Old Diaoye is a serious person.
The old man has a very strange temperament, he is unpredictable and difficult to predict, but he gives people a very reliable feeling. The words he says are like lead ingots falling from the sky, which can make a hole when they land on the ground.
At the moment, looking at his expression and the way he speaks, I don't think he is joking with us. I also feel a little uneasy. Following his gaze to the vast mountains in front of me, my heart feels like it is tied with a rope and hung up, as if the mountains in front of me are man-eating evil ghosts in the underworld, who can swallow us without leaving any bones.
Brother Yaozi asked him what he was worried about, but he refused to say. He smiled and shook his head, muttering that this is just an old man's hysteria. He has lived for a long time and seen a lot, so he is more afraid of death. He always has wild thoughts at the slightest disturbance.
Then, he asked us to tie the horses in the shed behind his house. There was plenty of grass in the shed, so we would not starve to death even if we stayed in the mountains for a while.
After that, he led the way in front of us, knocking on the ground with a wooden stick, and plunged into the deep mountains along the rugged mountain road.
Lao Bai and I walked side by side, pointed at Lao Diaoye with a smile, and told me that this trip with the old man accompanying us was a sure thing.
He told me not to underestimate the wooden stick in the old man's hand, because it was not a walking stick.
One end of the wooden stick was sharpened, and at first glance, it looked like a spear. When Lao Diaoye knocked on the ground, it was also very distinctive. Every time the spear was tilted at 45 degrees, it would penetrate into the soil for nearly 20 centimeters, not a centimeter longer or shorter.
I watched for a while, and gradually felt that Lao Diaoye was not doing this casually, so I asked about the tricks.
"The methods of the Ginseng Gang!"
Lao Bai told me with a smile that the Ginseng Gang was not one of the many gangs, but they also made a living in the deep mountains and old forests between the white mountains and black waters, so their subordinates naturally had their own unique skills.
The current trick was that Lao Diaoye was trying to find the way to Ginseng.
In the old society, the Ginseng Gang was similar to the charlatans, who made themselves sound very mysterious. They poked the ground with a stick and said that they were communicating with the old Ginseng King in the mountains, and they could quickly find the old mountain ginseng, which was called "finding the way to Ginseng".
In fact, this was just a gimmick.
Lao Bai said that they poked the ground with a stick, which was to identify the soil, relying on experience. As long as they poked the stick, they could know what the soil quality was like, what was suitable for growing, whether there were ginseng and old medicine, what kind of wild animals lived around, and even the powerful ones could tell how soft the soil was at normal temperature by just looking at the color of the soil. They could tell the next weather changes by sticking the stick in. This was their reliance on making a living in the deep mountains and forests. Others would run into a bear's den and be beaten half-paralyzed if they were unlucky, but these masters of the ginseng gang would never encounter wild beasts in the mountains. They could find whatever they wanted, relying on the stick in their hands. The mysterious power was more frightening than the aura of the protagonist in the novel.
With Lao Diaoye's skill, we didn't need to bring our own dry food when we went into the mountains, and we were guaranteed to have delicious food and spicy drinks.
Old Bai's face was flushed with ruddy glow, and he had long forgotten the hidden worries on Old Diaoye's face before entering the mountain. But I was even more worried. If Old Diaoye had this ability, then what could make him worry... wouldn't it be even more deadly? !
Ghosts?
I don't think so. This is our business.
Wild beasts?
Not likely. Old Diaoye has such a big gun on his back, plus Qi Ye and Xiao Zhebie, what kind of beast can get close to him?
I couldn't figure it out, so I stopped thinking about it. I followed behind him honestly, but I was always vigilant in my heart.
The fact is almost as what Lao Bai said. This mountain is the world of Lao Diaoye. After walking for most of the day, there are wild fruits when thirsty and sheltered places when tired. Although it is not as mysterious as Lao Bai said, it is good to have such a small life in the mountains. Unconsciously, I walked a long way. Looking back, there were pine forests covering the sky and the sun behind me. The pastoral area was no longer visible.
However, I noticed that the route taken by Lao Diaoye was a bit strange. He did not run straight after identifying the direction, but took a winding road, as if he was deliberately avoiding something.
Qi Ye and others also noticed this, so they asked Lao Diaoye, isn't it a detour to walk like this?
"Humans have their own way, and animals have their own way. If a person follows the way of an animal, he will either become an animal or become feces."
Old Master Diao said expressionlessly: "If you meet a ghost, listen to those kids. If you enter the mountain, listen to me. Don't think that you are familiar with the place just because you have come here a few times. You are still young and don't know the season!"
Master Qi was blushing because of the bear, but he didn't dare to argue with the old man.
Season?
After hearing this, I was moved, so I chased him and said with a smile: "Grandpa, you mean, in late autumn and winter, wolves grow fat and tigers store food, so there is unrest in the mountains?"
"There is a smart kid."
The old man smiled for the first time, but then said with some melancholy: "However, it is easy to say that wolves grow fat and tigers store food. We dare to kill them if they dare to come. We are afraid that something else will emerge at this time of year."
After saying this, he held the pipe in one hand and pointed to the front: "Kid, see, how far can you see at a glance? In the middle of the afternoon, the forest has become like this. This is a typical poor mountain and bad water. Don't look at the powerful firearms now, but if you really enter the mountain, you have to listen to the mountain god. You must know that there are many things in this world that people have never seen. It's not that they don't exist, but that everyone who has seen them is dead."
My eyes wandered, looking in the direction of his finger. There was no fog in front of me, and the light was not bad, but I couldn't see too far away. It was a little blurry a little further away.
I was moved, and thought of a sentence - the mountain has qi, which is related to water.
This has nothing to do with Feng Shui. The ancients often said that looking at the qi, who is rebelling and where there are ambushes. It's not that they have fire eyes and golden pupils and can really see things that ordinary people can't see, but the sixth sense in the dark is at work.
I once heard some mountain people in my hometown say that if some mountaintops are occupied by extraordinary things, there are traces of their existence everywhere. After that person walks in, he will feel uncomfortable all over, and he will feel something wrong everywhere. This is the so-called mountain has qi, which is actually the instinctive feeling of a huge threat.
According to the old man, there seems to be some unknown things in this mountain, not ghosts, not beasts, mysterious and terrifying.
I asked tentatively, "Grandpa, what are you doubting about?"
"You are such a thoughtful kid. I saw you were distracted along the way, and I guessed that you were still thinking about this."
The old man laughed and stumbled. I hurried to hold him back. He patted my hands and said with a smile, "Grandpa is not keeping you in suspense here, but I can't tell you. If we are unlucky and really get entangled, you will know then. Otherwise, if you keep muttering in your heart, it will be a big deal. Isn't it said that what you think will come true, good things don't work, but bad things do. Some things are very effective. If you keep muttering in your heart, maybe you will really find it. If you don't mutter, maybe there will be some chances to avoid it."
This time he made it clear. I am not an ignorant child. I don't have such a strong curiosity. I am just worried about my safety. Now that it has come to this, I will not ask any more questions and follow the old man honestly.
Time passed quickly, and before we knew it, night had fallen.
After walking for most of the day, we were really tired, so Lao Bai came up to Lao Diaoye and said, "It's getting late, let's find a place with north wind and rest for a night before continuing on our way?"
Lao Diaoye didn't respond, but handed me the pipe and asked me to light a bowl for him. Then he took the stick and stabbed the ground a few times, patted the big tree, squatted on the ground and pulled a few grasses and rubbed them on his fingers, then raised his head and sighed, "It's going to snow soon, we can't rest, we have to keep going all night!"
To say that our luck is really unmatched, we just entered the mountain and caught the first snow in the mountain!
Qi Ye said that although it snowed early here, it was not as early as this year, and it hadn't happened for many years.
Lao Bai interrupted and said that since it was going to snow, we should find a place to rest.
"Stop talking nonsense, hurry up tonight!"
The old man looked very serious. He took the pipe from me and didn't even bother to take a few puffs. He walked forward quickly, leaving only one sentence: "The snow came early, people are not prepared, and animals are even less prepared. You must not stay in one place at this time!"
"This weird old man!"
Lao Bai complained a lot, but I pushed him and didn't let him say more, just cooperate.
Not to mention Lao Bai, even Qi Ye felt that the old man was a little abnormal today. When he went into the mountain before, he didn't react so much. There are indeed some ferocious beasts in this mountain, but they are not everywhere. With weapons in his hands, the old man usually doesn't bother to ask a question. Why is it so panic today, as if this mountain is more dangerous than the tomb, and there is murderous intent at every step.
Could it be related to the ancient tomb of Donghu?
Without explanation from Old Master, none of us could tell. However, we gradually realized the seriousness of the situation and followed him obediently.
Facts have proved that Old Master was not bad in the gang. At night, snowflakes were indeed falling from the sky.
At first, the snow was not heavy, but gradually, the wind and snow began to be violent, completely subverting the common sense that snow is not cold but melting snow is cold. The biting cold wind with snow foam hit people's faces, which was just like cutting meat with a knife. Although we wore sheepskin coats when we came out of the cemetery, we still looked thin in such weather. The cold wind poured in from the collar, and we were cold soon.
Looking at the sky and the earth, there was a vast expanse of white, and the wind swept the remaining blood. That was the real white-haired wind.
Old Master Diao didn't allow us to use flashlights, or even torches soaked in oil. He led us forward in the dark on the rugged mountain road against the wind and snow. Zhang Xinya didn't take a steady step, her feet slipped, and she rolled down the hillside for thirty or forty meters. If it wasn't for Brother Yaozi chasing her down in time, Zhang Xinya would have been in trouble!
In such weather, not to mention Lao Bai, even I was a little discouraged. The mountain was getting steeper and steeper. How could we go down?
"Ah!"
At this time, a beast roar sounded without warning.
I have never heard such a terrifying beast roar, suppressing the wind and snow, longer than the wolf's howl at the moon, and more rough than the tiger's roar. Even though the distance was still far, the roar still shook the surrounding trees.
It is hard to imagine what kind of giant beast can make such a earth-shaking roar.
"Oh, it's this thing!"
The old man slapped his thigh, his dark face was covered with ice chips, and he slapped his thigh angrily: "I tried to hide, but I couldn't hide in the end!"
The old man was pale because of the roar of the beast, and asked tremblingly: "What on earth is this thing? I have never heard such a roar!"
"Could it be..."
The seventh master seemed to have thought of something and shuddered all over.
The old man interrupted him directly, his turbid eyes flashing with light at this time, like an eagle staring at its prey, scanning us: "Listen, kids, if you want to live, you must listen to me next!"
After saying that, he turned around and ran in one direction, his legs and feet were so agile that he didn't look like a centenarian at all.
However, looking at the direction he ran, it was clear that he ran directly following the roar of the beast.
"Oh, don't think too much!!"
Brother Yaozi was anxious and shouted, "Follow Master Diao!"
Only then did our group hurriedly catch up.
Not long after, Old Master Diao led us to stop in front of a towering ancient tree. The tree was thick enough for dozens of adults to hug together, and it was unknown how many years it had lived.
Under the tree, there was another large hole with a diameter of about two meters.
Old Master Diao pointed at the hole and shouted, "Go in!"
Master Qi glanced inside and asked subconsciously, "What is this place? Why do I smell something wrong inside? It's like a wild beast's nest..."
"It's the nest of the thing you're worried about. Get in!"
Old Master Diao shouted, kicked Master Qi into the hole, and then pushed Zhang Xinya in...