Journey to the West: A clone sacrifices to the heavens, possessing boundless magical power.

At the head of the Hall of Gathering Righteousness, King Yellow Wind's face turned cold.

He picked up his wine cup, took a small sip, and said calmly, "My cave dwelling was built using the spiritual energy of the mountain range, and it's also protected by a wind-eye restriction, making it as solid as a rock. Let him curse all he wants; he'll leave when he's tired of cursing. Minions, don't pay him any mind, continue drinking!"

With the king's words, the demons had no choice but to feign composure and raise their wine cups again.

But Tiger Vanguard couldn't sit still.

He surveyed the fearful faces of the lesser demons in the front courtyard, his tiger-like eyes blazing, and roared, "A bunch of useless trash! The Great King's divine powers are unparalleled; why would he fear a mere hairy-faced monk!"

As the effects of the alcohol took hold, he abruptly stood up, clasped his hands in a fist salute to the Yellow Wind King at the head of the table, and challenged him to a duel:

"Your Majesty! That hairy-faced monk is ungrateful and dares to bring a pig's head to his death! This humble general is willing to fight again and capture that monkey and pig, skin them to make a cushion for Your Majesty, and pull out their tendons to make a belt for Your Majesty!"

King Yellow Wind glanced at him, and seeing his high fighting spirit, smiled and nodded: "Good! Since the vanguard has such ambition, I grant it. Go, and do not tarnish the prestige of Yellow Wind Ridge!"

"Your subordinate obeys!" Tiger Vanguard's voice boomed like a bell.

"Pass on my order! Gather fifty elite soldiers and follow me out of the cave to capture that scoundrel and present him to the King!"

At his command, the atmosphere in the front courtyard changed instantly. Although the fear had not dissipated, Tiger Vanguard's ferocity overwhelmed everything.

Fifty of the tallest and most powerful demon soldiers quickly assembled, each clad in armor and wielding weapons, exuding a murderous aura.

Tiger Vanguard returned to the inner courtyard and reappeared a moment later.

At this moment, he was fully armored, with a sword at his waist and a heavy bronze broadsword in his hand, looking majestic and invincible.

"My minions, open the cave door! Follow me into battle!"

He led his troops out of the cave in a grand procession, heading straight for the east of the ridge.

After they left, the stone gate slammed shut again, separating the inside from the outside into two worlds.

The leopard-headed demon general who remained behind immediately began to redeploy defenses, raising the alert level of the entire Yellow Wind Cave to an unprecedented level.

"You, you, and you..." The demon general pointed at the ranks of demon soldiers, "All of you, be alert! Guard the key points, or I'll cut off your heads!"

Huang Mao'er was also called upon and was assigned to a temporary guard team. His task was to guard a flank of the passageway leading from the front courtyard to the inner core.

Huang Mao gripped his spear tightly, standing quietly at his post, awaiting news of Tiger Vanguard's death.

The demon soldiers in the front courtyard had long lost their composure. They craned their necks and peered toward the gate, their faces filled with tension and unease.

After an unknown amount of time, a crack suddenly opened beneath the tightly closed black stone gate.

"What happened? Are you done fighting?"

"Who won? Was it Grandpa Vanguard?"

Just as the demons were speculating, a demon soldier covered in blood squeezed in through the crack in the door. As soon as he entered the cave, he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

"Vanguard...Vanguard Grandpa...has lost!"

"Grandpa Vanguard's fake body... was reduced to ashes by that monkey's staff! His true form was exposed the moment it was revealed, but that pig-headed guy... saw right through it!"

The demon soldier's eyes reflected the horrific scene outside the cave.

"That pig-headed monk's nine-toothed rake... landed solidly... on Grandpa Vanguard's back!"

"Grandpa Vanguard's protective demonic aura shattered like paper! Blood...blood gushed out like a fountain...he...he screamed, and...he revealed his true form..."

A magnificent tiger lay dying in a pool of blood.

"Finally...finally..." The demon soldier seemed to recall something even more terrifying, and his whole body trembled violently. "Grandpa Vanguard risked his life...spitting out his inner core...wanting...wanting to self-destruct, to take that pig-headed man down with him..."

"But...but that monkey...he...he only hit it with a stick...from a distance..."

"Grandpa Vanguard's inner core... was right in mid-air... and he blasted it apart... it exploded into... a cloud of blood mist..."

Fan Yuan understood that Tiger Vanguard's Golden Cicada Shedding its Shell was essentially a combination of an illusion and an aura simulation technique, which required the caster to consume their own essence and soul.

It is extremely difficult to use this technique multiple times in a short period of time, and there will inevitably be a very brief fluctuation at the moment when the true body and the false body switch auras.

This flaw might fool ordinary demons, but it could never fool Sun Wukong's fiery eyes, nor could it fool Zhu Bajie, the former Marshal Tianpeng who once commanded the Heavenly River Navy.

This skill is fine for escaping, but to think you can use it to turn the tide of battle is nothing short of wishful thinking.

Fan Yuan never focused on it. Compared to the Samadhi Divine Wind, which originated from the lamp oil in front of the Buddha and contained Taoist charm, this Golden Cicada Shedding its Shell was nothing more than a heretical method.

……

At this moment, the exclamations and incredulous cries inside the Hall of Righteousness completely washed away the false atmosphere of the previous banquet.

The once orderly cave dwelling was now in complete chaos.

Those low-level demons scurried around like headless flies. Some even tried to escape deeper into the cave, but were blocked by other equally panicked demon soldiers and squeezed together.

Those middle-level leaders who usually acted arrogantly were now pale-faced. They tried to maintain order, but their voices were quickly drowned out by the huge wave of panic, and not a single demon obeyed their orders.

Yellow Hair's gaze swept past the chaos and landed once again on the entrance to the passageway leading to the core area.

The two black-armored demon generals still stood in place like gatekeepers, but their bodies were no longer as stable as before.

Their faces were extremely pale, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief. They exchanged glances frequently, their hands gripping their weapons, veins bulging.

Clearly, the death of Tiger Vanguard, the sudden fall of the number two figure in Huangfeng Cave, brought them a huge psychological shock, and their defenses began to waver at this moment.

Just as the chaos reached its peak, a roar filled with rage suddenly erupted from the depths of the Hall of Gathering Righteousness:

"waste!"

"My beloved general has been killed!!!"

It's the voice of the Yellow Wind King!

The voice no longer carried its previous composure; it was now filled with rage and fury.

"Reveal my royal decree!"

The Yellow Wind King's voice rang out again, "From this moment forward, close the cave entrance tightly and activate all restrictions! All lesser demons, return to your positions and increase vigilance! Without my order, no one is to move an inch!"

"I, the King, will personally take action and use my Samadhi Divine Wind to reduce those audacious monkey and pig-headed beasts to dust, avenging my Tiger Vanguard!"