Amid the chaos and upheaval, Tripitaka could no longer remember how far Barry Bear had carried him, nor how many times Barry had whispered in his ear, "Master, hold on!"
The scenery around them blurred past in a frenzy. Behind them, Damon Six-Ears swung the Golden Staff with furious roars, smashing everything in his path.
Mountains collapsed, plains rose, rivers changed course—before Damon Six-Ears' absolute power, nothing could withstand him.
Yet Tripitaka's mind was utterly blank.
In this moment, the whole world seemed to fall silent—an unprecedented stillness. All that lingered in his ears were Barry Bear's constant words.
......
From the distant horizon, a streak of spiritual light shot forth, striking Damon Six-Ears as he charged ahead.
The blow did little actual harm, but it slowed Damon Six-Ears for an instant. In that fleeting moment, a bolt of lightning crashed down from the sky, striking his back.
After the piercing 'crack' of thunder, his body tumbled from the sky like a severed kite, raising clouds of yellow dust.
As he struggled to his feet, dazed and battered, Mother Nuwa was already hovering before him, the Emerald Wall floating at her side.
"Your opponent is me." A voice echoed in Damon Six-Ears' mind.
"You? My opponent?" Damon Six-Ears clutched the Golden Circlet on his head and laughed madly.
......
Barry Bear kept running at full speed with Tripitaka on his back.
......
On the mountainside, the Buddhas' chanting grew steadily faster.
......
In the sky, two Heavenly Tribulations converged once again, unleashing a deafening roar as they prepared to strike anew.
Mother Nuwa's face was as cold as frost.
"If just saying you're my opponent makes it so, then what does that make me—a joke?" His smile twisted, almost as if he were crying. Damon Six-Ears searched for Nuwa's position, trembling as he continued, "But it doesn't matter. I am a joke anyway. Hahaha! But I'm going to make every last one of you... wish you were dead!"
No sooner had he spoken than Damon Six-Ears shot forward like an arrow loosed from a bow, still heading in Tripitaka's direction.
In a flash, Mother Nuwa spun and gave chase. With a sweep of her flowing sleeves, she tore a vast stretch of earth from the ground and hurled it skyward—Damon Six-Ears included.
Wracked with pain, Damon Six-Ears' eyes lost all focus as his body mingled with the airborne rubble, flung far into the distance.
Seeing this, Mother Nuwa paused in surprise.
What was going on? Even prepared, he couldn't evade such a move?
"Could it be that his seven senses are completely scrambled?"
If that was true, then the problem was nearly solved.
Before the rubble even hit the ground, Damon Six-Ears clenched his fists again, channeling his spiritual power and roaring as he charged once more toward Tripitaka.
This time, Mother Nuwa paid close attention.
Indeed, Damon Six-Ears was sprinting roughly toward Tripitaka's position—but only roughly. The deviation was actually quite obvious.
Mother Nuwa turned and glanced toward Spirit Mountain.
......
On the mountainside, Saint Raymond slowly opened his eyes.
......
Understanding at last, Mother Nuwa spun around, extended her hands, and sent a surge of spiritual power crashing into Damon Six-Ears' shoulder from afar.
The blow wasn't heavy—barely enough to leave a mark on Damon Six-Ears—but it was enough. His direction shifted, and though he came within less than five li of Tripitaka, he veered away, heading even farther off course.
Most crucially, he was completely lost, left only to roar and swing the Golden Staff wildly in every direction.
Mother Nuwa watched quietly from the side, occasionally intervening to further disrupt Damon Six-Ears' sense of direction.
'Limitless Way' cannot subdue 'Unbounded,' but 'Unbounded' is equally powerless against 'Limitless Way.'
In truth, aside from the so-called omnipotent 'Heavenly Dao Non-Action,' even beings of equal Heaven's Way cultivation are incapable of truly overcoming one another.
But that was enough. The 'Limitless Way' bound by the Golden Circlet was no longer the original 'Limitless.' Now, all Mother Nuwa needed to do was watch and intervene as needed, and Damon Six-Ears would never even touch the hem of Tripitaka's robe.
Seeing through this, Mother Nuwa finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Time trickled by, moment after moment.
Barry Bear still raced forward with Tripitaka on his back. In the distance, he could already see the dazzling light atop Spirit Mountain.
"Master, we're almost at Spirit Mountain! Just hold on a little longer! We're about to win!"
Tripitaka lay quietly on Barry Bear's back, his face ghostly pale, unable even to manage a faint smile.
Gradually, Yang Chan and her demons arrived, and Qingxin too. They watched from afar as Damon Six-Ears roared and smashed wildly with the Golden Staff, while Mother Nuwa followed close behind, effortlessly nudging him off course whenever he tried to adjust, keeping him forever beyond five li of Tripitaka.
In the sky, Heavenly Tribulation still thundered. At the heart of the swirling clouds, the color had turned a deep crimson.
Everyone understood: the true disaster was only just beginning...
......
Within the Palace of the Great Supreme, Master Tongtian clenched his fists in anxiety, his jaw tight and his gaze locked unblinking on Old Lord.
With Tripitaka's arrival at Spirit Mountain, the Buddhist riddle of a hundred generations would finally be resolved, and the great debate between Tripitaka and Saint Raymond was only just beginning. On the surface, Raymond seemed to hold the advantage, but until the very end, no one could say who would win.
But that was their concern. As long as Tripitaka reached Spirit Mountain, it meant the Westward Journey had succeeded. And then—could Old Lord's Heavenly Dao Non-Action be restored?
Everyone understood this truth. But what could understanding do? The Heavenly Tribulation had descended, and the battle raging below was between two cultivators of Heaven's Way—far beyond the Three Pure Ones' ability to resolve.
Master Tongtian could only regret not having acted sooner.
In the midst of the stalemate, Old Lord gently set down his teacup and said, "There is still a chance."
"There is still a chance?" Master Tongtian frowned, unconvinced.
......
On the mountainside, King Kṣitigarbha paused his chanting, furrowing his brow as he murmured, "Something... doesn't feel quite right."
The other Buddhas glanced at him, but did not stop their chanting.
After a moment's hesitation, King Kṣitigarbha sighed softly, "Intense pain can indeed disrupt the seven senses, but... no matter what, he should still be able to sense the Buddha's light. That way, he wouldn't lose the direction of Spirit Mountain. If he can sense Spirit Mountain, he shouldn't be so far off in perceiving Tripitaka's position."
At these words, the other Buddhas all furrowed their brows.
......
Just as the Buddhas of Spirit Mountain were puzzling over this, Damon Six-Ears suddenly ceased his struggle.
He trembled, clutching the Golden Circlet, suspended motionless in midair.
Every hair on his body stood on end, and his bared fangs glinted. Clearly, the pain hadn't lessened in the slightest. Yet why had he stopped struggling?
"Has he given up?" Yang Chan muttered to herself.
Mother Nuwa watched him intently, spiritual power gathering in her palm, ready to act the moment Damon Six-Ears tried anything—just as before, to keep him from ever touching the hem of Tripitaka's robe.
But at that moment, Damon Six-Ears erupted once more. He roared, his Golden Staff suddenly extending skyward, then hurled it with all his might toward Spirit Mountain.
"Judging Tripitaka's position by the Buddha's light from Spirit Mountain?" Mother Nuwa quickly soared forward, raising a shield in the path of the Golden Staff, ready to withstand Damon Six-Ears' full-force strike.
But at that moment, something strange happened. Damon Six-Ears shifted his strength in midair, and the Golden Staff's trajectory changed. Its new target—Emerald...
A voice echoed in Mother Nuwa's mind: "I told you I could adapt. It was only a matter of time. Too bad you didn't believe me, hahaha..."