The story continues: When Sanzang was carried out of the cave by the demon, the Sha Monk came forward and asked: "Master, you're out—where is Elder Brother?"
Bajie said: "He's got a plan. He must have traded himself for the master." Sanzang pointed at the demon and said: "Your elder brother is inside her belly." Bajie laughed: "Filthy business! What's he doing in there? Come on out!" The Pilgrim called from inside: "Open your mouth and let me out!" The demon indeed opened her mouth.
The Pilgrim shrank himself tiny and was just emerging from her throat when he feared she might snap her jaws and bite him. He took out his iron staff, blew a fairy breath on it, and cried "Change!"—it turned into a jujube-pit peg that propped her upper jaw open. He gave a leap, jumped out of her mouth, whisked the staff out after him, arched his back, and resumed his true form and dharma body. He raised his staff and struck. The demon, at the same time, whipped out her twin swords and clashed them to block. The two of them on the mountaintop—what a battle!
Twin swords flew, parrying face to face; The gold-banded cudgel rose, aimed at the head. One was the Heaven-born monkey breed, the Mind-Ape's body; One was the Earth-produced spirit, the Fair Maiden's frame. The two of them, hearts full of hatred, Joy turned to vengeance—a great contest on the field. She wanted to take his primal yang and make a mate; He wanted to conquer her pure yin and form the holy elixir. The staff rose up—a sky of cold fog rolled; The swords met—a ground of black dust sifted. All for the elder, to worship the Tathagata, They fought in bitter struggle, each showing great power. Water and fire cannot mix—the mother principle suffers harm; Yin and yang cannot join—they part and go their ways. The two fought for a long time, Till the earth shook, the mountains trembled, and the trees were shattered.
Bajie, watching them fight, kept up a running commentary of complaints, resenting the Pilgrim. He turned to the Sha Monk and said:
"Brother, Elder Brother is confused! Just now he was inside her belly. He could have swung his fists, punched her into a belly full of red, and burst out through her stomach—wouldn't that have been the end of it? Instead he comes out of her mouth and fights her, letting her run so wild!"
The Sha Monk said: "True, but we owe it to Elder Brother for getting the master out of the deep cave, and now he's fighting the demon again. Let's have the master sit here by himself, and you and I take our weapons and help Elder Brother bring down the demon." Bajie waved his hand: "No, no, no! She has magic powers—we're not up to it." The Sha Monk said: "What are you saying! This is for everyone's benefit. Even if we're not up to it, even a fart adds to the wind." The idiot, fired up at last, snatched up his rake and shouted: "Let's go!" The two of them, not even looking back at the master, sprang up on the wind and rushed forward, raising rake and staff to strike the demon from all sides.
The demon, who already could not hold her own against the Pilgrim, now saw two more charging in. How could she fight? She turned and fled. The Pilgrim shouted: "Brothers, after her!" The demon, seeing them pressing close, pulled the flowered shoe off her right foot, blew on it a fairy breath, recited a spell, and cried "Change!" The shoe turned into a copy of herself, wielding twin swords and dancing forward. Her true body flickered, turned to a gust of clean wind, and was gone.
She thought she could not win the fight and was racing home to save her life—but who could have known this would happen!
And it was Sanzang's star of disaster still unspent: when the demon reached the archway at the cave mouth, there was the Tang Priest sitting all alone. She rushed up, seized him in one arm, grabbed the baggage, bit through the horse's reins, and carried the man, the horse, and all back inside the cave. We shall speak no more of that.
Now Bajie, spotting a gap, swung his rake and brought the demon crashing down—but it was a flowered shoe.
The Pilgrim saw and said: "You two idiots! Watching the master was all you had to do—who asked you to come and help?"
Bajie said: "Sha Monk, you see! I said don't come. This monkey has got some madness in the head. We help him subdue the demon, and he turns around and complains about us!" The Pilgrim said: "Where did you subdue a demon? That demon used the same shoe trick on me yesterday to fool me. You two ran off—now who knows what's happened to the master. Let's go look, quick!" The three hurried back, and sure enough—the master was gone, and the baggage and the white horse along with him.
Bajie ran frantically back and forth. The Sha Monk searched high and low. The Great Sage Sun too was burning with impatience. As they searched, they suddenly saw on the road a half-length of reins lying askew. The Pilgrim picked it up, and tears he could not hold back streamed from his eyes. He cried aloud:
"Master! When I left, I said goodbye to man and horse; When I came back, I found only this bit of rope!" Truly, seeing the saddle makes one think of the fine horse; shedding tears, one thinks of one's loved one. Bajie saw him weeping and could not help throwing back his head and laughing.
The Pilgrim cursed: "You blockhead! You want to break up the party again!"
Bajie laughed again: "Brother, that's not it. The master must have been taken back into the cave by the demon. As the saying goes, 'Things succeed on the third try.' You've been in the cave twice—go in once more, and you'll surely get the master out." The Pilgrim wiped his tears and said: "All right—things being what they are, I have no choice. I'll go in again. You two have no baggage or horse to worry about—just guard the cave mouth well."
Good Great Sage! He turned and leapt into the cave. This time he did not change his form—he went in his own true dharma body. Truly:
A strange, odd face, a heart of iron, A monster from his youth, with godlike might. His face, high and low, could rival a saddle bow; His eyes shot golden light, bright as fire. His whole body covered in hair, stiff as steel needles; His tiger-skin kilt hung with ringing flowers. In Heaven he scattered ten thousand clouds; In the sea he churned up a thousand layers of waves. With his own strength he fought the Heavenly King head-on; He drove back a hundred and eight thousand generals. Ennobled as the Great Sage, the Handsome Monkey King, His hand ever wields the gold-banded cudgel. Today on the Western road he shows his powers anew, Returning to the cave to save Sanzang.
He halted his cloud light and went straight to the demon's dwelling. He saw the gatehouse door was shut. Not caring whether it was wise, he swung his iron staff and smashed it open, then charged in. But inside it was dead silent, without a trace of anyone. In the eastern corridor, no Tang Priest. In the pavilion, the tables, chairs, and all the household goods—every single item, gone.
It turned out that her cave was over three hundred li in circumference, with many demon lairs. The first time she seized the Tang Priest there, the Pilgrim found him. This time, fearing he would come looking again, she had moved out—no one knew where.
This so vexed the Pilgrim that he stamped his feet and beat his breast, crying at the top of his voice: "Master! You are a Tang Sanzang made of bad luck, a scripture-seeking monk forged from disaster! Bah! This road I know well—how can she not be here? Where is old Sun to find her?"
As he was shouting and fuming, suddenly he caught a whiff of incense smoke. He collected himself and said: "This incense smoke drifts from the back—she must be in there." He strode forward, staff in hand, and went to look. Still no sign of anything. Then he saw three back rooms, and against the rear wall stood a carved lacquer altar table with a dragon's-head design. On the table was a large gilded incense burner, and from it rose fragrant smoke.
Above it was set up a large gilded name tablet. On the tablet was written: "To My Venerable Father, Heavenly King Li." Below it, slightly smaller: "To My Venerable Brother, the Third Prince Nezha."
When the Pilgrim saw this, his heart filled with joy. He did not bother to search for the demon or the Tang Priest. He shrank his iron staff into an embroidery needle, tucked it behind his ear, reached out, snatched up the tablet and incense burner, turned on his cloud, and went straight out the cave mouth. At the cave entrance he laughed and laughed, hooting and hollering without end.
Bajie and the Sha Monk heard him. They set down their guard at the cave mouth and came to meet him: "Brother, so happy—have you rescued the master?"
The Pilgrim laughed: "No need for us to rescue him. We just ask this tablet for the man." Bajie said: "Brother, that tablet isn't a demon—it can't talk. How do you ask it for the man?" The Pilgrim set it on the ground and said:
"Look!" The Sha Monk came forward and read: "To My Venerable Father, Heavenly King Li." "To My Venerable Brother, the Third Prince Nezha."
The Sha Monk said: "What does this mean?" The Pilgrim said: "This is what the demon worshipped in her home. I barged into her dwelling—no one there, only this tablet. So she must be the daughter of the Heavenly King Li, sister of the Third Prince, who longed for the mortal world and came down to become a demon and seize my master. If we don't ask them for the man, who do we ask? You two guard this place. Old Sun will take this tablet to Heaven and file a petition before the Jade Emperor, and make the Heavenly King father and son return my master." Bajie said:
"Brother, as the saying goes, 'To accuse a man of a capital crime, you'd better have a capital case.' You need solid grounds before you can do it. And a petition before the Emperor—is that something to file lightly? Tell me, how will you word it?" The Pilgrim laughed: "I have a plan. I'll use this tablet and incense burner as evidence, and write out a separate paper petition." Bajie said:
"How will the petition read? Read it to me."
The Pilgrim said:
"The plaintiff, Sun Wukong, of age as recorded on his ordination certificate, is a disciple of Tang Sanzang, a scripture-seeking monk sent from Great Tang in the Eastern Land to the Western Heaven. This is a complaint regarding a false demon seizing and trapping persons.
Now, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing, together with his son Prince Nezha, have been negligent in their household discipline. Their own daughter has escaped and gone down to the mortal world, to the Mountain of Sunken Emptiness, the Bottomless Cave, where she has transformed into a demon and deluded and killed countless people. She has now seized my master and trapped him in a winding, deep cave, with no way to find him. If I do not file this complaint, I submit that the father and son are unkind, having allowed their daughter to become a demon and harm the people.
I humbly beg that this complaint be received and approved, that they be summoned to court, the demon seized, the master rescued, and the crime properly punished. This would be a great kindness.
This complaint is hereby submitted."
When Bajie and the Sha Monk heard this, they were greatly pleased: "Brother, the complaint is sound. You'll surely win. But you must come back quickly—if you're slow, the demon may do the master harm." The Pilgrim said: "I'll be fast! I'll be fast! By the time the rice is cooked—no, by the time the tea boils, I'll be back."
Good Great Sage! Taking the tablet and incense burner, he leapt up and rode his auspicious cloud straight to the South Gate of Heaven. The heavenly gatekeepers, the Great Spirit God and the Kingdom-Protecting Heavenly King, saw the Pilgrim coming and each bent his back and bowed, not daring to bar his way. They let him through.
He went straight to the Hall of Universal Brightness, where the Four Great Heavenly Masters—Zhang, Ge, Xu, and Qiu—came forward and greeted him: "Great Sage, what brings you here?" The Pilgrim said: "I have a paper petition. I want to sue two people." The heavenly masters were startled: "This rascal—who does he mean to sue?" They had no choice but to lead him into the Lingxiao Hall and announce him. By imperial decree he was admitted. The Pilgrim set down the tablet and incense burner, bowed to the throne, and presented his petition. The immortal Ge took it, unfolded it, and laid it on the imperial desk.
The Jade Emperor read it from beginning to end. Seeing what it contained, he endorsed the petition as an imperial decree and ordered the Planet Venus, Taibai Jinxing of the West, to take the decree to the Cloud Tower Palace and summon the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li to present himself.
The Pilgrim stepped forward and petitioned: "May the Heavenly Lord punish him strictly—otherwise there will be more trouble."
The Jade Emperor also said: "The plaintiff shall go too." The Pilgrim said: "Old Sun goes too?"
The Four Heavenly Masters said: "His Majesty has issued the decree. You may go together with the Planet Venus."
The Pilgrim indeed followed the Planet Venus, and they rode the clouds to the Cloud Tower Palace. It was the Heavenly King's residence, called the Cloud Tower Palace.
The Planet Venus saw a boy attendant at the palace gate. The boy recognized the Planet Venus and went in to report: "Lord Taibai Jinxing has arrived."
The Heavenly King came out to welcome him. Seeing the Planet Venus bearing a decree, he ordered incense burned. Then he turned and saw the Pilgrim following him in—and the Heavenly King grew angry. Why did he grow angry?
Years ago, when the Pilgrim wreaked havoc in Heaven, the Jade Emperor had appointed the Heavenly King as Great Marshal Who Subdues Demons, and Prince Nezha as the Spirit of the Three Altars and the Ocean Assembly. They had led the heavenly troops to subdue the Pilgrim, but after many battles could not prevail. It was the grudge from that defeat five hundred years ago that still rankled—and so he grew angry. He could not hold back and said:
"Old Venus, what decree do you bring?"
The Planet Venus said: "It is the Great Sage Sun's petition against you." The Heavenly King, already annoyed, heard the word "petition" and flew into a towering rage: "What does he sue me for?" The Planet Venus said: "He sues you for a false demon seizing and trapping persons. You've burned the incense—read it for yourself." The Heavenly King, huffing with anger, set up an incense table and gave thanks to Heaven.
After the bows, he opened the decree and read it. It was thus and thus, so and so. He slammed his hand on the incense table and said: "This monkey head! He has accused me falsely!"
The Planet Venus said: "Calm your anger. There is the tablet and incense burner as evidence before the throne, saying she is your own daughter." The Heavenly King said: "I have only three sons and one daughter. My eldest is Jinzha, who serves the Tathagata as a frontline dharma-protector. My second is Muzha, a disciple following the Bodhisattva Guanyin in the South Sea. My third is Nezha, who is by my side, attending the court day and night. My daughter is only seven years old, named Zhenying—she does not even understand the affairs of the world yet. How could she be a demon?
If you don't believe me, I'll carry her out and show you. This monkey head is truly insolent! Never mind that I am a great meritorious minister of Heaven, invested with the authority to execute first and report after—even if I were a common citizen of the lower world, I could not be falsely accused. The law says: a false accusation adds three degrees of punishment."
He called his subordinates: "Bring the demon-binding rope and tie up this monkey head!"
In the courtyard below stood the Great Spirit God, the Fish-Belly General, and the Yaksha Commander. They surged forward and bound the Pilgrim.
The Planet Venus said: "Heavenly King Li, don't cause a disaster! I came before the throne with him, bearing the decree to summon you. That rope of yours is heavy—if you bind him too tightly and harm him, he'll suffocate."
The Heavenly King said: "Venus, with this kind of false, fraudulent accusation, how can I let him off! Sit down. Let me fetch the demon-cutting blade and cut off this monkey's head, and then go with you to see the Emperor and report!" The Planet Venus saw him reach for his blade and was terrified. He said to the Pilgrim: "You've bungled this. A petition before the Emperor—is that something to file lightly? You didn't even check the facts. If you mess about like this and he takes your life, what then?" The Pilgrim was completely unfazed. He smiled and said: "Old sir, don't worry. Nothing will happen. Old Sun's business is always done this way—lose first, win later."
Before he could finish, the Heavenly King swung his blade and brought it down on the Pilgrim's head. But the Third Prince leapt forward, caught the blade on his waist-cutting sword, and called: "Father, stay your anger!" The Heavenly King turned pale with fright. Oh!
A father seeing his son block his blade with a sword should have ordered him away—why did he turn pale with fright? It turns out that when the Heavenly King's son was born, the character "Ne" (哪) was on his left palm, and "Zha" (吒) on his right—hence the name Nezha. At three days old, this prince had gone down to the sea to bathe and caused havoc—he kicked over the Crystal Palace and seized a flood dragon, wanting to draw its sinews for a belt. The Heavenly King, fearing future trouble, wanted to kill him.
Nezha, in fury, took a blade, cut off his own flesh to repay his mother, and carved out his bones to repay his father. Having returned the father's seed and the mother's blood, his solitary soul went straight to the Western Paradise to appeal to the Buddha. The Buddha was lecturing to the bodhisattvas when, amid banners and jeweled canopies, someone cried: "Save me!" The Buddha's all-seeing eye saw that it was Nezha's soul. He used green lotus root for bone and lotus leaf for skin, and recited the true incantation of resurrection. Nezha came back to life.
With his divine powers, he subdued ninety-six cave-demons, and his magic was vast. Later he wanted to kill the Heavenly King, to avenge the bone-carving. The Heavenly King, helpless, appealed to my Lord, the Tathagata. The Tathagata, valuing harmony, gave him a wish-fulfilling golden pagoda of relics, exquisite and finely wrought. On each level of the pagoda were Buddhas, shining with brilliant light. He bade Nezha regard the Buddha as his father, and thus the feud was resolved. This is why he is called the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li.
Today, being at leisure at home, he had not been holding the pagoda. Fearing that Nezha might still harbor thoughts of revenge, he went pale with fright.
He reached back at once, took the golden pagoda from its stand, held it in his hand, and asked Nezha: "My son, you blocked my blade with your sword—what do you have to say?"
Nezha dropped his sword and kowtowed: "Father, you do have a daughter in the lower world." The Heavenly King said: "My son, I only had you four siblings—where would another daughter come from?" Nezha said: "Father, you have forgotten. That daughter was originally a demon spirit. Three hundred years ago she became a monster and stole the Tathagata's scented flowers and precious candles at Vulture Peak. The Tathagata dispatched us father and son with heavenly soldiers to capture her. When she was caught, she should have been killed. But the Tathagata said: 'Water raised to feed fish is never fished out; deer fed in the deep mountains are left to live long.' He spared her life then. Out of gratitude for that mercy, she bowed to Father as her father and to me as her brother, and set up a tablet below, burning incense in worship. We did not expect her to become a demon again and trap the Tang Priest. But Sun Wukong searched out her lair, took the tablet, and used it to file a petition before the Emperor.
She is an adopted daughter of gratitude, not my own sister of the same womb." When the Heavenly King heard this, he was startled and amazed:
"My son, I truly forgot. What is her name?" The prince said: "She has three names:
By her true origin, she is called the gold-nosed, white-haired rat spirit. After stealing the scented flowers and precious candles, she changed her name to the Half-Bodied Guanyin. Now, having been spared and sent down to the lower world, she changed it again—she calls herself the Lady Who Bursts from the Earth." The Heavenly King finally understood. He set down the pagoda and reached out to untie the Pilgrim himself. But the Pilgrim, playing the rogue, said:
"Nobody untie me! You can carry me, ropes and all, before the Emperor—then old Sun wins his case!" The Heavenly King's hands went weak with panic. The prince was speechless. The generals slunk away. The Great Sage rolled on the ground, playing the rascal, insisting that the Heavenly King go before the Emperor. The Heavenly King, at his wit's end, begged the Planet Venus to mediate. The Planet Venus said: "As the ancients said, 'In all things, lean to mercy.' You acted too harshly—binding him and then wanting to kill him.
This monkey is a famous rogue. How can you expect me to deal with him now? By your son's account, she is a daughter of gratitude, not a true daughter. But still, the bond is heavy. However you argue it, you still bear some blame." The Heavenly King said: "Old Star, find a way to let me off." The Planet Venus said:
"I'd like to mediate between you, but I have no argument to make."
The Heavenly King laughed: "Tell him about the time you handled the amnesty and conferred the official title—that will do it." And so the Planet Venus went up to the Pilgrim, patted him, and said: "Great Sage, for my sake, let him untie the ropes so you can go before the Emperor." The Pilgrim said: "Old sir, no need to untie. I know how to roll. I'll roll all the way there." The Planet Venus laughed: "You monkey, you are too ungrateful. In years past I showed you some kindness. For this small matter, you won't do as I say?"
The Pilgrim said: "What kindness did you show me?"
The Planet Venus said: "Years ago, when you were a monster on the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, subduing tigers and dragons, erasing your name from the registers of death, gathering demons and running wild—when Heaven wanted to seize you, it was I who urged that you be granted amnesty and summoned to Heaven, where you were appointed Keeper of the Heavenly Horses. After you drank the Jade Emperor's immortal wine and caused more trouble, it was again I who urged amnesty and had you titled the Great Sage Equal to Heaven. Then you did not keep your place—you stole peaches, pilfered wine, and burgled Lord Lao Zi's elixir. And so on, and so forth—until you attained the state of neither birth nor destruction. If not for me, how would you be here today?" The Pilgrim said: "The ancients said it well: 'When you die, don't share a grave with an old man—he'll cleanly dig up all your faults!' I was only the Keeper of the Heavenly Horses and wreaked havoc in Heaven—nothing so grand. All right, all right—for your sake, let him untie me himself." The Heavenly King then dared to step forward and untie the bonds. He invited the Pilgrim to dress, take the seat of honor, and came forward one by one to bow.
The Pilgrim turned to the Planet Venus and said: "Old sir, you see? I said it—lose first, win later. That's how the business is done. Now hurry him to the Emperor—don't delay my master's rescue."
The Planet Venus said: "Don't rush. After all this fuss, at least have a cup of tea." The Pilgrim said: "You drink his tea, take his bribe, let the prisoner go, slight the imperial decree—what crime would that be for you?" The Planet Venus said: "No tea! No tea! Now he's dragging me into it too! Heavenly King Li, go, go!" The Heavenly King did not dare to go—he feared the Pilgrim would make something out of nothing, play the rogue, and rave, and how could he argue with him? He had no choice but to beg the Planet Venus again to mediate.
The Planet Venus said: "I have a suggestion. Will you go along?"
The Pilgrim said: "The binding and the blade-swinging, I already let pass for your sake. What else is there? Speak!
Speak! If it sounds good, I'll agree. If not, don't blame me."
The Planet Venus said: "A lawsuit started in a day takes ten days to settle. You filed a petition, saying the demon is the Heavenly King's daughter. The Heavenly King says she is not. The two of you will argue back and forth before the throne, endlessly. Now, they say one day in Heaven is a year in the world below. In that year, the demon will have your master trapped in the cave. Never mind a wedding—if she bears a son, you'll have a little monk on your hands—won't that ruin everything?"
The Pilgrim hung his head and thought: "True! I left Bajie and the Sha Monk saying I'd be back by the time the rice was cooked, the tea was boiled. It's already been a while—am I not late? Old sir, if I go along with you, how do I return the decree?"
The Planet Venus said: "Have the Heavenly King muster his troops and go down with you to subdue the demon. I'll go back and report." The Pilgrim said:
"How will you report?" The Planet Venus said: "I'll say that the plaintiff fled, and the defendant is released from the charge." The Pilgrim laughed: "Ha! I was doing you a favor, and you say I fled! Have him muster the troops and wait for me outside the South Gate of Heaven. I'll come with you to report and withdraw the petition." The Heavenly King, still afraid, said: "If he goes and says anything, it will be a minister betraying his lord." The Pilgrim said: "What kind of man do you take old Sun for? I too am a man of honor! A word once spoken cannot be chased by four horses—how could I slander you?" The Heavenly King thanked the Pilgrim. The Pilgrim went with the Planet Venus to report.
The Heavenly King mustered his own heavenly troops and went straight out the South Gate of Heaven.
The Planet Venus returned to the Jade Emperor and reported: "The one who trapped the Tang Priest is a gold-nosed, white-haired rat spirit. She had falsely set up tablets of the Heavenly King father and son. The Heavenly King, upon learning this, has already mustered his troops to go and capture the demon. I beg Your Majesty to pardon the offense."
The Jade Emperor, already knowing the facts, granted his heavenly mercy and waived all charges. The Pilgrim turned his cloud light around, went out the South Gate of Heaven, and saw the Heavenly King, the prince, and the heavenly troops arrayed and waiting. Oh! Those divine generals, in rolling winds and billowing mists, fell in with the Great Sage. Together they brought down the clouds and soon arrived at the Mountain of Sunken Emptiness.
Bajie and the Sha Monk, eyes wide with waiting, saw the heavenly troops and the Pilgrim arrive. The idiot went up to the Heavenly King and bowed: "Sorry to trouble you! Sorry to trouble you!" The Heavenly King said: "Canopy Marshal, you wouldn't know—just because my father and son accepted one stick of her incense, the demon had the audacity to trap your master. Forgive our delay. This is the Mountain of Sunken Emptiness? But which way does her cave door open?" The Pilgrim said:
"This road I know well. But this cave is called the Bottomless Cave, over three hundred li in circumference, with many demon lairs. Last time my master was in the two-eaved gatehouse. This time it's dead silent—not a ghost of a trace. She must have moved somewhere else."
The Heavenly King said: "Let her try a thousand tricks—she cannot escape the heavenly net. We'll go to the cave mouth and take it from there." They all set off. In about ten li, they reached the great stone.
The Pilgrim pointed at the jar-mouth-sized hole: "There it is." The Heavenly King said: "How will you catch the tiger cub without entering the tiger's den? Who dares go first?" The Pilgrim said: "I'll go first." The Third Prince said: "I was ordered to subdue demons—I'll go first." The idiot, rough and blunt, bellowed: "At the head, it's still old Pig!" The Heavenly King said: "No need to quarrel. Follow my deployment: Sun Wukong and the prince will lead the troops down inside. The three of us will guard the mouth—an inside-outside pincer. We'll give her no road to Heaven, no door to Earth. That will show some real skill." Everyone answered: "Yes!"
See the Pilgrim and the Third Prince, leading the troops, swoop into the hole. They rode the cloud light, shimmering and glittering. They looked up—indeed, what a cave!
Still the twin wheels of sun and moon, Lighting the same wide vistas of mountain and stream. Jade wells and pearl pools breathe warm mists; There is much here to admire. Tier upon tier of vermillion towers and painted pavilions; Lofty red cliffs and blue-green fields. Third-month willows and ninth-month lotus— What a rare cave heaven indeed!
In an instant they halted their cloud light and went straight to the demon's old dwelling. Door by door they searched, shouting and hollering, one hall after another, one place after another. They trampled the grass flat across those three hundred li—but where was a demon? Where was Sanzang?
They all said: "That wretch must have slipped out of this cave long ago and gone far away."
But little did they know that in the dark southeastern corner, looking down, there was another small cave. Inside the cave was a tiny door, a low little room, with a few pot-grown flowers and several bamboo by the eaves. Black mists curled, dark fragrance hung heavy. The old demon had seized Sanzang and moved him here, forcing the marriage—thinking the Pilgrim would never find him.
But her fate was sealed. Inside, the little demons were buzzing and chattering, jostling and crowding. One of them, bolder than the rest, craned his neck and peeked outside—and ran headlong into a heavenly soldier. The soldier cried: "Here they are!" The Pilgrim, inflamed, gripped his gold-banded cudgel and charged in. Inside it was narrow and cramped—a whole den of demons.
The Third Prince launched the heavenly troops. They swarmed in. Where could the demons hide? The Pilgrim found the Tang Priest, the dragon horse, and the baggage. The old demon, seeing no way out, could only kowtow to Prince Nezha, begging for her life. The prince said:
"This is an imperial decree to capture you—this is no small matter. My father and son accepted one stick of incense from you, and nearly—like a monk dragging timber—built ourselves a temple!" [Translator's note: 寺 (sì, "temple") is a pun for 事 (shì, "trouble"). The saying means "to get into trouble."]
He barked: "Heavenly soldiers, bring out the demon-binding ropes and tie up all these demons!" The old demon could not escape a taste of suffering. They turned their clouds and all came out of the cave. The Pilgrim was laughing and joking the whole way.
The Heavenly King opened the cave mouth and greeted the Pilgrim: "This time you've got your master back."
The Pilgrim said: "Many thanks! Many thanks!" He led Sanzang to bow and thank the Heavenly King, and then the prince.
The Sha Monk and Bajie wanted to hack the old demon to pieces. The Heavenly King said: "She was taken by imperial decree. She cannot be dealt with lightly. We still need to go back and report."
On one side, the Heavenly King and the Third Prince led the heavenly troops and generals, escorting the demon, to report to the Heavenly Bureau for her sentence. On the other side, the Pilgrim helped the Tang Priest. The Sha Monk packed the baggage. Bajie brought the horse. They seated the Tang Priest on the horse and set out on the great road. Truly:
The silken vines were severed, the golden sea drained; The jade lock was broken, and out of the cage they strode.
But what lay ahead on their journey—listen to the explanation in the next chapter.