Flipping over the black wall, Lu Yu entered a completely different world.
On the other side of the black wall was the desolate and silent Land of Mist, while this side was a brightly lit neighborhood, filled with densely packed buildings.
Looking at the endless flow of people on the street, Lu Yu wondered if he had entered an illusion.
But the truth told him that everything appearing before him was real.
On the streets, a variety of spirits coexisted harmoniously, having long cast aside prejudice and animosity between races.
Having died once, what else was there to hold onto?
The main reason was that the Netherworld wouldn't allow "death," making conflicts aningless.
Lu Yu disguised his attire and walked into a small shop that looked like a store.
By observing the passersby on the street, Lu Yu had almost mastered the soul language.
Compared to normal language, the soul language resembled communicating thoughts more closely, without the possibility of misinterpretation, because what you heard was the speaker's most explicit intention.
This was also why spirits of various forms could live peacefully together, as there were no communication barriers between them.
Ting! A few rough black coins fell on the table; these coins were made of black soil.
After Lu Yu's observation, he found that the black soil used to make these coins could only be found on the other side of the black wall in the Land of Mist; there seed to be no such material on this side.
As for extracting black soil from the wall, those with power would disdain to do it, and those without power couldn't do it at all.
Only an outsider like Lu Yu, with a little special power, could scrape so black soil off the wall.
These Black Soil Coins were all made by him using a mold crafted from an original Black Soil Coin, pressed to be completely identical.
The shopkeeper, seeing the Black Soil Coins on the table, reached out to cover a few and drew them into his arms, warmly asking, "What would you like?"
Lu Yu glanced at the items on the other custors' tables and said to the shopkeeper, "Give the sa as him."
"Alright, you sure have a keen eye. This is a specialty of our shop and greatly benefits the restoration of soul-body injuries," the shopkeeper praised, then said, "Please have a seat, I'll serve you shortly."
"Wait, I have another question for you," Lu Yu tapped the table, calling to the shopkeeper who was about to turn and leave.
Upon hearing his voice, the shopkeeper imdiately stopped, turned around, and looked at Lu Yu with a smile, respectfully saying, "Ask anything you want; as long as I know, I'll definitely tell you everything."
"Do you know how to reach the Netherworld River?" Lu Yu cut straight to the point.
As he asked, Lu Yu was highly tense, alert to every slight movent around him, fearing a slip of the tongue would give him away.
The shopkeeper paused for a mont, then said, "Netherworld River? You an the Mother River?"
"Wanting to go to the Mother River is easy! As long as soone else 'kills' you, you'll revive in the Mother River."
Then the shopkeeper realized that wasn't the question Lu Yu was asking, frowned, and after a mont said, "If you're asking about going to the Mother River while 'alive,' I indeed don't know."
The shopkeeper shook his head, indicating his own powerlessness.
Lu Yu was also stunned upon hearing this and silently noted that the original residents of the Netherworld called the Netherworld River the Mother River and could revive in the Mother River after death.
"Since you can revive from the Mother River, how co you don't know the way there? Haven't you died before?" Lu Yu asked instinctively.
The shopkeeper stared at Lu Yu for a while, saying, "I have died many tis, but it seems you haven't died yet! You know nothing about the Mother River."
"After coming out from the Mother River, you can never find the way back, no matter what mark you leave, it's useless. Unless you die again, you can't enter the Mother River."
After saying this, the shopkeeper hesitated for a mont and said, "I have heard a rumor."
He glanced around, leaned closer to Lu Yu, and whispered, "I don't know if this rumor is true or false, but so say that at the end of the West Street, a small courtyard houses a Ferryman of the Mother River, who guides those soul bodies that have died too many tis and lost their sanity back into the cycle of reincarnation."
"He is responsible for ferrying on the Mother River, so he should know the way there, right? Just saying, don't take it seriously, the Ferryman is a taboo existence for us, better to avoid contact if possible," the shopkeeper advised with lingering fear.
During one revival from the Mother River, he saw the figure of the Ferryman and almost thought he couldn't return.
After coming back, he abandoned fighting, peacefully opened a small shop, and lived as long as he could, until he got tired of life.
After all, he's also unsure if the next death would an being taken by the Ferryman.
...
Following the shopkeeper's directions, Lu Yu found the West Street and walked to the end of it.
From afar, Lu Yu saw the Ferryman's small courtyard because it was too conspicuous.
Around the Ferryman's courtyard was an empty space, extrely quiet, with no soul willing to get close. The bustling crowd stopped here.
Leaving the crowd, Lu Yu walked toward the Ferryman's small courtyard.
As he approached, several passersby turned their heads to look at him, with eyes that seed to regard him as a dead man.
"Here's yet another one who can't think straight. Isn't it good here? Striving for immortality isn't achievable, yet anyone here can live as long as they want and won't die. Why bother being reborn?" soone said in confusion.
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