Tang Seng was filled with devotion in his heart, yet he didn’t dare to utter anything about divine protection, even as the spirits of the grass and trees guided their way. They trudged through the thorns, finally free from pain, and continued westward. Time flew by, and it was just the end of winter and the beginning of spring; everything was coming back to life, with green shoots sprouting and willow branches budding. The peach blossoms on the mountain were as bright as brocade, and the streams were crystal clear, truly picturesque and uplifting. The sunlight danced on the petals, and swallows gently carried moss in their beaks. The scenery resembled a painting by Wang Wei, while the birds sang melodies like those of Ji Zi. The master and his disciples were out enjoying the beautiful spring day, when suddenly they spotted a tall mountain that seemed to reach the sky. Tang Seng pointed at the mountain and said, “Wukong, that mountain must be incredibly high; it looks like it’s going to soar into the heavens!”
Wukong chuckled in response, “A wise poem says, ‘Only the heavens are high; no mountain can compare!’ No matter how tall this mountain is, it can’t match the sky!” Pigsy interjected, “Then how can Kunlun Mountain be called the Pillar of Heaven?” Wukong explained, “You see, since ancient times, the heavens haven’t been full in the northwest, and Kunlun Mountain is exactly in the northwest, so it’s said to reach the heavens.” Sandy couldn’t help but laugh, “Big Brother, don’t tell him this; he’ll want to conquer everyone again. Let’s just keep walking; we’ll know the height when we reach the mountain.”
So, Pigsy and Sandy were playfully bickering, while Tang Seng’s horse galloped swiftly, and soon they reached the edge of the cliff. As they moved upward, they heard the wind howling and the streams gurgling. Even the birds found it hard to fly, and even the immortals felt it was tough to climb. The mountains and valleys were winding and twisting, dust flying everywhere, yet no one came to visit. Strange rocks jutted out, making it a feast for the eyes. Suddenly, a deafening tiger roar echoed, and leopards and wolves blocked their path. Tang Seng’s heart tightened at the sight, but Wukong wasn’t afraid. He pulled out his golden staff and roared, scaring the fierce beasts away, clearing the way for his master to climb the mountain.
After crossing the peak, they arrived at a flat area, where suddenly a radiant light shone down, surrounded by colorful mist, and they faintly saw a palace with a bell ringing melodiously. Curious, Tang Seng asked, “Disciples, what place is this?” Wukong looked up, shielding his eyes, and thought to himself, “This place is truly remarkable!” It was indeed: precious towers and seats, a renowned temple, green pines shielding the tall pavilion from the rain, and emerald bamboos protecting the lecture hall. The rosy glow floated, revealing a dragon palace, with red railings and jade doors, painted beams and carved rafters, fragrant aromas wafting, and birds chirping—a truly wonderful place.
After taking it all in, Wukong turned to his master and said, “Master, this place is a temple, but I sense some danger here. The scenery resembles that of the Thunder Sound Temple, yet the path seems wrong. We must be cautious and not enter recklessly, or we might encounter misfortune.” Tang Seng was displeased, “If it looks like the Thunder Sound Temple, isn’t that the Spirit Mountain? Don’t misinterpret my sincerity!” Wukong quickly explained, “No, I’ve traveled the road to Spirit Mountain, and this is definitely not it!” Pigsy added, “Even if it’s not, there must be good people living here.” Sandy suggested, “Why not go through that entrance and see what’s going on?” Wukong nodded, “Wujing is right.”
Tang Seng rode his horse, rushing to the mountain gate, and upon seeing the three large characters “Thunder Sound Temple,” he panicked and rolled off his horse, landing on the ground, cursing, “Damn monkey! You’ve really done me in! This is clearly the Thunder Sound Temple, and you dared to deceive me!” Wukong chuckled beside him, “Master, don’t be angry. Take a closer look; there are actually four characters on the gate. Why did you only read three and blame me?” Tang Seng, trembling, got up and looked again, and indeed, it was four characters: “Small Thunder Sound Temple.”
Tang Seng sighed in relief, “Since it’s Small Thunder Sound Temple, there must be Buddha inside. The scriptures say there are three thousand Buddhas, so there’s bound to be more than one: Guanyin in the South Sea, Puxian on Emei, and Wenshu on Wutai. I wonder which Buddha’s temple this is? As the ancients said, ‘With Buddha and scriptures, there’s no place without treasures; let’s go in and take a look.’” Wukong shook his head, “Master, this place has more ominous signs than auspicious ones. If there’s true danger, don’t blame me.” Tang Seng replied, “Even if there’s no Buddha, there will certainly be a statue. My disciples wish to see and worship the Buddha; how can I blame you?” So he ordered Pigsy to fetch the cassock, put on a monk's hat, and prepare to enter.
At that moment, a voice came from the mountain gate: “Tang Seng, you have come from the Eastern Lands to pay your respects to the Buddha. Why are you being so negligent?” Upon hearing this, Tang Seng immediately bowed down, and Pigsy also knelt, while Sandy knelt down as well. Only the Great Sage was at the back, tending to the horse and packing their belongings. As they entered the second gate, they saw the Great Hall of the Tathagata, with five hundred Arhats, three thousand celestial beings, four heavenly kings, eight bodhisattvas, and countless holy monks and Taoists outside the hall, surrounded by fragrant flowers and auspicious clouds. Tang Seng, Pigsy, and Sandy paid their respects one by one, but Wukong did not bow.
At that moment, a loud voice suddenly called out from the lotus seat: “Sun Wukong, why don’t you bow to the Tathagata?” Wukong looked closely and realized that it was a false Buddha. Angered, he dropped the horse and his luggage, picked up his golden staff, and shouted, “You bunch of wicked beasts, how dare you use the name of the Buddha to tarnish the Tathagata’s pure virtue! Don’t even think about escaping!”
With the staff in hand, he charged forward to strike. Suddenly, a “ding” sound rang out from the air as a golden gong fell, trapping Wukong, head and feet, inside it. Seeing this, Pigsy and Sandy quickly grabbed their weapons, but they were surrounded by a group of Arhats and holy monks and had no time to react before being captured. Tang Seng was also caught, and all three were tied up tightly with ropes.
It turned out that the “Buddha” on the lotus seat was actually a demon king, and the surrounding Arhats were little demons. The demon king shed his Buddha disguise, revealing his true form, and took the three away to be stored. Meanwhile, Wukong was trapped in the golden gong, unable to escape, and was destined to remain there for three days until he turned into pus and blood. Only after that would the demon king prepare to steam the three of them for his enjoyment. This was truly: "The blue-eyed monkey recognizes the false from the real, the Zen mind sees the form and worships the golden body. The blind old woman blindly participates in the ritual, while the wooden mother foolishly discusses matters." The evil monsters grew strong, bullying their true nature, and the demon head harbored malice, deceiving the heavenly beings. It was indeed a case of a small path and a large demon, mistakenly entering a side door and wasting their lives. At this point, the demons hid Tang Seng and the others in the back, tied the horse to the side, and also stored his cassock and monk's hat in their luggage, hiding them securely.
Meanwhile, Wukong was trapped in the golden gong, which was dark and hot, making him sweat profusely. He bumped around, unable to escape. Growing anxious, he thought, "Since I can’t get out, I’ll try to grow larger!" He performed a hand gesture, and his body instantly grew to a height of hundreds of feet, but the golden gong expanded along with him, leaving no gaps. He then performed another gesture to shrink himself down to the size of a small mustard seed, and the gong shrank as well, still without any openings.
Now Wukong was getting really anxious, thinking, “What to do?” He blew some celestial energy onto his iron staff and shouted, “Transform!” The staff immediately turned into a flagpole, propping up the golden gong. He then plucked two hairs, transforming them into plum blossom heads, and tried to drill through the gong, making a “clang clang” sound, but he couldn’t break through. Growing more desperate, he recited incantations, calling upon the celestial beings of the five directions and the six Ding and six Jia: “Come quickly and help me!”
The celestial beings outside the gong replied, “Great Sage, we are protecting the master and won’t let the demons harm him. What do you want us to do?” Wukong, hearing this, was displeased: “My master doesn’t listen to my advice; it wouldn’t be a loss if he were to die! But you all need to think of a way to lift this golden gong and let me out; I’m about to suffocate!” However, the celestial beings tried for a long time but couldn’t budge it. The golden-headed celestial being said, “This golden gong is truly a treasure; it’s solidly fused together, and our strength is too weak to lift it.”
At that moment, the celestial being decided to ask the Jade Emperor for help, flying straight to the Southern Heavenly Gate and up to the Lingxiao Palace, reporting to the Jade Emperor: “Your Majesty, the Great Sage is trapped in the golden gong of the Small Thunder Sound Temple. Please send someone to rescue him!” Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor immediately ordered, “Quickly, send the twenty-eight constellations to rescue him!” The constellations didn’t dare delay and immediately followed the celestial being.
When they arrived at the mountain gate, it was just around the second watch of the night. The demons, having captured Tang Seng, were all celebrating, and the elder demons had gone to sleep. The constellations quietly approached outside the golden gong and reported, “Great Sage, we were sent by the Jade Emperor to rescue you!” Wukong was overjoyed upon hearing this: “Quickly, break this golden gong so I can get out!” But the constellations replied, “We dare not strike it; this is a pure gold treasure, and if we hit it, it will surely make a sound, alarming the demons and making it harder to rescue you.”
The constellations began to strike the golden gong with their weapons, but it wouldn’t budge; it felt as if it were forged from a single piece. Inside, Wukong looked around, unable to see any light. Kang Jinlong comforted him, saying, “Great Sage, don’t worry. This golden gong must be a magical item and should be able to change form. Feel around for any gaps; I’ll use my horn to poke in, and you’ll be able to transform.”
Wukong followed his advice and felt around until he found a gap. Kang Jinlong shrank his body, and his horn, sharp as a needle, slipped inside with great effort, finally penetrating the golden gong. Wukong shouted from inside, “There’s no way out! Hurry and pull me out!” So, Kang Jinlong transformed the golden staff into a steel drill and made a hole in the gong. Wukong then shrank himself down to the size of a mustard seed, squatting in the hole and calling out, “Pull my horn out!” The constellations exerted all their strength and finally pulled his horn out, collapsing to the ground, truly a difficult rescue!
Wukong finally drilled out of the golden gong, returning to his original form. He drew his iron staff and struck the gong fiercely, making a loud “clang” that sounded like the collapse of a copper mountain. The golden gong instantly shattered into countless pieces, leaving everyone stunned! This frightened the twenty-eight constellations so much that even the five directional celestial beings stood on end. The old demon king was startled awake from his dreams, hurriedly putting on his clothes and beating the drum to summon the demons for battle.
As dawn broke on the horizon, the demon king arrived at the base of the treasure platform with a group of little demons. Upon seeing Wukong and the constellations gathered around the shattered gong, he was immediately taken aback and shouted, “Quickly close the front gate! Don’t let them escape!” Hearing this, Wukong immediately led the constellations to ride the clouds up into the sky. The demon king, filled with rage, donned his armor, grasped his wolf-toothed club, and shouted into the air, “Sun Wukong! Don’t think you can run away; come down and fight me!”
Unable to hold back, Wukong descended with the constellations to see what this demon king looked like. He saw a disheveled figure with a thin golden hoop around his head, slippery eyes, eyebrows like two yellow lines, a sharp nose, a square mouth with sharp teeth, wearing linked armor and black shoes, wielding a wolf-toothed club, resembling a monster! Wukong shouted angrily, “You demon, how dare you impersonate the Buddha and occupy this mountain, pretending to be the Small Thunder Sound Temple!”
The demon king sneered, “You don’t know who I am and dare to cause trouble! I am Huangmei Laofo, and this is my Little Western Heaven. I have attained the true fruit, bestowed with a treasure pavilion by heaven. I set up this illusion to lure your master in, wanting to make a bet with you. If I win, you all must die; if you win, I will let you go!”
Wukong, hearing this, felt delighted: “A bet it is! Come on, let’s get started!” The demon king, unwilling to back down, tightened his grip on the wolf-toothed club, ready for an exciting battle. The two faced off, each holding their weapon—one a short, flexible Buddhist weapon, the other the sturdy golden staff—engaging in a fierce contest.
They fought fiercely for fifty rounds without a clear winner. At the mountain gate, the demons were beating drums and cheering, creating a lively atmosphere. Meanwhile, the twenty-eight constellations and the five directional celestial beings were also unwilling to back down, raising their weapons in preparation to surround the demon king. Although the demon king felt fear in his heart, he still refused to yield, gripping his wolf-toothed club and leading his troops. Suddenly, he took an old white cloth from his waist, threw it up, and ended up wrapping Wukong, the twenty-eight constellations, and the five directional celestial beings all together, joyfully taking them back.
The old demon king, feeling proud, ordered the little demons to carry the bound Wukong and the others to the back and casually toss them on the ground, preparing for a feast and drinking until dark. At this moment, Wukong and the celestial beings, helplessly tied up, suddenly heard Tang Seng weeping nearby, “Wukong, I truly regret not listening to your advice back then, which has led us to this calamity today!”
Upon hearing this, Wukong felt a pang of sympathy: “Even though Master doesn’t listen to my advice, he still thinks of me in times of danger. He truly is a good master.” So, he decided to take advantage of the quiet night while the demons were asleep to find a way to rescue everyone. Wukong used his transformation skills to shrink his body and quietly approached Tang Seng, whispering, “Master, I’m here!”
Tang Seng immediately recognized the voice and hurriedly asked, “How did you get here?” Wukong explained the situation to him, and Tang Seng was overjoyed: “Quick, save me! From now on, it all depends on you!” Wukong immediately got to work, first freeing Tang Seng, then releasing Bajie and Sha Seng, and finally untying the twenty-eight constellations and the five directional celestial beings. He then brought over the horse and urged everyone to hurry and leave.
However, as soon as they stepped outside, Wukong realized their luggage was missing and rushed back to look for it. Kang Jinlong teased him from the side, “You care more about your belongings than people! It’s enough to save the master; why are you still thinking about the luggage?” Wukong replied, “The person is important, but the luggage is even more important. It contains the travel documents, cassock, and alms bowl—all precious Buddhist treasures. How can I not look for them?”
Bajie urged from the side, “Brother, you go find it; we’ll leave first!” So, the constellations protected Tang Seng and used their magic to fly down the mountain, preparing to wait on the flat ground.
Around midnight, Wukong quietly moved into the demon’s lair. But the door was tightly shut, and the windows were sealed. He feared the sound of the window frame would alert them, feeling anxious. So, he made a hand gesture and transformed into a celestial mouse, commonly known as a bat. You might ask what it looked like? It had a pointed head like a little mouse, bright eyes, hid during the day, flew at night, and specialized in catching mosquitoes.
He slipped through an unsealed tile, passed through several doors, and finally reached the window of the third floor, where he saw a flickering light. This was not from a lamp, nor from incense, and certainly not from flying clouds, but from the light emitted by Tang Seng’s cassock. The cassock was adorned with precious Buddhist treasures like the Ruyi Pearl and Mani Pearl, which shone with dazzling brilliance.
Seeing this treasure, Wukong was overjoyed and immediately returned to his original form, grabbed the cassock, and prepared to sneak away. But unexpectedly, he accidentally dropped the cassock onto the floor, making a loud “thud.” The old demoness, sleeping soundly below, was startled awake by the noise and cried out, “Someone’s here! Someone’s here!” The other demons also got up, lighting lamps and checking around.
At this moment, a demon reported, “Tang Seng has escaped!” Another demon said, “The Monkey King and the others have also left!” The old demon king quickly ordered, “Quick! Be careful at every entrance!” Upon hearing this, Wukong thought it was over and quickly leaped out of the window.
The demon king and his minions searched everywhere. Seeing that dawn had broken, he picked up his club and led the demons over. Just then, the deities of the twenty-eight constellations and the five directional celestial beings gathered in a cloud of mist at the foot of the mountain. The demon king shouted, “Where do you think you’re going? I’m here!” Jiao Mu Jiao called out urgently, “Brothers, be careful, the monster is coming!” The various gods and demons clashed on the hillside, creating a truly lively scene.
Seeing this, the demon king sneered, gathering four to five thousand demons, preparing for a fierce battle on the western slope. The two sides fought fiercely, with the demon king leading the demons in a relentless attack, creating an earth-shattering scene. Amid the chaos, Wukong shouted, “Old Sun has arrived!” Bajie quickly asked, “What about the luggage?” Wukong helplessly replied, “I can barely save my own life; how can I worry about the luggage!”
Sha Seng, holding his precious staff, said, “Stop talking about that and hurry to fight the demons!” At that moment, the deities of the constellations and the celestial beings were surrounded in the middle, and the old demon began to attack them with his club. Wukong, Bajie, and Sha Seng were busy defending themselves, and the scene was chaotic, darkening the sky as they fought fiercely.
As night fell, the demon king whistled and ordered the other demons to be cautious. He unfastened a bundle from his waist, preparing to collect the spoils of war. Upon seeing this, Wukong felt a pang of anxiety: “This is bad! Run!” He couldn’t care for Bajie, Sha Seng, or the other deities and immediately used his somersault cloud to fly high into the sky.
The gods and his companions were left bewildered by the situation, abandoned by Wukong as he flew away alone. The demon king, seeing this, recalled his troops to the temple, re-captured Tang Seng, Bajie, and Sha Seng, and tied up the White Dragon Horse as well. All the gods were also bound and thrown into a cellar, the lid sealed, while the demons dispersed.
Meanwhile, Wukong was high above in the sky, feeling anxious. Seeing the demon soldiers returning, he realized everyone had been captured. He pressed down on the auspicious light and landed on the peak of the Eastern Mountain, gritting his teeth in anger, tears streaming down his face as he looked up to the sky and sighed, “Master, what kind of karma have you created? In this life, you’ve encountered so many demons; it’s truly unbearable!”
After sighing alone for a long time, he thought to himself, “What kind of creature is this demon that can hold so many beings? I need to find a celestial being for help. I remember the True Warrior in the North; he’s on Wudang Mountain. I’ll go ask him to rescue Master!” This truly was a moment of uncertainty: having not yet attained the celestial path, his mind was restless. Whether he would succeed or not, we shall discuss next time!
