Chapter 370: A Matter of Fate

“May I ask how to get to Yinnan County?”

“I don’t know...”

“I’m not sure!”

“I think it’s somewhere to the south, but I’m not clear on the exact route. That godforsaken place hardly has any visitors.”

“Try asking someone else...”

In this era, transportation and communication were truly underdeveloped. Many people spent their entire lives confined to a small area, knowing at most how to get to the neighboring village or the county town. As for other counties or places one or two hundred li away, they had no idea.

Some people had never even heard of Yinnan County.

The young man, dressed in black and white, was repeatedly met with dead ends, leaving him feeling frustrated and exhausted.

“No need to rush—try asking in a different way,” Song You said with a gentle smile, showing no hint of blame.

“It is said that over ten thousand Longwei troops are stationed around Mount Ye in Yinnan County. These troops were originally garrisoned in Fengzhou, tasked with defending Angzhou, where the imperial capital is located, in the south. When they were redeployed to Mount Ye, it must have caused quite a stir. With such a large army, feeding both men and horses would require frequent transportation of provisions, especially given Yinnan's poverty.

Additionally, it’s said that the State Preceptor once conscripted laborers to hollow out and renovate the entirety of Mount Ye. These laborers were later released, and while they may not know which county the mountain they worked on was in, they would surely remember the general direction.”

“I’m so foolish, I didn’t think of that!” the young man exclaimed.

“You simply haven’t heard about the garrison at Mount Ye or the situation there,” Song You replied. “If you had, you would have thought of it yourself.”

“I understand now. I’ll go ask.”

“Be cautious when asking,” Song You advised. “Transporting military provisions is a sensitive matter, and the mountain city built by the laborers is likely just as sensitive.”

“I understand!”

The young man quickly turned and headed back.

Not long after, he returned, his face now showing a trace of joy. He said to Song You, “Sir, I’ve found out something. There is indeed a regular supply convoy that transports military provisions from the commandery capital. They usually head south from the city’s west gate. However, I’ve heard that after traveling a short distance, the main road disappears, and it turns into smaller paths. Finding the way might be tricky, and I’m not sure if the footprints of donkeys and horses are still visible.”

“No matter. We just need a general direction to start with,” Song You replied with a smile. “The yin energy and ghostly aura in this area are growing stronger, and ghost officials from all directions are gathering here. Once night falls, we can wait for a group of ghost officials and ask them for directions.”

“Oh... that’s true...” The young man froze for a moment, feeling a bit embarrassed.

“It’s a simple solution that anyone could think of. It’s just that when you’re flustered, it’s harder to reason things out. Staying calm and composed is always better when dealing with problems.”

“Thank you for the lesson, sir!”

“Thank you for your hard work,” Song You said with a smile before leading the way forward.

Once they left the city, the terrain became dominated by barren hills.

These hills weren’t particularly tall or large but were densely packed. Traveling through them required constant climbing up and down. The paths were uneven, full of potholes and loose stones, and overgrown with weeds, making progress very difficult.

After half a day’s travel, they switched to smaller trails, which were even harder to navigate.

It was no wonder people said that the roads in Zi Commandery’s Fengzhou region were treacherous.

Fortunately, supply convoys had previously passed through this area. There were no brambles growing along the roadside, and the weeds covering the paths seemed to have sprouted only this early spring.

These fresh grasses, however, made it harder to distinguish the route. It was unclear how the supply teams managed to find their way each time.

Yet, despite these challenges, the State Preceptor hadn’t ordered the roads to be improved, likely to keep the area less accessible and less known to outsiders.

Song You walked cautiously.

The swallow worked hard to scout the path ahead.

The grass was too dense, the mountain forest too chaotic, and the narrow paths too convoluted and hard to track. Despite the group’s caution, the trail eventually disappeared beneath their feet. Clearly, they had unknowingly strayed off course. The only question was how far off they had gone.

Fortunately, night was approaching, so Song You found a relatively flat patch of grassland with few brambles. He cleared away some stones and prepared to rest there.

“Sir...”

The swallow perched on a nearby branch and said softly, “It’s my fault for not finding the right path...”

“How can you blame yourself so easily?” Song You replied. “You’ve been scouting paths and streams for me for a year and a half, saving me countless hours of travel. And none of that was something you were obligated to do. If anything, I owe you far more gratitude than I can express. A small mistake like this is nothing. If you say such things, it only makes me feel ashamed.”

“That’s not what I meant...”

“Then you must never speak like that again,” Song You said firmly. “Understand that without you, I might have wandered dozens more li off course on roads like this. Your rare mistake, at worst, means I owe you a little less thanks than usual.”

“Yes...” the swallow answered weakly, lowering its head.

Seeing its dejected posture, Song You smiled warmly. “Besides, I came down the mountain to experience the human world. The main roads and narrow paths are part of that world, and so are these overgrown thickets. Isn’t this just another kind of experience? Who’s to say ending up here isn’t a kind of fate?”

“Yes...” the swallow replied again, still softly.

Meanwhile, Lady Calico transformed into her childlike human form and ran off to gather firewood.

They built a fire, cooked a meal, and settled in for the night.

However, in the middle of the night, as Song You slept, he felt something hard and sharp poking at his forehead.

“Sir...”

Awake and groggy, he opened his eyes. By the light of the crescent moon, he could make out a small black silhouette beside him.

“There are ghost officials over there...” the swallow whispered.

Song You quickly became fully alert.

Turning his head, he saw that the cat was already awake as well, lying at the edge of the woolen mat with its head poking out, staring intently at something on the far side of the small hill.

The night was quiet, and voices could be heard in the distance.

Moving carefully, Song You lifted the blanket and got up, slowly making his way up the small hill.

From the other side of the hill, he spotted several ghost officials walking along, talking as they went. However, they weren’t escorting any spirits, making it unclear if they were returning from Mount Ye or not.

Their tones sounded frustrated.

“Those two ghosts are no ordinary ones—they were generals in life. Capturing them would’ve been a great merit. But after making it all the way here, they managed to escape. Can you imagine how infuriating that is? The worst part isn’t even that they escaped; it’s that we spent months traveling north and back just to come up empty-handed. How are we supposed to explain this to the higher-ups?”

“What can we do? Those two were incredibly skilled. We can handle ordinary soldier ghosts just fine, but against them? Even if they were stripped of their armor and weapons, we still couldn’t stop them.”

“Someone must’ve let something slip!”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

“Stop arguing. Let’s focus on how we’re going to explain this. Everyone, think it through, and we’ll tell it like it is...”

“There’s someone there!”

One of them spotted Song You standing on the hill.

Under the starlight and moonlight, the silhouette of the Daoist was clearly visible. Ghosts could see especially well at night.

“It’s a Daoist!”

“Who are you?”

The ghost officials’ reactions ranged from confusion to wariness.

“Please don’t be alarmed,” Song You said calmly to the group below. “My name is Song You, a humble mountaineer from Yizhou. I mean no harm. I’m an old acquaintance of the State Preceptor and wish to visit him at Mount Ye. However, the roads in Zi Commandery are difficult to find and traverse. I’ve inadvertently lost my way and hoped to ask for directions from you.”

“You want to go to Mount Ye?”

“You’re an old acquaintance of the State Preceptor?”

“How can we trust you?”

“Wait... may I ask, sir, what is your name?”

“My surname is Song, and my given name is You,” Song You replied patiently.

The group of ghost officials fell silent, exchanging uncertain glances.

Finally, the one who had first noticed something unusual broke the silence and asked, “Are you... could you be the renowned Mr. Song who eradicated demons in the north?”

“I did travel through the north and dealt with quite a few demons,” Song You replied calmly.

The ghost officials exchanged more looks, lowering their gazes. Their eyes fell on the calico cat at his feet, and they quickly bowed.

“Greetings, Daoist Master!”

“Greetings, Immortal Master!”

“Greetings, Your Excellency...”

The greetings varied in wording but were delivered in perfect unison.

“You flatter me,” Song You replied humbly, then asked, “Have you heard of me before?”

“Your Excellency, we just returned from Yanzhou in the north, where we captured some ghosts. While there, we heard stories about your deeds from various demons and ghosts,” one ghost official said respectfully.

“Yanzhou?”

“That’s correct.”

“I overheard you mention earlier that you brought back two ghost generals from Yanzhou?” Song You inquired.

“We dare not hide the truth from you, Your Excellency. It was indeed two ghost generals—one surnamed Feng and the other Chang. We spotted them while they were wandering around. To be honest, they’re far stronger than us. Even without their weapons and armor, we wouldn’t stand a chance against them.

“But we noticed their skills and thought they weren’t the type to stay out of trouble. Fearing they might cause chaos, we lied to them, saying we were inviting them to serve as officials in Ghost City. We hoped to trick them into coming with us. Who could’ve guessed that after making it all the way here, they suddenly went berserk and escaped?”

“I see...”

Song You couldn’t help but find the situation amusing.

The two ghost generals, Feng Da'er and General Chang, had almost crossed paths with him back in Yanzhou. Although they never met, it was unexpected to hear their names again, nearly two years and thousands of li later in Fengzhou. And now, he’d nearly encountered them once more.

It felt like a kind of fate.

However, knowing those two ghost generals, their cautious and suspicious nature made this story unsurprising. Back then, they’d fled without hesitation upon hearing of his arrival. For these ghost officials to have tricked them this far was no small feat. Likely, the two generals had noticed something amiss and reenacted their escape, much like they had two years ago.

These two ghost generals were unruly, but if Song You were to personally judge their crimes, it would be troublesome. If they could be taken to the Ghost City and handed over to the appropriate authorities for judgment, that would undoubtedly be ideal. Now that they’ve fled, he couldn't be bothered to chase after them.

“Do you know the way to Mount Ye?”

“Your Excellency says you’re an old acquaintance of the State Preceptor. Surely, you wouldn't lie about something like that. Would you be willing to travel by night? If so, we can escort you there.”

“Let me prepare briefly.”

“Wonderful! Wonderful!”

The ghost official repeated the word joyfully, visibly relieved. With this, their return wouldn’t incur punishment from their superiors.

After returning to camp, Song You found he had lost the desire to sleep. He asked Lady Calico to assume her human form, light a lantern, and help gather their belongings. With each carrying a lantern, Song You and the cat followed the ghost officials.

Initially, he had only planned to ask for directions. Once they reached Yinnan County, they wouldn’t be far from Mount Ye. Its ghostly aura made it a barren place, devoid of grass, and the stationed army made it easy to identify. With the swallow scouting from the air, locating Mount Ye wouldn’t have been difficult. When the time came, they could go directly there.

Still, this arrangement was ideal.

They traveled by night and rested during the day. After two nights, they passed through Yinnan County. Another night’s trek through mountain paths brought them to the outskirts of Mount Ye.

This area was already under military lockdown.

However, the State Preceptor had anticipated Song You’s arrival and had come to greet him in person.