Great Demon Sun Wukong

No one knows what truly happened to Sun Wukong. Is it possible to switch between Buddha and demon so readily? The vast Buddha's power and the boundless Demon Qi now, Sun Wukong has completed a perfect transformation between the two mechanisms. Yet, this transformation, how can anyone know if it's a blessing or a curse?

Looking at the three deep purple Buddhas in mid-air, they seemed like peerless demons, bringing fear with their endless Demon Qi. Demons, after all, are demons, inherently opposing Buddha. Although sometimes Buddha isn't always truly good, nor are demons always truly evil, in many people's eyes, Buddha symbolizes good, and demons symbolize evil. This mindset is deeply entrenched, not something one or a few can easily change.

This is, in fact, a kind of tragedy. The reason demons are seen as evil is because they harm people, consuming and killing them or doing other misdeeds. Buddha is viewed as good because Buddha often defeats demons; slaying demons stops them from harming people, thus Buddha saves. Yet unbeknownst, demons commit small evils, while Buddha does great evils. The world sees only small evils and ignores the great, hence they only know demons as evil, unaware that Buddha can be more evil.

However, that's not absolute. Some within the demons are virtuous, saving lives with good intentions. Meanwhile, some within Buddhism have evil intents, abusing people's faith malevolently. For example, in the Pangu Realm, many of the Demon Clan are kindhearted, with Sun Wukong as a representative, but his fate was tragic.

As for Tathagata, the master of Buddhism, he hasn't harmed people, yet he led the entire Western Paradise Buddhist Gate to invade the Demon Clan and Heaven for dominance, causing countless slaughter. Sun Wukong's counterattack on Heaven was to exact vengeance, to carve out a place for the Demon Clan, while Tathagata simply sought to seize Heaven's domain. What is good, what is evil, can't be judged in a few strokes, but generally speaking, demons still symbolize evil.

Hence, when Sun Wukong transformed into a Great Demon, the aura he emitted made everyone tremble, especially the members of the Demon Clan, pressed down by Sun Wukong's aura to the point of breathlessness. His momentum even stalled the once wildly spinning Tongtian fire pillar. But soon, the speed of the Tongtian fire pillar's rotation increased, as if sensing the danger brought by Sun Wukong, eager to absorb as much spirit as possible before his eruption.

Sun Wukong's changes were not yet done. When the Demon Qi rose to its peak, everyone thought he was ready. Surprisingly, however, his momentum continued to rise, just as when the Golden Body of the Buddha transformed into the Demon Body earlier. Sure enough, when the Demon Qi broke through the peak, it suddenly began to dissipate.

Replacing it was a very peculiar aura, peaceful yet containing the distinctly different forces of Buddha and demon. As this indescribable aura emerged, the three phantoms began to rotate again, quickly positioning the Sun Wukong-like phantom in the center. Simultaneously, this special aura seemed to trigger the surrounding phantoms, causing them to transform once more.

The unfamiliar Buddha once again returned to a hundred-zhang golden body, with vast Buddha's power spreading, while the Heaven-Supporting Giant Ape phantom continued to surge in Demon Qi. The contrasting gold and purple colors and opposite energies exhibited on these hundred-zhang-high phantoms were bizarrely yet indescribably harmonious, akin to a Tai Chi Diagram where black and white blend together perfectly.

Amidst the gold and purple phantoms stood the Sun Wukong-like phantom, and gradually these three phantoms started to undergo changes. The first to change was the Sun Wukong phantom originally donned in monk's robe; its robe slowly vanished, replaced by battle armor, the same armor Sun Wukong once acquired from the Dragon King of the East Sea.

It was Sun Wukong's favorite armor, so at this moment, manifesting it according to his will. The unfamiliar Buddha donned a Kasaya, and its appearance began changing, from a common bald monk to the figure from when Sun Wukong was enshrined as the Victorious Fighting Buddha in the Great Thunderclap Monastery of the Western Paradise. As for the Heaven-Supporting Giant Ape, there was no change.

Indeed, whether it's the Heaven-Supporting Giant Ape or the Victorious Fighting Buddha, whether demon or Buddha, they are both aspects of Sun Wukong. The truest Sun Wukong is still the one in the center, clad in the battle armor of the Great Sage Equalling Heaven. Now, the forces of Buddha and demon reached a subtle balance, Sun Wukong no longer suppressing Buddha power nor forcibly exerting demonic power. More so, these powers are fully under Sun Wukong's control!

This was the move Sun Wukong always wished to try. Before becoming the Victorious Fighting Buddha, he was purely of the Demon Clan. Though his skills were taught by Patriarch Subhuti—who also cultivated both Buddhism and Taoism—Sun Wukong's cloud tricks and Seventy-Two Transformations were Taoist spells. However, his spiritual energy was purely demonic power, merely employing some Taoist spells. After reaching the Western Paradise, Tathagata attempted to erase his demonic power with supreme Buddha's power to make him convert to Buddhism, but he found Sun Wukong's demonic power irretrievable, causing the coexistence of Buddha and demon powers within him.

Sun Wukong harbored deep hatred for Tathagata, refusing to use his power, continuously suppressing Buddha force with his own strength. Now, however, he has fully unleashed Buddha power, and more so, tamed it, with both forces now under his self-control. Possessing both Buddha and demon forces, Sun Wukong always wanted to try merging these water and fire-like discordant powers, educating himself that if these two opposing forces could fuse and be unleashed together, it would certainly be a formidable move.

Now, Sun Wukong finally achieved his wish, manipulating both forces as the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, a Buddha and a demon, gathered within himself. As he began gradually merging these forces, Primordial Honor's side also began to show changes. Many of the previous fire phoenixes vanished into the void, with a few attacking those on the ground. Now, the missing fire phoenixes have returned.

The manner of their return was quite peculiar, all gathering together to form a giant humanoid flame shadow, tearing through space to appear a hundred meters away from the Tongtian fire pillar. This flaming humanoid figure, approximately thirty zhang tall, was entirely made up of flying fire phoenixes.

As the flaming figure appeared, the Tongtian fire pillar slowed its rotation until it completely stopped, then quickly disappeared, revealing Primordial Honor. He looked at the flaming figure and laughed heartily, suddenly raising his head to the sky, exclaiming, "You old immortal fool, you thought you destroyed all my spirit? Hahaha, don't you know a cunning rabbit has three burrows? Don't think hiding in the Myriad Demons Country makes you safe; wait and see, I will return to my strongest state and then destroy everything, including the Myriad Demons Country!"

Not everyone understood Primordial Honor's words, but if Ye Zi and Ye Wu were alive, they certainly would. Back when they attacked the Myriad Demons Country and were sent into a Mystic Space by someone named Ling Wei Zimo, they discovered a humanoid spiritual body, accumulations of spirit from countless Soul Devouring Insects collecting the cosmos' beings. At that time, Ye Zi found it strange that after collecting spirit for millions of years, Primordial Honor had only that much. Though they greatly increased their cultivation after absorption, it wasn't overwhelmingly powerful.

Now it seems, Primordial Honor had long prepared, dividing the collected spirit into multiple locations and deliberately letting Ling Wei Zimo know about the smallest portion.

Primordial Honor was wise, realizing he couldn't hide the spirit entirely from everyone. Instead, he purposely exposed a part, leading others to think they'd found the secret while concealing the remainder, deeming the larger secret uncovered.

This was akin to stealing ten thousand taels of gold, unable to hide it completely, so the best strategy was to reveal two hundred taels or less to some, letting them believe only that much was stolen and discovered, keeping the rest safe.

Now was the time for Primordial Honor to use these reserves. Clearly seen, Primordial Honor's order for the Fire Phoenix to attack those on the ground was merely to divert attention. (To be continued. If you like this story, you're welcome to visit Starting Point (qidian.com) for votes and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)