There are a hundred Hamlets for a hundred readers. Similarly, if there are a hundred Buddhist practitioners, there are a hundred paths to seek Buddhist scriptures. "Journey to the West" is Wukong's journey to learn scriptures, and this book is Bajie's journey to learn scriptures, presenting another kind of cave.
Bajie's predecessor was Marshal Tianpeng, the supreme leader of the Heavenly Navy. He had profound military qualities and was the senior brother of Guanyin's Buddhist team. Wukong's predecessor was Monkey King. He was good at hard work but lacked skills and was the senior brother designated by Buddha. Under the auspices of Wukong, he fought hard, but the efficiency of eliminating demons was low, and the road to the west was bumpy. After Wukong was driven back to Huaguo Mountain due to three attacks of white-bone spirits, Bajie took over the task of subduing demons and used military strategies to eliminate demons. The efficiency and effect were high, and the road to the west was smooth. This laid an irreversible new model for eliminating demons and accelerated the learning process. In the end, Guanyin rated Bajie as a senior demon-conquering master, and Wukong as a deputy senior demon-conquering master. By separating positions and professional titles, Bajie's professional capabilities were affirmed. After successfully learning from the experience, only Bajie among the four masters and disciples took on the actual position: Jingtang Envoy (Logistics Minister), which further demonstrated Bajie's talents.
