Chapter 238: Desire to Go Beyond the Heavens

The green mountains are trimmed jade, the blue mist piles up clouds.

Deep in Longyuan Mountain, ancient trees flourish, blocking the sky and sun; the surroundings are shrouded in a faint white mist, and within the mist's center a faint green light can be seen permeating, exuding a dread that makes the monsters tremble, so they dare not approach lightly.

This is precisely where Ye Qin is in seclusion.

The Northeast Tiger and the other monsters prowled the mist's outer edge, occasionally casting curious glances, but quickly withdrew their gaze due to the heavy aura.

The jackal couldn't help swallowing, 'Good fellow, the master's pressure is growing heavier; I suppose he'll soon emerge from seclusion.'

The yellow weasel clasped his hands behind his back, adopting the pose of an old scholar: 'According to my guess, the master might emerge today; when that happens, we must not forget what we told the humans.'

The Northeast Tiger flicked his ears, 'I don't know how the Golden Thread Monkey and Golden Eagle are faring, nor have they sent any news back; I truly envy them, being able to occupy a mountain as king.'

The fox shook his fluffy tail, 'They're not out playing; perhaps they're busy with important matters now, and once everything settles, they'll send word back.'

Longyuan Mountain lies deep in the great mountains, lacking communication with the outside world; moreover, the nearby villagers pay little heed, so the mountain's monsters know nothing about the Golden Eagle and Golden Thread Monkey.

As the monsters were chatting, the white mist on the periphery suddenly boiled, like water dripping into hot oil, one white bubble after another bubbling up 'gudong'.

The thick white mist tended to disperse, yet a slash of green light shot straight up, sinking into the mountain range, like a azure dragon's roar, where it passed the billows surged and huge waves rose.

Above the peak, purple clouds gathered; in the sunlight, countless hazy purple vapors rose, winding and entwining, dazzlingly brilliant, blinding to the extreme.

The monsters could feel a powerful aura coming head-on; the suddenly rising mountain wind made their hair flutter, each strand standing on end, even the air seemed slightly distorted.

The Northeast Tiger and the others hastily lowered their heads, bowing devoutly: 'Welcome Master's emergence from seclusion.'

The white mist cleared, revealing Ye Qin's figure: 'What has happened recently?'

The Northeast Tiger quickly spoke: 'Earlier a group of humans came, saying they were sent by the authorities to negotiate with us; we told them the master is in seclusion, so they should return first, and we'll give instructions after the master emerges.'

The arrival of the officials was within Ye Qin's expectations; back when the monsters went to famous mountains and rivers across the nation to undergo tribulations, causing frequent omens, he had already anticipated this.

The officials will surely come knocking; it's only a matter of time.

Initially Ye Qin acted low-key, because his cultivation level was insufficient; without great strength, if he rashly appeared before humans, he would have no bargaining leverage and might even attract covetous designs.

Human hearts are the most changeable, so Ye Qin does not want to gamble.

But now it's different; he bears vast divine abilities and powers, human hot weapons pose only a moderate threat to him, and the monsters have also achieved success, wielding power, having been totally transformed.

Thus Ye Qin feels at ease letting the monsters leave the mountain, after all they can stand on their own; they cannot forever hide in the deep mountains and old forests.

'It's also time for the monster race to appear openly before the eyes of the world.'

'Does the master mean to negotiate with the humans?'

Ye Qin nodded: 'Although our monster race is strong, humans are numerous and have lived in this region for many years; I have always hoped the two races could coexist peacefully, which is in accordance with the natural way.'

If the two races were to go to war, first it would hinder the monsters' continued cultivation, second it would easily invite karmic entanglement, which is unfavorable for future tribulations.

Moreover, Ye Qin is not a warmonger; he has no interest in ruling the world, his heart seeks only the supreme Dao.

All the monsters nodded: 'We understand the master's meaning; shall we now contact those humans?'

Ye Qin shook his head: 'There's no rush; at the negotiating table, whoever first reveals their hand loses, and the same holds for talks—the humans will contact us again; we just need to hold our position.'

Although a few words the Northeast Tiger and company didn't fully grasp, they also understood Ye Qin's meaning.

Of course, this is also not the main reason Ye Qin temporarily avoids negotiations.

The real reason is that Ye Qin currently has another, more important matter to resolve.

Ye Qin's expression turned solemn: 'From now on, you will guard the Dharma for me; I will enter seclusion again for a period.'

The monsters were somewhat surprised: 'Master, why are you entering seclusion again?'

'Still because of that golden meteorite.'

Previously, Ye Qin's seclusion was for studying the golden meteorite; from the information transmitted from it, it appears that other civilizations may indeed exist in the universe, related to cultivation, and it might even be the very scene he once saw in his dream.

Whether there are cultivation civilizations beyond Earth building signal towers?

To verify his conjecture, he wants to go into space to gather information.

But his current strength is insufficient; he can only seek another way—since his flesh cannot reach there, he intends to try using divine ability to roam the cosmos; perhaps this method will work.

Just like his previous dream of wandering the cosmos.

Upon hearing Ye Qin's explanation, the other monsters' expressions also turned grave: 'If so, we will certainly assist wholeheartedly; please rest assured, Master.'

Ye Qin nodded: 'Because I will employ divine ability, I won't be able to attend to outside affairs; you must instruct the other monsters that during this period, no one may ascend the mountain, nor may anyone be allowed to disturb.'

The monsters nodded: 'Please rest assured, Master.'

Ye Qin here prepares to enter deep seclusion again, employ divine ability, hoping to roam the universe and bring back useful clues; the monsters will guard the Dharma and also watch over Longyuan Mountain.

……

Meanwhile.

Mount Hua, mountains piled upon mountains, peaks layered upon peaks.

Formerly bustling mountain trails, now blocked, see no visitors, appearing somewhat deserted; the entire range lies silent, save for the sounds of morning and evening bells, there is no other movement between heaven and earth.

Yet deep in the great mountains, a low murmur arose, like the Dao whispering, the murmurs of all beings.

'The Dao flows everywhere, it can be left or right. All things rely on it to live yet do not refuse; when their work is done they take no name. They nurture all things yet are not the lord, ever desireless, thus may be called small; all things return to it yet are not the lord, thus may be called large. Hence the sage never claims greatness, and thereby achieves greatness.'

Mysterious divine radiance pervades all directions; faint golden glimmers can be seen.

The Great Sage Monkey King sits cross-legged, here cultivating and expounding the Dao; around him, every animal imitates his manner, listening to the wondrous Dao's sound, shaking heads and swaying, as if intoxicated.

Deep in the great mountains surges a vibrant vitality; this is the very center of Mount Hua, also where spiritual energy is thickest; now the faint outline of a spirit vein can be seen.

The Great Sage Monkey King also lays out a spirit‑gathering formation here, able to hasten the convergence of heavenly and earthly spiritual energy; although it cannot compare to Longyuan Mountain, if the spirit vein here truly grows, it too is not to be trifled with.

As the discourse ended, the Great Sage Monkey King slowly opened his eyes; his golden‑bright pupils resembled two rising suns, radiant and dazzling.

In order not to lose face for his master, and also to set an example for the later monsters, the Great Sage Monkey King roused his vigor, training day and night; during this period of cultivation on Mount Hua, his progress actually surpassed that when he cultivated on Longyuan Mountain.

If any other monster were present here, they would surely notice his aura, far stronger than when he first left the mountains.

Now his qi and blood surge throughout his body like great rivers; his hair grows ever more brilliant, resembling heavenly stars.

This is also easy to understand: although Longyuan Mountain's spiritual energy is rich, many monsters cultivate there together; Hua Mountain's spiritual energy is scant, yet it all goes to the Great Sage Monkey King alone.

While cultivating, the Monkey King also does not neglect chanting sutras and expounding the Dao, developing his own power; however, compared to Ye Qin, he falls far short.

When Ye Qin first opened an altar to preach on Longyuan Mountain, many animals gained abundant harvest, opening their spiritual wisdom; he has been preaching on Splendid Mountain for so long, yet not a single animal has awakened its spiritual awareness.

It merely made these animals much smarter, their eyes no longer murky as before, gaining a bit of spirit, and their reactions became much more keen.

Looking at the surrounding ignorant beings, the Monkey King sighed, "The road is long and far; I don't know when you will gain spiritual wisdom and strengthen my monster clan—it seems there is still a long way to go."

The Monkey King was not discouraged, after all, it cannot be compared with Ye Qin, and this place is not Longyuan Mountain.

"Now over sixty percent of the animals have come here to listen to the preaching, but it's still not enough; next we must have them bring more animals to listen."

Watching a group of animals still immersed in the scriptures, the Monkey King has already begun planning for the future, thinking while picking up the phone beside him.

This phone is something the Monkey King recently learned; since he is undergoing worldly training and human cultivation, he certainly must learn new things.

During this period, it is not solely cultivating in deep mountains and old forests; occasionally after finishing a preaching session, it goes into the city to have a look.

Although the Mountain Base is blocked and guarded by military region personnel, to the Monkey King it is merely nominal; free entry and exit is no problem at all.

Each time it enters the city, it can learn many useful things, broadening its horizons and enriching its knowledge.

Ye Qin once said, humanity possesses several thousand years of splendid culture, with much worth learning for the monster clan; previously the Monkey King did not quite understand this, but after coming down the mountain he expressed comprehension.

Take the phone as an example; coming into contact with this item is like opening the door to a new world.

A small thing, yet it is so convenient—simply more useful than an ordinary Dharma Implement, truly shocking the Monkey King, who cannot help but admire human wisdom.

Indeed, as a monster one cannot be too arrogant; there is still much to learn.

While thinking, the Monkey King began surfing the net, habitually searching for news about Longyuan Mountain, just as before, finding no useful information.

"It seems nothing has happened back home, so I can relax."

Just as the Monkey King was browsing information, a phone call suddenly rang.

"Ding-ling-ling—"

The incoming call displayed an eagle's avatar; as soon as it was connected, a resonant voice came from the other side.

"Monkey King, there's a matter you need to help me with."

After knowing the phone's function, the Great Sage Monkey King immediately found the Golden Eagle and taught it how to use it, thus facilitating their future communication.

However, the two monsters were both busy cultivating, so they hardly kept in touch.

"I'm here, why did you suddenly think to call? What's up?"

Since it was the first time answering a call, the Monkey King was also full of novelty.

From the other end of the phone could be heard the Golden Eagle's somewhat astonished voice: "Good fellow, this little thing is truly amazing—it really can let us talk and stay in touch; when the opportunity arises later, we should equip the big guys as well——"

The Monkey King impatiently interrupted: "Hurry up and say the main thing; I still have to cultivate later."

The Golden Eagle got straight to the point: "It's like this—you must come to Everwhite Mountain right away; I have a major matter here."

When the Monkey King and the Golden Eagle were on Longyuan Mountain, their relationship was decent; although the Golden Eagle had better talent, the Monkey King worked harder, so over time their cultivation levels were not far apart, and the Monkey King even faintly showed a trend of surpassing.

The Monkey King helplessly said: "You say you'll come and you come; I'm also busy here—what major matter can't be made clear over the phone."

The Golden Eagle's tone was somewhat anxious: "Can't explain in a few words; in short, are you still my brother or not? If yes, hurry over."

The Monkey King's intelligence stands far ahead among monsters; he keenly sensed something off in the Golden Eagle's tone.

"You're so eager for me to come over—did you stir up some trouble? When we left the mountain, our master taught us to cultivate in peace and avoid causing trouble."

Hearing this, the Golden Eagle became somewhat displeased, even raising its voice several degrees: "How could I possibly stir up trouble!"

Soon its voice weakened, carrying a tone of insufficient confidence: "However, there indeed is some trouble, but it is absolutely not something I provoked!"

The Monkey King couldn't help but roll his eyes: "I believe your nonsense, you pesky old Golden Eagle, you're terrible."

In terms of cultivation talent, the Golden Eagle placed among the best on Longyuan Mountain; if it cultivated properly, its strength would likely be second only to the Northeast Tiger.

But precisely because it relies on its high talent, its cultivation has become lax, and like the Northeast Tiger it likes to show off.

The Northeast Tiger shows off because its strength is there; the Golden Eagle's showing off is just forced.

It is quite obvious that this is learned bad behavior from the Northeast Tiger.

"Sigh, no, listen to my explanation!"

Based on the Monkey King's understanding of the Golden Eagle, he knows this guy definitely has nothing good up his sleeve: "Not going, no time, don't disturb!"

"If there's nothing, then let's leave it at that."

Before the Golden Eagle could react, the Monkey King immediately hung up.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side, Everwhite Mountain.

Only see endless snow peaks, boundless, as if merging with the sky; the summit's snow never melts year-round, and under sunlight it refracts a peculiar radiance.

Gazing afar, here is an icy snowy world, with howling cold winds; between heaven and earth there is only one color, the snow mountains magnificent and winding, making one cannot help but marvel at nature's miraculous craftsmanship.

"Beep-beep-beep—"

On the snow mountain peak, a three-meter-long Golden Eagle heard the busy tone from the other end of the phone, and involuntarily widened its eyes.

"You damned Monkey King, daring to hang up on me, forgetting who carried you all the way from Longyuan Mountain to Splendid Mountain, and now you're making excuses when I ask for help."

The furious Golden Eagle wished to smash the phone, yet had to carefully peck at the screen with its wings, with great difficulty managing to dial the call.

"Listen to me——"

Before a single word could be finished, the other side hung up again, enraging the Golden Eagle to the point it almost lost control and smashed the phone.

Suppressing inner anger, the Golden Eagle trembled with rage and dialed the phone for the third time.

"Can you hear me finish my words? This time there really is a major matter!"

Compared to the Golden Eagle's blazing fury, the Monkey King on the other end of the phone appeared extremely calm: "Not going, you said the same before, and the result was that it was hardly any major matter at all."

It's not that the Monkey King is unfeeling; it's just that the Golden Eagle's mouth is like a door without a windscreen—utterly untrustworthy.

Back when they were on Longyuan Mountain, the Monkey King had been tricked by it many times; this time, no matter what it says, he won't be fooled again.

"I still have many things to attend to here; I'll hang up first."

「￥%￥%#￥……&！」

Golden Eagle cursed and hung up the phone, "Damn monkey, you've hung up on me several times in a row, I've remembered this, you wait for me!"

"If you don't come, then forget it; I don't even care. By then the treasure won't be yours—it'll all be mine."

"I found something good and called you over, but you hung up on me instead—my good intentions were treated as waste!"

This golden eagle is three meters long, nearly five meters tall, and when its wings are fully spread, its wingspan reaches over ten meters! It can be said to be huge in size.

Its whole body is black, each feather crystal clear, as if forged from black inkstone, and among these feathers are faint golden patterns, making it look especially majestic.

Its beast eyes emit a sharp aura, making one dare not meet its gaze; now filled with rage, the pressure it exudes grows ever fiercer.

After leaving Longyuan Mountain, it placed the Monkey King near Splendid Mountain, then the golden eagle came to Everwhite Mountain, vowing to create its own demon king's domain here.

Not long after arriving here, it heard that Splendid Mountain had appeared with purple mist, and then came the news of a plane crash.

With everyone on the plane surviving and no casualties, the incident caused an uproar online, and it also saw many related comments and inquiries on its phone.

Many survivors said they saw golden light and heard beast roars.

As for these news, ordinary people saw them and thought nothing of it, considering them hallucinations or rumors, but to the golden eagle it was different.

That must be the disturbance caused by the Monkey King!

Surely it was also its intervention that allowed everyone on the plane to survive.

Considering they've only been out a few days, Splendid Mountain already had this situation, whereas by comparison this place seems obscure.

The golden eagle's heart felt unbalanced at once, seeing all the online news almost drove it mad.

After all, everyone emerged at the same time, starting from the same point; the Monkey King's side already has fame and influence, and if the news reaches the other demons of Longyuan Mountain and even the master knows, how will they view me then?

Thinking this, the golden eagle felt it must speed up, act immediately, wanting to learn from the Monkey King's teachings to expand its influence.

Unfortunately, its lecturing ability is merely average, lacking the Monkey King's effect entirely.

Often animals would listen halfway, not only gaining no insight but even falling asleep!

Their snoring rose to the heavens, making the golden eagle so angry it almost struck them.

After so long, the many animals that listened to its lectures, aside from gaining a bit of weight, basically showed no change!

Angry, the golden eagle drove away all the animals and could only seek another way.

While wandering in Everwhite Mountain, it never expected to one night accidentally see a meteor fall into a valley, sensing a strange aura emanating from within, which led to that phone call just now. (End of chapter)