Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

After shaking off the entangling Liu Boqin, Jiang Liu quickly walked towards the Five Elements Mountain.

Legend has it that it was transformed from the palm of the Tathagata, concealing the power of the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Even though it's called Five Elements Mountain, its shape resembles a hand, so it's also known as Five-Finger Mountain.

The journey was about twenty Chinese miles through the wilderness without a beaten path. So, even with Jiang Liu's brisk pace, it still took him nearly a Chinese hour to reach the foot of the Five Elements Mountain.

As originally described in the novel, Sun Wukong was suppressed under the mountain. Jiang Liu thought about it and decided to walk around the Five Elements Mountain to search.

Since it resembled a palm, the Five Elements Mountain looked very steep; however, its area wasn't quite extensive. Circling it would cover just over ten Chinese miles. Thus, after about half a Chinese hour, Jiang Liu had walked around it once.

But he found nothing.

"What's going on!?" Back at the starting point of his circular walk without having found any trace of Sun Wukong, Jiang Liu was completely bewildered, with no idea what was happening.

In the modern world, there's no shortage of film and TV adaptations of 'Journey to the West,' and almost every version features Sun Wukong waiting under Five Elements Mountain for the Tang Monk to arrive. As soon as he sensed someone, Sun Wukong would immediately shout out loud, urging the Tang Monk to quickly save him from the mountain.

But now that he was here, not only did Sun Wukong not shout out, Jiang Liu had even walked a full circle around the Five Elements Mountain without catching a glimpse of him.

Could it be that he had arrived in a fake version of 'Journey to the West'?

Could it be that although Sun Wukong was said to be suppressed under the Five Elements Mountain, he was not at the foot but halfway up the mountain?

Or was it that Sun Wukong was asleep at this time, not noticing his arrival?

Thinking it over, he was indeed at Five Elements Mountain, Jiang Liu concluded. He followed up by climbing up the mountain and searching around the midsection.

He even shouted several times, hoping to attract Sun Wukong's attention, or at least to wake him up if he was asleep.

After about a Chinese hour of searching without even finding a single monkey hair, Jiang Liu paused his steps when he spotted something else. Continue reading on empiren/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

On Five Elements Mountain, an old and somewhat yellowed Buddha Seal was attached to the mountainside. Despite being weathered by sun and rain over many years, the six syllables of the mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum" could still be clearly seen on the Buddha Seal.

Quite obviously, a mere mountain couldn't suppress Sun Wukong. It was the Tathagata's Buddha Seal that truly kept him under control.

"Since the Buddha Seal is here, Sun Wukong should be suppressed under Five Elements Mountain, so why is he not here?" Jiang Liu wondered, looking at the Tathagata's Buddha Seal but failing to understand why Sun Wukong was gone.

Gurgle.

After walking for a Chinese hour and searching for nearly two more, the sun was now high in the sky. Six hours had passed, and his stomach was growling with hunger. Jiang Liu touched his belly and found a relatively clean spot on the grass to sit down.

He opened his storage space; lacking the desire to cook, he took out some steamed buns and water. Nibbling on the buns and sipping water, he pondered over the whereabouts of Sun Wukong.

Logically, Sun Wukong should be suppressed here under Five Elements Mountain, shouldn't he? Could it be he managed to leave on his own?

"Wait a minute, I remember watching a very old movie when I was young. Sun Wukong could leave the Five-Finger Mountain at will. Could it be? Is it like what that movie depicted?" Jiang Liu paused while eating his steamed bun, then shook his head, thinking such a possibility was very slim.

Then he remembered Liu Boqin, who had been pulling at him earlier.

In the original story, he too was quite an important supporting character, even needing his rescue at one point. Could it be? Because he didn't stay with Liu Boqin and went straight past him, that's why he couldn't find Sun Wukong?

Is it like when playing a video game, if you don't clear the previous levels, even if you rush to the later ones, you still won't see the BOSS?

Take Super Mario for example, if you jump over the flagpole without bringing the flag down, then you can't enter the castle?

"You're kidding, right? Although the Golden Finger I carry is a gaming system, this is after all the real world, and besides, whether or not Sun Wukong is here, how could it possibly be up to a mere Liu Boqin to decide?", shaking his head, Jiang Liu cast aside all the chaotic thoughts from his mind.

Because he hadn't found Sun Wukong, it seemed he was letting his imagination run a bit wild.

After suppressing all the chaotic thoughts in his mind, he carelessly ate a couple of steamed buns and drank some water, then Jiang Liu felt that he should continue searching on Five Elements Mountain.

If he really couldn't find him, then he might have to turn back and look for Liu Boqin after all; who knows, he might actually know something?

Since he was nicknamed the Mountain-Guarding Marshal, he must be very familiar with this area and might indeed know where Sun Wukong is.

Jiang Liu spent the afternoon wandering aimlessly on Five Elements Mountain, waited until dusk when the setting sun turned red, and after still finding nothing, he shook his head helplessly and left Five Elements Mountain to head back the way he came.

Although he didn't know the reason, it seemed that Sun Wukong had truly disappeared, and he would have to go ask Liu Boqin after all.

If there were any clues to be found about Sun Wukong's whereabouts, they would have to be from him.

As the sky grew dark, indeed, he saw Liu Boqin coming towards him.

In what seemed like good luck for the day, Liu Boqin was carrying a wild boar that weighed roughly fifty pounds, clearly returning with a full haul.

"Uh, Elder? You, what are you doing?", upon seeing Jiang Liu returning, Liu Boqin was momentarily startled and asked in surprise.

Hadn't he seen him early in the morning, leaving hurriedly? Why had he come back at dusk?

"Benefactor Liu, you are known as the Mountain-Guarding Marshal, so you must be very familiar with this area, right?", Jiang Liu straightened himself up, brought his palms together, and after giving a bow, he asked.

"I dare not deceive the Elder, I have lived here for several decades. Within tens of miles, I can remember the position of every single tree", Liu Boqin said, nodding.

"That's good."

Upon hearing Liu Boqin's response, Jiang Liu nodded and then turned to point at Five Elements Mountain: "Below Mount of the Two Realms ahead, there's a rumor about a monkey being suppressed. Do you know about it?"

"Of course, I know. I've even seen it many times," Liu Boqin replied promptly.

"Do you know where exactly that monkey is suppressed? I heard about this oddity and wanted to take a look, but I haven't been able to find it all day," Jiang Liu pressed after hearing Liu Boqin's answer.

"That's impossible. As far as I can remember, that monkey has always been suppressed in the same place. It's been said that it's been there for generations," Liu Boqin's reply, in turn, surprised Jiang Liu.

After pondering for a moment, Liu Boqin said, "Elder, it is already late today, and there are many poisonous insects and fierce beasts at night. Instead of continuing, how about you rest at my humble abode tonight, and early tomorrow, I will lead you to find that monkey?"

After a slight hesitation, considering the sky was indeed turning dark and the mountain paths were difficult to navigate, Jiang Liu nodded: "In that case, I thank you, Benefactor."

After the conversation, Jiang Liu felt even more puzzled.

Where on earth had Sun Wukong gone? Why did everyone else seem to know, yet he himself couldn't find him?