The Second-in-command had said he knew all of the rich households in Wuxing Mountain County, yet he strangely didn't recognize Cen Zhen and Cen Changqing.
Now, his wife and daughter were being teased and played with by a bunch of bandits, yet his expression didn't change, and he even seemed to quietly encourage them, as if treating it like a sweet delicacy.
Such tolerance was absolutely not the behavior of a husband or a father. This was the second oddity.
After observing silently, Zixia and Li Ping'an, carrying these two doubts, prepared to return to their own place to bathe. Just as Zixia was about to leave, Li Ping'an also wanted to follow and explain himself once more.
However, Li Ping'an was stopped dead by the Second-in-command and the Third-in-command—they insisted on drinking until they passed out!
As night fell and the feasting subsided, the various henchmen withdrew from the Hall of Righteousness. As Cen Zhen and Cen Changqing left, they gave a meaningful glance to their wives and daughters, who immediately understood and then enticed a few henchmen to another room to gamble.
Cen Zhen and Cen Changqing, watching Li Ping'an, who was thoroughly drunk in the seat of honor, revealed a crafty smile before stealthily retreating with Protector Wang.
At this moment, in the Axe Guild's mountain stronghold Hall of Righteousness, only the dizzy Li Ping'an, the Second-in-command, and the Third-in-command remained.
Seeing that the time was about right and everyone had left, Li Ping'an, his head spinning from the feast, staggered with the help of the Second-in-command and the Third-in-command to his room, which was also Supreme Treasure's abode.
"Gang Leader, the bathwater is ready. Hurry up and take a bath, then you can go to sleep!"
The Second-in-command and the Third-in-command threw Li Ping'an onto the bed and staggered out of the room.
No sooner had they stepped out of the room than the seemingly drunk Second-in-command and Third-in-command immediately stood up straight, their faces slightly flushed, but with no trace of drunkenness.
"Blind Man, stop pretending!"
"Ah? Second-in-command, you didn't get drunk either?"
"Heh heh, me, drunk? How could I do those things with Zixia if I were drunk?"
"So you've been thinking about Zixia all along!"
"Aren't you thinking the same, lad?"
"But she's the Gang Leader's master, and she knows the Immortal Law and Divine Skills. Are you seeking death?"
Under the Third-in-command's questioning, the Second-in-command took out a small medicine bottle from his sleeve and said with an excited twinkle in his eye:
"Have you forgotten about the medicine peddler we robbed last year?"
The Third-in-command asked in surprise:
"Could this be..."
"Exactly!"
The Second-in-command shook his head and said triumphantly:
"It's the number one aphrodisiac in the world, 'Indecent Immovable'! Not just taking it, but even skin contact will make you hornier and more wanton than any lascivious woman…I had that idiot put some into Zixia's bathwater earlier!"
"Hahahaha! Then shouldn't we hurry and peek at Zixia bathing?"
"First let's dress up and make ourselves look good. A beauty like her deserves to be fully enjoyed. It also does her justice."
"But what if the Gang Leader finds out?"
"We'll just call over the Gang Leader to join in. After all, she's planning to kill the Gang Leader today!"
...
Inside the room, Li Ping'an felt extremely dizzy and lay down for a while before feeling nauseous and eventually leaning over the chamber pot to vomit profusely.
After expelling all that disgusting matter, his mind cleared up considerably.
Still feeling somewhat unwell, Li Ping'an now just wanted to take a hot bath and then have a good sleep.
He staggered over to the bathing tub, struggled to stand up, and started undressing, swaying haughtily.
But just as he was undressing, a casual glance sent a chill down his spine, and he sobered up significantly.
"Huh? What's this?"
In a casual glimpse just now, Li Ping'an had spotted a monkey face reflected on the surface of the bathwater.
"Why is there a monkey in the water?"
Startled, Li Ping'an stepped back, and the monkey face on the surface of the bathing water bucket immediately disappeared.
"It seems I really drank too much, still not sober, and now I'm hallucinating!"
After spitting, Li Ping'an calmed down in surprise, completely sobered up with a clear mind, and approached the bathing water bucket again to continue undressing.
But the eerie scene reappeared; this time, he saw a monkey face on the surface of the water in the bathing water bucket.
As he undressed, he not only saw the monkey face but also half of a monkey body, quietly reflecting on the water surface, gazing back at him!
"Damn it! Monkey demon!"
Driven by instinct, Li Ping'an threw a punch at the water surface, and the monkey face and body shattered instantly under the force of his punch.
When the water calmed down, the monkey face and body reappeared intact!
"What's happening here!"
Frightened, Li Ping'an stepped back, away from the water bucket, and as he took a step back, the monkey demon reflection disappeared from the water surface in sync with his movements.
"Could it be..."
A bad premonition suddenly hit Li Ping'an, as if he had just realized that the monkey demon on the water surface was his own reflection!
"Damn! Damn! Damn! Can it be? Am I, Li Ping'an, really a monkey demon?"
Li Ping'an vehemently denied his own thoughts. If he were truly a monkey demon, Zixia would have noticed it long ago, but how could he explain what was happening right now?
Trembling with fear and suspicion, Li Ping'an tested it several times in a row, and the result was always the same. Whenever he appeared by the water bucket and reflected his body in the water, a monkey demon would appear, moving and expressing just like him, as if looking into a mirror.
"This must be an illusion!"
Completely baffled, Li Ping'an went to look at the bronze mirror, seeking final confirmation. Standing in front of the bronze mirror, it also showed a monkey demon, identical to the one that had appeared in the water before.
"Why is this happening? Could this be the lair of demon monsters?"
Li Ping'an felt a sudden chill, convinced that the place was spooky and bizarre. Everything—bathing water, bronze mirror—was filled with a creepy and strange atmosphere.
Then, he fled the place as if possessed, intending to inform the Second-in-command, but when he reached the room of the Second-in-command, he found the room empty.
"Then let's try here!"
Li Ping'an stood by the washbasin used by the Second-in-command, which still had water in it, and this time he only saw his own human face reflected, which gave him a bit of secretive joy and confusion.
He then tried again in front of the bronze mirror, still seeing his own human face.
"Hahaha! I knew it! How could I, a living person, possibly turn into a monkey demon!"
Li Ping'an laughed heartily in relief.
"No, wait!"
Suddenly, Li Ping'an thought of something and looked towards his room, nervously saying:
"Could it be that this strange phenomenon only occurs in the room I'm staying in?"
"But that room was Supreme Treasure's room!"
"And now, I am Supreme Treasure!"
"Supreme Treasure is also the reincarnation of the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong!"
"Could it be... I am Sun Wukong?"
"Damn! Can it be? Aren't I the Destined One?"
It seemed like Li Ping'an had stumbled upon a huge secret, laden with doubts and suspicions, lacking logic, completely mismatched, and highly uncertain.
As he was lost in his doubtful and chaotic thoughts, a henchman casually pushed open the door and entered:
"Second-in-command, keeping good things to yourself, huh?"