The Ungar Swamp was perpetually shrouded in mist. A giant Agrashi tree stood here, and the Stone Monkeyâs Hideout was located at the very top of the tree.
In order to catch a tiger, you need to venture into its den. Thus, Kang Oh and his raid team would need to enter the hideout in order to hunt Wukong.
âItâs been a while,â Sephiro whispered, and Kang Oh slightly nodded his head.
He, Sephiro, and Eder had been the first ones to find the Stone Monkeyâs Hideout. At the time, Kang Ohâs Hyper Intuition had led them to it. Wukong had also given him a quest, demanding that he keep any outsiders from finding his hideout.
Of course, Kang Oh didnât do anything in particular. Ultimately, another Dungeon Hunter found Wukongâs hideout. Thus, he not only failed the quest, but Wukong began his rampage throughout the Great Forest.
âI havenât heard word of Wukong appearing anywhere else, so he should be inside his hideout,â Isher said.
Kang Ohâs raid team began to climb the giant Agrashi tree. A short while later, they entered the tree through a hole in the middle.
[Entering the hidden dungeon, Stone Monkeyâs Hideout.]
The Stone Monkeyâs Hideout hadnât changed at all. The wooden footholds and the vines were still here, and they needed to use these in order to get up the tree.
Of course, the monkeys still threw rocks at them.
However, Kang Oh was a lot different now than he was when he first discovered the hideout. He was strong enough to beat 10 of his past selves now. That was the extent of his growth since then.
Kang Oh climbed up the vines and slaughtered the monkeys. Viper and Bartâs movements were impressive too. He had gathered all these people to kill Wukong, so the monkeys were obviously no match for them.
They climbed up the tree without any issues.
Unable to hold them back, the monkeys retreated again and again.
Eventually, Kang Ohâs team reached the top of the tree!
There was a giant room at the top, but it didnât give them the sense that they were at the top of the tree. It was as if they were within Buddhaâs giant palm. At the center of the room, a giant monkey laid on his side, resting his cheek upon the palm of his hand.
[You have encountered the Monkey King, Wukong.]
âWow, itâs really Wukong! Itâs really him!â Karin said excitedly. âWukongâs right in front of me! The same one that I saw on TV!â
âCalm down, Karin.â Soren tightly grabbed Karinâs arm.
Countless monkeys stood side by side on the Agrashi treeâs giant branches and shrieked.
âMore annoying bugs have come again,â Wukong said. His voice was both irritated and murderous.
Eventually, Wukong widened his eyes.
âYou!â Wukong pointed a giant finger at Kang Oh!
âYou know me?â Kang Oh feigned ignorance.
âDo I know you? Do I know you!?â Wukong suddenly raised his upper body and slammed his fist into the ground, causing the giant tree to shake. What incredible strength!
âListen carefully! I told you to prevent others from coming here. You agreed to that. And in exchange, I would give you those shining yellow lumps in exchange. But sometime after you left, more humans came here. I couldnât find you anywhere. You still donât remember!?â
Wukong clearly remembered Kang Oh.
âYou were there too.â Wukong pointed at Sephiro.
âWhatâs going on?â Bart asked. He stood right behind Kang Oh.
On the off chance that Wukong recognized him, Kang Oh had explained his encounter with Wukong to his team. However, Bart, Mulan, and Viper had come on the day of the hunt, so they had no idea what was going on.
âI was the first one to find him.â
âHe gave me a quest, but I didnât do it. Heâs angry over that little thing. Tch, tch.â Kang Oh shook his head.
âGood of you to come!â Wukong completely stood up. He was wearing a slanted gold crown on his head.
Wukong raised his right fist, which began to gather blue energy.
âPrepare for battle!â Kang Oh yelled.
His team began to get into formation based on their assigned duties.
Isher, Mulan, and the tanks stood in front, while close-range damage dealers like Kang Oh or Viper stood behind them. Healers and long-range damage dealers stood a certain distance away from them.
âReflect on your mistakes in hell!â
Wukongâs fist ripped through the air, unleashing a giant Chi Torpedo at Kang Oh.
âGet behind me!â The Shield Knight, Isher, positioned his shield in front of himself. Kang Oh hid behind him.
Isherâs body began turning into steel.
The Chi Torpedo struck Isherâs shield. The attack was so powerful that it left a small dent in the middle! However, Isher neither shook nor was he pushed back a single inch. It was because of Immovable Stance. With him in front, Kang Oh hadnât taken any damage either.
The raid team quickly moved around, and bombarded Wukong with attacks.
The monkeys didnât stand still either.
âI want the kids to stay back. Only the adults will intervene!â Wukong yelled.
Only the larger monkeys threw rocks or charged at them.
âWho are you supposed to be?â Wukong flung a player away with his finger.
He was one of Aresâ Warriorsâ tanks. He clumsily rolled onto the floor, but a green light shined upon him. Their healers had cast a healing spell on him.
âArrows! Magic! Anythingâs fine! Use whatever you got!â
âThose assigned to monkey duty, go out and kill the monkeys!â
The tension began to rise.
Kang Oh, whoâd been hiding behind Isher, rushed forward. Heâd chosen to wield Blood at this moment in time.
âLetâs go!â Kang Oh yelled. Kang Oh and Wukong. It was like the battle of David and Goliath.
âHoh.â Wukong was speechless. âYou fearless worm! Iâll flatten you!â Wukong swung his palm downwards, as if he were swatting a fly.
âHueup!â Kang Oh dodged his palm, and rolled onto the floor.
Wukongâs palm sunk deep into the ground, and the tree shook. However, he hadnât caught the fly. Kang Oh had dodged well.
Now it was Kang Ohâs turn. Blood turned completely red.
Half of his HP was gone, but for 30 seconds, heâd be as strong as if heâd used Gluttony.
His blood sword cleaved through the back of Wukongâs tough hand. The sudden pain caused Wukong to scowl.
Kang Oh didnât stop there. As he swung downwards, he unleashed a Tempest Tiger! He was aiming for Wukongâs hand!
Wukong quickly withdrew his hand, avoiding the golden aura.
âYou rat!â Wukong gathered blue energy around his hands.
Wukong swung his fists at him, alternating between the two.
Whoosh! Bam! Whoosh! Bam! Bam! Bam!
Kang Oh used Red Butterflyâs Dance, allowing him to dodge a few of Wukongâs attacks. However, the resulting shockwaves pushed him back.
He wasnât the only one whoâd been pushed back. Aside from Isher and the Wolf Warrior, Mulan, all of the other tanks and close-range damage dealers couldnât move properly due to the shockwave.
âTake this too.â Wukong raised his right hand. Then, a giant rock formed in the air. He threw the rock at the area where Kang Oh had rolled over to.
The boulder broke into pieces and scorched the ground. However, a red being flew into the air. It was the Red Demon!
Kang Oh swung his sword horizontally from midair!
The red crescent moon wave flew towards Wukong.
Wukong chopped the Fresh Blood Wave in half.
Meanwhile, the raid teamâs strongest members began moving in earnest.
The Genius Gamer, Bart, used Spear of Judgment!
The high-rank assassin, Viper, used Silent Slash!
Sephiro and Dambi, both skilled archers, used Sun Piercing Arrow and Crystal Arrow!
Soren used gravity to push Wukong down, while Karin created a sandstorm.
All of these attacks were focused on Wukong.
However, Wukong didnât seem to care in the slightest. He merely raised his foot and stomped on the floor.
âKuhahk!â One of Aresâ Warriorsâ tanks cried out as Wukong stomped on him.
Wukong forcefully pushed his foot down and bared his teeth. Perhaps this is what a little kid who liked pressing on ants with their fingers looked like.
There was no way to save the tank. The healers couldnât heal him fast enough; he was losing more HP than they could possibly restore. Ultimately⌠that was game over for him!
It had only been 5 minutes since the battle had begun, yet one of their teammates had already died. However, this was only the beginning.
Wukong wasnât going to let any of them survive.
Wukong roared and beat his chest. His voice reverberated throughout the tree!
Jin Cheol and his production crew were watching Kang Ohâs hunt inside their conference room.
âShall we begin?â the youngest production crew member asked, glancing at their seniors.
Jin Cheol nodded his head with his arms crossed, and the youngest wrote this on the whiteboard.
âPlease bet on one of these two options! Please be sure to write down your name and how much you bet.â
The production crew members went up one or two at a time, and did as the youngest instructed.
âYouâre the only one left, Producer,â the youngest said.
âLetâs see hereâŚâ Jin Cheol stared at the whiteboard.
There were way more people that bet on Kang Oh failing, even though Kang Oh was the one whoâd succeeded the most on this program. Thatâs just how notorious Wukong was.
After all, the 5 great guilds had all failed to defeat Wukong.
âWhich will you choose?â The veteran writer, Yoon Mi, pestered him from the side.
âHmm.â Jin Cheol grabbed the marker, and he kept going back and forth between the two options. But he did eventually stop!
Jin Cheol had stopped at âpassâ. No matter how strong Wukong was, he felt like Kang Oh would be able to beat him. This was Kang Oh after all!
âYou hope you donât disappoint me,â Jin Cheol said to himself.
However, Yoon Mi heard him and added, âIt looks like heâll disappoint you this time.â
âLook at that.â Yoon Mi pointed at the screen.
Wukong roared and beat his chest. Those who heard his cry were completely frozen solid. Only Kang Oh and a few others were fine.
At this rate, the battle would end in tragedy.
âMm!â Jin Cheol couldnât look away from the screen. The other staff members couldnât look away either.
Wukongâs roar was so intimidating that most of the raid team couldnât move.
âGet a grip!â Kang Oh, who hadnât been frozen, yelled. However, it didnât have much of an effect. His voice was too quiet. âAh, if only I had Baramutâs Roar at a time like this!â
A battle cry rang out. Though it wasnât as loud as Wukongâs, it didnât lose in intensity.
Mulan roared with his double-bladed axe resting on his shoulder.
It felt like blood was circulating through their bodies again. It was as if theyâd been given the strength to move again.
The raid team regained their composure and backed off.
âWe fight, and we win!â Mulanâs yell was curt and coarse. However, he didnât need to say much to increase his teammatesâ morale.
âWe fight, and we win!â Isher repeated.
âWe fight, and we win!â The others repeated after him. But that didnât mean the battle was suddenly in their favor. They had only gotten over a huge hump.
The Stone Monkeys came from every direction, and Wukong began his merciless assault once more.