Chapter 80: Treasure-seizing In Lotus Cave
However, Ao Tu healed Silver Horn Great King. Silver Horn Great King felt grateful for Ao Tu’s kindness and, together with Golden Horn Great King, the two wanted to acknowledge Ao Tu as their elder brother.
Ao Tu naturally agreed.
The three in that Lotus Cave set up a tablet for Heaven and Earth, also enshrined the Three Pure Ones’ images, and under their joint witness, became brothers.
In a moment, the three were all delighted.
Silver Horn Great King loudly called out: “Little ones, quickly set up a wine feast to celebrate my brother and me swearing brotherhood with Great Brother!”
Those little demons cheered together and set up the wine feast.
Fine Ghost and Clever Worm came forward, acknowledged Ao Tu as Greatest Great King, and came to beg for wine to drink.
Silver Horn Great King drank several cups of wine but was not fully satisfied, because there were no good dishes to go with the wine.
Clever Worm said: “Second Great King, how about we go cut off Pig Bajie’s ears to go with the wine.”
Fine Ghost said: “Ears are not enough to eat; cut off a pig leg too and stew it to eat!”
Golden Horn Great King said: “Don’t be petty; roast him whole and bring him up to eat!”
Fine Ghost and Clever Worm said: “Yes!”
The two little demons hurriedly went down.
Ao Tu laughed: “Two virtuous younger brothers, drink first; I’ll go down and take a look.”
Golden Horn Great King and Silver Horn Great King drank while Ao Tu went down to check on Bajie.
He saw in the back that Fine Ghost and Clever Worm were directing seven or eight little demons to use a large log to tie Bajie on top, lifting him to roast over the fire pile.
Bajie struggled on top and cursed:
“Plague-ridden monsters, you want to roast your Pig Grandpa to eat! Marshal of the Heavenly Horses, if you don’t come soon, your old pig is about to be roasted and eaten by these monsters!”
Those seven or eight little demons were already straining to lift Bajie, and with Bajie struggling, it was even harder. With tremendous effort, they finally got Bajie onto the fire pile.
The fire pile was burning, Bajie felt the heat, his body couldn’t stop shaking, the supports on both sides of the fire pile weren’t steady, they snapped with a crack, and Pig Bajie fell into the fire pile.
“Ouch!” Bajie jumped up from the burn, rolling on the ground; several little demons rushed to hold him down but couldn’t.
Ao Tu saw this, formed a spell with his fingers and chanted an incantation, used a mountain-shifting spell, and lifted Pig Bajie up.
Those little demons saw it and hurriedly called: “Greatest Great King!”
Fine Ghost said: “Greatest Great King, why have you come?”
Ao Tu laughed: “I’ve come to see how the wine dishes are coming along.”
Fine Ghost said: “Greatest Great King, this pig is too heavy, hard to roast. But don’t worry, I’ll tell the brothers to bring an axe and split him from top to bottom into two halves. Left side one slab, right side one slab, set up two fire piles and roast them separately; that’ll work!”
Ao Tu laughed: “Good, good, that’s a great idea! Quickly go arrange it!”
Fine Ghost was overjoyed at the praise and hurriedly went to arrange it.
Bajie saw it was Ao Tu and hurriedly said:
“Greatest Great King, don’t scare your old pig; for the sake of our old acquaintance, let me go this time!”
Ao Tu said: “Since we’re old acquaintances, what should you call me?”
Bajie looked around and fawningly called: “Master, let me go!”
Ao Tu laughed: “What master am I to you? When did I ever take you as a disciple?”
Bajie said: “Back at Gao Lao Village, you tricked your old pig into worshiping at the incense table with you, receiving the precepts; the dharma name Bajie was also given by you. Even if not true master and disciple, there’s still some incense and fire bond!”
Ao Tu laughed: “Good disciple, I can let you go, but only if you help me with one thing.”
Bajie said: “Any number of things is fine!”
Ao Tu said: “Promise me you’ll capture Tang Sanzang, and I’ll let you go.”
Bajie heard this, his face changed, and he refused:
“That won’t do.”
Ao Tu said: “Why not?”
Bajie said:
“If it were anything else, your old pig could agree, but to capture Master? I can’t do that. Your old pig may be a bit sloppy, but he’s not the kind to betray his master and ancestors, heartless like that!”
Ao Tu laughed: “You’re quite loyal. Since you’re loyal, don’t beg for mercy. Little ones, lock him up. Eating just him isn’t satisfying; wait until we capture that Tang Sanzang and his disciples, put the four master and disciples in a big iron pot, and stew them together to eat!”
The little demons cheered upon hearing this and locked Pig Bajie in the prison cell.
Clever Worm said: “Greatest Great King, we don’t have an iron pot that big in the cave!”
Ao Tu said: “Go get some raw iron.”
Clever Worm and the little demons brought over a pile of raw iron.
Ao Tu blew a breath of fire, melted the raw iron, then used magic power to make a ten-foot-tall big iron pot.
Those little demons excitedly circled the iron pot, saying:
“This iron pot is great; from now on, use this iron pot to stew dishes to eat!”
Ao Tu returned to the front and continued drinking with Golden Horn Great King and Silver Horn Great King.
Silver Horn Great King asked Ao Tu: “Great Brother, if that Sun Wukong comes again tomorrow, how do we deal with him?”
Ao Tu said: “You’ve fought that monkey twice; what do you think of his skills?”
Silver Horn Great King said: “Fighting him is like meeting an equal opponent, a worthy adversary.”
Golden Horn Great King looked over.
Silver Horn Great King gave an embarrassed laugh and told the truth: “That monkey is quite formidable, skilled in martial arts, and his cloud is fast. As soon as I use the treasure, he leaves; if I don’t use the treasure, I can’t beat him.”
Ao Tu said: “That monkey has faced many hardships and is now slippery. Going straight at him would indeed be hard to capture. I wonder, if you fight him for a dozen or so rounds, can you hold out?”
Silver Horn Great King said: “A dozen or so rounds, I can hold out.”
Ao Tu said: “Tomorrow, we won’t wait for the monkey; we’ll proactively go find them master and disciples. You fight Sun Wukong for a dozen rounds, then lead him to my place, and I’ll have a way to take him.”
Silver Horn Great King happily said: “Good!” He personally poured a cup of wine and offered it to Ao Tu to drink.
At that time, Tang Sanzang and his disciples were in the mountain hollow outside.
Sha Seng chopped several trees, and the master and three disciples built a shed to live in.
Tang Sanzang by the fire pile was mending clothes.
Wukong beside him laughed: “Master, you know this skill too?”
Tang Sanzang said: “When young living in the monastery, I could mend some shoes and socks. Later as a high monk, I grew rusty. Before at White Tiger Ridge, I went up the mountain to chop wood and gather herbs, tore my clothes, and asked that benefactor’s wife to mend them for me.
That benefactor said to me: ‘I heard monks’ kassaya are called patchwork robes, made from scraps of cloth donated by every household, sewn stitch by stitch. You as a monk, why can’t you mend your own clothes?’
Upon hearing this, your master felt deeply ashamed and thus picked up this craft again.”
Wukong covered his mouth and chuckled softly.
Tang Sanzang said: “Enough of that. That monster is fierce; it burned half this trouser leg. Wukong, are you alright?”
Wukong said: “Thank you for your concern, Master. Old Sun is fine; that monster fanned fire that hit half my body, Old Sun saw it and hurriedly used the fire-avoiding spell to leave, but these clothes can’t withstand burning; they were ruined as soon as they touched the fire.”
Tang Sanzang said: “As long as you’re fine. Clothes damaged, your master will mend them for you; I just don’t know how Bajie is now.”
Wukong said: “Master, rest assured; that monster was beaten badly by me, even recuperating will take a year and a half; he can’t eat Bajie. Tomorrow, Old Sun will go rescue Bajie out.”
Tang Sanzang said: “Good, good.” By the firelight, he carefully sewed Wukong’s clothes.
The night passed uneventfully.
The next day, Wukong put on the mended clothes, still his pilgrim garb, but one trouser leg was patched, the color slightly different.
On the other side, Ao Tu led Golden Horn Great King, Silver Horn Great King, and a crowd of little demons out of the cave.
Ao Tu flew in the air and spotted the position of Tang Sanzang and his disciples.
Ao Tu told Golden Horn Great King to lead the little demons in ambush; once Sun Wukong was lured away, go capture Tang Sanzang and Sha Wujing.
Ao Tu then took Silver Horn Great King and flew four hundred li to a mountain hollow in the south, took out the peach wood staff, pointed it at the ground, and a peach grove dozens of li wide grew on the ground.
Pink plump peaches hung on the trees, their fragrance filling the air.
Ao Tu instructed Silver Horn Great King: “Don’t get entangled in battle; lead Sun Wukong here, and I’ll deal with him.”
Silver Horn Great King agreed, picked up the Seven Star Sword, and went to find Tang Sanzang and his disciples.
Silver Horn Great King cloud-rode and soon flew to the position of Tang Sanzang and his disciples.
Wukong saw the monster cloud and hurriedly said: “Bad, Junior Brother Sha, protect Master!”
Sha Seng hurriedly shielded Tang Sanzang behind him.
Wukong cloud-rode up and saw it was Silver Horn Great King, saying:
“My boy, you’re a dog-breed monster; your bones were just broken yesterday, and you’re fine today!”
Silver Horn Great King said: “Sun Wukong, don’t boast with words. That fan didn’t burn you yesterday; today, whose broken pants did you steal and sew on?”
Sun Wukong angrily said: “You monster, blind as you are. This was sewn for me by my master Tang Sanzang with cloth from alms-begging. Wearing this is better than immortal-woven cloud brocade; don’t go, take my staff!”
Wukong brandished his staff to strike.
Silver Horn Great King wielded the Seven Star Sword against him.
They fought a dozen rounds; Silver Horn Great King spat out the Treasure Fan, Wukong saw it and turned to leave.
Silver Horn Great King put away the Treasure Fan and ran back.
Wukong turned back to chase.
Silver Horn Great King cloud-rode four hundred li and dove into the peach grove.
Wukong chased in too but lost sight of Silver Horn Great King.
Wukong chased all the way and felt a bit hungry and thirsty; seeing peach trees all around with fragrant peaches, he couldn’t resist wanting to eat.
Wukong used his fiery golden eyes to look; seeing the peaches were real, he picked one and ate it.
Juice overflowed, sweet and delicious.
Wukong ate two; not far off on a tree was a ripe big red fresh peach, so he jumped over, sat in the tree, picked that peach, and ate it.
At that moment, Wukong saw a golden rope hanging on a tree branch.
“What’s this?”
Wukong curiously picked up the rope to look.
Ao Tu recited the tightening rope incantation, and the rope wrapped toward Wukong.
Wukong exclaimed in alarm: “Bad!”
He turned to use his somersault cloud to leave, but it was too late; the Golden Rope tightly bound him, he couldn’t move, and fell to the ground.
Silver Horn Great King came out laughing: “Great! Finally caught this monkey! Great Brother, thanks to you avenging me!”
Ao Tu came out: “No big deal; this is the merit of the Golden Rope.”
Silver Horn Great King said: “Without Great Brother’s transformation into the peach grove, let alone using the Golden Rope, even slightly moving it, this monkey would have left; it’s Great Brother’s strategy that worked!”
Wukong twisted on the ground: “Ao Tu, demon dragon, it’s you tricking your Old Sun again!”
Ao Tu ignored him, carefully searched his body, and found the Purple Gold Red Gourd. Just as he took the Purple Gold Red Gourd, Ao Tu had a thought:
“This gourd is precisely a congenital object. Though not a living being, it is still formed congenitally. If I borrow it to study and observe its principles, it will greatly benefit my path!”
Following many friends’ suggestions, split the chapter into two, and changed the chapter names too. Wondering if this format works?
PS: The author is terrible at naming; just these two names took over ten minutes to think of.
