Chapter 219: Heavenly Cudgel
Walking on a path paved with luxurious jade stones, passing through meticulously pruned coral formations, and surrounded by a group of stunning palace maidens, Sun Wukong and the Eastern Sea Dragon King arrived at the outer halls of the Dragon Palace.
Suddenly, the Dragon King stopped, pointed in a certain direction, and lifted a formation.
In an instant, a colossal iron staff appeared before them.
This massive staff weighed 13,500 jin (about 8,100 kg), was as thick as a battle pole, and two zhang (about 6.6 meters) long. Its two ends were coated in golden lacquer, radiating an endless divine light that illuminated the vast seafloor around them.
The Dragon King stroked his beard and introduced,
"Esteemed Immortal, behold! That glowing staff is the Divine Needle Stabilizing the Seas!"
Even though Sun Wukong had long known what the Ruyi Jingu Bang looked like from Journey to the West, seeing it in person still sent a thrill through his heart.
The moment his eyes fell upon the Ruyi Jingu Bang, he felt a mysterious connection form between them.
Instantly, he knew—this was his destined weapon.
Even compared to Innate Spiritual Treasures, nothing suited him better than the Ruyi Jingu Bang!
Seeing Sun Wukong's clear satisfaction, the Dragon King let out a subtle sigh of relief and asked,
"Does the Esteemed Immortal find this Divine Needle satisfactory?"
Sun Wukong smiled and replied,
"Satisfactory? Naturally!"
Hearing this, the Dragon King finally relaxed. The task given by the Buddhas had now been successfully fulfilled.
However, curiosity arose in his heart as he asked,
"Might I ask, how does the Esteemed Immortal plan to take the Divine Needle away?"
After realizing Sun Wukong's cultivation had at least reached the Taiyi Golden Immortal level, the Dragon King had never once doubted that he could lift the Divine Needle.
Even if its weight were ten times greater, it would still be nothing more than a slightly heavier iron rod to a Taiyi Golden Immortal.
But Sun Wukong did not answer immediately. Instead, he stepped forward, recalling the events from Journey to the West, and gave it a try:
"Shrink! Shrink! Shrink!"
The moment Sun Wukong uttered the words, the Ruyi Jingu Bang seemed to understand. It immediately shrunk in size, transforming into a staff perfectly suited for Sun Wukong to wield.
Seeing this, the Dragon King couldn't hide his astonishment.
Sun Wukong had never even refined or bonded with the Divine Needle before.
Yet, it was already obeying his commands!
This could only mean one thing—the Divine Needle had already acknowledged Sun Wukong as its master!
Such a phenomenon was exceedingly rare, occurring only when a weapon and its wielder shared an extremely high compatibility.
Was Sun Wukong truly such a perfect match for this legendary weapon?
If so, then in his hands, the Divine Needle could unleash power far beyond its normal limits!
Sure enough, after picking up the Ruyi Jingu Bang, Sun Wukong couldn't resist swinging it around for a while.
His Great Luo Golden Immortal-level mana seamlessly fused with the Golden Cudgel, and the two combined to produce an overwhelming force.
As he swung the Ruyi Jingu Bang, the surrounding space resonated with its movements, causing the entire Eastern Sea Dragon Palace to shake violently.
The finely carved corals nearby shattered from the sheer vibrations, their broken pieces scattering across the ground.
Seeing that if this continued, the entire Eastern Sea Dragon Palace might collapse, the Dragon King hurriedly shouted,
"Esteemed Immortal! Please stop! If you continue, my entire Dragon Palace will be destroyed!"
Sun Wukong was not an unreasonable person. Upon hearing the Dragon King's plea, he immediately stopped.
Looking around at the ruins of the once-magnificent Dragon Palace, and at the heartbroken expression on the Dragon King's face, Sun Wukong scratched his head in embarrassment.
"Ah… my apologies. I got carried away and accidentally caused quite a mess. But don't worry, I'll fix it right away!"
With that, he raised a finger—
Immediately, the wreckage and debris scattered across the palace began moving in reverse, as if time itself was being rewound.
In just a few moments, the entire Eastern Sea Dragon Palace was restored to its original state, as if nothing had ever happened.
Seeing this, Sun Wukong grinned and asked the Dragon King,
"Old Dragon King, what do you think?"
The Dragon King stood there in shock, his mouth agape.
With his vast knowledge and experience, he immediately recognized the technique Sun Wukong had just used.
It was one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Transformations—
The Reversal of Yin and Yang!
A divine technique that, when mastered, could distort the natural order, reverse cause and effect, and even shake the very foundations of the cosmos.
At its peak, it could shatter the balance of the heavens, throwing the sun and moon into disarray.
Even at its beginner stage, it granted control over all things, allowing the user to alter fate itself.
And just now, Sun Wukong had precisely reversed time to restore the Dragon Palace—
An undeniable demonstration of his mastery over the Reversal of Yin and Yang!
If it were one of the lesser-ranked Thirty-Six Heavenly Transformations, that would be one thing. But Reversal of Yin and Yang was among the top few divine powers.
The higher-ranked the Heavenly Transformations, the harder they were to cultivate. In fact, the top ones were almost exclusively practiced by Quasi-Saints and Saints.
For example, when Nuwa achieved Sainthood and created humanity, she used the first-ranked Heavenly Transformation—Creation and Transformation.
This alone demonstrated how extraordinary the highest-ranked Thirty-Six Heavenly Transformations were!
And now, Sun Wukong had already grasped the basics of Reversal of Yin and Yang.
Wouldn't that mean he had a high chance of mastering the other top-ranked divine powers as well?
Could it be that he had the potential of a Quasi-Saint?!
The Eastern Sea Dragon King grew more and more terrified as he thought about this.
Suddenly, a chilling realization struck him—
The Buddhas had targeted the wrong person.
If Sun Wukong managed to attain Quasi-Sainthood, the entire Journey to the West tribulation would take a drastic turn.
In fact, it could throw the entire Six Realms into chaos, plunging countless beings into catastrophe!
That was the power of a Quasi-Saint!
As fear gripped the Dragon King, Sun Wukong suddenly stepped closer to him.
Plucking a golden monkey hair from his body, he infused it with his essence power, then handed the now radiant, divine hair to the Dragon King.
Seeing the Dragon King's confused expression, Sun Wukong explained,
"Today, your Dragon Palace has gifted me a great treasure.
Would I, Sun Wukong, be the kind of monkey who forgets such kindness?
This hair contains my essence power and is linked to my very life.
If you, Old Dragon King, infuse your power into it, it will unleash my strongest attack.
And immediately after, I will use my Golden Light Teleportation to rush to your aid with all my strength.
Should you ever have a request, as long as it does not violate my principles, I will do everything in my power to help!"
The Dragon King tightly gripped the golden monkey hair, its overwhelming aura still radiating in his palm.
He stared at Sun Wukong, momentarily at a loss for words.
Since the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity, the Dragon Clan had long declined.
For countless years, no cultivator above the Taiyi Golden Immortal level had ever shown them such kindness.
And now, Sun Wukong was the first.
Not only that, but this wasn't just ordinary goodwill—
It was the goodwill of a cultivator who was at least a Taiyi Golden Immortal, and possibly destined to become a Quasi-Saint!
For the Dragon Clan, this was an unimaginable fortune.
At that moment, the Dragon King's heart wavered.
He even felt a sudden urge to warn Sun Wukong about the Buddhas' schemes.
But he forced himself to suppress that impulse.
A deep intuition told him—
If he spoke up, the Buddhas would surely exterminate the Dragon Clan!
The so-called Buddhas were nothing like the benevolent figures described in Buddhist teachings.
Even if he couldn't warn Sun Wukong, the Dragon King made up his mind—
When the time came and Sun Wukong fell into their trap, he would help him however he could.
If he could ensure Sun Wukong survived the tribulation, even maintaining his current strength would already be a great blessing for the Dragon Clan!
With this thought, the Dragon King spoke,
"Esteemed Immortal, I see that you now have a divine weapon, yet you lack a robe befitting your status.
Why don't we Dragons gift you a suit of divine armor as well?"
Sun Wukong was surprised.
He hadn't even brought it up yet, and the Dragon King was already offering him a divine robe?
But he quickly realized something—
He had just gained the friendship of the Dragon Clan.
Smiling, he replied, "Many thanks, Old Dragon King!"
As the sound of a great bell echoed through the waters, the other Three Sea Dragon Kings gathered at the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace.
After the Eastern Dragon King explained the situation, the other Dragon Kings all nodded in agreement.
"Marvelous!" they said.
"As long as Sun Wukong attains Quasi-Sainthood, even if we Dragons can't restore our former glory, we can at least escape our current decline!"
And so, they each presented him with a divine treasure.
The Eastern Sea Dragon King gifted the Divine Needle Stabilizing the Seas—the Ruyi Jingu Bang.
The Northern Sea Dragon King gifted the Lotus-Thread Cloud-Stepping Boots.
The Western Sea Dragon King gifted the Golden Chainmail Armor.
The Southern Sea Dragon King gifted the Phoenix-Winged Purple-Gold Crown.
When Sun Wukong emerged, fully adorned in his golden armor, holding the radiant Ruyi Jingu Bang, the four Dragon Kings and the many Dragon Palace princesses all exclaimed in admiration—
"What a magnificent Monkey King!"
Sun Wukong was very satisfied with his new set of divine armor. By now, he had also started to understand the ways of the world a little better.
So, he made another solemn vow:
"I, Sun Wukong, will never forget the kindness of the Dragon Clan. One day, I will surely repay this favor!"
Hearing this, the Four Sea Dragon Kings exchanged satisfied smiles.
This was exactly what they had been waiting for.
Once Sun Wukong left the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace, the Four Dragon Kings gathered to discuss their next move.
Finally, they made a bold decision—
They would take a risk and refuse to report Sun Wukong to the Heavenly Court as the Western Buddhas had requested.
Of course, the reason they dared to do so was that their role in the Journey to the West tribulation was insignificant.
Even if their defiance resulted in failure, it would not affect the overall outcome of the tribulation in the slightest.
---
Meanwhile, after leaving the Dragon Palace, Sun Wukong immediately returned to Mount Huaguo to show off his new treasures to his monkey subjects.
However, despite all their praise and admiration, he did not let it go to his head.
Unlike in the original Journey to the West, he did not start recklessly enlarging his Ruyi Jingu Bang and causing chaos in the Heavenly Court.
Instead, over the next period of time, he focused entirely on cultivation.
His goal was clear—
He wanted to reach the level of Quasi-Saint before the Heavenly Court summoned him.
If he could attain Quasi-Sainthood, he would finally have the power to control his own destiny.
After all, in an era where the Saints did not interfere, a Quasi-Saint was the strongest existence in the world.
---
During this time, Sun Wukong began thinking about a major issue—
The lifespan of his monkey subjects.
Unlike in the original story, he did not consider breaking into the Underworld to alter the Book of Life and Death.
Instead, he decided to teach them the path of cultivation, allowing them to grow stronger and use their own power to resist the passage of time.
Reading through Journey to the West, Sun Wukong noticed a major problem—
During the battle against the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, he was the only one capable of fighting.
Not a single one of his monkey subjects could even match a single Heavenly Soldier.
To put it bluntly—
He alone had fought against 100,000 Heavenly Soldiers, while his monkey subjects had just been spectators.
That was unacceptable.
He had to train them as quickly as possible.
Even if they couldn't defeat the Heavenly Soldiers, they should at least have the ability to protect themselves.
That way, even if something happened to him, his monkey subjects would still be able to survive in the vast wilderness.
---
One day, while Sun Wukong was resting outside, he suddenly sensed a powerful divine ability taking effect on him.
The power of this divine ability was immense—
If he hadn't already placed one foot into Quasi-Sainthood, he wouldn't have been able to detect it at all!
The user of this technique was at least a Quasi-Saint-level powerhouse.
And its sole purpose—
Was to suppress his awareness, cloud his judgment, and make him more impulsive and irritable.
At that moment, Sun Wukong finally understood—
In Journey to the West, how had his Taiyi Golden Immortal-level soul been so easily taken away by two nameless underworld messengers?
The answer was clear now—there had been a Quasi-Saint behind the scenes!
Damn it.
The schemes had begun.
Sun Wukong remained expressionless, but deep inside, he was troubled.
He didn't know what his next move should be.
If he fought back directly, the Quasi-Saint who was scheming against him would immediately become aware of his true cultivation level.
They might even strike him down or take some countermeasures against him.
However, if he did nothing, once he arrived in the Underworld, he would undoubtedly be trapped in their schemes.
They would find ways to make things difficult for him, and even if he tried to leave peacefully, King Yama would still report him to the Jade Emperor.
That would give Heaven the perfect excuse to send troops against Mount Huaguo!
Just as Sun Wukong was feeling torn, a refined and elegant voice suddenly whispered into his ear—
"Act quickly—I'll cover for you."
Sun Wukong's expression brightened.
He recognized that voice—it was from the mysterious immortal!
According to Patriarch Bodhi, this mysterious figure was at least a Saint-level powerhouse.
With such a backer, he had nothing to fear!
Silently expressing his gratitude, Sun Wukong suddenly stood up.
His fiery golden eyes, like two miniature suns, locked onto the two Underworld Messengers who had just stepped within five meters of him.
With an angry roar, he demanded—
"Who dares to try and take the soul of a Great Luo Golden Immortal?!"
The two Underworld Messengers, who were only scattered immortals, trembled violently under his overwhelming aura.
At the same time, their expressions were filled with shock and confusion—
Messenger A: "???"
Messenger B: "???"
What the hell?!
Wasn't this just supposed to be a normal soul collection mission?!
Why did their target suddenly turn out to be a Great Luo Golden Immortal?!
In the Six Realms, there were very few Great Luo Golden Immortals.
Even in Heaven, they were absolute pillars of power and trusted ministers.
In the Underworld, their status was higher than the Ten Yama Kings, almost on par with the Five Ghost Emperors—second only to Emperor Fengdu and Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva!
How were two lowly Messengers supposed to claim the soul of someone at this level?!
Seeing their stunned and helpless expressions, Sun Wukong didn't make things difficult for them.
He understood—
These two were just pawns who had no idea what was really going on.
The real mastermind was hiding in the Underworld.
With this in mind, Sun Wukong retracted his oppressive aura and even stabilized their fading souls with a flick of his power.
Then, pretending to be furious, he shouted—
"I must question the Ten Yama Kings myself—how dare they make such a mistake as to summon the soul of a Great Luo Golden Immortal?!"
"Move out!"
With that, he led the two terrified Messengers straight to the Underworld!