49: Chapter 50 Stealing the Base!

The Monkey King rode his Somersault Cloud, avoiding the raging divine fire, and landed silently at the entrance of Lotus Cave. He saw the area in front of the cave entrance littered with the corpses of lesser demons, all of whom had been routed by his Incarnation earlier. They were heavily wounded, lying on the ground, wailing incessantly, and had long since lost the power to resist.

The Monkey King's gaze was cold. Holding his Golden Cudgel, he showed no mercy, sweeping through them and killing all the remaining lesser demons cleanly and efficiently, leaving no future trouble. Afterward, he leaped forward and burst into Lotus Cave.

At this moment, the Lotus Cave was empty as the horde of demons had poured out. Only a few lesser demons responsible for guarding Tang Seng and his disciples remained. They were already scared out of their wits, huddled in a corner, trembling.

The Monkey King held his Golden Cudgel, let out a shout, and flashed in front of the few lesser demons. Seeing this, the lesser demons' legs went weak with fear. Lacking even the courage to resist, they knelt and begged for mercy. However, the Monkey King showed no mercy, taking them out one by one with his cudgel and instantly finishing off the guards.

After dealing with the guard demons, the Monkey King immediately rushed to the side of Tang Seng, Sand Monk, and Ao Lie. He circulated his Immortal Qi and with a gentle wave, severed the ropes binding the three.

After being freed, Tang Seng grabbed the Monkey King's hand, tears streaming down his Face, his voice choked with sobs: "Wukong, you have finally come! Just now, the divine fire outside was raging, and I thought you had met with misfortune. You truly scared your Master to death!"

"Master, do not fear. With me, the Monkey King, here, I will certainly protect you!" The Monkey King comforted him softly, then turned to untie Sand Monk's ropes. Finally, he looked at Ao Lie and asked, "Brother Ao Lie, are you injured? Did the demons in the cave give you any trouble just now?"

Ao Lie slowly moved his hands and feet, which had gone numb from being bound. His expression was calm, and he shook his head slightly, replying in a deep voice: "Rest assured, Senior Brother. I am unharmed; these lesser demons cannot hurt me. It is just that King Gold Horn has the Palm Leaf Fan in his possession, which can fan out the Five Elements divine fire. Its power is immense; you must be careful when dealing with it and not be careless."

His tone was steady. Throughout the whole ordeal, he did not reveal even a shred of Shadow Power, remaining in his low-key and forbearing White Dragon Horse guise. He kept his own secrets tightly hidden, not mentioning a word about his secret investigation, fully cooperating with the Monkey King's actions.

The Monkey King nodded and replied: "Rest assured, Brother Ao Lie. I know the power of that Palm Leaf Fan and will definitely be on guard. Now that King Silver Horn has been put into my purple-gold red gourd, King Gold Horn is all alone and nothing to fear. Let us leave this Lotus Cave first, and then make further plans!"

Having said this, the Monkey King turned around and let down Pigsy, who was hanging from the rafters. Pigsy's feet touched the ground, his whole body weak and sore, nearly collapsing to the floor. He hurriedly steadied himself against a stone pillar nearby and thanked the Monkey King repeatedly: "Many thanks, Senior Brother! Many thanks, Senior Brother! If it weren't for you, I, Old Pig, would have been skinned and steamed by these demons today. It was truly too dangerous!"

"You fool, you are the one who always talks too much and causes trouble. If you hadn't provoked King Gold Horn, you wouldn't have nearly lost your life. Remember to restrain your Heart-Nature in the future!" The Monkey King glared at Pigsy and scolded him sternly.

Pigsy nodded repeatedly, not daring to retort, and stood obediently to the side.

Just as the Master and disciples were about to leave Lotus Cave, the Monkey King suddenly caught sight of a soft golden light emanating from a stone table in the cave. Looking closely, it was none other than the sheep-fat jade purifying bottle that had been snatched back by the demons earlier. This bottle was also an Immortal Magic Treasure of the Taishang Laojun, and its power was quite remarkable.

The Monkey King was delighted. He stepped forward quickly, tucked the sheep-fat jade purifying bottle into his bosom, and said with a smile: "This time, not only have I rescued Master and Junior Brother, but I have also retrieved this Magic Treasure. It is truly killing two birds with one stone! Now that King Gold Horn has lost so many Magic Treasures, let's see how he can still contend with me!"

After putting away the purifying bottle, the Monkey King was about to lead the group away when he suddenly sensed a disturbance in the aura outside the cave. He thought to himself: "Oh no: King Gold Horn must have extinguished the divine fire and chased back into the cave!"

Sure enough, as soon as the thought crossed his mind, an angry roar from King Gold Horn came from outside the cave. It turned out that when King Gold Horn saw the Monkey King riding a cloud away, he thought he was afraid of the divine fire and was fleeing in panic. He had put away the Palm Leaf Fan, extinguished the divine fire, and, carrying the Seven-Star Sword, returned to Lotus Cave in a rage, intending to continue guarding his Immortal Cave and wait for an opportunity to take revenge.

As soon as he arrived at the entrance, he saw the corpses of the lesser demons all over the ground and the cave door wide open. His heart sank, and he thought: "This is bad." He immediately rushed into the cave and saw at a glance the freed Tang Seng and his disciples, as well as the Monkey King standing in front of them.

"You wretched monkey! How dare you sneak into my Immortal Cave, rescue Tang Seng, and steal my Magic Treasure!" King Gold Horn was furious, jumping with rage. His Demonic Qi surged, his eyes turned blood-red, and he stared fixedly at the Monkey King. "I will fight you to the death today!"

Having said this, King Gold Horn held the Seven-Star Sword and charged recklessly toward the Monkey King, every Move lethal, wishing he could swallow the Monkey King alive.

The Monkey King hurriedly protected Tang Seng and his disciples behind him, held his Golden Cudgel, and met him head-on, engaging King Gold Horn in a fierce battle once again.

At this moment, King Gold Horn was making a desperate final gamble, his heart filled with despair and rage. His swordsmanship became increasingly ferocious, and every Move was a suicidal tactic. The Monkey King responded calmly, neither arrogant nor impatient, wielding his Golden Cudgel flawlessly, and always firmly held the upper hand.

The two fought fiercely inside Lotus Cave. The stone tables, stone chairs, and ornaments inside the cave were all smashed to pieces, dust filled the air, and it was a scene of chaos. Tang Seng and his disciples hid to the side, watching this intense battle with trepidation, not daring to interfere in the slightest.

In the midst of the fight, the Monkey King caught a glimpse of the Palm Leaf Fan at the back of King Gold Horn's collar from the corner of his eye, and a plan immediately formed in his mind. He deliberately left an opening, exposing his back, to lure King Gold Horn into attacking.

King Gold Horn, eager for victory, fell for the trap. Seeing this, he was overjoyed and immediately swung his sword, thrusting directly at the Monkey King's back, wanting to win with a single blow.

The Monkey King was already prepared. He flashed his body, easily dodging, and at the same time leaped up, circling behind King Gold Horn. Taking advantage of the moment when his opponent's Move was overextended and he could not defend in time, he reached out and snatched the Palm Leaf Fan from the back of King Gold Horn's neck, gripping it firmly in his hand.

"My Palm Leaf Fan!" King Gold Horn was shocked. Turning around, he discovered that his last Magic Treasure had also been snatched away by the Monkey King. His mind was immediately thrown into chaos, his Face filled with despair. "You wretched monkey! You bully me too much!"

Having lost the Palm Leaf Fan, King Gold Horn completely lost his reliance and no longer had the heart to fight. He turned and wanted to flee out of Lotus Cave to save his life and seek revenge another day.

How could the Monkey King give him a chance to escape? He immediately shouted: "Wretched demon, where are you running to!"

Holding his Golden Cudgel, he quickly caught up and swept out with a strike, hitting King Gold Horn heavily on the back. King Gold Horn let out a miserable scream, spat out blood, and stumbled forward, falling to the ground. He struggled to get up, but it was already too late to turn the situation around.

The Monkey King stepped forward, pressed his Golden Cudgel firmly against King Gold Horn's neck, and scolded sternly: "You wretched demon, you have been doing evil in Pingding Mountain, harming living creatures, and repeatedly plotting to frame my Master and fellow disciples. Today is your death day!"

Having said this, the Monkey King was about to raise his Golden Cudgel to strike King Gold Horn to death and completely end this tribulation.

Just at this moment, Ao Lie suddenly stepped forward and said softly: "Senior Brother, wait!"

Hearing this, the Monkey King paused, turned to look at Ao Lie, and asked suspiciously: "Brother Ao Lie, why do you stop me? This demon has committed many evils, and keeping him alive is a disaster; he should be eliminated!"

Ao Lie shook his head slightly, looked outside the cave, and said in a calm tone: "Senior Brother, these two demons, King Gold Horn and King Silver Horn, are not wild demons from the mortal world, but Immortal attendants from the Heavenly Realm who have descended to the mortal world. There is Heavenly Realm Karma involved behind them, so they cannot be easily killed. You wait a moment; in a little while, everything will be clear."

He had long since sensed through his Shadow Power that the aura of a powerful being from the Heavenly Realm was descending, heading straight for Lotus Cave. He already knew in his heart that the true Master of these two demons was about to appear, so he spoke up to stop him, preventing the Monkey King from acting rashly and provoking trouble with the Heavenly Realm.

Hearing this, although the Monkey King had doubts, he had always known Ao Lie to be steady and never one to speak nonsense, so he temporarily put away his Golden Cudgel, ordered Pigsy and Sand Monk to tie King Gold Horn up tightly, and decided not to take his life for the time being, waiting to see how things developed.

Tang Seng put his hands together, chanted Amitabha, and also advised: "Wukong, what Brother Ao Lie says makes sense. Monks should be compassionate; let us spare his life for now and see what happens next."

The Monkey King nodded in agreement, guarded the bound King Gold Horn, and waited inside Lotus Cave with the Master and his disciples, secretly pondering: "This demon actually involves Heavenly Realm Karma; I wonder which powerful being from the Heavenly Realm will come to deal with this?"

The Monkey King finished off Hu Aqi and the army of demons, and holding the purple-gold red gourd and the Palm Leaf Fan, he walked up to King Gold Horn. Just as he was about to make a Move to subdue him, he suddenly heard a burst of immortal music lingering in the sky. Auspicious clouds gathered, and a golden light descended from the sky, landing in front of Lotus Cave.

Everyone looked up and saw an elderly figure sitting on a green ox, holding a horsetail whisk. He had the demeanor of an immortal, with Immortal Qi lingering around him. It was none other than the Dao Ancestor of the Three Realms, the Taishang Laojun of Doushuai Palace.

Seeing this, Tang Seng, Pigsy, and Sand Monk hurriedly bowed to pay their respects. The Monkey King also put away his Golden Cudgel and stepped forward to cup his hands in greeting, knowing that the Elderly Lord had come for the two boys, Gold Horn and Silver Horn.

The Elderly Lord slowly stepped down from the green ox, looked at the captured King Gold Horn, and then looked at the purple-gold red gourd in the Monkey King's hand. He sighed softly and said to the Monkey King: "Wukong, show mercy. These two boys, Gold Horn and Silver Horn, are the fire-tending boys under my seat. They stole my Magic Treasure without permission and descended to the mortal world to cause chaos, which is truly inexcusable. I hope you will give some Face to this old man and release the two of them so I can take them back to Doushuai Palace and punish them severely!"