Chapter Summaries

Xuanzang and Copper Horn freed Zhu Bajie inside the Purple-Gold Red Gourd while Sun Wukong pursued the wounded Silver Horn King to Lotus Cave. Wukong slipped into the cave as a mosquito, where Golden Horn and Silver Horn discussed the danger without noticing him.

• Copper Horn used her light to revive Xuanzang and Zhu Bajie inside the gourd, then bit through the Ox Sinew Rope binding Bajie.
• Xuanzang stopped Zhu Bajie from attacking Copper Horn and revealed the Red-Blood Buddha Wheel behind his head.
• Sun Wukong fought Silver Horn King, who used the Seven-Star Treasure Sword's glare to reach Lotus Cave.
• Wukong turned into a Spotted-Leg Mosquito and slipped through a crack in the cave gates.
• Silver Horn told Golden Horn that Xuanzang had been sucked into the gourd and that Wukong might be outside, while Wukong watched them from the stalactites.

The Silver Horn King and Golden Horn King adjusted to life as fox cubs on Dragon-Pressing Mountain while their mother’s daughter doted on them. By late autumn, their older sister brought them food, and Silver Horn’s body betrayed his disgust with a hungry growl and a wagging tail.

• The Silver Horn King wondered whether he and the Golden Horn King had been too hasty in involving their little sister in their ordeal.
• Fox Aqi visited his sister and nephews, roughhoused with Silver Horn, and boasted about his strength until the mother fox told him not to frighten the children.
• Several months passed as Golden Horn and Silver Horn grew quickly and discussed cultivating their mortal bodies until the Pilgrim arrived.
• The light-brown fox pounced on the brothers, licked them, and reassured them she would protect them from anyone who mocked their horns.
• The light-brown fox offered the brothers demon mice and wild fruits, and Silver Horn’s stomach growled despite his protests; his tail then wagged when she patted him.

Fox Aqi and the weakened nine-tailed fox tried to protect their family when demons attacked Dragon-Pressing Mountain. Ayu died defending Gold Horn and Silver Horn, whose rage awakened their sealed powers and left them ready to retaliate.

• Fox Aqi warned that the Gray Wolf Monster and Python Demon were attacking Dragon-Pressing Mountain while the nine-tailed fox was weakened after giving birth to Gold Horn and Silver Horn.
• When the assault began, Fox Aqi went to hold off the attackers, and the nine-tailed fox ordered Ayu to take her little brothers to the rear mountain.
• Ayu led Gold Horn and Silver Horn into the forest, where a black-furred wolf demon attacked them and she blocked its path to protect them.
• The wolf demon fatally wounded Ayu, but she bit down on its throat and refused to let go.
• Gold Horn and Silver Horn's sealed power awakened in their fury, revealing their magical treasures as they transformed into human form and vowed to kill those who harmed their kin.

Inside the Purple-Gold Red Gourd, Xuanzang soothed the nightmare-stricken fox while Wukong learned that the demon kings planned to summon their mother. Wukong intercepted the old demon on her way to Lotus Cave and asked to exchange her for Xuanzang and Bajie, but she refused.

• Xuanzang calmed the pale-brown fox inside the Purple-Gold Red Gourd, while Bajie searched for a way out.
• The Golden Horn King told Silver Horn to hide the gourd and heal, revealing that he had sent Bashan Tiger and Leaning-on-the-Sea Dragon to fetch their mother.
• Sun Wukong overheard the demon kings' conversation, then asked the Earth God where Dragon-Pressing Cave was.
• Wukong followed the messengers to Dragon-Pressing Cave and secretly slipped into the old demon's sedan as she set out for Lotus Cave.
• Wukong sealed the sedan, revealed himself to the old demon, and demanded that she trade herself for Xuanzang and Bajie; she shook her head.

Wukong questioned the old fox about her family’s strange actions, but she attacked him with a golden binding rope. After stopping short of killing her, he learned she wanted him to kill her and end her sons’ deluded hopes.

• Wukong challenged the old fox to explain her family’s actions and offered to tell her where Little Fox was if she spoke.
• The old fox panicked when Wukong mentioned Little Fox, then attacked him with a golden rope and cast the Tightening Rope Spell.
• Wukong’s bound body turned out to be a false body, and the real Wukong destroyed the sedan chair and knocked Bashan Tiger and Leaning-on-the-Sea Dragon away.
• Wukong halted his Golden Cudgel just above the old fox, bound her with it, and took the golden rope.
• After Wukong assured her Little Fox was safe, the old fox begged him to kill her and end her sons’ deluded hopes.

Sun Wukong discovered that the old fox’s sons had been using the Golden Rope’s Dao resonance to keep her alive, and that taking the treasure away had caused her to begin dying. Realizing the two demons were staging a filial rescue, he changed plans and headed for Lotus Cave with Little White Dragon, Sha Wujing, and the old fox.

• The old fox begged Sun Wukong to spare her children, and he carried her back to the clearing where Sha Wujing, Little White Dragon, and A-Hu waited.
• Sun Wukong told Sha Wujing that Tang Sanzang and Bajie were trapped in a magic gourd but were not in immediate danger, then set off with Little White Dragon to rescue them.
• The old fox began dying after Sun Wukong took the Golden Rope away, and Sha Wujing called him back for help.
• The Golden Rope sent Dao resonance into the old fox and revived her, revealing that her sons had used the treasure to replace her exhausted life essence.
• Sun Wukong concluded that the demons were acting out a filial rescue, ordered Little White Dragon and Sha Wujing to accompany him to Lotus Cave with the old fox, and left A-Hu to guard the luggage.

Wukong’s group confronted Gold Horn and Silver Horn at Lotus Cave, forcing them to release Xuanzang, Bajie, and Copper Horn when they learned the old fox had been captured. Xuanzang challenged Gold Horn’s motives and left him confronting the possibility that he had fallen into demonic delusion.

• Wukong sent Little White Dragon to attack Lotus Cave’s entrance while Sha Wujing supported the old fox, who held the Golden Rope.
• A demon reported that the old fox was outside, and Gold Horn ordered Silver Horn to release Xuanzang, Bajie, and Copper Horn so they could retrieve their mother.
• Bajie attacked Silver Horn after emerging from the gourd, but Xuanzang stopped the fight and listened as Gold Horn demanded that Wukong release their mother.
• Gold Horn said he would free Xuanzang and the others in exchange for his mother, but Xuanzang questioned why Copper Horn had guided them and why the brothers had not intercepted them earlier.
• Xuanzang told Gold Horn that he had fallen into demonic delusion and needed to wake up.

Gold Horn revealed that he intended to have the Pilgrims kill his mother so he could purify her soul and restore her through the Golden Rope, and Xuanzang agreed to honor his wish. The captives were exchanged for Old Fox, leaving Gold Horn reunited with his mother.

• Gold Horn admitted he had planned to use Copper Horn to lure the Pilgrims to Dragon-Pressing Mountain, where their actions would help him restore his mother.
• Gold Horn explained that Tang Sanzang’s flesh could not save his mother and that he wanted the Pilgrims to kill her so he could merge her purified soul with the Golden Rope.
• Silver Horn began recalling someone from the past, but Gold Horn soothed him with clear qi as Copper Horn comforted him.
• Xuanzang challenged Gold Horn to consider whether his loved ones wanted to be saved this way, but agreed to do as Gold Horn wished after hearing his plea.
• Gold Horn released Xuanzang and Bajie in exchange for Old Fox, whom he caught and asked if she was all right.

Gold Horn attacked Wukong and unleashed a powerful fire with the Banana Leaf Fan, while Wukong fought through the flames. As Wukong prepared to strike Gold Horn, Old Fox rushed between them, and a beam of white light suddenly shot toward Wukong.

• Silver Horn took Old Fox's hand as Gold Horn confronted Wukong and demanded the return of the Golden Rope.
• Wukong consulted Xuanzang, then told Little White Dragon and Bajie to protect their master before facing Gold Horn.
• Gold Horn attacked Wukong with the Seven-Star Treasure Sword, but Wukong knocked him back and wounded him.
• Gold Horn used the Banana Leaf Fan to summon a growing sea of spiritual fire, and Wukong entered it behind a dark golden shield.
• Wukong created hair-clone Pilgrims to distract Gold Horn, then appeared above him and brought down his cudgel.
• Old Fox threw herself in front of Gold Horn, who smiled at the prospect of using her death to save her; a beam of white light then hurtled toward Wukong.

Silver Horn died saving the old fox from Gold Horn’s attack, driving Gold Horn to turn the Banana Leaf Fan’s flames into Yin-Blazing Fire. Xuanzang countered with the Unimpeded Luminous Buddha Wheel and asked Gold Horn to hear a story.

• Silver Horn blocked Gold Horn’s Golden Cudgel from striking the old fox and died in Gold Horn’s arms.
• Gold Horn mourned Silver Horn while the old fox collapsed in grief and Copper Horn sensed her brother’s death.
• Gold Horn used his essence blood to corrupt the Banana Leaf Fan and unleashed Yin-Blazing Fire at Wukong and the others.
• Wukong tried to hold back the fire as Little White Dragon and Sha Wujing intervened, while Bajie urged Xuanzang to retreat.
• Xuanzang advanced with the Unimpeded Luminous Buddha Wheel and extinguished the Yin-Blazing Fire.
• Gold Horn rejected Xuanzang’s appeal to awaken, and Xuanzang asked him to hear a story.

Xuanzang told Gold Horn how King Virudhaka destroyed the Shakya despite the Buddha’s attempts to turn him back. As King Mahanama drowned himself to delay the slaughter, Xuanzang left unresolved whether Mahamaudgalyayana’s attempt to save five hundred Shakya had succeeded.

• Xuanzang recounted how King Virudhaka’s humiliation as a child led him to vow revenge against the Shakya.
• The Buddha twice met Virudhaka’s army beneath a withered tree and persuaded him to withdraw, but Yeli urged the king to march again.
• On the third campaign, Virudhaka ignored the Buddha and ordered his army to slaughter the Shakya.
• Mahamaudgalyayana proposed ways to rescue the Shakya, but the Buddha said supernatural powers could not overcome karmic power.
• Mahamaudgalyayana hid five hundred Shakya in his alms bowl, while Mahanama pleaded with Virudhaka to spare his people.
• Virudhaka refused Mahanama’s plea, then agreed to delay the slaughter until Mahanama surfaced from the river; Mahanama bound himself underwater and drowned.

Xuanzang explained to Gold Horn that the Buddha acted compassionately despite knowing karma could not be escaped, and urged him to recognize how attachment had deepened his suffering. Gold Horn faced Silver Fox’s death as the Old Fox comforted him, while a Daoist voice rang out from below the mountain.

• Xuanzang recounted how King Virudhaka’s slaughter of the Shakya clan arose from past causes and conditions, and how even the Buddha had suffered the effects of karma.
• Gold Horn accused Xuanzang of mocking him, explaining that he had tried to use tribulation power to sever his mother’s karma and had sacrificed his own cultivation to save her.
• Xuanzang asked why the Buddha still tried to stop the army despite knowing that fixed karma could not be escaped, and explained that the Buddha acted from his original heart rather than indifference.
• Xuanzang told Gold Horn that his attachment to keeping his family together had brought him suffering and urged him to contemplate impermanence.
• Gold Horn looked at Silver Fox’s lifeless body as the Old Fox knelt beside him and embraced his shoulders.
• A clear voice from the mountain path declared that the Great Firmament Heaven lay before those whose hearts were unburdened by form.

The Old Lord arrived at the scorched mountain and invited Xuanzang to join the Daoist Order, but Xuanzang declined and affirmed his commitment to the westward journey. The Old Lord then rebuked Gold Horn for his reckless plan and began dealing with the injured survivors.

• The Old Lord appeared on the mountain, greeted Sun Wukong and the others, and went to meet Xuanzang.
• The Old Lord praised Xuanzang’s teachings and invited him to abandon the scripture journey for Daoist cultivation, but Xuanzang politely refused.
• Sun Wukong interrupted the conversation and asked the Old Lord what he would do about Gold Horn, Silver Fox, and Old Fox.
• The Old Lord struck Gold Horn on the head and scolded him for failing to protect Silver Fox and for entangling tribulation and karmic power.
• The Old Lord lifted Gold Horn to his feet, then swept his sleeve and brought a pale brown figure out of the cave.

The Old Lord revealed how Gold Horn and Silver Horn had sacrificed themselves to save Copper Horn and Old Fox, then used his powers to restore them all. The family reunited, and the chapter ended as a fox-eared man arrived and called Old Fox “Sis.”

• Little Fox learned that Silver Fox had died and begged the Old Lord to save him, offering her life in exchange.
• The Old Lord separated and reunited Copper Horn and Silver Horn’s souls, then reshaped Copper Horn into a human girl named Ayu.
• The Old Lord restored Old Fox by merging the primal essence of Gold Horn and Silver Horn’s demon bodies, then invited her to work at Doushuai Palace.
• Gold Horn, Silver Horn, Ayu, and Old Fox thanked the Old Lord for saving them.
• A fox-eared man arrived with Green Ox and called Old Fox “Sis.”

Fox Aqi reunited with the Nine-Tailed Fox and Ayu, while Gold Horn and Silver Horn vowed to follow the Great Dao and help those in need. The Old Lord departed with his treasures, and Xuanzang and his disciples prepared to continue their journey, asking where A-Hu was.

• Fox Aqi returned and embraced the Nine-Tailed Fox and Ayu, while Silver Horn wept and Gold Horn received his uncle's praise.
• Gold Horn vowed to relieve suffering and help those in distress, and Silver Horn joined him in the vow.
• Xuanzang reminded the brothers that familial affection was no obstacle, but greed was, and told Ayu to act like a big sister.
• The Old Lord departed with the fox family and reclaimed his Golden Rope from Sha Wujing.
• The Old Lord recited teachings on delusion and attaining the Dao as Xuanzang and his disciples bowed.
• Xuanzang asked his four disciples where A-Hu was.

Xuanzang and his disciples continued west, helping villagers and guiding or disciplining demons along the way. As they approached another high mountain, Xuanzang learned that Sha Wujing had secretly accepted the villagers’ wish slips and warned that their vow power carried weight.

• Xuanzang and his disciples traveled through villages, where he helped the locals and Bajie, Little White Dragon, and Sha Wujing assisted with their work.
• Wukong fought demons who attacked them, spared those who fled, and arranged for the demons who stayed to cultivate under the local gods’ supervision.
• The disciples discussed their slow journey and the next mountain, while Xuanzang said that the trials mattered more than simply reaching the west.
• Xuanzang noticed that Sha Wujing’s luggage had grown heavier, and Wukong revealed that Sha Wujing had accepted villagers’ wish slips.
• Sha Wujing admitted he had taken the slips, and Xuanzang warned him that vow power was heavy.

Xuanzang questioned Sha Wujing's practice of recording villagers' wishes and reciting them, then explained the difference between making wishes and making vows. The chapter ended with Xuanzang asking why villagers still prayed for help even though they knew they had to rely on themselves.

• Xuanzang asked Sha Wujing to show him the tokens villagers had entrusted to him, and Sha Wujing explained the hopes behind each one.
• Sha Wujing revealed that he had written the villagers' requests into his scripture and recited them daily, hoping to help their wishes come true.
• Sha Wujing described this work as his own path of cultivation, and Xuanzang urged him to think for himself rather than fear he had done wrong.
• Xuanzang explained that wishes seek results from outside power, while vows plant a cause and guide people to act through their own efforts.
• Xuanzang asked why villagers continued making wishes if they knew they ultimately had to act for themselves.

Xuanzang explained that people make wishes because faith helps them endure hardship, while Buddhas and Bodhisattvas guide rather than act in their place. Sha Wujing chose to carry the wishes entrusted to him despite the risk of being blamed, and the pilgrims continued toward the mountain.

• Wukong helped Sha Wujing explain that sentient beings make wishes because their afflictions give rise to desires, but Xuanzang said that did not answer why they prayed or why Buddhas did not grant their wishes directly.
• Xuanzang told Sha Wujing that people make wishes because they need faith that someone hears their suffering and can help them endure it, while true deliverance helps them find their own strength.
• Xuanzang praised Sha Wujing for accepting people’s wishes and explained that their trust in him—and his trust in them—was a root of goodness.
• Bajie, Little White Dragon, and Wukong offered to help Sha Wujing carry or recite the wishes, and A-Hu growled as if joining them.
• Xuanzang warned that people might resent Sha Wujing if their wishes went unfulfilled, but Sha Wujing said he believed accepting their wishes had given them hope and that he would keep his promise even if they blamed him.
• Xuanzang accepted Sha Wujing’s decision, and the pilgrims set off toward the mountain with Sha Wujing walking at the rear, carrying the tokens.

Xuanzang and his disciples reached the Imperially Commissioned Baolin Temple, where Abbot Yongde welcomed them and asked Xuanzang to preach the next day. Wukong suspected Yongde’s hospitality was driven by calculation and took a keen interest in the temple’s Stone Bodhisattva.

• Bajie suggested that Xuanzang and the others spend the night at a nearby temple, and Wukong spotted Baolin Temple ahead.
• Abbot Yongde welcomed Xuanzang’s party, explained that he had anticipated their arrival, and led them into the monastery.
• Xuanzang noticed the Stone Bodhisattva, and Yongde recounted how the miraculous statue had led the sovereign to establish Baolin Temple.
• Yongde hosted the travelers in a guest courtyard and asked Xuanzang to preach to monks and pilgrims the next morning, which Xuanzang accepted.
• After Yongde left, Bajie praised his devotion, while Wukong said the abbot was calculating and running a business.

Xuanzang and his disciples ate at Baolin Temple, where Wukong questioned the abbot Yongde about the Stone Bodhisattva. That night, Sha Wujing heard a mysterious voice calling from the Mahavira Hall.

• Yongde served Xuanzang and his disciples a lavish vegetarian meal and praised the Stone Bodhisattva as answering every prayer.
• Xuanzang urged Bajie to reflect on the labor and virtue behind the food, then declined to eat more.
• After the meal, Wukong hinted that the Stone Bodhisattva was suspicious, while Xuanzang silently began reciting sutras.
• Sha Wujing woke at night to a distant voice, found the temple courtyard deserted, and heard it clearly calling him from the Mahavira Hall.