In this chapter, the ruge tries to break the rules of the Underground Man's story. He tries to explain that the underworld isn't actually a place, but rather a stage. He explains that he and his companions need to enter their spiritual form in order to enter the real world. The underworld is a "crack in the time" , he says, so it's not a physical place. He's afraid that someone will try to get in his way, so he's going to get rid of them. The ruge says that he brought the others along to help him find a way. The fog is getting heavier, the ground is crawling with rats, and he can't even see where the two idiots are. He doesn't care, he just wants to get to the bottom of the mountain. He wants to chop some ingredients and make a tasty meal for his customer.