Chapter 98: Yin-Yang Road

I was on the verge of total collapse. In the end, Big Brother directly lifted me by the waist, then grabbed the rope and climbed out onto the surface. It was pitch black outside, and I had no idea how much time had passed underground. It turned out to have been an entire day. Big Brother set me down on the ground, sat in place, and watched me in silence.

I didn't know how long I stayed in that dazed state. When I finally came to, I looked at Big Brother, lit a cigarette, and sat down opposite him. In an almost pleading tone, I said to him, "Big Brother, I've endured you keeping other things from me—whether it's because I can't speak of them now or for my own good. I won't ask. But for this matter, you must give me an answer. You have to explain it to me. Just consider it me begging you."

Big Brother glanced at me. He reached out and took the half-smoked cigarette from my hand. He took a deep drag and said, "Although his death was the same as Dad's, he is absolutely not him. We are brothers."

Big Brother didn't finish the next sentence, but I knew what he meant to say—we are brothers, and he is a father.

"Who is that, then?" I asked.

"A yellow rat spirit that has been cultivated into human form," Big Brother replied.

After that, he stood up and patted my head. "I know what you're thinking. After the full moon night, I'll tell you. If possible, I can also take you into the Twelve Ghost Caves to see for yourselves."

After that, Big Brother helped me up as well. I calculated the days and realized there were only two left until the full moon night. Big Brother had already made concessions, so I couldn't press him further. I followed him out.

I only now had the mood to observe the surroundings. When Old Four with the eyepatch had brought me and Li Qing here, I hadn't known where I was. Now I had even less idea where I stood. We were in a dense forest, one we hadn't passed through on the way in. I could confirm that, because the path back then had been deep with wild grass all the way.

I turned on the flashlight and shone it around. In this forest, perhaps because it was night, thick white mist filled the air, and the flashlight could not penetrate it at all. It gave a ghostly, eerie feeling. But this time the person with me was Big Brother, not Li Qing, which made me feel even safer.

Walking like this was actually rather boring, so I asked Big Brother, "What kind of place is this?"

"This is the yellow rat's grave. After walking out, you reach the cliff. Climb up and you'll reach the outside of the mountain," Big Brother said.

I realized my question had been almost pointless, because I'd been in the Fudi Valley for so long and had never heard of a place called the yellow rat's grave. Even compared to Big Brother, who had only been here half a year, I knew less. We walked into the deeper part of the forest while talking. The mist was even thicker now, and the air carried a damp chill.

While walking, Big Brother stopped. I looked ahead and saw a huge tree stump in front of him where the tree had been cut down. Next to the stump stood a stone tablet engraved with a row of bright red characters: the Yellow Great Immortal's Grave.

That row of red characters was shockingly vivid, as if written in blood. I asked Big Brother, "That yellow rat spirit wasn't in the ancient temple underground. Why is this a Yellow Great Immortal's Grave?"

"Let's go. You'll know once you're inside," Big Brother said softly. He took my hand and walked straight ahead. The trees in the forest were much thicker than before, and the white mist was denser still. The flashlight's visibility was less than five meters. Honestly, anyone would get lost here, but Big Brother kept going straight without trying to figure out directions. It felt to me that his knowledge of the back mountain Funi Mountain was even deeper than Old Four's.

All the way, I paid attention, looking for grave mounds or anything, but there were none. I didn't see any yellow rat corpses either. As we went farther, suspicion grew in me. In a yellow rat's grave, where was the grave, and where was the yellow rat? What sense did that make?

But just as the thought floated through my mind, I suddenly saw two clusters of red light floating ahead. Upon closer inspection, they were two red lanterns hovering less than a meter off the ground, coming straight toward us.

I hadn't even spoken when Big Brother snatched my flashlight and killed the light. He leaned close to my ear and whispered in a low voice, "From now on, stay right by my side. Don't speak, don't eat anything. Just watch my eyes and act accordingly. Understood?"

Big Brother spoke with grave solemnity. Honestly, my mind was in chaos, my eyes fixed only on those two red lanterns drifting toward us. There was no time to think, but I still nodded at him.

Then Big Brother stood with his hands behind his back, waiting for the lanterns to approach. When they got close, I saw they weren't floating but were being carried by two yellow rats. Because of the darkness, they had first appeared to float.

These two yellow rats looked much like the ones outside but were larger. They walked upright, their front paws gripping the lantern handles like hands. They truly resembled the monsters from television.

One of the yellow rats bowed to Big Brother like a human, then spoke in human words: "You two, please wait. The sedan chair will arrive shortly."

After that, its round eyes scanned over me and Big Brother. This reminded me of the little one underground, who had refused to leave the surface with me at the last moment and chosen to stay below. I didn't know what had become of it. After they finished speaking, Big Brother nodded and continued standing. At this moment, even with a thousand questions in my mind, I could only pretend to be calm and stood in front of Big Brother without uttering a word.

A while later, I saw two sedan chairs slowly approaching from the direction of the lanterns. Each had an identical lantern hanging from the top. When they came closer, I was startled.

It was indeed two sedan chairs, but the carriers were four stone figures, exactly like the guardian stone men in the ancient temple underground.

Big Brother pinched my hand, signaling me to stay calm. The four stone figures lowered the sedan chairs. The yellow rat bowed again and said, "We apologize for the wait. Please board."

I don't know if yellow rats favor bright red, but these sedan chairs were also bright red. Big Brother nodded and walked into one. I hesitated, and the yellow rat looked at me and said, "Please."

Since Big Brother had already gotten in, I hurried after him. My whole person was in a daze. Wasn't this the yellow rat's grave? Why were there living yellow rats? I felt as if I had entered the country of the yellow rats.

What I could do was simply not speak and pretend to be composed.

After I boarded the sedan, the stone figures began carrying it. Honestly, this was my first time riding in a sedan chair, and it didn't feel comfortable at all. Although the stone figures carried it steadily, the sedan was completely sealed without even a curtain. I had just endured the stuffiness of the underground cave, so I couldn't stand it. I wanted to lift the curtain to breathe fresh air, but when I tried, it was pressed down. The yellow rat outside laughed dryly and said to me, "You cannot look on the yin-yang road. If you do, you will not return to the human world. We are almost there. Endure it a bit."

At that moment, Big Brother coughed in his sedan chair. I had been about to shout, What? Is this the yin-yang road? Leading to the underworld? Reminded by Big Brother's cough, I simply closed my mouth and didn't ask any more.

Sitting in the sedan chair again, although I was nervous, because I was with Big Brother and he seemed to be in full control, giving me a great sense of security, I wasn't afraid at all. Instead, I felt a strange kind of stimulation.