Chapter 16 A Blink of Decades
"Stop pretending, you can't fool me," Chen Nuo said calmly.
Although he knew the monkey was sincere in learning culinary arts, Sun Wukong still yearned for the path of cultivation.
"Disciple didn't..." Sun Wukong's face changed, as he hurriedly spoke.
Chen Nuo gently interrupted the monkey, saying, "First listen to your teacher finish speaking."
"It's good to focus on learning culinary arts, but how much can you learn from me in your lifetime?"
Chen Nuo's culinary skills were not so simple; easy to learn, but incredibly hard to master!
"Even if you were to die of old age here, you wouldn't be ready to graduate."
"Is that so?"
A sense of powerlessness suddenly overwhelmed Sun Wukong.
After Chen Nuo finished speaking, he saw Sun Wukong looking somewhat negative, shook his head helplessly, and with a beckoning of his hand, a booklet exuding an extreme ancient aura appeared in front of Sun Wukong.
Sun Wukong subconsciously took it, "Great Celestial Decision? What is this?"
Sun Wukong was puzzled.
"This is a cultivation technique that leads directly to becoming a Daluo Golden Immortal!" Chen Nuo's voice sounded again.
Immortal Law!?
Sun Wukong took a sharp breath, his hands trembling as he held the booklet. The thing he had long dreamt of was now in his grasp?
"Thank you, Master!" Sun Wukong was overjoyed and promptly bowed in gratitude.
"There is nothing to thank me for. If you do not cultivate, how could you learn my culinary skills?" Chen Nuo said earnestly.
Although currently only capable of two dishes, as time goes by, there will be more and more, and even if Sun Wukong were to pursue cultivation, he might still not finish learning them all!
"With this 'Heavenly Immortal Art,' you no longer need to worry about your lifespan. In the future, you must be diligent, not only in cultivation but your culinary skills should not be neglected!"
Sun Wukong said with a smile, "Yes, Master."
Chen Nuo nodded. He had no intention of making the monkey wait for six or seven years like Bodhi did, wasting Sun Wukong's time of cultivation that amounted to only three years, and truly wasting Sun Wukong's talent.
Years passed by, from spring to autumn, and in a blink of an eye, ten years had gone by.
One day, the fellow disciples under Three Star Cave gathered under a large pine tree.
"Wukong, we heard the teacher passed on to you the Art of Transformation, which can overcome three disasters. Can you perform it? Show us, let's broaden our horizons!" one of the brothers suddenly said.
Upon hearing this, Six Ears, dressed in Taoist robes, looked grim. He knew it was about to end.
"Please give me a topic, what do you want me to change into?"
"Turn into a pine tree!"
"Alright!" Six Ears took a deep breath before chanting the incantation, and with a shake, he transformed into a pine tree before everyone's eyes.
The crowd was delighted, showering praises, but in their mouths, they were chanting Sun Wukong's name.
Finally, the noise disturbed Bodhi.
"What are you doing! Do you still look like someone who cultivates?" Bodhi scolded angrily, then upon seeing Six Ears who had just changed back into Wukong's appearance, he waved his sleeves and said coldly, "You may leave now!"
Six Ears, neither sad nor joyful, cupped his hands and said, "Master, where do you ask me to go?"
"Wherever you came from, go back there. You cannot stay here! With your departure, troubles will surely arise. No matter what trouble you cause, you must never say you are my disciple!"
"If you utter even one word of it, you shall never be able to turn your karma around!"
Six Ears raised his head, looked at Bodhi's eyes that held not the slightest disdain, nodded and said, "Disciple will keep this in mind."
Hence, he left without any expression and flew towards Huaguo Mountain.
Seeing Sun Wukong leave, Bodhi clenched his hand, and everyone standing by turned to nothingness.
With another step, the entire Blood Moon Three-Star Cave began to silently tear apart, as if everything ceased to exist.
With one step, he shattered the void, and in an instant, he had vanished on the spot.
In front of Chaos Residence, Sun Wukong squatted on the steps, holding a huge Flat Peach, eating it bite by bite.
The Flat Peach was heavy, flat and round, tender in color, emitting a fresh fragrance.
If one with discerning eyes were to see it, they would certainly recognize it as one of the ten greatest Innate Spirit Roots, the Flat Peach, and of the oldest age at that, otherwise it wouldn't be so large!
However, this precious Flat Peach was being eaten by the monkey as though it were a mere snack, consumed in a few bites. Then, like a trick, he pulled out another one.
Why, the Flat Peach trees here in Chen Nuo's place bore fruit once a year, and over the years, the backyard had almost been turned into a small peach orchard by Sun Wukong.
After demolishing several of them, Sun Wukong belched contentedly.
He had already spent an entire ten years in this place, during which not only had he cultivated to the middle stage of Taiyi Golden Immortal, but he had also learned several heaven-defying Divine Skills from his master's cooking recipes.
And as for his cooking, according to his master, he had just barely reached the threshold.
One could say he had been completely transformed.
Yet Chen Nuo's little shop remained quiet, no one but the woman from ten years ago had ever come, and yet every day his master was as leisurely as ever, which couldn't help but fill Sun Wukong's heart with admiration.
Looking towards the direction from which he had come, a sense of melancholy showed on his face. Counting the time spent on his journey, it was nearly twenty years in total.
After so long, he didn't know how his monkey and ape offspring were doing.
Now, having learned his skills, perhaps he should return for a visit and show off a bit?
The more he thought about it, the stronger the idea became. So, Sun Wukong stood up, patted the dust off his body, and approached Chen Nuo, who was inside the house.
Looking at Chen Nuo, who was resting with his eyes closed, Wukong shrank his neck and swallowed the words he was about to say.
Then he turned around, intending to leave.
"If you have something to say, just say it," said Chen Nuo, opening his eyes indifferently.
"Master," Sun Wukong chuckled sheepishly and said in a very ingratiating manner, "You're awake. Don't you want to sleep a little longer? Or should I make you a cup of Flat Peach juice?"
"No need," Chen Nuo shook his head, glancing at Sun Wukong: "You, little monkey, have become increasingly skilled in flattery these past two years."
Sun Wukong quickly shook his head and said earnestly, "Master, this is coming straight from my heart, following my true feelings!"
If it were someone else, he wouldn't act like this, but his master had been like a rebirth to him, and his gratitude was as clear as a mirror in his heart.
Chen Nuo showed a hint of a smile, feeling inevitably pleased in his heart. Taking this monkey as a disciple had not been a mistake!
Although it was initially because of a system task, as time passed, he had indeed come to treat him sincerely.
Having the Great Sage Equalling Heaven of a previous life as his disciple was indeed a unique experience.
"So, what is it?"
"Master, I want to go back to Huaguo Mountain to see those monkeys and ape offspring."
Chen Nuo's brow furrowed. Leave Chaos Residence?
Wouldn't Sun Wukong then be exposed to the eyes of the Three Realms? In that case, wouldn't his destiny be fraught with upheaval once again?
However, Chen Nuo also knew that it was an unavoidable matter; one can't expect Sun Wukong to hide forever, can they?
If it were The Cunning Bastard, he might believe it possible, but with a monkey prone to impatience, better not.
Seeing Chen Nuo's expression change, Sun Wukong couldn't help feeling anxious and quickly waved his hands, saying, "Master, I have absolutely no intention of leaving. I will return in a few days!"
"If Master wishes, I won't go back!"
"I didn't say you couldn't go back," Chen Nuo said, tapping the tabletop, "It's just that I have a few things I need to tell you."