Chapter 25: The Heavenly Court Wants to Slap the Face of the Buddhist Sect

This incident of face-slapping was genuinely delightful, yet the Heaven-Defying Taoist was quite vexed for not having killed Yang Jian. Given more time, he was certain he could have made Yang Jian suffer even more.

Wukong said, "Yang Jian is famously powerful in battle, and now that he has achieved the status of a Taiyi Golden Immortal, he is truly formidable. The fact that you managed to injure him is already a good outcome. Now that Yang Jian's Daoist temple has been destroyed, he no longer has a foothold in the Celestial Realm, and even less so in the Eastern Divine Region. A deity whose Daoist temple has been overturned will not be worshiped by the people anymore."

Having absorbed the Incense Willpower from within Yang Jian's Daoist temple, Wukong felt his mana deepen further. No wonder the strife between Buddhism and the Taoist faction was so fierce; Incense Willpower was such a wondrous thing! Although there are Buddha Lands and people in the Western Heavenly Buddha Land, it is far less populated than the Eastern Divine Region.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist bitterly said, "It's only a shame I didn't brush him to death with a single stroke of the horsetail whisk!"

Wukong, however, shook his head and said, "Revenge is a major undertaking and should be planned over the long term. Do not seek immediate gratification. After all, we have only just reached the level of Taiyi Golden Immortals, and how many such immortals exist in the Celestial Realm and the Western Heaven? We have already endured for five hundred years; what are a few more decades or even centuries in comparison?"

The Heaven-Defying Taoist nodded and replied, "What Wukong says is extremely true. I was indeed being impulsive!"

Wukong continued, "Your actions do cast some doubts, but with Tathagata's immense reputation, even if they suspect, they will console themselves with the thought, 'The Tathagata has such strong mana; that monkey must have been slapped to death. This Heaven-Defying Taoist cannot be that monkey.' Heh, believe it or not."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist said, "Of course I believe it. Even if Tathagata knows, he probably wouldn't say it out loud. Wouldn't that be slapping his own face?"

Wukong spoke, "Let's return for now. I'm off to find Princess Iron Fan."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist asked, "Why seek her out?"

Wukong smiled and said, "Do you think Princess Iron Fan is truly willing to let that Guanyin take her child away? I have a copy of the 'Tightening Ring Spell' taken from Guanyin's Daoist temple, and it will be very useful!"

The Heaven-Defying Taoist, surprised, said, "Princess Iron Fan, the Rakshasi, must have a significant background. How could she be afraid of Guanyin?"

Wukong shook his head and chuckled, "Heh, that I do not know."

With a wave of his hand, the Heaven-Defying Taoist transformed into a wisp of blue smoke and entered his body. The two merged into one, and with a somersault, Wukong flipped towards the Verdant Cloud Mountain to look for Princess Iron Fan, the Rakshasi. But let's leave this matter for now.

******

Meanwhile, after the ruckus caused by the Heaven-Defying Taoist at the Southern Heavenly Gate, the Jade Emperor immediately called his ministers to discuss the matter.

The Jade Emperor sat loftily at the dragon podium, looking at his array of civil and military ministers with an inscrutable expression.

The Jade Emperor raised his finger and spoke slowly, "The General Yang Jian was ambushed just as he left the Southern Heavenly Gate. Are you all aware of this?"

"We are aware," they replied.

The Jade Emperor sighed, "The battle at the Southern Heavenly Gate was earth-shattering. I truly did not expect that Yang Jian would be wounded by that demon. It was said that just a few years ago, that demon's cultivation was no more than that of a High Immortal. Just seven years away, and he has achieved the indestructible realm of Taiyi Golden Immortal?"

Sentry of a Thousand Leagues said, "Your Majesty, we clearly saw at the gate of the Southern Heavenly Gate that the demon was extremely fierce, and the Magical Treasure in his hand was even more bizarre, brushing away everything. General Yang Jian suffered a significant loss at his hands. It is evident that the demon has indeed reached the realm of a Taiyi Golden Immortal."

The Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing said, "The horsetail whisk in that demon's hand is very strange; it somewhat resembles the Divine Skills of the Western Heaven's Zhun Ti Taoist."

Zhun Ti Taoist with his Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, that brushes away everything, is well-known throughout the Three Realms.

The Star Lord of Fire Virtue meanwhile said, "That Taoist surely has no connection with Zhun Ti; otherwise, why would he kill a person of the Buddhist Sect? By his actions, it seems he bears great enmity towards Buddhism and our Heavenly Court!"

Li Jing waved his hand and said, "Not necessarily!"

The Jade Emperor asked, "What insight do you have, my valued subject?"

Li Jing said, "General Yang Jian was ambushed just as he stepped out of the Southern Heavenly Gate, and at the same time, the True Monarch's Temple at the Confluence of Rivers was destroyed. It's clear that the demon had a plan: one to ambush General Yang Jian outside the Southern Heavenly Gate and another to target the Confluence of Rivers, killing the Roaring Sky Dog and the Six Sages of Meishan and destroying the Daoist temple. Bodhisattva Guanyin's temple was destroyed, and now General Yang Jian's as well. It is evident that the demon has a vendetta against the General."

After listening, all were silent and contemplative, finding Li Jing's words sensible. It seemed too coincidental that as soon as a fight begun in heaven, the temples on earth were set aflame. Little did they suspect that the Heaven-Defying Taoist was a malevolent spirit cleaved from Wukong, with a shared mind and impeccable coordination in their actions.

The Jade Emperor inquired, "Who do you think it might be, Li, my esteemed subject?"

Li Jing replied, "I do not know. With General Yang Jian's way of doing things, I'm afraid he has made many enemies. This will require asking him."

Li Jing and General Yang Jian have always had an uneasy relationship, all because during the battle at Water Curtain Cave, when Wukong gathered a group of demons to resist the Heavenly Court, Li Jing could not defeat them. Eventually, the Jade Emperor decreed that Yang Jian should capture Wukong, who then gained an extraordinary victory. In recent years, the Heavenly Court has been peaceful, and just when a demon caused trouble, Li Jing, the Great General, didn't achieve any significant success, yet Yang Jian, the Erlang God, stole all the limelight. How could he feel comfortable?

The Jade Emperor pondered for a moment and said, "A Heaven-Defying Taoist? Five hundred years ago, there was a Great Sage Equalling Heaven, haha, could this Heaven-Defying Taoist be that Sun Wukong causing trouble?"

Below, there was immediate uproar.

"How could that be possible? The real Sun Wukong was long ago slapped to death by the Buddha Ancestor's palm, and how profound is the Buddha Ancestor's mana, to have let him escape?"

"Tathagata Buddha's Buddhist law is boundless, that irreverent monkey was suppressed under a palm for five hundred years. When the Buddha Ancestor moved to kill, how could he have escaped?"

The Jade Emperor's face darkened slightly; it seemed that the influence of the Tathagata Buddha of the Western Heaven was growing deeper by the day, and his subjects were in deep admiration of this Buddha Ancestor's mana! The Jade Emperor felt a surge of irritation, and pretending to have not gripped the teacup on the table, he let it "clang" as it smashed onto the ground.

The ministers hastily stopped their discussion, straightened their faces, and listened to the Jade Emperor's teachings.

"If not him, then why did this Heaven-Defying Taoist take such targeted actions against the Buddhist Sect? First, he killed the emissary of the Journey to the West, and then caused a huge disturbance in Golden Mountain Temple, overturning Bodhisattva Guanyin's Daoist Temple, went to Water Curtain Cave to kill the Dharma Body of the Eight Divisions of Heavenly Dragons, and now he has come to take revenge on Yang Jian! Back then, Yang Jian killed a man who was close to that monkey, you all mustn't be unaware!" the Jade Emperor said coldly, "Even the Buddha Ancestor is human, how could he possibly not make mistakes?"

The crowd then realized they had affronted the Jade Emperor's authority and hurriedly confessed their wrongdoing.

"Your Majesty speaks truth; however, such matters should be carefully deliberated and not speculated upon rashly," intervened Tai Bai Jin Xing to smooth things over.

And now, the Buddhist Sect was becoming more domineering by the day, openly invading the Eastern Divine Region and seizing the Incense Willpower of the Taoist Faction!

The Jade Emperor ruled over the Three Realms and had already allocated the Western Heavenly Buddha Land to Buddhism, even relocating millions there during the Investiture of the Gods to provide incense offerings. Unexpectedly, Buddhism's reach was so long and their greed insatiable, that they now coveted the Eastern Divine Region. Although the Jade Emperor was aware of the Western Journey, he was caught in high-level power games and, feeling inadequate, could only watch from the side, becoming a pawn in the process...

The Jade Emperor said indifferently, "What do my ministers think?"

Among them, some were sycophantic, loudly chanting "Your Majesty is wise," but others were wary, simply stating, "It needs further discussion."

After a while, the Jade Emperor then said, "Regardless of who this Heaven-Defying demon Taoist is, he has caused chaos at the Southern Heavenly Gate, killing over five hundred of my Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, and has also injured the True Monarch Erlang Yang Jian, truly offending the authority of the Heavenly Court!"

The ministers listened intently, not daring to say much, for the Jade Emperor's thoughts were truly inscrutable.

The power within the Heavenly Court was too mixed, filled with those who presented a facade of integrity.

The Jade Emperor said, "From this day on, anyone who can capture that demon Taoist will be rewarded with ten peaches of immortality, one glazed lamp, and fifty Supreme Yin and Supreme Yang crystals each!"

Only then did the ministers understand why the Jade Emperor had announced such a grand reward!

The Buddhist Sect had been searching for the Heaven-Defying Taoist for a long time without any result, which was quite embarrassing. If the Heavenly Court managed to capture the Heaven-Defying Taoist before the Buddhist Sect, it would be like giving the Buddhist Sect a resounding slap in the face. How could the Buddhist Sect then have any face to promote their Buddhist Law and divide the incense willpower of the Divine Land's citizens?

"We obey the decree!"

Li Jing was the first to bow with hands clasped, followed by the other ministers.

The Jade Emperor was then satisfied, nodding and saying, "This demon Taoist is extremely formidable; everyone should take extra care."

"Thank you for Your Majesty's concern!"

This was the Heavenly Court's counterstrike against Buddhism, an outlet for their dissatisfaction, a battle of face-slapping... Whoever captured the Heaven-Defying Taoist first would be slapping the other's face! In the cultivation world, what did they value the most? First was cultivation, and second was face. With their minds clear and desires few, apart from cultivation and face, they truly found little else to value.

Thus, the struggles between the immortals consisted of battling with magic powers and face-slapping, which is also why after Bodhisattva Guanyin's Daoist Temple was overturned, she hasn't appeared in the world for many years; the slap was too loud, and she was simply too ashamed to show her face. Perhaps mortals wouldn't care much, but those in the path of cultivation always treated this as a joke, and eventually, it spread widely among the populace, causing a sharp decline in incense offerings to Bodhisattva Guanyin...

After the court dismissed, Li Jing turned to Nezha and said, "My child, this is a moment for our Li Family to stand tall and take a deep breath. Your mana is profound, and you have reached the realm of Taiyi Golden Immortal, additionally having the magical treasures gifted by the Taiyi Zhenren. You are capable of battling that demon Taoist!"

Nezha harbored discord with this Li Jing, once desiring nothing more than to kill him, leading one to question if they were truly related by blood, which later spawned the story of Nezha dismembering himself to return his bones to his father and flesh to his mother. But after the Investiture of the Gods, Nezha's obstinate nature seemed to change somewhat, or perhaps, he was subdued several times by the Treasure Pagoda in Li Jing's possession, becoming more obedient.

Seeing Li Jing attempting to gain merit through his efforts again, Nezha didn't say much, only replied, "Your son understands. Rest assured, father."

Li Jing said, "Hmm... Notify me immediately if there's any news."

Nezha took his leave, secretly sighing that Li Jing truly didn't care the slightest bit about him. With that demon Taoist being so formidable, his father hadn't even said a word to urge caution. Nezha felt that in the Heavenly Court, he was like a soulless person, or perhaps... an exceedingly obedient... dog?