Chapter 261: Clear of Heart, Seeing one’s Nature, Comprehending the Emptiness (2)

Translator: Lordbluefire  Editor: Lordbluefire

Under the cold moonlight, blood splattered everywhere.

Bathing in the moonlight, a fierce and ruthless expression appeared on Feng Lin’s face as he bared his canines and howled.

Now that he was thoroughly a stone monkey and after being stimulated by fresh blood, a bestial instinct rose from him. Boundless qi flooded his heart as his golden eyes were dyed a bloody crimson. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to destroy everything around him.

The smell of blood drifted into his nose, and it smelt so delicious and fresh.

Feng Lin seemed to have transformed into a world-destroying devil ape. He kept howling as his aura grew increasingly terrifying.

The wolves were still around him. They let out low growls and their bestial instincts warned them of the danger. Their green eyes stared at the skinny figure of the stone monkey, yet none of them dared to get near him.

Feng Lin drew in a deep breath as his body started to tremble and his fur stood up straight.

The sky turned even darker.

The starlight flowed into him with unprecedented speed, many times faster compared to the time that old monkey king and wolf king when they absorbed the astral energy.

A thick black-colored qi began to emit from Feng Lin.

This was demonic qi!

However, this demonic qi seemed different from the one emitted by the wolf king and old monkey king. This demonic qi was packed with a ruthless aura that remained unchanged despite the passage of time. Even if the positions of the stars were shifted, the sky wouldn’t be able to cover Sun Wukong’s eyes, and the earth wouldn’t be able to bury his heart.

Such an aura was terrifying to the extreme. When it radiated outward, a cacophony of noises rang out from within the mountains. All sorts of creatures were shocked awake and they all fled in panic, creating an extremely chaotic scene.

What was a demon?

If one wasn’t a human, that creature would be a demon!

Currently in this form, Feng Lin’s mind was that of a human but his body was that of a demon. In the Flowerfruit Mountain where demonic beasts fought each other daily for the sake of survival, his bestial instincts gradually awakened. Finally, under the attack of these demon wolves, the tipping point was passed and the ruthless aura in his heart completely erupted forth.

Those monkeys in the forest were all trembling. It was like they didn’t know Feng Lin. No one expected he, who was always rejected by them, to actually be so terrifying when he flipped out.

The demonic monkey was bathed in blood. He unceasingly absorbed the essence of the moon and the stars, which made his demonic qi grow stronger and stronger.

Those demonic wolves all started howling; the feeling of danger grew increasingly stronger. All of a sudden, they opened their maws and manifested black balls of demon fire that blasted over, wanting to seize the initiative and incinerate this demonic monkey who came out of nowhere.

The body of the demonic monkey was engulfed in the black flames. But those wolves didn’t even have the time to breathe when the black flames exploded.

A moment later, the demonic monkey simply walked out, free of all injuries. The demonic qi around the monkey grew thicker and thicker.

He roared sharply. His bloodshot eyes stared at the demonic wolves as he lunged over ferociously.

Ferocious Tiger Climbs the Mountain!

Although Feng Lin was a monkey now, his stances abruptly shifted to the tiger form, unleashing fierce and fast attacks. He was like a tiger pouncing on the wolves, completely ravaging the poor beasts.

Those demonic wolves were sent flying through the air, and their bones shattered amidst their howls of pain. They actually couldn’t even withstand a single strike.

The bones in their heads were tough, but their waist was their weak points.

Although the demonic nature in Feng Lin’s heart was stimulated, he hadn’t lost himself completely yet. The ruthless qi in his heart gushed forth ceaselessly, as he was filled with the desire to slaughter.

A stone monkey wasn’t a human!

At this moment, he truly became a demonic monkey birthed by the heavens and earth. He continued unleashing strikes, seeking out demonic wolves to kill.

The crowd of wolves was in complete chaos as their casualties mounted higher and higher.

The dangerous situation of the monkeys instantly diminished.

The pressure on the old monkey king also eased up greatly. With Feng Lin’s assistant, the old monkey king could finally concentrate and not be distracted by the safety of its tribe members.

It unleashed all its strength. The sword qi radiating from it instantly enveloped the Green Wolf King.

Chi, chi, chi~

Fresh blood leaked from the gaps between the armor covering the wolf king. Although all the wounds the wolf king had suffered could only be considered light wounds, if these small injuries kept accumulating, they might eventually become a threat to its life. It could no longer endure watching Feng Lin slaughtering his pack.

It continued to howl. “There’s actually a demonic monkey hidden within the other trash of your monkey tribes. What a good schemer you are!”

The old monkey king had a smile of disdain; it didn’t reveal Feng Lin’s origin. In fact, it even increased its force. Its sword aura had a hint of coldness within, as it sought to exterminate the wolf king.

The more killing intent it had in its heart, the quicker its sword would be.

Sword Dance of the White Ape! Although it was a demon, there was a hint of immortal intent in its sword. Its swordplay was incomparably ethereal and unfathomable.

Although the wolf king had the armor formed from the moon’s essence, it wasn’t without flaws.

The sword strikes caused wounds after wounds to appear on its body, and its aura grew increasingly weaker.

Evidently, this old monkey king was trying to kill the wolf king and was using the entirety of its strength. It wanted to kill the wolf king to remove all the future sources of trouble.

The sword qi ran rampant. The injury of the wolf king also intensified and it finally felt fear.

The demonic wolves in its pack were easily subdued by Feng Lin. It had completely lost the chance of gaining a victory. Based on its strength alone, it couldn’t win against the old monkey king.

The reason why those trash monkeys could monopolize the peach forest was precisely because of the old monkey king’s cultivation base.

The wolf king thought that the old monkey king was already on the verge of death, and it had an opportunity.

Sadly, the appearance of another demonic monkey spoiled his plans!

The wolf king knew that if it didn’t leave now, it wouldn’t be able to leave anymore.

Being able to become a demon king of a certain area meant that it had experienced many tough and dangerous struggles before he managed to do so. Its intelligence far surpassed those of its race.

The Green Wolf King could see that his subordinates had suffered heavy casualties. It instantly made a decision and threw its head back while giving out a long howl.

“GO!” The wolf pack’s members were slaughtered easily by Feng Lin, and the surviving wolves had fear in their hearts. If it wasn’t for the fact that they also feared their king, they would have fled long ago.

Upon hearing the command, the wolf pack retreated immediately, fleeing as quickly as they could and as far as possible.

The Green Wolf King had no choice but to retreat after its forces suffered heavy casualties.

“Where are you going?” The old monkey king finally had such a rare opportunity to finish the wolf king, how would it give up?

It also knew that it was the only king in the monkey tribe now. No other monkeys had enough potential to cultivate.

Its lifespan would reach an end soon, if it didn’t finish this threat now, its tribe would surely be annihilated the moment it died.

The old monkey king absorbed the essence of the stars frenziedly and unleashed a beam of sword qi that sped toward the Green Wolf King. The sword stance was filled with ferocity; this hatred would only be wiped away by death.

However, the cunning wolf was beyond imagination.

The wolf king howled and a moment later, ten demonic wolves lunged over and pounced at the old monkey king.

“DIE!” The old monkey king howled in rage. The sword light swept out, slashing one of the demonic wolves into two.

However, the other demonic wolves worked together and clamped their jaws down on different parts of the monkey king’s body. Its legs and hands were all clamped down, causing its movements to be restricted. Now, it wouldn’t be able to pursue the wolf king so easily.

When the old monkey king finally crushed the heads of these wolves, the Green Wolf King had already fled far away.

Feng Lin didn’t pursue it.

Right now, he was just a demonic monkey, and it was impossible for him to be a match for a demon king. If he went after the wolf king, he would only be courting death.

In the end, corpses littered the ground everywhere. The wolf pack all fled away while the monkeys won a pyrrhic victory.

However, things weren’t concluded yet.

The crimson eyes in the darkness moved further and further away, but howls of sorrow and misery for their fallen comrades rang out, filled with an undying grudge. The wolves would surely come back for revenge in the future.

The crimson light in Feng Lin’s eyes gradually faded as the ruthless qi diminished. He regained clarity.

He frowned. He could remember clearly that when the Green Wolf King was fleeing away, it shot an extremely venomous gaze filled with killing intent at him.

The threat within the gaze was naturally implied.

“I will return. At that time…”

Feng Lin knew that the Green Wolf King had made him its next target. He just made a powerful enemy.

The corpses of monkeys, the blood of wolves…the entire ground was littered by them. The originally peaceful immortal peach forest now had a bloody feel to its atmosphere.

The monkeys cried and wailed.

After some time, the dark clouds in the air faded away. The rays of the rising sun were like a beam of divine sword light exterminating the darkness, illuminating the land.

Feng Lin narrowed his eyes and stared into the distance.

(Dawn has arrived!)

…

Pitter patter!

The stone entered the lake and created an impact that generated ripples.

The waterfall fell from the thousand-foot precipice, creating rumbling sounds as the water vapor in the air brushed across one’s face.

On the top of a huge rock in the cave, a dust-covered monkey squatted there, staring at the majestic waterfall before his eyes as he fell into deep contemplation.

If it wasn’t for him knowing about the mythological records, who else would know that there was another world the water curtain created by the waterfall?

It was a blessed land of the Flowerfruit Mountain.

Another world inside the Water Curtain Cave.

What secrets were in there?

The records were very fragmented. Feng Lin only knew that Sun Wukong had passed through the water curtain with a single leap and managed to enter there.

However, from Feng Lin’s observation. The force of the waterfall was about ten thousand catties; the impact was exceedingly great, capable of crushing rocks apart. How could a tiny monkey like him cross it?

The mythological records were too simple. It wouldn’t have noted down all the facts and reality.

There were too many unknown things hidden in blank space.

One could become the Monkey King after leaping through the water curtain into the cave. It was easy to speak of it, but how could it be so easy to accomplish it?

Feng Lin sank into deep thoughts.

All of a sudden, he was startled awake as he glanced at his back.

“So you are here. As expected of a stone monkey birthed by the heavens. Your senses are very sharp, far surpassing mortal creatures. I have already concealed my aura, but I didn’t expect that you could still perceive my presence.” A white-furred old ape slowly walked over. At this moment, the imposing aura of a demon king from last night couldn’t be felt at all.

If Feng Lin hadn’t seen that personally, everything would feel like a dream.

The old monkey king slowly walked to Feng Lin’s side and sat down cross-legged. Its eyes were filled with peace, staring at Feng Lin with a look of tenderness like how an elder would look at a junior.

Feng Lin furrowed his brows. He could clearly sense a rotting aura from the body of this old monkey king. It was like an ancient tree that was about to die. The old monkey king seemed more aged than ever, like it could wither and die at any moment.

Feng Lin’s heart trembled.

This old monkey king was clearly in a very bad shape. It was going to die soon from old age!

It was originally already ready to enter the coffin. How could his burst of energy yesterday in that fight not come with a price?

With such an old body, it had to fight and suppress a younger Green Wolf King.

Clearly, the old ape had burned its remaining life force as the price to unleash its power!

Although these were just guesses, Feng Lin’s powerful spirituality made him instinctively guess this fact that was incomparably close to the truth.

“Stone monkey, thank you for rescuing my tribe,” the old ape spoke gently. There seemed to be a hint of anticipation in its eyes, like it was staring at a rare treasure that finally appeared in its hands.

Feng Lin nodded but didn’t display too much emotions.

“Stone monkey, although you have no parents and were born and nurtured by heavens and earth, you are also of the monkey race. Why don’t you live with us together? After I die, you would become the new monkey king!” The old ape changed the topic suddenly, causing Feng Lin to feel extremely tempted.

Such a great benefit was listed out? It was like the old ape was afraid that Feng Lin wouldn’t agree.

“Mhm?” But Feng Lin hesitated.

He who was always wary by nature knew that there was no such thing as free food falling from the sky.

He was just an outsider. Even if the old monkey king had high regard for his innate stone monkey’s powerful abilities, it was impossible for it to directly give him the king’s position, right? There should be some other intentions hidden within this.

Feng Lin pondered deeply as he tried to think of the reason.

Earlier when he tried to leap across the water curtain to become the new Monkey King, he didn’t succeed and received merciless jeering from the other monkeys.

Now, the old monkey king actually took the initiative to pass the throne to him. It felt like the moment Feng Lin stretched his hands out, he would be able to obtain the throne. This caused him to hesitate.

Something that was obtained too easily would also be lost very easily.

Feng Lin was very clear on this point. He chose to remain silent for now.

Seeing that Feng Lin didn’t lose his rational over such a huge offer, the old ape nodded in satisfaction.

“You know that our monkey race is favored by the heavens and is considered a singular race out of the three realms. We don’t belong to the bug race or the scale race; we resemble humans but we are not humans. There’s nothing to restrict us, so we can live a life of carefreeness. Among the multitude of lives in the world, the monkey race is a unique race that has its own sovereignty,” the old monkey king spoke, revealing an extremely rare secret that only a few people knew.

Feng Lin silently nodded. This old monkey king was pretty knowledgeable.

“It is precisely so. The monkey race was born in trees and cliffs, resembling birds, but we have the ability of walking beasts, although we don’t need to walk on our four limbs. We have no natural enemies and can live in the immortal peach forest without wanting for food or clothing. The Flowerfruit Mountain is like an independent world. There are all sorts of beasts and avian creatures here, yet the monkey race is the most suitable to live here in comfort. But sadly over time, this becomes a bad thing. With no natural enemies, the monkeys aren’t skilled in combat. They would slowly lose their bestial instinct and lack the motivation for cultivation.

“The other beasts live by the law of the jungle where the weak are food for the strong. They fight each other constantly and this results in their combat strength far surpassing the monkey tribe. To survive, they have to ignore fatigue and keep absorbing the energy of the sun and the moon. Once they evolve into a demonic beast from a mortal beast, the monkey tribe will no longer have an advantage in being able to scale trees and mountains. For demonic beasts, trees and cliffs are not considered barriers at all. Other than me, all the monkeys in the tribe are just mortal monkeys; they would have no way to resist the slaughter from the other demonic beasts. But it was just so that the numbers of our tribe are extremely huge. Due to the fact that we eat spiritual peaches often, there’s concentrated spiritual qi within our bodies, and this results in us becoming delicacies for the other demonic beasts!” the old monkey king spoke in a heavy tone, listing out the dangers the monkey tribe would face in the future. Helplessness and worry could be seen in its eyes.

“I’m already very old. I have to choose a new king before I die to lead the tribe for continued survival and to resist the attacks from the other demonic beasts. I think you are very suitable for the throne. As long as you are willing to join us, you will be the new king after I die!” The old monkey stared at Feng Lin, his eyes filled with anticipation and even a trace of pleading.

Although it was also an ape, the old monkey king’s intelligence was extremely shocking. The look in its eyes resembled a human who received hope when it was on the verge of death.

Feng Lin’s heart stirred and he couldn’t bear to reject it.

However, he didn’t reply straight away and asked a question that contained the greatest worries and doubts in his heart.

“Why me?”

There were many strong monkeys in this tribe, why did it choose him?

He was just an outsider!

After his experience in cultivation, Feng Lin didn’t feel that the fact he was a stone monkey had caused the old monkey king to regard him highly. Rather, it was the innate tyranny he had displayed when he had fought the demonic wolves last night.

The old monkey king didn’t reply but asked another question. It stood up and pointed to the waterfall. “Do you know why I say that whoever can pass through the water curtain would become the new Monkey King?”

Feng Lin slowly shook his head.

“Do you really think that I don’t know the fact that no monkeys would be able to pass through the water curtain?” A solemn look could be seen on the old ape’s face. It heavily continued, “As the king, not only does one requires great power, but the candidate has to have great talent, and most importantly, enough courage as well! Without courage, how can the king lead the monkeys in combat against the other demonic beasts? This is the greatest requirement needed for a king! Leaping through the water curtain is just a test to choose monkeys who are courageous. Sadly, no one in the tribe dares to do so, only an outsider like you dared to make the attempt!”

Upon speaking until here, it sighed heavily, feeling sad for the cowardice of its tribe members.

Feng Lin’s body trembled, he suddenly seemed to have understood something as the layers of fog in his heart cleared up.