Late at night, one side of the city gate was left ajar.
Dozens of guards held torches aloft, patrolling back and forth. A fast horse brushed past them and quickly crossed through the city gate.
The soldier on horseback whipped his mount with all his strength. Before long, he had crossed the long street and arrived at a grand mansion.
'Who goes there?' barked a gate guard.
Upon hearing this, the soldier hurriedly dismounted, pulled out a command token from his belt, and presented it with both hands. He announced, "I am the flag officer under General Shaw, sent by his order on urgent business to request an audience with the National Preceptor. Please pass word inside."
The quarry?
The guards outside exchanged glances, and for some reason, all of them burst out laughing.
Soon, a young man dressed as a servant pushed open the door inside the mansion, knelt respectfully, and said, "Reporting to the National Preceptor: General Shaw has sent someone, who is waiting outside for an audience."
For a long moment, silence reigned.
The servant lifted his head slightly.
In the modest hall, six chairs were arranged—two in the main seats at the front, four placed on either side.
At this moment, three Daoists sat in the side chairs, dressed in red, orange, and gray robes, respectively. At the main seat stood another Daoist in black robes, his back to the reporting servant, face unseen.
The red, orange, and gray-robed Daoists exchanged glances.
The orange-robed Daoist stroked his small mustache and said, "Sent from the quarry—what do they want?"
"What else could it be?" snorted the red-robed, bearded Daoist with a fierce look, rolling his eyes. "They all went to the quarry—of course they'd send someone."
After speaking, he waved his hand at the reporting servant and said, "Just tell him we've received the message and he should return for now. The National Preceptor will decide later."
The servant glanced up at the black-robed Daoist, replied "Yes, sir," then withdrew and closed the door behind him.
After the servant left, the white-robed Daoist with a goatee, who had remained silent, stroked his long beard and said, "So they've reached the quarry and met those bald monks, eh? What should we do next?"
Six eyes turned in unison to the black-robed Daoist.
Just then, there was another knock at the door.
"Come in."
The door creaked open and another servant entered, knelt, and said, "Reporting to the National Preceptor: for some reason, the fur-faced monk has already soared away on the clouds."
"Oh?"
Everyone present widened their eyes.
"The Great Sage actually left?" The black-robed Daoist turned around and slowly broke into a smile. "It seems Heaven is helping me!"
This person was none other than Many-Eyes the Centipede!
...
At this moment, outside the Hall of Life and Death in the Netherworld, Monkey was calmly watching King Brightcourt, who knelt on the ground trembling.
"You think your dead colleagues are too lonely, so you want to join them, is that it?"
"Great Sage... Great Sage, you must be joking, just joking." King Brightcourt wiped away cold sweat with trembling hands.
Then why did you try to stop me?
"Great Sage," King Brightcourt stammered, "How would I dare to block you? It's just... better to avoid trouble when possible. I'm only doing this for your own good."
Swallowing hard, King Brightcourt continued, "Times have changed. Now the Netherworld is ruled by the Earth-Store King. Without his order, even Yama cannot let anyone into the Hall of Life and Death."
"Is that so?" Monkey snorted. "In that case, have him come see me."
"Have him come..." King Brightcourt choked, glanced at Monkey, and seeing he wasn't joking, nodded slightly and withdrew, bowing as he left.
...
By the altar, a Ghost Messenger said, "Reporting to the World-Honored One: the Great Sage Sun Wukong is outside the Hall of Life and Death. He requests that the World-Honored One meet him personally."
Earth-Store King turned his face and calmly glanced at Saint Raymond, titled Right-Dharma Radiance, and said, "See, my Golden Body has already returned."
So, Earth-Store Venerable plans to go meet him?
"Let's wait a bit—no rush." Earth-Store King took a deep breath. "It's rare for me to leave once. If he just goes back now, there are some who won't be happy."
Saint Raymond, titled Right-Dharma Radiance, squinted slightly, eyeing the Earth-Store King with suspicion.
...
Meanwhile, in the eastern market, a crowd of soldiers stood trembling, clutching their weapons.
Not far away, Tripitaka and a group of monks conscripted for labor sat on the ground.
Each of these monks wore tattered robes, their exposed skin covered in whip marks.
Marshal Silver and the others guarded Tripitaka closely.
A white-bearded old monk, weeping bitterly, said to Tripitaka, "Master, you may not know. Buddhism used to be the state religion of Cartwright Kingdom. In the old days, from the king to the commoners, all were devout. But a year ago, Cartwright Kingdom suffered a great drought, and the king ordered us to pray for rain..."
Wiping his tears, the old monk continued, "With no other choice, we gathered the high monks of Cartwright Kingdom and set up an altar outside the capital, chanting scriptures for eighty-one days, but no rain came. At last, we had to take down the altar. Then a Daoist from afar arrived, and in the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, summoned wind and rain, ending the drought..."
At this point, the surrounding monks were already sobbing.
The old monk paused, then continued, "Afterward, His Majesty made Daoism the state religion, confiscated all Buddhist temples and property in Cartwright Kingdom, and conscripted all monks into forced labor..."
In moments, the monks were all in tears, bowing to Tripitaka and crying, "Master, you must have been sent by the Buddha. Please save us! Please save us!"
Tripitaka could only smile helplessly and looked to Marshal Silver.
In Buddhism, one cultivates oneself, seeking Buddhahood. All suffering is a test of character.
Though people often say the Buddha offers protection, would the Western Buddhas really intervene to bring rain?
Expecting Buddhists to pray for rain is misguided, equating Buddhism with Daoism.
But for a Daoist to summon wind and rain in the time it takes to burn a stick of incense? That can't be right.
Though Tripitaka never trained as an immortal, he knew that ordinary spellcraft could bring rain, but to end a kingdom-wide drought in Cartwright Kingdom, only a Dragon King's intervention would suffice.
To summon a Dragon King in the time it takes to burn a stick of incense... How far is it from here to the Dragon Palace? How long from the mortal world to Heaven?
Is that possible?
With a gentle sigh, Tripitaka reached out to help the old monk up, saying, "I am already aware of this matter."
Then, Master, what do you intend to do?
At this moment, all the monks looked hopefully at Tripitaka.
Helpless, Tripitaka could only reply softly, "If possible, I will enter the palace soon and reason with His Majesty."
Meanwhile, five li away on a slope, a soldier hurriedly knelt before Many-Eyes the Centipede and three other Daoists.
Reporting to the National Preceptor: the hairy-faced monk has not returned. The group is still stranded in the quarry.
Many-Eyes the Centipede nodded slightly and said, "Keep investigating!"
Understood!
The soldier mounted his horse and sped off toward the quarry.
Sir," the bearded Daoist in red robes saluted Many-Eyes the Centipede, saying, "Since the Great Sage has not returned, we must seize the opportunity. Why do we not strike now?"
Do not act rashly," Many-Eyes the Centipede waved his hand, "Though the Great Sage is absent, Tripitaka is still guarded by Marshal Silver, Barry Bear, and other experts. If we fight head-on, we may not fare well. That is why we keep our distance—to avoid their detection."
Taking a deep breath, Many-Eyes the Centipede handed a command token to the gray-robed Daoist, saying, "Order the army to encircle them. First use mortals to distract them, then we strike at the right moment for a decisive blow!"