“So everything was intentional.” Feng Lin mumbled.

　　“That’s right. Only extraordinary creatures can pass through the thousand-foot waterfall. But if one didn’t even have the courage to try, how can they set foot on the heaven-defying path of cultivation and aid the entire tribe? On the Flowerfruit Mountain, other than you, it’s probably impossible to find another monkey who can set foot on the path of cultivation! Hence, only you are qualified to become the new monkey king,” the old ape spoke in a heavy voice filled with helplessness and gratification.

　　It felt helplessness because despite the large numbers of monkeys in its tribe, not even one of them was qualified to cultivate.

　　It felt gratified because fortunately, it managed to find a suitable successor before it died.

　　Feng Lin fell silent. After knowing the intentions of the old ape, he fell into a state of deep contemplation.

　　Should he accept this fortune that fell from the sky?

　　He was very clear on the helplessness in the old monkey king’s heart. This didn’t seem to be a falsehood.

　　The weak are food for the strong, living a comfortable life is the original sin!

　　Because of the environment they lived in, it could be said that the monkeys were favored by the heavens. However, because they got too comfortable, they gradually lost all their courage to fight. They stayed in the immortal peach forest, which was a treasure land. This would naturally attract the invasion of other demonic beasts. If they didn’t grow any stronger, they would definitely be wiped out in the future.

　　The lifespan of the old monkey king was reaching its end. This was why it was trying all sorts of methods. It wanted Feng Lin to become the new monkey king.

　　“Stone monkey, you don’t have any parents and live independently. Since you have no place to go, why don’t you join us? With the members of the same species living together with you, you would no longer feel lonely. Also, after you become the new monkey king, given your strong will and talent, you will definitely be able to continue protecting the monkey tribe. I can set my heart at ease even if I die,” said the old ape.

　　So this meant that he would become a beast king if he agreed?

　　Feng Lin sank into contemplation.

　　The term ‘beast king’ wasn’t just as simple as a title. It represented the king of a race, and the titleholder had the great responsibility of ensuring the race or tribe’s survival

　　But for the sake of the mortal monkeys, the old monkey king didn’t hesitate to discard his pride to beg an outsider monkey.

　　Feng Lin seemed to have faintly understood something.

　　Since his future path was to become the Monkey King, he first had to become a beast king before he could combine the Spiritual Stone Monkey Gene and Beast King Gene into the Monkey King Gene.

　　In that case, what was he waiting for?

　　Staring at the pleading look on the old ape’s face, Feng Lin’s heart stirred. It was like he could see a dust-covered monkey helping the old monkey king up as they walked into the crowd of monkeys.

　　These were all memories of what Sun Wukong had experienced before.

　　Feng Lin’s heart stirred. What he was experiencing now was the path Sun Wukong had taken as he matured.

　　Sun Wukong also made the same choice. Undoubtedly, he already found some answers here.

　　“Fine, I’ll promise you!” Feng Lin nodded and agreed.

　　“I can set my heart at ease then.” The old monkey king had a smile of gratification on his face, like a burden was lifted off his chest. “Last night, I fought against the Green Wolf King and my life force is dried up. Let me bring you to walk a certain path. After my death, you will inherit the position of the monkey king!”

　　“…” It was this sentence again. Feng Lin had heard this several times and he was helpless to say anything else.

　　He nodded and propped the old monkey king up as they walked into the peach forest together.

　　After that, Feng Lin officially joined the monkey tribe.

　　Due to him righteously acting for their sake when the Green Wolf King had attacked earlier, these monkeys were all very clear that Feng Lin only looked weak on the surface but was actually extremely strong. They no longer treated him as an outsider. But they didn’t really treat him well either.

　　Feng Lin didn’t mind. He set his heart at ease and mixed into the crowd, experiencing this scene of reality. It was like he had truly become a monkey, drunk immortal water, and eaten spiritual peaches, living a carefree life without restraints.

　　But from the start until the end, he didn’t forget his original heart.

　　Although the monkeys treated the peach forest as their headquarters and they had no natural enemies, it didn’t mean that this place was completely free of dangers.

　　The Flowerfruit Mountain contained a multitude of living things. There were naturally some powerful groups, such as evil avian creatures and ferocious beasts that could threaten the safety of the monkey tribe.

　　And for the monkey tribe, other than their old monkey king, the other members were all extremely weak. Feng Lin had also experienced many dangerous situations such as fighting against eagles and hawks, as well as killing ferocious tigers…

　　Given his innate strength as a spiritual stone monkey and his profound martial arts, he was able to win every single time and he gradually became known as the number two strongest monkey within the tribe. He had established his might.

　　But Feng Lin didn’t really care about this too much.

　　No matter how powerful a monkey is, it is still a monkey.

　　This was a true tragedy!

　　In addition, no matter how real the scenes here were, he knew that everything was just an illusion-scape. There was truly no need for him to care too much about this.

　　The more important thing was that Feng Lin gradually understood the true meaning of ‘Beast King’.

　　Beasts lived in the wilderness; they had to survive through competition, fighting against the heavens, the earth, and each other. The competition was incomparably cruel.

　　It was survival of the fittest.

　　If they didn’t have the strength to defeat their foes, if they didn’t have the courage to advance through all difficulties, a beast king wouldn’t be qualified to take on the task of their tribe or race’s survival.

　　The greater one’s power, the greater one’s responsibility!

　　The fog in Feng Lin’s heart gradually grew clearer.

　　Even for Sun Wukong, he wasn’t born innately powerful. The path had to be traversed step by step, accumulating strength bit by bit.

　　…

　　The night’s wind was cold; silence was everywhere.

　　Feng Lin was just leaning against a tree branch and sleeping there, but all of a sudden, ripples of unease rose in his heart.

　　He suddenly opened his eyes as his gaze shone like a torch, staring in all directions.

　　Silent. Things were too silent!

　　Darkness was everywhere, and it was completely silent. Even the occasional cries of insects were muted. It was so quiet that one could feel despair in the air.

　　(Something is wrong.)

　　Feng Lin instantly reacted. He roared and his voice echoed through the forest, shocking everything awake.

　　The monkeys lying on the nearby tree branches were all shaken awake. They stared over in dissatisfaction. “What are you wailing in the middle of the night for?”

　　Just when they were complaining, at the next moment, all of them suddenly screamed.

　　“Eyes, so many eyes!!!”

　　The cacophony of screams broke the silence of the forest. Numerous pairs of red eyes shone like a lantern in the dark.

　　“Wolves, demonic wolves!”

　　“They are here again!”

　　“Hurry up and flee!”

　　…

　　Upon realizing the demonic wolves had come, those monkeys were all screaming in fear as they fled in panic.

　　Seeing how cowardly these monkeys were, Feng Lin involuntarily shook his head. He moved ahead and stood beside the old monkey king.

　　Compared to before, the old monkey king seemed even frailer now. Its back was bent, like an old man with a stooped back.

　　“Don’t panic, stand behind me!” the old monkey king spoke in a heavy voice, radiating a sense of imposingness, stabilizing the hearts of the other monkeys.

　　Those monkeys who were struck with fear seemed to have found their backbone. All of them respectively gathered behind the old monkey king. Although there was fear on their faces, they were no longer panicking.

　　So this was a Beast King?

　　In his eyes, the old monkey king’s stature seemed incomparably gigantic and mighty. The hope of its entire tribe was on its shoulder.

　　Awoooooo~

　　The wind was very cold, numerous wolf howls rang through the air.

　　The wolves wearing a bone carapace on their heads moved out one after another. The demonic qi here was so thick that they formed black clouds.

　　“Green Wolf King, it is you again!” the old monkey king roared in rage.

　　“That’s right. Old ape, it is me. However, I didn’t come alone.” A burst of malevolent laughter rang out, filled with cruelty.

　　The wolves stepped to the side, opening up a path as a giant wolf walked out. Its body was riddled with wounds left behind by the old monkey king. This was none other than the Green Wolf King.

　　However, there was actually one more sinister figure behind it. Upon taking a closer look, this figure resembled a fox and a wolf. Its eyes shone with cunning brutality and its fur was red.

　　The old monkey king was startled and he stated the identity of this demonic beast. “Blood Jackal King!”

　　Jackals were related to wolves. They were cunning by nature, not inferior to foxes, and were all extremely cruel.

　　Wolves and jackals always colluded together.

　　The expression of the old monkey king instantly turned extremely heavy.

　　It seemed like it would be hard to protect the monkeys of its tribe today.

　　“Be careful, they will target you first.” It lowered its voice and warned Feng Lin.

　　Feng Lin silently nodded.

　　“Old ape, I didn’t expect you to conceal things so well. Out of so many trash monkeys, there was actually one that you managed to nurture into a demonic monkey!” The Green Wolf King bared its fangs and let out a cold and sinister laugh. Its eyes stared fixedly at Feng Lin, filled with killing intent.

　　“Prepare to die!” The old monkey king didn’t continue to waste words. It instantly acted.

　　Their grudge was originally already unresolvable. Why speak so much crap?

　　The monkey king roared. With a single leap, he lunged toward the two demon kings. Its body expanded in size as its wrinkles faded away, reverting to a state more suited for combat.

　　The sky darkened; the night was so dark that one wouldn’t even be able to see their five fingers if they stretched out their hands. The astral light in the surroundings transformed into silvery rays that were absorbed by the old monkey king. The starlight congregated together, causing the shape of a long sword to take form.

　　Sword Dance of the White Ape!

　　The monkey king was clearly an ape, but it executed one of the most profound sword arts in the world. In an instant, sword shadows filled the air, each of them containing unfathomable mysteries within. His skill far surpassed the most brilliant swordsmen in the world.

　　(There’s an immortal intent inside the sword! There’s killing intent. And more so than ever, there’s sword intent!)

　　The demonic wolves at the front were instantly torn apart. The sword light shot straight toward the two demon kings like lightning, wanting to kill them.

　　Shriek!

　　An ear-piercing sound rang out. It was like invisible needles piercing into one’s ears, causing Feng Lin to have a headache.

　　Mind control?

　　Feng Lin activated his spirit force and instantly dissipated the controlling energy.

　　However, the old monkey king didn’t have an innately strong spirit force. Its mind was under attack and its movements slowed perceptibly.

　　At this time, there was a flaw in its sword stances!

　　Awooooo~

　　A group of demonic wolves kept howling; the crimson light radiating from their eyes was extremely clear in the darkness. They surged forward, transforming into blurry shadows as they targeted the four limbs of the old monkey king.

　　The old demon king bore the pain. He waved his sword and slashed the demonic wolves into pieces.

　　However, these demonic wolves were extremely obstinate. Even after they died, their jaws were still clamped tightly on the old monkey king.

　　The other remaining demonic wolves all ignored their own safety and lunged over under the control of the wolf king. They were like tides rushing at the old monkey king, wanting to bind its movements.

　　“Come and delay this old ape for me. I will go and kill that new demonic monkey. That new monkey might be the new monkey king of this tribe. If we can kill it, in the future, these monkeys would no longer have any strength to resist and will become our prey!” The Green Wolf King laughed malevolently. It transformed into a black wind as it lunged toward Feng Lin. Clearly, he hated Feng Lin for spoiling his plans the previous time.

　　The wolf king moved like an apparition. The demonic qi around it was like a blanket of darkness, smothering those near it.

　　Feng Lin’s heart sank as he felt a chill in his heart. Truly, this was a great calamity.

　　The might of a demon king was terrifying to the extreme.

　　He could also feel numerous killing intents locked onto him.

　　There was nowhere for him to escape…