Rebirth in Journey to the West: Sun Wukong

Chapter 275: Chapter 275: Entering the Ascend to Heaven Platform (2nd Update)

Once the power of Investiture of the Gods was activated, Sun Wukong also felt it. The original massive influx of Lifebound Imprint fragments towards Zhao Gongming drastically reduced, and there seemed to be a faint sign of them flowing back.

“Dream on if you think you can snatch from Old Sun’s mouth!”

Sun Wukong snorted coldly, increasing the stimulation of the Chaos Primordial Force. The melting of the Divinity accelerated, and the force assembling the Lifebound Imprint fragments also greatly increased. Investiture of the Gods or not, Heavenly scriptures or not, once Old Sun sets his eyes on something, no one can snatch it away!

As Sun Wukong further increased the assimilative power of the Chaos Primordial Force, the melting of the Divinity immediately intensified. Zhao Gongming’s pain also sharply increased in an instant, making him unable to resist groaning again, but he knew in his heart that the more critical the moment, the less he should resist, or else all his previous efforts would be wasted!

Right away, Zhao Gongming forcefully suppressed the rebellious Immortal Force within his body, following the method Sun Wukong described by only protecting his pulse and Divine Soul, completely ignoring the damages occurring elsewhere, and harshly endured it. After the Lifebound Imprint fragments fluctuated for a while, Sun Wukong’s Chaos Primordial Force still gained the upper hand, continuing to pull it out from the Investiture of the Gods.

When the last trace of Lifebound Imprint fragments emerged from the void and entered Zhao Gongming’s third eye palace pellet, Sun Wukong immediately stopped the assimilation of the Divinity. The Divinity had been completely melted into a pool of Spiritual Liquid, from which a special imprint belonging to the Investiture of the Gods was refined out by the Chaos Primordial Force, flickering faintly on the side.

Sun Wukong, with a thought, wrapped the special imprint of Investiture of the Gods in True Solar Fire and instantaneously burned it to ash, while the Divinity melted into Spiritual Liquid, which he collected into a cold Jade Vial and placed inside a replica Qiankun Bag.

“Phew~!”

Sun Wukong let out a long breath, and Zhao Gongming finally relaxed completely, opening his eyes, his body drenched in sweat, but his face was filled with irrepressible joy.

“Congratulations, Daoist Zhao. From today on, you will no longer be restrained by the Investiture of the Gods. You are a free man now!”

Sun Wukong smiled and congratulated Zhao Gongming.

“This is all thanks to Great Saint! Please, accept my bow,” Zhao Gongming said.

Zhao Gongming knelt on one knee and gave Sun Wukong a grand kowtow of thanks. Sun Wukong, smiling, accepted his salute, then helped him up.

“Alright, no need for excess formalities. This is what Old Sun promised to help you with, naturally, it had to be done.”

After sizing up Zhao Gongming with his Void-Breaking Starry Eyes, Sun Wukong said, “Daoist Zhao, though you’ve broken free from the constraints of the Investiture of the Gods, this body was granted by the Investiture of the Gods. It’s best to find a new body soon.”

Unlike ordinary Immortals, Zhao Gongming’s physical body is a Divine Body condensed by the Investiture of the Gods. Although he has freed himself from the constraints of the Investiture of the Gods, if he comes near the Investiture of the Gods, this body will still be influenced. However, considering Zhao Gongming had long intended to free himself from the Investiture of the Gods, he must have considered this aspect already.

Indeed, Zhao Gongming nodded and said, “Great Saint is right. I have already prepared a new body that completely matches my Divine Soul, ready for possession. I just need to meditate and cultivate for a while, and I can condense an Immortal Body.”

“That is very good! Then Old Sun won’t keep you any longer. Hurry back to possess it, lest the night brings more dreams!”

Zhao Gongming left the Guardian Marshal’s Mansion and flew towards his Treasury Mansion. Sun Wukong checked the time; three days had already passed, and in about one or two more hours, it would be time to go to the Ascend to Heaven Platform. After resting a bit, he would be about ready to head to the Martial Arts Field.

“Crack!”

“Crack crack!”

In the Jade Emperor’s sleeping chamber behind Lingxia Palace, the sound of teaware shattering continuously resounded as the Jade Emperor, his face twisted ferociously, violently smashed one teacup after another to the ground, growling, “Who? Who is it? I will drag you out, strike you with thunder, never to reincarnate!”

Having detected someone absorbing Zhao Gongming’s Lifebound Imprint fragments, the Jade Emperor had activated the Investiture of the Gods to obstruct, yet still hadn’t managed to stop it! The Investiture of the Gods’ force in pulling the Lifebound Imprint fragments didn’t stand up to the opponent’s, and he watched in helpless rage as Zhao Gongming’s last traces of Lifebound Imprint fragments broke through the void and disappeared. The Jade Emperor was nearly exploding with anger.

This was bluntly a slap to his face, a provocation, a challenge to him!

Who could be so bold as to provoke him like this? Could it be that Demon Monkey, Sun Wukong?

No, it shouldn’t be. That Demon Monkey merely has formidable combat power; he shouldn’t have such capability. Moreover, Sun Wukong only entered the Investiture of the Gods during contests; he had no opportunity to retrieve Zhao Gongming’s lifebound divinity. Even if he wanted to, the lifebound divinity was in a separate special space; how could he possibly enter there?@@novelbin@@

The Jade Emperor didn’t realize that Sun Wukong had used his Cloning Divine Powers to sneak out a clone during his battle with Real Man of Jade Cauldron, nor did he know about Sun Wukong’s Void-Breaking Divine Eye which, in its fourth phase, could see the nodes between spaces and the situations in other spaces. Thus, just with a fleeting thought, he excluded Sun Wukong from suspicion.

If not Sun Wukong, then who could it be?

After pondering for a long time, the Jade Emperor could not figure out who was so bold as to forcibly extract fragments of the lifebound Dharma medallions of the God of Wealth, Zhao Gongming. Could it have been Zhao Gongming himself? Did he want to escape the restrictions of the Investiture of the Gods, so he devised ways to extract his own lifebound Dharma medallion fragments?

That must be it, certainly!

The Jade Emperor’s face revealed anger; he knew it. In the Heavenly Court competition that occurred once every thousand years, Zhao Gongming had never registered to participate, but this time, he had. Moreover, he willingly gave up his qualification to ascend to the Ascend to Heaven Platform to Nezha, indicating that his actual purpose was not to ascend, but rather to reclaim all fragments of his lifebound Dharma medallion and thereby regain his freedom!

Such a deceitful bastard!

A surge of anger rose from within the Jade Emperor, and he was about to order the arrest of the God of Wealth, Zhao Gongming. However, as he began to raise his hand, he held back, considering a valid reason was needed for the arrest. What reason could he possibly use to arrest Zhao Gongming?

Zhao Gongming was no ordinary Divine General. His cultivation had reached the brink of the Quasi-Saint Realm, just a step away from becoming a Quasi-Saint. Moreover, now that the restrictions of the Investiture of the Gods on him had dissipated, it was possible that Zhao Gongming had already reclaimed a physical body and thus no longer belonged to the deities but had become an Immortal beyond the control of the Heavenly Court. To order his arrest without a valid cause could not only provoke opposition from Zhao Gongming but possibly also resentment from other Immortals and Gods.

Upon thinking it through, the Jade Emperor hesitated. Immortals were different from deities. The Jade Emperor had the power of life and death over deities, but only the power to call upon Immortals. Now that Zhao Gongming had escaped the domain of deities and become an Immortal, the Jade Emperor no longer had any authority over him. It would be inappropriate to treat Zhao Gongming as a deity now.

“Forget it, let’s investigate slowly when the opportunity arises!”

After much consideration, feeling that all options were inappropriate, the Jade Emperor shook his head, dismissing the thought of arresting Zhao Gongming. He still summoned his personal guard to secretly observe Zhao Gongming’s movements and find out who was aiding him.

…

Finally, the time had come for the opening of the Ascend to Heaven Platform. The Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother stood on the platform of the Martial Arts Field, facing each other. Each formed several Dharma seals with their hands, fusing them in the space between them.

Swish!

A pillar of light shot out from the fused Dharma seals, soaring into the sky, above which a mirror-like surface appeared over the Ninth Layer of Heaven, revealing a massive platform within. The platform had nine layers, with the largest one at the bottom and the layers above it decreasing in a circular fashion. The topmost layer seemed to span only about sixty feet.

“So, the Ascend to Heaven Platform is hidden within a parallel space in the Ninth Layer of Heaven. No wonder I had never even heard of it in my previous life!”

Sun Wukong inwardly sighed, realizing how troublesome it was to open the parallel space of the Ascend to Heaven Platform — it required the combined efforts of the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother!

Observing the sweat forming on the foreheads of the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother, even the opening of the Ascend to Heaven Platform took a substantial toll on them. A flash of golden light passed through Sun Wukong’s eyes; his pupils now revealed concentric circles and starry sparks as he quietly activated his Void-Breaking Starry Eyes, looking towards the space where the Ascend to Heaven Platform was located. He wanted to locate and memorize the spatial nodes of the parallel space in case the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother closed the parallel space maliciously, allowing him to use the Void-Breaking Starry Eyes to open a passageway and return.

Hum~!

The spatial power finally stabilized, and the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother both let out a long breath, withdrawing their techniques. The mirror-like space in the sky stabilized, looking exactly like a celestial pavilion.

“The Ascend to Heaven Platform is now open. Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong, Erlang God Yang Jian, Guardian Marshal Nezha the Third Prince, quickly enter. You must return within a month, otherwise, the entrance will close, and those who stay on the Ascend to Heaven Platform will be subject to Heavenly Punishment!”

After regaining his breath, the Jade Emperor looked towards Sun Wukong and the others and announced in a stern voice.

“Heavenly Punishment if you remain? What kind of Heavenly Punishment?”

After muttering to himself, Sun Wukong glanced at Nezha and Erlang God, then soared into the air towards the watery mirror, followed closely by Erlang God Yang Jian and Nezha, all three entering the parallel space of the Ascend to Heaven Platform.

“Is this the Ascend to Heaven Platform? Such a dense aura of Immortal Spirit Qi, truly living up to its reputation!”

The moment he stepped onto the Ascend to Heaven Platform, Sun Wukong’s eyes brightened. This was only the first layer of the platform, yet the intensity of the Immortal Spirit Qi was already comparable to the fourth level of the Heaven-Piercing Tower at Flower-Fruit Mountain Water Curtain Cave. Clearly, the Ascend to Heaven Platform was the Heavenly Court’s Heaven-Piercing Tower, though much more advanced in its development compared to that of Flower-Fruit Mountain.

Lifting his leg, Sun Wukong stepped onto the staircase; Yang Jian and Nezha’s faces changed abruptly, and they were about to speak out in warning when Sun Wukong had already stepped onto the step. Instantly, the winds and thunders rose from the ground around them, and a bolt of lightning suddenly appeared, striking directly above Sun Wukong’s head.

Boom!

Caught off guard by the lightning strike, even with Sun Wukong’s cultivation strength and the resilience of his physical body, he was left grimacing, his hair standing on end!

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