Since entering that magical array, Mo Xuan entirely devoted his thoughts to cultivation.
He was different from the monkey; the monkey was a natural spirit, a unique being born from the convergence of heaven and earth's spiritual energy, while he was just an ordinary crow, and if he wanted to achieve success in cultivation, he naturally had to strive hard at all times.
During this period of cultivation, he understood one thing clearly: cultivation cannot be rushed, and there is no shortcut to take. Perhaps you might be lucky and obtain some treasure, leading to an abrupt increase in your cultivation, but if your mindset doesn't keep pace, and your comprehension is insufficient, then such improvement is merely superficial glory.
Previously, his cultivation had been too opportunistic, encountering much luck. Now, what he needed to do was to solidify his foundation.
Calculating the days, the monkey's disturbance in Heaven should last a while longer. During this time, many events would unfold. However, the most significant one was the sworn brotherhood among the seven saints. Apart from the monkey, the strengths of the other six saints were not inferior to his. Heaven knows that if he carelessly wandered around Mount Huaguo and happened to bump into them, should they be in a bad mood, he would be facing major trouble. Thus, seizing this opportunity to enhance his strength was warranted; while he didn't expect to be on par with that monkey, gaining a bit more self-protection was sensible.
In the world of gods and demons, there are many ways to delineate the limits of individual power, with the most common being based on the size of one's magical prowess. The classification is categorized into three realms: heaven, earth, and human. Ordinary cultivators in the mortal realm, those with a bit of insight, do not enter any realm. Entering a realm is a significant event for a cultivator, for after entering a realm, one's lifespan greatly increases, and it truly signifies that you are touching upon the threshold of cultivation. In fact, those who are said to be "immortal" among mundanes mostly refer to having entered the initial stage of the human realm. Such individuals are already referred to as immortals, while Mo Xuan's current strength was probably at the pinnacle of the human realm, and now he needed to work hard to break through and enter the earth realm during this time.
The monkey's strength should currently be at the peak of the earth realm, on the verge of breaking through into the heavenly realm.
This was the toughest hurdle.
In fact, transitioning from the human realm to the earth realm is a relatively step-by-step process. However, breaking through from the earth realm to the heavenly realm is incredibly difficult—it is akin to becoming an immortal or a Buddha. Most immortals spend their entire lives stuck at the top of the earth realm, unable to ascend to the next level.
Moreover, within the heavenly realm, there are divisions between ranks: small heavenly realm, intermediate heavenly realm, true heavenly realm, and high heavenly realm.
With each rank ascended, there is a vast difference in power. Even in the god and demon world, those who reach the heavenly realm are few and far between. In today's world, those at the peak of the earth realm can go unchecked.
The monkey was one of those few. Meanwhile, Mo Xuan was determined to take the opportunity during this relatively tranquil period to step into the threshold of the earth realm.
Therefore, he shut himself away within that magical array, and after consuming a pill left by Zhu Rong, he entered a state of meditation, practicing the Lihua Mystic Art and Nine-Ranked Celestial Immortal Technique.
As it is said, one day in the mountains equals a thousand years in the world; this applies equally to cultivation. Mo Xuan tirelessly practiced in the cave without realizing how fast time flew. With only one thought in mind: to transcend the human realm and step into the earth realm, when he finally succeeded, he suddenly discovered that over a decade had passed.
He was taken aback. Yes, over a decade? What does that even mean? Could it be that the monkey had already been suppressed under the Five Elements Mountain?
Feeling anxious inside, he worried that if this were true, his plans would all go to waste—what with the old man's golden pills and the Queen Mother's peaches—everything would go down the drain.
This fellow had always intended to take advantage of the chaos, just as he always had. He knew that the monkey was currently on a good streak of luck. Before encountering the great Tathagata Buddha, not only had he devoured the Queen Mother's peaches but also the treasured pills painstakingly refined by the Primordial Heavenly Lord in the Palace of Sorrowful Separation. Unbeknownst to whether it was intentional or not, it was evident that recently was the monkey's most fortunate and glorious period, while Mo Xuan aimed to rely on his fortune to bolster his own strength.
Exiting the magical array, Mo Xuan, feeling uneasy, just stepped out of the cave when he heard the sound of battle echoing around him.
"Could it be that the monkey has already stirred trouble in Heaven?" Mo Xuan felt his heart race, his body swayed—even a gust of demon wind swirled as he flew straight towards the Water Curtain Cave. After all, the demon aura was currently soaring high on Mount Huaguo; surely, his meager demon aura wouldn't attract much attention.
Upon reaching the entrance of the Water Curtain Cave, Mo Xuan cleverly employed his invisibility technique, concealing himself in the shadows to observe carefully. There, he saw the monkey fiercely battling with a young boy.
"Nezha?!" Seeing the appearance of the youth, Mo Xuan was shocked, then he felt amused. This was Nezha, the real Nezha! Look at him, already a few thousand years old, yet still appearing as a child, pretending to be youthful! Mo Xuan found it quite funny.
Watching the monkey and Nezha engage in their fierce contest, Mo Xuan felt more at ease. Why? Because he remembered that the skirmish between Nezha and the monkey happened the first time the monkey rebelled against the Heavenly Court, meaning that at this time, the monkey was not yet the Great Sage Equal to Heaven and not in a position of authority; the trouble in Heaven had yet to unfold.
With that in mind, he settled down, observing the fight between the monkey and Nezha. Both were not easy individuals to deal with. Not to mention the monkey, Nezha was already a notorious troublemaker since the Investiture of the Gods period, kicking up a storm even at a tender age, having caused ruckus in the sea palace, and who knows how much trouble he had stirred up—he was an outright violent figure. As for the monkey, he was a rogue with no manners, brandishing a cruel weapon in hand.
In the world of gods and demons, in any struggle, aside from the significant gap in levels where there is no suspense, the only way to determine the winner between two equally matched opponents like the Monkey King and Nezha is through the simplest method—fighting.
And when it comes to fighting, another element must be considered: techniques.
The Monkey King's techniques were learned from Bodhi Patriarch; however, a figure of Bodhi Patriarch's caliber could not demonstrate the techniques in person. He merely communicated the principles of the techniques to the Monkey. The Monkey, being greedy, learned every type of weapon and did not neglect his martial arts skills. Only after acquiring the divine Iron Rod did he specialize in staff techniques.
As for Nezha, since the time of the Investiture of the Gods, he had been using the renowned Fire-tipped Spear from the Three Realms. In theory, with his experience and skills, Nezha should hold the upper hand. However, the reality was different; the Monkey was somewhat stronger.
If Nezha could be referred to as the famous God of Battle, then the Monkey was a born fighting machine. He seemed to exist solely for combat; the more he fought, the more excited he became. With his rod weighing over ten thousand pounds in hand, when he twirled it, even if he didn't hit anyone, the winds generated could cause injury. Although Nezha possessed the divine powers of three heads and six arms, he struggled against this ferocious offensive. Furthermore, the Monkey, when in battle, seemed to think faster than usual. After more than thirty exchanges, he utilized a trick by transforming a hair into his true form while secretly casting a spell for a surprise attack, defeating Nezha in one move.
Seeing Nezha lose, the Heavenly King Li was taken aback and, without a moment's thought, retreated back to the Heavenly Court, ending this demon-slaying battle abruptly.