The Origin of Scars

The battle between Sages actually drew Hongjun down.

As soon as Hongjun arrived, everything immediately calmed down.

"I already knew that a variable would appear in the Journey to the West, but no Sage interfered," Hongjun's gaze fell upon Tongtian. "You have been in the depths of this Primordial Era for many years, go now."

Tongtian rejoiced and respectfully bowed, "Thank you, Master."

After speaking, Hongjun vanished from his spot.

Everyone had expected a Sage battle to cause heaven and earth to collapse, but no one anticipated that Hongjun's appearance would resolve it so easily.

Tongtian returned to Biyou Palace, feeling as if he had gone through an entire lifetime.

"Greetings, Master."

His disciples hastily knelt in greeting.

Looking at them, Tongtian couldn't help but sigh.

Some of his once proud disciples had already been converted to Buddha by the Western Heaven, including some of his most favored ones, Daoist Duobao and Chang'er Dingguang Immortal...

However, quite a few from the Chan Sect had also been converted, and thinking of this, Tongtian felt a sense of balance in his heart.

"A variable has appeared in the Journey to the West. All of you, do your best to find it," Tongtian issued an order.

"Yes."

The two Sages, Jieyin and Zhunti, were completely bewildered this time.

In their eyes, Primordial Lord of Heaven must have secretly interfered, there was no doubt about it.

But Hongjun, that immortal old man, had already said no Sage interfered.

This was truly bizarre.

If no Sage interfered, then where did this variable come from?

The two of them were puzzled.

Tang Yu was dozing off, leaning against his donkey.

Suddenly, a System notification chimed.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for plundering Destiny Points from the Daoist Sect."

"Reward: Five million Destiny Points."

Hearing this, Tang Yu immediately woke up.

What was going on? Why was there so much this time, a full five million?

"System, what's happening?"

"Ding! Due to the host's arrangements, a Sage battle occurred, Hongjun appeared, and Tongtian was freed."

The message was concise and to the point.

Tang Yu understood what it meant after a moment's thought.

He had been worrying about how to make money, and now this had happened.

However, it was still quite a bit short of the Destiny Points needed for what he wanted to exchange for.

The Nine-Nine Heavenly Merit!

He had long set his sights on this cultivation technique, the very technique Great God Pangu had practiced.

What was commonly known now as the Nine-Nine Mystic Merit and Eight-Nine Mystic Merit were merely incomplete fragments of the Nine-Nine Heavenly Merit.

Sun Wukong's Seventy-Two Transformations belonged to the Eight-Nine Mystic Merit, and he and Yang Jian were both practicing the Eight-Nine Mystic Merit, though their versions were different.

This was because Subhuti and True Man Yu Ding had obtained different fragmented texts.

Even just a fragment of the Eight-Nine Mystic Merit could make Sun Wukong and Yang Jian so formidable.

What was even more terrifying was that the Eight-Nine Mystic Merit was merely a fragment of the Nine-Nine Heavenly Merit, which showed just how powerful that technique was.

Therefore, Tang Yu had already decided to exchange for it.

Although he didn't have enough money yet, as long as he kept working hard, there was hope.

He wondered how many Destiny Points he would get if he killed a couple of Bodhisattvas or something.

It probably wouldn't be a small amount.

Thinking of this, Tang Yu couldn't help but chuckle sinisterly.

Seeing him smile so wickedly, Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie both shivered involuntarily.

This monk wasn't as harmless as he appeared on the surface; he was actually incredibly cunning.

His sinister smile made it clear he was up to no good.

Sensing his disciples' gazes, Tang Yu coughed dryly and made small talk, "Wukong, Er Daizi, what were you two talking about?"

"Master, Old Pig and I were just talking about some amusing stories of Tathagata Buddha before he became a Buddha," Sun Wukong said, clapping his hands and laughing.

Upon hearing it was about Tathagata Buddha's past, Tang Yu's interest was immediately piqued.

"What is it? Tell your master."

Zhu Bajie chuckled foolishly and, after a slight hesitation, said, "Master, do you know about the bumps on Tathagata Buddha's head?"

Aren't those Buddhist ritual scars?

Why is this idiot suddenly bringing this up? Could there be some hidden story behind it?

"No, I don't. Tell me quickly."

Zhu Bajie coughed dryly and slowly began, "The Buddha was once Daoist Duobao, a disciple of Tongtian..."

As Zhu Bajie spoke, Tang Yu understood what had happened.

So, after Daoist Duobao became the Buddha, he got cocky and went to show off to Laojun.

Laojun ignored him once or twice, but even a clay figurine has a temper.

Let alone Taishang Laojun.

Ignoring him once or twice was giving him face, not wanting to stoop to his level.

But when he went to pester Laojun again, Taishang Laojun finally lost his temper, grabbed him by the collar, dragged him over, and gave his head a good beating.

Wham, wham.

That's how Tathagata Buddha got a head full of bumps. He originally wanted the Two Sages of the West to remove them.

But then he saw that with these bumps, he looked kind and benevolent, perfectly fitting the Buddhist tenet of compassion.

So, the Buddha kept them and even issued a decree that all believers must also get some scars.

This is how the Buddhist ritual scars came to be.

"So that's how it is." Tang Yu burst into laughter.

He had always found the ritual scars strange and now he finally understood.

A monk with six bumps was ordinary, nine bumps meant he was an abbot, and a head full of bumps belonged to Tathagata.

The more bumps, the higher the status.

"I never imagined Tathagata old man had such a past! Haha, the next time I see him, I'll definitely give him a good roasting!" Sun Wukong exclaimed, jumping with laughter.

If you dare to roast Tathagata, do you think he won't smack you?

He got a bump on his head from Taishang Laojun, and he can give you a bump on your head too.

Glancing around, Tang Yu patted the donkey's rear and signaled it to brake, deciding to rest here for a while.

It was a good time to ponder the next challenge.

If Tang Yu wasn't mistaken, the next tribulation should be the "Four Saints Test the Heart."

Should I really kill those two Bodhisattvas?

Honestly, he was tempted.

But how to carry it out, and do so without anyone noticing, that was the difficult part.

He was deep in thought.

In the Western Heaven, Tathagata Buddha was also deep in thought.

He felt his mind was a bit muddled.

This won't do, I need a smoke.

Taking a drag from his cigarette, Tathagata felt his mind instantly clear.

"Venerable Guanyin, Bodhisattvas Manjushri and Samantabhadra, for the next tribulation, I will need your combined efforts to complete it."

"To that end, you shall go to Lishan and invite Old Mother Lishan."

Thinking of Old Mother Lishan, Tathagata felt a little awkward. When he was Daoist Duobao, she was his senior sister.

"As you command, Buddha."

The three Bodhisattvas received the Buddha's decree and set off for Lishan together.

Tathagata Buddha murmured, "I hope no more accidents happen this time."

The Journey to the West had encountered one accident after another, and now even Tathagata Buddha was uncertain.

Lishan!

Old Mother Lishan was tending to her garden.

Suddenly, she looked up at the sky.

Three figures appeared, and they bowed in unison, "We greet Old Mother Lishan."

Old Mother Lishan was of the same generation as Tathagata, so they should pay their respects. Moreover, they were here to ask for a favor.