The sound of flowing water, different from before, and a strange, ethereal fragrance gently woke me from a dreamless sleep. Opening my eyes, I saw that our boat was now drifting upstream on a vast river. On the banks, countless crimson flowers stretched endlessly, arranged in a soft curve under the night sky. The sight seemed to go on forever, like blood or fire.

  This was it. The realm of the dead.

  The river, named Wangchuan, the flowers called the Bian Hua and the opposite scent that filled the air—all confirmed it. This was the pce we had come for, and only a step away from the world we were to return to.

  (T/N: 忘川; wàng chuān means Forgetful, 彼岸; bǐ àn hua means Other Shore Flower or Red Spider Lily or Budhism paramita.)

  The children slowly woke up, startled by the surroundings and the sky above that seemed like but not quite like the sky. They nervously asked me where we were.

  I didn′t tell them this was the nd of the dead, but only that this was the necessary path to get back home.

  They finally had expressions of surprise.

  As our small boat cut through the river, the "Bian Hua" seemed like friendly hosts, watching us, the uninvited guests.

  Along the way, we encountered no abnormalities. In fact, the Underworld was not the terrifying pce associated only with death, as legend had it. It was simply a space that accommodated another form of existence. The universe is like this—everything has its opposite. Where there is darkness, there is light; where there is shadow, there is sun; where there is life, there is death. This is true bance. At least, the Underworld is still a normal space, far more upright than the world filled with fires and bull yaokais we came from.

  I began to consider whether I should properly deal with Mu when we returned. This woman, she truly is a disaster.

  The sound of the water grew weaker and weaker. I saw the flowing river gradually slow down, and the water level lowered as well. Where the river had completely disappeared, there was a stretch of dry, pine-like gravel. Each stone was as smooth as a mirror, and among the shimmering, multi-colored stones stood a rectangur bck object, with edges wrapped in flowing white light.

  As I approached, I saw that the bck square was formed by a swirling vortex that kept rotating endlessly. Some strange, beautiful lights would occasionally shine through the gaps in the swirling vortex.

  That was... light from the human world.

  "Alright, we're almost home," I smiled as I announced to the group of kids.

  They seemed unable to believe it, asking foolishly, "Really? Really?"

  "You'll know when you step out," I winked at them.

  I took a deep breath, patted my true body, and smiled. "You've worked hard this time. I'll make sure to give you more spiritual dew when we get back. Next year, you'll definitely grow even more lush and prosperous." After speaking, I reached out my hand to Pang Er. "Give me your hand, and everyone else, hold on to each other. Don't let go!"

  The boat's bow slowly entered the "gate," and Pang Er was too afraid to open his eyes.

  His hand was sweating as he held onto mine, and the other girls were in almost the same state, gripping each other's hands tightly, too scared to open their eyes.

  I was the first to pass through the swirling vortex. It felt cool and comfortable, without any discomfort. One second ter, the scene in front of me brightened, and a familiar warmth enveloped my body. Sunlight, real sunlight, belonging to the human world, poured down from the crisp autumn sky. The distant mountains and the road beneath them, with cars passing by occasionally, all y real and vivid before me.

  Gā gā gā gā!

  I turned toward the sound and saw a group of ducks leisurely walking by a pond, with a few fpping their wings curiously, looking at the figure that appeared from the void.

  The exit to the underworld is like this: unpredictable. No one knows where they'll end up in the human world after emerging. Luckily, we arrived at a suburban pond. If we had materialized in someone's house, we would have terrified an innocent person half to death.

  I smiled, tapped Pang Er's head, and said, "We're here. Open your eyes!"

  He cautiously opened one eye, then froze for a moment. Then his excitement grew, and he waved my hand away, shouting, "We′re back! We′re back!"

  The boat continued to drift outward, and the two girls with gsses made it out safely, followed by the st one, Ren Xiaocheng.

  My heart finally settled.

  Pang Er and the two girls with gsses rushed off the boat, and Ren Xiaocheng was about to follow. However, her face suddenly changed. With a scream, her body was pulled back toward the door of the underworld by some mysterious force.

  I silently cursed. The boat had already exited the underworld, and if Ren Xiaocheng, being an ordinary human, was pulled back into the underworld now, without the protection of my true form, her body and soul would be torn apart in an instant by the opposing forces of the underworld and the human world.

  I leapt forward, grabbing her hand and shouting, "Hold on!"

  The other three kids instinctively tried to help, but I shouted them back. I wouldn't let them approach the suddenly unstable exit. If one more unfortunate soul was dragged in, I wouldn′t be able to handle it.

  "Help!" Ren Xiaocheng cried out in distress.

  I could clearly feel her body being pulled inch by inch back into the underworld. The unseen force behind the door seemed far stronger than mine.

  "I don′t want to die... I don′t want to die!" Ren Xiaocheng screamed, struggling desperately, calling out to me for help.

  At this point, both my energy and spiritual power were at their limit.

  But how could I let everything fail at this moment?

  I gritted my teeth and resolved to give it my all. I wrapped my hands around her arms and the part of her body still outside, like stubborn tree branches, clinging on tightly. I told myself, even if it meant exhausting every st bit of my strength, even if it meant dying in the process, I would drag this girl out!

  I held my breath, gritted my teeth, closed my eyes, leaned back, and shouted, "Come out!"

  For the first time, I felt "immensely strong."

  With a whoosh, Ren Xiaocheng was pulled out of the door, crashing into me. The immense force of the collision made both of us slide back a long distance, scaring the ducks into fleeing in all directions.

  Ren Xiaocheng seemed to be stunned by the shock, lying in my arms, sobbing uncontrolbly.

  I patted her back, saying, "Okay, okay, it's over. Don't rub your snot on me, alright? You—"

  Before I could finish my sentence, I felt something was wrong. A sharp pain mixed with a kind of numbness gradually spread across my chest.

  Ren Xiaocheng climbed off me, removing her right hand from my chest, standing to the side. A smile, oddly sinister and cunning for someone her age, curved her lips. But her eyes were empty, vacant, as though there was no one home.

  I tried to stand up but found myself unable to move. There, embedded in my chest, was a sharp ice spike, as thin as a little finger. Its surface was etched with countless runes, twisting and squirming within the spike, like strange worms, rapidly crawling toward my heart. I tried to pull it out, gritting my teeth against the pain, but the moment my palm touched it, the spike dissolved into water and vanished, leaving nothing behind.

  Now, it wasn't just the sharp pain. It was agonizing, searing from the inside out. Every inch of my body felt as if it were being torn apart by countless razor-sharp teeth. My head was throbbing, almost as if it were about to explode, as though something was being taken from inside my skull, something vital.

  "Xiaocheng... you..." Her companion was clearly frightened by her actions, retreating as if seeing a ghost, while Ren Xiaocheng stood still as if nothing had happened.

  My vision became somewhat blurry, perhaps because the cold sweat falling like rain had blurred my eyes. Through the haze, I vaguely saw a figure slowly approaching me.

  Now, I couldn't even wipe the sweat off my forehead.