Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 59, Encountering Demons in the Black Pine Forest (Part 3)
Meanwhile, the group returned.

Ao Tu, Bajie, and Sha Wujing said, "Just now I saw that old demon and recognized him as the demon who kidnapped my elder sister, Princess Baihuaxiu, thirteen years ago."

Upon hearing this, Sha Wujing said, "Your Highness, since that's the case, why not let the two of us rescue the princess?"

Ao Tu said, “We have come from a long journey and are starving. As the saying goes, ‘Even a hero fears hunger.’ That demon is waiting in comfort and has minions to help him. I am afraid we will not be able to defeat him. My sister and I have been separated for thirteen years. Now we are about to reunite. We should not fight now. It will not be too late to raise an army to punish him after we have regained the throne.”

Upon hearing this, Pigsy boasted, "Your Highness, after we return to the country, all you need to do is prepare a sumptuous vegetarian meal for me, Pigsy. Without consuming any of your country's military strength, I, Pigsy, alone can subdue that demon and rescue the princess!"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "In that case, we will have to rely on Elder Pig."

No one mentioned that they had been hungry all night.

The next day, Tang Sanzang sent Sha Wujing to beg for alms.

Sha Wujing said, “Master, there are no houses for dozens of miles around, so it is really not easy to beg for a meal. Even if we find a house, it may not be willing to give alms. Please wait here and don’t worry. I will slowly beg for alms and return.”

Tang Sanzang sighed and said, "Go ahead."

Ao Tu then ordered Tiger Vanguard, "Go and search along another road. See if there are any houses. If there are, buy some grain and bring back some water."

Tiger Vanguard accepted the order and went off.

Tang Sanzang was hungry all day and could not walk, so he rested on the spot and exchanged scriptures with Ao Tu.

Pigsy sat to one side, bored out of his mind, chewing on grass roots.

It was past noon when Sha Wujing returned, bringing a bowl of vegetarian food and a few steamed buns.

When Pigsy saw this, he quickly went over to them.

Sha Wujing pushed him away and said, "This is for Master!"

Sha Wujing handed the vegetarian meal to Tang Sanzang and said:
“Master, your disciple Tengyun has traveled two hundred miles and visited more than a dozen families, but none of them are wealthy. I have scraped together this vegetarian meal, and I hope you will not find it offensive.”

Tang Sanzang said, "Wujing, you've had a hard time."

Sha Wujing bowed and said, "Master, don't mention how hard it is, please eat."

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang picked up his alms bowl, intending to share the vegetarian meal with everyone.

Sha Wujing shook his head and said, "Master, it's alright for the two of us to go hungry for a few meals. You should eat."

Bajie looked at the steamed bun, wanting to eat it, but still held back and said:
"Master, these few steamed buns aren't even enough to fill an old pig's teeth, you should eat them!"

Seeing this, Tang Sanzang was somewhat moved and prepared to share half of his meal with Ao Tu, and the two of them ate together.

Ao Tu refused, saying, "I sent my brother to buy grain; he should be back soon."

Just then, Tiger Vanguard returned.

He carried two geese in his hands, a bundle of yams at his waist, and some wild vegetables. Tiger Vanguard said:
"Your Highness, I walked twenty or thirty li without seeing any houses, but I happened to see some wild geese flying overhead and shot down two of them. These yams and wild vegetables were dug up in the mountains!"

Ao Tu instructed:
"Give the yams and wild vegetables to the elders, and roast the wild goose somewhere far away so we can eat it."

Pigsy said, "Your Highness, why are you taking it far away to roast? Let's roast it here. I can't eat it, but I can at least smell the aroma!"

Tang Sanzang shouted, "Bajie, how dare you be so rude!"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "I'm fine, but I'm afraid that meat might offend you."

Tiger Vanguard started a fire and roasted the two geese over it.

Seeing this, Pigsy placed the yam on top of the goose.

Sha Wujing asked, "Second Brother, what are you doing?"

Bajie said, "You don't know, yams roasted like this taste like meat!"

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang angrily said, "Bajie, hurry up and take the yam down."

Pigsy said, "Master, I haven't broken any precepts..." Tang Sanzang said, "Fool, I am a monk with Buddha in my heart. Although you haven't eaten, you have already broken the precepts in your heart. Take him away immediately!"

Upon hearing this, Pigsy had no choice but to reluctantly take the yam down.

After the meal, the group continued their journey.

The journey to Baoxiang Kingdom was still three hundred li, and the group traveled slowly, stopping frequently along the way. Without Wukong, securing daily meals became a major problem.

In addition, Ao Tu and Hu Xianfeng are both ordinary people.

In the past, when the four of them traveled, they could easily travel one or two hundred miles a day on flat roads; but now, with Ao Tu and Tiger Vanguard to consider, they could not travel quickly.

They traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping frequently, and after half a month, they had only covered a little over two hundred miles.

At this point, they were approaching the capital of Baoxiang Kingdom, and people were starting to settle in the vicinity.

Passing by a farmhouse, the group decided to ask for lodging.

Tang Sanzang dismounted from his horse, only to faintly hear the sound of a chime. His head throbbed with pain, and he lost his balance and collapsed to the ground.

Sha Wujing and Zhu Bajie hurriedly went to greet them.

Pigsy asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

Tang Sanzang shivered all over, clutching his head and saying, "My head hurts, my head hurts terribly!"

Pigsy said, "Master, you have epilepsy."

Tang Sanzang was so troubled by a headache that he couldn't speak.

Sha Wujing observed carefully and said, "No, it's just a headache!"

An old woman emerged from that house; she was none other than the White Bone Demon in disguise.

Just now, she was in the house, and she struck the headache chime on Tang Sanzang. Tang Sanzang fell to the ground in response, suffering from a terrible headache.

The White Bone Demon stepped forward and asked, "Elders, what are you doing in front of my house?"

Sha Wujing bowed and said, “Old benefactor, we are monks from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East, on our way to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures. We passed through this place and, seeing that it was getting late, we wished to ask to stay at your home for the night. However, my master has been traveling for days and, when he dismounted, he suffered a headache and is now having a terrible pain. We beg you to do us a favor and let us, master and disciple, go in and rest.”

The White Bone Demon said, "Then please come in quickly!"

Pigsy then carried Tang Sanzang inside and laid him on the bed.

The White Bone Demon brought hot water.

Tang Sanzang drank it, which relieved his headache slightly, but he still had a headache and found it difficult to walk.

The headache-inducing chime is a magical artifact of the Plague Department. When it is struck, the plague enters the body. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are all predetermined by Heaven, and it takes a long time to cure.

This was only because the White Bone Demon did not use her magic. If she had used her magic to strike it, even a deity would have been afflicted by the plague, suffering a splitting headache and unable to control himself.

Tang Sanzang had a headache and couldn't continue his journey, so he had no choice but to stay here.

There was no one else around here, so it was just the right place to accommodate everyone.

Sha Wujing asked curiously:
"Old benefactor, why do you live here all alone?"

Upon hearing this, the White Bone Demon burst into tears and said, "I originally had a son, a daughter-in-law, and a grandson. The four of us lived together here."

Sha Wujing asked, "Where are the others?"

The White Bone Demon said sorrowfully, "Two years ago, His Majesty the King somehow obtained a recipe for soaking human bones in wine. The bones of a strong man could strengthen his body; the bones of a young woman could nourish her complexion; and the bones of a young child could prolong life. Therefore, he captured my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, and there has been no news of them since. I'm afraid they're all gone..."

Sha Wujing said, "Ah, using human bones to make wine, isn't that a monster!"

Pigsy said, "Brother Sandy, have you forgotten? That king was a demon in disguise!"

(End of this chapter)