"Sun Wukong?" he called down the mountain.
"Yeah! What is it, Master?" Sun Wukong's voice came from below.
"Are you sure tearing off these talismans will work?" Tang Sanzang asked. "They're so old. Why don't you tear them off yourself?"
"Because Old Sun can't move or reach them, of course!" Sun Wukong said.
"Then why didn't you ask someone else?"
"Damn it, someone would have to pass by before I could ask!" Impatience crept into Sun Wukong's voice. "Quit dragging your feet, monk! I said I'd protect you on your journey to the Western Heaven for the scriptures, and I won't lie to you! I can swear to the heavens that I'll get you there! Otherwise, may heaven strike me down and earth swallow me up. Happy now?"
Tang Sanzang sighed.
He looked at the talisman, then at the tiny words on it, and gritted his teeth.
Forget it. Since this was a Saint's arrangement, it shouldn't harm me.
He caught a corner of the talisman, closed his eyes, and tore hard.
The talisman ripped.
The instant it tore, the entire Five Elements Mountain shook.
At the foot of the mountain, Sun Wukong felt the change.
The restraints pinning him down loosened. The weight that had pressed on him like the heavens themselves began to fade.
He felt his strength returning. The magical power sealed away for more than six hundred years surged through him once more.
He drew a deep breath. His mouth slowly spread into a grin, exposing two rows of sharp teeth.
"Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh, heh..."
His laughter rose from beneath the mountain, shrill and piercing, echoing through the valley like a knife scraping stone.
"Freedom! Old Sun can smell freedom!"
His voice grew louder and more excited.
"Monk! Get moving! Far away! Old Sun's