Look at the Monkey King! He parted the waterway and went straight back to the Iron Bridge.
Four old monkeys led the others, waiting at the bridge's edge. Suddenly, they saw Wukong leaping out of the water, completely dry, and striding confidently across the bridge, sparkling in golden brilliance. The monkeys were astonished and knelt, exclaiming, "Great King, so magnificent! So magnificent!"
Beaming with joy, Wukong climbed up to the throne after he planted his rod at the center of the dais.
The other monkeys couldn't resist and came to touch the treasure. But it was as if they were trying to shake an iron tree with a dragonfly, unable to move it at all. They bit their fingers and stuck out their tongues, saying, "Oh, my goodness! It's so heavy! How did you manage to carry it?"
Wukong approached and effortlessly lifted it up, saying with a smile, "Every object has its owner. This treasure was sealed in the sea for who knows how many thousands of years, and it just happened to shine this year. The Dragon King thought it was a piece of black iron and called it the Divine Iron Rod of the Milky Way’s bottom. He asked me to retrieve it personally. At that time, it was over two zhang long and as thick as a barrel in girth. When I grabbed it, I thought it was too big, so it became smaller; when I asked it to be smaller, it became even tinier, and when I asked it to be even smaller, it shrank further. It even has an inscription! It says, 'Compliant Gold-Banded Rod, 13,500 catties.' Stand back, and I'll make it change again."
He played with the treasure in his hand and called out, "Small! Small! Small!" It immediately became as small as a needle for embroidery and could be hidden inside his ear.
The monkeys were astonished and exclaimed, "Great King, take it out and show us!"
The Monkey King took it out from his ear and held it in his palm, shouting, "Big! Big! Big!" And it became over two zhang long and as thick as a barrel. When Sun Wukong was pleased with its shape, he walked back to the bridge. Holding the rod, he displayed a divine power that shook the heavens and mirrored the earth. He bowed his waist and shouted, "Grow!"
Suddenly, Monkey King grew to a height of ten thousand zhang, with a head like Mount Tai, a waist like a towering peak, eyes like lightning, a mouth like a blood basin, and teeth like sharp swords. In his hand, the rod reached the thirty-third heaven above and the eighteenth layer of hell below.
All the tigers, leopards, wolves, insects, mountain-dwelling monsters, and seventy-two cave-dwelling beast kings were terrified, prostrating themselves and trembling with fear. Their souls nearly scattered and flew away.
Satisfied, Sun Wukong withdrew his divine form, turned the rod back into a tiny needle, and concealed it in his ear. He returned to his cave.
The various beast kings of the caves hurried to offer their congratulations.
For the occasion, the monkeys pulled out all the stops, making a big show with drum beats and resounding gongs. The table was filled with all sorts of mouthwatering delicacies, and they poured coconut and grape juice, having a blast feasting and drinking with everyone. After a good while of revelry, they resumed their previous training exercises.
The Monkey King honored the four old monkeys as mighty generals, dubbing the two red-bottomed horse monkeys as General Ma and General Liu. The two humpbacked ape monkeys became the Generals Beng and Ba. He entrusted them with the tasks of setting up camps, giving rewards and punishments, and maintaining discipline among the troops.
Sun Wukong set his mind at ease. He spent his days soaring through the clouds on his Flying Nimbus, roaming the four seas, and enjoying a thousand mountains. Demonstrating his martial skills, he sought out heroes; performing his magical feats, he made friends with the wise. At this time, he also gathered six brothers, namely, the Bull Beast King, the Dragon Beast King, the Roc Beast King, the Lion Beast King, the Macaque Beast King, and the Gibbon Beast King.
Daily, they discussed literature and martial arts, shared drinks and stories, played stringed instruments, sang, and danced. They set out in the morning and returned in the evening, reveling in every kind of pleasure. To them, a distance of ten thousand miles was nothing but a courtyard stroll. What others might call crossing three thousand leagues, they reached with a nod, and with a simple twist of the waist, they traveled eight hundred miles.
One day, in the cave, the Monkey King instructed his four generals to prepare a feast and invite the six beast kings for a grand celebration. They slaughtered cattle and butchered horses, offering sacrifices to the heavens and the earth. The monsters danced and sang joyously, indulging in drunken revelry. After bidding farewell to the six kings, the Monkey King rewarded his subordinates, then leaned against the shade of a pine tree near the iron bridge and dozed off in no time.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
The four generals surrounded him, speaking softly so as not to disturb his slumber. As the Monkey King slept, he dreamt of two figures approaching him with an official document bearing the name "Sun Wukong." Without any explanation, they swiftly tied him up with a rope and extracted his spirit, leading him to a city nearby. When he woke up, he noticed a sign above the city gate with three bold letters: "Underworld."
"The Underworld is where the kings of the dead reside. Why am I brought here?" asked the Monkey King.
The two figures replied, "Your time on Earth has come to an end. We have been granted permission to take you."
The Monkey King retorted, "I, Sun Wukong, transcend the Three Realms and exist beyond the Five Elements. I am no longer subject to their jurisdiction. How dare they come and take me!"
The two death-reapers persisted, trying to drag him inside.
Enraged, the Monkey King took out his shimmering treasure from his ear. He lifted his hand and turned the two death-reapers into minced meat with a single stroke. Setting himself free, he discarded the rope. Swirling his staff, he charged into the city.
The sight of the Monkey King frightened all the ghosts. They fled in all directions, seeking refuge in the Hall of Judgment. The terrified ghosts rushed to the Lord of the Underworld and cried, "My Lord, trouble is brewing! There's a fearsome thunder god with a hairy face! He’s attacking from outside!"
The ten underworld kings scrambled to fix their attire as they approached. Seeing the monkey’s fearsome appearance, they quickly lined up and called out, "Celestial being, leave your name! Celestial being, leave your name!"
The Monkey King retorted, "If you don't recognize me, why'd you send your folks to summon me?"
The ten kings replied, "We didn't mean to. It must have been a mistake from our messengers."
The Monkey King said, "I'm Sun Wukong, the handsome Monkey King from the Water Curtain Cave of Flower Fruit Mountain. What's your official ranking?"
The ten kings bowed and said, "We are the ten successive rulers of the Underworld."
Wukong said, "Name yourselves quickly, and we'll avoid a fight."
The ten kings responded, "We are King Qin Guang, King Chu Jiang, King Song Di, King Wu Guan, King Yanluo, King Ping Deng, King Tai Shan, King Du Shi, King Bian Cheng, and King Zhuan Lun."
Wukong retorted, "Since you've all ascended to the throne and have divine insight, how come you don't know better? I, Sun Wukong, have attained the way of immortality, achieved longevity equal to the heavens, transcended the Three Realms, and stepped beyond the Five Elements. So why're you trying to detain me?"
The ten kings said, "Calm your anger, celestial being. There are many people with the same name and surname in the world. Could it be a mistake from the death-reapers?"
Wukong replied, "Nonsense! Nonsense! As they say, 'It's either a judge's mistake or the clerk's mistake, the person who collects is never mistaken.' Quickly fetch the Book of Life and Death, and let me see!"
Upon hearing this, the ten kings immediately brought Wukong to the book's location.
Wukong firmly grasped his magical rod and walked straight to the Hall of Eternal Judgment. Then, he took a seat in the center, facing south.
The ten kings immediately ordered the court clerk to bring out the documents. The clerk didn't dare to delay and quickly fetched five or six books along with ten categories of records. They examined them one by one, finding entries for various insects and creatures but nothing under the category of monkeys. Sun Wukong was neither registered as a human nor classified as an insect, beast, or bird.
Finally, they came across another ledger, and there, at number 1350, was inscribed "Sun Wukong, born from a stone, destined to live for 342 years, with a good ending."
Wukong said, "I don't remember my exact age, but it's all good as long as my name is crossed out. Pass me the pen."
Hurriedly, the clerk handed him a pen dipped in thick ink.
Sun Wukong took the ledger and struck out every entry related to monkeys. "Accounts settled, accounts settled. I'm not under your jurisdiction anymore." With a swing of his staff, he blasted out of the Underworld.
The ten kings dared not approach him, and all went to the Jade Cloud Palace to bow before Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha[1]. They discussed filing a report to the heavenly court, but that's a story for a different time.
Once the Monkey King stormed out of the city, he suddenly tripped over a grassy knot and tumbled down, jolting awake from what seemed like a dream within a dream. Stretching his back, he heard the four capable generals and the other monkeys exclaim, "Great King, you've had quite a bit of drink and slept through the night. Why haven't you woken up yet?"
Sun Wukong replied, "Sleep is harmless, but in my dream, two beings came to drag me away and brought me to the gates of the Underworld. Only then I realized it was a dream. I displayed my divine powers and raised a ruckus in the Hall of Judgment, arguing with the Ten Kings over our life and death records. I erased all our names. I refuse to be subject to their rule!"
The monkeys bowed and thanked him. Since then, many mountain monkeys remained forever young, hidden from the Underworld in anonymity.
After the Monkey King finished recounting his past, the four capable generals informed all the kings of the various caves, and they all came to offer their congratulations.
In a short time, the six righteous brothers also came to celebrate. Upon hearing the news of the cancellation of their names from the Underworld's records, they were delighted and gathered for festivities every day without exception.
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[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%E1%B9%A3itigarbha Kṣitigarbha: Kṣitigarbha, also known as DiZang in Chinese, is a revered bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. Known for his compassionate vow to alleviate the suffering of sentient beings in hell realms, Kṣitigarbha is often depicted as a guardian of the Earth and a protector of children and travelers.