Now, Old Mother Lishan, Manjushri Bodhisattva, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, and Guanyin Bodhisattva burned paper offerings for the Jing River Dragon King.
When King Yama learned of this, the color drained from his face, and he nearly fell from his throne.
What was going on? Hadn't they said that old dragon had no backing?
Fear gripped his heart. He hurriedly invited the other Kings of Hell to discuss the matter: King Qin Guang, King Chujiang, King Songdi, King Wuguan, King Pingdeng, King Mount Tai, King Dushi, King Biancheng, and King Zhuanlun.
The ten kings gathered, trembling with fear. Each put in his own word, but their hearts only grew more unsettled, and they could reach no conclusion.
The old Jing River dragon was entangled in far too many disgraceful affairs. They dared not go to the Emerald Cloud Palace to question Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, much less report the matter to Heaven.
King Yama asked his subordinates where the old Jing River dragon's soul was now.
A ghost messenger answered that he was wandering the Land of the Nine Netherworlds, unwilling to enter the cycle of reincarnation.
The so-called Land of the Nine Netherworlds was the lowest stratum to which the turbid energies had sunk when primordial chaos first parted. It lay beneath the Eighteen Levels of Hell, a gathering place for foul energies of the utmost darkness and yin.
When Patriarch Bodhi expelled Sun Wukong from his tutelage, he had told him:
"Once you leave, you are certain to do evil. Whatever trouble you stir up or violence you commit, you must never say you are my disciple. If you breathe so much as half a word, I will know. I will skin you, you monkey, grind your bones, and banish your soul to the Nine Hells, where you will never rise again through ten thousand tribulations!"
This alone showed how perilous the Land of the Nine Netherworlds was.
King Songdi suggested, "Why don't we bring him out and attend to him properly?"
King Qin Guang said, "No. The affairs that old dragon is entangled in could not be overturned even if these three Bodhisattvas came in person. If we bring him out, trouble is certain to follow, and disaster will fall upon us."
King Yama said, "We certainly cannot bring him out, but neither can we offend him. In my opinion, we should send ghost messengers every day to provide him with incense offerings. If anything truly changes in the future, we will have something to say in our defense."
The other kings all agreed with this proposal.
Thus, each assigned ghost messengers under his command to take turns tending to the old Jing River dragon.
At that moment, the Jing River Dragon King's soul drifted through the Nine Hells. No light shone anywhere; all was bleak and desolate. The baleful yin winds nearly scattered his soul, and only a lingering obsession in his heart held him together.
Then, suddenly, a ghost messenger delivered incense offerings from the mortal world, stabilizing his ghostly soul. The Jing River Dragon King was utterly astonished, with no idea what was happening.
Outside, Ao Tu saw that Guanyin Bodhisattva had actually burned the spirit money and could not help marveling inwardly. She truly was a Bodhisattva, capable of enduring what ordinary people could not.
After Lianlian finished burning the spirit money in her hands, she gazed at Ao Tu with her beautiful eyes and said sweetly:
"Can we marry now, husband?"
Lianlian was already beautiful, but with that single word, "husband," she became a beauty who could topple kingdoms.
There she stood: moth-wing brows brushed emerald, a powdered face blooming with spring. Bewitching beauty beyond compare, slender grace that stirred the heart. Her figure was delicate, her bearing drifting beyond the mortal dust. With a half-hidden smile, she wore Xi Shi's lovely countenance; with slow steps, she seemed the Mystic Lady descending to earth.
But Ao Tu knew she was a Bodhisattva in disguise. No matter how beautiful she was, he regarded it all as illusion and, having gained an inch, reached for a mile:
"Lianlian, when we marry, we must bow to our parents. Kneel with me before my father's spirit tablet, and that will count as paying our respects to our parents."
Hearing this, Lianlian approached and took Ao Tu's arm with fingers as slender as spring bamboo shoots. "Whatever you wish, husband. Let us bow quickly!"
Ao Tu led her down to kneel.
Guanyin Bodhisattva would never truly kneel. She only pretended to comply, making as though to kneel while holding Ao Tu's arm with one hand. With the other, she conjured a hoop and brought it down toward his head.
Ao Tu had been on guard all along. He reached out at once and caught Lianlian's slender wrist, sneering, "I was ready for you!"
Seeing her scheme fail, Guanyin Bodhisattva revealed her true form.
Auspicious mists scattered in brilliant hues; blessed light guarded her sacred form.
Amid the splendor of the ninefold heavens, a perfected woman appeared.
Golden leaves adorned her hair clasp; auspicious energies draped her jeweled strands.
Jade ornaments hung upon her breast, over a pale, plain blue robe.
Through lingering mist, a willow branch drooped, sprinkling the azure heavens.
Jade rings threaded embroidered clasps; golden lotuses bloomed deep beneath her feet.
Guanyin Bodhisattva had anticipated that her scheme might fail, so she had seized Ao Tu's wrist in advance to keep him from escaping with Earth-Traveling Golden Light. She then took out the Jade-Cleansing Bottle, intending to draw him inside.
Ao Tu had been guarding against her. He pulled the Dragon-Binding Rope from his waist and cried, "Go!" binding Guanyin Bodhisattva where she stood.
Seeing this, Manjushri and Samantabhadra both revealed their true sacred forms.
Manjushri Bodhisattva manifested his true sacred form:
An indigo-blue face revealed his Buddhist aspect; red hair and a crimson beard cowed all evil.
Five brilliant colors adorned his body; golden light shielded him throughout.
His demon-subduing pestle rolled with scarlet flames; beside his golden lotus, rosy radiance surged.
Taking refuge in the great Dharma, he revealed his majestic light; clusters of auspicious clouds shrouded all eight directions.
Samantabhadra Bodhisattva also manifested his true sacred form:
His face, purple as a jujube, revealed his sacred aspect; a vast mouth and fangs lent him fearsome majesty.
Red clouds from the west wreathed his head; auspicious hues of enlightenment veiled his golden body.
Strands of jeweled beads draped his entire form; lotuses bore his feet as blessed clouds rose.
Three heads and six arms wielded sharp weapons; in one hand he held a demon-subduing pestle.
At the sight, Ao Tu unleashed the Five-Fire Seven-Bird Fan. With a sweep of his hand, he fanned forth boundless flames. Golden serpents danced wildly, and black smoke blotted out the sky, forcing the two venerable ones back.
Old Mother Lishan had already stepped aside. Standing in a corner, she watched the commotion with a smile.
The Little Maid transformed into Mucha. Wielding a solid iron staff, he quietly crept closer to strike Ao Tu.
Tiger Vanguard came up from behind and, without warning, kicked Mucha sprawling.
Guanyin Bodhisattva shed her sacred robe and turned it into a substitute, freeing her true body from the Dragon-Binding Rope. She drew the willow branch from the Jade-Cleansing Bottle and struck at Ao Tu.
The willow branch looked light and airy, yet it bore the weight of the Thirty-Three Heavens.
Ao Tu dared not meet it head-on. He recalled the Dragon-Binding Rope, took Tiger Vanguard with him, and fled as a streak of golden light.
Guanyin Bodhisattva, Manjushri Bodhisattva, and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva pursued him together.
Outside awaited a net spanning heaven and earth: the Nine Luminaries Star Lords, the Four Heavenly Kings, the generals of the Thunder Department, and eighteen Arhats.
Utterly unafraid, Ao Tu fled onward.
The three Bodhisattvas pursued behind him.
When the divine generals saw the Bodhisattvas, they joined them in surrounding Ao Tu.
The Four Heavenly Kings stationed themselves in the four directions, blocking the sky. The Azure Cloud Sword, the Primal Chaos Umbrella, the Jade Pipa, and the Flower-Fox Marten each displayed their might.
The generals of the Thunder Department unleashed divine lightning. Thunderbolts swept like wind, and lightning poured like rain, crashing down in torrents.
The Nine Luminaries Star Lords led a hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals into formation, casting a net across heaven and earth so tight not even water could seep through.
The eighteen Arhats each manifested their golden bodies, like eighteen golden Buddhas standing in the air, towering and motionless.
As Ao Tu approached, he found his way blocked above and below, in every direction.
The Four Heavenly Kings came to seize him first.
Five rays of radiance appeared behind Ao Tu: blue, yellow, red, white, and black. The blue light flashed and swept away the Four Heavenly Kings.
The generals of the Thunder Department hurled divine lightning at him.
Yellow light flashed over Ao Tu, sweeping away the generals of the Thunder Department.
The Nine Luminaries Star Lords charged with a hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals.
White light flashed over Ao Tu, sweeping away the Nine Luminaries Star Lords and the hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals.
The eighteen Arhats each unleashed their supernatural abilities, bearing pagodas, raising bowls, extending hands, and shifting brows as they attacked Ao Tu.
White light flashed over Ao Tu, sweeping away the eighteen Arhats.
By now, Ao Tu had taken in the Four Heavenly Kings, the generals of the Thunder Department, the Nine Luminaries Star Lords, a hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers, and the eighteen Arhats.
Ao Tu felt his body grow heavy and his magical power falter. Rather than fight the three Bodhisattvas behind him, he used Earth-Traveling Golden Light once more, turning into golden light and fleeing.
The three Bodhisattvas pursued relentlessly.
Manjushri wielded the Dragon-Binding Pillar, while Samantabhadra used the Rainbow Rope.
Left with no choice, Ao Tu manifested the black light again and swept away both Manjushri and Samantabhadra.
Guanyin Bodhisattva could see that Ao Tu was already a spent arrow at the end of its flight, yet she still refused to abandon the chase.
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