Six-eared Demon of Mind

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A jade peach, Six-Ears rests on a stone step halfway up a mountain slope. A thousand-foot Buddha light descends from the clouds, illuminating the steps layer by layer with a brilliant white glow. Bell tolls echo in the distance, deep and solemn, never failing to resonate perfectly. He has heard this sound for centuries, remembering clearly each tolling bell and what incantation to recite, where to join his palms, and at what angle to lower his gaze after each ring. Cognizance Mountain stands behind him, but he does not look back. At the end of the mountain path ahead, human towns begin to light up one by one. At first, only a few lights flicker in the twilight, then more and more until they form a patchwork of tiny glows. A wind blows from below, carrying with it the smells of smoke, alcohol, dust, hot soup, and damp wood chips. Many sounds blend together in his ears. These sounds are chaotic and loud, yet carry the scorching heat. Six-Ears stands still, his black cloak fluttering in the mountain breeze. The sacred light of Cognizance Mountain is both majestic and solemn, unable to pierce his resolve. Human lanterns seem too distant to illuminate his face. He tightens his grip on the staff in his hand. The fiery glow from its tip flickers faintly, and the searing pain and hardness in his palm are the only things he can truly hold onto at this moment. In his mind, a voice still echoes from the grand hall before he left: "Find the Monkey King, replace him to obtain the true scripture, and you shall attain enlightenment." Six-Ears closes his eyes, taking a deep breath of the cold mountain wind. A fire burns in his chest, pressed deep within his bones, searing silently. After a moment, he resumes his journey, walking deeper into the shadows. But not far ahead, he halts once more at a steep cliff face. In a crevice, a lone wild peach tree grows. Its branches are twisted by the wind, leaves sparse, and its branches bear a few unripe jade peaches. Six-Ears stares at them, his fingers twitching slightly, his throat involuntarily tightening. He raises his hand, plucking one of the green peaches from the branch, its tiny hairs brushing against his palm. "Thud.""In a moment of wrist tilt, the string of beads that had been perpetually wrapped around his arm bone glided down under its own weight, emitting a faint crisp sound. A familiar, suffocating scent of sandalwood suddenly materialized in mid-air, constricting his throat. The beads on his wrist, weighing only a few pounds, felt like iron chains rooted to his skin, causing him agonizing pain. Do not act impulsively! Do not covet! Do not harbor anger! The bell tolled in his ears, making the unseen fire within his chest surge and crash against his ribs, causing him immense pain. He clutched the green plum tightly, its flesh tearing, juicy nectar splattering. Six Ears hung his head, gazing at the remnants in his palm, murmuring sutras under his breath. Unreadable currents swirled beneath his gaze. As he recited the sutras, the beads on his wrist tightened incrementally, pushing back the fire raging within his chest. He remained expressionless, as cold and unyielding as stone. He took another step forward, descending along the mountain path. The lights of civilization stretched out beneath his feet, distant echoes of the sacred sounds from Cognizance fading behind him. He walked alone on the dark trail, his face swallowed by the night. A gust of wind caressed his bare chest, passing over the crimson scars etched upon it. Only a faint, raw scent of green plum lingered in the cold breeze, dancing with his labored breath. A serene golden Buddha sat tall, eyes half-closed as if asleep. The Rohans stood motionless in two rows. A young monk held a scroll, mouth opening and closing as he recited each word slowly. "Duk." Woodfish rang out once. "Duk." It chimed again. A little monkey crouched on a beam, tail drooping, swaying with the rhythm of the woodfish. On the sixty-sixth beat, it yawned. Too quiet. He gripped the beam and inverted himself, hanging upside down. Below, the young monk continued his recitation, eyes nearly closed from exhaustion."The little monkey tilted its head, then suddenly stretched its tail, lightly sweeping it across the top of the small monk's glowing head. The monk opened his eyes, rubbed his head, and looked around, as the sound of the wooden fish stopped mid-stroke. Perfect. The little monkey grinned and took a few more steps forward, aiming for the fruit bowl on the altar, leaping from the beam and landing at the edge of the altar. The lotus lamp on the stand wobbled slightly. He grabbed a fruit, taking a bite. Ew! A mouthful of ash-like grit! He wrinkled his nose, spitting out half a fruit. "Thwack!" It landed right on the head of a Rohana. The Rohana opened his eyes. The little monkey's eyes widened as he quickly picked up the fruit bowl and ran before the Rohana could react. Chaos ensued in the grand hall. The monk went to support the knocked-over lotus lamp, while the Rohana reached out to grab him. The robe of the Bodhisattva fluttered, sending incense ashes flying throughout the hall. By then, the little monkey had scaled a banner. He grabbed it and flew out, stepping on the shoulder of a golden statue with his tiptoes, using its momentum to leap onto another pillar. The fruit bowl fell from his grasp, clattering down the steps. The little monkey quickly caught up, imitating him as he rolled down the stairs. At the bottom, ash had landed on his head, his tail curled into a ball, but he still held a peach tightly in his arms. He stood up, taking a bite of the juicy peach, only to be hit with that same ash flavor. The little monkey tossed the peach behind him and shook his head, continuing his run. Using all four limbs, he ran down the stone steps, disappearing into the forest at the back of the mountain. He grabbed a vine, swaying it vigorously until he soared into the air, landing safely on a giant tree. The tree was laden with bright red peaches. He plucked one, taking a large bite, savoring its sweetness and coolness as the juice dripped down his chin onto his chest hair. This is what a peach should taste like! He finished one in two bites, then went to grab another. Below, there was commotion from footsteps.The monks arrived, gasping for breath, pointing and shouting at the tree. "Get down!" "Stop your insolence!" The little monkey hung upside down from a branch, flicking his tongue at them, and precisely slammed a peach pit into the nose of the frontmost monk. Those below grew angrier, rolling up their sleeves and reaching for the tree. The little monkey burst out laughing, letting go and plummeting into the stream below. Water splashed high, drenching everyone's robes. He took advantage of the moment to duck into a denser thicket. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, breaking up into golden speckles. The little monkey darted among them, chasing after a colorful butterfly, sprinting over mossy stones and across meadows filled with wildflowers. Wind whistled past his ears. He ran faster than the wind. Until a golden net descended from the sky. The little monkey hadn't even managed to leap onto a branch when he tumbled headfirst into mud, and the peach in his arms rolled to the monk's shoes, being crushed by a single step. He was brought back to the Great Hall of Enlightenment. The door slammed shut, leaving mountain wind and stream noises outside. A string of prayer beads was wrapped around the little monkey's wrist. Bells rang, and wooden fish sounds pounded on and off... Finally, Cognizance fell silent. The sound of a shattered body was lighter than expected. In that moment of collision with Sun Wukong's spirit, all external winds, roars, and chanting of Buddhist law faded from Six Ears' perception. He plummeted into boundless chaos, waves of white water beneath him, like an endless ocean without shore. He looked down and saw himself—a monkey shackled in chains made of prayer beads, scriptures, precepts, and bells. Deep within the sea of suffering, a Buddhist melody rang out: "Six Ears." The voice was steady and solemn, like every bell toll that had echoed for centuries. "You were born on Cognizance, a chosen practitioner. Only because of unclean six senses did you find spiritual practice to be arduous." The sacred realm unfolded before him, and he saw himself donning robes, standing beneath a lotus platform.The Buddha's light washed away the red stains on his body and the fire in his eyes. He earned the nickname "Six-Ears" and found his place beneath the Golden Lotus Seat. With a origin came a destination. Six-Ears gazed upon himself within the Buddha's glow, his face untouched by any ripples. He raised his hand and tore free the first chain of Buddhist law binding him. "Snap." The mala broke. Another resonant Buddha sound echoed: "You will attain enlightenment." The ground beneath him trembled like a sea of suffering, revealing another path before his eyes. He saw himself traveling west with the Golden Mantis. Sand storms swept the sky, the journey endless. Walking beside the mantis, he banished demons, protected laws, and sought scriptures. Some called him "Great Saint," others "Protector." When he swung his staff, all evil spirits scattered. The path ahead was solemn and bright; following it would lead to enlightenment. Six-Ears lowered his gaze, seeing the road beneath his feet, each step falling precisely onto pre-written scripture. He no longer swung his staff for himself. His anger became a task, his struggles a test, his silence an awakening. He grasped the second chain. "Snap." The script crumbled to ash. The sea of suffering churned, revealing all future possibilities: Disciple of Cognizance, Protector on the Western Journey, Worthy of Merit, Wanderer in Human Realm... Every future was complete, every future was real. As long as he bowed his head, returned, and took Son Wukong's place on that path, he would survive, be accepted, attain enlightenment, and be praised by all sentient beings. Yet, within those futures, there was no "Six-Ears." Six-Ears walked forward, the shackles on his body breaking one by one. At the end of the sea of suffering, Son Wukong's spirit struggled within a thousand Buddha lights, like a raging sun. Six-Ears lifted his head—he finally saw his origin and his destination. He was never a rootless wanderer. He was the other half of the soul torn from the Heavenly Great Saint. Bound by Buddhist law yet forever fueled by an unquenchable fire of resistance. "Further ahead, lies the scattering of soul and spirit."The Buddha's melody faded, a searing pain pulling Six-Ears back. He lowered his head, gazing at the golden beads wrapped around his wrist. They snaked from his wrist to his shoulder, down his spine, and into his very soul. Those were the first fetters, the deepest embedded in his spirit. "Do not act impulsively!" The Buddha's bell tolled, the beads glowing with blinding gold, attempting to force his spirit back onto the "right path." "Do not covet!" Six-Ears raised his other hand, gripping the beads tightly. His palm sizzled from the golden glow, but he didn't flinch. He stared at the towering figure at the end of the tormented sea, a fiery red rage burning in his eyes unlike anything he'd ever felt before. "No!" A crisp snap echoed through the celestial sounds. Six-Ears had torn the beads apart. The dark golden orbs scattered into the boiling sea, perfect futures shattered like broken mirrors. He abandoned the fruit of his labor and the "life" bestowed upon him by the Cognizance. What awaited was a death scene where his soul dissipated. Just as the fetters crumbled, he finally heard his heartbeat. For centuries, this was his first true moment of life. Six-Ears roared with madness, charging towards Wukong, the pain tearing at his spirit visible in his twitching lips. After a millennium of imprisonment, even if it were just for a breath of freedom, it was worth it! The repressed pain and anger from his past transformed into searing flames, mingling completely with Wukong's defiance. Lost in the tormented sea, he carved out a path to the heavens!

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