Escape

It was already two in the morning when the demons gathered. They pushed Tang Xuanzang off the main hall. By the light, Tang Xuanzang suddenly saw that all three of his disciples were tied up in a corner. Tang Xuanzang went to Sun Wukong's side and said to Sun Wukong:

"Wukong, what should we do now? Every time we encounter difficulties, you're always out there using your Divine Ability to come here and subdue demons. Now you've been captured too, what am I supposed to do?"

Upon hearing their master's lament, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing burst into tears, while Sun Wukong, unperturbed, smiled slightly and said:

"Master, don't worry. Bajie and Wujing, you two stop crying. No matter what they do, they can't hurt me. We can set off once that Old Devil falls asleep."

After saying this, Zhu Bajie didn't believe what Sun Wukong said at all. Zhu Bajie simply said:

"Brother, now that things have come to this, stop joking. We're both tied up with ropes. You're quite thin, but look at me, the ropes are digging into my flesh. How am I supposed to get off?"

However, Sun Wukong scoffed, "Even if he ties me up with ropes, or even if he chains me with iron chains, I can still get out."

Just then, the Azure Lion said, "This time, we owe a great debt to our third brother's strength. Everyone has witnessed his cleverness. It was indeed a brilliant plan, and we captured Tang Xuanzang without lifting a finger."

After saying that, he continued, "Men, those of you who need to boil water, boil water; those of you who need to wash the pots, wash the pots; bring out the iron cage and put all four of them inside."

"When the time comes, we'll steam Tang Xuanzang first, and let my brothers enjoy him together. After we've eaten and drunk our fill, we'll share his flesh with you, so you can also Changsheng with us."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Bajie panicked and said tremblingly to Sun Wukong, "Brother Monkey, listen to this! That monster is plotting against us now. What should we do?"

"Don't be afraid now. Let me see how many times he's acted as a demon."

Sun Wukong pretended not to sense Zhu Bajie 'Zhu Bajie fear, and then joked with him.

"Brother, let's not talk about these things now. We're practically living next door to the King Yama."

Sha Wujing couldn't stand Sun Wukong's jokes anymore, so he went to Sun Wukong 'Sha Wujing side and said Sun Wukong.

After that, the elephant demon said, "This Zhu Bajie) is difficult to steam. We'll probably need a lot of heat, but if the heat is too high, won't Tang Xuanzang's flesh be steamed away?"

Upon hearing this Zhu Bajie laughed and said, "Since you can't eat my flesh, then you can eat someone else and let me go. I don't know who you are, speaking so kindly of me."

Kunpeng pondered this carefully, and after a long while, continued, "If Zhu Bajie is hard to steam, peel off his skin and then put him on top of the steamer."

Zhu Bajie panicked instantly and shouted, "Please don't skin me! If you really can't handle it, you can boil me into soup. Just poke my flesh and it will fall apart."

But the Azure Lion didn't think that way. He simply said to the two people around him, "If Zhu Bajie can't be steamed properly, then put him in the bottom compartment."

"Bajie, don't be afraid. This Azure Lion is just a first-time demon; he's not an expert."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong was overjoyed and immediately said to Zhu Bajie.

However, Sha Wujing looked completely bewildered and asked Sun Wukong, "How did you know that, Senior Brother?"

"Actually, it's very simple. When other people steam things, they start from the top. They put all the hard-to-steam items on top and just add more heat."

"If it's placed at the bottom, it'll clog up. Even if you steam it for half a year, it won't be cooked. This monster just said Zhu Bajie is hard to steam and should be placed at the bottom. This isn't the first time he's been a monster. What is he then?"

At this moment, Sun Wukong crawled around like an insect and came to Zhu Bajie 'Zhu Bajie side, explaining to him.

"Brother Monkey, if we follow your logic, then that's definitely murder. He could see I was out of breath, so he flipped me over and lit a fire, making me cooked on both sides, but left me half-cooked in the middle!"

Sun Wukong was immediately impressed by Zhu Bajie's imaginative ideas.

Just then, a little demon said, "Your Majesty, the soup is boiling now, we can carry them up."

Upon hearing this, the Azure Lion gave the order, and all the lions rushed forward together, placing Zhu Bajie at the very bottom and Sha Wujing second in line. They figured that when Sun Wukong came to lift him up, he could escape.

Sun Wukong said, "Based on my calculations, we can tamper with this light."

So he plucked a hair from his head, blew a breath of immortal energy, and it became Sun Wukong, bound with ropes, while his real body had already jumped into the air, looking down.

The demons had no idea that Sun Wukong was an imposter; they simply ranked Sun Wukong third and placed Tang Xuanzang at the top. Amidst the raging fire, Sun Wukong sighed from the clouds and said:

"My Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing for a while, but my master will crumble the moment he rolls around; there's no way to save him."

After speaking, he immediately summoned the Dragon King of the North Sea, who loudly proclaimed, "Great Sage Sun, Little Dragon Ao Shun of the North Sea Dragon King of the North Sea greets you. May I ask what brings you here?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong slowly said:

"Actually, I need your help with something. We've arrived here, but we've been captured by that monster and are currently being steamed in an iron cage. You and I need to go and protect Tang Xuanzang. Make sure he doesn't get burned."

The Dragon King then transformed into a cold wind, blowing into the pot and swirling around Tang Xuanzang. With the fire extinguished, the three— Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujing, and Tang Xuanzang— were no longer in mortal danger.

At midnight, the Azure Lion put down his wine cup and said to his men, "We used so many schemes to capture Tang Xuanzang and his companions. Escorting them was quite arduous, and we haven't slept all night."

"They're trapped in their cages now and can't escape. You keep a close watch on them so we can get a good night's sleep. By dawn they'll be cooked through, and then you can wake us up to enjoy them together."

The demons obeyed the Azure Lion's command, but the three demon lords went back to their beds and fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Sun Wukong was watching from the sky. He only descended from the clouds after hearing what the Azure Lion said, but after listening carefully for a long time, he could not hear any sound from inside the cage.