Wukong paused for a moment, then said, "If this brother here is not otherwise occupied, how about joining us on our journey?"

 

Indeed, the Minotaur agreed with delight, cracking a wide smile and laughing heartily, "If there's such a treasure land, I'd truly love to see it."

 

Wukong asked, "I am Sun Wukong, may I know the esteemed name of this Daoist brother?"

 

The Minotaur replied, "What esteemed name? Master always calls me 'Clumsy Bull'."

 

The two fox spirits introduced themselves; the male was named Hu Zhi, and the female, Hu Yu. Wukong said, "In that case, I'll take these two and ride the clouds. Brother Bull, you can keep up, right?"

 

Clumsy Bull glared, "Are you underestimating me? If you can leave me behind, I'll call you brother, how about that?"

 

Wukong laughed heartily, "Alright, then let's have a try."

 

Just as the four were about to take off, a voice from the sky commanded, "Stop, you demons!" Two colorful clouds floated down, and ten people jumped down from them, all in bright armor and sharp weapons. Leading them were two with peculiar appearances: one dressed in black armor wielding a black spear, his beak as though painted with black lacquer, making him appear as if he had rolled out of a coal heap, save for the whites of his eyes. The other was dressed in a myriad of colors, with green boots, white trousers, a blue cape over a red robe, and two feathers on his head trembling, over half a meter long, his tail extraordinarily bright, holding a seven-colored feather fan.

 

Wukong chuckled, "Here comes a business opportunity."

 

Clumsy Bull inquired, "What business?"

 

Wukong replied, "With such fine feathers, opening a clothing store would surely be profitable."

Clumsy Bull was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter, while Hu Zhi and Hu Yu, seeing Wukong's confident demeanor, felt much more at ease.

 

The one in black armor declared, "Bold demons, we are the Bi Moon Crow and Wei Earth Pheasant from the Western Seven Lodgings of the twenty-eight constellations, here to capture you for harboring the fox spirits upon the divine command."

 

Hearing about the twenty-eight constellations, Wukong instantly became alert. Kui Wood Wolf, Jing Wood Anteater, Kang Metal Loong... In the original Journey to the West, these constellations had interactions with the Handsome Monkey King. Kui Wood Wolf was a martial arts master; even Pigsy and Sandy couldn't defeat him. Kang Metal Loong's single horn was incredibly hard, able to pry open even Maitreya's golden cymbals, and Jing Wood Anteater was notably significant in capturing the Rhinoceros spirit. Although seemingly of low status within the celestial court, each of the twenty-eight constellations possessed true abilities, leaving a strong impression on Wukong: they were formidable.

 

Though Wukong had not encountered Bi Moon Crow and Wei Earth Pheasant before, considering their avian beaks, he shivered, recalling every such figure in the entire Journey to the West saga was extraordinary. The Peacock Great Ming King who swallowed the Tathagata was one thing, but even his brother, the Golden Winged Great Peng, was a match Wukong couldn't win. Mao Sun(Ri) Chicken , with a needle refined from its eyes, managed to subdue the Centipede spirit that caused Wukong much trouble. While Wukong was calculating, Clumsy Bull could no longer hold his patience, "I'll take you two birdmen, ascending to the heavens and then forgetting your origins, calling out 'demon' this and 'demon' that. I'll break your mouth and see if you dare to babble again!"

 

Bi Moon Crow sneered, "This demon bull has become human and presumes to be lofty. You must realize, whether in heaven or on earth, there are rules to follow!"

 

Clumsy Bull retorted, "Nonsense rules! The thing I hate most is rules! No rule can beat a fist!"

Bi Moon Crow frowned, inspecting the Minotaur's cultivation level but failing to discern its depth, he asked, "Who are you, dare to state your name?"

 

Bi Moon Crow and Wei Earth Pheasant, both from the Western Seven Lodgings, originally the celestial court's twenty-eight constellations governed the four directions with seven in each direction, and this area belonged to the Western Cattle Gift Continent, exactly on the border governed by Bi Moon Crow and Wei Earth Pheasant. Further west would be under the Buddha's dominion.

 

The leader of the celestial soldiers was actually an underling of Bi Moon Crow, who, after suffering a setback, reported back. Knowing someone in the lower realm could withstand the "Xuan Thunder Talisman" without harm, he realized he was outmatched and thus reported to Bi Moon Crow. Bi Moon Crow, always cautious, hence invited Wei Earth Pheasant to join him. As Wukong had guessed, each of the twenty-eight constellations was exceptionally skilled. Bi Moon Crow's decision was not out of fear but due to long-standing caution in celestial court affairs, fearing to offend someone by mistake. Since this incident occurred on their jurisdictional border, it was appropriate to issue a formal challenge.

 

Wei Earth Pheasant didn't see it the same way as Bi Moon Crow. Although Bi Moon Crow had shown him respect, he felt annoyed that Bi Moon Crow seemed to always drag him into matters. Seeing the Minotaur's disrespectful words now only fueled his anger. With a flick of his feather fan, a blast of wind, fire, smoke, and thunder was unleashed, truly formidable in its power.

 

Wukong, seeing the great force, pulled Hu Zhi and Hu Yu aside. Clumsy Bull, however, didn't dodge. He twirled his Daoist robe, reflecting the attack back. It turned out that this tattered robe, unimpressive at first glance, was actually a protective artifact.

 

Seeing a part of his robe scorched black, Clumsy Bull felt a pang of regret and scolded, "You damned bird, what are you playing at!" Although Wei Earth Pheasant's first fan had no effect, he remained unflustered and raised his fan for another swing. This swing was silent and seemingly powerless. Clumsy Bull's expression changed, cursing, "What a sinister wind!" He dared not take it head-on and instead spat out a beam of yellow light, repelling the shadowy wind.

 

Wei Earth Pheasant's expression darkened as he fanned a third time, combining the might of the previous two attacks. Hundreds of fan ribs shot out, targeting Clumsy Bull, who found them hard to block and had to dodge. Just slightly late, he was grazed by a fan rib on his left rib. The material of the fan rib, upon contact with skin, penetrated like a steel nail.

 

Clumsy Bull roared in anger, "What a venomous birdman!" With his left hand, he forcibly pulled out the fan rib, tearing out a large chunk of flesh along with it. The fan rib was designed with countless reverse barbs, causing Clumsy Bull intense pain as he yelled out, "You think you're the only one with a fan?"

With a flip of his hand, a palm-sized jade fan appeared. With a gentle flick towards Wei Earth Pheasant, the latter flew away like a kite with its string cut, vanishing in no time, leaving only two feathers drifting down.

 

Wukong was shocked. Was that... the Banana Fan? Aside from the Banana Fan, what other treasure could have the power to blow someone away like that? Could Clumsy Bull actually be the Buffalo Demon King? Considering Clumsy Bull's demeanor and temperament, Wukong became more convinced that he must be the Buffalo Demon King, who daringly claimed the title of "Great Sage Who Pacifies Heaven." But why would the Buffalo Demon King, a demon, wear a Daoist robe?

 

The books once said that Wukong, during his travels across the seas, made six brothers: the Buffalo Demon King, the Flood Dragon King, the Roc King... To think that just half a month into their journey, he had encountered the eldest brother, the Buffalo Demon King. It seemed truly destined and unchangeable.

 

Seeing Wei Earth Pheasant blown away, the Buffalo Demon King raised the small fan and chuckled at Bi Moon Crow and the other nine, "Guess where he went?"

Bi Moon Crow, with an inscrutable expression, remarked, "What skill is there in relying on a magical treasure?" Judging the Buffalo Demon King's rugged appearance as simple-minded, he attempted to provoke him, staying silent during Wei Earth Pheasant's successive sneaky moves.

 

As expected, the Buffalo Demon King put away the fan and said, "With your physique, one punch from me is enough to finish you." Bi Moon Crow, falling for the bait, indeed put away his black spear and advanced, lowering his stance.

 

The two engaged in hand-to-hand combat, with Bi Moon Crow's martial skills clearly lacking. With obvious vulnerabilities and far less strength compared to the Buffalo Demon King, it took only three rounds for the latter to knock Bi Moon Crow to the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Bi Moon Crow got up, cast a resentful glance at the Buffalo Demon King, and left with the eight celestial generals without a word.

 

The Buffalo Demon King chuckled, and by then, his rib wound had mysteriously healed.

 

Wukong, seeing the Buffalo Demon King single-handedly repelling the attackers and demonstrating vast magical powers, congratulated him. The Buffalo Demon King commented, "Bi Moon Crow is quite the character, even in defeat he has his grace."

Wukong was taken aback, realizing the Buffalo Demon King was more insightful than he appeared. It seemed Bi Moon Crow had not used even a third of his strength, likely to ensure a full retreat and to spare Wei Earth Pheasant embarrassment. If so, Bi Moon Crow's scheming was indeed profound.

 

Wukong advised, "The heavenly forces are formidable; they likely won't let this go easily. It's best to be cautious."

The Buffalo Demon King replied with a smile, "I've been itching for a fight for many days now; the more chaotic, the better." Wukong thought to himself, so the Buffalo Demon King was also a restless soul.

 

 

Annotations:

 

Bi Moon Crow and Wei Earth Pheasant: Representatives of the Western Constellations in Chinese astrology, signifying the celestial authority and the complex hierarchy within the heavenly courts. Their appearances and attributes symbolize the diversity and the power of celestial beings.

 

Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions (二十八星宿): Twenty-eight star sectors divided based on the observation of the sun, moon, and five planets' movements, composed of seven mansions each from the Eastern Azure Loong, Southern Vermilion Bird, Western White Tiger, and Northern Black Tortoise, affiliated with the Four Symbols' deities.

{Annotate：

The Twenty-Eight Mansions, each represented by three characters: the first character signifies the name of the mansion, the second represents its element (with the sun, moon, and the five elements associated with fire), and the third denotes the animal symbolized by the mansion.

Sun mansions include Room (Fang), Emptiness (Xu), Hairy Head (Mao), and Star (Xing), associated with the fire element.

Moon mansions include Extended Net (Zhang), Duke (Gong), Roof (Wei), and Net (Bi), associated with the fire element.

Metal mansions include Neck (Kang), Ox (Niu), Ghost (Gui), and Bond (Lou), associated with the metal element.

Wood mansions include Horn (Jiao), Well (Jing), Legs (Kui), and Dipper (Dou), associated with the wood element.

Water mansions include Chariot (Zhen), Wall (Bi), Winnowing Basket (Ji), and Three Stars (Shen), associated with the water element.

Fire mansions include Wings (Yi), Encampment (Shi), Beak (Zui), and Tail (Wei), associated with the fire element.

Earth mansions include Root (Di), Stomach (Wei), Girl (Nü), and Willow (Liu), associated with the earth element.}

 

 

Banana Leaf Fan: A legendary treasure in Chinese mythology, capable of causing storms or sending beings flying with a simple wave. Its association with the Bull Demon King adds a layer of intrigue and reveals his significant power.

Bull Demon King: A major figure in "Journey to the West," known for his strength, cunning, and complex relationship with Sun Wukong.