After leaving the Webbed Hollow, Tang Sanzang and his disciples continued their journey westward. Soon, they came across a Taoist temple. As they approached, they saw that the temple was called Temple of Yellow Flowers. Tang Sanzang said, “Although Taoists and we Buddhists have different beliefs, our practices are quite similar. It would be appropriate to pay our respects.” Sha Wujing agreed, “The scenery here is beautiful. It wouldn’t hurt to take a look and maybe get some food for Master.”
The Taoist and the Seven Sisters
The four disciples entered the temple and noticed that the main hall door was closed, with only one Taoist priest grinding herbs in the corridor. Tang Sanzang raised his voice to greet the priest. The priest immediately set down his tools and came to welcome them, inviting them to sit in the main hall. He then instructed two young disciples to prepare tea and food.
As the young disciples went to the backyard to prepare, they disturbed seven sisters who were actually spider Yaoguai. These sisters were sewing clothes and had come to seek refuge with their older brother, the Taoist priest. The eldest sister asked the young disciples, “Are there any guests?” The disciple replied, “Four monks have arrived, and the master asked us to prepare tea and food.” Upon further inquiry, the eldest sister realized that these monks were none other than Tang Sanzang and his disciples, who had become their enemies earlier that day. She instructed the young disciple to signal their master to come to the backyard when serving tea.
The Poisonous Taoist
The young disciple did as instructed when serving tea. The priest then asked the young disciple to entertain the guests while he went to the backyard. The seven sisters explained the situation to their brother, the Taoist priest, who became furious and agreed to help them deal with Tang Sanzang and his disciples. The sisters asked how he planned to attack them, but the priest said there was no need for a fight. He led them to the medicine room, took out a packet of poison, and said, “This poison can kill ordinary people instantly. Even immortals would succumb with a triple dose. Bring me the scale.” He measured the poison, divided it into four portions, and placed it in red dates, which he then soaked in tea. He returned to the main hall.
Back in the main hall, the priest apologized for the delay and asked about their journey. After Tang Sanzang introduced themselves, the priest pretended to be excited, exclaiming, “I had no idea you were such esteemed monks!” He then asked the young disciple to bring the prepared tea and food. The young disciple brought the poisoned tea, and the priest served it to each of them, not knowing their seniority, so he served them based on their size, making Wukong the last to receive his tea.
Wukong smelled something off about the tea and was about to warn the others, but he noticed that his master and brothers had already drunk it and were showing symptoms. Enraged, Wukong threw the tea in the priest’s face and smashed the cup. The priest shouted, “You insolent monkey!” Wukong retorted, “You villain, we have no quarrel with you. Why poison us?” The priest snapped back, “Don’t you know what you did at the Webbed Hollow today?” Wukong realized, “So you’re all in cahoots! Take this!” He attacked the priest, and they began to fight. The seven sisters heard the commotion and joined in, using their spider webs to entangle Wukong. Overwhelmed, Wukong pulled out a hair and transformed it into seventy Wukongs. Together, they untangled the webs and captured the seven sisters.
The sisters, defeated, begged for mercy. Wukong said, “Cure my master and brothers, and I’ll spare your lives.” The sisters turned to their brother for help, but the priest said, “Eating Tang Sanzang’s flesh grants immortality. Your lives are not worth trading for that.” The sisters despaired, and Wukong said, “If you don’t cure them, I’ll kill you all.” He then struck the seven sisters dead.
Wukong reabsorbed his hair and resumed fighting the priest one-on-one. After sixty rounds, the priest began to feel fatigued and started to remove his clothes. Wukong mocked, “What’s this? Can’t fight, so you strip?” But as the priest finished undressing, he raised his arms, revealing a thousand eyes on his ribs that emitted a blinding golden light. The light encircled Wukong, trapping him with no way to advance or retreat, and he couldn’t escape upwards either. Just as he was about to be completely subdued, Wukong had a flash of inspiration and transformed into a pangolin, burrowing into the ground to escape.
After getting away, Wukong reverted to his original form. Worried about his poisoned master and brothers, and unable to defeat the Taoist priest’s hundred eyes, he began to cry in frustration. Suddenly, he heard a woman crying in the distance. It was Li Shan Lao Mu (Holy Mother of Mount Li), who had seen the disciples in trouble and came to help. Seeing Wukong crying, she pretended to cry to get his attention. She then advised Wukong to seek out Pilan Po (also known as the Blue Lotus Mother) at Purple Cloud Mountain, as only she could subdue the Yaoguai.
Following Li Shan Lao Mu’s advice, Wukong used his somersault cloud to reach Purple Cloud Mountain and found Pilan Po. She was delighted to hear that the Great Sage Equal to Heaven had converted to Buddhism and was escorting Tang Sanzang to fetch the scriptures. She agreed to help and followed Wukong back to Temple of Yellow Flowers. The Taoist priest’s golden light was still shining. Pilan Po took out an embroidery needle and threw it into the golden light, instantly breaking the priest’s spell.
Wukong and Pilan Po entered the hall and saw the priest standing still, eyes closed. Wukong raised his staff to strike, but Pilan Po stopped him. She handed Wukong three elixirs to cure his master and brothers. After saving them, Wukong returned to thank Pilan Po. Zhu Bajie (Pigsy) wanted to attack the priest, but Pilan Po stopped him again, saying, “Wukong knows I have no one to guard my mountain now. Let me take him back to guard my place.” She then cast a spell on the priest, revealing his true form—a centipede Yaoguai. Wukong asked Pilan Po about the embroidery needle, and she explained, “It was crafted in the Sun’s eye by my son, the Rooster Star (Sirius).” With that, she bid farewell to the disciples and took the centipede Yaoguai away.
Curious, Zhu Bajie asked Wukong, “Why was that embroidery needle so powerful?” Wukong replied, “The Rooster Star is a giant rooster, and Pilan Po is his mother, so she’s a hen. Chickens are natural enemies of centipedes. They have many ways to deal with centipedes.”
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