On the official road, Zhang Jingqing rode on his horse, watching the drizzling rain, and continued:
"Zhiwei, your fellow apprentices all like to watch Journey to the West. Why don't you like it?"
"I don't dislike watching this!"
"Master, I have never seen you read it!"
Zhang Zhiwei: “…………”
Master, you are still peeping at these!
The reason why Zhang Zhiwei didn't translate it was not for anything else, but simply because he had read "Journey to the West" so many times in his previous life, including various versions, that he was not interested in the obscure and unannotated paper version of "Journey to the West".
Of course, this couldn't be said openly, so Zhang Zhiwei said, "Aren't you worried about delaying your cultivation?"
"If you have time, you can go to the library and take a look. The Journey to the West in our house is different from the versions outside. It truly records many ways of cultivation. The content is profound and very beneficial!" said Zhang Jingqing.
"Then rest assured, Master. I will study it carefully after returning home!"
Zhang Zhiwei said quickly, and then, thinking of the general story line of "Journey to the West", Zhang Zhiwei had an epiphany.
No wonder that in the later journey to the West, the monkey was not like before. He became invincible. When fighting monsters, he looked at their backgrounds and would call for reinforcements whenever possible. He was evenly matched with anyone.
It's not that the monkey has become weaker, but that he has become rounder. He has smoothed out his edges and corners, and started to behave in a round way in his daily life.
Before becoming "round", the monkey was full of edges and corners, and was unstoppable. He made trouble in heaven, was the Monkey King, and was one of the seven sworn brothers in the Flower-Fruit Mountain. He was very majestic.
But after reaching the peak of his prosperity, he declined and was pressed under the Five Finger Mountain for five hundred years. Those who used to praise him as the Monkey King, those brothers who were sworn brothers with him... none of them ever came to see him.
But when he became "round", all the gods and Buddhas in heaven became his friends. He did not even need to put in any effort to overcome many disasters. He could solve them peacefully by just dealing with people, seeing roundness everywhere, and having roundness everywhere.
If it were the former Monkey King, wouldn't he have killed all these immortal mounts, immortal children, etc.?
In later generations, many people interpreted that in the tribulation between the True and False Monkey King, the real Monkey King was beaten to death and the fake monkey replaced him, so the monkeys that followed became less and less like the previous ones!
But Zhang Zhiwei now feels that there is no such thing as a real or fake Monkey King. Both monkeys are real, but one of them is the Monkey King in the Heart.
The ordeal of the True and False Monkey King meant that the monkey had conquered his inner monkey, so after that, he never scolded Bajie again, never suffered the golden hoop curse again, and never killed any monster again.
It's not that he's really weak, it's that he's smoothed out his edges and corners, lost his sharpness, and understood the saying that the martial arts world is not about fighting and killing, but about human relationships and worldly wisdom...
Is this what it means to control one’s mind?
Zhang Zhiwei muttered to himself.
Naturally, he is very fond of Sun Wukong, a household name.
But... the one he liked was always the Monkey King who made havoc in Heaven.
Instead of the Fighting Buddha who calls his friends.
"Master, is this the only way to overcome the Monkey King problem?" Zhang Zhiwei asked.
Zhang Jingqing turned her head to look at Zhang Zhiwei, and at one glance she knew what he was thinking.
"You don't like the Monkey King behind, but prefer the Monkey King in front?" Zhang Jingqing said.
Zhang Zhiwei suddenly fell silent.
"That's nothing. When I was young, I also liked the Monkey King!"
Zhang Zhiwei looked at Zhang Jingqing.
Zhang Jingqing continued, "If you insist on asking if there is a second way, the answer is yes. The first way is what your master told you, to refine your mind and achieve the Hunyuan Golden Pill."
"The second way is to stop suppressing your true heart, overturn the alchemy furnace, unleash the power of your inner monkey, wreak havoc in the Heavenly Palace, destroy everything, overturn the cauldron with force, and use violence to reach the sky."
Hearing this, Zhang Zhiwei's eyes lit up. This second type was so domineering.
Then he heard Zhang Jingqing continue, "Both methods have their pros and cons. The first is a slow and steady process, requiring experience to hone your mind bit by bit. The advantage lies in its stability, a unified state of mind without any loopholes."
"The second type relies entirely on one's true heart. If one doesn't have a pure heart, it's very easy to go astray. People who take this path are often too aggressive and too sharp, making it easy for others to exploit the gaps in their hearts and target them, leading to a bad ending!"
Zhang Zhiwei looked curious: "For example..."
He wanted to know what this unpleasant ending meant.
Zhang Jingqing said: "For example, the ancient Overlord Xiang Yu and the Martial Saint Guan Yu, they both took this path!"
"Overlord Xiang Yu, Martial Saint Guan Yu..." Zhang Zhiwei was stunned. "Did they also practice the 'Five Thunders Righteous Method' of our Tianshi Mansion?"
Zhang Jingqing said angrily, "You are unlearned and unskillful. When the Overlord was active, there was no Tianshi Mansion, and naturally no Five Thunders Law. However, the great way of the world may have different starting points, but the end point is the same. No matter what you practice, when you reach a high level, you will encounter the stage of the monkey heart!"
"So that's it!" Zhang Zhiwei thought thoughtfully. It was true when he thought about it this way. Both Overlord and Guan Erye were the kind of people with sharp edges and not very "round" in their dealings with others. In the end, they also ended up miserably because they were not very "round".
"Master, now, is there anyone in the world of extraordinary people who takes this path?" Zhang Zhiwei asked.
"There are many people who have taken this road, but only a handful of them have succeeded. As far as I know, in recent years, only the Taiping Heavenly King has succeeded in taking this road!" said Zhang Jingqing.
"The Taiping Heavenly King?" Zhang Zhiwei reacted. "Isn't that the one who was destroyed by the Qing court and the Red-haired Devils fifty years ago?"
Zhang Jingqing nodded. "Indeed, he is considered the pinnacle of the alien world. He comes from the Taiping Dao and practices the art of chaos. He is a Yellow Turban warrior who can turn beans into soldiers and can defeat thousands of troops alone."
"At the time, he led a group of extraordinary people in an uprising, nearly overthrowing the entire Qing Dynasty. However, his supernatural powers were ultimately no match for their scheming, and he ultimately ended in disastrous defeat."
Zhang Jingqing looked into Zhang Zhiwei's eyes and said, "Zhiwei, how do you think you compare to them?"
Zhang Zhiwei pondered. This question was not easy to answer. To say that he was better than these people? That was too arrogant.
But if you are weaker than them, it would be too self-deprecating.
Zhang Zhiwei always boasted that he was no less capable than others and was destined to stand on top of the mountain, so he naturally would not belittle himself.
Therefore, Zhang Zhiwei did not answer Zhang Jingqing's question immediately.
However, not answering was actually the best answer. Zhang Jingqing's face darkened. After all, he had underestimated his apprentice.
"Evil beast, arrogant!"
Zhang Jingqing shouted angrily, pulled his horse forward and walked ahead without saying a word.
Zhang Zhiwei followed behind, not trying to offend his master at all, and kept thinking about what Zhang Jingqing had just said.
——Push over the alchemy furnace, release the power of the monkey heart, make a big fuss in the Heavenly Palace, break everything, overthrow the tripod with force, and be violent to the sky.
Is this road feasible?