16: attacking the monkey troop

The sky was bright, and the sunlight reflected off the water's surface, illuminating the underwater world of the Yunxi River. Filtered through the water, the harsh sunlight became much gentler, bringing only warm vitality without any scorching intensity.

Gu Yuchuan followed behind a Shrimp Soldier. This Shrimp Soldier was at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer and was now the second strongest expert in Yunxi Palace. With the fall of the Black Snake Great King and the Crab General, the strength of Yunxi Palace had indeed declined significantly.

Great King Hui She looked at the demons behind him and let out a long sigh. As expected, getting involved with Human Race practitioners never led to anything good. He had already lost two experts without even engaging in close combat; it was truly distressing.

"Everyone, the monkey troop in the Monkey Forest killed our Crab General. Today, we shall exterminate the Monkey Forest. All demons capable of going ashore, follow me. Pure Aquatic Tribes will stay home and wait for our return. Let's go."

They went ashore and headed toward the Monkey Forest, making no attempt to conceal their movements.

Gu Yuchuan felt that there must be other schemes at play, but with his limited information, he couldn't figure it out. He could only be more cautious. He hoped nothing would go wrong.

Soon, the Monkey Forest came into view. The musky scent of the monkey troop was already palpable. Many minor demons, like Gu Yuchuan, frowned, finding the musky smell quite unpleasant. Many monkeys were already standing at the entrance of the Monkey Forest with their weapons, and the Monkey King was also in his armor, ready for battle.

He wore a suit of golden armor that only revealed his monkey head. He looked majestic, like a general of the Human Race. The sunlight hitting the armor added a few more layers of brilliance to its dazzling light.

"Great King Hui She, our two sides have always minded our own business. Your territory is in the water, and mine is on land. What is the meaning of this today?"

Hui She gave the Shrimp Soldier a look, and he immediately jumped out. "Presumptuous! You, a mere Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon, dare to speak to our King like that? You know perfectly well why we are here. By killing our Crab General, you have already declared war on us. Naturally, we are here to accept the challenge."

The Monkey King was nearly exploding with rage. Good, good, a classic case of the villain suing first, isn't it? He slammed his staff into the ground, his Aura fierce and his tone turning much more vicious. "What a fine 'villain suing first'! That crab came to my Monkey Forest to steal our treasure. I haven't even questioned if you, Great King Hui She, were the one who directed him. And yet, you dare to show up today."

Great King Hui She didn't say much about the matter. In fact, by this point, the issue of the Crab General was a minor detail. His decision to send troops had nothing to do with the Crab General. "Since you've admitted it, this will be easy. Prepare to die. A bunch of monkeys daring to kill my people—there is only one outcome: death."

His tone was indifferent, but the pressure of a Spirit Beast already filled the field. Gu Yuchuan felt the pressure more clearly than anyone else because he followed the same path as the Serpent. Since he would become a Serpent upon ascending to a Spirit Beast, the common source made it even more uncomfortable for him. Fortunately, this pressure wasn't aimed at them but at the monkey troop.

"Charge!"

Great King Hui She shouted only once, and all the demons behind him rushed out. Gu Yuchuan was among them, but he was very cautious. He knew that Human Race Cultivators might be hiding in this Monkey Forest.

However, he still had to do his part. He knew this was an excellent opportunity to train his combat skills. Currently, he possessed cultivation and Divine Abilities but lacked combat experience, which would certainly hinder his growth. So, he had to seize this opportunity. He found a Monkey Spirit at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, slightly lower than his own cultivation.

This Monkey Spirit also used a staff, wielding it with such vigor that it seemed to create wind, looking extremely powerful and causing the surrounding minor demons a great deal of suffering. Suddenly, two streams of water transformed into two ferocious pythons in the air, entangling its arms. Black venom sprayed from Gu Yuchuan's mouth.

At the critical moment, many monkey hairs fell from the Monkey Spirit, forming an earthy yellow shield in front of him, blocking all the venom. However, the shield in front of him was also mostly corroded.

But Gu Yuchuan's attack wasn't over yet. Behind the Monkey Spirit, two Water Swords pierced through its chest. It widened its eyes and stared fixedly at Gu Yuchuan.

The battle seemed quite easy, and in fact, it was. His cultivation, Bloodline, and Cultivation Technique were all far superior to this monkey's. Winning was naturally very easy. He began to look for another opponent.

He also had requirements for his opponents. First, they had to be in the Mid Qi Refining Stage. After all, the jump from the Qi Refining Third Layer to the Fourth Layer was a threshold; whether one crossed it significantly impacted combat power. Fighting those who were Qi Condensation Early-stage cultivators wouldn't benefit him much.

However, there were only a few Monkey Spirits in the Mid Qi Refining Stage, and he soon killed them all. He felt that besides gaining a deeper understanding and some variations of his Water Manipulation Divine Ability, there wasn't much else. These monkeys were simply too weak. Sigh, loneliness is being invincible; he now wanted to stand above and sing 'Loneliness is being invincible' for everyone.

He looked over at the Serpent's side; the battle there was the truly exciting one. Although Great King Hui She's cultivation was superior, the Monkey King had three Magical Artifacts on him, allowing him to barely hold his ground. However, he was still at a disadvantage, and death was only a matter of time.

Great King Hui She used his magic power to softly transmit his words to the Monkey King's ear: "If the Human Race Cultivators don't come out now, it will be too late."

These words were meant for the Monkey King, but in reality, they were also for the people from the Beast Taming Sect behind them. Sure enough, after he said this, three Cultivators flew out from the depths of the Monkey Forest. Although it was Gu Yuchuan's first time seeing the man with a red sword, he had a premonition: this was the person who had killed him so many times!

He howled with rage in his heart but didn't dare to approach. He couldn't beat a Qi Refining Great Perfection Cultivator, and even Great King Hui She might find it difficult. But then he realized he had spoken too soon.

Great King Hui She was actually a Qi Refining Great Perfection demon! He had been hiding his cultivation all along, waiting for the other party to appear. The intent behind hiding his cultivation was clear: he wanted to kill these Cultivators. Wait, this seemed different from all the Simulations, but never mind. As long as they could be killed! That Blazing Sword Cultivator must die today; otherwise, Lord Snake would be fuming with rage.

He found a spot, activated his invisibility, and began to watch secretly.