#chapter recap

[journeythroughjourneytothewest]

Chapter Recap 1: The divine root conceives, its source revealed; Mind and nature nurtured, the Great Dao is born

Hello to everyone, and thank you for a good showing on this first official “meeting” for the Journey to the West reading group. Many thanks to everyone who participated! You comments, memes, art, and meta was all wonderful. To end the day, I will provide a quick chapter recap for anyone who may want or need it. I  hope you all find it useful. Here’s looking forward to next week’s session.

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Chapter 1 covers a LOT, beginning with the primordial figure Pan Gu’s construction of the Universe, the creation of Heaven, Earth, and Man, before we then zoom into Flower-Fruit Mountain. The focus is here put on an immortal stone which, “nourished for a long period by the seed of Heaven and Earth and by the essences of the sun and the moon,” becomes “pregnant with a divine embryo” (i.e. a stone egg), which later on, being “exposed to the wind,” is “transformed into a stone monkey.” Thus is the hero of Xiyouji created!

We then follow the stone monkey as he lives a life of feasting on the fruits of the Earth that Flower-Fruit Mountain provides and becoming friends with everything from tigers to deer to gibbons. And then one fateful day, while playing with a group of monkeys, all these simians decide to follow a mountain stream to its source. Encountering a great waterfall, the monkeys declare that “‘If any of us had the ability to penetrate the curtain and find out where the water comes from without hurting himself, we would honor him as king.’” The stone monkey is the only one to take on the challenge, and, jumping through the waterfall, he discovers a sizeable cave all ready and furnished. The stone monkey, delighted with his discovery, soon convinces the rest of the simians to jump through the waterfall and join him in the cave so that they might “spare ourselves from being subject to the whims of heaven,” i.e. the weather. And so the stone monkey “ascended the throne of kingship” and “assumed the title, Handsome Monkey King.”

The Handsome Monkey King and his subjects, “a flock of gibbons and baboons,” enjoy “their independence in perfect happiness” for “three or four hundred years.” Yet one day during a feast, the king “suddenly grew sad,” soon after explaining to his alarmed subjects that his sorrow comes from fact that though “‘we are not subject to the laws of man today, nor need we be threatened by the rule of any bird or beast, old age and physical decay in the future” will bring an end to their happiness. The monkeys are left weeping, “each one troubled by his own impermanence.” Yet from “among the ranks a bareback monkey suddenly leaped forth” and informs the Monkey King that the Buddhas, the immortals, and the holy sages “can avoid the Wheel of Transmigration as well as the process of birth and destruction, and live as long as Heaven and Earth, the mountains and the streams.” The Monkey King immediately resolves to “find these three kinds of people” so that he can learn how to escape death and be young forever. The monkeys are delighted at this idea, and declare that they will “send the Great King off with a great banquet.”

After an entire day spent drinking and feasting, the Monkey King has his subjects make him a raft, and he sets off in search of the immortals. When he arrives on a distant shore, he soon afterward catches and strips a man of his clothes so that he can wear them himself, “aping the way humans wore them.” The Monkey King then made his way “though counties and prefectures, imitating human speech and human manners,” always “bent on finding the way of the Buddhas, immortals, and holy sages, on discovering the formula for eternal youth.” Yet his search seems fruitless, as “the people of the world were all seekers after profit and fame; there was not one who showed concern for his appointed end.”

The Monkey King is unsuccessful in finding the immortals on one continent, though he spent eight or nine years searching. So he builds himself another raft and drifts across another ocean to another continent. Here he comes across a magnificent mountain, and here encounters a woodcutter that he mistakes for an immortal. Yet this man is neighbors with an actual immortal, and is thus able to tell the Monkey King how he can find “‘the Cave of Slanting Moon and Three Stars. Inside the cave is an immortal by the name of the Patriarch Subodhi, who has already sent out innumerable disciples.”

Finding the cave exactly as the woodcutter told him he could, the Handsome Monkey King nevertheless doesn’t dare to knock. And, being a monkey, he instead “jumped onto the branch of a pine tree, picked a few pine seeds and ate them, and began to play.” Yet doing so works out in his favor; an immortal youth, coming out both because his shifu told him to and to see who was making a disturbance, soon afterwards brings the Monkey King inside to meet Patriarch Subodhi.

As soon as he sees Patriarch Subodhi, the Handsome Monkey King “prostrated himself and kowtowed times without number, saying ‘Master! Master! I, your pupil, pay you my sincere homage.’” And indeed, after being questioned on where he came from, how he got to the immortal’s cave, and even on how he looks and moves, the Patriarch gives the Monkey King the religious name “Sun Wukong,” or “monkey awakened to the void,” accepting the simian as his pupil.

And so we leave the stone monkey, the Handsome Monkey King, the newly named Sun Wukong, at the beginning of his Daoist cultivation. We’ll see how successful he is at it next week.

[merlinjuno]

Habits of people living in blue zones:

-drinking tea

-eating till 80% full

-drinking alcohol in moderation

-social bonding

-no strenuous exercise but moving everyday

-low stress

-low meat consumption

Okinawan diet:

-rich in tofu, sweet potatoes, fish (3 times a week), vegetables (at least 11 ounces per day)

-served in 4 small plates and 1 slightly bigger plate

[hwadam-stories]

Below are 10 summarized pages for the first chapter of MASTER OF THE SUN taking place in the first volume of the light novel.

PAGES: 9,10,11

The wind is cold as Bayan exhales deeply, watching her breath dissipate. She had been sitting in a tree for too long, avoiding children who threw stones at her, and her back ached. Realizing the sun was setting, she gracefully jumped down, landing lightly on the ground. After dusting herself off, she stretched her body, feeling relief despite the groans. Bayan picks up her backpack, feeling satisfied with the weight of the rabbit she had caught earlier. Since she couldn't join the village's communal work, she didn't receive rations, and her mother, the village shaman, only received a small amount of food. Happy about the prospect of a good meal, Bayan hummed a song as she walked home. Approaching her shabby but comforting home, she noticed a shadowy figure in front of the house and hurried her steps, thinking it might be her mother. However, she soon realized it was Jahan, who greeted her awkwardly. After a brief exchange, Jahan handed Bayan a small, cloth-wrapped object, leaving her curious about its contents.

PAGES: 12,13,14

Jahan tries to give Bayan some meat, knowing she likely didn’t receive her rations. Bayan coldly questions why Jahan is helping her and mocks him, asking if his father, an elder, knows about him giving valuable food to a "useless mutant." Jahan angrily defends Bayan, insisting her healing power, though self-directed, is the strongest among their people, the Shiyo. Bayan dismisses this, feeling her power is worthless since it can’t heal others. The narrative then provides background on the Shiyo people, who have healing abilities they use to create and sell healing potions. A rare type of Shiyo, known as "Black Shiyo," can only heal themselves and not others, making them useless to their community. Bayan, a Black Shiyo, faced severe discrimination and was denied food, forcing her to scavenge in the mountains from a young age. Despite the danger and suffering, she survived through sheer determination. As Jahan observes Bayan, he reflects on her resilience and the life in her eyes, believing she will never be defeated despite the hardships she endures.

PAGES: 15,16,17,18

Jahan feels relieved that Bayan hasn't left him despite his worries. He plans to ask her to be his partner after his coming-of-age ceremony and leave together. Jahan notices Bayan's unease and offers to help her regain her strength, but she angrily rejects his help, reflecting on her painful and futile attempts to restore her power. Bayan's frustration escalates, leading her to shout at Jahan to leave. Afterward, her mother, Rangbi, comments on Bayan's temper and the futility of her anger towards Jahan. Rangbi, who is blind but sharp-eared, directs Bayan to continue preparing the meat Jahan brought. Despite her irritation, Bayan cannot afford to waste the food due to their poverty. As winter approaches, Bayan worries about their dwindling resources and her mother's declining health, emphasizing the harshness of their situation.

[egophiliac]

A guy who just wake up from a coma -> what did i miss?

Pomefiore was the last plot i follow before real life made me forget about our silly boys. How bad has the plot become now for our gang? Also who is that Gojo looking guy?

anon, I am so sorry and I mean this in the best way, but I do think episode 5 is the absolute funniest place to have stopped following Twst because shit starts escalating SO fast after that. episode 6 literally starts with a secret government shadow agency breaking down our doors and kidnapping students. zero to a million instantly.

and like...that's not even the zaniest thing so far? Ortho's hacked into the collective human unconscious. there's time travel (sort of). "Crowley might be Malleus' long-lost father" is a serious theory. if you'd told me any of this back pre-episode 6, I would have asked for the link to this unbelievable but highly intriguing fanfic.

also, episode 7 gave us (and then immediately took away 😔) the best character in the whole story:

[starmocha]

My dragon.

[copia]

COPIA'S JOURNEY TO RITE HERE RITE NOW ⛧ PREQUELLE ERA

"We need someone new. A firm leader; with youth, and stamina—and sexual charisma...."

video sources | comic bubbles | latin transcript | title font

[sleepyorchidmonster]

So, considering how Idia developed the cheat tool and broke the 4th wall into tiny pieces...

Does that mean that the events and vignettes are all thanks to Idia?!?

I mean, they do fit his brand of silly, though maybe the other students also join in to create the stories? Like a Friday night "let's brainstorm a new event" thing that they do after the third years moved to their internships, so as to keep the cast together??

I can see everyone trying to at least adapt the other main story chapters into the game (maybe using S.T.Y.X. tech to recreate the events by analyzing their memories) as a way to keep track of things/ identify a possible pattern or mastermind working behind the scenes...

Which would be quite funny, since they'll have to play the whole game again...

Some highlights include:

- General sense of despair at realizing just how bad Yuu's situation is, especially since the story is in their POV;

- Realization that there's an overblot phantom or more hanging out at the mines;

- Obligatory overblot flashback angst;

- Riddle's mom is worse than they thought;

- General anger at Octotrio for making Yuu homeless/ enslaving a good chunk of the student body;

- Suspicion at Crowley;

- Immediate plans to free Jamil from indentured servitude;

- General consensus that the first years are stupidly reckless;

- Everyone now ships Deuce and Epel and keep teasing them both;

- The whole cast now understands a bit more about S.T.Y.X. and their general role;

- Lots of theorizing about Yuu's dreams;

- Understanding the conflict between human and faes;

- Levan is Crowley theories;

- Everyone's embarassed at seeing their dream selves again.

I've already done a "cast play the game" post so this time I tried to focus more on their general interpretation of the main events, since they'd be playing the game as a way to recap what happened/ find clues about what's to come instead of mere entertainment.

Doesn't mean they don't have plenty of laughs with the sheer insanity of this school...

[myobsession]

Seeing the influx of so many new lotm fans 🥹. I’m gonna gaslight tf out of them when the donghua starts airing. No one is going to get a straight answer out of me…only reading the whole series will give you the truth HAHAHAHAAHAHAA

But guys for real. Collectively, as a fandom, can we please not spoil any of the major plots?

[sapphicfandompirate]

[luchicm04]

Naruto - All Manga/Anime Arcs⋆⁺₊⋆ ☆⋆⁺₊⋆

Our boy sure went through a lot. What's your fav episode?

[thompsborn]

Peter is always bruised in some way.

Harley notices it the same way he notices everything about Peter—inevitably, intensely, with an embarrassing flutter of emotion in his chest and a craving to understand and to help and to be here, be here, be here.

hey yall hb2 chapter 2 is so late but here’s a sign of progress. proof of life. i promise it is happening

[chiyana]

First Kontact Chapter 30: Daddy's Home

Bruce returns in true Bruce fashion: panicking with a straight face and absolutely flooding his children with anything they might need.

[beachyserasims]

Since I just ended chapter eight of my Geneva Island Legacy series, I wanted to do another quick recap of all my favorite moments and comments from all my wonderful moots who followed along!!

When we were all screaming with excitement!!

@sirianasims

How we got seriously invested in our pixel fam

@feroshgirlsims

That time we yelled at the screen to GET IT TOGETHER

@lynzishell

When we imagined a cozy future for Rowan

@sirianasims

Then we all said YAY!! (and my moots made me happy cry)

@soulthesimmer

When we wished for something better for Autumn

@honeyjars-sims

A huuuuuugeee thank you again to everyone who followed along and showed any kind of love to my story!! I am very excited to continue onto the next chapter with you all ♡♡

Starting Chapter 9 in a few days!!

[lucilassie]

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 🎊

This was my first year of doing fortography from start to finish, so I put together my top 10 shots I've done all year (in no particular order)

To 2025! 🥳 🎉

[six-eyed-samurai]

Ok I was sick before so I've finally gotten around to reading chapter 132 and here are my usual two cents no one asked for

1. ENJIN IN A SUIT????

2. DO I SEE A POTENTIAL REDEMPTION ARC WITH FU AND AMO OR DO I SEE

3. I'm so sorry Eishia

4. I WISH WE GOT FULL PROPER MODELLED LOOKS OF THEIR DOLL FESTIVAL COSTUMES

5. man if they weren't the bad guys of this arc ( I think) I'd smash the Nijiku siblings

[starmocha]

I will be dissecting Caleb's myth like I did with Sylus because I want to make sure we're all crying horrendously about the agonizing depths of Caleb and MC's love for one another

and because i am a nerd