The origination and development of the story in Journey to the West is generally thought to owe much to the staitic findings of ancient records and cultural relics to the neglect of dynamic factors, espcially the influence of the debates between Buddhist and Taoist ideas in history. This paper starts from the discuession of Zhiyuan Distinction from Falsehood in Kula Khan's time which was closest to it in time, goes on to base itself on the incident of betting of Buddhism ans Taoism in The Xuwu Debate (1258), continues with the discussion of the story of saint contest in Chchi told in the book of Piao Tongshi and finally comes to the story of power contest between Buddhism and Taoism in Journey to the West. It will also cover the influence of vernacular Chinese in Yuan Dynasty on the narrative style of Journey to the West, hoping to trace and locate the origin of the powerful imagination in it.
