Chapter 201

Hanuman stared blankly, his mouth agape.

As he was held in the palm of Hebe's Purification Knights, he imagined he might be reprimanded and suffer unimaginable humiliation; or be punished and endure indescribable pain; or even be killed on the spot and thrown into the wilderness like a piece of trash...

But no.

The patriarch before her only asked herself what injustice she had suffered.

Hanuman burst into tears.

272 I'm not unhappy

Hebe didn't know what the rulers' perspective was, but she thought that compared to those in high positions in the mortal world, there shouldn't be much difference.

When Arthur was in command of his troops, he never cared about their joys and sorrows, nor did he pay attention to their past.

When Minamoto no Raikō was suppressing the rebellion, she never cared about how many heartbreaking pasts the demons and Oni Host who died by her sword had.

Those in high positions have intense emotions, but they only vent them to those they care about.

The distinctions in all things in the world are nothing more than closeness or distance.

Hebe was no exception.

She never considered herself kind, nor did she claim that her actions were righteous; she simply said that she only walked the path of truth.

The origin of Hanuman can be summarized in a single sentence.

But once the matter was brought up, decades passed.

Throughout history, in mythologies around the world, "birth by inspiration" has always been a symbol of honor.

Whether in Bharata, Albion, or Cathay and the Higashi... all the famous natural saints in history basically conceived children through divine inspiration.

Even those who aspire to achieve great things in later generations need to create various kinds of hype to bask in a spiritual glow.

Humans consider it an honor, but monkeys do not.

This is because they are a race that originally lived in the wilderness.

The so-called "sensory birth" is, for the monkey race, like being raped by a different race and forced to give birth to a mixed-race offspring.

Hanuman's childhood was not happy; in fact, he was subjected to bullying.

The only source of warmth for him was his mother, who died young during his childhood.

Hanuman's mother was a strong woman, but he was too young at the time to realize the hardships she was facing.

At first, he made a fuss about seeing his father, but later he spoke ill of his mother and complained that she shouldn't have given birth to him.

Hanuman was unwilling to go hunting because he was afraid of seeing the mocking smiles of his fellow tribesmen and hearing their humiliating words.

At that time, Hanuman did not think about where the food he used to fill his stomach came from. He enjoyed the three meals a day that his mother brought back without any qualms and habitually complained to his mother after meals, completely unaware that she was getting older and older.

Then one day, he didn't see his mother return.

Tormented by hunger, Hanuman was forced to go outside. Monkeys flew through the canopy from time to time, casting mocking glances at him as usual.

And this time was different; there was a hint of coldness in their eyes.

"Oh, Hanuman, are you looking for that ugly, stupid old woman? Head west!" a monkey shouted with laughter from afar. "Maybe you can still catch her last words!"

Hanuman trembled as if struck by lightning. For the first time ever, he stood up and roared at the monkeys.

But no monkeys responded to his roar; perhaps eager to see the spectacle, they ran off laughing.

Only Hanuman remained standing on the treetop, like a ghost, his face pale.

He ran and leaped, anger burning within him. He jumped farther and higher, as if riding the wind or riding the clouds, and soon he saw his mother lying under the tree.

Her body was covered in wounds, not from hunting, but from being executed by her own kind.

Stone punishment, an ancient and terrifying form of torture.

The victim was to be buried in the ground and then, in the presence of their relatives, crushed to death by specially selected stones.

Of course, monkeys who find things troublesome are too lazy to dig holes.

They smashed her with stones, leaving her like this.

The monkeys didn't kill her outright because Hanuman wasn't present.

Only when Hanuman witnessed all of this could it be considered a perfect execution.

Hanuman opened his mouth tremblingly, but he couldn't make a sound.

He heard voices of the same kind coming from all directions, saying she had committed adultery and theft, but the most important reason was that she had given birth to an unblessed offspring.

She should have chosen to have an abortion while pregnant, or killed the child herself after giving birth. This way, she could be reinstated by her parents and relatives, returning to her ancient and glorious lineage.

But she chose to give birth to Hanuman and raise him.

How could she do this without paying a price? For the past ten years, she has endured complete social isolation.

Even in the villages of the Higashi, the two essential tasks of "attending funerals" and "rescue Extinguishing Fires" are still retained.

The monkeys of Bharata would only wish for her to die sooner, preferably like their matriarch Sati, who threw herself into the fire.

In this situation, what can she do?

In the past, monkeys would pay for her youthful beauty, but what can she do when her looks fade under pressure and hardship?

She had been very careful, and the amount she stole was just enough to feed the two of them for half their meal.

Hanuman was so preoccupied with complaining that his mother was bringing back less and less food each day that he failed to notice that she never ate at home. When he asked her about it, she simply said that she had already eaten.

Sounds came from all directions, but Hanuman couldn't hear them; tears streamed uncontrollably down his face.

Hanuman wept silently as he reached out and embraced his mother's body.

His mother was so light that he could lift her up with one hand.

'Child, don't cry. Live well.'

There was noise all around, but Hanuman only heard his mother say this.

Perhaps his mother never said anything at that time, but Hanuman preferred to believe that she would say it.

He saw a somewhat shriveled peach hidden in his mother's arms, so he took it out.

Was that the crime that led to her death?

Hanuman didn't even know when his mother had turned cold. He walked alone and lost, through burning forests and the corpses of his kin; across flowing blood and icy rivers... When he regained his senses, all that was left in his hand was that peach.

Hanuman mechanically put it into his mouth.

The peaches didn't taste good at all.

Hanuman did not throw away the peach pits, but instead strung them together and wore them around his neck, just like humans do.

He committed the atrocity of killing his own kind and was ostracized from monkey society. He also loathed that world and thus wandered among the city-states for a long time.

The village chief hoped he would return to the Kshatriya city-state and be worshipped.

This was done out of good intentions, but the village chief had no idea what he had been through.

Hanuman stumbled and struggled to survive amidst the chaos of the Sixteen Kingdoms clashing on the Ganges Plain.

Human society and the world of monkeys are not far apart, except that humans are good at concealing their intentions, while monkeys are more accustomed to expressing direct malice.

Hanuman wanted to sever all ties with the Vayu.

In his view, all the misfortunes of himself, and even his mother, came from the Vayu.

In human society, Hanuman must conceal his identity at all times.

Humans and monkeys are ultimately different, and he is neither human nor willing to associate with monkeys anymore.

Most of the time, Hanuman was able to fake his past. But no matter how he faked it, he could never truly pretend to be human and stay in one place for long.

In this era, many immortals would be invited to become priests for the Kshatriya kings. They were responsible for tending the sacrificial fire, conducting ceremonies, and praying for blessings and warding off disasters.

Since Hanuman did not want to be associated with the Vayu, he was an "Asura"—or rather, a fellow Dalit.

Most of the time he could just walk away, but there were also times like today when he was blocked by an immortal.

Each time, he had to invoke the name of the Vayu in order to escape from the immortal's meaningful gaze.

He refused Sugarcane King's request to enter the Pure Land in his physical body, and he refused King Ayodhya's invitation to divide the land into kingdoms.

The respectful gazes of the Kshatriya kings fell on his back, stinging like the marks left by whips.

—Is this some kind of honor? How can this be a symbol of glory? Aren't you ashamed of this?

Hanuman did not think this was a good thing; he only felt ashamed and utterly pathetic.

So he went to the wilderness, the woodlands and the marshes, where he found true freedom and joy.

Prior to this, Hanuman had lived among several tribes.

These tribes must have once had a glorious culture, but they have now abandoned it.

After all, when survival and continuation are at stake, any further thought is unnecessary. These tribal people have made their choice; they are willing to live a savage life.

They were completely unaware of Hanuman's presence; before they even realized something was wrong, Hanuman had already vanished.

And so Hanuman repeated the process of exile.

Until he came to Fangcun Mountain and saw this village located on the shore of the lake.

Hanuman originally thought that this was another Dalit tribe that had lost its culture.

But he was wrong.

The villagers were not dressed in fancy clothes, nor did they eat anything fancy, but their faces radiated a vibrant energy.

Their heads are always held high, their backs are always straight, and they walk with a down-to-earth gait, exuding an indescribable confidence.

Hanuman admitted he was captivated by what he saw, realizing that the inhabitants of this village were unlike any other. They possessed a spirit and energy different from the Bharata; they did not identify themselves as Kshatriya or Brahmin, nor were they bound by the constraints of Vaishya or Shudra. They were Dalit, Asura who were not bound by caste and did not submit to the king's rule.

But in Hanuman's eyes, they were even more noble than the gods.

He would never admit that he was secretly imitating their words and actions.

The son of the Vayu actually learned the laws of conduct and human behavior from the Asura, which is enough to shock the world.

This peaceful and secluded life did not last long; the villagers soon discovered that the food in the warehouse was mysteriously decreasing.

In addition, they discovered other unusual damage and soon found traces of Hanuman.

Although Hanuman fled in a sorry state, he never intended to fight back.

In his mind, these villagers were his "teachers," so how could he lay a hand on his teachers?

However, faced with this desperate situation, he finally had to tear off his mask, suppressing his anger, humiliation, and shame, and declare that he was the son of the Vayu.

Hanuman's tragedy stemmed from the Vayu, but ironically, when he was driven to the brink of despair, he still had to rely on this godfather's name for protection.

Under the Bodhi Tree, the monkey wept uncontrollably.

"Grandmaster! Grandmaster!" Hanuman raised his head with tears in his eyes and clasped his hands together. "I have indeed done something very wrong, but I never want to use the name of the Vayu to save my life again!"

The monkey cried out, "I... I want to live a life of integrity, I don't want to be a coward!"

But then a soft sigh came from the immortal under the Bodhi Tree.

"Come forward."

Hanuman froze, instinctively took a few steps forward, and then knelt down on the ground with a thud.

Hebe lowered her head and looked at the monkey kneeling on the ground.

She could see just how much Hanuman resented the Vayu.

As a child born under the influence of Shiva's wrath, the Ragged Ascetic's wrath can still trigger terrible curses.

How could Hanuman be completely without the power of the Vayu? It's just that he resists this power more than he cherishes his own life.

The only time he lost control so far was after his mother's death, when he unleashed his divine power to kill all the members of his abusive clan.

Even when surrounded or in danger of death, he would only use empty fame to intimidate others, and would rather not fight them.

"Good monkey, you've worked hard." Hebe reached out and patted Hanuman's head.