Chapter 434: Chapter 434

Sun Wukong nodded in satisfaction and then continued to ask, "What is the origin of those three demons?"

The Sizhi Gongcao hastily replied, "There are three demons in this cave: the eldest is called the Cold King, the second is the Heat King, and the third is the Dust King. These demons have been here for a thousand years."

"From a young age, they loved to eat pastries and sesame oil. In their early years, they became demons and pretended to be Buddha statues here, deceiving the officials and people of Jinpingfu, setting up the Golden Lamps, which use pastries and sesame oil as fuel."

"Every year on the fifteenth day of the first month, they transform into Buddha statues to collect the oil; this year, after seeing your master, the demons recognized him as the body of the Holy Monk, and they have captured your master in the cave, planning to cut and fry his flesh in sesame oil in the coming days."

After hearing this, Sun Wukong nodded to himself and said, "Is that all?"

"That’s all I know," the Sizhi Gongcao hastily replied.

Sun Wukong snorted coldly and waved his hand, saying, "Hurry up and take good care of my master’s life. If there is any slackness, beware of Old Sun’s Jingu Bang."

"Dare not! Dare not!" the Sizhi Gongcao quickly replied and then left as if granted amnesty.

As they neared Mount Meru, the four Sizhi Gongcao also appeared here because if their master were to be lost here, all their previous efforts would be wasted.

Sun Wukong turned to Zhu Bajie and Sand Monk and said, "According to what those four fur spirits said, these three demons have been here for a thousand years. It seems these demons are native to this land and are not unauthorized from the lower realm, so they probably don’t have any great powers. With the four of us against the three of them, we have the numerical advantage, so it shouldn’t be difficult to subdue them."

Zhu Bajie grunted and said, "Brother Monkey, don’t be careless and underestimate the enemy. Although these three demons aren’t from the heavens, they have some tricks up their sleeves. We should still be careful. Rescuing your master may be more complicated than anticipated."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong slightly furrowed his brows and then turned to the Nine Spirits Holy Yuan, asking, "Old Lion, what’s your opinion?"

The Nine Spirits Holy Yuan smiled and said, "As long as we don’t take them lightly, though these three demons have some tricks, we needn’t fear them. Let’s go directly to challenge them; if we can subdue the three demons in one fell swoop, that would be best. If we can’t, we can think of other methods afterward."

Sun Wukong nodded and said, "That sounds right, let’s go together."

Straightaway, the party of four arrived at the entrance of Xuanyin Cave, with the Nine Spirits Holy Yuan, Zhu Bajie, and Sand Monk hiding on a nearby mountain peak, instructing only Sun Wukong to go up and call out the challenge.

Sun Wukong did not object; he leaped to the gate and swung his Jingu Bang, smashing the stone stele at the door to dust, which bore the six large characters, "Xuanying Cave of Qinglong Mountain."

Today, however, this stone was shattered by the monkey’s blow. Then Sun Wukong stabbed the Jingu Bang into the ground and shouted, "Listen up, demons inside the cave, send my master out quickly, or else Old Sun will break down the cave door and smash all of you rude monsters into meat paste."

The little demon guarding the cave door saw Sun Wukong’s fierce demeanor and his formidable aura, not daring to provoke him. He hastily went inside to report to the three Demon Kings.

"Great King, it’s terrible! Something terrible has happened," the little demon shouted as he ran into the main hall.

At that moment, the three demons were gathered together drinking and enjoying themselves, and they had also heard the noise from outside.

Now seeing the little demon in such a panic, they couldn’t help but rebuke, "What’s all this panic about? What exactly has happened?"

"Reporting to the three Great Kings! Outside, there’s a furry-faced monk, demanding his master! He said if his master isn’t released, he’ll break down the cave door and smash us all into meat paste!" the little demon hastily reported.

"A furry-faced monk? That must be Sun Wukong," the Dust King said with a furrowed brow.

The Heat King said somewhat angrily, "I didn’t expect that monkey to find us so quickly."

The Cold King sneered and said, "Hmph! There’s an old saying, ’When the enemy advances, block him; when the water rises, contain it.’ There’s nothing to fear. Since this monkey has come to us, let the small ones gather troops and horses immediately to follow me out of the cave to meet the enemy. It’s perfect timing to capture that Macaque and steam him together with the others."

At the Cold King’s command, a multitude of little demons in the cave, excluding the old, the weak, and the sick, grabbed their weapons and charged out. The three demons quickly donned their armor, took up their weapons, and rushed out to battle.

Hundreds of little demons clustered around three Demon Kings, forming a strategic formation in the open space outside the cave; these monsters were rather impressive in appearance.

Just like a human army, not only were they wearing uniforms and armor, but they also hoisted three large flags, inscribed respectively with Dust King, Heat King, and Cold King.

However, the visages of these little demons varied greatly, a bizarre assortment of ox heads, horse faces, wolf heads, and leopard heads—every imaginable form was present.

Their statures, too, were all different: tall, short, fat, thin—the only commonality was that they were all a bunch of beasts, and one uglier than the next.

Compared to these monsters, Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sand Monk seemed rather comely.

Sun Wukong glanced over and asked loudly, "You bunch of rude monsters, do you recognize your Grandpa Sun?"

Cold King frowned and asked, "Aren’t you called Sun Wukong? Why have you changed your name?"

"Ha ha~!" Sun Wukong laughed heartily and said, "Your Grandpa Sun’s name is not something you can mention casually—do you realize that’s high treason?"

Only then did Cold King react, angrily retorting, "How dare you, you impudent monkey, mock this Great King."

Sun Wukong waved dismissively and said, "With your smarts, you still have the audacity to play the thief; enough idle talk. Since you recognize your Grandpa Sun, hurry up and release my master. If you’re even half a minute slow, your Grandpa Sun might recognize you, but my staff certainly won’t—each and every one of you thief monsters will be beaten to a pulp with a single strike."

Heat King snorted coldly and said, "What a big talker! You aren’t afraid of your tongue snapping in the wind."

Dust King sneered and said, "I’ve long heard how formidable the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, the one who caused Havoc in Heaven, is. Seeing you today, it turns out fame is not as good as the reality; to think it’s just a macaque who dares to spout such nonsense here. It would be wise for you to leave quickly if you want to save your petty life. Otherwise, this day next year will mark your anniversary."

Sun Wukong angrily retorted, "What a bunch of smooth-talking sesame oil thieves, since that’s so, today you’ll witness Old Sun’s prowess!"

As he spoke, Sun Wukong swung his staff and charged forward to attack.

The three demons loudly threatened, but knowing full well Sun Wukong was not easy to handle, saw him charging with his Jingu Bang and did not dare to slack off. The Three Demons came out together, each wielding their weapon to meet him head-on.

These three demons, distinct in appearance and armed differently, had their own weapons: Cold King wielded a battle axe, Heat King used a large knife, and Dust King a rough vine stick.

Seeing Sun Wukong by himself, the three demons were fearless, swarming and surrounding Sun Wukong in the middle.

Sun Wukong, skilled and bold, remained unafraid amidst the battle, fighting the three monsters alone.

Sun Wukong fought fiercely with the three monsters, clashing intensively. In the blink of an eye, after dozens of rounds, Sun Wukong indeed proved his strength; though outnumbered, he did not falter, and neither side could claim victory.

Yet, after such a prolonged battle, Sun Wukong grew tired of wasting words with these demons, and shouted loudly, "Are you just going to stand there and watch? Come and help quickly!" Hearing Sun Wukong’s cry, Zhu Bajie said with a smile, "This monkey is getting impatient. Old Lion, Sand Monk, let’s go lend him a hand. We’ve been watching for a long time and haven’t seen these three demons display any notable skill. Today, let’s subdue them once and for all!"

"Yes!" Nine Spirits Holy Yuan and Sand Monk promptly agreed, took up their weapons, bellowed, and soared into the sky, heading straight for the three Rhinoceros Demons.

Sun Wukong did not use his full strength, after all, with Nine Spirits Holy Yuan, Zhu Bajie, and Sand Monk by his side, there was no need to fight so desperately.

Seeing Sun Wukong had assistance, the three demons quickly dispatched two of their number to meet the challenge; Heat King faced Zhu Bajie, and Dust King faced Sand Monk, leaving only Cold King to fight Sun Wukong one-on-one.

As a seasoned expert, Nine Spirits Holy Yuan naturally wouldn’t take advantage of others’ misfortune and stood aside to watch.