txolops Chapter 101 Baoxiang Kingdom: Pigsy Abandons His Brothers
Chapter 101 Baoxiang Kingdom: Pigsy Abandons His Brothers
Now, after escaping his predicament, Tang Sanzang arrived at the Kingdom of Baoxiang. Upon reaching the main hall, he exchanged his travel documents and then addressed the king, saying, "Your Majesty, I have two reasons for wishing to exchange my travel documents and also to deliver a letter from home to Your Majesty."
The king was overjoyed and asked, "What letter?"
Tang Sanzang then told the story of Baihuaxiu, and the king wept uncontrollably. He then asked the Grand Scholar to read a letter from home, and the king was filled with sorrow again.
He then asked, "Who dares to lead troops and generals with me to vanquish the demons?"
But those on stage, both civil and military officials, were all ordinary people; who would dare to answer?
The king was troubled when someone advised, "Your Majesty, I believe the monk who went to the East to retrieve the scriptures is a holy monk from a superior land. This monk is highly accomplished, his virtue is so great that even dragons and tigers submit, and even ghosts and gods revere him. He must possess the art of exorcising demons. As the saying goes, those who speak of right and wrong are themselves troublemakers. We should ask this elder to exorcise the evil spirits and save the princess; this would be the best course of action."
The king was overjoyed upon hearing this and said to Tang Sanzang, "If you, Elder, have the ability to capture the demon and rescue my son back to the capital, I am willing to become sworn brothers with you, share the imperial throne, and enjoy wealth and honor together!"
Tang Sanzang hurriedly replied, "This humble monk only knows how to chant Buddhist scriptures, not how to subdue demons."
The king said, "Since you can't subdue demons, how dare you go to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha?"
Tang Sanzang could not hide the truth any longer and had to mention his two disciples, saying, "Your Majesty, it is truly difficult for this humble monk to have come here alone. I have two disciples who are skilled at clearing paths through mountains and building bridges over rivers, ensuring my safe passage."
The king asked in bewilderment, "Since you have disciples, why don't you bring them up?"
Tang Sanzang said, "They are ugly and might offend His Majesty."
The king said "It's alright," and then ordered his men to summon Pigsy and Sandy.
That fool was indeed ungrateful. Once in the hall, he boasted, "I am Marshal Tianpeng, but I was banished to the mortal world for violating heavenly laws. Fortunately, I have now converted to Buddhism. Since coming from the East, I am the first to subdue demons."
He then performed several transformations and displayed some supernatural powers, leaving the king and his officials completely bewildered.
The king was delighted and believed him. So he poured wine and praised him. Pigsy, in a moment of impulsiveness, rode away on a cloud.
Fearing for Pigsy's safety, Sandy said to Tang Sanzang, "Master! When that Yellow Robe Monster captured you, the two of us fought him to a draw. Now that Second Brother is going alone, I'm afraid he won't be able to defeat him."
Tang Sanzang said, "That's right, disciple, you can go and help him with his cultivation."
Upon hearing this, Sha Wujing also rode up on a cloud and headed straight for the Wave Moon Cave.
The two arrived at the cave entrance, only to find the gate tightly shut. Pigsy then went up and started arguing with them.
It turned out that the Yellow Robe Monster was afraid that Li Fa and his companion would come back again, so he had kept the cave door tightly closed for the past few days and dared not come out.
But then a little demon came from inside the cave to report: "Your Majesty, someone is shouting and cursing outside!"
The yellow-robed monster was shocked upon hearing this and hurriedly asked what the person outside looked like.
The little monster replied, "There's a monk with a long snout and big ears, and another monk with a gloomy face."
Upon hearing this, the yellow-robed monster felt somewhat relieved and asked again, "Did you see clearly? Were there any Taoist priests following behind them?"
The little monster said, "There were only two monks, and I didn't see any Taoist priests."
The yellow-robed monster then sneered and cursed, "You damned pig-headed fool! I kindly let you go west, and you come to provoke me instead. You really don't take me seriously."
So he shouted, "Bring me my armor!"
Dressed neatly, he turned and asked, "Really no Taoist priest is coming?"
The little monster said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, there is absolutely no such thing."
The yellow-robed monster then opened the cave door, drew his steel sword, and stepped out, asking, "Monk, since I spared your master, how dare you come to attack my door again?"
Pigsy said, "You wretched monster, what a mess you've made!"
The old demon asked, "What is it?"
Pigsy said, "You tricked the Third Princess of Baoxiang Kingdom into coming to your cave, forcibly took her as your wife, and have lived here for thirteen years. It's time to return her to you. I've come here on the king's orders to capture you. Hurry up and go inside, tie yourself up with the ropes, or I'll have to do it myself!"
Upon hearing this, the Yellow-Robed Monster was furious. "It's one thing for that old Taoist priest to bully me—at least he has some skill. But this dead pig dares to bully me too! Does he really think I'm a hidden dragon or a fallen phoenix? I must show him what I'm capable of!"
He raised his knife; it was gleaming red, and he slashed at the head.
Pigsy dodged to the side, only to have his rake come crashing down on him. Then Sandy rushed forward with his staff and joined the attack.
This duel on the mountaintop was different from the previous ones; the real difference was:
Words spoken carelessly invite anger; malicious intent breeds resentment and rage. The demon king's great steel blade lashes out at the head; Pigsy's nine-toothed rake comes to meet it head-on. Sandy throws aside his staff, and the demon king parries the divine weapon. One fierce monster, two divine monks, come and go, seemingly without end.
One said, "You deceived the country and deserve to die!" Another said, "You meddled in other people's business and sought justice!" One said, "You forced the princess into marriage, which is a disgrace to the country!" Another said, "This is none of your business, so don't argue!" It all started with delivering a letter, which caused unrest between the monk and the demon.
They fought for eight or nine rounds on the hillside. Pigsy gradually became exhausted, unable to lift his rake and losing strength.
It turns out that when they first fought, the guardian deities secretly helped Pigsy and Sandy, so they only managed a draw. At this time, the deities were all in Baoxiang Kingdom protecting Tang Sanzang, so the two of them were no match for each other.
The fool said, "Sandy, you come forward and fight him, so that I, Pigsy, can relieve myself."
He disregarded Sha Wujing and slipped into the thicket of thorns to hide, leaving Sha Wujing to fight alone.
Seeing that Pigsy had left, the monster went after Sandy. Sandy was caught off guard and grabbed, dragged into the cave, where the little demons bound Sandy's four hooves together.
Meanwhile, the Yellow-Robed Monster, having bound Sha Wujing, neither beat nor scolded him. He picked up his steel knife and thought to himself, "Tang Sanzang is a man from a superior country; he must know propriety. If I spare him, will he send his disciples to find him again? Perhaps my wife sent some letter to his country, and word got out! I'll go and ask her for an explanation."
His ferocity surged instantly, and he drew his knife and charged straight at Baihuaxiu.
The yellow-robed monster kicked open the door and roared angrily, "You heartless, despicable woman! You have no humanity whatsoever! I brought you here, where you enjoy comforts all year round, and we share a deep bond as husband and wife, yet you only think of your parents and have no affection for your spouse whatsoever!"
Upon hearing this, the princess was so frightened that she knelt down and said, "My lord, how can you speak such heartless words today?"
The yellow-robed monster angrily pointed at her and said, "You're heartless! A few days ago, that old Taoist priest and that thief came to seek revenge on me, and instead of helping me, you sided with them; now you've sent word that these two monks are coming to attack our gate and take you back. If you didn't do it, who did it?"
The princess, in a panic, repeatedly kowtowed, crying, "My lord, you are innocent! I never sent a letter!"
The yellow-robed monster sneered, "Still dare to be stubborn? Having captured an enemy is proof enough!"
The princess asked in a trembling voice, "Who is it?"
The old demon gritted his teeth and said, "It is Tang Sanzang's second disciple, Sha Wujing!"
When people are facing death, no one is willing to admit it; they can only let them go.
The princess said, "My lord, please calm your anger. I will go with you to ask him. If he indeed has the book, I will gladly kill him; but if he doesn't, wouldn't it be a pointless killing of my servant?"
Upon hearing this, the monster, without giving a chance to speak, swung his large hand, grabbed the princess by the hair, pulled her forward, and slammed her to the ground.
He brandished a steel knife and interrogated Sha Wujing, shouting sternly, "Sha Wujing! You two have trespassed into my gate. Did this woman send a letter back to Baoxiang Kingdom, and did her king send you here?"
Sha Wujing, bound to the side, saw how vicious the old demon was, even intending to kill the princess. A thought flashed through his mind: "She clearly saved my master; her kindness is immeasurable. If I reveal the truth, she will surely die. Wouldn't that be repaying kindness with enmity?"
"Enough! Old Sha has served my master for a long time, yet he has never done anything to repay him. Now that he is captured, he will repay my master's kindness with his life."
He then shouted, "You monster, don't be rude! What book does he have? My master spoke of the princess's appearance in the Kingdom of Baoxiang. The king ordered a portrait to be made, and it was discovered to be her daughter. He then sent us to bring the princess back to the palace. If you want to kill, kill me, Old Sha! Don't harm innocent people!"