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墨書 Inktalez
Wu Kong stretched lazily, wandering aimlessly until he reached a mountain peak. This peak, oddly named "Chou Feng Hill," left him wondering whether it was the mountain or its inhabitants that were troubled. As he looked up, he spotted a delicate-looking young boy clutching a letter, muttering to himself as he walked. "Ugh! My foreman is such a nuisance. Why does he have to worry about everything? And writing to Elder Official Wang Si? How embarrassing! Today, Mr. Chen is hosting a banquet at Rainbow-Drinking Terrace, and now I have to make an extra trip this afternoon, which ruins my plans to watch the show. What a buzzkill!"
"Rainbow-Drinking Terrace?" Wu Kong's ears perked up; that name sounded familiar. Right! His master had been taken there by the Little Moon King! He needed to hurry and check it out. Just as Wu Kong was about to set off, he hesitated, realizing that the Little Moon King's territory was unfamiliar to him. If he took a wrong turn, it would waste time. It would be better to ask the boy for directions. With that thought in mind, Wu Kong called out, "Hey! Young sir!"
To his surprise, the boy was so engrossed in his own mumbling that he didn't notice Wu Kong at all. Suddenly looking up and meeting Wu Kong's fierce face, the boy was so frightened that he fainted, blood streaming from his seven orifices as he collapsed to the ground.
Seeing this, Wu Kong couldn't help but burst into laughter. "This little fellow has such a weak heart that he fainted just like that. Well, I might as well take a look myself." He stepped forward and picked up the letter that had fallen from the boy's hand. With a quick flick of his wrist, he opened it and read:
Dear Elder Official Wang Si,
I am Shen Jingnan, the head of the Thirteen Palaces. I am grateful for your recognition and promotion to this position. However, I did not expect my lack of cleverness would cause you trouble. I wish to maintain my good reputation, so I have been doing my best in my work over the years.
Yesterday, Zuotou Yu suddenly informed me that several items were missing from Sixty-Four Trigrams Palace, Three Hundred Scripts Palace, and Eighteen Chapters Palace—over one hundred items in total. This has greatly angered His Highness the Little Moon King, who has stated that you will be sent to each palace for an inventory tomorrow morning. I believe you are a kind person and will look out for me even without my saying so.
Still, I worry that my intentions may not be understood; if I suffer unjustly because of this, it would be a lifelong regret. If you could continue to assist me consistently, I would be immensely grateful!
Respectfully yours,
Shen Jingnan
Head of Thirteen Palaces
After reading it, Wu Kong crumpled the letter into a ball and tossed it aside; he couldn't care less about such trivial matters!
Just as he was about to leave, he recalled the boy's earlier mutterings and felt a spark of inspiration. He picked up the letter again and read it carefully once more. The letter mentioned that the Little Moon King would be inspecting the palaces early tomorrow morning. Wu Kong felt a surge of excitement; it seemed likely that his master was indeed trapped at Rainbow-Drinking Terrace! He glanced at the sky; it was already afternoon and dusk was approaching.
As he pondered his next move, he suddenly heard a commotion in the distance. Looking up, he saw a monkey rushing up the slope from below, shouting, "Great Sage! Great Sage! I've been searching for you everywhere!"
Wu Kong asked, "What did you see?"
The monkey replied breathlessly, "I arrived at a wondrous place and saw a white deer speaking!"
Suddenly, two Hairy Ones, known as the Wanderers, came flying over, playfully tussling with each other.
Before he could even ask what was going on, the two Wanderers knelt on the ground and began to accuse one another.
"Great Sage, you must take my side!" one of the Hairy Ones pointed at the other, indignantly saying, "This fellow took advantage of my moment of inattention and stole my plums!"
"It was you who ate an extra Jade Peach and now you're trying to frame me!" the other Hairy One retorted defiantly.
Wu Kong felt a headache coming on. These three creatures were usually lazy and gluttonous, but now, at such a critical moment, they were squabbling over a few fruits. It was infuriating! He shouted, "Shut up!"
The three Hairy Ones trembled at Wu Kong's furious shout, immediately ceasing their bickering and kneeling obediently on the ground, not daring to breathe. Wu Kong glared at them with annoyance, about to scold them further when he suddenly remembered he had more important matters to attend to. He waved his hand dismissively, telling them to get lost.
The two Hairy Ones felt as if they had received a reprieve and quickly transformed into three beams of golden light, flying back into Wu Kong's body. Wu Kong sighed helplessly as he watched them disappear; these creatures were more trouble than they were worth!
Rubbing his temples, he felt as if someone was hammering a string in his brain, making it thrum with discomfort. The two who had stolen were bad enough; after all, they were just greedy. But now this new wave of commotion was even more chaotic than a flock of chattering sparrows.
They surged in from all directions, bouncing around in front of him and chattering excitedly about their "adventures." Some were animatedly gesturing and dancing as if they wanted to bring that celestial realm right before him; others were downcast and mumbling complaints about how haughty and indifferent the immortals were.
Some claimed that the place was breathtakingly beautiful, while others insisted it was nothing special. One even mentioned seeing two lines of poetry inscribed on a wall:
"Let thoughts flow like water,
Yet dwell among the green mountains.
Only upon seeing fallen flowers,
Do we realize spring has departed."
Another one chimed in that there was an Embroidered Ball Tree there, with an immortal standing on each leaf, holding a fishing board and singing solo:
Return to me my nothingness,
Return to me my nothing and self.
The void serves as the master,
Both self and objects are but guests.
“That place is beautiful! The clouds are like brocade, colorful and vibrant, and there are celestial cranes flying above!”
“Come on, just a few tattered feathers; they’re not as pretty as a single hair from Old Sun back in the day!”
“I discovered a paradise, built entirely of agarwood, fragrant and inviting; it must be home to immortals!”
“Pfft, it could just be some monster’s stinky den, and you’re eager to go sniff it out!”
Wu Kong felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. These guys usually pretended to be so well-behaved, but once let loose, they revealed their true colors, squawking like hundreds of ducks in his ears. He was so annoyed that he wished he could shove them all back into his ears!
“Enough!” he roared, shaking the surrounding mountains and stones.
The group of Fine-Haired Wanderers was startled into silence by his shout, their heads drooping like frostbitten eggplants. They obediently transformed into streams of golden light and dove back into his body.
Just as Wu Kong was about to set off, he suddenly remembered something. He reached out to pat himself down, and his expression changed instantly.
“Oh no, I’m still missing one!”
As soon as he spoke, from the direction of the Southwest, a Fine-Haired Wanderer staggered over, face flushed and reeking of alcohol, barely able to walk straight—like a crab that had sneaked a drink of Top Scholar's Red.
“You unruly monkey! Where have you been? Look at you now!” Wu Kong gritted his teeth and demanded.
The Fine-Haired Wanderer let out a drunken belch, his eyes glazed as he looked at him, grinning foolishly and saying, "Great Sage... heh heh... I found a great place... there's... there's wine to drink..."
"Wine?" Wu Kong felt an ominous premonition rising within him. "What kind of wine?"
The Fine-Haired Wanderer chuckled and leaned closer to his ear, whispering, "It's... it's Peach Blossom Wine... so fragrant... and there's a girl... she's quite beautiful..."
Wu Kong's anger flared instantly, and he grabbed the Fine-Haired Wanderer by the ear, shouting furiously, "You damn fool! I sent you to find clues, and you went off to drink and flirt with some girl!"
The Fine-Haired Wanderer yelped in pain, the alcohol fading from his system as he pleaded, "Great Sage, spare me! I... I won't do it again..."
Wu Kong was so furious he could have exploded, wanting nothing more than to slap him dead. But then he reconsidered; after all, this was a part of himself, and killing him would be a waste.
"Get lost! Go back right now!" He threw the Fine-Haired Wanderer to the ground, cursing angrily.
The Fine-Haired Wanderer felt as if he had been granted a reprieve. He rolled and crawled away, transforming into a beam of golden light that darted back into Wu Kong's body. Wu Kong watched the disappearing light with a long sigh.
These guys really drive me crazy!
The Wanderer collected the hair and then descended from Chou Feng.
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