Chapter 228
Chapter 228
The Chang family’s second brother was shocked by those words.
“Eldest Brother, what do you mean?
“Are you planning to accompany the young master physician through Guoyin?!
“No! It’s too dangerous! There’s a nine-in-ten chance you won’t return!”
Second Master Chang shook his head like a rattle drum.
“If someone has to go, I should go!
“Eldest Brother, the Chang Family can do without me, but not without you!”
As Second Master Chang spoke, he strode over to Hua Jiunan and prepared to send out his primordial spirit into the Yin-Yang Realm.
As the story quietly explains:
What he was attempting was extremely dangerous.
When someone’s realm was insufficient or the proper ritual had not been performed, the primordial spirit that left the body was known as a “living soul.”
A living soul entering the Yin-Yang Realm was like a torch burning on a rainy night.
Not only was it in terrible danger, it was also exceedingly easy to discover.
Being caught by ghost guards would actually be a fortunate outcome, for it would at least have an opportunity to reincarnate.
If it encountered a vicious ghost or an asura, it would certainly be devoured, its soul destroyed beyond any hope of reincarnation.
Chang Huaiyuan hurriedly stopped the Chang family’s second brother.
“Second Brother, don’t act recklessly!
“I, Chang Huaiyuan, swore to follow the young master physician all my life and remain loyal until death!
“Besides, it isn’t time for us to perform Guoyin yet. The more people who go and the higher their cultivation, the easier they are to detect!
“We wait!
“When the young master physician and his companions face mortal danger and cannot escape, then Hemp-clad Elder Sister and I will go to their aid.”
Elsewhere, Hua Jiunan and his two friends slowly awoke and discovered themselves in a dark world.
It was lonely and desolate. Fierce winds swept yellow sand across the sky, and everything was shrouded in gray.
A massive, dilapidated pass stood nearby.
A great plaque hung above it, bearing seven large golden words: “Nether Gate of the Underworld Court-Ghost Gate.”
Hua Jiunan murmured,
“Of ten who enter the Ghost Gate, nine never return.”
Chen Daji was not nervous at all. Instead, he gazed at the ancient gate and exclaimed,
“Big Brother, so this is the Ghost Gate! It really is fucking enormous!”
Young Monk Wuxin had already hidden behind Hua Jiunan. Tugging timidly on his Daoist robes, he said,
“Namo Amitabha Buddha.
“I’m scared, Brother. Let’s go back.”
Hua Jiunan turned, picked Wuxin up, and smiled bitterly.
“Little one, now that we’re here, going back won’t be easy.”
As he spoke, the group arrived before the Ghost Gate.
Bleached bones covered both sides. Some were human, while others belonged to all manner of creatures.
They came in bizarre shapes and every size.
The largest skull alone stood three or four meters tall, piled there like a small mountain.
“The Ghost Gate lies at the boundary between the world of the dead and the mortal realm-at the very edge of death.
“This place is extremely dangerous. We shouldn’t linger.”
As Hua Jiunan spoke, he pushed against the stone gate with all his strength.
Zhao Fei and Chen Daji hurried forward to help.
Dust billowed amid a grating creak.
The gates slowly opened, and the passage between the Yin and Yang Realms appeared completely before them.
The Yellow Springs Road!
“Above, to the azure heavens; below, to the Yellow Springs!”
According to folk legend, the Yellow Springs Road was a road of no return. Once a person set foot upon it, there could be no turning back.
Dense fog filled the surroundings, limiting their visibility to less than three meters.
An icy chill came through their feet as they walked the Yellow Springs Road.
It felt like stepping barefoot onto ice in temperatures dozens of degrees below freezing.
Before long, Chen Daji’s face had turned blue-purple from the cold. Combined with his black paper clothes, he truly looked like a dead soul.
“I-It’s t-too cold!
“If I-I’d known, I-I would’ve worn a thick pair of fur boots!”
Eighth Master Chang glared at Chen Daji in displeasure.
“You still have the nerve to complain about the cold, little bastard?
“Be satisfied! Only your feet are touching the ground. My whole body is lying on it!”
Chen Daji lowered his head to look.
Sure enough!
White frost now covered Eighth Master Chang from head to tail. He looked exactly like a wild giant snake that had frozen to death long ago.
“E-E-Eighth Master!
“I-I told you a long time ago, y-you need to stand up! You can’t always c-crawl on your belly!”
Eighth Master Chang could not be bothered trading nonsense with Chen Daji. Curling his tail around the group, he raced down the Yellow Springs Road.
Hua Jiunan spoke up.
“Thank you for your hard work, Eighth Master. But please be careful not to run into any other dead souls.”
Hua Jiunan said this because newly deceased souls were extremely fragile on the Yellow Springs Road.
One collision with Eighth Master would likely destroy them completely.
Chen Daji did not understand, but joined in anyway.
“Exactly! Big Brother is right. Slow down, Eighth Master!
“If you cause an accident by speeding, it’ll be entirely your fault. Most importantly, you don’t even have insurance!”
They raced onward for more than ten minutes.
With his keen eyesight, Hua Jiunan faintly discerned a pair of figures ahead.
At the front were none other than Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
“Careful, Eighth Master. We’ve encountered underworld bailiffs!”
Eighth Master Chang had sensed them already. He slowed down and invoked a Daoist art to conceal their presence.
Terrified, Zhao Fei pressed himself tightly against Eighth Master Chang’s back and whispered,
“Hua Boss, are Lords Ox-Head and Horse-Face reasonable?
“What’s the difference between them and the Black and White Impermanence envoys?!”
Hua Jiunan kept a wary eye on the figures ahead as he quietly explained,
“The Black and White Impermanence envoys deal with vicious ghosts. When a vicious or evil ghost causes trouble in the mortal world, they usually carry Mourning Staves to capture it.
“Ox-Head and Horse-Face apprehend evil people.
“When someone who committed countless evil deeds dies, they use steel pitchforks and iron pincers to escort the evildoer’s soul to the Underworld Court for judgment.”