Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 198: Liu Boqin

Tang Seng was locked in another cave, while Xiong Shanjun and Te Chushi began to chatter randomly. The two talked about the paths of cultivation for demons and beasts, deliberately showing off their knowledge and praising Taoism. Those who practiced immortality had delicate bones, while those who attained the Way were the most spiritual. With nine orifices, they could absorb the finest essence of heaven and earth, gather the essence of the sun and moon, collect rare herbs according to the seasons, and refine elixirs through nine transformations.

When it came to elixir refinement, Xiong Shanjun and Te Chushi each had their own views. Though there were slight differences, their goals were ultimately the same. Such a discussion on the Way was extremely rare. General Yin listened with rapt attention, and even the little demons in the cave were overjoyed, gaining much from it.

While the two continued their discussion, Wukong saw someone falling from the sky—it was Tai Bai Jin Xing, who had come to rescue Tang Seng. With just a finger gesture, all the ropes binding Tang Seng broke apart. Tai Bai Jin Xing then used magic to wake him up. Recognizing his kind face, Tang Seng bowed in gratitude. Tai Bai Jin Xing replied, “This place is called Shuangcha Ling, full of monsters and demons. It’s best to leave as soon as possible.”

Seeing his belongings neatly tied to the white horse’s saddle and his nine-ring tin staff leaning nearby, Tang Seng felt fortunate. Tai Bai Jin Xing then led him out of the cave, saying, “I’ll guide you to the main road.” Deeply grateful, Tang Seng took hold of the reins and followed Tai Bai Jin Xing out of the rugged terrain onto the main road. He turned to thank him, but Tai Bai Jin Xing had already transformed into a gust of wind, riding a red-crowned crane and flying away.

Tang Seng saw a note floating down from the sky, with four lines written on it: “I am Tai Bai Jin Xing from the Western Heaven, sent to rescue you. Divine disciples will assist you ahead. Do not complain due to hardships.”

Seeing this, Tang Seng bowed several times more, thanking Tai Bai Jin Xing for saving him.

Wukong saw clearly that the note read, “I am Tai Bai Jin Xing from the Western Heaven.” It was unclear whether “Western Heaven” referred to the Spiritual Mountain in the west or the western part of the sky. It might also have been intentionally vague, making Tang Seng think it was all thanks to the Western Heaven.

Tai Bai Jin Xing was extremely cunning. Having witnessed the Jade Emperor’s arrangements, he had guessed some of the Emperor’s intentions. It seemed the struggle between Buddhism and Taoism was not so simple, with both sides having many considerations. He often acted as a mediator, taking advantage of the situation to gain favors.

Tang Seng continued on the main road alone toward the west. Though called a road, it was wide enough for at most two riders side by side. After traveling for half a day with no path ahead, he had no choice but to dismount and search for a way.

Since leaving the pass, he hadn’t eaten or drunk anything, and he was extremely hungry and thirsty. All he saw were barren mountains and wild lands, with no signs of human habitation. Fortunately, there was grass everywhere, allowing his horse to maintain its strength.

Tang Seng only hoped to cross this mountain so that he could find some settlements ahead where he could obtain some vegetarian food. Little did he know that the further he went, the more desolate and dangerous it became. The paths in the mountains were not particularly difficult to traverse, but the roars of tigers and wolves grew louder, and wild snakes slithered through the grass by the road—truly terrifying.

Tang Seng moved forward slowly, terrified. Though he knew the area ahead was dangerous, he had the scriptures only in the west, so he just hoped to cross the mountain as soon as possible. The deeper into the mountains he went, the more wild beasts there were. Already timid, Tang Seng felt as if countless eyes of wild beasts were staring at him in the dark forest.

Suddenly, he heard the roar of a fierce tiger. Echoed through the mountains, it was hard to tell how many such beasts were roaring at once. The might of the king of beasts was extraordinary, causing all the wild animals in the mountains to scatter in panic. Even Tang Seng’s white horse grew weak in its front legs and lay motionless on the ground. Tang Seng lamented bitterly, thinking his life was lost.

Sure enough, a huge beast came rushing toward him from afar. Its fur was patterned, and it was over ten feet long. Upon seeing Tang Seng, it stopped and let out another long roar before pouncing toward him with quick steps, clearly regarding Tang Seng as its meal. Tang Seng was too paralyzed to move, not even having the strength to call for help.

As the tiger closed in, less than ten feet away, there was a sharp sound of a bowstring. An arrow with eagle feathers was shot from behind Tang Seng, piercing right through the “king” character on the tiger’s forehead. The beast let out a pained cry, turned around, and fled with the arrow stuck in it. Tang Seng escaped death. Looking back, he saw a hunter dressed in brocade robes, with a lion-skin belt around his waist, deer-leather boots on his feet, holding a powerful bow, a quiver of arrows slung across his back, and a polished trident leaning against him.

Seeing this man’s bravery, Tang Seng clasped his hands and cried out, “Great king, save me! Great king, save me!”

The hunter stepped forward and said, “Elder, need not be afraid. I am a hunter from the mountains. My surname is Liu, and my name is Boqin. I came into the mountains to hunt some game, never expecting to meet you.”

Tang Seng rejoiced, saying, “It is the Buddha’s blessing that has led me to meet such a noble person.”

Liu Boqin replied, “No, no. It’s just fate that brought us together. Since you believe in Buddhism, I will take you across now.”

Tang Seng was overjoyed. So Liu Boqin led the way, with Tang Seng following behind. Liu Boqin had been hunting in these mountains for a long time, and all the creatures there would scatter at the sight of him, afraid of not escaping in time. Indeed, poisonous insects fled, monstrous beasts ran away, tigers hid, and snakes disappeared.

Wukong never left Tang Seng throughout the journey. Seeing that hunter Liu Boqin possessed at least the cultivation level of an immortal, he realized Liu was no ordinary hunter but rather an immortal in disguise. It was a pity he couldn’t use the secrets of the Mysterious Void Technique, so he couldn’t discern Liu’s true foundation. His words, “Since you believe in Buddhism, I’ll take you there,” were merely meant to reassure Tang Seng, fearing his resolve might waver.

Before long, the two reached the foot of the slope. Liu Boqin pointed to a manor below and said, “That’s my home. It’s not easy for you, an elder, to travel such a long distance. Please come in and have some food.”

Tang Seng was already so hungry he had no strength left, so he accepted without hesitation, saying, “Then I’ll trouble you.”

Liu Boqin replied, “Oh no, we’re all subjects of the Great Tang. There’s no need for formalities.”

Upon entering the manor, Liu Boqin brought out his mother and wife to meet Tang Seng. Tang Seng wanted to pay his respects, but Liu’s mother said, “As a guest from afar, there’s no need for bows. But I wonder why you, alone and without any strength, intend to go somewhere?”

Tang Seng replied, “I’ve been sent by the King of Tang to worship Buddha and obtain scriptures in the Western Heaven. Passing through this sacred place, I feel obliged to show my gratitude.”

Liu’s mother asked, “Worship Buddha? Obtain scriptures? Do you know how to perform religious rituals?”

Tang Seng said, “It’s not that I’m boasting, but aside from other things, performing rituals comes naturally to me.”

Liu’s mother said, “What a coincidence today.” Then she turned to Liu Boqin and said, “Tomorrow happens to be the anniversary of your father’s death. He passed away a year ago, and no rituals have been held in these remote mountains. Since you’re skilled in this, please have him recite some scriptures to bless his soul. It might be useful.”

Liu Boqin, being a filial son, said, “Of course, I’d be honored to do that. I wonder if it will delay your journey?”

Tang Seng replied, “Though I’m eager to go, one more day won’t matter. Besides, being kind to others is what Buddhism teaches us to do.” So Liu Boqin prepared incense and paper offerings, ready to use them the next day.

That night, the Liu family prepared vegetarian food for Tang Seng, and there was no conversation throughout the night.

The next morning, the whole family got up early to prepare vegetarian food to entertain the elder. After finishing his meal, Tang Seng washed his hands, lit incense, and paid respects at the family altar.

Then Sanzang began to beat the wooden fish, first reciting mantras to purify the mouth, followed by spells to cleanse the body and mind. After that, he opened a volume of the “Sutra for Saving the Dead.” After reciting it, Liu Boqin asked him to write a prayer for the deceased, then they recited the “Diamond Sutra” and the “Avalokiteshvara Sutra” aloud. After lunch, they recited the “Lotus Sutra” and the “Amida Sutra.” After reciting several volumes of each, they recited one volume of the “Peacock Sutra” as well.

By the time these scriptures were finished, it was already late in the day. Sanzang instructed Liu Boqin to offer various kinds of incense, burn paper horses for the gods, and burn the prayer for the deceased, thus completing the religious ceremony.

Early the next morning, Liu’s mother exclaimed joyfully, “Elder, Boy Boqin, I have something to say to you.” The two approached, and the old woman, sitting on the bed, said, “Last night I had a pleasant dream. In it, your father came to our home and said that thanks to the Elder’s blessings, his sins had been forgiven, and he would be reborn in the wealthy homes of the Central Plains.” Liu Boqin was astonished, “It’s truly divine will! I had the same dream last night!”
So the mother and son bowed before the Elder and thanked him, “We are endlessly grateful for helping my late father escape his troubles and be reborn. There’s no way to repay you enough!” Sanzang replied, “It’s all thanks to Buddha’s power; there’s no need to thank me!”
Liu’s mother said, “From now on, I will burn incense every day and devoutly worship Buddha.” Liu Boqin added, “From now on, I’ll give up this job too and move to the city to find work. It’s better than killing animals every day.”
Tang Seng was overjoyed and said, “How wonderful! It’s truly great that the donor has turned back so soon.”
Wukong, watching from the side, sneered inwardly. None of the Liu family members were ordinary people; they were all those with supernatural powers pretending to be ordinary folks.
He wasn’t sure whether Buddha’s rituals of salvation were real or not. After all, just after the rituals, they were reborn in wealthy families and could even send dreams to their families—this seemed too coincidental and unbelievable. But since Tang Seng saw his own efforts to save souls succeed, he became even more convinced of Buddhism and Zen, unable to change his mind.
Even an ordinary hunter was part of this planned act. If that was the case, perhaps nothing along the way to the West would be random. It seemed that Buddhism and Taoism would use Tang Seng and his group as a medium, using the quest for the scriptures as a pretext to engage in many overt and covert struggles.
With his merits now complete, Tang Seng decided to bid farewell and set off westward. Liu’s mother and Boqin’s wife prepared plenty of dry food and vegetarian dishes for the Elder to take on the journey. Boqin also gave the Elder a large amount of silver, asking him to take it with him.
Tang Seng said, “I can accept the dry food, but I really can’t accept gold or silver. If you truly wish to help, please accompany me a little further. I would be deeply grateful.”
Boqin replied, “That’s of course not a problem.”
So Boqin took his hunting gear and led the Elder westward along the main road.
With Liu Boqin by his side, the Elder had no worries along the way. After traveling for half a day, they saw a huge, bare mountain ahead. Liu Boqin said, “Elder, ahead is Tartar territory. This mountain is called the Two Realms Mountain. From here, I can no longer go further. Please forgive me.”
Tang Seng said, “I’m already extremely grateful.”
Liu Boqin added, “Beneath this Two Realms Mountain lies a demon monkey. It is said that this monkey refused to obey the heavens, so it was imprisoned here. If you hear it roaring later, don’t be alarmed.”
Tang Seng thanked him for the warning.

Liu Boqin then bid farewell to Tang Seng and turned back. Tang Seng sighed, knowing that though Liu Boqin was kind, he could not accompany him on the journey. He would have to walk this long road alone step by step.
The road here was quite flat, so Tang Seng spurred his horse and soon reached the foot of Two Realms Mountain.
Seeing Tang Seng approaching, Wukong merged his two forms and hid in a stone box at the foot of the mountain, crying, “Master, save me! Master, save my life!”