Singing with a Sword

The following is the main text of the novel "{?$article_title?}" ({?$jieqi_title?}) provided by {?$jieqi_sitename?}. Please enjoy! Master Xue, however, remained calm, looking at Meng Da and coldly saying, "I hired you to protect me, not the other way around. I hope you understand that. Therefore, how many of your people die is none of my concern; I only need to pay you your commission."

Meng Da was furious. These guys were greedy, especially him and Lao Mo. But they valued brotherhood even more!

"You—" Meng Da had barely uttered a word when Old Mo covered his mouth, glaring at him fiercely. You brat, you really don't know what's good for you. If you keep talking back to this Master Xue, you'll only end up dead!

Meng Da's eyes were still filled with resentment, and he wanted to rush over and fight Master Xue to the death. Old Mo immediately whispered in his ear, "If you rush over and get killed by Master Xue, then I will also rush over without hesitation to avenge you, and then I will be killed by Master Xue! Then, one by one, the brothers will rush over to fight him, and then what? One by one, they will die!"

Old Mo glared at Meng Da and continued, "Do you want us all to die because of your impulsiveness?" Upon hearing this, Meng Da finally calmed down.

At this moment, Master Xue said calmly, "Have you finished speaking? If so, then hurry on your way." Old Mo replied, "Master Xue, we'll be on our way now."

Meng Da glanced at Master Xue again, then fell behind the group once more, walking alongside Yi Ranxiao. Yi Ranxiao's goodwill towards Meng Da grew, and she offered him a few words of comfort. Meng Da wasn't a fool; after calming down, he understood. Being a mercenary was inherently dangerous. Otherwise, why would his family have tried to stop him from doing this?

After walking for about another hour, a glimmer of light finally appeared in the darkness in the distance. A white dot gradually grew larger, and that was the entrance to the cave.

Old Mo was the first to step out of the cave. His eyes suddenly lit up, and a feeling of sudden enlightenment welled up inside him. Looking around, the valley was covered with lush trees, a verdant paradise.

One by one, everyone came out, and they were all attracted by the beautiful scenery. They looked around, admiring the view and breathing in the fresh air. This white desert was truly a hidden paradise!

"Everyone be careful. The book says this valley is a dangerous place. Beware of all kinds of monsters and aggressive plants," Old Mo reminded them at the right time.

Immediately afterwards, a group of people began searching for the Divine Monkey with Connected Toes. Yi Ranxiao increasingly felt that his opportunity was drawing ever closer.

“It is said that the mythical monkey with its toes together lives in places with water, so let’s find a water source,” Master Xue said, his blood-red eyes scanning the surroundings.

The Blood Bat clan is a clan specializing in pupil techniques, and their vision is far superior to that of ordinary cultivators. Upon looking at the waterfall, Master Blood spotted a massive waterfall in the distance to the east, with no other water source in sight. He then led the group towards the waterfall.

Beneath the enormous waterfall lies a small lake, but this is not the most captivating feature. The most striking element is a stone statue in the center of the lake, depicting a Taoist priest. Strangely, this priest has eighteen arms, nine on each side.

Others might not recognize who the sculpture depicts, but Yi Ranxiao knew it must be Zhunti Daoist! But who placed the statue of Zhunti Daoist in such a place? And why in such a place? Is there some connection between Zhunti Daoist and this valley?

Still puzzled, Xiao was looking at the waterfall and the small lake when Old Mo said, "Master Xue, could it be that this 'Symphony with Toes' lives in the lake? No way, how could a monkey live in water?" He paused, then looked at the statue and guessed, "Could the monkey be hiding inside the statue?"

Master Xue, however, secretly focused his attention, staring intently at the small lake. His gaze dipped deep into the water, but he didn't spot a single monkey. Then, he looked at the statue of Daoist Zhunti, but found nothing unusual. Finally, he looked at the waterfall.

"Huh!" Master Xue exclaimed in surprise, "There's a cave behind the waterfall! Master, that unicorn monkey must be hiding inside the cave!"

"Master" was naturally the title used to address Di Bai in front of outsiders. Upon hearing this, Di Bai was overjoyed. Master Xue continued to stare at the waterfall, straining his gaze to see into the dark depths of the cave, but it was too dark inside. "Master, it's too dark inside the cave. We can't see clearly. It seems we have no choice but to go inside."

Old Mo was stumped. "Master Xue, where is that cave located near the waterfall?" Master Xue replied, "It's about fifty meters above the lake." Old Mo frowned and said, "That's so high, we can't get up there."

Master Xue smiled slightly, and two wings suddenly appeared on his back. He then lightly rose into the air, flew towards the waterfall, and plunged into it, entering the cave.

Old Mo and the others were quite surprised. This Master Xue was truly unfathomable; he was actually a winged person! He could actually fly! They didn't know that the Blood Bat Clan's true form was a bat, and it would be strange if they didn't have wings.

A moment later, a thick, long rope shot out from the waterfall and landed at the feet of the people on the shore. Master Xue's voice came from behind the waterfall: "Hold on to the rope, I'll pull you in."

Everyone did as instructed and was pulled into the cave by Master Xue. Even Di Bai went in. The emperor's favorite saying was that he had to do everything himself.

This cave is about the same size as the previous one, and what they have in common is that it's so dark you can't see your hand in front of your face.

“Although I still can’t see into the depths of this cave, I can sense that the Divine Monkey with its Toes Together is not far away!” Master Xue said excitedly, then said to the eight servants, “Be careful to protect the master!”

Eight servants responded and moved around Debai, protecting his vitals.

Yi Ranxiao remained at the very back, her sense of destiny growing stronger, as if it were sitting right in front of her, beckoning her. And just then—

"careful!"

Old Mo, who was walking at the front, shouted a warning, when suddenly ten fireballs flew from the depths of the cave. But these ten fireballs were not aimed at the group; instead, they flew towards the cave walls. There were ten torches on the walls, which were lit one by one by the ten fireballs, and in an instant, the cave was brightly lit.

Everyone's eyes lit up as they spotted a group of monkeys a hundred meters away. The monkey in the center was incredibly domineering, sitting on the back of another monkey, treating its own kind like a chair! Besides that, this domineering monkey had its legs crossed, holding a small monkey in its hand, kneading and pulling it like a toy, causing the cute little monkey to grimace in pain, looking over with teary eyes.

Everyone was both amused and exasperated by this scene. The domineering monkey, however, coldly stared at them and asked, "Who are you people?"

Master Xue and Di Bai were overjoyed at the same time—this monkey could actually talk! Looking at its feet, sure enough, the second and third toes were joined together—webbed! There was no mistake, it was indeed the Webbed Monkey!

"The Monkey King with Toes! The Monkey King with Toes!" Di Bai shouted several times, disregarding his image. "Quickly, capture it for me!" In his excitement, he accidentally let slip the secret.

Old Mo and the others looked at Di Bai in surprise, about to ask a question, when they heard the closing-toe divine monkey say arrogantly, "Oh, another bunch of foolish humans trying to capture this great king. Hmph, today I'll show you!" After saying that, he threw the little monkey in his hand behind him, and then actually formed a hand seal!

Suddenly, six metal giants, each five meters tall, emerged from the ground in front of him!

"They're puppets! This monkey can actually use puppetry! Good heavens!" Master Xue looked at the six metal puppets opposite him with great interest.

The mercenaries immediately drew their bows and arrows, aiming one after another at the gaps between the metal figures, aiming straight for the clasped-toe monkey behind them!

Dibai exclaimed in alarm, "Don't you dare harm my unicorn monkey!"

But he didn't need to worry; under the control of the Monkey King, the six metal giants immediately waved their hands, blocking the entire rain of arrows! At the same moment, the Monkey King controlled a metal giant to rush over at lightning speed!

"What, your monkey with unicorn hooves? I, the Great King, will kill you!"

Master Xue's expression tightened; this puppet of the clasped-toe monkey was incredibly powerful! Far superior to the giants in the cave!

"Barrier, protect His Majesty!" Master Xue said to the eight people, who immediately formed a hand seal, and a transparent shield enveloped Di Bai.

In this way, Master Xue could fight the Divine Monkey with all his might. "Today, I, Xue Wuyai, will test the skills of the Divine Monkey with its toes joined together." After saying this, two blood-red beams of light burst forth from his eyes, several times stronger than those he had shown before!

call out!call out!

The crimson light struck the metal man's torso in the blink of an eye. With a clang, the metal man was jolted back several steps, but it was not pierced through!

hard!

The remaining five metal men had already attacked Lao Mo and the others. Lao Mo swung his heavy sword at the metal men, slashing down on their heads again, but this time, the metal men were completely unharmed!

Old Mo was stunned! Damn it, even the best iron armor in the army would break after taking this heavy sword strike, but the metal man in front of him was completely unharmed!

"Don't engage the metal man in a prolonged battle. Look for an opportunity to attack the Monkey King controlling him!" Master Blood warned. The best way to deal with puppetry is to subdue the puppeteer!

At this moment, the wings on Master Blood's back reappeared, stretching out to a length of about five or six meters. Beneath the wings, a black object flew towards the metal man—a swarm of blood bats! Blood-red eyes and sharp fangs! They flew through the gaps between the metal men, trying to break through their defenses and attack the Gami behind them.

The monkey with its toes chuckled, "Don't even think about succeeding!" Immediately, six metal figures shifted their forms and stood in front of it, their arms moving even faster.

The blood bats simply can't get through!