Inside the empty Heaven's Prison, the firelight on the walls bathed everything in a dull red glow.
The jailers had all been summoned away to unknown places, leaving only General Curtain sitting quietly in his cell, anxiously peering outside.
From outside the iron bars, bursts of commotion drifted in from time to time.
Vaguely, he had long sensed that something was wrong, his heart lodged in his throat.
But with his current status as a disgraced prisoner, what could he possibly do?
“Has that monkey really fought his way to South Heaven Gate? And the Marshal... what has become of the Marshal?” Staring blankly at the pitch-black sky beyond the iron bars, he muttered to himself, “His Majesty will surely protect him, whatever happens. His Majesty once said the Marshal is Heaven’s most reliable man... His Majesty is a wise ruler, he will protect the loyal... He must, he surely must...”
He repeated these words over and over, his expression vacant, as if trying to convince himself to believe.
To die in battle was not terrifying; what was terrifying was to die in humiliation.
"If His Majesty truly punishes the Marshal, then everything before..." General Curtain dared not think further.
In that moment, his mind was utterly blank.
Atop the shattered stone, Monkey leaned on his Golden Staff and slowly stood up, clutching his stomach as he laughed and laughed, nearly unable to catch his breath.
At the same time, a crisis was unfolding.
South Heaven Gate was only half closed, but outside, rivers of blood were already flowing. Countless Daoists fell before the Celestial Army, and inside the gate, whispers began to spread.
"They're killing people?"
"Are they closing the gate?"
"Are they leaving everyone outside for the demon monkey to kill?"
"No... My master and uncle are still out there! No! You can't close the gate!"
A surge of Daoists rushed toward the rear of the Celestial Army, many gripping their magic tools, some already channeling spiritual power into them.
Seeing the wave of furious Daoists behind him, King Virūḍhaka stiffened in alarm.
"What do we do now?" a Celestial General asked in terror.