YaoBound lore library
Read the words
before the monsters.
Source-conscious guides to yaoguai, Chinese supernatural beings, Journey to the West, and the cultural vocabulary behind YaoBound.
Published guides
Culture is not flavor text.
Each guide answers one search question on its own, separates documented tradition from YaoBound’s original fiction, and links readers to the texts or institutions used as evidence.
FIELD GUIDE · 16 MIN
Chinese mythology spirits explained
Why “spirit” is an English umbrella rather than one Chinese species—and how shen, gui, ling, jing, yao, and xian overlap.
- shen
- gui
- jing
- translation
TERM GUIDE · 12 MIN
What does yaoguai mean?
A practical map of yao, guai, jing, mo, gui, shen, and xian—and why “demon” is never a complete translation.
- translation
- Journey to the West
- terminology
COMPARISON · 10 MIN
Yaoguai vs yōkai: are they the same?
They share the written form 妖怪, but modern Chinese and Japanese usage belongs to different cultural and narrative systems.
- China
- Japan
- translation
SOURCE CHECK · 15 MIN
Shan Hai Jing creatures, quoted
Ten entries with the original sentence each comes from—and a full-text check showing Taotie, Taowu, Baize, and the qilin are never named in the book.
- Shan Hai Jing
- primary text
- creatures
SOURCE COMPARISON · 12 MIN
The nine sons of the dragon, compared
Two Ming lists, twelve names, six in common—and one name given two conflicting duties. Both authors said they did not know the source.
- dragon
- Ming sources
- comparison
CHARACTER GUIDE · 16 MIN
The five pilgrims of Journey to the West
Origin, offence, recruiter, dharma name, everyday name, and final rank for each traveller—including two places where the novel contradicts itself.
- pilgrims
- chapters
- primary text
SOURCE GUIDE · 18 MIN
25 major demons in Journey to the West
A chapter-checked guide to the major yaoguai encounters, their revealed origins, and their final fates—without inventing a universal monster count.
- primary text
- demons
- chapters
PRIMARY TEXT · 20 MIN
The complete 81 tribulations
The 80 trials named in chapter 99, the final river ordeal, and why “81 tribulations” never meant 81 demon battles.
- 81 trials
- chapter 99
- primary text
IDENTITY GUIDE · 14 MIN
Sun Wukong’s names and titles in order
Stone Monkey, Bimawen, Great Sage, Pilgrim Sun, and Victorious Fighting Buddha—who gives each name, what it means, and where it appears.
- Sun Wukong
- titles
- chapters
Editorial method
Source first. Context always. Fiction clearly marked.
- 01
Start with the text
When a claim concerns Journey to the West, chapter-level evidence outranks a modern character list.
- 02
Do not invent one taxonomy
Folklore, religion, literature, and everyday speech overlap. We describe tendencies without pretending every era used the same system.
- 03
Mark the adaptation boundary
Lingyao, Eclipse Marks, and YaoBound’s post-pilgrimage world are original design choices, never disguised as recovered folklore.
From research to game world