“Alright, let’s just listen for now!” Henry Clark shook his head. He saw that the Slanting Moon Three Stars Cave was less a cave and more a grand manor, filled with layer upon layer of exquisite pavilions and towers, halls adorned with pearls and shells. Naturally, there was no shortage of rare flowers and exotic plants, and of course, plenty of towering trees. In fact, not only were there many trees, but especially at the spot where the Patriarch sat upon his jade platform, it was beneath two ancient, sky-reaching trees. Secretly making up his mind, Henry Clark flapped his wings and flew into the manor, choosing one of the two ancient trees and finding a good spot to settle down.

During this time, his heart was pounding with anxiety—who knew if this old immortal would notice him?

Thinking back to all those martial arts, gods-and-demons, and fantasy novels he’d read, every expert in those stories could sense any enemy or creature within dozens or even hundreds of meters, and nothing within hundreds of miles could escape their spiritual perception. Back then, he thought it was all nonsense, but in this situation, he had no choice but to believe it!

Fortunately, by the time he found the thickest, most hidden branch to perch on, the Patriarch still hadn’t reacted, and only then did he relax. Whether the Patriarch truly hadn’t noticed or was just pretending not to, in any case, Elder Wright didn’t seem to care.

In fact, he wasn’t the only bird in the tree. Besides his own perch, there were plenty of other birds among the branches and leaves, and he even spotted several nests.

After seeing those nests, Henry Clark considered following suit, gathering some twigs and debris to build a nest of his own. But on second thought, that would be too much trouble and far too suspicious. It wouldn’t matter if the Patriarch didn’t mind, but if some sharp-eyed Daoist noticed a crow that never moved from the tree, that would be a problem.

Henry Clark, ever the pragmatist, thought for a long time but couldn’t come up with a good solution, so he simply stopped worrying about it. Just then, the Patriarch began his sermon, so he obediently perched on the branch, focusing all his attention and memorizing every word the Patriarch spoke, cramming it into his limited brain capacity.

But enough about that—let’s talk about the Patriarch’s sermon.

Originally, in Henry Clark’s mind, the most memorable part of the Monkey King’s apprenticeship was when the monkey was tapped three times on the head and then taken aside for special instruction, so he’d always thought the Patriarch was holding back secrets.

But after listening now, his opinion changed completely. The Patriarch’s sermons were dazzling and profound, with golden lotuses springing from the earth as he spoke of Dao and Zen. Though much of it was obscure and difficult, the Patriarch’s words made it all clear and accessible. Truly: “With one enlightened word, the heart turns to truth; guiding the nature to transcendence and mystery.”

However, the Patriarch didn’t preach every day—only on the first and fifteenth of each month did he open the altar to teach. On the first, he lectured on the scriptures; on the fifteenth, he answered questions. Whenever this happened, Henry Clark would quickly find a good spot between the two ancient trees to listen. The rest of the days, he would practice according to the Patriarch’s teachings, living quite comfortably.

Honestly, having a teacher makes all the difference in the world.

Before, Henry Clark had only relied on instinct to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the essence of sun and moon, and circulate it within himself. But after listening to the Patriarch’s sermons, Henry Clark finally found a scripture that suited him. The Patriarch’s teachings were vast and varied, as if he were a living library, with countless methods and techniques. Each disciple would choose the method best suited to their own situation. If they had any difficult questions, they could ask the Patriarch on the fifteenth, and the relationship between master and disciple was quite natural.

As for Henry Clark, he was completely an outsider, only allowed to listen and not to ask questions. But this didn’t trouble him, because when choosing a method, he was careful and picked the same one as the Monkey King—the Ninefold Celestial Immortal Art.

Chapter Two: The Spirit Bird of Mount Fangcun Steals the Teachings (Part Two)

He had never imagined that the Monkey King actually stayed on Mount Fangcun for such a long time—seven whole years passed before he heard Samuel Wright tap him three times on the head with the ruler.

Why “heard”? The reason was simple: he couldn’t see it. Why? Let me explain.

After so many years, Henry Clark had figured it out: the Patriarch had indeed noticed his presence. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to stay on that tree for seven years so safely. At the same time, the Patriarch clearly regarded him as a little demon who had just gained sentience but hadn’t yet taken human form, and hadn’t realized he was a transmigrator.

It could be said that these seven years were the most important of Henry Clark’s life, because during them, he basically figured out the nature of this world. It was similar to ancient China, but on a scale countless times larger, and immortals and demons were real.

In these seven years, he thoroughly understood the methods of cultivation, and whether intentionally or not, Elder Wright gradually included more and more demon cultivation methods in his sermons. For Henry Clark, this was an incredible stroke of luck.