Chapter 52: Sun Wukong Raises a Great Fuss in Golden Cave; the Tathagata Quietly Points Out the Monster's Master

Now then: the Great Sage had recovered the Golden-Hooped Rod and battered his way out of the cave mouth. He leaped to the high ridge and stood before the heavenly host in great delight.

Li Jing said, "How did it go?"

Wukong said, "I slipped into the cave in disguise, and that fiend was inside drinking and singing in triumph. I still could not find where he kept his treasure. Then, on the way to the rear, I heard the sound of horses crying and dragons roaring. I knew those were things from the Fire Division. On the east wall of the cave my Golden-Hooped Rod was leaning there, so I took it up and fought my way out."

The gods said, "Now that your treasure has been recovered, when will ours be returned?"

Wukong said, "That is not hard. With this iron rod back in my hands, I will not care what happens. I will still beat him down and take the treasure away from him."

While they were speaking, the sound of gongs and drums rose from the lower slope, and shouting shook the mountain. It was the Rhinoceros King leading his monsters in pursuit of Wukong.

Wukong cried, "Good! Just what I wanted."

He turned to the heavenly host and said, "Please sit tight and watch. Old Sun will go and capture him again."

The Great Sage sprang forward with the rod in both hands and shouted, "You filthy fiend, where are you going? Take this staff!"

The monster raised his spear to block it and cursed, "You thieving monkey, you are truly rude. How dare you rob my goods in broad daylight?"

Wukong shouted back, "You wretched beast, what do you mean, your goods? You used a ring to steal my weapons right in front of me. What right have you to call anything yours? Do not run. Take another blow!"

The monster set his spear against the rod and met him in a furious battle:

The Great Sage used his full force, and the demon would not yield to gentleness.
Both sides fought hard; neither would give up.
The iron rod moved like a dragon's tail; the long spear like a serpent's head.
One rod stroke flashed with such speed it sounded like wind rushing through it;
one spear block rose with such power it moved like water.
The mountain ridges darkened under clouds of color; the lucky vapors spread gloom through the woods.
Birds in the sky stopped beating their wings; wolves and snakes in the wild all tucked in their heads.
The little monsters on the field shouted and howled, while the Great Sage shook himself and gave his all.
One iron rod had no match and could scour the Western land for ten thousand li;
one long spear was indeed a worthy foe and held the Golden Mountain in check.
When those two met, there could be no easy ending;
neither would rest until one side had won.

The fiend and the Great Sage fought for three full hours without a clear victory. By then the daylight was already beginning to fade. The monster leaned on his spear and said, "Wukong, stop there. The sky is darkening and the earth is darkening. This is no time for a fight. Let us both rest and continue tomorrow."

Wukong cursed him. "Filthy beast, do not talk nonsense. Old Sun has only just gotten into his stride. What do I care if it is late? We will settle the question today."

The monster shouted once, threw a false spear thrust, and saved his life. He led his swarm of monsters back into the cave and shut the stone gate tightly.

The Great Sage drew his rod back and returned to the ridge. The heavenly gods all congratulated him, saying, "You are a strong and capable Great Sage Equal to Heaven. Such skill is truly beyond compare."

Wukong laughed. "You flatter me."

Li Jing stepped forward and said, "That is no flattery. You truly are a fine hero. This round was no worse than the old time when Heaven was concealed in a net and earth was covered over in one great sweep."

Wukong said, "Leave old stories aside. That fiend has just fought me and must be tired now. I do not mind the trouble. Please all stay seated. I will go back into the cave and look for the ring. I must steal it and seize the monster, then find the weapons and return them to you before I go back to Heaven."

Nezha said, "It is already evening. Would it not be better to sleep here and go tomorrow?"

Wukong laughed. "Young lord, you do not know how thieves work. Who makes a theft in broad daylight? A true thief goes in at night and comes out at night, unseen and unheard. That is how business is done."

The Fire Virtue Star Lord and the thunder gods said, "Third Prince, say no more. We do not understand this sort of work. The Great Sage is a veteran at it. He should go now, while the monster is tired and the night is dark and unguarded."

Wukong smiled and hid his rod. He leaped down from the high ridge and returned to the cave mouth. Then he shook himself and changed into a cricket.

He truly looked like this:

A hard little mouth, a long beard, and a black body;
bright eyes and split claws.
In clear wind and bright moonlight he cries against the wall;
in the stillness of night his voice sounds like human speech.
He weeps on the dew, bleak and forlorn;
his call rises and falls in praise.
The traveler in his window hates to hear him;
yet he loves to hide beneath the empty steps and bed.

He spread his legs and hopped three or five times to the door, then slipped through the crack and crouched at the base of the wall. Turning his face toward the lamplight inside, he looked carefully.

Inside, the great and small monsters were still eating. They had all wolfed down their food and were now clearing the dishes and making up their nests. In about the space of one watch, Wukong had already made his way to the back chambers.

There he heard the old monster issuing orders: "Wake up the little ones at the gates. Guard every entrance carefully. Sun Wukong may change into something again and sneak in to steal."

There were also some monsters assigned to sit up through the night, beating drums and clappers. The watch was kept with great noise, and that was all the better for Wukong.

He slipped into the room and saw a stone bed. On both sides stood a few mountain goblins and tree ghosts powdered and rouged like women, waiting on the old monster, taking off his shoes and undressing him.

The monster loosened his clothes and left that white-glinting ring on his left arm. It looked like a linked bracelet. He never took it off, only rubbed it twice higher up his arm and tightened it close against the flesh before he lay down.

Wukong saw this and changed himself again, into a yellow-bellied flea. He leaped onto the stone bed and crawled under the blanket, where he bit the monster hard on the arm.

The monster rolled over and cursed, "These lazy servants! The blanket was not shaken, the bed was not dusted, and some damned thing has bitten me."

He rubbed the ring up his arm again and lay down once more.

Wukong climbed onto the ring and bit again. The monster could not sleep. He turned over again and cursed, "What a pest! It is killing me."

Seeing that the watch was strict and the treasure always stayed on his arm, Wukong knew he could not steal it. He jumped down from the bed, changed back into a cricket, and went out of the room.

At the rear he heard once more the sound of dragons roaring and horses neighing. The inner gate had been locked tight, and the Fire Division's dragons and horses were all hanging inside.

Wukong showed his true form and went up to the gate. Using a lock-opening spell, he muttered an incantation and brushed his hand over it. With a clack, both locks dropped at once. He pushed the gate open and went in to look.

Inside was bright as day, lit by the blaze of all the fire weapons. On the east and west walls he saw the prince's Demon-Cleaving Sword, the Demon-Slicing Knife, the Demon-Binding Rope, the Demon-Subduing Pestle, and the fire wheel, together with the Fire Virtue Star Lord's fire bows and fire arrows.

By that firelight he looked all around and then saw on a stone table by the back door a bamboo basket filled with a handful of hairs. The Great Sage was overjoyed. He picked up the hairs, breathed on them two warm breaths, and cried, "Change!"

At once they became thirty or fifty little monkeys. He told them all to take the swords, knives, clubs, ropes, wheels, bows, arrows, spears, carts, gourds, fire crows, fire rats, and fire horses - every one of the weapons and fire-beasts inside the cave. Then he set the fire dragons loose and brought the blaze alive, sending it burning from the inside outward.

Only the crackling can be imagined: booming and popping, thudding and bursting, as though thunder had been torn apart and cannon fired one after another. The little and big monsters were all asleep and half-awake. They scrambled under blankets, covered their heads, and ran crying and shouting, with no road of escape. Most of them were burned to death.

The Handsome Monkey King returned victorious, and it was already about the third watch.

On the high ridge, Li Jing and the others saw the fire flare bright and all rushed forward. There they saw Wukong riding a dragon, calling and driving the little monkeys as he came up the peak, shouting in a loud voice, "Come and take back your weapons! Come and take back your weapons!"

The Fire Virtue Star Lord and Nezha answered at once. Wukong shook his body, and the hairs returned to him. Nezha took back his six weapons, and the Fire Virtue Star Lord had the fire division gather up the fire dragons and the rest. They all laughed and congratulated Wukong, so we need not dwell on that.

Now then: inside Golden Cave, the fire was blazing everywhere, and the Rhinoceros King was so frightened that his soul was almost gone. He hurried up, opened the chamber door, and ran with the ring in both hands. He pushed east and the east fire died; he pushed west and the west fire died. He ran around through the smoke and flames, using the treasure to extinguish them in every direction, until at last all the fire was put out.

He hurried to save his monsters, but most of them had already been burned. The men and women alike numbered not more than a hundred left alive. He looked through the hidden store of weapons, and every weapon was gone. He went to the rear chambers and saw that Bajie, Sha Wujing, and the elder were still bound there, the White Dragon Horse was still in the stall, and the luggage still sat in the room.

The monster grew angry and said, "Some little monster must have been careless and let the fire break out. That is why this disaster has happened."

One of the attendants said, "Great King, this fire had nothing to do with the household. It must have been some thief raiding the camp who let loose the fire division's creatures and stole away the divine weapons."

Only then did the old monster understand. "No one else. It must be that Sun Wukong. No wonder I could not rest at all when I went to sleep. That monkey must have changed in and bitten me twice on the arm.

"He wanted to steal my treasure, but when he saw that I had tightened the ring on my arm and could not be reached, he stole the weapons instead and let loose the fire dragons. That monkey is truly hateful! He may have used tricks, but he does not know my skill. With this treasure on my arm, I can walk into the sea and never drown, or go into a pool of fire and never burn.

"If only I can catch that monkey this time, I will scrape him down to the last hair, and only then will my heart be satisfied."

He raged for a long while. By then cockcrow had already come and daylight was breaking.

On the ridge, Nezha had the six weapons back and said to Wukong, "Great Sage, now that daylight is here, do not be slow. While the monster's spirit has been shaken, let us use the Fire Division and strike once more. Perhaps this time he can be taken."

Wukong laughed. "That makes sense. Let us all put our hearts into it and go make mischief."

Each of them shook himself and showed off his skill, and they went straight to the cave mouth. Wukong shouted, "You filthy monster, come out and fight your grandfather!"

The two stone doors had already been burned to ash by the fire, and several little monsters were inside sweeping up the ashes. When they suddenly saw the holy host arriving together, they were so frightened that they dropped their brooms and ash rakes and ran inside to report, "Sun Wukong has brought many heavenly gods and is cursing at the door again!"

The Rhinoceros King heard that and was shocked. His steel teeth ground together, and his round eyes opened wide.

He took up his long spear, brought out the treasure, and came to the door cursing wildly. "You thieving monkey, you camp-raiding firestarter! How much skill do you have, to look down on me like this?"

Wukong laughed and cursed back, "You filthy monster! If you want to know my skill, come closer and I will tell you."

Then he recited:

Since childhood my hands have been strong, and my name has spread through heaven and earth.
In youth I had wit enough to cultivate the Way; long ago I learned the method that grants immortality.
I set my heart on entering the place of the Square-Inch and sought out the land of the sage.
Having learned the boundless art of transformation, I roam the sky and universe at will.
When I am idle, I tame tigers before the mountains; when I am vexed, I subdue dragons in the sea.
My ancestral home is Flower-Fruit Mountain, where I reigned as king; in Water-Curtain Cave I displayed my might.
Many times I meant to seize the heavenly realm, and many times I ignorantly stole from the heights above.
By imperial favor I was named Great Sage Equal to Heaven, and by edict again the Handsome Monkey King.
Only because a banquet was set for the Peach Feast and I was not invited by any written summons did I grow fierce.
I slipped into the Jade Pool to steal the jade nectar and went secretly to the treasure vault to drink the immortal wine.
Dragon liver and phoenix marrow I once stole and ate; a hundred delicacies and rare savories I sampled by theft.
For a thousand years I enjoyed peach after peach; for ten thousand years I stuffed my belly with elixirs.
I took every strange thing in Heaven and hid every rare treasure in the holy mansions.
The Jade Emperor saw that I had skill, and at once sent heavenly soldiers to draw up a battlefield.
The wicked stars of the nine luminaries were degraded by me; the fierce stars of the five directions were wounded by my hand.
None of the gods under heaven could withstand me; the hundred thousand heavenly troops dared not stand against me.
I forced the Jade Emperor to issue his decree; the Little Sage of the Jiao River led his troops against me.
We matched each other in seventy-two transformations, each showing all his strength.
Guanyin of the South Sea came to help the battle, and her jade vase and willow branch gave aid as well.
Then Laozi sent the Diamond Hoop to seize me and bring me up to the upper realm.
Bound before the Jade Emperor, I was judged by the heavenly officers and found guilty.
They sent the Great Power One to cut off my head; the blade struck my scalp and flashed like fire.
With a thousand schemes they still could not kill me, so they carried me to Lord Lao's palace.
In the Six Ding divine fire furnace they refined me, tempering my whole body until it was hard as steel.
When the forty-nine days were done and the furnace was opened, I burst out all the more fierce.
The gods shut their doors and could do nothing; the saints gathered and called on the Buddha for help.
Truly the Tathagata has limitless power, and his wisdom is broad beyond measure.
When he wagered with me in somersaults, he pinned a mountain on me and I could not force it apart.
Only then did the Jade Emperor hold his Peace-Heaven Banquet, and the Western Land came to be called the Land of Ultimate Bliss.
For five hundred years Old Sun was trapped beneath the mountain and never tasted even a mouthful of tea or rice.
Then Tripitaka the Golden Cicada came down into the world, and the Tang emperor sent him west to worship the Buddha.
He sought the true scriptures to bring them back to the great kingdom, but the Tang ruler died before the mission was done.
Guanyin persuaded me to return to goodness and take up the precepts, and I have not dared to run wild again.
Freed from the hard place under the mountain, I now go west to fetch the scriptures.
You filthy demon, stop showing off your fox and badger tricks. Return my Tripitaka so he may bow before the Law-King.

The monster, hearing this, pointed at him and shouted, "So you are the great thief who steals from Heaven. Do not run. Take my spear."

The Great Sage raised his rod to meet him. Nezha on the side flared up with anger, and the Fire Virtue Star Lord also grew fierce. At once they threw the six divine weapons, together with the rest of the fire division, straight at the monster. Sun Wukong's spirit rose even higher.

On another side the thunder gods hurled their bolts, and Li Jing raised his sword. All sides closed in together.

The monster smiled coldly. From his sleeve he quietly brought out the treasure, tossed it up into the air, and cried, "Catch!"

With one rush, it swept away all six divine weapons, the fire division's gear, the thunder gods' bolts, Li Jing's sword, and Wukong's rod alike. The gods were left empty-handed, and the Great Sage was again without a fist to throw.

The monster won the field and turned back toward the cave, calling, "Little ones, haul stones and rebuild the gate. Move earth and repair the buildings. Put the halls and corridors in order again. When everything is ready, we will slaughter the Tang monk and the other three to thank the earth, and then the whole household can settle down in comfort."

The monsters obeyed and kept on with the work, so we need not dwell on it.

Li Jing led the heavenly host back to the high ridge. The Fire Virtue Star Lord blamed Nezha for being too hasty, the thunder gods blamed Li Jing for being too crafty, and the Water Marquis stood by without a word. Wukong saw that their faces did not match and that they were all out of spirits, but he could do nothing. He put up a forced smile and said, "Do not be troubled. As the old saying goes, victory and defeat are common in battle.

"As for martial skill, the matter is only this. The trouble is that he has that ring. Because of it, he has swept away our weapons. Put your hearts at ease. Let Old Sun go and look into his background once more."

Nezha said, "You reported to the Jade Emperor that you had checked all heaven and earth and found nothing at all. Where else are you going to search now?"

Wukong said, "I have remembered something. The Buddha's law is boundless. I will go now to the Tathagata and ask him to use his wisdom eye to look across the four continents of the world and see from what region that monster comes, where he lives, and what treasure that ring really is. No matter what, I will capture him and give you all a little breathing room before sending you back up to Heaven in joy."

The gods said, "Since you have that thought, do not delay. Hurry, hurry."

Wukong said only, "I am off."

He rode a somersault cloud straight to Lingshan and landed in a blaze of auspicious light. Looking around, he saw it was indeed a good place:

Beautiful peaks stood clear and high, tier on tier of ridges rose clean and bright, until the mountain tops touched the blue sky.
From the Western Heaven one could see this great stronghold, its shape pressing down on Middle Kingdom.
Vital breath moved through heaven and earth, far and wide; its majestic force flew through the halls like petals.
Bells and chimes sounded now and then, and the chanting of sutras came clear and plain.
Beneath green pines the monks and nuns recited; among the cypresses the arhats moved to and fro.
White cranes came affectionately to the Vulture Peak, and blue phoenixes waited in the quiet pavilions.
Black monkeys stood in pairs with immortal fruit; long-lived deer came in couples offering purple blossoms.
Hidden birds cried over and over as though they spoke; strange flowers shone in colors no one could name.
Ridges coiled again and again in circles; old roads curved and looped everywhere.
Truly it was a land of pure mystery and bright spiritual grace, the solemn style of the Great Awakening.

Wukong was still studying the mountain view when he heard a voice call, "Sun Wukong, where are you coming from, and where are you going?"

He turned quickly and saw that it was a bhikshuni. The Great Sage bowed and said, "I have an urgent matter and seek an audience with the Tathagata."

The bhikshuni said, "You troublesome monkey. If you want to see the Tathagata, why are you standing here admiring the mountains?"

Wukong said, "I have only just arrived at this holy place, so I dared to be a little bold."

The bhikshuni said, "Come with me."

He followed her to the gate of Thunderclap Monastery, where the eight great Vajra guardians stood fierce and strong, blocking the way on both sides.

The bhikshuni said, "Wukong, wait here a moment while I go in and report for you."

Wukong had no choice but to remain outside the gate.

The bhikshuni went before the Buddha, joined her palms, and said, "Sun Wukong has business and seeks an audience with the Tathagata."

The Tathagata sent down the order to admit him, and only then did the Vajra guardians step aside.

Wukong bowed his head and paid homage. The Tathagata asked, "Wukong, I had heard that Guanyin had freed you, that you had returned to the Buddhist path, and that you were escorting Tripitaka here to seek the scriptures. Why have you come here alone? What is the matter?"

Wukong knelt and said, "I report to the Buddha. Your disciple has kept the precepts and traveled west with the Tang master. We came to Golden Mountain and Golden Cave and met a demon king named the Rhinoceros King. He has vast powers and seized Master and my junior brothers, locking them in the cave. I went to ask him for their release, but he meant no good. We fought, and he used a white-glinting ring to snatch my iron rod. I feared he was an evil star from Heaven and hurried upward to inspect, but could find no trace.

"The Jade Emperor sent Li Jing and his son to help, but the fiend robbed the prince of his six weapons. Then I asked the Fire Virtue Star Lord to burn him, but he snatched away the fire weapons too.

"Then I asked the Water Virtue Star Lord to flood him, but not a drop could drown him. I spent much spirit and strength stealing out my iron rod and the other weapons, then went back to challenge him again, and he once more swept them all away with that ring. There was no way to subdue him.

"So I have come specially before the Buddha, begging your mercy and asking you to look and see what creature he truly is. Then I may go seize his kin and neighbors, capture this fiend, save my master, and bow before the proper fruition.

"I beg the Buddha's compassion."

The Tathagata heard him and looked off with his wisdom eye. He already knew the answer. He said to Wukong, "I know what that monster is, but I cannot tell you. You monkey have a loose mouth. If I tell you, you will say it was I who told you, and then he will not fight you. He will surely make a great uproar here on Lingshan and bring trouble upon me instead.

"I will help you capture him another way."

Wukong bowed again. "What help will the Tathagata give me?"

The Tathagata ordered the eighteen arhats to open the treasure vault and take out eighteen grains of gold sand to aid Wukong.

Wukong said, "What good is gold sand?"

The Tathagata said, "Go outside the cave and challenge the monster. Draw him out. Then let the arhats scatter the sand. It will sink in and trap him so that he cannot move his body or pull up his feet. Then you may beat and seize him at will."

Wukong laughed. "Wonderful, wonderful. I will go at once."

The arhats dared not delay and brought the gold sand out at once. Wukong again thanked the Tathagata. As he went along he counted only sixteen arhats and shouted, "What sort of place is this? You are shorting people."

The arhats said, "Shorting people?"

Wukong said, "You were supposed to send eighteen arhats. Why are there only sixteen?"

Before he could finish speaking, the two arhats who subdue the dragon and the tiger came out from within and said, "Wukong, why are you making such trouble? We two were delayed because we were listening to the Buddha's order in back."

Wukong said, "You are far too slow. If you had only been a little later, you would not have come out at all."

The arhats all laughed and rode away on auspicious clouds.

Before long they had reached the Golden Mountain borderland. Li Jing saw them and came forward with his host to welcome them, telling all that had happened.

The arhats said, "Enough talk. Hurry and call him out."

The Great Sage clenched his fists, went to the cave mouth, and shouted, "You fat filthy monster! Come out now and meet your grandfather, Sun!"

The little monster ran in again to report. The demon king said, "That monkey has surely invited someone else. I wonder who it is this time."

The little monster said, "No general at all. Only him alone."

The demon king said, "The rod has already been taken from him. Why has one lone monkey come again? Is he planning to fight with his fists?"

He brought out the treasure, took up his spear, and came out the gate, shouting, "You thieving monkey, you have not gained the advantage any time you have come. Why do you keep returning to shout and clamor?"

Wukong said, "You filthy monster, you know no sense of right or wrong. If you want your grandfather not to come again, then first submit, apologize, and send out my master and junior brothers, and I will spare you."

The monster said, "Your three monks have already been washed clean, and before long they will be cut up and killed. Why do you still not understand your place? Go on, get out."

When Wukong heard the word "killed," rage flared across his cheeks and he could not hold his anger. He dropped his stance, swung his fists, and moved in a crooked step, using the hanging-face strike against the monster. The monster stretched out his spear and met him head-on. Wukong jumped left and right, teasing him farther and farther from the cave mouth toward the south. Then he called to the arhats to scatter the gold sand on the monster all at once.

What sand it was:

At first it spread like mist and smoke, drifting far and wide over the horizon.
White and bright, it blinded the eyes wherever it went; dim and murky, it made all the road-finding wrong.
The woodcutting woodsman lost his companion; the herb-gathering boy could not find his home.
Fine and soft as wheat flour, then rough and shifting like sesame seed.
The world went blurry, the mountain tops grew dark, and the open sky was hidden from the sun.
It was not like dusty streets blown behind a racing horse, and no words can describe how light and gentle it was, or how it lay upon the jeweled carriage.
This sand was an emotionless thing, yet it could cover the earth and veil the sky to catch the monster.
Only because the demon had invaded the right path did the arhats use the law to show their strength.
Once those grains were in hand, they flashed like pearls, and when the time came they scratched the eyes till they burned.

The monster saw the flying sand blur his sight and lowered his head. At once he sank three feet into the ground.

He hurriedly sprang up, only to sink two feet deeper in a moment.

The fiend panicked, pulled his feet free, and quickly threw up the ring, crying, "Catch!"

With a rush, he swept up all eighteen grains of gold sand and carried them back into the cave.

The arhats all hung in the clouds with empty hands.

Wukong came forward and asked, "Why did you not scatter the sand?"

The arhats said, "There was a crash, and the gold sand was gone."

Wukong laughed. "That ring has swept it away again."

Li Jing and the others said, "He is this hard to subdue? How are we to catch him? When can we return to Heaven, and with what face can we meet the Emperor?"

The arhats who subdue the dragon and the tiger said to Wukong, "Wukong, do you know why we were delayed in coming out?"

Wukong said, "Old Sun only wondered why you did not come earlier. How could I know what you were about?"

The arhats said, "The Tathagata told us this: 'The monster has great powers. If the gold sand is lost, tell Sun Wukong to go to Lord Lao in Tushita Palace beyond the Heaven of Parting Sorrow and search for the monster's source. In that way he may yet seize him in one strike.'"

When Wukong heard this, he cried out, "How hateful! The Tathagata has tricked Old Sun. He should have told me that at once. Instead he made you come all this way for nothing."

Li Jing said, "Since the Tathagata has given this clear hint, Great Sage, you should set out at once."

The Great Sage said only, "I go."

He rode a somersault cloud straight through the Southern Heavenly Gate. The four marshals met him and asked, "How is the monster?"

Wukong answered as he flew, "Not yet. But now there is a place to search for his root."

The four generals dared not stop him and let him pass through the gate. He did not go to Lingxiao Hall or to the Hall of the Dipper and Ox. Instead he went straight beyond the thirty-third heaven to the Heaven of Parting Sorrow and the Tushita Palace. There he saw two immortal boys standing guard. He gave no name and went on at once.

The boys hurried to stop him. "Who are you? Where are you going?"

Wukong said, "I am the Great Sage Equal to Heaven and I have come to seek Lord Lao."

The boys said, "Why are you so rude? Wait here and let us report."

Wukong would not listen. He shouted and walked in. Just then Lord Lao himself came out from within and nearly collided with him.

Wukong bowed and saluted him. "Old lord, I have not seen you for a long time."

Laozi laughed. "You monkey, you are not off seeking scriptures. What brings you to my place?"

Wukong said, "Seeking scriptures, seeking scriptures. I have not been still day or night. There is a little obstacle, so I have come to bother you."

Laozi said, "The road west is blocked. What is that to do with me?"

Wukong said, "The West, the West - do not delay me. I have found the trail, and I am here to tangle with you."

Laozi said, "This is my highest immortal palace. What trail could there be to look for?"

Wukong went inside, eyes fixed, looking east and west without blinking. After he had passed several corridors, he saw a boy drowsing beside the cattle shed, and the blue ox was not in the stall.

Wukong cried, "Old lord, the ox is gone! The ox is gone!"

Laozi was shocked. "When did that beast leave?"

While he was still shouting, the boy woke up and knelt in front of him. "Grandfather, I fell asleep. I do not know when it went."

Laozi cursed him. "Why were you sleeping?"

The boy knocked his head to the floor. "I found a pill in the elixir room and ate it. I fell asleep right here."

Laozi said, "That must have been one of the seven-turn fire pills I refined the other day, the one missing from the tray. That pill is enough to make one sleep seven days. Since you slept, no one was watching the beast, and it took the chance to descend to the world below. By now seven days have passed."

He at once asked whether anything had been stolen.

Wukong said, "Nothing else. Only a ring, and a very fierce one at that."

Laozi hurried to inspect, and everything was there except the Diamond Hoop.

Laozi cried out, "That beast stole my Diamond Hoop!"

Wukong said, "So that is the treasure. It was that thing that hit Old Sun the other day. Now it is running wild below, and I do not know how many of our things it has swept away."

Laozi said, "Where is that beast now?"

Wukong said, "It lives at Golden Mountain and Golden Cave. It has seized my Tang monk and my Golden-Hooped Rod. When we called on the heavenly troops, it took the prince's six weapons. When we asked the Fire Virtue Star Lord for help, it took his fire gear. The Water Marquis could not drown it, but it did not seize any of his things. Then we asked the Tathagata to send the arhats with gold sand, and it swept that away too.

"You old lord have let loose this monster, and it has stolen and harmed people. What punishment should you receive?"

Laozi said, "My Diamond Hoop is the tool I used when I passed through Hangu Pass and converted the barbarians. It is a treasure I refined from childhood. Whatever weapons, fire, or water may come near it, none can touch it. If that wretch had stolen my Plantain Fan too, even I could not have done anything to him."

The Great Sage was overjoyed and followed Lord Lao.

Laozi took up the Plantain Fan, rode a cloud of auspicious light, and went out of the immortal palace with Wukong. Outside the Southern Heavenly Gate they lowered their cloud and went straight to Golden Mountain.

There they met the eighteen arhats, the thunder gods, the Water Marquis, the Fire Virtue Star Lord, and Li Jing and his son, and Lord Lao heard all that had happened.

Laozi said, "Sun Wukong, go out and lure him again. I will take him."

Wukong leaped down from the ridge and shouted again, "You filthy beast! Come out and die at once!"

The little monster again ran to report. The old fiend said, "That monkey has surely invited someone else. Who is it now?"

The little monster said, "No one else. Only him."

The old fiend said, "What, only him? Then why is he so bold? Has he come to die?"

He took up the treasure and spear and came out the gate.

Wukong cursed, "You filthy monster, this time you are fixed to die! Do not run. Take my palm."

He sprang forward, jumped into the monster's face, slapped him hard, and turned to run. The monster swung his spear and chased him.

From the high ridge a voice called out, "That ox, why do you not go home? What are you waiting for?"

The monster looked up and saw it was Lord Lao. He was so frightened that his heart and gall slipped into his throat. "This thieving monkey really is an earth spirit. How did he find my master?"

Laozi recited a charm and fanned once with the Plantain Fan. The monster threw up the ring, but Laozi caught it in one hand. He fanned again, and the monster's strength left his sinews and his limbs went limp. His true form appeared: he was only a blue ox.

Laozi blew immortal breath on the Diamond Hoop, pierced the ox's nostrils with it, took off his belted robe sash, tied it to the hoop, and led the beast by the nose.

To this day there is still a ring left for leading an ox by the nose, and it is also called a bovine nose-ring for that reason.

Laozi took leave of the gods, mounted the blue ox's back, rode his colored cloud, and returned straight to Tushita Palace. With the fiend bound, he rose again to the Heaven of Parting Sorrow.

Only then did Sun the Great Sage go with Li Jing and the others to break into the cave. They killed all hundred or so of the little monsters, each of them took back his own weapons, and they thanked Li Jing and his son as they returned to Heaven. The thunder gods went back to their court, the Fire Virtue Star Lord returned to his palace, the Water Marquis returned to the river, and the arhats went west.

Only then did they release Tripitaka, Bajie, and Sha Wujing, and Wukong took up the iron rod.

The three of them thanked Wukong again and again. They harnessed the horse, gathered up the baggage, left the cave, and set out along the main road.

Before long, as they were walking, someone called from the roadside, "Holy Monk Tang, come eat your vegetarian meal."

The elder was startled.

But who was calling? That is another matter; listen to the next chapter for the full account.