Chapter 43: Diverse Thoughts

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Chapter Forty-Three: Each Lost in Thought (Second Update)

After they had finished discussing the matter, Fox Princess went aside with Little Qing to speak privately. Every so often, she glanced toward Zhou Yu, making him feel somewhat awkward and uneasy.

Lustful Monkey busied himself devouring the fruit on the table, occasionally gesturing with his hands as he pondered how to use the Cloning Art.

Zhou Yu, meanwhile, carefully reviewed the entire plan, considering whether anything had been overlooked. After analyzing it, he realized that the most crucial factor was still the strength of that powerful being. If the man’s strength was truly heaven-defying, then no scheme or stratagem would be of any use.

Of everyone present, Fox Princess understood his strength best. Yet for some reason, she was unwilling to reveal much, merely hinting that his power was considerably greater than hers.

Fox Princess was already nearly at the level of one of the Five Great Demon Kings. The fact that this powerful being was far stronger than her made Zhou Yu wonder about his identity.

Zhou Yu had thoroughly investigated the strongest beings in this world back when he was in the Spirit Realm. Among the demon race, there was the Demon Emperor White Bone Weep, the Five Great Demon Kings, and several hundred other Demon Kings. These were the supreme powers of the demon race.

Although he had never heard of an unconventional powerhouse like Fox Princess, if the demon race possessed someone even stronger than the Five Great Demon Kings, how could he have failed to hear of him? Besides, Fox Princess herself seemed uncertain of the man’s identity.

After thinking it over again and again, Zhou Yu quietly nudged Lustful Monkey and asked, “Did your adoptive father really die back then?”

The adoptive father Zhou Yu was referring to was naturally the former Demon Emperor, Old Monster Black Mountain.

Lustful Monkey said gravely, “I personally collected my adoptive father’s remains. That man could never have been him. If he were, how could Fox Princess fail to recognize him?”

Zhou Yu picked up a thoroughly reddened apple from the table, bit into it, and swallowed its sweet juice before saying, “I was overthinking it.”

“Rest assured. If we fail when the time comes, I will certainly keep you all safe. You must take good care of Little Qing.” Fox Princess had approached at some point and was now speaking to Zhou Yu.

“Also, if matters come to that, have the fox clan migrate to Flower Fruit Mountain as well.” Fox Princess turned to Lustful Monkey.

Lustful Monkey and Zhou Yu both understood that Fox Princess was preparing to fight to the death.

“How can we do that?” Zhou Yu objected. “If this plan fails, we can still think of another way.”

Fox Princess shook her head. “If I truly stake my life, he will certainly suffer as well. At the very least, he will be gravely wounded. If you can seize the opportunity to kill him, all the better. If you cannot, he will be unable to recover for quite some time. Use that opportunity to strengthen yourselves. One day, you will be able to defeat him.”

“So that fellow is nothing but a shameless bully! He dares to run rampant only because he has no ties and nothing to lose!” Zhou Yu understood what Fox Princess meant. Although that man was immensely powerful, she still had a way to injure him. The reason he was so fearless was that Fox Princess was restrained by her responsibility to consider the greater good.

“Zhou Yu, I just learned from Little Qing that you are human?” Fox Princess asked.

Zhou Yu nodded.

Fox Princess then looked at Lustful Monkey. “You are the chief fugitive on White Bone Weep’s wanted list.”

Lustful Monkey thrust out his chest and proudly declared, “That would be this monkey!”

Seeing his ridiculous expression, Fox Princess could not help smiling faintly. “White Bone Weep is belligerent abroad and tyrannical at home. More than half of the hundred clans are dissatisfied with her. At present, she is locked in a bitter struggle with the humans. This is indeed an excellent opportunity.”

“You are both so young, yet you already possess the strength of Upper Demon Generals. Your talents are truly extraordinary. With Fatty as your strategist, if you have now seized Flower Fruit Mountain, you are certain to accomplish great things,” Fox Princess said.

“Mother-in-law, do you know anything about the rumors concerning Flower Fruit Mountain?” Zhou Yu asked respectfully. Whatever one planned to do, the logistics had to be secured. If there truly was something strange about Flower Fruit Mountain, it would be too late once trouble arose.

Fox Princess smiled and shook her head. “The mysterious powerhouse who originally occupied Flower Fruit Mountain was that very man.”

Zhou Yu and Lustful Monkey were both shocked. So that was the truth.

In that case, they had to eliminate him no matter what. What would happen if they had just finished establishing themselves on Flower Fruit Mountain and that man returned? Now that they had Fox Princess as a major ally, they needed to plan everything with even greater care.

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Fox Princess spoke with Lustful Monkey and Zhou Yu for a while longer. Most of what she said was advice for Zhou Yu to treat Little Qing well, along with a great deal of information for Lustful Monkey concerning the surrounding demon clans, including the strengths and weaknesses of various Demon Kings.

Zhou Yu and Lustful Monkey committed every word to memory.

“A body formed from a demon soul cannot last forever. I must disperse now. Remember well what I have told you—and the timing.” As Fox Princess spoke, her figure began to scatter.

Little Qing came over from the side, tears glistening in her eyes as she gazed at Fox Princess. Zhou Yu reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding her gently as he comforted her. “It’s all right. In just a few days, you’ll be able to stay with your mother every day.”

Little Qing nodded and stopped crying, wiping away her tears.

Fatty had already taken several subordinates and set out with food for Black Valley, hoping to trade for mandrake root. They were expected to return in three days.

After Fox Princess departed, Zhou Yu and Lustful Monkey said little to each other. They merely exchanged a nod in greeting.

Zhou Yu then headed toward the cliffside cave with Little Qing, while Lustful Monkey remained behind in the cavern.

The cold wind howled outside. Once night fell, the snow seemed to grow heavier again. Snowflakes struck the door with a sharp pattering sound, making it easy to imagine how fierce the wind and snow were beyond the cave.

Lustful Monkey carefully placed the Golden Staff on the table and examined it closely. After a while, he reached out and gently touched its surface.

“When Fox Princess appeared, you spoke.”

A faint glimmer flashed across the Golden Staff. Lustful Monkey tensed, but moments later his expression relaxed again.

“You truly are alive! That night, I thought I had only dreamed it.” Though he had relaxed, his voice was filled with excitement.

“Then you must know how Sun Wukong used his Cloning Art. Can you tell me?” Lustful Monkey asked expectantly.

The Golden Staff rolled several times across the table. When it passed over the fruit peels and cores Lustful Monkey had left behind, it suddenly bounced into the air.

Lustful Monkey caught it in one motion. Light continued to flow across the Golden Staff as he gripped it tightly, his expression tense and solemn. Slowly, he closed his eyes.

Outside the cave, the cold wind roared. Within, the lamplight flickered erratically.

An image appeared in Lustful Monkey’s mind: Sun Wukong battling a hundred thousand celestial soldiers!

Sun Wukong wore armor and radiated overwhelming majesty. With the Golden Staff in his hands, he swept it through the air in broad, powerful arcs, beating the celestial soldiers and generals into utter disarray. In his grasp, the Golden Staff sometimes became a pillar supporting the heavens, and at other times grew thin and slender as a needle. Each staff technique was exquisite beyond measure.

Even so, there were simply too many celestial soldiers and generals. Gradually, they surrounded Sun Wukong.

At that moment, Sun Wukong plucked a tuft of hair from the back of his head, placed it in his palm, and blew lightly upon it. Countless duplicates emerged.

Each duplicate wielded a Golden Staff. Shouting, they charged toward the host of divine beings and heavenly soldiers. Before long, they had beaten the hundred thousand celestial soldiers and generals into a rout.

Lustful Monkey’s breathing quickened. One man facing a hundred thousand celestial soldiers and generals—what kind of power was that?

Moreover, among those celestial soldiers and generals were many beings as powerful as Demon Emperors. Demon Kings were as numerous as blades of grass, while even the weakest celestial soldier possessed the strength of a Demon General.

As for Sun Wukong’s true body, he had faced several beings far beyond the level of Demon Emperors all by himself—and had not fallen at a disadvantage!

The battle raged until heaven and earth changed color. Famous mountains and great rivers were destroyed one after another, and the corpses of celestial soldiers lay scattered across the land.

When the vision reached its end, Lustful Monkey suddenly stopped it and said softly, “Can you show me the part where he uses his Cloning Art again?”

A flash of light passed through the Golden Staff, and the image of Sun Wukong creating his monkey duplicates appeared once more.

This time, the scene unfolded extremely slowly. Even Sun Wukong’s body seemed to transform into light.

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Lustful Monkey clearly saw that Sun Wukong’s entire body was almost completely condensed from energy. The energy at the back of his head was extraordinarily concentrated, and the Golden Staff in his hand was likewise brimming with power. In contrast, the celestial soldiers and generals were dim, like sparks of fireflies.

Sun Wukong plucked a cluster of light from the back of his head and placed it in his palm. As he blew upon it, a stream of energy surged from his mouth into the glowing mass, while energy from his entire body simultaneously flowed toward his palm and poured into it.

At last, the energy within the glowing mass accumulated to a terrifying degree. The moment it left his hand, it transformed into countless duplicates.

Lustful Monkey opened his eyes and stared at the wavering lamplight, his brows furrowed in thought. The image of Sun Wukong using the Cloning Art replayed over and over in his mind.

After a long while, Lustful Monkey suddenly slapped his thigh.

“I understand! The demonic power is gathered within the hairs at the back of the head. When the Cloning Art is to be used, more demonic power is infused into those hairs, while the power is controlled and shaped into duplicates!”

The Golden Staff bent slightly, as though nodding.

Within the cliffside cave, Zhou Yu held Little Qing tightly, using his body to shield her from the cold.

Little Qing obediently nestled in his arms, sleeping soundly.

Zhou Yu, however, could not fall asleep. He kept thinking about the origins of that powerful being.

He thought and thought, but reached no conclusion.

He then recalled the Demon King Sky Wolf. Although Sky Wolf had suffered setbacks at Zhou Yu’s hands several times, Zhou Yu knew that all of them had been due to luck. If they had faced each other directly, Sky Wolf could probably have killed him with a single move.

Judging from what Flower-Missing-Moon had said, Sky Wolf’s strength seemed to be inferior even to Flower-Missing-Moon at her peak.

Flower-Missing-Moon’s strength should have been below that of Gold-That-Never-Changes, while Gold-That-Never-Changes was inferior to several others, including Heavenwalker, Spirit Wanderer, and Willow Without a Sword.

By this reasoning, that powerful being should have been on the same level as Flower-Missing-Moon and Gold-That-Never-Changes.

Even so, that was already terrifying enough. Zhou Yu had personally witnessed Flower-Missing-Moon and Gold-That-Never-Changes unleash their full power. Their techniques could not quite be called capable of destroying heaven and earth, but their scale, might, and energy requirements were all enormous.

Zhou Yu reckoned that even ten of him together would not be able to defeat them. At that thought, he could not help remembering Lady Du.

He instinctively glanced at his arm and suddenly caught sight of a speck of green light. When he looked again, the light had vanished, leaving only the green mole on his wrist.

Zhou Yu shook his head. He must have seen incorrectly.

He had to admit that when Lady Du was with him, he could face enemies far stronger than himself without falling into a disadvantage. Lady Du could immediately determine an enemy’s physical condition, strength, and other information. During battle, she could track changes in the enemy’s energy and use them to deduce the power of each attack. More importantly, Lady Du’s full-force electric strike had once pierced through the protective demonic power surrounding an unprepared Sky Wolf.

As one of the Five Great Demon Kings, Sky Wolf’s protective demonic power was certainly stronger than that of the Boar King, who specialized in defensive demonic power.

Back then, Zhou Yu and Lustful Monkey had needed to strike the Boar King together, nearly exhausting all their energy, merely to break through his protective demonic power. Yet Lady Du’s electric strike had been able to pierce through Sky Wolf’s defenses directly. It seemed that electricity possessed a unique ability to harm Demon Kings.

Before he realized it, dawn had begun to break. The snow outside the cliffside cave appeared to have stopped, and the cold wind no longer howled. Zhou Yu gradually closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep while holding Little Qing.

“Ha!”

A sudden shout came from beneath the mountain wall outside the cliffside cave.

Little Qing’s ears twitched, and she awakened. Zhou Yu was startled awake by the cry as well. The two of them pricked up their ears and listened, but the voice did not sound again.