Marrying a playboy? She turned the tables and used a magical talisman to become famous throughout th

He couldn't continue.

Yin Liuli sighed inwardly as she looked at him.

She's a fearless person, but what she hates most is owing favors. Gu Jinyan has been completely devoted to her, so naturally she can't let him be taken advantage of.

"Alright." Yin Liuli withdrew her hand and turned to look at the Empress. "I'm making this trip, but not for the Xiao family, nor for any of those lousy lords. I'm doing it for Gu Jinyan."

Upon hearing this, the Empress burst into tears, her lips trembling, and it took her a long time to manage to utter a single sentence: "Liuli, I...I will remember your kindness."

Yin Liuli didn't reply, but simply said, "Before I leave this world, there are a few things to prepare. First, find me a quiet room with the doors and windows tightly closed, so that not a single ray of light can get in. Second, prepare three ever-burning lamps, and use the finest ghee for the lamp oil. Third, after I enter meditation, no one is allowed to touch my physical body, not even a single person."

"And also," she turned to look at Gu Jinyan, "you stay by my side and don't leave for a moment. If anything tries to take advantage of the situation, you have to protect me."

Gu Jinyan nodded vigorously, his eyes filled with unprecedented solemnity: "Don't worry, I'm here."

The Empress immediately gave the order, and in less than half an hour, a secret room was prepared.

The secret chamber was located deep within a side hall of the Empress's palace. The walls were made of thick blue bricks, and the only window was completely covered by heavy brocade. Inside, there was only a low couch, a small table, and three brand-new bronze lamps on the table.

Before entering, Yin Liuli removed all the hairpins and earrings from her hair, and even untied the jade pendant from her waist. She wore a plain white ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), and her hair was simply tied in a bun, making her look as simple and serene as a hermit.

"When I walk through the underworld, I can't carry any metal objects on me, otherwise it will disturb the underworld." She said as she sat cross-legged on the low couch.

Gu Jinyan looked at her, his Adam's apple bobbing, as if he wanted to say something but then swallowed it back.

The old woman lit the three ever-burning lamps one by one. The ghee made a soft sizzling sound as it burned, and a faint milky aroma filled the secret room.

Yin Liuli closed her eyes and regulated her breathing, her hands forming a strange hand seal. Her breathing gradually became long and slow, and the rise and fall of her chest became smaller and smaller until it was almost invisible.

Gu Jinyan stood to the side, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Suddenly, the flame of the first ever-burning lamp leaped up, its warm yellow turning into an eerie, ghostly green.

The old woman was so frightened that she took a step back, but Gu Jinyan remained motionless.

Immediately afterwards, the second lamp also changed color, its eerie green light reflecting on Yin Liuli's face, making her appearance both familiar and strange.

When the third lamp changed color, Yin Liuli's body, which was sitting cross-legged, suddenly went limp, as if something had been drawn out of her body.

Gu Jinyan's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively wanted to reach out to help, but he forcibly restrained himself.

He remembered Yin Liuli's words—no one is allowed to touch his physical body.

At the same time, Yin Liuli was already standing in an endless gray fog.

She looked down at her hands; they were translucent, with a faint halo. The ground beneath her feet was bluish-black, like a dirt road compacted by countless feet over thousands of years.

A huge, dark city gate could be vaguely seen ahead, with two pale white lanterns hanging above it, each bearing the character "Gate of Ghosts".

Yin Liuli took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Shadows flashed by from time to time in the gray mist; some cried out, some groaned, and some let out strange giggles. Yin Liuli kept her eyes down, ignoring them all, and walked steadily with her feet firmly on the ground.

Two ghostly soldiers stood at the city gate, one with a blue face and fangs, the other with a bull's head and a human body. Seeing Yin Liuli approach, the blue-faced ghostly soldier raised his steel fork and shouted sternly, "What kind of living soul dares to trespass into the underworld!"

Yin Liuli remained calm and composed. She flipped her right hand, and a golden light shone from her palm. Within that golden light, the outline of a rune could be faintly seen—the very rune she had drawn on her palm before descending to the underworld.

"Yin Liuli, a cultivator from the mortal world, has been ordered by the Dao to enter the underworld to investigate a karmic matter. I humbly request that you two ghost messengers grant me this favor."

Upon seeing the golden light, the blue-faced ghost soldier's expression changed. He exchanged a glance with the bull-headed ghost soldier and then made way for him.

Having narrowly escaped death, Yin Liuli found herself in a bright and clear world.

A straight dirt road stretched into the distance, its sides lined with large, red flowers, as red as if splashed with blood. The flowers bloomed wildly, moving without wind, their petals opening and closing as if breathing.

Red spider lily.

Yin Liuli glanced at it once and then looked away, walking briskly forward along the dirt road.

Scattered along the road were a few wandering souls, some bewildered, some weeping, and some expressionless. They were being escorted by ghost messengers, walking forward step by step.

Yin Liuli walked past them to the end of the Road to the Underworld.

Ahead was a bridge paved with bluestone slabs, and at the head of the bridge stood a stone tablet with two large characters engraved on it: "奈何" (Naihe).

An old woman stood on the bridge, her back hunched, her face full of wrinkles, holding a bowl of soup in her hands.

That's Meng Po.

Yin Liuli knew she couldn't cross this bridge. She was a living soul, not a dead one; once she crossed the Bridge of Helplessness and drank the Meng Po soup, she would never be able to go back.

She bypassed the Bridge of Helplessness and headed east.

Walking the path of the dead is different from the path of the dead; cultivators who walk the path of the dead have their own set of rules. She wasn't looking for the Bridge of Helplessness, but rather the Crossing Between Yin and Yang.

The Yin-Yang Ferry is a side passage left by the underworld for cultivators. There is a small boat at the ferry, and the boatman is an old man with one eye.

When Yin Liuli arrived at the ferry, the one-eyed old man was dozing on the awning boat. Sensing someone approaching, he opened his remaining eye, looked Yin Liuli up and down, and chuckled twice: "Oh, a rare guest. It's been so many years since I've seen a cultivator who travels through the underworld."

Yin Liuli cupped her hands in greeting: "Master, please ferry me across the river."

The old man stood up, using his boat pole, and said slowly, "It's easy to ferry you across, but do you know the rules of this river?"

Yin Liuli said, "I know a little. This river is bottomless, and beneath the boats lie only white bones. I will pay one lifespan in exchange for a round trip."

The old man grinned, revealing a set of yellow teeth: "You know your stuff. But little girl, your lifespan is very valuable, are you willing to part with it?"

Yin Liuli didn't hesitate: "I taught you, you guide me. Whether I'm willing to give it up or not is my business."

The old man said no more, pushed the boat ashore, and the awning boat slowly left the shore.

A thin layer of mist floated on the river, making it gloomy and obscuring everything. But as the boat reached the middle of the river, Yin Liuli glanced down and saw that the water was a dark red, thick like blood. Beneath the surface, she could vaguely see countless hands struggling, flailing, and screaming silently.

She looked away.

When the boat reached the other side, Yin Liuli jumped onto the dock, glanced back at the old man, and said, "I'll come back to ferry you back in an hour."

The old man had closed his eyes, as if he were asleep, and only waved his hand.

Yin Liuli didn't linger any longer and strode towards the Yama Palace.