Journey to the West: The Mountain Shaker

Chapter 84 Golden Immortals Gather

After a brief silence, Aolai Island went into a frenzy following the appearance of the Great Sage.

Outside the barrier, the nearest Star Moon Pavilion also experienced widespread array failures and spell malfunctions, leaving everyone utterly shocked.

Countless people wanted to enter Aolai afterward, but the teleportation array on Jingtianfang was shut down immediately, cutting off Aolai Island from all information.

What exactly happened in Aolai?

Rumors flew everywhere: some said there were spatial anomalies, some said a divine artifact had appeared, and some said a powerful demon deep in the swamp had broken through to the Golden Core realm, causing the barrier to loosen...

The most suspicious person is the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, who is trapped in the five-finger phantom, because there is a rumor that the sect leader of the Star Moon Sect, the Great Luo Golden Immortal Tu Erxuan, ran away in a golden light!

Tu Erxuan is a rabbit spirit; he is a rabbit spirit.

In the later stages of the Seven Demons' Rebellion, the Heavenly Court took control of the situation and laid a net around Aolai. The Monkey King, relying on his somersault cloud, launched sneak attacks everywhere, and no one could stop him.

It was Tu Erxuan who devised the plan, using all the living beings of Aolai as hostages, and killing a thousand people every day with cruel punishments. He himself ate several hundred of them alive, which eventually forced the Great Sage to return to the aid.

That day, he returned to Aolai and, amidst a million-strong army, right under the noses of Laozi and Buddha, struck Tu Erxuan with a stick, causing his soul to leave his body. If Buddha hadn't intervened in time, he would have already died.

Tu Erxuan had connections with various powerful figures, and it could be said that apart from the Monkey King, there was no one else in the world he feared. Therefore, his escape proved that the Great Sage might be making some moves.

However, the golden light that had fled quickly returned, and the Star Moon cultivators in the market reacted relatively calmly, so no one was too nervous.

After the magic power failed for a moment, all the cultivators of the Star Moon Sect received the news immediately. Everyone was stunned for a moment, but that was all. Everyone went about their business as usual—gamblers were still sitting at the gambling table, brothel patrons were still laughing and joking with women on their left and right, and alchemists and talisman makers, after a moment of frustration, were still full of confidence and continued to the next challenge...

However, unseen by the public, all the Golden Core level and above cultivators of the Star Moon Sect flew back to Fangcun Mountain immediately. At the same time, countless Foundation Establishment cultivators in plain clothes went out to act as patrolmen, and various shops selling valuable items in the market also quietly increased their vigilance.

However, after a few hours, all sorts of suspicions and underlying tensions dissipated.

That evening, the western sky was ablaze with fiery red clouds, and a dazzling array of multicolored light swept across the heavens and earth. Amidst the watchful eyes of countless people, three streaks of extraordinary light, as swift as lightning and as sharp as arrows, shot up to the sky above Xingyuefang, revealing the appearance of three immortals in mid-air.

One of them, dressed in the purple robes of the Heavenly Court, was the Heavenly Court's Nine Heavens Patrol Envoy. The other two, one in a Confucian robe and the other in a Taoist robe, were from Yingtian Academy and the First Grotto Heaven of Wangwu Mountain.

May you enjoy boundless longevity and happiness!

With a proclamation, the Nine Heavens Patrol Envoy lightly flicked his whisk, and countless Bagua characters shimmering with clear light appeared out of thin air. They first piled up in the air to form the shape of the Nine Heavens, and then, under the glow of the sky, slowly drifted down to the entire Star Moon Workshop.

The extraordinary sight lasted for a full minute. For a moment, everyone in Aolai looked up and stopped, staring at the north. People in nearby areas such as Jingtianfang even knelt down and kowtowed, while Xingyuefang was deserted as everyone knelt in the street.

Further north, all the cultivators and ordinary people in the vast area surrounding Fangcun Mountain witnessed this extraordinary sight, and everyone shouted the name of the Nine Heavens and offered incense in worship.

Tu Erxuan and several disciples stood respectfully in front of the mountain gate early in the morning. The three guests circled in the sky above Xingyuefang and then descended on clouds.

But before the two sides could exchange greetings, another strange phenomenon appeared in the western sky.

Two auspicious clouds drifted swiftly from the left and right, leaving behind countless white lotus-shaped clouds that formed two long white lotus paths, displaying ultimate beauty against the backdrop of the crimson clouds to the west.

"Amitabha."

Soon, two auspicious clouds arrived above Xingyuefang, and two bodhisattvas from Lingjiu Mountain and Putuo Mountain appeared in the air. With a Buddhist chant, the surrounding wind and clouds suddenly rose.

Countless streams of air swirled together to form a purple lotus flower the size of a hill. In just a few breaths, the entire process of flower formation, budding, blooming, and withering was clearly demonstrated. Finally, the sixteen enormous petals fell one after another, transforming into countless petals in mid-air, which then fluttered down from the sky to the ground.

A shower of flowers fell upon the earth, but when people reached out to catch them, all they held in their hands were tiny specks of firefly light, which flashed and then disappeared, leaving behind only a sense of awe and a touch of melancholy.

Within a radius of a thousand miles, countless people witnessed this extraordinary sight. Everyone was mesmerized, and many cultivators even gained some insights, sitting down to meditate and contemplate the profound meaning of the flower's fleeting bloom and ephemeral nature.

It was obvious that something serious had happened, but the arrival of five Great Luo Golden Immortals calmed everyone on this side of the barrier.

Conversely, in Aolai, the excitement was quickly dampened, and the people who had been eager to act because of the Great Sage's appearance suddenly became frustrated and restrained.

That evening, Xingyuefang issued a notice, which was proclaimed by the patrol team. The notice explained the sudden loss of magical power over a large area with the eight characters "the seal has loosened and Sun Wukong has acted strangely".

Announcement: Starting tomorrow, under the guidance of the Nine Heavens and Lingjiu Mountain, the Xingyue Sect cultivators will conduct a large-scale inspection and repair of the magic array. All unrelated personnel are requested to stay at least five miles away from the magic array. Anyone who ignores this warning and deliberately trespasses or accidentally enters the magic array area will be killed by the Xingyue Sect.

The announcement also reminded everyone that the person who came to Ling Jiou Mountain today is the "Bodhisattva Who Removes Obstacles". The Bodhisattva saw that there were many obstacles in this place and wished to set up a platform in the southwest open space of the market three days later to preach the Dharma. All those who are willing are welcome to listen.

The Bodhisattva who removes obstacles is one of the eight great Bodhisattvas in Buddhism. Such an opportunity to preach the Dharma in person is extremely rare, perhaps only once in a hundred years.

As the saying goes, "When the Buddha descends to the altar, one should hastily burn incense." Upon this announcement, the casinos in Xingyuefang fell silent, the brothels closed their doors, and everyone began to burn incense, bathe, fast, and change clothes, praying before the Buddha statue to cleanse their minds and hopes to gain something on the day the Bodhisattva preaches the Dharma and to reach a higher level in their spiritual practice.

For a time, Xingyuefang, which spanned several miles, was as quiet as a ghost town, while on the towering Fangcun Mountain not far away, the Dharma lamps shone brightly, and the disciples of Xingyuefang did not sleep all night.

At dawn the following day, the entire Star Moon Sect mobilized, with thousands of cultivators spreading out in an orderly fashion along the base of the five-finger phantom, which was hundreds of miles wide. Tu Erxuan personally oversaw the Star Moon Pavilion, while several Nascent Soul cultivators directed the thorough investigation of the super magic array beneath the five-finger phantom.

This formation is called the "Two Realms Soul Suppressing Formation." The name is quite arbitrary because it was created by Laozi (Taishang Laojun) when he was suppressing the monkey and sealing Aolai.

The magic array that can support the towering phantom and seal off the entire Aolai is naturally enormous. There are 108 array fortresses exposed to the world, but this is only the tip of the iceberg. The huge hidden network beneath is the key to the magic array. Now that the seal has shown signs of disturbance, it is only natural that five powerful figures have come to the scene.

Meanwhile, the Aolai teleportation portal remained closed, and Huaguo Mountain was also under heavy lockdown.

For safety reasons, the Yimu Shuttle, which normally travels back and forth to Aolai every day, patrols the island for seven consecutive days until the morning of the eighth day, when the route is restarted.

At this moment, the five powerful beings were outside the barrier. Having witnessed the wonder of the five powerful beings' arrival, the fervor in Aolai caused by the Great Sage's appearance had gradually subsided.

In reality, everyone understood that after 100 years of separation between body and soul, and daily torment from the suppression of the magic array, it was already a miracle that the Great Sage's soul had not been annihilated. However, after 100 years of being stifled in Aolai, countless people were looking forward to the Great Sage's return. The moment the monkey showed his face, all the people of Aolai couldn't help but start fantasizing.

The Great Sage is still here, and since none of you dare to come in anyway, can't I just think about it?

After three days of speculation, the discussion about the appearance of the Monkey King on the main island had become extremely heated.

There is a legend that Laozi's death is imminent.

As we all know, Buddha entered Nirvana a year after sealing the Great Sage. If Laozi also passes away, the Five Fingers Seal may not be able to continue, and the Great Sage's return may be possible.

Legend has it that the people of Aolai were plotting a change, which caused the Great Sage to act strangely.

As we all know, the Great Sage is the Mind Monkey. This Mind is very likely the Mind of Aolai. When Aolai was unsealed, the Mind's thoughts stirred and its power was directed to challenge the Great Sage's seal.

This latter explanation gained widespread acceptance, and in a short time, statues of the Great Sage were erected all over Aolai. Countless people ignored the Heavenly Court's prohibition and openly worshipped this once-great demon.

Even worse, in a few areas, there have been incidents of beating up Heavenly Court officials and storming their residences.

Meanwhile, inside the Heart Monkey Chamber deep within the Water Curtain Cave of Flower and Fruit Mountain, under the full treatment of Old Dragon Mark and with the blessing of Zhao's elixirs, Cai Fei's injuries are rapidly improving.

A handsome young man named Chu Zhiyin became Cai Fei's ears, standing outside the small room for half an hour every morning and evening to report on the changing events in the outside world.

Above the narrow stone passageway outside the small room, a spider the size of a millstone lay, its pair of scarlet compound eyes coldly gazing down. Anyone entering or leaving the small room who inadvertently looked up would always be startled.