“You're a thorough disgrace, you damned gang of demons,” said Monkey with a laugh. “Last time you tried to trick me into coming out so you could bite me and this time you've lured me out to face an army ready for battle. It's obvious that you've got tens of thousands of soldiers here to tackle me when I'm alone. Most unreasonable. I'll pull him away. I'm going to drag him off to see my master.”
“If in your mercy and compassion you spare our lives, Great Sage,” the demons said, all kowtowing together, “we vow to escort your master across this mountain.”
“If you want to live all you have to do is cut the rope with your sword,” said Monkey with a laugh.
“My lord,” the senior monster said, “I can cut the rope outside, but it's no good having the length inside that's tied round my heart. It sticks in my throat so uncomfortably that it makes me feel sick.”
“In that case,” said Monkey, “open your mouth and I'll go back inside to undo the rope.” This alarmed the senior demon, who said, “If you don't come out when you go in this time I'll be in a mess, a real mess.”
“I know how to undo the end of the rope that's in you from the outside,” Monkey replied. “But when I've undone it will you really escort my master across?”
“We will as soon as you've undone it,” the senior demon chief replied. “I wouldn't dare lie about this.” Now that he had satisfied himself the demon was telling the truth Monkey shook himself and put the hair back on his body, whereupon the monster's heart pains stopped. It was the Great Sage Sun's transforming magic that had tied the hair round his heart in the first place, which was why the pain ended as soon as the hair was put back on Monkey.
The three demon chiefs then rose up into the air to thank him with the words, “Please go back now, Great Sage, and pack your luggage. We will carry a chair down to fetch him.” The demon horde then all put their weapons down and went back into the cave.
Having put his rope away the Great Sage went straight back to the Eastern side of the ridge, and when he was still a long way away he saw the Tang Priest lying on the ground, rolling around and howling. Pig and Friar Sand had opened the bundles of luggage and were dividing it up.
“Don't tell me,” thought Monkey with a quiet sigh. “No doubt Pig has told the master that I've been eaten up by evil spirits. The master's sobbing his heart out because he can't bear to be without me and the idiot's dividing the things ready for us all to split up. Oh dear! I can't be sure, so I'd better go down and give the master a shout.”
Bringing his cloud down, Monkey shouted, “Master!” As soon as Friar Sand heard this he started complaining to Pig.
“All you want is to see people dead, just like a coffin stand,” he said. “Our elder brother wasn't killed but you said he was and started this business here. Of course he's bound to kick up a row.”
“But I saw him with my own eyes being eaten up by the evil spirit in one mouthful,” Pig replied. “I'm sure we're just seeing that ape's spirit because it's an unlucky day.”
Monkey then went up to Pig and hit him in the face with a slap that sent him staggering. “Cretin!” he said. “Is this my spirit you can see?”
Rubbing his face, the idiot replied, “But the monster really did eat you up, brother. How can you-how can you have come back to life?”
“Useless gumboil!” said Monkey. “After he ate me I grabbed his bowels, twisted his lungs, tied a rope round his heart and tore at him till he was in horrible agony. Then they all kowtowed and pleaded with me, so I spared his life. Now they're bringing a carrying-chair here to take the master over the mountain.”
As soon as Sanzang heard this he scrambled to his feet, bowed to Monkey and said, “Disciple, I've put you to enormous trouble. If I had believed what Wuneng said we would have been finished.”
“Chaff-guzzling idiot,” Monkey said abusively, taking a swing at Pig with his fist, “you're thoroughly lazy and barely human. But don't get upset, Master. The monsters are coming to take you across the mountain.” Friar Sand too felt deeply ashamed, and quickly trying to cover it up he packed up the luggage and loaded the horse to wait on the road.
The story returns to the three demon chiefs, who led their devilish hosts back into the cave. “Elder brother,” said the second demon, “I'd imagined that Sun the Novice had nine heads and eight tails, but he turns out to be nothing but that pipsqueak of a monkey. You shouldn't have swallowed him. You should have fought him. He'd have been no match for us. With our tens of thousands of goblins we could have drowned him in our spit. But by swallowing him you let him use his magic and cause you agony, so that you didn't dare have it out with him. When I said we'd take the Tang Priest across the mountains just now I didn't mean it. It was only a way of luring him out because your life was in danger. I most certainly won't escort the Tang Priest.”
“Why not, good brother?” the senior demon chief asked.
“If you and I draw up three thousand junior devils ready for battle I can capture that ape,” the second demon replied.
“Never mind about three thousand,” the senior demon chief said. “You can have our whole force. If we capture him it'll be a credit to us all.”
The second demon chief then mustered three thousand junior demons whom he led to a place beside the main road, where they were put into battle formation. He sent a herald with a blue flag to carry a message.
“Sun the Novice,” the herald said, “come out at once and fight His Second Majesty.”
When Pig heard this he said with a laugh, “As the saying goes, brother, liars don't fool the people at home. You lied to us when you came back, you trickster. You said you'd beaten the evil spirits and that they'd be bringing a carrying-chair to take the master across. But here they are challenging you to battle. Why?”
“The senior demon did surrender to me,” Monkey replied, “and he wouldn't dare show his face. The sound of my name alone is enough to give him a headache. The second demon chief must be challenging me to battle because he can't bring himself to escort us across. I tell you, brother, those three evil spirits are brothers and they have a sense of honour. We're three brothers but we don't. I've beaten the senior demon, so the second demon's come out. There's no reason why you shouldn't fight him.”
“I'm not scared of him,” Pig said. “I'll go and give him a fight.”
“If you want to, go ahead,” Monkey replied.
“Brother,” said Pig with a laugh, “I'll go, but lend me that rope.”
“What do you want it for?” Monkey asked. “You don't know how to get into his belly or tie it to his heart, so what use would it be to you?”
“I want it tied round my waist as a lifeline,” replied Pig. “You and Friar Sand are to hold on to it and let it out for me to fight him. If you think I'm beating him pay more rope out and I'll capture him, but if he's beating me, pull me back. Don't let him drag me off.”
At this Monkey smiled to himself and thought, “Another chance to make a fool of the idiot.” Monkey then tied the rope round Pig's waist and sent him off into battle.
The idiot lifted his rake and rushed up the steep slope shouting. “Come out, evil spirit! Come and fight your ancestor Pig!” The herald with the blue flag rushed back to report, “Your Majesty, there's a monk with a long snout and big ears here.” The second demon chief came out of the encampment, saw Pig, and without a word thrust his spear straight at Pig's face. The idiot raised his rake and went forward to parry the blow. The two of them joined battle in front of the mountainside, and before they had fought seven or eight rounds the idiot began to weaken. He was no longer able to hold the evil spirit off.