Chapter Nine: The Ancestor Hosts a Banquet to Showcase Treasures

Moreover, my younger brother recently traveled abroad and, upon passing through the Southern Zhanbu Continent, obtained a treasure beneath the Five Elements Mountain. This treasure emits brilliant golden light by day and exudes auspicious energy by night, absorbing the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, and astonishingly possesses its own divine powers, manifesting in various sizes at will

The palace is adorned with artificial mountains and peculiar stones, connecting to the earth's veins, which brings forth a pool of azure water and a fountain. Exotic plants from the Flowing Sand River are then transplanted, giving it a somewhat ethereal grandeur. However, the inhabitants of this place are all spirits, and within a few days, it becomes filled with smoke and haze, with demonic clouds swirling.

Upon reaching outside the hall, one could see the venerable Zhu Ba standing in front of an inconspicuous huabiao pillar, drunkenly proclaiming: "Brothers, this Ruyi Jingu Bang shines with countless rays of light. I have concealed it with an illusion to prevent anyone from coveting it and seizing it from me. I shall now remove the illusion!"

Some are captivated by beauty, others by delicious food, and there are countless variations; only a few remain composed. Upon witnessing this, Zhu Ganglie silently took note.

Zhu Ganglie hosted a banquet in the main hall, taking the seat of honor himself. On his left sat Sha Wujing, while the other demon kings took their respective seats. The lesser demons served dishes in a continuous stream, including chicken, duck, beef, and lamb, filling the air with delightful aromas. One of the demon kings exclaimed, "Why is there no pork?"

Zhu Ganglie ordered his subordinates, the myriad demons, to ignore the situation and to exercise patience. After the construction of the Water Palace was completed, invitations were sent out far and wide, inviting the water tribe demon kings within a radius of 3,000 li to come and celebrate, with the Red Horn Demon King also included among the invitees

Indeed, the Demon King of Route 34 changed his expression, whispering among themselves; some harbored doubts, while others contemplated seizing it. The Red-Horned Demon King exclaimed: "I wonder how Old Ancestor Zhu Ba obtained this Ruyi Jingu Bang? Could you share it with us, so that we may broaden our horizons!"

Zhu Ganglie chuckled and said: "It is indeed a coincidence. One day, my younger brother was traveling around and passed by the foot of Wuxing Mountain. He saw a skinny monkey trapped under the mountain and couldn't help but pity him for a moment. The monkey, in a fit of rage, boasted about how remarkable he was, claiming that he once caused a great uproar in the Heavenly Palace, and that a million heavenly soldiers and generals could not stop him. Naturally, I did not believe him.

The Flowing Sand River stretches for thousands of miles, and near the Water Moon Cave Heaven, there are six or seven demon kings in control, the closest being the Red Horn Demon King who leads the Weak Water Flood Dragon clan. The Red Horn Demon King is a seven-clawed red-horned flood dragon, claiming to be a descendant of the Dragon God of the Flowing Sand River, possessing great powers. The last time a three-clawed flood dragon caused trouble, it was at his instigation, but unexpectedly, it was directly eliminated by Zhu Ganglie using thunderous methods

The Water Moon Cave spans an area of approximately 100 acres, featuring a main hall and two auxiliary halls, all of which are resplendent and magnificent, surpassing the earthly palaces in grandeur by a third.

The stout man continued, "This treasure has two golden hoops at both ends, with a section of black iron in the middle. There is also an inscription on it: 'Ruyi Jingu Bang, weighing 13,500 pounds.'" At this point, Zhu Ganglie fell silent, savoring the wine while secretly observing the expressions of the crowd.

The Ancestor of Eel Tian snorted, tore off a beef leg, and stuffed it into his mouth, displeased as he said: "You are not being courteous to your guests, what is the reason for this? After all, we have also brought gifts!"

The myriad demons listened, seemingly deep in thought. In the Southern Continent, beneath the Five Elements Mountain, is it not the very place where the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, who once wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace, was imprisoned? What treasures could the Old Ancestor Zhu Ba possibly obtain beneath the Five Elements Mountain? ... Could it be ...

Among the thirty-four demon lords, there is a red-scaled golden-scaled sea serpent spirit. Originally a monster from the South China Sea, he could no longer stay there after teasing the third princess of the dragon clan in the East China Sea. Thus, he followed the flow of the Sand River to this place, establishing a cave dwelling in the Jianhe Library. The red-scaled serpent spirit is inherently lecherous, cackling with a strange laugh as he rises to pursue those women. The other demon kings are also eager to act, but since their master has not given the order, they refrain from making a move.

Upon hearing this, Sha Wujing hesitated somewhat. The ornamental post outside the hall was planted by Zhu Ganglie this morning; in fact, it was the malicious Exploding Chrysanthemum Needle. The Exploding Chrysanthemum Needle had been refined by Zhu Ganglie's Samadhi True Fire, being neither metal nor iron, capable of changing in size. Early in the morning, Sha Wujing had already seen his brother tampering with the Exploding Chrysanthemum Needle, and now he had a slight understanding, yet he still did not know what exactly he intended to do.

The hearts of the demon kings trembled, and they thought, "The serious matter has arrived!" They quickly prepared themselves in secret, in case the Old Ancestor Zhu Ba made a move in the shadows. Upon seeing the scale of the Water Moon Cave Heaven, they understood that this Old Ancestor Zhu Ba was a person of great depth and complexity, how could they not be on guard?

Within the palace, the sound of bamboo flutes rises, and a group of beautiful women gracefully enters the hall, slowly dancing to the rhythm of the music

Zhu Ba Laozu categorized the demons who sought refuge into three, six, and nine ranks. The top three ranks were allowed to cultivate beside the Six曜 and Five Stars Great Formation, making significant progress. The others could only cultivate on the periphery, progressing at a slower pace, yet still several times faster than cultivating outside. Therefore, they were deeply grateful to the two ancestors.

The aquatic demon clan collected various treasures from the bottom of the Quicksand River to adorn their decorations, and the palace was embedded with three thousand water-repelling pearls, expelling the weak water and allowing for free breathing

Zhu Ganglie was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He removed the double-ringed golden pendant leaf from the precious gold palladium, transforming it into two formations of the Six Days and Five Stars. These formations continuously drew spiritual energy from the river water and the earth's veins, dispelling the demonic aura, facilitating cultivation, and also refining one's 'moral character'

Zhu Ganglie chuckled and said: "Red Scale King, please wait, there will be benefits for you later. He Tu Shu"

The monkey, seeing that I did not believe him, took out a golden needle from his ear. In the wind, it grew and transformed into an eight-foot golden staff. Proudly, he declared: "This staff weighs thirteen thousand five hundred pounds. If you can lift it, I shall give it to you!"

These thirty-four demons, constrained by face, had no choice but to come, each carrying weapons and magical treasures, secretly on guard, and inevitably prepared some congratulatory gifts, all of which were rare and precious treasures from the water. Upon seeing the scale of the Water Moon Cave and the two major gathering spirit formations, they could not help but repeatedly praise the craftsmanship of Ancestor Zhu Ba.

Xie Wei broke into a cold sweat and quickly fetched pen and paper to jot it down

Zhang Cizheng led the group of Daoists away in a state of disarray, declaring that they could not seek revenge for at least fifty years. Zhu Ganglie paid little attention to this—who would care about such minor characters fifty years later? After formally becoming sworn brothers with Sha Wujing, he ordered the various demons to expedite the construction of the Water Palace. Within a month, the Water Palace was finally completed. Zhu Ganglie named it the Water Moon Cave Heaven and officially referred to himself as Zhu Ba Laozu, while Sha Wujing was called Jinwu Laozu.

The Red-scaled Serpent Spirit could only sit down, feeling restless and frequently glancing towards the back hall. Zhu Ganglie laughed and said: "Today, we are hosting all the great kings. Firstly, it is to celebrate the opening of my little brother's cave dwelling and to greet all of you, so that we can look out for each other in the future. Secondly..."

The Sand River, spanning three thousand miles, is home to eighteen village chiefs and sixteen demon kings. Upon receiving the invitation, they all came to offer their congratulations. However, the waters were filled with demonic clouds, and thirty-four types of demons arrived, including frogs, turtles, snakes, vipers, water corpses, fish, dragons, eels, and so forth, all of whom are formidable figures in their own right

The little demon attendants in the Water Moon Cave changed their expressions drastically, as they had long known that the true form of Ancestor Zhu Ba was that of a pig demon. Therefore, they had not prepared any pork. Upon hearing the demon king's loud calls, they couldn't help but break into a cold sweat and secretly glanced at Zhu Ganglie. They saw that the ancestor remained unfazed and smiled, saying: "Pork has become quite expensive these days, so I did not ask the little ones to purchase any. I hope Ancestor Mian Tian can understand!"

The Red Horned Demon King could not bear to watch another force emerge beside him. However, due to his poor judgment, he refrained from taking direct action. Instead, he dispatched several of his subordinates, the Flood Dragons, to frequently stir up trouble within the territory of the Zhu Ganglie force, intending to provoke a war between the two factions and eliminate the influence of Ancestor Zhu Ba in its infancy.

Zhu Ganglie appeared to be somewhat tipsy, laughing heartily as he said, "What’s the harm? This treasure is standing right outside the hall, serving as a decorative pillar. I can’t lift it or dance with it anyway; I originally intended to let you brothers have a look. Whoever can manage to lift it will get a treasure that I can handle in exchange!" He then stood up and, swaying slightly, walked toward the entrance of the hall. Xie Wei followed closely behind, carrying the drinks.

Once the dance concluded, the young ladies performed a bow to the fortune and slowly retreated to the back hall to collect their silver. As they passed by the old demons, there was no shortage of groping and touching, which frightened the girls into a panic as they fled, while the demons laughed heartily.

The Red-Horned Demon King rolled his eyes and exclaimed, "Old Ancestor, could you allow my brothers to open their eyes and witness the Ruyi Jingu Bang?"

In the past month, the Heavenly Court has not dispatched celestial soldiers to seek out Sha Wujing's ill fortune, and it is likely that they have long forgotten about this matter. Even if they were to send down celestial soldiers, with their cultivation levels, entering the deathly aura of the tribulation zone would result in their souls scattering. Even if the Heavenly Court wished to place blame, it could hardly be attributed to the two individuals.

These women were exquisite beauties captured by Zhu Ganglie from the royal palace of the Qingping Kingdom. Although Zhu, the plump man, had some thoughts about these girls, he did not force them. Each beauty was given one hundred taels of silver, and after this performance, they were sent back home. Faced with the bizarre and grotesque demons, these beauties, though somewhat flustered, were not afraid. With flowing sleeves and smiling cherry lips, they danced gracefully, delighting the old monsters, who watched with drooling anticipation.

Zhu Ganglie selected several talented individuals from the group of demons to become his named disciples, imparting spells and certain celestial techniques, categorizing them by their scores. The Water Scorpion Spirit, Xie Wei, was appointed as the guardian of the palace, the Carp Spirit, Li Yu, took on the role of patrolling, and the Leech Spirit, Yuan Hua, was responsible for gathering intelligence, each overseeing a hundred minor demons. In their spare time, they practiced formations to prepare for potential invasions by external enemies

Zhu Ganglie took a sip of wine and chuckled, saying, "I must admit, this Ruyi Jingu Bang is indeed too heavy for that brother. However, seeing that this treasure is extraordinary, I employed a technique to harness the demonic wind, dragging the Ruyi Jingu Bang for a distance of three thousand miles. The monkey was shouting and screaming, but unfortunately, he was trapped under the mountain. I paid him no mind and thus obtained this treasure"

Zhu Ganglie repeatedly apologized, waved to Xie Wei, and said in a low voice: "Make a note of this fellow's nonsense, lest I forget it later. When I have time, I will deal with him properly! Damn it, daring to eat pork!"

Is it possible that my cheap brother intends to use this venomous needle to deceive me into using a magical artifact

The myriad demons rejoiced, whispering: "This Zhu Ba, the old ancestor, is blind to treasures; he is indeed a fool, thinking of exchanging the Ruyi Jingu Bang. I happen to have some treasures here; I will exchange them with him later and trick him into handing over the Ruyi Jingu Bang!"

The Demon King of Route 34, upon hearing this, found it quite in line with the character of Sun Wukong, and believed it to be about seventy to eighty percent true. Even Sha Wujing, who had once met Sun Wukong, was somewhat convinced, and they all clapped their hands and laughed, saying: "Old Ancestor, what a skill, what a skill!"