Ultimately, Yang Jian was more powerful. He possessed a unique innate physique, and the essence of Pangu's blood bestowed upon him by Xuan Tian refined his body. Furthermore, he cultivated a close-combat technique rarely seen in the world, making him increasingly formidable in battle. Initially, he wanted to teach the monkey a lesson, but later, he was moved by his talent. There were many cultivators in the world, but those who cultivated close combat were extremely rare. Since the fall of the Wu Yao, even fewer had reached the Great Luo Realm in close combat. Yang Jian usually only had Nezha to spar with, which made him somewhat lonely. Now, seeing a worthy opponent like the monkey filled him with joy. Those who cultivate combat techniques are often fond of fighting, and their techniques can create battle maniacs. However, in this day and age, finding a worthy opponent is truly difficult.
The three-pointed double-edged sword was hundreds of feet long, its cold light sharp, and the heavens and earth seemed to be split apart wherever its blade passed; the Sea-Stabilizing Needle was also extraordinary, thousands of feet long and hundreds of feet thick, truly like a giant pillar supporting the sky. Amidst the golden light, the sound of wind and thunder rang out, and the weapons clashed like lightning and thunder.
The sight of the two warriors clashing terrified Marshals Ma and Liu, who trembled and could not even wave their banners; Generals Beng and Ba, too timid to wield their swords. On this battlefield, Kang, Zhang, Yao, Li, Guo Shen, and Zhi Jian relayed the orders, releasing the grass-headed spirits, who, along with their hawks and hounds, nocked crossbows and drew their bows, launched a simultaneous attack on the Water Curtain Cave. The four valiant monkey generals were scattered, and two or three thousand demons were captured! The monkeys, abandoning their weapons and armor, threw down their swords and spears; some ran, some shouted; some went up the mountain, some returned to their caves. It was like a night owl startling roosting birds, scattering stars across the sky. The brothers' victory is not described further.
Capture the monkey and take it to Heaven.
Meanwhile, Erlang Shen Zhenjun Yang Jian and the Great Sage were fighting in a grand display of magic, when the Great Sage suddenly saw the demon monkeys in his camp scatter in panic. He couldn't help but feel flustered, so he withdrew his magic form, grabbed his staff, and fled.
Seeing him flee in defeat, Yang Jian strode after him and said, "Where do you think you're going? Surrender now and I'll spare your life!" The Great Sage did not want to fight and simply ran away.
As they approached the cave entrance, they ran into the four Grand Marshals Kang, Zhang, Yao, and Li, as well as Generals Guo Shen and Zhijian, who led their men to block their way, shouting, "You impudent monkey, where do you think you're going!"
The Great Sage panicked, so he twisted his golden cudgel into a needle, hid it in his ear, and transformed into a sparrow, perching on a treetop. The six brothers, frantic and searching frantically, cried out in unison, "That monkey spirit is gone! That monkey spirit is gone!"
Just then, Yang Jian arrived and asked, "Brothers, what happened over there?" The gods replied, "We surrounded them here, and then they disappeared."
Yang Jian knew the monkey possessed transformation magic, but he wasn't worried. This was because Yang Jian himself was extraordinary, born with three eyes. As far as was known, those born with three eyes were all extraordinary. For example, Wen Zhong's three eyes allowed him to see throughout the Three Realms, reaching the Thirty-Three Heavens above and the Nine Netherworlds below. Wen Zhong held the esteemed position of Thunder Minister in the Heavenly Court, also due to his three-eyed supernatural power. His three eyes could unleash thunder magic that ordinary immortals could hardly withstand. Yang Jian's divine eyes were different. The ability to see throughout the Three Realms was innate, and he could also discern countless magical transformations, the interplay of reincarnation forces, birth, aging, sickness, and death, and all the vicissitudes of life.
With such supernatural powers, the True Lord was naturally unafraid of the monkey's escape. He stopped, and with his left hand, he touched the three eyes with two fingers. Instantly, the phoenix eyes widened, and a beam of golden light shot out, traveling through the Three Realms and Six Paths to observe. Seeing that the Great Sage had transformed into a sparrow and was perched on a tree, the True Lord withdrew his magical form, discarded his divine weapon, and unloaded his slingshot. He then transformed into a hungry eagle, spread his wings, and flew to swoop down. The Great Sage, seeing this, quickly took flight, transforming into a large cormorant and soaring into the sky. Erlang, seeing this, hurriedly shook his feathers, transformed into a great sea crane, and soared into the clouds.
The Great Sage lowered himself down into the ravine, transforming into a fish and diving into the water. Erlang rushed to the ravine but found no trace of him. He thought to himself, "That monkey must have gone into the water, probably transformed into a fish or shrimp. I'll transform again to catch him." Sure enough, he transformed into a cormorant, floating on the surface of the downstream water. After waiting for a while, the Great Sage, now a fish, swam downstream when he suddenly saw a bird, resembling a hawk but with feathers that weren't blue; resembling a heron but without a crest; resembling a stork but with legs that weren't red: "It must be Erlang in disguise, waiting for me!" He quickly turned and darted away. Erlang saw this and said, "That fish that darted away looks like a carp, but its tail isn't red; it looks like a mandarin fish, but its scales aren't visible; it looks like a black carp, but without stars on its head; it looks like a bream, but without needles on its gills. Why did it turn back as soon as it saw me? It must be that monkey in disguise." He caught up and pecked it in the mouth. The Great Sage leaped out of the water, transformed into a water snake, swam near the shore, and burrowed into the grass. Erlang, unable to catch him, saw a snake leap out amidst the splashing water, recognized the Great Sage, and quickly turned into a grey crane with a crimson embroidered crest, its long beak resembling a pair of sharp iron pincers, and went straight to eat the water snake. The water snake leaped and transformed into a bustard, standing stiffly on the reed bank.
Erlang saw that the bustard had become lowly—the bustard is the most despicable and lewd of all birds, mating with any flock, including phoenixes, eagles, and crows—so he didn't bother with it. He immediately revealed his original form, went over, took his slingshot, drew it fully, and shot the bustard in the heel. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the Great Sage rolled down the cliff, lay there, and transformed again, this time into a small earth god temple. Its mouth was wide open, resembling a temple door; its teeth became the door panels, its tongue the Bodhisattva, and its eyes the window frames. Only its tail was difficult to manage, standing upright behind it, transforming into a flagpole. Zhenjun rushed to the bottom of the cliff, but saw no bustard he had struck down, only a small temple. He quickly opened his phoenix eyes and looked carefully, seeing the flagpole standing behind it. He laughed, "It's that monkey! He's trying to trick me again. I've seen temples before, but I've never seen a flagpole standing behind one. It must be this beast causing trouble! If he tries to lure me in, he'll bite me. How can I go in?" "Wait till I punch the window frame first, then kick the door!" Upon hearing this, the Great Sage exclaimed in alarm, "How ruthless! The door is my teeth, and the window frame is my eyes. What will happen if I break your teeth or gouge out your eyes?" With a leap, he vanished into the air.
Zhenjun rushed around frantically, only to be met by the four Grand Marshals and the two Generals, who all rushed to him, saying, "Brother, have you captured the Great Sage?" Zhenjun laughed and said, "That monkey just transformed himself into a local temple to trick me. I was about to break into his window and kick his door when he suddenly vanished without a trace. How strange, how strange!" Everyone was astonished, and looked around but there was no sign of him. The True Lord said, "Brothers, stay here and patrol. I'll go up and find him." He quickly leaped onto a cloud and rose into the air. He saw Li Tianwang holding up the Demon-Revealing Mirror, standing on a cloud with Nezha. The True Lord asked, "Heavenly King, have you seen the Monkey King?" The Heavenly King replied, "He hasn't come up. I'm watching him from here." The True Lord finished recounting the story of the bet on transformations, the display of supernatural powers, and the capture of the monkeys, and then said, "He transformed into a temple, and just as we were about to fight, he left." Upon hearing this, Li Tianwang shone the Demon-Revealing Mirror in all directions and chuckled, "True Lord, hurry, hurry! That monkey used an invisibility spell and went to the camp, heading towards your Guanjiang Estuary."
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