Now, the Great Sage Sun kept up his antics inside the old demon’s belly for a while. The demon lay in the dust without a sound or a breath. Hearing no reply, Pilgrim thought he must be dead and eased off a little. The demon caught his breath and cried, “Greatly merciful, greatly compassionate Bodhisattva, Great Sage Equal to Heaven!” Pilgrim heard him and said, “My son, don’t waste your breath. Save a few words and just call me Maternal Grandfather Sun1.” The demon clung to life and really did call, “Maternal Grandfather! Maternal Grandfather! It was my fault. I blundered and swallowed you, and now you’re hurting me instead. I beg the Great Sage to show mercy. Pity even an ant’s wish to live and spare my life. I’m willing to escort your master across the mountain.” For all the Great Sage’s heroic might, his concern was to advance the Tang Monk on his journey. Seeing the demon beg for mercy, and being fond of flattery himself, he softened and called, “Demon, if I spare you, how will you escort my master?” The old demon said, “I have no gold or silver, pearls or kingfisher ornaments2, agate, coral, coloured glass, amber or tortoiseshell, no rare treasures to offer him. The three of us brothers will carry a fragrant rattan chair and take your master across this mountain.” Pilgrim laughed. “Carrying him over in a chair is better than giving treasures. Open your mouth and I’ll come out.” The demon duly opened his mouth. The third demon came close and whispered to the old demon, “Elder Brother, when he comes out, snap your jaws shut. Chew the monkey to pieces and swallow him. Then he won’t be able to torment you any more.”

But Pilgrim had heard them from inside. Rather than come out first, he pushed his gold-banded cudgel out to test the monster. Sure enough, the demon bit down. Crack! His front teeth shattered. Pilgrim drew back the cudgel and said, “Fine demon you are! I was going to spare your life and come out, and you bite at me instead, trying to kill me. I won’t come out. I’ll torment you to death while you’re still alive. I won’t come out, I won’t!” The old demon complained to the third demon, “Brother, you’ve turned our own people against our own! All we needed was to ask him out, but you told me to bite him. I never bit him at all, and now my gums are aching from the blow. How did we get into this?”

Seeing that the old demon blamed him, the third demon tried to goad Pilgrim into action. He shouted fiercely, “Pilgrim Sun! Your name has thundered in my ears. They say you displayed your might outside the Southern Gate of Heaven, flaunted your power beneath the Hall of Divine Mists, and now subdue demons and bind monsters on the road to the Western Heaven. So you turn out to be a petty little monkey!” Pilgrim said, “What makes me petty?” The third monster said, “‘Treat well the guest who comes a thousand li, and he’ll carry your name ten thousand li.’ Come out and fight me, and then you’ll be a hero. What are you doing, playing tricks inside someone’s belly? If that isn’t petty, what is?” At these words Pilgrim thought to himself, “True, true. How hard would it be to tear his intestines apart, gouge through his liver and kill this monster? But it really would ruin my name.” He said, “Very well, very well. Open your mouth and I’ll come out to match myself against you. Only this cave entrance is too cramped to use our weapons. We must go somewhere with more room.” Hearing this, the third demon mustered the monsters, great and small, over thirty thousand spirits in all, from every part of the cave. Each carried a fine, sharp weapon. They came out and drew up the Three Powers Formation3, waiting for Pilgrim to emerge from the demon’s mouth so that they could all attack together. The second monster supported the old demon and led him straight outside the gate. “Pilgrim Sun!” they called. “Come out if you’re a hero. There’s a battlefield here, with room to fight!”