The origins of Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Listening Ear were quite interesting.
They were originally a pair of human brothers who, after their deaths, encountered two wisps of the world’s golden essence and water essence, transforming into demon immortals and joining the Severing Sect.
Thousand-Mile Eye was named Gao Jue, and Wind-Listening Ear was named Gao Ming. They were Severing Sect immortals who entered the God-Sealing Platform during the early stages of the Great God-Sealing Calamity.
These brothers didn’t possess any extraordinary abilities themselves, but they were clever and quick-witted, with the divine power of “Semi-Heaven-Born” detection. They also had commanding appearances that carried natural authority.
After Li Changshou left the Primordial World, Jiang Shang took charge of the God-Sealing. These two brothers were chosen as messengers running errands before the Crystal Palace. Empowered by the Heavenly Dao, they could instantly survey the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity.
Speaking of which, when that seven-colored divine light struck the Crystal Palace, all the immortals and deities discussing matters within were startled.
The Jade Emperor was already irritated and about to lose his temper when Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Listening Ear entered the hall to report promptly. They were then ordered to observe the source of the divine light and report their findings.
“Reporting to Your Majesty!”
Gao Jue announced steadily: “This humble official observed that the source of the divine light was a stone monkey. The location is Mount Huaguo in the Eastern Victory Divine Continent’s demon territory. This stone monkey seems to possess innate divine powers, and its emergence has disturbed the spiritual energy, alarming the Heavenly Court!”
“Stone monkey?”
The Jade Emperor fell silent for a moment as ripples of Heavenly Dao power appeared in the Crystal Palace.
Soon, the Jade Emperor spoke slowly:
“It’s merely a stone embryo born from the heaven-mending stone, perhaps blessed with power from the Human Race’s Holy Mother. My beloved officials continue with the discussion. There’s no need to concern ourselves with this matter.”
The assembled deities bowed their heads and responded, “We obey.”
Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Listening Ear retreated to guard outside the hall, standing magnificently alongside the Four Marshals of the Crystal Palace, who were formerly the Four Saints of the Nine Dragon Island.
The discussion in the Crystal Palace continued its rhythm, but the Jade Emperor’s mood had inexplicably improved.
It had been a long time since this Heaven Emperor had shown a smile, but today he smiled several times.
At Spirit Platform Square Inch Mountain, Li Changshou calculated with his fingers and quickly determined through the Heavenly Dao that the stone monkey’s emergence in the East Sea had indeed disturbed the Heavenly Court.
After some hesitation, he still rode the clouds toward the East Sea to secretly observe the Heavenly Court’s reaction.
As the monkey’s master was personally appointed by the Dao Ancestor, these actions were all “part of his duties.”
Half a day later, at nightfall, Li Changshou finally saw the stone monkey with his own eyes.
It was curled up in a crevice in the mountain forest, its light golden monkey fur covered in mud, with a makeshift covering of leaves around its waist for modesty.
One shouldn’t underestimate this modest covering—it was what distinguished a Heaven and Earth Spirit Embryo from ordinary creatures.
In the stone monkey’s eyes, Li Changshou saw a hint of confusion, a touch of panic, and even more so, a kind of yearning and curiosity.
As the night deepened, the stone monkey touched its empty belly, went out to find some leaves and grass, chewed them briefly, then discovered several peach trees and climbed up to feast heartily.
Afterward, the stone monkey rather cautiously returned to its previous mountain crevice, curling up quietly there to spend its first night since coming into existence.
Dark clouds drifted in from the East Sea, bringing wind and rain to Mount Huaguo.
The stone monkey stared blankly at the darkened mountainside, listening to the sound of rain and wind. Li Changshou didn’t know what it could see or what it could feel at that moment.
But surely, it must have felt the loneliness of living beings.
The stone monkey yawned, its eyelids fluttering continuously until it finally fell asleep.
Li Changshou landed on the mountainside, sat cross-legged, concealed his aura and form until nearly transparent, and kept watch through the night with a thoughtful expression.
With the protection of the Heavenly Dao, Li Changshou wasn’t worried about the stone monkey’s safety.
But for some reason, he wanted to stay close to this monkey, quietly accompanying it through this most difficult night.
The next morning, as Li Changshou prepared to quietly leave, many insights arose in his heart.
These insights weren’t about the Great Dao or divine powers, but about life itself.
Living beings are born lonely and thus yearn for companionship.
Lonely in this lightless night, perhaps the stone monkey’s heart would therefore long for light, chase after light.
Because the night is so deep, one believes more strongly that light lies ahead on the path.
Many feelings welled up in Li Changshou’s heart. For some reason, he thought of those difficult days before his death in his previous life.
When his illness worsened for the second time, he hid it from his family, only letting his best friend accompany him through his final journey, leaving behind farewell videos expressing his gratitude, thanks, and remorse to his loved ones.
Enduring the pain while sitting in his wheelchair, looking up at the yellowing leaves of a phoenix tree, Li Changshou had questioned and felt lost, wondering what his life meant, ending prematurely in middle age.
But questioning and doubt couldn’t change anything—the endpoint of life was complete darkness.
Li Changshou had asked himself this question more than once—[Was the self that awakened in the Primordial World still the self from his previous life?]
He had found the answer:
Yes.
This wasn’t simply the grafting of memories, nor the reincarnation of a soul, nor transmigration after drinking Lady Meng’s soup of forgetfulness.
Put simply, the true spirit of the individual entity known as Li Changshou had passed through a space-time crevice and been drawn into the Six Realms of Reincarnation system of the Primordial World.
The River of True Spirits doesn’t only flow through the Chaos Sea and the Primordial World—it flows through all realms of form, projecting countless living beings.
The Chaos Sea isn’t the only realm of form.
If he could find that space-time crevice, he might be able to return to Earth.
[The truth of his transmigration was an extremely minute event—a true spirit retaining the consciousness of its previous projected being.]
When Li Changshou comprehended this point, his Dao realm advanced rapidly.
Previously in the Purple Void Palace, Li Changshou had debated this matter with the Dao Ancestor, deliberately giving the answer the Dao Ancestor wanted to hear, letting him mistakenly believe that Li Changshou thought Senior Liang had brought him to the Primordial World.
Senior Liang couldn’t achieve this at all, nor could the Dao Ancestor.
It was pure chance.
Senior Liang had seen Li Changshou in the Primordial World’s future through calculating the Heavenly Dao and instead thought it was the Dao Ancestor and Heavenly Dao’s doing, bringing Li Changshou over as a supplement to their [Primordial World Residents’ Committee]’s unfinished plan.
After all, whether the Dao Ancestor Hongjun or Senior Liang, they were each only reasoning about this question from their perspectives.
Li Changshou had taken a different approach, delving into the characteristics of true spirits and how they interact with the Dao, fundamentally proving his method of transmigration.
The unfinished plan of the [Primordial World Residents’ Committee] was the truth behind Senior Liang’s final desperate struggle. Li Changshou currently lacked sufficient evidence and couldn’t be completely certain.
But from this perspective, Li Changshou and the stone monkey were kindred spirits.
When Li Changshou looked at the stone monkey, it was as if he saw that male infant who had just awakened to memories of his previous life, curled up trembling in his parents’ tent.
Fear of the unknown;
Yearning for the outside world;
Excitement at gaining life;
That pathetic yet laughable sense of loneliness…
“Never mind.”
Li Changshou sighed softly.
At this moment, he decided to teach this stone monkey well, without imposing any mission upon it, without deliberately binding the stone monkey to the anti-heaven chariot.
For opposing heaven, he alone was enough.
Before leaving, Li Changshou saw a group of monkeys passing by the mountain crevice where the stone monkey was, and a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.
His master should be safe and sound in reincarnation.
Although comparing his master to monkeys was somewhat inappropriate, weren’t these monkeys who would take in the stone monkey just like the master who had taken him in years ago?
At this thought, Li Changshou’s brows furrowed slightly.
But he didn’t do anything more, nor did his cloud pause as his form remained hidden among the white clouds.
He wouldn’t impose a mission or add destiny to the stone monkey, but the Heavenly Dao intended to use the stone monkey to scheme against the demon race and greatly promote Buddhism. The stone monkey was even nurtured by Heaven and Earth specifically for this destiny.
Whether this boundary could be broken would depend on the stone monkey’s future choices.
Li Changshou didn’t mind sacrificing some odds of victory for this monkey by confronting the Dao Ancestor early.
It all depended on how the Dao Ancestor would choose.
After returning to Spirit Platform Square Inch Mountain, Li Changshou kept himself busy.
He had previously accepted some disciples from the Middle Divine Continent, and during this trip to Mount Huaguo, he also recruited a batch of minor demons along the way, bringing them back to his temple for training as disciples.
After all, they were disciples of “Master Puti”—what did that have to do with “the exile” Li Changshou?
Taking in some demons was actually meant to help the monkey adapt to the teaching atmosphere at Spirit Platform Square Inch Mountain, preventing any feelings of inferiority and giving him some companions during his cultivation here.
From last night’s details, one could judge that this stone monkey had very delicate sensibilities.
Thus, Li Changshou gathered twenty-seven young disciples, with previously enlightened boy and girl attendants responsible for their daily needs, and began small-group teaching and Dao instruction in the Three-Star Cave.
Li Changshou treated each disciple equally—considering them all his registered disciples.
He also had strict requirements for each disciple’s character—to prevent them from causing trouble that might implicate him as their master.
While teaching these disciples, Li Changshou thought of the pleasant years he spent nurturing Ling’e.
Of course, he didn’t feel particularly nostalgic, as Ling’e was still by his side, and he still regularly made time to keep her company.
Li Changshou just felt that he had done quite well teaching Ling’e back then, and she was indeed a qualified disciple of their stable teaching method.
Thus springs came and autumns went, with mountain dwellers unaware of the seasons’ passing, and more than sixty years elapsed.
This batch of Li Changshou’s registered disciples had all grown up, with half having passed through the Flying Immortal Tribulation, gaining immortal bodies.
Under Li Changshou’s deliberate guidance, they didn’t concern themselves with backgrounds, treating all beings equally, helping both lost woodcutters in the mountains and wounded black bears shot by hunters.
As these disciples’ sphere of activity grew increasingly vast, the reputation of his “Three-Star Cave of Spirit Platform Square Inch Mountain” gradually spread.
Many qi practitioners came seeking his teachings but couldn’t find Square Inch Mountain’s location;
Some wandering old immortals wanted to meet Master Puti, but were simply turned away by his disciples with “Our master doesn’t see outside guests.”
To be safe, Li Changshou reduced his true body’s activities, focusing on playing the role of the virtual Puti well.
Alas, with two near-Dao companions by his side, here he was waiting for a monkey to come seeking teachings…
He couldn’t think about it—the more he thought, the more it brought tears to his eyes.
This day, as Li Changshou was taking an afternoon nap in the back hall, he suddenly sensed a trace of Dao rhythm spreading in his heart, and the Dao Ancestor’s voice appeared in his spirit platform.
“Puti, that stone embryo has left Mount Huaguo. Protect him secretly, don’t let others take him in.”
Li Changshou jumped up with a flip, made a Daoist salute to the air, and softly acknowledged.
Tying his Daoist robe and picking up his whisk, he hurriedly headed to the border between South Jambudvipa Continent and East Victory Divine Continent, secretly guarding the stone monkey who had ventured into the mortal world.
This fellow…
Just entered the human world, and was truly providing endless amusement.
The stone monkey left Mount Huaguo with only one purpose—to find an immortal master and seek the Great Dao of longevity.
Born extraordinary, the stone monkey had various innate divine powers, and conquering a monkey troupe with just a few demon monkeys was nothing to him.
For these sixty-plus years, the stone monkey had lived carefree and happily on Mount Huaguo, leading that large group of monkeys in playing all over the mountains.
Mount Huaguo was rich in resources, and demons had previously occupied it. Those demon monkeys quickly discovered some cave dwellings and found some weapons and treasures, not only having no worries about food and drink but directly achieving a “moderately prosperous demon” lifestyle.
Carefree and lively.
Perhaps because this stone monkey had too much spirit, the monkey troupe gained spiritual awareness within a few years, could speak human language and move with agility, and attracted more monkeys to join their “tribe.”
They drove away tigers and wolves, chased away jackals and leopards, brewed fine wine, and produced offspring.
The stone monkey was the strongest fighter and the most powerful. Many female monkeys had designs on them, but the stone monkey wasn’t an ordinary being and didn’t catch onto this thread at all.
When the stone monkey discovered the blessed land of the Water Curtain Cave on Mount Huaguo, the group of demon monkeys promptly made him their king.
The stone monkey called himself grandfather, and the demon monkeys became his monkey children and grandchildren.
In just a few decades, the Water Curtain Cave demon monkeys had effectively become the “overlords” of Mount Huaguo. Although they didn’t have many powerful fighters, the fact that all members had gained spiritual awareness made those demons secretly observing Mount Huaguo watch in trepidation.
The stone monkey didn’t know that when those ancient old demons looked at him, their eyes glowed green with envy!
After sixty years of carefree living, an old demon monkey’s lifespan ended, and he died of old age in the Water Curtain Cave, giving the stone monkey a direct experience of the power of “birth, aging, illness, and death.”
Living beings fear death and cling to life, and the stone monkey was the same, asking what death was.
A nearby macaque explained some profound principles, bringing up immortals and the way of longevity, telling the stone monkey that cultivating immortal methods could lead to eternal life.
The stone monkey suddenly understood, and only then set out westward to seek immortals and cultivate methods of longevity.
This stone monkey didn’t simply want eternal life for himself. Before leaving, he waved his hand grandly and said:
“When this great king returns, I will surely let my children learn immortal methods and gain eternal life!”
He dared to say it, and those monkeys truly dared to believe it.
By the way, that macaque must have been an incarnation of the Heavenly Dao.
Thus, the monkey ventured into the South Jambudvipa Continent, experiencing various aspects of mortal life under the watchful eye of the Heavenly Dao, Li Changshou’s protection, and mortals’ screams.
It was fortunate that the “monkey performance trade” had risen early in the mortal world, and the stone monkey himself was clever enough, otherwise, it would certainly have led to some tragedies.
The stone monkey tumbled through the mortal world, being despised and cursed at, yet maintained a smiling face, though it did affect his heart.
He also met many kind people who actively gave him food and clothing, and even let him stay in their homes.
But the stone monkey, disregarding both mockery and cursing, neither accepting pity nor charity, simply played in the mortal world, never letting the mundane world cloud his pure Dao heart.
He had played with chained little monkeys, picked up some gold, silver, and money, and eaten meat dishes in restaurants.
He had also taught lessons to disagreeable ruffians, driven away wild boars that were eating crops, and peeked through newlyweds’ windows with a group of youths.
He had even helped people drive away ghosts, fought some fake immortals, and demolished several dark temples…
Over ten years, from the east of the South Jambudvipa Continent to the northwest.
The stone monkey’s search for immortals in the mortal world was naturally a lonely one.
When he was secretly guided by the Heavenly Dao to near Square Inch Mountain and heard the name of Master Puti, his expression was already quite calm.
When the stone monkey gazed far toward Square Inch Mountain’s location and saw spiritual energy soaring to the heavens and immortal light surrounding it, his heart was startled, knowing he had found a true immortal’s dwelling.
So he ran wildly, darting through the mountains, leaping over streams, rushing through the mist, unconsciously losing his way, then coincidentally meeting that woodcutter, hearing those mysterious verses.
The stone monkey repeatedly bowed, begging the woodcutter to accept him as a disciple. The woodcutter naturally pointed the way through the clouds and mist, leading him to the Three-Star Cave.
Li Changshou sat quietly in the cave-dwelling, his immortal awareness seeing that monkey’s figure, and showed a slight smile.
Finally, he had come.
Watch as this stone monkey, hopping and jumping to the front of the temple, looked around, hesitated back and forth, climbing trees and circling about, and finally couldn’t resist coming to the temple gate.
The stone monkey looked left and right, seeing two lines of text carved on the doorframe.
“Those who enter my gate all attain the Dao, with hopes for several hundred years of long life.”
“Oh?”
The stone monkey gave a start, rushed to the wooden door in a few steps, knocked several times, and immediately called out:
“Master! Master! This disciple has come to pay respects and seek teachings!”