Seeking the Demon King of Havoc

Jiang Zhe's brows knitted tightly.

The Demon King of Havoc's methods were cruel to such an extent?!

He had smashed open these monkeys' skulls while they were still alive, then scooped out their brains and eaten them raw!

Beast!

Jiang Zhe's chest churned.

A thought suddenly occurred to him.

If Brother Monkey returned after completing his training and saw the monkeys he had lived alongside day and night, braving life and death together, butchered like this...

His innocent heart, which should have been as pure as water, would probably shatter into dust on the spot.

No wonder.

No wonder that well-behaved Stone Monkey who had sprung from a rock would eventually become the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, who wrought Havoc in Heaven and dared to challenge the Heavenly Court.

Who could bear to see their own kind treated like this?

"Greetings, great immortal!"

Two trembling voices rang out from the troop of monkeys.

Two gray-furred monkeys staggered forward. Their knees buckled, and they fell to the ground, fear and gratitude mingling in their gazes as they looked at Jiang Zhe.

"There's no need for that."

Jiang Zhe drew his thoughts back and spoke softly:

"I haven't become an immortal yet. There's no need for such ceremony."

As he spoke, he casually glanced at the monkeys kneeling on the ground.

There was not the slightest trace of bloodthirsty malice about them.

Although demons ran rampant on Flower-Fruit Mountain, the monkeys usually lived in the wilds, drinking morning dew and eating wild fruit, never harming or killing living beings.

Instead, each of them had a spiritual air nurtured by the mountains and forests.

Killing them would not only earn him no merit, but would also burden him with karmic sin.

"You saved our lives! We wouldn't dare show you anything less than respect!"

The two gray-furred monkeys soothed the other little monkeys, who had been frightened to tears, while respectfully kowtowing.

Jiang Zhe couldn't be bothered to keep fussing over etiquette. He looked up at the gray monkeys. "Brothers, do you know where the Demon King of Havoc's cave abode is?"

"You!"

The two gray-furred monkeys were stunned.

"You're going to... fight the Demon King of Havoc?!"

At that very moment!

A young, excited voice burst out from behind the two gray monkeys!

At some point, the little golden-furred monkey had climbed up from the ground. His dark eyes shone brightly as he looked at Jiang Zhe with anticipation:

"You, you're going to fight that big bad guy?!"

"You mustn't, benefactor!"

The two gray-furred monkeys cried out in alarm together!

"That Demon King of Havoc is a great demon king infamous throughout this area!" The burlier of the two big monkeys spoke first, so nervous that his voice trembled:

"He seized the Water Filth Cave north of Flower-Fruit Mountain! A group of mandrills, distant relatives of our clan, used to live in that cave. After he came, he killed some and drove the rest away. Now the whole Water Filth Cave has become his lair!"

"He's a full thirty feet tall!"

"And he can ride clouds and mists!"

"His strength... is extraordinary!"

The other gray monkey nodded vigorously beside him, his eyes filled with deep fear.

Their cultivation barely qualified the two gray monkeys as minor demons who had gained sentience. Under some demon kings, they wouldn't even qualify as foot soldiers patrolling the mountains.

Faced with the Demon King of Havoc, who stood thirty feet tall, could ride clouds and mists, and ate monkey brains at the slightest whim!

They had almost no room to resist, save to kneel and beg for mercy.

"Don't worry."

Jiang Zhe shook his head, the corners of his mouth curving up slightly:

"Since I came here, I'm naturally confident."

He looked at the monkey corpses whose skulls had been smashed open while they were alive, a chill flashing in his eyes.

The Demon King of Havoc?

However strong he is, how strong could he be?

When all is said and done, he's just the first boss in Flower-Fruit Mountain's newbie village!

After Sun Monkey returned from his training, the demon king hadn't even lasted a single blow.

And this fellow had occupied Flower-Fruit Mountain for over twenty years, claiming to be the foremost of the Seventy-Two Cave Demon Kings.

By Jiang Zhe's reckoning, even if this demon wasn't as strong as the old yellow bull at the peak of the Human Immortal realm, he couldn't be far behind.

But!

Back when Jiang Zhe was at the Dao Integration realm, he had needed only the Flame Dragon Armor he transformed into using Samadhi True Fire to finish the old yellow bull in a single blow!

Much less now, when he had already reached the peak of Dao Integration!

With both Samadhi True Fire and Green Lotus Core Flame at his disposal, and Wild Bull Force mastered to great completion, all he needed was to pass his lightning tribulation to enter the Human Immortal realm!

With the Flame Dragon Armor he could transform into at the peak of Dao Integration!

If I can't blow him apart with one punch, I might as well find a block of tofu and bash my head against it until I die!

"Are... are you sure you want to go, benefactor?"

The big, burly gray monkey saw the resolve in Jiang Zhe's eyes and made one last tentative attempt to ask.

"Yes."

Jiang Zhe looked at him calmly:

"Just point me in the right direction, you two. Leave the rest to me."

"From this day forth, there will be no more Demon King of Havoc."

"Benefactor!"

The big gray monkey gritted his teeth and stepped forward:

"I'll take you there!"

"Second Brother, take the little ones back to the mountain and wait for our king to return!"

"Big Brother... you..."

The other gray monkey's expression changed slightly, and he looked conflicted.

"There's no need to argue." Jiang Zhe waved a hand and looked gently at the big gray monkey. "You only need to tell me where the Demon King of Havoc is. I'll take care of the rest myself."

"Even so!"

The big gray monkey refused to back down. Instead, his expression turned solemn, and he lowered his voice:

"There's something you don't know, benefactor."

"Recently, the Demon King of Havoc has been secretly contacting the other Seventy-Two Cave Demon Kings of Flower-Fruit Mountain, plotting to form an alliance and seize the entire five-hundred-li Flower-Fruit Mountain for themselves!"

Jiang Zhe's gaze sharpened slightly.

"If you go this time, benefactor, I'm afraid... you won't just be facing the Demon King of Havoc alone."

The big gray monkey's Adam's apple bobbed as he spoke, as if recalling some terrifying experience:

"To tell you the truth, benefactor... I was once captured by the Demon King of Havoc's underlings and locked in a beast pen in the outer section of the Water Filth Cave. They were going to cut open my skull and offer my brains to their king."

"But I was lucky. I came across a hidden passage through a crack in the rock, quietly slipped out of my chains, and escaped through it!"

"That path... leads straight to the mountain behind the Water Filth Cave. Demon soldiers don't usually guard it."

Having finished, the big gray monkey bowed deeply:

"I'm willing to guide you, benefactor."

"If the enemy's forces are too strong, you can retreat with me and look for another opportunity!"

Jiang Zhe pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"That will do."

He looked at the big gray monkey, a little more approval in his gaze.

He had managed to escape, and he dared to step forward! His courage surpassed that of most demon kings on Flower-Fruit Mountain.

As for the Seventy-Two Cave Demon Kings Alliance!

A trace of gravity flashed in Jiang Zhe's eyes.

Confidence was one thing; arrogance was another.

He was confident in his current strength, but he honestly had no idea exactly how strong he was, or whether he could throw his weight around in front of that bunch of old demons who had lived for years!

If I really do capsize in a ditch...

Jiang Zhe instinctively sensed the cyan lightning in the system space, which came from the dawn of primordial chaos and was being held firmly in check.

Then he would just have to trouble the demon kings to test the power of a bolt of Primordial Chaos Creation Divine Lightning for him first.

"Let's go."

Jiang Zhe raised his hand and casually clenched it toward the toad demon, who was still struggling and wailing inside the dome of fire!

Puff!

Fire flashed and his merit increased. The toad demon didn't even have time to scream before he turned into a wisp of green smoke and dispersed between heaven and earth.