Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 26, Crossing the Shifting Sands (Part Two)
Ignoring Wukong's attempts to stop him, Tang Sanzang went to greet the fisherman.

"Fisherman, fisherman! Please come here!"

The fisherman was actually Sha Wujing in disguise. Upon hearing this, he rowed his boat over.

"Master, what brings you here?"

Wukong hurriedly followed, keeping a close eye on Sha Wujing.

What puzzled Wukong was that although Sha Wujing had some fierce aura, he didn't have any demonic aura, so he really wasn't a demon in disguise.

Tang Sanzang said, "This humble monk is heading west and would like to ask you to help me cross the river."

Sha Wujing said, "No, no, I can't take you there."

Tang Sanzang asked, "Why is that?"

Sha Wujing looked around as if he were on guard against something, and said, "Masters, this is not the place to talk. Please come to my house first. I will come after I finish casting this net."

Tang Sanzang asked, "May I ask where your residence is located?"

Sha Wujing pointed south and said, "It's over there, about five miles away."

After hearing this, Tang Sanzang led Wukong and the others to Sha Wujing's residence.

Before long, Sha Wujing also rowed over in his boat.

"Please, masters," said Sha Wujing.

Tang Sanzang bowed and followed Sha Wujing into the house, with Wukong and Bajie following behind.

Sha Wujing put down his raincoat and bamboo hat, revealing a bald head.

Tang Sanzang asked, "Could it be that the fisherman is also a monk like this humble monk?"

Sha Wujing said, "Although I like monks and love Buddha, I am not a monk."

Pigsy laughed and said, "Then you must have tinea capitis, otherwise why won't your hair grow?"

Sha Wujing said, "No, no, I was burned by fire!"

Tang Sanzang asked, "Was it burned by fire?"

Sha Wujing said, “Masters, you don’t know, there used to be a village here with about a hundred households. But because a monster ate people, the villagers were all scared away. The monster was furious because no one was eating it, so it set off a demon fire and burned the village to the ground. I was a little late in escaping and was burned in the fire by the monster, which is why I look like this.”

Tang Sanzang exclaimed in surprise, "Could you be a vengeful spirit?!"

Sha Wujing said, "I am not a wronged spirit."

Tang Sanzang asked, "Then how did you survive?"

Sha Wujing poured tea for the three of them and began to tell them:
“I was fortunate to be saved by the Bodhisattva, which is why I survived. She told me to wait here, saying that a holy monk from the Tang Dynasty in the East would pass by and would help me eliminate the monster and avenge my great hatred. Then she asked me to lead him across the river. Master, you have come from afar, have you seen the holy monk from the East?”

Tang Sanzang was overjoyed and said, "Amitabha, this humble monk has come from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East, on his way to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures."

Upon hearing this, Sha Wujing quickly replied:

"It's the Holy Monk himself! I've finally waited for this moment! Please accept my bow! I beg the Holy Monk to subdue the demon for me!"

Tang Sanzang quickly helped Sha Wujing up and said:
“There’s no need for that, fisherman. My two disciples are skilled at exorcising demons. Just tell them what kind of monsters you’re looking for.”

At this point, Wukong began to believe Sha Wujing's identity somewhat more. Sha Wujing indeed didn't possess any demonic aura, and his words seemed reasonable and well-founded.

However, Wukong did not believe it completely and remained wary, saying, "Tell me what kind of monster it is first."

Sha Wujing said, “This river is called the Blackwater River. There are three evil spirits near the river, also known as the Three Evils. Go south from here, there is a forest, and the ferocious tiger in the forest is one of the evil spirits.”

Wukong asked, "Anything else?"

Sha Wujing said, “The poisonous dragon in the river is the second scourge. It will eat travelers crossing the river. Therefore, I dare not go too deep when I am fishing, nor do I dare to ferry the holy monk across the river now.”

Wukong asked, "What is the third scourge?"

Sha Wujing said, "Little Master, don't be so ambitious. With your small and thin body, you'd probably have a hard time even eliminating one scourge, let alone talking about a third one."

Wukong said angrily:
"You scoundrel, you don't know my abilities. I am Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven who wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace five hundred years ago. Ten thousand heavenly soldiers and generals were no match for me. A little tiger is nothing more than a flick of my finger!"

Sha Wujing said, "You little monk, you're quite the talker. That vicious tiger's mouth is bigger than your body; it could swallow you whole in one gulp. By the time I prepare a meal for the holy monk this afternoon, you'll probably be nothing but monster excrement."

Pigsy laughed and said, "Brother Monkey, he doesn't believe in your abilities!"

Wukong angrily said, "I, Old Sun, will go and catch that vicious tiger right now so you can see it!"

Sha Wujing said, "Little Master, don't be reckless. I think this Elder Pig has some strength. Why don't you go together?" Bajie laughed, "Brother Monkey, he's afraid you'll get eaten by the tiger, so he asked me, Old Pig, to be your helper!"

Wukong glanced at Sha Wujing, still wary, and said, "Bajie, stay and protect Master. I'll be right back."

Having said that, Wukong jumped outside and rode away on a cloud.

Upon reaching the southern forest, looking down, one indeed saw a huge, ferocious tiger lying in the woods.

Wukong jumped down from the cloud and swung his staff.

With a loud thud, a large crater was punched into the ground.

It turned out to be a tiger skin.

Wukong exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no, we've fallen into a trap!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding environment changed. Red sand filled the sky, and black fog filled the air. The sky was not visible above, and the earth was not visible below. Yin and Yang and the Five Elements could not be changed, trapping Sun Wukong in it.

Sun Wukong used his somersault cloud to try to escape, but Ao Tu grabbed a handful of red sand from the formation altar and threw it at Sun Wukong, knocking him off and back into the formation.

When Sun Wukong was hit by the red sand, he felt as if his whole body was being cut by a thousand knives. He was pressed down by the red sand and could not move an inch. Worried about his master's safety, he tried to leave with his primordial spirit.

Ao Tu, seeing this, scattered three more handfuls of red sand, knocking Sun Wukong's primordial spirit away, bewildering his soul, causing him to fall back into the formation, unable to escape.

The way is:
Few have grasped the essence of the Jie Sect, for its profound mysteries hold heavenly secrets.

First, the gold powder in the furnace is formed, then the endless white jade powder is refined.

A few pieces of red sand shattered hearts, while black mist filled the air, causing courage and resolve to vanish.

If we meet at the Dragon and Tiger Land today, even the most divine beings will depart.

Sun Wukong was trapped in the Red Sand Formation. Ao Tu took out a piece of cloth and used a transformation spell to make Sun Wukong's handwriting appear on it, writing:
The journey to obtain the scriptures was long and arduous, and I longed for my homeland after being away for so long.

Please ask my teacher to wait a moment, as he may temporarily return to his hometown for a visit.

After a month or so, they returned to follow the horse and escorted them westward to break through evil obstacles.

Don't be afraid of demons causing trouble, you have Pigsy's help by your side!

He handed it to Tiger Vanguard and said, "If Pigsy comes looking for Sun Wukong, give him this."

Tiger Vanguard received the order and went out with the cloth.

Meanwhile, Pigsy and Tang Sanzang waited for a long time at Sandy's house, but Monkey didn't return. Tang Sanzang said:

"Bajie, why hasn't Wukong returned yet? Go and see him."

Bajie said, "Brother, you have incredible abilities, what could possibly happen to you?"

Tang Sanzang said, "I'm worried, go and check!"

Pigsy said, "Okay, okay, I'll go."

Pigsy went out the door and headed south.

Before long, they arrived in the woods and called out, "Senior brother, senior brother?"

I called for a long time, but there was no sign of anyone.

Just then, a vicious tiger leaped down.

He was dressed in black gold armor, wore a black gold helmet, held a tiger-headed broadsword, and carried a black gold spear on his back.

Because of his changed attire, Pigsy didn't recognize Tiger Vanguard and asked, "Could you be the vicious tiger among the three scourges? Where is my senior brother?"

Tiger Vanguard laughed loudly:

"What vicious tiger? I am the King of Nanshan! The senior brother you mentioned is that monkey with the hairy face and thunderous mouth! He saw me living a carefree life in Nanshan and became envious. After I gave him a few words of advice, he left!"

Pigsy exclaimed in surprise, "Where did they go?"

Tiger Vanguard said, "Naturally, we're going back to where we came from!"

Bajie said, "I don't believe it. My senior brother isn't a fickle person!"

Tiger Vanguard laughed and said, "If you don't believe me, he left a note here saying that if a monk with a long snout and big ears comes looking for him, he should have me pass this note on to him!"

(End of this chapter)