Chapter 9. Partnering.
“That being said, I’ve always been traveling alone…” Sun Wukong said thoughtfully, seemingly still preferring to go his separate ways with Jiang Huaisu.
Although Jiang Huaisu wanted to team up with Sun Wukong, he was unwilling. She wouldn't stubbornly insist on following him. Seeing that she couldn't persuade him with a few words, she had already decided to back down.
Why don't we go to Flower Fruit Mountain for a while? Judging from Sun Wukong's personality, the monkeys he's disciplined should be good monkeys, at least they won't drive her away.
Now that she has magic powers, her physique is much stronger than it was three years ago. Once her injuries heal, she can try to cross the sea to search for mountains.
Just as he was about to ask Sun Wukong for more details about Flower Fruit Mountain, he saw him raise his eyebrows and look up at the sky, as if he were observing something.
Jiang Huaisu also looked up: "What's wrong?"
"What the hell is this weather?" he muttered. "It was sunny just a moment ago, and now it's raining."
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Huaisu felt a cool sensation on her head as tiny water droplets fell down.
With nowhere to shelter from the rain on the bare beach, the monkey carried her in its arms and walked towards higher reefs.
“You’ve been in the sea for so long, your wounds are in bad shape. You need to be careful to avoid water in the future,” Sun Wukong said kindly. “Once the rain stops, I’ll take you ashore. It’s too close to the water here, and the reefs are bare with hardly any trees. It’s not a good place to stay for long.”
They had only met by chance, and the fact that the other person was willing to help her so much was already more than kind and generous. Jiang Huaisu thought she should reciprocate, so she immediately used her magic to create a rainless area around Sun Wukong.
Sun Wukong, who had never learned magic, was able to sense the fluctuations of spiritual energy. He was stunned for a moment, but quickly realized that Jiang Huaisu was performing a spell to shield him from the rain.
Looking down, I saw that the bird's feathers were standing on end, its pupils were slightly constricted, and its wings were trembling slightly, as if it was trying its best to maintain this small barrier from being invaded by rain.
"You know magic?"
Jiang Huaisu modestly replied, "Just a little bit."
"Where did you learn these spells? Can you teach me?" Sun Wukong's interest was instantly piqued, and he stared intently at her.
"...I can't teach you, I taught myself."
"It's not that I'm stingy," Jiang Huaisu defended herself. "I know some spells myself, but I don't know how to teach others." Besides, she didn't bring those books with her, so she couldn't just blindly teach them.
Furthermore, Sun Wukong's true master is still waiting on Lingtai Fangcun Mountain. If she interferes with the teaching, she might mislead the students.
Sun Wukong seemed a little disappointed, but he wasn't angry. He said magnanimously, "Alright, then I'll have my master teach me after I become a disciple."
Jiang Huaisu observed his reaction: "You're not angry, are you?"
"Why am I angry?" Sun Wukong held her up to his eyes to examine her. "Alright, stop bothering. Look at you, it's so much trouble for you to cast a spell."
"I'm not usually like this, but I'm injured today and not in good condition."
Sun Wukong covered her with his sleeve and said jokingly, "I'm not afraid of getting wet from this little rain. Stop using your magic, Bird King."
"......"
A monkey and a bird climbed to a high place and huddled in a recess in the rock wall to shelter from the rain.
Watching the rain fall silently like a beaded curtain, Jiang Huaisu remained silent for a moment. The sound of the rain was so soothing, and she gradually felt drowsy and wanted to sleep.
Unfortunately, the rain came and went quickly; within minutes, the dark clouds dispersed and the sky cleared up again.
Sun Wukong pulled her out of his sleeve. "Don't sleep, let's get going."
She struggled to open her eyes: "I wasn't asleep."
"Jiang Huaisu".
"Mmm, mmm." Her head bobbed back and forth like a chick pecking at rice.
When it was raining just now, I was thinking...
"What?" she managed to say, forcing herself to speak.
"How about we listen to you and team up?"
Jiang Huaisu paused, instantly wide awake. She didn't know why Sun Wukong had suddenly changed his mind, but without thinking twice, she agreed first: "Okay!"
She paused for a moment, then asked, "Let me confirm, we're going to Xiniu Hezhou together, right?"
“Yes.” Sun Wukong scratched his head. “I was going to say that if you have no home to return to, you can go to Flower Fruit Mountain. It’s more comfortable to stay in the mountains than to wander outside.”
“Staying in Huaguo Mountain is fine,” Jiang Huaisu said honestly, “but it’s also good to go out and broaden your horizons, to go higher and see farther.”
Sun Wukong made the decision: "Alright, since you're willing, then it's decided. Let's go to Xiniu Hezhou together! Let's not delay, let's set off immediately."
"You're leaving already?"
"Of course! Are we going to rest during the day and travel at night?" Sun Wukong huffed and puffed as he pulled his raft. "Let's go! Let's go!"
Perhaps infected by his positive attitude, Jiang Huaisu's previous low mood was swept away, and she felt a sense of freedom, like a bird soaring in the sky, even though she couldn't fly for the time being.
As Sun Wukong poled the raft, he chatted with her: "The journey may be a bit arduous, but you have magic powers, which will be enough to protect you."
Jiang Huaisu confidently declared, "I can not only protect myself, but also you."
She thought to herself that perhaps her previous display of skill had changed Sun Wukong's mind. Bringing a magpie with questionable survival abilities along the way would indeed be a burden, but with magic, things would be different.
I have come to deeply understand the meaning of "it's always good to have many skills".
Sun Wukong, speaking with the air of someone who's been through it all, advised her, "Not all monsters are good monsters. Even if you're one of their own kind, they might still try to kill you. You must be vigilant when you're out in the world."
She practically took out a small notebook to write it down, nodding vigorously: "I understand."
This sea area looks vast, but once you pass through the reefs, it's not far from human settlements.
Sun Wukong, familiar with the route, headed towards the northwest shore and stopped his raft at a small fishing village by the sea. He called out to the drowsy Jiang Huaisu, "Why are you asleep again?"
"Sorry... I'm a little seasick."
"Oh," Sun Wukong said, understanding. "That's alright then. We won't be traveling by water anymore. If we're heading to Xiniu Hezhou, we won't need to go out to sea again, so we can throw this raft away."
However, his mission was unsuccessful. Not long after landing, Sun Wukong reached into his pocket and discovered that the cloth bag he used to carry herbs was missing.
He thought about it for a moment and figured it was most likely that it had landed on that shallow beach. Since it wasn't far from here, he decided to go back and look for it.
"You don't need to come back with me, just wait for me here." The monkey, who had the ability to climb trees, quickly carried Jiang Huaisu to the highest branch of the tree and covered her with leaves.
"...You'll come back after you get your things, right?" A strange sense of unease crept in.
Sun Wukong glared at him angrily: "Do you think I'd just leave you here? I'm not that kind of monkey!"
She quickly tried to appease Sun Wukong: "No, no, no, I was just asking casually. Go and come back quickly, I'll wait for you here, I'm not going anywhere."
"OK."
Sun Wukong jumped onto the raft and waved to her, signaling her to hide in the tree and not peek out.
Jiang Huaisu stared intently at his departing figure, her eyes stinging, but she couldn't tear her gaze away. She and Sun Wukong didn't have much of an emotional connection, so it wouldn't be surprising if he really abandoned her.
Having experienced too many changes in a short period of time, she is now somewhat paranoid and can't help but imagine the worst-case scenario.
If she were to part ways with Sun Wukong... the world is vast, and there are many places she could go. Longevity Mountain, Pingdingshan, Qijue Mountain... after thinking it over, Flower Fruit Mountain seems to be the safest option.
As I sorted through my jumbled thoughts, an hour had passed without me realizing it.
During this time, Jiang Huaisu did not forget to avoid the gaze of ordinary people under the tree, hiding behind the leaves and quietly pretending to be invisible.
Injured wings cause many inconveniences, making even getting down from the tree difficult. She estimated that her injury would take about one or two months to fully heal.
She finally breathed a sigh of relief when a small bamboo raft drifted into view on the horizon. Well, she had been judging him by her own petty standards; Monkey King wouldn't try to outsmart her.
"Have you found your medicine bag?"
“Found it,” Sun Wukong said, shrugging, “but didn’t bring it back. What a wasted trip.”
"What do you mean?" She didn't quite understand. "If you found it, why didn't you bring it back?"
"I met a child who had fallen and hurt his leg. He was limping and looked quite pitiful, so I gave him my medicine bag."
Jiang Huaisu asked in surprise, "How could there be children in that godforsaken place?"
“He’s no ordinary kid. I offered to take him home, but he refused, saying he could get back on his own,” Sun Wukong commented. “He’s stubborn, but he’s got some skills. I’m too lazy to bother with him.”
"...I'm a little curious, what does this child look like?" She had a bad feeling.
"She's fair-skinned and quite pretty. But her clothes are a mess, and she has injuries on her body."
A tiny figure popped into Jiang Huaisu's mind. She thought to herself, "No way, no way, how come the description sounds so much like Zhen Miaolian? What a small world!"
"He said he came looking for someone... oh no, for a bird. A white magpie that had injured its wing and fallen into the sea, and got separated from him."
Jiang Huaisu looked around guiltily: "Haha, really? There's actually a bird as unlucky as me."
Sun Wukong suddenly smiled slyly: "Don't worry, I didn't sell you."
"......"
"He seems quite polite, not like a bad kid." Sun Wukong asked with a gossipy look, "How come you can't get along with him?"
Since she had already been seen through, Jiang Huaisu simply stopped pretending.
"That kid is the kind of person who's all bark and no bite; he's quite friendly to people he doesn't know well. Sigh, I can't really say for sure." Her expression shifted. "We've only known each other for a few years, so I wouldn't dare say I completely understand him."
Sun Wukong looked at her thoughtfully: "Wait, if I may ask... is your injury related to him?"
In situations like this, it's unnecessary to be so perceptive.
Jiang Huaisu hesitated for two seconds. She didn't want to lie or go into details, so she said vaguely, "He hurt me; there was a misunderstanding."
"Hmm, it's the same story as that kid."
"What?"
“The child told me that he had a misunderstanding with his magpie friend and they had to meet up as soon as possible to clear things up.”
Jiang Huaisu was taken aback. From this, it seemed that Miaolian knew about the spider demon's lies, felt that she had been wronged, and therefore wanted to seek reconciliation with her.
Hehe, even so, there's no way she could go back and meet up with Miaolian!
He jumped off the cliff to escape, and now that he's finally free, only a fool would go back and let him tie him up and play with him.
However, since both sides knew there was a misunderstanding, it was as if there wasn't. She felt much better, and that little bit of resentment vanished.
Thinking about it more deeply, the fact that Miaolian had the time to come looking for her means that the King of Hearts must have already been dealt with. Given Miaolian's personality, she wouldn't leave that evil demon a way out.
So this matter was actually a happy ending for everyone; the evil demon was brought to justice, and Jiang Huaisu was able to end her imprisonment ahead of schedule.
She thought that her interactions with Miaolian should end here; he was a great god in heaven and would eventually return to his rightful place.
"that......"
"Um?"
"You said he's lame and badly injured?"
“He said he’s fine, I wonder if he’s just putting on a brave face.” Sun Wukong rolled up his sleeves, looking eager to try. “But you didn’t cause his injury, while he caused yours. Why don’t we find a chance to get revenge?”
Jiang Huaisu hesitated, then quietly assessed the strength of both sides and concluded that Sun Wukong's level was too low at the moment, and he didn't know any magic, so his chances of winning were very low.
After hesitating for a moment, he finally decided to tell the truth: "Wu...Guoguo, you may not be able to beat him right now."
That was close! I almost blurted out that name. Hold on, hold on! Only after the Bodhi Patriarch bestows a name upon him can I openly call him Sun Wukong!
Fortunately, the monkey didn't notice her slip of the tongue and proudly puffed out its chest, saying defiantly, "How would you know if you didn't try!"
“Sigh, the most important thing right now is to seek a teacher and ask questions. Let’s hurry up and get on our way,” Jiang Huaisu advised. “If you want to learn from him, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. Wouldn’t it be better to find him after you have learned your skills?”
In short, focus on the main storyline first!
"But he is a mortal."
"He's no ordinary mortal; he's very powerful and knows magic."
Sun Wukong waved his hand: "That's not what I meant. I meant, how many years can a mortal live? Maybe by the time I return as a disciple, the grass on his grave will be as tall as you. How will we have a chance to spar then?"
That sounds reasonable. But... Miao Lian will die, while Nezha is a god with an immortal lifespan. Ultimately, they are the same person.
Having figured this out, Jiang Huaisu said firmly:
"There will be a chance. You and him will definitely meet again."
However, by then, he was already the Great Sage Equal to Heaven and the Great God of the Three Altars and Seas.
A note from the author:
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