The monkey personally instructed the shipyard engineers that there was no need to inspect the warship, then followed a certain Bai back to Little Broken Ball World. After arriving at the Floating Mountain behind the floating divine palace, it entered a certain Bai's General Store beneath the small tree once again.
Not long after they had left, the little stone lion sleeping atop the railing's stone pillar had already awakened. It sat upright with solemn seriousness, and the shop had been tidied until it was spotless.
Little Phoenix shrank down and landed atop the Money Tree, frightening the poor tree until it trembled all over.
Meanwhile, the monkey excitedly touched this and examined that, curious about the merchandise. It bounced and spun about before discovering a crudely made bone whistle.
"Eek, what's this?"
There was a label beside the item.
Beggar's Bone Whistle: A toy made by an impoverished hunter for his child. The craftsmanship is crude and the materials ordinary. Blowing the bone whistle allows one to recall their father's smile and reminisce about the beauty of home in childhood...
The monkey's paw grabbed the bone whistle and brought it close, inspecting it from left and right before weighing it in its hand. The material was utterly ordinary, and the workmanship was rough.
Driven by curiosity, it gave the whistle a light blow, producing a simple, ordinary note.
Suddenly, a strange feeling surged into its heart.
The monkey's vision blurred. It seemed to see the familiar mountains and forests of its childhood, the familiar scent of grass and trees, troops of monkeys playing and frolicking, wild fruit fragrance drifting across the mountains. It saw itself clinging to Monkey Mother and playing, following her around to eat wild fruit and tender leaves, picking lice off each other—hardship-filled yet beautiful, happy