Spinning Tall Tales

Upon hearing this, the little demon thought about it seriously, and after a long while, said to Sun Wukong, "You look unfamiliar to me; I don't recognize you at all."

After speaking, Sun Wukong stood beside the little demon, carefully observing its every move, in preparation for the next step.

Why are you looking at me like that? It's making me feel a little repulsed by you.

Seeing this, the little demon immediately moved away from Sun Wukong, fearing that Sun Wukong would pounce on him and do something malicious to him.

"Brother, think about it carefully. I knew you wouldn't recognize me at all, since I'm a fire starter, so of course you wouldn't see me often. When you come to me and come play, you'll see me much more often."

Sun Wukong rolled his eyes, smiled, and looked at the little demon, then said to him.

With her brows furrowed and waist slightly bent, she sensed something was amiss and said to Sun Wukong:

"No, no, I feel like you're lying. None of the brothers in my cave who tend the fire have sharp lips, but looking at you, with your round face and sharp lips, you're definitely not one of my brothers."

"Oh my, this little demon is quite clever. Since she has a sharp tongue, I can just change my appearance, right?"

After thinking for a moment, Sun Wukong looked down at his mouth, covered it with his hand, rubbed it, and said:

"Since that's the case, my mouth won't be pointy anymore."

Sure enough, as soon as Sun Wukong finished speaking, Sun Wukong mouth changed its appearance.

"Hey, you're really something else. You were pointed a moment ago, but after rubbing it, it's no longer pointed. It's really puzzling, and you're not easy to identify. You're not from our family."

"That's very unusual and highly suspicious. Our royal family has very strict rules. Those who tend the fire only tend the fire, and those who patrol the mountain only patrol the mountain. We certainly wouldn't let you tend the fire and patrol the mountain at the same time."

After speaking, the little demon rubbed his temples and asked Sun Wukong in confusion.

Patting his forehead, Sun Wukong walked over to the little demon and said with a smile, "Brother, you don't know, do you? The King saw how well I kept the fire and promoted me to patrolman."

"Oh, I see. It seems I was just being paranoid before."

Upon hearing this, the little demon's tightly furrowed brows suddenly relaxed, and he said to Sun Wukong with a sudden realization.

Upon seeing this, Sun Wukong immediately stepped forward and followed closely behind the little demon, wandering aimlessly around the entire mountain.

After a short while, the little demon suddenly turned to Sun Wukong and said:

"I suddenly remembered something, maybe I'm overthinking it, but our first class in the mountains has a total of eighty people, and the fifth class has four hundred people, and they are divided into several groups based on their appearance and skin color."

"But the king was worried that if we messed up the formation, it would be difficult to take attendance, so he gave us a token. Do you have this token?"

"What should I do now? If I don't have that brand, Xiao Yao will definitely notice something's wrong. No, I have to think of a way to convince him quickly."

It turned out that Sun Wukong, seeing only the demon's appearance and words, transformed into the demon's form.

Because Sun Wukong didn't see the tag on the little demon, he also didn't have one on himself. Sun Wukong couldn't admit he didn't have one, so he could only obsequiously say:

"How could you not have one? But I just received a new token; let me see yours first."

Little did the little demon know this was a trap set by Sun Wukong, so he casually lifted his clothes and muttered softly, "Since you've said so, I'll let you take a look."

The little demon was carrying it close to his body. Upon closer inspection, Sun Wukong realized it was a Mutou sign with a red silk cord attached to it.

"That sign is too far away right now. Could you bring it closer so I can see it? My eyesight isn't very good."

Sun Wukong wanted to switch the prince with a cat, so he said this weakly to the little demon.

"Honestly, your eyesight is terrible. Why did the King insist on sending you to patrol the mountain? If something goes wrong, you're finished. Sigh! Since that's the case, I'll let you take a look anyway."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sign was in Sun Wukong's hands, while the little demon kept muttering to himself.

"This brand is really good; it seems to be a little different from what I have."

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that behind the sign was a golden plaque symbolizing might and the slaying of demons, with three large characters on the front reading "Little Wind Scout." Seeing this, Sun Wukong thought to himself:

"Enough said. I could imitate this with ease. It's just that these little demons patrolling the mountain would definitely end with the character 'wind'."

After thinking for a moment, he said to the little demon, "Put your clothes down now. I'll take out my badge so you can see it, and then you'll understand."

Then Sun Wukong turned around and dropped a monkey hair, which turned into a Mutou sign with a green rope tied to it. On the rope were three large characters that read "Chief Wind Scout".

"Alright, I'll show you anyway. Open your eyes wide and look carefully, I'll only show you once."

After speaking, Sun Wukong handed the plaque to the little demon, who was greatly surprised and shouted:

"What's the deal with your brand? We all call it 'Little Wind Scout,' so why are you called 'Chief Wind Scout'? I'm afraid your brand is fake!"

"Brother, you don't know this, do you? The king saw that I was good at tending the fire, so he promoted me to a patrolling demon and gave me a new card called 'Chief Wind Patrol,' putting me in charge of all of you."

Touching the monkey fur on his body, Sun Wukong said to the little demon with a cold smile.

The little demon, having just met her new superior, didn't think much of it and, for convenience, immediately flattered him, saying:

"Oh, it's you, sir. You're new here, so it's a little unfamiliar. Please forgive my harsh words earlier."

"It's not your fault at all. There's just one thing we need to discuss before we meet, so please give me a little something."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong patted the little demon on the shoulder and smiled, then said to the little demon...

"Sir, please don't panic. Let's go together now. All my brothers are at the foot of the mountain. Once we meet, I'll have them give them all to you. How does that sound?"

After speaking, the little demon wanted to take Sun Wukong with him on his journey.

"That works too. In that case, I'll go with you. You can give me less, but they'll have to give me more."

"Besides, I've already told you beforehand that this is something only the two of us should know. Considering we've gotten to know each other now, I can let you give me a little less."