The name of the halfway road comes from giving up halfway, which makes Wei Chiran feel that there must be some meaning in it. And what is the end of the halfway house, and most importantly, the halfway way? Is it Yunzhou Temple? Did Danma really realize his mistake and no longer blame Wei Chiran and Tang Qianlin? Or is this road not leading to Yunzhou Temple at all, and Danma has other plans to bring them here?

Wei Chiran's mind was full of questions, and he could also see that He Changqing did not completely believe in Danma.

The three of them walked all the way along the rocky path by the river, and walked for almost an hour before they came to the halfway house that Danma had mentioned.

"It's here, it's ahead," Danma said, gesturing to a boulder in front of her.

The bright flashlights of the three of them shone towards the boulder, and the first thing they saw when they illuminated it was the halfway house on top of the boulder, which was a strange thing that didn't look like a house, because it was made up of square cabinets like building blocks. There was also a dead tree next to the halfway house, and the dead tree had only three thicker branches, and each branch was covered with brass bells, which seemed to be the source of the bell that I had heard before.

The four walls of the halfway house are made up of cabinets, topped with irregular planks of hay and branches and dead leaves.

He Changqing's face became very ugly when he looked at the pitch-black cabinets, but he stood there when Danma walked along the path next to him to the halfway house.

Wei Chiran asked, "What's the matter?" ”

He Changqing said in a low voice: "That kind of cabinet is called a spiritual corpse, and its function is similar to that of a coffin, and the ascetics that Danma mentioned before are a group of cultivators who were the first to come here from the Central Plains, and they think that the true meaning of life can be found in the Western Regions, and they are frantically looking for the so-called Heavenly Path in this area." ”

Danma, who was already standing on the rock, turned to look at them: "Come in, it's too cold outside." ”

He Changqing said loudly: "You go in first to clean up, and Wei Chiran and I will take a look around." ”

Danma nodded and walked into the halfway house, and Wei Chiran asked, "What does Tianlu mean?" ”

He Changqing explained: "As the name suggests, you can reach Heaven or Heaven through that road, and that kind of road is said to be only accessible to good people after they die, but some people believe that living people who have experienced some kind of penance can also set foot on the Heavenly Road, so later, some people feel that as long as they find the Heavenly Road and practice penance on the way to the Heavenly Road, they can achieve their goal." ”

Wei Chi shook his head and said, "People are really a strange thing, always self-righteous. ”

People who live in hardship fantasize about becoming immortals or going to heaven to escape reality, while those who live a solid life and don't know what suffering is, because they don't want to give up everything they have, try their best to live forever, or enjoy everything after death. Both are essentially the same, and it is often asked, what do people live for? From a balanced point of view, man lives only because of nature's choice. Conversely, from the perspective of human sensibility, then the answers are varied.

For example, becoming an immortal or immortal, most people know in their hearts that it is impossible, so they need to create legends first, and artificially create obstacles based on legends, such as cultivating and overcoming tribulations, and going through countless tribulations.

Ordinary people can't admit those calamities, either choose to die, or choose to give up, and in the eyes of some people, they don't succeed because they can't persevere, and they can't persevere, and they become not pious enough.

In fact, human beings have created civilization, and civilization has flaws and can never become perfect, and trying to achieve perfection in an imperfect world is the meaning of human life. Whether it is for the overall situation or the individual, isn't the goal of human life exactly the same from an emotional point of view?

He Changqing did not explain what the so-called spiritual corpse was, but led Wei Chi into the halfway house. The door of the halfway house was just a quilt that had long been dirty, and the space inside the house was relatively spacious, with three animal skins on the floor, dried meat hanging from the branches above the branches inserted into the cracks of the wooden cabinets, and a stove made of stones in the middle.

Danma seemed to be well adapted to this environment, and it was clear from his relaxed expression that he was happy with the halfway house.

Wei Chiran asked, "Uncle Danma, have you been here before?" ”

Danma nodded and said, "I've been here, only once, and I haven't been here since that time, and I don't dare to come again." ”

Wei Chiran asked, "Why?" ”

Danma hesitated a little and said, "Because my father died here." ”

Wei Chi hurriedly said, "I'm sorry. He subconsciously looked at He Changqing next to him, thinking that He Changqing was going to cast a reproachful look, who knew that He Changqing was just using the stove to boil water to make tea, this is what he must do every day, even if the sky falls, he must drink that tea.

Danma said lightly: "No need to be sorry, because I have been running away." ”

He Changqing asked slowly: "So, the location of Yunzhou Temple was also told to you by your father?" ”

Danma said: "Yes, he has been to Yunzhou Temple, and there, the people of Yunzhou Temple told him that he will die halfway, that is his fate, and if he wants to rebel against fate, he must stay away from this road." ”

Wei Chiran asked, "But why did he come here again?" ”

Danma said: "Because he wants to get rid of his original fate." ”

Wei Chi shook his head: "I don't understand." ”

The Danma clan is the descendants of the Tibetan Guards, and their responsibility is to protect the secret of Jiaguo Canyon, but many people have doubts about this. Unfortunately, people are social animals, and most people do not dare to speak out in the face of injustice, and if a person stands up against him, he often does not get the support of others, but if this person succeeds, these people will immediately start to vassal him, sing about him, write stories for him, and regard him as a legend.

But if the person fails, a person with a little conscience will dissociate himself from him, and a person without a conscience will condemn him.

Guyan Village is such a group, everyone is dissatisfied with the rules left by their ancestors, but no one dares to rebel. You can leave the village to go to school, to get in touch with the outside world, but you have to come back, and if you don't come back, you will lose this home forever, and the home will not accept you again.

How can one not need a home? Therefore, this is also the reason why Zeren returned to Guyan Village after going to the city to study.

I don't know when it began, there is an unwritten rule in Guyan Village, if you want to leave the village, you must become an apostle of God, so that you can untie yourself in the name of God, and the way to become an apostle is to become an ascetic and go to the end of the road to heaven.

Danma's Abba didn't want to be bound to the ridiculous ancestral teachings of the village, and he didn't want to see his descendants forever entangled in something like a curse, so he resolutely set foot on the road to heaven.

Wei Chiran asked, "Isn't the end of this road Yunzhou Temple?" Since he found Yunzhou Temple, didn't he complete his penance? ”

Danma smiled bitterly, "But he didn't become an apostle. ”

Wei Chi shook his head: "This is a kind of self-restraint, I think the original penance is a psychological trap set by Guyan Village, just like someone is terminally ill, someone told him that the only way for you to live is to become an immortal, this is originally ridiculous, you Abba can take you away, there is no need to self-bind yourself in the village." ”

Danma nodded, "Yes, there is no need, just like me, I could have saved the village, but I hurt everyone because of the so-called rules." ”

He Changqing said: "I think that the masters of Yunzhou Temple know the psychological constraints of your Abba, and they don't need to predict, just use logical speculation to find out the reason why your Abba will eventually die on this road." ”

At this time, the crisp sound of the bell came again, but it was obviously the sound of the bell hanging on the branch overhead, and it still sounded far and near.

Danma's face turned pale: "It's here." ”

Wei Chi asked, "What's coming?" ”

Danma said, "The ascetics are here. ”

Wei Chiran looked at He Changqing, neither of them understood what it meant, why did the bell ring from far and near, it meant that the ascetic was coming? Why are there ascetics at this time? They didn't see anyone else along the way, did they?

Then, Wei Chiran heard the sound of things rubbing against the ground and stones, and listened carefully, it should be the sound of something being dragged forward.

Wei Chi wanted to get up and go out to see, but was stopped by Danma, Danma seemed very scared, along the way, even when facing those corpse beasts in the canyon, Danma did not show fear, why was he afraid of being like this at this moment?

The sound of dragging and grinding was getting closer and closer to the doorway, and then the three of them saw a pair of tattered shoes appear under the door curtain, and then heard the sound of a clang, and saw a thick iron chain falling next to their feet, and it seemed that someone was dragging something with an iron chain.

Wei Chi pulled out the fishbone sword, He Changqing also held the two daggers in his hands, and Danma curled up in the corner, looking at the door curtain in horror, not only lost his ability to move, but also seemed to have stopped thinking.

"Is there any salt?" The man outside the door finally made a voice, and the voice was strange, as if several people were talking at the same time, and there were men and women, and the voice was extremely empty, and there was no emotion.

Danma put his finger in front of his mouth, his face covered with sweat, and looked at Wei Chiran and He Changqing with pleading eyes, signaling them not to speak.

Wei Chiran looked at He Changqing, He Changqing shook his head and asked Wei Chiran not to make a sound.

"Is there any salt?" The man asked again, and soon after, he added, "May I come in?" It's really cold outside, I want to come in, please please let me in. ”

Danma waved his hand and signaled them not to say anything, not to open the curtains, and not to do anything.

After a long time, there was no sound outside the door, and the lieutenant Chi Chi looked carefully and found that the tattered shoes were still there, but when he leaned down to look, he only saw a pair of shoes, but not the legs of the owner of the shoes, and the iron chain that was obviously next to the shoes disappeared before.

Danma also trembled and looked at it, and then breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, let's go, it's okay for the time being, sleep, I have a medicine here, you can sleep until dawn after taking it, no matter what happens halfway, you won't wake up." ”

Wei Chi wondered, since this place is so evil, shouldn't someone be on duty at night? Why do you still need to take that medicine?