A pitch-black ancient ship emerged from the mist, and an old man in a black robe was rowing it slowly as the ship gradually approached the shore.

There are many ghosts on the ship.

After the ancient ship docked, the spirits disembarked one after another.

Qin Luo suddenly realized why there were so many ghosts on this remote floating island; they were all brought there by this ancient ship, and most of them were fishermen who had perished.

The haggard-looking middle-aged man looked at Qin Luo and said, "This is a ship to the underworld. Once you go, you won't be able to come back."

Qin Luo nodded and said softly, "This place is far from the secular world, and there are many ferocious evil spirits on the island. Are you sure you want to stay here?"

The haggard middle-aged man's eyes were filled with sadness. He said with a dejected expression, "My family is still waiting for me. Even if the hope is slim, I want to go back and see them."

The evil spirits on the island are all bound by their past and live because of their obsessions. Qin Luo looked at the haggard middle-aged man with some sympathy and said softly, "Let go of one thought and you will be at ease. Don't torture yourself anymore."

"I can't do it, I can't do it..."

The haggard middle-aged man repeated this sentence to himself as he numbly walked into the distance.

Qin Luo sighed softly.

Are you going to the underworld by boat?

A hoarse voice came from behind.

Qin Luo looked at the old man punting the boat, nodded slightly, and then stepped onto the ancient boat. The boat was very similar to a covered boat, with a long canopy, like a dark tunnel.

Qin Luo walked through the boat's canopy.

He likes to stand at the bow of the boat and enjoy the scenery.

The pitch-black ancient ship slowly left the shore. Qin Luo watched the ghosts disappear, and when he turned around, everything was blurry, and he was surrounded by mist.

Qin Luo could only see the old man punting the boat and the yellowish oil lamp; the boat was eerily quiet.

Why do you want to die?

An old man rowing a boat broke the silence.

Qin Luo smiled and shook his head. "I don't want to die. I want family, friendship, love, freedom, and to live a good life. Why would I want to die?"

The old boatman looked at him with a puzzled expression and said in a hoarse voice, "If you don't want to die, you won't die."

Qin Luo remained calm and composed, "You're right, but things don't always go as planned. Perhaps that's just life."

The yellowish lamplight flickered, and the old man punting the boat nodded. "Life and death are the hardest shackles to break. True transcendence is not about transcending life and death, but about accepting them. All things are one, and life and death are no different. This is the meaning of reincarnation."

"That makes sense."

Qin Luo nodded.

"How long have you been rowing the boat, senior?"

"A very, very long time."

Qin Luo asked with a smile, "Senior, could you tell me your story?"

The old boatman was somewhat surprised. He chuckled, "I've ferried many people across. Some remained silent, some complained incessantly, some poured out their troubles, prayed, and begged for help. I've heard all sorts of stories, but you alone want to hear my story, my story..."

The ancient ship became quiet.

After a long while, the old man rowing the boat said seriously, "My story is boring. Do you really want to hear it?"

Qin Luo smiled and nodded, "I was just bored."

As the old man rowed the boat, he said, “When I was young, I was smart and sensible. I was filial to my parents and respected my elders. I followed my parents’ arrangements to get married and have children. I lived a life of conformity. I was always willing to help others and was humble and polite. I had friends all around me, but I did not feel happy. When I was twenty, I left home to travel around and seek immortality. After wandering around for ten years, I did not learn any real skills. When I returned to my hometown, I only saw a few graves.”

Qin Luo could see that the old man punting the boat had a numb look in his eyes.

"From then on, I began to kill, becoming a scoundrel and evil cultivator in the cultivation world. Killing gives me temporary pleasure, and if I want to be happy, I can only keep killing. I kill good people and bad people. Anyone who provokes me will die."

Qin Luo didn't see happiness in his eyes.

The old boatman continued his story, “For thirty years I committed all sorts of evil deeds, and then I was besieged and killed by the righteous sects. When I was on the verge of death, I begged a passing high monk to save me. The high monk did indeed save me. He said that my conscience was not dead and that I could become a Buddha as long as I laid down my butcher’s knife.”

“I became his disciple, and he led me into Buddhism. I could recite ten thousand volumes of Buddhist scriptures backwards and forwards, and I could learn a thousand supernatural powers in no time. I followed his teachings and saved countless people over three hundred years. After his passing, I left Buddhism.”

"For the next three hundred years, I became a demon, killing gods and Buddhas alike. Countless cultivators died at my hands until I met the Dao Ancestor, who shattered my soul with a single slap, imprisoning it on this ship of the underworld, where it will never be reborn."

The old man rowing the boat looked at Qin Luo, and after a moment of silence, asked, "Do you think I can atone for my sins here?"

Qin Luo looked serious. He shook his head and said solemnly, "No, the merits don't outweigh the demerits."

"I was a good person for thirty years, and a bad person for thirty years; I was a monk who rang bells and chanted sutras for three hundred years, and a demon for three hundred years. I have no regrets; my sins are unforgivable, and I am not subject to reincarnation."

Qin Luo shook his head and sighed softly, "I regret it a little. This story is really not interesting. But your daily rowing here can be considered your reincarnation. Perhaps the path to redemption lies within it."

"I made a mistake."

"This may be my eternal cycle of reincarnation."

The old man rowing the boat asked curiously, "Do you have a story?"

"My story is boring too."

"Can anyone be more boring than me?"

Qin Luo thought for a moment, then said softly, "The world I live in has no demons or monsters, no cultivators. I'm just an ordinary person, living an ordinary life. I came here by accident and made many friends. My experiences are far less rich than yours. I just want to live a good life."

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