Chapter 31. Let's go on a mission together.
Since it was a rare opportunity to come back, Jiang Huaisu naturally wanted to stay at Huaguo Mountain for a few more days.
She carried the baby monkey all over the mountains and fields every day, and she felt that she was almost assimilated into a member of the monkey troop. Her only regret was that she couldn't grow a tail and swing on the tree branches with them.
Living such a carefree life, the date of their return to heaven was repeatedly postponed. Several months passed, and Jiang Huaisu was still stuck on Flower Fruit Mountain, unable to move an inch.
"I'll leave after this spring." She sat in the tree weaving a flower wreath, making excuses for herself, "Springtime is the best time to see the scenery, it would be such a pity to miss it."
"Then you can come back every spring," the little monkey sincerely suggested.
"That won't work. I'd have to travel back and forth. Time flies by in the sky. Maybe while I'm sleeping in, a season will have already passed on Earth."
"How amazing."
“I think so too.” Jiang Huaisu looked up at the sky. “Hey, a huge cloud is drifting over there. Is it going to rain? Have you taken in the dried fruit that was drying in front of the cave?”
The little monkey yelled and ran back, "I'll go collect it right now!"
Jiang Huaisu remained in that tilted-back position, her eyes slightly squinting from the sunlight. It didn't look like it was going to rain; she said that to scare the little monkey away.
Having spent so much time in Heaven, she recognized that those weren't ordinary clouds, but rather the vehicles used by celestial soldiers. They were probably just passing through, but she felt a little guilty after having just conspired with Sun Wukong to do something wrong.
As the clouds drew closer, her heart pounded. She stared intently at the sky, so focused that she forgot to weave the flower wreath.
The clouds have stopped.
A streak of silver light leaped down from the clouds and rushed towards Jiang Huaisu's direction.
Startled, she fell off the branch, rolled half a circle on the ground, and then hid behind the tree trunk.
No way, no way, her smuggling of peaches has been discovered? Are heavenly soldiers really coming to confront her?
With her heart pounding, she tried to calm her breathing as she slowly peered out, trying to see where the silver light had landed.
"Woof!" A familiar dog bark rang out.
The silver light landed and turned into a fluffy ball, which turned out to be the long-unseen Xiaotian.
The dog rushed into her arms. With that force, if it weren't for the tree trunk behind her, she would have been sent flying.
"I knew I wasn't mistaken, it really is you!" Xiaotian wagged its tail excitedly.
Jiang Huaisu rubbed her aching ribs and pulled the dog out of her arms. Thank goodness, it really was just passing by, not there specifically to catch her.
Relieved, she smiled and said, "Rushing around like this, going out to exorcise demons with your second brother again?"
"Hmm, my brother said these monsters are a bit tricky," Xiaotian said unhappily. "They're too good at hiding, and there are so many of them, it'll be hard to wipe them all out in one fell swoop... But this time we're working with Nezha, so if we coordinate well, maybe we can..."
He stopped halfway through his sentence, realizing that it sounded like he was praising Nezha.
"Let's not talk about that now. You came back in such a hurry last time that you didn't have time to say goodbye. Are you feeling alright?"
"It's been ready for a long time!" Jiang Huaisu replied in a strong voice.
"Would you like to come and have fun with us this time?"
"Aren't you going to work?"
"This battle might be drawn out for a long time. It's okay to take breaks along the way." Xiaotian looked at her expectantly.
"What do you mean it's okay?" A disapproving voice rang out. It was Nezha, riding on his Wind Fire Wheels, landing next to Jiang Huaisu. The heat wave he generated made the tree branches tremble, making it look like a rapid emergency landing.
"She's young and playful, easily swayed. And you're so immature, you stupid dog."
Nezha criticized Xiaotian mercilessly, seemingly bringing up old grievances. After all, Jiang Huaisu had learned her lesson from the lizard demon last time.
She suspected that Nezha wasn't just giving Xiaotian a dressing down, but also retaliating for her previous comment about his age. But then she thought, Nezha probably wasn't that petty or cunning. Perhaps she was overthinking it.
Jiang Huaisu cleared her throat and said calmly, "It's really not appropriate. You have important matters to attend to, so it would be better to get on with it quickly. Let's get together next time."
The dog's head drooped, and it was clear that it was somewhat disappointed, but it acquiesced to Jiang Huaisu's decision and did not try to persuade her any further.
Yang Jian, who arrived a step late, with the air of an impartial and incorruptible god, immediately began to take sides as soon as he landed: "Want to bring Jiang Huaisu along? Then come along, what's wrong with that?"
Jiang Huaisu spread her hands: "I can't help even if I go."
"Nezha and I will handle the fighting; you won't have to get involved."
Nezha glared at him: "Yang Jian!"
"how."
Yang Jian's consistent free-range attitude towards his dog shows that he has a very weak sense of danger avoidance. It's not because he's carefree, but because he believes that encountering danger is as commonplace as drinking water or eating. You can't just stay home for fear of falling, can you?
Before Yang Jian could finish his sentence, he looked at Nezha and raised an eyebrow. They could have avoided Flower Fruit Mountain, but Nezha insisted on leading the way through this area. Wasn't he also trying to bring Jiang Huaisu along?
“Uh, I…” Jiang Huaisu was indeed somewhat tempted, but she was afraid that she would be in the way if she went.
Nezha suddenly turned to her and asked, "Do you really want to go?"
"No......"
"That conflicted look means you've thought about it."
Jiang Huaisu didn't deny it. She picked up the flattened flower wreath and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Actually, I was afraid of being a burden if I went."
“That reason doesn’t hold water.” Nezha, who had just been so adamant about refusing her to come along, now started arguing in reverse, “You’re not going to join the other side to fight us, are you? How can you be considered a burden?”
Nezha suddenly changed his attitude and was no longer opposed to Jiang Huaisu joining the team. Although Xiaotian was a little confused, he immediately echoed his words.
As Yang Jian said, this mission was indeed not very dangerous, and it was perfectly feasible to bring Jiang Huaisu along.
......
Fifteen minutes later, Jiang Huaisu sat on the cloud and began to reflect. Nezha's assessment of her seemed to be correct; she was indeed a bit too playful.
There was no fear of the unknown in my heart, only excitement at the prospect of witnessing a grand spectacle. I wonder if it's because I've been following Sun Wukong for too long, and my courage has grown too big.
The wind blowing in her face carried the chill of early spring. She squinted her eyes contentedly.
The group settled in a small mortal town. According to intelligence, one of the strongholds of the demons they were about to hunt was located here.
To avoid alerting the enemy, the heavenly soldiers remained hidden, awaiting orders. The leaders, however, had already disguised themselves and gone ahead to the town to scout out the situation.
Yang Jian and Nezha discreetly changed their appearances and blended into the crowd. Xiaotian also changed his fur color, as he was quite well-known among demons and might be recognized. As for Jiang Huaisu, she also dressed up as a peasant girl to match Yang Jian and Nezha's attire.
Based on existing intelligence, that group of demons is highly socialized. They do not stay in one place for long, nor do they carry out large-scale killings in a high-profile manner. They usually disguise themselves as humans to commit crimes, minimizing their presence in heinous incidents in order to cover up their activities.
Nezha, now transformed into a country boy, was quite unhappy. Knowing the enemy was nearby, he couldn't use a one-size-fits-all tactic because he needed to protect the surrounding people; he could only wait for the venomous snake to emerge.
He cursed the demon in his heart for being cunning, but he could only patiently use the demon-revealing mirror to subtly probe the suspicious people around him.
But some monsters cannot be detected even by the demon-revealing mirror.
I spent three days in town and only caught a few insignificant little monsters; I didn't catch anything big.
Even with the Demon-Revealing Mirror and Xiaotian's tracking technique, the results were meager.
Jiang Huaisu finally understood why she had said this demon was troublesome. The opponent was too good at hiding its strength, and this fight wouldn't break out anytime soon.
The grand scene she had envisioned didn't happen. Instead, she followed Yang Jian and Nezha and tried almost all the local delicacies, as if it were a paid vacation, making it hard to feel any tension.
Today, while passing by an inn, Xiaotian suddenly stopped, his nose twitching as he sniffed the ground, looking as if he had made a discovery.
Nezha: "I smell meat?"
Xiaotian shook his head slightly.
If they smelled not the aroma of meat, then they smelled demonic energy. The group immediately went into the inn and, at the waiter's invitation, found a table in the corner to sit down.
It was lunchtime, so the group casually ordered a few signature dishes and a pot of wine, blending perfectly into the diners' conversation.
Nezha glanced around calmly.
The men, women, and children coming and going all seemed normal. Most people were focused on eating, while others were drinking, chatting, or playing games to pass the time, such as a few men arm wrestling at a table to the right.
Nezha tossed a chicken leg to Xiaotian, and using this action as an excuse, leaned down and whispered in the dog's ear, "Who's acting strange?"
Xiaotian shook his head again. This meant that the demonic energy was too weak and scattered, and wouldn't amount to anything.
It's highly likely that it's not a demon, but a human tainted with some demonic energy. However, at this juncture, not a single clue can be overlooked.
Nezha poked at the rice in his bowl with a sullen expression. This feeling of being unable to start eating made him a little frustrated.
With so many people present, are we supposed to go and find out their whereabouts one by one? Maybe they just happened to brush against some little flower fairy or insect fairy while passing by the bushes. It's a coincidence, and even if we investigate thoroughly, it's hard to get any real information. They themselves might not even know that they had brushed past a fairy.
These faint clues were right in front of them, making it impossible to know where to begin. However, from another perspective, since the possibility of demons being present was very small, they didn't need to hold back too much.
Nezha loosened his finger bones and decided to take the initiative.
By using games to build rapport, it becomes easy to elicit information. Nezha approached the men arm-wrestling at the table, rolled up his sleeves, and indicated his desire to join in.
The scarred man at the head of the group glanced at Nezha, smiled, and waved his hand: "Let your parents come. At your age, the most important thing is to eat more, grow stronger, and then come play with your older brothers."
Jiang Huaisu, who witnessed the whole thing from a slightly behind angle, struggled to suppress her laughter and lowered her head to eat. Although Nezha had changed his appearance, he had only adjusted the details of his facial features; his youthful appearance remained the same.
Nezha's lips twitched. This level of teasing wasn't enough to enrage him, but his competitive spirit compelled him to show these people what it meant to be unpredictable.
"I want to give it a try." Having not forgotten that his purpose in coming here was to gather information, Nezha maintained his good attitude, with a warm smile on his face.
The scarred man laughed heartily, "Alright then." He casually pointed to one of his companions, "You go, spar with this guy?"
The man who was pointed at nodded and sat down opposite Nezha. He was quite confident in his strength; although he might not be the strongest in the arena, he could easily overpower a seventeen or eighteen-year-old.
However, when the man began his arm-wrestling match with the boy, he did not win as he had expected. Their hands, clasped together on the table, remained as steady as stone statues; neither could budge the other, and they were locked in a stalemate.
The scarred man watching the game laughed loudly, "Hey! You're throwing the game way too obviously."
The veins bulged beneath the man's sleeves, and cold sweat dripped from his forehead. How could he explain that he really hadn't let the water slide?
This guy's hands seemed to be permanently attached to the table; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't budge them an inch. He felt like he was trying to break off a rock that wouldn't budge.
Nezha, who was actually holding back, showed a seemingly troubled expression: "My brothers are indeed very strong. Do you always do heavy work? Are you out in the fields wielding hoes every day?"
The scarred man was in a good mood and replied, "Of course I have to do the heavy work, but it's not like I'm going to the fields to wield a hoe every day. Sometimes I help unload goods; those big boxes are too heavy to move if you don't have the strength."
"Unloading...is it at the dock?"
“Not bad.” The scarred man said with interest, “There are also people your age working there, but they eat a lot and do little, so the foreman doesn’t like them.”
"So you eat a lot and do a lot of work?"
“Of course.” The scarred man pointed to a stack of empty bowls on the table. “After we finish this meal and rest for a while, we’ll have to get back to work. The busy farming season is over, and making money at the docks is the most important thing.”
After saying this, the scarred man suddenly realized that they had been lingering here for a while. Even if they were going to go easy on him, they had gone this far enough. He silently urged his companion with his eyes to quickly take down the child and show no mercy.
The man who was arm wrestling with Nezha had no way to explain himself. He was too ashamed to lose to a mere boy in front of everyone, so he could only grit his teeth and keep trying.
Nezha felt he had gathered enough information, so he stopped arguing with the man opposite him. Using his forearm, he easily and deftly pressed the man's hand down onto the table. He then flicked his wrist, as if he had barely won.
"Thank you for your kind offer." Nezha was about to slip away when the scarred man with a surprised expression reached out and stopped him.
"How could this be..." The scarred man looked at his companion, then at Nezha.
The man who lost the arm wrestling match was now completely convinced: "Boss, I really didn't hold back. This guy is pretty strong."
Scarface, not believing in bad luck, decided to test the waters himself. However, this time there wasn't even a stalemate; he was defeated as soon as he stepped onto the table, and the sensation of his hand slamming against the table was incredibly hot.
Nezha was eager to go back and share his experiences with his companions, so he didn't bother to comfort the scarred leader whose Dao heart was broken. He simply threw down a silver ingot and said, "You guys are too kind to me. This meal is on me."
Back at his family's dinner table, Nezha gulped down a mouthful of herbal tea, then shared the information he had learned with his friends.
“I just chatted with the people at the next table for a bit,” Jiang Huaisu said in a low voice. “Most of them had just finished work at the docks and were here to rest and have lunch.”
"That makes things simple. The demonic aura here is so strong, which means many people are tainted by it, and what they all have in common is that they all work as laborers at the docks." Nezha tapped the table lightly. The process of following this clue was much simpler than he had imagined. He thought it would take a lot of talking, but he got the information out of them in just a few words. It seemed he was in good luck today.
Yang Jian served himself a bowl of soup: "After we finish eating, let's go to the dock."
"Can't we go now? You actually started eating." Nezha glanced at the amount of food left on his plate. "You have quite an appetite."
Jiang Huaisu said weakly, "Um... I ate half of it."
She was only half-hearted in saying it; in reality, she had eaten two-thirds of the food on the table, and she felt a little guilty for making Yang Jian take the blame alone.
"Oh." Nezha pushed the roast chicken in front of Jiang Huaisu. "That monkey usually only knows how to feed you fruit, right? It's rare for him to come out, so you should eat more."
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