In the Imperial Capital, it seemed like there was no night.
The grand mural of the landscape was like a royal screen, softly glowing like a flower canopy, brimming with cosmic wonder. The city under the setting sun appeared more celestial than earthly.
Ke Mo stood atop Biyun Tower, overlooking the expanse. The higher the building, the more luxurious it became, and the room he occupied was just one floor shy of the top, with a daily dose of a mystical crystal. This was a seven-star presidential suite from another world!
From this vantage, pedestrians looked like ants, while the distant cacophony faded into silence.
In a daze, it felt like all the splendor of the Imperial Capital was right beneath his feet.
“Slurp slurp—”
Little Ke sat on a stool, perched with his left foot on a grand armchair, slurping up some braised beef instant noodles.
What? Am I battling the projection of the Great Sage?
Ke Mo decided to eat three big bowls first to calm down.
Before long, after taking a moment to breathe, he entered a small world.
Still the same Yin-Yang dojo.
“It’s definitely full.”
“All this life energy, is it from the Huanmo Sect?”
Ke Mo took out the Kongming Multicolor Tower, lost in thought.
His observation of divine intention had recently slowed down, as he had triumphed over plenty of intense projections lately—he was no longer in the dire straits he once was.
He was in need of a stronger opponent.
The flood of life energy rushed in like the Yangtze River, merging into the Hunyuan True Mirror, causing it to shine with an unprecedented brilliance.
Beside the Yin-Yang dojo, the bluish stone he often leaned against trembled, shaking dust loose.
Then, amid a booming noise, a stone monkey shot up from the ground.
Its body was dark blue, eyes like torches, standing about ten feet tall. The Yin-Yang energy twisted around its rocky form, flexing power that distorted the surrounding space, casting a shadow that eclipsed the moonlight.
“Is this the Great Sage projection?”
Ke Mo felt a flicker of familiarity; this was strikingly similar to his transformation among the seventy-two forms, an uncanny resemblance.
Just at that moment.
His little person stone monkey divine pattern lit up, the Great Sage’s divine will manifesting behind him, piercing through the howling wind, locking eyes with the stone monkey.
For the first time, a flicker of human emotion was evident.
“To fight is to know!”
He shed his pure Yang robe, revealing a sturdy frame, wielding his hammer weapon.
Faced with this suspected Great Sage projection stone monkey, he dared not underestimate it even slightly.
As his pristine robe fell to the ground, the stone monkey leaped high, casting a shadow over the youth. The heavy star sledgehammer in Ke Mo’s hands felt surprisingly weightless, as though it propelled his body into a spinning launch for a devastating strike.
The hammer clashed against the stubborn stone, producing a deafening sound.
In this test of strength, Ke Mo leveraged the power of his mystical weapon and the might of hammer techniques, almost reminiscent of autumn glory.
The stone monkey’s feet dug in, halting its momentum, its tail flicking as it adjusted its posture. Its coiled body sprang into action like a poised spring, rushing towards him.
It seemed to have no grasp of martial arts.
But when it threw a punch, it appeared straightforward; yet in the rhythm of stillness and motion, it condensed complexity into simplicity.
In this moment, Ke Mo’s intention and body converged, his training hits echoing in his mind like fireworks.
Strike!
He did not budge an inch, sending forth the hammer as lightly as a feather, landing squarely on the stone monkey’s arm joint.
However, this potent hammer strike was easily sliced apart by that deceptively simple punch.
Not only had he failed to score a hit, but it also seemed to amplify the stone monkey’s strength, leaving Ke Mo vulnerable, wide open for an attack!
Oh no….
Golden light shone on Ke Mo as, during their second exchange, he was forced into his unbreakable state.
Bang—
Fiery sparks flew as he took a punch straight to the face and was blasted back to the edge of the Yin-Yang dojo.
If it weren’t for the unbreakable defense, this fight could have been concluded right then and there.
Ke Mo suppressed his astonishment and, wincing in pain, plucked two hairs from his head. Three figures, all identical, lifted a hammer, simultaneously striking at the stone monkey in tandem.
Yet, facing three versions of the same youth, the stone monkey seemed to flow with ease, rendering the extra two clones more of a burden.
Finally, as one avatar landed a blow on its elbow, it launched back, arms crossed in a slow-motion meteor slam, resembling a feather falling gracefully.
It… can also use “Seven Fixes to Stabilize the Universe”?
Ke Mo’s heart sank in shock, retreating.
No, wait.
The stone monkey didn’t know any martial arts; it relied on instinctive combat skills, transforming the mundane into the miraculous. This miracle could be martial arts or something entirely different.
But what was the core of it?
Blunt fists, elbows, and even its tail seemed to move like a raging storm.
Ke Mo forced himself to withstand the onslaught, even resorting to a celestial technique, yet he remained unable to gain the upper hand.
Clearly, they were evenly matched in strength, yet he had more tricks in his arsenal.
But he was the one without the strength to retaliate.
His breaths grew increasingly labored.
Since his debut, he had never faced such an oppressive opponent. Even against foes of higher realms, he had always found their weak spots or used other tactics to bridge the gap.
But in this moment, facing the stone monkey, which surpassed him in physicality and divine intent, he felt utterly helpless.
If it kept up like this, he would undoubtedly be the one to lose…
Just then, a ray of moonlight suddenly burst forth.
The Taiyin in the small world illuminated.
Everything around seemed to slow down, and the anxious fatigue in Ke Mo’s heart was washed away by the cool and gentle essence of Taiyin.
In the moonlight, the stone monkey’s movements appeared to decelerate; he could see every hair, every shift of its energy.
The stone monkey vanished.
Only the simplest, most fundamental aspects remained.
Just like the stone monkey, Ke Mo too found clarity, feeling himself, feeling the existence of his physical body.
A wave of enlightenment surged within him.
“It seems I’ve never truly understood my own heart.”
Ke Mo’s mind quieted as he cast aside all moves, all extraordinary skills, and divine techniques.
Bang—
Another clash.
A continuous yet simple hammer met the stone monkey’s fist; it was less like battling and more like forging iron.
Ke Mo summoned his celestial force, his arms suddenly swelling.
Swinging the hammer once more, a dazzling golden light flared.
Boom—
The immense recoil jolted his body, scattering the shattered air. His expanding arms dissipated into nothingness.
Ke Mo nearly lost grip of the hammer.
A gold-clad long staff materialized in front of him, halting the strike from the celestial hammer without a budge.
The stone monkey stood firmly, coming to a stop.
Its expressionless face seemed to awaken.
Dust flaked away from it like ashes dissipating, and the golden light seemed to break free from its shackles, flowing into the staff, illuminating its inscriptions.
It sounded like a weapon humming, stirring the winds in the little world.
【Ruyi Jingu Bang】
