A Fright

Upon seeing this from the main hall, the Imperial Preceptor panicked and said:

"What's wrong with this person? Why is he so suspicious?"

After Sun Wukong removed all the bloody hearts, he picked them up one by one from the ground for everyone to see. They were all red, white, and multicolored, but not a single one was black. The tyrannical ruler was stunned and trembled as he said:

"Quickly take all these hearts back, I was terrified."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong smiled and said:

"Your Majesty is truly blind. I, a monk, meant well. In truth, your Imperial Preceptor is a heartless man who could be used as a medicinal ingredient. If you don't believe me, I'll take his heart out for you so you can see for yourself."

Upon hearing this, the Imperial Preceptor was immediately alarmed. Suddenly, Sun Wukong revealed his true form, and the preceptor vaguely noticed that Sun Wukong's monkey face looked somewhat familiar.

In an instant, he knew where he had seen Sun Wukong before. In the National Preceptor's memory, Sun Wukong was the Great Sage Equal to Heaven Heavenly Palace five hundred years ago.

After thinking for a moment, he took to the air, only to be knocked to the ground by Sun Wukong, who shouted, "Where are you planning to go? Don't run, take this!"

The Imperial Advisor raised his weapon and cane to meet Sun Wukong, and the two fought fiercely in mid-air.

Sun Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang) is like a fierce tiger emerging from the mountains, while the Imperial Preceptor's walking stick is like a coiled dragon leaving the sea.

After battling Sun Wukong for dozens of rounds, the demon's walking stick finally gave way to the Jingu Bang. She then feinted, her figure transforming into a flash of cold light as she fell into the inner courtyard of the palace, taking the demon queen out of the palace gates, and disappearing without a trace.

Just then, Sun Wukong jumped down from the cloud and entered the palace, saying to the officials, "Your Grand Preceptor is truly excellent."

Only then did the officials understand the meaning behind Sun Wukong's words, and they all bowed and knelt to thank Sun Wukong. However, Sun Wukong said:

"Don't be like this right now, go and see where your foolish emperor is."

Upon hearing this, everyone remembered their king. Then one of the officials said, "Just now, when our king saw the two of you fighting, he was frightened and hid. We don't know where he went."

Sun Wukong inwardly sighed in alarm and hurriedly said, "Oh no, oh no! We must go find her quickly! If she's been captured by the Queen, things will get really difficult!"

Upon hearing this, all the officials, regardless of their status, followed Sun Wukong to the Empress's palace. After searching for a long time, they found that even the Empress was nowhere to be found. The other princesses came to thank Sun Wukong, Sun Wukong said:

"Don't thank me now. Hurry up and find your emperor. If he gets into danger, things will get complicated."

After a short while, several eunuchs led the tyrannical emperor slowly from behind the hall. Upon seeing this, the ministers immediately prostrated themselves on the ground and shouted:

"Your Majesty is fortunate that a divine monk came to our place today to discern the truth. That Imperial Preceptor was actually a demon, and now even the Empress has disappeared."

Upon hearing this, the king quickly brought Sun Wukong to the palace. Once inside the hall, he bowed to Sun Wukong and said:

"Elder, why did you look the same when you came in this morning, but you've changed now?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong laughed and said, "To tell you the truth, the one who came this morning was actually my master, Tang Xuanzang. I am his disciple, Sun Wukong. I also have two junior brothers named Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing."

"They are at that post station now. Because you believed the rumors that you wanted to take my master's heart and liver as a medicinal ingredient, I transformed into my master's appearance and came here to subdue demons."

Upon hearing this, the king immediately issued an edict, ordering his ministers to go to the inn and bring Tang Xuanzang and his disciples to the court.

At the same time, Tang Xuanzang heard what Sun Wukong said and saw what Sun Wukong looked like. However, when he suddenly saw Sun Wukong subduing demons in the sky, he was so frightened that his soul almost left his body. Fortunately, with the protection of Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing, Tang Xuanzang was able to calm down.

However, because Tang Xuanzang's face was covered with mud made from Zhu Bajie's urine, he immediately became sullen. Then he heard someone call out:

"Master, the king sent me here to bring you into the court!"

Upon hearing this, Tang Xuanzang was immediately flustered, but Zhu Bajie laughed and said, "Master, don't be afraid. This isn't going to take your life. It must be that our eldest brother has already won and wants to have a meal with you."

After speaking, Tang Xuanzang said to Zhu Bajie, "Although he came to invite us, how can I face people with this mud on my face?"

However, Zhu Bajie fearlessly replied, "That's not a problem at all. Once we see our eldest brother, he will naturally make arrangements."

Then Tang Xuanzang had no other choice but to have Zhu Bajie lead him to the imperial court. The ministers, seeing this, said in fear:

"Grandpa, where did you find something that looks like a monster?"

Upon hearing this, Sha Wujing immediately became displeased and said, "Please don't blame us for being ugly; it's what we were born with. However, my master is not like this. After he meets my eldest brother, my master will become handsome."

The three of them arrived at the main hall and walked straight in without waiting for any message from inside. Upon seeing this, Sun Wukong hurriedly greeted Tang Xuanzang and then wiped all the mud off Tang Xuanzang's face, restoring Tang Xuanzang to his original appearance.

The king personally came down to greet him, saying, "Elder, I've been waiting for you for so long! You've finally arrived."

After the four travelers tied up their horses, they met in the main hall. Upon seeing this, Sun Wukong said:

"Do you know where that monster came from? Let's go together and capture it to prevent future trouble."

Upon hearing Sun Wukong's words, all the concubines in the imperial harem rushed out and said together, "If the Holy Monk can eliminate the threat completely, it will be an immense surprise for us. We will surely repay him handsomely."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong could only return the greeting, then looked at the king and asked him where the monster lived. The king, embarrassed, could only reply:

"When I met him three years ago, I asked him about it, and he said he lived not far from this city, somewhere called Huaqing Village."

"The Imperial Preceptor has no son; his wife gave birth to a daughter who is only sixteen years old and has never been married. She was willing to give herself to me, and I accepted her because I found her to be as beautiful as a flower."

"You're always chasing after women, never worrying about your own health."

Helpless, Sun Wukong gritted his teeth and said fiercely.

Upon hearing this, the king ignored what Sun Wukong had said and continued:

"But after a while I fell ill, and the imperial physician's medicine had no effect on me at all."