Chapter 17 Telling the Titan Ape the story of the Monkey King? Your strength is at best that of a monkey's grandson!
"Why haven't you found the third spirit ring yet?"
As Xiao Wu dismounted from the Titan Ape's shoulder, she sensed Ye Tianchen's presence and her eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"Although Sanpao is a useless martial soul, it is a useless martial soul mutated from Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. Therefore, only dragon or sub-dragon soul beasts are suitable for it. Dragon-type soul beasts are rare and not easy to find. Moreover, I have my own requirements."
Ye Tianchen spread his palms, his face also showing a hint of helplessness.
"I'm leaving."
Ye Tianchen's explanation eased Xiao Wu's brows slightly. After a moment of silence, Xiao Wu suddenly spoke.
"So you've come to say goodbye?"
Ye Tianchen looked puzzled.
"Yes and no, I just want to remind you of a few things. The most dangerous thing in the Star Dou Forest is not the soul beasts, but humans. Er Ming will protect your safety, but he will not become your servant. You must grow up as quickly as possible, only in this way will you not let down Da Ming's sacrifice."
Xiao Wu spoke at length, but received no response from Ye Tianchen. When she looked up at him, she saw a hint of pity in his eyes.
"I don't know how to calculate the age of a soul beast, but according to human age, you are only in your prime. You must be carrying so much on your shoulders, it must be very hard for you, right?"
Ye Tianchen reached out and stroked Xiao Wu's scorpion braid. Xiao Wu's incessant nagging just now reminded him of his nagging mother in his previous life. Her fragile shoulders had once supported the entire family.
Xiao Wu stood there like a statue, her red eyes fixed on Ye Tianchen. Only after her vision blurred and tears streamed down her face did she belatedly realize what was happening and abruptly turn around.
"I'm leaving! Remember what I said, next time... next time I come back, I want to see you stronger."
She wiped her face with her soft hands, but the more she wiped, the more tears she shed. Xiao Wu didn't know what was wrong with her; she only felt that Ye Tianchen's words and eyes had pierced the softest part of her heart.
The Titan Ape rose and left again. A crystal-clear drop seemed to slide down from the air. Ye Tianchen raised his hand and reached out. A wet drop spread across his palm.
He didn't know what was wrong with him just now; he just thought about it subconsciously and then said it out loud.
"Forget it, let's not think about it anymore. Let's go, Sanpao, and continue looking for soul rings."
Ye Tianchen gently stroked the swollen lump on Luo Sanpao's head, then turned and walked into the jungle.
...
"Brother Ox, save your energy. We still need to storm the Jade Emperor's palace and sit on his throne..."
Ye Tianchen told the story vividly, and the Titan Ape squatted beside him, listening intently. When it got excited, it looked up at the sky and roared, snapping off a towering tree next to it and swinging it around vigorously.
"Brother Tianchen, what kind of soul beast is the Monkey King?"
After releasing its pent-up energy, the Titan Ape returned to calm, though its golden, round eyes held a hint of urgency as it looked at Ye Tianchen.
"How can a soul beast be used to describe the Monkey King? It has long been at the level of a god or immortal."
The Titan Ape did not know what immortals were, but it knew what gods were.
"A god? That must be at least a million-year-old soul beast! I never imagined my clan had such a powerful and charming ancestor. It's decided! I, the Titan Ape, will become the Handsome Ape King! Brother Tianchen, you should also cultivate to become a god quickly. When you revive my elder brother, I can replicate my ancestor with him and fight our way to the God Realm!"
The Titan Ape's golden, round eyes were filled with longing. When it got excited, it grabbed a tree trunk and started wreaking havoc on the surrounding bushes.
"Then you'll have to work hard. I don't mean to discourage you, but if you calculate your current strength, it's probably only..."
Ye Tianchen frowned slightly, lost in thought.
"What kind of strength? Does he even have a tenth of the Monkey King's strength?!"
The Titan Ape stopped what it was doing, its face showing a human-like expectation.
It is currently a 100,000-year-old soul beast, while the Monkey King is a god, equivalent to a million-year-old soul beast. After its brain calculates, it naturally believes that it possesses one-tenth of the Monkey King's strength.
"One-tenth? You're dreaming. With one-tenth of your strength, you would have already broken through the God Realm. Do you still remember the monkeys of Flower Fruit Mountain? With your current strength, you're not even close to being a monkey, just a monkey's grandson."
Ye Tianchen stroked his chin, assessing the Titan Ape's strength.
"Monkey's grandson... that's fine too! As long as they're related to my ancestor!"
The Titan Ape initially looked somewhat surprised, but then it became happy again.
"Alright, to find out what happens next, stay tuned for the next installment. That's all for today's story. I need to continue my search for my third spirit ring."
Ye Tianchen patted the dry leaves off his bottom and stood up.
"Aren't you going to tell the story anymore? What happened next?"
Although it didn't know what "interruption" meant, Ye Tianchen's sudden interruption left it scratching its head, feeling stuck and unsure of what to do next.
"We'll talk about the rest tomorrow. I'm in a hurry to break through. Besides, don't you want to become the Handsome Ape King? Why don't you hurry up and cultivate? Otherwise, how will you replicate your powerful and charming ancestor?"
Ye Tianchen patted the Titan Ape's paw, signaling it to calm down.
"But... Brother Tianchen, what kind of dragon-type soul beast do you want? I'll help you find one."
Seeing that Ye Tianchen was not going to continue, the Titan Ape simply changed its approach.
"What, you're planning to help me find it? Have you forgotten what your sister Xiaowu said?"
Ye Tianchen chuckled as he looked at the Titan Ape.
"Sister Xiaowu only said I shouldn't act rashly, but she didn't say I couldn't help you find soul beasts. At worst, I won't act. Just tell me what kind of soul beast you want."
Driven by the impatience of keeping up with the latest episodes, even the Titan Ape has learned to use its brain.
"A dragon-type soul beast with both earth and lightning elements."
"Dual earth and lightning elemental?"
Hearing Ye Tianchen's words, the Titan Ape was also in a dilemma. Now it finally understood why Ye Tianchen had been unable to find a suitable spirit ring for so long.
"What, is it difficult?"
Seeing the human-like predicament on the Titan Ape's face, Ye Tianchen realized that his inability to find a suitable spirit ring for so long was not necessarily due to bad luck.
"It's not just difficult, it's basically... impossible. I remember my elder brother saying that dragon-type soul beasts, apart from those extremely rare attributes such as holy, spatial, and temporal, all have some lightning attribute. Like my elder brother, he has both water and lightning attributes. However, there is one attribute that, not to mention dragon-type soul beasts, has never been compatible with lightning attribute in any other type of soul beast, and that is the earth attribute."
"Why?"
The Titan Ape's words made Ye Tianchen ponder deeply, while also leaving him somewhat puzzled.
"That's because earth and lightning are completely opposite attributes. One represents stability and the other represents destruction. For lightning-attribute soul power, earth represents stagnation. Think about it: the soul power flowing in your body needs to flow rapidly in one direction and flow smoothly in the other. What would happen if you forced it to flow?"
[end of the chapter]