Patriarch Subhuti already knew that the Stone Monkey did not reflect on his wrongdoings.
Recently, he had been unrestrained and exposed his true nature. He had cultivated the Formless Technique to a certain level.
The patriarch was overjoyed.
As for the other disciples, they were truly rotten wood that could not be carved. If they were disturbed by the Stone Monkey's storytelling, they would not be able to achieve anything in the future.
"Wukong."
The patriarch got up and put on his clothes. "Accompany me for a walk."
He brought the Stone Monkey out of the room and strolled in the forest under the night sky.
Following a small path in the forest, the two of them climbed up a cliff.
A cool breeze blew and the moonlight was like water.
"You saw through the secret in my plate. I will teach you another technique."
The patriarch admired the night sky and suddenly said, "What do you want to learn?"
The Stone Monkey hurriedly replied, "Master, I want to learn the path to immortality."
"The path to immortality?"
A ray of light flashed in the patriarch's eyes. He then stroked his long beard. "This is not difficult for you."
The patriarch did not reject. Although he did not reject, he did not teach the path to the Stone Monkey like what was written in the book.
"There is a demon in your heart. You must defeat it.
I can teach you. "
The patriarch reminded the Stone Monkey.
The Stone Monkey slightly frowned. "Master, I do not have a demon in my heart."
"Everyone's eyes are shorter than their own."
The patriarch turned around. "There are too many secrets hidden in your heart. Now that the dharma is gradually forming, the demon in your heart will naturally be born."
Seeing that the Stone Monkey did not believe him, he waved his horsetail whisk and a wispy black fog flew out from the Stone Monkey's body.
The black fog spiraled in the air and then condensed into a Stone Monkey sitting cross-legged on a lotus.
"Eh!"
The patriarch exclaimed in surprise.
Even he did not expect that the demon in the Stone Monkey's heart was a Buddhist demon.
The Stone Monkey raised his head and looked at the black fog. The demon's appearance was exactly the same as him, except that its eyes were filled with Buddha-like nature.
The Stone Monkey immediately understood that the demon in his heart was a thought that he had rejected.
"The Buddha's mouth and sacred heart can save all living beings."
The inner demon suddenly said, "You should have become a Buddha."
What kind of inner demon was this, to actually persuade people to become Buddhas?
"Wonderful Level, Wonderful Level!"
The Patriarch could not help but praise in his heart.
His disciple was truly a good person. Otherwise, how could he have developed such an inner demon?
The Stone Monkey was also a little surprised. Then, he shook his head.
"In this world, demons wreak havoc. Humans are like weeds. To deliver the masses from suffering, one should not listen to nonsense."
He did not agree with the inner demons.
Inner Demon's eyes darkened, and she spoke again.
"Your heart is higher than Buddha, but there are a thousand knots that you can't solve."
"Let me ask you, if you want demons to not eat humans, then demons must not kill humans. How can humans not be killed?
How do you solve this knot? "
The heart demon interrogated the Stone Monkey, and the Stone Monkey's expression changed slightly. He could not help but take a step back.
This retreat revealed an opening, and the Heart Demon took advantage of it to enter the Stone Monkey's body.
The Stone Monkey fainted on the ground.
Unable to stop him, the Patriarch could only shake his head and sigh.
The words of the Heart Demon were extraordinary. It could be seen that this disciple had great ambitions. His ambitions were so high that it was shocking.
The Patriarch bent his body and stretched out his hand, wanting to help the Stone Monkey up. However, he realized that the black gas wrapped around his body, and he could no longer move.
Thus, the Patriarch set up an enchantment, turned around, and returned to the house.
The next day, the Patriarch informed the disciples that the Stone Monkey was being punished behind closed doors.
Not mentioning the gloating of the disciples, the Patriarch could not help but think that the monkey's question about demons and humans might not have an answer.
The more the Patriarch thought about it, the more he felt that something was wrong. Humans kill, and demons eat humans. This was the cycle of the heavens, and there was no way to break it. Even the Buddha might not be able to answer it.
"The monkey is in danger …"
The Patriarch thought to himself.
If he could not answer the Heart Demon, the Stone Monkey would never wake up again.
Three days later, the Patriarch came to the cliff again.
At this time, the moon was bright in the sky. The Stone Monkey suddenly opened his eyes. His eyes reflected a deep starry sky, but it was as clear as a child's, without any pollution.
When the Patriarch saw it, he could not contain his joy.
"Wukong, your Heart Demon has been eliminated."
He hurriedly asked, "Then what is the answer?"
The Stone Monkey stood up and bowed to the Patriarch. "Disciple has not found the answer yet."
The Patriarch was stunned.
"Then how did the Heart Demon disappear?"
"Master once said that at the beginning of primordial chaos, one must comprehend the void to break through stubbornness."
The Stone Monkey replied, "Disciple discovered that blindly pursuing the answer will lead to no end, and it will not help the situation."
The Patriarch looked at the Stone Monkey and was stunned for a long time. Then, he laughed involuntarily.
He understood now.
This was a huge problem in the world. How many sages and deities had thrown themselves into it, never to be freed?
But this monkey was different. He had a carefree nature, breaking through the obsession, freeing himself from the problem itself, and directly getting rid of the obsession.
Once the obsession was gone, the Heart Demon would naturally disappear.
"There is no solution to the problem in the first place, and people are just worrying about it."
The Patriarch shook his head. This time, he had become a mediocre person.
"Wukong, have you let it go?"
The Patriarch asked.
"No."
The Stone Monkey shook his head, and a light seemed to flash in his eyes.
"There is no solution to the thousand knots, but there is still a path that can allow me to find the answer."
The Patriarch's body trembled, and he looked at the Stone Monkey again.
"I can't wait!"
The Patriarch thought.
The Stone Monkey thought that he didn't get the answer, and the Patriarch thought that he had already let it go. But he didn't expect that the Stone Monkey had already gotten an even better answer.
As the saying went, the Great Dao is the simplest, great wisdom may appear foolish.
"Wukong, I am happy that you are wholeheartedly doing good."
The Patriarch sat cross-legged on the cliff and suddenly chanted.
"The Secret Truth Manifestation Mystic Art, cherishing life, there is no other reason.
Come, one's essence, qi, and spirit, carefully hide and not leak out.
Do not leak out, hide in the body, receive my teachings and prosper.
Memorize the mantra, eliminate evil desires, and obtain coolness.
Obtain coolness, the light is bright, and one can admire the bright moon on the pill platform.
The moon hides the jade rabbit, the sun hides the crow, and the turtle and snake are intertwined.
Intertwined, one's life is firm, but one can plant a golden lotus in the fire.
Gather the five elements and use them upside down, and one can become a Buddha and a deity. "
This was the art of immortality.
Thus, the Stone Monkey learned immortality. Another three years passed, and his nature became more and more apparent. He played around every day like a child, but his foundation became more and more stable.
The Patriarch then taught the Seventy-two Transformations to the Stone Monkey.
Just like that, several years passed. One day, the Patriarch was observing the stars, and his fate with the Stone Monkey had come to an end.
"It's time for him to go back."
The Patriarch was reluctant, but the Stone Monkey had already completed his immortal technique. If such a world-shaking person stayed here for a long time, he might bring disaster.
The Patriarch calculated with his fingers. The Stone Monkey was naughty and mischievous by nature, and he would definitely flaunt his transformation techniques. At that time, there would be a chance to chase him away.
Thus, the Patriarch secretly watched the Stone Monkey. About half a year passed, but to his astonishment, he discovered that the Stone Monkey often played around and never flaunted his immortal technique.
"This monkey has already completed his formlessness!"
The Patriarch was surprised and delighted. The completion of formlessness lied in the concealment of one's true self. It was like looking at flowers in the fog, and one couldn't see through it. The Stone Monkey didn't give the Patriarch a chance to chase him away.
The Stone Monkey had studied in the Three Stars Cave for over ten years, and he was often ridiculed by his senior brothers. However, he had never revealed his true self, and no one in the sect knew that he had already cultivated the Great Dao.
Now, even the Patriarch's calculations were ineffective against him.
Fake and real, real and fake, the Stone Monkey had already mastered the formlessness technique.