PD -Chapter 129 Taking a Trip on the Yellow Springs Road

“Shh, someone’s coming!”

At that moment, Shentu immediately crouched down and lowered her voice.

I instinctively followed them and hid behind a huge peach tree, not daring to breathe. After holding it in for a while, I suddenly realized that I was in a soul-form right now—I didn’t need to breathe at all.

Soon, I also heard footsteps approaching from afar, seemingly heading in our direction.

I quietly peeked out and saw, not far away in the peach forest, a long-haired man dressed in ancient scholar’s robes, holding a folding fan, strolling leisurely through the grove.

“Is it him?” Shentu murmured under her breath, as if she knew the man.

But the situation didn’t allow for conversation, so we didn’t ask anything, only praying that he wouldn’t come closer… If we were discovered by the underworld officials before even entering the Ghost Gate, that would be truly disastrous.

However, that man looked like nothing more than a frail ancient scholar—he didn’t seem like a fierce underworld enforcer at all. Could he be a wandering soul who sneaked into this mountain after death?

While I was thinking this, the scholar-like man slowly walked closer, getting nearer and nearer. My nerves tightened further…

At that moment, Shentu actually closed her eyes beside me. A red glowing dot slowly appeared between her brows, then shot into the air, rushing deeper into the denser part of the peach forest.

Immediately, the scholar-like man seemed to sense something. He closed his folding fan, stopped walking, and raised his head to look in the direction where the light had flown. Then he frowned, placed both hands behind his back, and vanished instantly from where he stood—turning into a streak of afterimage as he shot into the depths of the forest.

We remained crouched behind the tree for a while longer. When there was still no movement, we finally relaxed and stepped out from behind the peach tree.

“Who was that guy? You know him?” I frowned and asked Shentu.

She didn’t seem willing to answer and instead changed the topic: “Hurry up and take out the road permits!”

With that, Shentu transformed again—becoming a disheveled man holding a bamboo scroll. At the same time, she pulled out a small sachet from her waist and shook it toward the open space ahead. I saw countless wisps of black smoke surge out of the sachet and fall to the ground, taking form into a group of wandering souls.

These souls included both men and women, all with blank, lifeless expressions. Although they wore ordinary mortal clothing, their faces were ashen, with no trace of vitality.

Each of them had a yellow paper pasted on their chest—that was the so-called “road permit” she had mentioned earlier. Only souls carrying this could pass through the Ghost Gate.

Of course, our permits were fake. Shentu had created them with her spiritual power. I had never seen a real one, so I couldn’t tell any difference. According to her, these were enough to fool the inspection at the Ghost Gate.

Following her instructions, Liu Xiaopeng and I joined the line of wandering souls she had created. Then Shentu tied us together with a rope, forming a single file. It made me extremely uncomfortable—like a group of prisoners being escorted.

Before I could even complain, Shentu pulled the rope at the front… and in an instant, she teleported us down to a yellow sandy road at the foot of the mountain.

As soon as we landed, I felt like I had swallowed a mouthful of sand. The environment here was even harsher than up on the mountain.

As far as the eye could see, everything was covered in yellow sand. Occasional whirlwinds swept through, kicking up sand that slapped against our faces.

I squinted and looked around. I realized the Peach Stop Mountain we had been on was to the north… and this sandy road cut straight through it, extending into an unseen distance.

Behind us, faint roaring waves could occasionally be heard. When I turned back, I saw a black river surging violently, as if countless beasts were struggling and roaring beneath its surface.

I knew that this was the Nether River—the boundary formed between yin and yang. And this yellow sand beneath our feet was the legendary Yellow Springs Road.

I couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Most people only walk this road once in their entire life… and if we could return to the living world after this trip, we would probably have to walk it again when we truly die. I wondered what that moment would feel like—whether we would still remember everything that happened today.

“The Ghost Gate is right ahead. Stay alert!” Shentu seemed to notice I was spacing out and tugged the rope in front, whispering.

I immediately snapped back to attention, sighed, and put on the same wooden expression as the other wandering souls. I matched their pace and followed Shentu step by step across the yellow sand.

We walked forward for about ten minutes. When I looked up again, the outlines of ancient buildings began to appear faintly in the sandstorm ahead—that was our final destination.

The closer we got, the clearer the outline of that ancient fortress gate became.

Although I had already seen a rough simulation of the Ghost Gate in Shentu’s map before, I still felt nervous now that we were actually approaching it.

Finally, a massive black stone by the roadside revealed its true form. It was much taller than I had imagined—at least ten meters high. On it, the blood-red words “Ghost Gate” were carved deep and jagged, exuding a wild, sharp aura.

Within each stroke of the engraving, it even seemed as if molten lava was slowly flowing, emitting a strange glow.

After passing that boulder, I immediately felt the atmosphere ahead change. The previously desolate Yellow Springs Road—aside from the harsh wind and sand—had felt relatively normal.

But beyond the stone, everything suddenly turned bleak and oppressive. Looking at the towering gate ahead, I felt as if I had stepped onto an ancient battlefield. What filled the air here wasn’t yin energy or malice, but a cold, crushing pressure that kept every nerve in my body tense.

I also noticed that the wandering souls in front of and behind me all lowered their heads the moment they stepped into this area. Their backs bent involuntarily, their eyes fixed firmly on the ground, not daring to lift their gaze.

I couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Perhaps this was exactly what the underworld wanted to achieve. Before that massive gate, all souls were reduced to ants. The pressure alone was enough to suppress their will.

No matter how powerful you were in life—ruling over storms or being insignificant as dust—once you arrived here, you had to submit to the rules of the underworld. Whether you were sent to the lower hells or reborn into another life was not something you could decide.

I focused my mind, resisting the invisible pressure, and imitated the other souls. I hunched my back, lowered my head, and shuffled forward step by step under Shentu’s lead.

Until suddenly, the procession in front came to a halt.

We had finally arrived beneath the massive Ghost Gate.