Fusion 2.0

Chapter 33. The Third Lotus Emerald

Wukong once again wrapped his tail around Mk's wrist as they teleported, but this time, Mk raised an eyebrow. "Why do you always do that?" he asked, curious.

Wukong, slightly taken aback, looked down at Mk's hand and then back at him. "Oh, sorry, kid," Wukong said, releasing Mk's wrist.

As the flash of blue light subsided, they arrived back on the island. "Welcome back to Flower Fruit Mountain. That's the name of this island, though I don't remember if I ever mentioned it to you," Wukong said, his tail swaying side to side.

Mk's eyes filled with stars at the name. "That name is so cool!" he exclaimed, making Wukong smile.

"Yep, well, I am pretty cool," Wukong said with his usual cocky tone as they walked toward the waterfall. After passing through the waterfall and entering the hollow cave that housed Wukong's hut, Mk took in the familiar sights—the cracks and craters in the ground that he and Wukong had caused during past training sessions.

"How do you always fix everything we destroy while training?" Mk asked as he lifted himself onto Wukong's shoulder to get a better view.

Wukong allowed it, smirking. "Pffft, it's easy. I'm the Great Sage, Equal to the Jade Emperor himself," Wukong said proudly.

"That doesn't explain anything," Mk muttered as he relaxed his arms and lowered himself back down.

Wukong sighed. "Kid, your room is the first door on your left; mine's the second," he instructed as they entered the hut. Mk hopped off Wukong's shoulder and took in the living room—a cozy space with a couch facing a plasma TV, a setup similar to the one back at the house but smaller.

"Whoa, I didn't know TVs existed centuries ago," Mk said, his eyes once again filled with stars.

Wukong raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Oh no, kiddo. I 'found' all the new technology and brought it back here."

Mk’s excitement deflated slightly. "Oh," he said before heading to his temporary room to set up.

After making the room his own, Mk emerged to find Wukong looking pissed off, while Macaque stood nearby with a smirk, clearly having won some sort of argument.

"Oh, hey, bud," Macaque greeted as he shifted into his shadow form, appearing behind Mk. "Guess who's going to help you train?"

"Umm... you?" Mk guessed hesitantly.

Macaque snickered, which turned into a giggle that almost became an evil laugh before he caught himself. "You got it right, kiddo," Macaque said with his usual smirk, allowing himself to fall sideways into a shadow portal before reappearing behind Wukong. "It'll be just like old times, won't it, Wukong?" Macaque added, his voice tinged with a mix of nostalgia and resentment as he shook Wukong's shoulders playfully.

Wukong, clearly annoyed, tried to shrug Macaque off, but Macaque jumped away before Wukong's Sunstone could touch his Moonstone.

"So, how will this work?" Mk asked, trying to cut the tension.

"The first two days of the week, you'll train with me. The last two days, you'll train with Macaque. On Wednesdays, you'll be trained by both of us, and on weekends, you can go back home," Wukong explained, his voice straining when mentioning Macaque.

"Alright, when do we start?" Mk asked, eager to dive into the training.

Two months passed, with Mk following the rigorous schedule Wukong had set. Over time, he found himself almost forgetting about Red Son—until one weekend when a pink shooting star appeared in the sky. Mk, who was once again awake in the middle of the night, watched as the star drew closer and closer. It wasn’t a star at all but a lotus-shaped spaceship that descended toward the beach.

Mk jumped over the rail of the house's porch and carefully made his way down the hill to the shore. When he reached the beach, he hid behind some bushes, his eyes fixed on the ship.

"Whatcha doing?" Mei's voice suddenly whispered beside him, causing Mk to jump in surprise. She had followed him down, curious about his midnight excursion.

"Shhhh," Mk hushed her, turning back to the spaceship. "Don't you see the spaceship?" he asked urgently.

Mei raised an eyebrow, clearly skeptical. "No, Mk, did you crack your gem?" she asked, but before Mk could respond, the spaceship's door opened, and Mei's doubt vanished as she finally saw what Mk had been talking about.

A gem with white skin, black hair, and pink eyes stepped out of the ship. His gem, pink and shaped like a flower, was embedded in his back, visible only when he turned slightly to face the ship's door. He wore a lotus-themed outfit, predominantly light hot pink with gold accents, and a red ribbon tied around his waist with its ends floating in the air.

"Grey Diamond, get over here now," the pink gem called out, his voice commanding.

Diamond Iron Fan stepped out of the ship, joining the pink gem, who Mei and Mk now knew was named Ne Zha.

"Ne Zha, what is it with you and these official titles?" Diamond Iron Fan asked, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Because it is unprofessional not to use them. Now, how big of a deal are these other gems you mentioned?" Ne Zha asked, his tone serious.

"Well, Third Lotus Emerald, they’ve teamed up with Sun Wukong," Diamond Iron Fan replied, causing Ne Zha’s eyes to widen in surprise.

"Hmm, I haven’t seen him since I was 300 years old. Alright, I'll handle this. You go back to the ship and wait in orbit. I don’t have time for distractions," Ne Zha ordered. Diamond Iron Fan nodded and returned to the ship, which soon lifted off into orbit.

Ne Zha sighed as the ribbon around his waist floated up to loop behind his neck, down his arms, and then back behind him. Two wheels, previously connected to the back of his feet, moved to hover beneath them, igniting with pink flames that allowed him to travel swiftly. Ne Zha used the wheels to glide off toward the town.

Mk and Mei exchanged a glance. "We should tell Pigsy," Mei said, getting up first and running back toward the house, with Mk quickly following. Mk overtook her, reaching the house first, his mind racing with what they had just witnessed.