Chapter 24: Sun Wukong Presents Treasures to Lord Chu

The Gate of Immortality opened.

Sun Wukong hurried over, his face alight with joy, carrying a large sack on his back. To express his gratitude for the Immortal Master’s guidance, he had helped himself to a fair share of treasures from the Dragon Palace in the Eastern Sea. Among the loot, the most eye-catching were three luminous pearls, each the size of a goose egg. The sack on his back, meanwhile, was filled with the saplings and seeds he had been instructed to bring from Mount Huaguo at Chu Xiaoyu’s request.

“Immortal Master, Immortal Master...” Sun Wukong called out as he approached, bustling along with all his baggage, resembling a married daughter returning to her parents’ home laden with gifts. Seeing the mountain of bags, Chu Xiaoyu was taken aback. “Er... What exactly have you brought with you?”

With great delight, Sun Wukong set the sack down and gave Chu Xiaoyu a deep bow. “Immortal Master, this disciple has never dared forget your teachings and instructions.”

“I first went to the Dragon Palace to retrieve the Ruyi Jingu Bang, and while I was there, I fetched these for you as well.”

“Please, Immortal Master, look.”

With a flourish, Sun Wukong produced the three goose-egg-sized luminous pearls and respectfully presented them to Chu Xiaoyu with both hands. Though inwardly thrilled, Chu Xiaoyu affected a nonchalant air, as if gold and jewels were but dirt to him. “These things—did you also happen to pick them up from the Dragon Palace?”

What enormous luminous pearls! Such rare treasures were beyond compare, truly priceless!

But... from the look on the Immortal Master’s face, he didn’t seem all that impressed.

Sun Wukong scratched the back of his head, looking rather sheepish. “Yes, I did take these from the Dragon Palace. If you don’t like them, Master, then I can just—”

“Oh, no, since you brought them for me, I’ll reluctantly accept them,” Chu Xiaoyu quickly interrupted, tucking the three pearls safely into his robe.

How could he not treasure them? A single one could provide a lifetime of wealth and luxury. Where else in the world could such gems be found? Nowhere! Their rarity made them all the more precious.

He was elated!

But... the Immortal Master’s expression was ambiguous, as if he liked the pearls yet also didn’t.

With a silent grumble, Sun Wukong hurried to untie the sack and continued, “Immortal Master, as you instructed, I brought saplings and seeds from Mount Huaguo. Would you care to have a look at these...?”

When Chu Xiaoyu saw the saplings and seeds in the sack, his delight was palpable, as though he had stumbled upon a new continent. “Excellent, excellent! You are a disciple worth teaching. Now, let us plant these seeds and saplings in the farmstead together.”

“Of course! Since you command it, Master, I dare not disobey.”

Without another thought for business, Chu Xiaoyu closed the farmstead’s gates—the planting and transplanting of saplings was now the highest priority. These fruit tree seeds and saplings from Mount Huaguo were rare wonders, to be nurtured with the utmost care.

During the planting, Chu Xiaoyu was both meticulous and gentle.

Seeing such caution, Sun Wukong was puzzled. “Master, you treat these plants as if they were precious treasures. Why?”

After all, Mount Huaguo was filled with fruit trees—commonplace, ordinary things. Why did the Immortal Master value them so?

Chu Xiaoyu, of course, had no intention of revealing his true thoughts to the monkey. Instead, he replied mildly, “Whether it is plant, animal, or superior human, all living things deserve respect.”

“If a person has no reverence, care, or compassion for the myriad beings of the world, he is no better than an unawakened, uncivilized beast.”

Especially since these plants were brought from Mount Huaguo—how could they not be precious? They were utterly unique.

Naturally, the monkey could not understand. It was only to be expected.

Once the planting was done, the miraculous Longan Spring was used to water them—as if irrigating with elixir from the gods.

And then, the inexplicable happened.

The freshly planted seeds and saplings, some no more than a seed or a few centimeters tall, suddenly burst forth with branches, growing at a phenomenal rate... until, awesomely, they flowered and bore fruit.

“Immortal Master, this spring water is truly wondrous! It causes all the plants to mature in a single night. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d never have believed it.”

In an instant, the entire farmstead was suffused with the fragrance of flowers and fruit.

Even though he had steeled himself for wonders, Chu Xiaoyu was still shaken. The Longan Spring was truly supernatural.

Who could ever imagine that a seed, freshly sown, could instantly sprout, grow, bloom, and bear fruit under the power of that water?

Such a miraculous sight could only be found in the old television tale of the Calabash Brothers, where the grandfather watered seven gourd seeds with a single ladle and they sprang up at once.

Now, the branches of the fruit trees sagged under the weight of their bounty, every limb laden with ripe fruit.

It was a breathtaking and magnificent spectacle.

The fruits, each the size of a fist, glistened with moisture, irresistibly tempting and seemingly on the verge of perfect ripeness.

Sun Wukong could not resist—he flipped through the air and plucked two peaches, each larger and more radiant than those of Mount Huaguo.

Could it be the miraculous spring water that caused this?

“Master, come, have a taste,” the monkey said respectfully, offering a peach to Chu Xiaoyu.

Chu Xiaoyu took it, bit in, and his mouth filled with sweet, fragrant juice—so delicious he nearly bit his tongue in delight.

Could this fruit truly be called a “peach of immortality”?

“How can this taste... it’s even more delicious than those from my own Mount Huaguo!” Sun Wukong’s eyes shone with astonished joy.

“Master, this fruit is extraordinary—worthy of being called a celestial fruit,” the monkey declared, full of praise.

Its flavor lingered on the palate, endlessly delightful.

Chu Xiaoyu nodded. “Yes, it’s delicious, full of juice—worthy indeed of its origins from Mount Huaguo.”

To have an entire orchard’s worth of fruit ripen in an instant—such an uncanny event, who could say what consequences it might bring in the future?

If word were to get out, who knew what trouble the farmstead might attract?

Ah!

Dealing with this was truly a headache.

But so be it! Since such an extraordinary event had already occurred, its very existence must be reasonable. When the time comes, there will always be a way forward.

Chu Xiaoyu no longer dwelled on it.