Letting the Monks Escape

Upon hearing Sun Wukong's words, the monks were immediately alarmed and Sun Wukong, "This absolutely cannot be done!"

"That immortal drew pictures for us. The territory of the Chechi Kingdom is so vast, and our shadows are everywhere, even in official positions."

"If we capture a monk, we'll be promoted three ranks. Even without an official position, capturing a monk will earn us fifty taels of silver. We really have no way to escape."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong felt a deep sense of regret and said to the monks:

"If you're all in so much pain, why don't you all die together?"

Upon hearing this, the monks felt utterly helpless and quickly said to Sun Wukong.

"We wanted to die but couldn't. We tried to strangle ourselves with ropes, but the ropes broke."

"If you hurt yourself with a knife, it won't hurt at all; if you jump into the river, the current will automatically carry you to the shore; and if you take poison, your body won't suffer any damage whatsoever."

"Wouldn't you all live longer if you act like that?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong looked puzzled and asked the monks.

"Elder, you misspoke. We've suffered for so long!"

After the monks finished speaking, some of them finally couldn't hold back anymore and covered their faces, weeping bitterly. Seeing this, Sun Wukong couldn't bear it and said:

"Then why don't you ask your Buddha for help? Instead, you continue to endure pain and torment here."

Upon hearing this, one of the monks said to Sun Wukong:

"We prayed to Buddha for help, and Buddha told us not to take our own lives, but to wait for Tang Xuanzang from the Great Tang of the Eastern Lands to go to the Western Heaven Paradise to obtain the scriptures."

"He had a disciple named the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, who was upright and kind, and specialized in handling matters that were difficult to escape from the human world."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong was extremely pleased with himself.

"Who said I had no tricks up my sleeve? It turns out my name has already spread far and wide."

After thinking this through, Sun Wukong bid farewell to the monks and quickly arrived at the door, where he met the Daoist priest. Upon seeing Sun Wukong, the Daoist priest smiled and said:

"Sir, you're finally back! Is there anyone you're related to?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong immediately replied, "Those five hundred are all related to me."

Upon hearing Sun Wukong's words, the Daoist priest was instantly terrified and quickly said to Sun Wukong:

"You absolutely mustn't do that! All those monks have names bestowed by the Emperor. If you release even one or two, you'll have to submit medical records to your master before they can be released."

"We can't just release them like that; it's simply not feasible. Not only are we helpless, but if this were reported to the imperial court, it would also put them in an awkward position."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong became very angry and took out his Ruyi Jingu Bang from his ear, striking the Daoist priest on the head.

The two Daoist priests were instantly beaten, their heads bleeding profusely, and they collapsed dead. The monks on the beach, seeing Sun Wukong kill the two Daoist priests, were greatly shocked. They immediately dropped what they were doing and ran up to Sun Wukong, saying:

"Oh no! Oh no! You've killed that member of the royal family!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong looked puzzled and pointed to the two dead Daoist priests, asking:

Which of these two people is a member of the royal family?

The monks immediately surrounded Sun Wukong and said:

"How could you cause trouble here? His apprentice was here to supervise us; this has nothing to do with you. How could you kill him?"

"That immortal isn't someone you can just kill at will. He only came to supervise us, yet he lost his life. If we follow you into the city, it will definitely lead to murder."

Sun Wukong laughed and said upon hearing this:

"You don't need to worry about this at all. I'm here to rescue you."

"You've already killed people, how are you going to save us? Don't let us all get caught up in it, that would be the end for us."

One of the monks spoke to Sun Wukong nonchalantly, as if what Sun Wukong had just done had nothing to do with them.

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong said to the group of monks:

"You really have no appreciation for talent! I kindly saved you, and you're so ungrateful. Fine, then forget it."

After saying this, Sun Wukong immediately turned to leave, but the group of monks stopped Sun Wukong and Sun Wukong:

"Please don't go, sir! You still haven't told us who you are!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong immediately revealed his true form. Seeing this, the crowd knelt down and bowed to Sun Wukong, saying, "Grandpa, we are but mortals, unaware of your transformation. We hope you can avenge us and defeat the Yaomo in the city as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong picked up the cart and smashed it to pieces, then said to the monks:

"I've already smashed this thing, so I'm determined to fight that king to the death. You all should leave now; tomorrow, after I see the emperor, I'll wipe out those Daoist priests."

After hearing what Sun Wukong said, everyone quickly said to Sun Wukong:

"We can't leave even if we want to. They'll catch us all when they get here."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong gritted his teeth, then put a pile of monkey hair from his body into his mouth, chewed it to shreds, and handed it to the group of monks, saying:

"Place this monkey hair between your fingers and clench your fists. Just keep walking, and I guarantee no one will dare to arrest you. If anyone does try to capture you, just shout 'Great Sage Equal to Heaven,' and I will come to protect you."

Meanwhile, Tang Xuanzang stood by the roadside for a long time, but Sun Wukong did not appear. So he sent Zhu Bajie to walk towards the monks. After a short while, he saw Sun Wukong and the monks.

Tang Xuanzang was very puzzled and asked Sun Wukong:

"Wukong, I've waited for you for so long, but you haven't shown up at all. Now I've finally found you. What are you doing here?"

Upon hearing Tang Xuanzang 'Tang Xuanzang words, the monks nearby immediately knelt down and said to him:

"Thanks to your disciple, Elder, who is truly Divine Ability, we are monks from this city. Because there is a statue of the late King Taizu here, we were not destroyed."

"Now, please come into the city and to our temple immediately. Great Sage Sun will surely have a solution during the morning court session tomorrow."

Sun Wukong nodded upon hearing this, and then the group entered the city.

Tang Xuanzang then dismounted and arrived at the city gate. By then, the sun had already set in the west. After crossing the drawbridge and passing through the three gates, the crowd saw Tang Xuanzang and the monks from Jetavana Temple and quickly hid.