That was the largest, tallest tower Ye Jingyu had ever seen; he couldn't possibly estimate its height. Even the Jianmu he had witnessed was not so tall, not so massive. Compared to this tower, Ye Jingyu felt like a speck of dust on a planet—utterly insignificant. Was this the true divine power of Tongtian?

It wasn't just Ye Jingyu; even the Monkey King was wearing an expression of sheer awe. Facing the rapidly approaching Tongtian Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, he could no longer afford to tangle with the Three Pure Ones. The Battling Sage Buddha, Wukong the Daoist, both returned to his true form. With a single somersault, he covered tens of thousands of miles, yet he was still completely enveloped by the tower's structure. By the time he performed several more somersaults, the Tongtian Pagoda had already descended directly upon him, crushing him beneath its base, while the Three Pure Ones vanished from sight.

Sun Wukong instantly felt as though he had been transported to another dimension—a boundless, endless space. Yet, defiance burned in his eyes. He drew out the Ruyi Jingu Bang and plunged it directly into the ground beneath his feet, chanting incantations under his breath. The golden staff began to grow—longer, taller, ever larger, ever higher. But the Tongtian Pagoda grew in tandem: for every inch the Jingu Bang extended, the Pagoda rose a foot; for every foot the staff grew, the Pagoda soared ten feet. Sun Wukong’s plan to prop open the Tongtian Demon-Suppressing Pagoda with his staff was utterly defeated.

Seeing this, Sun Wukong frantically scratched the back of his head, his eyes flashing with golden light. For a moment, he could not conceive of a solution. His combat strength was in no way inferior to Tongtian’s, but his mastery of divine techniques was lacking. Facing Tongtian’s colossal tower, he was completely helpless.

“Monkey head, do you yield?” At that moment, Tongtian’s voice echoed within the tower.

The Monkey King was the last creature in existence to admit defeat. Even when Laozi imprisoned him in the Alchemic Furnace, or when the Buddha suppressed him beneath Five Elements Mountain for five centuries, he had never conceded. How could he yield now? Yet, there was no way to break out in the short term. His face was etched with frustration, but he remained silent.

“Brother Tongtian, you know the Great Sage’s temperament. Please do not make things difficult for him!” Having witnessed the might of the Tongtian Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, Ye Jingyu understood that Sun Wukong would not emerge anytime soon. Asking him to surrender was merely wishful thinking. This whole ordeal might drag on indefinitely, and they still had major enemies and crucial tasks ahead. They could not afford to be stalled like this.

“Heh heh heh…” Tongtian chuckled softly, realizing this was hardly the moment for obstinacy. With a casual grasp, the Tongtian Demon-Suppressing Pagoda vanished without a trace, revealing the Monkey King’s true form.

The Monkey King glanced at Ye Jingyu, then at Tongtian, before suddenly cupping his hands in a gesture toward Tongtian and declaring, “This Old Sun admits defeat!”

Hearing Sun Wukong actually utter the words of concession, both Ye Jingyu and Tongtian were visibly stunned. When had this monkey changed his nature? He had previously preferred death over admitting loss. Had he contracted a fever?

Or perhaps they were hallucinating? But looking again at the Monkey King, despite the dissatisfaction clouding his features, his eyes held genuine sincerity; he truly seemed to have conceded.

“Hahahaha, Great Sage, you are too kind. This humble Daoist has cultivated for countless years; I merely had an advantage in time!” Upon hearing the Monkey King admit defeat, the knot of pride in Tongtian’s chest dissolved completely. A surge of joy washed over him. Even his Eldest Martial Brother couldn't force an admission from the Monkey back then, yet Tongtian had earned it from him. The thought that he had surpassed his Eldest Martial Brother in this regard filled Tongtian with inexpressible contentment.

What he said was, in fact, the truth. Tongtian existed long before Pangu split the heavens and the earth; he was a being of primordial existence. He had achieved the Saintly body before Sun Wukong was even born. For the Monkey King to push him to such lengths already demonstrated incredible power.

“Lost is lost; it’s not the end of the world. This Old Sun is not one to renege on a debt… but next time, I will certainly defeat you,” Sun Wukong grumbled under his breath.

“Hahahaha, if the Great Sage wishes it, this humble Daoist is ready to accompany you anytime…” Tongtian laughed heartily. Addressing him as ‘Great Sage’ rather than ‘Monkey Head’ signaled Tongtian’s acceptance; he was now treating Sun Wukong as an equal.

Seeing that neither party showed signs of continuing the fight, Ye Jingyu finally relaxed. Before this, he had intended to spar with Tongtian himself, but now he understood that with his current cultivation, engaging Tongtian would only result in him being tossed around at will, unless he had the Eastern Emperor Bell or the Twelve Ancestral Witches Extinction Array in hand.

The three emerged from that realm together. Tongtian was radiant, while the Monkey King trudged along, dejected. Although he knew that losing to Tongtian, whose cultivation was profound, wasn't shameful, the feeling of being defeated still soured his mood. The concept of 'glory in defeat' held no appeal for the Monkey King.

When Liang Xiaoke and the others saw that Tongtian had bested the Monkey King, they were overjoyed. After all, their Master had won, which brought them honor. However, their gaze toward the Monkey King shifted from dissatisfaction to deep reverence. How many beings in the Three Realms could push Tongtian to such an extreme?

The group returned to Tongtian Mountain. Tongtian naturally began to preach his doctrine, and the Monkey King also entered seclusion. From the battle with Tongtian, he had grasped countless profound insights. Liang Xiaoke and Ye Jingyu intended to seize this opportunity to advance their own cultivation, but Ye Jingyu still had a grand wedding to prepare; he had no time for secluded practice.

As for Ye Jingyu, having resolved his inner conflict, he now had to embrace responsibility. He certainly could not let down a devastating beauty like Yaorao.

In Cloud Capital City, the Zhenguo Mansion stood closest to the Imperial Palace—an estate that Luo Ruofeng had reserved for Ye Jingyu. From the outside, it appeared modest, but inside, countless spatial folds had been compressed, allowing a small mansion to house hundreds of thousands of people. One could only imagine the sheer magnitude of its internal space.

Inside the great hall of this estate, Ye Jingyu sat upon his seat. To his right was Luo Ling’er, and Jiufeng sat to his left. Xiyang stood obediently behind him, massaging his back.

Given the robustness of his physical body, Ye Jingyu suffered no rheumatism or aches. Furthermore, Xiyang’s massage technique was far from gentle. Her eyes constantly darted toward Yaorao, who sat opposite Ye Jingyu, sparking a fire within her. The force she applied to the massage was hardly that of gentle kneading—it was closer to beating a drum. Fortunately, Ye Jingyu’s physique was incredibly resilient; he barely noticed, and in fact, had to subtly shield Xiyang’s small hands with his own power to prevent her from injuring herself from applying too much pressure.

So, he's taking a few more wives? Jiufeng and Ling'er don't object. Why are you making such a fuss?

(Four hundred more Gold Bricks to break the 30,000 record, brothers, one more push! Two more chapters coming this afternoon!)