The Monkey King's Legacy
"This heavy thing is just my style. Thanks, monkey."
"G-give it back."
Sun Wukong muttered so softly it was barely audible as he stared blankly at the pillar that had been yanked out of the ground. "What was that?"
"······."
When I stared straight at his face, he slowly turned his head away. He must not have been embarrassed even after saying it himself.
"You're the real deal, Great Sage. Your little monkey tail's gone."
"······."
Sun Wukong's face flushed so red I worried it might actually catch fire.
Chik, chik.
"Huu—"
"Even if you somehow pulled it out, you can't even swing it······."
Whoosh—!!
"Gyaaaah!!"
When I swung the Yeoui horizontally, Sun Wukong frantically bent backward. Just swinging the iron staff produced a sound like it was tearing the air itself apart, loud enough to rupture eardrums.
"A-are you insane! Do you even know what that's made of before swinging it around like that?!"
"Isn't it divine iron?"
"How······?"
Even though they were supposed to be beings who had attained divine status, there wasn't a single dignified thing about their actions or speech. It was fortunate that Sun Wukong's mischievous personality actually worked in my favor.
"Still, you can't just swing it around recklessly like that!"
"Says the guy who already wrecked the durability by swinging it like crazy, and now he's yelling at me."
"······."
Sun Wukong's flustered gaze gradually shifted.
"You're not gonna solve this with brute force, are you?"
"····What the hell do you take me for? Even like this, I'm the Buddha who completed the journey to the West and earned the title of Victorious Fighting Buddha."
"Really? That's pretty cool, Buddha. Then I'll put this to good use."
"W-wait a second!!"
"Now what."
Sweat was dripping down Sun Wukong's face. He must really cherish the Yeoui.
"You're not gonna use staff techniques anyway. That's not something a human can handle."
"You're not wrong, but then teach me a bit."
"Why should I."
Sun Wukong, who had been flustered the whole time, suddenly grinned slyly.
"Like this?"
Whoosh—!!!
"Eek!!"
Boom!!!
The hard ground didn't just crack—it exploded outward. This was no longer a blunt weapon; it was a massive mass weapon.
"If you handle it like that, the Yeoui will break within a hundred years!"
"A hundred years?"
If it could last a hundred years with only three percent durability left, I couldn't even imagine how Sun Wukong had been treating it all this time.
"Sniff sniff, what kind of peaches have you been eating to turn a human into this?"
"If even a dog-nosed monkey can do it, why can't a human?"
"Seriously···· Meeting you in person makes me want to punch that mouth of yours."
"Everyone says that. I can't help it after hanging out with my kids."
"Haa."
Sun Wukong let out a sigh and rubbed his face with his palm repeatedly.
"Anyway, there's only three percent durability left. Think of it as passing it on to your disciple."
"····Who said anything about a disciple. And how do you even know the exact number?"
"You're really petty."
True to his name, Sun Wukong kept grumbling.
Ding!
"Here."
When I tossed something I'd taken out of my inventory to Sun Wukong, who was still staring at the ground, he caught it without even looking.
"What is it."
"Don't you like that?"
Sun Wukong turned his gaze to the object in his hand and made a completely shocked expression.
"····Huh!? Choco Song Song!"
"I thought you'd like it···· Where did it go?"
"Huh? I ate it allllll."
"Say that after you finish eating."
He dumped the entire bag of snacks into his mouth and started chewing. His cheeks were puffed out like he really was a monkey.
"It's delicious!!"
"Whoa, you're gonna spit it out."
While moving his mouth busily, he reached his hand out to me.
"What."
"Give me more."
"I just gave you some. You already ate it all?"
"Yeah."
When I took out another bag from my inventory and handed it over, he smiled brightly like a child.
"Aaa—"
He dumped it straight into his mouth again.
"Here."
Even with his cheeks looking like they were about to burst, he took the snacks again. It was a small stick-shaped snack the size of a thumbnail with a huge chunk of chocolate stuck on top, looking like an umbrella.
"Aaa—"
"Here."
"Aaa—"
"Here."
"Aaa—"
"Here."
"······Ugh."
"Why aren't you eating more? I was wondering if monkeys could get diabetes too."
Sun Wukong shook his head rapidly from side to side.
"Ehh, I caaan't eat anymooore."
"Come on, seriously. Finish eating and then talk."
Gulp.
"Where did this come from?"
"Inventory."
"Oho. I wanted to eat this so badly. Now I probably won't need to eat it for another hundred years."
Everything was a hundred years with him. Our sense of time seemed very different.
"Ah, I'm so satisfied."
"Now that your stomach's full, teach me some staff techniques."
Sun Wukong, who had been sitting sprawled on the floor patting his belly, suddenly turned his head.
"Hmph."
"Oh come on. You're the one who told me to take it. Stingy monkey."
"Hmph."
"Humans know how famous Sun Wukong is. Every time I heard stories about you causing trouble in the heavenly palace, I was like, whoa!"
"Huuu····"
It seemed easier than I thought.
"Ever since I was little, I dreamed of becoming like Sun Wukong when I grew up."
"Huuu."
"The invincible Sun Wukong who became a true divine being probably doesn't need a staff like this, but I can say I've achieved my dream."
"Haha."
"To inherit the weapon of the Sun teacher I admired···· Haa···· It feels like a dream."
"Really?"
"Of course, of course. I heard my hero, Teacher Sun, likes Choco Song Song, so I brought a ton of them."
When I opened my inventory, snacks poured out like crazy. I'd swept up everything like I was clearing out a supermarket.
"Ooh!"
"Here, Teacher Sun. This is a gift from my heart. Don't feel burdened and accept it."
"You···· You know your stuff, huh?"
"Of course, of course."
Chik, chik.
"Huu— Teacher Sun, wanna smoke too?"
"Puhaha. Sure, sounds good."
When I lit another cigarette and handed it over, he took it with a pleased expression.
"Huaa—"
Whether they were trapped or here by choice, the common denominator among divine beings was that they were starving for something.
"Here, Teacher Sun."
The crazy monkey took out twenty cigarettes at once from the pack I'd given him for later and lit them all at the same time.
"Haaaaaaa—"
"Kya! Our Teacher Sun even smokes cigarettes stylishly."
"Puhaha! Right?"
"You're seriously so cool."
"Uahaha!"
Sun Wukong, holding a bunch of cigarettes in his hand, took a few steps forward and blew out smoke. His back view as he smoked cigarettes in a ridiculous manner somehow looked lonely.
"Ta-da."
Suddenly turning around, Sun Wukong had cigarettes stuck in his nostrils.
"You're insane."
"Kahaha."
Ding!
"Teacher Sun, wanna try this too?"
"Huh? What's this?"
Sun Wukong took the game console and started fiddling with it without even asking. I thought I'd have to teach him when he got stuck, but he kept messing with it and before I knew it, he was playing the game. His actions were playful, but a divine being was still a divine being. I couldn't see it, but he probably possessed tremendous power. According to legends, Sun Wukong started as a weak monkey. For Sun Wukong, who wasn't born strong, to gain such power, being just smart wouldn't have been enough.
"You're good even without me teaching you?"
"This much is nothing. But this is really fun."
He was holding the game console and making beeping sounds without even looking this way. His comprehension and adaptability were far beyond human limits.
"Teacher Sun, teach me some staff techniques."
"······."
"You can't keep doing that without a power source, right?"
"What?!"
When I met Sun Wukong's suddenly gleaming eyes, my whole body froze.
"Ugh!"
"Ah, sorry······."
With an honest apology, my body instantly felt comfortable again, as if it had never happened.
"Huu, it's fine. I'll give you a rechargeable item before I go, so can't you teach me some staff techniques?"
"Hmm. Well, since I've already passed the Yeoui to my successor, I'll teach you roughly at least."
Sun Wukong put down the game console he'd been holding, finished his brief contemplation, and approached me.
"Really?"
"What do you take me for. Let's go."
"Huh?"
Bang!!
The moment Sun Wukong grabbed my arm as he approached, the scenery in front of me blurred as if covered by clouds, and my vision melted like paint mixed with water.
"Aaaah!!"
"We're here."
"W-what······."
Before the short scream I'd let out the moment my arm was grabbed even ended, we were already on top of a high mountain peak. Even if I used teleportation, it would have taken longer than this. I couldn't believe this was possible in less than a second.
"Baek Seol, are you okay?"
"Fun!"
What a brave rabbit.
"Your friend says it's fun. You're more of a crybaby than I thought."
"You call this being a crybaby······?"
I didn't know how he did it, but it seemed like Sun Wukong had protected me. Otherwise, my whole body would have been torn apart. I could see the ground so far away it was dizzying. The speed was unbelievable if I thought we'd started from down there.
"No, wait—how did you understand what Baek Seol said?"
"Huh? She spoke, so I heard her. What are you talking about."
The voice coming from my throat felt like it got caught in my throat. He was the first person to hear Baek Seol's voice.
"Is it because you're a monkey······?"
"Nonsense. Give me the Yeoui."
"Uh, uh······."
I wondered if it would be okay since the owner had changed, but it seemed there was no problem as long as I allowed it. Sun Wukong's expression instantly turned serious as he held the Yeoui in his hand.
"Listen carefully. Spear techniques, staff techniques, and pole techniques all walk the same path. There's not much difference in weapon techniques. Depending on the person, spear techniques are sometimes called staff techniques."
"Yeah."
"The most basic is 'Lan.' It's swinging from inside to outside. Staff techniques are weapons that combine offense and defense. They attack and defend at the same time."
Even though I didn't understand, I nodded for now, and Sun Wukong gave me a mischievous smile.
"Second is 'Na.' It's the opposite of Lan. From outside to inside."
Sun Wukong demonstrated slowly, like a turtle crawling.
"Third is 'Chal.' Unlike Lan and Na, which combine offense and defense, it has a strong offensive tendency."
"Can't you use that for defense?"
"You can. The foundation of staff techniques is flexibility."
Sun Wukong swung quickly from inside to outside, then from outside to inside again, and finally thrust the staff in slightly. Then, while the hand holding the staff remained relaxed, the tip of the staff shook like crazy. If it was an iron staff with that kind of weight, just grazing it would make flesh burst out. It was more efficient than I thought.
"When using Chal deeply, you hold the tip of the staff and add rotation while thrusting it in."
As I listened to his continued explanation, the monkey in front of me seemed to think of the Yeoui in his hand as a tree branch. Watching him swing an eight-ton iron staff around, it didn't seem like a wrong thought.
"Brother Sun, are you serious? You want me to hold the tip while withstanding that weight and thrust it in, and even add rotation?"
"Huh? Haha. It's been a while since I heard that title. It brings back memories."
I didn't say that to make him get lost in nostalgia, but he still wasn't making sense.
"Can't you show me quickly?"
"Sure. Watch carefully, this is Chal."
He still took the preparatory stance slowly like a turtle, as if he wanted to teach me properly.
"Don't do it with just arm strength. Use your shoulders and waist too."
"Yeah."
"Watch carefully. With a spear it's Chal Spear, with a staff it's Chal Staff, with a pole it's Chal Pole.
"
"Chal."
Sun Wukong grabbed the tip of the Yeoui and thrust it into the air. In that moment, a thrust beyond human understanding and perception unfolded.
—Kwa-ga-ga-ga-gak!!!!
"······This is crazy, you said it was basic."
It felt like my sense of perspective had been destroyed. A huge hole had been punched in the mountain range that had been so far away I could barely see it. The immense sense of disconnect made my body unable to accept reality.
"I'll show you one more time at your level. Try to be able to do at least this much at first."
When Sun Wukong lightly thrust the Yeoui toward the ground, another hole opened with a whooshing sound.
"This is how you handle the Yeoui."
"What do you mean 'this is how,' you crazy monkey."
He was making a face like, what's the problem when I taught you because you asked.
"Next, I'll teach you 'Muhwa' and 'Byeok.'"
In times like this, I needed to give him a sharp word to bring him to his senses.
"Got it, Master."