“So that’s what happened…”

Above the vast, misty waves of the Eastern Sea, Li Changshou explained the matter of the tree spirit in detail to Jiujiu.

Looking at the magical device containing the soul in Li Changshou’s hand, Jiujiu pouted and sighed, “Senior Sister Jiang Yu has had quite a rough journey. In the end, it was Senior Brother Qi Yuan who acted too rashly. This calls for a drink!”

Jiujiu casually grabbed the gourd hanging at her slender waist, tilted her head back for two gulps, and let out a satisfied “Ah” followed by… “Hic!”

Li Changshou, sitting behind her, couldn’t help but smile. If she wanted to drink, she could just drink – there was no need to find an excuse.

Due to Little Junior Aunt’s casual sitting posture, Li Changshou tried not to stare directly, only occasionally… ahem, he focused on gazing at the blue sky and white clouds!

Li Changshou said, “Grand-Master-Uncle Wang Qing has now achieved the Golden Immortal realm and will be eternally immortal from now on.”

“What’s so good about eternal life?” Jiujiu curled her lip. “All these cultivators chase after it without thinking. What if… what if… How does that saying go? For me, if one day all the wine in the world runs out, but I still have to live forever – what tremendous suffering that would be!”

Li Changshou smiled, “Junior Aunt, are you thinking of ‘becoming emotionless and natureless’?”

“Yes, yes!” Jiujiu immediately gave Li Changshou a thumbs up. “Little Changshou knows so much!”

“Junior Aunt, everything has two sides. Becoming emotionless and natureless is also a state of cultivation,” Li Changshou said gently. “The higher the realm, the closer one gets to the Great Dao. The Ancestor of the Dao School merged with the Heavenly Dao for this very reason – to reach the ultimate destination of the cultivation path. However, what you say is also correct. If after gaining immortality, one loses their emotions, preferences, and even the pursuit of the Dao, then that immortality would truly be meaningless.”

“Changshou, you’re different,” Jiujiu shifted backward, sliding down from the front of the gourd to its narrow waist. She leaned back on her hands, crossed her legs, and tilted her head back, making direct eye contact with Li Changshou who sat at the rear of the gourd.

Jiujiu suddenly giggled, making Li Changshou blink in confusion, wondering what his Junior Aunt was up to now.

“Little Changshou, you’re the most interesting and amusing person this Junior Aunt has ever met!”

Li Changshou: …

That was a compliment, right? It had to be a compliment!

If she meant to mock him as a joke, she would have used different words, right?

Li Changshou smiled without speaking and took out an alchemy scripture he had recently organized. He said, “Please keep us on course to the Underworld, Junior Aunt. This disciple will cultivate for now.”

“Really! Just when I praised you – how boring!” Jiujiu snorted but didn’t say more, after all, she was the one who had volunteered to accompany him to the Underworld.

Was she just out for a stroll?

No, she was worried about Little Changshou, who had just reached the Yuan Immortal realm. How could he venture carelessly into such a dangerous place as the Underworld?

Junior Aunt Jiujiu took another sip of wine and sped up the gourd, racing like lightning toward the Underworld.

And so, several days later…

“Niu, was that Sea God as mysterious as you said?”

On the eastern side of Fengdu City, atop two parallel mountains, a campfire was set up near the cliff. Two similarly built men in soul-collecting official robes squatted there chatting.

“Ma, why would I lie to you? What would I gain from that? Who told you to follow those human cultivators and go into closed-door cultivation? Do you need closed-door cultivation? You’re a Shaman, you fool! If you hadn’t gone into seclusion and had come with me then, you could have seen it yourself! That scene – goodness, crowds of people, banners flying, drums beating, powerful beings everywhere!”

As one Shaman cursed casually, the other smiled sheepishly, repeatedly expressing his regret.

Suddenly, ‘Ma’s eyes lit up, and his long chin lifted toward the small path not far below the mountain.

“Hey? Is that someone with our Shaman bloodline? Niu, look over there, that human girl sitting on the front of that big gourd, is she a Human-Shaman?”

“Should be a descendant of our Shaman tribe, but why did she enhance her bloodline strength in her chest muscles? How can she fight like that?”

“She must still have strength.”

The two exchanged glances, followed by shoulder-shrugging snickers.

But as they laughed, ‘Niu’ suddenly jolted to attention, noticing another person sitting at the back of the gourd, and hurriedly called out:

“See that man at the back? That’s the Sea God’s beloved! The only reason we could talk to the Sea God was through his introduction!”

“The Sea God’s male or female beloved?”

“Male!”

“By the Goddess, these humans are truly depraved… hehe, but I like it.”

“Pah, I misspoke! That’s the Sea God’s good friend! Not beloved!”

‘Niu’ immediately stood up and pulled out his head covering, swiftly putting it on.

“Quick, let’s go down to prepare for their reception. This is our chance to help those folks up on the surface!”

These two battle Shamans who had shed blood in the ancient wars busily transformed into the Underworld soul collectors, Ox-Head and Horse-Face.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face waited on the cliff for a while until the large gourd flew to the ‘Single Thread of Sky’ and was stopped by the Underworld guards.

With a shout from Ox-Head, two figures leaped down from the cliff edge!

Below, Jiujiu put away her precious gourd and followed behind Li Changshou.

Li Changshou took out a treasure pouch, smiling as he handed it to the guard captain.

Today’s guard captain looked like he was suffering from poor appetite and constipation, his face black as he held the treasure pouch. He glanced at Jiujiu and snorted:

“Behave yourselves in Fengdu City. This isn’t a place where you human True Immortals can run wild!”

Jiujiu rolled her eyes beside him but didn’t say anything.

Just then, two black shadows crashed down from high above. The various restrictions above the Single Thread of Sky all flashed with light but didn’t impede these two figures…

“Stop!”

“Hey! What are you doing!”

Two shouts rang out as a large foot flew from the side, directly kicking the guard captain flying. The treasure pouch flew two zhang high, caught steadily by Ox-Head.

Ox-Head glared at the guard captain who had been kicked a hundred zhang away and cursed:

“Are you blind? These are our Underworld’s honored guests! Moo!”

Horse-Face beside him immediately stepped forward and made a proper ceremonial bow to Li Changshou and Jiujiu. His unexpectedly handsome horse face wore a gentle smile.

“My apologies, our subordinate was offensive. Please forgive us… neigh.”

By now, Jiujiu was standing in front of Li Changshou, protecting him behind her. She transmitted her voice: “Be careful, this Underworld is too strange.”

Li Changshou: …

Well, can’t judge everyone the same way – the strangest ones were these two masked men right in front of them.

At this point, Ox-Head approached with a laugh.

Horse-Face stood aside somewhat reserved, now holding a stone comb, quietly grooming his brown mane.

Ox-Head directly ignored Jiujiu and smiled at Li Changshou:

“Changshou, we meet again! Have you come to the Underworld this time with instructions from the Sea God?”

“Junior Aunt, let me handle this.”

Li Changshou whispered in Jiujiu’s ear, then stepped forward to exchange ceremonial bows with Ox-Head.

After some pleasantries, Li Changshou explained his purpose, saying he had come to send a friend’s soul for reincarnation.

Ox-Head smiled, “That’s easy to arrange. As it happens, we brothers aren’t busy, and escorting souls for reincarnation is our duty as soul collectors. We’ll accompany you! Please! This way! Don’t be formal in the Underworld, we’re all family here, just treat it like your own home!”

“Thank you for your trouble, Senior Ox-Head,” Li Changshou replied with a smile.

Jiujiu couldn’t help but hold her forehead, finding it almost unbearable to watch.

Ox-Head summoned a comfortable open-top ox cart, and invited Li Changshou and Jiujiu to sit, while he and Horse-Face accompanied them.

They also summoned a squad of guards for escort, unhurriedly heading toward Fengdu City…

The old ox pulling the cart was no ordinary spirit beast – it walked on black clouds and flew quite fast.

In Li Changshou’s view, this pair of Underworld soul collectors was quite interesting.

In terms of personality, Ox-Head was rough, and Horse-Face was delicate.

Once on the ox cart, Ox-Head sat cross-legged and chatted casually with Li Changshou.

Horse-Face brought over a stool and sat properly at the back of the ox cart, thoughtfully providing a blanket for Jiujiu, the female cultivator in a short skirt, to drape over her legs.

When Ox-Head ran out of words, Horse-Face began speaking eloquently, discussing life and art with Li Changshou, describing the magnificent landscapes of the Netherworld to avoid any awkward silences.

Jiujiu, sitting behind Li Changshou, couldn’t help but transmit her voice in a murmur:

“Little Changshou, are these the Underworld acquaintances you mentioned?”

Li Changshou recalled the five hundred female ghosts and transmitted back:

“Our relationship is reasonably good. They need something from another friend of mine, so they’re trying to curry favor with us. These two are Battle Shamans who follow the Great Virtue Houtu. They possess formidable strength and hold divine positions granted by the Heavenly Dao – they’re worth befriending.”

Hearing this, Jiujiu’s expression became… indescribable.

Li Changshou soon discovered that although Ox-Head and Horse-Face might not hold high divine positions, their status within the Shaman tribe must be extraordinary…

With the two of them personally accompanying them, the journey was completely unobstructed.

When they entered the grand and eerie Fengdu City, the various ghost officials not only bowed but couldn’t help stealing glances at them.

The humans and demons who had come to Fengdu City on business all curiously observed their group.

Even the numerous ghost cultivators and yin cultivators in Fengdu City showed expressions of reverence.

Sometimes, all you need to make a statement is an ox cart.

The cart swayed gently until they reached the restricted area – the central district of Fengdu City.

After passing through several grand formations, they finally saw the true appearance of this place.

Ten majestic palaces floated in the air, connected by black chains several zhang in diameter, forming some kind of formation pattern.

Below these ten palaces, in the center of Fengdu City, was a circular pit ten li in diameter with no visible bottom.

A celestial island floated above the pit, upon which stood an enormous disc wrapped in clouds of rosy light.

The bottom of the deep pit was filled with blood mist, seemingly leading to endless abysses below, constantly echoing with the anguished cries of countless souls…

This was the Yama Palace, the Place of Reincarnation, and the Eighteen Levels of Hell.

Numerous figures flew about the Yama Palace, with ghost officials flying up and down, delivering souls to their designated places…

Li Changshou’s group first went to the Yama Palace above, avoiding the main hall and staying in a corner…

The reincarnation process had several steps, but with Ox-Head and Horse-Face present, many could be skipped.

Horse-Face directly invited a Judge to come over.

This Judge’s divine position in the Underworld was slightly higher than Ox-Head and Horse-Face’s, but he still showed great respect upon seeing them.

Li Changshou carefully observed – this Judge had attended the Sea God Temple’s ceremony last time…

Ox-Head rubbed his large hands together and smiled, asking, “Changshou, where’s our Master-Uncle?”

“Here,” Li Changshou took out the porcelain bottle and released the tree spirit’s soul. The little tree spirit’s soul curled up into a ball in Li Changshou’s palm.

The Judge took out an iron pen and an ancient book – these were projections of the heavenly treasures, the Book of Life and Death and the Judge’s Pen, which could only be used by judges of various ranks within the Yama Palace.

In Li Changshou’s understanding, the Book of Life and Death and the Judge’s Pen were a ‘system,’ rather than just two simple treasures.

The Judge touched the little tree spirit’s soul once with the iron pen, and rows of text appeared in the Book of Life and Death.

Then, the Judge patiently explained:

“There are no sins in this life, and in the previous life, there were good deeds and accumulated virtues. The merits outweigh the karmic obstacles, so the next life should be in the human realm, though the path of fate has some hardships. Here, would you like to make some adjustments?”

Li Changshou hurriedly said, “If possible, please.”

“Very well, I’ll do my best to adjust the fate pattern.”

The Judge pondered for a moment before writing two sentences.

Although he couldn’t change the existing text in the Book of Life and Death, he could add a line at the end saying ‘misfortune shall turn to fortune, noble people shall be met along the way’ – effectively changing the fate.

Ox-Head asked, “What else can we do here? Let’s do everything for our Master-Uncle!”

“We can also determine which family they will be born into,” the Judge smiled. “Although it will consume some merit, we’re all friends here, and this person isn’t evil, so some modifications are acceptable.”

“Do it!” Ox-Head waved his large hand, and the Judge immediately began writing.

Although by rule, Li Changshou and Jiujiu weren’t allowed to view the Book of Life and Death, they could occasionally glance at it from the side, accidentally seeing…

Soon, Master-Uncle’s reincarnation package was complete.

The Judge also explained: “The Book of Life and Death generally only affects mortals. Once they begin cultivation and step onto the path of immortality, the book’s constraints on their fate will be greatly weakened.”

Li Changshou thanked the Judge and presented a generous gift he had prepared. The Judge glanced at Ox-Head and Horse-Face before smilingly accepting it.

After confirming the soul’s next life and obtaining the reincarnation quota, Ox-Head and Horse-Face led Li Changshou and Jiujiu out of the Yama Palace.

They took a small side path, climbing up to the celestial island above the deep pit.

This celestial island was quite remarkable. As soon as they stepped onto it, the scenery before them shifted, heaven and earth turned chaotic and upside down, and their surroundings completely changed…

A small world was hidden here!

A huge seven-colored disc stood at the end of this narrow heaven and earth…

Many ghost officials were busy in various places, escorting human-shaped souls to the Hometown-Viewing Terrace, then to view the Three-Lives Stone, cross the Bridge of Helplessness, drink a bowl of Lady Meng’s soup, and enter reincarnation.

This was the procedural reincarnation.

There were also countless true spirits floating about like summer fireflies, occasionally being drawn toward the Six Paths Reincarnation Disc by its pull…

This was true spirit rebirth, quite different from soul reincarnation.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face led the two to cut directly to the front of the Hometown-Viewing Terrace, with a group of ghost officials hurriedly making way.

Most souls were in a daze and had no chance to voice any opinions.

A pale yellow light flew out from the Hometown-Viewing Terrace, enveloping the tree spirit’s soul.

The tree spirit’s form slowly dispersed, transforming into the original form of a true spirit, then condensing into a beautiful woman wearing gauze robes…

Her eyes were full of confusion as she looked at the Hometown-Viewing Terrace, seeing only an old tree about to wither, its lifespan nearly exhausted.

Then, the woman was drawn by a beam of light to the Three-Lives Stone nearby, where she stood quietly for a while, seeing her previous life and the life before that…

Soon, with tears in her eyes, the woman turned to look at Li Changshou and Jiujiu, softly calling out:

“Thank you… thank you… Junior Sister Jiu, and Changshou… thank you…”

She must have seen Li Changshou’s figure in her life as a tree spirit and learned his name.

Li Changshou made a ceremonial bow, and Jiujiu grinned at Wan Jiangyu while secretly wiping her eye corner.

It was just the wind in her eyes – not because she was emotional.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face stepped forward together, calling out: “It’s getting late, the earlier you go for reincarnation, the better. Don’t waste your friends’ good intentions.”

Wan Jiangyu made another ceremonial bow to Li Changshou before being escorted by Ox-Head and Horse-Face on either side to the Bridge of Helplessness.

After crossing the Bridge of Helplessness, they reached Lady Meng, who casually scooped up a bowl of soup.

Ox-Head stepped forward and whispered something, causing Lady Meng’s hand to shake, spilling most of the soup back into the wooden barrel, leaving Wan Jiangyu to drink only a small portion…

When Wan Jiangyu’s figure was enveloped by the light from the Six Paths Reincarnation Disc and quickly disappeared, Li Changshou finally felt relieved of one worry.

Next, he would go to Master-Uncle Wan Jiangyu’s place of rebirth and arrange for a paper person to guard…

Hmm?

Li Changshou turned his head to see Jiujiu tilting her head, gently leaning against his shoulder, letting out a soft sigh full of emotion.