Chapter 12: Debiao

Chapter 12: Debiao

Chapter 12: Debiao

It is said that the sister of the Dragon King of the West Sea, Ao Run, married the Dragon King of the Jing River and gave birth to nine sons. The first one, Little Yellow Dragon, lived in Huaidu; the second one, Little Black Dragon, lived in Jidu; the third one, Green Back Dragon, occupied Jiangdu; the fourth one, Red Bearded Dragon, guarded Hedu; the fifth one, Fu Lao Dragon, served as the bell-keeper with the Buddha; the sixth one, Wen Shou Dragon, served as the ridge-guarding dragon with the Temple of God; the seventh one, Jing Zhong Dragon, served as the guardian of the Heavenly Biao with the Jade Emperor; the eighth one, Shen Dragon, occupied Taiyue. Only the ninth one, the Claw Dragon, although called a dragon, only had a dragon head and a turtle body, which is what people often call a dragon turtle. He was the most humble among the brothers and was not welcomed by his relatives since he was a child. He could only live in the Black River. Unexpectedly, the Dragon King of the Jing River was beheaded by Wei Zheng for violating the Heavenly Rules, and his mother died of depression soon after. Thanks to the help of his uncle, the Dragon King of the West Sea, Ao Run, they were able to barely survive.

Although the claw dragon had a miserable life, he was ambitious. He was determined to make a career so that his relatives would look at him with new eyes and prove that he was also a member of the dragon clan and was no worse than others.

A while ago, Sun Wukong escorted Tang Monk to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures and happened to pass by his Black Water River. He heard that Tang Monk was a good man who practiced Buddhism for ten lifetimes and that eating a piece of his meat would make him immortal, which was equivalent to ten thousand years of hard practice. How could he not be tempted? He made a plan and really caught Tang Monk. He could not wait to write a letter to his uncle: "I, your humble nephew, bow my head a hundred times and pay my respects to my second uncle, Mr. Ao. I am grateful for your kindness. Now I have obtained two things, which are rare in the world from monks in the East. I dare not use them myself. As my uncle's birthday is approaching, I have specially prepared a banquet to wish him a long life. I hope your carriage will arrive soon, thank you!"

The claw dragon thought: "This time, I have done such a great thing, capturing Tang Monk and inviting my uncle to enjoy the feast together. This not only shows my ability, but also shows my filial piety. I am sure that from now on, no one will look down on me anymore."

Unexpectedly, instead of waiting for his uncle, he was severely scolded by his cousin. Not only did he not say a word of praise, but he also said that he had caused them a big disaster. He let go of Tang Monk, who he had caught with great difficulty, and locked him up for half a year. His uncle Ao Run often called him by his nickname and scolded him, "De Biao! Why are you so idle? You only know how to cause trouble? Can't you compare with your brothers?"

Every time Ao De Biao heard his uncle's scolding, he felt very aggrieved. He had good intentions, but he was always not recognized by his relatives and was looked down upon. Every time he thought of this, he felt very depressed. He was very eager to have an opportunity to be recognized by his relatives, so he paid attention to the things in the heaven and the Buddhist world that only those recognized as successful people could get in touch with. After a lot of effort, he learned from his fifth brother Tu Lao Long that the white elephant, the mount of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, ate a lot of bananas every day. Now he just needed someone who could transport a lot of bananas from the mortal world to Lingshan on time every morning and evening. Ao De Biao thought to himself: "Although it's just a job of transporting bananas, it's still a chance to see those Western Bodhisattvas and Arhats. It is said that the Bodhisattvas in the Buddhist world are so respectful that even the Jade Emperor in the Heavenly Palace has to show respect to them. If I can work under the Bodhisattva in the future, I will definitely not be looked down upon again." Thinking of this, he begged his fifth brother to talk to the Bodhisattva and ask him to find this job for him.

Fu Lao Long said, "The mount of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva has a big appetite. This job will not be easy. Are you really willing?"

Ao Debiao said quickly: "Yes, yes! Please help me, Brother Five!"

With the help of Tu Lao Long, Ao De Biao successfully took over the task of transporting bananas. Tu Lao Long instructed him, "There is a banana garden in Dongsheng Shenzhou, which is guarded by an old man. He will prepare bananas every day. You must deliver the bananas to Lingshan on time every morning when the sun rises and every evening when the sun sets. You must not be late."

Ao Debiao said, "The journey is so long, and I am so frail that I have to carry this heavy tortoise shell. It would be fine if I were in the water, but in the sky, although I know some tricks of riding the clouds, I can only travel ten thousand miles in a day. The sacred mountain is 180,000 miles away from the mortal world, and I am afraid it is beyond my ability."

"Don't worry, here is a magic weapon given by the Bodhisattva, named 'Darba'. You can ride on it and just chant the spell 'Pull Banana'. In less than two hours, this treasure will carry you to Lingshan." As Tu Lao Long said this, a thing with two wheels appeared on the ground.

Ao De Biao looked around the treasure, rode on it and shouted, "Pull the banana!" The Dalba really lifted up Ao De Biao's heavy body and flew to the west at a high speed. Ao De Biao rode on it, which was really fast and labor-saving. He couldn't help but love this treasure. Ao De Biao rode on Dalba, enjoying the feeling of galloping in the sky, and soon mastered the way to control the magic weapon. Back on the ground, he said to Futile Dragon, "What a good treasure, worthy of the Bodhisattva's thing."

Fu Lao Long reminded: "You only need to recite the activation spell once. If you recite it a second time, the speed of this treasure will be ten times faster than before, and it will be difficult to control. Remember, remember!"

Ao Debiao said: "Don't worry, I'll remember it!"

In this way, Ao De Biao came to the banana garden on time every morning and evening. The old man would fix bunches of bananas on his tortoise shell. After that, Ao De Biao would ride on Dalba and shout, "Pull bananas!" Dalba would soar into the sky and head straight for Lingshan. No matter the wind or the rain, he was never late.

The old man often praised Ao Debiao for his diligence, praising him: "Nowadays, there are not many young people who are so down-to-earth and willing to endure hardships!"

Aodebiao always responded with a kind smile and thanked the old man for his help.

One day, Ao De Biao came to the banana plantation as usual, but he could not find the old man. Normally at this time, the old man should have prepared bananas for him. Ao De Biao looked around for the old man, but he saw him lying in his cabin, groaning in pain. Ao De Biao hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "What's wrong with you?"

The old man pointed at the bananas in the house and said, "It's okay, it's just an old problem. The bananas are ready, just take them away."

Ao Debiao said, "You look very bad. I think it would be better to find a doctor to check you out."

The old man turned around and said, "No, it's too much trouble. Your time is precious, so don't waste it on me."

Ao De Biao ignored the old man's objection, put him on his back, rode on Dalba and shouted, "Pull bananas!" Dalba soared into the sky, and Ao De Biao controlled Dalba and sent the old man to the West Sea to live with Prime Minister Turtle. Prime Minister Turtle was proficient in medicine, and the old man really got much better after taking the medicine. Ao De Biao looked at the time and did not dare to delay. He rode Dalba back to the banana garden, gathered the bananas, and tied them on his back. He shouted twice in a row: "Pull bananas! Pull bananas!" Dalba flew into the sky, and the speed was indeed much faster than before. Ao De Biao used all his strength to control Dalba's flight with difficulty, but it still deviated from the western route. Dalba carrying Ao De Biao did not know where he flew. But he heard a voice screaming in his ear: "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Ao De Biao subconsciously replied, "The one pulling bananas!" Unexpectedly, as soon as he said this, the Dalba carrying him accelerated again, and it was unknown how far he flew in an instant. This time, Ao De Biao completely lost control of Dalba and began to run wild, unable to stop. Ao De Biao had no choice but to shrink his head into the tortoise shell and let Dalba carry him and run around in the three realms.

At this time, the Jade Emperor was sitting in the Lingxiao Palace, feasting with the gods. Who knew that the next moment, a big ball suddenly appeared from nowhere. No one knew what it was. It was wrapped in a gust of wind and overturned the wine table in front of the heavenly generals, and the wine and dishes were scattered all over the floor. Bananas appeared out of thin air. Even the Jade Emperor couldn't open his eyes because of the strong wind. He hurriedly shouted: "Thousand-Li Eyes, Wind-Ears? Look at what happened? Where is the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li? Use the magic mirror to see who the evil spirit of that ball is that dares to disturb the heavenly court!" Thousand-Li Eyes, Wind-Ears, and Heavenly King Li received the order and showed their magical powers. They all used their magic power to look at the ball that was flying away. However, the speed of the ball was too fast, and even with the Thousand-Li Eyes's eyesight, it couldn't see clearly. Even in the magic mirror of Heavenly King Li, the picture was extremely blurry, and it was impossible to tell what it was. The gods were left speechless, and no one knew what to do.

The ball left the heavens and somehow headed straight for the East China Sea. When it entered the sea, it was like a small mountain, shaking away countless fish in the sea. The entire East China Sea was shaken to the point that Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the East China Sea, was so panicked that he kept shouting, "Earthquake? Earthquake? Where is the patrolling Yaksha?"

The Yakshas patrolling the sea came forward and reported: "According to the aquatic creatures, a large ball fell from the sky with such force that it stirred up the sea."

The Dragon King of the East China Sea said, "So that's it. It's a meteorite! It's not surprising. Don't panic. Where is the meteorite now? I'll go check it out."

Yaksha stammered, "The big ball fell to the bottom of the sea, but it couldn't stop its momentum. It went straight into the ground, and now no one knows where it is."

The Dragon King of the East Sea was also puzzled after hearing this. He called Prime Minister Turtle and asked, "What kind of meteorite is this? It can actually drill into the ground?"

Prime Minister Turtle hesitated and said, "I really don't know about this."

The ball continued to move forward, and it bored a hole in the ground, all the way to the eighteen levels of hell in the netherworld. When had the ghosts and the evil ghosts in hell ever seen such a sight? The executioner threw down his whip to look, and the evil ghosts being tortured widened their eyes and forgot to scream. The Black and White Impermanence, the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced, the Four Judges, and the Ten Kings of Hell all dropped their work and went to check. The hungry ghosts in the eighteen levels of hell looked up and saw that the hell that had always been impregnable now had a big hole right above. The evil ghosts struggled to climb up, and soon a small hill formed by the bodies of many ghosts was formed. The evil ghosts trampled on the bodies of their own kind, and when they were about to reach the hole, they were stopped by a group of ghosts. The ghosts waved their sharp weapons and drove the evil ghosts who tried to escape from hell back.

Aodebiao rode on Dalba for an unknown period of time before he finally felt the sensation of rapid movement gradually stop. He then dared to slowly stick his head out and shook it. He sighed to himself: "Since I was born, I have always felt inferior because I have a tortoise body. I usually feel that my tortoise shell is a burden, but I didn't expect that at the critical moment, it was this tortoise shell that saved my life!" As he was sighing, he looked up and saw that he was on a deserted island with many banana trees on the island, with bunches of huge bananas. Aodebiao then remembered and screamed: "Oh no, today's bananas haven't been delivered yet!" He quickly gathered the bananas from the trees together, tied them on his back, and rode on Dalba again, shouting: "Pull bananas!" Dalba flew into the sky and took him on the journey of delivering bananas again.

At this time, he didn't know that he had really done something earth-shattering this time.

(End of this chapter)