Chapter Summaries

The True Martial Great Emperor rescued the injured Kunpeng from Ghost Chariot and took him back to the Heavenly Court. After the Great Emperor warned Kunpeng to behave himself, Kunpeng headed to the High Cloud Palace, confident he would soon be made a Great Emperor.

• Ghost Chariot prepared to kill the injured Kunpeng, but Kunpeng called on his true Majesty for help.
• The True Martial Great Emperor struck down Ghost Chariot's attack and declared that Kunpeng's fate belonged to the Heavenly Court.
• Eastern Sovereign Taiyi allowed the True Martial Great Emperor to take Kunpeng away, choosing to focus on gathering demons and establishing the Demon Court.
• The True Martial Great Emperor brought Kunpeng through the South Heaven Gate and released him, then warned him to behave himself in the Heavenly Court.
• Kunpeng set off for the High Cloud Palace, privately expecting to receive the title of Great Emperor.

Hun Xiu appointed Kunpeng, the ancient Demon Master, to guard the South Heaven Gate as a Gate-keeping Divine Beast, forcing him to swallow his humiliation. Meanwhile, Sun Wukong arrived at the gate seeking help against the Yellow Wind Monster and was startled by Kunpeng’s Great Peng form.

• Hun Xiu made Kunpeng the South Heaven Gate’s Gate-keeping Divine Beast instead of appointing him a Great Emperor.
• Kunpeng suppressed his anger, accepted the post, and left to guard the South Heaven Gate as a Great Peng.
• Tang Xuanzang’s group continued west after receiving the Heart Sutra from Monk Wuchao at Futu Mountain.
• At Yellow Wind Ridge, the Yellow Wind Monster captured Tang Xuanzang, and Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie sought reinforcements from the Heavenly Court.
• Sun Wukong arrived at the South Heaven Gate and exclaimed at the sight of the enormous Great Peng.

Sun Wukong went to the Heavenly Court for help with the Yellow Wind Monster and met Kunpeng at the South Heaven Gate. He returned to Yellow Wind Ridge with Great Master Lingbao, who revealed that Zhu Bajie was his martial nephew and confronted the Yellow Wind Monster.

• Sun Wukong mistook Kunpeng for a huge bird at the South Heaven Gate, and Mo Liqing explained who Kunpeng was before directing him toward a Daoist who could subdue the Yellow Wind Monster.
• Sun Wukong met Great Master Lingbao, who said the Yellow Haired Rat had escaped from his home and caused trouble at Yellow Wind Ridge.
• Sun Wukong brought Great Master Lingbao to Yellow Wind Ridge, where Lingbao recognized Zhu Bajie as his martial nephew and Zhu Bajie paid his respects.
• Guanyin wondered why Lingji had resumed the identity of Lingbao, while the Yellow Wind Monster recognized the voice outside Yellow Wind Cave as his teacher’s.

Great Master Lingbao subdued Yellow Wind Monster and took the merit for the Yellow Wind Ridge trial, while Bodhisattva Lingji waited in vain on Mount Sumeru. When Lingji arrived to confront the supposed impostor, Lingbao declared his own identity and rebuked Lingji for abandoning his place among Chanjiao’s Twelve Golden Immortals.

• Great Master Lingbao subdued Yellow Wind Monster, and Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie rescued Tang Xuanzang from Yellow Wind Cave.
• Great Master Lingbao confronted Guanyin, who sensed that something about him was strange.
• Bodhisattva Lingji calculated that the Yellow Wind Ridge trial had already passed and rushed there, furious that someone had taken his merit.
• Lingji demanded answers from Guanyin, then turned to face Great Master Lingbao and accused him of impersonation.
• Lingbao claimed he was the original Great Master Lingbao and criticized Lingji for leaving the Twelve Golden Immortals to become a Buddhist bodhisattva.

Lingji confronted the impostor Great Master Lingbao, who escaped after accusing him of betraying Chanjiao. At the Flowing Sand River, the Red-Haired Monster captured Tang Xuanzang and recognized Zhu Bajie's Nine-Toothed Rake, asking if he was his brother.

• Great Master Lingbao fought off Lingji's Flying Dragon Treasure Staff and vanished after threatening to kill him for betraying Chanjiao.
• Lingji left in a rage, while Guanyin worried over the next trial and her share of its merit.
• Sun Wukong sent Zhu Bajie underwater to rescue Tang Xuanzang after the Red-Haired Monster captured him.
• The Red-Haired Monster spared Tang Xuanzang because he believed the pilgrim's tenth incarnation would free him from the Flowing Sand River.
• Zhu Bajie confronted the Red-Haired Monster, who recognized his Nine-Toothed Rake and asked, "Brother, is that you?"

The Red-Haired Monster and Zhu Bajie recognized each other as former Heavenly Court comrades and explained how they had ended up in their current forms. The Red-Haired Monster revealed that Guanyin had ordered him to capture Tang Xuanzang to create an obstacle, and he planned to release him when help arrived so he could escape the Flowing Sand River.

• The Red-Haired Monster recognized Zhu Bajie as the former Marshal Tian Peng, and they identified each other by the Crescent Shovel and Nine-Toothed Rake before embracing.
• The Red-Haired Monster explained that Zhang Bairen had punished him over a Glazed Lamp, while Zhu Bajie explained that he had entered the wrong pig womb after being banished.
• The Red-Haired Monster revealed that the nine skulls on his necklace belonged to Tang Xuanzang's previous incarnations, whom he had eaten under Guanyin's orders.
• Zhu Bajie asked to taste Tang Xuanzang, but the Red-Haired Monster said Tang Xuanzang could not be eaten because he was destined to complete his merits.
• The Red-Haired Monster explained that he had captured Tang Xuanzang to cause trouble for Zhu Bajie and would release him when Guanyin sent someone, freeing himself from the Flowing Sand River's restraints.

Sun Wukong discovered Zhu Bajie feasting with the Red-Haired Monster, who revealed he had once been the Curtain-Raising General and was meant to join the Journey to the West. Guanyin freed Sha Wujing from his red-haired form, but Hun Xiu arrived and claimed that no one from his Heavenly Court could join the Buddhist Sect without his permission.

• Worried about Zhu Bajie, Sun Wukong transformed into a fish, entered the Red-Haired Monster's cave, and found Tang Xuanzang unconscious while Zhu Bajie feasted with the monster.
• Zhu Bajie introduced the Red-Haired Monster as a former Curtain-Raising General assigned to protect Tang Xuanzang, and Sun Wukong joined their feast.
• Guanyin arrived at the Flowing Sand River, discovered the group was eating and drinking below, and summoned them before restoring Sha Wujing to his normal form.
• Guanyin told Sha Wujing to protect Tang Xuanzang, but Hun Xiu appeared and challenged the transfer of anyone from his Heavenly Court to the Buddhist Sect.
• Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing recognized Hun Xiu and knelt in fear, leaving Sun Wukong confused by their reaction.

Sun Wukong arrogantly challenged Hun Xiu, mistaking him for the weak Jade Emperor he had once humiliated. Hun Xiu spared him but ordered Guanyin to tell Tathagata to come to the Heavenly Court with a satisfactory offering, leaving the Buddhist Sect facing trouble because of Sun Wukong’s insolence.

• Sun Wukong called Hun Xiu the old Jade Emperor, demanded to be addressed as the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, and raised his Golden Cudgel.
• Guanyin apologized for Sun Wukong’s behavior, but Sun Wukong continued to boast that he could defeat Hun Xiu.
• Guanyin shouted at Sun Wukong, knocking him from the clouds, then tightened his hoop until he screamed and fainted.
• Hun Xiu told Guanyin he would not bicker with a monkey, but ordered her to summon Tathagata to the Heavenly Court after the matter was settled.
• Hun Xiu warned that Tathagata must bring something satisfactory or might not be allowed to leave, and Guanyin agreed to relay his demand.

Hun Xiu assigned Sha Wujing to help Tang Xuanzang complete the Journey to the West before returning to the Heavenly Court, while Tathagata decided to replace the troublesome Sun Wukong and cancel the Four Saints Test. Months later, the Ginseng Fruit Tree vanished, prompting Guanyin to seek Tathagata’s help and Zhenyuanzi to leave Primeval Lord of Heaven’s sermon to find it.

• Hun Xiu arranged for Sha Wujing to accompany Tang Xuanzang on the Journey to the West and return to the Heavenly Court after the pilgrimage.
• Sha Wujing joined Tang Xuanzang’s party, and the group crossed the Flowing Sand River after Sun Wukong awoke.
• Guanyin told Tathagata about Hun Xiu’s summons, and Tathagata resolved to replace Sun Wukong and cancel the Four Saints Test the Zen Mind.
• Months later, Guanyin discovered that the Ginseng Fruit Tree had disappeared and hurried to Spirit Mountain to consult Tathagata.
• Zhenyuanzi sensed that his connection to the Ginseng Fruit Tree had been severed, divined that it was gone, and left Primeval Lord of Heaven’s sermon to search for it.

After the Ginseng Fruit Tree vanished, Zhenyuanzi blamed Sun Wukong and the Buddhist Sect and tracked the fleeing pilgrims. Sun Wukong warned Zhenyuanzi that catching up could cost him his life, leaving the two facing one another in a sudden, absolute silence.

• Primeval Lord of Heaven failed to divine why the Ginseng Fruit Tree had vanished and sensed that an unseen force was throwing the Three Realms into chaos.
• Zhenyuanzi returned, found his Ginseng Fruit Tree gone, blamed Sun Wukong and the Buddhist Sect, and used the Book of Earth to locate the pilgrims.
• Sun Wukong fled with Tang Xuanzang, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing, but Zhenyuanzi caught up with them after they stopped to rest.
• Sun Wukong admitted he was Zhenyuanzi and warned him that he should not have caught up, because he might die there.
• Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing realized Sun Wukong had deeply offended Zhenyuanzi as silence fell over heaven and earth.

Zhenyuanzi overwhelmed Sun Wukong, captured the scripture-seeking party, and imprisoned them at Five Elements Temple to force the Buddhist Sect to answer for the Ginseng Fruit Tree’s disappearance. He prepared a boiling-oil cauldron for the captives while Sun Wukong continued to defy him.

• Sun Wukong challenged Zhenyuanzi, who repeatedly sent him flying with effortless waves of his hand.
• Zhenyuanzi trapped Sun Wukong in the Sleeve of the Universe and swept Tang Xuanzang, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing inside as well.
• Zhenyuanzi returned to Five Elements Temple and ordered Qingfeng and Mingyue to prepare a cauldron of boiling oil.
• Zhenyuanzi had the party bound to Stone Pillars and pierced the Pipa Bones of Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing to seal their magical power.
• Sun Wukong kept cursing Zhenyuanzi, who slapped him and warned that he would soon be unable to shout.

Tathagata and Guanyin arrived at Five Elements Temple after learning that the Ginseng Fruit Tree had vanished, hoping to prevent Zhenyuanzi from killing Sun Wukong and the others. Sun Wukong's repeated demands that they kill Zhenyuanzi enraged him, leaving Tathagata and Guanyin to face his demand for an explanation.

• Zhenyuanzi taunted Sun Wukong and claimed his Oil Cauldron could break even Tathagata's golden body.
• Guanyin reported the Ginseng Fruit Tree's disappearance to Tathagata, who could not divine its whereabouts and hurried with her to Five Elements Temple.
• Tathagata and Guanyin arrived as Sun Wukong insulted Zhenyuanzi while praising Tathagata.
• Sun Wukong begged Tathagata and Guanyin to kill Zhenyuanzi, prompting Zhenyuanzi to demand an explanation from them.
• Sun Wukong interrupted Tathagata's attempt to respond and urged him to help beat Zhenyuanzi, who threatened the pair with a fight.

Zhenyuanzi trapped Tathagata and Guanyin inside Five Elements Temple and demanded compensation for the missing Ginseng Fruit Tree and punishment for Sun Wukong. Tathagata agreed to let Zhenyuanzi throw Sun Wukong into the Oil Cauldron to appease him, while intending to save or heal the monkey afterward.

• Zhenyuanzi activated Five Elements Temple's formation, trapping Tathagata and Guanyin, and demanded an explanation for the lost Ginseng Fruit Tree and Sun Wukong's insults.
• Guanyin rebuked Sun Wukong and warned him that he had brought about a monstrous calamity.
• Tathagata apologized on behalf of the Buddhist Sect and offered compensation, but Zhenyuanzi insisted Sun Wukong be punished first.
• Tathagata proposed throwing Sun Wukong into Zhenyuanzi's Oil Cauldron, accepting the danger to calm Zhenyuanzi and continue negotiations.

Zhenyuanzi punished Sun Wukong for the destruction of his Ginseng Fruit Tree, then demanded that the Buddhist Sect resolve the matter before he released Tang Xuanzang and his group. Unable to discover what happened, the Two Western Saints offered Zhenyuanzi additional merit or threatened war.

• Zhenyuanzi threw Sun Wukong into the Oil Cauldron and amplified his senses so he experienced the frying as prolonged torment, while keeping his soul intact.
• After Tathagata asked whether Zhenyuanzi had vented his anger, Zhenyuanzi agreed to discuss the Ginseng Fruit Tree with Tathagata and Guanyin.
• Tathagata went to the Pure Land of Bliss and told Daoist Zhunti and Daoist Jieyin that the Ginseng Fruit Tree had vanished without a trace.
• Daoist Zhunti and Daoist Jieyin failed to deduce what had happened, even after joining forces.
• Daoist Zhunti ordered Tathagata to offer Zhenyuanzi an additional share of Journey to the West's merit if he released Tang Xuanzang and his group, or threaten war if he refused.

Tathagata deceived Zhenyuanzi about the lost Ginseng Fruit Tree, provoking Zhenyuanzi to activate the Five Elements Formation and trap the Buddhist Sect at Five Elements Temple. Hun Xiu watched the confrontation from the Heavenly Court and invited the immortals to see the show.

• Tathagata gathered the Buddhist Sect's quasi-saint experts and concealed them in his palm world before going to Five Elements Temple.
• Tathagata told Zhenyuanzi that the Ginseng Fruit Tree would soon be returned, then took Tang Xuanzang and his companions into his palm world.
• Tathagata admitted the Ginseng Fruit Tree was gone and offered Zhenyuanzi a portion of the merit from Journey to the West.
• Zhenyuanzi realized Tathagata had deceived him, threatened Tathagata and Guanyin, and activated the Five Elements Formation.
• Hun Xiu projected the scene at Five Elements Temple in the High Cloud Palace and invited the immortals to watch.

Zhenyuanzi realized that the Buddhist Sect had schemed to take his Ginseng Fruit Tree and attacked Tathagata and Guanyin with the full power of Mount Wanshou's array. As Guanyin struggled under the divine thunder, Tathagata revealed that he had come prepared by manifesting the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm.

• Zhenyuanzi accused Tathagata and Guanyin of stealing his Ginseng Fruit Tree and declared that neither would leave Mount Wanshou.
• Tathagata attacked Zhenyuanzi with the Tathagata Divine Palm, but Zhenyuanzi blocked it with the Book of Earth as the strike destroyed Five Elements Temple.
• Zhenyuanzi unleashed World-Ending Divine Thunder from the array against Tathagata and Guanyin, laying waste to Mount Wanshou.
• Tathagata protected himself with the Twelve-Petal Golden Lotus while Guanyin formed a barrier that began to crack under the thunder.
• Guanyin asked Tathagata for help, and he manifested the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm, revealing that he had prepared a countermeasure.

Tathagata and the Buddhist Sect’s many quasi-saints broke Zhenyuanzi’s formation and defeated him after he refused to join them. Cornered, Zhenyuanzi prepared to self-destruct and take several of his enemies with him, but Tathagata and the others moved to restrain him.

• Tathagata and the Buddhist Sect’s Great Powers shattered Zhenyuanzi’s grand formation, leaving him wounded and defeated.
• Tathagata offered Zhenyuanzi a Buddha Fruition if he joined the Buddhist Sect, but Zhenyuanzi refused and spat on him.
• Tathagata fought Zhenyuanzi, then the Buddhist Sect’s quasi-saints joined in and overwhelmed him.
• Tathagata kicked Zhenyuanzi into a crater and declared that the strong preyed upon the weak.
• Zhenyuanzi threatened to take the Buddhist Sect’s powerhouses down with him and began preparing to self-destruct.
• Tathagata and the other Buddhist Sect members cast spells to restrain Zhenyuanzi before he could self-destruct.

As Tathagata’s forces prepared to suppress Zhenyuanzi, Ancestral Dragon rescued him and arrived with more than a dozen Great Principle Golden Immortals. Eastern Sovereign Taiyi and his demons then joined them, leaving the Buddhist Sect facing a powerful opposing alliance.

• Tathagata restrained Zhenyuanzi’s attempt to self-destruct and ordered the Buddhist Sect to suppress him.
• Ancestral Dragon appeared, forced the attackers back, and freed Zhenyuanzi.
• Ancestral Dragon summoned more than a dozen Great Principle Golden Immortals from the Dragon Clan and challenged Tathagata.
• Eastern Sovereign Taiyi arrived with numerous demons and joined Ancestral Dragon against the Buddhist Sect.
• Zhenyuanzi thanked Ancestral Dragon and Eastern Sovereign Taiyi, while Eastern Sovereign Taiyi berated the Buddhist Sect and insulted Daoist Zhunti and Daoist Jieyin.

Hun Xiu appeared at Mount Wanshou and used his overwhelming pressure to stop the quasi-saints’ battle before it could destroy the mortal world. He ended the dispute, took Zhenyuanzi’s Book of Earth, and promised to protect him.

• Eastern Sovereign Taiyi struck Tathagata with the Eastern Sovereign Bell, and Tathagata prepared to fight back as the quasi-saints’ battle erupted.
• Taibai Jinxing and the immortals urged Hun Xiu to intervene before the fighting destroyed the mortal world.
• Hun Xiu appeared at Mount Wanshou and suppressed everyone present, forcing the combatants to stop.
• Tathagata agreed to end the dispute, and Zhenyuanzi said he would not continue fighting.
• Hun Xiu took the Book of Earth from Zhenyuanzi and promised to protect him throughout the Three Realms.

Hun Xiu healed Zhenyuanzi after taking the Book of Earth, while the Saints of the West wondered what kind of power he possessed and plotted to draw him into Chaos. Back in the Heavenly Court, Hun Xiu confronted the spirit of the Ginseng Fruit Tree and declared himself her master.

• Hun Xiu healed Zhenyuanzi's injuries and left after saying he owed him something in return for the Book of Earth.
• Daoist Zhunti and Daoist Jieyin discussed Hun Xiu's inexplicable strength and planned to lure him out of the Three Realms into Chaos.
• Hun Xiu returned to the Heavenly Court with the Ginseng Fruit Tree, whose spirit had reached the quasi-Saint realm.
• The tree spirit appeared in Hun Xiu's palm-made world and attacked him with vines when he claimed he would be her master.
• Hun Xiu blocked her attacks, grabbed her hand, and refused to let go as she struggled and protested that he was hurting her.