Starting with the titmouse, seventy-two transformations

Chapter 425 The Six-Eared Macaque!
"Yes, I've been waiting for you..."

The sixth man nodded, his voice low and his eyes deep, reflecting countless light and shadow as if he could see through the past and the future. He sighed and said:

"I just want to see what the person they chose, known as 'The One Who Escaped,' is really like..."

Liu Sheng saw the other person's lips moving as if they were speaking, but he couldn't hear a sound, so he quickly said:
"Senior, what are you saying? I'm sorry I didn't hear you..."

"What did you say? I didn't say anything!"

The sixth brother vehemently denied it, jumped to the ground, scratched his ear, took a few steps closer, and bared his teeth:

"You must have something wrong with your ears!"

"Uh……"

Liu Sheng took two steps back, glancing at the half-face of a strange Guanyin statue in the corner. Remembering the statues that had been smashed one by one along the Hundred-Mile Buddhist Corridor, he quickly came up with a plan:

"It seems you have quite a grudge against Buddhism, Sixth Senior? You said you even conferred the title of Buddha? Does that mean you went to Mount Ling and met the World-Honored One, the Bodhisattvas, and the Arhats?"

"Grievances? Heh heh!"

The sixth brother snorted coldly, his eyes burning with hatred, and screamed:

"A bunch of hypocritical, disgusting, and despicable dogs have seized this sacred land, claiming to be Buddhas and ancestors. They talk about compassion and benevolence, but in reality, they cheat, swindle, kill, set fires, are ruthless, and commit all kinds of evil!"
They regard all living beings as ants, whether human or demon, they are just leeks they planted in the ground.

When the time comes, they will be harvested and become the elixir and miraculous medicine to be shared by all the Buddhas at the Dharma assembly.

He was breathing heavily, and deep within his fierce eyes lay a profound and unyielding sorrow.

“There was a monkey who was lured by them with the promise of ‘becoming a Buddha’ and put on a show called ‘Journey to the West’, which was actually a harvesting operation.”

They spread Buddhism along the way, but also killed their own kind, displaying extreme cruelty.

Later, the monkey realized its mistake and refused to be their puppet anymore, aiding and abetting their evil deeds.

So they were tricked and killed on their journey to the West, and even their bodies were used... to refine elixirs.

The sixth brother chuckled, but it was more like a cry, his eyes filled with desolation, his tone bleak, and tinged with intense regret and hatred:

"They tricked another foolish monkey into taking the place of the disobedient monkey, saying that as long as he cooperated in the play, they would make him a Buddha, grant him longevity, allow him to sit on Mount Ling, and live as long as the heavens."

The foolish monkey believed it and was indeed made a Buddha, but later…

He paused abruptly, gazing intently at Liu Sheng, his voice ethereal:
Do you know what happened next?

"It's just a matter of 'the rabbit is killed once the hunt is over, the hound is cooked' anyway."

Liu Sheng smiled faintly and said softly:
"For meat eaters, whether it's rabbit meat or dog meat, as long as it's stewed in a pot and eventually eaten, there's no real difference."

At worst, we can raise dogs when we have more rabbits.

After all, it's too difficult to stand tall as a human being in this world, but it's easy to crawl on the ground and be a dog. There are far too many people eager to be someone's dog.

After saying that, he glanced at Lao Liu and realized that the story he had told earlier was probably Lao Liu's past experience.

There are countless miraculous skills and methods in the world, and bringing the dead back to life is not uncommon. The only question is whether he was the first monkey or the second.

Wait, this story sounds familiar, isn't it just...

Journey to the West: The Legend of the Exorcist?
The Monkey King, Sun Wukong, cultivated in the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars on Fangcun Mountain. He escorted the pilgrims on their journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures. On the way, they encountered a Six-Eared Macaque who was exactly the same as Sun Wukong in appearance, skills, equipment, and experience, making it difficult to distinguish the real from the fake. In the end, with the help of the Buddha, Sun Wukong killed the imposter on the spot.

The four of them then happily continued their journey and eventually succeeded in obtaining the scriptures. The monkey was then bestowed the title of "Victorious Fighting Buddha".

A thunderous roar seemed to explode in Liu Sheng's mind, shattering the fog that shrouded his memories. Some previously vague recollections suddenly became clear. So, this "Senior Six" before him was very likely the Six-Eared Macaque from the story?
But wasn't he killed by Sun Wukong back then?

Or perhaps, the one who was actually killed back then was...

Sun Wukong?
impossible!
Liu Sheng shook his head vigorously, feeling a sense of unreality.

The feeling of a character from a novel stepping into reality and telling you a "truth" completely opposite to your own is so unreal and unbelievable, it's like a dream.

It feels so unreal, yet it's happening right before my eyes.

"Senior, you..."

Liu Sheng looked up at Lao Liu, his gaze seemingly piercing through a layer of mist, glimpsing the short, thin figure beneath the skin—

Yellow hair, fiery eyes, a hairy face, a thunder god's mouth, protruding fangs, six ears, and a broad forehead...

It was none other than the legendary Six-Eared Macaque!
One of the four most famous monkeys in the world, alongside the Spirit Stone Monkey, the Red-bottomed Macaque, and the Long-Armed Demon Ape.

only……

Dark clouds gathered above his head, lightning flashed and disappeared, and bolts of electricity continuously struck him without ceasing.

It turns out that so much was hidden beneath the facade of "Master Jingyue"!
But why couldn't we see it before?

"If I want you to see it, you will see it!"

The Six-Eared Macaque let out a strange laugh, pointed at himself, and it was as if the curtain had been drawn back up—

Before her eyes was still Master Jingyue, scratching her ears and cheeks, grimacing, as if the previous scene was just an illusion.

If the person in front of you is indeed the monkey from "Journey to the West," replacing the real "Sun Wukong," successfully obtaining the scriptures, being named the "Victorious Fighting Buddha," and then becoming an outcast of Buddhism, suffering a tragic fate.

So what was his purpose in searching for himself?
One of his claws was suppressed inside the Qingyuan Cave ruins. Could it be related to Erlang Shen?
Given his abilities, which were no less than those of Sun Wukong back then, was he forced into this situation or did he do it voluntarily?

Why was he so certain that he would come to Shuiyue Nunnery after leaving the ruins?
After the initial confrontation, he only recounted some dubious "old stories" from back then, saying nothing else of value...

What's the purpose?
Liu Sheng's breath hitched, and a question arose in his mind, but no matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn't come up with an answer.

Despite his ability to swiftly kill Huang Ting and single-handedly defeat Tong Xuan, in the context of "Journey to the West," he wouldn't even be considered a minor figure.

Compared to the giant among demons, the Six-Eared Macaque, who replaced Sun Wukong and was given the title of "Victorious Fighting Buddha," was utterly insignificant.

They have absolutely no right to get involved in these big shots' schemes; the slightest misstep could result in their utter destruction and their soul being scattered.

"But I clearly didn't get involved!"

He felt extremely wronged, but dared not show it on his face, forcing a smile instead.
"Senior, your supernatural powers are vast and your magic is boundless. I am far inferior to even a fraction of your abilities."

“I know you have many questions, but there are many things that cannot be said, cannot be said, and cannot even be thought about, otherwise, people will immediately sense it.”

The Six-Eared Macaque spoke in a mystical tone, shaking his head and mumbling incoherently, yet the sound was like the beating of a drum, ringing in Liu Sheng's ears and making his heart pound with fear.
"You only need to remember one sentence..."

"what?"

"Truth and falsehood intertwined, falsehood and truth!"

The monkey opened its mouth, revealing a mouthful of fangs, reached out and grabbed Liu Sheng's right hand, and pointed at something:
"Remember this: when falsehood is taken for truth, even truth becomes falsehood; when truth is taken for falsehood, even falsehood becomes truth!"

(End of this chapter)