Journey to the West: Treasure Vase of the Great Dao

Ruyi True Immortal glanced at the smug Big Black Donkey and couldn't be bothered with this contemptible creature.

During these days, he had come to understand this fellow's true nature. As the saying goes, "When one is shameless, they are invincible." Big Black Donkey quite embodied this sentiment, finding a sense of superiority in his words regardless of any setback, which always made Ruyi True Immortal feel as though he was arguing with a fool.

So much so that now, he didn't want to speak to this contemptible creature at all, to avoid being disgusted.

Under the guidance of Marshals Ma and Liu, the group arrived at The Water Fall Cave and witnessed what Cave Heaven and Blessed Earth really looked like.

After visiting The Water Fall Cave, they proceeded to the summit and saw Lu Yu, who was meditating, and hurried forward to greet him.

Lu Yu helped up his disciples, smiling as he said, "I didn't come by because I didn't want to disturb your cultivation, but as the saying goes, 'It's better to travel ten thousand miles than to read ten thousand books.' This opportunity is a good one for you to see the world. Moreover, Huaguo Mountain is your martial uncle's dojo, so take a good look and familiarize yourselves with it; it will be good for you when you are out and about."

"Teacher, as soon as we arrived here, we heard an astonishing heartbeat that made my own heart tremble. Is this recent change related to that?" Xiao Qi, who could never hold his tongue, immediately voiced his doubts.

"Don't worry. Spend these next few days enjoying Huaguo Mountain, and you'll understand in a few days," Lu Yu said, his face an enigma.

Several days later, the heartbeat resonating in Huaguo Mountain grew stronger, causing many of the animals in the forest to start running wild. Countless birds flew out of the dense jungle, turning Huaguo Mountain at that moment into a kingdom of birds and beasts,

At that moment, Lu Yu sat on the Green Stone Slab, opening his eyes as two bolts of thunder sprung forth, illuminating the decrepit stone and revealing the monkey inside starting to move, knowing that this avatar was about to be born.

Meanwhile, far away, the Monkey sensed the situation and secretly instructed Bajie and Sand Monk, then his Primordial Spirit left his body and arrived at Huaguo Mountain, instantly spotting Lu Yu sitting on the big green stone.

"How is it going? Is it almost done?" the Monkey asked urgently.

Lu Yu looked at the anxious face of the Monkey and smiled, saying, "Yes, looking at this situation, it's about to come forth. Don't forget to split the Primordial Spirit when the time comes."

"Don't worry, Lao Shun knows well," assured the Monkey.

Liu Qingyun and the others also sensed the change and rushed to Lu Yu's side. Seeing their long-missed martial uncle, they each came forward to respectfully greet him, delighting the Monkey who couldn't help but beam with joy while still trying to maintain the demeanor of an elder, urging his juniors to cultivate diligently. Lu Yu watching from the side couldn't help but laugh silently.

Shortly afterward, a True Dragon flew out from the East Sea and soared through the Nine Heavens, landing in Huaguo Mountain and transforming into an elegant and upright middle-aged man, none other than the East Sea Dragon King, Aoguang.

As soon as he landed, he saw Lu Yu and the others, approaching with a smiling face to exchange pleasantries. The Monkey also spoke with a slight smile. After all, they were old neighbors and had once owed favors, showing quite a bit of respect to the Old Dragon King. Meanwhile, Xiao Qi, somewhat embarrassed, greeted him, saying, "Greetings, Uncle!"

Aoguang's face immediately took on a kindly smile as he said, "Oh, it's Xiao Qi. Now that you are here, why haven't you come to visit your uncle at the Dragon Palace?"

"Uncle, please don't take offense. I was actually planning to bring my teacher and fellow disciples to visit once this matter is concluded!"

Truthfully, Xiao Qi was quite fond of his uncle. Among several uncles, Aoguang was the most amiable and took great care of the younger generation, perhaps attributable to his role as the leader of the Dragon Clan.

It was just that this time he had come with fellow disciples, and having spent the past few days visiting Huaguo Mountain, he hardly had time to pay a visit elsewhere. Now that he had been called out by Ao Guang, he felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Here we go!" Just then, Lu Yu suddenly spoke up.

Everyone instantly turned their attention to the unremarkable rock, hearing only a loud bang as the stone, which Lu Yu had restored with the effort of nine oxen and two tigers, instantly shattered into five pieces.

A golden light burst out from within the stone, leaping into the air and instantly transforming into a golden monkey, who, at this moment, had not yet developed sentience and appeared dazed and foolish, merely an empty shell.

Lu Yu turned his head to nod at the monkey, and a golden light suddenly shone above the monkey's Primordial Spirit. It was as if a steel sword was chopping at his Primordial Spirit, and the pain originating from the soul made even the monkey unable to help crying out in pain.

Fortunately, the pain came quickly and left quickly, and in just a moment, a smaller monkey appeared in front of everyone.

"Scholar, I'm off!" Both the large and small monkeys said simultaneously.

As soon as these words were spoken, the small monkey leapt up, flew into the air, and upon contact, merged with the shell, instantly making the previously foolish monkey's eyes lively.

Seeing this, Lu Yu burst into laughter and exclaimed, "Success!"

His words were filled with joy. This was the result of his own efforts. Through this experiment, he had also gained a deeper understanding of the Way of Creation and the Elder Lord's Path of Artifact Refining, reaping substantial rewards.

However, at this moment, the monkey in the sky did not come down; instead, it leapt up, somersaulted, and vanished from everyone's sight.

People hurriedly turned their gaze aside to the monkey who had just recovered from pain, only to hear the monkey cry out, "Trouble!"

He got up and was about to leave, but Lu Yu, quick as a flash, grabbed him and asked anxiously, "What happened?"

The monkey said with a wry smile, "My split-off has been occupied by a Heart Demon; I fear it is now going to find my master!"

Having said this, the monkey did not say more. With a somersault, he was instantly gone, chasing after his doppelganger.

At this moment, Lu Yu was piecing together clues. It seemed likely that the monkey already harbored dissatisfaction, and during the splitting of the Primordial Spirit, he transferred all his negative emotions to the doppelganger. Unexpectedly, as the Primordial Spirit entered the doppelganger and rapidly grew, these negative emotions also intensified, eventually triggering the Heart Demon and controlling the actions of the doppelganger.

"It seems we might witness a battle between the true and false Monkey Kings," Lu Yu thought to himself.

"Teacher, could Uncle Master be in trouble?" Liu Qingyun asked Lu Yu with a worried face.

Lu Yu, seeing several concerned eyes around him, smiled and replied, "Don't worry, you all underestimate your Uncle Master too much. This kind of situation wouldn't pose a problem for him at all."
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By this time, the monkey was the focal point of a major calamity, watched by all Saints. Who would dare to make a move at this time was truly foolish, and even the Heart Demon likely had little association with the Demon Lord, for offending all the Saints would essentially block one's own path to transcendence, a fact he understood better than anyone.