"You can't say it, can you?" The Six-Eared Macaque—Damon—let out a slow, feral grin, retreating step by step as he shook his head. "Did you really think I was stupid? Yes, I believe you're no spy, because you're too proud to stoop to deceiving me. But you and that so-called master of yours, that old fool, are the same. You stayed here for your own purpose, never truly chose me. You've never once said, out loud, that you chose me. And I—I've only held back from tearing off the last mask between us. Now you're shielding a traitor. What does that mean? Are you ready to lay your cards on the table?"
Anna Yang said nothing, only gazed at him in silence.
Damon unleashed his spiritual power without restraint, making the entire Qi Tian Palace tremble. Gavin Goathorn had already stepped back in fright, and the demon generals guarding the doors outside scattered in panic, terrified of being caught up in the blast.
Grabbing a teacup from the desk, Damon bared his fangs and said viciously, "I know you have ties to Marina. I just wanted to see—when Nine-Headed Wyrm betrayed me, would you choose them, or choose me? Now I know the answer."
With that, he smashed the teacup on the floor. It shattered instantly into powder.
At this moment, Anna still stood frozen, tears glimmering at the corners of her eyes. But this time, her tears did nothing to soften Damon’s heart.
...
At dawn, a ray of sunlight broke through the clouds and fell across King Roc’s face, illuminating a look of sly regret tinged with secret delight—a mask of endless hypocrisy.
Standing by the railing, he gazed down at the wailing chaos of Lionback Kingdom and sighed, "Tsk, tsk, tsk... A fine Lionback Kingdom, finished just like that. What a pity."
"What now?" King Liontusk chuckled beside him. "Who’d have thought, Damon really is pinned down by Her Holiness. Many-Eyes may be useless at most things, but when it comes to scheming, he’s a master."
"I didn’t quite believe it before, but now it makes sense. That Six-Eared Macaque never looked at us straight. With things this bad, does he care what happens to Lionback anymore?" As he turned, King Roc caught sight of a demon soldier hurrying past with a bulging sack of unknown loot.
Their eyes met, and the demon soldier nearly collapsed in terror, dropping to his knees and trembling violently.
"What’s wrong with him?" King Liontusk asked.
King Roc glanced at Liontusk and sighed. "We can see everything from up here. How could they know we’re watching them?"
With a small step, King Roc walked over to the soldier and picked up the sack he’d dropped.
The moment his hand touched the sack, the soldier nearly fainted from fear. He tried to stop King Roc, but didn’t have the courage. Instead, he kowtowed and wailed, "My lord! My lord! I must have lost my mind—please, I’ll never do it again! Never! Spare me, please!"
"A new recruit, I suppose?" King Roc said, opening the sack.
Inside the sack was a jumble of odds and ends—clearly stolen from somewhere.
King Roc grabbed a handful, chuckling. "Forget about ‘next time.’ Let’s call this your tax for today. Understand?"
With that, he stuffed the loot into a nearby officer’s hands and tossed the sack back to the terrified soldier.
The soldier stared, utterly confused, unsure what to make of it.
King Roc had no choice but to signal a nearby officer with a glance.
The officer understood at once, strode over to the soldier, and shoved the sack into his hands. "If the King tells you to take it, you take it. Got it?"
"Th-thank you, my lord." The soldier clutched the sack, kowtowed dumbly, then carefully stood and backed away step by step, glancing nervously at King Roc as if expecting him to lash out at any moment.
But King Roc did nothing.
Even after the soldier left King Liontusk’s line of sight, King Roc remained motionless.
Word spread quickly. Even the last pretense was gone. Under King Roc’s lead, the demon troops began storming homes across Lionback Kingdom, plundering under the guise of searching for Nine-Headed Wyrm.
Thick smoke billowed into the sky. What had started as a prison fire, under King Roc and his troops, now spread like a plague to every corner of the city.
...
At that moment, atop a distant cliff, Saint Raymond and Earth-Store King stood side by side, watching it all unfold from afar.
After a long silence, Saint Raymond sighed softly, "It’s almost enough."
"Still a bit short," Earth-Store King replied coolly.
...
Just then, a demon soldier hurried up behind King Roc and knelt. "My lord, Many-Eyes says you may notify the other side."
"Notify the other side?" King Roc blinked, taking a moment to process. Then he waved his hand. "Got it. You may go."
King Liontusk whispered, "Which side?"
King Roc just smiled, offering no answer, gazing contentedly at the swirling smoke over Lionback.
...
On the empty grasslands after the rain, Tripitaka still trudged forward, leaning on his staff, each step slow and unsteady.
Not far ahead, Monkey King watched with a blank, tired expression.
Behind them, Louis Quickpaw came running, holding up his robe, splattering mud all over his clothes.
He rushed up to Monkey King, panting. "Great Sage, something's happened!"
"What is it? What else could possibly go wrong?" Monkey King stared at him, eyes dull and lifeless.
"Something's happened in Lionback Kingdom—King Roc brought the news! He says Her Holiness is in danger!" As he spoke, Louis Quickpaw pulled out the jade tablet Monkey King had entrusted to him and handed it over.
Monkey King froze for a split second. Then, without another word, he spun around, shot into the air, circled once, grabbed Tripitaka, and flew straight toward Lionback Kingdom.
Seeing this, the demon generals nearby—including Marshal Silver and King Bullhorn—had no choice but to hurry after them.
...
In Qi Tian Palace, the standoff dragged on.
Anna Yang hadn’t said another word—she simply gazed quietly at the Six-Eared Macaque.
What she’d already decided, there was no need to argue. Arguing was pointless—and, more importantly, she simply didn’t want to.
As for the Six-Eared Macaque, he just glared at her in silence, letting time slip by.
He couldn’t do anything to Master Sage Subhuti, but Anna Yang—he could take her life in an instant. Yet… did he really want to?
A demon officer hurried up behind the goat spirit and whispered a few words in his ear.
The goat spirit’s eyes went wide. He immediately looked over at the Six-Eared Macaque.
Anna Yang said coldly, "Speak."
The Six-Eared Macaque still stood motionless.
The goat spirit glanced nervously at Anna Yang, then at the Six-Eared Macaque, and finally mustered the courage to whisper, "Great Sage, something seems to have happened outside."
"Then go deal with it!"
"I… I might not be able to handle it, my lord. Maybe… you should—"
"Out!"
At the shout, the goat spirit shrank back and retreated a step.
He silently bowed, then turned and left the study.
Only the Six-Eared Macaque and Anna Yang remained in the study.
Suddenly, the Six-Eared Macaque lunged forward and seized Anna Yang by the throat.
"You really think I don’t dare kill you? Even if I give up being the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, I won’t swallow this humiliation!"
Before he finished, there was a sharp crack. The pendant at Anna Yang’s waist shattered and fell to the floor.
Anna Yang gasped in shock.
Before she could react, the Six-Eared Macaque snatched up the broken pendant and eyed Anna Yang suspiciously. "What is this?"
...
At that very moment, thousands of miles away, a matching pendant at Erik Yang’s waist shattered too.
...
In the study, the Six-Eared Macaque grinned wickedly, clutching the broken pendant. "A signaling device? I’ve seen you wear it since Mount Hua. So—it’s for reporting to your brother, isn’t it? Touching, how deep your sibling bond runs. Hahaha, good, very good. Let’s see if he dares come. If he does, I’ll tear him apart right in front of you!"
...
In Tusita Palace, Lord Lao pursed his lips and grinned at Lord Genesis and Lord Skygate. "That’s about enough."