The Sea of ​​No Delusion

For some reason, Gu Lili has been sleeping a lot lately. She sleeps for long periods of time, but not soundly. Strange people and things always appear in her dreams, piecing together incomplete stories.

The woman in white often appears in my dreams, always with her back to me, saying things I can't understand.

"Mengli, do you still hate me?" the woman in white asked slowly, still with her back to Gu Lili.

Gu Lili could see clearly that she was in a mountain stream with a babbling brook. Several peach trees full of blossoms dotted the stream, and the woman in white stood under the trees, seemingly gazing into the distance.

The figure was slender, with long, unadorned hair and a simple white robe that fluttered in the wind, giving off an air of otherworldly elegance and aloofness.

"Mengli? You've mistaken me for someone else, I'm not her." Gu Lili replied, tentatively taking a few steps forward, trying to get closer and see the other person's face clearly. But no matter which direction she stepped in, she could only see the other person's back.

"Mengli, I hope that in this life he can resolve your resentment and lead you back to the right path." The woman in white spoke again, her voice strange and ethereal, not like it came from her own mouth, but rather like someone whispering in Gu Lili's ear at an extremely low frequency.

The other person didn't answer Gu Lili's question, only calling her Mengli repeatedly. If it were anyone else, she might not be too angry, but this person in front of her, dressed in white, with long hair, making strange noises, and always having their back to her...

Isn't this the typical four-piece set of a horror movie? Are you trying to scare me? Gu Lili thought to herself.

“I was scared by you when I was a child, but I’m not a child anymore.”

Gu Lili was clearly still nervous, so nervous that she directly used lines from the period dramas she often watched, summoning her primal energy as she spoke, wanting to fight: "Qing Lian, Qing Lian..."

"There are restrictions I've set up here; you can't use magic."

"Who the hell are you? If you have something to say, just say it. You're always playing tricks on me. It's so annoying."

The woman in white often appeared in her dreams, but it was always the same few lines, repeated over and over, lingering in her dreams and refusing to leave. This annoyed her greatly, and this time was no different. Gu Lili was so angry that she scolded her a few times, calmed her mind and summoned her source again. If it didn't work the first time, she would try again.

Suddenly, a glint appeared between Gu Lili's brows. It seemed her source was about to break through the barrier and emerge. The woman in white panicked at the sight: "Mengli, why are you still so impatient? I'm leaving now, I'm leaving now..."

After the woman in white hurriedly disappeared, the peach grove in the mountain stream also vanished, and darkness gradually enveloped the surroundings. A sense of silence returned to her dream, and Gu Lili was finally able to fall into a deep sleep.

After an unknown amount of time, Gu Lili slowly opened her eyes. She hadn't slept so peacefully in a long time.

Looking up, Gu Lili saw 389 fast asleep on her bedside table, wearing her favorite Qing Dynasty zombie work uniform. A floral fragrance wafted in from somewhere, causing Gu Lili to sit up and sniff around.

It turned out that someone had placed a bouquet of preserved flowers on her bedside table. Fresh flowers and living things from the human world cannot be brought into the underworld. Normal fresh flowers will wither and die as soon as they enter the underworld. However, these preserved flowers are dried using special methods in the human world, so that although they are dead, they still retain their appearance as they were in life and preserve a trace of their former fragrance.

"Lady Meng Po, you've finally woken up."

Gu Lili's loud sitting up woke up 389. When 389 saw that she was awake, he was so happy that he immediately sat up.

Did I sleep for a long time?

389 reached out and picked up the water glass from the bedside table, handing it to Gu Lili: "You slept for three days this time."

"Ah, I slept for so long? I feel like I slept so soundly this time. It's the first time I've slept so peacefully since I became Meng Po."

"By the way, Lord Guan Nan has also come. He tried to wake you up with his magic, but he couldn't. Instead, he used up a lot of his spiritual power and went back to recuperate. He said that once you wake up, you should go to him to repair your spiritual body."

Gu Lili curled her lip: "Tch, is he even capable?" She'd heard that Guan Nan not only hadn't woken her up, but he also needed to go back and recuperate. She thought to herself that although that guy could maintain his youthful appearance, his health was probably...

"Sir, look at these flowers, aren't they beautiful?" 389 took the water glass, placed it on the bedside table, picked up the bouquet of preserved flowers, smelled it himself, and said, "Hmm, they smell really good." He then handed them to Gu Lili.

"Hmm, it looks nice. Where did you get it?"

"It's Sister Fangfang. She was very worried when she saw you were unconscious. She heard that people in the human world send flowers to wish patients a speedy recovery, so she pulled some strings and asked Lord Wuchang to get this from the mortal world."

In Gu Lili's memory, only her grandmother would ask for special things for her, such as going to the temple to pray for blessings on certain special days. It wasn't because she had faith, but because she wanted to ask for a piece of fruit offered by the temple to bring back for Gu Lili to eat. She had to arrive as early as possible to obtain the finest fruit offered by the temple.

Because the older generation said that the fruit on the tip of the tree is closer to the gods and Buddhas, and that eating it will bring more blessings from the gods and Buddhas than eating the fruit below, the old woman with faltering steps did not hesitate to set off in the middle of the night and walk more than ten miles to find that one fruit on the tip of the tree.

Gu Lili took the artificial flowers, smelled them under her nose, then put them back on the bedside table, adjusting them repeatedly to find the best position before speaking: "How has Huang Quan been these days? Has anything unusual happened? I've been resting for so many days, could some ghosts be causing trouble in Huang Quan?"

"No, ever since Sister Fangfang made an example of someone, the order in the entire underworld has improved significantly. The souls are all in perfect unison, obediently waiting for you to return."

"oh??"

"Let me tell you..."

389 vividly recounted the events of the past few days to Gu Lili. Gu Lili listened with a mixture of shock and a wide grin until 389 handed her the booklet she had written herself. Only then did Gu Lili stop laughing and begin to read attentively.

“Hmm, that’s true. We should make more Meng Po…and clone them?” Gu Lili pondered. Indeed, this problem should be solved. It’s the new era of the underworld, after all. Also, “You recorded this question very well. Although I don’t know what Meng Po’s soup tastes like, why can’t the last sip of a departed soul be made into a beverage?”

"Right, sir? Let's have something nice for the last sip, like milk tea, cola, or lemon tea. Wouldn't that be so much happier?" 389 pouted and looked at Gu Lili, nodding quite affirmatively.

"And this whole thing about the dead queuing up is so tedious. What number was it again? They waited for 10 years, stood there for 10 years. Wouldn't it have been better if they could have spent those 10 years having some fun, or at least scrolling through Douyin to kill time? Why would they have so much resentment over queuing..."

“That’s right, that’s right…” 389 nodded frantically.

“Let’s go to the Yellow Springs first. You can record some more information, and I’ll go to Guan Nan’s place to demand an explanation from him.”

........

As Gu Lili and 389 stepped into the underworld, she saw a projection screen floating in front of her desk in front of the Bridge of Helplessness. The screen showed a scene of continuous gunfire. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a popular anti-Japanese war film that had been a box office success.

"You're awake, Lady Meng Po," Fangfangfang greeted her with concern.

"Oh, Lady Meng Po, how come... are you fully recovered? Why don't you rest for a few more days? We'll be fine later, this movie... is quite good..."

Before Gu Lili could answer, the sycophantic man came forward to greet her, and some of the nearby spirits echoed his greeting.

"I have official duties to attend to, and I can't delay for too long. I'll make the soup today, so you can drink it and go on your way." Gu Lili remembered what 389 had told her about how adjusting the reincarnation process almost scared hundreds of souls to death. She suppressed a laugh, pretended to be calm, said a few words, and then went to start the soup-making process.

"Yes, Lady Meng Po, we will follow your arrangements."

"Yes, sir, we'll do as you say..."

The spirits of the dead echoed and echoed each other from afar.

Gu Lili turned and walked towards the soup pot, summoning her essence and dripping it into the pot. Soon after, the green water boiled and began to glow.

The method for making Meng Po soup is actually very simple. The soup base is the water that Fang Fang Fang brings back from the River of Oblivion each time. Adding a drop of the original essence will give it the effect of Meng Po soup. The difficulty lies in the fact that the original essence of Meng Po cannot be separated.

"Hey~ Sister Fangfang..."

"Lady Meng Po, what kind of trouble are you causing now?" Fangfangfang frowned. Every time Gu Lili called her "Sister Fangfang," it was never anything normal that followed.

"Can this Meng Po soup be improved?" Gu Lili pulled 389 over and asked, "389, which little brat did you say wanted to drink bubble tea?"

"That one... the one in the line wearing the yellow vest."

Following the direction 389 was pointing, a thin little boy stood quietly in the line wearing a yellow basketball jersey. The jersey didn't fit him well; an uninformed person might think he was wearing a dress. But Gu Lili knew what it was because of the bright number 24 on the basketball jersey. That number corresponded to a star player, a superstar who represented perseverance and strength. Unfortunately, this star player passed away suddenly a few years ago, which saddened Gu Lili for a long time.

Gu Lili remembered that when they first entered the Yellow Springs, they could smell their favorite scents. She smelled boiled fish, which smelled delicious. That must have been the scent of Meng Po's soup. But by chance, after she became Meng Po, she could no longer smell the soup, and she didn't even know what it tasted like.

“389, do you think I should try a sip? I’m also wondering what this soup tastes like?” Gu Lili looked down at the soup pot, holding the soup spoon: “I think a small sip should be fine.”

"If anything happens, the world will be doomed, Lady Meng Po." Fangfangfang walked over, reached out and took the soup spoon, and said helplessly.

Gu Lili raised an eyebrow and smiled: "Sister Fangfang, you've been in the Yellow Springs for so long, haven't you heard what this soup tastes like?"

"I haven't heard of it. Before you came, the Yellow Springs were solemn and dignified, and no one dared to inquire about the taste of the soup."

Fangfangfang still had that poker face, and her every word and action was official and wooden. Gu Lili found it hard to imagine that the artificial flowers on her bedside table were something Fangfangfang had painstakingly obtained. She would rather believe that Fangfangfang had been possessed by some emotionally intelligent ghost.

"Lady Meng Po, why don't we ask the next soul when they drink the soup?" 389 changed the subject very appropriately.

Gu Lili nodded, and 389 then hurried to the stone pier in front of the Naihe Bridge to help the amnesiac old lady to the soup table. After a series of gestures and colloquialisms, she finally managed to explain to the old lady that she should taste a bite first and then report on the taste.

Under the watchful eyes of the three, the old woman tremblingly raised her right hand to pick up the soup bowl: "Girl, don't worry, Grandma remembers this time." After saying that, as if she had made up her mind, she raised her left hand as well, and with both hands holding the soup bowl, she drank it all in one gulp. Then, like the other souls who had finished drinking the soup, she stood there blankly, waiting for the guidance of the soul-summoning banner.

"Hehehe... Sir, the old lady had amnesia in her previous life, let's ask the next one." 389 scratched his head and said to Gu Lili, who was still in a daze.

The young soul that came next looked to be no more than 20 years old. 389 looked the other person up and down, and repeatedly told him to taste the soup first before handing the soup bowl to him with peace of mind.

"Gulp..."

"What does it taste like?" 389 asked anxiously.

"I couldn't taste it..."

"Then try it again..."

"Glug glug glug glug..."

Without the slightest hesitation, the young man picked up the soup bowl and drank it all in one gulp. Afterward, his eyes glazed over, and he stopped answering no matter how the others questioned him.

Gu Lili felt she had never been so speechless in her life; managing ghosts was so difficult.

"Forget it, I'll go ask Guan Nan instead. Same as always, let that child and those who have wishes wait aside, and let those who are willing to be reborn drink the soup first."

Since Qinglian returned her magic power to Gu Lili, she has made great progress in her hearing, vision, and some minor spells. She can also use teleportation freely. After explaining to 389 and Fangfangfang, she activated teleportation and went to Guannan Hall.

"Lady Meng Po, Lord Guan Nan has not returned since we parted a few days ago," said A Tao, the public relations officer of Guan Nan Palace.

"Is he still at that special management office for the dead?"

Atao hurriedly replied, "That's a forbidden area, I didn't know."

"Okay, you can go ahead and get busy."

Gu Lili dismissed Atao, closed her eyes, and made a hand seal: "Qinglian, do you know the Special Soul Management Office? Teleport me there."

"Huh??? Lady Meng Po is going to the forbidden area?"

"What? I...can't go?"

Qing Lian frowned: "Of course there's no place in the underworld you can't go, but the forbidden areas are dangerous. Those forbidden areas are where vengeful and malevolent spirits who refuse to be reborn are imprisoned, and there are many restrictions. I don't see your magic power has recovered yet..."

"Oh well, it's nothing to lament. Let's go, I'll be careful."

As the fluorescent green smoke gradually dissipated, Gu Lili appeared on the shore of Wuwang Beach.

"Lady Meng Po, the ancient seal here suppresses a spirit like me, so I can only send you this far. The building ahead is the Special Management Office for the Dead." After saying this, Qing Lian concealed her aura and returned to Gu Lili's spiritual realm.

Unlike the tranquility of the River of Oblivion, the inky sea before Gu Lili was turbulent, with giant waves rising and falling like angry beasts, roaring and crashing towards the shore until they hit a boundary marker inscribed with "Sea of ​​No Return" before dissipating and retreating to merge into the next attack.

"Who goes there?" A figure appeared at the boundary marker, holding a long sword and walking towards Gu Lili.

Gu Lili felt a little awkward. She had come to find Guan Nan, but it seemed unreasonable to say it directly to the guard. So she simply went up to him and said, "Meng Po of the Yellow Springs."

The figure panicked: "Lady Meng Po?"

The previous entanglements between the two Meng Po (the Goddess of Forgetfulness) in the underworld had spread far and wide, naturally leading to all sorts of rumors. Some even gave Gu Lili the title of a great demon. This figure, who had been stationed at the Boundless Sea for many years, was naturally flustered upon seeing the legendary figure for the first time. He was taken aback at first, then quickly tried to cover it up:

"This Boundless Sea is a forbidden area of ​​the Underworld. May I ask what brings Lady Meng Po here?"

"A while ago, Huangquan sent over a soul, license plate number 302. I have something to ask him."

Gu Lili remembered what happened in room 302, but she didn't have enough points and couldn't think of a good solution, since she still owed Guan Nan a thousand years' worth of points. It just so happened that she could discuss this matter with Guan Nan today.

"this....."

"What? I can't enter this place?"

"No, no, no, no, no... It's just that Lady Meng Po didn't come before, and I didn't know whether I should let them pass..."

"She's never been here before, that's because she didn't want to come. What rule says I can't come here?"

The figure seemed somewhat hesitant. While the previous Meng Po hadn't come, that didn't mean the current one couldn't. Although the Boundless Sea was a forbidden area of ​​the underworld, the staff handbook didn't explicitly state that Meng Po couldn't enter to interrogate the dead.

Seeing that the other party was hesitant and timid, Gu Lili added, "Don't worry, I'm just asking about something, I'll be right back."

"Then please follow me, Lady Meng Po." The figure made a respectful gesture and led Lady Meng Po to the stone tablet. Then, the figure closed its eyes and made a hand seal. The previously raging Wuwang Sea suddenly calmed down. A crack in the middle of the sea rolled open to both sides, revealing a straight passage. At the end of the passage was an old pavilion that looked quite old.

"The passage is open, Lady Meng Po, please proceed."

Thank you.

Gu Lili made a hand seal and teleported to the pavilion in an instant. Just like the Dream Bureau, there was a facial recognition system at the entrance of the pavilion. After she stood in the designated spot and had her face scanned, the gate opened with a "beep".

The interior of the building resembled a hospital ward from the 1960s or 70s. The dimly lit corridors were unusually quiet, and every few steps there was an old, mottled yellow wooden door. Above the wooden door was originally a square glass window, but for some reason it was covered with paint, making it look quite eerie.

"Oh, Lady Meng Po!"

A PR person in a black suit suddenly appeared behind Gu Lili, poking half his head out to greet her.