Chapter 37 First Meeting with the Demon King

The faint morning light pierced through the heavy clouds, tracing golden outlines across the vast earth. A gentle breeze swept by, carrying the sweet fragrance of moist soil. At this moment, two figures stood side by side upon a mountain peak. They were Yu Qiye and the Handsome Monkey King, Sun Wukong. Traveling together, they intended to wander across the four seas.

"Brother Crow, is there anywhere you wish to go?" The Monkey King looked toward Yu Qiye.

"Nowhere in particular," Yu Qiye replied honestly. Aside from cultivation, he had no other pursuits, nor did he know much about the outside world.

"And you?" Yu Qiye suddenly asked in return.

"Well, old Sun certainly has a place in mind." The Monkey King chuckled, then added, "My monkeys and apes told me that not far from here resides a demon king of rather formidable strength. I am quite interested in him."

"Then let us go pay him a visit." Anticipation flickered across Yu Qiye's face.

"Very well." The corner of the Monkey King's mouth curled up as he performed a somersault, hurtling away toward the south.

...

South of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit stood another mountain. It had no famous name, yet it was towering to the extreme, resembling a massive barrier standing majestically between heaven and earth. Within it, demonic aura surged into the sky, suggesting an innumerable horde of ghosts and monsters resided there.

Yet at this very moment, unaware to anyone, deep within the great mountain, a figure slowly opened its eyes.

"Have they come?" In a daze, a figure covered entirely in hair and shaped like a monkey wore a complex expression.

This was a monkey demon. However, he was unlike ordinary monkey demons. His ears were exceptionally large, resembling wind-catching sails. His entire body exuded an air of fierce ferocity and ruthlessness. Yet in the next instant, he restrained his aura, transforming back into an ordinary monkey demon, making his depth entirely unfathomable.

"I wonder if the legendary Macaque King is here?"

Before the visitors had even arrived, a voice drifted down from the high heavens.

"So soon!"

Suppressing the tremor in his heart, the monkey demon raised his gaze toward the sky above. There, clad in golden armor, a figure had appeared out of nowhere. This was also a monkey demon, with a hairy face and a thunder-god beak, yet by monkey standards, he could be considered quite handsome.

"The Water-Curtain Cave of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, the Handsome Monkey King."

Although they had never met, the Macaque King had long since known the identity of the newcomer. What baffled him, however, was why the Monkey King had a crow perched on his shoulder. Moreover, the feeling this crow gave him was extraordinary.

Narrowing his eyes, his gaze locked onto the bird. In the next moment, the crow seemed to sense something, abruptly lifting its head. A pair of blood-red eyes seemed to traverse the very space between them to meet his gaze.

Boom!

With a sudden roar, the Macaque King's entire body shuddered.

"Is this also a demon king?" The Macaque King was shaken.

"Are you the Macaque King?" Before the Macaque King could recover from his shock, the golden-armored Monkey King had already descended from the clouds and arrived right before him. Blinking his eyes in apparent curiosity, he continuously sized the Macaque King up.

"This humble one is indeed the Macaque King." The Macaque King suppressed the upheaval in his heart and forced a smile. Yet his gaze remained locked tightly onto the Monkey King's shoulder, where the crow stood quietly.

"Brother Crow, haha, old Sun told you the Macaque King would spot you." The Monkey King laughed heartily.

"As expected of the legendary Macaque King."

With a sigh of admiration, the black crow standing on the Monkey King's shoulder spread its wings and leaped into the air, shifting its shape to transform into human form.

This was Yu Qiye. Although he was traveling with the Monkey King, he worried that his presence might hinder the Monkey King from making heroic acquaintances and forging broad friendships. Therefore, he had taken his original form and perched on the Monkey King's shoulder. Thanks to his colorful destiny trait—Child of Destiny—and his red trait—Spirit of Mountains and Rivers—he was not overly concerned about his identity being seen through.

Yet he had not expected that the very first demon king they encountered would perceive his extraordinary nature. Still, upon second thought, it was understandable. After all, this particular demon king was no ordinary being; he was none other than the Macaque King, who would later become the Monkey King's sworn brother, ranking fifth, and would come to be known as the Great Sage Who Ventilates the Wind.

...

The Monkey King would eventually have six sworn brothers. Although these brothers varied in strength, and a few possessed somewhat inflated reputations, three among them made even Yu Qiye somewhat wary.

The first was naturally the illustrious Demon King Bull; his strength was beyond question.

The second was the Demon King Peng, whose speed was no less than the Monkey King's Somersault Cloud.

And the last was this unfathomable Macaque King. In days to come, he would style himself the 'Great Sage Who Ventilates the Wind.'

The name 'Ventilating the Wind' could be interpreted in two ways. First, it meant coming and going unpredictably, hiding one's presence like a ghost, and possessing ever-changing transformations; second, it meant being exceptionally sharp, quick of ear and bright of eye, knowing everything under the sun.

The former was easy enough to accept. But if it were the latter, Yu Qiye could not help but associate this fellow with another famous monkey demon—the Six-Eared Macaque. Legend had it that the Six-Eared Macaque was skilled at listening to sounds, discerning principles, knowing past and future, and understanding all things. Simply put, it meant the Six-Eared Macaque had complete mastery over all intelligence and information between heaven and earth, and likely knew the weaknesses of everyone by heart.

If this Macaque King truly proved to be the Six-Eared Macaque, then in Yu Qiye's mind, he was an entity on the exact same level as the Demon King Bull.

"Who might you two be?" The Macaque King's eyes flickered as he assessed the two figures before him.

Both the monkey and the crow were extraordinary. The monkey was easy to understand—the Handsome Monkey King, a naturally born stone monkey. The Macaque King had known a thing or two about his birth and had even paid attention to him for a time. But where had this crow come from? He knew absolutely nothing about it. This was deeply strange.

"Old Sun is the Handsome Monkey King of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit," the Monkey King declared, before taking the initiative to introduce Yu Qiye. "And this is my sworn brother, the Heaven Crow King."

"The Heaven Crow King?"

Confusion grew even denser in the Macaque King's heart. He had never heard of this demon king before. Could he be a rising star? But that did not make sense. If he were merely a rising star, how could he possess such terrifying strength?

At that moment, the corners of the Monkey King's mouth curled into a grin. "My monkeys and apes told me there was a peerless demon king here, so they specifically asked me to come pay my respects."

"I dare not claim to be peerless. Please, come into my cave for a chat."

Despite the turmoil in his heart, the Macaque King politely invited the two demons into his dwelling. How could he not be polite? A single Handsome Monkey King was already a handful, let alone an unfathomable Heaven Crow King.

However, what the Macaque King did not know at this very moment was that Yu Qiye had already seen through seven or eight-tenths of his background.

[Race: Macaque Tribe]
[Tier: Late True Immortal Stage]
[Traits: Catching the Wind and Shadows (Gold), Elusive and Unpredictable (Gold), Ancestral Bloodline Atavism (Red), Inconstant and Mutable (Red), Ancient Demonic Physique (Red), Profound Wisdom and Strategy (Purple)... Mastery of the Staff Dao (Purple)...]

This was the Macaque King's trait panel. It was exaggerated to the extreme—two Gold, three Red, and seven Purple traits. As expected, he was incomparable to ordinary demon kings. Yet it was evident that this fellow was exceedingly uncanny. Perhaps he was even stranger than Yu Qiye had imagined.