As we walked into the courtyard of the Temple of the East Wind, a Goat monk approached to greet us, his wooden staff tapping on the stone tile as he walked. "Welcome, travelers. I am Wai Mi. What business do you have at the Temple of the East Wind?"
"We're here to see Friar Sand." I said, bowing respectfully, and the others followed my example as Wai Mi's eyes lit up. "You wish to speak to the most esteemed and venerated Friar Sand? Very good! He awaits you at the north landing out behind the temple."
Wai Mi's eyes then took a more ominous light, and I noticed him grip his staff tighter as he glanced at Monkey King next to me. "I must offer you a warning - Friar Sand is a powerful warrior, appointed to his duty by the Celestial Court! If you mean him or the temple any harm, any attempts at violence are ill-advised."
"Thank you for the warning." I said, bowing respectfully once again before heading off to the gates of the north landing. As we reached other the end of the pier, I could see someone meditating on a large, smooth rock out in the middle of the water.
As I got closer, I could see that it was an ogre with blueish-violet skin, a white beard like the crests of waves, white hair pulled back into a tightly-clubbed pigtail, and slightly yellowed tusks protruding out of his mouth. He wore a necklace of skulls over a turquoise monk's robe, and lying next to him was a monk's spade: a long metal pole with a flat spade-like blade on one end and a smaller crescent shaped blade on the other.
The ogre that could only be Friar Sand opened his dark eyes, and he got out of the lotus position to stand and pick up his weapon. "You have traveled far, across dangerous ground, to reach me. Why?"
"We need your Turtle Ball to reach Cao Tzu." I answered, bowing respectfully, but apparently, that didn't score me any points with Sandy, because he said, "I am afraid I cannot release my Turtle Ball to anyone. Especially anyone in the company of Monkey King!"
Friar Sand then turned to said Monkey, and he said, "You made me swear to protect it, and to resist you, more than anyone else, should you want it."
"It made sense at the time. Look, Sandy... let's talk..." Monkey King said in a diplomatic tone that was probably false, but Friar Sand cut him off as he pointed the larger blade of his monk's spade at Monkey King. "I cannot surrender the Turtle Ball willingly. If you think you can take it... you are welcome to try."
"But you know I am invincible when in or over water." Friar Sand continued, and seeing the surprised looks on our faces, he said, "Your friends, they didn't know, did they? Have you led them into a trap?"
Monkey King gave Friar Sand a smug smirk as he brought out the pearl he looted from Karasu on Raven Island earlier. "There's a trap here, all right. But you're the only one in it. When is water not liquid?"
Friar Sand's eyes widened as Monkey King tossed the pearl into the water, and as it disappeared beneath the surface, ice spread out to freeze the water solid from the point of contact. "NO!"
"Hah! I'm going to enjoy farming you!" Nikolai shouted as he brought out his staff. Temeraire slid down my back from my shoulders, and he snuck up on Friar Sand to jump him from behind.
From atop an ice pillar made by Nikolai's magic, Emma was trying to get a good shot at Friar Sand, and even though the water had been frozen, Friar Sand still made a fearsome opponent. As our weapons collided, I felt a jarring shiver run down my arms and spine, I instantly knew I wouldn't beat him through sheer force alone. Luckily, the pearl had also made snow atop the ice, so our footing wouldn't be too bad.
Monkey King was more able to block Friar Sand's ferocious strikes, and as he leapt back from another strike, Friar Sand tried to follow up with another attack only to see that his feet from the ankles up had been encased in ice, courtesy of Nikolai taking an opportunity when they locked weapons.
Emma took her shot as I leapt in, and Friar Sand took a blow to the stomach and an electrical burst to his arm at the same time. Temeraire then coiled around Friar Sand's neck, and began constricting him until he fell in the snow and was forced to tap out.
As Temeraire let go of him to be back at my side, Friar Sand sat up, rubbing his neck as he did so. "I should have expected such behavior from an ally of Monkey King. You won by trickery, but won you did."
Friar Sand then unhinged the lower jaw of one of his necklace's skulls, and nestled behind the teeth, I could see his Turtle Ball. "Here is my Turtle Ball. I have guarded it well until now. If you are gathering them, you must be summoning the great turtle. Such an action must only be undertaken with the best of intentions, so I will not hold your trickery against you."
"Thank you for your understanding." I said as I took the Turtle Ball from the skull's jaw, and Friar Sand continued, "Go and speak to Wai Mi, and he will tell you of the last two Turtle Balls."
We bowed respectfully before we left, and Wai Mi was waiting for us outside the gates to the north landing. "You have defeated the undefeated Friar Sand. You must be the mightiest of warriors... or you cheated."
All of us couldn't help but laugh, and still holding Friar Sand's Turtle Ball, I made a victory sign in the air.