- NOTE: This article is about the 2011 version of Lady Earth Flow. You may be looking for information on her original counterpart.
Lady Earth Flow (in Chinese: 地涌夫人), originally known as the Golden Nosed Albino Rat Spirit (in Chinese: 金鼻白毛老鼠精) or the Half-Guanyin (in Chinese: 半截觀音), is one of the major antagonists of the 2011 TV series Journey to the West, based on the 16th-century Chinese classic novel of the same name by the late Wu Cheng'en. In contrast to the sadistic and twisted original version, she's portrayed as a much more sympathetic character, in the same veins that the 1992 movie version of Count Dracula is portrayed as a much more three-dimensional character than his original counterpart.
She was portrayed by He Zhuoyan.
Personality[]
In contrast to her nearly irredeemable original counterpart, Lady Earth Flow is portrayed as truly sympathetic as her adbuction of Xuanzang is out of a genuine desire to be with him rather than to possess him as an object. As such, she's less sadistic than the original Lady Earth Flow. When Bajie convinces her that one day with Xuanzang is enough, she willingly lets him go and even bids a farewell to the monks like a friend, showing that she has redeemed herself and let go of her obsession.
Biography[]
Origins[]
Like the original version, the Golden Nosed Albino Rat once stole the Fragrant Blossoms Precious Candles at Vulture Peak. During this time, she saw the Golden Cicada (Xuanzang's original incarnation) and fell in love with him. Eventually she was captured by Li Jing and Nezha, but the Golden Cicada told them to spare her life, and she was so grateful to the point of acknowledging Li Jing as her godfather and Nezha as her godbrother. After achieving a humanoid form due to learning Taoist arts for 300 years, she moved to the Bottomless Pit at Flaming Air Mountain and renamed herself "Lady Earth Flow", armed herself with a pair of swords. Yearning for her crush, Lady Earth Flow plotted to find him and have him for herself.
Journey to the West[]
When Xuanzang's group pass by Black Pines Forest, Lady Earth Flow disguised herself as a woman who was tied up to a tree, and fabricated a story of being kidnapped and tied up by a gang of thugs to win Xuanzang's empathy, but Sun Wukong sees through her cover. Though Xuanzang was at first convinced by Sun Wukong that she's a demoness and left her there, the Lady later managed to lure Xuanzang into rescuing her and letting her accompany them to a nearby temple.
During her short time in the temple, Lady Earth Flow ate six monks in three nights, and managed to capture Xuanzang, tried to force him to marry her. After numberous attempts, Wukong managed to force her to take Xuanzang out of her cave, but when Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing were distracted by her trick, the demoness re-captured Xuanzang once again. While sneaking into her cave again to find his master, Sun Wukong found out her two memorial tables that content the name of Li Jing and Nezha, and went to Heaven to sue them, learning about her story in the process. Meanwhile, in the cave, Lady Earth Flow tried to remind Xuanzang of his life as the Golden Cicada and begged him to marry her.
Just then Li Jing and Nezha appeared and demanded her to release him, but Lady Earth Flow vehemently refused, having fallen in love with her savior so much to let him go. However, Bajie then told her that one day together was enough for hundreds of years of waiting, giving her flashes of memories together with Xuanzang, even if he didn't return her feelings. Feeling happy, Lady Earth Flow released Xuanzang. She then bid the monks a farewell before returning to her cave.
Gallery[]
