The temporal and spatial rupture process of the 14 November 2001 Kunlun Mountain Pass earthquake (KMPE) is obtained by inverting the high signal-to-noise-ratio P-waveform data of vertical components of 20 stations with epicentral distances less than 90°, which are of Global Digital Seismogragh Network (GDSN). The inverted results indicate that the KMPE consists of 3 sub-events. The rupture of the first sub-event initiated at the instrumental epicenter (35.97°N,90.59°E) and then propagated both westwards and eastwards, extending 140 km westwards at the speed of 4.0 km/s and 80 km eastwards at the speed of 2.2 km/s, which appeared to be an asymmetrical bilateral rupture dominantly from east to west. This sub-event formed a 220-km-long fault. Fifty-two seconds after initiation of the first sub-event, at which time the first sub-event was not over but in its healing phase, the rupture of the second sub-event initiated 220 km west of the epicenter and propagated both westwards and eastwards, extending 50 km westwards at the speed of 2.2 km/s and 70 km eastwards at the speed of 5.8 km/s, which appeared to be an asymmetrical bilateral rupture dominantly from west to east. The secondsub-event formed a 120-km-long fault. The second sub-event fused with the first sub-event 140km west to the epicenter right 12 s after its initiation. Fifty-six seconds after initiation of the first sub-event, at which time the first sub-event was getting close to the end of its healing phase, the rupture of the third sub-event initiated 220 km east of the epicenter and propagated both westwards and eastwards, extending 140 km westwards at the speed of 4.0 km/s and 130 km eastwards at the speed of 3.7 km/s, which appeared to be nearly an bilateral rupture. This sub-event formed a 270-km-long fault. The third sub-event fused with the first sub-event 80 km east of the epicenter right 36 s after its initiation. Afterwards, the source process of the KMPE was dominated by the slip after fusion of the first and third sub-events.