After hearing Sun Wukong out, the king said, "Your Majesty need not worry. I'll go capture that monster and bring Golden Palace Lady back."
The king hurriedly knelt to thank him. Wukong said, "Your Majesty, could you tell me when this monster usually comes to cause trouble, or what kind of creature it is?"
The king replied, "That monster comes several times a year and takes a few palace maids away to wait on Golden Palace Lady."
To keep the monster from harming anyone else, the king had also ordered a Monster-Avoiding Tower to be built.
Sun Wukong suggested, "Would Your Majesty take us to see the Monster-Avoiding Tower?"
The king agreed to Sun Wukong's request and led them there. The tower had been built underground, with nine great halls inside and a stone slab covering the entrance.
The Monster-Avoiding Tower was very spacious. Each of its nine halls had an entrance through which the common people could rush inside, and they could enter through any of the nine halls.
The entrances to the nine halls were located at the nine busiest places in the city. If the monster came, the people could quickly make their way into the tower.
As the king was speaking, a sudden gale swept in from the south, sending dust swirling everywhere.
The civil and military officials all cried out in alarm, "The monster's here! The monster's here! Protect His Majesty! Hurry, protect His Majesty!"
The king hurriedly said, "Quick, close the entrance! Close it!"
Sand Monk and Bajie were about to go into the cave too, but Sun Wukong grabbed them and said, "Come on, let's go out and see what this monster is all about."
So they leaped outside. Sure enough, a monster holding a long spear stood in the air. Sun Wukong