Continuing upwards, the path was winding and circuitous due to the steepness of the mountain, much like how mountain porters use a zig-zag route to conserve energy. Listening to the steady roar of the engine, I began to understand why they believed only a Mercedes-Benz could ascend, or more accurately, only a rear-wheel-drive, high-horsepower van could consistently climb. Modern vans, prioritizing comfort, fuel efficiency, and cost savings, are generally front-wheel-drive.
Front-wheel-drive vehicles have no issues on flat ground; they offer only advantages. However, on mountain roads where performance truly matters, they falter, completely lacking power. It's akin to needing to move a small car up a steep slope: would you choose to pull it from the front with a rope, or push it from behind? With the same amount of force, the latter would be easier.
As the car reached about halfway up the mountain, we encountered a relatively gentle section. The roadside stations and shops suddenly became more numerous, clearly indicating a tourist rest stop. After another two hundred meters, I saw a large sign by the road, bearing the four characters "地下森林" (Underground Forest).
"We're here," Lin Xi said. "Inside, it's all boardwalks. Cars can't go in; we have to walk."
Everyone got out of the car and entered the wooden boardwalks within the forest. A nearby sign indicated that from here to the Underground Forest was still about 1.5 kilometers.
Not long after entering, I experienced a completely different feeling from any previous forest I had entered. This was a primeval forest in the truest sense. The trees were tall and dense, each reaching towering heights, completely blocking out the sunlight. The temperature in the forest was at least five degrees Celsius lower than outside. Because there was no wind, the forest was as quiet as night. The creaking sound of our footsteps on the wooden boardwalk echoed through the trees, as if from a distance, or perhaps it was the reaction of some small wild beast hiding in the distance, startled by our presence.
Another point was the air. The oxygen content here was significantly higher than outside. Taking a deep breath, the crisp air carried a hint of sweetness, warm and moist, seemingly containing many beneficial plant spores. Every breath felt like a "dialysis" for my lungs. I had been craving a cigarette, but in such clean and wonderful air, I had a strange thought that smoking would be a desecration of nature. This was completely different from "smoking is harmful to health." It wasn't forced abstinence, but a subjective lack of desire to smoke at all!
No wonder all the scenic area employees I saw didn't smoke; it must have been for the same reason.
If it weren't for the trash cans placed at intervals, reminding me that this place had been conquered and developed by humans, I might have entirely believed this wasn't the mortal world, but another fantastical realm.
Following the boardwalk, we gradually descended into the valley. I had assumed we were slowly entering the valley floor of the Underground Forest. Unexpectedly, after passing through a waterfall in the woods and standing on a cliff edge, I saw that the "Underground Forest" was actually at an even lower position, within a massive "sinkhole" at least fifty meters below our feet!
The entire sinkhole was filled with ancient, towering trees, densely packed and of many different species, arranged at various heights. Sunlight lazily slanted onto the canopy of trees at the bottom of the valley, painting the layers of forest in vibrant colors. And around the edge of the "sinkhole," the perimeter of the Underground Forest, were continuous, rugged volcanic cliffs, exposing the raw, savage traces of eruptions from millions of years ago. The convergence of these two scenes was beyond my ability to describe in words. I only felt as though a giant, celestial deity had dropped an immense and exquisite bonsai from their celestial palace into the human world!
The Eagle Demon, Lin Xi, Chen Ke, and Whale God didn't experience the same sense of awe as I did, as they had all been here many times before. Especially the Eagle Demon, accustomed to viewing the world from above, had never seen such beautiful and peculiar scenery. The four were looking for a path to the valley floor. Seeing me standing by the cliff in a daze, they urged me to hurry down, warning that we would get lost.
With the Qi Sensing technique, how could I get lost? Lost, really. I hadn't seen enough yet!
However, it was time to attend to business...