Chapter 57: First Encounter with the Iron Fan

The Monkey King has departed!

With a single somersault, he ascended to the heavenly palace.

Before leaving, he expressed his hope that Yu Qiye would take good care of his monkey descendants.

Naturally, Yu Qiye would not refuse.

However, these trivial matters did not require his personal attention.

As things stood in Sky Crow Cave, there were still a few formidable demon powerurs worth mentioning.

The Divine Mastiff was merely half a step away from entering the realm of Demon Kings.

Qingqiu Xue had also long since reached the peak of the Demon General realm.

The rest were hardly inferior either.

With them present, protecting the Monkey King's descendants was more than assured.

Yet, just at that moment, watching the Monkey King leave, Yu Qiye's thoughts shifted.

"I suppose I shall take a trip as well."

Yu Qiye intended to step beyond Heavenly Green Mountain.

Although the Monkey King would serve as the Protector of the Horses in the heavenly palace for only a dozen days or so, down in the mortal realm, more than a decade would have passed.

Over the span of a decade, quite a lot could happen.

For instance, Yu Qiye could advance another "step" or even "two steps".

With this thought in mind, Yu Qiye summoned the various demons, bid them farewell, and then spread his wings, his figure vanishing from the cavern dwelling in the blink of an eye.

...

"I still need to pay a visit to the Bull Demon King."

Soaring through the sky with outstretched wings, Yu Qiye remembered something.

He had already sworn a oath of brotherhood with the Bull Demon King.

Now that he had emerged from seclusion and visited his second brother, the Flood Demon King, failing to visit his eldest brother, the Bull Demon King, might breed estrangement between them.

Therefore...

Yu Qiye altered his course, heading straight for the Bull Demon King's domain.

Back when the eight great demon kings had gathered, the Bull Demon King had already revealed his dwelling place.

It was located in Mount Cuiyun, inside the Plantain Cave.

That was the abode of Princess Iron Fan.

In the blink of an eye, several days passed.

During these past few days, Yu Qiye flew straight toward Mount Cuiyun.

Whenever he lost his way, he would use divine arts to summon the local mountain and river deities to inquire for directions.

And on this very day,

Yu Qiye finally arrived in the vicinity of Mount Cuiyun.

Here, the rolling mountains resembled undulating waves, wreathed in clouds and mist, resembling a veritable fairyland.

Truly, it was an ancient site of a thousand years, a celestial trail of ten thousand generations, where emerald phoenixes sang among green phoenix-tree branches, and hidden dragons dwelt in living waters.

"I am the Sky Crow King, come specifically to pay my respects to Big Brother Bull."

Yu Qiye's voice reverberated across heaven and earth, echoing for thousands of miles.

It startled numerous demons and fiends alike.

"Which demon king has arrived?"

"Did you not hear? It seems to be the Sky Crow King, the eighth brother who swore brotherhood with the Bull Demon King."

"This Sky Crow King's cultivation does not seem simple at all."

One voice after another rose as the demons engaged in heated discussions.

However, right at that moment,

"My old man is not at home; I invite the Sky Crow King to enter the cave for a chat."

A gust of demonic wind suddenly swept up from a certain peak, scattering the clouds and mist that filled the sky.

"Is this Princess Iron Fan, the Rakshasa?"

Yu Qiye narrowed his eyes slightly, gazing toward that particular peak.

Standing there leisurely was a graceful figure.

Her slender form was straight, her features exquisite, and her exposed skin as white as jade, with smooth and soft contours.

Her hair was thick and dark, with sideburns hanging down to partially obscure her delicate face.

Her nose was high and straight, and her lips parted slightly to reveal teeth as white as snow.

Her slender eyes flickered with the light of wisdom, and her pupils exuded a mysterious aura.

"Who are you?"

Yu Qiye feigned ignorance and asked.

"This humble one is the wife of the Bull Demon King, Iron Fan."

"Ah, so you are my sister-in-law."

Yu Qiye came to a realization, then folded his wings and descended toward the peak.

...

Princess Iron Fan walked ahead, swaying her slender waist to lead the way.

Yu Qiye followed behind, observing her closely.

[Race: Celestial Female.]

[Rank: Mid-stage Mysterious Immortal.]

[Traits: God of Wind (Gold), Wind-Sailing Divine Art (Red), Fire-Walking Technique (Red), Riding Clouds and Mist (Purple), Sword Mastery - Lesser Accomplishment (Purple)...]

Staring blankly at these, Yu Qiye could not help but wear a strange expression on his face.

He was not surprised that Princess Iron Fan possessed a golden trait.

After all, she was a renowned figure in the demon realm.

It would be quite unreasonable if she did not have one or two golden traits.

Yet, why was it the God of Wind?

Could it be because of her supreme treasure, the Plantain Fan?

Wait,

Yu Qiye suddenly raised an eyebrow.

He recalled a certain phrase concerning the origin of Princess Iron Fan.

*“Old Mother Meng was raised by my teachings, the God of Wind is my attained fruition. Lady Li Shan and I are sisters, I master the wind and she masters the fire. Horn Wood Jiao and Well Wood Gan are paternal uncles, Net Wood Xie and Wolf Kui are cousin-brothers-in-law.”*

Yu Qiye did not know whether these words were true or false.

Yet if they were true, could they explain why Princess Iron Fan possessed the golden trait—God of Wind?

After all, this was her attained fruition.

"If I can defeat Princess Iron Fan and plunder her trait—God of Wind, then my wind-attribute arts..."

As Yu Qiye's eyes flickered, a trace of burning anticipation arose within him.

Coincidentally, this was also an opportunity.

The Bull Demon King was not at home.

Had he been home, it would not have been convenient for Yu Qiye to propose a spar.

But now...

Thinking of this, Yu Qiye suddenly halted his steps and looked toward Princess Iron Fan.

"Sister-in-law..."

Hearing Yu Qiye's call, Princess Iron Fan turned around and asked with some puzzlement,

"What is it?"

"I heard from Big Brother Bull that your wind-attribute arts, sister-in-law, have long reached perfection, and that you even possess the supreme wind treasure, the Plantain Fan. Your younger brother specializes in wind-attribute arts, and I hope you can offer me some guidance."

Yu Qiye wore a sincere expression.

"This..."

Princess Iron Fan seemed to hesitate.

However, a moment later, looking at Yu Qiye's harmless face, she nodded nonetheless.

"Then let us spar briefly."

As her words fell, Princess Iron Fan's figure rose with the wind, putting some distance between them.

"Is it my illusion? I actually feel as though the wind is being drawn away by her."

Yu Qiye's heart sank slightly.

One could only say she truly lived up to her golden trait; her mastery over the wind might far surpass his own.

"Princess Iron Fan stays at home year-round and enjoys quiet cultivation; presumably she is not skilled in combat. This might be my chance."

Since Yu Qiye had stated he wanted guidance on wind-attribute arts, he could only rely on wind-attribute arts to win as much as possible.

As for other methods, if he were to deploy them, it might invite gossip.

Of course, considering the importance of a golden trait, Yu Qiye still had a very high probability of resorting to other means at a critical moment.

...

The spar began quite abruptly.

Both Yu Qiye and Princess Iron Fan could be considered masters of wind-attribute arts.

The two of them stood facing each other.

Boom, boom...

Amidst sudden roaring sounds, one tornado after another rose from the sea of forest.

They seemed to wail and roar as well.

The entire mountain forest began to tremble, and boundless wind-waves lashed out in all directions.

However, right at that moment, Yu Qiye flicked his right hand.

"Swoosh..."

Accompanied by a crisp sound, a blade of wind dozens of feet long cleaved the sky, heading straight for Princess Iron Fan.

"Not bad."

Princess Iron Fan smiled, flicked her sleeve, and summoned an equally huge wind blade of her own.

Time slowly passed, and in the blink of an eye, a little under half an hour had elapsed.

The entire mountain forest was reduced to a mess.

Vegetation was completely shattered, and the earth bore deep gashes one after another.

However, right at that moment,

"Sister-in-law, I concede."

Yu Qiye cupped his fists and looked toward the slender figure not far away.

That was Princess Iron Fan.

Her clothes were disheveled, and in certain places, even cut open by the wind blades, revealing patches of snow-white skin.

Yet, more important than that was the fact that she was covered in a sheen of sweat, her demonic power largely depleted.

This spar had been won much more easily than Yu Qiye had anticipated.

He had overestimated Princess Iron Fan.

Although Princess Iron Fan's control over the wind was far superior to his, combat depended not only on wind control, but also on the application of the wind, the amount of demonic power within one's body, and so-called combat experience.

Princess Iron Fan had lost in these other aspects.