Journey to the West: Sun Wukong's Advice System
Chapter 78 Rewards and Criticism

Chapter 78: Chapter 78 Rewards and Criticism

Almost simultaneously, all eyes turned toward the thin and proud figure standing erect.

Almost everyone found it incredulous. They had guessed around in circles but never imagined that it was Sun Wukong who had innovated this entirely new method of artifact refining!

They all knew of Sun Wukong’s abilities, not only his formidable strength as a Daluo Golden Immortal capable of contending with a Quasi-Saint,

but also his skill in investigation and governance, having consecutively uncovered the cases of the attacks on the Dragon Palace and the Underworld, and the murder of the Wood Treasury Star Lord Deng Hua, subsequently taking charge of the Directorate of Imperial Horses and the Armory Division.

At this Martial Arts Gathering, Sun Wukong even replaced Li Jing, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King, as the chief organizer, and although it was a temporary position, it was ample evidence of his capability and his high standing in the Emperor of Heaven’s heart.

Indeed, the Martial Arts Gathering had undoubtedly been a success; the opening event alone was memorable, not to mention the shock the artifact refining contest brought to everyone.

And now, Yu Hua informed them that the artifact refining method, which was enough to shake all three realms, was actually created by Sun Wukong.

At that moment, the same thought crossed the minds of most immortals: Was there anything that the Great Sage Equalling Heaven couldn’t do?

The Jade Emperor’s eyes glimmered like the flowing Milky Way as he asked, "Where is Sun Wukong?"

"Your Majesty, Old Sun is here, right here," Sun Wukong said with a playful laugh, and in a flash, he appeared on the floating island where the Jade Emperor was.

If many years hadn’t changed him to be much more composed, he would have long stood out to declare to all the immortals: this was the method of artifact refining founded by him, Old Sun!

"Sun Wukong, did you create this method?" asked the Jade Emperor.

"Indeed, indeed," Sun Wukong answered with a smile, "After Your Majesty appointed Old Sun as the Head of the Armory, Old Sun felt the scarcity and the mixed quality of the heavenly weapons. So after a bit of thought, Old Sun came up with this method, and all the refined magical treasures are Spiritual Conductors."

The immortals were speechless, yet some remained unconvinced.

Tai Yi Zhenren said, "What Spiritual Conductors? Who’s to know if you’re not just talking big,

the Path of Artifact Refining is exceedingly difficult, how can it be possibly mastered just by pondering a bit, let alone inventing a whole new method,

unless it was learned from somewhere else and presented as his own to cheat fame and world recognition?"

Many immortals agreed with these words. If refining artifacts were simple, then since the primordial times, countless masters of artifact refining would have emerged, but as of now, only Grandmaster could truly be deemed a master.

The rest of them, for the most part, relied on destiny, merit, lineage, and the confluence of time, place, and harmony to forge powerful Spiritual Treasures; their own artifact refining skills rarely reached the level of mastery, unable to produce more powerful treasures.

And Sun Wukong, before ascending to heaven, was unknown, and had never revealed any artifact refining skills; yet now he suddenly claimed that with a little pondering, he had developed a new method of artifact refining.

Who would believe that!

Sun Wukong noticed these doubtful gazes, and he couldn’t stand being misunderstood or doubted, especially when Tai Yi Zhenren clearly had ill intentions, probably seeking revenge for an earlier incident.

"Heh heh!" He scoffed coldly, his eyes filled with defiance, as he stared down Tai Yi Zhenren from a distance, "You hypocrite who dares to act but not to own up, open your dog eyes and see clearly who is cheating fame and stealing from the world!"

Tai Yi Zhenren’s face darkened, and a sense of foreboding rose within him.

The next moment, his expression changed dramatically.

Hum!

Layers of profound and mystical Daoist charm emanated from Sun Wukong, sweeping across the entire Martial Arts Gathering.

All the immortals were shocked, for their magical treasures felt an attraction at that moment, yearning to fly towards Sun Wukong.

Thankfully, Sun Wukong did not continue to cast the spell, or else those less powerful immortals wouldn’t have been able to control their own magical treasures.

Some of the more powerful immortals looked serious and immediately realized what it was.

The Power of Laws of Artifact Refining!

Only the Grandmaster could use the Power of Laws of Artifact Refining!

...

The Palace of Ultimate Joy.

Grandmaster, who was in seclusion refining artifacts, suddenly trembled, looking shocked towards the North, his gaze piercing through layers of immortal palaces to the scene above the celestial river.

"When did this monkey comprehend the Power of Laws of Artifact Refining?!"

Unimaginable!

Since the beginning of heaven and earth, he had never seen such a creature.

This was unlike the ancestral witches who were born with mastery over the laws of the Dao, Sun Wukong had, in a very short period of time, come to understand the laws of the Dao on his own!

Besides, this monkey previously had no knowledge of artifact refining and had only learned the art of artifact refining from him for a while.

Just a period of time, that was all!

"Grandmaster, have you had another revelation?" Golden Horn curiously asked.

"Congratulations, Grandmaster!" Silver Horn followed immediately.

Grandmaster Laozi gently shook his head, suddenly feeling envious of Wukong’s aptitude.

Inspired by the guidance of the spiritual treasure, he had been in closed-door cultivation for some time now, truly gaining some insights, such as being now able to use ordinary artifact refining materials without fragments of laws to craft middle-grade postnatal spiritual treasures.

But compared to Wukong’s aptitude, which seemed to improve effortlessly, his own understanding was somewhat slow.

Thinking of this, Grandmaster Laozi said to the two boys, "Continue to fan the winds, do not stop."

He decided that he would not end this period of closed-door cultivation until he was able to refine a supreme-grade spiritual treasure out of artifact refining materials that did not contain fragments of laws.

Golden Horn and Silver Horn exchanged helpless glances, wondering when it would ever end.

...

Above the Milky Way.

All immortals were stunned; if someone had mastered the laws of artifact refining, how could they not know how to refine artifacts!

"Old Sun always does things straightforwardly and honestly," Wukong said with a smile, withdrawing the power of the artifact refining law, "Not like some immortals, some sects, who are so hypocritical they won’t even admit what they have done."

Taiyi Zhenren’s face was stern, no longer having the face to say anything else.

Southern Extremity Longevity Star, Guang Chengzi, and other disciples of the revealing teachings all had ashen faces; this detestable monkey was too aggravating, not giving an inch once he had the upper hand!

But they were not in a position to contradict him openly.

The Jade Emperor watched all this unfold yet remained impassive, declaring with dignity, "Sun Wukong, the Armory Controller, has today innovated the path of artifact refining, contributing to the Three Realms. The Heavenly Dao is moved; thus, a nine-thousand-year-old flat peach and a nine-revolution Golden Core are specially bestowed."

"Hehe, thanks, much appreciated," Wukong chuckled and bowed, clearly overjoyed upon receiving his reward.

Having been an official in heaven for so long, he had only seen promotions but no tangible benefits; now, he finally got some!

The immortals once again looked on with envy; these two rewards were treasures that only a very few could obtain during the annual Elixir Origin Conference and Flat Peach Festival.

Wukong had secured both in one go.

Afterward, the Jade Emperor also awarded Yu Hua with a six-thousand-year-old flat peach as a reward for the winner of the artifact refining contest.

Yu Hua also kept his promise, handing over the rewards his sect had just won in the artifact refining, alchemy, and formation contests—all three six-thousand-year-old flat peaches—to Wukong.

"Great Saint, the method of spiritual guidance instruments propelled our sect to victory in this martial contest," Yu Hua said respectfully, "As per our prior agreement, all prizes won by our sect are yours, Great Saint."

"It’s only your sect that keeps its word, unlike certain other sects," Wukong laughed as he took the three flat peaches gratefully, his delight doubled, taking the opportunity to again slight the revelatory teachings.

The faces of Southern Extremity Longevity Star and the others only soured further, itching to leave this accursed place immediately, as they obviously couldn’t publicly confront Wukong.

The rest of the immortals envied Wukong even more, but he had earned his rewards through skill, leaving no room for disputes.

The actions of the cut-off teachings in generously giving away contest rewards were a cause for reflection among the immortals.

The disciples of the cut-off teachings in heaven were mostly well-known immortals who did not fear the three calamities and five disasters, and their desire for flat peaches and Golden Cores was naturally not great.

On the contrary, giving them to Wukong could build goodwill with the Daluo Golden Immortal, who had recently become hot property.

In the end, this martial assembly was declared concluded.

Immortals from all over the Three Realms left the Heavenly Court with a mix of complex emotions, each with their own thoughts.

The revelatory teachings’ disciples left the quickest; however, Fear Stays Sun Buddha and Golden Cicada remained, seeking a private audience with the Jade Emperor.