Legend of the Great Sage大圣传

I'm at ch1150 rn.
Its better than most xianxia at the beginning(~500ch), but like most stories in this genre the quality decreases as the story goes on. Author has a good talent for writing, there are multiple gem chapters in here. Plot is the average cultivation plot.
A great part of this novel is the side characters. Some of them are very fleshed out and written really well, seeing their characters grow is a good experience.
Another plus is the references to buddhism and chinese literature (that the translator actually explains in T/Ns). There's some actual knowledge in there, you can tell the research was done when making these techniques.
(A wrote a small complaint at the bottom, let me know if you agree with me)

MC is.... unique? but also very bland.
- Transmigrator from earth (but doesn't really affect the story)
- Typical protag 'personality' (protect friends w/ life, wicked vengeful to enemies). However, the twist on his personality is that he's kind of a brute? He likes chugging alcohol, is lustful, inhales food at banquets while people stare at him weirdly, stuff like that.

In my reading so far, there are three negatives that stood out. Granted, these are just negatives to me, some ppl might not have a problem.
1. The FMC: I like Xiao An a lot, especially .BUT! Their relationship always seemed... off to me. At least in the beginning of the story, it gave off heavy grooming vibes. Granted, the author always says that their relationship 'surpasses man and woman,' but those honestly seemed more like excuses to me. It got better as Xiao An grew up, but imo the best chapters of the novel were the ones where she was stuck cultivating in the buddhist temple.
2. Gu Yanying: Throughout the entire book, I had no idea what the author wanted to do with this character. She gets way to many accolades/praises from the author (at times I've even wondered if this was his wish-fulfillment character). Stuff like 'anyone that sees her jade skin falls in love at first sight.' or 'over half of the ruyi commandery is this woman's pursuer.' Her character is developed, but with no direction.
3. MC's relationships: MC has a lot of relationships with a lot of women, but 99% of them are as shallow as can be. The women will get introduced as characters, but over the course of time just turn into outlets for his lust. Honestly sad and heartbreaking, especially when the characters themselves realize this, but just continue to do it anyway.

Now for my the complaint: The MC should have been the one to cultivate White Bones and Great Beauty!!!!! Not Xiao An! And here's why:
- It's so much more fleshed out, explained, and interesting than his '9 transformations.' Author actually knows his buddhism, and you can tell he put a lot more thought into developing this technique. Compared to White Bones Great Beauty, the 9 transformations are just too bland and unoriginal in comparison.
- Author could have made the balance of anti-buddha/buddha much earlier, so the MC would still have his emotions like the current Xiao An. This is the same concept of balancing demonic/divine in the 9 transformations.