“A whole crowd of evil spirits are heading for the city with sandstorms, flying stones, fogs and wind.”
“Whatever shall we do?” asked the prince, deeply alarmed.
“All stop worrying,” said Brother Monkey, “all stop worrying. It's the evil spirit from Tigermouth Cave who ran away when he was beaten yesterday. He went to the Southeast to gang up with the Primal Sage of Ninefold Numinosity or whatever he's called and now he's here. We brothers are going out. Tell them to shut all the city gates, and send men to hold the city wall.” The prince ordered that the city gates be shut, sent men to the wall, and went with his sons and the Tang Priest to inspect. The army's banners blotted out the sun, and the cannon fire reached the sky as Monkey, Pig and Friar Sand left the city amid wind and clouds to give battle. Indeed:
Because they were careless the weapons were lost,
Which led to attacks by the devilish host.
If you do not know the outcome of the battle listen to the explanation in the next installment.
Chapter 90
By Giving and Receiving the Master and the Lion Turn into One
After Stealing the Way and Obstructing Dhyana Ninefold Numinosity Is Pacified
The story tells how the Great Sage Sun left the city with Pig and Friar Sand and looked the monsters in the face to see that they were all lions of various kinds. The Tawny Lion Spirit was leading, with Leo and Elephant-fighter Lion on his left, Gryphon and Raccoon-dog Lion on his right and Monkey Lion with Snowy Lion behind him. In the middle of them all was a nine-headed lion. The ogre Greenface was holding a canopy of brocade embroidered with flowers just behind the nine-headed lion; while Wily Freak and Freaky Wile carried a pair of red flags. They were all drawn up at a hollow place.
In his rough way Pig went up to them to shout abusively, “Ogres! Thieves! Treasure-stealers! What did you go there and gang up with that hairy lot for?”
To this the Tawny Lion Spirit retorted, gnashing his teeth in fury, “Vicious baldies! When I was alone yesterday the three of you beat me and I had to run away. You should have done right, instead of burning my cave palace, destroying my mountain home and murdering my family. My hatred for you is as great as the ocean. Stay where you are and take this from my halberd!”
The splendid Pig raised his rake to parry the blow. When the two of them had just started fighting and neither was yet coming out on top Monkey Lion joined in, swinging his spiked iron club, as did Snowy Lion with his three-edged mace.
“Welcome,” shouted Pig. Watch him as he charges straight forward to meet their onslaught and fight with them all. Friar Sand quickly pulled his demon-quelling staff out from where he was at the side and hurried forward to help Pig, at which Leo Spirit, Gryphon Spirit, Elephant-fighter Spirit and Raccoon-dog Spirit all piled in. The Great Sage Monkey held the evil spirits at bay with his gold-banded cudgel. Leo fought with a club, Snowy with a bronze hammer, Elephant-fighter with a steel spear and Raccoon-dog with a battleaxe.
The fight between the seven lion spirits and the three ferocious monks was a splendid one:
Club, hammer, spear, axe and three-edged mace,
Spiked club, ball-staff and four-bright halberd:
Seven lions with seven deadly weapons,
Shouting their war cries as they surround three monks.
Powerful was the Great Sage's gold-banded cudgel;
Friar Sand's staff was almost matchless in the world.
Pig moved around with the power of a whirlwind
As his flashing rake gave off baleful light.
All, displaying their might, blocked before and behind,
Held off the onslaughts with daring and courage.
From the walls of the city the prince lent support,
Where his soldiers felt braver as they beat drums and gongs.
Throwing and thrusting, all showed off their magic,
Turning heaven and earth both dark and upside-down.
After the evil spirits had been fighting the Great Sage and the two others for half a day, night fell. Pig by now was dribbling and his legs were going weak, so he feinted with his rake and fled in defeat.
“Where do you think you're going?” Snowy Lion and Monkey Lion shouted. “Take this!”
The idiot could not dodge them, and he took a heavy blow from the mace on his spine that laid him flat on the ground crying out, “I'm done for, I'm done for!”
The two lion spirits grabbed Pig by the bristles on his neck and by his tail and carried him over to see the nine-headed lion, “Grandfather,” they reported, “we've caught one of them.”
Before the words were out of their mouths Friar Sand and Monkey also had to fall back, beaten. When the evil spirits all came after them Monkey pulled out a handful of hairs, chewed them to pieces, spat them out, shouted, “Change!” and turned them into more than one hundred little Monkeys who went round and round, surrounding Snowy, Leo, Elephant-fighter, Raccoon-dog and Tawny Lion. Friar Sand and Monkey then came forward to join in the fight again. Later that night they caught Leo and Gryphon and put Raccoon-dog and Elephant-fighter to flight.
When Tawny Lion reported to the old demon that two of the lions had been lost the demon ordered, “Tie Pig up but don't kill him. When they give our lions back we'll return Pig to them. If they're stupid enough to kill them we'll make Pig pay with his life.” That evening all the fiends slept outside the city.
The story now turns to the Great Sage Sun, who carried the two lion spirits to beside the city wall, from where the senior prince saw him and ordered that the gates be opened. Twenty or thirty officers were sent out with rope to tie the lion spirits up and carry them into the city. The Great Sage then put his magic hairs away and went straight with Friar Sand to the wall tower, where he saw the Tang Priest.
“This is a terrible business,” the Tang Priest said. “Is Wuneng still alive?”
“No problem,” Brother Monkey replied. “As we've captured a couple of the evil spirits they won't possibly dare harm him. Have them tied up tight. I'll swap them for Pig tomorrow morning.”
The three young princes then kowtowed to Monkey and said, “When you were fighting them at first you were by yourself, Teacher. Then when you pretended to run away and came back again there were over a hundred of you. How was that done? When you came back to the city wall after capturing the evil spirits there was only one of you again. What magical powers did you use to do that?”
“I have 84,000 hairs on my body,” Monkey replied. “Each of them can become ten, and the ten become a hundred, so I can do millions and millions of transformations. It's extra body magic.” The princes all kowtowed as a vegetarian feast was brought to the tower for them. All along the battlements lanterns and banners were displayed. There was the sound of clappers, bells, gongs and drums as the watches were changed, arrows passed on, cannons fired and warcries shouted.
Soon it was dawn, and the old demon sent for Tawny Lion Spirit to make a plan of action: “You must all use your wits to capture Sun the Novice and Friar Sand while I make a secret flight up onto the wall to capture their master, the old prince and his sons. I'll take them back to the Nine-bend Twisty Cave and wait for you to come back in triumph.”