Volume 3: A Long Journey Chapter 254: Retiring in Success

The Bull Demon King arrived in no time. Since Hu Yu failed to persuade the Nine-Tailed Fox to return to Jilei Mountain, the Bull Demon King, unwilling to give up, decided to try again. Seeing Guanyin fighting against the Nine-Tailed Fox, old grievances and new resentments surged in his heart, so he roared loudly, “Who dares harm my mother!”

Guanyin and the Nine-Tailed Fox exchanged blows—she with her whip, he with his tail—more like a dance than a fight, yet the magical energy involved was immense, leaving countless deep grooves in the ground. Hearing the Bull Demon King’s roar, both stopped their attacks and stepped back. Although only three of the Four Heavenly Kings remained, the Golden Horn King’s spells could only trap the Four Wood Stars for a short time. Now freed, the Four Wood Stars had the upper hand with seven against two.

Without hesitation, the Bull Demon King joined the battle. His iron rod swept through like a gust of wind, and none of the Heavenly Kings dared to meet it, quickly retreating from the fight.

The Golden Horn and Silver Horn Kings bowed simultaneously and said, “Thank you, sir, for saving us!” But the Bull Demon King ignored them, coldly replying, “I’m not here for you two. I’m here for my mother.” Then he flew to the Nine-Tailed Fox’s side and began to care for her.

Wukong thought the Bull Demon King’s act was quite convincing. Setting aside his relationship with the Golden Horn and Silver Horn Kings, he claimed to be there only for Hu Yu’s mother, the Nine-Tailed Fox. This was clearly to avoid tying this matter to Qitianling. As for Wukong, the Bull Demon King didn’t even glance at him, treating him like a rock. Wukong secretly praised himself, thinking, “The old bull is rough on the outside but clever inside—not bad.”

Upon seeing the Bull Demon King, Wukong suddenly remembered something he should have thought of earlier: the Bull Demon King and the Nine-Tailed Fox must have known each other long ago. The Monkey King from Journey to the West had killed the Nine-Tailed Fox, and the Bull Demon King surely knew about it. Yet neither Hu Yu nor the Bull Demon King mentioned it when they were at the Flaming Mountain, which seemed unreasonable. For Hu Yu, the Nine-Tailed Fox was like her own mother, so she should have talked to the Bull Demon King about it. And at least the Golden Horn and Silver Horn Kings knew about the Monkey King killing the Nine-Tailed Fox. Since all three—Golden Horn and Silver Horn Kings and the Bull Demon King—were disciples of Laozi, they would surely share information. It seemed likely that after pretending to die, the Nine-Tailed Fox had met Hu Yu again. Otherwise, with one person gone, how could things remain so calm? This meant the Nine-Tailed Fox and the Bull Demon King were quite close. If he asked the Bull Demon King, he would surely know the truth.

Seeing that the demons had gained more reinforcements, Guanyin realized she wouldn’t achieve anything today. Though she was highly skilled, she could only fend off the Nine-Tailed Fox alone; the Three Heavenly Kings and the Four Star Gods were no match for the Bull Demon King. Guanyin sighed to herself—now that the Nine-Tailed Fox from Qingqiu had reappeared, peace would be hard to maintain. She decided to report this to the Buddha.

Guanyin called Wukong over and whispered, “Stay here and watch over Tang Seng. Do not take another step forward. I’ve come to stop these demons from stopping you all from going west; I have no intention of capturing or killing them. I’ll go inform the Buddha to handle this.”

Wukong replied, “Go ahead, Goddess. I’ll surely protect Master.”

With that, Guanyin ordered the Three Heavenly Kings, the Four Star Gods, and Wukong to protect Tang Seng together, then soared westward on clouds.

Meanwhile, the Bull Demon King’s roar had alarmed someone. Wuhui shared a deep bond with his father, the Bull Demon King. Hearing his father’s roar, he feared something might have happened to him. Since Wukong had told him not to leave Tang Seng’s side, he was extremely anxious. When he saw Wukong arriving with the Three Heavenly Kings and the Four Star Gods, he hurriedly flew to the Lotus Cave. The Bull Demon King was comforting the Nine-Tailed Fox with Hu Yu when Red Boy flew in, leaving them stunned—their awkward expressions were indescribable. Red Boy, seeing the Bull Demon King with a beautiful woman and their intimate demeanor, guessed what was going on. Since it was not the right time for a father and son to talk, he glared at the Bull Demon King angrily before flying away.

Zhu Bajie, not understanding why Wuhui kept flying around, asked, “Wuhui, are those demons ahead very fierce?”

Wuhui replied coldly, “Go and see for yourself!”

Zhu Bajie glanced at Wuhui and then at Wukong, confused. Wukong, knowing the situation, smiled and said, “Don’t ask silly questions.”

Still puzzled and embarrassed after being scolded by Wuhui, Zhu Bajie flew over to take a look. Among those people, he only recognized the Bull Demon King. He wondered why—the Bull Demon King had clearly been sworn brothers with Wukong on Flower-Fruit Mountain, yet now they seemed like enemies. And why was Wuhui angry? The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. Seeing the majestic appearance of the Heavenly Kings and realizing he himself was dressed in plain clothes and ugly, he grew even more frustrated. He simply closed his eyes and lay down in the grass to sleep.

Tang Seng paid respects to Vajra and the Four Planetary Deities in turn, while Wukong sat alone aside, feeling somewhat uneasy. When Guanyin went to invite Buddha, she naturally had to smooth the way, assuring Tang Seng to proceed westward in peace. Even with the powers of the nine-tailed fox, she could only match Guanyin; she surely couldn’t defeat Buddha. Guanyin had a remarkable background, and if captured by Buddha, many secrets might not be uncovered. After some thought, Wukong used his skill of transforming his form, leaving a fake body behind while his true form had already vanished invisibly.

Flying to the Lotus Cave, he saw Golden Horn and Silver Horn leading the Bull Demon King inside; the nine-tailed fox and Hu Yu were not visible, likely already inside. Wukong sent a message, saying, “Old Ox, it’s me, Wukong!” The Bull Demon King recognized Wukong’s voice and stopped at the cave entrance, also sending a message, “What’s the matter?” Wukong replied, “The chaos has grown huge—three celestial deities and kings have been captured. Won’t you stop?” The Bull Demon King laughed, “Who decides whether to stop or not?” Wukong said, “Guanyin has gone to invite Buddha. If you don’t leave now, you might not be able to escape!” The Bull Demon King exclaimed in shock, “Really?” Wukong affirmed, “Absolutely!” Without further conversation, the Bull Demon King rushed into the cave and shouted, “Something serious—” But as soon as he spoke, the nine-tailed fox waved her hand to silence him, sending a message, “There are outsiders in the cave; don’t shout!” The Bull Demon King looked around and indeed saw the Water Virtue Deity, the Wood Virtue Deity, and the King of Holding the Country trapped inside.

The Bull Demon King sent a message, “Buddha will arrive soon. It’s better if we retreat early.” Silver Horn doubted, “Old Ox, don’t scare me. Just the two of us can really disturb Buddha?” Golden Horn glared at Silver Horn and said, “You overestimate yourself.” The nine-tailed fox said leisurely, “Buddha surely comes for me. Buddha, Buddha…” She murmured Buddha’s name, eventually speaking through gritted teeth, clearly filled with deep hatred.

None of them understood the reason. The Bull Demon King said, “Mother, let’s talk elsewhere first. Brave men shouldn’t suffer immediate losses!” The nine-tailed fox replied resentfully, “Fine! I’ll go back to Jilei Mountain with you.” She glanced at Golden Horn and Silver Horn, “Children, I don’t know when we’ll see each other again after this separation.” Golden Horn and Silver Horn said, “Don’t worry, Mother. As long as you’re still in the world, we’ll surely pay you respects every year!” The nine-tailed fox finally showed a hint of a smile and said, “Then there’s no need for formalities. Let’s go!” She handed the Golden Rope and the Banana Fan to Silver Horn, picked up Hu Yu in one hand and the Bull Demon King in the other, and left the cave, disappearing without a trace.

Silver Horn said, “Since Mother has left, there’s no need to worry. How about we trouble them a bit more, brothers?”

Golden Horn shook his head and said, “I’m afraid Buddha will become enraged out of shame; we can’t take such a risk.”
Silver Horn replied, “Even if we just leave, it will arouse suspicion. We’d better send a message first.”
The two left their cave and flew straight toward where Tang Seng was resting. They shouted from above, “Hand over Tang Seng, and we’ll let you go west!”
When Wukong saw only the two of them coming out, he knew the Bull Demon King and the others must have left. He drew out his iron rod and shouted, “Watch this rod!” Knowing Wukong’s iron rod was deadly, Silver Horn didn’t dare confront it head-on. Instead, he threw out his Golden Rope and cried, “Look at this treasure!”
It was the first time Wukong had encountered such a magical weapon, so he didn’t know how to dodge. In a moment of distraction, he was tied up by the Golden Rope.
Silver Horn laughed heartily and descended to capture Wukong. At that moment, Golden Horn saw a golden light coming from the west and shouted, “Brother, run quickly!” He grabbed Silver Horn and soared into the sky, not daring to look back.
Soon, Guanyin and Buddha arrived. Hearing that Buddha had come, Tang Seng knelt down from a distance of hundreds of miles, repeating “Amitabha” over and over. Buddha didn’t approach closely; instead, he pointed from afar, removing the Golden Rope from Wukong’s body and calling him over.
Wukong said, “Disciple pays respects to Buddha!”
Guanyin asked, “Has that fox gone?” She didn’t ask about others but only about the nine-tailed fox.
Wukong replied, “Just now, those two horned demons came to capture my master. I fought against them, but they tied me up with their rope. I don’t know when the fox left.”
Guanyin said, “What a clever trick of feigning retreat.”
Buddha hadn’t been in vain; he wasn’t angry. He said, “Since it has revealed its true form, it can’t escape the power of Buddhism sooner or later!”