Chapter 21

Covering an area of several dozen miles, the entire valley came into view. This was clearly not just an open field but a valley.

At the bottom of the valley, the trees were lush and dense, and the sounds of screeching and chattering echoed from the towering ancient forest, indicating that countless iron-armed monkeys lived there.

The cliffs surrounding the entire valley were covered with various vines, making it easy to imagine that the monkeys used them to move up and down the valley.

Screech!

A series of urgent calls came, and Li Chen looked down, feeling dizzy and disoriented for a moment before regaining his composure.

He saw two black iron-armed monkeys, a few dozen feet away, grabbing the vines and waving at him, signaling him to come down.

"Want me to come down?"

Li Chen pointed at his nose, then at the ground below, his face full of apprehension.

Screech!

The two iron-armed monkeys nodded vigorously, waving their arms rapidly, as if urging him.

"Let's go for it!"

Seeing the look in the monkeys' eyes, Li Chen felt they were mocking him. His blood boiled, and he gritted his teeth, flipping down and grabbing the vines to slide down.

At first, he was trembling, moving like a turtle, but as he gradually descended, he found it wasn't as difficult as he had imagined. After a few more attempts, he finally gained the courage to climb down more confidently.

His arm strength was excellent, and the vines were extremely sturdy, easily supporting the weight of a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old boy.

In just a few moments, Li Chen stood on the ground with the two iron-armed monkeys, shaking his slightly sore arms and following the two monkeys deeper into the valley.

Perhaps due to the abundant moisture at the bottom of the valley, the ancient trees were particularly lush, and looking up, one could hardly see much sunlight.

Before long, they arrived at a stone forest where countless iron-armed monkeys were jumping around, curiously examining him.

Li Chen, somewhat uneasy, followed the two black iron-armed monkeys to a small cave entrance.

He wrinkled his nose slightly, and his eyes lit up. The air was filled with a thick, fragrant aroma, which he had initially missed due to his nervousness.

Following the two monkeys into the cave, Li Chen's eyes widened. On a large rock inside the cave, there were various rare and precious fruits, ranging from low-grade to high-grade first-tier fruits.

Seeing this, Li Chen's heart finally settled. It seemed that these seemingly fierce monkeys were inviting him to a feast!

With this thought, Li Chen's courage grew. He walked to a large rock and reached out to grab a fruit.

Screech!

Before he could put the fruit in his mouth, two sharp screeches startled him, causing him to shiver and drop the fruit to the ground.

Li Chen, quick to react, cursed under his breath and swiftly caught the fruit, placing it back on the stone.

Turning around, he saw a small, gray, unremarkable iron-armed monkey, with a stick in its hand, emerging from a corner of the cave.

Beside it, the injured golden-lashed monkey was limping along.

Li Chen was initially not too concerned, but when he noticed the warning calls from the two black iron-armed monkeys, he was suddenly alarmed. His pupils narrowed sharply as he looked at the gray iron-armed monkey.

This was not an ordinary gray iron-armed monkey. Its emaciated body, dull fur, and cloudy eyes, along with the walking stick, all indicated that it was an old monkey in its twilight years.

Huh!

Seemingly noticing Li Chen's surprise, the old monkey suddenly let out a strange cry, baring its toothless gums in a grin, and a glint of wisdom flashed in its cloudy eyes.

For a moment, Li Chen was startled by his own thoughts. Although he had heard that high-tier beasts had intelligence and that powerful beasts could even transform into human form with intelligence equal to humans, how could a first-tier iron-armed monkey have such intelligence?

But... he had clearly seen the smile and wisdom in the old monkey's eyes!

"Could it be... it has become a spirit?"

With this thought, Li Chen followed the old monkey's gesture and sat on a stone stool in front of the large rock.

Huh!

The old monkey grinned, frequently gesturing.

Facing this old spirit, Li Chen felt extremely uneasy, unsure of what to do. The golden-lashed monkey, using all its strength, climbed onto the large rock and limped over to pick up a few fruits, offering them to the old monkey.

Unexpectedly, the old monkey pushed it away and pointed at Li Chen, indicating that the guest should eat first.

Seeing the small monkey hand the fruits to him, Li Chen awkwardly smiled and started eating the fruits.

These fruits were not ordinary; each had unique effects. Although they tasted excellent, Li Chen did not dare to eat too many.

He was not afraid of poison but knew that with his cultivation, he could not consume so many fruits rich in elemental energy. If he forced himself to eat more, the concentrated energy would surely rupture his meridians and kill him.

"Um... Old Sir... Monkey Sir, thank you for the hospitality, but I have matters to attend to and won't disturb you further!"

Feeling uneasy, Li Chen stood up, having eaten only a few fruits, and spoke the words he had been rehearsing in his mind.

Huh!

The old monkey's face broke into a smile, which looked strangely eerie given its aged appearance. It patted the large rock a few times.

Li Chen, with his sharp eyes, noticed the two black iron-armed monkeys exchange glances, revealing reluctance. They only left after the old monkey's stern look and repeated urging.

When they returned, they were holding a bamboo tube about a foot long. Even though the mouth was sealed with a wooden plug, Li Chen could smell a special aroma of alcohol from a distance.

The alcohol was not harsh at all but made him feel relaxed and comfortable. At that moment, Li Chen felt the internal energy in his meridians stir.

The two black iron-armed monkeys placed the bamboo tube on the large rock and glared at Li Chen, as if he had taken something extremely precious from the monkey clan.

Huh!

The old monkey pointed at the bamboo tube, then at Li Chen, and mimed drinking with its hand.

"Give it to me?"

Li Chen's eyes lit up, pointing at himself.

When the old monkey nodded again, Li Chen could no longer resist the urge. He grabbed the bamboo tube, removed the wooden plug, and took a big sip.

A few drops trickled down his chin, making the two iron-armed monkeys scratch their heads and ears, but they did not dare to act rashly with the old monkey nearby.

"Good alcohol!"

The taste was sweet and spicy, yet smooth, and Li Chen immediately praised it.

However, his face suddenly turned red as he felt a surge of heat in his abdomen, a result of the powerful elemental energy.

Li Chen never imagined that the alcohol in the bamboo tube was a monkey wine passed down through generations of the iron-armed monkey clan, made from eighty-one types of rare fruits. It was a top-tier first-tier spirit wine.

Even a high-grade Qi-Gathering Pill could not match the concentration of elemental energy in a single sip of this wine. Only the rarest high-grade Qi-Gathering Pills could slightly surpass it, but in terms of various effects, they fell short.

The old monkey was startled by his drinking method and tried to stop him, but it was too late.

Falling to the ground with a thud, Li Chen struggled to suppress the boiling blood and rampant elemental energy in his body. He desperately circulated the *Fusion of the Sun Technique* to try to refine the uncontrolled elemental energy.