Rain of Compassion

Night lay black as ink over the rear hall of Guanyin Monastery.

Elder Jinchi clutched the Brocade Kasaya tightly, curled up in a grand armchair, his eyes clouded and crazed.

"A gift for me... how could that be?"

"What priceless treasure under heaven comes free? This must be Tang Sanzang's scheme! Tomorrow, he'll use it to extort this monastery from me!"

Beside him, a vicious glint flashed through his disciple's disciple Guangmou's eyes. He said quietly:

"Grandmaster, once we've begun, we must see it through. If you fear his extortion, why not... silence them forever?"

Guangmou pointed outside the window. "The wind is high tonight, and everything is dry. We'll carry over some firewood, surround those three guest rooms, and burn them down! We'll just call it an accidental fire. Neither gods nor ghosts will know. Then you can wear this kasaya without a worry, Grandmaster."

Elder Jinchi shuddered. Looking at the shimmering kasaya in his arms, he finally let greed triumph over reason.

"Good... good! Go do it! Make absolutely sure you leave no trace!"

Outside the guest rooms, the night wind grew stronger.

Dozens of monks moved like ghosts, carrying dry firewood and reeds as they silently surrounded the guest rooms, leaving not a single gap.

Inside the room, in the darkness.

Sun Wukong, who had only been pretending to sleep, suddenly opened his eyes, a cold smile curling his lips.

He rolled off his bed and nudged Ao Lie on the other couch. "Hey, Little White Dragon, wake up. That old crook really was up to no good. They've piled firewood all around us. They're setting up a little 'burn them alive' trap."

Ao Lie sprang to his feet, magical power surging through him as his silver armor instantly gleamed with cold light.

As a prince of the Dragon Tribe, when had he ever suffered such damned indignity?

"Outrageous!"

Murder blazed in Ao Lie's eyes as two balls of water lightning formed in his hands. "The holy monk kindly gave him a treasure, and he repays that kindness with treachery! I'll go out right now, summon heavenly lightning to flatten this wretched temple, and slaughter these bald asses!"

Sun Wukong was never one to shy away from stirring up trouble. He chuckled. "No need for all that. Let Old Sun go up into the sky and watch the fire start. Then I'll blow a gust of wind to lend his flames a hand, burn down his damned monastery, and make him swallow the bitter fruit of his own deeds! Burn those blackhearted crooks to death!"

"Stop."

A calm voice sounded in the darkness.

Xuanzang sat cross-legged on his bed and slowly opened his eyes. There was neither fear nor anger in his gaze, only profound compassion.

"Wukong, Benefactor Ao, do not act rashly."

Ao Lie froze, then said urgently, "Holy monk! They've already put a blade to our throats, and the flames are about to singe our eyebrows! You're still speaking of compassion? Are we supposed to sit here and wait for death?"

Xuanzang rose and walked to the window, looking at the shadowy figures outside and the torches about to kindle the fire.

"His murderous intent arose because greed blinded his mind, leading him onto a demonic path. If we burn the monastery and summon lightning to kill, how would we differ from those demons?"

"Besides, this is Guanyin Bodhisattva's sacred ground. Apart from those few evildoers, there are many ordinary monks here who know nothing of this, as well as enshrined Buddha statues and scriptures."

"If this fire begins, jade and stone will burn alike, and the innocent will suffer. Is that what we cultivators ought to do?"

As he spoke, firelight suddenly flared outside the window.

"Burn them to death!"

At Guangmou's command, the dry wood met oil, and flames instantly leaped into the air. Waves of heat rolled toward them, while thick smoke poured through the cracks around the door.

"Holy monk!"

Ao Lie stamped his foot in anxiety, water vapor swirling around him to keep the smoke at bay.

Xuanzang turned toward Ao Lie, his expression solemn. He pressed his palms together and bowed slightly.

"Benefactor Ao."

Startled, Ao Lie hastily stepped aside to avoid the bow. Although he had not formally become Xuanzang's disciple, he was his attendant. How could he dare accept such a courtesy? "Holy monk, what are you doing?"

"This humble monk has a favor to ask."

Xuanzang's voice was sincere, his gaze clear.

"Benefactor, you belong to the Dragon Tribe, govern the waters, and possess divine powers. The flames outside are fierce. If allowed to spread, they will surely destroy this centuries-old monastery."

"Please summon rain to extinguish the fire. Save the innocent within this temple."

Looking into Xuanzang's eyes, Ao Lie felt the violence in his heart miraculously subside.

Others wanted to burn him alive, yet he wanted to put out the fire?

Was this... what made him a holy monk?

Ao Lie drew a deep breath and solemnly clasped his fist. "Since the holy monk has entrusted this to me, how could I, Ao Lie, do anything less than my utmost?"

With that, he thrust open the door.

"Roooar-!!"

A piercing dragon cry rang through the night sky.

Ao Lie's body flickered, becoming a streak of silver light that shot into the clouds, where he revealed his enormous true form as a white dragon.

He circled among the clouds, opened his mouth, and inhaled, gathering cloud vapor from every direction.

"Let rain fall!"

Ao Lie bellowed.

The night sky, bright with stars and moonlight a moment before, instantly filled with dark clouds.

Whoooosh-

Torrential rain poured down like the celestial river spilling backward, falling precisely onto the raging blaze.

Hiss, hiss, hiss-

White smoke billowed upward, and the once-rampant flames were forced down in an instant.

The monks outside were already petrified at the sight of a dragon flying out of the room.

"A dragon! I saw a dragon!"

"Amitabha Buddha! Tang Sanzang actually has a true dragon protecting him! We'll suffer retribution for what we've done!"

The monks who had set the fire dropped their torches and knelt in the muddy water, knocking their heads against the ground like pestles pounding garlic.

Twenty li to the southeast, on Black Wind Mountain.

The Black Bear Spirit, demon king of Black Wind Cave, had not yet gone to sleep. Seeing flames reaching into the sky from Guanyin Monastery below the mountain, he thought, That old monk is my friend. How did a fire break out? I must go save him!

He rose on a cloud and arrived above the monastery in moments.

Just as he was about to cast a spell to extinguish the flames, the Black Bear Spirit's attention was drawn to the abbot's room at the rear.

Amid the chaos, Elder Jinchi stumbled out, clutching a bundle tightly to his chest. One corner had come loose, revealing ten thousand rays of rosy light and a thousand streams of auspicious radiance.

"What... treasure is that?!"

The Black Bear Spirit's eyes locked onto it.

"What a fine treasure! What blessings has that old monk cultivated to possess such a Buddhist treasure?"

The moment greed arose, his intention to fight the fire vanished like smoke.

"This fire is a good thing! It mustn't go out!"

Seeing water vapor suppressing the flames below, the Black Bear Spirit sneered inwardly.

Trying to put out the fire? Not so easily! Let Old Black lend you a hand. Only after muddying the waters can I fish out a prize!

The burly black fellow opened his mouth in midair and blew a fierce breath down toward the ground.

Whoooosh-!!!

A demonic wind sprang up from the ground!

The wind fed the flames, and the flames borrowed the wind's might.

Caught in that black wind, the flames that Ao Lie's rain had suppressed instantly swelled tenfold! Tongues of fire roared upward like vicious dragons, sweeping straight past the edges of Ao Lie's curtain of water and spreading wildly toward the surrounding halls, bell tower, and drum tower.

The sudden black wind sent the monks staggering in every direction. Sparks flew everywhere, igniting the curtains in the front hall and the roof beams in the rear hall.

In an instant, the entire Guanyin Monastery became a true sea of fire!

Ao Lie was alarmed, wondering where this demonic wind had come from. This was the first task the holy monk had entrusted to him, and he could not botch it, so he redoubled his efforts and intensified the rain.

For a time, the howling wind, pounding rain, crackling buildings, monks' cries, and shouts of those fighting the fire all tangled into one chaotic din.

Only one place remained quiet.

It was Xuanzang's guest room. He sat meditating on the bed, while Sun Wukong, recognizing something unnatural about the wind, stood guard without moving half a step away.

Xuanzang did not rise. Listening to his surroundings, he lowered his head, pressed his palms together, and quietly recited the Great Cloud Wheel Rain-Requesting Sutra. The luminous white Nectar Buddha Wheel slowly appeared behind his head, turning gently.

"I now summon all dragon kings assembled here to send abundant rain upon the lands of Jambudvipa that request it, through the power of All Buddhas and Tathagata, through the true power of All Buddhas of the three ages, through the compassionate heart. Svaha."

His chanting was soft at first, flowing like a mountain spring, then gradually swelled until it drowned out every other sound.

The luminous white Nectar Buddha Wheel behind Xuanzang's head hummed and trembled, radiating rings of gentle yet steadfast white light.

That white light pierced the roof ridge and shot into the clouds, merging with the vast curtain of rain Ao Lie had summoned.

The rain, once bitterly cold, now carried a trace of gentle sweetness, as though every drop contained the power to purify.

"This is..."

Ao Lie's dragon body shuddered in midair. He felt a vast, compassionate power of vows bless him, instantly replenishing his nearly depleted magical power.

He lowered his head toward the guest room, his eyes filled with astonishment.

Hiss, hiss, hiss-

When the demonic wind that had fueled the fire met this nectar rain imbued with Buddhist power, it was like boiling oil poured over snow. Piercing shrieks rang out at once, and the black vapor rapidly dissolved.

The Black Bear Spirit blanched in midair. He had only intended to fan the flames and muddy the waters. He had never expected an expert within Guanyin Monastery who could purify even his Black Fiend Demon Wind.

I cannot linger!

Seeing the flames weakening, the Black Bear Spirit knew there was little point in feeding them further. His gaze fixed on Elder Jinchi, who was stumbling through the chaos below.

Buffeted by the gale, Elder Jinchi lost his footing and fell. The bundle flew out of his arms, and the Brocade Kasaya spilled free, still shining with treasured radiance amid the muddy water.

"The treasure is mine!"

The Black Bear Spirit had no desire to prolong the fight. While the wind still lingered, he turned into a blur and plunged downward.

Whoosh-!

A foul-smelling gust swept past, and the Brocade Kasaya on the ground vanished.

Once the Black Bear Spirit had secured his prize, he did not pause. Mounting the remaining mass of black cloud, he raced away to the southeast.