"You want to fight?"
Elder Gale stared at Monkey King, his face expressionless.
Spiritual power had already gathered, silent and invisible.
This spiritual power was unlike the Traveler's Path's violent force; it was gentle as water, elusive, silent—yet, once truly touched, could instantly transform into a deadly beast.
Monkey King could even clearly sense that at least six artifacts on Gale's body were already half-activated.
The two simply stared at each other in silence, the Golden Staff hovering less than an inch from Elder Gale's nose.
Elder Skyreach, face filled with shock, tried to intervene, but was stopped by Stillwater, who grabbed his hand.
The Traveler's Path naturally held an advantage over the Sage's Path in combat. Unfortunately, the higher one climbed, the smaller that advantage became.
Elder Gale's cultivation was at least at peak Great Luo Immortal, perhaps with one foot already in the Great Luo Hunyuan Immortal realm. Not just in the mortal world—even across all Three Realms, such power was vanishingly rare.
With peak Celestial Sage-level Traveler's Path cultivation, Monkey King might have some chance against such a top-tier land immortal in a direct fight. But did he really want to start a hysterical, all-out battle with his senior brother here?
Breaking free from Stillwater's grip, Skylar Loft rushed anxiously between the two: "Junior Brother! Are you really going to fight here? Put the staff away! Eldest Brother, what are you doing? Don't stoop to his level."
With Skylar Loft between them, the two stared at each other in stunned silence.
Elder Gale gently brushed aside his sleeve, straightened his back, and said expressionlessly, "You’ve grown used to causing havoc outside—do you think Crescent Star Cave is just like Blossom Mountain, letting you do as you please?"
Monkey King clenched his teeth; the tip of the Golden Staff trembled slightly.
"Eldest Brother, Junior Brother is just anxious—he means no harm! Truly, no harm!"
Elder Gale let out a cold laugh.
"Junior Brother, you can't be so reckless. No matter how many reasons you have, harming your fellow disciples is unforgivable!"
Monkey King's cheeks twitched slightly.
"Eldest Brother, please calm down—Junior Brother is just too desperate. He waited over a hundred years for this day, only to find the Book of Life and Death blank. Anyone would struggle to accept that."
"Junior Brother, put down the staff! Put it down!" Skylar Loft pressed hard on Monkey King's hand gripping the staff and shouted, "You can't beat Eldest Brother—don't be foolish! Put it down!"
The hall was deathly silent; only Monkey King's heavy breathing could be heard.
The five brothers stood quietly together.
After a long while, Elder Gale spoke softly: "Go back. Return to where you belong. You belong to Blossom Mountain, not Crescent Star Cave. That was decided the moment you chose the Traveler’s Path."
As he spoke, Elder Gale slowly supported himself on his knees and stood up.
"Don’t talk nonsense." Monkey King collapsed to the ground, gritting his teeth. "What does Master really mean? Is he truly unwilling to help me? If he wants to sever ties, he should just say so instead of playing games! Is he going to remind me again not to mention his name if anything happens?"
...
In the side room, Master Subhuti sat silently before a cup of mist-shrouded tea, unmoving.
...
Elder Gale took a deep breath and said calmly, "Master’s meaning is that he cannot break the seal either."
"If he can't break the seal, why not say so face to face?"
"Because he does not wish to see you."
The words were heavy, but to Monkey King, they barely caused a ripple.
"Doesn’t want to see me..." He laughed bitterly. "When Ninth Brother courted a fairy, Master scolded him. But me? I could tear open the heavens and he wouldn’t say a word. Whenever trouble came, the other brothers were sent to reflect behind closed doors, but when I killed, nothing happened to me... heh, heh, heh."
"In the end, he never saw me as a disciple. I know—he never did. His mind is fixed only on his grand plan."
"From the moment I entered the sect, he knew what I wanted. He let it happen, even encouraged it... You think I don’t know his intentions? The moment he kept me in the dark about Lord Lao searching for Birdie’s soul, I knew he was scheming. That’s why I ran away."
"It doesn’t matter. None of it matters. He owes me nothing. On the contrary, I owe him. If not for him, I’d have died kneeling at the gate long ago."
"But what does he mean now? Didn’t he want to break the Heavenly Dao? If so, shouldn’t he help me find Birdie? Or has he changed his mind and decided to side with Lord Lao?"
...
In the side room, Master Subhuti silently lifted his tea and sipped.
...
Elder Gale still gazed at Monkey King with an impassive expression.
"Does Master’s opinion really matter that much?"
"Doesn’t matter? If his view doesn’t matter, what does? Haven’t you always cared most about Master’s thoughts?"
Elder Gale smiled faintly, turned, and walked step by step toward the door. At the threshold, he paused and said quietly, "When your heart insists on something you cannot let go, obsession is born. Obsession brings countless flaws. The Daoist canon spells this out—you should understand."
He tilted his head slightly and sighed, "You’re right—Master truly owes you nothing. Back then, it was you who stubbornly chose the Traveler’s Path. When another brother tried to persuade you to return to the monastery, you refused."
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"Indeed, Master has another plan—a plan you may truly find unacceptable. But... if you only cling to the past, whether you can recover what’s lost is uncertain, but what you have now will surely be sacrificed. Take my advice: don’t wait until regret is too late."
He lowered his head, chuckled helplessly, and shook it. "One mistake repaid by countless others—how do you repay those? Sometimes a single thought leads to a world of difference. Judge for yourself."
With that, he stepped across the threshold.
Monkey King still lay there, dazed, a bitter smile on his face.
Skylar Loft quietly tugged at Stillwater's sleeve. "Eldest Brother’s words have a hidden meaning, don’t they?"
Stillwater sat motionless, reaching out to pat Skylar Loft’s foot, signaling him to stay silent.
The hall was hushed and still.
After a long moment, Monkey King staggered to his feet, bent down to pick up his Golden Staff, chuckled, tucked it behind his ear, and turned to leave.
"Junior Brother, where are you going?" Skylar Loft called out.
"Wherever I need to go." Monkey King frowned, then turned back with a lazy smile. "If Master and Eldest Brother won’t help, I’ll go elsewhere. I’ll search for Spirit Mountain—maybe the Buddha will help me. Isn’t that right?"
Skylar Loft and Ewan watched him quietly.
After a long pause, Monkey King pressed his lips together and said in a low voice, "I won’t give up on this."
With that, he turned and shot westward in a blaze of golden light, leaving his three senior brothers staring after him.
...
In the side room, Elder Gale and Master Subhuti sat in silent contemplation.
"Master, I spoke out of turn."
Subhuti slowly shook his head. "Words make no difference. If he could be persuaded so easily, he wouldn’t have founded Blossom Mountain, nor become King of Ten Thousand Demons. Only someone that stubborn can accomplish such things. In fact, if I hadn’t been here, you’d have struck before he did, wouldn’t you?"
Elder Gale remained silent.
"The Sage’s Path is different from the Traveler’s Path. The Heavenly Dao is emotionless; if a Sage cannot achieve that, he will never break through. Fall into obsession, and the Dao-heart shatters—death may follow."
After a long hesitation, Elder Gale bowed deeply. "Master’s teachings—I will remember them always."
In the dim side room, Elder Gale prostrated himself on the floor. Subhuti sighed softly, "From today, you will enter seclusion as well. Leave all external affairs to your Fifth Junior Brother."
"I obey, Master."
...
In the biting wind, Monkey King clenched his teeth and soared westward.
Racing at top speed, all the scenery flashed past him, turning into streaks of light pointing in one direction.
As time and space blurred, he spun once, gripping the Golden Staff tightly in his hand.
"Spirit Mountain, Spirit Mountain, Spirit Mountain... Where is Spirit Mountain?"
In the distance, he saw a colossal pyramid-shaped golden mountain, towering into the clouds, its flanks crowded with smaller peaks, most crowned with temples.
He halted in midair, hovering.
A golden stairway wound from the foot of the mountain all the way to the summit, leading into a golden palace.
Golden light poured down from the summit, bathing everything below in a radiant glow.
The sound of bells slowly echoed in all directions.
"Is this Spirit Mountain?"
He gathered all his strength and charged toward the summit.
But in just an instant, the golden light vanished without a trace.
Monkey King stood there, breathing heavily, staring blankly at the world around him.
No, it wasn’t just the golden light—everything had changed, the entire scene was different.
Whipping around, he suddenly realized the glowing mountain was now behind him.
"Did the whole mountain move?" He slapped his head hard. "No, it wasn’t the mountain—it’s me, my direction was shifted without my knowing."
He tried again, cautiously approaching Spirit Mountain, this time deliberately slowing his pace.
But right before his eyes, the entire world’s scenery began to slide and rearrange itself.
In a heartbeat, everything returned to exactly as it was before.
"What’s happening? Is this some kind of maze formation?"
He began to panic. He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again; silver light flashed from his pupils, but he saw no trace of spiritual power.
At that moment, a figure appeared silently behind him.
"Great Sage Equal to Heaven, with no Buddha in your heart, how can you ever reach Spirit Mountain?"