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"Very well, then,'' said the Patriarch, "what method of escape would
you like to learn? There is the Art of the Heavenly Ladle, which numbers
thirty-six transformations, and there is the Art of the Earthly Multitude,
which numbers seventy-two transformations." Wukong said, "Your pupil is
always eager to catch more fishes, so I'll learn the Art of the Earthly Multi-
tude." "In that case,'' said the Patriarch, "come up here, and I'll pass on the
oral formulas to you." He then whispered something into his ear, though
we do not know what sort of wondrous secrets he spoke o£ But this Mon-
key King was someone who, knowing one thing, could understand a hun-
dred! He immediately learned the oral formulas and, after working at them
and practicing them himself, he mastered all seventy-two transformations.

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