How could she tell him her ancestors had a good reason not to want to help? Because they were right—she wasn’t who she said she was. They didn’t know Ping.
But she couldn’t tell Shang that.
“I don’t mean to offend your ancestors,” Shang added, misreading her silence. “If you trust them, I will, too.”
“You should trust them,” Mulan said, hoping he wouldn’t catch how her voice faltered at the end. More than you trust me.
Because, if she was honest with herself, how could Shang trust her if he didn’t even know her real name?
Mulan’s ancestors halted before the last hill. It was lower than the others, and freckled with white and yellow dandelions across the grass. Ren poked at the hill with his cane, and Mulan saw multiple demon-head medallions appear, speckling the dry grass with red, glowing eyes.
Underneath the teeth of two of the bronze medallions were rings—door handles. With one tug, Ren parted them, revealing a door under the grass. He walked straight into the hill. Mei was next.
ShiShi balked. “This could be a trap. I wouldn’t—”
“Relax, guardian,” said Liwei. “It’s a portal that’ll take you to the ninety-seventh level. That’s as high as we’re allowed to go anyway.”
“I’ll go first,” Mulan said to ShiShi.
Before he could protest, she slipped into the hill, her foot landing on a narrow brick path.
Inside the hill was another hive much like the one she’d seen from the bridge when she’d first entered the gates. It was like looking up an endless well, except each stone was a different chamber. Most were bleak, rocky, cavernous rooms, but others held forests and stone deserts and tempestuous thunderstorms. Mulan saw demons laboring over a stone furnace in one, and a village of ghosts in another. She tried searching for any sign of the vermilion gates at the very top of the hive, but her eyes couldn’t see so far.
Taking her place behind Ren, Mulan followed the thin brick path as it wound up and up the cave. Often, the path forked into a maze of winding, serpentine lanes, so Mulan reminded herself to be grateful Ren knew the way.
Shang followed, then ShiShi—who landed so wide he almost fell off the brick path. It was then Mulan noticed the pathway beneath her was floating. Beneath them was an infinite tunnel of darkness.
“This isn’t very promising,” the lion muttered, throwing a glance about the cave’s interior.
“It isn’t the most scenic route,” said Ren, “but it’s fast. And the demons won’t think to look for you here—only veterans of Diyu know all the shortcuts.”
“Would you care to explain why you are a veteran of Diyu?” ShiShi grumbled. “I’d think a monk shouldn’t be here at all.”
“I had a few…shortcomings,” Ren admitted. “But I’m bound for Heaven soon, as you can see by my aura.”
What kind of shortcomings? Mulan wondered. She would have asked, but Ren was the only one of her ancestors who hadn’t questioned her identity. She thought it fair not to do the same of him.
Still, for a monk, his pockets jangled rather noisily.
Maybe it’s full of pebbles. Or stones. Who knows what ghosts in Diyu collect?
Mulan pushed aside her doubts and focused on her surroundings.
The smells changed rapidly. Wafts of wood fire and cinnamon, and sometimes dead fish; Mulan also heard shouts and screams from far away. When there were stairs, they were narrow and rough. ShiShi climbed them five at a time, keeping pace with Mulan’s ancestors, who had no trouble floating up and up.
“The stairs are for the demons,” Ren explained.
Mei snorted. “It helps keep them in shape. Most of them get lazy after a thousand years.”
“Can all ghosts fly?” Mulan asked.
“The longer you’ve been here, the better you are at it.” Ren tilted his head at Shang. “I’m guessing you haven’t mastered your unearthly talents yet.”
“Err, no.”
“You won’t have to,” Ren said matter-of-factly. “You’re not staying here long.”
“How can you tell?” Shang asked. “I don’t look any different from you.”
“Our colors.” Ren compared his ghostly aura to Shang’s. They were nearly the same shade of blue, Mulan noted. Most of the ghosts she’d seen had been either yellow or red. His aura was green, almost blue—like the eye of a peacock feather.
“Once you turn blue, it means you’re either going to be reincarnated or you’re bound for Heaven. I’m guessing you’re the former. Those bound for Heaven usually don’t stick around the lower parts of Diyu.”
“The bandit ghosts were red,” Mulan remembered. “What does that mean?”
“Red means you have a long time to serve. Behavior in Diyu is closely monitored, just as it was in the real world. King Yama’s put a stamp on all of us. Only he knows how long we have here. But our colors are a hint. When we get closer to blue, that means our time is coming up. Or we’ve done something to deserve getting out of this place.”
“The Li family has no one lingering in Diyu.” ShiShi grunted. “Clearly, the Fa family isn’t as distinguished. Why are you all here?”
Mei glowered at the lion. “What do you mean, why are we all here?”
Liwei peered at her, his jowls sagging over his neck. “You know what he means. Not everyone in the Fa family’s been honorable, you know. I’d say some of us bring the family name down more than others.” He stroked his chin, studded with short white hairs. “How many husbands did you have again, Mei?”
“You’re one to talk about reputation,” Mei retorted. “You think you get to take the high road because your parents were acupuncturists? Why don’t you tell them why that business didn’t survive? Oh, because you killed one of the patients.”
“It was an accident!”
Listening to them, Mulan wanted to roll her eyes. “Are they always like this?” she asked Ren.
“Try living with them for centuries,” Ren replied with a dry chuckle. “Careful,” he said, looking up. “Watch your head, cousin Ping.”
Mulan hunched over, thankful for the warning. The ceiling lowered sharply, and ShiShi was the first and only one to hit his head.
“Serves you right,” Mei trilled at the lion.
Shang straightened his back once the ceiling returned to its normal height. “Where are we?”
“We have to make a few detours,” Liwei said, stifling a yawn. His heavy eyelids blinked at Mulan. “I hope they’ll be inspiring for you, young Ping. If I’d seen all this, I would have lived my life quite differently.”
“We’re passing the Chamber of Rocks on your left,” Mei narrated. “Don’t stop and stare.”
Mulan and Shang looked, but ShiShi grunted and didn’t bother slowing down. Inside the Chamber of Rocks were hundreds of ghosts, all chained to black lacquered columns. Each ghost carried a rock above his head so heavy that if it fell, it would certainly crush him. Mulan couldn’t look at them without feeling pity.
“Don’t mind them,” said Mei. “I had to do it for a while, too. Twelve years, thirty-four days, and five hours.” She shuddered. “It’s best not to pay them any heed.”
“Is this how ghosts are punished?” Mulan asked.
“If you deserve it,” said Mei airily. “Or if King Yama’s in a bad mood when you greet him.”
“I did my time on the Ice Mountain,” Liwei said, somewhat proudly. “Trust me, it’s much more agonizing than the Chamber of Rocks. Though there is another, fourth Fa ancestor in Diyu. Unfortunately, he’s still in the Valley of Eternal Misery. We were on our way to visit him when you three made such a commotion on the Mountain of Knives.”
Mulan pursed her lips. “Well, I thank you most graciously, Auntie and Uncles, for guiding us.”
“Please don’t call me Auntie,” said Mei. Her aura was pale yellow, like the steamed egg cake she’d started nibbling. “I can’t be more than a year or two older than you.”
“Fa Mei died young,” said Fa Liwei. “It would have bee
n tragic, had she not been such a shrew to her husbands.”
Mei whacked him with her fan. “You should talk.” She faced Mulan and Shang, then jabbed the end of her fan into Liwei’s stomach. “This one died from indigestion. He choked on a fish bone.”
“At least I was old.”
“Old and fat,” Mei retorted.
“Please,” Ren said, holding his arms wide. “Enough bickering.”
“Definitely motivation for you two to be good on earth,” ShiShi muttered to Mulan and Shang. “Or else you’ll have to spend centuries with idiots such as these.”
“ShiShi, they’re my ancestors.”
“Even worse.”
“Ah, here we are,” Ren announced, coming across a bronze bell in the middle of the path. “Will you do the honors?”
Mulan struck the bell with the side of her sword.
“I meant to ask you where you got that sword from,” ShiShi said, staring at the blade.
“I found it on the Mountain of Knives. Why?” Mulan tilted her head. But Ren made another turn and peeled open another hidden door. Shadowy light flared in her eyes.
“Here we are,” Ren announced. “The ninety-seventh level, mostly occupied by the Hall of Echoing Forests.”
It didn’t look like a hall. Mulan was beginning to learn that Diyu’s structure was different from anything in the real world. Here, mountains could float on clouds, and rivers could course through the sky. Everything here existed to suit King Yama’s whims.
A soft hum buzzed from the trees, and every few beats, the leaves rustled in an erratic rhythm. The sky was dimmer here, and shadows danced across the forest canopy. The trees were withered and shriveled, with branches that looked like bones and leaves shaped like teeth. But aside from that, the forest wasn’t so different from the bamboo grove where Mulan and ShiShi had first arrived.
“How do we get to the hundredth level from here?”
“Follow the moonlight.” Ren pointed at the beam of silvery light across the trees. “Didn’t King Yama tell you that?”
Mulan gazed up. “He didn’t tell me anything.”
“It won’t be easy finding the gateway to the next level, but if you follow the light it’ll at least bring you to the right vicinity. If you can find the gate latches shaped like King Yama’s face, they should lead you to another stairway. Just be careful of demons.”
Fa Mei frowned. “Aren’t you forgetting to warn them about the Caul—”
“No,” Ren interrupted. He cleared his throat and fumbled with his sleeves, his poise disappearing for an instant. “No,” he repeated. “There’s nothing to worry about. I’m afraid this is as far as we can take you.”
“What didn’t you warn us about?” Mulan said.
Ren laughed, a little too loudly for Mulan’s liking. “Mei was just being paranoid. The Chamber of Boiling Despair used to be on your path—”
“Some call it the Cauldron,” inserted Mei.
“—but Diyu’s chambers and levels move constantly, and you shouldn’t have any trouble with it.”
“Shouldn’t?” Shang echoed.
“I wouldn’t send my own blood into the Cauldron,” Ren assured them hastily. “After all, it is such a joy for me to see one of my descendants alive and well.”
Mulan thought she heard Liwei or Mei snort, but maybe she’d just imagined it. When she glanced at them, they both avoided her gaze.
“Watch the moon and you’ll be fine,” Ren promised. “You’re so close to the top already. You’ll certainly make it.”
The moon was north of them, still half-bright and half devoured by darkness. No change in their timing. That was good.
“I guess we should be on our way.” Eager to resume their journey, Mulan started to bow to each of her ancestors.
“Not so fast,” said Mei. She sat on a tree stump, elegantly adjusting her shimmering silk skirts so they didn’t touch the dirt. “Ping, you said you’d update us on family news.”
Mulan swallowed. Right. “There isn’t much to report,” she said lamely. “The family’s all doing great.”
Mei threw her hands up in the air. “That isn’t an update. I want to hear why you’re here. The other ghosts say there’s no mention of you at all in King Yama’s book. That means you don’t even exist.”
“We don’t have time for stories,” ShiShi interjected gruffly. His attention was on something within the trees. “We’re on a tight schedule.”
“She didn’t ask you, lion,” said Liwei.
Mei reached into her pocket and took out another steamed egg cake, this one topped with a dark red date. “How about a treat for the loyal guardian?”
ShiShi’s fur bristled, and his tail became stiff and straight. “Absolutely not. I won’t be fooled into accepting food from you.”
“Fine, your loss.” Mei took a bite. “Mmm. So delicious. I always thought guardians had a weakness for sweets.”
“Or spirits.” Liwei snickered. “Where do you think all those gourds of rice wine go when you leave them for your ancestors at the altar?”
ShiShi scoffed and returned his attention to the forest. He still looked preoccupied by something in the trees. Mulan looked over, and all she caught was a flash of red fur. It disappeared behind the brambles before she could make out what it was.
ShiShi crouched, tail whirling behind him. “On second thought,” he said, his anger suddenly gone, “I suppose I can give the family reunion a few minutes.”
“ShiShi?”
“You stay with Ping, Li Shang.” ShiShi strode off into the woods. “Don’t wait for me. I’ll find you.”
Mulan raised a hand after him. “Wait, where are you—”
“He probably saw a fox,” said Ren. “They run rampant in this area.”
“What a peculiar beast.” Mei stuffed the rest of the egg cake ShiShi had refused into her face.
Shang looked at Mulan, confused. “Ping, is there really no record of you in Yama’s book?”
Mulan’s tongue sat heavy in her mouth. She didn’t know what to say.
“Oh, that’s right,” Mei said, licking her fingers clean of crumbs. “I still don’t remember Fa Zhou having a son.” She frowned. “And I would have remembered.”
“You do have a knack for keeping track of the men in our family,” Liwei said drily. “Or rather, getting them into trouble.”
Ren glared at them before returning his attention to Mulan. “Now that the lighting is better, let me take a look at you, cousin Ping.”
Ren patted Mulan’s face. It was like being brushed by the wind, and when he squeezed her cheeks, she thought she felt a pinch.
“See?” he said to the others. “Cousin Ping has Fa Zhou’s teeth and forehead. Fa Li’s hair and eyes. A bit soft on the jaw and cheeks, but he’s still a growing boy, I suppose.”
“I see the resemblance,” Mei agreed. She peered at Mulan from beneath her long eyelashes. “But he’s far shorter than Fa Zhou is. And smaller, too. Not even a hair on his chin.”
“You know, they’re right.” Shang smothered a laugh. “You’re lucky. You never have to shave.”
“Hmph.” Liwei circled Mulan with his hands behind his back. “I still think you’re hiding something. If we find out you lied to take advantage of us, we’ll throw you into the river ourselves. It isn’t far from here, you know.”
“How dare you call Ping a liar,” Shang said, inserting himself between Mulan and the three ghosts. “Ping risked his life to rescue me. Did any of you have that sort of honor? I think not. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here.”
Liwei whistled, then floated over to inspect Shang. “And who are you to speak of family honor to us?”
“That’s Captain Li Shang,” Mei whispered to her relative.
Liwei’s eyebrows rose. “Of the famous military Li family?”
“An honorable clan indeed.” Mei batted her eyelashes at Shang. “My first husband was a military man, too. He was killed in battle a week after we got married. I accidentally put
flour in his cannons instead of gunpowder, and I forgot to sharpen his sword. I was so lonely.” Mei straightened the collar on Shang’s cape, and Mulan couldn’t help feeling a twinge of jealousy. “I’ll bet you wouldn’t let a little accident like that kill you. You’re so strong and tough.”
Shang recoiled, looking flustered.
“Look,” Mulan said, stepping between Mei and Shang, “I am here to bring Captain Li Shang back to the real world. I made a promise to his father.”
“I think it more likely you’re a demon,” Liwei announced, going back to Mulan. “A demon in disguise sent by Meng Po to trap him in Diyu forever.”
“What?” Mulan spluttered. “I’m not a demon.”
“So you say. Demons are liars. Seems you and they have that in common.”
“I’m not a demon,” she repeated. “And why would Meng Po want to trap Shang here anyway? He’s to be reincarnated.”
“Meng Po’s army isn’t what it used to be,” Liwei reasoned. “A decorated captain from the Emperor’s army would make a fine addition to her warriors.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Shang said. “Ping risked his life to come here and save me.”
“I suppose,” Liwei allowed. “But either way, cousin Ping, if what you say about coming into the Underworld is true, it’s against the rules to be here.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t be helping him after all,” Mei said with a gasp. “I only have a century left until I’m invited to Youdu. I can’t afford to have my sentence extended just for helping a poor relation.”
Liwei nodded, a scowl forming on his round face. “I can’t imagine the dishonor Ping is bringing upon our family for trespassing into Diyu.…That is, if we really are his family.”
“I am your family,” Mulan insisted. “I’ve always respected my ancestors.”
“Have you, now?” Mei crossed her arms. “I’ve never heard your prayers to us.”
Mulan gulped, wishing she’d heeded Grandmother Fa’s advice to be more attentive to her ancestors when she prayed at the family shrine. Maybe if she’d paid more attention to them in the past, she could have trusted Ren, Mei, and Liwei with her secret. They would have helped her.
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