Tripitaka and his three disciples once again set out on the road, relieved to finally leave the ‘Little Western Paradise’ behind.
After about a month of travel, spring came to an end. All the trees had bloomed, but storms became increasingly frequent, and sudden downpours made it difficult for the travelers to proceed.
The Storm’s Refuge
One day, as dusk was beginning to fall, rain met them head-on, and Tang Sanzang exclaimed in discouragement, pulling at his horse’s reins:
“Where can we find shelter? It grows more painful with each step to move forward!”
As they were speaking, a small village appeared before them, and Wukong said excitedly:
“Were we not just talking about finding a place to spend the night? Here’s where we’ll do it!”
“Where?” asked the master, puzzled, for he had seen nothing.
Wukong replied, pointing with his finger:
“There, that house beneath those trees. We shall go there and ask for shelter for the night. At dawn, we will continue our journey.”
The master spurred his horse and rode toward the entrance of the farmhouse. The gates were closed. Since they were wooden, Tripitaka gently knocked on them with his fist while shouting:
“Open up! Open up!”
Soon an old man appeared at the door, holding a staff in his hands, wearing straw sandals, a black cloth wrapped around his head, and a completely white robe covering his body.
“Who dares make such noise?” he asked in a grumpy tone.
Joining his hands at chest level and bowing respectfully, Tripitaka replied:
“This humble monk from the Eastern Lands is traveling westward toward the Western Paradise in search of scriptures. While passing through this respectable region, night has begun to fall, and we are seeking a place to rest for the night. We would be eternally grateful if you would deign to offer us lodging.”
The old man answered:
“I don’t doubt that you are heading where you say. But I can assure you, you will never reach there. The distance is immense, and you will face too many difficulties. Not to mention that crossing this region will prove extremely arduous for you.”
“What do you mean by that?” asked Tripitaka, concerned.
The elder explained:
“More than thirty miles west of this village lies the Mountain of Seven Extremes, stretching over eight hundred miles in length. This area is practically uninhabited, and no traveler has ever crossed that mountain.”
Upon hearing these words, Tripitaka grew so disheartened that he did not know what to say.
Only the Monkey King lost his patience and exclaimed, annoyed:
“It’s clear you have no sense of timing whatsoever! We’ve come to ask for lodging after a long journey, and all you do is tell us these things to discourage us. If you don’t have space in your home for us to spend the night, just say so clearly, and we’ll curl up against the trunks of these trees.”
Pointing his staff at the Monkey King, the old man shouted, offended:
“Just look who’s coming to give me advice in my own house! Some kind of spirit with a gaunt face, flat forehead, flat nose, protruding jaw, and a face covered entirely in fur! How dare you treat an old man like me with so little respect?”
Trying to appease him with a smile, the Monkey King replied:
“It seems that although you have eyes, you do not use them properly. It’s a serious mistake to judge people by their appearance. Ugly as I may seem, I assure you few people possess virtues as great as mine.”
“And where are you from, and what extraordinary virtues do you claim to possess?” asked the old man.
Smiling, Wukong replied:
“I come from the continent of Purvavideha, and for a very long time I have practiced meditation in the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits(Flower-fruit Mountain). I have a perfect mastery of martial arts. I can even tame beasts and dragons. There is none who surpasses me in capturing monsters and demons.”
Exclaiming, the old man bowed unexpectedly with deep respect:
“Please, honor my humble dwelling with your presence.”
A Feast and a Favor
Once they entered, the old man invited his guests to sit and ordered tea and food to be served.
No sooner had they finished eating than Bajie tugged at Sun Wukong’s sleeve and whispered in his ear:
“Why would this old man give us such a lavish banquet when at first he refused to let us in?”
Wukong replied:
“Don’t exaggerate either. After all, how much could all this food really amount to? Anyway, the best hasn’t even come yet. Just wait tomorrow he’ll serve us an even richer feast with more dishes and fruits.”
Bajie responded:
“You should be ashamed! Obviously, he treated us so well because of the exaggerated introduction you gave of yourself. Why would he keep being generous when we leave? Most likely, he’ll send us off with empty stomachs.”
Trying to calm him, the Monkey King said:
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Wukong took the opportunity to ask respectfully, bowing his head:
“May I ask your surname?”
“Li,” the old man replied briefly.
Wukong asked again:
“Might we trouble you, Mr. Li, to explain why you provided us with such a splendid banquet?”
Standing up, the old man replied:
“When I heard you say there was no one better than you at capturing monsters, I thought perhaps you might help us capture one that makes life impossible for us. If you succeed in defeating it, be assured we will reward you generously.”
The Monkey King said:
“Your village appears prosperous and peaceful. That explains why so many families live together in such a remote region. Would you care to tell me what kind of monster has terrified you so?”
The old man replied:
“To tell the truth, for a long time there were few places as peaceful as this. Everything began to change about three years ago, when in the month of June, a wind arose suddenly—more violent than any we had ever seen here. At first we thought the weather had changed unexpectedly.”
He paused briefly and added:
“How could we suspect that inside that storm traveled a monster that, in the blink of an eye, devoured all the cattle grazing in the fields? Its hunger was insatiable; as soon as it finished with the cows and oxen, it attacked chickens and geese, even devouring every man and woman it encountered. Since then, it has continued to visit us constantly, cruelly diminishing both our possessions and our families. If it’s true that you have enough power to defeat monsters, free us from this one, and I promise we will never forget what you’ve done for us.”
The Monkey King concluded:
“Fear no more. I will help you capture that beast.”
As they were immersed in conversation, suddenly a violent gust of wind blew, making everyone tremble with fear.
Exclaimed the old man:
“What bad luck for this poor monk! No sooner mentioned than already here comes the beast.”
The elder Li flung open the gate leading to the courtyard of his house and urged Tang Monk and the others to take cover immediately, saying:
“Hurry inside! The monster has arrived!”
Eyes in the Tempest
The Monkey King shouted to Bajie and Sha Wujing:
“We must quickly discover what kind of monster this is.”
Soon after, the wind abruptly calmed, and high in the sky appeared something that looked like two lit lamps.
Bajie looked up into the sky, shaking the dust from his body slightly. Seeing the two lights, he burst into laughter and exclaimed:
“Now this is strange! Who would go walking the roads carrying two lanterns?”
Wujing replied:
“You’re mistaken. Those are not lanterns—they are its eyes.”
“Heavens!” cried Bajie.
“If its eyes are so far apart, what must its mouth look like?”
The Monkey King advised them:
“Have no fear. Stay here and protect the master while I approach the beast and ask it a few questions to find out who it is.”
The Monkey King leapt high into the air and soared upward. Without ever letting go of his iron rod, he shouted in a powerful voice:
“Where are you rushing off to in such haste? Don’t you see I’m here?”
Noticing his presence, the monster stood upright and began thrusting violently at the air with a spear. The Monkey King did not retreat. On the contrary, he took a fighting stance and asked:
“Where are you from, and what powers aid you?”
The monster did not answer. All it did was sweep the space before it with its spear. Wukong repeated his question, but received the same response. The monster seemed obsessed only with striking left and right.
The Monkey King laughed aloud:
“So you’re deaf and mute? Too bad for you! Don’t run away—taste my iron rod instead!”
Bajie said impatiently to Sha Monk:
“You stay here while I go help our brother. It’s not fair for him to get all the credit.”
He rose into the clouds and struck the monster with a mighty blow from his rake.
“This monster is truly a master in wielding the spear!” Bajie exclaimed in admiration.
“He has very flexible wrists,” admitted the Monkey King.
“However, the most surprising thing is that it cannot speak. It must not have yet attained human nature. After thinking about it carefully, I’ve concluded that it is entirely under the influence of Yin. Because of this, at dawn, when Yang becomes increasingly powerful, its strength diminishes alarmingly, and it is forced to flee. That is the moment we must take advantage of—cut off its retreat and prevent it from escaping.”
“I agree with you completely!” replied Bajie.
The battle continued for a long time. Gradually, light began to appear in the east. As the Monkey King had predicted, before the first majestic ray of sunlight could appear, the monster turned around and fled at full speed.
The Crimson Python
Bajie and Wukong flew after it. Soon they arrived at the Mountain of Seven Extremes.
Once the mountain was crossed, the monster regained its usual form. It turned out to be an enormous red-scaled python.
Bajie exclaimed in astonishment:
“What a huge snake! I bet it could eat five hundred people and still remain hungry.”
“Without a doubt,” said the Monkey King, “those spears it wielded so skillfully were actually the two tips of its forked tongue.”
The snake quickly slithered into a hole. Bajie managed to grab it by the tail and shouted excitedly, setting his rake aside:
“I’ve got it! I’ve got it!”
But although he pulled with all his might, he couldn’t pull it out even an inch further.
The Monkey King advised him:
“Let it go. It’s impossible to pull a serpent out of its hiding like that. I know a better method. Just watch.”
Reluctantly, Bajie let go, and the snake disappeared completely into the hole.
Then Bajie lamented:
“I almost had it out. Now that it’s safely inside, how are we going to get it out?”
The Monkey King explained:
“This hole is too small for such a large body. You would never have been able to turn it around. That means there must be another exit nearby. Find it and make sure it can’t escape through it. I’ll attack from this side.”
Bajie ran to the other side of the mountain and soon indeed found another opening.
Wukong struck the serpent with a tremendous blow from his iron staff, causing it to shoot out from the other end, shrieking in pain. He did it so quickly that Bajie was caught off guard, and the snake’s tail slammed straight into his face, knocking him flat onto the ground.
Wukong rushed toward the exit and mockingly exclaimed:
“No wonder they call you the Idiot! Come on! Let’s chase after that beast again!”
After crossing a stream, they saw that the snake had coiled itself on the ground, forming what looked like a small mound of sand.
Monkey in the Belly
As they approached, it suddenly opened its enormous mouth and lunged at Bajie with its fangs. Bajie immediately turned around and fled.
Instead, the Monkey King approached and ended up inside the monster’s stomach.
Seeing how easily it had swallowed him, Bajie began beating his chest while shouting desperately:
“Why did you have to come here and die at the hands of a mere snake?”
“Don’t worry,” the Monkey King repeated from inside the python’s belly.
“If you look closely, you’ll see how this python transforms into a bridge.”
He raised his iron rod and forced the python to bend in such a way that, indeed, it resembled the typical arch formed by a bridge.
Bajie said:
“It does look exactly like a bridge, but I doubt anyone would dare walk across it.”
The Monkey King replied, bringing his iron staff down against the python’s belly:
“In that case, I’ll make it look like a boat.”
With its belly pressed to the ground and its head raised, the python truly resembled a boat.
Bajie commented:
“It does remind me of a boat, but it lacks a mast, and I seriously doubt it could sail by the wind’s power.”
The Monkey King exclaimed:
“Step aside and I’ll prove you completely wrong.”
The Monkey King lifted his staff with all his strength upward, driving it into the monster’s spine. The beast’s back was pierced, and the iron staff went right through, reaching a height of fifteen or twenty meters, looking just like a mast.
Unable to endure the pain any longer, the python tried to return the way it had come, but after more than twenty miles, it collapsed to the ground and died.
Heroes’ Reward
Bajie set his weapon aside, grabbed the snake by the tail, and dragged it backward.
The elder Li and the rest of the villagers of Tuo Luo, upon seeing the Tang Monk at dawn, said worriedly:
“Your two disciples have been fighting all night and have not returned yet. We don’t want to alarm you, but it’s likely they have lost their lives.”
Tang Sanzang exclaimed confidently:
“I don’t believe that. In any case, it wouldn’t hurt for us to go take a look.”
Soon afterward, they saw the Monkey King and Bajie approaching with the enormous dead python. Upon realizing what had happened, every villager, young and old, men and women alike, fell to the ground, faces downward, bowing repeatedly.
To show their gratitude, every family insisted on showering them with gifts and offering feast after feast. Despite their desire to continue their journey as soon as possible, the pilgrims had to stay in that place for nearly a week.
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