Journey to the West

9. Journey to the Underworld

This volume is adapted and illustrated based on Chapters Ten and Eleven of the classical literary masterpiece 'Journey to the West'. The soul of Emperor Taizong of the Great Tang, Li Shimin, wandered into the underworld. Fortunately, Wei Zheng lodged a complaint in the netherworld, saving him from the entanglement of the ghosts. Upon reaching the Hall of Yama, he confronted the Ten Kings of Yama. Judge Cui altered the Emperor's lifespan and was commanded to escort him back, passing through the Eighteen Levels of Hell, the Bridge of Helplessness, the City of Wrongful Deaths, and the Six Paths of Reincarnation. The Emperor was compelled to borrow gold and silver from the treasury to appease the ghosts and promised to hold a Water and Land Dharma Assembly to deliver the souls of the deceased. Only then did he return to the mortal realm. Subsequently, Liu Quan answered the imperial edict and went to the underworld to present a pumpkin. Liu Quan's wife borrowed a corpse to return to life and rejoined Liu Quan in the mortal world. The Emperor then dispatched ministers to Kaifeng to seek out Xiang Liang and constructed the Great Xiangguo Temple, repaying the debt of gold and silver borrowed from the underworld. The Emperor also sent emissaries to seek out eminent monks to organize the Water and Land Dharma Assembly.