In the Journey to the West, we can see that Friar Sand is a very honest character on the surface, and seems to have no skill, but in fact his background is also great. Friar Sand was also a powerful figure in the sky before he learned the scriptures in the Western Heaven. He is the personal bodyguard of the Jade Emperor, and his martial arts are very powerful. Even if he was later demoted to Liushahe, no one dared to bully him.
Friar Sand's martial arts are so fierce that he only killed a monster on the way to learn Buddhist scriptures, but the reason why he didn't show his true skills was actually an act of preserving his sanity. Because Friar Sand was sentenced to death by heaven when he broke a cup in heaven, he went astray, so he kept a low profile when he went to the Western Heaven to learn Buddhist scriptures, and he wouldn't stand out where he could stand.
After the Monkey King was swallowed by the lion essence, Friar Sand and Pig separated their luggage and prepared to go their separate ways. But later, when the Monkey King came back, he didn't blame Friar Sand and put everything on Pig's head. Therefore, Friar Sand is not a very honest person. In the journey to the west, Friar Sand's martial arts were also very powerful, but on the whole journey to learn from the scriptures, Friar Sand only killed one monster. The reason why he hides his skills may be because he wants to preserve his sanity and arrive in the Western Heaven safely to learn from the Buddhist scriptures.
Because his previous experience in heaven made him understand that safety is the most important thing, and only in this way can he have the last laugh, so he kept a low profile.