I don't remember how I was born.
One moment, darkness. The next, the stone cracked open like an eggshell, and I tumbled out, hitting the hard ground. The sky was blindingly bright, the earth unyielding, the wind sharp and cool against my new skin. I opened my eyes to a circle of monkeys staring down at me—their eyes wide, round, gleaming like polished river stones.
"A monkey born from a rock!" an old one croaked.
"No mother?"
"No."
"No father?"
"No."
"Then where'd he come from?"
"The stone."
They stared a long time, then wandered off—some to pick fruit, others to bask in the sun. I stayed where I was, flat on my back, staring up at the endless blue sky that looked deep enough to drown in.
I didn't know what I was waiting for.
---
On Flower-Fruit Mountain, every monkey cultivates.
They sit cross-legged, eyes closed, breathing in the spiritual qi that drifts from every direction. It flows into their bodies; their fur glows with a faint golden sheen, like clouds at sunset.
I tried it too.
Cross-legged. Eyes shut. Inhale. Exhale.
The qi brushed past me like a river flowing around a rock on the bank. It never entered. Never touched me.
"You have no spirit root," Tongbi Ape told me. He was the oldest, the one in charge, white eyebrows drooping like frost. His gaze swept me from head to toe, then back again—like inspecting a barren tree.
"What's a spirit root?"
"The foundation for cultivation."
"No root means no cultivation?"
"Exactly."
"Then what can I do?"
He looked at me again, longer this time.
"Pick fruit."
He turned and left.
The sun warmed my fur, but inside I felt cold.
---
Flower-Fruit Mountain has one thousand seven hundred and thirty-eight fruit trees. I counted them myself.
Peach, pear, loquat, lychee. Spring fruit sour, summer sweet, autumn astringent, winter hard. I sorted them: ripe ones for the elders, rotten for me.
No one asked me to. I just did.
At least that's what I told myself.
One day while picking peaches, I heard voices below the tree.
"That stone monkey's at it again—picking fruit."
"It's all he's good for."
"No spirit root and still dreams of cultivating? Pathetic."
"Not dreams. Just pitiful."
Laughter—low, snickering.
I crouched on the branch, peach in hand. Its fuzz pricked my palm. I didn't look down. Didn't speak. I waited until they left, then climbed down.
The peach was crushed in my fist. Juice dripped between my fingers, drawing ants. They formed a line, hauling away the pieces. One couldn't move it alone—two worked together. Silent, but together.
I had no spirit root. And no one.
---
Ma Hou was the first to actually talk to me.
He led the patrol squad, at the fifth layer of Qi Condensation—strong for the mountain. Black fur, two long scars on his arms from fighting a snake demon years ago.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Don't have one."
"Want one?"
I thought about it. "Yeah."
"What'll it be?"
"Sun Wukong."
He blinked. "Who gave you that?"
"Myself."
He studied me for a long moment. His small eyes shone like black pebbles.
"Sun… Wukong. You know what it means?"
"No."
"And you still picked it?"
"Yeah."
He laughed—not mocking, but the kind that says, *This monkey's interesting.*
"Fine. Sun Wukong. I'll remember it."
He walked away. I watched his back, those two scars like coiled centipedes under his fur.
---
That night I climbed to the highest peak.
The moon hung huge, turning the sea silver. East wind carried salt. I sat on the cliff edge, legs crossed like the others.
Inhale. Exhale.
Nothing.
Inhale. Exhale.
Still nothing.
My dantian was empty—a dry well with no echo.
[Host detected—]
A translucent blue panel appeared in my vision. Only I could see it.
[—Emotional fluctuation: unwillingness, rage, confusion. Activate "Newbie Guidance Quest"?]
I stared at the words.
"Activate."
[Newbie Guidance Quest activated]
**Quest:** Gain recognition from the Flower-Fruit Mountain monkey troop.
**Reward:** Chaos Holy Body seal released 1%.
**Failure Penalty:** Remain mortal forever.
Forever.
My palms sweated, slick against the stone.
---
I didn't sleep for three nights.
I crouched outside the sleeping troop, watching their steady breaths, fur faintly glowing in moonlight.
Ma Hou slept on the edge. His breathing was heavier. Those scars gleamed white.
How do I make them accept me?
Cultivate? Impossible.
Hunt? I'd die.
Pick fruit? A thousand days, and I was still nothing.
At dawn, I walked over and nudged him.
He woke instantly, eyes snapping open, pupils narrowing—then relaxing when he saw me.
"What?"
"Today's patrol. I want in."
"Patrol needs Qi Condensation Layer 2."
"I'm fast. Faster than anyone."
He stared. Then a soft snort of laughter, warm air from his nose.
"Fine. Keep up."
---
The patrol was five monkeys. Ma Hou in front, me at the rear.
We crossed peach groves, crested ridges, reached the dense eastern forest. Trees pressed close; wind couldn't penetrate.
Ma Hou raised a hand. We froze.
"Demonic qi."
Rotten meat and sulfur stench poured out.
Bushes rustled.
A wolf emerged—taller than Ma Hou standing, black scales, crimson eyes like burning coals. Drool sizzled on the ground.
[Black Scaled Wolf · Foundation Establishment Layer 1]
Ma Hou paled.
"Run!"
Too late. It lunged at him.
Claws slashed. Ma Hou rolled, barely dodging. Second claw, third—stones flew.
The other three monkeys fled, branches snapping in their wake.
I didn't move.
My feet felt rooted.
The wolf turned, eyes locking on me. Head tilted—as if wondering why this monkey wasn't running.
Then it charged.
I didn't dodge. Couldn't. Too fast. Claw slammed my chest—I flew, crashing through a tree that splintered behind me.
Blood filled my mouth—salty, hot.
The wolf approached slowly, silently.
I closed my eyes.
[Chaos Holy Body emergency response—activating]
[Consuming vitality. Temporarily unlock 1%]
Heat exploded from my bones—like magma flooding veins. Nails dug into dirt. Teeth ground together.
I opened my eyes.
Gold. My pupils were gold.
I could *see* qi now—flowing like rivers, winds, transparent serpents. The wolf's qi was thickest: black and red, burning.
It hesitated—just a heartbeat.
I lunged.
Fist smashed its skull. Not my bones cracking—its. Skull caved; blood sprayed from its eyes. It collapsed, twitching, tail lashing twice, then still.
I stood trembling.
The heat receded like a tide. My body emptied. I dropped to my knees on sharp stones. No pain. Nothing.
Ma Hou stared, face splattered with wolf blood.
"You…"
I tried to speak. Throat raw. Lips moved. No sound.
He crouched, slung my arm over his shoulder, hauled me up. His body was warm. Only then did I realize how cold I was.
"From today," he said loudly enough for the returning three monkeys at the forest edge to hear, "he doesn't pick fruit anymore."
He looked at them.
"He's going to cultivate. And we're all going to help him."
I leaned against him, watching the eastern sky.
The sun rose. Clouds burned red. The sea burned red. My blood burned red.
[Quest completed. Chaos Holy Body seal released 1%. Cultivation panel unlocked.]
New lines appeared on the panel. I didn't read them.
I watched the sun—huge, round, rising over the sea like a ripe peach.
For the first time, I realized: peaches aren't the sweetest thing.
Being seen is.