Chapter 67: Tuoluo Village Is Saved; the Chan Heart Settles and the Dao Heart Clears

A verse says:

When all wholesome causes are gathered, fame may spread through the four continents.
Wisdom's bright light reaches the far shore;
wind gathers and clouds rise at the edge of heaven.
The buddhas all repay one another,
and for ten thousand autumns they abide on the jade terrace.
Break the butterfly dream of the human world.
Clear away the dust and stink, and let no sorrow cling.

Now to return to Tripitaka and his three disciples. They had escaped from Little Western Heaven and set out again in high spirits. They had traveled for a month when spring was already deep and the flowers were in bloom. By then they had passed many gardens and groves grown dark with green, and each stormy shower only sent the evening down sooner.

Tripitaka drew in his horse and said, "Disciples, night is falling. Which road should we take to find lodging?"

Wukong laughed. "Master, do not worry. If there is no place to stay, the three of us all have some skills. Let Bajie cut grass, let Brother Sha split pine, and Old Sun knows carpentry. We can put up a thatched hut by the roadside and live there for a year if we must. Why be anxious?"

Bajie said, "Brother, that is not a place for lodging. There are tigers, panthers, wolves, and worms all over the mountains. It is hard enough to travel by day. Who would dare spend the night there?"

Wukong said, "You fool, you have grown even less capable. I am not bragging: with this staff in my hand, even if the sky fell down, I could hold it up."

While they were speaking, they saw a manor not far away.

Wukong said, "Good. We have a place to stay."

Tripitaka asked, "Where?"

Wukong pointed. "Is that not a household in the trees? Let us go ask for a night's lodging and start out again at dawn."

Tripitaka was delighted, urged his horse forward, and dismounted at the gate. The wooden doors were tightly shut. He knocked and called, "Open the gate. Open the gate."

Inside, an old man came out, leaning on a staff of brambles and wearing straw sandals, a black headcloth, and plain clothes. He opened the door and asked, "Who is making all that noise?"

Tripitaka joined his palms and bowed. "Old sir, I am a monk from the East, sent by imperial command to the Western Heaven to seek the scriptures. It is already evening, so I have come to your honorable house to ask shelter for one night. I beg your kindness."

The old man said, "Reverend monk, if you mean to go west, that road cannot be taken. This place is called Little Western Heaven, and the Great Western Heaven is far beyond it.

Never mind the hardships of the journey ahead. Even here the road is difficult."

Tripitaka asked, "Why is it difficult?"

The old man pointed and said, "Thirty li west of our village there is a bad place called the Sparse-Persimmon Ditch, and the mountain there is named Seven-Absolute Mountain. The mountain road runs for eight hundred li, and the whole mountain is covered with persimmons. As the old saying goes, the persimmon tree has seven virtues: it adds years to life, gives deep shade, attracts no bird nests, breeds no insects, its frost leaves are pleasing to the eye, its fruit is fine, and its branches and leaves grow thick. That is why it is called Seven-Absolute Mountain.

Our land is broad and our people are few, so no one has ever crossed that deep mountain road. Every year, when the ripe persimmons rot and fall, they fill the rocky ditch road. Then rain, dew, snow, and frost turn them into one long sheet of filth. People here call it the 'Sparse-Persimmon Ditch.' When the west wind blows, the stink rises so fiercely that even a privy-pit would not smell as bad. But now it is deep spring, and the southeast wind is blowing hard, so you do not notice it yet."

Tripitaka only frowned in silence.

Wukong could not hold back. He shouted, "You old fellow, you make no sense at all. We have come from far away to ask for lodging, and you only say all this stuff to scare us. If your house is really too cramped for us to sleep in, we can squat under this tree and get through the night. Why talk so much?"

The old man saw how ugly he looked and shut up too, though he forced himself to be bold. He thrust out his staff and cried, "You rough-faced, forehead-thick, flat-nosed, sunken-jawed, hairy-eyed, ill-looking wretch! You do not know your place. How dare you barge in on an old man like this?"

Wukong smiled. "Old sir, your eyes are clouded. You do not know this sickly-looking fellow. The old physiognomers say, 'A strange face may hide a jade in the stone.' If you judge by looks and speech, you will get it badly wrong. I may be ugly, but I do have some skill."

The old man asked, "Where are you from? What is your surname? What skill do you have?"

Wukong laughed and recited:

I have long lived in Dongsheng Divine Continent,
and from Flower-Fruit Mountain I practiced from youth.
I bowed to the Patriarch of Mount Lingtai,
and learned a full and perfect art of arms.
I can churn the sea and subdue dragons,
and I know how to shoulder mountains and chase down the sun.
I am first at binding monsters and seizing demons,
I can shift stars and change the dipper, to the terror of ghosts and gods.
I have stolen heaven and overturned the earth, and my fame runs wide.
I am the marvelous Stone Monkey, beyond all counting, beyond all forms.

The old man heard this and at once changed from anger to delight. Bowing low, he said, "Please, please come into my humble house and settle in."

So the four pilgrims led the horse and carried the baggage inside. Along the path stood thorny brambles on both sides.

The second gate was a wall made of brick and stone and covered over with thorns. Only inside it were three tiled rooms.

The old man drew up chairs, sat them down, served tea, and then called for dinner.

Before long, tables were brought over and set with gluten, tofu, taro shoots, radish, spicy mustard greens, turnips, fragrant rice, and a sour-simmered mulberry-leaf soup. The pilgrims ate until they were full.

After the meal, Bajie pulled Wukong aside and whispered, "Senior Brother, this old man would not take us in at first. Why is he serving such a fine feast now?"

Wukong said, "How much can this amount to? By tomorrow he will still have to send us away with ten fruits and ten vegetables."

Bajie said, "Do not be embarrassed. You just talked big and coaxed a meal out of him. Tomorrow if we have to run, what then?"

Wukong said, "Do not rush. I have my own way."

Not long after, it grew dark, and the old man called for lamps to be lit.

Wukong bowed and asked, "Old sir, what is your honored surname?"

The old man said, "My surname is Li."

Wukong asked, "Then this must be Li Village?"

The old man said, "No, this place is called Tuoluo Village. There are more than five hundred households here. There are many other surnames, but mine is the only Li family."

Wukong asked, "Li Benefactor, what good will in your house has led you to feast us so handsomely?"

The old man stood up and said, "Just now I heard you say that you can catch monsters. We have a monster here, and if you would catch it for us, we would thank you richly."

Wukong gave a salute toward the rafters. "You have honored me with your trust."

Bajie said, "Look at him. He hears there is a monster to catch, and he is so eager he would not be this polite even to his own grandfather. He salutes before anything is settled."

Wukong said, "Brother, you do not understand. My salute is like putting down earnest money. He will not go ask anyone else now."

Tripitaka said, "You monkey, you always want to take things into your own hands. If the demon has great powers and you cannot catch him, would that not make me a monk who tells lies?"

Wukong smiled. "Master, do not blame me. Let me ask a little more first."

The old man said, "What more do you need to ask?"

Wukong said, "Your place is level and peaceful, with so many households. It is not some remote backwater. What kind of demon would dare come to such a fine and well-ordered place?"

The old man said, "To tell the truth, our village used to be peaceful enough. But three years ago, in the sixth month, a great wind suddenly arose. People were busy everywhere. Those threshing grain were on the threshing ground, and those transplanting rice were in the fields. All were thrown into confusion and thought the sky had changed.

Who would have guessed that after the wind passed, a demon would come along and eat the cattle and horses pastured by the households, eat the pigs and sheep, swallow chickens and geese whole, and even seize men and women alike and gulp them down alive? Since then, for these two years, it has kept coming back to harm us. Reverend monk, if you truly have skill, catch the monster and sweep the evil out of this land, and we will surely thank you well. We would never slight you."

Wukong said, "That is hard to catch."

Bajie said, "Yes, truly hard. We are wandering monks. We only wanted to stay one night and move on tomorrow. What monster are we supposed to catch?"

The old man said, "So you are monks who only came to eat for free. At first you bragged and wagged your tongues, saying you could change stars and shift the dipper and bind demons and subdue monsters. But when the real matter came up, you backed away and said it was hard to catch."

Wukong said, "Old sir, the monster is easy enough to catch. It is only that the households here are not united, so it is difficult."

The old man asked, "How are the people not united?"

Wukong said, "This monster has been troubling you for three years. Who knows how many living creatures it has harmed? I think each household should contribute one tael of silver. With five hundred households, that would make five hundred taels. No matter where we had to go, we could find a magistrate to catch the monster. Why should you have endured three years of torment?"

The old man said, "If we are talking about spending money, that is enough to make anyone ashamed. Even one household spends three or five taels. Two years ago, we once found a monk in the mountains south of here and invited him to catch the monster, but he did not prevail."

Wukong asked, "How did that monk try to catch it?"

The old man said:

That monk wore his robe and cassock.
First he recited the Peacock Sutra, then the Lotus Sutra.
He burned incense in the brazier and rang his bell in hand.
Just as he was chanting, he disturbed the demon.
Wind rose and clouds gathered, and he went straight to the manor.
Monk and monster fought, and it was worth admiring:
one threw a punch, one seized and clawed.
The monk fought back, though he had no hair.
Before long the demon won and went back to the clouds.
It turned out the monk had been beaten badly dry.
We went up to look, and his bald head looked like a smashed watermelon.

Wukong laughed. "So he lost?"

The old man said, "He only managed to save his life. We were the ones who lost. We had to buy his coffin and bury him, and then give some silver to his disciple. But that disciple has not let it rest, and to this day he still wants to bring a case. The matter is not yet settled."

Wukong asked, "Did you invite anyone else to catch it afterward?"

The old man said, "The year before last we invited a Daoist."

Wukong asked, "How did the Daoist try?"

The old man said:

That Daoist wore a golden crown and ritual robes.
He rang the command tokens and used talismans and charm-water.
He summoned gods and ordered generals, and dragged the demon to court.
Wild wind roared and black mist swirled thick.
The Daoist and the monster fought one against the other.
By dusk the demon had returned to the clouds.
Heaven and earth were clear again, and we all came out together.
We went to look for the Daoist and found him drowned in the brook.
We hauled him up and looked closely, and he was just a drenched chicken.

Wukong laughed. "So that one also lost?"

The old man said, "He too only saved his life. We still spent enough money to make us miserable."

Wukong said, "No matter, no matter. Let me catch him for you."

The old man said, "If you truly have the skill to catch him, I will ask a few of our village elders to draw up a written agreement for you. If you win, you may have whatever reward you ask for, down to the last cent. If you fail, do not blame us or try to cheat us. We will all leave the matter to Heaven."

Wukong laughed. "This old man has been cheated enough to become afraid of cheats. We are not that sort of people. Quickly invite the elders."

The old man was overjoyed and immediately sent servants to invite the neighbors, cousins, in-laws, and friends. Eight or nine old men all came to meet them. They greeted Tripitaka and, once the matter of catching the monster was explained, were all delighted.

The elders asked, "Which disciple will go to catch it?"

Wukong joined his hands. "This little monk will go."

The elders all said in alarm, "That will not do, that will not do. The monster has great powers and a huge body. Reverend monk, you are so small and thin that you would not even fill the gap between its teeth."

Wukong laughed. "Old sir, you do not know how to judge a person. I may be small, but I am sturdy. As the saying goes, 'I have eaten the sharpening water, but the spirit is still within.'"

The elders could only yield and ask, "Reverend monk, if you catch the monster, how much reward do you want?"

Wukong said, "Why speak of reward? As the old saying goes, 'Gold dazzles the eye, silver looks too blank, and copper cash smells fishy.' We monks cultivate merit. We do not want money."

The elders said, "If that is so, you must truly be high monks under vows. If you want no money, then there is no reason to trouble you for nothing. Our households live off fishponds. If you really subdue the fiend and clean up the place, each household will give you two mu of good field, a thousand mu in all, all in one place, so that you and your disciples can build a monastery and sit in meditation. That would be better than wandering around the world."

Wukong laughed again. "That would be even worse. If you give us land, then we must keep horses, pay duties, deliver grain, and cut straw. We would not be able to sleep at dusk or rise at the fifth watch. That would be downright torment."

The elders said, "If you want none of that, then what can we give you?"

Wukong said, "For a monk like me, a bowl of tea and a bowl of rice is enough."

The elders were delighted. "That is easy enough."

Then they asked, "But how will you catch him?"

Wukong said, "As soon as he comes, I will take him."

The elders said, "The monster is huge. He props up the sky above and the earth below. He comes with wind and goes with mist. How will you get near him?"

Wukong laughed. "If we are talking about demons who ride wind and cloud, I will treat them like children. If he is merely big-bodied, I have means to deal with him."

While they were still talking, they suddenly heard the sound of wind rushing.

The eight or nine old men trembled and said, "That monk talks so plainly that as soon as he mentions the demon, here it comes."

Old Li opened the side gate and called his relatives, along with Tripitaka, "Come inside. Come inside. The monster is here."

Bajie was frightened and wanted to hide inside too. Sha Wujing also wanted to go in.

Wukong seized both of them with his hands. "You two are terribly unreasonable. Why do monks not know how to keep their place? Stand still. Do not run. Come with me into the courtyard and see what kind of monster it is."

Bajie said, "Brother, those people have all been through this before. When the wind starts, they know the monster is coming. They all hide. We do not owe that monster anything, and we do not know him. We are not old friends. Why should we go look?"

Wukong had too much strength to be argued with and would not let go. He dragged them into the courtyard.

The wind grew fiercer and fiercer. It was a terrible wind:

It uprooted trees and toppled forests, to the dread of wolves and tigers.
It shook the three peaks of Mount Hua and lifted the four continents of heaven and earth.
The villagers shut their doors, and all the women and children hid away.
Dark clouds blotted out the stars and river, and lamps lost their light across the ground.
Poor Bajie shook so hard he flung himself flat, pressed his snout into the earth, and buried his mouth in the dirt as though it had been nailed down.
Sha Wujing covered his face, unable to keep his eyes open.

Wukong heard the wind and recognized the demon. In a blink the wind passed, and in the half-dark sky there were two faint lights.

He lowered his head and called, "Brothers, the wind is gone. Get up and look."

Bajie pulled his snout out, shook off the dust, looked up, and saw those two lights. He burst out laughing. "Fine, fine! So this is a monster with manners. We ought to be friends with him."

Sha Wujing said, "It is a dark night. We have not even met him face to face. How can you tell whether he is good or bad?"

Bajie said, "As the old saying goes, 'When you travel by night, you need a candle. If there is no candle, you stop.'"

Sha Wujing said, "You have mistaken it. Those are not two lanterns. They are the monster's eyes."

Bajie shrank three inches. "Heaven help us! If his eyes are that big, who knows how big his mouth must be?"

Wukong said, "Brother, do not fear. You two protect Master while Old Sun goes up and asks what sort of monster this is."

Bajie said, "Brother, do not give us away."

The fine Monkey King leaped into the air with a whistle, stood in the sky, held his iron staff, and shouted, "Hold there. I am here."

The monster saw him, steadied its body, and began waving a long spear in wild arcs.

Wukong set his staff and asked, "What demon are you? What spirit do you claim to be?"

The monster gave no answer, only kept waving the spear.

Wukong asked again, but there was still no answer, only the spear.

Wukong laughed to himself. "How strange. Deaf and mute, are you? Do not run. Taste my staff."

The monster did not care. It only swung the spear to block him. Up and down in the dark sky they fought, back and forth, and by the time they reached the third watch there was still no winner.

Bajie and Sha Wujing could see clearly in Old Li's courtyard. The monster did nothing but parry and defend; it made no attempt to strike. Wukong's staff never left the monster's head.

Bajie laughed. "Brother Sha, you stay here and keep watch. I am going to help fight so that monkey does not take all the credit and later claim the first bowl of wine."

The fool leaped up into the clouds and went to strike. The monster raised another spear to meet him. The two spears flashed like flying snakes and lightning.

Bajie praised it. "This monster has fine spear work! It is not a mountain spear, but a wrapped-silk spear. And not a Ma family spear either. It must be a soft-hilt spear."

Wukong said, "Fool, stop talking nonsense. What soft-hilt spear?"

Bajie said, "Look. He is using the spear tip to block us, and I cannot see the shaft. I do not know where he has hidden it."

Wukong said, "Maybe it really is a soft-hilt spear. But this monster still cannot speak, so he has probably not yet entered the human way. His yin breath is still heavy. Once dawn comes and yang breath rises, he will surely leave. When he does, we must pursue him and not let him escape."

Bajie said, "Right, right."

They fought for a long while more, and at last dawn began to show in the east.

The monster did not dare stay and fight. It turned and fled. Wukong and Bajie chased after it and suddenly smelled a foul stench. That was the filth of Seven-Absolute Mountain's Sparse-Persimmon Ditch.

Bajie said, "What household is emptying a privy? Ugh! The stink is awful."

Wukong pinched his nose and shouted, "Quickly, chase the monster. Quickly, chase the monster."

The monster sprang across the mountain, revealed its true form, and turned into a huge red-scaled python.

Look at it:

Its eyes shot out like morning stars, and its nose blew dawn mist.
Its teeth were packed like steel swords, and its claws curved like gold hooks.
A fleshy horn rose from its head, as if thousands of pieces of agate had been clustered together.
Its body wore layer on layer of red scales, as though myriads of pieces of vermilion had been set into armor.
Coiled on the ground, it looked like a brocaded quilt; flying through the air, it might have been a rainbow.
When it rested, its stink rose to heaven; when it moved, red clouds wrapped its body.
It was so large that no one could see left or right around it, and so long that it spanned a mountain from south to north.

Bajie said, "So that is what the long snake looks like. If it wants to eat people, it could gulp down five hundred in one meal and still not be full."

Wukong said, "The soft-hilt spear was just its pair of feelers. We have chased it until it has gone soft. Strike it from behind."

Bajie leaped up and jabbed with his rake. The monster plunged headfirst into a hole, leaving seven or eight chi of tail outside.

Bajie dropped the rake and grabbed the tail. "Got it! Got it! Pull it out!"

He pulled with all his strength, but it would not budge an inch.

Wukong laughed. "Fool, let it go in. I have a way. Do not pull it backward like that."

Bajie did let go, and the monster withdrew into the hole.

Bajie complained, "If I had not let go just now, half its body would have been ours. But now it has shrunk back inside. How are we supposed to get it out? This is what comes of having no snake!"

Wukong said, "That brute is huge-bodied and the burrow is narrow. It cannot possibly turn around. It must have gone in straight and must have a back exit. Go quickly and block the back door. I will strike at the front."

Bajie ran around the mountain in a flash and found another opening. He planted himself there.

Before he had even stood firm, Wukong shoved his staff in from the front entrance. The monster, hurt, shot straight out the back. Bajie was not ready and got whipped over by its tail. He could not get up and lay on the ground groaning in pain.

Wukong saw nothing left in the hole, snatched up his staff, and ran around to call him onward. Bajie heard the shout, grew ashamed, gritted his teeth, and got up, raking wildly after it.

Wukong saw this and laughed. "The monster is gone. What are you still striking?"

Bajie said, "Old Pig is here beating the grass to startle the snake."

Wukong said, "Alive fool, hurry after it."

The two of them chased across the ravine and saw the monster coiled in a heap. It raised its head, opened its huge mouth, and meant to swallow Bajie.

Bajie was so frightened he backed away.

Then Wukong rushed forward instead and was swallowed whole.

Bajie beat his chest and stamped his feet, shouting, "Brother, you have been done in!"

Inside the demon's belly, Wukong braced his iron staff and said, "Bajie, do not worry. I will make it into a bridge for you to see."

The monster bent its back and, from the outside, looked like an arched rainbow road.

Bajie said, "It looks like a bridge, but no one would dare walk it."

Wukong said, "I will make it into a boat for you to see."

Inside, he propped the staff against its belly.

The monster flattened itself against the ground and lifted its head, looking like a great river boat.

Bajie said, "It looks like a boat, but it has no mast or sail. It cannot catch the wind."

Wukong said, "Move aside and I will give it some wind."

Inside, he thrust with all his strength and drove the staff up through the back. It came out five or seven zhang, like a mast rising.

The thing, desperate from the pain, shot forward with such force it was faster than any wind, but after running back onto the old road for twenty-odd li, it finally collapsed in the dust and could no longer move. It was dead.

Bajie caught up behind it and began hammering it with his rake again and again.

Wukong drilled a great hole through the creature and came out, saying, "Fool, it is dead already. Why do you keep beating it?"

Bajie said, "Brother, you do not know. Old Pig has always loved to beat dead snakes."

So he put away his weapon, grabbed the tail, and dragged the corpse back upside down.

Now to return to Tuoluo Village. Old Li and the others said to Tripitaka, "Your two disciples have not come back all night. They must have lost their lives."

Tripitaka said, "That cannot be so. Let us go out and look."

Before long, they saw Wukong and Bajie dragging a giant python and shouting as they came.

Only then did everyone rejoice. All the old and young, men and women in the village, came to kneel and bow.

They said, "Holy master, that was indeed the monster that harmed people here. Now that your divine art has cut down the demon and cleared away the evil, we can all live in peace."

Everyone was so grateful that they invited them here and there and each household tried to repay them. The pilgrims stayed five or seven days before they could refuse their hosts and take their leave.

Each family, seeing that they would accept neither money nor goods, prepared dried provisions and fruit, and brought out mules, horses, red silks, and colored flags to see them off.

From the five hundred households, seven or eight hundred people came to escort them.

They went happily along until they reached the mouth of Sparse-Persimmon Ditch. Tripitaka smelled the foul stench and saw that the road was blocked. "Wukong, how can we possibly get through this?"

Wukong pinched his nose. "This is difficult indeed."

Tripitaka saw him say it was difficult, and tears began to fall from his eyes.

Old Li and the others came forward and said, "Please do not worry, holy master. We have already agreed on the plan. Your excellent disciple has subdued the monster and removed a household calamity for us. We will all put our hearts into it and open a proper road to send you across."

Wukong laughed. "Old sir, you are not speaking quite right. You first said this mountain road ran for eight hundred li. You are not the divine soldiers of Yu the Great, so how could you cut through a mountain and open a new road? If my master is to cross, we still have to do the heavy work ourselves. You cannot manage it."

Tripitaka dismounted and asked, "Wukong, how are we to do the heavy work?"

Wukong laughed. "Right now we need to cross the mountain, and that is hard. If we were to open a new road, that would be hard too. We still have to go through the old ditch. The only trouble is that no one may be there to feed us."

Old Li said, "Reverend monk, what are you talking about? However long you stay, we can feed you. Why say no one will feed you?"

Wukong said, "In that case, go fetch two dan of rice and make us some dry rice, steamed buns, and flat buns. When that long-mouthed monk has eaten his fill and turned into a great pig, he can root open the old road. My master can ride the horse, and we will support him. That should get us through."

Bajie heard this and said, "Brother, you all want things to stay clean and neat, so why pick Old Pig to do the dirty work?"

Tripitaka said, "Wujing, if you really have the skill to root open the ditch and lead me across the mountain, I will give you the first credit."

Bajie laughed. "Master, all of you benefactors, do not make fun of me. Old Pig has thirty-six transformations. If you are talking about turning into light and graceful flying things, I truly cannot. But if you are talking about turning into mountains, trees, rocks, dirt mounds, wild boars, water buffalo, or camels, I can do all of that. Only my body grows larger, and my belly grows larger too. I have to be full before I can work."

The villagers said, "We have food. We brought dried provisions, fruit, baked cakes, and flat buns precisely to open the mountain and see you off. Bring them all out and use whatever you need. Once you have changed, we will send more food after you."

Bajie was overjoyed. He took off his black robe and set down his nine-pronged rake.

Then he said to the crowd, "Do not laugh. Watch Old Pig do this dirty deed."

The fool pinched a spell and shook himself. At once he transformed into a huge pig.

Truly:

His snout was long, his coat short, his fat half-rendered from birth.
From youth he fed on mountain herbs.
His black face and ringed eyes were like sun and moon.
His round head and great ears were like plantain leaves.
His strong bones were forged for a life as long as heaven's,
and his rough hide was refined until it was tougher than iron.
His nose huffed and honked, and his throat let out a raucous cry.
His four white hooves were taller than a thousand feet,
and his sword-like mane ran in a hundred zhang of length.
Never had the human world seen such a fat hog,
nor had it seen Old Pig the monster-slayer today.
Tripitaka and the others praised him together,
admiring Marshal Tianpeng's great power.

When Sun Wukong saw Bajie had changed like that, he ordered the villagers to pile up the dried provisions and other food at once so Bajie could eat his fill.

The fool did not distinguish cooked from raw and gulped everything down in a flood. Then he went forward to root the road open.

Wukong told Sha Wujing to take off his shoes, carry the baggage carefully, and asked Tripitaka to sit steadily on the saddle.

He himself took off his sandals and told the villagers, "If you are kindly disposed, send more food quickly for my younger brother to keep up his strength."

The seven or eight hundred people who came to escort them most had mules or horses. They rushed home like shooting stars to cook. The three hundred who went on foot stood at the foot of the mountain and watched them go.

The village was more than thirty li from the mountain, and to fetch more food and return was another thirty li, so the round trip was nearly a hundred li. By then the pilgrims had already gone far ahead.

Still reluctant to part, the villagers urged their mules and horses on and hurried through the ditch road. They traveled through the night and only caught up the next day, calling, "Holy master of the scriptures, slow down, slow down. We are bringing food!"

Tripitaka thanked them without end. "You truly are kind believers."

He told Bajie to stop and eat more to strengthen himself. Old Pig had been rooting for two days and was already hungry again. Those many people sent far more than seven or eight dan of food, and he did not care whether it was rice or flour, all of it he ate in one flood, filling himself once more before he went on to root the road.

Tripitaka, Wukong, and Sha Wujing thanked the villagers and took their leave.

As the saying goes:

Tuoluo Village's people returned home;
Bajie opened the mountain and passed through the ditch.
Tripitaka's sincerity called forth divine strength;
Wukong's skill brought the demon low.
The thousand-year Sparse-Persimmon Ditch was cleared this very morning;
the Seven-Absolute Mountain road was opened today.

All desires of the six senses were cut off cleanly,
and with no obstacle in the way, they bowed toward the lotus throne.

But how far they still had to go, and what other monsters they would meet, that must wait for the next chapter.