The setting sun slanted across the land, dyeing everything in a dusky red glow.
A single fallen leaf drifted slowly to the ground.
Outside the gates of the abbey, Louis Quickpaw knelt motionless, his forehead pressed tightly to the earth, his body trembling ever so slightly.
Behind him, the assembled demon generals also bowed their heads, waiting in anticipation.
A black boot stepped steadily over the high threshold, coming to rest right in front of Louis Quickpaw.
Louis Quickpaw, trembling, lifted his eyes and saw those black boots.
In that instant, his eyes brimmed with tears.
"Rise."
A voice reached Louis Quickpaw's ears—plain, familiar, yet somehow distant and hard to grasp.
The demon generals behind him remained prostrate, not daring to move; only Louis Quickpaw slowly raised his head.
A seemingly ordinary military tunic, dark golden fur, and the features etched deep in memory.
"Great Sage, your old minister... your old minister..."
His mouth hung open, tears streaming down his wrinkled face like a breached dam, as he gazed at Monkey in a daze, his expression blooming with indescribable joy.
"Your old minister... your old minister has waited so bitterly, six hundred and fifty years. I always knew... I knew the Great Sage would return. I have always been ready... always been ready to welcome you back..."
He slowly straightened, trembling, reaching out as if an old man yearning for one last touch of his child's face before death—yet, suddenly aware of his own status, he drew his hand back, though his gaze could not leave Monkey's face.
Monkey lowered his head and quietly watched him.
After six hundred and fifty years apart—perhaps because his cultivation had stalled—Louis Quickpaw now appeared aged and frail, almost like a different person. Yet beneath that worn exterior, his loyal heart for Blossom Mountain and Monkey remained unchanged.
Once, outside Evil Dragon City, he was the pedantic scholar spouting classical phrases, rushing to pledge allegiance. Now, he was nearing his life's end.
In six hundred and fifty years, even the Nine-Headed Wyrm had grown conflicted, and the whole world had changed beyond recognition. Yet one person still clung to his beliefs.
Shortbeak and Rhino had mocked Louis Quickpaw countless times for being rigid and stubborn.
Yet perhaps only those who are so rigid, stubborn, and old-fashioned can hold onto their beliefs unchanged through six hundred and fifty years, steadfastly guarding a distant, uncertain dream.
In that moment, as Monkey looked at Louis Quickpaw, tears streaming down his old face, his own eyes reddened too.
"Quick, get up. You're not young anymore—don't keep kneeling."
As he spoke, Monkey reached out to help him up.
But Louis Quickpaw pressed his head to the ground and cried out, "Great Sage, the demons of the Three Realms have all been waiting for your return, waiting for you to lead us again and raise the demon banner. I never imagined... never imagined I would live to see this day. If Heaven shows mercy and grants me a little more time, I swear to devote all my strength to aiding the Great Sage in ruling the Three Realms. I—Louis Qing—humbly beg the Great Sage to return to court and take charge of the situation!"
"We humbly beg the Great Sage to return to court and take charge! We humbly beg the Great Sage to return to court and take charge!" All the demon generals cried out, their voices echoing to the heavens.
Inside the abbey, the monks trembled at those shouts.
"What on earth is happening?"
"Will they rush in and kill us all?"
As they spoke, they all glanced toward Tripitaka, sitting alone not far away.
Just moments before, the words "Great Sage Equal to Heaven" were nothing but an ancient legend to these monks—a monster who, centuries ago, wreaked havoc across heaven and earth, only to be subdued by the Buddha.
Only now did they truly grasp what those words meant to the demons.
Abbot Goldenpool timidly crawled over to Tripitaka and whispered, "Master Tripitaka, your friend... that Great Sage, he won't attack us, will he?"
"He won't," Tripitaka replied calmly.
With this reassurance, Abbot Goldenpool finally relaxed a little, though he still sat nervously beside Tripitaka, wishing he could cling to him for safety.
...
Outside the abbey, on a distant hillside, a hidden demon released his grip on the leaves and slipped away without a trace.
...
Monkey's hand, reaching to help Louis Quickpaw, paused and slowly withdrew. He said softly, "Have them go back first. Let's talk, shall we?"
"Us... talk?" Louis Quickpaw raised his head, a bit stunned as he looked at Monkey. The surrounding demons also stared at Monkey in surprise.