Iron Fan Immortal sneered repeatedly.
This matter was a dark spot in the Ox Demon King's life.
When brothers meet, naturally there would be no lack of fine wine.
The Ox Demon King and Sun Wukong drank together, the two brothers talking about everything under the sky.
As for Iron Fan Immortal, she was catching up on family matters with Lady Dragon of Wealth.
Red Boy was chasing the little monkeys all over the place, playing merrily.
He had the heart of a child, innocent and carefree, and although he was already thousands of years old and quite clever, he still acted like a child.
Boom, boom, boom.
Outside Huaguo Mountain, thunder sounded.
Sun Wukong and the Ox Demon King both stood up.
They naturally did not mistake it for thunder—it was the war drums of the Heavenly Court.
"What's going on?"
The Ox Demon King asked curiously.
Sun Wukong smiled and said, "Ziwei invited me to join his ranks and I refused. It seems he intends to force the issue now."
"Has he gone mad?"
The Ox Demon King couldn't believe it.
No one knew better than he just how powerful his brother was.
Known as Equal to Heaven, he truly possessed that level of strength.
He had nearly overturned the Heavenly Court in the past, and although there was an element of playacting, his strength was beyond doubt.
If it weren't for Tathagata's schemes back then, the Heavenly Court would have had a slim chance of suppressing Wukong.
Great Emperor Ziwei, gathering the old factions of the Heavenly Court along with his own forces, to take down Sun Wukong, was simply a fool's dream.
"If he weren't mad, why would he think of taking Old Sun as his subordinate? Big brother, wait here a moment. Let Old Sun go and slaughter those lackeys."
As soon as Sun Wukong finished speaking, he was ready to rush out.
"I will go with my young brother,"
the Ox Demon King grabbed him and said with a smile.
Neither of them took those Heavenly Soldiers and Generals seriously.
Sun Wukong chuckled and said, "For us brothers to go out together, we would be giving him too much face."
Either of the two great sages of the Demon Clan possessed vast magical powers, ranking among the top in the Three Realms.
Any one of them could handle a hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals on their own.
Let alone the two of them appearing together.
Unless the Little Sage took action and Lotus Boy assisted, there might be a chance to suppress the two brothers.
Ordinary Heavenly Soldiers and Generals were no match for them.
As they left Huaguo Mountain, golden clouds churned ahead, banners fluttered, Pagoda-Bearing Li Tianwang commanded the Central Army, the Four Generals of the Demon Family followed, with Jin Zha and Mu Zha each standing beside Pagoda-Bearing King.
There was also Lei Zhenzi, leading part of the Thunder Department with a predatory gaze.
Some of the Constellations among the twenty-eight constellations.
Fire Virtue Star Lord and Water Virtue Star Lord among the Nine Luminaries.
Sun Wukong scoffed. To imagine such an assembly could take him down was highly underestimating him.
When Pagoda-Bearing King saw Sun Wukong and the Ox Demon King walking out of Huaguo Mountain together, his face darkened.
His force, barely enough to handle one Sun Wukong, was pressed to its limits.
Now with another being as strong as Sun Wukong, the Ox Demon King, this battle was doomed.
"Lord Li, long time no see, what brings you here? Are you here to fight Old Sun?"
Sun Wukong gave a cheeky laugh, pretending not to know his purpose.
Pagoda-Bearing King kept his composure, and straightly said, "I've heard of the Great Saint's return and am less than thrilled. So I invited some friends to come congratulate the Great Saint on his return. Any tactlessness is asked to be excused by the Great Saint."
Snickers.
The Ox Demon King could not help but burst out laughing.
He admired Lord Li, truly worthy of being an old fox of the Heavenly Court. This ability to blatantly lie without blinking was indeed unparalleled.
If it were him, he definitely could not have been so effortlessly shameless.
Sun Wukong's lips curled slightly upwards, his expression somewhat mocking.
"Then thank you, Lord Li, I already know your purpose here, you may go now," he said.
"Great Saint, we take our leave."
Li Jing clasped his fists, then turned and ran.
The others followed him, fleeing back in disarray.
"Haha."
Behind them, the unrestrained laughter of Sun Wukong and the Ox Demon King could be heard.
Li Jing and his companions' faces turned completely red, yet they had no intention of fighting back desperately.
What was more important, face or life? They were very clear on this.
"A rabble of no account. Without the Jade Emperor, the Heavenly Court is no longer what it was," the Ox Demon King lamented.
People depict the Jade Emperor as a timid and fearful figure.
Who understands that ruling over the Three Realms, suppressing the Four Seas and Eight Wastelands, commands such awe?
No demon or immortal under heaven dares to disobey.
All living beings in the Three Realms exist within the rules set by the Heavenly Court, everything orderly and well-regulated.
How could such a great divine emperor be so inept?
Unfortunately, he ultimately perished, the cause unknown.
Sun Wukong laughed for a while, then finally restrained his smile.
"No wonder the Three Realms are in chaos, expecting someone like Ziwei to govern the Three Realms and restore order is utterly a fool's dream," he remarked.
He held a very low opinion of the Great Emperor Ziwei, utterly disdainful.
The Ox Demon King laughed and said, "This has nothing to do with us brothers. After all, we are demons. The more chaotic it is, the more we like it; why bother with the rest."
"Indeed, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva released me expecting me to save this world, which is laughably foolish and endearingly stupid. I am, after all, one of the strongest demons in the world," Sun Wukong said humorously.
The Ox Demon King glanced at him and said, "If you don't mind my feelings, you can drop the 'one of'; you are the strongest demon in the world."
Sun Wukong smiled, yet his expression was somewhat noncommittal.
They returned to Huaguo Mountain and continued drinking.
As for the arrival of Pagoda-Bearing King and his group, it had already been completely forgotten.
In the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, Great Emperor Ziwei sat on his imperial throne, his gaze icy.
An endless authority emanated from him, so oppressive that Lord Li and his group dared not raise their heads.
The expedition to Huaguo Mountain had been a failure from start to finish, virtually turning them into a joke, which infuriated Great Emperor Ziwei.
The original plan had been to kill the Monkey to demonstrate his strength.
But instead, he had lost significant face.
For an ambitious emperor like Ziwei, it was simply unforgivable.
If it weren't for the fact that he needed people at this time, he might have already executed Lord Li and his group.
But, now he could not do so.
"This time let it pass, after all, with the Ox Demon King there, it is normal that you could not fight him. If there is a next time, I will certainly not forgive you," said Great Emperor Ziwei coldly.
"Thank you, Great Emperor," they all exhaled in relief.
Great Emperor Ziwei's expression slightly eased, his gaze falling on Gold Star Taibai.
"Does Taibai have any good ideas on how to subdue that Demon Monkey?" he asked.
Gold Star Taibai stepped forward, speaking respectfully, "In my opinion, the Great Saint is intractable and cannot be subdued by anyone unless his conditions are met; otherwise, it is simply impossible to subdue him."
Great Emperor Ziwei snorted coldly. If he really agreed to Sun Wukong's conditions,
it would not be Sun Wukong who was subdued, but himself, Ziwei.
To attempt to commission someone else only to become his subordinate, such an absurd situation—he, Gou Chen, would never do such a thing.
"Alright, you may leave as well. I wish to be alone," he said, waving his hand, appearing somewhat weary.