Chapter 100: The False Southern Gate

“Great General Monkey King, please save my son!” Nezha was trapped in a perilous situation, prompting Li Jing to appeal to Yuan Wuji for help.

When Li Jing arrived at Flower-Fruit Mountain, fear was evident in his eyes. He dreaded Sun Wukong’s power and worried about getting injured himself, but due to arrangements from the Buddhist faction, he had no choice but to steel himself and agree.

Men like Li Jing, lacking innate talent and strength, were a dime a dozen. His reliance on the Buddhist sect was bolstered only by his three sons.

Because Nezha was his son, seeing him injured before his eyes stirred worry in Li Jing, even anger flashing in his gaze. Yet lacking the strength to save Nezha from Sun Wukong’s grasp, he could only call out to Yuan Wuji beside him.

“Lord Li, wait a moment. I’ll be right there,” Yuan Wuji responded immediately.

This was not out of overflowing sympathy, but because Nezha had a role to play behind the scenes; he could not afford for anything to happen on Flower-Fruit Mountain.

The butterfly effect Yuan Wuji had triggered was already growing. Originally, Nezha and Sun Wukong had decent relations, but now they were not just enemies, but bitter foes.

Yuan Wuji summoned his Golden Light that Tramples the Earth, instantly appearing before Nezha and blocking Sun Wukong’s fatal strike.

“Bang!”

The clash between the Decapitation Rod and the Golden Cudgel was fierce. Yuan Wuji’s cultivation was superior to Sun Wukong’s, but the Golden Cudgel was a higher-grade treasure than the Decapitation Rod, so the exchange was evenly matched.

“Hurry and leave!”

Nezha’s face showed conflict. He hadn’t expected Yuan Wuji to come to his rescue, but urged by Yuan’s command, he quickly departed Flower-Fruit Mountain.

Sun Wukong, however, looked at Yuan Wuji with a strange expression that made Yuan’s hair stand on end.

“Great Ape… King, old Sun greets you,” Sun Wukong suddenly said, causing Yuan Wuji to feel a bad omen.

It made no sense—Sun Wukong shouldn’t have recognized him. When could they have met? Perhaps from a portrait?

“Oh? Then why do I not remember you?” Yuan Wuji retorted.

“Back then, you and King Yu Rong were on that very peak,” Sun Wukong pointed toward the mountain where Yuan Wuji had once set a barrier, his face curious.

What…!

How could he have been discovered? The barrier was so well concealed that even a Supreme Taoist Immortal could not detect any anomaly. How could Sun Wukong have found it?

Could it be related to his innate divine powers?

“I didn’t expect you to serve the Heavenly Court. If that’s the case, then King Yu Rong must be like you,” Sun Wukong said, his expression turning grim.

“No, he is not, and neither do I serve the Heavenly Court. Of course, I won’t tell you what I do there,” Yuan Wuji shook his head.

Hearing this, Sun Wukong’s expression softened somewhat.

If King Yu Rong also served the Heavenly Court, then how did their sworn brotherhood come about?

“You saved my son who just insulted me. Now I have no other outlet for my anger,” Sun Wukong said pointedly, eyes blazing with battle intent. Yuan Wuji also wanted to test Sun Wukong’s strength.

“Then let’s fight!”

Yuan Wuji swung his Decapitation Rod at Sun Wukong, who countered with his Golden Cudgel.

The Golden Cudgel, a primordial spiritual treasure, clearly outperformed the Decapitation Rod in battle.

In the first round, Yuan Wuji sensed Sun Wukong’s physical strength was formidable, but still inferior to his own.

Charging again, Yuan Wuji secretly employed the “Mountain-Pressing, Sea-Soaring” divine power, instantly amplifying his strength, aiming to catch Sun Wukong off guard.

“Boom!”

After the collision, both monkeys parted ways. Yuan Wuji retreated three miles, while Sun Wukong withdrew tens of miles.

During this, Yuan Wuji clearly felt Sun Wukong’s strength had also surged. It seemed Sun Wukong had employed a similar power technique. The difference was that Yuan Wuji’s was purely a strength-based technique, making his power boost more direct. Since his physique was inherently stronger, he gained the advantage in that strike.

While Sun Wukong retreated, Yuan Wuji swiftly ascended back to the sky, beyond Sun Wukong’s reach.

In the previous life’s Journey to the West, only Nezha and Sun Wukong fought, with Nezha defeated and retreating. Then Venus descended again to summon Sun Wukong to Heaven.

This had already affected the Journey to the West timeline. If Yuan Wuji defeated Sun Wukong, it could cause major problems. Many storylines in the Journey to the West could be altered, but the thread involving Sun Wukong could never be tampered with.

The Journey to the West could do without Tang Sanzang, Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujing, or even the White Dragon Horse—but never without Sun Wukong. He was the sole protagonist of that era, the child of the epoch.

After Yuan Wuji returned, Li Jing immediately said:

“I didn’t expect Sun Wukong to be so formidable. We’ll discuss this when we return to the Heavenly Court.”

Anyone with eyes could tell who won that strike, but the Buddhist orders given to Li Jing were clear: only defeat, never victory.

Thankfully, Yuan Wuji withdrew; otherwise, Li Jing might have had to step in himself to pull him back.

“Yes, Sun Wukong is indeed powerful,” Yuan Wuji agreed, subtly aligning with Li Jing’s stance. Watching Sun Wukong below, ready to charge at any moment, it was better to leave early.

Nezha, saved by Yuan Wuji, was healing quietly on the sidelines and said little.

Finally, Li Jing gathered his original forces and returned to the Heavenly Court.

This expedition to Flower-Fruit Mountain was more like a “rehearsal,” with no casualties—coming and going swiftly.

“Lord Li, this doesn’t seem to be the way back to the Southern Heavenly Gate,” Yuan Wuji remarked, noticing their route differed from their descent, which had started from the Southern Heavenly Gate.

“With the Great General Monkey King as our ally, we’ll soon understand the truth. For now, this path leads to the Southern Heavenly Gate,” Li Jing said with a strange tone.

A structure resembling the Southern Heavenly Gate appeared in Yuan Wuji’s vision, accompanied by four familiar auras.

“The Four Heavenly Kings?”

Indeed, it was them, and the sign above read “Southern Heavenly Gate.” Yuan Wuji could almost guess what was going on.

It seemed Sun Wukong’s storming of the Heavenly Palace was no mere performance; even the Southern Heavenly Gate they passed through was a fake gate.

The Four Heavenly Kings guarded a counterfeit Southern Heavenly Gate, while the real gate was protected by Fei Peng.

“Lord Li, was capturing that monkey demon below successful?”

“That demon monkey is truly formidable. We couldn’t subdue him and are preparing to petition the Jade Emperor,” Li Jing said, his expression lacking defeat but rather that of dealing with an old acquaintance.