Chapter 012: The Eastern Sea Dragon Palace Shows Off Its Might

Wukong had used the water escape technique to enter the water and immediately felt extremely uncomfortable. In his past life, what he liked least was underwater combat. In water, his abilities were significantly reduced. However, among the thirty-six types of transformations, there was one divine skill called "Overturning Seas and Rivers." Once mastered to great achievement, naturally, he would no longer be constrained as he had been in his past life.

Wukong activated the divine skill of Overturning Seas and Rivers and found moving through the water much more comfortable. He dove deeper and finally saw the glowing Eastern Sea Dragon Palace in the depths of the sea.

There are four seas in the world, and each of the four seas has a Dragon King, all from the Ao clan. Dragons are divine beasts with strong physical bodies and extraordinary talents. The Four Seas Dragon Kings were by no means weak. Had it not been for instructions from those above, Wukong going to the Eastern Sea to steal treasures with his abilities would surely result in capture. There were many aquatic tribe generals in the Dragon Palace; even a powerful tiger cannot withstand a pack of wolves, let alone when the tiger has fallen onto flatlands, Wukong had become such a tiger the moment he entered the water.

Wielding the God-Beating Whip, Wukong arrived at the Dragon Palace, where a group of shrimp soldiers and crab generals quickly surrounded him and reprimanded, "Which place's Macaca are you to dare trespass into the sacred land of the Eastern Sea?"

Wukong said, "I've long heard that there are many treasures in the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace. I'm here to ask Old Dragon King for a treasure."

A patrolling sea demon shouted, "Audacious! How dare you be so arrogant, seize him!"

The patrolling sea demon, followed by hundreds of shrimp soldiers and crab generals, advanced on Wukong. Wukong raised his God-Beating Whip into the air, and immediately, eighty-four talismans flashed brightly. With a loud yell, "Wham!" like a thunder explosion, the seawater reversed its flow. As the God-Beating Whip swung, a peal of thunder rang out, emitting golden light, wrapping around the several hundred shrimp soldiers and crab generals and pressing them with immense water pressure, instantly crushing them, their physical bodies unable to withstand such massive force. Wukong was also taken aback; though the God-Beating Whip was counterfeit, its power was outstanding indeed.

The patrolling sea demon witnessed Wukong's ferocity and said, "Macaca, cease your violence, I will capture you!"

Hold the God-Beating Whip in his hand, and barely managing to tread evenly in the water with the skill of Overturning Seas and Rivers, Wukong fought the sea demon for a couple of rounds. Suddenly, with a whip strike to the shoulder and a crisp snap, the sea demon's shoulder was broken by the God-Beating Whip. Panicking, he retreated and dashed into the Dragon Palace. Wukong walked into the Dragon Palace unhurriedly with the whip, where he was met by a cluster of aquatic tribe generals wielding weapons and glaring angrily at him.

Wukong raised his Divine Whip, and with a flash of red light, myriad branches extended from the Great Year Whip towards them.

The aquatic tribe generals tried franticly to defend, but their cultivation was too low, most being merely True Immortals. Wukong wielded the Great Year Whip as if it were part of his own body, quickly stirring chaos and having the aquatic tribe generals sprawling on the ground, unable to get up after being severely beaten. Wukong laughed heartily, waving the Great Year Whip to clear his path of the aquatic tribe generals. When he encountered a formidable one, he fought them with the God-Beating Whip for a couple of rounds. Then, with a strike to the top of their heads, he killed them instantly, crushing their primordial spirits within their bodies.

Ao Kuang watched from behind, inwardly shocked at the monkey's tremendous strength. He rushed forward, saying urgently, "Great Immortal, please hold your hand! My subordinates retreat at once."

These aquatic tribe generals were only the lower rank of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace, easily repelled by Wukong's attacks. They could not hold on and hastily retreated upon the Dragon King's command.

"Eh? Someone dares to storm the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace? Truly audacious!" One of the twenty-eight constellations, the Aquatic Ape, had come to drink with the Dragon King today but saw Wukong running amok inside the Dragon Palace, and he was incensed, brandishing his weapon to attack.

In the hands of the Aquatic Ape was also an iron rod of fine gold. With a sweeping motion, a surging tidal wave pressed down towards Wukong.

Seeing a formidable adversary, Wukong was slightly surprised and quickly braced his God-Beating Whip against the iron rod. The collision set off a firework explosion in the water, sending shrimp soldiers and crab generals nearby whirling away in the turbulent flow. Those who got too close were crushed into bloody froth by the currents.

"Well struck!" Wukong shouted as he parried the iron rod with his whip, then punched out with the divine skill "Shake Mountains and Earth", a blow of boundless strength, his fist bearing the power of over a hundred thousand pounds.

The Aquatic Ape quickly retracted his rod, barricading it across his chest, only to be struck squarely by Wukong's punch. The sound was like a muffled thunderclap. The ape was swept away by the current, drifting far off.

Wukong put aside the Great Year Whip. With a snap, he struck the Aquatic Ape in the chest with it, as heavy as Mount Tai bearing down, causing the ape to spit blood and crash onto the seabed, creating a large crater and appearing as if all his bones were shattered.

"Wow, this monkey is formidable!" The Aquatic Ape spat out more blood, and as Wukong whipped down again, he quickly rolled to the side, his Divine Whip smashing into the ground and creating another huge pit. Watching this, the Dragon King's heart trembled with fear; despite being a counterfeit, the Magical Treasure was alarmingly powerful, a match for no ordinary artifact.

This was the deep sea where Wukong's abilities were difficult to perform at their fullest, and the Aquatic Ape had the advantage of terrain. But with low divine power, being only at the first level of the Elixir Realm as a Taiyi Golden Immortal, and facing the Pair of Male and Female Whips in Wukong's hands, extremely fierce Magical Treasures, how could the ape be Wukong's match?

"Wait, stop, Great Immortal, please hold your hand!" Ao Kuang, old and cunning, hurriedly cried out to Wukong.

Seeing the Aquatic Ape severely injured and powerless to resist, Wukong did not continue attacking. He retracted the Pair of Male and Female Whips and asked with a sneer, "Old Dragon King, do you have any advice for me?"

Ao Kuang then made a bowing gesture and said, "I wouldn't dare give advice. With Great Immortal's mighty divine power, how could I offer any instruction? The Aquatic Ape is a good friend of this old dragon, so please refrain from harming him."

Aquatic Ape cursed, "You're skilled alright, but you're just relying on those two magical treasures to act fierce! If you have the guts, put away the treasures and then let's compare our abilities."

Ao Kuang hurriedly said, "Fellow daoist, please slow down! A great immortal who comes from afar is a guest; it's just a bit of a misunderstanding, Aquatic Ape daoist friend, please don't take offense."

Wukong heard Aquatic Ape shouting curses and replied, "Even if I put away my magical treasures, you would still be no match for me! Besides, we are still underwater."

Aquatic Ape, extremely annoyed, shouted loudly, "Fine, very well! State your name, and one of these days I'll gather a few fellow daoists to seek you out, and we'll see how arrogant you can be then!"

Wukong then said, "I am Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, from the Water Curtain Cave of Flower-Fruit Mountain in the Ao Lai Kingdom of Dongsheng Immortal State. If you dare to come, you had better prepare your coffin, lest there be nowhere to bury your ash!"

Aquatic Ape gritted his teeth in rage, thinking to himself that he would seek out his twenty-seven fellow daoists when the time comes. No matter how powerful he is, what can he do then? Can he be equal to the Twenty-Eight Constellations who can fight the Heavenly Court? Moreover, when the Twenty-Eight Constellations gather together, they can harness the power of the Twenty-Eight Stars, which doubles their fighting strength. Even if that monkey has a body of iron, how many nails could he withstand? Immortals value their face greatly, and this Aquatic Ape, being one of the constellations under the Western White Tiger, despite being the last in rank, values his face immensely. He would certainly call upon all his fellow daoists to come and capture this demon monkey.

"Alright, Sun Wukong of Flower-Fruit Mountain, I will remember you!" Aquatic Ape shouted loudly.

Ao Kuang hurried to stop Aquatic Ape from continuing to argue with Wukong, fearing that any further disagreement could lead to a fight, and if he got killed in this Dragon Palace, the other twenty-seven constellations wouldn't be easy to deal with. Being a Dragon King himself, it would be difficult to explain. Moreover, this monkey's background was not small, with a saint backing him up and even the South Pole Immortal Emperor personally descending to the Lower Realm to handle his affairs, ordering him to give the Sea-Calming Needle to Wukong.

Wusheng and Southern Immortal Weng couldn't help but smile from behind. This Macaca really knew how to cause trouble, audaciously giving himself the title of "Great Sage Equalling Heaven." However, he indeed possessed a bit of dominance.

Ao Kuang busily said, "Fellow daoist Aquatic Ape, today it is I, the Old Dragon, who has wronged you. You are seriously injured now, so please come inside the Dragon Palace to rest and recuperate for a moment."

Aquatic Ape also felt that he was fundamentally injured by the Great Year Whip and needed to consume an elixir and meditate for a few days to recover. He was bitterly resentful towards Wukong in his heart, but the situation was stronger than the person. It was a good thing that the Eastern Sea Dragon King Ao Kuang, this peacekeeper, was present, otherwise, he might have been really killed by the monkey today.

Aquatic Ape took the elixir offered by Ao Kuang, turned around and entered the interior of the Dragon Palace, finding his way with familiarity and choosing a cave abode to meditate and heal without leaving.

Wukong laughed and said, "Old Dragon King, I respect you, and although he spoke rudely, I showed you some consideration."

Unable to respond directly, Ao Kuang said, "Great immortal, please come in, and I, Old Dragon, will make sure to treat you well."

Wukong followed Ao Kuang into the crystal palace, then a group of maids brought up tea, fruits, and other items, but Wukong said that tea was boring and asked for wine instead. With no choice, Ao Kuang instructed the maids to bring wine, and he joined Wukong for a couple of drinks.

If it truly came down to a real fight, Wukong might not have been able to leave the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace unscathed, but Ao Kuang certainly didn't dare to take such action!

The Great Emperor Zhenwu had been the first to come and give a heads-up, followed by the Emperor of Eternal Life, and then a female cultivator with unknown levels of profound cultivation. Ao Kuang was secretly shocked by the depth of the monkey's connections, noting that even saints dispatched their disciples to help him with the treasure. He knew that he couldn't keep the Sea-Calming Needle, which had been left by Da Yu, and he would eventually have to explain it to the Jade Emperor, stirring up trouble between the Jade Emperor and this monkey.

Wukong was unaware of Ao Kuang's plans, content to drink until his cup was dry, consuming hundreds of cups. Eventually, Ao Kuang became unsettled and asked, "Great Saint, what brings you to the Dragon Palace?"

Wukong laughed and replied, "It's said that your Eastern Sea Dragon Palace is full of treasures, and I've come to seek one. These two whips are powerful indeed, but they're not handy for me. I want a weapon that suits me."

Ao Kuang then said, "That's easily arranged! I'll have my subjects fetch some weapons for you."

Wusheng secretly admired Wukong's proficiency. It was only his first fight, and he handled the Divine Whips with ease, defeating a number of aquatic tribe generals and even beating the Western Asterism's Aquatic Ape! This was deep in the sea, where Wukong was at a disadvantage and unable to fully demonstrate his strength, and Aquatic Ape had the upper hand of being in his home territory. The average Taiyi Golden Immortal of the Heavenly Human Realm would really be no match for Aquatic Ape in these conditions.

Ao Kuang subsequently ordered his shrimp soldiers and crab generals to bring forth weapons. Wukong tried all eighteen types of weapons, axes, halberds, hooks, and forks, reflecting on whether to collect a few if they were good and pass on them if they were subpar. After all, there were still many Macacas back on Flower-Fruit Mountain who could use them as weapons.

To find out what happens next, please tune in to the following installment.