Chapter Summaries

Ao Tu learned that the white lotus fragments gathered through virtue and that the old monk had served an ancient immortal awaiting his lord’s return. After sheltering the monk in the Flower Realm, Ao Tu resolved to seek Lord Lao’s advice on gathering the Twelfth-Grade White Lotus and examined his latest rewards before obstructing Monk Tang.

• The old monk thanked Ao Tu for restoring his soul and explained that he worshipped an ancient supernatural wielder who had died in a cosmic tribulation.
• The old monk said white lotus fragments gathered around virtuous people, prompting Ao Tu to realize that collecting the Twelfth-Grade White Lotus would require great virtue.
• The old monk asked for shelter, and Ao Tu settled him in the Flower Realm as an elderly Divine Ying Attendant.
• Ao Tu decided to consult Lord Lao at Tushita Palace about the white lotus and prepared to obstruct Monk Tang.
• Ao Tu examined six rewards, including Buddhist fragrant oil, primal gold, a Nine-Revolution Soul-Restoring Pill, Curse-Subduing Arts, and Six-Ding Divine Fire.

After receiving the Incense-Burning Golden Furnace, Ao Tu prepared for the Thorn Ridge ordeal and sought Taishang Laojun’s guidance about the Twelfth-Grade White Lotus. The Jade Emperor approved Ao Tu’s plan to establish a western realm for the virtuous and advised him to open it together with a corresponding place below, using a primordial artifact.

• Ao Tu received the Incense-Burning Golden Furnace and sent an incarnation to prepare for the Entangling Thorn Ridge ordeal before visiting Tushita Palace with the Third-Grade White Lotus.
• Taishang Laojun explained that the path of utmost goodness meant advancing good and restraining evil, and told Ao Tu to consult the Jade Emperor and the nether realm before acting.
• Ao Tu arranged for the Water Virtue Star Lord to be demoted and accepted a three-day confinement as part of a plan agreed upon with the Jade Emperor.
• Ao Tu asked the Jade Emperor about establishing a place for the virtuous, and the Jade Emperor directed him to create it in the west under his own authority.
• The Jade Emperor advised Ao Tu to use a primordial artifact to open the realms above and below together so they would remain stable and Ao Tu would avoid future harm.

Ao Tu reached Thorn Ridge to prepare for Tang Sanzang’s arrival, then went to Lesser Thunderclap Temple to propose an alliance with Yellow-Brow. Yellow-Brow accepted Ao Tu’s fragrant oil but had not yet answered his offer to join forces against Tang Sanzang and his disciples.

• Ao Tu entered Thorn Ridge, assessed its brambles and resident tree spirits, and continued west to seek Yellow-Brow.
• Ao Tu arrived at Lesser Thunderclap Temple with a pot of Buddhist Sect fragrant oil as a gift.
• Yellow-Brow recognized Ao Tu, had his demons escort him into the treasure hall, and accused him of rebelling against Spirit Mountain.
• Ao Tu reminded Yellow-Brow that they had served under the Tathagata Buddha and Maitreya Buddha, and Yellow-Brow eagerly drank the fragrant oil.
• Ao Tu proposed that he and Yellow-Brow unite against Tang Sanzang and his disciples.

Ao Tu failed to recruit the Yellow-Browed Old Demon, so he established his own Thunderclap Monastery on Thorn Ridge to mislead Tang Sanzang and prepare him for Yellow-Brow’s tricks. With the monastery, fabricated scriptures, and trial formations ready, Ao Tu waited for the travelers and rebuked the spirits who tried to seduce him.

• The Yellow-Browed Old Demon refused to ally with Ao Tu and claimed he could subdue Sun Wukong himself, so Ao Tu left vowing to make him regret the insult.
• Ao Tu bestowed dragon qi on Thorn Ridge’s mountain spirits and tree demons, then ordered them to build a monastery called Thunderclap Monastery.
• Ao Tu disguised himself as the Tathagata, transformed the spirits into figures of Spirit Mountain, and assembled ninety-six fabricated scripture texts.
• Ao Tu arranged trial formations in the thorn thickets so Tang Sanzang and his disciples would accept the monastery and its scriptures as genuine.
• That night, Apricot Immortal and four young spirits asked Ao Tu for primordial essence, but he threatened to revoke their dragon qi and sent them away.

Tang Sanzang and his disciples reached a vast ridge of thorns, and Bajie cleared a path through it with his rake. After Wukong left to seek food, Sha Wujing went to gather firewood and became lost among the brambles.

• Tang Sanzang worried that the thousand-mile thorn ridge would be impossible to cross, while Wukong offered to move it and Sha Wujing and Bajie suggested ways to burn it; Tang Sanzang rejected both plans.
• Bajie enlarged his rake and cleared a path through the thorns without harming the creatures in the undergrowth.
• The four disciples traveled several dozen miles, then stopped at dusk, and Wukong left on his cloud to seek vegetarian food.
• As Wukong failed to return, Bajie asked Sha Wujing to gather firewood, and Sha Wujing soon found himself surrounded by thorns and unable to find the way back.

Sha Wujing became trapped in Ao Tu’s Congenital Eight Trigrams formation, while Tang Sanzang and Bajie struggled through the thorny ridge and mist. They eventually reached Ao Tu’s secluded village, where Bajie became infatuated with the Apricot Immortal.

• Sha Wujing wandered through the thorns and clouds of Ao Tu’s formation but could not escape.
• When Wukong and Wujing failed to return overnight, Tang Sanzang and Bajie tried to retreat, only to become trapped in mist and thorns.
• Tang Sanzang and Bajie spent seven or eight days struggling through the ridge, surviving on dew and a few wild plants.
• Tang Sanzang and Bajie emerged into a prosperous village, where village head Ao Tu welcomed them into his home.
• Bajie was captivated by the Apricot Immortal, and his eagerness to greet her caused Tang Sanzang to fall to the ground.

Tang Sanzang and Bajie reached Ao Tu’s seemingly peaceful village, where Ao Tu claimed an enormous monster formed all of Thorn Ridge and had trapped the villagers for centuries. After the Apricot Immortal served them a lavish meal, Ao Tu asked whether either traveler would stay and become his son-in-law.

• Tang Sanzang and Bajie learned from Ao Tu that Thorn Village had been surrounded for generations by a monster as large as the entire ridge, and Ao Tu said their missing companions had likely been eaten.
• The Apricot Immortal served Tang Sanzang and Bajie a plentiful vegetarian feast, while Bajie flirted with her and Tang Sanzang scolded him.
• Ao Tu explained that the fertile village prospered despite its isolation, then hinted that he wanted a strong, honest man to help his household and cultivate the fields.
• After the meal, Ao Tu asked Tang Sanzang and Bajie whether either would marry the Apricot Immortal, who protested that she wanted to remain with her father.

Bajie succumbed to the Apricot Immortal’s charms and agreed to become Ao Tu’s son-in-law, while Tang Sanzang remained determined to continue westward. The chapter ended with Bajie boasting to Ao Tu about the many household tasks he could perform.

• The Apricot Immortal and Ao Tu tried to persuade Tang Sanzang and Bajie to stay, but Tang Sanzang rejected marriage and insisted on continuing his pilgrimage.
• Ao Tu drove Tang Sanzang and Bajie into a woodshed, where Tang Sanzang recited sutras while Bajie complained about his refusal.
• That night, Ao Tu punished the Apricot Immortal by squeezing her roots when she tried to hide beneath his quilt.
• Bajie visited Ao Tu, apologized for Tang Sanzang’s harsh words, and offered to marry the Apricot Immortal.
• Bajie told Ao Tu he could handle farming, summoning wind and rain, repairing the house, and other household work.

Bajie secretly agreed to marry Ao Tu’s daughter Xing'er, then tried to persuade Tang Sanzang to stay at the village. Tang Sanzang refused and prepared to continue west, but Wukong arrived and attacked Ao Tu, whom he identified as a demon.

• Bajie promised Ao Tu he would marry Xing'er and left his Rake as a pledge.
• Tang Sanzang remained unaware of Bajie’s plan as they attended a farewell feast arranged by Ao Tu.
• When the feast was revealed as a betrothal banquet, Tang Sanzang refused to stay and offered to repay the food with flesh rather than abandon his pilgrimage.
• Bajie gave up the marriage, retrieved his Rake, and chose to leave with Tang Sanzang.
• Wukong suddenly arrived and swung his staff at Ao Tu, accusing him of threatening Tang Sanzang.

Wukong escaped Ao Tu’s Congenital Eight Trigrams formation and found Sha Wujing, then reached Tang Sanzang and Bajie as Ao Tu revealed the village was a transformed Thunderclap Monastery. Ao Tu pinned Wukong and convinced Tang Sanzang and his companions to accept him as the Buddha, but Wukong pleaded for mercy and Ao Tu released him.

• Wukong saw through the illusory Heavenly Court, escaped the formation, and searched Thorn Ridge until he found Sha Wujing.
• Ao Tu revealed that the village was a trial and transformed it into Thunderclap Monastery as Wukong arrived and attacked him.
• Ao Tu manifested his Sixteen-Foot Golden Body and pinned Wukong, while Tang Sanzang, Bajie, and Sha Wujing believed Ao Tu was the Buddha and bowed.
• Ao Tu promised the scriptures and true fruition to Tang Sanzang and his disciples, then addressed the trapped Wukong.
• Wukong pleaded that his service protecting Tang Sanzang should count in his favor, and Ao Tu released him after the others asked for mercy.

Wukong suspected that Ao Tu had disguised himself as Buddha and that Spirit Mountain was a counterfeit, but Tang Sanzang refused to believe him. The pilgrims bathed inside the monastery while Wukong planned to wait until night to lead them away.

• Wukong used his Golden Eyes to inspect Ao Tu and recognized the genuine Buddha-Light, concluding that the Demon Dragon was probably behind the disguise.
• Ao Tu declared Wukong’s merits and summoned Ananda and Kasyapa to escort Tang Sanzang and his disciples into the monastery.
• Tang Sanzang and his disciples entered Spirit Mountain, admired its holy grounds, and bowed before the Bodhi Tree.
• Ananda and Kasyapa led the pilgrims to a side chamber and prepared fragrant bathwater for them.
• Wukong warned Tang Sanzang that Spirit Mountain and its holy figures were fake, but Tang Sanzang and Bajie dismissed his claims.

Tang Sanzang and his disciples arrived at a Spirit Mountain that Wukong suspected was an illusion, but they accepted Ao Tu’s welcome and were led to the Scripture Pavilion. Wukong examined a scroll and found genuine scriptures, leaving the group inside the pavilion as Ananda reassured Tang Sanzang that reading them was harmless.

• Wukong failed to convince Tang Sanzang and the others that Spirit Mountain was false, so he joined them in bathing and then followed them through the halls.
• Tang Sanzang presented the Passbook to Ao Tu, who reviewed the pilgrims’ deeds and sent Ananda and Kasyapa to guide them to a meal and the scriptures.
• In the Jewel Tower, Bajie reached for a giant clam shell, but Tang Sanzang stopped him; the pilgrims then ate the plentiful immortal food while their guardians debated whether the place was real.
• Ananda and Kasyapa led the pilgrims into the Scripture Scroll Pavilion, where Tang Sanzang worshipped the scrolls and Wukong used his Golden Eyes to inspect them.
• Wukong opened a scroll despite Tang Sanzang’s protests, found genuine scriptures within, and began reading as Ananda said the scriptures could be read without harm.

Wukong and the others read Ao Tu’s scriptures and received thirty works, but Ao Tu withheld the rest until Tang Sanzang listened to his Dharma. As Ao Tu preached, the group listened while Wukong began challenging him with questions.

• Wukong, Tang Sanzang, Bajie, Sha Wujing, Ananda, Kasyapa, and the hidden guardians became absorbed in Ao Tu’s scriptures, and Wukong urged Tang Sanzang to pack them away.
• Ananda and Kasyapa showed Tang Sanzang all ninety-six works, then handed over thirty works comprising one thousand nine hundred sixty scrolls before refusing to transmit the rest.
• Tang Sanzang appealed to Ao Tu, who explained that he feared people in the Eastern Land would misunderstand and slander the scriptures.
• Ao Tu agreed to bestow further scriptures after Tang Sanzang listened to his Dharma, and Wukong, Bajie, and Sha Wujing joined the audience.
• As Ao Tu preached, the demons and plant spirits restrained their harmful natures, while Wukong listened and began posing difficult questions.

Ao Tu kept Tang Sanzang’s pilgrimage delayed by preaching profound Buddhist Dharma, while Wukong tried to alert the guardians and reach the Buddha. After the guardians reported the false Thunderclap Monastery, the Buddha sent eighteen arhats to Thorn Ridge, where they arrived for Ao Tu’s second sermon.

• Ao Tu preached for twenty-eight days, absorbing Wukong, the guardians, and many creatures while Tang Sanzang struggled to understand.
• Tang Sanzang copied Ao Tu’s teachings to share in the Eastern Land, and Wukong realized he could not persuade his master to leave.
• Wukong summoned the guardians, who admitted they could not tell whether Ao Tu was genuine, and asked them to report to Spirit Mountain.
• Wukong distracted Ao Tu with questions while the guardians slipped away and told the Buddha about the false Thunderclap Monastery.
• The Buddha sent eighteen arhats with the guardians to Thorn Ridge, and they arrived at Thunderclap Monastery as Ao Tu began his second sermon.

Ao Tu answered the Eighteen Arhats’ challenge to his teaching by expounding the Bodhisattva Great Path, drawing the assembly into his sermon. Wukong tried to escape to Spirit Mountain for help, but Ao Tu trapped him in a cauldron and sentenced him to remain there for ten days.

• The Eighteen Arhats challenged Ao Tu’s teaching of the Arhats Path, citing its limits and the Arhats’ duty to protect the Dharma.
• Ao Tu began expounding the Bodhisattva Great Path, and the Eighteen Arhats, Kirtimukhas, and Sangharamas descended to listen despite their initial resistance.
• Wukong saw the others absorbed in Ao Tu’s sermon and tried to leave secretly to seek help at Spirit Mountain.
• Ao Tu exposed Wukong’s escape attempt and trapped him inside a dark cauldron.
• Tang Sanzang, Bajie, and Sha Wujing pleaded for Wukong, but Ao Tu said he had to remain in the cauldron for ten days while the sermon continued.

Ao Tu’s preaching at Thorn Ridge drew countless listeners while he helped prepare Yaochi for the Peach Banquet and examined the Queen Mother of the West’s Plain-Colored Cloud-Realm Banner. Tathagata sent Manjushri, Samantabhadra, and Mahamayuri Bodhisattva to challenge Ao Tu, and they recognized his teaching as Guanyin Bodhisattva’s Dharma lineage.

• Ao Tu’s Buddha-Light spread to the Heavenly Realm, but the Jade Emperor dismissed the gathering at Thorn Ridge as spirits of the lower realm.
• Ao Tu and the seven fairies moved flowers and trees to Yaochi for the Peach Banquet, where Hong’er stopped Mingniang from touching the banquet furnishings.
• Ao Tu offered to erase Mingniang’s aura, then asked Hong’er to take down the Plain-Colored Cloud-Realm Banner so he could examine it.
• Tathagata sent Manjushri and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva to debate Ao Tu, and Mahamayuri Bodhisattva joined them.
• The three Bodhisattvas reached Thorn Ridge, where Samantabhadra recognized Ao Tu’s preaching as Guanyin Bodhisattva’s Dharma lineage.

Ao Tu’s false Buddha identity was challenged by Manjushri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, but his improvised exposition of his own path began to overwhelm the assembly and deepen his cultivation. As his incarnation’s realization reached Ao Tu’s true body at Yaochi, the Buddhist Great Way revealed itself to him and the Plain-Colored Cloud-Realm Banner slipped into his sleeve.

• Manjushri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva disguised themselves as demons, challenged Ao Tu’s teaching for lacking great vows, and revealed their true forms.
• Ao Tu debated the two Bodhisattvas as Tang Sanzang and his disciples grew suspicious, then prepared to leave after his false identity came under scrutiny.
• Mahamayuri Bodhisattva challenged Ao Tu to expound the Buddha’s path, prompting Ao Tu to preach his own path from the Golden Lotus.
• Ao Tu’s Buddha-light overwhelmed Tang Sanzang, his disciples, Manjushri Bodhisattva, and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, while Mahamayuri Bodhisattva advised them to wait for the teaching to fail.
• Ao Tu continued expounding beyond the path he had already traveled, entering a state of awakening as his understanding and cultivation rapidly increased.
• Ao Tu’s true body received the incarnation’s insight at Yaochi, where his Buddha-light made the immortals prostrate and the Plain-Colored Cloud-Realm Banner slipped into his sleeve.

Ao Tu attained Buddhahood by comprehending the past and future, then fought Patriarch Styx, who tried to block his path to the Great Dao. After the Old Daoist restrained Patriarch Styx and promised to guard him, Ao Tu recovered and prepared to complete the final stage of his Attainment of the Dao.

• Ao Tu preached his Buddhist Dao, saw his past lives and future, and attained Buddhahood as those listening became his disciples and followers.
• Ao Tu’s true body broke free of its restraints above the Great Dao and encountered Patriarch Styx, who attacked him to block his path.
• Ao Tu used his treasures and the Great Formation of Stars of the Celestial Cycle to wield the authority of heaven, but Patriarch Styx resisted and overwhelmed him.
• As Patriarch Styx charged at the fallen Ao Tu, the Old Daoist restrained him and forced him off the Great Dao.
• The Peacock Great Wisdom King Bodhisattva challenged the Old Daoist, who then promised to guard Ao Tu; Ao Tu recovered and prepared to complete his Attainment of the Dao.

Ao Tu hesitated before joining the Buddhist Sect, then rejected the Buddha path and chose to pursue the Great Dao on his own. He left the old Daoist behind as the Buddha-Light at Thorn Ridge faded and the others recovered.

• Ao Tu stood ready to merge his Buddha Path into the Great Dao, but reconsidered the consequences of joining the Buddhist Sect.
• Ao Tu remembered his duties, ambitions, agreement with Guanyin Bodhisattva, and unresolved grievance with Ananda, then told the old Daoist he would pursue the Great Dao himself.
• Ao Tu offered the old Daoist an elixir, accidentally presenting a Nine-Revolution Poison Elixir before replacing it with an azure Immortal Elixir.
• The old Daoist praised the elixir and explained that his sores came from Dao injuries, while Mahamayuri Bodhisattva mocked him.
• Ao Tu and Mahamayuri Bodhisattva departed, and the Buddha-Light at Thorn Ridge faded as the Bodhisattvas, Arhats, Tang Monk, his disciples, and the others recovered.

Ao Tu abandoned Buddhahood, revealed his demonic identity on Thorn Ridge, and escaped after fighting the Buddhist Bodhisattvas. Tang Sanzang and his disciples prepared to resume their journey, but Bajie returned to steal Ao Tu’s treasure, and Wukong went after him.

• Ao Tu revealed his Little Demons and trapped Wukong and Sha Wujing in the Mysterious Tripod, then declared that he would not attain true fruition until he avenged past wrongs and stopped the Buddhist Sect’s rise in the east.
• Mahamayuri Bodhisattva roused Manjushri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, who attacked Ao Tu; Ao Tu released Wukong and Sha Wujing and escaped as the demons scattered.
• The Bodhisattvas and Arhats returned to Spirit Mountain, while Tang Sanzang and his disciples stayed behind and returned the miscellaneous scriptures to the Scripture Pavilion.
• Bajie spotted Ao Tu’s untouched treasure and claimed he needed to relieve himself so he could go back for it.
• Wukong realized Bajie’s plan, and Tang Sanzang told him to stop Bajie; Wukong first gathered leftover pastries and fruit from the dining hall, then headed for the Treasure Pavilion.