High above, Monkey poured all his strength into his flight, streaking across the sky. The spiritual energy he condensed was so fierce, it sent lightning rampaging in wild arcs. Wherever he passed, thunder rumbled ceaselessly, shaking heaven and earth, the echoes lingering long after. Birds and beasts cowered in their nests, paralyzed with fear.
Monkey was certain he could defeat Damon Six-Ears. But if he charged straight into Lionback Kingdom, what would happen then?
His eyes blazed crimson with fury, yet at this moment, Monkey's mind was cold and clear.
From what he knew of Damon Six-Ears, the fiend would seize Anna Yang as a hostage without a second thought. As long as he kept his distance, with that speed, he could easily threaten Monkey. Maybe right now, Damon was standing right beside Anna, waiting for Monkey to come rescue her. Perhaps this whole situation was a trap, laid from beginning to end.
But even if it is a trap, does that mean he can just stand aside?
Obviously not. No matter the reason, Monkey couldn't cross the threshold in his heart. He had to go. Even if it meant risking the Westward Quest, even if it meant clashing with Tripitaka, Monkey still had to go.
That left only one strategy: to win through cunning and surprise.
Soon, Monkey reached the outer edges of Lionback Kingdom.
He concealed himself in the clouds. When a wild gale swept by, he suppressed his aura and transformed into a single droplet of water, falling silently from the sky.
Before touching the ground, he reverted to his true form. With a flick of his finger, he cast a Silence Spell onto a tree trunk below. The next instant, he landed heavily on the branch.
The heavy impact made the whole tree tremble, but the spell had erased every sound. Even the few falling leaves were caught by Monkey’s hand and turned to ash midair, vanishing without a trace.
Less than two zhang—about seven meters—away, three little demons stood chatting idly. Yet they remained oblivious to everything happening nearby.
Without the slightest pause, Monkey began his operation.
Using the green leaves as cover, he erased all sound and burned away the fallen leaves, slipping silently through the treetop canopy.
Below, squads of demon soldiers patrolled as usual, completely unaware of the anomaly overhead.
With a crisp snap, Monkey leapt from the tree, plunging into a thicket waist-high.
Nearby, two demons strolled past with weapons in hand, laughing and joking. They had no idea they were brushing shoulders with death itself.
The forest ended here; beyond this point lay the inner perimeter of Lionback Kingdom.
Once the two little demons had wandered off, Monkey—hidden in the thicket—reached out and gently parted the wild grass blocking his view.
What met his eyes were Lionback Kingdom’s shattered city walls, clusters of buildings reduced to ruins, and demon armies everywhere cleaning up the aftermath.