Volume 3: A Long Journey Chapter 263: Demoting Zhu Bajie Tang Seng asked Wu Kong to fetch paper and pen. Wu Kong thought to himself—could it be that Tang Seng wanted to write a demotion order? He entered the room, where Zhu Bajie had just taken out the purple-gold alms bowl from his pack. Seeing Wu Kong come in, Bajie said, “Master was worried I wouldn’t find it, so he asked Senior Brother to come too.” Wu Kong glanced at Bajie and went ahead to get pen, ink, paper, and inkstone before leaving the room. Bajie muttered to himself, “Does begging for alms even require a written document?” Wu Hui replied, “Master became a monk since childhood. His skill at begging is top-notch—why would he need a written document?” Bajie laughed and said, “Probably because he hasn’t begged for a long time and fears forgetting the right words.” He cheerfully came out and saw Wu Kong fetching water from a vat in the courtyard, grinding ink, and laying paper on a rock. Tang Seng quickly wrote, and in just a dozen characters, a demotion order was completed. It read: “Second disciple Zhu Wuneng has violated the precepts, shows no willingness to reform, is stubborn and unchangeable, and cannot achieve enlightenment. He is now demoted back to Gao Laozhuang and will never be employed again.” After writing this, Tang Seng took two more sheets of paper and wrote two more copies in the same manner. Wu Kong watched and seemed to understand something. He recalled that Tang Seng had once been manipulated by the White Bone Spirit and written a demotion order for the Monkey King, and that order existed only in the Monkey King’s possession. Since a demotion order served as proof, it should logically be in three copies—one for the person being demoted, one for the writer, and one for a guarantor. It seemed that Tang Seng’s decision to demote the Monkey King back to Flower Fruit Mountain was impulsive, not genuine. But this time, with Bajie, it was done seriously, clearly with intent. Zhu Bajie, holding the purple-gold alms bowl, stood there in shock until Tang Seng finished writing all three copies. Then he snapped out of it, dropped the bowl, and knelt down, saying, “Master, what grave offense have I committed to deserve such cruelty from you?” Tang Seng replied, “You still ask me? With your mouth full of worldly desires, how can you still be considered part of my Buddhist community?” Having written the demotion order, his anger subsided. Since he no longer regarded Bajie as his disciple, whatever Bajie did was no longer his concern. Bajie glared at Wu Kong, assuming he must have betrayed him. Wu Kong felt helpless, thinking, “This has nothing to do with me. But how can I explain it?” He said to Tang Seng, “Master, Bajie was just greedy this time. It wasn’t a serious offense like killing or arson. Why be so angry?” Though Wu Kong seemed to be pleading for Bajie, he was actually trying to understand what was going on. Tang Seng’s behavior was extremely unusual—some external stimulus must have provoked him.

Tang Seng joined his hands and gazed westward, sighing, “Amitabha. My Buddha is merciful. On such a long journey, if one’s heart is not sincere, how can one reach the Western Heaven?” He then looked at Zhu Bajie and said, “It’s not that I’m heartless, but you…” Tang Seng hesitated before waving his hand and saying, “Go ahead!”
Zhu Bajie refused to leave. He hadn’t realized much while in heaven, but after being demoted and becoming a demon on earth, he constantly missed the glorious days when he led the heavenly troops in armor. Only by joining this journey to obtain the scriptures did he find a glimmer of hope. Though the journey was arduous, Sun Wukong would handle everything, so he didn’t need to take risks—just carry the load.
What was most tempting was that no matter whether the mission succeeded or failed, he would still have a place to go—this was the advantage of being an undercover agent. If the mission succeeded, the Buddha would surely grant him some honor; if it failed, heaven wouldn’t neglect him either. But if he failed now, it would mean giving up halfway, and not only would he end up in a bad situation, but the Jade Emperor might even kill him in anger.
The more Zhu Bajie thought about it, the more afraid he became, and he fell to the ground, weeping bitterly.
Tang Seng’s expression was also grim, clearly feeling pity, but he had made up his mind this time and would not change it. Sun Wukong, watching from the side, couldn’t understand why.
Then Zhu Bajie said, “Master, it’s true I’m greedy, but I know you’re merciful. You wouldn’t demote me just for eating meat. Please tell me why, so I can die knowing the truth.”
Tang Seng replied, “Zhu Bajie, you’ve broken the rules many times before, and I’ve never punished you severely. But this time, I can’t forgive you anymore. Just now, the Bodhisattva appeared to me in a dream. She warned me that today is the birthday of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna, and if anyone on this journey dares to break the rules, they will never reach the Western Heaven.”
Hearing “Bodhisattva,” Zhu Bajie stopped crying and asked, “Which Bodhisattva appeared in the dream?”
Tang Seng said, “Of course, it was Guanyin Bodhisattva!”
Zhu Bajie stood up abruptly and said, “Master, that’s not right! Those meatballs were given to me by Guanyin!”
Tang Seng snapped, “Stop talking nonsense! How could Guanyin Bodhisattva teach you to break the rules?”
Zhu Bajie said with a sad face, “Master, I’m telling the truth!”
Tang Seng said sternly, “Stop calling me master! There are three copies of this demotion order. Keep one for yourself, have Sun Wukong keep one on my behalf, and deliver the other to Guanyin Bodhisattva when the time is right. After all, she once taught you good teachings and guided you—this will be a way to repay her.”
Zhu Bajie held the demotion order, looking foolish. Though the title of the second disciple on this journey wasn’t prestigious, it was at least a place to return to. Now he had nothing left.
Tang Seng and Sun Wukong said, “Help me back to the room.”

Wukong helped Tang Seng inside the house, truly feeling pity for him. Since his rebirth, that fool no longer harbored such evil thoughts as before; he merely had stronger desires for food and sex, but that was not his true nature. Yet, with the Bodhisattva’s vision to Tang Seng and the decree already written, it was impossible to change anything, and even if Wukong tried to intercede, it would be futile.

Zhu Bajie kept claiming that the meatballs were given to him by the Bodhisattva. With his boldness, how would he dare use the Bodhisattva as an excuse? So, this statement was almost certainly true! Guanyin gave the meatballs to Zhu Bajie but also sent a vision to Tang Seng. Putting these two things together, it was clear that she intended to remove Zhu Bajie from the pilgrimage team. Initially, Zhu Bajie was recommended by Guanyin to join the group, and now she used Tang Seng to drive him away—what kind of trick was Guanyin playing?

Outside, Zhu Bajie called out “Master” several times, but Tang Seng simply sat on the couch, ignoring him. As dusk fell, Tang Seng, having realized the situation, had no appetite to eat and remained seated in silence inside the house.

That fool became stubborn, calling out from time to time. From sunset to the full moon, he received no response from Tang Seng. As he kept calling, Zhu Bajie’s hopes faded. He knew it would be extremely difficult to make Tang Seng change his mind, so he felt both regret and anger. With a fierce stamp of his foot, he soared into the air, planning to return to Gao Laozhuang to enjoy some peace for a few days.

As he approached the palace gates, he suddenly saw several figures flying swiftly from the north. Suspicious, Zhu Bajie thought that flying around in the dead of night surely meant nothing good. While hesitating whether to investigate, those figures also saw Zhu Bajie and stopped mid-air, staring at each other from afar.

Those people were naturally Qin Wuxian, Yun Juanshu, and the others. After driving away the Green Lion Demon, they came to the palace to force the King of the Black Chicken to abdicate. Unluckily, they encountered the exiled Zhu Bajie.

That night, the moon was as bright as day. Qin Wuxian recognized Zhu Bajie from afar—he was one of the pilgrims who had entered the palace during the day. He cursed inwardly, thinking, “What’s this guy doing out here in the middle of the night?”

Zhu Bajie approached with a smile and said, “Isn’t this the Second Grand Preceptor?”

Seeing that Zhu Bajie had recognized him, Qin Wuxian silently ordered, “Kill him!”

Immediately, everyone attacked, wielding their weapons and magical treasures. Zhu Bajie, caught off guard, had no choice but to fight back. He swung his Nine-Toothed Rake, demonstrating its formidable power.

Yun Juanshu and the others carried ordinary magical weapons, which could hardly stand up to his precious Golden Rake. Their weapons broke and shattered with just one strike. In a single round, everyone’s weapons were reduced to half.

Qin Wuxian’s eyes gleamed as he shouted, “That rake is a rare treasure! Capture him!”

Although Bajie managed to gain a slight advantage, seeing that the opponent was numerous and unskilled, he feinted an attack and fled eastward. With his wits, he naturally couldn’t guess what these people intended to do, assuming they were just night guards of the palace.

This fight alerted Wukong, who stepped out of his room and glanced at the adjacent room—there was no sign of movement. He wasn’t sure if Guanyin was still inside, nor did he dare to probe further.

Wukong saw Bajie defeated and fleeing in panic, wondering how the Second Grand Preceptor could have clashed with Bajie. His mind was far more meticulous than Bajie’s, so he guessed that since the Nine-Headed Worm had been captured, the Second Grand Preceptor had no one to restrain him. He must have come to the palace in the middle of the night, hoping to plunder and leave. He never expected that Qin Wuxian would be so bold as to plot to seize the throne!

Wukong concealed himself and swiftly entered the palace. He saw Qin Wuxian and his men entering recklessly, using magic to knock out any palace guards or maids they encountered. Unimpeded, they soon reached the Uji King’s bedroom.

The Uji King was asleep when he suddenly felt a chill on his neck. Opening his eyes, he saw a broken blade across his throat and cried out, waking the queen beside him.

The king rubbed his eyes and immediately recognized Qin Wuxian, exclaiming, “Second Grand Preceptor, you—”

Qin Wuxian said, “Stop calling me Grand Preceptor. From tomorrow, I will be the Uji King!”

Shocked, the king shouted, “How dare you! Do you really want to seize the throne?” At his cry, the blade pressed harder against his neck. Qin Wuxian waved his hand and said, “Don’t kill him.” Turning to the king, he added, “I’ve been here for years, bringing prosperity and peace to the people. My contributions are far greater than yours, aren’t they?”

Knowing Qin Wuxian’s great powers, the king dared not argue. Qin Wuxian continued, “At tomorrow’s court meeting, hand over the throne to me. You can still remain a wealthy man. If you refuse, I’ll give you an immortal pill now—after that, you’ll be nothing but a walking corpse. Which do you think is better?”

The king had no idea such sinister methods existed, but he naturally couldn’t doubt what Qin Wuxian said. He gradually calmed down and said politely, “Grand Preceptor, I know you’re extremely powerful. But haven’t you heard the saying that the throne is divinely ordained? It may be easy for you to take my position, but even if you do, it likely won’t be stable.”

Qin Wuxian’s heart sank. He came from a world where the strong ruled—whomever wanted to be king or emperor could do so as long as they had the strength, and no one interfered. But this world had different rules, so he pondered a strategy.

Yun Juanshu said, “Stop with your flattery. Who in heaven cares about matters on earth?”

The Black Chicken King said, “Elder Immortal, how many people in the world would refuse to be emperor? Even immortals would likely find it hard to resist the temptation of such a position. Yet among all the kingdoms in the world, not a single emperor is an immortal—this is something that becomes clear upon reflection.”
The Black Chicken King came up with this excuse in a moment of desperation; he had no idea if it was true or not. Seeing the king’s uneasy gaze, Qin Wuxian laughed and said, “Impressive that you could come up with such a thing! How dare you try to deceive me!”
When exposed, the king angrily declared, “If you take my throne, you will surely suffer divine punishment!”
Qin Wuxian sneered, “I’m curious just how big heaven is!” Then he reached out to grab the king.