The alchemist roasted the pork at a leisurely pace, occasionally taking bites of the cooked meat. The group of monkeys formed a circle around him, watching him intently yet not daring to approach.
The alchemist found himself chuckling inwardly, thinking: I’ll have to spend some time with these monkeys after all—quite an interesting experience indeed.
“Well, just eat it all,” said Master Xuan as he tossed out a large piece of perfectly roasted meat. The monkeys were overjoyed and began scrambling to claim their share, none willing to yield an inch.
“What’s there to grab? Just roast it yourself,” the master said with a smile, then used his finger to cut the large piece of meat into many small pieces and placed them on a large rock beside him.
The bold monkeys approached, reached out to pinch the food, and ate it. Seeing that Master Xuan had no objection, a large group of monkeys became even more unrestrained and eagerly surrounded him, treating him as one of their own.
“Heh heh, there’s plenty—don’t compete for it. Hundreds of pounds of wild pork are available at a bargain price for you guys,” the master monk said with a laugh. But he spoke too soon; the monkeys began shouting loudly, and in no time thousands of them had gathered, filling the entire valley to capacity. With so many monkeys and so little meat, they started fighting over every bit, eventually even vying for the raw meat that hadn’t yet been cooked.”
Night Yu cried for a long time in the forest and felt much better. The enticing fragrance from outside kept filling his nostrils, making the fresh peaches taste utterly bland. As the monkeys around him began to leave one by one, hearing their excited chirping, even the four or five monkeys that had been staying with him couldn’t resist and slipped out as well.
“Hmph, since he’s going to be my master, he’ll have to grill meat for me every day,” Ye Yu thought for a long time before finally coming up with an excuse. He walked slowly out of the forest and saw the monkeys competing fiercely—none of them gave any regard to him as their king.
“Alright, enough crying for now. If you don’t come over soon, all this meat will be eaten by the monkeys,” said Master Xuan with a smile.
After another long period of hesitation, Yu Yu finally could not resist. With an extremely unnatural expression, he approached, took the pig leg offered by Master Xuan, said nothing, and began eating it voraciously—as if trying to vent all his resentment onto that very piece of meat.
“Good boy, could you lend me your blade for a moment?” asked Master Xuan.
Night Feather placed the knife under his buttocks and shouted, “No borrowing!” This cry not only startled the monkeys around him but also caught him off guard himself. Glancing sideways, he saw that Master Xuan was not angry at all; only then did he calm down and continue eating the meat.
“Heh heh, if you don’t want to borrow it, that’s fine,” said Master Xuan with a smile, then picked up a small monkey beside him. “Good little monkey, grilling meat shouldn ‘t be done in such a hurry. Look—this piece of meat has already turned into charred residue. And don’t worry about the fire; holding such a long stick, would you really fear getting burned?” He kindly offered guidance.
Seeing that he could bribe those monkeys with just a meal of pork, Ye Yu felt deeply displeased.
The mystic stood up. “I have roamed the world without ever encountering a match. Having you as my master is no hardship at all; just think about it for one more day. If you wish to stop being bullied, you must become stronger than others.” With these words, he approached a massive rock, struck it lightly with his palm, shattering the stone weighing several thousand pounds into fragments, then soared into the air. He unleashed all his physical power, moving as swiftly as lightning and ascending rapidly to a nearby mountain peak.
“Throughout the vast expanse of heaven and earth, who understands my heart? A solitary master—what more could I seek for a rival?” he murmured softly, then raised his voice to a long, continuous roar that echoed like thunder throughout the valley. After finishing his cry, he soared into the sky and vanished instantly within the misty heavens.
“Hmph, you dead monkeys—you’re lazy and gluttonous, yet you can’t even appreciate what others have earned. Don’t you understand this basic truth?” As Master Xuan left, Ye Yu erupted in fierce curses. The monkeys chattered incessantly, pointing at the pig’s leg in his hand, each displaying an expression of defiance on their faces.
“Pah, you dead monkey! He asked me to eat it voluntarily—what does that matter!” Ye Yu cursed vehemently. After a long while, he realized his behavior was unreasonable and could only return to the forest in frustration, drawing his black knife to vent his anger on the innocent trees.
“Hmph, am I really that incompetent? Why are all the people from outside so formidable?” he thought angrily.
The monkeys climbed up the nearby trees, each watching the spectacle. To their surprise, a tree knocked down by Ye Yu startled a large swarm of wasps nearby; with a hum, a dark cloud rose from the air.
When Yu saw this, he was utterly terrified. These hornets paid no heed to his royal status; they buzzed toward him and the group of monkeys, driving him into a panic and causing him to flee hastily. Despite his speed, he still suffered a sting on his shoulder and three punctures on his bare buttocks. As for the monkeys, though covered in fur, they were also stung so severely that they screamed incessantly.
“I never thought even a swarm of wasps would come to bully me!” Ye Yu felt increasingly dejected. “That damned Divine Eagle—why did you bring me here? Now then, you should be satisfied; you truly deserve to be captured by others!” He shouted to the sky, unaware that it was precisely he who had instructed the Divine Eagle to take him on his travels.
By evening, the mystic still hadn’t returned, and Ye Yu couldn’t help but miss him. “I’ll just learn from him those flying spells,” he thought. “Hmph, they say I have no magical potential—yet as a warrior myself, how come I can fly?” The memory of that strange Mo Luo in the Demon City filled him with anger.
The next day, Master Xuan finally appeared. To his delight, Ye Yu had already been waiting there respectfully, accompanied by a large group of monkeys standing guard obediently. When they saw him flying through the air carrying two wild boars, each monkey erupted in joy.
“Ha ha, there’s no need to compete today—everyone gets a share,” said Master Xuan with a smile, then flew away. Soon he returned carrying two wild pigs. By then, the group of monkeys had already taken their advantageous positions and were having a great time playing around.
“Have you understood now?” asked Master Xuan.
“Indeed,” said Night Feather, “I want to be able to fly around in the air just like you.”
“Ah, that’s no easy task. To master flying by controlling qi, one must at least reach the Holy Level. Do you know what qi is?” asked Master Xuan.
Yu Ye shook his head, “I don’t know—could it be that very force coursing through my body?” He then struck out with a palm, shattering a stone the size of a battle drum. The mystic couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at the feat.
“Then who taught you these skills?” Master Xuan asked curiously.
“Nobody else helped me learn this skill—I did it myself. The demon mage Maluo from the Demon City brought me to Demon Mountain, where there was a cave from which strong winds blew. Maluo asked me to pass through it, but the wind was fierce and filled with swirling sand. Before I could even complete half the journey, I was blown out. It was within that cave that I independently mastered my current abilities, and I found this blade there as well,” Ye Yu said.
The mystic was utterly astonished upon hearing this. “Where is the Demon City? And why is there even a Demon Master named Moluo?” he asked.
“The Demon City lies less than ten li from Demon Mountain. The mountain is extremely high, piercing the upper clouds like a sword. Moruo said that beyond Demon Mountain lies a black desert; by following that cave all the way inward, one could cross the mountain and reach the desert, but I don’t understand why I need to go there,” Ye Yu said. “Once, I tried flying over Demon Mountain on the Divine Eagle to see what lay beyond, but it ran out of power halfway up—the situation was quite strange.” “Is that mage Moruo truly powerful?” asked Master Xuan, his curiosity about the mysterious Demon City growing strong.
“That must be quite impressive—those monsters seem to all fear him,” said Ye Yu.
“Are there any other humans in the Magic City besides you and him?” asked Master Xuan.
“There’s none other—there’s only me. That demon is utterly bizarre; you wouldn’t even call him human. Just see him, and you’ll understand,” Ye Yu replied.
“That’s quite strange. How did you come here? Did you jump out of a stone?” Master Xuan asked curiously.
“How do you know? Every time I ask, that’s exactly what Moro says. Could it be that all humans sprang out of stones?” Ye Yu asked, leaving Master Xuan utterly stunned.
“Alright, I won’t say more. You’ll understand naturally in time. Want to learn how to fly by controlling qi? Well then, you must first understand what qi is. This qi isn’t the wind that flows between heaven and earth—it’s omnipresent, present in the air, within the soil, and in water. This is primordial qi; only by focusing your mind can you truly perceive it.” As he spoke, Master Xuan led Ye Yu into the forest. “The woods are rich in spiritual energy. Sit quietly for an hour and fully absorb this pervasive qi throughout the universe.” “No, Master,” Ye Yu replied, “I’d rather go outside to experience it myself. Didn’t you say it’s everywhere?”
“What are you saying? I said it’s right here!” said Master Xuan.
“No way, Master—I’m afraid of ghosts; there are ghosts there,” Ye Yu said, pointing to the location of a wasp nest in the forest. “Hmph… I’ll make you suffer first,” he thought to himself.
“Fearing ghosts? That’s utter nonsense. It’s broad daylight and the world is perfectly clear—how could anyone fear ghosts? That’s bizarre,” said Master Xuan as he drifted over with his qi. “I remember you’re incredibly brave; how could you fear such an inexplicable thing? Besides, what ghosts could possibly exist here?” Ye Yu threw a stone and quickly hid among the grass. “The ghost has come out! It really has!” he shouted.