Let us leave aside for now the celestial generals surrounding the mountain and the Great Sage resting at his ease. We speak instead of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, the Great Compassionate One Who Saves from Suffering and Peril, of the numinous and responsive Assembly of He Who Perceives the Sounds of the World, whose dwelling is on Mount Potalaka in the Southern Sea. She had been invited by the Queen Mother of the West to attend the Peach Banquet, and with her senior disciple, the Pilgrim Hui'an, she ascended to the jeweled pavilions of the Jade Pool—only to find the place desolate and forlorn, the banquet tables in disarray. A few immortals were there, but none had taken their seats; all were standing about in agitated discussion. The Bodhisattva greeted the assembled immortals, and they told her everything that had happened.
"Since there is to be no grand assembly and no passing of the wine cups," said the Bodhisattva, "you may all accompany me to see the Jade Emperor."
The immortals gladly followed her. When they reached the Hall of Universal Brightness, the Four Heavenly Teachers, the Great Immortal Barefoot, and many others were already there waiting. They welcomed the Bodhisattva and told her that the Jade Emperor was much troubled, that he had dispatched celestial soldiers to seize the monster, and that they had not yet returned.
"I should like to see the Jade Emperor," said the Bodhisattva. "Please convey my request."
The Heavenly Teacher Qiu Hongji went at once into the Hall of Divine Mists to announce her, and she was summoned within. The Supreme Old Lord Laozi was in attendance above, and the Queen Mother stood behind.
The Bodhisattva led the immortals inside. After exchanging courtesies with the Jade Emperor, she greeted the Old Lord and the Queen Mother as well, and they all took their seats.
"How went the Peach Banquet?" she then asked.
"Every year we hold the feast, and all is joy," said the Jade Emperor. "But this year that demon monkey has wrecked everything—it was an invitation issued in vain."
"What is the origin of this demon monkey?" asked the Bodhisattva.
"The demon monkey was hatched from a stone egg on the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit in the land of Aolai on the Eastern Continent of Superior Body," said the Jade Emperor. "At the moment of his birth he shot golden light from his eyes that pierced the very Palace of the Dipper. I paid it no mind at first, but then he became a spirit, subdued dragons and tigers, and struck his own name from the registers of death. The Dragon King and the King of the Underworld both memorialized me about him. I was about to have him seized when the Planet of Gold—the Evening Star—memorialized me, saying, 'Throughout the Three Realms, all who possess nine apertures may attain immortality.' So instead I extended him grace and favor, summoned him to the Upper World, and appointed him Protector of Horses in the Imperial Stables. That wretch despised the office as too lowly and rebelled against Heaven. I sent Li the Pagoda-Bearer Heavenly King and Prince Nezha to subdue him, but then I issued an edict of appeasement, summoned him back to the Upper World, and gave him the title 'Great Sage Equal to Heaven'—a title with office but no stipend. Having nothing to manage, he drifted idly east and west. Fearing he would stir up further trouble, I set him over the Garden of Peaches. But he obeyed neither law nor ordinance, and stole and ate every peach of the great fruits on the old trees. When the banquet was prepared, he, being a person without stipend, was not invited. So he played a trick on the Great Immortal Barefoot and deceived him, transformed himself into the immortal's likeness to enter the feast, and stole and consumed all the immortal dishes and immortal wine. He then stole the Old Lord's elixir and a quantity of imperial wine besides, and carried them off to his mountain to enjoy with his monkey host. For this my heart is troubled, and I have dispatched a hundred thousand celestial soldiers with a net of heaven and a net of earth to subdue him. A full day has passed with no word returned, and I know not whether they have won or lost."
Hearing this, the Bodhisattva at once commanded the Pilgrim Hui'an: "Go quickly down from the Heavenly Palace to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit and find out how the battle goes. If you encounter the enemy, lend your aid in one engagement, and be sure to return with a true report."
The Pilgrim Hui'an straightened his robes, grasped an iron staff, mounted the clouds, and left the palace gates, traveling straight to the foot of the mountain. There he saw the net of heaven and net of earth, layer upon layer, dense beyond penetrating; sentries at every camp gate rang their bells and called the watchwords, and the mountain was ringed about so tightly that not a drop of water could have leaked through.
Hui'an halted and called out: "Heavenly warriors at the camp gate, be so good as to send word within. I am Muozha, the second prince of Heavenly King Li, disciple of Guanyin of the Southern Sea, known as Hui'an. I have come to scout the state of the battle."
The spirit soldiers of the Five Sacred Peaks within the camp passed his message through the gates, and soon the Rat of the Void Day, the Cock of the Rooster Day, the Horse of the Horse Day, and the Rabbit of the Room Day relayed his words to the central command tent. Heavenly King Li gave the order to open the net of heaven and the net of earth and let him in. By this time dawn was just breaking in the east. Hui'an entered following the signal flag, and bowed to the Four Heavenly Kings and Heavenly King Li.
When the courtesies were done, Heavenly King Li asked, "My child, from where have you come?"
"I attended the Peach Banquet with the Bodhisattva," said Hui'an. "Seeing the grand assembly desolate and the Jade Pool abandoned, she led the immortals and me to see the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor told us that Your Majesty had descended to the lower world to subdue the demon monkey, and that a full day had passed with no word, so the Bodhisattva sent me to learn the truth of the matter."
"Yesterday we arrived here and set up our camps," said Heavenly King Li. "I sent the Nine Luminaries to challenge him, but that wretch threw about his magical powers and all Nine Luminaries fled back in defeat. Then we ourselves led troops against him, and he too drew up his battle lines. We fought him in a great melee, our hundred thousand celestial soldiers against him, until nightfall, when he used a body-splitting spell to fight us off. When we gathered our forces and took stock, we had caught nothing but wolves, insects, tigers, and leopards—not so much as half a demon monkey. Today he has not yet come out to do battle."
Hardly had he finished speaking when someone came in from beyond the camp gates to report: "That Great Sage is leading a troop of monkey spirits, shouting challenges outside."
The Four Heavenly Kings, Heavenly King Li, and the princes were just then discussing whether to send out troops.
"Father King," said Muozha, "the Bodhisattva instructed me to come down and scout out the situation, and said that if I met battle, I might lend my aid. Now I am willing to go myself and see what sort of 'Great Sage' this is!"
"My child," said the Heavenly King, "you have followed the Bodhisattva in cultivation these several years; no doubt you have some powers of your own. Take great care."
What a prince! He wheeled his iron staff in both hands, tightened his embroidered robe, leaped out through the camp gates, and shouted in a great voice: "Which of you is the Great Sage Equal to Heaven?"
The Great Sage leveled his As-You-Will staff and answered: "Old Monkey is he. Who are you, that you dare question me?"
"I am the second prince of Heavenly King Li," said Muozha. "I now serve as disciple and protector of the faith before the precious throne of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, and my religious name is Hui'an."
"If you practice cultivation in the Southern Sea," said the Great Sage, "what business have you coming here to see me?"
"My master sent me to scout the battle," said Muozha. "Seeing how rampant you are, I have come especially to seize you!"
"You dare to talk so big!" said the Great Sage. "Stand not aside! Taste Old Monkey's staff!"
Muozha showed no fear at all, and met him with his iron staff.
The two of them took their stand halfway up the mountain, outside the camp gates, and what a battle it was:
Though staff crossed staff, the irons were not the same; Though warrior met warrior, the men were not alike. One was a scattered immortal of Primordial Unity styled "Great Sage"; One was Guanyin's disciple, a true dragon of the primal origin. The wrought-iron staff was forged by a thousand hammers, Its spirit-work done by the Gods of the Six Cyclical Combinations; The As-You-Will staff was set in the River of Heaven, A sea-quelling divine treasure of boundless power. When the two met, they were true opponents matched; Their exchanges of technique were truly inexhaustible. This one's guarding staff—ten thousand forms of menace— Encircled his waist like a cable, swift as the wind; That one's spear-gripping staff gave no opening at all— How could left parry and right block hold against it? On that side banners flashed and glittered; On this side drums and kettledrums boomed. Ten thousand heavenly generals wheeled in rings; A whole cave of demon monkeys clustered thick. Monstrous mists and sorrowful clouds shrouded the earth; Wolf-smoke and baleful vapors pierced the palace of heaven. Yesterday's great melee was yet bearable; Today's struggle was fiercer still. One must admire the Monkey King's true abilities— Muozha, defeated once more, barely escaped with his life.
The Great Sage and Hui'an fought fifty or sixty rounds, until Hui'an's arms grew numb and sore and he could no longer hold off his foe. He feinted with his staff, broke from the fray, and fled back in defeat. The Great Sage likewise withdrew his monkey troops and stationed them outside his cave door.
Outside the Heavenly King's camp, troops great and small caught hold of the prince and opened a path for him. He went straight in through the gates and stood before the Four Heavenly Kings, Li the Pagoda-Bearer, and Nezha, gasping for breath, unable to steady his panting: "What a Great Sage! What a Great Sage! Truly his powers are vast! I could not defeat him—I too have come back beaten!"
Heavenly King Li was alarmed at heart and at once ordered a memorial written requesting aid, dispatching the Great King of the Demon Ghosts of Great Strength to carry it, together with Prince Muozha, up to Heaven to report.
The two dared not linger. They burst out through the net of heaven and the net of earth and mounted auspicious clouds of rosy vapor. In a moment they arrived below the Hall of Universal Brightness, where the Four Heavenly Teachers met them and led them into the Hall of Divine Mists to present the memorial. Hui'an also bowed to the Bodhisattva.
"What did you learn on your scouting mission?" asked the Bodhisattva.
"I received my orders and went to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit," said Hui'an. "I had them open the gates of the net of heaven and the net of earth, saw my father, and explained my master's command. Father King said, 'Yesterday we fought a battle with that Monkey King and caught nothing but his tigers, leopards, lions, and elephants—not a single monkey spirit.' Just as we were speaking, he came demanding battle again. I took my iron staff and fought him fifty or sixty rounds, but could not prevail, and fled back to camp in defeat. Father King has therefore sent the Great King of the Demon Ghosts of Great Strength up with me to seek aid."
The Bodhisattva lowered her head and pondered.
Now the Jade Emperor opened the memorial, saw the request for aid, and laughed: "Insufferable [Translator's note: the original ponai is an exclamation of impatience and indignation] monkey spirit! How great can his powers be, that he dares to withstand a hundred thousand celestial soldiers! And now Li the Heavenly King comes asking for help. Which of my divine commanders shall I send to aid him?"
Before he had finished speaking, Guanyin pressed her palms together and addressed the throne: "Let Your Majesty rest easy. This humble monk can recommend one divinity who can capture this monkey."
"Which divinity do you recommend?" asked the Jade Emperor.
"Your Majesty's own nephew, the True Lord Erlang the Sagely and Miraculous," said the Bodhisattva, "who now resides at Guanjiangkou in Guanzhou, receiving the incense and offerings of the lower world. In days past he slew six monsters by his own strength, and he has the brothers of Mount Mei and twelve hundred unkempt spirit-troops before his tent. His powers are vast. The trouble is, he heeds summons to battle but not summons to court [Translator's note: he answers calls to military action but refuses to appear at court]. If Your Majesty issues an edict of military command, he will go to your aid, and the monkey can be taken."
Hearing this, the Jade Emperor issued at once the edict of military command and dispatched the Great King of the Demon Ghosts of Great Strength to bear it.
The Ghost King received the edict, mounted the clouds, and traveled straight to Guanjiangkou. In less than half a watch he arrived at the True Lord's temple. The ghost bailiffs keeping the gate announced within: "An imperial envoy is without, bearing an edict." Erlang came out at once with all his brothers to receive the edict, burned incense, and had it read aloud. It said:
"The demon monkey of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, has rebelled. Having stolen peaches, wine, and elixir in the palace and thrown the Grand Peach Banquet into chaos, he is now surrounded by a hundred thousand celestial soldiers and eighteen layers of heaven's net and earth's net, who have invested the mountain but have not prevailed. We hereby specially summon our worthy nephew, together with his sworn brothers, to proceed at once to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit to lend your strength in exterminating him. On success you shall be raised high in rank and richly rewarded."
The True Lord was overjoyed. "Let the envoy return," he said. "I shall go at once and draw my blade to aid them."
The Ghost King returned to make his report, and of him we say no more.
The True Lord then summoned the six brothers of Mount Mei—the four Commandants Kang, Zhang, Yao, and Li, and the two Generals Guo Shen and Zhi Jian—and gathered them before the hall: "Just now the Jade Emperor has summoned us to go to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit to subdue the demon monkey. Let us go together!"
All the brothers gladly consented. They mustered their own spirit troops, with hawks on their wrists and hounds in leash, crossbows set and bows drawn, raised a wild wind, and in an instant crossed the Eastern Ocean, arriving straight at the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit. There they found the net of heaven and the net of earth, layer upon layer, so dense they could not advance.
They called out: "Divine generals of the net of heaven and net of earth, hear us! We are the True Lord Erlang the Sagely and Miraculous, summoned by the Jade Emperor to capture the demon monkey. Open your camp gates and let us through!"
At once the word passed from layer to layer, and the Four Heavenly Kings and Heavenly King Li came out of the camp gates to welcome them. After exchanging courtesies, they asked about the state of the battle, and the Heavenly King related all that had happened.
The True Lord laughed: "This Little Sage has come here to match transformations with him. Gentlemen, do not cover the top with your net of heaven and net of earth—only close it tightly on all four sides, and let me wager battle with him. If I lose to him, you need not come to my aid; my own brothers will support me. If I defeat him, you need not bind him; my own brothers will lay hands on him. I ask only that Li the Pagoda-Bearer Heavenly King take the Demon-Revealing Mirror and stand firm in midair. I fear that if he loses the battle he will flee elsewhere; you must keep him illuminated clearly for me and on no account let him escape."
The Heavenly Kings took their stations at the four quarters, and the celestial troops arrayed themselves in ranks. The True Lord, leading the four Commandants and two Generals—seven brothers in all, counting himself—issued from the camp to give battle, instructing the other commanders to guard the camp closely and to gather in all the hawks and hounds. The unkempt spirit-troops received their orders, and the True Lord went straight to the outside of the Water Curtain Cave, where he saw a host of monkeys drawn up in neat and orderly ranks in the formation of a coiled dragon. In their center flew a banner bearing four great characters: "Great Sage Equal to Heaven."
"What claim has that vile monkey," said the True Lord, "to an office equal to Heaven?"
"Enough of your admiration," said the six brothers of Mount Mei. "Call him to battle!"
The little monkeys at the camp entrance saw the True Lord and ran swiftly to report. The Monkey King seized his gold-banded staff, adjusted his golden armor, set his feet in cloud-walking boots, pressed his purple-gold crown firmly down, and dashed out of the camp gates. Opening his eyes wide, he took in the True Lord's appearance—truly refined and striking, dressed with elegant grace. Indeed:
A face most handsome, a bearing grand and tall, Ears hanging to his shoulders, eyes full of light. On his head, a three-peaked cap with flying phoenix; On his body, a single robe of pale goose-yellow. Gold-threaded boots on dragon-coiled hose, A jade belt round with flowers, adorned with eight treasures. At his hip a pellet bow curved like the new moon; In his hand a three-pointed, double-edged spear. With an axe he split Peach Mountain and once saved his mother; With pellets he struck down the twin phoenixes of Palm Grove. By strength he slew eight monsters, his fame spread far; In righteousness he joined the Seven Sages of Mount Mei. Proud-hearted, he acknowledges no kinship with Heaven's house; Haughty in nature, he went to live as a god at Guanjiang. The numinous and sagely lord of effulgent grace at Chicheng, Manifest without bounds, he is titled Erlang.
The Great Sage looked at him with a broad grin, raised his gold-banded staff, and called out in a loud voice: "Little general from what region are you, that you dare come here so boldly to challenge me?"
The True Lord shouted back: "You wretch, are you blind? Do you not know me? I am the Jade Emperor's sister's son, Erlang the Miraculous and Sagely Prince, invested by imperial command. By command from above I have come here to capture you, the rebel Protector of Horses who overturned the Heavenly Palace, and still you do not know whether you live or die!"
"I recall," said the Great Sage, "that the Jade Emperor's younger sister yearned for the mortal world, descended to the lower realm, and joined with one Lord Yang, bearing a son—the one who split Peach Mountain with an axe. Is that you? I was minded to curse you a few times, but we have no particular enmity between us. I thought to strike you one blow of my staff, but it would be a pity to take your life. Young lord, run home quickly and call out your Four Heavenly Kings to face me."
Hearing this, the True Lord's heart filled with fury: "Vile monkey! No more insolence! Taste my blade!"
The Great Sage turned aside to dodge, then swiftly raised his gold-banded staff and struck back.
What a battle the two of them fought:
Erlang the Miraculous, Lord of Sagely Grace, And Sun the Great Sage Equal to Heaven! This one, proud of heart, scorned his foe—the Handsome Monkey King; That one, stern of face, would master him—a true pillar of heaven. The two had never met before, and each was eager for the wager. Never had they plumbed each other's depths; Only today did they learn the measure of light and heavy. The iron staff vied with a flying dragon; The divine blade danced like a phoenix on the wing. Blocking left, attacking right; parrying before, meeting behind. On this side the six brothers of Mount Mei lent their awe; On that side the four Marshal commanders passed their orders. Banners waved and drums thundered, every heart as one; Shouts arose and gongs were beaten, each adding to the spirit. Their two blades found every opening; Back and forth they went without the seam of a thread. The gold-banded staff was a treasure from the sea, Transforming, soaring, ever gaining the advantage. If one's body were slow, his life would end; The least misstep would bring him crashing down.
The True Lord and the Great Sage fought more than three hundred rounds, and still victory was undecided. Then the True Lord shook out his divine might, shook his body, and transformed—growing ten thousand spans tall, his two hands raising aloft his three-pointed, double-edged divine blade, like the very peak atop Mount Hua, his face green, his fangs protruding, his hair crimson, fierce and terrible, and he hewed down at the Great Sage's head.
The Great Sage too used his magic power and grew as tall and as fierce as Erlang, raising his As-You-Will gold-banded staff like a pillar upholding heaven on the summit of Mount Kunlun, and held off Lord Erlang. This so terrified the Marshals Ma and Liu that they trembled and could not wave their banners, and the two Generals Beng and Ba, faint with fear, could not wield their swords.
On the other side, Kang, Zhang, Yao, Li, Guo Shen, and Zhi Jian passed the word: they loosed the unkempt spirit-troops, who swooped with hawks and hounds, crossbows set and bows drawn, upon the area outside the Water Curtain Cave and fell upon the monkeys all together. Alas! They scattered the demon monkeys' four mighty commanders and captured two or three thousand nimble spirits! The monkeys flung down their spears, abandoned their armor, cast aside their swords and hurled away their lances. Those who could ran, those who could not cried out; some fled up the mountain, some scrambled back to the caves—like night-crows startling roosting birds, scattering like stars flung across the sky.
Of the brothers' victory we need say nothing more.
Now the True Lord and the Great Sage had both grown to the vastness of heaven-and-earth in their battle, but when the Great Sage suddenly saw his own camp of demon monkeys scattered, his heart panicked. He withdrew his magic form, seized his staff, slipped out of the fight, and fled.
The True Lord saw him flee and strode after him in great bounds, calling: "Where do you run? Submit at once, and I will spare your life!"
The Great Sage did not linger to fight, but simply ran with all his might. As he neared the mouth of his cave, he ran straight into the four Commandants Kang, Zhang, Yao, and Li, and the two Generals Guo Shen and Zhi Jian, who blocked his way with all their troops: "Vile monkey! Where do you run!"
The Great Sage panicked. He squeezed his gold-banded staff down to the size of an embroidery needle, hid it in his ear, shook his body, and transformed into a little sparrow, flitting up to perch on the tip of a tree.
The six brothers, flustered and confused, searched back and forth without finding him, and cried out together: "The monkey spirit has escaped! The monkey spirit has escaped!"
Amid the clamor the True Lord arrived. "Brothers, where did you chase him and lose him?"
"Just now we had him surrounded here," said the divinities, "and then he vanished."
Erlang rounded his phoenix eyes and looked carefully: he saw that the Great Sage had transformed into a sparrow perched on the tree. He withdrew his magic form, cast aside his divine blade, slung off his pellet bow, shook his body, and transformed into a sparrowhawk, spread his wings, and swooped to strike. The Great Sage, seeing this, whirred up on the wing and transformed into a great cormorant, soaring skyward.
Erlang, seeing this, swiftly ruffled his feathers, shook his body, transformed into a great sea-crane, and drilled up into the clouds to peck at him. The Great Sage then pressed his body downward, dove into the mountain stream, transformed into a fish, and darted beneath the water. Erlang rushed to the edge of the stream, but there was no trace of him.
He thought to himself: "That macaque must have gone into the water—doubtless transformed into a fish or a shrimp. Let me change again and catch him."
Indeed, with one shake he transformed into a fish-hawk, drifting on the waves downstream, and waited a while. The Great Sage, in the form of a fish, was swimming along with the current when he suddenly spied a bird flying overhead: like a blue sparrowhawk, yet its plumage was not blue; like an egret, yet it bore no crest; like an old stork, yet its legs were not red.
"This must be Erlang transformed, lying in wait for me!"
He turned sharply, flicked his tail, and swam away.
Erlang saw him and said: "A tail-flicking fish—like a carp, yet its tail is not red; like a mandarin perch, yet it shows no patterned scales; like a black fish, yet it has no stars upon its head; like a bream, yet no spines on its gills. Why would it turn back the moment it saw me? It must be that monkey transformed."
He darted after him and gave a slash of his beak. The Great Sage sprang out of the water, and with one shake transformed into a water snake, swam near the bank, and slipped into the grasses. Erlang, having failed to peck him, saw amid the rippling water a snake dart out, recognized it as the Great Sage, turned swiftly, and transformed into a grey crane with a scarlet-embroidered crown, stretching out a long beak like a pair of pointed iron pincers, and came straight to devour the water snake.
The water snake gave a leap and transformed into a bittern, standing dull and clumsy upon the sandbar among the knotweed.
Erlang saw that he had debased himself to something lowly—the bittern being the basest and most wanton of birds, mating without discrimination with phoenixes, eagrons, crows, or any other—and so he would not go near it. Instead he resumed his true form, strode over, took up his pellet bow, drew it full, and with one pellet knocked him head over heels.
The Great Sage seized the chance, tumbled down the cliff, crouched there, and transformed again—this time into a village shrine of the local earth-god, mouth gaping wide like the shrine door, his teeth become the door panels, his tongue become the idol of the god, his eyes become the lattice windows. Only his tail he could not manage: it stood up behind, transformed into a flagpole.
The True Lord raced down to the foot of the cliff, but found no fallen bittern—only a little shrine. Opening his phoenix eyes wide and studying it carefully, he saw the flagpole standing at the back, and laughed: "It's that macaque! He's trying to fool me again. I've seen my share of temples, but never one with a flagpole standing behind it. This beast is surely playing tricks. If he could lure me inside, he would bite down on me with one snap. But why should I go in? Let me first smash his window lattice with my fist, and then kick in his door panels!"
The Great Sage heard this and was shaken with fear: "How vicious! How vicious! The door panels are my teeth, the lattice windows are my eyes. If he knocks out my teeth and smashes my eyes, what am I to do?" With a tiger-leap he sprang into the air and vanished.
The True Lord chased wildly back and forth, until the four Commandants and two Generals crowded up to him: "Elder brother, have you caught the Great Sage?"
The True Lord laughed: "That monkey just turned himself into a temple to fool me. I was about to smash his windows and kick in his doors when he sprang up and vanished without a trace. Strange! Strange!" All were astounded, and looked about in every quarter, but there was no shape or shadow anywhere.
The True Lord said: "Brothers, stay here to keep watch and patrol. Let me go up and search for him."
He sprang into the clouds and rose into midair. He saw Heavenly King Li holding the Demon-Revealing Mirror aloft, standing in the clouds with Nezha. The True Lord called: "Heavenly King, have you seen the Monkey King?"
"He has not come up," said the Heavenly King. "But I have him in the mirror here."
The True Lord recounted the whole affair of the transformations, the magic powers, and the capture of the monkey host, and concluded: "He turned himself into a temple, and just as I was about to strike, he escaped."
Hearing this, Heavenly King Li swept the Demon-Revealing Mirror around the four quarters, then laughed heartily: "True Lord, go quickly! Go quickly! That monkey has used an invisibility spell, slipped out of the encirclement, and is headed for your own Guanjiangkou!"
Erlang, hearing this, seized his divine blade and raced back toward Guanjiangkou.
Now the Great Sage had already reached Guanjiangkou. He shook his body, transformed into the very image of old Lord Erlang himself, pressed down his cloud, and walked straight into the temple. The ghost bailiffs, unable to tell the difference, kowtowed to welcome him one and all. He seated himself in the central hall and examined the incense accounts: he saw the three sacrificial animals returned as thanks by Li Hu, the blessing vowed by Zhang Long, the document petitioning for a son by Zhao Jia, and the pious vow to cure illness made by Qian Bing.
Just as he was reading, someone came to report: "Another old Lord has arrived!"
The ghost bailiffs hurried to look, and every one of them was struck with alarm.
The True Lord demanded: "Has anyone seen any so-called Great Sage Equal to Heaven around here?"
"We have seen no Great Sage," said the ghost bailiffs. "There is only one old Lord in there checking the accounts."
The True Lord barged through the door. The Great Sage, seeing him, resumed his true form: "Young lord, no need to shout—the temple already bears the name of Sun!" The True Lord raised his three-pointed, double-edged divine blade and hewed at his face. The Monkey King shifted his body, let the blade pass, drew out his embroidery needle, waved it once to the thickness of a rice bowl, closed in, and struck back.
The two of them, shouting and brawling, fought their way out of the temple gates, half in mist and half in cloud, battling as they went, until they had fought their way back to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, where the Four Heavenly Kings and the rest redoubled their vigilance in alarm. Commandants Kang, Zhang, and the others closed in around the True Lord, and with combined strength they encircled the Handsome Monkey King—but of that we say no more.
We tell instead of the Great King of the Demon Ghosts of Great Strength, who, having dispatched the True Lord and his six brothers with troops to seize the demon, had returned to the Upper World to report.
The Jade Emperor, with the Bodhisattva Guanyin, the Queen Mother, and the assembled immortal ministers, was just then talking in the Hall of Divine Mists: "Since Erlang has gone down to battle, and a full day has passed with no report returned—"
The Bodhisattva pressed her palms together: "May this humble monk invite Your Majesty to go with the Patriarch of the Way, Lord Laozi, outside the South Gate of Heaven, and see for ourselves how matters truly stand?"
"Well said," replied the Jade Emperor. At once the imperial procession was made ready, and the Jade Emperor, with Lord Laozi, Guanyin, the Queen Mother, and the immortal ministers, proceeded to the South Gate of Heaven. Heavenly warriors and mighty spirits were already there to receive them. They opened the gate and gazed afar: they saw the celestial soldiers spreading their nets, encircling the mountain on all sides; Heavenly King Li and Nezha standing in the clouds, holding the Demon-Revealing Mirror; and the True Lord battling around and around with the Great Sage in their midst, wagering their skills in a storm of combat.
The Bodhisattva turned to the Old Lord and said: "What think you of this Erlang I recommended? Truly he has divine powers—he has the Great Sage trapped. Only, he has not yet managed to seize him. Let me now lend him my aid, and the capture is certain."
"What weapon would you use, Bodhisattva?" asked the Old Lord. "How would you help him?"
"I will throw down my pure vase and willow sprig and strike that monkey's head," said the Bodhisattva. "Even if it does not kill him, it will knock him down with a fall, so that the Little Sage Erlang may go and take him."
"Your vase is a piece of porcelain," said the Old Lord. "If it strikes him, well and good. But if it misses his head and meets his iron staff instead, will it not be shattered? Do not act yet—let me, the Old Lord, lend him the aid of a blow."
"What weapon have you?" asked the Bodhisattva.
"I have one, I have one, I have one," said the Old Lord. Rolling up his sleeve, he took a circlet from his left arm and said: "This weapon was wrought and refined from tempered steel, which I transformed with the alchemy of the Returned Elixir and nourished with a whole body of numinous breath. It can transform itself, is impervious to water and fire, and can snare all things. It is called the Diamond Snare, also known as the Diamond Bracelet. In the old days when I passed through the Hangu Pass and converted the barbarians to Buddhism, I owed it much. Morning and evening it serves best to guard one's person. Let me throw it down and strike him a blow."
So saying, he hurled it down from the Gate of Heaven. Whirling round and round, it plunged straight into the camp on the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, and smack!—it caught the Monkey King square on the crown of his head.
The Monkey King, locked in bitter combat with the seven sages, never saw the weapon falling from the sky. Struck on the crown of his head, he could not keep his footing, stumbled and fell. Scrambling up, he tried to run, but Lord Erlang's hound came racing up and bit him on the calf of his leg, tumbling him down once more.
Sprawled on the ground, he cursed: "You wretched beast! Instead of jinxing your own master, you come and bite Old Monkey!"
He struggled to twist over and rise, but could not. The seven sages pressed upon him in a rush and pinned him down; they bound him with cords, and with hook-blades pierced his collarbones, so that he could transform no more.
The Old Lord retrieved the Diamond Snare and invited the Jade Emperor, together with Guanyin, the Queen Mother, and all the immortals, back into the Hall of Divine Mists.
Down below, the Four Heavenly Kings, Heavenly King Li, and the other divinities struck their camps and drew in their troops, then came forward to congratulate the Little Sage: "This is the Little Sage's achievement!"
"This was the boundless good fortune of the Celestial Worthy and the mighty authority of all the divinities," said the Little Sage. "What merit have I?"
Commandants Kang, Zhang, Yao, and Li said: "Elder brother, spare us the courtesies. Let us escort this wretch up to the Upper World to see the Jade Emperor and request his sentence."
"Worthy brothers," said the True Lord, "you have not been enrolled in Heaven's registers and may not come before the Jade Emperor. Let the armored heavenly soldiers guard him. I will go up with the Heavenly Kings to make my report. Do you lead your troops in searching the mountain; when the search is finished, return to Guankou. Wait until I have requested your rewards and claimed your merits, and we shall rejoice together."
The four Commandants and two Generals accepted his instructions.
The True Lord and his company mounted the clouds, singing songs of triumph, and returned victorious to Heaven. Before long they arrived outside the Hall of Universal Brightness.
The Heavenly Teachers announced: "The Four Heavenly Kings and all their company have captured the demon monkey, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. They await your summons."
The Jade Emperor issued his decree, commanding the Great King of the Demon Ghosts of Great Strength and the heavenly warriors to escort the prisoner to the Demon-Beheading Platform and hack the wretch's body to pieces. Ah! It is truly:
Deception's fraud now reaps the torment of the law; The hero's pride is ended in an instant.
If you would know whether the Monkey King lived or died, listen to the explanation in the next chapter.