Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 48, The Three Battles with the White Bone Demon (Part 1)
On their wedding night, Ao Tu was about to leave when Qiao'er stopped him.

Ao Tu asked, "What's wrong?"

Upon hearing this, Qiao'er felt nervous and her mouth went dry.

She had intended to make an excuse that if Ao Tu left, he might be discovered.

But when Ao Tu asked her, she couldn't come up with a single lie or excuse.

He could only look at Ao Tu with hopeful eyes and say with heartfelt emotion:

"I...I want you to stay."

Ao Tu said, "Alright, let's turn off the lights and go to sleep!"

After blowing out the red candles, Qiao'er lay on the bed, anxiously anticipating the moment.

Ao Tu lay down beside him with his eyes closed, focusing solely on cultivating his inner energy and preserving his spirit.

After a long silence, Qiao'er finally mustered up her courage and took Ao Tu's hand.

Ao Tu opened his eyes and looked over.

He was no ordinary man; even in the night, he could see clearly.

The young girl had almond-shaped eyes and arched eyebrows, and a pretty face. She said shyly, "My lord, please take me!"

Ao Tu said, "You want to make this a real show?"

Qiao'er nodded quickly and said, "Yes!"

Ao Tu said, “You are just a mortal. After this matter is over, I will definitely abandon you without the slightest hesitation. If you cooperate with the act, I will give you a thousand gold pieces and guarantee you a lifetime of wealth; if you are greedy for momentary pleasure and take the act for real, I will not want you, nor will I have a single piece of gold or silver. When we meet again, a hundred years may have passed, and you will have long since turned into a handful of dust.”

Qiao'er was stunned and lowered her head.

Ao Tu said nothing more and continued to cultivate his inner energy and preserve his spirit.

A moment later, a soft, warm body embraced him, its snow-white arms carrying the fragrance of a young girl.

Nothing was said that night. A mere mortal woman is ultimately delicate and cannot bear such favor.

The next morning at dawn, Qiao'er was still curled up in his arms, craving his tenderness, and had not yet woken up.

Ao Tu took two fruits out of the divine light, let her smell them, and then took them back.

It's not that Ao Tu is stingy.

Just smelling it is the best you can do.

Giving it to her would actually harm her.

The days that followed were peaceful and serene, and the two lived like a truly ordinary couple.

The sparse fence and low house let in the morning light; the husband and wife till the land together on the north hill.

At midday, resting in the shade of a tree by the field, a clay pot filled with water evokes deep feelings.

The woman cooks beans and rice, filling the air with their fragrance; the husband hunts foxes and rabbits, his steps hurried.

As dusk falls, the setting sun sends us back to the fields; as night deepens, we sit together, the moon as white as frost.

After Tang Sanzang and his disciples left Longevity Mountain, they traveled on a flat road for more than a month. On this day, they saw a tall mountain.

Tang Sanzang said, "Disciples, the mountains ahead are treacherous, so please be careful."

Wukong said, "Master, don't worry."

He leaped onto the high cliff, brandished his iron rod, and roared. The wolves and insects scattered in fright, and the tigers and leopards fled.

Tang Sanzang was terrified on horseback.

After walking for a long time in the mountains, Tang Sanzang said, "Wukong, I'm hungry today. Go and beg for some food."

Wukong said, "Master, this mountainside is deserted. Even if we have money, there's nowhere to buy food. Where can we find a vegetarian meal?"

Tang Sanzang was displeased and scolded, "You monkey! When you were trapped in the stone box by the Buddha on the Two Realms Mountain, unable to move or walk, I was the one who saved your life, touched your head and gave you the precepts, making you my disciple. Why are you unwilling to work hard and always have a lazy heart!"

Wukong said, "I am diligent every day, how could I be lazy?" Tang Sanzang said, "Since you are so diligent, why don't you beg for food for me? How can I walk when I am hungry? Don't say there is nowhere to beg for food. You have the ability to fly through the clouds, where can't you find food?"

Wukong said, “Master, please don’t be offended. The mountains here are steep and dangerous. I’m afraid that if we go too far, demons might come to harm you. You should dismount and sit still. Bajie and Sha will protect you while I search for you.”

Wukong leaped onto a cloud, shaded his eyes with his hand, and opened them to look around.

The mountains were desolate, with no manor houses or villages. There were only a few wooden houses on the west side of the mountain ridge, but they were filled with an eerie atmosphere and were not a good place to go.

After looking for a while, I saw a tall mountain on the south side. On the sunny side of that mountain, there was a patch of bright red dots.

Wukong descended from the cloud and said, "Master, there is food."

Tang Sanzang asked what it was.

Wukong said, "There's no one to beg for food in these mountains. There's a patch of red peaches on the south mountain; they must be ripe. I'll go pick a few for you to eat."

Tang Sanzang said happily, "It's not bad for a monk to have peaches to eat. Go quickly."

Wukong soared into the clouds and rushed to the South Mountain to pick peaches.

The White Bone Demon, under Ao Tu's arrangement, came out after seeing Wukong leave. She took a fake corpse as her incarnation, carried a basket in her left hand and an earthenware pot in her right hand, and headed straight for Tang Sanzang.

Upon seeing this, Tang Sanzang said, "Bajie, Sha Wujing, Wukong just said that there was no one here in the wilderness. Look, isn't a person walking out in the distance?"

Pigsy said, "Master, you and Sandy sit here and wait for me to go and take a look."

Pigsy put down his rake, straightened his clothes, and ran over to watch.

Seeing that it was a woman, and that she was beautiful, he lowered his guard and asked:

"Female Bodhisattva, where are you going? What are you carrying in your hands?"

Seeing that Pigsy was not afraid, the White Bone Demon said:
“Elder, this basket contains white flour buns, and the earthenware pot contains fragrant rice. They were originally for my family, but I saw you elders here just now, so I came here specifically to offer alms to the monks.”

Upon hearing this, Pigsy was overjoyed. He quickly turned and ran back to report to Tang Sanzang:

“Master! Good people are always rewarded by Heaven! Master is hungry, so I sent my brother to beg for alms. That monkey has gone somewhere to pick peaches. If you eat too many peaches, they will turn sour. Look, here comes a female bodhisattva who is offering alms to monks?”

Seeing the woman carrying a basket approaching from a distance, Tang Sanzang quickly stood up, clasped his hands together in front of his chest, and said:

"Female Bodhisattva, where do you live? Why are you here to offer alms to monks?"

Upon hearing this, the White Bone Demon said, "Master, this mountain is called White Tiger Ridge. My home is located directly to the west. My parents are deceased, and I live with my elder brother and sister-in-law. My brother has parents-in-law still alive, and he also has a younger brother. My brother and sister-in-law are currently farming on the north mountain. This is the lunch I cooked and brought to them. I met three elders on the road, so I offered this meal to them. If you don't mind, it's just a small token of my hospitality."

Tang Sanzang said, “Excellent! Excellent! My disciples have already gone to pick fruit. I dare not eat this food; if I were to eat your food, and your brother and sister-in-law scolded you, wouldn’t that be a sin against me, a monk?”

The White Bone Demon said, "Master, you don't know, my brother and sister-in-law are devoted to Buddhism and often give alms and vow to feed monks. If they knew that this food was given to you, they would be very happy."

Tang Sanzang still refused to eat.

Bajie complained, "Master, you have no opinion at all. You don't eat the food that's already served, and now that you've eaten it, you've only divided it into three portions. When that monkey comes, you'll want to divide it into four portions."

As he spoke, he picked up the basket and was about to eat.

Wukong picked a few peaches from the top of Nanshan Mountain, rode back on a cloud, and saw the woman. He opened his fiery eyes and recognized her as a demon. He drew his iron cudgel and struck her on the head.

Seeing this, the White Bone Demon used a "corpse-dissolving technique." When Wukong attacked, her true form left ahead of time, leaving behind the fake corpse, which Wukong smashed on the ground.

This frightened Tang Sanzang so much that he trembled and said, "You impudent monkey! How dare you harm people without cause!"

Wukong said, "Master, this woman is a demon, she's trying to trick you!"

Tang Sanzang said, "That was clearly a respectable woman who kindly wanted to give us alms. How could she be a demon?"

But the corpse on the ground was a real corpse, only it had been smashed to pieces.

The basket that fell to the ground contained steaming hot white steamed buns.

The earthenware pot shattered, but inside was fragrant rice.

Wukong was now unable to explain himself.

(End of this chapter)