The Battle in Journey to the West-Chapter 56 - 0 Heavenly King Takes Credit and Sends

Horned Water Jiao Dragon said, “Indeed, this Sun Wukong has vast divine skills and powerful magical treasures! And those other six Demon Kings are also quite formidable.”

Li Jing also needed to take precautions before it was too late, even though he knew those six Demon Kings weren’t at Flower-Fruit Mountain, he still needed to ask in detail.

Li Jing then said, “I wish to hear more about it.”

Well Wood Prisoner took up the conversation, saying, “The eldest is known as the Ox Demon King, titled the Equal-to-Heaven Great Saint. This demon’s body is incredibly robust, impervious to weapons; even our Constellation Sword could only leave a white mark upon striking! Moreover, he possesses a solitary lamp, the flame of which, once swept across, unleashes a purple sea of fire which is extremely difficult to handle. If one’s mana is insufficient, they are instantaneously incinerated to ashes.”

Li Mou and his subordinates couldn’t help but gasp in shock.

Horned Water Jiao Dragon continued, “The second brother is the North Sea Jiao Demon King, an expert in naval warfare. His spear is exceedingly fierce. In terms of water battles, I fear that even General Tianpeng wouldn’t be his match.”

Li Mou and others felt their faces twitch, thinking, “With these Seven Great Demon Kings gathered together, how could we possibly fight them?”

Horned Water Jiao Dragon added, “The third is the Peng Demon King, known for his numerous strategies and titled Great Sage of Mixing Heaven. He wields a spear too, but his divine skills are exceptionally potent; upon reverting to his true form, he can cover a hundred thousand miles with a flap of his wings and summon the potent energies of wind and thunder. The fourth, the Lion Camel King, known as the Mount-moving Great Saint, possesses boundless strength. A single roar from him can damage one’s Primordial Spirit, and his weapon is a Crescent Blade. The fifth, Macaques King, titled Ventilating Sage, is knowledgeable, can pay attention to six routes simultaneously, and despite his vast knowledge, he is rather impulsive, especially skilled in martial arts and extremely fast, wielding a large saber. The sixth, Yu Rong King, known as the Exorcising Great Saint, has a Magical Treasure consisting of three rings resembling Laojun’s Vajra Bracelet, capable of capturing others’ Magical Treasures or seizing people. The seventh, of course, is the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong. Since the Aquatic Ape already discussed this, I will not elaborate further here.”

Li Mou and his team shook their heads continuously, unable to believe that these great demons were all so formidable. No wonder the Jade Emperor always opted for a peaceful resolution when they provoked the Heavenly Court.

Nezha frowned and said, “Well, at least the other six Demon Kings are not at Flower-Fruit Mountain right now, just Sun Wukong. We fight him alone, and he cannot support himself alone! Tomorrow, let the child challenge him to a fight, and if he accepts, the child will try his best to capture him. If the child is defeated, I will then ask the venerable constellations to make a move.”

The twenty-two constellations thought coldly, “You all want to seize this merit; go ahead then. How troublesome can this Sun Wukong be? With just you, a little kid, as his opponent? Haha, I look forward to seeing you and your father’s faces hit the ground tomorrow.”

Li Mou, being the Great Marshal commanding the armies, could not allow them to engage in battle. These immortals were all quite astute, with only a few exceptions. Having mingled in the Heavenly Court for many years, how could the twenty-two constellations not perceive Li Mou and Nezha’s intentions? It was clear they wanted to snatch this achievement! If they captured Sun Wukong, there would be no involvement from them, and later it would be Li Mou and his son alone who went to receive the reward from the Jade Emperor.

However, the twenty-two constellations weren’t optimistic about Nezha’s chances. Although Nezha was at the Third Heaven of the Taiyi Golden Immortal level in the Heavenly Human Realm, having integrated with heaven and man and greatly increased his mana, his master, the Taiyi Golden Immortal, had also bestowed upon him many Magical Treasures, potentially giving him the power to fight. But to defeat that demon monkey, they still deemed it unlikely.

Li Mou said, “Alright, then let’s have the scout deliver the challenge letter. Tomorrow, we battle!”

Li Mou called for the scout, wrote the challenge letter, and had the scout deliver it to the Water Curtain Cave. The scout hurriedly accepted the command and left.

Upon arriving at the Water Curtain Cave, the scout, facing the menacing little demon, said, “I am not here to fight, but to deliver a challenge letter from my marshal. Please, take this letter to your great king!”

Upon hearing that the letter was for the great king, the little demon dared not delay, taking the scout’s letter and going into the Water Curtain Cave to report. Meanwhile, the scout quickly turned his horse around and left, secretly delighted, thinking that he had just saved his own life! They had all seen how today the Giant Spirit God was knocked down by Wukong in two blows and then captured into the Water Curtain Cave; now, his fate was probably grim, and delivering this letter made them feel empathetic.

The scout reported back to Li Jing, having delivered the challenge letter, he commended him to continue lurking in the Flower-Fruit Mountain to gather more intelligence.

Li Jing planned to set up a banquet to boost Nezha’s morale, but Nezha said, “Father, there’s no rush. Let’s speak after I’ve captured the Demon Monkey! Setting up the feast in advance, if we cannot win, would only turn into a laughingstock.”

Li Jing pondered for a while and felt it made sense, so he let the matter drop.

Meanwhile, the little demon delivered the letter into the Water Curtain Cave, where Wukong opened it to see that it was indeed a challenge letter written by Li Jing.

The letter said:

Alas! Protector of the Horses, Sun Wukong, the Jade Emperor treated you generously, yet you, audacious beyond measure, caused havoc by the banks of the Heavenly River and rebelled against the Celestial Palace, which is truly unkind; Now, under my command, the Jiaoling God extended an invitation for your surrender, yet you took advantage of his unpreparedness and injured him, which is truly unjust! Appointed by the Jade Emperor himself, you should have welcomed me with bowed head, yet you met me with bladed arms, which is truly disloyal; As a subject must serve his sovereign, the Jade Emperor is our sovereign father, yet you disregard him, which is truly unfilial!

You, unkind, unjust, disloyal, and unfilial one, bereft of shame, yet still flaunt your martial prowess, daring to call yourself the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, yet do you truly know the extent of your ability? Your divine power? Your Taoist arts? Serving in the same imperial court, it’s a humiliation for Li Mou. I must not share the sky with you and will capture you to return to the heavens to repent and thank the heavenly grace.

Alas! Tomorrow at noon, we shall decide the victor!

After reading the challenge letter, Wukong couldn’t help but pinch his nose and curse, “How sour, so sour! Writing a challenge letter and still being so unbearably pedantic. If it were up to Old Sun, I would have written just one word—’Fight!’ That would suffice.”

The Ox Demon King couldn’t help but snicker, “Ha! There are indeed many such fame-seeking figures in the Heavenly Court. You think everyone is like you, Macaca, so utterly devoid of literary grace?”

The gathering of Demon Kings didn’t tense up because of Li Jing’s letter; instead, they burst into loud laughter, finding it completely ludicrous and reeking of pretentiousness.

If King Li knew about this, who knows if he might not twist his nose in anger.

The Peng Demon King mused, “It’s unclear who they will send as their expert.”

The Macaques King yawned lazily and said, “I just heard a bit ago, it’s that Pagoda-bearing God Li Jing…”

Yu Rong King hurriedly asked, “He’s coming out in person?”

The Macaques King steadily continued, “His son, Nezha.”

Yu Rong King almost spat out a mouthful of old blood, unable to understand how the usually irascible Macaques King could split a sentence in two like that.

The Macaques King added, “This Nezha is no easy foe; he was a disciple of the True Man Taiyi and gained significant renown during the Ancient Era of Deification, but his mana has only reached the third level of Taiyi Golden Immortal!”

Yu Rong King remarked, “Naturally, naturally! Most who ascend to the Heavenly Court slack off, spending their days enjoying their blessings and fortunes, how would they find the time to cultivate?”

The Macaques King, while picking his ears, said, “That does seem true.” But then added, “But that fellow has quite a collection of magical treasures. Wukong, you must be careful when you fight him tomorrow, beware of his magical treasures’ tricks.”

Wukong had fought with Nezha several times in his past life and knew exactly what to guard against. He chuckled and said, “No worries, Fifth Brother! That Nezha is just a perpetual child; his progress in cultivation is limited not because of his slackness but because his physical body is made of lotus root, which imposes restrictions on him, hence he can hardly advance further.”

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The Macaques King remarked, “Wukong, it sounds like you understand him quite well.”

Wukong replied, “It’s just hearsay, no need to delve too deeply into it.”

All the brothers likely knew there was more to the story, but their thoughts drifted to his sect, aware that he was reluctant to discuss his sect, so they did not inquire further.

While eating at the banquet, Wukong and the others discussed how to deal with the large forces of the Heavenly Court.

To find out what happens next, please tune in to the next installment.