Journey 029: Bloody Vengeance
Dismissed by San Zang for his killing spree, Sun Wukong decides to let out some steam with … a killing spree.
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Transcript
Welcome to the Chinese Lore Podcast, where I retell classic Chinese stories in English. This is episode 29 of Journey to the West.
Last time, a demon called Lady White Bone tried three times to get a piece of San Zang while the pilgrims were crossing her mountain. Sun Wukong tried to kill her three times, finally succeeding on the third attempt. But his master San Zang, being cursed with mortal eyes that couldn’t tell demons from humans, thought he had killed three innocent people. An irate San Zang promptly dismissed Sun Wukong from the group, going so far as to write an official dismissal letter and pledging that were he to ever meet with Wukong again, he would rot in hell.
Sun Wukong had no choice but to leave. He took to the air and zoomed toward his former home, Flower and Fruit Mountain on the East Sea. As he approached the seashore, he could hear the waves crashing. Now, his mind was filled again with thoughts of his former master, and he couldn’t help but stop and weep for a good while before resuming his flight.
As he flew over the sea, he couldn’t help but sigh and say to himself, “I haven’t come this way for 500 years.”
Before long, he had crossed the sea and arrived above Flower and Fruit Mountain. As he surveyed the landscape below, however, he saw that the mountain was barren of vegetation. Its fog and mist had dissipated. Its peaks had crumbled, and its forests had withered.
So, the last time we were actually here, it was right after Sun Wukong had been captured by the forces of heaven. While Sun Wukong was hustled off to heaven for his punishment, the god who captured him, Erlang, ordered his men to set fire to the mountain, leaving behind this destruction.
This pitiful sight made Sun Wukong even more depressed. Just then, he saw a few little monkeys leap out from in front of a slope. They rushed forward, surrounded him, and kowtowed, shouting, “Great Sage! You’re back?!”
“Why were you all hiding instead of being out and about?” he asked them. “I’ve been back for a while and didn’t see any sign of you. How come?”
The monkeys wept and told him, “After you were captured and taken to heaven, we’ve been assaulted by hunters. They had strong bows, vicious eagles and hounds, and countless nets and hooks. In order to save ourselves, we’ve gone into hiding deep in the caves, far away from our homes. Just now, we snuck out to steal a few bites of grass and a sip of water from the spring. But we heard your voice, so we came to welcome you.”
This report only added to Wukong’s melancholy. He asked how many monkeys remained on the mountain, and they told him only about a thousand.
“I used to have 47,000 demons. What happened to them?” he asked.
“After you left, Erlang set fire to the mountain and that burned the majority of our forces to death. The survivors stayed alive by squatting in wells, lying in streams, or hiding under the iron bridge. After the fire went out, we came out but there were no more fruits. It was hard to survive, so half of the survivors left. Those of us in the other half have been hanging on in the mountain. But then, these last couple years, hunters have captured half of our numbers.”
“Why did they capture you?”
“These hunters are so despicable. The monkeys who were killed by their arrows, spears, and poison are skinned, deboned, and cooked for food. The ones who are trapped and taken alive are forced to jump through hoops, do somersaults, or stand straight on the streets for show. There’s nothing they won’t make us do.”
Sun Wukong was incensed. He asked who was in charge on the mountain, and the little monkeys told him that his four senior monkey generals were still around and managing affairs. So he sent them to tell their leaders. The little monkeys did so, and soon, the four senior monkey generals rushed out to welcome their king back into the Water Curtain Cave.
Once Wukong sat down in his throne, his minions kowtowed to him and asked, “Great Sage, we recently heard that you managed to stay alive and were protecting the Tang monk to the West to fetch scriptures. Why are you back here instead?”
“Little ones, you don’t know the half of it! That San Zang is ignorant and foolish. I used all my skills along the way to protect him and kill a bunch of demons. Yet he said I was committing violence and didn’t want me as a disciple. So he dismissed me and chased me away. He even wrote a letter as proof, stating that he will never talk to me again.”
All the monkeys clapped and laughed, “What great luck! Why be a monk? Come home and have fun with us for a few years instead!”
They then called for wine to celebrate, but Wukong said, “Forget the wine for now. Tell me, how often do those hunters come to the mountain?”
“No matter the time of year, they’re here every single day,” two of his senior generals said.
“Why haven’t they come today?”
“They’ll be here.”
“Little ones, go gather up the burnt, shattered rocks from the mountain and arrange them in piles. I’ll have a use for them.”
So the monkeys swarmed out and quickly created numerous piles of stones. Wukong then told them to go hide in the cave while he did his thing. He now kept watch from a peak. Soon, he heard the sound of drums and gongs coming from the south. He saw about a thousand vicious looking men, leading eagles and hunting hounds and wielding knives and spears.
As he watched them come up his mountain, Wukong was pissed. He muttered a spell and blew a breath toward the ground. A wild gale immediately whipped up, sending the piles of loose stones swirling into the air and besieging the hunters. Blitzed by this sudden hail of rocks, the hunters were helpless as the flying stones shattered their heads, knocked over their horses, and left their dead bodies strewn across the mountainside.
Having avenged his tribe with this grisly act, Wukong descended from the clouds and laughed. “Awesome! Ever since I started following the Tang monk, he always nagged me and said, ‘Not even a thousand days of kind deeds are enough, but one day of wickedness is too much.’ Seriously. I killed a few demons and he accused me of committing violence. Well, today I’ve come home and killed all these hunters.”
So yeah, here’s another segment that didn’t quite make it into the family-friendly version of TV and movie adaptations of the novel. In any case, Wukong then called out his monkeys and told them, “Go to the south slope and remove the clothes from all the dead hunters. Wash off the blood and put them on to protect yourselves from the cold. Throw all the dead bodies into the deep lake. Bring the dead horses back. Remove their skins to make boots, and preserve the meat so we can enjoy them slowly. And take the hunters’ weapons for yourselves. And bring back their banners for our own use.”
The monkeys did as he instructed. He used the cleaned-up banners to make a large flag, on which he wrote the words: “Rebuilding Flower and Fruit Mountain, Reviving Water Curtain Cave, the Great Sage of Heaven.” He erected the flag outside the cave and started recruiting demon lackeys and building up his provisions. Soon, he had put his monk days far behind him. He also went to visit the dragon kings of the four seas to borrow some magical water, which he used to wash clean his mountain. He then planted elms, willows, pines, cedars, peaches, plums, jujubes, and apricot trees all over the mountain. Soon, Flower and Fruit Mountain had regained its former glory, and Wukong and his monkeys returned to their carefree lives.
Meanwhile, on the road heading West, San Zang and his two remaining disciples continued their journey after he dismissed Sun Wukong. Zhu Bajie led the way, while Sha Zeng carried the luggage in the rear. After they crossed over White Tiger Ridge, they came upon a thick forest.
San Zang said to his pupils, “The mountain roads were treacherous, and now we have this dense forest. We must be careful. There might be demons or beasts inside.”
So Zhu Bajie told Sha Zeng to lead the horse, while he paved the way into the forest with his rake. After they traveled for a bit, San Zang stopped and said, “Bajie, I’m really hungry. Where can we find some food?”
“Master, please rest here while I go find food,” Bajie said. So San Zang dismounted, while Sha Zeng set down the luggage and handed Bajie their alms bowl.
“Where are you going?” San Zang asked Bajie as he started to head off.
“No need to ask. Even if I have to go through ice and fire, I will come back with food for you.”
So Zhu Bajie headed off. He exited the forest and traveled West for a few miles, but didn’t come across a single household. This was the middle of nowhere, and Zhu Bajie was huffing and puffing from all the walking. He now griped to himself, “Back when that monkey was here, whatever that old monk wanted, he got. But now it’s all on my shoulders. It’s like they say, ‘Only when you’re in charge of a house do you know the price of firewood and rice; only when you have kids do you appreciate your parents.’ There’s nowhere to go to find food.”
And as he grumbled, he started to feel tired. He thought to himself, “If I go back now and tell that old monk that there’s nowhere to find food, he won’t believe that I walked all this way. I should tarry a while longer before I go back. Oh well, let me take a nap in the grass over there.”
So he flomped down on a patch of grass and started to snore. Meanwhile, back in the woods, San Zang was getting restless. He said to Sha Zeng, “Why has Bajie not come back yet from looking for food?”
“Master, you don’t understand,” Sha Zeng answered. “Here in the West, there are a lot of households that offer food to monks. And he’s got a big appetite. Don’t worry about him. He’ll come back when he’s eaten his fill.”
“That’s true. But as long as he’s lingering and eating, how would we meet up with him? And it’s getting late. This is no place to spend the night. We need to find a proper place to lodge.”
“No problem, master. You sit here, and I’ll go find him.”
“Right. Let’s not worry about food for now. Just find a place to spend the night.”
So Sha Zeng grabbed his Buddhist spade and walked out of the forest to look for Bajie. So … once again, we’re forgetting the first rule of journeying to the West: Never EVER leave San Zang by himself.
After Sha Zeng left, San Zang sat alone in the woods and was feeling very fatigued and irritated. He mustered his energy and got up. He stacked the luggage in one place and hitched the horse to a tree. He then took off the Buddhist hat he was wearing and latched his Buddhist staff. After tidying up his clothes a bit, he took a short stroll among the trees to pass the time. The ground was covered with wild grasses and mountain flowers, while overhead echoed the calls of flocks of birds returning to their nests at dusk. The vegetation in the forest was thick, and the paths narrow. And San Zang’s mind was occupied. Before long, he had gotten himself all turned around. He wanted to see if he could find his two disciples. But whereas they had gone West from the woods, he ended up heading South.
After wandering for a while, San Zang emerged from the woods and was greeted with a shimmering golden light and colorful clouds in the distance. He took a closer look and saw that there was a pagoda, with a golden top that glowed in the rays of the setting sun.
“What bad luck I’ve had,” he thought to himself. “Since leaving the East, I had pledged to offer incense at every temple I come across, bow to every Buddha statue I see, and sweep every pagoda I encounter. Isn’t that a golden pagoda right there? How come I didn’t come that way? Where there’s a pagoda, there must be a monastery, and where there’s a monastery, there must be monks. Let me go there. There’s no one traveling through here, so the luggage and the horse should be ok in the woods. If the monastery can take us in, then when my disciples come back, we can all rest there.”
So he walked toward the pagoda. Around him were towering sheer cliffs. Vines covered the valley for miles. With its babbling streams, fragrant flowers and trees, and wondrous animals, the place looked like some immortal realm.
When he came to the foot of the pagoda, San Zang saw a door with a bamboo curtain hanging over it. He pulled up the curtain and ducked inside. But when he lifted up his head, he froze. On a stone bed, there slept a demon. He had a blue face with white fangs jutting from his giant mouth. Tangled locks of red hair hung down both sides of his face, while purple whiskers sprouted from his chin like the budding shoots of a lychee tree. His nose arched like a parrot’s beak, and his eyes glowed like morning stars. He had fists as big as a monk’s alms bowl, and his blue feet were like gnarly roots jutting from a cliff. He wore a pale yellow robe and brandished a big saber in his hand while he slept leaning against his bed.
San Zang felt his whole body go limp, and he started to turn around to leave. But the Yellow-Robe Demon sensed his presence, opened his eyes, and shouted, “Little ones, who’s that outside the door?!”
A demon lackey poked his head out the door, took a look, and rushed back in to tell his boss, “My lord, there’s a monk outside. He has a round head, broad face, two long ears, and tender looking flesh and skin!”
The demon lord laughed aloud and said, “This is called ‘A fly on the snake’s head — the meal has delivered itself.’ Little ones, catch him and bring him to me. I’ll reward you handsomely!”
So a horde of demon lackeys swarmed out and chased after San Zang. He saw them coming and tried to run, but yeah, good luck with that. Between his stiff legs and the treacherous roads, it didn’t take long for the demon lackeys to return to the pagoda carrying San Zang like a freshly caught animal.
The Yellow-Robe Demon saw San Zang’s handsome appearance and thought to himself, “This monk looks like a high-class figure, not an ordinary person. If I don’t show my prowess, he’s not going to submit.”
So he put on his mean face and barked, “Bring that monk in here!”
The lackeys shoved San Zang into the room, and San Zang had no choice but to press his palms together and greet his captor.
“Monk, where are you from? Where are you going?! Tell me now!” the demon lord shouted.
“I am a monk from the Tang kingdom. On my emperor’s command, I’m heading West to seek scriptures. I was passing through your pristine mountain and came to the pagoda to pay my respects to the Buddha. I didn’t mean to disturb you. Please forgive me. Once I have completed my mission and returned to the East, I will forever sing your praises.”
The demon roared with laughter. “I had you pegged for someone special, and I was right. So it’s YOU. I was planning to eat you, and you’ve delivered yourself to me. Great! I would’ve allowed you to escape by mistake. You’re destined to be my meal, and you’ve stumbled here on your own. I can’t let you go! Little ones, tie up this monk!”
So the lackeys swarmed forward and tied up San Zang to a column. The demon lord gripped his saber and asked, “Monk, how many are in your party? I can’t imagine you would dare to go West alone.”
With a blade in his face, San Zang had no choice but to fess up. “My lord, I have two disciples, named Zhu Bajie and Sha Zeng. They left the woods to find food. I also have a load of luggage and a white horse, both still in the woods.”
“Great luck just keeps rolling in!” the Yellow-Robe Demon said. “Two disciples, plus the horse. That’s four of you. I’ll eat you all in one meal!”
His lackeys now volunteered to go capture the disciples, but their boss said, “No need to go. Shut the front door. When those two come back from begging for food, they’ll go looking for their master. When they can’t find him, they’ll no doubt find their way here. As the saying goes, ‘Business is easier when it comes to your door.’ We can capture them at our own leisure.”
And so, the lackeys did as he said, and they waited.
Let’s go check in on the disciples. Sha Zeng was looking for Zhu Bajie. He walked westward from the woods for a few miles and didn’t see any sign of habitation. So he climbed to a high vantage point and looked around. Suddenly, he heard someone muttering from the tall grass. He pulled the grass apart and found none other than Zhu Bajie, snoozing and talking in his sleep.
Sha Zeng woke up Bajie by pinching his ear and chiding him, “Dum-dum! Master told you to go find food, and yet you’re here sleeping?”
“Brother, what, what time is it?” asked Bajie, still groggy.
“Get up already! Master said nevermind the food, let’s go find a place to spend the night.”
So Zhu Bajie got up, grabbed his rake, and walked back with Sha Zeng. But of course, when they got back to the woods, there was no sign of San Zang.
“This is all because you didn’t come back!” Sha Zeng lamented to Bajie. “Some demon must have captured our master.”
“Brother, stop your nonsense,” Zhu Bajie laughed. “The woods are a peaceful place; there are no demons here. That old monk must’ve gotten bored and went to do some sightseeing. Let’s go find him.”
So they fetched the horse and the luggage, along with San Zang’s hat and staff, and left the woods in search of their master. After some fruitless searching, they noticed a golden glow coming from the South.
“Brother, the luck is always lucky,” Bajie said to Sha Zeng. “Master must have found his people. That glowing thing is a pagoda. They won’t dare to neglect him there. They must be preparing food to treat him there. Let’s hurry up so we can get a bite too.”
“Brother, I’m not sure if that place is good or evil. Let’s go have a look,” Sha Zeng said.
The two of them went to the pagoda and found its doors shut. Across the top of the door was a white jade slab, with the characters “Wavy-Moon Cavern of Bowl Mountain.”
“Brother, this is no monastery,” Sha Zeng said with alarm. “It’s a demon lair. Even if our master is here, we won’t be able to see him.”
“Don’t worry, brother. You go watch the horse and luggage, while I question them.”
So Zhu Bajie hoisted his rake and shouted for the doors to be opened. A demon lackey opened up, took one look at them, and ran back inside, shouting, “My lord, our business has arrived.”
“What business?”
“There is a long-snout, big-eared monk outside, alongside a monk with a sullen look. They’re demanding that we open up!”
The demon lord rejoiced. “This must be Zhu Bajie and Sha Zeng. Well, how did they find their way here?”
Umm, so first of all, you do live in a tall, glowing pagoda that’s visible from miles away. And second, you were expecting this! This was part of your plan! Why are you acting surprised? Anyway, the Yellow-Robe Demon now donned his armor, took his saber, and went out. He looked quite fearsome, as a poem in the novel attested:
With a blueface, red whiskers, and flaming hair streaming,
He gleamed in bright golden armor.
Around his waist was girded a stone-studded belt,
Across his chest, the straps of cloud-treading mail.
When idly standing before the mountain, the winds howled about him;
When roaming the seas in boredom, the waves surged in fury.
With indigo hands, sinews taut like burnt cords,
He clutched tightly a soul-chasing, life-taking blade.
If you wish to know this creature’s name, he is loudly called Yellow-Robe
“Monks, where do you come from?! Why are you making noise here?!” he asked his visitors.
“Sonny, you don’t recognize me? I’m your daddy!” Zhu Bajie shot back. “I am heading West on the order of the Tang emperor. My master is imperial brother San Zang. If he’s here, send him out at once, so I don’t have to rake my way in!”
“Yes, I do have a Tang monk in my home,” the Yellow-Robe Demon said with a laugh. “I haven’t neglected him. I’ve prepared some human flesh buns for him. Why don’t you come in and have one, too?”
Well, dum-dum took him at his word and was about to head inside for a little snack. But Sha Zeng pulled him back and was like, you dolt! He’s kidding! Also, when did you start eating human flesh, again? Only then did Zhu Bajie come to his senses. He now raised his rake and swung at the demon. Yellow Robes dodged his blow and hoisted his saber to counter. The two now showed off their respective powers, tangling in the clouds. Sha Zeng ditched the horse and luggage and joined the fight.
The three engaged in a dogged back-and-forth for dozens of exchanges, with neither side gaining the upper hand. Now, to tell the truth, Zhu Bajie and Zha Zeng would normally be no match for this demon. But on this occasion, they had the secret assistance of that gaggle of 18 gods who were tasked with protecting San Zang. So they were able to fight the demon to a standstill. Of course, those secret protector gods could’ve spared everyone a lot of hassle if one of them would’ve just piped up and whispered in San Zang’s ear that, hey, you probably don’t want to go in the direction of that pagoda.
While the demon and the two disciples were fighting up a storm outside, San Zang was weeping inside the demon’s lair as he thought of his disciples. “Oh Bajie,” he lamented, “did you run into a friend in some village and are stuffing yourself with food? Sha Zeng, you don’t know where he went, so how can you find him? How can you guys know that I’ve run into a demon and are suffering here? When will I see you again and escape this calamity so that we may resume our journey?”
While he was crying, he suddenly saw a woman emerge from the back of the cave. She approached and asked, “Elder, where did you come from? Why are you tied up here?”
Looking up through his tears, San Zang saw a woman of about 30. He replied, “Madam, there’s no point in asking. I’m destined to be eaten. Since I stumbled into your home, just eat me as you will. Why must you ask me anything?”
“I’m not a cannibal,” the woman said. “My home is about 100 miles to the west of here. There’s a city there called the Kingdom of Precious Elephants. I’m the third daughter of the king. My childhood name was Shaming the Hundred Flowers. Thirteen years ago, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, while I was watching the moon, this demon swept me away with a wild wind. I have been his wife for the last 13 years and have had children with him. I have not sent any word to my kingdom. I miss my parents, but can’t see them. Where did you come from? How did you get captured?”
“I am a pilgrim heading west,” San Zang explained. “I was taking a stroll and stumbled here. That demon now wants to capture my disciples and eat us all together.”
The princess smiled and said, “Elder, don’t worry. Since you’re a scripture pilgrim, I will save you. The Kingdom of Precious Elephants is on your way west. Please deliver a letter to my parents for me, and I’ll ask my husband to spare you.”
“Lady Bodhisattva, if you can save my life, I am willing to be your courier.”
So the princess rushed to the back and wrote a letter to her parents. She then came back out, untied San Zang, and gave him the letter. San Zang took the letter in hand and said, “Madam, thank you for sparing my life. When I pass by your honorable home, I will definitely deliver it to the king. But it’s been so long. What if your parents refuse to see you again? Please pardon my saying so.”
“No problem,” the princess said. “My father doesn’t have any sons, just three daughters. If they see this letter, they WILL want to see me.”
So San Zang put away the letter, thanked the princess, and started to head outside. But she pulled him back and said, “You can’t go through the front door. All the lackeys are out there cheering on their lord while he fights your disciples. You should go out through the back door. If my husband catches you, he might question you. But if his minions catch you, they might kill you without asking. Let me go out there and convince my husband to grant me a favor and release you. Then he can tell your disciples, and you all can leave together.”
To see how the princess will convince her demon husband to let his dinner go, tune in to the next episode of the Chinese Lore Podcast. Thanks for listening!
Music in This Episode
- “Luỹ Tre Xanh Ngát Đầu Làng (Guzheng) – Vietnam BGM” by VPRODMUSIC_Asia_BGM
- “Ravines” by Elphnt (from YouTube audio library)
- “The Quiet Aftermath by Sir Cubworth (from YouTube audio library)
- “All For You – Traditional Chinese Style Instrumental” by kaazoom
- “Comfortable Mystery 3 – Film Noire” by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100536; Artist: http://incompetech.com/)
- “Dark Toys” by SYBS (from YouTube audio library)