"AAAHHH!" It was the piercing cry of a certain young man who fell that echoed in heaven and earth. "Just wait, Park Mubong! I'm going to chew you to pieces!"
The young man was of average height and athletic build, wild spiky brown hair, his irregular eyes that had been red with gold crosses instead of pupils were now completely white due to the anger and pain he was experimenting.
The Loop of Binding, the headband that protects him and at the same time seals his incredible power from yesteryear flickered on his head. His robes, the Dragon King's Armor, was falling apart in tatters showing his upper chest and arms marked with scars resulting from several fights. His staff, the firm and powerful terror of the gods, Ruyi Jingu Bang, was shattered at one end. The pieces of the staff fell on the ground where it passed, shattering the surrounding area due to the extreme weight of the pieces of the titanic pillar that was turning to dust.
"Mori ... Please ... Stay alive ... And please don't hate humans ... Too much."
Those were the last words of Jin Mori's grandfather, which echoed again and again inside Jin Mori's head, as he fell uncontrollably from the sky in agony. And the hatred manifested itself, absolute and unlimited hatred that together with the pain born from the loss twisted his being to the point where he could not recognize himself as the happy and carefree young man that once was Jin Mori.
"How dare you! How dare you betray me! My grandfather!" Mori kept howling in pain and fury, shattered and with desires of revenge growing inside him.
Meanwhile, the Loop of Binding left his head, his armor was beginning to fade away never to be restored perhaps forever, his staff would turn to dust in a few minutes.
What was happening was that Mori's power had been and was being absorbed by the National Treasure: The Holy Grail. Deployed by the man he once considered his ally, Park Mubong.
The Monkey King had believed that after Ragnarok and defeating the gods it would all be over.
The Monkey King had believed that after Ragnarok and defeating the gods it would all be over. Sure, he had had a quick fight against Ultio R, the last son of the First Jade Emperor and Mandeok had escaped with the part of Nox's faction that followed him, and they were also to search for Mira but they seemed like problems to solve after a good rest.
Mori felt that he could live in peace with his grandfather once and for all. Being trapped for so long in the Sage Realm and rushing through the floors of the Celestial Realm had been a pain, having time against him when his clone, Hui Mori and the others were facing the Jade Emperor.
To then face so many gods when he finally made it back to the human world. Beelzebub, Uriel, Michael, his old sworn brother Garuda, and finally Satan and Ultio R who left him completely exhausted. But he saved the earth and had become the Supreme God, the Almighty God of the Universe.
And now he had lost everything.
'You didn't.'
"AAAAAAAHHHHH!" Between wailing and cursing Park Mubong, Mori kept falling like a meteorite towards the earth and crashed crashing with a thud in an urban area.
His mind flooded with pain he did not realize that the area where he had fallen was full of flames as cursed as hell, the corpses turning to ashes and the buildings shattering into pieces. He could only think of his failures in his two lives, as Sun Wukong and Jin Mori. In his first life, he had lost his master and the person who loved him most in that life, Xuanzang, and in his second life he had lost his grandfather and the person who loved him most in this second life, Jin Taejin.
His sworn brothers, Uma, Garuda, the monkey people, Daewi, Mira, Ilpyo, Hui Mori ...
He was the worst.
'You're not.'
"AAAAHHH!" Shouted the Monkey King in pain while holding his head. "Reduce yourself, please! reduce yourself, reduce!"
Were the shouts and orders that the fallen god was throwing at the stone pillar in front of him, which remained tall and powerful ignoring the orders of his master. The staff that accompanied the Monkey King for so long ... He stopped following his will.
"Listen to me! reduce yourself! Please, reduce yourself!" Jin Mori begged between cries and tears before realizing something. 'This is Park Mubong's Holy Grail's fault... I can't control anything!' In horror, the Monkey King could only watch as all the power he had achieved so far faded to nothing, in the end he would end up just like Hui Mori now. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
Mori could feel that his consciousness was fading into eternal darkness in the middle of that hell, while his divine powers were following the same path. Taijin's grandson could only stand idly by as tears fell like waterfalls down his cheeks.
'I can't go on anymore ... I'm so tired ... The best thing is ... Disappear ... '
"Listen to me at once, you idiot monkey!" Somehow, Mori felt a slap on his cheek. Which hurt, it hurt too much. But it had gotten his attention.
"Xu... Xuanzang?!" The Monkey King exclaimed, recognizing the ghostly form of the one who had once been his teacher.
She was just as beautiful as the day he lost her to Thatagata, forced to devour her living flesh to defeat the previous Supreme God. Her fair skin, her dark eyes with golden pupils as bright as the sun. Her brown hair tied in a bun shaped like a bun high up, while covered by a veil. She still wore her Buddhist robes.
Xuanzang smiled sadly at her first disciple. "I never thought I would see the day when you would surrender to someone. And look at you, you have surrendered to live."
"I ... " Mori choked, after so much he never imagined he would see her again. He didn't know what to say to her, and what was worse, she was seeing him in such a pitiful state. "I can't go on anymore... I'm so tired ... I have already lost everything, my friends, my family ... You ... "
But his words finished dying when she advanced without hesitation and hugged the former Monkey King affectionately around his neck.
"Everyone says you must love yourself first to love others, but right now that won't work with you, so that's why ... " She broke off and looked at him with a smile. "You were born to be loved, and that's why ... I love you, Sun Wukong." And she kissed him without hesitation.
It was a simple kiss, but one that conveyed a lot of feelings and a deep affection that the Buddhist monk felt for the King of Monsters. Mori opened his eyes in shock, it had been so long ... So long since he had felt Xuanzang's touch, words and warmth, he felt so ... So ...
Alive.
Instantly she broke away, the kiss had lasted a second how long, yet for both involved it had been an eternity.
"Please, Sun Wukong... No, Jin Mori, isn't it? ... Stay alive... " It was the only selfish request Xuanzang could plead with the Monkey King, then she smirked. "And remember that you are the strongest! Blah, blah, blah!"
Mori chuckled as small tears fell from his eyes, he had forgotten his teacher's silly endearing personality.
"Now, go on living."
The brown-haired young man opened his eyes wide, the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils filled with tears began to search all around him.
He was in an urban area, engulfed in cursed flames so powerful that Mori thought it was because of some god, though not yet they did not come to harm his person. But the smell of flesh being burned alive and death raided the former Monkey King's nose, making him realize that few had ever been so lucky.
He was looking at hell.
'Was it my fault?' The Monkey King came to ask himself worried and horrified, he had already committed many terrible things making the weight of his sins almost as heavy on him as Ruyi Jingu Bang.
But he realized that it was impossible for him to have done it, the cursed fire was an indication that it had been done by another god, besides, even if he had a thunderous fall, the impact would not have reached the level of magnitude of disaster he was present at.
So ... Who caused this hell?
However, his divine eyes were drawn to a figure walking through the flames. Mori stared in amazement as a red-haired boy not even ten years old walked through that disaster zone.
It was a straight road to hell, was the conclusion of the ancient Monkey King, but still ...
"He's trying to survive." Whispered the fallen god as what was left of his Loop of Binding shattered into pieces with a dismayed and shocked expression. "He is still struggling to survive."
The red-haired boy fell to the ground, scaring Mori for a moment, but after a few seconds he got back up and continued walking through that hell on earth.
"Ah... Ah ... " Sobbed the Monkey King, contemplating the scene. That firm will to keep on living was so beautiful in his eyes, that it brought tears to his eyes.
"Stay alive, Mori... And please don't hate humans too much."
That was what his grandfather had told him, and he couldn't help but wonder, how could he hate such strong beings? Here was a little boy struggling and trying to stay alive in this hell, and here he was losing hope ... The Great Monkey King had fallen while that little boy soared to the unbreakable heavens.
"Ah ... Ah!" The young man's sobs continued, as he watched the scene in wonder.
"I love you, Mori. Remember to keep on living."
Xuanzang's words echoed in his head again, making him remember that he could not give up. He no longer had the right to die, not in this way at least. His friends, Hui Mori, his grandfather, Xuanzang ... They all gave their lives for him, because they saw something in him worth preserving and keeping alive.
He had to make it worthwhile.
And that child reminded him of that.
That no matter how insignificant a life might be, it was precious and worth having the right to live no matter what.
However, when he turned his eyes back to the child he noticed something terrible. A building that was losing its structural strength was about to fall on the red-haired boy, to end his short life.
He managed to get the red-headed boy out of the way, but it cost what little energy he had left. His power seeped out of his body, making him lose the appearance of the once The Great Sage, Heaven's Equal and Jin Mori.
His spiky brown hair became more controlled and relaxed a bluish-green color. He became thinner and a little shorter. His sudden abrupt change made the green sleeping mask fall off his head drawing the red-haired man's attention.
"I am so... So relieved ... I'm relieved to see that you're okay." Mori expressed smiling broadly at the boy without caring at all about what just happened to him, as tears ran down his peaceful face. "Thank you for being well... Thank you for living."
Shirou, the boy who had empty eyes, devoid of life from witnessing countless horrors in that hell could not help but open them wide as they gained a little sparkle. Here was a young man before the blue-green haired one who had saved him from that building, but here was Mori smiling and crying with happiness, as if he was the one who had been saved and not Shirou.
For a moment, the red-haired boy felt jealous of that happiness, of that smile ... Of those beautiful tears filled with relief for life.
'I wonder ... Will I be able to smile like that someday?' Shirou asked himself mentally, before exhaustion and fatigue suddenly hit him. Inevitably he closed his eyes.
"Hey, wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" Mori exclaimed worriedly, but doing a quick check he could tell that the boy was still alive and had only lost consciousness. But he was still alarmed by the little boy's weak pulse.
Fortunately, he wouldn't have to wait long for help.
"You're alive! You're alive!" The former Monkey King turned his gaze to where the screams were coming from.
He visualized a middle-aged man with black hair and matching eyes, a few days old unshaven beard and a dark suit. The suit brought back bad memories of Park Mubong and his executives, but he controlled himself. Mori realized that the man was coming to help.
"Yes, please! Help me, his pulse is weak!" Exclaimed the fallen god holding the red-haired boy carefully as he carried him to the man hoping he could get him medical help.
A sheath as bright as the sun (and you better believe him, Mori fought in the sun against Satan), golden in color with celestial blue enamel accents. But what was truly beautiful, was the divine energy that the scabbard in front of him expelled.
For a moment he thought he was before a National Treasure, but one even stronger than the Holy Grail, and on the level of his Dragon King Armor or perhaps to the Blade of Thatagata or the Staff of the Sage.
A little of that energy inadvertently seeped into Mori, making his shredded muscles feel not so bad, at least a five for sure less bad. But what really amazed the Monkey King was that he felt again the connection with the Ruyi Jingu Bang that was a few meters away behind him.
And he was in time to see the miracle taking place before him. A golden aura that belonged to the Celestial Realm, at the level of the First Jade Emperor, covered the boy's body, healing every wound on his body to the amazement of the former Monkey King.
"He will be fine ... He will live ... " Said that man in a suit smiling ecstatically, as tears fell from his slightly empty black eyes.
Mori smiled broadly, that was the biggest news he had received since he lost his power.
You were born to be loved, so I will love you, Sun Wukong.
Make sure you stay alive, Mori. Don't hate much to mankind.
Sun Wukong's life was over, along with Jin Mori's life.
There was only one existence left in this new world, known as ...
Dan Mori.
...