Upon hearing Su Qing's words, Yudie couldn't help but stand on her tiptoes to look at the distant city.
"Baoxiang Kingdom? We've been traveling for so long, and we've finally reached a city! It really hasn't been easy."
After catching a glimpse of the outline of Baoxiang Kingdom, Yudie sighed with emotion and said, "Let's go and rest in Baoxiang Kingdom for a couple of days! It'll be a good chance to restock our dry rations and such. Although we can beg for alms or hunt for game along the way, it's ultimately a bit of a hassle."
Hearing this, the corners of Su Qing's mouth curled up. She reached out and tapped the girl's head, saying, "You just want to play there for a few days, don't you?"
"Well, I'm not wrong though! Playing is just a side benefit; the main thing is restocking!" Yudie said with a serious face, her arms crossed.
Su Qing rolled her eyes. How could she not know what this girl was thinking?
However, resting here for a day or two wouldn't really hurt. Constantly rushing on the journey wasn't exactly a fun experience either.
"Fine, we'll do as you wish. We'll rest in Baoxiang Kingdom for a day or two."
Receiving this answer, Yudie immediately beamed like a flower. She said, "Yay! Chaoyan, Sister Jingyue, let's go have some fun in Baoxiang Kingdom later!"
Chaoyan looked at Yudie's excited expression and couldn't help but smile helplessly. Sometimes she really forgot that she was actually younger than this girl.
"Alright, alright!" Chaoyan nodded and said, "I happen to be tired from the journey as well."
The group made their decision and soon reached the city gates of Baoxiang Kingdom.
Arriving at the gate, they naturally couldn't avoid being questioned. Su Qing and the others didn't hide anything, directly stating their identities as pilgrims from the Eastern Land of Great Tang.
After revealing their identities, Su Qing and the others were not blocked and were easily let inside.
The interior of Baoxiang Kingdom was exceptionally prosperous, dazzling Chaoyan and Yudie, who hadn't traveled far from home much.
Su Qing and the others walked through the city, purchasing some dry rations and other items along the way...
In this manner, time passed unknowingly.
The sky gradually darkened.
Seeing the fading light, Su Qing suggested finding an inn to rest. Since this was the capital of Baoxiang Kingdom, there was no need to ask locals for lodging; finding an inn would suffice.
Although Chaoyan might not have much money on her, Su Qing was never short of it...
As they searched for an inn, before they could find one, Yudie spotted a circus troupe in the distance.
Yudie acted as if she had never seen one before and insisted on dragging Su Qing to watch.
Helplessly, Su Qing looked at the time and felt there was still some time left, so she agreed.
Jingyue, however, had a strange expression upon seeing this, but she didn't say much and followed the group to the circus.
It was a circus troupe, and naturally, there was a monkey show. The monkey act wasn't exactly brilliant, but it wasn't boring either.
Yudie watched with excitement, unaware of the odd look on Jingyue's face beside her.
Su Qing's mind wasn't on the monkey show, so she naturally noticed Jingyue's emotions. She asked, "Do you feel pity for that monkey?"
Hearing this, Jingyue nodded slightly and said, "Yes. We are of the same kind; seeing this, it's hard not to feel a sense of shared sorrow."
Before long, the circus performance ended.
The animals were led over to interact with the audience while also asking for tips.
When the trainer leading the monkey walked past Jingyue, she suddenly asked, "Boss, is this monkey for sale?"
At these words, the trainer was stunned for a moment and said, "I'm sorry, guest, this monkey isn't for sale. This is how we make our living! There's no such thing as selling one's rice bowl."
Jingyue didn't waste words. Although Wuzhuang Temple was a Daoist temple without much incense power—where they even grew their own vegetables to eat—it didn't mean Wuzhuang Temple was actually poor.
At the very least, when Jingyue left, her master had given her plenty of travel expenses.
With a flick of her hand, she pulled a gold leaf from her sleeve and asked, "Is this enough?"
"..." The trainer was stunned. He only said he had to go back and ask the troupe leader before a decision could be made.
Su Qing watched from the side and didn't stop her, just watching quietly... doing nothing. Jingyue was simply buying it with money and wasn't using force.
Why interfere in her business? It was better to just watch quietly.
"But... at this rate, I wonder if we'll find an inn before it gets completely dark," Su Qing thought as she looked at the sky.
Soon, everything was settled.
Jingyue got her wish and led the monkey away from the circus, following Su Qing to find an inn.
"Why did you insist on buying this monkey?" Chaoyan asked with a bit of confusion.
Jingyue turned to glance at her and replied, "Because she called out to me for help, so I saved her."
"Called out to you? You can understand what it says?"
"We come from the same place, so naturally I understand," Jingyue replied calmly.
Chaoyan looked thoughtful upon hearing this and stopped questioning. In any case, it wasn't a bad thing.
Su Qing, riding on her horse, heard Jingyue's words and sent a telepathic message: "Are you saying... this monkey is from Flower-Fruit Mountain?"
"Yes... there should be no mistake," Jingyue replied with a nod. "I just... don't know how this fellow ended up in a place like this and became a trained animal in a circus."
Su Qing's eyebrows twitched slightly as she thought to herself, "Could something have happened at Flower-Fruit Mountain? But that doesn't seem right. If something happened there, the Earth God would have told me. Besides, there are other gods watching who would have sent me a message."
Confused, she performed a quick divination with her fingers.
After her calculation, Su Qing soon gained some clarity regarding the monkey's experiences.
Nothing had happened to Flower-Fruit Mountain...
The reason this child appeared in Aparagodaniya and fell into the hands of a circus was mostly because she was a bit foolish and reckless.
"Heh, I think I know what happened to this fellow..." Su Qing said to Jingyue via telepathy.
Jingyue turned to look at Su Qing and asked, "What does Sister know?"
"I just did a divination... It turns out this fellow was trying to follow you and Wukong's example by going overseas to seek knowledge. As a result, she accidentally fell into the hands of that circus and followed them all the way to Baoxiang Kingdom."
Su Qing didn't hide what she had calculated, informing Jingyue after simplifying it slightly.
After hearing this, Jingyue couldn't help but be speechless. "I don't know whether to say this fellow has good luck or bad luck."
Su Qing smiled helplessly and said, "Meeting you is her great stroke of luck. So, do you plan to take this monkey along the whole way?"
"Since I've saved her, I might as well take her along. This monkey has some potential and is good material for cultivation. It'll be good to teach her a bit on the road," Jingyue sighed and said.
Since she had chosen to save her, she had to take responsibility to the end.
Seeing this, Su Qing smiled faintly and asked, "Do you even know how to teach someone to cultivate?"
"..." Jingyue said, "I don't... but I can take it slow."
Su Qing rolled her eyes and said, "Since you don't know, you'd better not ruin this monkey! She's already a bit slow. If you teach her, she might become even dumber. Take this and feed it to her to let her transform, then send her to Wuzhuang Temple."
"Send her to Wuzhuang Temple?" Jingyue was stunned for a moment.
"It's not for the monkey to become a disciple, just for you to leave her there. Besides, it'll be good for her to learn a few things by being immersed in that environment," Su Qing replied.
Jingyue didn't say anything more and agreed to Su Qing's suggestion.
After discussing the little monkey's destination, Jingyue suddenly brought up Flower-Fruit Mountain. She said, "Speaking of which, I haven't been back to Flower-Fruit Mountain for many years. I wonder what it's like now."
Su Qing pointed quietly at the little monkey and said, "Why don't you just ask her? She's only been wandering this world for a few years; before that, she lived on Flower-Fruit Mountain. Who would know better than her what it's like now?"
Jingyue froze for a moment. She touched her face blankly, feeling a bit annoyed. "I'm so stupid... how could I forget that?"
But then she froze again, turned to Su Qing, and sent a telepathic message: "Wait, wouldn't it be the same if I asked you, Sister?"
Su Qing smiled helplessly. Zhenyuan Great Immortal was right—this girl only looked smart, but she was actually quite dazed.
Su Qing replied telepathically, "Have you forgotten? I spend most of my time on the Changbai Mountains and rarely return to Flower-Fruit Mountain! Asking me is naturally not as clear as asking this local monkey!"
Jingyue felt her head itch with embarrassment. In the end, she listened to Su Qing.
The group brought the monkey along and soon found an inn to stay in.
That night, following Su Qing's instructions, Jingyue gave the Transformation Pill to the monkey. She then set up a small array around them to prevent the commotion of the transformation from disturbing others.
The little monkey was very obedient. Although she didn't know what it was, she obediently swallowed the pill.
A short while after swallowing the Transformation Pill, she changed into human form.
However, Su Qing's Transformation Pill wasn't perfect. As a result, after the transformation, a long, thin monkey tail remained behind her, looking slightly strange.
Aside from the tail, however, the rest of the transformation was quite successful.
Jingyue looked at the monkey in human form and asked, "Do you have a name?"
The monkey, having just taken human form, still had her monkey-like habits. She scratched her cheek and said, "My mother gave me a name, Hou Qi, because I was the seventh monkey born in the family, so that's my name."
"..." Jingyue shook her head helplessly.
This name was clearly unsuitable, especially now that the monkey had transformed.
"That name isn't suitable. I'll give you a new one. Since you are a monkey from Flower-Fruit Mountain, you are my sister's person. You shall take my sister's surname and be called Su Qi."
Jingyue thought for a moment and kept the sound of 'Seven' but changed the surname.
The monkey didn't particularly mind. She just grinned and said, "Whatever you say! But... you said I'm your sister's person... who is your sister to Flower-Fruit Mountain?"
Jingyue smiled faintly. "Well, the compatriots of Flower-Fruit Mountain used to like calling her the Willow Immortal."
Hearing this title, the monkey immediately became excited. Clearly, she was very familiar with the name.
"She's really the Willow Immortal? She really is?"
"Yes!" Jingyue nodded and said, "Alright, don't get so excited. Tell me about the changes at Flower-Fruit Mountain in recent years. I've been overseas for so many years and never returned... I really want to know what it's become."
"You're also from Flower-Fruit Mountain? No, a monkey from Flower-Fruit Mountain?"
"Yes!" Jingyue nodded. "I left Flower-Fruit Mountain several hundred years ago..."
"So amazing! So amazing!"
And so, the two monkeys, whose ages differed by an unknown amount, began a conversation of questions and answers.
They talked for a long time. Su Qi told Jingyue everything she knew, describing the changes at Flower-Fruit Mountain over the past few hundred years in great detail, as if counting her own family treasures.
It seemed that everything about Flower-Fruit Mountain was a matter of immense pride for Su Qi.
The two talked happily, losing track of time. Before they knew it, dawn was approaching.
Jingyue noticed this and suddenly stopped the conversation.
"It looks like it's about time. I'll send you to Wuzhuang Temple. When I return from the pilgrimage, I'll take you back to Flower-Fruit Mountain."
Jingyue had already told Su Qi where she was going next. Now that the time was right, she prepared to send her off.
Su Qi nodded very obediently. She knew that being saved and gaining a human form was already a stroke of immense luck, and she didn't ask for more.
If there was one thing she felt was a pity, it was probably that she couldn't personally thank the Willow Immortal.
Time passed quickly. Before long, it was fully light.
Su Qing had already woken up and called Chaoyan to go downstairs for breakfast.
"Huh? Where's Sister Jingyue?" Chaoyan looked around and noticed Jingyue was missing, so she asked in confusion.
Su Qing said calmly, "Her? She's probably off sending that little monkey away."
Chaoyan tilted her head and said, "I thought she would keep the little monkey with her!"
"We aren't a circus; why would we bring a little monkey along?"
Chaoyan nodded thoughtfully and stopped asking. She didn't bother to ask where the monkey had been sent; she believed the little monkey would be fine regardless.
Seeing that she had no more questions, Su Qing went back to her food.
Soon, Jingyue returned.
As soon as she came back, she sat down next to Su Qing and said, "Sister... you really are a big liar."
Su Qing: "???"
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