Thin mist shrouded everything, the underworld was cloaked in darkness.

Deng Ai wanted a bowl of Meng Po soup, to forget the past, throw himself into reincarnation, and leave behind the resentment of being the Ghost Lord.

For him, memories might be a form of torment, but everyone has their own destiny. Chen Yi said little about it; since a bowl of Meng Po soup could help cross the Ghost Gate, then he would procure one.

Thus, Yin Weiyin thought of the ghostly woman who sold Meng Po soup and suggested they turn back.

Chen Yi agreed with this proposal. If they went to the Naihe Bridge, the journey would be long, fraught with peril. Instead of going forward, they might as well retrace their steps to find the ghostly woman who sold Meng Po soup privately.

And so, they spent nearly ten days on the way back, arriving at the place where the Prince Mansion's rear mountain dipped into the underworld. The ghostly soil was visible with a glance upwards, yet the ghostly woman's figure was nowhere to be seen.

The chilling wind blew through silence, and the scenes in the mist were hazy.

They searched for a long time, but to no avail.

Had she already sold her ninety-nine bowls of Meng Po soup?

Both couldn't help but speculate. If so, their trip was in vain.

Unable to find her at the moment, Yin Weiyin calculated a fortune. The sign was steady, evidence she was still around.

Thus, the two continued their search.

Finally, they truly found her.

The ghostly woman wasn't elsewhere but at the gate—the gate at the back of the Prince Mansion, the one connecting the realm of the living and the dead.

When Chen Yi and Yin Weiyin found her, she startled.

Then, she picked up a wooden bucket, squeezed out a smile, and said:

"Selling Meng Po soup. Do you want Meng Po soup? I happen to have two bowls left. You can pair up for the journey… No, anyway, do you want it?"

Seeing Chen Yi and Yin Weiyin return, the ghostly woman vaguely felt they would definitely want the Meng Po soup.

"Just one bowl."

Chen Yi's response half delighted and half surprised her.

The ghostly woman pulled a bitter face and said, "Why not take both bowls? Whether you drink them or not, keeping one as a reserve wouldn't be bad."

Yin Weiyin shot her a wary glance.

"Immortal maid, don't exorcise demons here."

The ghostly woman flinched back hastily, replying in quick succession:

"One bowl it is, one bowl it is… at worst, I'll wait a few hundred years, or a few thousand years, to try and convince someone again, wait for someone to honor my request."

Chen Yi fixed his eyes on her, thought for a moment, and said:

"Then perhaps, both bowls after all?"

The ghostly woman's face lit up with delight. Before Chen Yi could say more, fearing his rejection, she hurriedly brought out both bowls of Meng Po soup with both hands and handed them to him.

Chen Yi took a few sheets of paper money from his chest and handed them to her.

As she accepted the money, she praised her goods enthusiastically:

"The Meng Po soup at Naihe Bridge isn't the same as mine. Mine is much better."

"How so?"

"I added sugar—it's sweet."

The ghostly woman covered her mouth and laughed prettily.

She seemed very happy; the joy overflowed and infected others, even softening the ever-wary Yin Weiyin somewhat.

Chen Yi stared directly at this woman of unknown origin, unable to tell how long she'd been staying here.

Hundreds of years? Thousands? Or was it hundreds and thousands of years on Earth instead?

He suddenly asked:

"Why do you want to leave so badly?"

"I've said it before—to take a look at sunlight." The ghostly woman replied lightly, "I've spent my whole life in this underworld, I really want to go out and see just once."

"That's all?" Yin Weiyin questioned in confusion.

"It's actually more than that… seems like it's more than that."

The ghostly woman turned her face away, gazing at the tightly shut bronze gate, her eyes long and distant,

"It feels like there's a lot waiting for me outside.

So many… things I can't remember waiting for me."

Her tone grew slightly lower; as someone reduced to a mere soul and spirit, there were plenty of things she couldn't recall.

Chen Yi followed her gaze for a while.

The ghostly woman turned her head back just then and brushed aside her thoughts. She glanced at Yin Weiyin, then at Chen Yi. Having waited for so long, she seemed to have met her final customers. Her mood soared, and she said lightly:

"You must love each other deeply."

Chen Yi was briefly surprised.

Beside him, Yin Weiyin went still. Her gaze lowered, her expression complicated.

Keeping the female crown's expression firmly in view, Chen Yi laughed lightly and asked:

"Why do you say that?"

"I feel… you suit each other, seem perfect together." The ghostly woman said softly.

Chen Yi pondered for a moment before replying, "That's not far off."

The ghostly woman gave him a smile of blessing.

Chen Yi glanced sideways at the quiet female crown and responded more gently, "We're engaged."

The female crown's gaze abruptly lifted, a complicated mix of emotions flowing through her before she softly replied, "Mm."

"Congratulations, congratulations indeed."

The ghostly woman beamed brightly, as though witnessing lovers finally come together,

"When can I attend your wedding feast?"

Chen Yi hesitated for a moment and answered vaguely, "Not sure yet."

It wasn't a lie—he hadn't discussed a specific timeframe with the Prince Mansion or with Yin Weiyin.

Even with such an ambiguous reply, the ghostly woman seemed as though she had tasted happiness. She suddenly turned to Yin Weiyin and smiled:

"Miss, do you like him?"

Yin Weiyin didn't know how to answer. She asked herself if she didn't love him, yet in truth, she had been slowly ensnared. She laughed softly and said:

"He's the one who likes me."

Chen Yi raised an eyebrow.

Yin Weiyin, feeling a touch embarrassed, whispered:

"Enough. Leave it at that—this is an arranged marriage."

The ghostly woman mischievously winked at Chen Yi, her demeanor lively:

"She's not admitting she likes you."

Chen Yi chuckled lightly, refraining from responding, instead turning to plant a quick kiss on the female crown's face.

The ghostly woman gasped dramatically.

Yin Weiyin's face flushed red, muttering to herself:

Impossible to like him, absolutely not.

Her fingertips brushed against the kiss mark unknowingly, before swiftly withdrawing.

After exchanging pleasantries with these final customers, the ghostly woman gently set down her wooden bucket. As the breeze stirred, her already blurry features grew even fainter.

She slowly turned around.

Chen Yi couldn't help calling out:

"Hey, are you really leaving?"

The ghostly woman paused and turned her gaze back, nodding lightly.

"Will you… vanish completely? You're just a soul—why not reincarnate?" Chen Yi murmured after a brief pause.

A ghost like her, how could she endure the vastness of the human realm?

Even malevolent spirits capable of wreaking havoc avoided sunlight, fearing its searing pain that could obliterate their very soul.

"I know. If I reincarnate, I'll forget many things, many people,"

The ghostly woman nodded earnestly and said:

"While I still remember, I truly want to see—just once, even if it means vanishing completely…

If I forget my greatest yearning, then even accomplishing it would lose all meaning."

Chen Yi furrowed his brow slightly. He had a good impression of this ghostly woman, but… a fleeting encounter, no more than strangers in a distant land.

And so he finally muttered, "Alright."

The ghostly woman broke into a broad smile, waving toward them both:

"Goodbye. Let's hope next time I see you, you'll already be married."

Yin Weiyin waved slightly, while Chen Yi hesitated, his gaze tender as he said:

"Then… goodbye."

The ghostly woman had fully turned away, taking step after step toward the bronze gate.

Chen Yi watched as her figure gradually receded, until it became just a speck in the corridor.

And then, the gate slowly opened.

A day above ground is a year below. Ten-plus days in the underworld had passed for Chen Yi and Yin Weiyin, and now a faint light graced the horizon.

A streak of dawn crept through the interlaced trees, spilling into their view.

The ghostly woman raised her hand as she stepped toward the sunlight.

She lifted her gaze and finally saw that single ray of sunlight.

It burned, the agony making her tremble.

She stood there, gazing dumbfounded at the sunlight, her entire being bathed in its glow.

"Oh, so this is sunlight. So this is pain. So this is scorching…"

Her lips moved, but she could produce no sound. Looking down, she found that she was already crumbling away.

"So you really do vanish completely…"

More and more she deteriorated, diffusing into nothingness.

At this moment, she recalled something, abruptly turning her head, reaching out as if to grasp something, but her hand in mid-air was already disintegrating bit by bit.

Her figure seemed to sway gently in the wind, growing thinner and thinner, like a fish that had swum its final stroke with no strength left.

Yin Weiyin could bear to watch no longer, while Chen Yi's outstretched hand paused mid-motion—between the living and the dead lay the boundary she stood upon, the direction they had crossed to enter the underworld.

In the end, there was nothing left.

Indeed, she had finally seen sunlight.

And so… vanished completely.

..............

Near the brink of annihilation, she remembered she bore the surname Yin.

And not far away, within the coffin, lay her earthly remains.

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