Time passed quickly. Three years went by in the blink of an eye.
Wang Hu never left the Five Elements Mountain, cultivating hard every day under Sun Wukong's guidance. The peach tree bore fruit three times, but Sun Wukong did not eat a single one. All of them went into Wang Hu's stomach.
The results were extremely obvious. Within three years he reached Qi Refining level nine, only one step away from Foundation Establishment. But in Sun Wukong's eyes this was nothing worth mentioning, and Wang Hu could only feel helpless about it. He was just an ordinary tiger. Without Sun Wukong's guidance and the effect of the flat peaches, reaching this realm would likely have taken him a hundred years.
As for Sun Wukong, he was a spiritual monkey born of heaven and earth, dating back to the time when the heavens were new. From birth he had already been at the demon king realm, and later he trained under a famous master for seven years and directly became a demon immortal. This was not something that could be compared at all.
Late at night, seeing Wang Hu sleeping soundly, Sun Wukong raised his head to look at the sky, where a shooting star streaked across. In his eyes golden light kept flickering as he murmured, "Five hundred years already. This time old Monkey absolutely cannot lose."
The next morning, when Wang Hu woke in a daze and looked up at the sky, he was shocked.
"Damn. I woke up late this morning. Monkey Brother, why didn't you wake me up?" he complained a little. By now his relationship with Sun Wukong was already very close.
But when he turned around he immediately froze. Sun Wukong at this moment was looking at him extremely seriously. Normally he was always smiling and joking. This was the first time Wang Hu had seen such a solemn expression on him.
"You must leave. If you continue staying here, it will be very dangerous," Sun Wukong said in a low voice.
"Danger? You mean Tang Sanzang?" A cold glint flashed in Wang Hu's eyes. "Or should I wait for him to come and just swallow him in one bite?"
"If you dare touch him, I will peel off your tiger skin." Sun Wukong threatened him seriously, without any hint of joking.
Wang Hu immediately felt a chill run through his entire body, goosebumps rising. It seemed that the tiger-skinning incident in Journey to the West was not unjustified at all. This monkey had already targeted it from the very beginning.
"Don't you see? I'm already wearing a golden circlet. If you eat him, I won't survive either. The golden circlet is not just a simple control artifact." Sun Wukong looked at the circlet on his own head, his gaze profound.
Wang Hu was startled, but he also began to understand. "Monkey Brother, then why are you still wearing the golden circlet?"
Sun Wukong narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them. "It's just a golden circlet. Once old Monkey gets out, there will naturally be a way to deal with it."
Wang Hu fell silent. Yes. No king is willing to accept defeat and be imprisoned here until old age and death. Even if hope was slim, Sun Wukong still chose to resist. But according to the original Journey to the West storyline, he clearly failed in that resistance.
Wang Hu sighed. Of course, he could not say this directly to Sun Wukong.
Thinking of this, he could not help but clench his fists. In that instant he was filled with an intense desire for power — a power that could change heaven and earth. Three years of living together had already formed an inseparable bond. Moreover, Sun Wukong's bold and unrestrained personality had given him hope in his most desperate moments. Naturally he did not want to see the hero in his heart eventually tormented by Buddhism into a trembling, curled-up figure.
"Monkey Brother, is there anything I can help you with? Don't be polite. Just say it."
"Of course there is something for you to do, but your current strength is still too weak. After you go down the mountain, first work on improving your strength," Sun Wukong said, rolling his eyes.
Hearing this, Wang Hu's expression immediately fell. Three years of cultivation had made it very clear to him that he was not a monstrous genius like Monkey Brother. He rolled his eyes and moved closer again.
"Monkey Brother, with me being so weak, what if I get eaten by demons after going down the mountain? How about you teach me some other skills too?"
"Hey, so you still remember my abilities?" Sun Wukong laughed. "Fine. You brat suits my liking. I will teach you the Seventy-Two Transformations."
Wang Hu immediately nodded frantically and shamelessly leaned closer. "Monkey Brother, can you also teach me the somersault cloud?"
"You little black tiger. Don't be too greedy. The somersault cloud is my personal divine ability. You may not even be able to learn it." Sun Wukong shook his head.
Wang Hu stopped being greedy and instead focused on learning the Seventy-Two Transformations with Sun Wukong. In the blink of an eye three more months passed, and finally Wang Hu fully comprehended the Seventy-Two Transformations — though compared to Sun Wukong's effortless mastery, he was still far behind. The Seventy-Two Transformations could be considered both a divine ability and a soul cultivation technique. When cultivated to the extreme, one could not only transform freely but even change heaven and earth.
Three days later, beneath the Five Elements Mountain, a tiger and a monkey faced each other. It was finally time to leave.
"Wang Hu, there are three things you should now be able to help me with. Right?" Sun Wukong spoke while winking, pretending not to care. "I also know this is somewhat difficult for you, but I have no choice. If you cannot do it, I won't blame you."
Wang Hu replied very seriously. "Don't worry, Monkey Brother. Just say it. As long as I, Wang Hu, am not dead, I will definitely do it."
"Good. Worthy of being my brother. First, go to the Western Ox Continent, find my big brother, the Bull Demon King, and deliver these things to him." Sun Wukong opened his mouth and spat out a small fan, along with a small object like a jade pendant. "Second, take a golden monkey hair from my neck and deliver it deep into the Water Curtain Cave. There will be a demon king's guardian spirit there. Just give it to him. Third, if after you complete these two tasks my journey to the west has still not begun, then come back and cooperate with me in staging a grand performance for all the heavens and gods."
Sun Wukong's eyes flashed with killing intent as he finished speaking. Then he chuckled after thinking for a moment and added, "I don't have much to give you. Take these three life-saving hairs. Each contains one of my techniques. They can save you in times of danger. All right. Go down the mountain."
Wang Hu looked back reluctantly at the place he had lived for three years, and bowed to Sun Wukong.
"Monkey Brother, I'm leaving. Don't worry. Once you get out of here, I will definitely be waiting for you outside. This journey will be difficult. You must also be careful."
Sun Wukong smiled. "Don't worry. I've survived great disasters before. In the future, even dying won't be easy for me."