Here, without the sun and moon shining down, the sky above is chaotic and dark. The only light comes from the pale blue grass blades with white beads of light on the leaves of the soil beneath our feet.
A chilling wind blew around them, mixed with the cries of countless lovesick men and women, their voices filled with sorrow and resentment.
Lian Yao frowned; he instinctively disliked the gloomy environment here.
"This is the Forget-Me-Not Grass, and the glowing white beads on it are Soul-Eating Dew, which are the main ingredients used by Fairy Meng Po to make the Bewitching Soup."
Lian Yao pointed to the grass on the ground and said, "Both the Forget-Me-Not Grass and the Soul-Eating Dew are highly poisonous. Only Fairy Meng Po can refine them into the Bewitching Soup using a unique method. There is only one such person in the entire world. Therefore, the Bewitching Soup is also called Meng Po Soup. Please be careful not to eat it by mistake."
Seeing Ye Chen nod, Lian Yao reached out and took his hand, "There are many restrictions in the Underworld, so stay close to me."
Lian Yao led him away from the meadow formed by forget-me-nots and into the darkness ahead.
The bone in his hand flew up automatically and floated above his head, illuminating his path.
After crossing this pitch-black area, a wide river suddenly came into view in the distance.
The river water shimmered with a yellowish-green light, and its banks were covered with magnificent, blood-red flowers.
"That is the River of Oblivion. The flowers on both banks are the flowers of the other shore, which are called Manjusaka by the Buddhists. The bridge over the River of Oblivion is the Bridge of Helplessness."
From the darkness not far from them, six long lines of spirits stretched out. When these spirits arrived at the Bridge of Helplessness, they received a bowl of soup from the six ghost messengers waiting side by side at the bridgehead and drank it.
The soul that drank the soup had a blank and empty gaze, and walked blankly onto the Bridge of Helplessness.
"What they drink is the Meng Po soup. After drinking the Meng Po soup, they forget all their past lives."
They had stayed in Murong Yan's little world for several years, which would only be two or three days in the larger world. At this time, Fairy Meng Po should still be in the Dao Palace and had not yet returned.
At this moment, a soul refused to drink the Meng Po soup and forget its past. It stood at the head of the Naihe Bridge and cried. The line of souls standing there stopped. Seeing that the reincarnation time of the souls behind them was about to be delayed, two ghost messengers suddenly descended from the sky, took the soul away, and threw it into the River of Oblivion under the bridge.
As soon as the soul entered the River of Oblivion, it let out a mournful howl and was torn apart by countless ghosts within.
The other souls were terrified by this scene and quickly and obediently drank the Meng Po soup before being reincarnated.
"The ghosts in the River of Oblivion are all souls unwilling to forget their past lives. However, these ghosts devour each other. In other parts of the underworld, there are restrictions that prevent ghosts from attacking and devouring each other. But there are none in the River of Oblivion. Once you enter the River of Oblivion, only the souls with the deepest obsessions can survive there."
"If a living being falls in, its soul will be torn apart by the ghosts. Even immortals, whose souls are strong, can stay in the River of Oblivion for a short time, but if they stay there for too long, their souls will still be corroded."
Ye Chen said, "Let's go, let's go take a look."
The underworld forbids outsiders from flying, and since they are guests, they cannot break the rules.
Lian Yao had told Ye Chen about these details of etiquette before he came.
The two walked together to the banks of the River of Oblivion. Besides the Bridge of Helplessness, there was a fishing boat on the bank, with an old man sitting on it.
"You two deities, would you like to take a boat?"
Upon seeing the two approach, the old man asked.
Lian Yao asked in surprise, "When did boats appear on the River of Oblivion?"
A ghost messenger saw the token of Meng Po floating above his head and knew that these two deities must be distinguished guests of his superiors. He dared not be negligent and stepped forward to explain: "This boat and the boatman are the result of a ghost's enlightenment and cultivation in the River of Oblivion. They are here to carry souls who have mistakenly entered the River of Oblivion and wish to repent across the river to be reincarnated, thus accumulating merit."
Lian Yao nodded. In his memory, the souls thrown into the River of Oblivion could never leave. They were either imprisoned in the river forever or their obsession dissipated and they were devoured by other ghosts.
Over the years, countless great ghosts have arisen in the River of Oblivion.
So many ghosts are ultimately a hidden danger.
If one day the River of Oblivion can no longer contain them, and so many ghosts escape, who knows how many worlds they will destroy.
Lian Yao looked at Ye Chen, "Want to sit up and take a look?"
"Um!"
Ye Chen nodded.
The two boarded the boat.
The two sat at one bow of the boat, while the old man stood at the stern, rowing with both hands, and said, "Let's set sail! Hold on tight, you two deities!"
Knowing that the two were not going to be reincarnated, the old man rowed the boat to the middle of the river and began to row along the riverbank so that they could enjoy the scenery on both sides.
Ye Chen and Lian Yao sat side by side at the bow of the boat, looking around curiously.
"Young deity, the River of Oblivion is filled with ghosts who had deep obsessions in their previous lives. They have devoured countless souls while they are still alive. Please be careful not to fall in."
Seeing that Ye Chen's movements were a bit too exaggerated, the old man spoke up to remind him.
"Oh, thanks for reminding me."
After Ye Chen finished speaking politely, he continued to crane his neck and look at the water below, as if he were doing his own thing.
The surface of the River of Oblivion was calm, and not a single ghost could be seen. Ye Chen said, "Where are the ghosts in this river?"
The old man said, "That's strange. In the past, when we crossed the river, it was usually ghosts that tried to stop the boats. Why are these guys so quiet today?"
Ye Chen turned to Lian Yao beside him and saw that his face was pale and beads of sweat were on his forehead.
"Lianyao! What's wrong?" Ye Chen quickly hugged him tightly.
Lian Yao felt somewhat relieved as he was enveloped by his warm aura. He said, "I'm fine. It's probably because my true form is an aquatic plant. The water of the River of Oblivion makes me uncomfortable."
“Then let’s go back!” Ye Chen said immediately.
"No need. You rarely come here, you should at least explore the entire underworld. I'm fine, just hold me and I'll be alright."
Upon hearing this, Ye Chen hugged him even tighter.
Lian Yao buried her head in his chest, closed her eyes, and her long eyelashes trembled slightly.
pain!
Ouch!
Ouch, that hurts!
The fragmented memories that surfaced in my mind were the intense pain of my body being torn into many, many pieces.
Right here, right here in the River of Oblivion.
Amidst the boundless suffering, a familiar voice was faintly heard—
"Ancestral God, if this continues, his soul will not be able to bear it. Let's use the Soup of Bewitching Souls to relieve his pain."
No, no! I don't want to drink the potion of infatuation, I can't forget, I can't forget...it!
Lian Yao resisted in her heart, but the pain prevented her from making a sound.
Lian Yao remembered. There was something on his mind that he had always been concerned about. It was something that was very important to him, something he would rather die than forget!
But what exactly is it?
The Fairy Meng Po threw him entirely into the magical potion used for cooking soup.
Inside the round cauldron, in the bubbling broth of bewitching potion, a golden lotus flower was completely submerged. Lian Yao felt the pain in her body gradually subside, her consciousness became numb, and her memories became increasingly blurred.
A tear rolled down his cheek; so this is how I forgot...
Wait, in that memory, his true form was a golden lotus flower?!
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