Then he cried out with a terrible voiceand beholdthere appeared a company of Jinnof whom he enquired concerning the ape;and one of them said'I know his abiding-place;it is in the City of Brassupon which the sun riseth not.'Then said the first genie to me'O Abou Mohammedtake one of these our slavesand he will carry thee on his back and teach thee how thou shalt get back the girl: but know that he is a Marid and beware lest thou utter the name of Godwhilst he is carrying thee;or he will flee from theeand thou wilt fall and be destroyed.'I hear and obey,'answered I and chose out one of the slaveswho bent down and said to me'Mount.'So I mounted on his backand he flew up with me into the airtill I lost sight of the earth and saw the stars as they were fixed mountains and heard the angels glorifying God in heavenwhat while the Marid held me in conversediverting me and hindering me from pronouncing the name of God. Butas we flewbeholdone clad in green raimentwith streaming tresses and radiant faceholding in his hand a javelin whence issued sparks of fireaccosted me,saying'O Abou Mohammedsay'There is no god but God and Mohammed is His apostle;'or I will smite thee with this javelin.'
Now I was already sick at heart of my [forced] abstention from calling on the name of God;so I said'There is no god but God and Mohammed is His apostle.'Whereupon the shining one smote the Marid with his javelin and he melted away and became ashes;whilst I was precipitated from his back and fell headlong toward the earthtill I dropped into the midst of a surging sea,swollen with clashing billows. Hard by where I fell was a ship and five sailors thereinwhoseeing memade for me and took me up into the boat. They began to speak to me in some tongue I knew not;but I signed to them that I understood not their speech. So they fared on till ended daywhen they cast out a net and caught a great fish and roasting itgave me to eat;after which they sailed ontill they reached their city and carried me in to their kingwho understand Arabic. So I kissed the ground before himand he bestowed on me a dress of honour and made me one of his officers. I asked him the name of the cityand he replied,'It is called Henad and is in the land of China.'Then he committed me to his Vizierbidding him show me the citywhich was formerly peopled by infidelstill God the Most High turned them into stones;and there I abode a month's spacediverting myself with viewing the placenor saw I ever greater plenty of trees and fruits than there.
One dayas I sat on the bank of a riverthere accosted me a horsemanwho said to me'Art thou not Abou Mohammed the Lazy?'
'Yes,'answered I;whereupon'Fear not,'said he;'for the report of thy good deed hath reached us.'Quoth I'Who art thou?'And he answered'I am a brother of the white serpentand thou art hard by the place where is the damsel whom thou seekest.'So sayinghe took off his [outer] clothes and clad me thereinsaying'Fear not;for hethat perished under theewas one of our slaves.'Then he took me up behind him and rode on with metill we came to a desert placewhen he said to me,'Alight now and walk on between yonder mountains till thou seest the City of Brass;then halt afar off and enter it nottill I return to thee and teach thee how thou shalt do.'I hear and obey,'replied I and alightingwalked on till I came to the citythe walls whereof I found of brass. I went round about it,looking for a gatebut found none;and presentlythe serpent's brother rejoined me and gave me a charmed sword that should hinder any from seeing methen went his way.