This is a fresh, complete English translation of Wu Cheng’en’s public-domain one-hundred-chapter novel, produced with GPT-5.3-Codex-Spark assistance. It is an AI-assisted first edition, not a reproduction of an existing translation.

As for the part where the Eight Golden Vajra Kings had already sent Tripitaka back to his homeland, it need not be set down further. Beneath the Three-Tier Gate were the Five Directions Jiedi, the Four-Time Functionaries, the Six Ding and Six Jia, and the Defenders of the Dharma Sanctuary. They went before Bodhisattva Guanyin and said, “At your Dharma command, our disciples have protected the Holy Monk in secret. Today the Holy Monk has completed his journey; you have received Buddha’s golden decree. We ask that you grant approval for submitting the decree.” Guanyin rejoiced and said, “Approved. Approved.” She asked again, “How were Tripitaka and the four companions in heart and conduct along the way?” The divine attendants replied, “Their hearts were truly sincere and devout, and no one could hide from Guanyin’s insight. Only the suffering he bore is truly beyond telling. Every calamity and hardship he met on the road, your disciple has carefully remembered. This is the book of his tribulations.” Guanyin read it all the way through. It read:

By order of Mengcha Jiedi, in reverent submission, I have carefully kept a clear count of Tripitaka’s hardships: Gold Cicada demoted — first hardship. Nearly slain at birth — second hardship. Cast into the river on the full-moon day — third hardship. Searching for kin to redress injustice — fourth hardship. Meeting a tiger on leaving the city — fifth hardship. Tumbled into a pit from a divided road — sixth hardship. On Double-Fork Ridge — seventh hardship. At Two-Realms Mountain — eighth hardship. Horse changed at the precipitous ravine — ninth hardship. Burned by night — tenth hardship. Losing the kasaya robe — eleventh hardship. Capturing and subduing Zhu Bajie — twelfth hardship. Obstructed by the Yellow Wind demon — thirteenth hardship. Petitioning Lingji — fourteenth hardship. Struggling through Flowing-Sand waters — fifteenth hardship. Capturing and securing Sha Wujing — sixteenth hardship. Four holy ones manifesting themselves — seventeenth hardship. In Wuzhuang Hall — eighteenth hardship. Keeping the life-ginseng alive — nineteenth hardship. The heart-monkey again cast down — twentieth hardship. Scattered in Black-Pine Forest — twenty-first hardship. Bearer of the letter from Treasure-Elephant Kingdom — twenty-second hardship. Golden-Luan Hall turning into a tiger — twenty-third hardship. Meeting a demon on Mount Pingding — twenty-fourth hardship. Lotus Cave suspended high — twenty-fifth hardship. Rescue in Crow-Chicken Kingdom — twenty-sixth hardship. Possessed and transformed by demon magic — twenty-seventh hardship. Meeting monsters at Mount Hao — twenty-eighth hardship. Wind seizing the Holy Monk — twenty-ninth hardship. The mind-monkey harmed — thirtieth hardship. Inviting the Holy One to subdue demons — thirty-first hardship. Sinking into the Black River — thirty-second hardship. Delayed in transporting the vehicle — thirty-third hardship. Great gambling won and lost — thirty-fourth hardship. Banishing evil to uplift the monkhood — thirty-fifth hardship. Meeting a vast flood on the road — thirty-sixth hardship. Falling into the Celestial River — thirty-seventh hardship. The fish basket appeared — thirty-eighth hardship. Monster encountered on Mount Doushan — thirty-ninth hardship. The gods of heaven all could not be subdued — fortieth hardship. Inquiring into Buddha’s source — forty-first hardship. Poisoned by drank water — forty-second hardship. In West Liang, lingering for a marriage — forty-third hardship. Suffering in Pipa Cave — forty-fourth hardship. Again the heart-monkey was demoted — forty-fifth hardship. Unable to tell the true from the macaque — forty-sixth hardship. Journey blocked at Flame-Mountain — forty-seventh hardship. Seeking the plantain fan — forty-eighth hardship. Binding the demon king — forty-ninth hardship. Sweeping the tower at Saicheng — fiftieth hardship. Recovering treasure to rescue the monk — fifty-first hardship. Recitation among thorny thickets — fifty-second hardship. Small Leiyin met with misfortune — fifty-third hardship. Celestial deities themselves trapped in trouble — fifty-fourth hardship. Obstruction by the foul passage of Xishitong — fifty-fifth hardship. Practicing medicine in Violet-Purple Kingdom — fifty-sixth hardship. Rescuing the sick with urinary blockage — fifty-seventh hardship. Subduing demons and taking back the queen — fifty-eighth hardship. Drowned in the seven emotions — fifty-ninth hardship. Wounded by the many-eyed foe — sixtieth hardship. Lion-camel blocked the road — sixty-first hardship. Monsters divided into three colors — sixty-second hardship. Disaster in the city — sixty-third hardship. Inviting Buddha to take in the demons — sixty-fourth hardship. Monk saved a child — sixty-fifth hardship. Discerning true from false — sixty-sixth hardship. Rescue of a monster in a pine forest — sixty-seventh hardship. The monk’s chamber with fevered sickness — sixty-eighth hardship. Trapped in a bottomless pit — sixty-ninth hardship. Hard to proceed in the kingdom that destroys the Dharma — seventieth hardship. Encountered a demon on Mist-Hiding Mountain — seventy-first hardship. Rain requested in Fengxian Prefecture — seventy-second hardship. Weapon lost — seventy-third hardship. Huoqing and the pinning of the halberd — seventy-fourth hardship. Beset at Bamboo-Node Mountain — seventy-fifth hardship. Suffering in Xuanying Cave — seventy-sixth hardship. Chasing and capturing the rhinoceros — seventy-seventh hardship. Summoned to marriage in Tianzhu — seventy-eighth hardship. Imprisoned in Tongtai Office — seventy-ninth hardship. Crossing Lingyun and shedding the mortal flesh — eightieth hardship. The road covered ten-thousand-eight-thousand li. The master’s record of tribulations was perfectly clear. Guanyin perused the ledger and said quickly, “In the Buddha’s law, nine by nine returns to Truth. Tripitaka has endured eighty hardships, still one short, and the number is not complete.” She then ordered Mengcha Jiedi, “Catch the Golden Vajra one and bring forth another hardship for him.”

Mengcha Jiedi, obeying this command, rode a cloud in a single run to the east, and by dawn and dusk in one day and night caught up with the Eight Great Golden Vajra Kings. Whispering in his ear, he said, “... In this way, in this way: we have carefully observed Bodhisattva Guanyin’s instruction and must not err.” Hearing him, the Great Vajra one snapped and pressed down the wind, and sent the four companions with their horses and the sutra tumbling to the ground. Alas! It was precisely the moment of:

On the path of truth regained through ninety-nine, hardship is the road of practice. Keep steadfast and firm in resolve, and set the mysterious gate. Evil magics must be bitterly tempered and driven off; hold the right Dharma and restore it. Do not treat the scripture chapters as something easy: the Holy Monk has borne far more than you think. From olden times, perfect accord and inward agreement meet as one; even a single hair out of place prevents the forming of the elixir. Tripitaka’s feet touched the mortal earth and he felt sudden dread. Zhu Bajie laughed, "Haha, good, good, good—this is exactly why this would have to be delayed." Sha Wujing said, "Good, good, good. We have traveled too fast this time; we are to rest here for a while." Sun Wukong said, "There is a saying: ‘Sit at one ford for nine days; in one day you may cross nine fords.’" Tripitaka said, "The three of you stop your bickering, set your bearings, and see what place this is." Sha Wujing looked around and said, "It is here, it is here. Master, listen to the sound of the water." Sun Wukong said, "The sound of water seems like it comes from your homeland." Zhu Bajie said, "His homeland is Flowing-Sand River." Sha Wujing said, "No, no, this is Tongtian River." Tripitaka said, "My disciples, look closely at that bank." Sun Wukong sprang up and leaned on the cool awning frame to look carefully, then came down and said, "Master, this is the west bank of the Tongtian River." Tripitaka said, "I remember now. On the east bank there was once a Chen family manor. In that year when we came here, because you had saved his children, he was deeply grateful. He made a boat for us to send us off, and thankfully the White Tortoise offered passage. I remember the west bank was devoid of human settlement. What are we to do now?" Zhu Bajie said, "I only thought ordinary people could cheat; it seems even the Golden Vajra before Buddha can cheat. He obeys Buddha’s order and tells us to carry Tripitaka homeward, yet how has he left us half a way here? Now are we not in a hopeless dilemma? How are we to cross?" Sha Wujing said, "Second Bro, do not complain. Our Master has already obtained the Way; he shed his mortal body at Lingyun Ford before. This time he will not fall into the water. Teacher and I, together with you, will all use the restraint-art and carry the Master across." Sun Wukong laughed quietly to himself, "Cannot carry him, cannot carry him." See how he just says ‘cannot carry him’! If he truly exerted divine power and laid bare the secret of flying ascent, the teacher and disciples would cross a thousand rivers at once. But because in his heart he knew Tripitaka’s ninety-nine trials were not yet complete and one more trial still remained, he was held back here on purpose.

The disciples chattered as they walked, footstep by footstep, until they reached the riverbank. Suddenly someone called out, “Tang Sage, Tang Sage, this way, this way.” All four were startled. They looked up to see no one in sight and no boat or ferry, only a great white tortoise with a bald head raising its head from the bank and crying out: “Master, I have waited for you these many years, and only now have you returned?” Wukong laughed: “Old turtle, I have been counting these years for you; now, this year, we meet at last.” Tripitaka, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing were filled with endless joy. Wukong said, “Old turtle, if you truly mean to receive us, come up ashore.” The turtle at once leapt onto the bank. Wukong ordered them to lead the horse up onto him. Zhu Bajie still crouched behind the horse’s tail, Tripitaka stood to the horse’s left, and Sha Wujing to his right. Wukong put one foot on the turtle’s neck and one on its head and called, “Old turtle, walk steadily and keep your footing.” The old turtle kicked out its four legs and stepped on the water as if on level ground, carrying the four disciples and the horse—five mouths in all—on its back and returning straight to the east bank. As the saying goes:

In the Gate of No-Duality the Dharma is deep and mysterious; all demons are driven back, whether of man or heaven. The original face is now seen; the one essence and cause are made whole. With the proof of the Three Vehicles, entering and leaving in turn, perfected cinnabar turns nine times and moves through all. Even of staff and bundle, and of speeches about flying through battle, none can be spoken of—thankfully, at my return to origin, I met the old turtle. With the turtle bearing them, skipping over waves, they traveled most of the day and as dusk came they came close to the east bank. Suddenly it asked, “Master, in earlier years I petitioned the West before my Buddha, the Tathagata, and asked him about my years of life, whether there was any remaining term. Did he ever ask me that?” Since that Elder had, after coming west to Yujing Hall, bathed there, crossed Lingyun, climbed to Lingshan, and devoted himself wholly to worshipping Buddha and paying homage to Buddha, bodhisattvas, and holy monks; his mind was fixed only on taking the sutras, he had not inquired at all about the turtle’s lifespan, and could not answer. Yet he dared not deceive, and after a long pause he remained silent. The turtle knew at once he had never asked on its behalf. In an instant it shook its body and with a sharp splash plunged into the water, pulling all four disciples and even the horse beneath it. Alas! Fortunately Tripitaka had shed mortal birth and become a sage; had it been in earlier times he would already have gone to the bottom. Fortunate too that the white horse was a dragon and that Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing could swim. Wukong gave a faint smile and showed his divine powers, lifted Tripitaka out of the water, and got them onto the east bank. Only the scripture case, robes, and saddle tackle were wet.

After the party had just reached the bank and set things in order, a furious gale suddenly rose. The sky darkened, lightning flashed, stones and sand flew. What they then saw was this:

A blast of wind, and the cosmos was shaken in all directions; a crack of thunder shook all mountains and rivers. A glare flashed, boring through the clouds in fire; A whole fog of daylight veiled the earth. The wind screamed; thunder roared, fierce and relentless. The glare jerked out red fire, and fog confused both stars and moon. Wind-driven dust struck their faces, and terrorized by thunder, tigers and leopards hid their forms. The glare-wilted birds cried out, and trees vanished beneath drifting fog. That wind roused the River of Heaven so its waves rose in towering swells; that thunder made the fish and dragons of the River of Heaven lose heart. That glare lit the River of Heaven bright as day; that fog covered its banks and cliffs in dim gloom. A fine wind: collapsing hills, shattered stones, pines and bamboos overturned. A fine thunder: frightening, striking, and perilous to men with mighty force. A fine glare: streaking heavenward, lighting wild golden snakes. A fine fog: thickly spread, obscuring the ninth sky. The commotion made Tripitaka clutch the sutra, Sha Wujing hold down the scripture pannier, Zhu Bajie hold the white horse, while Wukong spun his Golden-Hooped Staff with both hands and protected them on both sides. In truth that wind, fog, thunder, and glare were yin demons in disguise, seeking to steal the scriptures. They roared and raged for a whole night, and only at dawn did it cease. Tripitaka, still in wet robes, trembled and asked, “Wukong, how did this come about?” Wukong replied in a breathless tone: “Master, you do not know this. We guard you so that you may obtain these sutras; this is to take up the work of heaven and earth’s cosmic patterning. It can last as long as Heaven and Earth, with the sun and moon shining equally, and grant long springlike life and an undying Dharma body. That is why heaven and earth do not tolerate it, and ghosts and gods resent it—it comes secretly to steal your scriptures. First, this sutra is soaked through with water; second, your upright Dharma body presses it down so thunder cannot strike, lightning cannot reveal, and fog cannot confuse; also, Old Sun circles with the Golden-Hooped Staff, bringing pure yang energy to guard it; and by dawn, yang qi had risen again. So it could not be taken.” Tripitaka, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing only then understood and offered endless thanks.

After a short while the sun rose high. They moved the sutras up to a high cliff and opened the package to dry them. The stone where the texts were dried there still remains to this day. Then they dried their robes and sandals along the cliff. Some stood, some sat, some jumped about. Truly:

In one body of pure yang, one turns joyfully toward the sun. The yin demons dare not assert themselves with brute force. Know that this true Water-conquering scripture does not fear wind, thunder, glare, or fog. From now on peace returns to true awakening; from this day on, peaceful ease reaches the land of immortals. On the scripture-drying stone remains a trace, and no demon has ever come here through the ages. The four checked the scripture copies one by one, laying them out in the sun. Soon several fishermen came to the bank and raised their heads to look. One among them recognized them: “Master, were you not the ones who came this way two years ago, crossed this river, and went west to fetch sutras?” Zhu Bajie said, “Yes, yes indeed. Which place are you from, and how do you recognize us?” The fisherman answered, “We are from above Chenjia Village.” Zhu Bajie asked, “How far is Chenjia from here?” The fisherman replied, “If one crosses Nan-chong and goes south, it is twenty li.” Zhu Bajie said, “Master, why not take our scriptures to Chenjia and dry them there? They have a place to stay, a place to sit, and we can get food there too. If we ask them, they can wash our robes.” Tripitaka said, “No need. Let them dry fully here, then we will gather our things and find our road home.”

The fishermen went on across Nan-chong and happened to meet Chen Cheng, calling out, “Second Master, we are the clerics who came to your house two years ago to serve in the rite for your child.” Chen Cheng asked, “Where did you see them?” They pointed and said, “Up on that stone, they are drying scriptures.” Chen Cheng took a few tenant households with him and walked over the ford to look. As he drew near he knelt down: “Holy Master, you have returned with the scripture complete, your work fulfilled. Why not come to the house, and instead linger here? Please, please come to the manor at once.” Wukong said, “Once the scriptures are dried, we will come with you.” Chen Cheng asked, “How did the scriptures and robes of the Master get wet?” Tripitaka said, “Last year a white turtle ferried us west across the river; this year we were once again carried east by it. When we came near the bank, it asked whether I had ever asked the Buddha in the west the matter of its own years. I had not asked, so it plunged in and drenched us, and this is why we are wet.” He then explained everything that had happened before and after. Chen Cheng’s request was earnest, and Tripitaka could not refuse; he gathered the sutra scrolls. Yet on the drying-stone, several fascicles of the Fo Benxingjing had become wet and the tail end of the text tore. That is why to this day the Fo Benxingjing is not complete, though traces of writing remain on the drying-stone. Tripitaka regretted, “We were negligent and failed to look after it.” Wukong laughed: “Not here, not here. Heaven and Earth are not complete in all things; this scripture was whole as it was. To have been wet and torn now is the hidden principle of its seeming incompleteness. This is no fault of human power.” When all had packed their things, they followed Chen Cheng to the manor.

At that manor all the householders spread the news—one told ten, ten told a hundred, and a hundred became a thousand. Young and old all came to see. Hearing of their arrival, Chen Qing laid out a fragrance altar at the gate to welcome them and ordered drums and music. After a short while they arrived and were brought in. Chen Qing, leading the whole household, came out and bowed to pay thanks for the former grace of saving his sons and daughters. He then ordered tea and set out a vegetarian offering. Tripitaka had accepted holy food and heavenly fare from Buddha and shed mortal flesh to become a Buddha; he no longer thought of ordinary food. The two elders urged him repeatedly and at last accepted his small assent. Wukong, who had never before eaten grain and mortal cookery, said, “Enough.” Sha Wujing, too, ate little. Zhu Bajie too, unlike before, put down his bowl. Wukong said, “Is the Bungler also not eating now?” Zhu Bajie replied, “I do not know why—my spleen and stomach are suddenly weak.” Thus they all ended the meal and at once asked about the matter of obtaining the sutras. Tripitaka then recounted in full how he had first gone to Yujing Hall in the west to bathe, crossed through Lingyun and stepped upward with a lightened body, then reached Liyin Temple to meet the Tathagata, where he was given banquet in the Precious Pavilion and transmitted the scriptural teaching in the Precious Hall. Because two dignitaries failed in their attempt to draw him into a private matter, they later transmitted him a sutra with no script characters. He then again bowed before the Buddha and was granted the number of one full collection, and he recounted as well the whole matter of the white turtle being dipped and the shadowy demons trying to steal the books in secret, all in detail, and was about to take leave.

Those elders and their whole households would not let us go, saying: "Long ago we were saved by you, rescuing our son and daughter from sacrifice; our deep gratitude cannot be repaid. We have already built a monastery and named it Jiusheng Temple, where incense is now tended without cease." They also summoned forth Chen Guanbao and Yichengjin, the children once set aside for sacrifice, and they knelt to offer thanks. They again begged us to come and see the temple. Tripitaka then took the scripture bundle and set it on the hall-front of their house, and recited one volume of the Baochang Sutra for him. When he arrived at the temple, he saw that the Chens had also arranged another banquet there. He had not yet sat down when they invited again; he had not yet lifted his chopsticks when they invited again. Invitations came in unending succession, one crowding on another, impossible to manage. Tripitaka could not dare refuse; he only feigned a little assent. He saw, all at once, that the temple had been built in complete order:

The mountain gate is vermilion and smooth, all thanks to the donor’s virtue. A pavilion now stands, with towers rising high, and from now two gallery-halls prosper as well. Crimson-red partition screens in jeweled filigree gleam sevenfold. Fragrance drifts, filling the Milky Way; pure radiance fills the heavens. A few young cypresses have only just been watered, while several trunks of lofty pines are yet without full clusters. Living waters answer the front, layering to heaven in swelling waves; a high cliff leans behind, and mountain ridges join the earth-dragons in many folds. After reading this, Tripitaka only then ascended the high tower. On the upper level were, as if sculpted, images of the four of them. Zhu Bajie saw this and tugged Sun Wukong’s sleeve: "Elder Brother, your likeness is very much right." Sha Wujing said, "Second brother, yours is also true enough; only Master’s turns out a little too handsome." Tripitaka said, "Excellent, excellent." He then came down. In the front hall and the rear corridor below, further tables for offering meals were still awaiting invitation. Sun Wukong asked, "What has become of the Former-Sun Great King Temple?" The elders replied, "That temple was torn down long ago. Since this temple was built, every year has ripened and every year yielded abundance; all this is owing to Your Grace’s blessing." Sun Wukong laughed: "This is the gift of Heaven; what has it to do with us? Yet from this day onward, after we depart, may your household and descendants in this village increase in number; may all your livestock live in peace; may the winds be timely and the rains right each year, year after year." All of them bowed and thanked him with their foreheads to the ground.

Behind and before, and all along beyond, there were endless households presenting fruit and offering vegetarian meals. Zhu Bajie laughed: "I have been in such a muddle. In those times when we ate, there was not a single household that did not invite me again and again, ten times over. Today I cannot get one meal through, and already another house comes in turn." Though indignantly hot with vexation, he moved his hands a little and ate enough to cover eight or nine vegetarian dishes; though his stomach was already sore, he also ate two or three dozen buns. He was fully sated, and yet another household came inviting again. Tripitaka said, "How can this disciple accept? We are deeply touched by this great kindness. Let us halt for this evening, and accept again tomorrow morning."

It was already deep into the night. Tripitaka kept guard over the True Scripture and dared not leave even briefly, so he sat below in meditation as a watchman. Near the third watch, Tripitaka whispered softly, "Wukong, the people here know our mission is complete. As the old saying goes, ‘A true person does not reveal his aspect; one who reveals himself is no true person.’ I fear that by lingering too long we may lose the great affair." Sun Wukong replied, "What the Master says is sound. We should make use of this deep night, while the households sleep, and go quietly." Zhu Bajie also became aware, and Sha Wujing was entirely clear as well; even the white horse understood. Then they rose, raised themselves, gently set the shoulder-pole load, and by the covered corridor carried it out toward the gate. At the gate they saw it locked. Sun Wukong used a lock-breaking method, opened the two inner doors and the main gate, and found a road and set out eastward. Then from midair came a cry from the Eight Great Vajra Kings: "Those who flee, follow me." The elder heard it with a wind of perfume wavering all about, and rose into the air. It was just here that the line was spoken:

When the cinnabar is made complete, one recognizes one’s original face. The body remains robust and true, bowing to the Master as it is.

In the end, how they eventually came to see the Tang King remains unknown; hear the resolution in the next chapter.