A Wrong Turn into Pansi Cave (Part Fifteen)

Meanwhile, Bajie asked Ao Tu for directions.

Ao Tu said, "This place is called Pansi Ridge. It's long at both ends and short in the middle, stretching 800 li from east to west and 1,600 li from north to south. If you Journey Westward, it's shorter to take the detour from the north, but there's a large river blocking the way; taking the detour from the south is longer, and there are also mountains and rivers separating the way; passing through the ridge is the easiest. Although there Demon lurking there, I think your senior brother didn't explain clearly that those seven female Demon don't eat people."

Bajie, who had been feeling lazy after hearing Ao Tu say there were great floods in the north and great mountains in the south, immediately perked up when he heard about seven female Demon and asked, "Seven female Demon?"

Ao Tu asked, "What? Didn't your senior brother tell you?" As he spoke, Ao Tu repeated what he had said to Wukong earlier.

Upon hearing the words "recruiting a son-in-law" from Ao Tu, Bajie was immediately intrigued. However, having endured many hardships along the way, he was also afraid it might be a trap, so he asked with some suspicion:

"Old man, those seven female Demon are looking for husbands, what are you doing here?"

Ao Tu said, "Is that even a question? It's naturally a marriage where the husband marries into the wife's family."

Upon hearing this, Bajie laughed and said, "Shameless! How dare you make fun of a monk like me, old man?"

Ao Tu said, "When have I ever made fun of you?"

Bajie said, "Look at you, old man, your hair and beard are all white, your steps are slow and your body is weak, unlike us young people who have plenty of strength. As the saying goes, 'An old persimmon can't withstand much play.' If you go to marry into the family, how can anyone accept you?"

Ao Tu said, "You don't understand. This old man is going to try his luck; perhaps it will work. But everyone else thinks it's Demon and doesn't dare to go. I have no children and am half-buried in the ground, so I have nothing to fear. That's why I'm going to give it a try. If it works out, I can live a life of comfort for the rest of my days; if it doesn't, so be it. If it were someone else here, I wouldn't tell them, for fear they would compete with me. But because you are monks, you can't marry, so I'm telling you the truth."

Upon hearing this, Bajie was overjoyed and hurriedly ran back to tell Tang Sanzang, "Master, there's no need to take the detour."

Tang Sanzang asked, "Bajie, have you found out everything?"

Bajie said, "We've scouted it out. This ridge ahead is called Pansi Ridge. It's 800 li long from front to back and 1600 li long from left to right. There's water to the north and mountains to the south. Only the middle section is easy to Mountain Ridge. If we take a detour, who knows how long it will take. Let's go through the middle."

Tang Sanzang Earthly Way with some concern, "Didn't Wukong say there were Demon on the mountain?"

Bajie said, "There are seven female Demon on the mountain. They don't eat people, otherwise how would that Old Man dare to pass by?"

After hearing this, Tang Sanzang looked at Wukong and asked, "Wukong, is what Bajie said true?"

Wukong laughed and said, "Master, you don't know, this fool wants to stay again and become someone's son-in-law!" As he spoke, Wukong told Tang Sanzang about the Demon's attempt to recruit a son-in-law.

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang hurriedly said to Bajie, "Bajie, we monks must not be tempted by beautiful women! Have you forgotten the Scorpion Demon from the Daughter Kingdom and the female Demon from Thorn Ridge that we encountered?"

Bajie said, "Master, when were those times? Those were all Demon in disguise, trying to eat you. This time, they didn't hide anything, openly and honestly taking you in as a son-in-law. It's a matter of mutual consent, so what's there to be afraid of? Remember my Cave Abode in Fuling Mountain, wasn't it originally..."

Wukong asked, "Also what?"

Bajie thought to himself that the Cave Abode was originally his son-in-law's, which he inherited from the female Demon, but it was a shameful thing and he didn't want to talk about it, so he kept quiet about it.

Sha Wujing said, "Second Senior Brother, in my opinion, we should take a detour. Think about it, those seven female Demon didn't seek husbands earlier or later, but they chose to do so now that we're here. Aren't they after us? Maybe they're trying to lure us over to eat Master's flesh!"

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang became frightened and wanted to take a detour.

Bajie complained, "Why do we have to take the roundabout Main Road instead of the main road? How long are we going to go on like this? We're making Master old! When will we ever get the True Scriptures?"

Wukong teased, "Fool, weren't you always thinking about dividing the luggage? Why are you thinking about the Journey to the West now? I bet you're still thinking about those female Demon!"

Bajie was indeed still thinking about the female Demon, and when Wukong exposed him, he became somewhat embarrassed and angry, saying:

"Monkey, don't use such foul language! Who's thinking about female Demon! I'm just worried about delaying Master's important Journey to the West the West! If you don't believe me, I'll lead the way. If we encounter any female Yaoguai, I'll kill them with my rake first, then you can pass!"

Upon hearing this, Wukong was overjoyed. Remembering how lazy this fool usually was, he was unusually willing to put in the effort this time. So he immediately asked, "Is this true?"

Bajie regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth, unsure of the strength of those Female Monster. If they were Supernatural Ability, it would be easy to deal with them; but if they were like the Scorpion Demon from the Western Liang Women's Kingdom, how could he possibly defeat them? However, with Wukong's question, he couldn't back down. Thinking that since those Female Monster wanted to find a husband, they probably didn't possess any Supernatural Ability, hence the need for a man to lead the household, he forced a smile and said, "Of course it's true!"

Wukong then said to Tang Sanzang, "Master, Bajie is unusually diligent and hardworking. Let's trust him this once!"

Tang Sanzang thought that even if Bajie didn't believe him, it wouldn't hurt Bajie feelings, so he agreed.

Bajie then let Sha Wujing carry the luggage, picked up his Rake, and led the way.

The three, master and disciples, followed behind.

They quickly reached the top of the mountain and headed towards the house.

The house looked close, but it was actually far away. As they walked, the Sun set. Fortunately, they didn't encounter Demon along the way.

Wukong said, "That's strange, why haven't we encountered that old man along the way?"

Sha Wujing said, "That Old Man is quite old. He probably couldn't walk any further after a while, so he went down the mountain via a side path."

Wukong thought so too, and didn't interfere any further.

Bajie climbed up a mountain and looked back to see his master and the others resting on the mountain behind them. It was getting late, and Bajie was too lazy to walk any further, so he sat down on Shitou to rest as well.

Just then, a Yaoguai appeared from the mountainside, carrying a lantern, and said "Guest," startling Bajie.

The Demon had long arms and legs, a thin body, and unusually large eyes that glowed in the light of the lantern; it was a Dragonfly Demon.

Bajie hurriedly picked up his rake, ready to strike.

The Dragonfly Demon hurriedly said, "Wait a minute, is our guest here to marry into the family?"

Bajie put down his rake and said, "Who wants to marry into the family? Look carefully, I'm a monk."

The Dragonfly Demon said, "Even monks can leave the monastic life. Since you've come here, you must be interested in marrying into the family. Why don't you come with me into the mansion and take a look? Look at that mountain range ahead; it's all ready-made property."

Bajie had already seen the sprawling cluster of houses and Palace Hall ahead, thinking to himself that this vast estate could be squandered for hundreds of years without being completely destroyed. He naturally coveted it, but was unwilling to admit it, and said:

"It's fine to take a look, but I must make it clear that I'm not going to marry into your family. It's just that my master taught me to clear the way, so I'll go with you to take a look. If there's a Demon trying to eat my master, I'll kill it with my rake first, clearing the way for him."

The Dragonfly Demon smiled and said, "Please, guest."

Bajie then followed the Dragonfly Demon.

Wukong watched from afar and saw Bajie follow the Demon into the house. He turned to Tang Sanzang and said, "Master, that fool has gone to be someone's son-in- Belongings. Let's go back."

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang was startled and quickly asked, "Did Bajie really go?"

Wukong said, "He went in. I saw him go in with my own eyes."

Tang Sanzang exclaimed anxiously, "What should we do? What if Bajie gets eaten by Demon? Wukong, you can't just Bajie!"

Wukong laughed and said, "Master, it's alright. Bajie is probably quite pleased!"

Sha Wujing advised, "Elder Brother, you should go and check on things, just in case something really happened."

Wukong didn't want Bajie to really get into trouble, so he thought for a moment and said:

"Alright, I'll go take a look."