At that moment, Ye Chen had already snuck underwater. The enraged Sand Monk had no time to spare a thought for what was happening below, so Ye Chen decided to take the risk. As long as he could rescue Tang Sanzang, nothing else would matter.
Clang! The Crescent Shovel clashed with the Adamantine Staff, sending sparks flying. The shock waves shook the trees on both banks, a testament to the force of their blows.
"Tsk, this monster really does have some tricks up his sleeve." Sun Wukong hadn't expected the monster to block his staff strike, and he was genuinely surprised.
After his first attack failed, Sand Monk charged at Sun Wukong again.
The two of them fell into a fierce brawl, fighting for over a hundred exchanges without either gaining the upper hand.
"Strange. Monkey Brother doesn't seem to be in very good shape today," Zhu Bajie muttered from the bank. He'd traded a few blows with the Long-haired Monster himself. His opponent was powerful, but nowhere near Sun Wukong's equal. If they hadn't been underwater, Zhu Bajie was confident he could have taken him down.
What he didn't know was that he and Ye Chen had already agreed on a plan while they were on shore. If Zhu Bajie managed to lure the monster out of the water, Sun Wukong would keep him occupied while Ye Chen secretly slipped underwater to rescue Tang Sanzang. Sun Wukong didn't dare use his full strength because if he couldn't defeat the monster in one blow and the monster escaped back into the water, both Tang Sanzang and Ye Chen would be in grave danger. So Sun Wukong had to pretend he was struggling, to bait Sand Monk into continuing the fight.
Meanwhile, underwater, Ye Chen was at a loss. Unlike Zhu