The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

The carriage was built of dark iron and adorned with sparkling jewels and gems. Its interior was spacious, and light shimmered from within like it was daytime.

But there was nothing but emptiness and silence inside the luxurious carriage that had endured for thousands of years. Contrary to their earlier beliefs, no immortal had seemed to escape the Immortal Realm via the carriage from the route of the Celestial River.

With no time to wait, Meng Qi noticed the mane of the Celestial Horses rustling and fractions of minute movements as they began to stir.

An idea came to him. He invoked the thunderbolt mark on the back of his hand and mimicked the aura of the ancient Thunder God. Propelling himself through the currents of the pond, he threw himself at the carriage and shouted at his companions via telepathy:

“Into the carriage!”

His instruction to his friends proved unneeded as they had already guessed his plans. The Celestial Horses seemed to hold special abilities that would allow them to travel at high speeds despite not being of the Dharmakaya realm. With a kick of their hooves, the horses would deliver them so far away that not even Snake Dang could keep up!

Meng Qi led the way, summoning a doppelganger which leaped before them to test for traps or barriers in the carriage. Jiang Zhiwei remained as a rearguard, holding the Oceanic Dominion Pearl in her hands tensely.

There would be no need for her to venture any risky maneuvers if their plan could work!

Still, Snake Dang was already a zombie, and the Oceanic Dominion Pearl’s actual function was to confound its Vital Spirit, cripple its physical body, and steady the current of flow. They could not finish off the monster even after severely destroying its body.

Meng Qi’s doppelganger entered safely into the carriage, indicating the absence of any magical traps or barriers. With his mind at ease, Meng Qi leaped into the carriage with Ruan Yushu, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng close behind. Jiang Zhiwei stepping within after them.

Suddenly, they felt the cold and deathly presence of their nemesis closing in. The head of the gigantic snake peered through the surface of the pond with its blood-shot eyes. With the silhouettes of the white-haired zombie and Luo Shengyi still within, the eyes scanned warily in fear of Meng Qi’s “I, the Unique and Righteous” technique!

The massive presence of a force so close to the Half-step from the Dharmakaya realm sent a chill down their spines, freezing the blood in their veins and their Vital Spirits. More so for the spit of venom that could spew forth anytime and consume everything at the bottom of the pond. Still, the Celestial Horses had yet to buck. They leaped despite stirring from their slumber of millennia!

Jiang Zhiwei stood bravely at the edge of the carriage. She wore a cold, defiant glare without fear and anxiousness in her eyes. In her hands, she readied herself with the Oceanic Dominion Pearl currently blushed with a faint colored glow. She was prepared to use it at a moment’s notice.

Having experienced its lesson from Meng Qi’s Secret Treasures, the giant snake cowered reluctantly at the sight of the Oceanic Dominion Pearl. Still, it slunk and withdrew slowly with apparent unwillingness as if it could, at any time, hurl itself forward and snatch its prize even at the cost of its body!

Meng Qi calmed himself. The motion of the saber he held became sluggish and slow. His stare grew dark and distant as ethereal and gossamer threads became visible to him.

The stroke of utter destruction—the Fruits of Karma technique!

Meng Qi looked once more at the massive figure of Snake Dang. It was unlike before. There were not many threads of Karma that spread out from it, and most of them were slowly fading due to its death. There was one which caught his eyes from amongst the remaining threads which numbered at below ten. A diaphanous strand which was thick and robust, sparkling amidst the shade of gloom. That single most distinct thread stretched far into an unknown distance.

Snake Dang instead felt a chilling dread as Meng Qi’s eerie stare rested on him. Between Meng Qi’s icy stare and its fear of the Oceanic Dominion Pearl, it could not help jerking its head back momentarily.

Noticing her chance, Jiang Zhiwei drew the shutters with her foot. The doors of the carriage closed with a slam.

The Celestial Horses came to life, springing into fluid motions that continued from the events that have transpired tens of thousands of years ago. With no hesitation and doubt, the horses kicked and leaped into the Celestial River. The carriage shone with a shroud of bright green as it drew through the currents of the heavenly river, tightly shut by the enchantments that came into effect on its own.

The heavenly steeds threw their heads back and neighed loudly, trampling through the rapids of the Celestial River.

Their bodies turned translucent suddenly as if they were entering a mysterious and magical channel!

Meng Qi finally heaved a massive breath of relief. He could feel the dangers and hidden secrets that lay behind the distinctly thick thread of karma belonging to Snake Dang. It would be nothing short of suicide if he were to use the Fruits of Karma technique on the monster and inherit the burden of Karma. It would have overwhelmed him instantly. Warding off the gigantic serpent was the best possible outcome.

He looked around the interior of the carriage. A question came to him finally: was the carriage prepared by Zhu Bajie for his escape, or was it by someone else who had left already?

If it were the former, Zhu Bajie himself would have been able to escape with higher speeds than using Celestial Horses, considering that his body still stood even after thousands of years of enduring the scorching heat of the Grand Sun. If it was the latter, when had the Immortal left? Was it during the fall of the Celestial Court, after the fall, or did he go sometime during Meng Qi’s company’s arrival?

The giant snakehead ventured another look from the surface of the pond and saw only the ripples of currents of the Celestial River.

The monster serpent hissed and emitted a deafening roar of anger that shook even the stars in the Heavens. But all was lost for it!

…

Four Celestial Horses drew the golden carriage across the belt of the Milky Way, flickering in and out of view as the heavenly steeds galloped upon the currents of the Celestial River with high speed.

On a planet covered with oceans and continents with rich flora and fauna, there stood more than a dozen men in front of a pile of ancient ruins, clad in strange clothing.

The leader of the group pointed to the ruins and said, “This is the altar of sacrifice built by the tribes of old to pray and offer sacrifices to the gods in return for their blessings and protection. There have been records in the ancient manuscripts about the coming of Immortals and Deities. With the manuscripts, we can restore the ancient civilization, practices, beliefs, and relationships between other tribes.”

There were several amongst the group who took down notes vigorously. Some studied the ancient altar curiously and some, in their peculiar headgears with strange decorative patterns, looked up into the blue sky while they visualized the lives of the ancient tribes.

All of a sudden, one of the men looking into the sky uttered incomprehensible gibberish that caught the surprise of the others. But they had barely been able to react when they saw a streak of light tearing across the sky with tails of flames behind it. It moved not with the speed and intensity of a comet, but calm and composed as if it was revolving around the planet.

“The engravings of the ancient bird on the altar is the emblem of this ancient tribe, slowly through time it became…” The lecturer saw his students staring blankly into the sky and felt it strange. He was suddenly bathed in light from behind as if something was descending into their midst.

He turned without thinking and looked at the altar, only to see four handsome horses with flowing manes drawing a majestic carriage of gold, galloping gracefully upon a belt of light and coming to a stop upon the altar.

“T-This…” Nobody uttered a word. It was like a bizarre dream.

The Celestial Horses took a brief respite before they gave a loud triumphant cry. They conjured a magical formation and leaped into the air once more, the divine convoy fading from sight and disappeared into the air.

Night came swiftly and the stars returned into the fold of darkness. The streak of light continued its journey across the stars, flickering continuously.

On another planet filled with nothing but the sands were minarets and turrets that pointed into the sky.

Several men dressed in the costumes of priests stood at the top of a tower, looking into the beautiful but bleak view of the desert.

“Another sacrificial ceremony tomorrow.” One of the priests said poignantly.

Another remarked with a laugh. “It is just for show. There is no need for anxiousness.”

The words had barely left their lips when their gazes fixated upon a meteor falling from the sky. It drew closer to them, getting larger and larger as it came, and they saw that it was no meteor, but a divine-looking carriage of gold drawn by proud horses of the heavens that rode imperiously across the sky.

The horse-drawn carriage came to a stop briefly on the top of the tower for a brief respite before the priests, who were staring with gaped-mouth astonishment, and ignored their presence.

After their rest, the heavenly steeds leapt in unison and set off with a brilliant glow that engulfed the entire pinnacle of the tower as well as the horses themselves.

The carriage once again took to the sky, galloping away with high speeds, leaving the priests awe-struck and stunned with silence in their wake.

…

The carriage continued its voyage through the dark pool of stars in the sky, making brief stops at intervals. After a time, the Celestial Horses suddenly climbed higher and hit a vortex.

The carriage came to its final stop. Meng Qi and his companions projected their senses outwards to make sure that they were safe before they even thought of stepping outside.

Just then, the voice of Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms reverberated once more.

“Successful withdrawal from battle; the assigned task is complete and a success. You may now return, or you may elect to stay for another hour. During the hour, you may select to return immediately regardless of if you are caught in battle or not.”

With the assuring words of the Dominator, Meng Qi survey their surroundings, feeling only the fresh scent in the air and the deep blue sky above them. There was an inexplicable familiarity that hinted that they might have returned to the World of the Journey to the West!

Not far away from where they were standing, they saw an old and decrepit ranch. There were no signs of life, save for the pungent stench waft drifting from the insides of the farm.

Meng Qi returned his gaze to the Celestial Horses and temporarily ignored the smell. Ruan Yushu looked at the steeds too with interest.

“These horses are precious ‘assets’ that can travel through the skies!”

The thought had barely registered, and suddenly he could hear the long whinny of the horses. A sudden, strong gale of wind blew and whisked them off into the air, keeping him and his companions away. The horses then rode through the wind and out of sight into the skies.

“These horses have sharp perception…” Meng Qi pursed his lips with faint disappointment. When they had first escaped, he was already thinking of ways to transport the horses back to the Realm of Reality!

Jiang Zhiwei smiled. With the effects of her technique diminishing, her aura turned extremely weak like Meng Qi. She turned to look at the ranch nearby, noticing the infestation of vines and creepers that have “drenched” the buildings into a shade of verdant green.

From the gaps between the vines, she made out a few words which she read out loud:

“The Gao… Vintage… Ranch…”

“The Gao Vintage Ranch?” Meng Qi could not believe his ears. “The destination of the carriage is the Gao Vintage Ranch?”

“It is true then, that the carriage is related to Zhu Bajie!”

“Let’s go in and have a look,” Meng Qi said with a heavy breath, dragging his weary self forward.

This time, Ruan Yushu, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng took the front and covered the rear, showing no doubt to Meng Qi’s suggestion to venture a look into the abandoned ranch. They hoped to gather as many items as possible to exchange for additional Karma Points.

They tore through the luxuriant vegetation of creepers and went through the main gate of the forsaken ranch, which broke into pieces after a mere push.

They searched the rooms and chambers but found nothing of use. Some of the items left, due to the ravages of time, reduced down to mucks of slimy sludge.

They ventured further and reached at the center of the ranch, finding a small chamber that seemed to be a study or a room used by the owner of the farm.

“Let’s search the study first. There might be manuscripts or books containing skills or techniques.” Meng Qi suggested.

Unbeknownst to his companions, Meng Qi knew that the Gao Vintage Ranch was the residence of Zhu Bajie’s in-laws. There could honestly be items of high value hidden here!

“All right.” Ruan Yushu was interested in the music of the World of the Journey to the West. She also wanted to examine the study herself even if there were no books on martial disciplines contained within. Tailing close behind Zhao Heng, she stepped carefully into the study with Meng Qi beside her as they began to climb to the second floor.

Moving carefully and with light steps with consideration for the old and frail planks of the floor. Stepping with any force more significant than they currently moved could break the planks into pieces.

A more profound observation would yield that the second floor was full of books. Nothing but the yellow shade of papers and parchments filled their sight.

Meng Qi’s eyes swept around and his gaze caught something. On the desk beside a window was a simple and old book with a cover in dark blue.

The companions searched around separately for anything useful. Meng Qi stepped to the table and picked up the book. Upon its cover were three words written in ancient runic seal script,

“The Tao Te Ching (the Scripture of Virtue)!”

“Enlightenment, if explained, would never be universal and eternal as it ought to be…” Meng Qi recited a phrase he saw as he riffled through the page. It was an ancient manuscript of archaic origins, not dissimilar to the “Tao Te Ching” that could be found circulating in the actual world they came from.

Suddenly, Zhao Heng heaved a dejected sigh. “These books are so old that they crumble to dust even at the gentlest touch. We have to use our genuine Qi to secure the books and lift them carefully. I have yet to see anything worth keeping here.”

“These books are so old…” Meng Qi murmured as he returned his gaze on the Tao Te Ching in his hand. There was something peculiar about it despite its common and relatively newer appearance.

Confused and bewildered, he beckoned his friends and got them to examine the book. But no one found anything extraordinary with it.

“An ordinary book…” After thinking about it, Meng Qi decided to keep the book for future examination. There was still room in his Space Ring anyway.

After much searching and delving for an hour, they found nothing of value. The footprints and traces left in the deserted ranch suggested scores of monsters have frequented the area. It will be unsurprising if they have already ransacked and plundered all that they could!

The voice of the Dominator of Six Samsara Realms echoed, signifying it was time to return,

“The main task has been completed. Each person shall receive the reward of 3,500 Karma Points.”

“Return.”

Pillars of light fall from the sky, returning the group to the Samsara Square with their injuries healed. Meng Qi felt all weariness and fatigue leaving him.

Just then, the hollow voice of Dominator of Samsara in the Six Realms rumbled again:

“The Samsara deepens as you cast off your immaturity and inexperience. The next task is a Death Task that will take place in a year. Be prepared.”

“For this mission, you will be forbidden from using your Secret Treasures and other artifacts. You will rely only on your skills, weapons, raiments, and other protective gears as well as only one healing elixir.”