After a lot of confusion and panic from everyone, Mao rushed over to the man as he surveyed the banquet with a dismissive look on his face. And then the mistress did something I'd never seen her do before. She knelt down in front of him. Her body was shaking from head to foot.

"Welcome to our banquet, Erlang Shen, most fearsome and frightening fighter of the Jade Emperor."

Gasps echoed in the courtyard. Mr. Yang fell out of his seat, but no one dared to laugh at the dragonhead leader of Chinatown's biggest gang as he scrambled back onto his stool.

All eyes were on Erlang Shen as Mao led the god to the table with all the food. Surrounded by pork buns, dumplings, noodles, and many more dishes, Erlang Shen sat at the head of the table like a king.

I couldn't believe my eyes, and neither, it seemed, could anyone else. Ye Ye's stories about the gods, my father's research about the existence of mythical deities and islands—they were true.

I thought of my prayer to Buddha earlier this morning, and shivered in awe. The gods had heard my wishes. Any day now, I could probably expect Mao to disappear, too.

The only person who wasn't gaping at Erlang Shen in stunned silence was my grandfather. "I knew this day would come," Ye Ye whispered. I looked over to see a glassy, awestruck look in his eyes, his fingers trembling where he'd clasped them onto the table. "The gods haven't attended our banquet in decades, but I knew they'd never forsake their warriors."

As fathers and mothers, warriors and girls put their heads together to whisper, Mao seemed to decide that the best way to handle a highly unusual circumstance was to act like nothing out of the ordinary was happening. She poured him a cup of tea, her hands shaking so bad that she spilled all over her red tablecloth.

"Humans. Hundreds of years, and your kind hasn't wizened up one bit," snorted Erlang Shen. He put up a dainty pinkie as he sipped on a cup of Oolong that Mao had just poured him. "This is why none of us deities ever want to leave Heaven. And because the government here sucks. Chinese and American."

A commotion parted the crowd. The five Elders, the oldest and baldest men living in the Jade Society, paraded past us, on their way to take their usual seats at the front table. Then they stopped, stunned, at the sight of the three-eyed god.

"Oh, hey," Erlang Shen greeted them as if they were old friends. "C'mon, don't be shy." He patted the stools next to him.

The Elders exchanged looks and then shrugged. They took Erlang Shen's offer in stride, seating themselves around him. I guess when you were that old, stuff like random visits from deities didn't bother you anymore. Stuff like beard hygiene didn't bother these old men, either, judging by the fact that they spent more time napping and growing their beards than actually attending to their elderly tasks, like meditating and communicating with the gods.

Mao stood up and gave us all a shaky smile. I watched the sweat roll down her forehead as she did her best to salvage the situation. "Everyone, we have a special guest joining us for dinner tonight. The greatest warrior god of heaven, the mighty Erlang Shen."

Erlang Shen raised an eyebrow and said, "Two guests. My hound, Xiao Tian Quan." He whistled, and a dog barked in response. I watched, wide-eyed, as a a familiar grey hound swooped down on a cloud and landed on the table in front of Erlang Shen, upending Mr. and Mrs. Xiong's noodles.

It took me a moment to process why the dog looked so familiar, and then I gasped.

Erlang Shen's hound was the dog who'd help his owner and me take down the nian dragon in the alleyway the other night. If Xiao Tian Quan was here, his owner couldn't be far. Not even a foot away from him, probably.

I allowed my gaze to rake up Erlang Shen's form until I was staring into a pair of black eyes. The black eyes of the warrior god. The black eyes of the old man with two swords.

My heart pounded in my chest. My mind raced. "It can't be," I said.

"I know, I'm in shock," Alex said, fanning himself with ba's notebook. "Erlang Shen and Xiao Tian Quan. They're video game legends. Do you think Erlang Shen will sign my forehead?"

"I doubt Erlang Shen will want to go near a blood traitor," Moli said loftily, causing Alex's face to fall. She turned away with a flip of her hair. Someone should cast Zhao Moli in a Chinese drama. She'd make the cattiest Chinese mother.

Erlang Shen seemed to be looking for something. Or someone. The warrior god examined the tables of silent people with his brows furrowed. A tense silence filled the courtyard, broken only by Ye Ye's coughs, and my growling stomach. I wasn't the only one who was starving; at the table next to ours, the boys eyed the food like predators zeroing in on their prey.

But the god took no notice of hunger. "I come on behalf of the Jade Emperor bearing a proclamation," Erlang Shen declared. "I posted the job description on my Twitter, but apparently none of you punks follow me."

Everyone exchanged confused looks. I had no idea if the warrior god was serious or not.

Erlang Shen pulled something out of his ear—a tiny golden object. He blew on it, and it grew about ten times bigger, into a scroll that he unfurled. Then the warrior god cleared his throat and began reading.

"The Jade Emperor is seeking new Heavenly Generals to aid him in preparation for a new era. From among this generation's young warriors, only the worthiest may be selected."

Gasps rose from the crowd.

Ye Ye shook Alex and me by our arms. His eyes lit up with excitement, brighter than I'd seen them since my father had left. "This is the chance your father and our ancestors have waited for," he breathed. "At last, the warriors—you—will see true glory."

I shook my head sadly. "Didn't you hear him? Only the worthiest may be selected."

"You are worthy, sun nu er," Ye Ye responded, a fierce pride steeling his face.

Erlang Shen rolled up his scroll and began speaking again before I could correct my grandfather. "On the fifteenth and last day of the Lantern Festival, exactly two weeks from today, the Jade Emperor will hold his annual peach banquet atop the Peng Lai mountain in the Peng Lai island, home to the wise eight immortals. Any warrior valiant enough to battle his way to the mountain will receive an invitation into the banquet, where the Jade Emperor will grant him the title of Heavenly General."

Alex's eyes darted to mine, and his jaw dropped at the same time mine did. Our father's black notebook thudded to the table in my brother's slackened grasp.

"The Peng Lai island?" Alex whispered.

"...and this quest is not to be taken lightly," Erlang Shen was saying. "During the next two weeks of the Lantern Festival celebrations, the demons will be more powerful than ever. The Jade Emperor is testing your physical strength, mental fortitude, and loyalty to the gods."

More murmurs swept through the crowd.

"This is impossible." One of the five Elders stood up. The Eldest. He dressed in elaborately decorated golden robes, flecked with red and black flowers, sleeves hanging past his arms and fabric swishing against the ground. His long white beard hung past his stomach, which earned him the nickname "Chinese Dumbledore" from the younger warriors. It had gotten so bad that I couldn't remember the guy's real name anymore. "No mortals have set foot on that island before. We haven't a clue where they are."

"Wouldn't be too sure about that," Alex muttered. He ducked his head down, his eyes gliding across pages of our father's cramped, barely legible writing. "So close...I'm so close..."

Erlang Shen raised an eyebrow. "To the best warriors, the impossible is merely another challenge. Then again, you're probably the lousiest bunch of warriors heaven has seen in thousands of years." He stood up with a look of disgust on his face. "The nian dragon attacked last night, and only one warrior was courageous and able enough to take it down with me."

A wave of confused murmurs swept through the aunties and uncles.

I felt the color drain from my face and willed myself to shrink just a little, like to the size of an ant. Erlang Shen hadn't noticed me, and I prayed he'd drop the matter. There was no way I could tell him the truth—not in front of everyone. Mao would laugh so hard she'd crack a rib. Nobody, not even my own family, would believe that a blood traitor had brought down a demon.

Ye Ye turned and stared hard at me. As if he could read my mind. As if he knew.

"What are you talking about?" Mao asked Erlang Shen with a weak smile. "Nian dragon? Did you mix it up with nian gao, perhaps?" She picked up Ye Ye's dish. "We have some here if you'd like to try—"

Erlang Shen gave her a scornful look. "No, idiot. The demons are stirring. Beasts that haven't roamed the Earth for thousands of years. Why do you think the Jade Emperor is calling for Heavenly Generals? All of Heaven is preparing for a great war."

Gasps erupted around me. I felt Ye Ye turn his eyes onto me, so I stared at the tablecloth like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.

"With all due respect, the nian dragon has been dormant for decades," Chinese Dumbledore said. "We would have sensed if it had been anywhere near us."

"Ha," Erlang Shen snorted. "Your senses have dulled, old man."

Chinese Dumbledore frowned, but bowed his head. "I didn't mean to...Are you sure it has awakened?"

"I know what I was chasing. Are you sure you're awake?" Erlang Shen fired back, his eyes glowing red with anger.

Chinese Dumbledore had the sense to sit down and mumble an apology.

Erlang Shen's eyes continued to flash. A cloud formed beneath his foot, and he crossed his arms over his chest as he floated above us, his voice growing more sonorous as he spoke. "If I were my uncle, I wouldn't choose any of you fools as my Heavenly Generals. Word up in heaven is that you've been slacking off. Growing soft and weak. Failing to pay your respects to the gods. Why, you haven't even constructed an altar for me, and even that lame little boy Nezha has one!"

This, I could tell, was the real reason Erlang Shen had been steadily building up a head of steam. He thrust his spear in the direction of the temple, and a bolt of purple fire shot out of the end. The powerful blast crumpled one of the shadow walls. Several people screamed.

I groaned. Guess who'd get to clean up that mess later tonight?

"And I hear you've turned your backs to demon-hunting in order to pursue other, less honorable activities." Erlang Shen's three eyes fell upon the guilt-stricken faces of some of the men: Luhao's and Yao's fathers in particular. A far cry from possessing warrior physiques, both men wore their wealth in their waistlines, potbellies protruding over their silk business suits. The men slumped their shoulders and fixed their eyes on the ground.

Erlang Shen flicked his gaze away after a long moment. He rose higher in the sky, taking Xiao Tian Quan with him on a grey cloud. "Two weeks, mortals. The Jade Emperor awaits. And don't let the other warriors beat you to the glory," the warrior god said, his laughter fading as he drifted up and away

"Wait! You haven't even tried the wine yet," Mao called up after the god, a perfect hostess to the last.

For a moment, Erlang Shen's departure was met by only stunned silence.

"Other warriors?" Chinese Dumbledore asked with a frown. "What other warriors? We are the only warriors left on this Earth."

Nobody had an answer for him.