"Brother Kong, we've arrived. This Tongbi ape is much easier to deal with than the Six-Eared Macaque. We have some acquaintance, so it shouldn't be difficult to win him over."
"Please rest on the clouds, Brother. Watch your second brother perform. I promise I won't disappoint you!"
Carried by Sun Kong's Chaos Somersault Cloud, the two moved swiftly. In just half an hour, they reached this region, one hundred eighty million li away.
After saying this, the second brother, Wuzhiqi, descended from the clouds to negotiate.
Leaving Sun Kong alone, he stood firm on the cloud, looking down at the beautiful scenery.
This place was different from the Huai River.
It was a border area between Nanzhan Buzhou and Xiniu Hezhou, two of the Four Continents in the Immortal Realm.
It was also a very peculiar place.
While there were high mountains and lush trees, a great river flowed, and spiritual energy was abundant, the geographical environment here was unique and unlike any other region in the Immortal Realm.
The entire area was called Tongbi Mountain.
As the name suggested, it was named because the Tongbi Ape lived there.
It was not something worth boasting about initially.
But the most memorable aspect was that the entire Tongbi Mountain was not located on the ground or by the riverbank, but floated in the air, like a floating island!
Eighteen magical vines, ten thousand zhang thick and ten thousand li long, extended from the mountaintop, piercing straight into the cloud layers millions of miles away.
Sun Kong did not possess the Fiery Golden Eyes yet, so he couldn't see if these vines actually reached the heavens or the Heavenly Court.
However, based on his initial estimation, these vines were definitely rare and special plants.
They might not be among the Ten Great Spiritual Roots like the Flat Peach Tree or the Yellow Middle Plum.
But they were certainly extraordinary!
Below it, there were eighteen thousand smaller floating islands, stacked one layer upon another, like stacking Arhats, connecting to the entire Tongbi Mountain that stood millions of zhang in the air.
And on the ground, there were nine great rivers arranged according to the Nine Palaces, and eight high mountains arranged according to the Eight Trigrams.
One had to admit.
The Zhou Wuxian, being one of the Four Mixed World Monkeys, truly had his merits.
Putting aside other aspects.
Just by observing his mastery of the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, and the principles of Heaven, Earth, and the Book of Changes, one could infer that this monkey's comprehension was absolutely top-notch, perhaps on par with Sun Kong himself.
This made it even more worthwhile for Sun Kong to conquer him, recruit him as his third brother, and team up with him for the Journey to the West, to share in the Way of the West and the fruits of Buddhahood.
"It is said that the more capable people are, the harder they are to conquer. Although I am the foremost of the Four Monkeys and have my past achievements, too few know the truth. I might not be able to intimidate Zhou Wuxian."
"I hope the second brother Wuzhiqi I just recruited is up to the task."
"Otherwise, I, as the elder brother, will have to step in and once again use that overly powerful Journey to the West Gatling to forcibly subdue Zhou Wuxian."
Above the ten thousand zhang clouds, Sun Kong leisurely sat on the Chaos Somersault Cloud, enjoying various delicacies, vegetables, and fruits.
While waiting for a reply from his second brother Wuzhiqi.
At the same time, due to the extraordinary strength of the Tongbi Ape Zhou Wuxian, who was likely the second strongest among the four monkeys, he felt a bit apprehensive.
However.
Just as Sun Kong was waiting with some unease, two figures appeared below, flying towards them at high speed.
The one behind was none other than the second brother Wuzhiqi.
He had a proud yet slightly anxious expression.
It seemed as if there was some problem with this mission?
And the one in front, though they hadn't formally met, was recognized by the sharp-eyed Sun Kong. This person possessed an explosive aura, commanding respect even without anger, and held a Sun Moon Rod, looking majestic and imposing.
This person should be none other than.
The monkey who was equally famous as them and whose combat power was not inferior to the original Sun Wukong.
The Tongbi Ape Zhou Wuxian!
"You are the Kong Ge, Sun Wukong, introduced by Wuzhiqi? Hunyuan Daluo Golden Immortal, low-grade? Not bad, but not particularly outstanding either."
"I am but a humble servant, the master of this Tongbi Mountain, and the Tongbi Ape, Zhou Wuxian, whose ranking is unfortunately on par with yours."
"That's right, as Wuzhiqi said, I have some acquaintance with him, and it's not a slight one. But based solely on his word, don't expect me to be convinced by you."
"In short, fame is fame, and brotherhood is brotherhood. If you want me to be your third brother, first exchange a few moves with me. I've heard your Golden Cudgel is very powerful, and my Sun Moon Rod..."
"Is not to be trifled with!"
Upon meeting, Zhou Wuxian appeared very arrogant. He wore an elegant Taoist robe yet carried the Sun Moon Rod, a Pre-celestial Spiritual Treasure, in his hand.
His aura was fierce, and he exuded an overbearing presence.
It seemed somewhat incongruous.
Perhaps it was because he had interacted with cultivators from all over the Immortal Realm for a long time, inadvertently picking up some habits from Taoism and Buddhism.
Yet, he couldn't shake off his original demonic nature.
Or perhaps, despite his great strength, he had low emotional intelligence. Although he could discern Sun Kong's general cultivation level, he was overconfident, daring to challenge him with a Great Principle Golden Immortal, peak cultivation.
Truly unbelievable!
Anyone else witnessing this scene would have immediately taught Zhou Wuxian a lesson.
However.
Sun Kong was not just anyone. He was not the original Sun Wukong who was more prone to fighting than thinking, nor was he the kind of person anyone in this timeline could imagine.
He was not at all angered by this seemingly arrogant, but in reality, somewhat childish Zhou Wuxian. Instead, he let out a chuckle.
He dealt with this future third brother in a completely different manner than how he had subdued Wuzhiqi before!
"The Sun Moon Rod is a good rod."
"But you, Zhou Wuxian, are not necessarily a skilled wielder of it. How about..."
"You dare to look down on me?"
As Sun Kong had expected, Zhou Wuxian's emotional intelligence was too low, and his self-control was insufficient. Just a casual remark had revealed his vulnerabilities.
Zhou Wuxian's eyes blazed with anger, and he raised his Sun Moon Rod, ready to attack.
Wuzhiqi, standing not far away, was terrified and quickly tried to mediate.
But he was repelled by the glare from both Sun Kong and Zhou Wuxian!
"Wuzhiqi, don't come over. This person thinks his cultivation level equals everything, but I don't concede to him. He is looking for death; it's not me bullying him because he's unfamiliar with the place."
"Sun Wukong, do you dare to duel me? Best of three, how we fight is up to you. I am not afraid of you at all!"
"Even, to make you feel it's fair, we can fight not on my home turf. We can go to your place, Flower-Fruit Mountain or Spirit Mountain, anywhere?"
Zhou Wuxian was becoming increasingly childish.
But Sun Kong ignored these increasingly obvious flaws and instead chuckled, taking him up on his offer.
"Best of three? Isn't that too outdated?"
"Didn't Brother Wuzhiqi tell you? I am the future Buddha of Spirit Mountain, and the Senior Disciple Brother of the Journey to the West. If I don't act, you'll be fine. But if I do act..."
"Forget it. No more jokes. Let's compete right here. Just one round. We won't compete in anything else, just who has stronger combat power."
"Do you want to go first, or should I?"