Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Sun Wazy, together with Eight Rules and Sand Monk, went out to the city wall to meet them face to face. They saw that the band of demons were all mangous lions: the Yellow Lion Spirit led the vanguard; the Suanni Lion and the Tuoxiang Lion were on the left; the Baize Lion and the Fuli Lion on the right; the Naosh Lion and the Snow Lion brought up the rear; and in the center was a nine-headed lion. The blue-faced demon held an embroidered banner with flowers and stood close beside the nine-headed lion; Diao Zuan Guai-er and Guai Diao Zuan-er flanked them with two red flags. They had all arrayed themselves in the Kan position.

Eight Rules, rash and reckless, strode forward and cursed, “You thieving devils who stole our treasures! What are you doing here with this pack of mangy fur-balls?” The Yellow Lion Spirit gnashed his teeth and cursed back, “You bald rascal, you brute! Yesterday three of you fought one of me. I went back defeated and let you have your way—what business did you have being so vicious as to burn my cave, ruin my mountain, and slaughter my kin? My hatred for you runs as deep as the sea. Don’t run away—take a bite of your grandpa’s shovel!” Eight Rules, nothing loath, raised his rake to meet him. The two had barely crossed weapons and no victor was yet in sight when the Naosh Lion Spirit swung a spiked iron club and the Snow Lion Spirit wielded a three-edged mace, rushing forward to strike. Eight Rules let out a shout: “Bring it on!” Look at this side—Sand Monk hastily drew his demon-quelling staff and stepped forward to help. Then the Suanni Spirit, the Baize Spirit, and the Tuoxiang and Fuli Spirits all charged at once. Here Sun Wazy used his iron cudgel to hold off the horde of spirits. The Suanni used a bludgeon; the Baize used a copper hammer; the Tuoxiang used a steel spear; the Fuli used a battle-axe. Those seven lion spirits and those three ferocious monks—what a fight!

Cudgel, hammer, spear, axe, three-edged mace, spiked club, and four-pronged shovel—

Seven lions, seven weapons, all razor-sharp, besieging the three monks amid a great clamor.

The Great Sage’s iron-banded cudgel was fierce; Sand Monk’s precious staff was rare in the mortal world.

Eight Rules, riding the wind, showed his heroic might; his spiked rake flashed with a ghastly light.

They blocked in front and shielded behind, each exerting his skill; they parried left and met right, all displaying their courage.

The princes on the city wall added to their might; they beat drums and gongs to steel their hearts.

They threw themselves at one another, displaying their magic powers, fighting till heaven and darkness blurred together.

The whole pack of demons fought Sun Wazy and his two brothers for half the day, and before they knew it, evening had fallen. Eight Rules drooled from his mouth, his legs grew weak; he made a feint with his rake and fled the field. The Snow Lion and Naosh Lion Spirits shouted, “Where do you think you’re going? Take this!” The fool couldn’t dodge—they struck him across the back with a mace. He lay on the ground, moaning, “It’s over, it’s over.” The two spirits grabbed Eight Rules by the mane and tail and carried him off to see the nine-headed lion, reporting, “Grandfather, we’ve caught one.”

Before they could finish, Sand Monk and the Pilgrim had also been defeated, and all the demons gave chase. The Pilgrim plucked a handful of his body hairs, chewed them to bits, and blew them into the air, shouting, “Change!” They at once turned into a hundred or so little Pilgrims, surrounding and encircling the Baize, Suanni, Tuoxiang, Fuli, and the Golden Lion Spirit. Sand Monk and the Pilgrim then pressed forward to attack. By evening they had captured the Suanni and Baize, though the Tuoxiang and Fuli escaped. The Golden Lion reported this to the old demon. The old demon, seeing that he had lost two lions, gave orders: “Tie up Zhu Bajie. Do not take his life. When they return my two lions, we will give them Bajie. If they are senseless enough to harm my two lions, then kill Bajie in exchange.” That night the host of demons rested outside the city—no more of this.

Sun Wazy, meanwhile, had the two lion spirits carried near the city wall. The old king, on seeing them, at once ordered the gates opened and sent some thirty officers with ropes to tie up the lion spirits and carry them into the city. The Great Sage gathered his magic hairs and went with Sand Monk straight to the city tower to see Tang Monk. Tang Monk said, “This business is truly dire! I don’t know whether Wuneng is alive or dead.” The Pilgrim said, “He’s fine. We’ve captured these two demons, and they would never dare harm him. Let’s keep the two spirits tightly bound; tomorrow morning we can exchange them for Bajie.” The three young princes kowtowed to the Pilgrim and said, “Master, when you fought your wager earlier, you seemed to be just one person. Then when you feigned defeat and retreated, suddenly there were a hundred or so of you. But when you captured the demons and brought them near the city, you were again just one. What magic power is this?” The Pilgrim laughed and said, “I have eighty-four thousand body hairs. Each one can become ten, ten can become a hundred, and from hundreds to thousands and myriads—all transformations through the method of the body-outside-the-body.” The princes bowed their heads in reverence one by one. At once a vegetarian meal was laid out, and they ate it there on the city tower. Every watchtower was furnished with lanterns and banners, bells and drums, night watches and signal arrows, cannon fire and war cries.

Soon it was dawn again. The old demon summoned the Yellow Lion Spirit and laid a plan: “Today you must do your utmost to capture the Pilgrim and Sand Monk. I will secretly fly through the air to the city and seize their master and the old king and his sons, and take them first to the Nine-Bend Coiling Cave. Wait for your victory and then report back.” The Yellow Lion accepted the plan and led the Naosh Lion, Snow Lion, Tuoxiang Lion, and Fuli Lion, each wielding his weapon, to the city wall, raising wind and churning mist as they challenged the city to battle. Here the Pilgrim and Sand Monk leaped out from the city wall and shouted fiercely, “You thieving devils! Quickly return our brother Bajie and we’ll spare your lives. If not, we’ll grind every one of you to powder.” The demons would not let them speak but charged forward as one. The two brothers, the Great Sage and Sand, each employed their strategy and held off the five lions. This fight was even more intense than yesterday’s:

A fierce wind howled and scoured the earth; dark mists blotted out the sky. Flying stones and sand made gods and ghosts tremble; uprooted trees and flattened forests startled tigers and wolves. Steel spears thrust viciously, battle-axes gleamed brightly, and mace and shovel brimmed with deadly malice. They wished they could swallow the Pilgrim whole and catch little Sand Monk alive. The Great Sage’s single Compliant Golden-Banded Cudgel, with its contracting and extending, was wonderfully nimble. Sand Monk’s Demon-Quelling Staff had a name even beyond the Palace of Lingxiao. Now they exerted their vast magic power; in the Western Regions they displayed their might to sweep away the demons.

These five mangy lion spirits were locked in a life-and-death struggle with Pilgrim and Sha Monk, when the old monster mounted his black cloud and soared straight to the city wall. He shook his head once, and the terror of it sent every civil and military official and every soldier on the wall tumbling down from the ramparts. He dashed into the tower, opened his mouth wide, and in one gulp swallowed Tripitaka and the old king and his sons. Then he went down to the dungeon and took八戒 in his mouth as well. It turned out that his nine heads had nine mouths. One mouth held Tripitaka, one held 八戒, one held the old king, one held the eldest prince, one held the second prince, and one held the third prince: six mouths held six people, and three mouths remained empty. "I'll be off first!" he cried. Seeing their patriarch victorious, the five little lion spirits each fought with renewed ferocity.

Pilgrim heard the shouting atop the city wall and knew at once they had fallen for the monster's scheme. He quickly called Sha Monk to be careful. Then he plucked every hair from his arm, bit them to pieces in his mouth, and spat them out, transforming them into a thousand little Pilgrims who surged forward in a mass attack. In the onslaught they toppled the Rhesus Lion, seized the Snow Lion alive, captured the Elephant-Taming Lion, overthrew the Crouching Fox Lion, and beat the Yellow Lion to death. With a great clamor they swept down to the city gate below. The three monsters with the blue face, the Wily-Burrower, and the Burrower-Wily, however, managed to escape. The officials on the city wall saw this and opened the gate again. They bound the five lion spirits with ropes and carried them into the city. Before they could decide what to do with them, the queen came weeping and bowing before Pilgrim. "Divine Master!" she cried. "My prince and his sons, along with your master—all is lost! What shall become of this lonely city?" The Great Sage gathered back his magical hairs and bowed to the queen. "Good queen, do not grieve. It is only because I captured the seven lion spirits that the old demon used his art of seizure to carry off my master and the prince and his sons. I reckon no harm will come to them. Tomorrow at the first light of dawn, my brother and I will go into the mountain and surely capture the old demon and return your four princes to you." Hearing these words, the queen and her ladies-in-waiting all bowed before Pilgrim. "We pray that the prince and his sons may live, and that the realm may endure forever." When they had finished bowing, each of them returned to the palace in tears. Pilgrim instructed the officials: "Skin the Yellow Lion spirit that was killed. Tie up the six living lion spirits securely. Bring us some vegetarian food—we shall eat and sleep. Put your minds at rest. I guarantee you will come to no harm."

The next morning, the Great Sage and Sha Monk mounted their auspicious clouds. Before long, they arrived at the summit of Bamboo-Knoll Mountain. They pressed their cloud down and surveyed the scene—what a magnificent mountain it was! Observe:

Peaks thrust up in rugged tiers, ridges rose steep and sheer. Deep ravines below where murmuring waters swirled, and before the cliffs brocade flowers breathed their perfume. Winding ridges overlapped one upon another, and the ancient path curved and wound. Truly, cranes came to the pines and found companions; indeed, clouds departed and the rocks stood alone. Dark gibbons sought fruit in the bright sunlight; deer and elk delighted in flowers beneath the warm sun. The blue phoenix cried with a clear, piercing voice; the oriole chattered with a soft, melodious song. In spring, peach and blossoms vied in beauty; in summer, willows and locusts competed in luxuriance. In autumn, yellow flowers spread like brocade; in winter, white snow flew like silk. Through all four seasons and eight periods, the scenery was splendid—second only to the immortal realm of Yingzhou.

As the two of them stood on the mountain peak admiring the view, they suddenly saw the blue-faced creature running out of a ravine, carrying a short staff. "Where do you think you're going?" shouted Pilgrim. "Old Sun is here!" The little demon was so frightened that it tumbled and rolled its way down into the ravine. The two of them gave chase, but the creature had vanished. They went forward a few more paces and came upon a cave dwelling, with two doors of mottled stone tightly shut. Above the lintel was embedded a stone tablet, on which ten characters had been carved in regular script: "Bamboo-Knoll Mountain of Myriad Spirits, the Cave of Nine Bends."

The little demon had run into the cave and immediately shut the door. Going to the middle, he said to the old monster, "Grandfather, there are two more monks outside." The old monster said, "Have your prince and the Rhesus Lion, the Snow Lion, the Elephant-Taming Lion, and the Crouching Fox Lion come?" The little demon said, "No, no. There are only two monks gazing from a high peak. I saw them, turned and ran, and they chased after me—so I shut the door and came in." Hearing this, the old monster lowered his head and said nothing. After a long while, tears suddenly fell from his eyes, and he cried out, "Alas! My Yellow Lion grandson is dead, and my Rhesus Lion grandson and the others have all been captured by the monks and taken into the city. How can this hatred be avenged?" 八戒 was bound nearby, huddled together with the king's sons and Tripitaka, suffering in misery. When he heard the old monster say that all his grandsons had been captured by the monks, he secretly rejoiced. "Master, do not be afraid; Your Majesty, do not grieve. My elder brother has already won, captured the demons, and is searching for this place to rescue us." After he had spoken, he heard the old monster call out: "Little ones, keep good watch here. I am going out to capture those two monks and bring them in, so that I may punish them all together."

Look at him—wearing no armor, wielding no weapon—he strode boldly forward and could hear Sun Xingzhe shouting. The old demon threw open the cave gate, made no reply, and rushed straight at Xingzhe. Xinghze met him with his iron rod held up to block him. Sha Seng swung his precious staff and struck. The old demon shook his head, and the eight heads on either side all opened their mouths together, gently seizing Xingzhe and Sha Seng once more and carrying them into the cave. He ordered, "Bring ropes." The ones called Diaozuan-Guguai, Guguai-Diaozuan, and Blue-Face were those who had escaped the night before; they brought two ropes and bound the two of them firmly. The old demon asked, "You wretched monkey—you captured my seven grandchildren. Now that I've caught four of your monks and four princes, that's enough to balance the lives of my grandchildren. Little ones, bring thorny willow sticks and beat this monkey head for me, to avenge my grandson Yellow Lion."

The three little demons each took up a willow stick and struck Xingzhe. Xingzhe's body had been tempered and refined; those willow sticks were nothing more than tickling him. He didn't make a sound no matter how they pounded him, paying it not the slightest attention. Bajie, Tang Seng, and the princes watched, their hair standing on end with dread. In a short while, the willow sticks were broken. They beat him until evening, and no one could count the number of blows. Sha Seng saw how much he was being beaten and could not bear it. "Let me take a hundred or so blows for him," he said. The old demon said, "Not so fast. Tomorrow it will be your turn. One by one, you'll each get your beating." Bajie grew anxious. "The day after, it'll be my turn, Old Pig!" After a while, it grew dark. The old demon called, "Little ones, stop for now. Light the lamps and eat your fill. I'm going to my Brocade Cloud Lair to sleep a while. You three have all suffered harm before—guard them carefully. We'll continue the beating tomorrow morning."

The three little demons moved the lamp over and struck Xingzhe's skull with the willow sticks, sounding like a watchman's clapper—tok-tok-tok, tok-tok-tok—fast beats, slow beats. Deep in the night, they all dozed off.

Xingzhe then used a body-shrinking spell, made himself small, and slipped free from the ropes. He shook out his hairs, straightened his clothes, took the rod from his ear, and waved it—it grew as thick as a bucket and two zhang long. He faced the three little demons and said, "You wretched beasts, you've struck your old master with so many sticks. Your old master will just stay as he is, but let him give you a taste of these sticks and see what happens." He lightly struck the three little demons, and they were smashed into three meat patties. He then brightened the lamp and freed Sha Seng. Bajie, bound so tightly, could not hold back and shouted, "Elder Brother, my hands and feet are swollen from the ropes—why not free me first?" This fool's shout woke the old demon. He scrambled up and called, "Who is freeing them?" Xingzhe heard this, blew out the lamp in one breath, and without bothering about Sha Seng and the others, took his iron rod and broke through several gates as he fled.

The old demon went to the central hall and called, "Little ones, why is no one answering? Could someone have escaped?" He called out once—no answer. He called again—still no answer. When he brought a lamp to look, he saw three bloody meat patties on the ground, and the old king, his son, Tang Seng, and Bajie were all still there—only Xingzhe and Sha Seng were missing. He lit a lamp and searched everywhere. He found Sha Seng still standing pressed against the corridor wall. He grabbed him, threw him down, and bound him as before. Then he searched for Xingzhe, but found several layers of gates all smashed—he knew Xinghze had broken through and fled. He did not pursue him, but repaired the broken gates, patched them up, and stayed to defend his stronghold. That is another matter.

Now the Great Sage Sun emerged from the Nine-Bend Winding Cave, mounted auspicious clouds, and flew straight to Yuzhou Prefecture. On the city walls, the local earth gods, deities, and the City God all bowed to greet him from mid-air. Xingzhe said, "Why are you only showing yourselves tonight?" The City God said, "We lesser gods knew the Great Sage had descended to Yuzhou Prefecture. Because the worthy king was hosting you, we dared not appear. Now we know the king and his party have encountered demons and the Great Sage is subduing them, so we've come to pay our respects." Xingzhe was just about to scold them when he saw the Golden-Headed Jiedi and the Six Ding and Six Jia divine generals bringing forward an earth god, who knelt before him. "Great Sage," they said, "we've caught this local ghost." Xingzhe shouted, "Why aren't you at Bamboo-Knoll Mountain protecting my master? How did you end up here?" The Ding-Jia generals said, "Great Sage, after you escaped, the demon again captured the Curtain-Lifting General and bound him as before. We saw that his power was very great, so we brought the Bamboo-Knoll Mountain earth god here under guard. He knows the origins of this demon. We beg the Great Sage to question him—then he can be dealt with and the Holy Monk and worthy king can be saved from their suffering." Xingzhe was overjoyed at these words. The earth god trembled and kowtowed, saying, "The old demon descended to Bamboo-Knoll Mountain two years ago. The Nine-Bend Winding Cave was originally the lair of the Six Lions. Ever since the six lions met the old demon, they all acknowledged him as their patriarch. The patriarch is a nine-headed lion, called the Nine-Spirit Primordial Sage. To defeat him, you must go to the Palace of Wondrous Rocks in the Eastern Extremity and invite his master—only then can he be subdued. No one else can capture him." Xingzhe heard this and reflected for a long time. "The Palace of Wondrous Rocks in the Eastern Extremity—that's the Savior from Suffering, the Most High of Great Unity. And his mount is indeed a nine-headed lion. So that's how it is." He then instructed, "Jiedi and the Golden Armor, return with the earth god and secretly protect my master, my junior brother, and the prefect and his son. The local City God will guard the city." The gods each obeyed and departed.

The Great Sage mounted his cloud somersault and pressed on through the night. By about the hour of the tiger, he arrived at the East Heaven Gate and ran straight into the Wide-Eyed Heavenly King together with his celestial soldiers and warriors in procession. All halted and greeted him with folded hands, saying, "Where is the Great Sage bound?" The Pilgrim returned their salutations and replied, "I'm going to have a look at the Palace of Miraculous Rock." The Heavenly King said, "You're not on the road to the West, so what brings you to the Eastern Heaven?" The Pilgrim said, "I went to Yuhua Prefecture, where the prefectural king entertained me and sent his three sons to become disciples of my brothers and me to learn the martial arts. As it happened, we encountered a pack of lion demons. I've now learned that the Savior from Suffering, the Supreme One of Miraculous Rock Palace, is the master of these demons, and I wish to invite him to come subdue them and rescue my master." The Heavenly King said, "That place—because you wanted to be a teacher, you stirred up this whole den of lions." The Pilgrim laughed and said, "Exactly, exactly." The celestial soldiers and warriors each cupped his fists in salute and yielded the way. The Great Sage entered the East Heaven Gate and before long reached the front of Miraculous Rock Palace. He saw:

Layer upon layer of rosy clouds, and purple mist thick and lush. Glazed tiles shimmered with waves of golden flame; the gates were lined with jade beasts in noble array. Flowers overflowed the twin watchtowers, wrapped in red sunlight; the sun shone upon the tall forest, wreathed in emerald haze. Truly it was a place where ten thousand immortals stood in encircling reverence and a thousand sages flourished in glory. Hall upon hall, all brocade; windows and verandas, open everywhere. Coiled azure dragons guarded a solemn divine light; the yellow radiance glowed with thick auspicious aura. This was indeed the Realm of Everlasting Bliss of the Azure Florescence—the Palace of Miraculous Rock of the Eastern Pole.

At the palace gate stood a celestial child clad in a rainbow cape. Catching sight of the Great Sage Sun, he at once entered the palace and reported, "Grandfather, the Great Sage Equal of Heaven, who once created havoc in the Celestial Palace, is outside." The Savior from Suffering, the Supreme One, upon hearing this, at once commanded his attendant immortals to go out and welcome him. They escorted the Pilgrim into the palace, where the Supreme One was seen seated high upon a nine-colored lotus throne, amid a billion rays of auspicious light. Seeing the Pilgrim, he descended from his seat to meet him. The Pilgrim bowed toward the throne. The Supreme One returned the salutation and said, "Great Sage, I have not seen these past few years. I heard earlier that you left the Way to return to the Buddha and are protecting the Tang monk on his pilgrimage to the West to fetch the scriptures—I suppose your meritorious labors are now complete?" The Pilgrim said, "Not yet complete, though we are close. But now, while protecting Tripitaka in Yuhua Prefecture, the prince sent his three sons to take Old Sun and the others as their teachers to learn the martial arts. They had our three divine weapons copied and forged, but during the night they were stolen by thieves. When we searched at daybreak, it turned out that a golden-haired lion demon who had attained essence on Tiger's-Head Mountain at the north of the city had stolen them. Old Sun used a stratagem to recover them, and that demon then gathered several lion spirits to make a great ruckus with me. Among them was a nine-headed lion of vast supernatural power, who carried off my master, Pig, and the prince's four sons in his jaws to a cave on Bamboo-Knot Mountain called the Nine-Winding Coiled Cave. The next day, Old Sand and I tracked them down and were also carried off. Old Sun was bound and beaten countless times, but fortunately I used a trick and escaped. They are suffering there still. When I asked the local tutelary deity, I learned that he is your servant, and I have come especially to request you to come subdue and rescue them."

On hearing this, the Supreme One at once ordered his celestial generals to go to the lion quarters and call out the lion slave for questioning. The lion slave was fast asleep; the generals shook him awake and dragged him to the central hall to appear before the Supreme One. The Supreme One asked, "Where are the lion beasts?" The slave wept, kowtowed, and could only say, "Spare my life, spare my life!" The Supreme One said, "The Great Sage Sun is here, so I will not beat you. Quickly tell me—how was it that you were careless and let the nine-headed lion escape?" The lion slave said, "Grandfather, a few days ago I saw a flagon of wine in the Hall of Boundless Sweet Dew and secretly drank it. I did not realize I had fallen into a drunken sleep, and I neglected to lock up the beasts, so they got away." The Supreme One said, "That wine was a gift from Lord Lao Zi—it is called the Nectar of Rebirth. After drinking it, one is supposed to sleep for three days without waking. How many days has the lion beast been gone?" The Great Sage said, "According to the local deity, he descended the year before last—it has been two or three years." The Supreme One laughed and said, "That's right, that's right—one day in the Heavenly Palace is one year in the mortal world." He called to the lion slave, "Rise. I spare you the death penalty. Come with me and the Great Sage down below to subdue him. All you immortals may return; there is no need to follow."

The Supreme One then set out with the Great Sage and the lion slave, treading the clouds straight to Bamboo-Knot Mountain. There they saw the Five Directional Vajra-Bearers, the Six Ding and Six Jia, and the local tutelary deity of the mountain all come to kneel in greeting. The Pilgrim said, "You have been guarding him—has any harm come to my master?" The deities said, "The demons fell into a rage and slept; they have not inflicted any punishment at all." The Supreme One said, "My Primordial Sage is also a true spirit of long cultivation: when he roars once, it reaches the Three Sages above and penetrates the Nine Springs below, and he does not lightly harm living beings. Great Sage Sun, go to his gate and provoke battle to draw him out—then I can subdue him."

When Pilgrim Sun heard these words, he indeed brandished his staff and leaped up to the cave entrance, shouting loudly, "You filthy demon, give us back our people! You filthy demon, give us back our people!" He called out several times, but the old demon had fallen asleep and no one answered. Pilgrim Sun grew impatient, swung his iron staff, and charged into the cave, shouting and cursing without cease. Only then did the old demon wake with a start. Filled with rage, he climbed up, gave a battle cry, shook his head wide, and opened his mouth to seize Pilgrim Sun. Pilgrim Sun turned and leaped out of the cave. The demon chased him outside, cursing, "Thief monkey, where do you think you're going?" Pilgrim Sun stood on a high cliff and laughed, "You still dare be so bold and insolent—you don't even know whether you're dead or alive! Isn't this your lord and master standing here?" The demon charged to the foot of the cliff, but the Heavenly Lord had already recited an incantation and shouted, "Yuan Sheng'er, I have come!" The demon recognized his master, dared not struggle, and fell to the ground on all fours, kowtowing. The lion slave ran over, grabbed him by the mane, and punched him on the neck a hundred or more times, cursing, "You beast, how dare you run off and make me suffer?" The lion-beast kept his mouth shut and dared not move. When the lion slave's hands grew tired, he finally stopped, then placed the brocade saddle on the beast. The Heavenly Lord mounted him and gave the command to go. The beast soared into the sky on a colored cloud and flew straight back to the Miaoyan Palace.

The Great Sage thanked him from afar, then entered the cave. First he freed King Yuhua, then Tripitaka Tang, then Zhu Bajie, Sha Seng, and the three princes. They searched the cave for its belongings, gathered everything together, and led the people outside. Bajie collected a pile of dry firewood, stacked it in front and behind, and set the cave ablaze. The Nine-Winding Coiled Cave was reduced to a blackened, shattered kiln. The Great Sage released the various gods and instructed the local tutelary deity to guard the place. He then ordered Bajie and Sha Seng to use their magic to carry the king and his sons back to the prefecture. He supported Tripitaka himself. Before long they reached the prefecture city; the sky was growing dark. The queen, consorts, and officials all came out to receive them. A vegetarian feast was laid out, and they sat together to enjoy it. Tripitaka and his disciples rested in the Boshating Pavilion. The princes went into the palace to their respective chambers. The night passed without incident.

The next day, the king issued an edict for a grand vegetarian banquet. All the officials of the prefecture, high and low, came to express their thanks. Pilgrim Sun then called for the butchers and had the six live lions slaughtered. Together with the yellow lion, they were all skinned, and the meat was prepared for consumption. The crown prince was overjoyed and gave the orders: one lion was kept for the prefecture's use inside and outside; one was shared with the palace's chief minister and other officials; the remaining five were cut into pieces of one or two liang each, and officers were sent to distribute them to all the soldiers and civilians in and around the prefecture, so that each might have a taste—first to sample the flavor, and second to calm their fears. Every household looked on with reverence.

Then the blacksmiths came with the three weapons they had forged, and kowtowed to Pilgrim Sun, saying, "Grandfather, we have finished our work." He asked, "How much does each weigh?" The blacksmiths replied, "The Gold-Banded Staff weighs a thousand jin; the Nine-Tooth Rake and the Demon-Subduing Staff each weigh eight hundred jin." Pilgrim Sun said, "That will do." He asked for the three princes to come out, each to take up his weapon. The three sons said to the old king, "Father, the weapons are finished today." The old king said, "Because of these weapons, I almost lost my sons' lives and my own." The youngest prince said, "Thanks to the divine teacher's magic, we were rescued. He also swept away the demons and eliminated future troubles. Truly this is what they call 'the seas are calm and the rivers clear—a world of peace.'" The old king and his sons rewarded the craftsmen, then went to the Boshating Pavilion to bow and thank the master for his grace.

Tripitaka then told the Great Sage and the others to teach the martial arts quickly and not delay their journey. The three of them took up their weapons and, in the palace courtyard, instructed the princes one by one. In a few days, the three princes had mastered all the techniques. The methods of attack and retreat, the rhythms of fast and slow—all seventy-two variations were known to them. This was first because the princes were determined, and second because the Great Sage Sun had first bestowed divine strength upon them. Thus the thousand-jin staff and the eight-hundred-jin rake and staff could all be lifted and wielded. Compared to their previous martial skills, it was a difference as vast as the sky and the abyss. A poem attests to this:

Through good fortune they met a divine teacher,

And in learning martial arts stirred up strange lions.

They swept away the demons and secured the realm,

United in faith to pacify the borderlands.

The Nine Spirits accord with the primal yang,

In all directions they comprehend the fruit of the Way.

This clear transmission of heart endures through the ages—

Yuhua enjoys eternal peace in a time of great tranquility.

The princes held another grand banquet to thank their teachers. They also brought out a large tray of gold and silver as a token of gratitude. Pilgrim Sun laughed and said, "Take it back quickly, take it back quickly. We are monks—what use do we have for it?" Bajie, standing nearby, said, "We truly dare not accept gold or silver. But my robe was torn and ripped by those lion demons. If you would give us a change of clothes, that would be kindness enough." The princes accordingly ordered the tailoring artisans to take bolts of blue brocade, red brocade, and tea-brown brocade, and make one garment for each of the three. The three accepted with delight, each putting on a brocade straight robe. They packed their belongings and set out. Throughout the city and its outskirts, young and old alike, all proclaimed that these were arhats descended to the mortal world and living Buddhas come to earth. The sound of music and the colors of banners filled the streets and choked the roads. Indeed, every household burned incense outside their doors, and every gate hung colored lanterns. They traveled a great distance before turning back, and only then did the four pilgrims depart westward from the city. From this point they left the lions behind and devoted themselves to the true fruit of enlightenment. Truly:

Without worry or fear they came to the Buddha's realm,

With sincere hearts they journeyed toward the Thunder Monastery.

As for how much distance remained to the Holy Mountain and when they they would arrive, let us listen to the next chapter.