It is said that after the four disciples obtained the true scriptures and achieved great success, Sun Wukong, who was granted the title of “Victorious Buddha”, did not live happily. One day, Sun Wukong went to drink with Zhu Bajie. Wukong said to him, “Bajie, I won’t do this battle to defeat the Buddha anymore. Whoever loves to do it, do it for him
Perhaps he has seen through the unfairness of the heavenly realm, perhaps he cannot tolerate the complexity of heavenly rules, or perhaps he cannot enjoy the offerings of the human world with peace of mind. After drinking with Bajie, Sun Wukong resigned from his Buddhist position and returned to Huaguo Mountain, only seeking a peaceful and carefree life.
But there are people in the sky who are not at ease. They sent Erlang Shen with the Laughing Heavenly Dog, the Giant Spirit God, the Four Heavenly Kings, and 100000 heavenly soldiers and generals to capture Sun Wukong.
He is not an ordinary monkey, he is a monkey who has made contributions. “- Erlang Shen
But even Erlang Shen doesn’t understand, ‘How many people can’t find this immortal Buddha’s throne?’ How many people want it but don’t have this kind of door!
During the battle with Erlang Shen, there was a detail where Erlang Shen vigorously took out a machete to strike Sun Wukong. This mountain axe originated from the story of “Erlang Shen Axe Splitting Peach Mountain to Save Mother”, which is also reflected in the TV series “Baolian Lantern prequel”.
Sun Wukong and Erlang Shenben were evenly matched, but unexpectedly the Tightening Curse suddenly appeared, causing Sun Wukong to lose. It turns out that this tight spell was not really removed when Sun Wukong became a Buddha, so it seems that Ling Shan has left a hand behind.
After Sun Wukong’s death, Erlang Shen distributed the five root tools representing Sun Wukong’s power and soul to the five demon kings who came to cooperate in battle: Black Bear Spirit, Yellow Wind Monster, Yellow Eyebrow, Hundred Eyed Demon Lord, and Bull Demon King. Erlang Shen himself secretly hid the last root tool “Yi”.
After Sun Wukong’s death, he turned into a stone egg. Hundreds of years later, an old monkey was telling the story of Sun Wukong to a group of little monkeys.
As one of the little monkeys, you left Huaguo Mountain and embarked on a journey to retrieve the Six Sacred Roots and become a destined person.
The setting of the game is extremely clever, whether it’s the many little monkeys holding willow sticks in Huaguo Mountain before you set off, or the monsters on the road repeatedly saying “it’s another monkey”, on the surface, it’s just saying that there are many little monkeys embarking on a journey in the game plot, and for hundreds of years, countless little monkeys have been stranded on the road. In fact, it also metaphorically refers to the millions of players who embark on a journey, some stopping halfway, and some persevering until they finally become destined people. It feels like a multiverse or breaking the fourth wall haha.
As for the true identity of the old monkey, there are various opinions, and there is currently no clear evidence. Here is an introduction to the Shadow God image, it depends on your own understanding:
Some people say he is Guanyin Bodhisattva.
Some people say he is the Patriarch of Bodhi.
Some people also say that he is Sun Wukong.
Some people say that he is just an unnamed old monkey in the mountains.
He always uses the same posture and says the same opening remarks.
Sometimes, there is no one above the mountaintop.
Sometimes, the mountaintop is bustling with people.
When he sends someone on the road that day, he will personally hit them with a willow stick.
Folding willows as gifts, a sense of reluctance arose in my heart.
The immortal in the heavenly court said he was gambling.
The Buddha of Lingshan said that if you gamble, you will inevitably lose.
He said he didn’t gamble or lose.
He is just waiting for the destined person to come back and tell him stories about the journey.
And he had never heard of two completely identical stories.
