Ian flew in mid-air, his eyes slightly narrowed as he looked at Sun Wukong, whose figure overlapped with the image in his memory. A slight smile played on his lips.
"Monkey, do you recognize me?"
In this vast environment, his voice carried an echo. That's right, this was an effect Ian specifically controlled.
Sun Wukong had, of course, watched television and knew this attire belonged to Yang Jian, but he tightly gripped his Golden-Hooped Rod, trying hard to recall something. 'Was this really the first time he'd encountered the true Yang Jian?'
Seeing this, Ian gently shook his head, feigning disappointment.
"Never mind. It doesn't matter if you don't recognize me."
"Just attack and let me test your mettle!"
Ian's voice sounded again.
Sun Wukong remained motionless, standing quietly where he was. He truly disliked people who wanted to fight him the moment they met, especially when he hadn't even grasped the situation.
Seeing the monkey make no move, Ian slowly spoke, his voice tinged with a sigh and remembrance.
"You, monkey, compared to him, possess a little less arrogance and a little more composure."
"I just wonder how much hardship you have endured over the years."
As Ian spoke, he seemed to see another figure through the Sun Wukong before him—the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, who once wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace and feared nothing.
Seeing that Sun Wukong still had no intention of striking, Ian stopped wasting words.
His figure moved, instantly vanishing from the spot.
The next moment, he appeared in front of Sun Wukong, the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd in his hand chopping down on his head!
The strike seemed to rip through space.
Sun Wukong was startled. Instinctively, he raised his Golden-Hooped Rod horizontally above his head, attempting to block the blow.
"Clang!"
A deafening metallic crash echoed across the sky. Sparks flew and shockwaves rolled out.
Sun Wukong felt a tremendous force surge through him, his arms went numb, and his body was sent flying toward the ground next to the skyscraper.
"Boom!"
The monkey's head plunged straight into the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.
Ducao was shocked and immediately tried to rush forward to help but was stopped by Ian's roar.
"You people! Having seen the True Lord, why have you not retreated!"
Ian merely waved his hand gently, and an invisible surge of air swept out, pushing Ducao and the others far away. His voice was cold and authoritative, making it impossible to even think of refusal.
Pushed away by this force, Ducao and the others dared not advance further.
Ge and Liu were dumbfounded. They were completely confused. 'Why were we even brought here? Just here to make up the numbers?'
'Also, what's with the fighting? These two really start fighting the moment they meet, just like in the TV shows.'
The dust cleared, and Sun Wukong, pulling his head out of the ground, appeared once more. He slowly rose from the ground, patting the dirt from his head. He then looked up at Ian, anger beginning to ignite in his eyes. Anyone would be mad about taking a hit for no reason.
His body then leaped into the air, swinging the Golden-Hooped Rod in a full circle and smashing it fiercely toward Ian.
Ian's eyes were calm. With a light flick of the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd in his hand, he blocked the monkey's heavy and powerful strike.
Blocked, Sun Wukong swung again. His speed quickly increased, and the Golden-Hooped Rod in his hand wildly rained down blows on Ian.
However, Ian remained completely at ease. The Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd in his hand seemed to be waved casually, yet it blocked all of the monkey's attacks.
From below, they could only see afterimages constantly flashing around Ian, who simply swung his weapon with effortless grace.
"Monkey, is this all the skill you have? It seems I won't be fully satisfied today."
Ian's voice sounded again, carrying an indescribable disappointment.
Hearing this, Sun Wukong became even more enraged. Not only was Ian provoking him right away, but now he was constantly mocking him. 'If this monkey doesn't show his power, you'll think I'm Monkey King of a Comedy!'
He roared, his body half-crouching to build momentum, then shot up into the high sky. He gripped the Golden-Hooped Rod with both hands, raising it high above his head. Then, the Rod began to rapidly grow bigger, longer, and thicker. The Golden-Hooped Rod began to glow with a dazzling golden light, and a powerful energy fluctuation radiated from it.
"Take this from your old Sun god!"
Sun Wukong roared, twisting his waist to rotate the Rod and accumulate power, then cleaved it down fiercely toward Ian.
Ian looked at the massive Golden-Hooped Rod descending from the sky, a hint of appreciation flashing in his eyes.
But he did not use the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd to block. Instead, he stretched out his right hand.
His palm slowly opened in the air, meeting the colossal Golden-Hooped Rod.
"Bang"
A muffled sound was heard as the Golden-Hooped Rod smashed heavily onto Ian's palm.
Yet, contrary to everyone's expectations, Ian's body remained completely motionless, and the Golden-Hooped Rod was bent into a huge arc by the immense force.
This sight left everyone utterly astonished. They couldn't imagine a person's raw physical strength reaching such a degree. They were Technology Gods, and Sun Wukong, with his Third Generation Beast Body, was almost the peak of physical strength in their universe. Perhaps Galaxy Power, upon becoming a Fourth Generation Divine Body, would have a chance to surpass him.
"T-this... how is this possible?"
Ducao's voice trembled. He simply couldn't believe what he was seeing. The monkey was his biggest trump card, yet he was no match for the Yang Jian who had suddenly appeared today.
Riven, Ajie, Ge, and Liu were all dumbfounded as well. However, their shock was less than Ducao's, as they didn't quite grasp the details of the fight, only that it was incredibly impressive. They had never seen such power; it completely surpassed their understanding.
"You, monkey, indeed have some semblance of his shadow."
"Since that is the case, next, I will also get slightly serious."
As he spoke, the Demon-Slaying Sword was slowly unsheathed from his waist, and then his imposing aura soared into the sky. The pressure forced Ge and the others to sit down abruptly on the ground.
Ian held the Demon-Slaying Sword and gave a light sweep.
In an instant, the sword light split, one into ten, ten into a hundred, a hundred into a thousand, a thousand into ten thousand—more than thirty thousand Light Blades flew out from the blade. They hovered densely in the air, then turned their tips to point straight at Sun Wukong.
The originally clear sky seemed to grow dark from the sheer intensity of the aura. Dark clouds gathered, and fierce winds howled. (Ian was secretly controlling this. If he was going to put on a show, he was going to do it completely!)
At this moment, Ge and the others felt like leaves in a fierce storm, liable to be torn to shreds at any moment. Now they could slightly understand how incredibly powerful this battle was.
Sun Wukong looked at the Light Blades dancing in the sky and realized he could not delay any longer. He had to use his full power, or he might genuinely be defeated here today.
He then pulled out a handful of monkey hair, blew on it, and split it into hundreds of clones. Each clone held a Golden-Hooped Rod and met a number of Light Blades.
"Clang, clang, clang..."
A series of dense collision sounds rang out, which were surprisingly rhythmic.
Although Sun Wukong's clones were numerous, they could not completely block the Light Blades. Clones were constantly struck by the Light Blades and scattered into strands of monkey hair. Sun Wukong's main body, meanwhile, seized the opportunity to vanish, disappearing from the spot.
The next moment, he appeared behind Ian, his Golden-Hooped Rod fiercely sweeping toward the back of Ian's head.
However, Ian seemed to have anticipated it. Without turning his head, he simply reached back and grabbed.
Sun Wukong's Golden-Hooped Rod was firmly caught by Ian's palm. No matter how hard Sun Wukong strained, the Rod would not move a fraction of an inch.
"You, monkey, truly delight me."
Ian's voice sounded again, his tone carrying a trace of admiration.
"Since that is the case, I will exert slightly more force."
With that, the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd in his hand twisted and chopped fiercely toward Sun Wukong. This strike contained no technique, no special effects, only power—an indescribable power.
Sun Wukong felt an indescribable sense of danger, a feeling he had not even experienced when he was surrounded by one hundred thousand Super Soldiers in the Heavenly Palace on the Star. He wanted to dodge, but Ian was too fast. He could only watch helplessly as the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd chopped toward him.
Just as it was about to strike, Ian twisted the spearhead, hitting the monkey with the side of the weapon. Otherwise, that one strike would have ended the monkey.
"Thud," with a dull sound, the Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd struck Sun Wukong's armor, sending him flying.
Just as the monkey, enduring the intense pain, was about to counterattack again, he suddenly felt his body tighten. He looked down and saw his body had been firmly bound by a golden dragon.
"With such slow movement, how can you bear the title of 'Equal to Heaven'?"
Ian's voice sounded in his ear. He looked up and saw that Ian had appeared in front of him without him knowing. Ian held the other end of the golden dragon in his hand.
Sun Wukong tried to struggle free, but found that the golden dragon around his body tightened even more, making it impossible to move even an inch.
Ian gently tugged the rope, pulling Sun Wukong toward him. He looked at Sun Wukong, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.
"Pity, you... are ultimately not him..."
"Haha, never mind. That was not enough fun for today. Now, you should rest well," Ian's voice suddenly rose as he laughed heartily.
He then tossed Sun Wukong aside.
Sun Wukong hit the ground hard. He struggled to get up but found himself completely immobilized. He could only watch as Ian and Zeke's figures slowly descended.
Ducao, Angel Yan, and the others were all utterly shocked to see Sun Wukong defeated so easily. They knew Sun Wukong's power—a Third Generation Divine Body, already among the forefront of the known universe in terms of strength—yet he had been effortlessly dealt with by Yang Jian.