Sun Wukong

Sun Wukong (孫悟空/孙悟空 Sūn Wùkōng, lit. "Monkey Awakened to the Void/Emptiness"), also known as the Monkey King, is a literary and religious figure best known as one of the main characters from the popular 16th-century Chinese novel, Journey to the West. In the novel, Sun Wukong is a monkey born from a stone who acquires supernatural powers through Taoist practices. After rebelling against heaven, he is imprisoned under a mountain by the Buddha. Five hundred years later, he accompanies the monk Tang Sanzang riding on the White Dragon Horse and two other disciples, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing, on a journey to obtain Buddhist sutras from India, known as the West or Western Paradise, where Buddha and his followers dwell.

Appearing as the player's character during the prologue and opening fight of Black Myth: Wukong, whereafter Wukong's fated successor, the Destined One, becomes the game's playable protagonist. His broken, senseless, and instinct-driven corpse becomes the final boss for Chapter 6: Unfinished and overall, the game itself.

Story[]

Introduction[]

Sun Wukong had finished the Journey to the West with his comrades and master, and was awarded with Buddhahood but rejected it upon realizing the lack of freedom the title had. Heaven distrusted Wukong, viewing him as unpredictable and a potential danger to the Court, and so many monkeys on Mount Huaguo were killed in an attempt to coerce Wukong back into his heavenly title. Angered, he confronted the celestial army led by Erlang Shen. He dueled with Erlang and both were evenly matched, but due to Guanyin's Golden Headband still bound to Wukong, it cost him the fight, causing him to be sealed in a stone atop Mount Huaguo by Erlang.
Right before he is sealed, Sun Wukong manages to split his power into six Relics (one for each of his senses) scattered all across China, each being held by his former enemies. The Destined One, who represents Wukong's mind, will then go on a journey to recover said relics and reincarnate as the new Sun Wukong; as his one true successor.

Ending/Final Chapter[]

After claiming all five of Wukong's relics, the Destined One, accompanied by Zhu Bajie, returned to Mount Huaguo to finally resurrect Wukong only to be intercepted by the Celestial Army themselves. Nevertheless, the young monkey, along Bajie, fought through these warriors and subdued yaoguais along the way, retrieving Wukong's armor pieces and Ruyi Jingu Bang in the process.
Upon entering the stone egg that housed Wukong's memories and lingering obsessions, the Old Monkey ferried the Destined One and Bajie through the waters of Wukong's memories. During the detour, it is revealed that the Destined One is the sixth relic; the Mind of Sun Wukong. As such, he is destined to bear the Great Sage's name and nature, much to Bajie's displeasure.
At the end of Wukong's memories, the Destined One has to face one final ordeal: To subdue Wukong's broken shell in order to merge the six senses into one. As much as Bajie wants to help the young monkey, the Old Monkey stated that the instinct-driven corpse only answers to its relic bearer. Therefore, the Destined One must go and fight the senseless body of his spiritual predecessor alone.
At the end of the battle, the Destined One regains the relics after the broken shell absorbed it from him. The Golden Headband then manifests from the broken shell and drops into the water, and the Old Monkey collected it and placed it on the Destined One's head. Unbeknownst to the young monkey, he doesn't truly hold Wukong's sixth sense as it is still held possession by Erlang Shen, dooming himself into total failure.
As such, Wukong's fate of forced obedience, slavery, and control remains the same as the cycle of reincarnation continues on. Perhaps another Destined One may truly break the cycle one day.

True Ending[]

Upon venturing back to The Great Pagoda in The New West and discovering the hidden area, if the Destined One has met certain requirements, he will travel through a mural where he will encounter Erlang Shen waiting for him on Mei Mountain. Erlang fights the Destined One as one last test before he goes to fulfill his destiny.
It is revealed during the encounter that Wukong willingly sealed and split himself into the relics in hopes of being reincarnated by a worthy successor. This was done in order to free himself from the tightening headband once and for all, as while it is still on him he will never have true freedom from Heaven's control. It is also revealed that Erlang Shen was fully aware of this plan and decided to help Wukong achieve this, secretly betraying the Court.
Upon defeat, Erlang Shen's third eye opens and the memories of Sun Wukong are given to the Destined One, showing that Erlang himself was guarding the 6th and final relic of Wukong. He then claims that he is now at peace and tells the Destined One to not fail Wukong. Armed with Wukong's memories (Including the memory of Wukong secretly telling Erlang in the opening cutscene that he will rip off the headband and break free of its control), the Destined One does not put on the headband within the stone and fulfills his true destiny as Wukong's successor and reincarnation, successfully completing Wukong's mission to rid himself of Heaven's control.

Abilities[]

Overall Skill[]

Sun Wukong is extremely strong, intelligent, durable, and agile. He also has nine layers of immortality, capable of shapeshifting and duplication, remarkably proficient in martial arts, and boasts a wide arsenal of other magical abilities. His power is unfathomably tremendous that he managed to singlehandedly defeat the entire Celestial army and most of the deities of the Celestial Court during his havoc in Heaven, with few powerful beings like Erlang Shen, Nezha, the Six-Eared Macaque, and the Bull Demon King being able to rival his strength. Only Tathagata Buddha himself could properly and easily defeat Wukong by sealing him under Five Phases Mountain for five centuries.

General Abilities[]

Immeasurable Strength - Wukong has supernatural strength and is able to support the weight of two heavy mountains on his shoulders while running "with the speed of a meteor". In addition, he is able to effortlessly lift his Ruyi Jingu Bang like any other staff despite weighing at 13,500 catties (17,550 lbs or 7,960 kg).
Immeasurable Speed & Reflexes - Wukong is extremely fast, able to travel 108,000 li (54,000 km, 34,000 mi) in one somersault and sprint at the speed of a meteor. He can also evade his enemy's attacks faster than the naked eye could perceive, often leaving an afterimage of himself.
Immeasurable Stamina & Endurance - Wukong's immortal body granted him infinite stamina and endurance, and his lengthy duels with Nezha and Erlang Shen during his younger days as the defiant and rebellious Great Sage Equaling Heaven is a testament to this feat.
Immeasurable Durability - Thanks to his several layers of immortality, Wukong is nearly impervious to any attacks thrown at him, be it a blade or a bludgeon. Additionally, he is nigh-absolutely resistant to the Four Banes and other more elements. This ability is known as Rock Solid (铜头铁臂 Tóngtóu Tiěbì, lit. Copper Head, Iron Limbs) or Diamond Body (金鋼之軀 Jīngāng zhī Qū).
Keen Eyesight & Extrasensory Perception - Wukong's Fiery Eyes, Golden Pupils (火眼金睛 Huǒyǎn Jīnjīng) grants him the ability to see far distances (1,000 li during the day, and 300 - 500 li at night) in a clairvoyant-like fashion, distinguish certain dualities (good from evil, truth from lies, rich from poor, etc.), and pierce through the most intricate of illusions and disguises/transformations. In addition to his vision's remarkable feats, his innate stone monkey traits grant him the abilities to recognize seasons and discern the advantages of earth.
Genius Intellect - Wukong is said to be smarter and more clever than an average mortal, has vast memorization skills and can remember every monkey ever born. As king of the monkeys, it is his duty to keep track of and protect every monkey. After attaining Buddhahood post-pilgrimage, he (possibly) has gained omniscience due to his position as the Victorious Fighting Buddha.
Master Martial Artist - During his time as Puti Zushi's disciple, he was trained under the arts of staff work and barehanded combat for nearly a decade by the patriarch before learning the Daoist Way of Immortality, 72 Changes, Cloud Somersaulting, and among other magic spells. This martial arts mastery would be frequently and deftly used in Wukong's life, singlehandedly combating the Celestial Army and Heaven's best warriors unscathed during his rebellion against Heaven, and subduing countless yaoguais and wild beasts throughout his pilgrimage with his master Tang Sanzang and junior disciples: Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing.

Mysticism[]

Laser Vision - When Sun Wukong first hatched from the stone egg, he respectfully bowed to the Four Cardinal Directions and inadvertently shot beams of golden light from his eyes right after, piercing through the Celestial Palace and startling the Jade Emperor.
Astronomical Object Manipulation - Tathagata Buddha claimed that there were four celestial primates that do not belong in the ten categories of life, among these spiritual monkeys is the Intelligent Stone Monkey AKA Sun Wukong, who knows transformations, recognizes seasons, discerns the advantages of earth, and is capable of altering the course of both planets and stars.
Somersault Cloud (觔斗雲 Jīndǒuyún) - Wukong's infamous ability to travel or “leap” 108,000 li (54,000 km, 34,000 mi) in one somersault. The ability, oft portrayed as Wukong riding a nimbus-like cloud, requires a magic hand sign, an oral spell, a fist clench, and a body shake. Wukong’s master Puti Zushi taught this ability to the monkey to give him a style of flying that compliments his penchant for jumping.
72 Earthly Transformations (七十二般變化 Qīshí'èr-bān Biànhuà) - Also known as the Multitude of Terrestrial Killers (地煞數, Dìshà Shù), is Wukong's shapeshifting ability, capable of transforming into anything or simply alter his size. The “Seventy-two Changes” metaphorically designate an endless variety of transformations (not limited to just 72 in a literal sense), and in addition, it is suggested that for each of the 72 Changes, Wukong has an extra life as well.
- Three Heads and Six Arms (三頭六臂 Sāntóuliùbì) - Wukong's gargantuan war form via 72 Earthly Transformations. He gained such form after copying Nezha's three-headed, six-armed colossal war form during their duel together back in his youth as the rebellious and defiant Great Sage Equaling Heaven.
- Method of Imitating/Modelling Heaven and Earth (法天象地, Fǎtiān Xiàngdì) - Another extension of Wukong's shapeshifting powers that allows him to transform into his monstrous, giant-sized form upon uttering the incantation "Grow!" (「長！」 “Zhǎng!”). Such form is described as being 10,000 zhang (approx. about 3,333,333 cm or 109,361 feet 3.8,268 inches) in height, but this may be metaphorical for a much larger, cosmically proportioned size, since Wukong boasts about his ability to fill the universe with his body should he will it. This could possibly be Wukong's Azure Dome (青穹 Qīng Qióng) transformation.
  - Pyrokinesis - While in his Stone Monkey form, Wukong is capable of casting flames by absorbing fire-based attacks or through the activation of the Scorch Shower spell.
  - Cryokinesis - While in his Stone Monkey form, Wukong is capable of generating glaciers by absorbing ice-based attacks or through the activation of the Ice Bath spell.
Immortal Breath (仙氣 Xiānqì) - Wukong's magic breath, which is what allows him to transform his hairs and staff, among other such mystic effects as: manipulating his own spirit, healing wounds, or divinely empowering others. He can also generate strong gusts of wind with a single exhale or breathe out streams of flames.
A Pluck of Many (身外身法 Shēnwàishēn Fǎ, lit. Body/Bodies Beyond the Body) - Wukong's ability to transform any one of his 84,000 hairs into whatever he wishes upon the command “Change!” (「變！」 “Biàn!”) from humanoid figures to animals (like insects), to miscellaneous items (tools, money, and even food). However, he mainly uses this power throughout the novel to spawn clones of himself, with Wukong boasting that a single hair can be multiplied into millions and even billions.
- Method of Bodily Division (分身法 Fēnshēn Fǎ) - A seemingly separate ability (denoted as such in the novel) that allows Wukong to also create clones of himself (probably through dismemberment).
- Life-Saving Strand (三根救命的毫毛 Sāngēn Jiùmìng de Háomáo, lit. Three Live-Saving Hairs) - Three special hairs created from willow branch leaves that are gifted to Wukong by Bodhisattva Guanyin, allowing him to create anything he wishes specifically in fulfillment of his duties as Tripitaka’s guardian; they are notably distinct from Wukong’s other magic hairs.
Method of Bodily Concealment (隱身法 Yǐnshēn Fǎ) - A spell that allows Wukong to become invisible to the eyes of humans and even gods and spirits.
- Cloud Step (聚形散气 Jùxíng Sànqì, lit. Gathering Mists, Intangible Form) - A method of stealth, by means of transforming, almost, into air and wind, used by Wukong. He can also use this during combat, with the spell often activated after evading his enemy's attack.
Body-Departing Spirit (身出一個神 Shēnchū Yīgè Shén) - Also known as Means of the Spirit Leaving the Body (出神的手段 Chūshén de Shǒuduàn); essentially the ability of astral projection. Wukong (disguised as a Taoist from the Celestial Realm) used this spell once to enter the Celestial Court and convince Nezha to blacken the sky in order to trick the Golden and Silver Horned Kings' minions that his own gourd (which is actually just his hair strand) is more powerful than their Purple Gold Red Gourd (紫金紅葫蘆 Zǐjīn Hóng Húlu) and Jade Suet Flask (羊脂玉淨瓶 Yáng Zhī Yù Jìng Píng), "boasting" that it's capable of absorbing Heaven itself.
Immobilize (定身法 Dìngshēn Fǎ, lit. Body-Fixing Method) - A spell that lets the Wukong freeze humans, gods, beasts and spirits alike in place, for up to a full day’s worth of time. This is usually done by repeatedly saying the command “Freeze!” (「住！」 “Zhù!”) and pointing at a target.
Spell Binder (禁字法 Jìnzì Fǎ, lit. Spell-Forbidding Method) - A spell that Wukong learned from the Maitreya Buddha that allows him to suppress the powers of his foes, objects, weapons, and even himself. While he didn't used it against himself like his reincarnation, the Destined One, he used it against Yellowbrow to render the magical seed sack useless, allowing Wukong to lure him to the melon patch created by the Maitreya.
Lock-Breaking Method (解鎖法 Jiěsuǒ Fǎ) - A spell that allows Wukong, with only a point of his finger or staff, to open any lock.
Ring of Fire (安身法 Ānshēn Fǎ, lit. Security Method) - Also known as Protective Circle (圈子 Quānzi); Wukong draws a circle on the ground with his staff, which functions as a protective ward or barrier as tough as an iron wall. Used to protect Tripitaka, it dissuades enemies from approaching, whether they be tigers, wolves, ogres, or demons. It can also be used as a heater; protecting Wukong from harshly cold environments, accelerate rejuvenation, and enhance the potency of his drinks.
Fire Avoidance Spell (避火訣 Bìhuǒ Jué) - Allows Wukong to survive fire; it does not work against True Samadhi Fire (三昧眞火 Sānmèi Zhēnhuǒ).
Water Avoidance Spell (避水訣 Bìshuǐ Jué) & Method of Water Restriction (閉水法 Bìshuǐ Fǎ) - Spells that, respectively, allows Wukong to ward off water and travel through water unimpeded by opening waterways. Still, he is unable to fight properly underwater.

Immortality[]

Sun Wukong has at least nine layers of immortality, each layers were attained through various methods.

Taoist Way of Immortality - As Puti Zushi's disciple, Wukong cultivated immortality through Taoist practices. Although this is forbidden under the Celestial Court's laws so anyone who learned immortality through Taoist self-cultivation will be destroyed via the Three Calamities. In order for Wukong to avoid divine punishment, Puti Zushi taught him the 72 Changes to guise himself from Heaven's wrathful gaze.
Book of Mortals - One night while Wukong was napping, the fetchers of the dead collected his soul as punishment for extorting the Dragon Kings and dragged him into Hell. Enraged because it invalidates the whole concept of immortality, Wukong fought his way through Hell and demanded the Ten Kings to see the Book of Mortals, and when it was handed to him, he erased his name off the book by simply scribbling on it (he also erased some of his monkey brethren's names in the process).
Peaches of Immortality - During his time as the Protector of the Peaches, Wukong discovered that there are three types of immortal peaches in the Heavenly Peach Garden, each of them have unique properties but grants eternal life the same. Out of impulsiveness, lust for immortality, and liking to peaches, Wukong consumed the entire orchard of immortal peaches.
Heavenly Wine - During the preparations for the Royal Banquet, Wukong, disguised as an invited god, sneaks into the place to taste the food. But amidst his antics, he caught a whiff of the Heavenly Wine, causing him to steal it and then drink it. The wine has an ability to turn someone who drinks it immortal.
Pills of Longevity - While intoxicated by the Heavenly Wine, Wukong stumbled his way to Lao Tzu's laboratory, seizing a gourd containing Pills of Longevity and gobbled them all up out of curiosity.
Lao Tzu's Eight Trigrams Furnace - After causing yet another mayhem in the Celestial Palace, Wukong was sentenced into multiple execution methods but all remained futile. Their one final method is to imprison Wukong inside the Eight Trigrams Furnace for 49 days in hopes of the Samadhi Fire distilling him into the elixir of the immortality pills. Unfortunately, that didn't work either as it only removed Wukong of his "mortal impurities" and granted him truth-seeking vision.
Another Pill of Longevity - Early on the pilgrimage, Wukong consumed another Pill of Longevity after subduing Lingxu, a close friend of the Black Bear Guai (who stole Tang Sanzang's Kasaya of Eversparks). Apparently, the pill was supposed to be a birthday present for the black bear.
Ginseng Fruit - At some point in the journey, Wukong and his comrades would stumble into a monastery that houses a "man-fruit tree". The man-fruit or ginseng fruit, is said to be more powerful than the peaches of immortality themselves; capable of granting stronger immortality than the peaches.
Buddhahood - After finishing the pilgrimage and attaining Buddhahood, Wukong and his comrades were provided with the Buddhist equivalents of celestial foods from Taoist Heaven, granting Wukong his final layer of immortality.

Background[]

Early Life[]

Sun Wukong was born from a strong magic stone that sits atop Mount Huaguo. The stone is said to receive the nurture of heaven (yang), which possesses a positive nature, and earth (yin), which possesses a negative nature, and thus is able to produce living beings, according to Taoist philosophies. The stone develops a magic womb, which bursts open one day to produce a stone egg about the size of a ball.

When the wind blows on the egg, the egg becomes the stone monkey. As his eyes move, two beams of golden light shoot toward the Jade palace and startle the Jade Emperor. When he sees the light he orders two of his officers to investigate. They report the stone monkey, and that the light is dying down as the monkey eats and drinks. The Jade Emperor believes him to be nothing special.

On the mountain, the monkey joins a group of other wild monkeys. After playing, the monkeys regularly bathe in a stream. One day, they decide to seek the source of the stream and climb the mountain to a waterfall. They declare that whoever goes through the waterfall, finds the stream’s source, and comes out again will become their king. The stone monkey volunteers and jumps into the waterfall.

The stone monkey finds a large iron bridge over rushing water, across which is a cave. He persuades the other monkeys to jump in also, and they make it into their home. He then reminds them of their prior declaration, so they declare him their king. He takes the throne and calls himself Handsome Monkey King. This happiness does not last. When one of his older monkey friends dies, the Monkey King is very upset. He decides to strike out from his island on a self-made raft, in search of an Immortal to teach him how to beat death.

He comes ashore and wanders around. Humans see him and flee, uncertain of his ape-like appearance. He takes some clothes that were left out to dry and continues on foot. His face hidden by a hood, he travels through towns and sees many examples of human degeneracy and vice. He continues on and into a forest. The Monkey King hears a woodcutter singing an interesting song, and when questioning the woodcutter about the origin he learns it was taught to the woodcutter by an Immortal who resides in the forest.

The Monkey King comes to the entrance of a temple in which a magical Taoist martial artist named Puti Zushi resides. Puti Zushi initially refuses to let him in, but the Monkey King refuses to leave and waits outside the entrance for months. Puti Zushi is impressed by the Monkey King’s persistence and allows him to enter. He accepts the Monkey King as a student, giving him his religious name, “Sun Wukong”, and teaches him many advanced Taoist practices, including the Way of Immortality.

He later advises Sun Wukong never to needlessly show off his skills, because others might ask him to teach them, and if he does teach them, they may go on to cause trouble, but if he doesn’t teach them, they will resent him for it. He then forbids Sun Wukong from ever revealing who it was that taught him, and the loyal Monkey King promises never to reveal the identity of his Master. Later, whenever Sun Wukong is asked about his powers and skills, he honestly replies that he learned everything in his dreams. Throughout the rest of the book, however, Sun Wukong is, repeatedly, referred to as a member of the “Monad Sect”.

After the Monkey King returns home, he learns that a demon called the Demon King of Confusion is kidnapping the monkeys of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit to use as slaves. He subsequently kills the demon and his minions, saving the kidnapped monkeys. He also brings the entire weapon storage of a nearby country for his subjects but is unable to find a weapon fit for himself. Upon hearing that Dragon Kings possess many treasures, he travels the oceans and finds the palace of a Dragon King.

At the entrance, Sun Wukong asks for an introduction, but Dragon King Ao Guang tells his guards to turn him away. Sun Wukong barges in anyway, brushing off protests from the guards, insisting the Dragon King must be confused to turn away a fellow king. Inside, he introduces himself and encourages the Dragon King to give him a weapon. Quickly realizing Sun Wukong is quite formidable, the Dragon King feigns willingness and hospitality, ordering his underlings to bring out weapon after weapon. Sun Wukong tests each weapon, but none are robust enough for the Monkey King, who is unhappy with the situation.

Sun Wukong then acquires the golden-banded staff Ruyi Jingu Bang/Ding Hai Shen Zhen, the stabilizer of the Four Seas and a treasure of Ao Guang. The Monkey King is the only creature strong enough to wield the staff-like weapon and there is an instant affinity between them. The golden-banded staff can change its size, elongate, fly, and attack opponents according to its master’s will. It weighs 13,500 jīn or 7960 kg. When not wielding the weapon, the Monkey King shrinks it down to the size of a sewing needle and stores it in his ear.

In addition to taking the magical staff, the Monkey King encourages the Dragon King to gift him attire fit for a King. The Dragon King calls upon the Dragon Kings for assistance, and they arrive and give Sun Wukong a golden chain mail shirt, a pair of dragon-soaring arm guards, a phoenix-feather cap, and cloud-walking boots. Sun Wukong thanks the Dragon Kings and leaves happy.

Upon his return to the mountain, Wukong demonstrates the new weapon to his monkey tribe and draws the attention of other beastly powers, who seek to ally with him. He forms a fraternity, the Seven Sages, with the Bull Demon King, the Saurian Demon King, the Roc Demon King, the Lion Spirit King, the Macaque Spirit King, and the snub-nosed monkey Spirit King.

The Monkey King, now sentenced to death for extorting the Dragon Kings, then defies Hell’s attempt to collect his soul. He wipes his name out of the Book of Mortals, a collection of books claimed to have every name of every mortal alive and the ability to manipulate lifespan, along with the names of all monkeys known to him. The Ten Kings report him to the Jade Emperor. The heavenly army uses everything, even trying to erase him from existence altogether, but ultimately fails.

Havoc in Heaven[]

Hoping that a promotion and a rank among the gods will make him more manageable, the Jade Emperor invites the Monkey King to Heaven. The Monkey King believes he is receiving an honourable place as one of the gods as he is told he will be made ‘Protector of the Horses,’ a fancy term the Heavens coined for a stable boy, the lowest job in heaven. When he discovers the importance of status in Heaven, and how he has been given the lowest position, the Monkey King sets the Cloud Horses free from the stable, then returns to his own kingdom and proclaims himself the Great Sage Equal of Heaven.

The Heavens reluctantly recognize his self-proclaimed title after Gold Star advises the Jade Emperor against rushing into military action against the "brash, rude and impudent" monkey, warning that failing to defeat Monkey would harm the reputation of Heaven. Gold Star advises the Jade Emperor to superficially appease Sun Wukong’s vanity while treating him as a pet, and invite him back to Heaven to keep him from causing trouble on earth. The Jade Emperor agrees after Gold Star laughs that, in reality, the fanciful title is a meaningless joke revealing Sun Wukong’s overconfidence and ignorance of the important workings of Heaven.

Sun Wukong suspects a trap but is happy when Gold Star, acting as an envoy, addresses him as the Great Sage Equal of Heaven and presents him with official papers. Gold Star tells Sun Wukong he has been granted a far more important position as ‘Guardian of the Heavenly Peach Garden,’ which peach-loving Sun Wukong accepts. Later, when seven heavenly maidens are sent by Queen Mother Xi Wangmu to pluck peaches for the Royal Banquet, Sun Wukong discovers every important god and goddess has been invited to the banquet except for him. When he tells the maidens he is the Great Sage Equal of Heaven, the maidens giggle, replying that everyone in Heaven knows he is merely an immortal who tends to the peach garden. The Monkey King’s indignation then turns to open defiance.

During the preparations for the Royal Banquet, Sun Wukong sneaks in to taste the fine foods and drink royal wine. In a tipsy state, the Monkey King roams Heaven while all the gods and goddesses are on their way to the banquet. He reaches high levels of the palace that the authorities of Heaven leave unguarded, for they can only be accessed by deities of the highest and purest spiritual power. Upon realizing that he is at the top of the 33 layers of the heavenly palace, Sun Wukong steals and consumes Laozi’s Pills of Immortality and Xi Wangmu’s Peaches of Immortality, takes the remainder of the Jade Emperor’s royal wine, and then escapes back to his kingdom in preparation for his rebellion.

The Jade Emperor refuses to accept Gold Star’s counsel to find another peaceful way to deal with Sun Wukong and orders his forces to mobilize. Laughing continuously and fully enjoying himself, and with a combination of martial prowess, guile, and quick-witted creative responses to many different types of powerful Heavenly weapons used against him, the Monkey King single-handedly defeats the Army of Heaven’s 100,000 celestial warriors, all 28 constellations, Nezha, and all of the Four Heavenly Kings.

Then Guanyin, the Boddhisattva of Mercy, and her disciple Muzha/Moksha arrive. Guanyin sends Muzha to inspect the situation and fight Sun Wukong. Muzha is defeated, and then Guanyin suggests the Jade Emperor’s nephew Erlang Shen fight Wukong. Wukong and Erlang are evenly matched and eventually, both turn into terrifying figures, which scares Wukong’s monkey army away. Sun Wukong is disheartened and turns into a fish to run away, then both of them keep shapeshifting to turn into more powerful things than the other, finally, Laozi throws his Diamond Jade ring at Wukong from behind while he is fighting, knocking him senseless and enabling Erlang to bind him up.

After several failed attempts at execution, Sun Wukong is locked into Laozi’s eight-way trigram crucible for 49 days to be distilled into an elixir by samadhi fires; this will allow Laozi to regain his pills of longevity. The fire of the crucible is hot enough to burn beings of so much unspeakable power that they rival Buddha himself.

When the cauldron is opened 49 days later, the Monkey King jumps out, having survived by hiding in a corner marked by the wind trigram, where there is less fire. The heat from the samadhi fires has reinforced his bodily frame, making him stronger than ever before and impervious to greater damage. The heat gives him a new ability; the Monkey King can now recognize evil with his new Golden Fiery Eyes. Sun Wukong then proceeds to destroy the crucible and makes his way to Heaven’s main chamber to confront the Jade Emperor and his senior advisors.

Imprisonment[]

The Jade Emperor and the authorities of Heaven appeal to the Buddha, who arrives from his temple in the West in person. After listening to Sun Wukong, who makes a case that he should be the new Jade Emperor, the Buddha makes a bet that the Monkey King cannot escape from his palm. The Monkey King smugly accepts the bet. He leaps and flies all the way to the edge of the universe. Seeing nothing there but five towering pillars, the Monkey King believes that he has reached the end of all existence.

To prove his trail, he marks a pillar with a phrase declaring himself the Great Sage Equal of Heaven and urinates on the middle pillar. He then leaps back and returns to Buddha’s palm to claim his victory in winning the bet. Sun Wukong is then very surprised to find that the five “pillars” he found are merely fingers of the Buddha’s hand, finding it impossible to believe. When the Monkey King tries to escape the palm, Buddha turns his hand into a mountain of rocks, sending Sun Wukong hurtling back down to earth.

Before the Monkey King can lift the mountain off, the Buddha seals him there, using a paper talisman bearing the mantra, Om Mani Padme Hum, in gold letters. The Monkey King remains imprisoned in stocks for five hundred years, to "learn patience and humility", with only his head and hands protruding from the base of the mountain. The Buddha arranges two earth spirits to feed the Monkey King iron pellets when he is hungry, and molten copper when he is thirsty.

Disciple to Tang Sanzang[]

Five hundred years later, the Bodhisattva Guanyin searches for disciples to protect a pilgrim on a journey to the West to retrieve the Buddhist sutras. In the hearing of this, the Monkey King offers to serve the pilgrim, Tang Sanzang, a monk of the Tang dynasty, in exchange for his freedom after the pilgrimage is complete. Understanding Sun Wukong will be difficult to control, Guanyin gives Tang Sanzang a gift from the Buddha: a magical circlet which, once the Monkey King is tricked into putting it on, can never be removed. When Tang Sanzang chants a certain sutra, the band will tighten and cause an unbearable headache. Guanyin gives the Monkey King three special hairs, only to be used in dire emergencies. Under Tang Sanzang’s supervision, the Monkey King is allowed to journey to the West.

Throughout the novel, the Monkey King faithfully helps Tang Sanzang on his journey to India. They are joined by Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing, both of whom accompany the priest to atone for their previous crimes. Tang Sanzang’s safety is constantly under threat from demons and other supernatural beings, as well as bandits, as they believe that by eating Tang Sanzang’s flesh, one will obtain immortality and great power. The Monkey King often acts as Tang Sanzang’s bodyguard to combat these threats. The group encounters a series of eighty-one tribulations before accomplishing their mission and returning safely to China.

During the journey, the Monkey King learns about virtues and the teachings of Buddhism. There, the Monkey King attains Buddhahood, becoming the “Victorious Fighting Buddha”, for his service and strength, thus liberating him from the magic circlet as a reward for his contributions throughout the pilgrimage. The Monkey King is revealed to know about the fate of Tang Sangzang and also of his knowledge in many other things, as on three occasions he knew that the monk was supposed to suffer and he also cured a king who had been ill for many years, and knew properties of herbs no one knew of. Wukong also mentions being sworn brothers with Erlang Shen.

After returning back from India and spreading Buddhism through China via the Buddhist scriptures, Wukong, alongside his master and junior disciples lived in Mount Lingshan thereafter for the rest of their godhood lives. But, unbeknownst to the Monkey King, Heaven still distrusts him and holds a grudge against him for his infamous reputation as the "Wrecker of the Celestial Palace", so to keep him "tamed" and under the Court's control, they ensured that the magic circlet remains on his head as a safety measure, albeit invisible to keep Wukong convinced that he is freed from the circlet.

Death and Rebirth[]

At some point in Sun Wukong's eternal life, he would resign from his position as the Victorious Fighting Buddha and retreated back to Mount Huaguo to revel in the simple joys with his monkey tribe as their beloved Handsome Monkey King once more, because he found the Celestial Rules cumbersome and desired total freedom. Furthermore, the Old Monkey in Chapter 6 suggests that another reason he abandoned the Buddhahood he worked hard to attain was due to lingering mortal love he felt for Baigujing, who he was forced to kill three times hoping his heart would no longer ache.

But of course, the mistrust and grudge of the Celestial Court remained, and his choice to forgo the life above only ended up fueling the fire. Despite all of his efforts in the journey of redemption that granted him maturity, wisdom, and Buddhahood, the deities of the Court still views Wukong's presence as a potential threat and a constant intimidation factor to them due to his overwhelming prowess and infamous reputation. Fearing that history may repeat itself, the Jade Emperor sent his nephew Erlang Shen to lead the Celestial Army with a task to destroy Mount Huaguo and massacre the Great Sage's kinsfolk in order to coerce Wukong back to his heavenly position.

However, as a sworn brother and friendly rival of Wukong, and given his lifelong grudge against his uncle thanks to the cosmic injustice he had done upon him and his mother, Erlang secretly and voluntarily helped Wukong in achieving his total freedom, essentially scheming a rebellion against the Celestial Court. And when the preemptive invasion on Mount Huaguo came, Wukong faced the Celestial Army to avenge his fallen kin, and staged a duel with Erlang in the process. At the climax of the battle, Wukong's magic circlet triggered and gave Erlang the opportunity to deliver the "finishing blow".

Subsequently, this made the pieces of their scheme fall into place, allowing Wukong to kill himself on purpose after being struck down and split his spirit into six relics with each of them corresponding to a certain sense, and are distributed by Erlang to Black Bear Guai (eyes), Yellow Wind Sage (ears), Yellowbrow (nose), Hundred-Eyed Daoist Master (tongue), and Bull King (body), with the mind being kept by Erlang himself. Wukong's broken shell was then sealed inside the birthstone and Erlang divulged his plans to his six other sworn brothers about testing the worthiness of Sun Wukong's reincarnation should he come to be.

Centuries has passed after the Great Sage's formulated death, the remainder of his spirit would eventually reincarnate into his spiritual successor known as the Destined One, a nameless, mortal, monkey warrior from Mount Huaguo tasked to go on a journey from China to India to recover the Six Senses of the Great Sage in order to bear both his name and nature. With this rebirth, Wukong and Erlang's coup has truly begun.

Names and Titles[]

Sun Wukong aka the Monkey King has many nicknames and titles, some of them fit his legendary status, some are insults, and among others.

Within Journey to the West[]

Sun Wukong (孫悟空/孙悟空 Sūn Wùkōng) - A name given by his first master, Puti Zushi. His last name "Sun" is a pun to husun, which means "monkey". While his first name "Wukong" means "Awakened to Void/Emptiness".
Handsome Monkey King (美猴王 Měi Hóuwáng) - Or Monkey King (猴王 Hóuwáng) for short. A title bestowed upon him by his monkey tribe after he successfully made it through Water Curtain Cave. The adjective mei means "handsome or beautiful", hou means "monkey", and wang means "king".
Intelligent Stone Monkey (靈明石猴 Língmíng Shíhóu) - The term for Wukong's race category that belongs in the Four Celestial Primates, said to be capable of transformations, can recognize the seasons, discern the advantages of earth, and able to alter the courses of planets and stars.
Stone Monkey (石猴 Shíhóu) - refers to Wukong's physical essence, being born from a stone egg after a millennia of incubation on Mount Huaguo.
Great Sage Equal to Heaven (齊天大聖 Qítiān Dàshèng) - Wukong's self-proclaimed yet well-known title after wreaking havoc in Heaven. This was actually suggested by one of his demon friends and used the title since.
Keeper of the Heavenly Horses (弼馬溫 Bìmǎwēn) - The celestial title given to Wukong by the Jade Emperor. Upon learning that it's just a fancy word for "stable boy" and the fact that it's the lowest rank among the celestial hierarchy, it enraged Wukong, released the Heavenly Horses free, then fled back to Mount Huaguo. From then on, the title was often used as a mocking insult against him.
Victorious Fighting Buddha (鬥戰勝佛 Dòu Zhànshèng Fó) - A godly title bestowed by the Buddha himself as a reward for embracing the dharma teachings after his five century-long punishment, uplifting good against evil, and subdued countless yaoguais throughout the journey west.

Outside of Journey to the West[]

Son Goku - is the Japanese translation of Sun Wukong's name. It is also the name of the popular fictional character from the Dragon Ball series written by the late Akira Toriyama.
Monkey - Wukong's name in the English dub of the 1978 Japanese TV show, Saiyuki (or Monkey Magic).
False Sage, Equal to Nothing - An insult to Wukong made by Azure Lion in LEGO Monkie Kid.
Jin Mori - The protagonist of The God of Highschool whose true identity is Sun Wukong.