ENG
Within the gloom, the monkeys roam,
Far away from their lauded home.
Ensnared in traps, as troubles brew,
In revenge's journey, what's cause, what's due?
Centuries ago, the troops of the Court razed Mount Huaguo once more. Upon hearing of the Great Sage's death, many monkeys left their home in sorrow and began searching for new sanctuaries for their practice. Given the Great Sage's past association with the Bull King, many sought his protection at Flaming Mountains.
The Bull King hated monkeys as the Great Sage had betrayed him, yet he offered shelter to these distressed refugees. But life in Flaming Mountains was harsh, afflicted with scorching heat and frequent harassment from outer yaoguais. Fortunately, the Keeper of the land treated them kindly, providing food and support, and earned the trust of the monkeys.
Soon, however, a plague struck. The monkeys' fur began to fall out, their skin festered with sores, and large black boils, horrifying and infectious, sprouted on their backs. The plague spread rapidly, leaving many in such agony that death seemed a preferable fate. The Macaque Chief, their leader, ordered the infected to be cast into the scorching Furnace Valley to fend for themselves there.
Abandoned and dying, these monkeys cursed their former kin. As death neared, the Keeper came and saved them with astounding cures. In weeks, their skin healed; in months, their boils burst, and revealed dark wings. The Keeper taught them to fly, accepted their loyalty, and enlisted them as his tenth-ranked minions, named the Tenners.
Their first task was to purge the camp of the Macaque Chief. Ruthlessly, they slaughtered their kin, sparing only the cunning Macaque Chief, who managed to escape to an unknown fate.
Centuries ago, soldiers from the Court attacked and destroyed Mount Huaguo again. When the monkeys learned that the Great Sage had died, many left their ruined home in grief and began looking for new places to live and continue their practices. Because the Great Sage had once been linked to the Bull King, a large group went to the Flaming Mountains seeking the Bull King’s protection.
The Bull King himself hated monkeys because he felt betrayed by the Great Sage, but he nonetheless offered shelter to these displaced monkeys. Life at the Flaming Mountains was difficult: the heat was extreme and the area was frequently attacked or harassed by outside yaoguais. During this time a local figure called the Keeper of the land treated the monkeys with kindness, providing food and support and earning their trust.
A terrible plague then struck the monkeys. Their fur fell out, their skin broke out in sores, and large black boils appeared on their backs; the disease was contagious and spread quickly. The suffering was so severe that the Macaque Chief, the monkeys’ leader, ordered all the infected to be cast into the hot Furnace Valley to fend for themselves rather than be cared for in the camp.
Abandoned and near death, the infected monkeys cursed their former kin. At that point the Keeper returned and cured them with remarkable treatments: within weeks their skin began to heal and within months the boils burst and exposed dark wings. The Keeper taught these survivors to fly, accepted their loyalty, and enlisted them as his tenth-ranked minions, who came to be called the Tenners.
The first order given to the Tenners was to purge the monkey camp of the Macaque Chief. They carried out a brutal slaughter of their own kind, sparing only the Macaque Chief, who managed to escape and whose fate afterward is unknown. The upshot is that the once-refugee monkeys were transformed into winged servants of the Keeper and used to eliminate their former community, leaving questions about revenge, loyalty, and who was responsible for what.