In the sky, a one-zhang-wide Eightfold Compass slowly glided westward.
Ahead stretched breathtaking scenery; drifting clouds swept past, and before their eyes unfolded a boundless world.
What does it mean to say, "The sky is vast, let birds fly"? What does "From on high, all mountains are small" truly look like?
Seated atop the Eightfold Compass, Aiden Chen's mouth hung open in awe at everything before him. Something bright sparkled in his eyes.
"Sister, this Eightfold Compass is amazing!"
"It is pretty impressive. It’s a relic from one of my senior brothers—perfect for transporting people and cargo."
"Sister."
"Hm?"
"Who are you taking Aiden to apprentice under?"
"A monkey."
"Huh?" Aiden Chen immediately looked a bit unhappy.
He frowned and stayed quiet for a long time, then mumbled, "Sister, I don’t want to apprentice under a monkey. Can I apprentice under you instead?"
"Why do you want me as your master?"
"Because you’re pretty." Aiden grinned, blinking up at Clara Heart.
"Little rascal." Clara shot him an exasperated look, then tapped his nose. "If he refuses to take you as a disciple, I’ll reluctantly accept you myself."
Aiden nodded vigorously, beaming with joy.
After a while, Aiden glanced back at Nathan Young, who was closely following behind, and whispered, "Sister, why is Nathan following us?"
Clara gently turned Aiden’s head back. "Just ignore him."
"Are we going to find that monkey now?"
"Yes. But first, we’ll stop by Crescent Star Cave."
"What’s Crescent Star Cave?"
"Crescent Star Cave is my sect."
"Then, will I get to meet your master?"
"Why do you want to meet him?"
"No reason. I just thought, since you’re so amazing, your master must be even more amazing!"
Clara paused, then after a moment reached out and ruffled Aiden’s hair, smiling. "He’s just a cranky old man. A… cranky old schemer."
And so their conversation drifted on, sometimes lively, sometimes idle.
Not far behind, Nathan Young rode his Wind-Fire Wheels, following closely and occasionally glancing down at the Jade Tablet in his hand.
......
Meanwhile, in the Ninth Heaven, the Jade Emperor leaned back in his chair, stroking his long beard as he gazed at two memorials side by side on the dragon desk.
On the other side of the dragon desk, General Lee stood silently.
"Nathan Young believes that if the hairpin falls into the Monkey King's hands, he will surely attack Mount Hua, and that will inevitably lead to conflict with General Erlang. Indirectly, it could implicate the Heavenly Court as well."
"Imperial Envoy Clara Heart’s view is that if the Monkey King gains an attachment, perhaps it could halt his westward journey. In that case, the conflict with Kunlun would naturally resolve itself, and peace would return to the Three Realms."
Hearing this, the Jade Emperor smiled faintly.
General Lee cupped his hands and spoke softly, "Your Majesty, do you mean...?"
The Jade Emperor took a deep breath, slowly closed his eyes, and sighed, "If he gets the hairpin, will he really attack Mount Hua? General Lee, do you think so?"
"Well..."
The Jade Emperor slowly shook his head. "I’m not so sure. The Monkey King has been out for some time now, yet he hasn’t set foot on Mount Hua. With his temperament, if getting the hairpin meant he would go, then surely he would have made some move before now. This matter is hard to say."
He flipped through Clara Heart’s memorial and snorted with a laugh, "As for Anna Yang leaving the mountain, and the Monkey King finding an attachment to bring peace to the Three Realms... that’s probably exaggerated too."
"Then, Your Majesty, do you intend to order Nathan Young’s recall, or command Imperial Envoy Clara Heart to halt her actions?"
The Jade Emperor tilted his head slightly, stroked his beard, and pondered for a moment. "If I recall Nathan Young, it gives them one less excuse. But if I order Clara Heart to stop, she may not obey. In that case, let’s wait and see."
With that, the Jade Emperor picked up Nathan Young’s memorial and handed it to the waiting attendant, saying softly, "Notify the Three Pure Ones, Kunlun, Five-Fruits Temple, Crescent Star Cave, and... General Erlang, Erik Yang."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
......
At this moment, on the Blackwater River, Monkey and his companions had already been trapped here for three hours.
The sky remained shrouded by the formation, the river raged on, and countless waterspouts had formed—like giant dragons plunging headfirst into the river, churning it ceaselessly.
With Monkey, Marshal Silver, and the others holding their ground, the river’s fury couldn’t break through the layers of spiritual protection to harm Tripitaka or the boat itself. Yet after three full hours, the power of the formation hadn’t weakened—in fact, it seemed to be growing stronger.
......
At the riverbed, three demon kings remained focused, controlling the formation with all their attention.
Jack Rivers clutched his wound, slowly walked to the formation’s edge, and sat down, his gaze empty as he stared at the swirling magic.
King Roc drew a golden awl from his belt and tossed it to Jack Rivers, who caught it firmly.
"Don’t just sit there. Go guard near them. As soon as they go into the water, that’s your chance."
Jack Rivers looked at the awl in his hand and hesitated slightly, then asked in a low voice, "Do you really think they’ll be foolish enough to go into the water?"
King Roc sneered, "It’s not foolishness, it’s that they have no choice. This formation is reinforced by a golden body—its power only grows. Do you really think they want to be trapped here forever?"
"And what about what you promised me...?"
"Don’t worry. As soon as the monk is dead, won’t the Netherworld be ruled by King Kṣitigarbha? Victor Wei will be at your mercy—you can take your revenge however you like!"
Jack Rivers gritted his teeth, gripped the golden awl, and swam toward the spot where the little boat was.
......
On the water’s surface, Monkey stood motionless, staring at the abyssal darkness of the river.
Marshal Silver reached out and grasped a wisp of air, sniffed it lightly, then put his hand directly into the water to probe.
After a long moment, Marshal Silver withdrew his hand, flicked off the water droplets, and said softly, "This river is strange. It not only blocks sight, but also weakens spiritual perception. If you go down there, you could be ambushed at any time."
"Those are Jack Rivers' tricks," Prince Adrian whispered. "He had this power even as a child. I've never seen it in anyone else."
"Is there a way to break it?"
Prince Adrian thought for a moment and said, "There's a kind of jade—if you hold it in your mouth, it works. Maybe... I could have someone bring it to us?"
Monkey couldn't help but laugh, "Send whom?"
That question left Prince Adrian speechless.
Finding out what kind of jade it is would be easy—just contact the Western Sea Dragon Palace.
But delivering it here? That's a problem. After all, there are few in the Western Sea Dragon Palace who could cross this formation.
Besides, even Prince Adrian himself doesn't dare enter the water—how could he ask them to come?
Jack Rivers is kin to the Western Sea, and the Western Sea Dragon King has shown him great favor. By rights, he shouldn't harm the Western Sea clan. But with this setup, it's clear he's not alone—and some of his allies might be major figures from the Buddhist Order. Whether the Western Sea Dragon Palace could guarantee safety in front of them is another matter entirely.
After thinking it over, Prince Adrian could only purse his lips and lower his head.
Monkey sighed deeply and asked Marshal Silver, "How deep do you think this river is?"
"Depth doesn't matter. They're just trying to force us down there—especially you. If you leave, even for a moment... it'll get dangerous here."
Monkey grinned and said, "Actually, I just thought of a way to go underwater without leaving the boat. The only question is—can they break it?"
Moments later, a thunderous crash rang out as the Golden Staff expanded and plunged straight from the little boat to the riverbed!
Immediately, the river water erupted, surging wildly in all directions.
In the raging current, Monkey, now hundreds of zhang tall, braced himself against the Golden Staff with one hand and held the tiny boat aloft with the other, slowly rising to his feet.