Great Demon Sun Wukong

Therefore, whenever anyone in the Great Honored Buddhism was about to break through their cultivation level, they would report to the sect, and then be led by an elder or a senior brother with strong cultivation to find a safe place to undergo tribulation. There would also be someone to act as a protector. Thus, it was almost unheard of for someone to suddenly face tribulation like Sun Wukong, especially in the dead of night. Luckily, an elder from the Law Enforcement Hall was nearby, so he was able to quickly take Sun Wukong away from the sect.

Of course, some might say what about this option: right as someone is about to break through, sneak into the Great Honored Buddhism and use the tribulation thunder triggered during their tribulation to destroy the sect. This tactic had been attempted before, but without exception, everyone who tried was killed on the spot by the sect's powerhouses. If Sun Wukong hadn't been shouting at the top of his lungs just now, he might have been mistaken for an enemy trying to sabotage the sect in this manner.

The Law Enforcement Hall elder, at the intermediate grade of Dao Transformation, was extremely fast, and within a few breaths, he had already brought Sun Wukong to an utterly desolate valley. He then tossed Sun Wukong into the valley and hurried away. Tribulation was not a trivial matter; it was crucial not to let the Heavenly Dao sense the presence of someone else assisting Wukong, or else the power of the tribulation thunder would increase exponentially. Just as the Law Enforcement Hall elder had left, the tribulation clouds in the sky had already begun to rumble with fierce lightning.

Actually, it had been a long time since Sun Wukong had faced tribulation. It was only because his practice was based on the Divine Skills from the Divine Kingdom and his body's uniqueness that he could enhance his cultivation without going through tribulation. Otherwise, the strength gained without tribulation would be incomplete.

At this moment, Sun Wukong felt somewhat amused. Pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger truly wasn't so simple. With the toughness of his physical body at this moment, this kind of heavenly tribulation was no more bothersome to him than a tickle. Even if he made no attempt to defend himself, at most his clothes would be torn to shreds. However, he had to put on a show of struggling through the tribulation, and couldn't make it look too easy. So, Sun Wukong had no choice but to take out some equipment and magic treasures from his storage space and prepare to face the first bout of tribulation lightning.

Sun Wukong's strategy was simple: to use magic treasures to deplete the tribulation's energy without revealing his own strength. After all, he had acquired many magic treasures while escorting others on his journey and wouldn't feel a pinch using them. So, when the first tribulation thunder struck, Sun Wukong used three magic treasures of the Peak of Unity Dao level to successfully neutralize the thunder's force. This move made the Law Enforcement Hall elder watching from outside shake his head continuously.

"What a profligate!" said the Law Enforcement Hall elder, grimacing in pain as he watched Sun Wukong. "Who undergoes tribulation like this?" As the second tribulation thunder crashed down, Sun Wukong responded the same as before, hurling three magic treasures to meet it. Yet the second strike was much more potent than the first, leading Wukong to throw in three more. Six magic treasures neutralized the second heavenly tribulation. Of course, all the magic treasures used to withstand the heavenly tribulation were obliterated, not one surviving. Nevertheless, Sun Wukong did not forget to draw the power of the heavenly thunder into his body; after all, even a mosquito leg is still flesh, and since it was free, why not take a bath in tribulation thunder?

What Sun Wukong faced this time was the great Nine Heavens Tribulation, totaling nine strikes, each stronger than the last. However, no matter how intense the heavenly thunder, nothing could overcome the sheer quantity of Sun Wukong's magic treasures. Wukong used nine magic treasures against the third heavenly thunder, twelve for the fourth, and fifteen for the fifth. When the sixth strike came, he tossed in seventeen Peak Unity Dao and one Primary Grade Unity Dao magic treasures. The sixth was met by three Primary Grade Unity Dao treasures, the seventh by five, and the eighth by seven. Initially, the Law Enforcement Hall elder watching Wukong's tribulation was anguished, but later on, was left with nothing but shock.

A person who squanders money as if it's nothing is called a prodigal. However, when that prodigal starts spending lavishly as if it's dirt, it is no longer just wastefulness, but a kind of boldness. Sun Wukong was doing just that, casting dozens of magic treasures without even blinking an eye. This was clearly not the act of a mere prodigal, but that of an ultimate spendthrift. Even the son of the sect hierarch wouldn't dare to face tribulation in such a way.

It wasn't until the last of the heavenly tribulations, the ninth strike, that Sun Wukong didn't use any magic treasures to resist. It wasn't because he had no more treasures, but because he needed to be prepared for the potential emergence of spatial rifts, especially with an elder watching from the outside; he had to perform some acts of deception. Therefore, he let the last strike hit him head-on while rapidly dispersing the thunder's power around him. In the blink of an eye, he had covered the entire valley with it, turning the area into a sea of thunder with its constant explosive rumblings.

As the power of the ninth tribulation thunder dissipated, Sun Wukong had a hunch, and sure enough, he was right. Once again, familiar spatial rifts appeared around his body, but concealed by the sea of thunder, they were invisible to the Law Enforcement Hall elder outside. Sun Wukong was elated and immediately entered the rift. This time, he navigated into the void confidently. Once inside, the space was nothing but endless white void. Without any hurry, Sun Wukong sat down cross-legged, ready to watch the scenes unfold.

This time, Sun Wukong had a breakthrough from the peak of Unity Dao to the intermediate grade of Dao Transformation, and the might of the Heavenly Tribulation that it triggered was somewhat smaller than Zhu Bajie's initial one, but it definitely exceeded that of our master's. Just as Sun Wukong was waiting for the scene to appear, he suddenly thought of a possibility. Since he possessed the ability to use the Five-Colored Divine Stone to seal his own cultivation, could he then seal his strength without limit and then break through and undergo tribulation again? In that case, wouldn't he be able to enter this spatial rift anytime and view those scenes? Thinking this, Sun Wukong felt more and more that it could be possible. The Five-Colored Divine Stone's sealing of cultivation was thorough, able to deceive even the Heavenly Dao. This was simply like cheating. If this method was workable, Sun Wukong even thought of using the sealing of cultivation as a way to let Bajie and the others undergo unlimited Heavenly Tribulation Tempering.

While Sun Wukong was pondering how powerful Bajie would become after hundreds of Heavenly Tribulation Tempering, the space in front of him began to distort, and the familiar scene once again appeared. The scene had barely appeared when Sun Wukong was stunned because he suddenly saw a familiar figure, one with whom Sun Wukong had myriad connections. "Nuwa? It's actually Lady Nuwa?" Amidst Sun Wukong's surprised gaze, the scene began.

Sun Wukong quickly recognized that, after having seen Pangu create the heavens and the earth last time, this time he was witnessing Nuwa mending the sky. Could it be that this scene intended to let him re-experience the history of the Pangu Realm? Or to say, behind all legends, are there unknown secrets? What about other myths? Could they be the same?

Shaking his head to dismiss the thoughts flooding his mind, Sun Wukong started to watch the scene intently. In the scene, there were two individuals fighting, and Sun Wukong recognized them. One was the Water Deity Gonggong, and the other was the Fire God Zhurong, both among the Twelve Ancestral Witches, with formidable strength. But having watched only for a few moments, Sun Wukong noticed something was amiss. The Fire God Zhurong seemed normal, but the Water Deity Gonggong appeared very strange, with lifeless eyes, as if he were in a state of extreme rage.

Moreover, Sun Wukong could see that Zhurong was fighting and simultaneously saying something, his expression filled with helplessness and sorrow, whereas Gonggong showed no emotions at all, only mindlessly launching frenzied attacks. After watching for a while, Sun Wukong realized that the battle between the two was not so much a fight as it was Gonggong attacking and Zhurong defending. Throughout the battle, Zhurong only counterattacked when forced into a corner, spending the rest of the time on defense.

"How interesting. It looks like Gonggong is either possessed or being controlled by someone, while Zhurong is constantly trying to awaken him, hence he's only defending and not attacking. This is not quite like the legend. In the stories, Gonggong, as the Water Deity, is a descendant of the Flame Emperor, and the one who battled with Gonggong was not Zhurong, but Zhuanxu. The legends tell that Gonggong and Zhuanxu were long-standing enemies and engaged in an earth-shaking battle, which ended with Gonggong's defeat and his furious assault on Mount Buzhou.

The great battle between Gonggong and Zhuanxu originated from their bloodline inheritance—the dispute continued from the Yellow Emperor and the Flame Emperor. When Gonggong wasn't able to withstand Zhuanxu, he out of fury rammed his head into the Heavenly Pillar, Mount Buzhou, leading to the pillar's collapse and a cut-off of the earth's axis, causing heaven to lean towards the northwest and thus the stars and the celestial bodies to shift; the earth was no longer full in the southeast, hence waters and dust gravitated there. Subsequently, the greatest flood in mythological history occurred.

After the collision with Mount Buzhou, Gonggong fled, and he was later captured and executed by Yu the Great.

However, what Sun Wukong saw was Gonggong fighting a great battle with Zhurong and clearly, Gonggong was not his normal self. While pondering this in his mind, the battle between the two depicted in the scene had gradually produced a victor. Although Zhurong had been largely defensive, Gonggong, perhaps due to being controlled or for some other reason, was unable to make full use of his strength, thus falling into a disadvantage. Right when Zhurong was about to defeat Gonggong, Gonggong suddenly let out a heaven-piercing howl and then abruptly changed direction, his massive body ramming straight into the so-called Heavenly Pillar, Mount Buzhou.

Mount Buzhou was directly toppled, and after the heaven and earth shattered, endless floods began to surge from beneath. This was different from the legend as well, with the flood in the tales leaking from the heavens. At this moment, Nuwa appeared, holding a Five-Colored Divine Stone, and flew toward the sky. Sun Wukong did not see a great hole in the sky as in the legend of Nuwa mending the skies; the repair Nuwa was making did not seem to be for that great hole. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Starting Point (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes, Monthly Passes. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)