Journey to the West: Life Simulation of Sun Wukong

The Bodhisattva Guanyin, after copying "Ruddy Radiance," bid farewell to Sun Wukong and departed, riding on a lotus.

After saying farewell, Sun Wukong returned to Huaguo Mountain and once again summoned Ao Yun, as well as the king of the Three Lives Academy, commanding them to go to the ninth floor of the library and update the various arts of cultivation taught at Huaguo Mountain.

"Brother, you are hugely talented." Ao Yun was already studying runes to engrave them on vessels, ordinary objects that could thereby absorb the endless spiritual energy of the universe and become mystical.

He had not expected his brother to have derived so much.

She found herself becoming a student too.

The king of the Three Lives Academy, however, turned his attention to various poems, allusions, and stories from another realm.

He was a lover of books but was not particularly keen on cultivation.

"Not so, it is merely the learning I imprinted from another realm during a year of seclusion. It is an induction based on existing knowledge, adapted to suit our Huaguo Mountain and the Three Realms," Sun Wukong did not claim all the credit for himself; aside from his own name, he included names of other authors from the Heart Realm on various works.

As for why he included his own name.

After all, Sun Wukong had synthesized and modified the content, making it better fit for the Three Realms' understanding; he naturally considered himself an author as well.

"Brother, you need not be modest; we don't have your Great Divine Power to travel to other realms by harnessing just a bit of True Spirit," Ao Yun, eager to learn, grasped the application of runes and felt enlightened, as if previously unknown things were now clear.

The king of the Three Lives Academy expressed his concerns: "Great King, these books are indeed excellent, but their vernacular expression, isn't it a bit too straightforward?"

Vernacular writing.

Common speech matters not, of course.

But putting it into a book, bound into volumes, seemed to him somewhat unrefined for scholarly appreciation.

"It is necessary," Sun Wukong said. "If it were in classical language, ordinary people would struggle to understand it. A thousand people reading might each interpret it differently. Although I, Old Sun, am not inferior to the likes of the Three Pure Ones or the ancient Buddhas in terms of cultivation and realm, my spiritual state still falls short, unable to produce a work with the subtle and profound moral truths like the 'Tao Te Ching'."

"If others misunderstand my intention in writing these books, wouldn't that be mistaken?"

"Thus, I use the vernacular," he said.

"Even so, each reader might interpret things differently based on their mindset," he added.

"And the education provided by the Three Lives Academy should be as close as possible to the knowledge we wish to impart. The other part is for them to develop their own imaginative and expansive thinking, integrating it with their personal Dao," he explained.

The king of the Three Lives Academy then asked, "But if they still do not understand, what should be done?"

"If one fails to meet a true sage, the mouth may falter. I have already made it so clear. If he still does not understand, then he must simply experience more of the outside world," Sun Wukong sighed. "People always face many reluctances, but within those reluctances, there are also gains to be had."

"That makes sense," the king of the Three Lives Academy nodded and took his leave from Sun Wukong to organize and prepare to incorporate these new books into the curriculum.

Ao Yun then broached another topic: "Brother, in a few days, you will have to go to heaven to report your duties again."

She then produced a document and said, "I have recorded the changes over this past year. You just need to copy them."

"Haha, thank you, Ao Yun," Sun Wukong took it and closely inspected it. He did not start copying immediately but waited for Ao Yun to leave. He then stood high above Huaguo Mountain, surveyed it as if conducting a comparison with the situation from a year ago, before eventually starting to embellish the document Ao Yun had prepared.

"Great King, you have come out of seclusion!"

Not far away, two clouds slowly floated over; atop one was a person with a pair of fox ears and nine tails behind—Yuyan.

Accompanying her was the Iron Fan.

"You both have made considerable progress," Sun Wukong praised, "Your skin like condensed jade, your aura ethereal. Continuing like this, becoming a Heavenly Immortal may be difficult, but becoming an Earth Immortal and being listed among the immortals should pose no problem."

Heavenly Immortals need enlightenment, to understand the fruits of the Dao, and these two were far from it.

Earth Immortals are recluses, like Zhen Yuanzi, residing on Longevity Mountain, whose lifespan worries are mitigated by his ginseng fruit, allowing more time for cultivation and spell mastery, thus possessing vast Divine Skills. However, everything physical has its lifespan; without reaching the status of a Heavenly Immortal, they would eventually perish with the cycle of the One Yuan Society.

Of course, there were ways around this.

For example, building good relationships with those like the Three Pure Ones or the ancient Buddha who had achieved the status of Heavenly Immortals or Buddha (attained the Dao fruit). Perhaps in the eventual end times, they could be asked for deliverance.

Becoming an Earth Immortal is simple: accumulate merit, perform good deeds, and when heaven and earth take notice, someone will descend to invite you to ascend and serve in heaven. Help us out by reading on M|V|LEM5PYR.

Hmm—

Rebellion is another option.

However, if one does not perform good deeds normally, being invited to heaven would not bring great merit, and regardless of how capable one is, one would still have to start as a minor official.

The heavenly court rewards immortals within the system based on their merit.

This path, however, must not be pursued in the Northern Jambu Continent. The heavenly court does not compromise with those unvirtuous and lacking in truth from that place and will fight to the end.

As for Ghost Immortals, they are beings, human or demon, with some merit but insufficient for heavenly recognition. Unwilling to immediately reincarnate, they are enlisted by the underworld to serve as ghost officials or jailers, either capturing souls or overseeing them.

Yuyan and Iron Fan, both pure and charming, had the advantage of an aspiring heart. In the future, accumulating merit, becoming Earth Immortals was just a matter of time.

And Sun Wukong, destined to be ranked among the Six Imperial Lords and establish his own celestial palace, could grant divine titles; for these two as his handmaidens, becoming immortals was virtually guaranteed.

"Of course!" Yuyan proudly pouted, "Forget Earth Immortals; even becoming Heavenly Immortals is within our reach."

Sun Wukong just smiled and tucked away the imperial edict, then asked Iron Fan, "Where is that big white bull?"

Tie Shan said, "After feeding him, we rushed back to the ox barn in Shuilian Cave, and by now he is already asleep... Speaking of which, is that ox really the Bull Demon King?"

"Of course," Sun Wukong nodded.

"But looking at him, he doesn't at all seem like a demon king," Tie Shan commented. "Eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating, just like a pig."

"He might have given up," Sun Wukong suggested.

"Given up?"

Yuyan and Tie Shan looked at each other, puzzled.

After Sun Wukong's explanation, both suddenly realized, "So the Bull Demon King knows he can't escape your grasp, thus he peacefully turned himself into an ox and settled for a mediocre life?"

"He might even be enjoying it," Sun Wukong chuckled. "After all, Huaguo Mountain is the ancestral pulse of the ten continents and the origin dragon of the three islands, abundant in spiritual energy, incomparable to the Western Bull-He Continent. He might even have taken a liking to eating grass."

Yuyan pouted.

Liking to eat grass?

That's absolutely impossible!

She had heard from her own father that the Bull Demon King was meaty by nature and, compared to grass, he much preferred meat.

"However, I suppose he has learned his lesson over the years," Sun Wukong thought to himself. "Give it a century, and I'll return his human form and set him free."

This Bull Demon King had vast divine powers, nearly indistinguishable from the initial version of himself in the simulator, except his indulgence in sensual pleasures rendered his body less agile, slightly inferior.

Of course, he was incomparable to his self from a year ago, let alone to his present self a year later.

"Set the Bull Demon King free? He probably wouldn't even want that," Tie Shan remarked. "Now that you, the great king, rank among the heavenly immortals, maybe in the future, you might even create your own celestial residence. Such demons also aim for such ranks; the Bull Demon King might not even want to leave when the time comes."

Sun Wukong just smiled and didn't respond.

"In two days, I'll be heading to the heavens for my duties, are you two coming with me?"

"We're not just going to stay outside the Southern Heaven Gate, are we?" Yuyan asked doubtfully.

"I'm familiar with the Increases Heavenly King," Sun Wukong smiled. "And now I am, after all, the Eastern Leisurely Spirit King, taking disciples with me is certainly possible."

Two days later, Sun Wukong, along with Yuyan and Tie Shan, ascended on clouds towards the Ninefold Heavenly Queues.

Outside the Southern Heaven Gate, the Increases Heavenly King and the other guardians came to greet them: "What brings the Leisurely Spirit King here?"

"I've come for my duties," Sun Wukong replied.

"Please enter," said the Increases Heavenly King.

"Here," Sun Wukong produced four bottles of Jadescent Nectar and four Qiankun Bags filled with various delicacies and specialties of Huaguo Mountain, which he handed to the Increases Heavenly King.

"What is this for, Leisurely Spirit King?" The Increases Heavenly King was puzzled.

"Did the Heavenly King forget? I recently hosted a banquet at Huaguo Mountain, inviting all immortals. Your four brothers were on duty and couldn't descend to the mortal realm, so I prepared this for you," Sun Wukong patted the Increases Heavenly King's shoulder and chuckled.

"Then I must thank the Leisurely Spirit King," the Increases Heavenly King joyously accepted, thinking to himself: This Monkey King is indeed a friend worth making deep connections with!

"Come, this is for you too."

Sun Wukong then took out thirty-six Qiankun Bags and handed them to Yun, Chen, Deng, Xin, Zhang, Tao, Zhu, and Fu, the eight Thunder Generals taking turns at the Southern Heaven Gate.

"Thanks to the Leisurely Spirit King,"

The eight were also happy to accept.

"Haha, if you're free in the future, you can visit my Huaguo Mountain to enjoy the scenery and explore the caves," Sun Wukong laughed heartily, leading Yuyan and Tie Shan into the Southern Heaven Gate.

Inside the celestial palace, the thirty-six palatial structures massively amazed the two ladies, surpassing Shuilian Cave by far, a true paradise!

Sun Wukong, familiar with the paths, headed directly to the Hall of Light, where he submitted his official report. Soon after, the screenbearer returned with his salary and imperial liquor and Spirit Pills bestowed by the Jade Emperor.

Sun Wukong accepted them and also gave a Qiankun Bag to the screenbearer, with whom he chatted for a while before he led Yuyan and Tie Shan out of the Hall of Light.

"Are we heading back already?" Yuyan still wanted to admire the place a bit longer.

"Come, I'll take you around to see more splendid sights in the celestial palace and enjoy the beautiful views," Sun Wukong led them towards the Jade Pool.

At the Jade Pool, auspicious qi soared, and the celestial palace was splendid.

Among the cloudy mists and walkways, a group of celestial maidens fluttered about, hurriedly walking back and forth.

"What are they doing?" Yuyan asked curiously.

"They are probably rehearsing, as this isn't really a workplace and moreover, the Flat Peach Banquet is coming soon," Sun Wukong observed as, besides them, some of the idle celestials stood watching.

"Taibaijinxing, my old friend!"

Sun Wukong rode his cloud over, startling Taibaijinxing.

"What brings Leisurely Spirit King here?"