Last time, we mentioned that Sun Wukong was furious because Fan Xin's spirit had been wiped clean, prompting him to strike at Heaven with his Jingu Bang. The rainbow rope used by Sun Wukong as a necklace had accidentally absorbed a drop of blood containing his spiritual charm, thus gaining the potential to cultivate into a human form.
This time, let's talk about how the Great Saint Sun caused a great disturbance at the Heavenly Palace! At the time, Wukong was seething with rage, brimming with demonic power, much like a fierce beast choosing someone to devour. Starting from the Peach Garden, he fought his way to the Southern Heaven Gate, intending to descend to the lower realms, but then he thought that simply leaving would be letting Heaven off too easily. So, wielding the Ruyi Jingu Bang, he continued his assault from the Southern Heaven Gate all the way to the Jade Pond, where the Queen Mother of the West was preparing to hold the Peach Banquet. Along the way, countless heavenly soldiers and generals couldn't withstand a single blow from him.
When the Great Saint Sun arrived at the entrance to the Jade Pond, not a single one of the heavenly soldiers dared to confront him. All they could do was surround the outside of the Peach Garden, guard the entrance, and wait for the Jade Emperor to dispatch more troops. It seemed that only with more soldiers would these heavenly troops gain a bit of courage. Seeing this, the Great Saint Sun laughed heartily, tucked away his Jingu Bang, and said to the host of heavenly soldiers, "You are all so faint-hearted, I, Old Sun, disdain to strike. Go quickly and inform your Jade Emperor, just say, 'The Beautiful Monkey King from Flower Fruit Mountain, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong, cannot stand Heaven's doings and thus has come alone to challenge all of Heaven. If there's anyone in Heaven who dares, send them over quickly; Old Sun will be waiting here at the Jade Pond, eating and drinking wine. If no one dares come, then Old Sun will overturn the Jade Emperor's dragon throne!'"
Having said that, he made an extremely graceful turn, his crimson cape swept out with a swish, exuding extraordinary grandeur. Then, laughing heartily, he stepped into the Peach Garden! His presence was imposing, domineering, and majestically unyielding! The heavenly soldiers behind could only look at each other, at a loss for what to do.
Having entered the Jade Pond, the Great Saint Sun looked around with his hands shading his eyes and saw that besides some fairies who were arranging the wine and fruits, there was no one else. He executed a freezing spell, and all the fairies were immobilized on the spot. The Great Saint Sun casually took a wine pot from one of the fairy's hands, tilted his head, drank it dry, and then threw the pot away, exclaiming, "Good wine, good wine, truly satisfying, truly satisfying." Afterward, the Great Saint pulled out a handful of monkey hair, blew on it, and transformed it into countless little monkeys, each with a pouch in hand. In no time, most of the fruits and wines prepared for the Peach Banquet at the Jade Pond were swept clean.
"Hey hey, leave a couple of bottles for your boss," the Great Saint deftly snatched a pot and hugged it. Otherwise, the quick-eyed, quick-handed little monkeys would have taken it in their pouches. "Alright, enough, stop taking more! Go back to Flower Fruit Mountain and distribute the fruits to everyone. Tell them to wait for me to celebrate the victory! Oh, and remember to call all the Demon Kings from the seventy-two caves of Flower Fruit Mountain." After giving the instruction, he waved his hand, and the little monkeys prepared to descend, but at that moment, one little monkey looked longingly at the pot of wine in the Great Saint's hand, eyes full of hope.
Sun Wukong helplessly rolled his eyes and casually tossed the wine pot to the little monkey. Pleased, the little monkey somersaulted and went straight for Flower Fruit Mountain! The Great Saint Sun gazed at the empty mess and his own empty hands, shook his head, and then plucked another monkey hair, which turned into a clone of himself. Meanwhile, he himself turned into a streak of light that disappeared to who knows where.
Sometime later, outside the entrance of the Supreme Elder Lord's Palace of the Doumu, an additional figure appeared; this person was the Great Saint Sun who had slipped away from the Jade Pond. At this moment, Sun Wukong, with a mischievous grin, pushed open the doors of the Doumu Palace and swaggered in.
Not long after, Sun Wukong emerged with a look of satisfaction on his face, "Fools would wait at the Jade Pond. It's much better here at the old official's place, with Immortal Pills aplenty. I'm stuffed, and I barely ate half! Now that I'm finished eating, it's time to teach Heaven a lesson." With a somersault, Sun Wukong vanished once again.
And then, throughout the entire Heavenly Court, a roar that shook the Three Realms was heard, "I am the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong. Displeased with the deeds of the Heavenly Court, I hereby declare war on Heaven. All beings within the Three Realms, if willing, gather at Flower Fruit Mountain in three days to deliberate on the campaign against Heaven. If no one comes, in three days, even if I stand alone, I shall flatten Heaven!"
Before the sound faded, another loud bang echoed; it was Sun Wukong who had just smashed the gates of the Lingxiao Palace with his staff. He then strode off with confidence.
With that, the Heavenly Court was enraged, and the Three Realms were shaken! How many years had it been since someone dared to stand against Heaven? Would he be successful? Should one join in for the excitement?
And what of the Great Saint Sun? He had already returned to Flower Fruit Mountain, activated the Mountain Protection Array without delay, and was preparing for the Demon Clan assembly set to occur in three days.
As Wukong was reminiscing, a shout interrupted his thoughts. He turned to see that it was none other than the Bull Demon King and the others, rushing to lend a hand. Wukong gathered his spirit and said, "So it's my brothers who've come. Have you finished on your end?" The faces of the Bull Demon King and his companions were somber as they hung their heads in silence. Sensing that something was amiss, Wukong flashed to the Bull Demon King's side, grabbed his arms, and demanded, "Big brother, what has happened? Is there trouble?" The Bull Demon King hesitated before speaking through clenched teeth, "The Beautiful Monkey King, he died in battle, creating an opportunity for my surprise attack. Yet, I failed to kill the Supreme Elder Lord. I only wounded him severely."
Upon hearing this, Wukong staggered but was swiftly steadied by the Peng Demon King's quick hand. However, Wukong noticed the emptiness where the Peng Demon King's hand should have been. "Peng Big Brother, your hand?" "It was an accident, the Supreme Elder Lord's Eight Trigrams Fire burned it off." His voice was calm, but the hatred in his eyes did not diminish one bit. "Big brother, what about the others? How are they? Did someone come to assist you afterward?"
"We underestimated the Supreme Elder Lord's tactics. Brother Jiaolong later led the elite forces of the Demon Clan and White Bone Spirit, among other demon chiefs, to the rescue. Alas, except for a few demon chiefs, the rest… they all died. Moreover, your master, Master Sanzang, Zhen Yuanzi, they're all gravely injured. Oh yes, there was a beautiful woman accompanying your master, she died too." At this point, Wukong's eyes were nearly bursting, the rims red as if about to drip blood. The Peng Demon King continued, "Later the Supreme Elder Lord was critically wounded, and Erlang God Yang Jian almost sacrificed himself to buy time for the Supreme Elder Lord, and so, the two of them fled. Your master and Zhen Yuanzi have gone back to Flower Fruit Mountain to heal. Only Jiaolong and a few of us still have the strength left, so we came to reinforce you. Monkey, how have things been on your side?"
Wukong hung his head and wiped the blood tears from the corner of his eyes, "My three disciples and I have trapped the four Heavenly Emperors in Lingxiao Palace, but by now, they may have already broken free and started reclaiming the floodwaters from the sky. We also underestimated the strength of the Jade Emperor and his cohort. Aside from the Emperor of Eternal Life and Ziwu Emperor being slightly weaker, the rest are not much different from me in power. Alone, I can defeat one, with two I can barely manage a draw, but against three, I can only flee. However, with the addition of our brothers and my three disciples, we might just be able to face them." After a pause, Wukong continued, "Initially, I planned to ally with other demon leaders to destroy Lingxiao Palace and be done with it, but now I've decided that the Heavenly Palace must be completely obliterated. Otherwise, I can't avenge the Beautiful Monkey King's great enmity." His eyes blazed with surging fighting spirit and boundless hatred.
"Good, let's do it, brothers. We'll avenge the Beautiful Monkey King and give the beings of the Three Realms a clean slate."
"However, brothers, there's no need to rush. The Demon Clan has already gained an absolute advantage, and the Heavenly Palace is in utter defeat. All we need to do is to defeat the four Heavenly Emperors, and then victory is merely a matter of time. My three disciples have gone to meet with other leaders. Let's go too. Then, with the strength of everyone combined, we'll capture the four Heavenly Emperors. Once they're headless, the army of the Heavenly Palace will undoubtedly surrender."
After speaking, Wukong, the Bull Demon King, the Peng Demon King, the Flood Dragon Demon King, the Lion Camel King, and the Rhino Monster, transformed into six different streaks of light, and vanished in a flash.
This final battle was finally upon them. The last stand that would determine the life and death of the Demon Clan's Heavenly Palace was set to unfold. No matter which side lost, it would significantly affect the overall situation. On the side of the demons, Wukong and his companions were the soul of the entire Demon Clan. If they were defeated, the Demon Clan's army would undoubtedly be counterattacked by the Heavenly Generals, leading to their dispersal. And if the four Heavenly Emperors were defeated, the Demon Clan would assuredly raze the Heavenly Palace in one fell swoop. Therefore, in this final battle, no one could afford to lose; neither side could bear the defeat!
And so it was:
Gods, demons, mortals, and ghosts each walk separate paths; since ancient times, battles have subdued no one.
To unify the three thousand worlds, it's bound to take thousands of lives and ten thousand bones withered away.