Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 373: The Golden Sacred Palace

The Peacock Great Brightness King Bodhisattva is only mentioned in “Journey to the West” and never appears in person. The Tathagata once said, “When the peacock emerges, it is extremely fierce; it can devour humans, sucking them in with one gulp over a distance of forty-five li. I, while cultivating my golden body sixteen zhang tall on the snow-capped mountain, was already sucked into its belly by it. I tried to exit through its side door, fearing it would defile my true form, so I split open its back and mounted the Spirit Mountain. Though I wanted to harm it, the Buddhas advised me that harming the peacock was like harming my own mother. Thus, I left it at the Spirit Mountain assembly and conferred upon it the title of Peacock Great Brightness King Bodhisattva, the Buddha Mother.”

The Roc once said the peacock was his brother, yet the two peacocks shot by the king of Zhu Zi Country were actually the children of the Buddha Mother Peacock. This was also a strange matter—how could a peacock alone give birth to offspring, let alone males?

Even if the Buddha Mother Peacock had the ability to reproduce on its own, these two peacocks lacked the strength to protect themselves. How could they have traveled thousands of miles from the Western Heaven to Zhu Zi Country?

Wukong, filled with doubts, headed toward the palace of Zhu Zi Country and soon arrived in front of the Five Phoenix Tower. Many soldiers stood there, blocking Wukong and Tang Seng. Wukong said, “We are monks from the Eastern Land, on our way to the Western Heaven to obtain scriptures. We are passing through your country and need to exchange passage documents. Please inform the authorities.”

The soldiers saw that Tang Seng was gentle and quiet, while Wukong, though oddly shaped, was thin and spoke politely. They replied, “You’ve come at just the right time. Our emperor also holds court only today.”

Wukong asked further, “Why isn’t the king holding court earlier?”

The soldiers said, “Our emperor has been ill for a long time. He only came to court today because someone answered the imperial edict. If you want to enter the palace, go and ask the eunuch officials to announce it.”

Hmm, someone actually answered the imperial edict—this really disrupted the planned sequence of events. But Wukong thought that since he had arrived in the world of Journey to the West, many things must have changed, and many people’s fates altered. With most of the journey to obtain the scriptures already completed, anything that happened was no longer surprising.

Wukong thanked the soldiers and walked a few steps to the outer gate. The eunuch officials went to the steps and reported, “There are monks from the Eastern Land outside the palace gate. They wish to go to the Western Heaven to worship the Buddha and obtain scriptures. They are passing through our country and need to exchange passage documents. They are waiting outside.”

The king, with a sallow face and a sickly appearance, was pleased upon hearing this. “I just ascended the throne today, and already high monks come to see me—what a fortunate event!” Wukong and Tang Seng entered the palace, performed the proper rituals, and the king ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare meals. Since Zhu Zi Country was located in Western Ox and Joy Continent, the whole nation believed in Buddhism, so they became much more friendly upon seeing monks.

Tang Seng presented the document to the king. After reading it, the king asked no further questions and stamped it with the royal seal. He then asked Tang Seng, “The venerable monk has come from afar in the Eastern Land. Why did he not travel thousands of miles to the West to obtain the scriptures? What is the reason?”
Tang Seng replied, “It’s a long story. I dare not dwell on it.” He glanced secretly at the king, who appeared pale and thin, looking distracted, so he did not wish to talk too much for fear of harming the king’s health.
The king said, “It’s alright. Please tell me.”
So Tang Seng began to explain the origin of his quest for the scriptures, starting from the Dragon King of the Jing River and ending with King Li Shimin’s spiritual journey to the netherworld, which led him to decide to obtain the scriptures to save the souls of the deceased and ensure the longevity of his kingdom.
After hearing this, the king asked nothing else and simply said, “Venerable monk, who was the wise minister who beheaded the Dragon King of the Jing River?” Tang Seng replied, “It was Wei Zheng, the prime minister serving your Majesty.”
“King Tang died but was revived after three days. It was thanks to Wei Zheng, who convinced Judge Cui to change the records, extending the king’s life by twenty years. Now, to hold a grand water and land ceremony, your Majesty sent me on this long journey to various countries to worship Buddha and obtain the Tripitaka of Mahayana scriptures to save those who suffer and ascend to heaven.”
The king sighed and said, “Truly, this is a great empire with a righteous ruler and wise ministers! I have been ill for a long time, yet not a single minister in the country could save me.”
Just as Tang Seng began to comfort him, an official came to report that the vegetarian meals in the Imperial Kitchen were ready, and Tang Seng and Wukong were invited to eat there. The king said, “Since the good doctor has not arrived yet, please dine with me in the Pixiang Hall.”
Just as Tang Seng was about to express his gratitude, an eunuch announced, “The famous doctor listed on the imperial edict has arrived!” Hearing about the famous doctor, the king ignored Tang Seng and strained his neck to look outside. Wukong also looked outside and saw a man of imposing presence entering the hall from afar. Upon seeing this man, Wukong was filled with surprise and joy. Who could it be? It turned out to be Erlang Shen, Yang Jian!
Wukong thought that since he hadn’t seen Yang Jian for a long time, he should get close to him. But Yang Jian ignored everyone else and walked straight up to the king, bowing respectfully without showing either arrogance or humility. He said, “I can cure the illness afflicting Your Majesty.”
Seeing Yang Jian’s good looks, the king felt even more favorable toward him. Hearing that he could cure his illness, the king was overjoyed and asked, “Can you tell what illness I have?”
Yang Jian examined the king carefully and said, “As I said, Your Majesty suffers from the illness of ‘two birds separated from their flock’!” Wukong laughed in the background, thinking it was just another clever remark.
The king was shocked and asked Yang Jian, “What does ‘two birds separated from their flock’ mean?”
Yang Jian replied, “It refers to two birds flying together, later separated by someone, leaving the male and female apart. They grieve in their hearts, hence the phrase ‘two birds separated from their flock’.”

The king was momentarily stunned and sighed, “There really are such excellent doctors in the world—able to see the hidden illness in my heart with just one glance. I only wonder how this illness can be cured?”
Yang Jian replied, “It’s easy… and yet difficult.”
The king asked, “How do you mean?”
Yang Jian said, “There are too many people in the hall; it’s not suitable to talk here.”
So the king dismissed all the ministers. Tang Seng, who didn’t recognize Yang Jian, grabbed Wu Kong and tried to leave, but Wu Kong refused to go, wanting to see what trick Yang Jian had up his sleeve. Yang Jian said, “These two monks need not leave. My method only affects ordinary people, not monks or Taoists.”
Only four people remained in the hall—the king and the three others. The king said, “Now you can speak.”
Yang Jian replied, “To cure Your Majesty’s illness, we must first understand its cause, so that we can prescribe the right treatment.”
The king sighed and said, “Alas, this matter is rather complicated, and I fear you may not believe it.”
Yang Jian said, “Your Majesty, go ahead and explain. Perhaps I can even eliminate the root cause of the illness.”
The king already regarded Yang Jian as a deity, so he said, “Although the Kingdom of Zhu Zi is not as great as the imperial court, it is still a large country with many concubines in the harem. A few years ago, three beautiful women came to the country—extremely charming. I doted on them greatly and appointed them as the Queens of the Golden, Silver, and Jade Palaces.”
“Among these three queens, the Queen of the Golden Palace was the most beautiful and young. Out of pity for her, I favored the Queens of the Silver and Jade Palaces first. One day, I held a banquet for my ministers to celebrate my marriage to the Queen of the Golden Palace, with the intention of making her the queen mother. But on that very day, a demon appeared and abducted her.”
Yang Jian asked urgently, “What is the name of that demon, and where does it live?”
Seeing Yang Jian’s concern, Wu Kong thought to himself, Could this Queen of the Golden Palace be someone Yang Jian knows? Otherwise, why would he come here to stir up trouble?
The king replied, “That demon calls itself the Lord of Qilin Mountain. It can control clouds and mist and possesses great magical powers. It has come several times, taking away more than a dozen maids, claiming they were needed to serve the queen.”
Yang Jian asked, “How far is Qilin Mountain from here?”
The king said, “It’s five thousand li southwest of the capital. I’ve sent troops to attack it, but none have returned.”
After hearing this, Yang Jian asked, “Are the Queens of the Silver and Jade Palaces still in the palace?”
The king replied, “They are fine.”
Yang Jian said, “Please ask them to come out. I have some questions for them.”
Without suspicion, the king sent someone to call the two queens. Soon, two graceful figures like fairies emerged from the back hall. Upon seeing them, Wu Kong thought, Huh? These two queens are clearly not ordinary people—they also possess Taoist mystical powers!

Princesses Yin and Yu hadn’t even had time to pay their respects to the king when they spotted Yang Jian. Shocked, their faces turned pale, and they quickly knelt down, saying, “Venerable Xiansheng Zhenjun!” The king was also confused to see the two princesses kowtowing to this doctor. He was a devout Buddhist and had never heard of Xiansheng Zhenjun before. After glancing at Yang Jian, he didn’t know what to say.

Yang Jian pointed at the two princesses with his halberd, his brows furrowing. After thinking for a moment, he suppressed his anger and took out a pill from his pocket, saying to the king, “I’ve figured it out. If Your Majesty takes this pill, he will be free from illness forever.”

After tossing the pill aside, Yang Jian stood up and headed out. Wukong called out, “Where are you going?” Yang Jian turned around and snapped, “Of course to catch demons!”

Wukong turned to Tang Seng and said with a smile, “Master, you stay here and talk with the king. I’ll go check on that demon.” Tang Seng didn’t stop him, but the king exclaimed in alarm, “That demon is extremely fierce. With your small stature, don’t risk your life!”

Tang Seng stopped the king and said, “Your Majesty, to be honest, my disciple is quite skilled. Ordinary demons are no match for him. Without his protection along the way, how could I have traveled such a long distance?”

The king was overjoyed and cried out, “If you two can rescue Princess of the Golden Holy Palace, I’m willing to share the kingdom with you!”

Wukong seemed to have guessed something and turned back, saying, “It’s possible to rescue her, but it will be hard to see her again!” Wukong chased after Yang Jian and called out, “Brother Yang, what does this have to do with me?”

Yang Jian replied, “Who said it has anything to do with you?”

Wukong laughed and said, “If it has nothing to do with you, why ignore me?”

Yang Jian said, “Hmph! I get angry at Buddhists the moment I see them!”

Wukong laughed again and said, “People say love for one’s home extends to its birds, but you seem to hate everything related to it. Tell me what’s really going on.”

The two talked as they flew through the air. Yang Jian briefly explained the whole situation.

It turned out that Princess of the Golden Holy Palace was none other than Yang Jian’s own sister, Yang Chan, the Taoist deity known as the Third Holy Mother. Yang Chan was the nephew of the Jade Emperor and held a special status in Taoism. She often acted without following rules, yet no one dared to discipline her. She could be seen everywhere in heaven and hell, acting without any restraint.

One day, the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother were discussing the conflict between Buddhism and Taoism by the Jade Pool. They thought Yang Chan was too young to understand and that what they were talking about wasn’t confidential, so they didn’t hide it from her. Little did they know, Yang Chan overheard them and became intrigued.

Yang Chan was different from Yang Jian. Having lived in the heavenly palace for a long time, she held great respect for her uncle, the Jade Emperor. Hearing the Jade Emperor worry about the situation of Taoism, she felt compelled to share in that concern. She did not know that the conflict between Buddhism and Taoism was aimed at gaining control over creation; she only heard the Jade Emperor say that the land of Xiniu Hezhou had been taken over by Ling Mountain, and that fewer and fewer people were following Taoism.

When Yang Chan went to Xiniu Hezhou, she found the situation roughly as the Jade Emperor had described. One day, while in the Kingdom of Zhuzi, she accidentally discovered that the king was extremely lustful. So she returned to heaven, chose two palace maids at random, and married them to the king, hoping to use their influence to weaken the king’s faith in Buddhism.

Wukong laughed heartily and said, “This niece of the Jade Emperor is far better than your niece.”

Yang Jian snapped, “You monkey! My sister is in danger, and you still come to mock her!”

Wukong looked slightly surprised and said, “Several years have passed since this happened. Why have you come only now?”

Yang Jian replied, “It’s normal for me and my sister not to see each other for ten or eight years. It was only when Ziyang Zhenren came to Guanjiangkou to look for me that I learned my sister was in trouble in the Kingdom of Zhuzi. Ziyang Zhenren didn’t give many details, so I came to the court to investigate.”

Wukong nodded. Ziyang Zhenren was indeed that Taoist deity who gave the Queen of Jinsheng Palace a powerful robe.