The Great Defeat of Li Jing

"You'll find out soon enough whether I'm bold."

Sun Wukong's expression was grave.

He pulled the Golden Cudgel from his ear and gripped it in his hand.

"Grow! Grow! Grow!"

The Golden Cudgel suddenly grew enormous.

It pressed straight down on the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals.

The ten thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals felt immense pressure.

This was no ordinary weapon. It was the Golden Cudgel, famed as the Sea-Calming Divine Needle.

The ten thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals held out for only a moment before they were gasping for breath.

Li Jing seized his chance and summoned his magic treasure.

"Return!"

Sun Wukong immediately recalled the Golden Cudgel.

"Today, you won't be taking Grandpa Sun anywhere!"

The pagoda blazed with light, its power further augmented by immense magic.

With a shout, Sun Wukong braced the Golden Cudgel against the mouth of the pagoda.

Li Jing released all his magic power.

Beads of sweat gathered on his forehead.

"That Mischievous Monkey is a tough one."

Li Jing was beginning to run out of strength. The monkey was far more difficult to deal with than he had imagined.

Sun Wukong was also forcing himself to hold on. Li Jing was no easy opponent.

"Break!"

Sun Wukong roared and unleashed all his strength.

The pagoda was enormous, and beside it, the monkey looked like a grain of sand in a vast sea.

But as Sun Wukong's strength surged, the pagoda was suddenly knocked away.

Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li spat out a mouthful of blood.

One of the deputy generals nearby struggled to his feet and helped Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li up.

"Heavenly King!"

Li Jing wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and glared furiously.

"You audacious Mischievous Monkey! Instead of surrendering, you dare to fight back so fiercely!"

"Do you really think there are no laws in the Heavenly Court?"

With the last of his magic power, Li Jing poured it into the pagoda and hurled it at Sun Wukong.

Sun Wukong swung the Golden Cudgel in his hand, dodged the pagoda, and appeared behind Li Jing.

"You old fool, prepare to die!"

Li Jing sensed something was wrong, but in that split second, he was struck again.

Li Jing was gravely injured, and the ten thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals were utterly powerless to resist.

"Mischievous Monkey, don't get cocky! The Heavenly Court will come down and capture you!"

At this, Sun Wukong burst out laughing.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"I'm going up to the Heavenly Court right now to see what kind of heartless beasts you lot are beneath those sheepskins."

"Today will be the day your Heavenly Court falls!"

Sun Wukong leaped onto his Somersault Cloud and hurtled straight toward the South Heavenly Gate.

The deputy general was about to chase after Sun Wukong, but Li Jing stopped him.

"Is there anyone in the Heavenly Court who can subdue him? There's no point in us going up there."

"Heavenly King, your injuries..."

Li Jing sighed. "I'm afraid I'll need some time to recover. That monkey is truly a ferocious beast."

The deputy general nodded, then took out Taishang Laojun's pills and handed them to Li Jing.

Li Jing opened the bottle and swallowed two pills, then couldn't help sneering. "That monkey is still just a plaything in the palm of my hand."

The deputy general was about to help Li Jing to his feet, but Li Jing waved him off. "It's fine. I only suffered a little backlash. It's nothing serious."

Sun Wukong held the diary in his hand, hoping to see what further instructions his benefactor might have, but no words appeared on the page.

Clutching the Golden Cudgel, Sun Wukong stood before the South Heavenly Gate, relying on nothing but his courage.

"Stop! Who are you, and why have you come to the South Heavenly Gate?" the Gatekeeping General demanded.

"You don't need to know who I am. Today, I'm going to tear down your South Heavenly Gate!"

Without another word, Sun Wukong raised the Golden Cudgel in his hand and shouted, "Grow! Grow! Grow!"

Without hesitation, he swung it straight at the South Heavenly Gate.

The South Heavenly Gate had been magnificent and imposing.

But after Sun Wukong's strike, it was reduced to ruins.

The Gatekeeping General hadn't expected this at all and stood there, dumbfounded.

The other Gatekeeping General realized that things were going badly.

He hurried inside to inform the people of the Heavenly Court.

The first Gatekeeping General cried, "You dare destroy the South Heavenly Gate? The Heavenly Laws will punish you for this!"

Sun Wukong remained expressionless. He put away the Golden Cudgel and said, "Today, I'll see how you intend to punish me."

With every step Sun Wukong took, the buildings around him crumbled.

The place had once been prosperous and splendid, but now it was no different from a wasteland.

The Gatekeeping General was about to say something, but Sun Wukong struck him with his cudgel.

"Quiet!"

Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Following Ear had just received the news when they saw Sun Wukong.

Both of them panicked, never imagining that the monkey had fought his way here.

"What happened? Did Li Jing really fail to subdue him?" Thousand-Mile Eye hurriedly asked.

"This is bad. What do we do now?"

Sun Wukong was like a god of slaughter. He swept a cold glance over them and said, "The Golden Cudgel will give you your answer."

Thousand-Mile Eye and Wind-Following Ear were just about to attack, but they realized Sun Wukong's move had frozen the space around them.

The Golden Cudgel's overwhelming might made it impossible for them even to think of resisting.

Seeing this, the two knew they were in trouble. They tried to use talismans to flee.

But against this power, everything was futile.

Sun Wukong left.

The two of them spat blood repeatedly and used the Voice-Transmitting Jade to report what had happened.

But at that moment, the Heavenly Court was still immersed in song and dance.

They had no idea that the monkey had suddenly fought his way in.

Still, as the commotion grew louder and louder, the Jade Emperor frowned and asked, "What's going on? What are they doing over by the South Heavenly Gate today? Why is it so noisy?"

A soldier appeared, his armor broken and his helmet askew, gasping for breath.

"Disaster, Jade Emperor! The monkey has broken in!"

The Jade Emperor had been about to drink, but at those words, his cup fell to the ground.

"What?!"

The Jade Nectar and Ambrosia splashed across the hem of his robe.

"Hadn't I already sent Li Jing?"

The officials who had been drinking in the hall were now in a panic.

They had always been used to peace and quiet; none of them had imagined a day like this would come.

The Jade Emperor straightened his hat and said, "Hurry and have the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals surround Sun Wukong!"