43: Chapter 44 I'm so angry!

It is said that the Monkey King used a strand of his hair to transform into a fake gourd, tricking Jingxi Gui and Lingli Chong out of the purple-gold red gourd and the sheep-fat jade purifying bottle they held; he then turned into a streak of golden light and hid in the clouds, keeping every move of the two little demons under his watchful eyes, not relaxing for a moment.

Those two little demons held the fake gourd, rushing excitedly toward Lotus Cave, filled with joy, thinking they had taken advantage of a huge opportunity and obtained a peerless Magic Treasure capable of holding the sky, certain that they would receive a heavy reward from the two kings upon their return.

Halfway there, Jingxi Gui suddenly stopped, scratched his head, and said to Lingli Chong, "Brother, let's test this Magic Treasure and see if it can truly hold the sky; we mustn't be tricked by that old immortal!"

Lingli Chong nodded repeatedly, agreeing, "That is exactly what we should do! If it is a real treasure, we can claim credit with the kings when we return; if it is fake, we can plan accordingly."

After saying this, Jingxi Gui held the fake gourd up high with both hands, mimicking the Monkey King's previous appearance, chanting words, and tossed the gourd into the air, waiting for the gourd to display its Divine Ability to hold the sky.

But the gourd not only failed to cause any reaction, it instead fell with a "thump" straight back to the ground from the air, rolling several times before stopping.

Seeing this, the two little demons panicked, hurriedly picking up the gourd to examine it repeatedly, and recited the incantations several more times, but the gourd remained completely unresponsive, showing no signs whatsoever of being able to hold the sky.

Lingli Chong's face turned pale, his voice trembling, "Oh no! We have been tricked! This gourd is fake! That old immortal was nothing but a swindler who swapped away our real treasure!"

Jingxi Gui also awakened as if from a dream, collapsing to the ground in despair, "The Monkey King was pressed under three mountains, how could he have escaped? It must have been that monkey playing tricks, transforming into an immortal to deceive us! Now that the treasure is lost, if we go back, the two kings will certainly not spare us; at best, we will get a severe beating, and at worst, we will lose our lives!"

"Then let's just run away! Far away from this Pingding Mountain, and never return to Lotus Cave!" Lingli Chong was shaking with fear and immediately wanted to turn and flee.

Jingxi Gui hurriedly held him back, shaking his head and sighing, "The world is vast, but where can we run to? The two kings possess great Divine Ability; even if we flee to the ends of the earth, they can still catch us, and our fate will be even worse! It is better to go back and report the truth, begging the kings for mercy; perhaps there is still a glimmer of hope."

The two thought it over and over, but ultimately had no way out; they could only walk with tearful, dejected faces, carrying the empty gourd, moving step by step toward Lotus Cave, each step feeling as heavy as if it were filled with lead.

The Monkey King, high above in the clouds, heard their conversation clearly and curled his lips into a cold sneer.

His figure flickered, transforming into a tiny fly, and he followed the two little demons silently, flying into Lotus Cave together, hiding on top of a door cabinet, listening intently to the movements inside the cave, secretly investigating what other Magic Treasures and schemes the demons had.

Inside the cave, the two kings, Gold Horn and Silver Horn, were sitting on stone chairs, drinking and making merry, full of anticipation, waiting for the two little demons to bring back the captured Monkey King.

Seeing Jingxi Gui and Lingli Chong walk in dejectedly, their hands empty and no sign of the Monkey King, King Silver Horn immediately put down his wine cup, furrowed his brows, and asked sternly, "You are back? Where is the Monkey King? Did you use the treasure to subdue him?"

The two little demons' legs went weak, and they knelt directly on the ground, trembling all over, kowtowing repeatedly, not daring to look up, their voices filled with tears, "Begging the King for mercy! Begging the King for mercy! We were incompetent, lost the Magic Treasure, and truly deserve to die!"

Hearing this, King Gold Horn was instantly furious, slapping the stone table, causing the wine cups and bowls on the table to jump, and shouted angrily, "Trash! A bunch of trash! I entrusted you with my supreme treasure to subdue that monkey, and not only did you fail, but you also lost the Magic Treasure! What use is there in keeping you alive!"

"King, calm your anger! King, calm your anger!" Jingxi Gui was scared to the point of Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, and hurriedly reported the sequence of events in detail, "We were heading to the front of the mountain with the Magic Treasure when we met an old immortal from Penglai Immortal Island on the way. That immortal claimed he also hated the Monkey King and was willing to help us."

"He said he had a gourd capable of holding the sky, and we were confused for a moment, so we swapped the purple-gold red gourd and the sheep-fat jade purifying bottle for his fake gourd. Who would have thought that the immortal was actually the Monkey King in disguise? By the time we realized it, he had already escaped with the real treasures!"

"That wretched monkey! How dare he humiliate us like this!" King Silver Horn was furious, jumping with rage, his Demonic Qi surging, and he said through gritted teeth, "I thought he was pressed under the mountain and unable to escape, but I never expected him to not only get free but also trick me out of my Magic Treasure! This feud is irreconcilable! Brother, rest assured, I will definitely tear this monkey into ten thousand pieces, take back the Magic Treasure, capture Tang Seng, and eat his flesh to gain immortality!"

King Gold Horn suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, "Brother, calm down. That Monkey King possesses great Divine Ability and is full of cunning tricks. Now that he has obtained two Magic Treasures, he is like a tiger with wings; we must not act rashly. Tell me, how many Magic Treasures do we still have in our hands, and can they deal with that monkey?"

King Silver Horn calmed down, thought carefully, and replied, "Brother, we have a total of five Magic Treasures. We have lost the purple-gold red gourd and the sheep-fat jade purifying bottle, leaving us with the Seven-Star Sword, the Palm Leaf Fan, and a Golden Binding Rope. This Golden Binding Rope has infinite power and is a supreme treasure of the immortals, but it is not in our hands right now; it is in Yalong Cave on Yalong Mountain, kept by our old mother."

"In that case, there is no time to lose!" King Gold Horn's eyes turned sharp, and he immediately ordered, "Send two capable little demons to Yalong Cave quickly to invite our old mother to Lotus Cave to enjoy Tang Seng's flesh together, and incidentally have her bring the Golden Binding Rope. Once we have the Golden Binding Rope, we will definitely be able to bind the Monkey King tightly, so he can never escape again and will be at our mercy!"

King Silver Horn nodded in agreement, immediately dismissed the kneeling and begging Jingxi Gui and Lingli Chong, and summoned two shrewd and capable little demons—Bashan Hu and Yihai Long.

With a serious expression, he repeatedly instructed the two little demons, "You two, go quickly to Yalong Cave, pay your respects to the old grandmother, and tell her that my brother and I have captured the Tang Seng from the Eastern Land Great Tang, and specifically invite her to come to Lotus Cave to enjoy Tang Seng's flesh and prolong her life. Remember, you must make sure she brings the Golden Binding Rope; we need to use this Magic Treasure to capture the Monkey King, and there must be no mistakes!"

Bashan Hu and Yihai Long responded in unison, "We obey your command! We will definitely not fail the mission, and will bring back the old grandmother and the Golden Binding Rope as soon as possible!"

After receiving their orders, the two dared not delay in the slightest, immediately turned and left Lotus Cave, rushing toward Yalong Cave without stopping.

The Monkey King, hiding on the door cabinet, heard every word of the two demons' schemes and conversation, calculating to himself: So these two demons still have the Golden Binding Rope Magic Treasure, and it is in the hands of that old demon hag on Yalong Mountain. If I can seize this Magic Treasure, I will have a few more chances of winning against these two demons.

He flew out of Lotus Cave silently, unfolded his Somersault Cloud, and instantly caught up with the traveling Bashan Hu and Yihai Long, still transformed into a small flying insect, clinging tightly to Bashan Hu, and followed the two toward Yalong Cave.

Meanwhile, inside Lotus Cave, the four of them—Tang Seng, Pigsy, Sand Monk, and Ao Lie—remained tied with ropes, imprisoned on one side of the Immortal Cave.

Tang Seng closed his eyes and silently recited scriptures, his face filled with sorrow, his heart full of worry for his disciples and fear for his own tribulation; Pigsy was hung from the roof beam, grunting and groaning, complaining every now and then, hating the demons for their cruelty while also resenting himself for not listening to advice earlier and falling into the trap; Sand Monk's eyes were wide with anger, struggling unceasingly, but he was unable to break free from his bonds, so he could only stare fixedly at the demons in the cave, maintaining vigilance at all times.

Ao Lie was tied to a stone pillar, head lowered and eyes closed, appearing calm, but in reality, he was secretly circulating his Shadow Power, carefully investigating every movement in the cave, committing the demons' conversation and information about the Magic Treasures to memory.

The aura around his body was restrained, hiding his Shadow Power flawlessly, never revealing a single flaw; he neither acted rashly nor easily exposed his own secrets, simply lying in wait, waiting for the best opportunity.

He knew clearly in his heart that the Monkey King had already begun his plan, and he only needed to endure and remain still, secretly protecting Tang Seng's safety and cooperating with the Monkey King's actions; he must not ruin the entire plan due to a moment of impulse, and even less could he expose his own identity as the Shadow Monarch.

Inside the cave, Demonic Qi swirled, and the demons drank and celebrated, showing an arrogant attitude; a great drama of treasure-stealing centered around the Golden Binding Rope had quietly begun, and the contest between the Monkey King and the two demons of Lotus Cave had entered a brand new stage.