Sun Wukong and the star lords quickly mounted their clouds and soared high into the sky.
The monster gathered all the golden fragments and, at the same time, ordered his troops to form up on the open ground beside the monastery gate.
Clash with the Yellow-Browed Demon
He then put on his armor, took up a mace lined with rows of wolf teeth, and stepped through the gate, shouting:
“Sun Wukong has proven himself a coward! If he were brave, he would have faced me in battle—even if he couldn’t have lasted three attacks!”
The Monkey King shouted back:
“What kind of monster are you, pretending to be a Buddhist Patriarch, ruling over this mountain, and naming this place the ‘Little Temple of Thunder?’”
The Yellow-Browed Demon sneered:
“So, you don’t even know my name, eh, stupid monkey? That explains why you dared to cross my territory without permission. Let me enlighten you: this place is known as the ‘Little Western Paradise.’ I am the Buddha of Yellow Brows, though the ignorant people around here call me the Great King of Yellow Brows or the Holy One of Yellow Brows. I knew you were heading westward, and that your powers surpass those of many immortals. That’s why I staged the trick that nearly fooled you. There was no other way to lure your master here. But those are matters of the past now. Let me tell you what I’m willing to do: if you can withstand my attacks, I will forgive you all and allow you to continue your journey. Otherwise, I will end your lives, present myself before Tathagata, and return with the sutras to the land from which you came—so that I alone may enjoy all the glory.”
The Monkey King laughed loudly and retorted:
“Why keep boasting like that? If you want to fight, come closer and I’ll show you what my iron rod tastes like!”
Epic Battle
The monster raised his wolf-toothed mace, and thus began one of the most spectacular battles ever witnessed.
They clashed more than fifty times, but neither managed to gain any significant advantage.
At the very gate of the monastery, the demon attendants cheered wildly, beating drums, clashing gongs, and waving colorful banners.
On the other side, the Twenty-Eight Constellations and the rest of the sages decided to join the fray. After raising a battle cry, they grabbed their weapons and surrounded the monster.
The White Wrap Trap
But the monster showed no sign of fear. On the contrary, he wielded the wolf-toothed mace(wolf-teeth club) with one hand to fend off the attackers, while with the other, he untied a strip of white cloth fastened around his waist. He flung the wrap skyward, and after a sharp whistling sound, it wrapped itself around the Monkey King and the Twenty-Eight Constellations.
With astonishing ease, he hoisted them onto his back like a bundle and returned to the monastery. The ease of the victory emboldened the demons, who continued shouting joyfully.
The monster ordered several dozen ropes to be brought, and he wound them repeatedly around the bundle on his back. He pulled so tightly that the gods trapped within could barely breathe.
Imprisonment and Escape
The demons dragged them to the rear of the monastery and unceremoniously threw them to the ground.
To celebrate such a resounding victory, the monster hosted a splendid banquet for his followers, which lasted well into the night.
By about midnight, everything seemed calm.
Taking advantage of invisibility magic, the Monkey King shrank his body so much that he slipped through the knots of the ropes as effortlessly as sunlight passes through a window.
He then approached the Tang Monk and rescued his master first. After freeing Bajie, Sha Wujing, and the Twenty-Eight Constellations, he took the reins of the horse and quietly made his way toward the gate.
Returned for the luggage
Before reaching it, he remembered the luggage and quickly turned back. Unfortunately, the Golden Dragon saw him and exclaimed contemptuously:
“How can you value things more than people? Isn’t rescuing your master enough? I don’t understand how you can hold such trivial baggage in such high esteem!”
Sun Wukong replied:
“Of course people are important, but the robe and alms bowl are even more so. Don’t you realize that, apart from being made of gold and adorned with beautiful embroidery, they were gifts from Buddha himself? Not to mention that in one of those bags is the travel document given to us by the emperor.”
Bajie advised him:
“Don’t listen to him—just go get it. We’ll wait for you by the road.”
It was about the third watch when the Great Sage returned inside the monastery, but all its gates were firmly locked.
He had no choice but to make a magical hand gesture and lightly shake his body, instantly transforming into a bat with a pointed head like a rat’s and eyes as bright as glowing embers.
It was fortunate for the Monkey King that there was a small gap between the roof tiles and beams, through which he easily slipped inside.
After passing through several doors, he reached the central part of the building, where he saw something shining extraordinarily brightly. Its glow was completely different from that of lamps or fireflies.
He paused mid-flight and moved closer to see what it was. To his surprise, it was the luggage bags. He soon realized that it was Tang Monk’s robe emitting such an extraordinary radiance.
Looking closely, it had been made from night-bright pearls, precious stones that obeyed the will of their owner, Mani pearls, agate beads, pieces of red coral, and sacred relics.
Overjoyed, Wukong resumed his normal form and grabbed the luggage. Without bothering to check whether the bags were tied to the wooden post from which they hung, he slung them over his shoulder and headed for the door.
He did so with such force that the wooden pillar collapsed, producing a great crash that finally woke the monster, who was sleeping in the room directly below.
Pursuit and Capture
Fearing recapture, Wukong abandoned the luggage and leapt onto a cloud, shooting out through one of the windows.
The monster searched every corner of the monastery but found no trace of the Tang Monk and his companions.
Realizing it was already almost daylight, he grabbed his mace and set out in pursuit of the escapees, followed by his army of demons.
He soon spotted the Twenty-Eight Constellations and the other divine beings on the farthest ridges of the mountain and roared with a mighty voice:
“Where do you think you’re going? It’s not that easy to escape my grasp!”
The monster repeatedly sent his troops against the heavenly forces, yet failed to gain any noticeable advantage.
They fought tirelessly until heaven and earth were plunged into darkness, but still could not defeat the demon. Even so, they continued fighting as the sun sank in the west and the moon rose in the east.
When darkness began to fall, the monster let out a piercing whistle, and immediately his entire army regrouped. Then he took out the white cloth strip again, but just as he was about to wave it, the Monkey King saw him and shouted in terror:
“Beware! Everyone, flee for your lives however you can!”
Wukong made such a spectacular leap that he landed in the Ninth Heaven itself. The others didn’t understand why he fled so suddenly and were once again captured by the monster. Only the Monkey King managed to escape the torment of the ropes.
No sooner had the monster returned to the monastery than he indeed ordered his subordinates to bring out the ropes again, and once more bound the prisoners with the same cruelty as before.
Leave a Reply