Emperor mean by this?

The Immortals and Gods were stunned. Since Great White Golden Star's suggestion was feasible, they should just follow it. Why would there be a need for any other suggestions?

Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing shifted his eyes and strode forward, "Your Majesty, your servant believes that the Demon Monkey does not possess the capability to break out from the Netherworld! The Power of the Six Paths of Reincarnation within the Six Paths of Reincarnation Realms is not something anyone can endure!

Moreover, even if he does manage to break out, there is no need to immediately conscript him. I request to lead the troops to the Polar Realm of Heaven and hold position there. Should the Demon Monkey truly emerge from the Netherworld, I will capture him and bring him back to the Heavenly Court. At that time, whether he is to be killed or pardoned, all shall be at Your Majesty's merciful decree!"

"Hahaha, well said, very well said!"

Jade Emperor burst into hearty laughter, visibly delighted, "Approved! As you have proposed, dispatch thirty thousand troops to the Polar Realm of Heaven to capture that Demon Monkey!"

"Your servant obeys the decree!"

Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing received the decree, full of pride as he turned and walked out of Lingxia Palace, commanding his troops. The other celestial beings in the palace were filled with regret and envy. Look, it was Li Jing who understood the Imperial Will and immediately discerned the unspoken meaning in the Jade Emperor's words.

Such an opportunity to build meritorious deeds was just snatched by Li Jing!

Great White Golden Star slightly narrowed his eyes, a flash of sharpness passed through them as he covertly glanced at the Jade Emperor and said nothing. After the assembly disbanded and he left the Lingxia Palace, he found a secluded spot, took out a Buddha Bead, and infused it with a Dharma Decree.

"The opportunity for the mandate of promoting Buddhism has already emerged, the Jade Emperor has decreed for Li Jing to lead troops and capture!"

After saying this to the Buddha Beads, Great White Golden Star crushed the bead, and a flash of golden light burst forth, tearing through a small spatial crack and disappearing within the realms of the Heavenly Court.

Netherworld, Hell's Yellow Springs.

Sun Wukong rode a cloud along the path of Yellow Springs, not daring to fly too swiftly. Yama King had warned him that within the Netherworld, it wasn't just the Ghost Tribe from the Netherworld under control, but also some powerful races that had lived there since the birth of the Netherworld, such as the Yaksha Clan and the Asura Tribe.

However, these races did not match the Ghost Messengers in numbers or strength, and with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva presiding, the cities controlled by the Netherworld were relatively peaceful. But that was not necessarily the case on the road of Yellow Springs.

Beyond the Tenth Hall of the Netherworld, there was a long stretch of desolate Yellow Springs Road only to see a three-meters wide path continuing into the distance, surrounded in a gray haze, creating a chilling and terrifying atmosphere.

Furthermore, along the riverbanks of the Yellow Springs, aside from the rushing river waters, there sporadically came strange wailing and agonizing moans, along with the sound of blades scraping against bone, making it even more chilling.

While on the road of Yellow Springs, one could still be protected by the formations spread along the path, but once one left the road or was five meters above its surface, that protection was lost, and one had to fend off dangers on their own.

While Sun Wukong opted to ride the clouds to hasten his journey, he did not dare to be too bold when traveling through the unfamiliar territory of the Netherworld's Yellow Springs' sky, opting instead for caution.

Up ahead was the Naihe Bridge, a critical pass on the road of Yellow Springs. After crossing the Naihe Bridge, the path of Yellow Springs would divide into two streams, a larger one called Oblivion leading into the far reaches of the Endless Void beneath which lay the Six Paths of Reincarnation Realms of the Netherworld, and a smaller one leading to the Boundless Blood Sea.

While flying, Sun Wukong suddenly felt a tremendous suction force coming from below, causing his cloud to tremble unstably. In a panic, he descended from the sky and landed on the ground, just in time to look up and see the Naihe Bridge nearby.

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Once he landed, the tremendous suction force disappeared, likely due to a flight restriction near the Naihe Bridge. In other words, anyone wishing to cross the Yellow Springs to continue forward could only seriously walk over the Naihe Bridge. Trying to fly over it was utterly impossible, and forcibly flying over it could very likely result in plummeting directly into the waters of Yellow Springs.

"What is that?"

Since flying over was not an option, he had no choice but to walk seriously across the Naihe Bridge. As Sun Wukong stepped towards the bridge, he noticed a mound of earth beside it topped with a huge silver mirror, beside which stood a blue stone over half a person tall, placed squarely in front of the mirror.

Approaching closer, only then could I see two large characters engraved on the clay platform, Wangxiang.

"So, this is the Wangxiang Platform, and this bluestone must be the Three Lives Stone!"

Sun Wukong suddenly realized. He had heard of the legend of the Wangxiang Platform and the Three Lives Stone, but in his previous life, he had only ever reached Wanshi City in the Netherworld and had never wandered through other places there, let alone visited this Wangxiang Platform.

Legend has it that the Wangxiang Platform is the last chance to look back at the mortal world. All souls that have passed the judgment of the Ten Yama Kings and endured the trials of the Eighteen Levels of Hell come here to gaze upon their loved ones in the mortal world for one last time.

On the Three Lives Stone, they can see their past and current lives, and then they must cross the Naihe Bridge to be reincarnated.

"Perfect, let me check out the current state of Flower-Fruit Mountain!"

Feeling joyful, Sun Wukong stepped onto the Wangxiang Platform and looked into the silver mirror. Soon, the scenery of Flower-Fruit Mountain appeared in the mirror. It was peaceful, no different from when Sun Wukong had left.

But that was to be expected; even though these days he had been chasing King Guang, sparring with the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and traveling, it had all occurred in less than ten days. What significant event could happen in such a short time? Maybe the followers at Flower-Fruit Mountain still thought he was in seclusion!

Shaking his head with a smile, Sun Wukong turned to leave but then halted, his gaze lingering on the Three Lives Stone.

"Looking at three lives in the Three Lives Stone, I wonder if my own past and present lives will manifest here?"

Struck by a wave of curiosity, Sun Wukong pressed his palm on the Three Lives Stone. Instantly, the entire stone emitted a burst of blue light, and a series of images flooded into Sun Wukong's mind.

They were experiences from his past life—wreaking havoc in the Heavenly Palace, being suppressed under Mount Wuzhi, the journey to the west to seek scriptures, and being framed in the Thunder Sound Temple at the summit of Spiritual Mountain. All these experiences reappeared vividly!

Sun Wukong's body trembled slightly, filled with anger, indignation, and heartache. These memories had always lingered in Sun Wukong's heart and had never faded, but revisiting them so vividly again was enough to unsettle his inner calm.

"Hmm?"

Following the scenes of Thunder Sound Temple, another scene invaded Sun Wukong's mind—a catastrophic scenario where the sky was collapsing and a giant black hole loomed alarmingly in the vast blue sky. Countless bolts of thunder and fire burst from the black hole and plummeted to the earth, causing all living things to perish and suffer terribly.

A serpentine woman with an astonishing aura flew in from the horizon, landing below the black hole. Surrounded by multicolored huge rocks, she let out a piercing cry, and the stones flew towards the black hole, extending ribbons of multicolored light that seemed to form a giant net, trapping the falling thunder and meteorites and wrapping them around the black hole.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"What... what is this?"

At that moment, Sun Wukong felt like a mere observer, quietly standing aside and watching this awe-inspiring scene. Could this be the scene from ancient times when the Fire God Zhu Rong and the Water God Gonggong fought, destroying the Heavenly Pillar and causing the sky to collapse?

And this serpentine woman, was she the legendary saint of the Demon Clan, Goddess Nuwa?

But this was supposed to be a vision of my past and present lives through the Three Lives Stone, so why would it show the scene of Nuwa mending the heavens?

Confused, Sun Wukong watched as Goddess Nuwa used the colorful divine stones one by one, flying towards the gaping black hole in the sky. Somehow, Sun Wukong felt an inexplicably strange and tender affection for her, as if there was a special connection between him and this saint of the Demon Clan.

"What exactly is going on here?"

His confusion deepened, and Sun Wukong suddenly remembered a legend from an alternate memory about his origin. It said that the Immortal Stone that had given birth to him was a leftover colorful divine stone from when Goddess Nuwa had mended the heavens in ancient times. Could the legend be true?

Just as Sun Wukong was puzzling over this, the situation changed again. All the colorful giant stones had already ascended, forming a layer that filled the vast black hole, yet there was still one corner missing, and the colorful giant stones were completely exhausted.

The thunder and fire began to seep through the gap in the corner, and the net of giant stones sealing the black hole also violently shook. If they couldn't completely seal the rift in the sky, all previous efforts would be futile, the hole would be breached once more, and the entire primeval land would plunge into a catastrophe.

Goddess Nuwa furrowed her brow sharply. After a moment, as though she had made a decision, she clenched her teeth, formed a hand seal, and an arcane Dharma Seal appeared in her hands. Streams of Essence Qi gathered from all directions and infused into the Dharma Seal, gradually coalescing into a giant stone identical to the colorful divine stones.