Just as the Jade Emperor's voice rang out, beneath South Heaven Gate, in a patch of light, Erlang Shen and Sun Wukong stood facing each other. They hadn't immediately begun fighting; instead, they chatted like old friends.
"You haven't had an easy time these past five hundred years, have you?" Erlang Shen asked softly. As he spoke, the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Halberd beside him clashed against Sun Wukong's Golden Cudgel, ringing like metal.
"You have no idea. That place pressed down on me until my whole body ached. I couldn't move, and there was nothing to eat. If Tathagata had shown me even the slightest bit more kindness, I wouldn't have charged back up here today."
"But even so, you shouldn't have come straight to attack the Heavenly Court. You're putting me in a difficult position. If you insist on taking the Jade Emperor's place, I'll have no choice but to fight you to the bitter end."
"Come on, why don't we overthrow the Heavenly Court together? Once I take that old Jade Emperor's place, I'll make you the Heavenly Court's number-one warrior. How about it?"
Erlang Shen looked at the naive monkey opposite him and smiled. "You may not know this, but after you were pinned beneath Five Finger Mountain, I became the Heavenly Court's number-one warrior."
"Oh? That fool Tian Peng couldn't compete with you for the position?" Sun Wukong looked at Erlang Shen in surprise.
"Tian Peng got drunk and harassed Chang'e, so he was demoted to the mortal realm. I've checked on him before. He's... not doing so well either." Erlang Shen sighed.
"Ah, that fool. Back then, he was at least someone who could fight me for a few rounds. I can't believe he was sent down to the mortal realm over something so trivial. That