A day trip to Hell in Kotoihara
Today is the weekend, and Xiang Yan had planned to have a good rest at home. However, he had just sat down when he was startled by Yi Yuan jumping in from the window.
"Huh! It's so scary. How could he suddenly jump in from outside?" Xiang Yan patted his chest, let out a breath, and glared at Yi Yuan unhappily.
"Sorry, sorry." Ihara smiled apologetically at Xiang Yan, then sat on the sofa next to Xiang Yan.
"What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?" Xiang Yan asked puzzledly.
Although they can share consciousness, not everything needs to be shared. Some things that can be explained clearly do not need to be shared and can be simply explained.
"Oh, yes, I came here to talk about something." After sitting down, Yi Yuan looked at Xiang Yan and said, "There will be activities in Hell these two days, do you want to go and see?"
"Activities? What activities?"
"It seems to be a Lantern Festival?" Yi Yuan was not really sure, but he heard Yang Wu mention it before, and Xiang Yan happened to have a day off today, so he thought of taking him to see it.
"Well... okay." Xiang Yan nodded. He thought about it and felt that he had nothing to do at the moment, so he might as well go with Ihara to see what the fun was.
The activities of Hell... He was still very curious.
"Then let's go!" Yi Yuan stood up and looked at Xiang Yan, then stretched out his hand, "Let's teleport directly over there."
"Wait, I also have to dress up as Xiang Ye..." Xiang Yan shook his head slightly at Yi Yuan and said.
He couldn't go to hell in his original appearance, as it would be bad if he was seen by the ghosts in hell.
The human world is no longer the same as before where there was only Ihara, a ghost messenger. Occasionally, you can see some ghost messengers coming and going in the city at night.
It would be hilarious if a ghost had seen Xiang Yan in the human world and then met him again in hell.
"No need." Hearing Xiang Yan's words, Yi Yuan smiled slightly, then took out two masks from behind.
One mask is a fox with red patterns, and the other is a silver-grey wolf.
Yi Yuan handed the fox mask with red patterns to Xiang Yan.
Because he was interested in this activity in hell, Ihara asked Yangwu a few more questions. Yangwu said that everyone would wear a mask in this activity and no one would know each other, so they could have fun without worry.
After listening to Ihara's explanation, Xiang Yan raised his eyebrows, took the fox mask and put it on, then looked at Ihara, "How is it?"
"It looks very nice." Ihara praised.
"I'm asking if you can recognize me?" Xiang Yan gave Yi Yuan a displeased look, then turned and walked to the mirror in the room and looked at himself.
The fox mask just covered the upper half of Xiang Yan's face, leaving only his fair chin and rosy lips exposed.
It was impossible to recognize what he looked like, but when Xiang Yan looked at his hair and clothes, he still felt that something was a little strange.
"Hmm..." Xiang Yan frowned slightly and looked at himself in the mirror in deep thought.
Yi Yuan, who was standing by, saw Xiang Yan thinking and walked to the mirror to look at it.
After looking for a while, Yi Yuan seemed to have thought of something. He took off his windbreaker and put it on Xiang Yan, then put the hood of his clothes on Xiang Yan's head.
"Is this okay?" Yi Yuan looked at Xiang Yan, who was completely wrapped in a windbreaker in the mirror, and said with a smile in his tone.
Because Yi Yuan was a little taller than Xiang Yan, his clothes were a little too big for Xiang Yan. The windbreaker hung directly to his calves, and the hood directly covered Xiang Yan's hair. Only a little bit of Xiang Yan's white chin could be vaguely seen from inside.
After looking around, Xiang Yan nodded with satisfaction, "Okay, that's it!"
"Then shall we set off?" Ihara turned his head slightly to look at Xiang Yan beside him.
"Yeah." Xiang Yan nodded.
………………
The teleportation talisman was very useful. Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan arrived at the gate of hell in the blink of an eye.
Before they entered, Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan met several ghost messengers who were also returning to hell.
Although those ghost officials knew Yi Yuan, they did not dare to step forward to say hello. They could only watch silently as Yi Yuan pulled Xiang Yan into the gate of hell.
After Yi Yuan brought Xiang Yan in, the ghost officials outside the door looked at each other and saw the gossip in each other's eyes.
I was very curious about Xiang Yan who was covering his face.
However, they only dared to talk about it in private and did not dare to dance in front of Ihara.
Taking Xiang Yan into the gate of hell, Yi Yuan and the others came to the Yellow Springs Road, where the deer-lion beast was resting with its eyes slightly squinted.
When he saw Ihara and Xiang Yan, Deershiomon opened his eyes for a moment. His gaze stayed on Xiang Yan for a long time. Just when Ihara was about to ask, Deershiomon retracted his gaze, lowered his head and continued to rest.
"?" Ihara looked at the Deer-Lion Beast in confusion, thought about it and didn't say much. He pulled Xiang Yan and walked towards the Yellow Springs Road.
At first he thought he couldn't hide it from Deer Lion Beast, but he didn't expect that he would let them go without saying anything...
With a lot of question marks in their heads, Ihara and the others entered the city of hell.
Just now on the Yellow Springs Road, Ihara also felt the constant gazes from all around him, so he also put on a wolf mask.
After putting on the masks, they really didn't attract much attention, because the entire Hell City was full of people wearing masks, and Ihara and the others were not very noticeable.
The City of Hell has a very lively atmosphere. Starting from the city gate, red lanterns are hung all along the way, and red candles are lit in the surrounding shops, making it look very festive.
However, looking at the red candles around him, Xiang Yan always felt a chill in his heart, a strange feeling.
The reds are a little too... red, almost dark red, not even true red, but more like blood red.
"It's okay." As if sensing Xiang Yan's uneasiness, Yi Yuan reached out and held Xiang Yan's hand. "Hell is already full of yin energy. You are a human being and you are not used to normal. I will hold you and everything will be fine."
After all, Yi Yuan is a ghost messenger from hell, and a special one at that. Following him and being led by him, Xiang Yan does feel a lot more at ease.
Although it was a bit strange to see two grown boys holding hands, Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan's awkwardness disappeared when they thought that they were the ones holding the hand.
Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan holding hands is like a person holding their left hand with their right hand. There is nothing wrong with that.
So, Yiyuan and Xiangyan walked around the city hand in hand.
There is indeed a big difference between the things in hell and those in the human world. Xiang Yan had a lot of fun wandering around, walking and stopping here and there, and stopping to look at anything he saw that interested him.
Although he saw a lot, Xiang Yan didn't buy anything.
It’s not a matter of money. Although I haven’t checked it carefully, judging from Ihara’s big house, Ihara is not short of money in hell.
Mainly because it is not used.
The things in hell are for the ghost messengers, the Black and White Impermanence or other ghosts. As a pure human being, Xiang Yan certainly cannot use them.
Even he didn't dare to eat anything from hell.
Many folk ghost stories say that you cannot eat anything from hell, because if you eat something from hell, you can't return to the human world.
Although he didn't know whether these claims were true or not, Xiang Yan didn't dare to try it himself. If he accidentally ate something wrong, he would be in trouble.
Yi Yuan didn't dare to give Xiang Yan any food, so the two of them were just strolling around. When they saw something interesting around them, they would stop to look and then continue walking.
Because it is a lantern festival, there are many lanterns around, of various kinds, very beautiful.
There were not only lanterns hanging on the streets or in shops, Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan also saw some people walking around with small lanterns in their hands, and the flames inside the lanterns swayed.
"Like?" As if sensing that Xiang Yan's gaze had stayed on a lantern for a long time, Yi Yuan glanced at the lantern, then leaned close to Xiang Yan and asked in a low voice.
"Hmm..." Xiang Yan nodded slightly when he saw the lantern with a few rabbits playing on the lampshade.
Lanterns are of no use, they just look good. After today, there will be no time to use them.
But the reason alone is enough.
Yi Yuan paid the money and handed the lantern to Xiang Yan, asking him to hold it.
Holding the rabbit lantern, Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan arrived at the bank of the Wangchuan River.
There were quite a few people standing by the Wangchuan River. Most of them were holding lanterns, and quite a few were holding river lanterns. They were squatting by the river, putting the river lanterns in their hands into the water, and then closing their eyes as if making a wish.
"Will a wish like this really come true?" Xiang Yan asked curiously.
River lanterns can be found in many places, and making a wish on them is just a way to seek psychological comfort, but very few of them are actually useful.
"Maybe..." Ihara was about to answer when a female voice interrupted him.
"Of course it works. The river lanterns here are not ordinary river lanterns. Wishes made here will come true."
Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan turned to look at the person who spoke.
The girl who spoke was wearing a skirt that was very common in hell, and had a pure white mask on her face.
Seeing Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan turned around, the girl smiled sheepishly, "I'm sorry, I just heard you guys talking about whether it works or not, and I couldn't help but interrupt."
"It's okay." Xiang Yan shook his head slightly, then asked curiously: "Is this river lantern really so effective? Can any wish come true?"
"The river lanterns are really powerful. I wished for a promotion last year and I really got one." The girl said with a little excitement.
"Really?" Xiang Yan asked curiously.
Anyway, they didn't have anything to do, so they were just wandering around, and it was interesting to listen to some stories here.
"Yeah." The girl nodded, and after taking a look at Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan's holding hands, she said, "I heard that praying for marriage is the most effective."
Looking at the girl's 'you know' look, Xiang Yan didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but he didn't explain it out loud. They were just casual acquaintances and they didn't even know each other's true appearance, so there was no need for any explanation.
"Really? Then let's try it out and see if it works." Yi Yuan said, and then took Xiang Yan to buy two river lanterns.
Although they don't have any particular wishes that they want to fulfill, buying a river lantern to play with is still a novel experience.
Watching the backs of Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan leaving, the girl in the pure white mask couldn't help but sigh, "Love...tsk tsk tsk."
After looking at Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan twice more, the girl turned and left. The lantern festival was so lively that a whole day would not be enough to visit it, and she didn't want to spend all her time here.
After the girls left, Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan also placed the river lanterns.
They didn't make any big wishes, just two random wishes that could be easily fulfilled, intending to see if the river lanterns were so effective.
"Where are you going next?" After releasing the river lanterns, Ihara turned his head slightly and looked at Xiang Yan beside him.
"Well...over there." Xiang Yan pointed to a crowded place.
Anyway, he had no idea what was so fun about hell, so he might as well follow the crowd and take a look.
Places where there are many people are naturally places where there are exciting things to watch!
"Let's go." Yi Yuan pulled Xiang Yan and walked in the direction he had just pointed.
After walking for a while, they arrived at their destination and looked carefully before they figured out what the place was for.
To put it simply, it is - paper puppetry!
Paper puppetry is a special kind of magic where the user creates a paper figure and then casts special spells to make the paper figure move.
The movements and range of action depend on the user's personal ability. A strong one can even create a paper puppet to fight against evil spirits, while a weak one can only make a few small paper figures for people to play with.
The ones in front of Xiang Yan and the others now should be those with weak abilities.
The two of them watched for a while and found that the user could only create a few small paper figures with little ability.
However, the people around didn't care about the abilities of the paper figures. They just had a playful attitude towards them and didn't need the paper figures to do anything.
The paper man only needs to stand on the table and stagger back and forth, which is enough to attract the interest and cheers of the people around.
Ihara was not interested in this paper man; it was just a little trick of little use.
However, Xiang Yan on the side was watching the performance in front of him seriously with some interest.
Xiang Yan himself didn't need this kind of little paper figure, he was thinking of his two younger brothers and sisters.
Xiang Yin and Xiang Shi would probably like this little paper figurine.
This little paper man is easy to raise and can move with just a little energy. It is only the size of a palm and is very convenient to carry.
I believe Xiang Yin and Xiang Shi will be very happy to have this little paper man accompany them.
They are the same person. After seeing Xiang Yan's expression, Yi Yuan thought about it for a while and understood what he was thinking.
After a pause, Yi Yuan looked at the owner of the paper figurine not far away and asked, "Is this paper figurine for sale?"
"Hey?" The owner of the paper doll who was originally teasing the little paper doll was stunned for a moment, then quickly reacted and walked over with a smile on his face, "Sell, of course sell, I wonder which one this lord wants to buy?"
There are indeed people who will buy this kind of paper figurine, but not many. Most people just take a look at it and then leave, and they don’t actually buy it.
So after hearing Ihara's voice, the owner of the paper man hurried over, fearing that Ihara would go back on his word.
Yi Yuan did not rush to answer the owner of the paper figurine. Instead, he looked at Xiang Yan who was standing beside him and asked, "Which one do you want?"
The owner of the paper figurine saw Yi Yuan's actions and realized that Xiang Yan was the one who really wanted to buy the paper figurine, so he turned his head slightly and looked at Xiang Yan, "Come here, sir, you can take a closer look."
"Yeah." Xiang Yan nodded, took a few steps closer, then looked down at the little paper figures on the table.
There are not many paper figures on the table, less than ten, but each has its own characteristics.
Xiang Yan looked at them carefully, and then chose two for Xiang Yin and Xiang Shi based on their personalities.
Xiang Yin is more lively and likes to play, so Xiang Yan chose a paper doll that is always jumping for her, while Xiang Shi prefers quietness, so Xiang Yan chose a paper doll that likes to sit for him.
"Just these two." Xiang Yan said to the owner of the paper man after he made his selection.
"Two? Okay, okay, I'll assemble them for you right away." The owner of the paper man seemed to have not expected that Xiang Yan would actually ask for two. He was stunned for a moment, but he immediately came to his senses and looked at Xiang Yan with a smile on his face.
Although this kind of paper figure seems to be useless, not everyone can make it.
It takes a lot of things to make a paper figure, and the spells are not passed on to outsiders, which makes these paper figures more expensive.
However, Xiang Yan would not be polite to Yi Yuan. Yi Yuan's money was Xiang Yan's money, and Xiang Yan spent it without any psychological burden.
Similarly, Ihara doesn't care about money issues. There is nothing wrong with buying things for his younger brothers and sisters. It is very normal!
So, when the maker of the paper figurines assembled the two temporarily sleeping paper figurines and handed them over, Ihara had already prepared the money.
"Once we go back, inject energy and it will move again!" The maker of the paper man reminded Chao Yan.
"Yeah." Xiang Yan nodded, indicating that he understood.
After taking the paper figure, Xiang Yan was pulled away by Yi Yuan.
Looking at Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan's backs, the people who were originally watching the fun felt mixed emotions in their hearts.
The girls were very envious of Xiang Yan for having a boyfriend like Ihara.
What? You said we're not a couple?
How is that possible!
Judging from the perspective of girls who have watched many TV dramas, Yiyuan and Xiangyan obviously have a very close relationship, they are either relatives or lovers.
As for why it was finally speculated that they were lovers instead of relatives?
Well...how should I put it, it's just a feeling. Looking at Xiang Yan and Yi Yuan walking together hand in hand, they really don't feel that that is the interaction between family members.
"Actually... who says that family members and lovers can't be together?" A girl looked at the two little sisters discussing next to her and couldn't help but say, "Wouldn't it be better if the two of them were together?"
"Huh?!!!" The two girls next to him couldn't help but shout out in shock.
After seeing the strange looks from the people around her, the girl who had just spoken quickly pulled her two little sisters away.
The girls envy Xiang Yan for having someone like Ihara by his side, while the boys around him envy Ihara for being so rich.
The price of the two paper figures was not a small sum, but Yi Yuan took them out without blinking, which showed that he was not short of money.
The boys are very envious...
………………
On the other side, Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan had no idea that their purchase of two paper figures had caused so much discussion. After buying the paper figures, they found a new street and walked up.
Unlike other streets, the lanterns on this street are not red, but white!
Looking at the white lanterns all around him, Xiang Yan couldn't help but feel a little panicked. He held Yi Yuan's hand tightly and didn't dare to leave Yi Yuan even a step.
"This place... is so strange!" Xiang Yan looked at the white lanterns around him and couldn't help but speak out.
"It is a bit strange." Yi Yuan looked at the white lanterns hanging all over the streets, frowned slightly, then protected Xiang Yan and walked towards the street entrance.
Originally, they just wanted to find a random street to stroll around, but accidentally ended up in this weird place. Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan no longer had the mood to stroll around and just wanted to leave here as soon as possible.
Although Ihara was confident that no one could hurt him in hell, he still didn't want to stay here any longer. His body wouldn't be hurt, but his mind might be. He didn't want to be scared.
After walking along the street for a while, Ihara noticed a figure swaying not far away.
He thought about it and decided to take Xiang Yan with him.
When he got closer and saw the figure, Ihara couldn't help but twitch his lips.
The person in front of him was an acquaintance of Ihara - Meng Shiqi, also known as the legendary Meng Po.
"Meng Shiqi? Why are you here?" Yi Yuan looked at Meng Shiqi.
Meng Shiqi was not wearing a mask, so Yi Yuan recognized her at a glance. As he spoke, Yi Yuan took off his mask and revealed his face.
"I'm here to buy something." Meng Shiqi greeted Yi Yuan happily when he saw him. After replying, he turned his attention to Xiang Yan who was standing beside him.
After taking a closer look at the hands of Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan, Meng Shiqi asked in a gossipy tone, "Who is this..."
"He is my friend." Yi Yuan stepped forward and blocked Meng Shiqi's inquiring gaze.
"Oh~ a friend..." Meng Shiqi raised her eyebrows. Although she said this, her eyes clearly showed that she didn't believe it.
Yi Yuan didn't care what Meng Shiqi's look was like. She just stopped her from seeing Xiang Yan. Xiang Yan was also very sensible and hid behind Yi Yuan and didn't have any communication with Meng Shiqi.
Seeing the actions of Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan, Meng Shiqi curled his lips, withdrew his gaze with regret, and then looked at Yi Yuan, "Why are you here? The Lantern Festival is not here?"
"Accident." Ihara couldn't help but frown when he mentioned this, "We got in accidentally."
"Oh." Meng Shiqi nodded, without asking any more questions, "Do you want to go out together?"
"Okay." Yi Yuan nodded and agreed to Meng Shiqi's proposal.
Although Yi Yuan could leave by himself, it was better to go out with Meng Shiqi than to wander around aimlessly.
On the way out, Meng Shiqi also told Yi Yuan and the others about the situation of this street. The situation here is a bit special. All the things sold here are ghost supplies, so white lanterns are used around it.
Except for ghosts, no one would normally go in. Meng Shiqi often deals with ghosts, so he knows about this place.
After walking out of the street hung with white lanterns and looking at the red lanterns and the bustling crowd around him, Yi Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, then said goodbye to Meng Shiqi with a smile.
Meng Shiqi also smiled and waved.
Just as Yi Yuan and Xiang Yan were about to turn around and leave, Meng Shiqi behind them suddenly shouted, "Xiang Yan!"
"Hmm?" Xiang Yan responded out of habit, then he reacted and looked at Meng Shiqi in surprise.
Seeing Xiang Yan's performance, Meng Shiqi confirmed his guess, so he waved to Xiang Yan with a smile on his face, then turned and left.
[He was the person Ihara called out to when he was drunk. Ihara actually chased him...]
"???" Seeing Meng Shiqi's expression, Xiang Yan looked at Yi Yuan with a puzzled look on his face, "Have you mentioned me to her?"
"No." Yi Yuan also looked confused. He had not told anyone else about Xiang Yan's existence, and he didn't know how Meng Shiqi knew Xiang Yan's name.
"Strange..." Xiang Yan murmured in confusion.
"Let's go. I'll take you home." Yi Yuan was also very surprised that Meng Shiqi knew about Xiang Yan, but he still cared more about Xiang Yan. After strolling for so long, it was time for Xiang Yan to go back.
"Yeah." Xiang Yan nodded, then followed Yi Yuan back.
The author has something to say: I haven't decided on the remaining extra chapters yet. If you have anything you want to see, please leave a comment and I will pick a few to write about~
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