The journey to the Western Heaven was never destined to be a simple pilgrimage of prayer and meditation. For the holy monk Tang Sanzang and his three supernatural disciples—Sun Wukong the Monkey King, Zhu Bajie the gluttonous pig-demon, and Sha Wujing the stoic river-ogre—the path was a gauntlet of cosmic trials. As they traversed the rugged landscapes of what is now the Qinghai region, the air grew thin and the mountains loomed like ancient, frozen giants. The sun beat down upon the dusty road, and the party found themselves parched, their water skins long emptied by the arduous climb through the high plateaus.
They eventually reached the banks of a river that sparkled like liquid silver under the midday sun. This was the Zimu River, also known as the River of Childbirth. Unaware of the river’s unique properties, the weary travelers paused. Tang Sanzang, feeling the heat of the day pressing against his brow, asked Zhu Bajie to fetch some water. The pig-demon, always eager to satisfy his physical needs, hurried to the riverbank with a golden bowl. He scooped up the cool, clear water and offered it to his master. Tang Sanzang drank deeply, find the water remarkably sweet and refreshing. Zhu Bajie, not one to be left out, then dipped his own head into the stream and gulped down several large mouthfuls, laughing at the coolness against his snout.
However, the relief was short-lived. Within half an hour of continuing their trek, a strange and agonizing sensation began to take hold of Tang Sanzang. He felt a peculiar warmth in his lower abdomen, followed by a bloating sensation that made it difficult to sit upright on his white horse. He clutched his stomach, his face turning a shade of pale green. Beside him, Zhu Bajie began to groan even louder. The pig-demon’s belly, already naturally large, began to distend further, pulsing with a rhythmic, uncomfortable pressure. They sought refuge in a small cottage near a ferry crossing, where an old woman greeted them with a knowing, mischievous smile.
Upon seeing the two distressed travelers clutching their swollen midsections, the old woman began to cackle. She explained that they had entered the borders of the Xi Liang Women’s Kingdom, a land where no men resided. The Zimu River was the source of life for the kingdom; any woman who wished to have a child needed only to drink its waters, and within three days, a child would be born. Since Tang Sanzang and Zhu Bajie had partaken of the water, they were now biologically pregnant with 'fetal spirits.' The monk was horrified. As a celibate Buddhist monk, the prospect of giving birth was not only a physical impossibility but a spiritual disaster that would end his quest for the sacred scriptures. Zhu Bajie was equally panicked, terrified of the pain and the sheer absurdity of a pig-demon birthing a child.
Sun Wukong, though amused by his companions' plight, knew that the situation was dire. The old woman informed them that the only way to undo the magic of the river was to drink from the Abortion Spring, located in the Cave of the Discarded Child on the nearby Jieyang Mountain. However, the spring was no longer accessible to the public. It was now guarded by a powerful Daoist master known as the True Immortal of the Compliant (Ruyi Zhenren). This immortal had claimed the spring as his private property and demanded high prices in gold, silver, and fine silks from any woman in the kingdom who sought to end a pregnancy.
Leaving the pregnant monk and the groaning pig in the care of Sha Wujing, Sun Wukong somersaulted through the clouds toward Jieyang Mountain. When he arrived at the lush, pine-covered peak, he found the immortal Ruyi Zhenren. To Wukong’s surprise, the immortal was the uncle of the Red Boy, a demon child Wukong had recently defeated and sent to serve the Bodhisattva Guanyin. Ruyi Zhenren held a deep grudge against the Monkey King for his nephew’s 'imprisonment' in the service of the gods. He refused to give Wukong even a single drop of the spring water, brandishing a hooked spear and challenging the Great Sage to a duel.