"Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city for in one hour is thy judgment time and all the fruits thy soul lusted after have departed from thee." "That's what the Bible tells us." "I don't care how fast you run or how far you go God will be right there waiting for you." "You can fall on your knees and embrace graven images and idols but that won't save you." "You can burn your joss sticks, spin your prayer wheels." "That won't do you any good either." "You can't fool God." "No, you can't put anything over on him because he can see right into your souls, and he will not be mocked." "The wages of sin is death, and the gift of God is eternal life." "You may be the bottom of the barrel, lower than the low but God doesn't care." "He still wants to save you." "All you have to do is open up your hearts let him enter, and you will be born again." "He is waiting with the precious gifts of salvation and eternal life." "Just ask and it shall be given unto you." "Accept him as your redeemer, and you shall be saved." "What in the world?" "If any of you needs a decent meal or a place to sleep my mission's right across the yard." "Hey, it's all right, boy." "Stand up." "There's nothing to fear, boy." "O Lord, we humbly thank thee for the miracle thou hast performed within the bosom of this poor China boy." "He was lost in error and pagan ways and thou didst cause thy countenance to shine on him." "Just one minute now." "What's your business with this boy?" "is he the boy's father?" "He says the boy belongs to him." "His property." "Slave." "He may have his slaves over there in China but this is the U.S. of A." "The boy has Jesus for his master now and needs no other." "You touch him, you'll have to walk over me first." "It's all right." "He's gone." "You don't have to be afraid." "You make me safe?" "God will save you, son, not me." "Now don't be afraid." "From now onwards, you're in his care." "You understand me?" "My name's Wing." "Tower of Babel." "You come with me inside." "Food to eat." "Yes?" "Thank you for your help." "Will you come too?" "It looks as though I might need your help some more if you'd be so kind." "My master, Chen, has had men killed." "He is very powerful." "He makes much money from the fan-tan games and he sells women and opium." "He lends people money, and if they do not pay him back double my master, Chen, sends his highbinders to kill them." "Everyone is afraid of him." "How do you come to be his slave?" "My mother, who died when I was very little she was one of his singsong women, so I belong to him." "He beats me for no reason, and he laughs." "Why did you not run away?" "My master, Chen, has great power." "If I ran away, he would send his highbinders to bring me back and beat me until I died." "He lets no one defy him." "Then how can you think you will be safe here?" "This holy lady, she is stronger than my master, Chen." "She made him lose face with the power of her God." "He has no magic to compare with that." "Well, thank you." "There is much he does not understand." "Of course." "He is afraid of his master." "l'm not worried about that." "You just tell me." "Does he really desire to become a Christian?" "Well?" "He wants to be saved." "God be praised." "I heard the boy cry out in his sleep." "He dreams he is a slave again." "Were you praying?" "I was thinking." "Do you mind if I ask?" "Are you thinking about becoming a Christian?" "I have a path. I seek not to change it, but to follow it." "My way is not easy, but I believe it is the right one." "Does that ever trouble you believing that the faith you have is God's plan and not something you just convince yourself is right?" "I seek only to become a cup empty of myself, filled with oneness." "You're a curious man." "A man." "We both need some rest." "Go back to sleep." "Let go!" "Let go!" "What's the matter, boy?" "What's wrong?" "The dragon!" "What's he afraid of?" "He thinks this dragon means I have come to kill him." "The dragon." "He's wearing a dragon!" "He's one of them!" "He's asleep in my bed." "Why didn't--?" "Why didn't he tell me that that man Chen was a leader of the tong?" "He feared it would not help him." "Despite the dragon on your arm, you're not one of them, are you?" "No." "The Dragon of Retribution Tong." "What a fearful name." "This boy was very brave to come to you." "Master, why do we mourn for this man who is a stranger?" "is he someone special?" "You heard the circumstances of his death?" "He was killed on the road by bandits of the Red Turban Tong." "This is what I was told." "There is more you were not told." "There is much evil in the world, grasshopper. lt has always been thus." "And so our ancestors built this monastery and developed the art of kung fu so they might cultivate virtue and protect themselves from harm." "But whatever one man possesses, another will covet." "The Manchu emperor heard of our prowess so he sent an army of soldiers to burn the monastery to the ground." "Only five escaped." "They made their way to Fukien and founded the tong to overthrow the Manchus and restore the Ming emperors to the throne." "Violence became their tool for combating violence." "Thus, the sage Chuang-tzu has said:" ""By ethical argument and moral principle the greatest crimes are shown to have been necessary and in fact, a great benefit for mankind."" "Two hundred years have passed." "The Manchus are still sitting upon the throne." "The tong still kill, no longer for a noble cause yet they are the children of the five Shaolin priests who went to Fukien long ago, and we are the parents." "So we mourn this stranger's death." "Master, must we not do more than mourn this wrong?" "We must right it." "How, grasshopper?" "Strike down this tong." "Take away from our children the power to do wrong." "That is what they said in Fukien 200 years ago." "No, grasshopper, evil cannot be conquered in the world." "It can only be resisted within oneself." "What do you want?" "To speak to you." "You want a woman, a pipe of opium?" "They cost money." "You do not even have shoes to put on your feet." "You look to me like a beggar." "Have you come to beg?" "I come to ask a favor." "You want me to give you a pair of my old shoes, beggar?" "It is about the boy." "Wing." "Wing?" "Who is Wing?" "Yes." "A dog who has run away from his master." "He is not a dog." "I say he is a dog, and when I punish him, he will whine like a dog." "Do you argue with me, beggar?" "No for l have heard you are a man of great dignity and wealth." "Then you have heard the truth." "Does a rich man hoard his goods?" "Do wise men dispute over small matters?" "To let the boy go his way would be a mark of Chen's true greatness." "If a flea bites me, should I be generous?" "No. I punish it for its impudence." "But then, Chen does not philosophize with beggars." "He has them beaten and thrown into the gutter like the rest of the garbage." "They are fierce fighters but you threw them through the air like kites of paper." "It accomplished nothing." "l must see the lo ban." "He is expecting you." "I apologize for disturbing you." "A slave ran away to the white missionary." "I already know this." "A beggar came to my yamen today." "He defied me." "Everyone saw." "And what did you do?" "I thought he was a beggar, but he is not." "He has the mark of the dragon burned into his flesh." "And you saw it?" "He held up his arms to show me, to frighten me." "And succeeded." "Venerable Li, what could I do?" "The man is a magician." "He overcame Woo and Ma." "He is a priest of the Shaolin order." "It is a matter beyond my ability." "What would you have me do?" "Why, dispose of him, venerable." "Do not come to me and whine like a dog whenever difficulties occur." "I have entrusted the power of the tong to you." "Now is the time to earn your right to that trust." "But, venerable, I have already tried!" "Woo and Ma-- l am not talking to Woo and Ma." "I am talking to Chen." "Yes, venerable." "What must I do?" "He is an obstacle in your path, this priest." "Ah Quong, you have a tool for removing obstacles from a path." "You must lend it to Chen for a while." "Chen?" "It is written in the iron that humility may lead to meanness but vanity may lead to violence." "Therefore, it is better to be humble." "Think on this, Chen, after you have discharged your obligation." "Speak, Ah Quong." "He has no spine, this one, an empty pig bladder." "He will fail." "You think so?" "They are possessed of great fighting skill, these priests." "Their hands are made of iron." "Let me kill him for you, venerable. I will not fail." "If Chen cannot overcome this priest then the disgrace will be his alone." "A superior man fights only great battles." "Let Chen fail." "Then how much greater will be your glory when you succeed?" "He has no right to the boy, and he's not gonna get him." "That's all." "Let him do his worst." "It is a serious thing." "The tong are very powerful." "Look, I come from San Francisco." "I know all about the tong." "They have you Chinese intimidated, but they won't touch a white person." "The boy is not white." "But I am, and I'm looking after him from here on." "Because you wish to save his soul?" "Because he needs my help." "Still, it would be better not to meet this man Chen at all." "You know you're quoting the Bible to me?" "Matthew 5:39, "Resist not evil but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also."" "I do not know your Bible but our sage Lao-tzu has written:" ""A wise man does not contend therefore, no one can contend against him." "Yield and overcome."" "You're something, aren't you?" "Are you afraid of what he might do to you?" "What will happen will happen whether one is afraid or not." "That's a beautiful hymn. I'll teach it to you." "Do you like to sing?" "l did good?" "Very, very good." "I like." "You're learning the joy of labor in the Lord's vineyards." "Gonna make a Christian out of you yet." "The boy is here." "Take him now, or leave him alone." "But he was behind you." "You couldn't see him throw it." "I knew in time." "Pump." "Pump." "Now I know it is magic." "Could you teach it to me?" "I will never tell anyone." "You think wisdom is like a flower for you to pluck." "It is a mountain and it must be climbed." "I am not worthy." "You are not willing." "There is a price that you must pay." "l am a slave." "Are you all right now?" "Yes." "My nose is bleeding." "That is because you fought in anger." "It is a bad way to fight." "l wanted to repay a hurt to Hofan." "And what was the hurt?" "He calls me "Oil and Water" because I have white blood." "And this made your nose bleed?" "lt caused me pain." "ls it a lie, then?" "No, it is the truth." "And you wish it were not true." "What is he making?" "An animal, master." "I cannot yet tell what kind." "It was just a piece of wood, and now it will become an animal." "And this will go feed the fires in the kitchen." "And yet they are the same in this that each has been diverted from its true nature." "Time is carving you, grasshopper." "Let yourself be shaped according to your true nature." "See the stonecutter chipping away at the mountain?" "ls he a slave?" "No." "But he must work very hard all day long just to earn a few grains of rice." "Now, here is the lord of the province on his horse." "The stonecutter is filled with envy." "Of course, he is rich." "He doesn't have to work." "He has everything he wants." "Which would you rather be, the lord of the province or the stonecutter?" "That's an easy riddle, Kwai Chang." "I'd rather be the lord of the province." "What is that?" "The sun." "It beats down on the lord of the province and makes him ill." "With all his power, the lord of the province cannot make the sun stop shining." "Do you still want to be the lord?" "No, I want to be the sun." "With all his power, nothing can stand against him." "But wait." "What is this?" "The nighttime?" "No, it is a cloud." "It falls across the face of the sun and snuffs him out like a candle." "Will the sun melt the cloud?" "lt is too big, too full of water." "Then I will be the cloud." "Very good." "Now you are the mightiest thing beneath heaven and earth." "Are you content?" "Yes, Kwai Chang." "I am content." "Thank you." "What's that?" "lt is a mountain." "It is in your way, cloud." "What will you do now?" "I will fly over it." "Oh, you cannot. lt is too high." "Then I will rain down on it and wash it away." "Can you make a picture of my rain?" "lt is no use." "You will wear yourself away to nothing." "Then the mountain is mightier than the cloud." "So it would seem." "Then I will be the mountain." "Congratulations, young Wing." "You again have made the wisest decision." "Now, the sun cannot melt you, the rain cannot wash you away." "Nothing can disturb your serenity." "I know. lt's the stonecutter and his hammer." "You are the priest?" "My master wants to see you." "Who is your master?" "Venerable Li Ho Sing Lo Ban Dragon of Retribution Tong." "The results are without merit yet it is a pleasant way to make time pass." ""Virtuous wisdom." "A gentle hand."" "A rule of terror has no virtue." "The hand that holds the bloody hatchet is not gentle." "If a man listens to sheep, all he will hear is their bleating." "Should superior men concern themselves with the noises made by animals?" "Please sit." "Do you wish refreshment?" "I wish to know why I was sent for." "Chi Chi Shan says that notes of the same key respond to each other." "You are a priest." "You seek to rule men's souls." "l rule their bodies." "l seek to rule nothing save myself." "You are like a rock beneath the surface." "Though you do nothing, still you threaten me." "The sheep see you set yourself against the Dragon of Retribution." "If you succeed, then they will be encouraged to follow your example and then things will not run smoothly." "They must be made to see that you are different." "l am not different." "You are a Shaolin priest a man of great learning, of strength and courage as far beyond them as the moon." "And I have thought of a way to show them who you really are." "You see my hatchet man, Ah Quong?" "l have seen him." "The sheep fear him as if he were a demon." "He walks down the street, and they tremble." "He looks their way, and their hearts stop beating." "They believe no man can overcome him." "Tomorrow at dusk, you and he will fight." "If he kills you, then my problem is solved." "But your power is great." "Perhaps you will overcome him." "If you do, that will suit me quite as well." "The sheep will see you kill this demon and they will know you are no ordinary man." "Then they will not dare to do as you have done." "l will not kill." "Then you will be killed for only death will stop Ah Quong." "I will not fight him." "Then how can you protect others?" "If you win, the boy would go free." "My price is blood." "Yours or another, I do not care but my price will be paid." "I could have killed you just now." "As easily now as later?" "ln one hour, I will kill you." "This is your last day on earth, priest." "Either one of our deaths will be misfortune for both of us." "You frightened Chen." "He is a running dog." "You will see that Ah Quong is different." "They say you have magic that you plucked Chen's hatchet out of midair." "l do not believe it." "lt is an exaggeration." "You are right not to fear what people say." "One hour." "Kwai Chang, what is going to happen?" "We do not know." "You could kill him if you wish to." "Perhaps, but I could not wish to kill him." "Think about it." "I have thought." "I do not want you to fight for me." "If you will not kill him, then he will kill you and afterwards, I'll be no better off." "So it will do no good for you to die." "Do you see?" "Perhaps there will be no fight." "You do not know Ah Quong." "He is not human, that one." "He has no fear." "No man has fear until fear comes to him." "You will kill him with this." "This is silver." "He can cast no spell that will protect him against this." "Dragon's blood and cinnabar the elixir of immortality." "Drink it, and no harm will come to you." "I will kill this priest for you, venerable." "Kwai Chang." "Kwai Chang." "I'm frightened but you sit there calmly." "Do you know some magic that is stronger than death?" "If a man lives it is a certainty he will die." "Therefore, it is foolish to think of death as if he were a foe to be vanquished." "He will come when he will come." "That's all." "Will he come today?" "Go outside and keep watch." "Go on." "Do as I told you." "Go with the sister." "You will stay with her." "And do not be afraid." "I will try to be like you." "Wait!" "Kwai Chang!" "He does not die like a man, this priest." "He dies like a dog." "Why are you laughing?" "Can't you see he's hurt?" "No, no, he is fine." "Very fine." "But you are not really hurt." "I saw you come back to life." "It was magic." "It is not magic." "It is a price that has been paid." "Here." "This will warm you up." "Wing, would you hitch up Zeke, please?" "Okay." "Thank you." "Will you be all right?" "Will you?" "l shall follow in the Lord's footsteps." "Will you make him a Christian?" "I'll try but I'm not sure that that's God's plan for him." "If you do not save his soul at least you will know you have helped to set it free." "Kwai Chang."