Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

The Heavenly King couldn't do it either!

With that resounding and forceful declaration, a towering aura surged from Sun Wukong as he pressed towards Manjusri Bodhisattva in midair, his eyes flashing with a brilliant light, his Divine Sense firmly locked onto Manjusri Bodhisattva.

He moved swiftly, flew into the sky, passed through the barrier of the Primordial Unity Grand Formation, and stopped three zhang in front of Manjusri, stretching out his hand to pull out the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod from his ear, which swelled to the thickness of a bowl, pausing in midair.

"Om~!"

A ring of shockwaves spread out in a circular shape in the air. Manjusri Bodhisattva's pupils suddenly constricted as the aura emanating from Sun Wukong gave him a suddenly unsettling feeling.

"What's going on? This monkey is merely at the Taiyi Golden Immortal level of cultivation, why does he have such a tremendous oppressive aura? It must be an illusion!"

Manjusri Bodhisattva's usually calm face became somewhat unnatural, the oppressive feeling from Sun Wukong making him very uncomfortable, a situation he had never encountered before, particularly from someone whose cultivation was inferior to his own.

"Amitabha!"

The Dragon-Escaping Stake in his hand began to tremble as Manjusri Bodhisattva loudly chanted a Buddha's name, his whole body's aura ascending, clashing sharply with Sun Wukong's, resisting the latter's imposing aura. With a smile that didn't reach his eyes, he spoke, "I am Manjusri of Mount Wutai, who are you, and why do you obstruct me?"

"I don't care if you are from Mount Wutai or Mount Liutai, daring to run to my Flower-Fruit Mountain to forcefully abduct people, you audacious bald donkey, you truly think my staff isn't heavy enough?"

Sun Wukong bared his teeth, "I, Old Sun, will count to three, disappear from in front of me, or else, I'll make you disappear!"

"Three!"

"What a rampant Demon Monkey, do you know who you are speaking to?"

Manjusri Bodhisattva was furious. He was one of the Four Great Bodhisattvas of Buddhism, a master at the peak of the Daluo Golden Immortal realm, with powerful mana and formidable strength. Even the Jade Emperor, the ruler of the Eastern Heavenly Realm, showed him great deference. He had never been scolded and slandered like this before, it was outrageous!

"Two!"

"Amitabha..."

"Ah, shut your trap!"

Just after counting to two, Sun Wukong shouted explosively, True Solar Fire suddenly blazing up on the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod, and he fiercely smashed it towards Manjusri Bodhisattva.

Manjusri, caught off guard by Sun Wukong's preemptive strike, his face flashed with astonishment, was already half a beat too slow, could only interpose the Demon-Subduing Pestle and the Dragon-Escaping Stake in front of him, trying to block this sudden explosive attack for now.

Boom!

The Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod clashed with the Demon-Subduing Pestle and Dragon-Escaping Stake, causing Manjusri Bodhisattva's face to change again. The Buddha Primordial Force contained within the two magical treasures was dispersed in an instant upon impact.

A great force surged from the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod towards his chest, causing Manjusri Bodhisattva to grunt involuntarily and recoil several zhang in mid-air, before he stopped, his face full of shock.

"How is this possible?"

Although he had defended in haste, he was, after all, at the peak of the Daluo Golden Immortal realm, having long condensed his body's essence, energy, and spirit into one, with Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, Five Qi Towards the Origin. How could he have been overpowered in just one strike?

"What Four Great Bodhisattvas of Buddhism, not that impressive!"

Sun Wukong let out a disdainful sneer, his hands still busy as he stepped hard in midair, bursting forth with the sound of an explosion, not pausing as he charged towards Manjusri Bodhisattva, the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod extending from under his armpit, aimed straight at Manjusri's chest.

"Dragon-Escaping Stake!"

Furious inside yet daring not to be careless any longer, Sun Wukong's close combat prowess was astounding and he had to rely on his mana and magical treasures to win! Manjusri urgently shouted as the Dragon-Escaping Stake in his left hand began to shake violently again, the three golden hoops at the tip magnifying and flying out, aiming to ensnare Sun Wukong's hands and feet.

"Thinking of binding Old Sun? Dream on!"

Sun Wukong's eyes narrowed slightly, a flash of golden light in his pupils revealing three starry points as the second phase of the Void-Breaking Divine Eye activated. The trajectory of the Dragon-Escaping Stake's golden hoops was fully revealed in his eyes.

Just as they were about to bind his body, Sun Wukong slightly shifted his stance, moving his feet, and suddenly all three golden hoops missed their target.
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"What?"

Startled, Manjusri Bodhisattva saw that once the Dragon-Escaping Stake was activated, it should have completely locked onto the enemy, never having missed before, yet it had just failed to bind Sun Wukong!

Clang!

Having dodged the binding of the Dragon-Escaping Stake's golden hoops, Sun Wukong's Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod did not stop but had already reached Manjusri Bodhisattva's chest. The immense power and pressure caused Manjusri a stifling pain in his chest, daring not to meet it head-on, his figure quickly retreated backward.

"Thinking of retreating, can you actually retreat?"

Sun Wukong's lips curled into a smirk, his figure charging forward rapidly. The end of the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod shadowed him closely, leaving just a foot between it and Manjusri Bodhisattva's chest, giving him no chance to escape. It appeared as though Sun Wukong was pushing Manjusri Bodhisattva with the rod, rapidly flying far beyond the airspace of Flower-Fruit Mountain in the blink of an eye.

"The king is so powerful!"

"The king is invincible and brave!"

Within Flower-Fruit Mountain, each Demon Clan member watched, utterly captivated. It wasn't clear who started it, but they all burst into cheers, with the thunderous shouting spreading far and wide, reaching the ears of Manjusri Bodhisattva and turning his face green.

Grinding his teeth, Manjusri Bodhisattva stopped in midair and performed a back bend. The Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod nearly grazed his nose and forehead, the True Solar Fire coiling around the rod almost burning his face. Had it not been for the protective Buddha Primordial Force around him, his face might have been burned already, yet he still felt a burning pain, immediate anger surging within him.

"You despicable monkey, you've gone too far. I won't let you off today!"

With an enraged roar, Buddha's Light around Manjusri Bodhisattva suddenly became dazzling, converging above his head into three celebratory clouds, revealing his Three Flowers Gathering at the Top. Sun Wukong's returning strike landed on the celebratory clouds, feeling soft and unsubstantial, and failed to break them, blocked by the clouds.

"Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, huh? Heh, truly desperate, pulling out all the stops!"

Sun Wukong retracted his Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod, stepped back, and stood firm on his Somersault Cloud, gazing at Manjusri Bodhisattva's sullen face. He raised his eyebrows and scoffed, "But it's not a big deal, nothing more than a turtle shell mounted on your body. Watch me directly shatter your Three Flowers!"

The gap between the Four Great Bodhisattvas of the Buddhist Sect isn't very large. Manjusri Bodhisattva's cultivation and strength were almost the same as those of Guanyin Bodhisattva, and if it were in a previous life, even at the peak of his strength, Sun Wukong might have struggled to overcome him, not to mention suppress him.

At this moment, Sun Wukong suddenly realized that his strength had already surpassed that of his past peak!

"Shatter it?"

Manjusri Bodhisattva laughed angrily in return, "I'd like to see how you'll shatter it!"

"Dharma Body, appear!"

A flash of Buddha's Light, and Manjusri Bodhisattva manifested his Dharma Body, towering several meters, wielding the Wisdom Sword, his entire being radiating with Buddha's Light, and appeared much more formidable than his original form. Upon appearing, he roared and pounced first at Sun Wukong, his Wisdom Sword casting multiple shadows aimed directly at Sun Wukong's vulnerabilities.

"Even deploying the External Incarnation, he's really planning to fight to the death!"

Sun Wukong narrowed his eyes slightly, snorting coldly, a streak of stubborn pride flashing in his eyes, "But, so what?"

"Cloning Divine Powers!"

With a thought, Sun Wukong activated his Cloning Divine Powers, clones leaping from his body and taking the Ruyi Silver-Hooped Rod from Sun Wukong's hands to block Manjusri Bodhisattva's Dharma Body, clashing noisily into a scramble while Sun Wukong himself took the opportunity to bypass the fighting clones and Dharma Body, charging directly at Manjusri Bodhisattva.

"A cloning technique? No, wait! The cloning technique isn't this powerful! It's a Divine Skill!"

Manjusri Bodhisattva was shocked. He originally thought that with the Dharma Body, he could thoroughly defeat Sun Wukong. With the Dharma Body engaging in close combat and himself using spells from afar, capturing Sun Wukong, a mere Taiyi Golden Immortal, would have been easy.

However, he hadn't expected Sun Wukong to utilize Cloning Divine Powers, summoning clones with strength equal to his own body, instantly neutralizing his advantage!

"Hmph! Even if you can use Cloning Divine Powers, what of it? You've given your Magical Weapons to your clones, planning to contend with me empty-handed? Sun Wukong, you are far too arrogant!"

"Oh, so you knew about me! And there you were, pretending to ask who I was earlier, don't you think that's utterly shameless?"

Sun Wukong paused his steps, stopping in front of Manjusri Bodhisattva, his face showing a trace of disdain. These Buddha Bodhisattvas of the Western Paradise indeed all play the same game—among the best for sheer nerve in the Three Realms, pretending to inquire while fully aware of his identity, their faces terribly thick!

"Spare us the verbal jousting, if you have skills just show them. I'd like to see how, without your Divine Weapon in hand, you'll still contend with me!"

Manjusri Bodhisattva's face darkened, showing no sign of shame but resolve, his Dragon-Escaping Stake trembling, sending three golden hoops again towards Sun Wukong. Once caught, even a Da Luo Golden Immortal wouldn't be able to use any mana.

He no longer dared to treat Sun Wukong as an ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortal; this demon Monkey's combat power was too abnormal, demanding his utmost effort, or he might risk capsizing in the gutter!

"Eat my pestle!"

Coordinated with the Dragon-Escaping Stake's golden hoops, Manjusri Bodhisattva's Demon-Subduing Pestle blazed radiantly, striking down towards Sun Wukong's head. He couldn't believe that Sun Wukong would dare to directly face his Demon-Subduing Pestle with his physical body!

If he could just restrict Sun Wukong, preventing him from dodging freely, the Dragon-Escaping Stake would surely capture him, and once his mana was sealed, whether to kill or maim would all be up to his mood.

"Demon Monkey, let's see how you escape this time!"