Sun Wukong left the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea in high spirits, and a prompt from the Advising System echoed in his mind.
[Congratulations on completing the suggestion—Visit the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea to borrow a weapon, and obtain a fourth-tier treasure chest]
This was the advice given by the Demon King, whereas the suggestion from the Demon King of Sea Serpents was to rob.
Obviously, the latter was not very decent.
"Heh, Old Sun would never do such a thing," Sun Wukong thought to himself. The misdeeds of the recent past had all stemmed from the evil thoughts and desires brought on by his double-mindedness.
So the alternative suggestion was also fulfilled.
[Congratulations on completing the suggestion—Visit the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea without vandalism or looting, and obtain a second-tier treasure chest]
In Sun Wukong's view, although the Old East Sea Dragon King made some excuses, he was reasonable in the end, not only lending the Divine Weapon but also borrowing armor from the other three seas for him.
That kind of friend should be visited more often in the future, while ravaging the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea would be unwise.
However, after waiting for quite a while, Sun Wukong did not hear a new prompt.
Before visiting the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea, he received three pieces of advice from a senior netizen at Zhihu, one of which was to make friends with the Sea Dragon King.
Now that he had left the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea, the Advising System still hadn't reminded him that he had completed this advice.
"Does this old Dragon King not consider Old Sun a friend?" Sun Wukong scratched his ears and cheeks, ready to return and ask for clarification.
But on second thought, doing so seemed inappropriate.
He was innately astute and not ignorant of social niceties; it was just that he had acted solely on his preferences in the past, unwilling to concern himself with such matters.
Now, upon reflection, even if he asked for clarity, it wouldn't make the East Sea Dragon King sincerely regard him as a friend.
There can be no friendship if it is forced; it must be willingly given.
"Mmm, it seems I really should visit more often," Sun Wukong mused, figuring that natural familiarity would lead to friendship.
He took this matter to heart and proceeded to open the two treasure chests he had just received.
[You have opened a second-tier treasure chest, congratulations on acquiring physical cultivation (early stage of Daluo Golden Immortal), primordial spirit cultivation (early stage of Daluo Golden Immortal)]
[You have opened a fourth-tier treasure chest, congratulations on acquiring insight into the art of the staff (first level), insight into the art of archery (first level), and instructions for using the Ruyi Jingu Bang]
Subsequently, a majestic mana surged into his body, and a series of profound memories and realizations flowed into his mind, continuously enhancing his strength and knowledge.
Sun Wukong carefully savored these improvements while also curiously inspecting the extra memories.
"Instructions?"
He already knew that this Divine Weapon could grow large or small at will, but could it also have other abilities?
"Wonderful, wonderful, indeed a fine treasure!" Sun Wukong exclaimed as he read on, suddenly bursting with joy, dancing with happiness, extremely delighted.
It turned out that this Divine Weapon was originally an Innate Spiritual Treasure in a state of disrepair, which was later refined by the Venerable Ancestor into the Ruyi Jingu Bang. Later, Da Yu used it to measure the depths of rivers, and the Divine Weapon thereby gained the virtue from controlling waters and became a powerful virtue-endowed Spiritual Treasure.
Although it weighed only thirteen thousand five hundred catties, without such virtue, one would find it difficult to lift this precious item.
Moreover, since the Divine Weapon could comply with one's will, its weight could also change as desired, and its force could be far greater than ten thousand catties when wielded.
Furthermore, and most importantly, the Ruyi Jingu Bang could change its size at will and also its shape.
"Hehe, change!" Sun Wukong scratched his face, and with a single thought, the Divine Weapon in his hand transformed into a Ruyi Divine Bow and Ruyi Divine Arrows with black and gold colors.
When he was at the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea, he had tried to find a suitable bow and arrows, but the Dragon Palace had none, so he thought to find an opportunity to search elsewhere for one later.
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No need for that now, with this Ruyi Divine Weapon, he could unleash even greater power with both his staff and archery techniques.
And with the Heart Arrow Technique learned from the woodcutter Da Yi, there are few in the Three Realms who could avoid his arrows!
"If I face the Demon King and his ilk again, old Sun will no longer just overpower them!" Sun Wukong's eyes shone with divine light, as the desire for battle brewed within him.
But it quickly dissipated, just as a senior netizen on Zhihu had said, the Jianghu isn't all about fighting and killing—it's about relationships and etiquette, and he should make more friends.
Then, he joyfully hurried back to Fruit Mountain and leaped out from the water beneath the bridge of the Water Curtain Cave.
Clad in a purple gold crown, Golden Armor, and cloud-walking boots, shining like gold, he looked extraordinarily heroic, which amazed all the monkeys and earned their praise for his grandeur.
Sun Wukong was even more pleased, his face beaming with delight as he ascended to his throne, placing the Ruyi Jingu Bang upright in the middle, and began to recount the origins of his treasures and his Divine Skills.
After showing off, he still wasn't satisfied.
Amidst the monkeys' exclamations, he went outside the cave, grasped the Divine Weapon in his hand, and with a shake of his body, performed the Law of Heaven and Earth.
His body grew to ten thousand zhang tall, his head as massive as Mount Tai, waist like a steep cliff, eyes like lightning, mouth like a bloody basin, and teeth like swords and spears.
The Ruyi Divine Weapon in his hand also transformed, growing immensely until it reached up to the thirty-third heaven and down to the eighteenth hell, terrifying all the tigers, leopards, wolves, insects, and the demons of the Seventy-Two Caves into scattering their souls and tremblingly kneeling in worship.
This commotion even disturbed Heaven, and the Jade Emperor, who was enjoying music and watching fairies dance, learned of this through the reports of Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Following Ear and sent someone to investigate what kind of weapon was causing such a disturbance.
The Netherworld was similarly alerted, with Emperor Fengdu, Lord of Mount Tai, the Underworld Sect Leader, and the Ten Netherworld Kings all shaken and wanting to investigate the matter.
The Monkey King, of course, had no idea about all this. After retracting the Law of Heaven and Earth, he transformed the Divine Weapon back into an embroidery needle and hid it in his ear, then returned to his cave to receive the homage of the Seventy-Two Demon Kings.
He indulged in the festivities with the crowd for a while, appointing four elderly monkeys as his stalwarts and two red-bottomed horse monkeys as marshal Ma and marshal Liu, and two long-armed monkeys as generals Beng and Ba, in charge of all the affairs of Fruit Mountain, such as setting up camp, dispensing rewards and punishments.
He, on the other hand, frolicked everywhere, traveled the seas and mountains, visited heroes, and broadened his circle of friends.
The Demon Kings he had fought before, like Bull Demon King, Jiao Demon King, Peng Demon King, Lion Camel King, Macaque King, and Yuantu King, all became his friends.
Latter on, as the senior netizen form Zhihu had said, they took advantage of a festive atmosphere to become sworn brothers, collectively known as the Seven Kings.
Of course, they did not forget to investigate the identity and whereabouts of the instigator.
One day, Sun Wukong arranged a banquet at Fruit Mountain, planning to reveal some clues to the Demon Kings.
During the banquet, the Bull Demon King heard these words and expressed his astonishment, "What, the instigator might be a six-eared macaque?"
The Jiao Demon King, Peng Demon King, and Lion Camel King were also very surprised and upon reflection, deemed it possible, considering it could be an internal conflict within their monkey kin.
The Macaque King and Yuantu King, being of the monkey kin themselves, agreed with Wukong's speculation.
The Macaque King said, "When I was young, I heard the elders of my tribe talk about an anomaly among us—the six-eared macaque, naturally adept at listening, able to understand rationale, know the past and foresee the future, all things clear,
With such innate Divine Skills, indeed, he could be the one stirring up trouble behind the scenes."
The Yuantu King added, "The biggest problem now is that we don't know why this instigator would want to target brother Wukong."
All six kings turned their gaze towards Sun Wukong, clearly hoping to get more clues.
Sun Wukong scratched his face, opting not to divulge the one body, two minds matter.
Firstly, this theory had not been fully confirmed. Now mentioning the six-eared macaque was meant to give the six kings something to guard against and a target for investigation.
Secondly, if the two minds theory were true, then it involved his own secrets and cultivation, which he certainly could not reveal lightly.
After the banquet, the six kings departed, and Sun Wukong, taking advantage of his drunkenness, fell into a deep slumber on a stone outside the cave.
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