Yin-Yang Road

The living walk the road of the living, the dead walk the road of the dead.

The road of the dead here refers not only to the Yellow Springs Road in the Underworld, but also to a special road at the boundary of the Yin and Yang.

It belongs neither to the living nor to the dead, and is therefore also called the Yin-Yang Road.

By means of this road, Ghost Messengers can reach any place in the world of the living in a short time, and can also quickly return to the world of the dead from any place in the world of the living.

Many departed souls walk this road before being escorted into the Underworld.

Generally speaking, the living cannot walk this road, unless they possess a special method of 'borrowing the road,' or are powerful individuals with deep Dao cultivation who can send their souls out of their bodies.

Of course, it occasionally happens that ordinary people mistakenly enter the Yin-Yang Road.

For example, the sixteenth-generation descendant of Marquis of Liú, Zhang Hua of the Western Jin Dynasty, recorded such a story in his Records of Diverse Matters.

A man, fleeing Luoyang to escape war, accidentally fell into a giant hole. He groped his way forward in the dark, walking for about a dozen miles before finally escaping the cave and returning to the human world.

However, upon inquiring, he found that he had actually arrived in Jiaojun (modern northern Vietnam).

Later, he traveled over mountains and rivers, hacking through thorns and brambles, and walked for a full seven years before finally returning to Luoyang.

"Danshan, get in the sedan chair. They will escort you to Qinggu County."

Outside the treasury, an unknown black sedan chair had appeared. Four burly men in warrior's attire, with beards like writhing dragons and red eyes, stood guard beside it.

Zhou Sheng knew that these four must be the legendary Ghost Messengers.

In front of the City God, they were extremely respectful, not only bowing to Lu Bingyuan but also to Zhou Sheng.

"Duke Lu, I heard that the Yin-Yang Road is not for the living. If I do something improper, will it cause you trouble?"

Zhou Sheng was somewhat worried.

"It's fine. As the City God, I have the authority to send a living person down the Yin-Yang Road. Besides, you Ghost Opera Performers actually have the qualification to 'borrow the road,' but only after you've completed your training."

"Duke Lu, but my opera trunk is still at the inn..."

"Young master, rest assured, it won't be any trouble. I'll get it for you right away!"

After the big man learned the address of the inn, he immediately turned into a whirlwind and left. In just a few breaths, he returned, holding a heavy opera trunk in his hand.

Zhou Sheng clicked his tongue in amazement. This big man must have taken the Yin-Yang Road. Otherwise, from the City God Temple to that inn was at least several miles. How could he have returned in an instant?

"Thank you, brother."

Zhou Sheng clasped his fists in thanks, then took the opera trunk and entered the sedan chair.

The space inside the sedan chair was spacious, clean, and tidy. Several sachets were placed inside, emitting a scent like mugwort.

"Danshan, the sachets in the sedan chair are to mask your scent as a living person, so as not to be coveted by the ghosts and gods on the road."

"Remember, do not get out of the sedan chair before you arrive, nor lift the curtain to look around carelessly. Your Dao cultivation is insufficient, and you haven't completed your training yet. Be cautious."

Lu Bingyuan gave another reminder, and then the four Ghost Messengers lifted the sedan chair, their figures quickly disappearing into the mist.

He gazed deeply in the direction Zhou Sheng had left, softly reciting a few lines of opera.

"Pity him, who was first an official in a small county of Dingyuan, pity him, who was impeached while judging the case of Zhao Da.

"Pity him, who advised the emperor while judging the case of Ri Guang, pity him, who investigated the dispersal of troops, descended to the Underworld, and visited the seven palaces, finding no peace in any of them!"

He paused, Lu Bingyuan sighed softly, his gaze profound.

"Yu Zhensheng, the opera you left unfinished that year, I wonder if this young man can continue it?"

The Ghost Messengers carried the sedan chair, walking the Yin-Yang Road.

Zhou Sheng sat upright in the sedan chair, his whole body tense, not daring to relax in the slightest.

After all, it was his first time walking the Yin-Yang Road, the legendary postal route of ghosts and gods. He was afraid of disturbing some ferocious entity.

As if sensing his nervousness, the Ghost Messengers carrying the sedan chair chatted with him intermittently.

"Young master, don't worry. You are in the City God's sedan chair. No lowly god would dare to disturb you if they were blind!"

"Heh heh, upon seeing the City God's sedan chair, they will immediately make way, unless..."

"Unless they encounter a god even more powerful than the City God, or a ghost king roaming about. But that's not so easy. We've been doing this for so many years, and we've never encountered one."

The Ghost Messengers' reassurances gradually made Zhou Sheng relax.

It had to be said that although they were moving very fast, they carried the sedan chair very steadily. Zhou Sheng, sitting inside, felt no bumps at all.

Through a corner of the curtain blown by the wind, his peripheral vision could catch glimpses of many strange houses, all shrouded in blue light and mist, indistinct.

However, after about fifteen minutes of travel, even these houses disappeared. The surroundings looked like desolate mountains and wild paths, extremely bleak and lonely.

But Zhou Sheng could vaguely sense that eyes were occasionally cast upon him from the surroundings, only to retract when they saw the sedan chair and the Ghost Messengers carrying it.

Although it seemed deserted, he always felt that there were many "people" around.

The Ghost Messengers' actions also proved this, as they would sometimes slow down, shouting something, as if telling those blocking the way ahead to move aside.

He had been excited, curious, and nervous at first, but as time passed, Zhou Sheng slowly relaxed, even feeling a hint of sleepiness.

He began to close his eyes to rest, his fingers massaging the acupoints around his eyes, such as Jingming, Chengqi, Qiu Hou, and Sibai, as if plucking clouds and mist.

This was also part of his training, practicing his eye technique.

Opera emphasizes the four skills and five methods. The so-called four skills are singing, speaking, acting, and martial arts, while the five methods are hand, eye, body, method, and step.

For a Ghost Opera Performer, the eye technique is a very important fundamental skill.

For example, when portraying Guan Gong, the gaze is crucial.

Guan Gong does not open his eyes; if he opens his eyes, he will surely kill!

If that momentary killing intent isn't strong enough, Second Lord Guan won't possess him, and the power displayed during a ghost opera will be very limited.

The eye technique relies first on practice, and second on nurturing.

When he was young, practicing his eye technique, his master would bring out many pigeons. He would draw a very subtle mark on one of them and then let the flock of pigeons fly around freely in a large cage.

Zhou Sheng had to find the marked pigeon and immediately point it out when his master asked.

If he was wrong or too slow, he would be beaten.

Later, the cage was placed further and further away – thirty feet, fifty feet, a hundred feet...

Now, he can accurately identify the pigeon with the subtle difference from fifteen feet away.

This is the practice method; the nurturing method involves frequently massaging the acupoints around the eyes and applying medicinal oil for nourishment.

Ten minutes on stage requires ten years of practice off stage.

Just as Zhou Sheng was using his travel time to practice his eye technique, the sedan chair suddenly stopped.

We're here already?

He was about to speak when the sedan chair suddenly dropped, hitting the ground and shaking his body.

Something's wrong!

The Ghost Messengers had been carrying it steadily and carefully; how could they be so rough when setting it down?

"Ghost Messenger brothers—"

As soon as he spoke, he heard a panicked voice from a Ghost Messenger by his ear, filled with undisguised tension and fear.

"Shh!"

"Don't speak, absolutely don't speak!"

"We are currently paying our respects. Someone... a formidable, terrifying deity has arrived!"