"Your scales?" Yun Jieshi asked the fish who was not a fish. He tried his best not to look too puzzled.
"Yes, Little Sage. I may be a mortal, but my scales are very special. They might be of use to you. They are the most valuable thing I have at the moment. I trade them with some of the fish I share the pond with. A lot of them have grown very large from feeding on them, even though they, like me, end up becoming fearful of the light," Bei Jun said proudly.
Yun Jieshi's eyes went round. He recalled the large fishes the Jade Imps had shot with arrows and taken for themselves. While they weren't as big as Bei Jun, they were bigger than most fish that could be found back on Earth. It appeared those fishes hadn't grown to that size by way of simply existing in this mystical world.
'Well, I guess that makes a little sense, but…' Yun Jieshi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He considered the giant fish ahead of him. 'How can you confidently describe your scales and simultaneously deny that you are a fish.' He kept the sentiment to himself. 'And what do the fish offer you in return for your scales? Food?'
The little monkey thought that was likely the case. He would have asked to confirm, but he had a feeling the great fish would start sprouting that phrase, "The days are short, but the nights are even shorter."
Past this, Yun Jieshi wondered about the value of the scales. He was supposedly an enlightened – a Sage. Would they work on him?
Meanwhile, Bei Jun was staring at him, analyzing his expression. He suddenly looked embarrassed.
"Perhaps… If… you wish, maybe…" He hesitated. "Perhaps, if this is another test… you being in that small vessel, I mean… perhaps my scales will grant you some benefit, Little Sage. You must have visited these lowly lands in such a modest body so as to fit in with us mortals. Perhaps my scales can give you some amusement. You might grow too."
Yun Jieshi could hardly believe how Bei Jun kept making things convenient for him.
'Amusement? Well, I'm still not sure if it will do anything, but I might as well take the scales and see what I can do with them,' Yun Jieshi thought. He did his best to act high and mighty for Bei Jun's sake… and his own.
"Let me see one of these scales," he half-commanded.
Bei Jun looked pleased. Yun Jieshi felt sorry for him.
The giant fish suddenly wore a strained face. It swelled comically, and he squinted his eyes. Bubbles streamed from his mouth. A good five minutes passed as he maintained whatever hideous effort he was exerting on himself.
And then, as though it was the most natural thing, one of the washbin-sized scales popped off one of his ten bodies, hints of blood coating its underside. The scale drifted out of the bubble and fell onto the snow. Yun Jieshi, doing his best not to gape, reached for it.
It was larger than he thought. He only got a scale of it once it was in his small hands. It was rough to touch and very hard. Its surface was uneven, but its shine hid that fact.
"A scale belonging to the Great North Star Tortoise, Bei Jun of the Six Leaves. Good for physical growth – bone, flesh, and marrow," the old, sagely voice informed.
Yun Jieshi reacted appropriately.
'So, he's really not a fish!' he thought, hiding his surprise and stifling the questions as to how that made any sense. Bei Jun was a tortoise?
Yun Jieshi fondled the scale in his hands.
'Has he transformed himself in some way? But why?' Questions, questions. He didn't have time for them. The greatest takeaway from his ever-reliable, old informant was that this scale did have growth dispensing properties. 'It seems like it will work for me… I think.'
He turned it over and applied pressure on it with his fingers. It wasn't impossible to crack if he really tried. This went again to show just how strong Yun Jieshi was despite feeling like he was about as mighty as a fetus. 'It has to be eaten, right?'
Yun Jieshi didn't miss the anxious look on Bei Jun's face. The fish who was not a fish was probably waiting to see if Yun Jieshi would deem it valuable.
'Well, we are about to find out together.'
Yun Jieshi took a hard bite of the scale. It broke apart pitifully. It was like eating a thick sheet of hard ice, only, the scale had an odd taste, like that of grass mixed with a bit of vinegar. The mighty Little Sage could hardly keep his face from contorting in disgust.
Bei Jun was watching keenly and that was motivation for Yun Jieshi to suck it up and eat the whole scale.
After swallowing the last bits of it, Yun Jieshi took a look at himself. He didn't look or feel any different. He was still less than half a meter tall and built like an infant.
Disappointment blessed him and Bei Jun at the same time.
"It would seem that it really won't wor—"
Bei Jun was forced to swallow his words almost immediately.
Yun Jieshi suddenly felt uncomfortable sensations in his elbows, wrists, thighs, ankles, neck, and abdomen. He felt something akin to ruthless tugs from these positions, but they weren't entirely unpleasant. They reminded Yun Jieshi of one of his more memorable massages while he was in Arizona. His muscles seemed to sing and he could have sworn he heard his bones creaking.
The feeling didn't last very long, but it left an impression all the same. Yun Jieshi appraised himself and he couldn't hide his surprise.
He had grown!
He was taller. He had surpassed his previous height of forty-five centimeters by twenty-four centimeters, reaching a sweet sixty-nine centimeters!
His limbs were a little longer as well, and his hands and feet no longer looked as though they were fresh from a womb. They had some seasoned texture and his fingers had a better grip.
Even though Yun Jieshi was already acquainted with some of the supernatural things he could do, a lot of the time, he didn't feel like his body should be able to accomplish them. But now, he felt a little deserving of his prowess.
His tail had grown. Its length had followed his height and its width threatened to equal the breadth of his forearm. It whipped to and fro excitedly.
'Ha! It worked! It actually worked!' Yun Jieshi thought. He was wearing a smile before he knew it.
Bei Jun seemed even more excited than he was.
"Little Sage, I told you! My scales are special! They work on even your fake vessel!" he cried. "I knew you would find my scales amusing!"
Yun Jieshi laughed, but inwardly, he was cursing the fish or tortoise or whatever it was. Bei Jun had mistaken his joy for mere amusement. But if the fish really was looking forward to the monkey's amusement…
Yun Jieshi grew bold.
"It is amusing, indeed! But now you can't offer me just one scale, Bei Jun. I need more, for my amusement. Many, many more!" he said.
The fish who was not a fish lost much of his enthusiasm. If he wasn't already in the water, the sweat might have shown on his temple.
"O-of course, I couldn't offer you just one scale," he said nervously, "but please be merciful, Little Sage. If I gave you too many scales, I would feel naked, and it takes a long while to grow them again. I can part with at most ten."
But Yun Jieshi was emboldened.
"Twenty," he said while raising two fingers. "Ten for fighting the Imp King and preserving your honor, and ten for retrieving your treasure." He sounded greedy, he knew, but he couldn't help it.
Bei Jun donned an odd smile.
"T-that's fair, Little Sage," he said, quivering. "But please understand, the days are short, but the nights are even shorter. It will take me a while to shed twenty scales. Please, complete my request first and while you are away, I will shed my scales for you."
Yun Jieshi narrowed his eyes.
'Bastard!' he cursed Bei Jun. The fish didn't know it, but there was no way Yun Jieshi could force it to give him more scales right away.
However, in truth, it did take a while for Bei Jun to shed a single scale. Just one had caused it to exert a great constipated effort for five whole minutes.
'I have no choice but to be reasonable then,' thought the little monkey.
"I understand, Bei Jun," he said to the fish who was not a fish. "I will go and fulfill your request first."
Bei Jun sighed in relief.
"However, for my amusement, it shouldn't be a problem for you to produce one more scale, as a deposit."