Lily and Issei were about to descend to the Heavenly Domain when David reached out to grab their arms.
"Wait," David said. "Don't go."
"Shut up, Old Coot!" Lily protested. "I don't care if Lugh is your friend. I'll beat the crap out of him!"
"David, let me go," Issei said without turning his head to look at his friend. He had already decided to battle it out with Lugh and make him pay for his arrogance.
"I understand that the two of you are angry, but if you go, this will only escalate into a brawl between Gods," David replied firmly. "If one of you goes down there right now, the rest of the Righteous Faction will follow. It will not just be a two-on-one, a quarter of the Gods in the Temple will become involved as well.
"So?" Issei asked back. This time he turned around to face David. "So what if this becomes a full-blown brawl? If they send a hundred, I'll stab a hundred. If they send a thousand, I'll stab a thousand."
David sighed, but his grip on the arms of his two friends remained firm. "This is a critical time for William. Just wait for a while."
"Wait? Wait for what?" Lily stomped her foot angrily. "Wait for him to get ganged up on?"
The Loli Goddess was one of the most adorable Gods in the Temple, but when she got angry, she was like a fearless honey badger that would even attack a lion.
"Please, for William's sake, trust me," David replied. "If you go down there, he will miss a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Issei frowned, but didn't make a move to pry off David's hands from his arm. He glanced at the red-headed boy as he gripped the dagger in his hand more firmly.
"Ten minutes," Issei stated. "If nothing happens in ten minutes, I'm going down there."
David nodded. "Okay. Just wait ten minutes."
Lily snorted, but she had already summoned a candy cane in her hand. Since Issei had compromised, she would also do the same. However, after ten minutes, even if David pleaded, she would go down to the Heavenly Domain and smack Lugh's face using the candy cane in her hand.
The King held the winecup in his hand and remained completely still. He looked at the battlefield as if remembering a time in the distant past.
A past when the worlds were still at war with each other and the Gods looked down on mortals and immortals alike.
-----
When the first Celestial Knights descended from the sky, Zhu roared and waved the Nine-Toothed Rake in his hand to create a tornado. The flying Knights were sucked up along with the soldiers on the ground.
Zhu may be a Pig Demon right now, and devoid of most of his Divinity, but he was once a Great General of the Heavenly Army that served under the Jade Emperor. He still had aces under his sleeves and a hundred Gold Knights would not be able to defeat him.
"Can you move, William?" Sha asked.
"Yes," William replied. "Sorry for including you and Zhu in this mess."
Sha snorted as he faced the Army that was nearing their location. "This Army will not let any of us go, so I say we charge our way forward."
"I agree, Brother." Zhu grinned. "This scene reminds me of the time when we fought those monsters from the abyss. My blood is boiling! Oink!"
Sha chuckled because he remembered the event that Zhu was talking about. Indeed, that battle was an unforgettable one because the odds were not in their favor. Even so, Zhu and him were able to escape it with their lives and make their way back to the Heavenly Palace to receive their punishment from the Emperor.
"Listen, William. We will pave the path for you," Sha declared. "Don't worry about us. Just focus on reaching that gate. Do you understand?"
"Yes," William answered with determination. Since Zhu and Sha were willing to help him, he wouldn't reject their offer. He just channeled his aura in his wooden staff and prepared himself to fight to the death.
"Go!" Zhu roared as he took the lead as the vanguard. He waved his rake left and right and sent the Celestial Knights flying as if they were dry leaves that were being cleaned up by the rake in his hand. Suddenly, everything became dark as millions of arrows flew in their direction.
Sha roared and summoned the sand from the jug behind his back, to form a dome of earth to protect them from the rain of arrows. The arrows embedded themselves in the moving dome, making it look like a giant porcupine, but the three under it were unharmed.
A few seconds later, Sha dispelled the Earth Dome and manipulated the sand to swirl around them. They looked at the tens of thousands of warriors that were surging towards them like a swarm of locusts.
Zhu increased his size until he became a four-meter tall Giant Demonic Pig. His eyes glowed red as he entered his Rage Mode. He bulldozed through the army in front of him like a tank, swinging his rake with the intention of slaughtering everything in his path.
Naturally, Sha and William weren't idle either. They fought side by side with Zhu and repelled the Celestial Army to the best of their abilities.
The Gods and Immortal Heroes were impressed by their battle prowess and even thought that they might just be able to make it.
Unfortunately, courage, and determination alone could not overcome the disparity in numbers. Like a swarm of ants, they outnumbered their opponents four-hundred thousands against one.
The first to fall was Zhu.
Although the Pig Demon fought valiantly, his enemies were not pushovers either. No one in the Celestial Army was weak. They were also great warriors when they were still alive, and they had retained their skills even after they passed over to the afterlife.
The second to fall was Sha.
He did his best to protect Zhu, and William, from the merciless onslaught, but one of the surviving Black Knights was able to pass through his defenses and delivered a mighty blow to the Sand Demon's chest.
After that, it was William's turn to suffer. The Celestial Army pinned him down and delivered countless blows to his body, which made Lily roar in anger.
Amidst the beating, William's determination never wavered. He fought, tooth and nail, even biting the hands of those that pinned him down with his bloody teeth.
It was at that moment when a string of words appeared inside his mind.
Gripping his staff, William shouted and unleashed a Magnum Burst which sent the Knights around him flying.
That small gap immediately closed as the enraged Knights charged at him with bloodshot eyes.
"Break all walls that stand before me!" William roared before he was pinned down and pummeled by the Celestial Knights, who were duty bound to bring him to his knees.
It was then when a dominating shout answered him from the Heavens.
"Sweep away all adversaries!"
"Ryu… Jingu… Bang!"
A giant golden metallic staff descended from the heavens. It was at least thousands of meters long, and a hundred-meters wide. It created a powerful shockwave that blasted away all the Celestial Knights that were pinning William, Zhu, and Sha, to the ground.
William panted and opened his eyes that had become swollen from the beating. Although it was still dark, there was some kind of golden light that allowed him to see his surroundings.
The first thing the Half-Elf saw was a person's back. It wasn't as big as his Grandpa's, but William felt that this was a back that wouldn't bend to anyone.
He then raised his gaze and saw a golden metallic staff that glowed brightly in the darkness. The boy realized that this was where the light was coming from.
As if sensing his gaze, the person turned around to look down on him. Although William's vision was a bit blurry, he could somehow detect that the edges of the person's lips in front of him were curled up into a smirk.
"What's your name, Kid?" a playful voice asked.
William forced his bloody lips to open as he spoke out his name. "William. My name is William, Your Excellency."
A chuckle escaped the person's lips as he crouched down to offer William an outstretched hand. Due to the person's closeness, William was able to see his facial features. It was then when he realized that the person who came to his aid wasn't Human.
It was a monkey with golden eyes that seemed to blaze like flames amidst the darkness.
"You have a good name, kid," the monkey replied. "From now on, you can call upon me in your time of need."
The monkey had a mischievous look on his face as he grabbed hold of William's hand, giving it a firm shake.
"Your Excellency, what is your name?" William asked. Although he had a nagging feeling that he already knew the identity of this legendary hero, he still dared to ask to confirm his suspicions.
"Me? I am none other than the Handsome Monkey King," the monkey declared in a teasing tone. "The Great Sage that Equals Heaven. The one and only…
"Sun Wukong."