Looking at the footage on the livestream, everyone wore expressions of shock and doubt.
The sight was all too familiar, at least to every person of Huaxia.
A spirit monkey, an iron staff, striking with the weight of a thousand tons—this was a scene straight out of myth and legend.
Yet here it was, playing out before their very eyes.
"Say, do you think this spirit monkey could be the legendary Great Sage Equal to Heaven?"
"The Southern Heavenly Gate, the ruins of the Heavenly Palace... hey, you might actually be onto something!"
"Probably not. Otherwise, that'd be way too legendary."
"Even if it isn't, this King of Mount Tai clearly possesses an absolutely terrifying degree of power. Can King Lu actually handle it?"
People began debating and speculating, their faces filled with astonishment. In the New Era, with the arrival of the extraordinary, anything was possible. Of course, another worry weighed on their minds:
This Spirit Monkey was simply too powerful. Even if King Lu took it on, it would likely be an uphill struggle. One look at that overwhelming aura was enough to tell.
Even Ji Huaiyuan, Elder Yun, and the others at the foot of the mountain could not help exchanging glances.
Though they were not physically present atop Jade Emperor Peak, they could still sense the Spirit Monkey's terrifying might.
The iron staff in its hands was likely some divine artifact as well.
Their hearts sank.
"I believe in King Lu. No matter what foe he faces, he can crush them with absolute force!" Zhu Qingyu spoke up, her gaze resolute.
If anyone present had the utmost confidence in Lu Yuan, it was without a doubt her. Every time she had faced a beast tide storming a city, he had been the one to stand alone against it, crushing the crisis in an overwhelming display of dominance.
Thus, Zhu Qingyu was full of confidence, her voice unwavering.
Beside her, the Ice Fairy nodded in agreement. "I believe that King Lu has never shown his true strength. Though that Spirit Monkey is powerful, it is definitely no match for him."
What of the Twelve Apostles? What of the South Sea Giant Demon? Hadn't they both been directly suppressed?
The others remained silent, their eyes glued to the screen.
Ji Huaiyuan and Elder Yun in particular were growing tense.
Mount Tai was vital to their future plans. If Lu Yuan triumphed, everything would proceed smoothly; if not, things would become rather troublesome.
They were also well aware that even if this Spirit Monkey had nothing to do with the legendary Great Sage Equal to Heaven, it was still unimaginably formidable.
Mount Tai had been extraordinary since ancient times. A creature capable of becoming king here ranked among the absolute pinnacle of all mutated beasts.
As for Lu Yuan, he was regarded as Huaxia's strongest Awakened—the King of Humanity.
This battle was a clash between the strongest and the strongest!
***
Meanwhile, atop Jade Emperor Peak.
Two golden streaks of light repeatedly collided.
The entire area was enveloped in a brilliant, dazzling radiance.
The surrounding space seemed to shudder, resonant booms echoing in waves as if the world itself could not bear such power.
*Rumble!*
Lu Yuan threw a punch, his golden blood-qi surging.
The Blood-Qi Pagoda vibrated within him, resonating with his five viscera and six bowels.
He stepped forward and drove a fist ahead, striking with the momentum of an ancient primordial mountain crashing down.
Opposite him, the Spirit Monkey wielded the dark iron staff. Its fur whipped in the wind like blazing golden flames as immense power constantly poured into the weapon.
*Clang!*
As the two clashed once more, the air detonated with a deafening blast, completely scattering the surrounding clouds and mist.
The might displayed by both sides far exceeded human imagination, pushed to the absolute extreme.
*Splatter!*
A spray of fresh blood flew.
The Spirit Monkey's arm had fractured under the shockwave, and its golden fur slightly dimmed.
Yet Lu Yuan retained his unstoppable momentum, resembling a divine king destined to suppress every foe before him in an invincible display.
*How is this human doing this?* The more the Spirit Monkey fought, the more alarmed it became. The hand gripping the iron staff went numb, the web between thumb and forefinger tore open, and its internal organs shifted under the impact. It knew that if this continued, being subdued was only a matter of time.
It had to change tactics immediately.
"Golden Body Dharma Idol, emerge!" it bellowed.
In an instant, its body swelled exponentially, reaching a towering height of a hundred meters.
Enveloped in rays of divine radiance, it transformed into a fearsome beast standing level with the clouds.
The aura radiating from its form grew far more violent than before, looming like a colossal mountain as its combat power surged drastically.
The dark iron staff in its grip gleamed faintly, expanding into a stone pillar that reached the heavens. Grasping it, the monkey swung it down directly toward Lu Yuan in a crushing strike.
"Could... could that be the legendary Heaven and Earth Embodiment from myth?"
"No, it hasn't reached that level yet. That's a Golden Body Dharma Idol!"
"I know about that! In the Golden Body Realm, once all shackles are unlocked and one's full potential is released, they achieve a perfect union. The truly mighty among them can manifest a Dharma Idol divine ability!"
"Incredible! That Spirit Monkey's bloodline talent must be extraordinarily powerful; otherwise, how could it ever reach this stage?"
"Yeah, even the South Sea Giant Demon couldn't do that back then."
"But with this, can King Lu still win?"
Those watching the livestream were thoroughly stunned upon seeing the Spirit Monkey grow to a hundred meters tall.
Anyone knowledgeable about the evolutionary stages recognized the Golden Body Dharma Idol at a glance.
Normally, only entities with bloodlines and talents refined to the utmost extreme could unlock it. For an ordinary cultivator, even if they broke through to the Golden Body Realm, reaching such a state was utterly out of the question.
Thus, this Spirit Monkey was not just a little bit stronger than the South Sea Giant Demon—it was terrifyingly superior.
And what of Lu Yuan? Though he was the King of Humanity, he was still only in the Shackle Realm.
A full major evolutionary realm separated them!
Could he really contend with it?
Ji Huaiyuan and Elder Yun grew anxious.
They had truly not anticipated that the king of Mount Tai would be powerful to such an extent.
A creature this formidable was likely almost impervious to thermal weapons, wasn't it?
For a moment, Ji Huaiyuan could not help regretting having asked Lu Yuan to go. It wasn't that he doubted Lu Yuan's strength, but rather that this action had thrust him into immense danger.
Yet things had already come to this. All they could do was watch, and if the worst came to pass, mobilize every resource at their disposal to extract Lu Yuan.
"Human, you are quite formidable. Forcing me to reveal my Golden Body Dharma Idol is something you can be proud of!" the Spirit Monkey boomed.
Its hands did not slow in the slightest, executing its mightiest technique with every intention of crushing the human before it.
"Proud?"
Facing that terrifying might, Lu Yuan merely smiled and murmured, "Very well. Let's not waste any more time."
With that, he stepped back, closed his eyes, and pressed his palms together. The golden blood-qi surrounding his body vanished.
An inexplicable force emanated from him.
Compassionate, boundless in love, and all-embracing of every living creature.
*Thud!*
The Spirit Monkey's attack ground to a halt. It found itself completely unable to press the strike downward.
At the same time, an intense premonition of crisis swept through its soul in an instant.
At that precise moment, Lu Yuan opened his eyes.
He extended his right hand and spoke softly:
"Buddha Kingdom in the Palm!"
The moment the words left his lips, an all-encompassing aura enveloped the entire Jade Emperor Peak.
Above, the clouds parted, and a colossal hand unfurled, descending from the heavens to envelop the hundred-meter-tall Spirit Monkey beneath it like a five-fingered mountain descending from an unknown realm.
Buddhist Sanskrit characters and thousands of ancient monasteries manifested in thin air, accompanied by eight hundred Buddhas chanting supreme scriptures.
Everything in the surroundings froze, locked within a singular, distinct domain.
The Spirit Monkey found itself thoroughly suppressed, unable to flee no matter how it struggled.
The scriptures chanted by those Buddhas reverberated like thunderous, magnificent waves pouring ceaselessly into its mind.
The Golden Body Dharma Idol it had unleashed lost all effect. It began to dissolve, and the monkey's body shrank.
Cracks formed across its physique as it trembled violently, an unprecedented weight bearing down on it and shaking its very soul.
"What kind of divine ability is this?!"
The Spirit Monkey was horrified. It exhausted every trick in its arsenal, only to find none of them had the slightest effect.
As the giant hand descended further, the crushing pressure mounted. If this went on, its life would undoubtedly be forfeit.
Looking back at Lu Yuan, his expression was serenely compassionate, his right hand pressing downward without the slightest hesitation.
"Wait!" the Spirit Monkey finally cried out. "Didn't you say earlier that you had something to discuss with me? Let's talk! Everything is open for discussion!"
It felt utterly aggrieved. As a creature of the Golden Body Realm, it had actually been subdued by a human in the Shackle Realm.
Of course, it was also genuinely humbled by Lu Yuan's strength. Reevaluating the gap between them, it chose to follow its instincts for self-preservation.
"Very well."
Lu Yuan smiled and withdrew his divine ability.
He did not worry that the Spirit Monkey might try to flee, because it simply couldn't.
From the very start, he had harbored no killing intent toward it, for a very simple reason: he knew of this creature.
He remembered that in his past life, a spirit monkey had emerged from Mount Tai, later proclaiming itself the Sacred Monkey. Wielding a sky-piercing iron staff, it had been one of the world's most formidable mutated beasts, endowed with a mighty bloodline and terrifying talent. At the same time, it had been the Beast King most amicably disposed toward humanity.
Just moments ago, when it attacked, it had not fought with lethal intent either.
As such, Lu Yuan had no desire to ruthlessly slay it.
If they could talk and reach an understanding, that would be the best possible outcome.
***
This entire scene was witnessed with absolute clarity by everyone watching.
"King Lu actually won! He subdued the King of Mount Tai with sheer force!"
"Truly worthy of being the King of Humanity! Completely invincible, absurdly strong!"
"Assuming the visage of compassion, subduing a spirit monkey with a single hand... why does that remind me of a certain scene from mythology?"
In that moment, everyone was dumbfounded, and then erupted into cheers.
They had thought the Spirit Monkey was too terrifying and that Lu Yuan would run into serious trouble.
Who would have guessed that in mere moments, despite being an entire major realm lower, he would emerge victorious? That technique of covering the heavens with a single hand was exhilarating to behold.
This only deepened everyone's reverence for Lu Yuan.
Ji Huaiyuan and Elder Yun could not help gulping.
Lu Yuan's strength had truly exceeded their wildest imaginations.
This was an invincible posture in the truest sense.
Their earlier worries had been entirely superfluous. The method Lu Yuan had displayed was nothing short of myth made flesh!
Monk Huikong's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. As a Buddhist disciple, he knew full well that such a divine ability belonged to the Buddhist tradition.
Yet an outsider had mastered and wielded it to such a profound extent.
This battle delivered a colossal shock to the minds of all who watched.
So this was the kind of power a truly supreme Awakened could display!
"It seems that with King Lu here, taking control of Mount Tai will pose no problem at all," Elder Yun said, brimming with excitement. He knew their mission was an absolute success; after all, the King of Mount Tai had been subdued on the spot.
Ji Huaiyuan felt the same, a brilliant gleam lighting up his eyes.
He was overjoyed, his excitement difficult to contain.
With an individual like this on their side, why fear that they could not forge a brand-new path in the New Era?
This was truly a blessing for Huaxia!
Chapter 92