Great Demon Sun Wukong

So, when Zhu Bajie talked about his feelings for Chang'er, it wasn't entirely devoid of emotion, but it was never that kind of romantic love between a man and a woman. In Zhu Bajie's heart, Chang'er always held the role of a sister-in-law, and for Chang'er, besides the gratitude from the past, there was also a familial affection towards Zhu Bajie. There was never any romantic love between them. The rumors about Zhu Bajie being infatuated with Chang'er were nothing more than baseless gossip spread by the immortals in Heaven.

In this lifetime, Zhu Bajie had only ever truly loved one woman, the now-deceased Miss Egg. Even for Gao Cuilian from Gao Laozhuang, Zhu Bajie did not really feel genuine love, but he always regarded Gao Laozhuang as his true home, while the Cloud Terrace Cave on Fuling Mountain was his former home. The unexpected incidents Chang'er and Zhu Bajie mentioned were about two events: one was Zhu Bajie's accidental killing of Hou Yi, and the other was his drunken flirtation with Chang'er at the Peach Blossom Banquet.

Chang'er understood Zhu Bajie very well, realizing that he was not at all like people portrayed him. Yet, Zhu Bajie could not forgive himself; neither the accidental death of Hou Yi nor the teasing of Chang'er were missteps he could ever let go of. He never allowed himself to be forgiven, nor did he ever explain these events to anyone, leading to more misunderstandings about him over time. Some even said that Feng Meng killed Hou Yi to seize Chang'er, forcing her to consume an immortal elixir.

Even after his rebirth, Zhu Bajie couldn't change his ways, continuing to flirt with Chang'er. In the face of these rumors, Zhu Bajie chose silence, adopting another persona to protect himself. This became the Zhu Bajie everyone recognized — seemingly carefree, greedy, lazy, lecherous, fond of stirring trouble, and bullying the weak while fearing the strong. This persona was a deliberate facade to convey to the world, "I've given up, just leave me alone."

Yet in his heart, Zhu Bajie never truly forgave himself. Only Chang'er understood this. Seeing Zhu Bajie's departing figure, Chang'er's tears fell like rain. "Chang'er, the ties between us are severed; go back. If you find the Moon Palace too dull, you can move to Heaven; there's no one to restrain you anymore, and from now on, we won't meet again." Zhu Bajie said, vanishing in an instant, leaving Chang'er alone, tears streaming down.

Having returned to Flower Fruit Mountain, Sun Wukong gazed at the distant sky and sighed inwardly. "What's the sigh for? You're a hero now," Fan Xin said, suddenly standing behind Sun Wukong, covering his eyes with her hands. Sun Wukong gently shook his head and replied, "After all this time and all that's happened, Bajie still can't let go of the past."

Fan Xin released her hands and sat beside Sun Wukong, turning to look at him seriously. "And you? Have you let it go?" Sun Wukong was taken aback by her question, then smiled wryly. "I haven't reached the same realm as Master yet." "Hmph, I knew it. Why don't you visit the Water Curtain Cave? All the monkeys are looking for you. Hearing you're back, everyone's very happy."

Sun Wukong suddenly patted Fan Xin on the head and laughed, "Playing hide-and-seek with them, and besides, if I go to the Water Curtain Cave, where would I find the time to be alone with you? That bunch of monkeys would surely cause a ruckus for days." Sun Wukong's words warmed Fan Xin's heart. Fan Xin, always clever, knew Sun Wukong's thoughts — she knew what to say, what not to say, what to do, and what not to do.

She didn't ask why Sun Wukong took so long to return or where he had been all this time. Fan Xin knew Sun Wukong disliked being questioned like that. So upon sensing his presence, she immediately followed the winding mountain path to the peak of Flower Fruit Mountain, ultimately finding Sun Wukong behind a large rock. Even though she yearned to hug Sun Wukong and sob like an ordinary girl, she restrained herself.

She casually asked Sun Wukong why he sighed. This natural approach was something Sun Wukong truly appreciated. When it came to matters of affection, Sun Wukong was quite awkward, unsure of how to express his emotions or accept Fan Xin's feelings. This wasn't just because of his identity as a Buddhist monk but more because he wasn't adept at handling such relationships. With his brothers from the Rogue Heart Sword Hero group, Sun Wukong could be carefree, but in front of Fan Xin, he always felt a little out of his depth, though he liked that feeling.

"Wukong, now that you're back, will you be leaving again?" Fan Xin gently leaned on Sun Wukong, wrapping her arm around his. Sun Wukong seemed a bit nervous; although he appeared calm, his tail, which he didn't know where to place, betrayed him. Sun Wukong steadied himself internally and said, "I suppose, I suppose I won't be leaving again. There's really nothing else now." Sun Wukong's lack of certainty came from a premonition, as if being the Primordial Honor hinted at many events still waiting for him.

Fan Xin immediately became excited, struggling to hide it but clearly showing, "Really? You're really not leaving? Hehe, wonderful! I've been waiting for this day for so long. Back then, Nyx promised me that once I could transform into human form, we'd travel and explore the world together."

Sun Wukong felt guilty in his heart. He did indeed promise Fan Xin, and that was during the time when he was the Bimawen. He nodded heavily. Fan Xin was unprecedentedly happy, suddenly leaning forward and unexpectedly kissed Sun Wukong on the face. Sun Wukong was taken aback immediately, his whole body stiffened, and his face flushed red. Fan Xin also felt a bit shy, awkwardly turning around, not daring to look at Sun Wukong again.

But as soon as she turned around, it didn't matter, Sun Wukong actually fell directly. Fan Xin was shocked at first, but then she remembered that Sun Wukong is not an ordinary person. Falling from a mountaintop or even from the sky wouldn't be an issue for him. However, Sun Wukong continued falling and didn't come back up for a long time. Fan Xin wasn't worried about Sun Wukong, she just found it amusing that she, a girl, wasn't afraid, yet Sun Wukong ran away shyly.

"Wukong, I'll go back first, you come back early, and don't drink at the old Dragon King's place." Fan Xin's cultivation was not weak either. She originally had an Innate Spirit Root, plus the overabundant spiritual energy of the Pangu Realm without the restrictions of the Heavenly Dao, Fan Xin's cultivation had been rapidly improving. Now she was at One Pattern Dao Pattern cultivation. So she knew Sun Wukong had dived straight to the bottom of the sea, clearly to hide out at the old Dragon King's place.

Feeling extremely good, Fan Xin stood up, skipped and hopped down the mountain peak back to the Water Curtain Cave, telling everyone not to search anymore, and to start preparations because the King had returned and there must be a celebration lasting three to five months. Not only Sun Wukong but also the Six-Eared Macaque had returned, and they would surely have to notify the leaders of the Demon Clan and the Immortals from Heaven and the Buddhas from the Western Paradise to come and celebrate Sun Wukong's return at Flower Fruit Mountain.

Indeed, Sun Wukong had entered the bottom of the East Sea. Although the Pangu Realm had once undergone great calamity, injuring the vitality of Heaven, Buddhism, and the Demon Clan, the Four Sea Dragon Kings had remained unaffected. Living in the depths of the sea, they were among the few who had not been touched by the fires of war, so the greetings between Sun Wukong and the old Dragon King need not be elaborated.

As the demons of Flower Fruit Mountain began to scatter and inform various gods, buddhas, and demons that in nine days they would come to East Shengzhou's Flower Fruit Mountain to attend the celebration, the entire Pangu Realm was shaken beyond belief. If in the past, Flower Fruit Mountain had organized a celebration, surely no one would have attended. But now it was different. Flower Fruit Mountain, Heaven, and the Western Paradise Sacred Mountain have become the three sacred places of the Pangu Realm. Moreover, Flower Fruit Mountain was the foremost among the three sacred places.

Mentioning this, it's impossible not to talk about the earth-shattering changes that occurred in the Pangu Realm after Sun Wukong, Tang Sanzang, and others left the realm.

Originally just an ordinary small world, after Sun Wukong's series of transformations and the awakening of the Pangu Realm, the spiritual energy of the Pangu Realm crazily increased, far beyond everyone's comprehension. Especially the three places where Sun Wukong placed the Nine Tripod Cauldrons, they became vortex centers of all spiritual power in the Pangu Realm.

With the elevation of spiritual energy levels in the Pangu Realm, countless living beings benefitted. Originally, some demons, gods, and buddhas saw their cultivation soar. Even without purposeful cultivation, their cultivation would rise rapidly day by day. The increase in spiritual energy resulted in Heaven and Earth Treasures being abundant across the Pangu Realm. Many times, casually picking a fruit from any tree would yield a ten-thousand-year Spirit Fruit.

Not only did these demons, gods, and buddhas experience great increases in their cultivation but even ordinary mortals were affected by the spiritual energy, each becoming robust and strong. Particularly newborns, almost every one of them turned out to be excellent candidates for cultivation. Thus, various Immortals, Buddhas, and Bodhisattvas began descending to recruit disciples. Human cultivation sects started recruiting as well, increasing the number of cultivators in the Pangu Realm tenfold in just thirty to fifty years. As time passed, more people began joining different sects, embarking on the path of seeking immortality and the Dao.

Therefore, after almost ten thousand years of development, the Pangu Realm has become a world of universal cultivation where casually encountering someone means meeting a cultivation expert. This is unimaginable in other small worlds or even high-level worlds. From within the former mortals, countless geniuses have emerged. The original gods, buddhas, and demons have all experienced enormous growth in cultivation. Presently in the Pangu Realm, the average cultivation level is at the Dao Transformation realm.

Among those with exceptional talent, some have broken through to the Dao Pattern realm, and within the Pangu Realm, the one with the highest cultivation, Ksitigarbha, has even reached the Five Pattern Supreme level. All of this is due to Sun Wukong's efforts. Hence, Sun Wukong's reputation has been elevated to an unimaginable status. All cultivators now revere Sun Wukong as: Grand Celestial Sage Equal to Heaven. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to vote and give monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)