MTS: Marvel and Beyond

Watching over the Peaches?

The gods exchanged glances, already sensing something unusual.

How could the Jade Emperor possibly entrust a monkey with guarding the Peaches of Immortality? Wasn't this just a one-way trip for the peaches?

But to their surprise, the Jade Emperor stroked his beard and actually agreed:

"Very well! Since you wish to guard the Peach Orchard, then so be it!"

The gods were visibly shocked. Even Sun Wukong himself was slightly surprised.

However, Sun Wukong merely found it unexpected, nothing more.

He had no reason to reject the Jade Emperor's decree—even if there was a trap behind it.

If the Jade Emperor ordered it, who would dare disobey?

Thus, Sun Wukong officially became the honorary guardian of the Peach Orchard.

In the days that followed, he remained in the Peach Orchard, secretly devouring peaches one after another.

Unlike what was written in Journey to the West, he no longer just took a bite and moved on.

Instead, he swallowed the entire peach—pit and all—absorbing every bit of its spiritual energy.

Yet strangely, the number of peaches in the orchard never seemed to decrease.

Why?

Because Sun Wukong was not an ordinary being.

He was a spirit-born Stone Monkey, a creature of heaven and earth, gifted with mastery over transformations, knowledge of celestial timing, control over terrain, and even the power to shift stars.

With his natural abilities, combined with the 108 techniques of the Heavenly and Earthly Arts, plus his near-Quasi-Saint level cultivation.

Only a handful in the entire Heavenly Court could detect his tricks.

For every peach he ate, he plucked one of his own hairs and transformed it into an identical peach to take its place.

By the time he had eaten over half the peaches in the entire orchard—

Not a single god had noticed anything amiss.

That day, Sun Wukong sat cross-legged on his bed, feeling the power surging within his body.

He was now only one step away from reaching Quasi-Sainthood.

But—

No matter how much he trained, unless he broke past this barrier, he would never ascend further.

However, he soon realized something

The difference between a Great Luo Golden Immortal and a Quasi-Saint was monumental.

Throughout history, every Quasi-Saint had spent countless eons before finally breaking through.

Even with his incomparable natural foundation—

Even after devouring every single Peach of Immortality in the orchard

All it had done was strengthen his foundation and increase his lifespan.

It was not enough to push him over the edge.

If he truly wanted to break through, there was only one option left—

He needed to sneak into the Supreme Lord Laozi's domain and devour every last Nine-Turn Golden Elixir in his possession.

Only then would he have a chance to reach Quasi-Sainthood.

"Without reaching Quasi-Saint, I am nothing but an ant."

Sun Wukong refused to remain a mere pawn in the grand scheme of things.

He would change his fate.

With that resolve, he sped up his plan

He finished consuming every last peach in the orchard, absorbing every bit of power within them.

Then, he abandoned his post and left the Peach Orchard, heading straight for the Tusita Palace, where Supreme Lord Laozi resided!

Supreme Lord Laozi was an enigma.

Sun Wukong had long suspected this.

Based on Journey to the West, along with his own observations in the Heavenly Court, he deduced—

The Supreme Lord Laozi in the Heavenly Court was merely an avatar of the true Sage.

Even if he was just a clone, should Supreme Lord Laozi act with full force, he could easily annihilate Sun Wukong.

And yet—

In Journey to the West, Sun Wukong was never truly burned to ashes by the Samadhi True Fire.

Instead, he devoured every last Nine-Turn Golden Elixir in the alchemy furnace.

Clearly, Supreme Lord Laozi had deliberately let him off.

Knowing this, Sun Wukong made his move.

With newfound confidence, he transformed into a wisp of mist and silently infiltrated the Tusita Palace.

Upon reaching the Pill Storage Pavilion, he spotted two golden-robed disciples guarding the entrance.

To his surprise, both of them had reached Golden Immortal-level cultivation—

In the mortal realm, they would be considered powerhouses.

But to Sun Wukong?

They were nothing.

With a simple trick, he rendered both disciples unconscious.

Then, without hesitation, he rushed into the pavilion and began feasting on the Nine-Turn Golden Elixirs.

There was no doubt—

Even if this was only an avatar, Supreme Lord Laozi was still a Sage, his power far surpassing ordinary immortals.

The moment Sun Wukong devoured the golden pills, he felt a blazing surge of energy erupt from his dantian, flooding every corner of his body.

At long last—

The bottleneck that had hindered his cultivation for so long...

Finally began to crack.

He dared not attempt his breakthrough within Tusita Palace but instead returned to Flower Fruit Mountain in an instant, retreating into Water Curtain Cave to cultivate in seclusion.

He knew that his actions could never remain hidden.

Before he was exposed, he had to break through and attain the Quasi-Saint realm—only then could he be truly free!

—

One day in the heavens is one year on earth.

But what Sun Wukong had done was too great to be ignored.

As time passed, the truth was inevitably discovered by the Heavenly Court.

The Queen Mother of the West plucked peaches in preparation for the upcoming Peach Banquet.

But when she took a bite to test their ripeness, the peach suddenly vanished, leaving only a single monkey hair behind.

A bad premonition surged in her heart.

She immediately ordered the Seven Fairies to pick more peaches.

Sure enough, apart from a few scattered peaches that remained untouched, the rest had all been transformed from monkey hairs.

Since this concerned the all-important Peach Banquet, the Queen Mother of the West immediately reported it to the Jade Emperor.

At the same time, the Supreme Lord Laozi also informed the Jade Emperor that his Nine-Turn Golden Pills had mysteriously vanished.

The Jade Emperor and Laozi exchanged glances, pretending to have just learned of this, then furrowed their brows in anger.

"This demon monkey is far too insolent. Summon Li Jing!"

Li Jing, clutching his recently recovered Exquisite Pagoda, knelt before the throne.

The Jade Emperor declared, "Lead the celestial army along with Nezha, the Third Prince, and capture this demon monkey at once!"

Understanding that the great tribulation of Journey to the West was about to begin, Li Jing solemnly replied, "Your servant obeys!"

—-—

In the mortal realm, on Flower Fruit Mountain.

Many had already learned that the Jade Emperor had humiliated their great king, appointing him as a mere stable hand.

Fury burned in their hearts.

However, before entering seclusion, Sun Wukong had instructed them to remain patient, to endure until he emerged.

Thus, Flower Fruit Mountain remained eerily calm, as if he had never been there at all.

Then, a towering figure, dozens of feet tall, descended from the sky, wreaking havoc upon the mountain and attacking the monkeys along his path.

If not for the fact that Sun Wukong had fed them pieces of the divine peaches, greatly enhancing their strength, they would have been slaughtered on the spot.

The Giant Spirit God, now in his massive form, rampaged through Flower Fruit Mountain, smashing everything in sight.

He bellowed, "Demon monkey, get out here! You dare trespass into the Celestial Court? Come with me at once and beg the Jade Emperor for forgiveness!"

The other monkeys desperately tried to block his path, hoping to prevent him from disturbing Sun Wukong's cultivation.

But they were far too weak.

Helplessly, they watched as he neared Water Curtain Cave.

Finally, just as the Giant Spirit God reached the cave entrance, raising his colossal double-bladed axe to strike it down—

Countless golden lotus flowers suddenly bloomed in the sky above!

Having survived the great calamity of the Investiture of the Gods, the Giant Spirit God recognized the phenomenon instantly.

His face turned pale as he cried out in shock, "The Merit Golden Lotus! Someone has attained the Quasi-Saint realm!"

His heart pounded.

This was Flower Fruit Mountain—who else could it be?

Only one monkey had the potential to reach Quasi-Sainthood.

Even if it seemed impossible, the truth stood before him.

Terror seized his heart, and he immediately turned to flee.

But it was too late.

A golden staff, radiating dazzling light, struck his chest with unstoppable force!

The same Giant Spirit God who had left the monkeys powerless now lay on the brink of death from a single strike.

If not for a life-saving treasure protecting him, he would have perished on the spot.

Defeated and overwhelmed with fear, he dared not linger.

He rushed to the clouds above and reported everything to Heavenly King Li.

Hearing that Sun Wukong had become a Quasi-Saint, Li Jing was visibly shaken.

If this was true, then Sun Wukong's strength now placed him on the same level as the Jade Emperor and the Buddha himself.

The great tribulation of Journey to the West was about to spiral into chaos.

But even so, Li Jing did not retreat.

The Heavenly Court held no deep grudges against Sun Wukong.

If anything, it was Sun Wukong who now owed them.

All they had to do next was put on a convincing performance for the Western Buddhist gods to see!

So Li Jing sent Nezha to capture Sun Wukong.

Nezha had barely set out before he returned, heavily wounded after taking just two strikes from Sun Wukong.

With no other choice, they returned to the Heavenly Court.

When they reported the situation at Flower Fruit Mountain to the Jade Emperor, his initial reaction was pure joy, his eyebrows even twitching slightly in excitement.

But he quickly returned to his usual calm demeanor.

The Jade Emperor wasn't surprised that Li Jing and the others had failed.

What truly caught his attention was that Sun Wukong had not disappointed him—he had successfully broken through to the Quasi-Saint realm!

A Quasi-Saint Sun Wukong might not have powerful divine artifacts to amplify his strength, but with his mastery of the 72 Earthly Transformations, he was more than qualified to disrupt the upcoming Journey to the West tribulation.

As long as the tribulation deviated from its intended course, the fortune of the Western Sect would suffer greatly.

And if the Western Sect weakened, the Heavenly Court would grow stronger—for the fortune of the world was finite.

Though delighted, the Jade Emperor maintained his act and ordered Erlang Shen to capture Sun Wukong.

Erlang Shen went forth, but even with his mastery of the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, he only lasted five blows before returning to the Heavenly Court, gravely injured.

Seeing that even the mighty Erlang Shen was no match for Sun Wukong, the Heavenly Court was left with no other option—they had to call upon the Buddha of the West.

In the Western Pure Land, the Buddha, Tathagata, was patiently awaiting the start of the Journey to the West tribulation.

Through it, he planned to harvest the fortune of the Six Realms to strengthen Buddhism.

But then, news arrived—Sun Wukong had ascended to the Quasi-Saint realm!

Even with his profound composure, Tathagata's expression changed upon hearing this.

This tribulation determined the rise of Buddhism—how could anything be allowed to go wrong?

No. Sun Wukong had to be suppressed.

His Quasi-Saint cultivation was still unstable.

Tathagata would strike now and forcibly push him back down to the Dao Immortal realm!

With that resolve, Tathagata stepped onto golden light and descended upon Flower Fruit Mountain to confront Sun Wukong.

—

Despite defeating the celestial army, Sun Wukong felt no joy.

He knew that his true enemy wasn't the Heavenly Court—it was the Western Sect that lurked behind the scenes.

Before he could rest, a massive golden Buddha manifested in the sky above Flower Fruit Mountain, gazing down upon the mountain from above.

Sun Wukong instantly recognized his visitor.

Who else could it be?

The hypocritical Buddha who had imprisoned him beneath Five Elements Mountain for five hundred years in Journey to the West—Tathagata!

His heart burned with fury, but Sun Wukong had matured.

Suppressing his emotions, he feigned ignorance and stepped forward to ask,

"Which benevolent monk are you, that you dare to interfere in a warrior's battle?"

Behind Tathagata, a sneering Buddha scoffed,

"Insolent monkey! The great Buddha Tathagata stands before you—how dare you show such disrespect?"

After his attendant had put Sun Wukong in his place, Tathagata finally spoke.

"I have heard of your wild arrogance and repeated violations of heaven's laws. Tell me—why do you rebel?"

Sun Wukong sneered.

"I, Old Sun, have done nothing but reside in Flower Fruit Mountain, harming no one.

Yet blind fools keep scheming against me.

How could I not fight back?"

Hearing Sun Wukong's words, Tathagata's heart tightened for a moment, thinking the monkey might have learned something. But after observing his expression, he dismissed the concern.

This monkey must still be unaware of his fate.

So, Tathagata asked Sun Wukong about his abilities.

Knowing exactly what Tathagata was planning, Sun Wukong played along, only keeping his most powerful and secret divine ability—the Power of Chaos—hidden.

As expected, once Sun Wukong answered, Tathagata put on a kindly smile and said,

"You mischievous monkey, if you can somersault out of my palm, I will personally ask the Jade Emperor to leave you be. How about that?"

Sun Wukong sneered inwardly.

He knew Tathagata was trying to lure him into his palm, planning to use his 'Buddha's Palm World' technique to trap him.

But outwardly, he simply replied,

"Of course!"

Then, Sun Wukong leisurely strolled toward Tathagata's palm.

Seeing this, two Buddhas standing behind Tathagata could no longer conceal the mockery in their eyes.

A monkey is still a monkey.

Even if he had reached the Quasi-Saint realm, he was nothing more than a savage beast!

He was destined to be suppressed for five hundred years, then obediently follow the Journey to the West to bring fortune to Buddhism!

However, just as Sun Wukong was about to step into Tathagata's palm, his body suddenly expanded until he was as tall as Tathagata himself.

At the same time, he activated all his divine powers to enhance his strength, enlarging his Golden Cudgel to thousands of feet long—before swinging it straight at Tathagata's head!

Caught off guard by the sneak attack from someone of equal cultivation, Tathagata failed to react in time and took a direct hit.

A massive lump instantly swelled up on his forehead, looking utterly ridiculous.

Having landed a strike, Sun Wukong had no intention of stopping.

While Tathagata was still dazed, he swung twice more, instantly killing the two Buddhas who had mocked him.

Neither of them had time to react to a Quasi-Saint's assault.

Even in their final moments, their expressions remained full of scorn.

Sun Wukong knew that despite their apparent equal cultivation, he was no match for Tathagata—who had accumulated countless years of foundation and possessed innumerable divine artifacts.

So he relentlessly swung his Golden Cudgel, unleashing an unending barrage of attacks on Tathagata.

And for a brief moment—his onslaught actually forced Tathagata into a disadvantage!

Above the clouds, countless celestial beings and Buddhas stared in shock.

None of them had expected Sun Wukong to suppress the mighty Tathagata.

After all, Tathagata was considered one of the strongest beings left in the world.

Expressions varied across the crowd as they watched in silence.

No matter what they thought, one thing was certain:

From this day forward, Sun Wukong's fate had completely diverged from what had been planned for him.

He had only two paths ahead:

Either he defeated Tathagata, faced all the Buddhas of the heavens, and claimed his freedom—

Or he would be slain by Buddhism, erased from existence.

But no matter the outcome, Sun Wukong's name would forever be engraved in the annals of history.

At the same time, beyond the sight of the gathered immortals, the legendary Patriarch Bodhi finally stepped out from his hidden sanctuary on Mount Fangcun.

His destination—the Underworld.

There, he intercepted Kṣitigarbha, Guanyin, and other powerful beings.