Lotus Flame, Zen Heart: Red Boy Attains the Dao at Mount Putuo

Centered on Mount Putuo and Mount Luojia from Journey to the West, the story unfolds over the three years after Red Boy arrives at Mount Putuo, extending to Mount Hao, the East Sea, the back mountain of Mount Putuo, and a corner of Spirit Mountain. The Buddhist sanctuary is devoted to cultivating the mind and understanding Zen, while its precepts and rules serve as shackles that temper one's character. The demons around Mount Putuo live off the spiritual energy of plants and trees, maintaining a delicate coexistence with the Buddhist community in which they generally leave one another in peace and occasionally lend a helping hand. The balance of power between the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist community remains in the background. The story focuses on Red Boy's transformation from a defiant young demon into someone beginning to attain a Zen heart, as well as the bonds he forms with the Dragon Girl and the Mountain Peach Spirit. It explores how obsession and letting go, love and Zen, can be reconciled.