Journey to the West: Starting with the Hunting of the Three Demons of Twin Fork Ridge

Chapter 134 Wuji Kingdom: Five Platforms Discussing Strategic Plans

Meanwhile, Manjushri received the Buddha's decree and rode a cloud back to the Wutai Mountain Buddhist temple. His disciple Jinzha led a group of monks to greet him at the mountain gate. Upon seeing Manjushri, they all bowed and paid their respects.

Jin Zha stepped forward and announced loudly, "The teacher is back."

Manjushri nodded, stepped into the hall, sat cross-legged on the lotus platform, and then took out the Mirror of Equality bestowed by the Tathagata, placed it on the table, and began to examine it.

The mirror was no bigger than the palm of my hand, with Sanskrit inscribed on the back. It shone with a restrained spiritual light and a subtle, auspicious aura, with a radiant glow flowing across it. It was truly extraordinary and miraculous.

Jinzha stood respectfully to the side, his hands at his sides. Seeing Manjushri's solemn expression, he knew something important must have happened, and couldn't help but ask, "Master, you look so grave on your return from Mount Ling. Has something serious occurred?"

Manjushri sighed and recounted the whole story.

After listening, Jinzha pondered for a moment and said, "Master, I have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it. I hope you will forgive me."

Manjushri raised his eyes and said, "Speak freely."

Jinzha bowed and said, "That Plasma's cultivation is unfathomable. He was able to kill Silver-Headed Jiedi and defeat Tiger-Taming Arhat. He even defeated my younger brother Muzha before. He has great supernatural powers and strange methods. He is far beyond the reach of ordinary rogue immortals and demons."

"Although Master possesses a treasure bestowed by Buddha himself, if we were to confront him head-on, even if we could win, it would be difficult to ensure a complete victory. In my opinion, it would be better to seek a clever plan and outwit him."

Manjushri said, "What is your plan? Tell me in detail."

Jin Zha said, "My disciple suggests that we use the Green Lion Spirit of Wuji Kingdom. That Green Lion was originally Master's mount, and it has been impersonating the king of Wuji Kingdom for three years now, commanding all the civil and military officials and thousands of soldiers, and holding the power of a mortal king. I think we should use mortal troops to capture that Plasma Spirit with mortal means, avoiding a direct confrontation."

Upon hearing this, Manjushri shook his head and said, "How can mortals capture immortals? It's all in vain."

Jinzha, however, was confident and laughed, "Teacher, have you forgotten what happened back then? You disguised yourself as a mortal monk and enlightened the King of Wuji Kingdom, but the king was ungrateful and pushed you into the water to soak for three days. Weren't you also captured by mortal methods?"

Manjushri said, "There are principles of the mortal world. At that time, I was a lay monk, so naturally I had to follow those principles. If I had acted on my own and attacked ordinary people without permission, wouldn't I have incurred many sins?"

Jin Zha said, "That's exactly the point. If even the Master can't attack mortals, how can Plasma? In my opinion, if he wants to interfere in Wuji Kingdom, he will definitely do so in his mortal form. That would be a perfect opportunity for us to take him down."

"Why not issue a decree, allowing the Green Lion Spirit to send his soldiers to search the entire city in the name of the King of Wuji Kingdom? If they encounter the Plasma, they should be arrested immediately. He can't attack ordinary soldiers, so he'll either have to run away or surrender."

"But knowing his temperament, even if he runs away, he will definitely come back, and there will always be a time when we catch him."

Upon hearing this, Manjushri nodded first, then shook his head, saying, "This plan is good, but it has a flaw. The Green Lion has been king in the mortal world for three years and has been influenced by worldly affairs. I'm afraid he will become greedy for royal power and wealth and his nature will change drastically. If we only send a verbal order, I'm afraid he will outwardly comply but inwardly disobey and will not do his best to carry out the task, which will delay the important matter."

Jinzha nodded in agreement, saying, "Teacher's thoughts are thorough and his words are absolutely right. If we rely solely on the Green Lion Spirit, this matter will indeed be difficult to be entirely successful, and we need to devise another plan."

Manjushri said, "Since you have a brilliant plan, you might as well speak frankly."

Jin Zha said, "I've heard that the Queen and Crown Prince of the King of Wuji Kingdom are still alive, so perhaps..."

Manjushri asked, "Do you mean we should transform into the appearance of a queen and a prince?"

Jin Zha said, "That's right. What I mean is that you will become the Queen and I will become the Crown Prince, taking over the roles of the two of us to manage the inner palace and the court. With the addition of the Green Lion, the power of the entire Wuji Kingdom will be in our hands, and our orders will be easy to carry out."

Manjushri asked, "If you and I were to transform into two different people, what would become of the true Queen and the Crown Prince?"

Jin Zha said, "That's easy. We'll teach them to fake their deaths. We'll hide their bodies and send their souls to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, where they'll be temporarily kept in the netherworld for a while. Once we've captured Plasma and settled the affairs of Wuji Kingdom, we can send their souls back to their bodies and bring them back to life."

Manjushri frowned slightly and hesitated, saying, "That's true, but how can we make his physical body rest and his primordial spirit leave his body? If we really take his life, that would be a real act of killing, which would harm our cultivation."

Jin Zha said, "What are you thinking, Master! I've heard that the Heavenly Venerable Taiyi Jiuku has a treasure called the Dividing Spirit Jade Disc. As long as you inject your magic power into it, it can make a person's primordial spirit leave their body, and the physical body enter a state of dormancy and apparent death. Then, you can use the Youth-Preserving Pill to fix the physical body and prevent it from decaying. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Manjushri was delighted upon hearing this and said, "Excellent! Excellent! But I'm afraid I won't be able to refine the Youth-Preserving Pill anytime soon."

Jin Zha said, "Teacher, there is no need to worry. Your disciple has already made thorough plans."

Manjushri said, "Tell me in detail."

Jin Zha said, "The body of the true king of Wuji Kingdom is still in the octagonal glazed well in the imperial garden. The dragon king of the well, grateful for the kindness of Buddhism, has long protected the body with the Youth Preservation Pill, so that its appearance remains unchanged and its flesh does not decay."

"We only need to go to the Dragon King of the Well, explain the situation, borrow a few Youth-Preserving Pills from him, and then place the seemingly dead Queen and Prince in the well. That will ensure everything goes smoothly."

Manjushri then asked, "What about the old king? The matter of the old king's return to life has already been arranged. When the time comes, Sun Wukong will surely go into the well to retrieve the corpse, but what if he stumbles upon the queen and prince's bodies?"

Jinzha said, "We'll proceed after that monkey has finished his business. As for the trouble in Wuji Kingdom, we can stop Tang Sanzang for a while, capture the plasma, and then push the green lion away. That would be the best of both worlds."

Upon hearing this, Manjushri nodded repeatedly: "Excellent! Excellent! This plan is thorough and interconnected. It avoids creating karma by killing, captures Plasma without harming the important mission of the journey to the West, and achieves three goals with one move. We will proceed according to your plan."

Jinzha immediately volunteered: "There's no time to lose. Master, you can go to the Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun to borrow the Divine Transformation Jade Tablet. I'll rush to the Well Dragon King of Wuji Kingdom right away, explain the situation, and borrow the Youth-Preserving Pill first. Let's split up and get it done quickly."

Manjushri repeatedly praised him, stood up and said, "Good, good, good. You are reliable. I trust you with this matter. I will go to the Heavenly Venerable to borrow the treasure now. You go to Wuji Kingdom to make arrangements and make sure nothing gets out."

The two immediately agreed to set off and act according to the plan.

This is exactly:

A single spirit returns to its seat, and all the Arhats in the hall gaze intently. Anger, if not severed, becomes enmity, and through countless reincarnations, the cycle continues.

A new Buddhist decree has been issued for the Lotus Realm, and Zen wisdom subtly guides the mortal world. Discussing strategies atop the golden lotus throne, let us witness the clouds and mountains emerging from their peaks.

We don't know what will happen next, so please stay tuned for the next installment.