#jttw 96

[sugarstripes]

Every day I weep over the loss of the JTTW 1996 English dub because I liked the voices so much. I still enjoy the sub but it still sucks that the 1996 episodes were pulled from YouTube from that one playlist.

[lavaflowe]

The other Wukongs asked the true Gameboy master for help in beating a boss🙏 (1996 is absolutely crushing it)

[returnofahsoka]

zhu "mansplain manipulate manwhore" wuneng hours

[itscoffeetime-world]

Just them

[ninjahaku21art]

Shop will be reopening tomorrow, Friday between 5 PM - 6 PM CST! There will be a restock and also new items including:

-7 new art prints

-Diamond cutter stickers (Sonic)

-Peachbuds stickers

-JTTW 96 Wukong sticker!

[ryin-silverfish]

A side-by-side comparison of Nezha's backstory in JTTW and FSYY

(Sth I've been working on for a while, as quick reference material for Nezha's story in the two novels specifically that doesn't go into the broader mythos.)

JTTW's Nezha:

-Born with the characters "Ne/Na" on one hand, and "Zha" on the other

-Has 2 older brothers and 1 younger sister: Jinzha, who worked as a guardian deity and attendant of the Buddha, Mucha, who was the disciple of Guanyin, and Li Zhenying, who's said to be 7 years old in JTTW (Chapter 83).

-There's also Diyong/Lady Earth Flow, the adopted mice sister that had eaten the Buddha's candle, was captured by Li Jing and Nezha, and spared on the Buddha's order.

-She shows up in Chapter 80, as a demoness who kidnapped Tripitaka for the purpose of marriage, and is subsequently recaptured to face celestial judgement.

-Three days after his birth, Nezha went off into an unknown ocean, stepped on a crystal palace and toppled it, and caught a flood dragon to use its tendon as a belt

-After that, Li Jing tried to kill him for being a menace, and Nezha did the "Return his flesh and bones to his parents" thing in anger

-His soul then drifted off to the Buddha's place, who performed the Lotus Resurrection Thing by reciting a mantra

-He then subdued 96 caves of demons, and went after Li Jing to take revenge for the "forced suicide" thing

-Li Jing pleaded to the Buddha for help, who gave him a pagoda with Buddhas sculptured on every level, and told Nezha to call the Buddha (on the pagoda) as his father from now on.

-The weapons he used in his Three-headed Six-Armed Form: The Demon-slaying Sword + Demon-cutting Blade, Demon-binding Rope + Demon-subduing Vajra, Embroidered Ball, Fire Wheel (held in his hand)

FSYY's Nezha:

-Is the reincarnation of Taiyi's oldest disciple, Spirit Pearl/Lingzhu Zi

-Is destined to be the Vanguard of the Zhou army in the upcoming War of the Investiture

-Has 2 brothers: Jinzha, disciple of Wenshu Guangfa Tianzun, and Muzha, disciple of Sage Puxian. (FSYY's quirk of making popular Buddhist deities into Daoist sages in a trenchcoat is at play again.)

-Mother was pregnant with him for three years, gave birth to a ball of flesh

-Jumps out of the ball of flesh when Li Jing cuts it open, wearing his Qiankun Ring as a bracelet, Huntian Sash wrapped around his stomach

-Was immediately taken by Taiyi as a disciple the next day, who told Li Jing that, born in the hour of Chou, Nezha is destined to break 1700 prohibitions against killing

-A 6 ft tall 7-years old (FSYY's sense of scale is really weird, like all old novels)

-Asked to go out and play in the river during summertime, unknowingly created a shockwave in the water with his sash that shook Ao Guang's palace in the East Sea.

-Ao Guang sent a Yaksha to check it out. Nezha sassed the Yaksha, who attacked him in a fury and got insta-killed.

-Ao Guang's soldiers reported the Yaksha's death. Ao Bing overheard the whole thing, asked to go deal with this random brat, and was granted permission by his father.

-Ao Bing rode out of the waves on his steed, and went "Who are you, sassy lost child, and did you just kill my Yaksha?!" And Nezha was like "Yeah, so what? Talk shit, get hit."

-Ao Bing charged Nezha with his weapon in a fury, got dragged down his steed by the sash, and was promptly bonked on the head by the Qiankun Ring, which reverted him to his dragon form.

-Nezha then pulled out his tendons to make a belt for Li Jing's armor and returned to Chentang Pass. Furious, Ao Guang hurried his way to Li Jing's mansion and accused him for the whole multiple homicide thing.

-Li Jing's first reaction was "My kid's only 7 and never goes out of the door, he can't possibly kill yours!" Then, when he indeed asked Nezha, Nezha flat-out admits it and went out to meet Ao Guang like "Yeah, sorry, doesn't know that's your kid. Anyways, here's his tendons, undamaged and untouched."

-Ao Guang, unsurprisingly, did not take it well and stormed off to press charges to the JE. Faced with his angry crying parents, Nezha also knew he had fucked up, and went to his master Taiyi for help.

-Taiyi's advice? Go ambush the dragon king on his way to complain to the JE and beat him up, mobster-style. Which Nezha promptly did, forcing Ao Guang to turn into a little snake and stay in his sleeves, to be carried back to Chentang Pass.

-The beatdown does not convince Ao Guang not to press charges. In fact, he said he'd get the other dragon kings of the Four Seas to press charges together. Li Jing raged at Nezha again, who assured him that it was alright, like, his master said he was destined to assist some Sage King and stuff.

-He then wandered into the back garden, picked up the Qiankun Bow and Sky-shaking Arrows of the Yellow Emperor that were, uh, just kept there in the family attic, and decided to do some archery practice.

-Sadly, he didn't know how far that arrow would go. It flew all the way to the White Bone Cave, abode of Lady Shiji the Rock Demoness, and went straight through the throat of one of her two disciples, the Verdant Cloud Boy.

-Since Li Jing also carved his name onto the arrow (…), Lady Shiji headed immediately to his place and whisked him away with her treasure, the Eight Trigrams Hankerchief.

-At her place, Li Jing pleaded that he really didn't do it, since the Qiankun Bow was a mystical ancient weapon no one could use in a long, long time, and Shiji released him back to Chentang Pass to find the true culprit. At which point he put two and two together, found out it was Nezha again, and told him to go answer to Shiji together with him.

-Nezha, who did not think this was his fault, smacked Shiji's other disciple, the Colored Cloud Boy on the head with his Qiankun Ring, when he came out of the cave on his master's orders. Shiji was even less happy about that, took his weapons away with a single swipe of her sleeves, then chased him all the way to Taiyi's place.

-At which point Taiyi was like "Well, if you want Nezha to pay for his crimes, how about we go to the Jade Emptiness Palace together and let my master (Yuanshi Tianzun) sort it out?" Shiji refused, stating that he was just using his master's authority to lord over her and unfairly protect his disciple.

-Taiyi then revealed the Chan-Jie division that would later become a huge thing in the War of Investiture, and basically went "Sorry that your student died in Nezha's archery accident, Lady Shiji, but it is literally Fated to Happen, which means you totally shouldn't be mad at me or him."

-Shiji did not buy that explanation at all, and they fought. Taiyi blocked her hankerchief when she tried to use it, then threw the Nine Fire Dragon Bell Cover over her head, burning her to death and reverting her to her true form——a rock.

-Taiyi then informed Nezha that with JE's permission, Ao Guang had gathered the other dragon kings to go after Nezha's parents. Nezha begged him to save them, and his advice was...well, "kill yourself and the dragon kings will let them go". Literally.

-So Nezha did, which was very graphically described in the novel, after which his soul drifted off to Taiyi's place.

-Taiyi told him to go to his mother and tell her to build a temple for him at Mt. Cuiping. He did, and Lady Yin woke up from her dream crying.

-Upon learning the reason why, Li Jing yelled at her for crying after Nezha had brought all these troubles upon their family. Nezha's soul then haunted her in her dreams for a week or so, until she finally relented and built him a temple in secret.

-Half a year later, Li Jing found out about the temple while Nezha's soul was out and away for some unknown reasons. In a fit of rage, he smashed Nezha's statue and burned the temple down (I talk about how this resembles the destruction of 淫祠, illicit cults in IRL history here).

-Nezha returned to his temple only to find it in ruins, at which point he went back to Taiyi, who did the Lotus Resurrection thing and gave him back his weapons, together with a new spear, the Wind-Fire Wheels and a golden brick.

-Nezha immediately rushed back to Chentang Pass to take revenge, stating that after the whole "returning his flesh and blood" thing, they were basically unrelated and didn't owe each other anything, so he was perfectly justified to go after Li Jing for the destruction of his temple.

-They fought. Li Jing, quickly exhausted, turned tail and fled using the Daoist arts of Earth Travel, at which point he ran into Muzha. While they were talking, Nezha caught up with them.

-Muzha was like "How dare you!" and Nezha replied with "Who the hell are you?" Only after Muzha said his name out loud did he recognize his brother and recount the whole story.

-Muzha retorted that "Parents can do no wrong". Nezha pointed out that after his suicide, they were no longer father and son, and told him to stand aside.

-Muzha whipped out his sword to fight him. Concerned that Li Jing might get away in the meantime, Nezha threw his golden brick at Muzha, hitting him in the back and knocking him down.

-The chase continued. Li Jing, knowing that he couldn't run away forever, was ready to commit suicide instead of facing the disgrace of being struck down by his son.

-However, Jinzha's master, Wenshu, suddenly showed up to rescue him. Nezha demanded that Wenshu release Li Jing from his abode, and if he didn't, he'd poke three holes in Wenshu instead.

"And who are you, to make such claims?"

"I am Nezha, disciple of Master Taiyi!"

"Never heard of you. You can throw a tantrum elsewhere, but not here, and if you keep this up, you are in for a spanking."

-Nezha attacked him. In return, Wenshu unleashed his treasure, the Flying Dragon Pillar, tying Nezha onto it. He then summoned Jinzha, handed him a walking stick, and told Jinzha to give him a good whipping.

-Then Taiyi showed up to rescue him, telling Nezha to bow to Wenshu, his Daoist uncle (Context: Taiyi and Wenshu are both among the 12 Immortals of the Chan Sect), and scolded Li Jing a bit for the temple-burning thing.

-Then he told the two to get along and go their separate ways. Nezha was delighted, seeing it as basically a free pass to resume his revenge the moment he was out of his master's sight, and indeed, he did.

-Then Sage Randeng (also of the Chan Sect) showed up, gave Li Jing a buff, and told him to fight Nezha again. Nezha, having witnessed the whole thing and reached an impasse in the fight, attacked Randeng in an attempt to disable the buff.

-Randeng was not happy about this "unprovoked" attack on an innocent bystander, so he dropped a pagoda out of his sleeves and onto Nezha, trapping him inside.

-On Randeng's command, flames ignited inside the pagoda. At last, Nezha pleaded for the sage to release him, under the condition that he'd call Li Jing father (grrrr grrrr) again.

-He was planning to pull a second "resume patricide arc" the moment Randeng left, until the sage gave the pagoda to Li Jing and told them to go back to Chentang Pass and Taiyi's place respectively, to wait until the War of Investiture formally began.

-And they did: Nezha was sent to rescue Huang Feihu during his escape from the Five Passes in Chapter 34, while Li Jing only showed up much later in Chapter 64, to kill a fleeing Luo Xuan after he got all of his fire-based treasures neutralized and taken away by Princess Longji.

-I will not do a full campaign-by-campaign summary of Nezha's performance in the War of Investiture proper, for this post is already long enough.

-The broadest overview: together with his senior Daoist brother Yang Jian, Nezha was one of the biggest powerhouses on the Chan/Zhou side.

-His total kill count in the novel (only counting the named/deified ones) is 15, which is actually more than Yang Jian's (12-13).

-Much like Yang Jian, he was often the one who survived lethal attacks and AOE plague spells while the others were taken out. His lotus body also made him impervious to spells and treasures that work directly on the soul, usually by pulling it out of the body.

-After suffering an injury from the Blood-melting Knife of Yu Hua/his master Yu Yuan, Nezha was given his final power-up at Taiyi's place via three cups of wine and three "fire jujubes", enabling him to transform into his Three-headed, Eight-armed Form.

-At the end of the novel, Nezha, together with Li Jing, Jinzha, Muzha, Yang Jian, Weihu and Lei Zhenzi, became "Sages in Flesh"——which I understood as "a better sort of gods/immortals that don't receive their godhood via death and deification".

-The 6+ weapons he has: Qiankun Ring, Huntian Sash, Fire-tipped Spear, Golden Brick, Wind-Fire Wheel (in its most popular "hot wheels" depiction), Yin-Yang Swords, Nine Fire Dragon Bell Cover

[digitaldoeslmk]

Hello there! I hope your month has been kind to you. This is the blog that deal with LMK, right? There's a theory floating around that MK is gonna shatter Wukong's staff in the middle of their predicted fight or at the start of it in the canon show. How do you feel about that?

On an unrelated note, what are your thoughts on the staff that Wukong uses? I'd say it's name but fear incorrectly saying it Have you watched the Netflix Monkey King movie? In that movie the staff is shown to be very obviously sentient with its own thoughts and options, and isn't shy about vibrating, humming about them. Do you consider this with your thoughts on Wukong and his staff too?

Have a good month, do not skip your meals and enjoy them, drink plenty of water and sleep early regularly.

this is the blog indeed! :3

hmmmm I'm not sure how I feel about that, exactly. I'm not much a fan of destroying such an iconic (and basically indestructible) weapon for the sake of shock value, since I don't really see any other reason for such a narrative decision. same about FFM being destroyed; its literally glazed over and, I kind of hate that /gen

you gotta keep in mind that yes this is just an inspired story but, FFM is a sacred mountain. in jttw its described in a way that it could easily be Mt Sumeru, the axis that sits on the center of the world and holds up the Heavenly realms. its, A Big Fucking Deal. same for the Ruyi Jingu Bang, it's the rod of celestial iron that held down the oceans by the Great Yu, it prevented floods during a time where those almost ruined the middle kingdom (China).

destroying them brings nothing to the story imo besides maybe Lego gaining the window to showcase another locations so they can sell more toy models. which, yes is the entire reason the show exists, to sell toys, but also..... eugh. in my ideal scenario, we gets to see FFM being restored and fixed up, thanks to everybody's efforts.

as for the second question, yes I've watched it though i gotta say, i am very much not the target audience x.x besides the first few minutes in Huaguoshan and the 2D sequence, i didnt like much about it. That said, im a sucker for sentient weapons hwbdhshbsbe

in the 1996 liveaction series of Journey to the West, Jingu Bang is also sentient and despite the dated graphics, it's some fun sequences when the staff gets to to its antics! plus 96 Xiyouji is just, such an emotional and genuinely good time of a series, I def recommend it to folks even if it changes A Lot about the canon and narrative. that's one adaptation that i think did the whole changes to the book source INCREDIBLY right.

while the staff is not much given sentience in the book, it does seem to Know that Wukong is its fated wielder and responds to him exclusively, which does give some credence to sentient weapons interpretations. that said, i do view the staff as an extension of Wukong rather than i suppose you could call a partner in arms. it's his signature weapon, what defines him as Him in iconography and depictions. same goes for Nezha with his artillery sash, fire-wind wheels, and fire-tipped spear!

thank you for the ask, and a good month to you too!!

[the-monkey-ruler]

I've been seeing some 'debate' in the JttW community recently about people making Wukong romantic/giving him a lover. Personally it doesn't bother me (and I love the potential), but I DO think it's funny that fans have no problem ignoring canon and turning a Buddhist allegory into another romance……. but HEAVEN FORBID they let Wukong be gay. I can understand why the movies can't get away with it (really wish they'd at least stop killing off all the lady love interests, though) but it's kinda funny how Straight the western JttW community is.

I haven't experienced personally Western fans being homophobic... that is more than upsetting to hear considering. I thought the community would be more open-minded and accepting... I'm sorry if you have had to face any harassment yourself, no one should be treated like especially not in 2023.

And it is strange to me how people connected Wukong with being straight considering his most popular ships, at least in CN being Jiankong, Suntang, and Zhuhou. 猴子 monkey is even a gay slang for twink. I'm not trying to say that Wukong is one way or another, rather he has shown to be addressed as above sexuality but to try to say that he can only be what is considered socially normal also goes against who he is as a character.

Giving Wukong a SO is nothing new in Xiyouji media but at the same point I think we are reaching a new era in how Wukong can be explored without it having to be romantic or at least not having the SO killed. We have seen more and more Xiyouji media with Wukong being played with more sidekicks and younger characters to still explore his character. Romance as a genre is a good within itself but I have rarely seen it being used to its full potential in Xiyouji media, and personally prefer when Wukong is explored more with another solid and well-written side character instead. I'm not sure we can see a decrease in dead SO's as that is the easy way out of destroying the romance but I do enjoy how 96 Xiyouji tv series did in that Wukong simply rejected his Love Interest's advances as he was just not interested.

[whynotaskmagiconch]

JTTW Chapter 96

Poor Wukong 🥲

[lavaflowe]

My favorite Wukongs!! I spent way too much time on this HAJDHA (click for better quality)

Tho that being said- OSP and Havoc were NOT fun to draw… very sad but I will be loving them from a distance now, I will NOT draw them

09 and 96 were my baby girls😌 I had so much fun drawing them, they get gold stars! Very Neutral about Nezha reborn and Death Battle- didn’t give me too much trouble🤷‍♀️ Lmk + 17 are some of my fav designs in general, so they also gold stars!

Honorable mentions under cut:

The design is so FUCKING COOL, but I also don’t hate myself enough to draw all those details

Rip forgot he existed BUT HES SO CUTE

[talesofsonicasura]

Sun Wukongs I know and personal nicknames

Something I thought of writing down and will update. Go from most known to least known.

Hero Is Back- Dāsheng

A name that he's commonly called throughout the English Sub of the movie and for the videogame. Quite simple plus more easy for me to remember. Has a small stubby tail that he prefers to keep hidden.

Lego Monkie Kid- Diva

He gives me pure diva vibes. Exaggerate some situations like running out of peach chips or is too lax at a serious problem such as MK's magic mishaps. Makeup game is on point alongside some outfits.

Saiyuki Journey West- Hermit

Wise and mischievous type that only travels for important business or visit loved ones living far away. Otherwise he gives advice, assist, and tell tales to his kingdom.

Journey To The West 1996- Teacher

Most likely to get out of a problem without much issue due to 'Out of the Box Thinking'. (Man literally acted like a marriage councilor for Demon Bull King/Bull Demon King and Princess Iron Fan.) Happily teach others if they are willing to listen to his rules and is quick to help those struggling with something. A little extra but means well. Tail acts a bit wonky making it unable to hold stuff for long.

Stephen Chow movies Sun Wukong- Feral

The type to stir trouble in two ways. Extravagant or stealthy manipulation, anything explosive and embarrassing are the most used. Will bite someone's ankles if they call him short. Has a stubby tail so he keeps up his human glamor as he rather not have someone notice.

Adventures From China Monkey King- Trick

Pulls small pranks or tends to trick people. Would definitely start a prank way for shits and giggles. If someone does manage to prank him, he takes it in stride. Not really a sore loser.

Digimon's Gokuwmon- Silverback

Second biggest Sun Wukong iteration. A bit reclusive fighting fanatic. Very bitter from having the tightening circlet placed to his head after being born. Takes time to trust others but is fiercely loyal once a bond is established. Nickname being given from his silver fur coat.

Monkey King Reborn- Flame

Hotheaded and fiery temper to match. Will throw hands with someone that pisses him off so you got to hold him back. Mischievous shit who is quick to get annoyed upon being caught in whatever shenanigan he's currently up to.

Nezha Reborn Sun Wukong- Gamble

Will bet on almost everything and likes to take a dangerous or insane route for any situation. Most likely find him at a casino that ends up going bankrupt since he's an expert card shark. Has a short tail and doesn't really care if someone sees it.

Unruly Heroes Sun Wukong- Wild

The type of person to be chilling on someone's rooftop or sleeping in trees. Probably jump into animal exhibits at the zoo or jailbreak all the simians. Will steal food from people like a wild monkey.

Smite Sun Wukong- Warrior

Fighting fanatic. Most likely host a small tournament or issue a friendly challenge. When not in a fighting mood, found enjoying good food and fine wine. Great drinking buddy, martial arts teacher from hell.

Aura Star Online- Acrobat

Has a hard time keeping still and will be a bit extra whether traveling and in a fight. Most likely to free climb any tall structure to even performing flips across the terrain. Will sneak into any performance just to steal the show. Has a short stubby tail that he prefers to keep hidden but doesn't have much of a reaction if someone sees it.

Tower of Saviors- Casanova

Suave smooth talker capable of seducing many. A huge wine lover that tends to shift between young, old, handsome or beast like appearance. Very committed to a solid relationship. Is very polite to advances if they didn't know he's in a relationship and understand that he's taken. Shift into a more monstrous form to chase off any that don't get the hint and keep pressing.

(Aura Star Online Sun Wukong btw)

[morfanerina]

jttw 96 episode 13:

Sanzang just going you are brothers you shouldn’t fight, especially for so small things >:(

Me: You obviously have never been around siblings long have you?

[ninjasmudge]

very quick doodle of jttw sun wukong. i came up with the design nearly a year ago when i was reading the book but back then i didnt have a tablet. this is him at the start of the journey, later swk would be nicer to xuanzang 😔

[antidotefortheawkward-art]

Fellas- do you ever see your best friend truly back in his element for the first time, and realize you’re feeling butterflies from how happy you are seeing him happy?

Here’s the Bajie half of the request for ZhuHou realizing their feelings! I think Bajie realized he liked Wukong after spending a day at Huaguo with him during the White Bone Arc. Unfortunate timing to say the least!

[returnofahsoka]

he's my comfort character and i get to choose how huggable and friend-shaped i want to draw him!!!!

[skellebonez]

73 and 61 with Wukong, Pigsy, and Spirit perhaps? 👉👈

I couldn't resist using this prompt set as an excuse to write a follow up to the last Spirit related fill I wrote! It was only a matter of time before Wukong was busted.

You’re putting an awful lot of trust in them./That is not a good hiding spot.

"Oh you cannot be serious Wukong," Pigsy sighed out as the "new regular" paused in taking a seat at the front of Pigsy's Noodles. The shocked "how in the actual hell did you know" expression would have been amusing had it not been under these specific circumstances. "Again? Really? You've been at this for weeks, it's starting to get old."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Pigsy, I don't know what y-"

"Don't "Mr. Pigsy" me, Wukong!" Pigsy snapped, allowing himself to smirk as he saw the almost imperceptible movement along the not so human man's waist. The tell tale sign of a tail trying to move. "That is not a good hiding spot, out here in the open. I picked up on you watching them within a few days you dingus."

"Dingus?" Wukong had the gall to look both offended and confused by the word, standing up straighter and crossing his arms. "Are you seriously calling a loyal customer a D-"

"The last bill you paid was in money made of hair."

That shut the Monkey King right up. Very fast. The recon mission was officially busted. He knew he should have double checked to make sure he had real money in his pockets.

"Alright, you got me," Wukong conceded as he allowed his voice to take back it's normal timber and tone. "I've been secretly coming into your noodle shop for lunch for the last few weeks. Whoo. I eat food like everyone else."

"And you're spying in my employee."

"Why would I ever need to spy on my own student like th-"

"I ain't talkin about MK," Pigsy said, a low growl threatening to bubble up at the last word. "I'm talkin about-"

"Pigsy?" Spirit asked as they came from around the corner, small boxes filled with what were presumably fresh ingredients for soup from the pantry. "What's, uh, what's going on?"

They looked between the two men, one disguised demon looking like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar and one clearly miffed chef.

"Just talkin about what happened last time, you know with the money shortage," Pigsy lied easily, surprising Wukong more than a bit. "Regular here actually forgot to pay the full amount and was apologizing, with how busy it was I can see how a couple customers forgetting a few yuan added up. He'd gonna pay the missing amount on his bill today, isn't that right... I never did catch your name?"

As Pigsy turned around he gave Wukong a dark look that promised he would find a way to make a punch actually hurt the immortal monkey.

"Cheung," Wukong provided quickly, his go to human name now. He couldn't help it, he happened to really like that actor who portrayed him in that one show.

"Mr. Cheung," Pigsy said, tone of voice not matching his facial expression at all. "Thank you."

"Oh, you don't have to do that M-"

"Spirit, I could use a little help here!" MK's voice sounded from the pantry as a thunk of something clattering was heard, and in no time the other yelped out an apology and ran into the back.

"You’re putting an awful lot of trust in them," Wukong said after a moment of silence, staring off to where the taller but equally disguised monkey ran off to at his student's voice. "You have no idea of knowing what could happen, you don't know what they're capable of-!"

"And you don't know know them at all outside of rumors," Pigsy interrupted, his glower and sharp tone giving the Monkey King pause. "Wouldn't you, Sun Wukong, The Great Sage Equal to Heaven, know a little something about rumors by now?"

Pigsy... wasn't wrong about that, now that he thought about it. Not really. Sure, he knew Spirit through tales of their favors. Who they had healed, who they had ran errands for, who they had... killed. They had killed, those were no rumors. But he had killed as well, hadn't he? He'd killed multiple times over, as had his brothers on their great journey.

As had Zhu Bajie. And as Wukong looked at Pigsy he couldn't help but...

Spirit hadn't really done anything in their time here. They'd offered many favors to MK, more than Wukong was comfortable with. But they hadn't forced him into accepting anything. And as long as he had been there, as long as he had watched them, they had seemed...

Different from what he had expected.

"... I'm still going to keep an eye on them," Wukong said firmly, relaxing his stance. "But I'll trust your judgement, and MK's as well. About this at least. For now."

He just hoped he wouldn't regret this.