The wooden plaque bore two names—Di Yao...
Not having seen that man again left Di Yao feeling somewhat unsettled. She slowly walked a few dozen feet away when suddenly a Ghost Messenger appeared out of thin air, holding a steel fork.
Unlike the ghost guards at the gate, this Ghost Messenger wore a skeleton armor, strutting with arrogance.
He stopped in front of Di Yao, crossing his steel fork before her.
He was a soul-hooking Ghost Messenger responsible for escorting souls to reincarnation. At most, he could escort twenty souls at once; at least, one.
And Di Yao was the lucky one with no companions along the way. Escorted one-on-one by the Ghost Messenger, she wanted to cozy up to him first, but his face was deathly pale and his brows fiercely knit, so she swallowed her words.
After a few steps, the Ghost Messenger spoke first: "Passing Ghost Gate, the path to rebirth has ten stops. In order: Wangxiang Terrace, Evil Ghost Ridge, Golden Rooster Mountain, Offering Pavilion, Fengdu City, Underworld Court, Eighteen Levels of Hell, Meng Po's Shop, Naihe Bridge, and the Hall of Reincarnation."
Along the way, the Ghost Messenger briefly introduced the information about the path. His voice was hoarse and unpleasant, and the information was overwhelming—sheer torture. If only the Ghost Messenger's voice were half as nice as that man outside the gate.
Thinking that someone was leading the way, Di Yao didn't listen too carefully. Her eyes wandered, looking here and there, while she kicked pebbles with her feet.
*
After passing Ghost Gate, it wasn't so desolate. On the road, she could see groups of two or three people escorted by Ghost Messengers. Strictly speaking, they could now only be called souls, and Di Yao was no exception.
The entire path to rebirth had a station roughly every ten li. Each station had different scenery and climate, and the sights were grotesque—fluorescent grass, legless soldiers floating in midair, hopping rows of skulls... Though a bit scared, Di Yao had never seen such wonders, and she curiously looked around the whole way.
Wangxiang Terrace was where departed souls looked back on their homeland. Di Yao had no loved ones left in the mortal world, so she didn't want to go up. Moreover, her priority was to hurry up and reincarnate, unwilling to waste time. The Ghost Messenger didn't insist; he just nodded and headed straight for the next station.
As soon as they reached the foot of Evil Ghost Ridge, they heard heart-wrenching cries from other souls ahead. Soon, a soul with only half his body crawled out of the ridge. When he saw Di Yao, he reached out to her as if she were a lifeline, crying for help.
His skin and flesh were all mangled, his clothes dirty and torn, and his arms were covered with densely packed bloody bite marks. Di Yao wanted to help but didn't know where to start, afraid she'd tear off his flesh.
Di Yao was terrified by the bloody, mangled hand. She felt as if she had lost half her own soul, trembling as she looked to the Ghost Messenger for help.
The Ghost Messenger said, "The more evil deeds one did in life, the more severe the injuries. He's not worth saving."
"This is the entrance, not the exit." With that, the Ghost Messenger stepped forward, lifted the dying man, and dragged him behind him, leading Di Yao up Evil Ghost Ridge, completely ignoring the twisted blood trail on the ground.
Watching the Ghost Messenger walk away, Di Yao suppressed the urge to retreat, swallowed her saliva, and nervously trailed a few steps behind.
Evil Ghost Ridge.
Seeing a dark mass of ghost shadows lying on the ground not far away, Di Yao was extremely anxious. The man who had been dragged back by the Ghost Messenger was torn apart and devoured by evil ghosts as soon as he entered the woods, not even a bone left. Then a few still-hungry ghosts eyed Di Yao, ready to pounce.
Di Yao was terrified. She counted to three to herself, then ran for her life.
Behind her were heart-rending ghostly screams mixed with the sound of chewing bones. She ran and cried, "Did that man know something? Is that why he refused to come?"
Even so, if she had known the dangers on the path to rebirth before Ghost Gate, Di Yao would still have chosen to find a way through. Because she wanted to return to the mortal world.
The evil ghosts were no longer human-shaped. Their legs and arms, when stretched out, were much longer than their whole bodies. Suddenly, one ghost, taking advantage of Di Yao's inattention, grabbed at her back. The other ghosts watched eagerly, waiting for their chance.
Every departed soul that passed through here had to experience this. But the actions of the evil ghosts were limited by how many good deeds the soul had done in life. Most people were only frightened and clawed by these ghosts; the brutal scene just now was rare.
Because of this, the evil ghosts were extremely hungry. Whenever they got a chance, they went all out, spitting saliva mixed with tendons, blood, and flesh in all directions.
But unexpectedly, as the leading ghost's claw neared Di Yao, it was forcibly pushed back by a force.
All the surrounding evil ghosts were thrown back, rolling several times. At the same time, a golden light flashed on Evil Ghost Ridge.
...
Di Yao had a few close calls along the way, but the tranquility near Naihe Bridge settled her heart. However, the moment of crisis on Evil Ghost Ridge was still vivid in her mind...
When that golden light appeared, the evil ghosts were heavily wounded and no longer dared to approach Di Yao. The same happened on Golden Rooster Mountain. Even the Ghost Messenger escorting her was quite surprised.
But this trip was probably the easiest he had had in three hundred years. Since Di Yao knew little about the Underworld, he didn't pry further.
Just a little girl.
Besides, today was the day the Ghost Emperor's mansion announced the selection results. He was distracted, so after bringing Di Yao to the edge of Naihe Bridge, he left.
Meng Po's Shop was right next to Naihe Bridge. The road ahead was simpler: drink Meng Po Soup, cross the bridge, and then reincarnate.
The river, shimmering with a greenish pearl luster, was constantly bubbling. Moreover, the river flowed from lower ground to higher ground, making her dizzy after looking at it for a while.
She shook her head and caught sight of many white bones floating in the churning river, some already corroded beyond recognition.
Suppressing her nausea, Di Yao frowned and found an old woman busy by the bridge.
"Are you Meng Po?" Di Yao asked respectfully, her voice soft.
The old woman put down the lid of her pot, glanced at Di Yao, and then took a ladle to scoop soup: "That's right."
Di Yao blinked curiously, examining the small shop in front of her. Under the awning, four square tables were lined up. At one end of the tables were more than a dozen pottery jars of various sizes; elsewhere, bowls of Meng Po Soup were neatly arranged. Near the pottery jars was a large three-legged bronze cauldron, bubbling as something boiled inside.
The old woman had gray hair, a hunched back, and her dark wheat-colored skin couldn't hide the freckles and spots on her cheeks. Beneath the spots were crisscrossing furrow-like wrinkles.
Meng Po responded with a smile, her voice somewhat hoarse, giving a feeling of kindness and closeness. Di Yao couldn't help but think of her grandmother, who used to carry her around to play when she was a child.
Struggling to pull back her straying thoughts, Di Yao took the Meng Po Soup. The soup in the bowl changed colors with the slightest shake—black, yellow, green, red, blue... The colors blended naturally, not thick, and if she looked closely, she could see her own reflection.
Di Yao sniffed carefully but smelled nothing. She had never seen such a strange thing, but drinking it was hard to bring herself to do. To make matters worse, the bowl in her hand was bigger than her face.
She looked up and asked tentatively, "Granny Meng, after I drink this, can I leave here?"
Meng Po put down the spoon and said softly, "After crossing the bridge."
"Then, after I drink this soup, will I forget everything?"
Meng Po nodded, then bent down to take a booklet from under the table.