Chapter 11

"Old lady, give me a bowl." Su Xing stepped forward, smiled brightly, and enthusiastically asked Meng Po for a bowl of soup.

"You're quite unusual, young man." Meng Po looked up, her face full of surprise as she sized up Su Xing, but her movements in ladling the soup were quick.

The sound of the copper spoon clinking against the large iron pot was crisp. Meng Po added a few more scoops into the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl. Su Xing watched curiously and noticed that the soup in the large iron pot seemed to never run out, and the blue-and-white porcelain bowls, which had been broken countless times, were still readily available as if they were inexhaustible.

"Here, since you're such a good boy, I'll give you a bit more." Meng Po smiled kindly and handed over the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl, which was filled with the clear and transparent Meng Po soup, shimmering like melted amber.

"This is the legendary Meng Po soup. It would be a shame not to drink it." Su Xing muttered to himself, picked up the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl, and saw the smooth, jade-like surface of the soup, which reflected his disheveled and dirty face.

Gulping sounds.

Su Xing tilted his head back and drank the entire bowl of Meng Po soup in one go.

"Delicious!"

Su Xing wiped his mouth with his sleeve and said contentedly.

"Old lady, your skills after thousands of years are not just talk." Meng Po nodded in satisfaction, her face beaming with a kind smile. The other ghosts who drank the Meng Po soup immediately lost their memories, but Su Xing still managed to give a comment after drinking.

"Wait!" Meng Po suddenly realized something, her eyes widening as she looked at Su Xing, who was savoring the aftertaste. "You... young man..."

"Old lady, can I have another bowl?" Su Xing smacked his lips, unable to resist, and asked shyly.

The ghosts behind him stared at each other in shock, and many of them fainted.

"You didn't lose your memory?" Meng Po asked cautiously, as the situation was too strange. In her thousands of years of selling Meng Po soup, she had never encountered such a case.

This was a serious matter, and Meng Po could not afford to be careless.

"I didn't lose my memory." Su Xing scratched the back of his head, a bit embarrassed, and asked, "Do I... need to pay for the soup?"

"If I don't drink it, I won't pay." Su Xing looked embarrassed, turned around, and headed towards the Tenth Hall to enter the cycle of rebirth.

That young man cannot enter the Six Realms of Rebirth; he hasn't lost his memory!

Meng Po realized the situation was bad and immediately called out to Su Xing, "Young man, the soup is free!"

"Really?" Su Xing walked back, eyeing Meng Po suspiciously. Free soup? Is there such a thing in this world?

"Of course, would old lady lie to you? You can drink as much as you want!" Meng Po rolled her eyes and said firmly.

"Heaven!" The ghosts in the queue behind him cried out, the little devils and ghosts were stunned, and the ghosts secretly marveled.

Meng Po knew the situation was serious. Despite her age, she was quick and agile, even more so than young men. With a flick of her arm, she quickly arranged four large blue-and-white porcelain bowls in front of the stall.

The large blue-and-white porcelain bowls were filled with the clear and transparent soup, like four bright mirrors. The rich aroma wafted through the air, and the ghosts in the distance all had their throats moving, secretly swallowing their saliva. They knew that drinking the Meng Po soup would make them forget everything from their past lives and leave a single tear of the mortal world, but they still craved it and wanted to drink it.

"Old lady, you're really amazing." Su Xing sincerely praised, picking up the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl and drinking it heartily.

"Old lady is just skilled from practice." Meng Po said lightly, her heart filled with pride and joy. It was the first time a ghost had craved the soup and said it was delicious, and the wrinkles around her eyes moistened slightly.

Su Xing caught a glimpse of the tears in Meng Po's eyes from the corner of his eye and said, "Old lady, the soup is really delicious!"

"Is that so?" The tears in Meng Po's eyes finally fell, rolling down her wrinkled face. "Old lady has been selling Meng Po soup for a thousand years, and every moment, ghosts drink it. This is the first time I've heard a ghost say the soup is delicious."

Meng Po had sold soup for thousands of years, and countless ghosts had drunk it, shedding tears of the mortal world. Many ghosts had struggled to drink the Meng Po soup, unable to let go of their past lives. If not for Meng Po's powerful abilities and her mesmerizing voice, they wouldn't have drunk it. But never had a ghost like Su Xing, who drank the soup voluntarily and said it was delicious.

A tear fell, and Meng Po had seen countless ghosts cry, feeling heartache. This time, she cried, but with joy.

"Hey, young man, hurry up. We still need to drink the Meng Po soup and be reborn!" The ghosts behind him pushed Su Xing, urging him. One of them was a ghost eager to be reborn.

"Yes, after you drink, it's our turn." Another ghost urged, a ghost who was eager to drink the delicious Meng Po soup.

"Alright, young man, come to the stall. Old lady is happy today, and I'll cook more soup for you when I have time." Meng Po said kindly, glancing at the long queue behind Su Xing and thinking about her duties.

Su Xing was too special, the first to drink the Meng Po soup without losing his memory. Meng Po couldn't let him go easily.

"Alright." Su Xing agreed readily, knowing he couldn't enter the Six Realms of Rebirth without forgetting his past.

Su Xing put down the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl, walked around to the back of the stall, and watched Meng Po work.

The stall was a simple pushcart made of gray-brown wood, with a blurred and ancient texture, having been polished by countless hands. The pushcart had many hidden drawers, and on top was a large iron pot filled with the magical Meng Po soup.

"Old lady, give me a bowl!" A ghost eager to be reborn said hurriedly, tapping on the front of the pushcart.

Meng Po was taken aback; she hadn't used her mesmerizing voice, yet the ghost had asked for the Meng Po soup voluntarily!

"Hurry up, I'm in a rush to be reborn. If I miss the auspicious time, I'll hold you responsible!" The ghost said anxiously.

"Alright, alright..." Meng Po quickly took a large blue-and-white porcelain bowl from a drawer, the copper spoon clinking as she ladled the Meng Po soup into the bowl.

The ghost eagerly took the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl and immediately drank it, as if afraid the soup would slip away.

With a clatter, the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl fell to the ground, breaking into two pieces and slowly disappearing. The ghost, dazed, turned and walked towards the portal leading to the Tenth Hall.

"It seems the effect of the Meng Po soup hasn't failed." Meng Po breathed a slight sigh of relief. If the effect of the Meng Po soup had failed, the consequences would be unimaginable, with billions or more ghosts stuck in the underworld, unable to be reborn, causing chaos in the Three Realms.

"Old lady, hurry up." As soon as the ghost eager to be reborn left, a ghost eager to drink the soup rushed forward.

Unlike the previous ghost, this one drank slowly, savoring the taste.

Unfortunately, it was useless. As soon as the Meng Po soup entered the ghost's mouth, they immediately lost their memory, regardless of how much they drank, and forgot the taste.

Clatter.

The ghost eager to drink the soup broke the large blue-and-white porcelain bowl and walked away, dazed, and instinctively looked back at the stall, as if something had once captivated them.

The queue was long, and the ghosts came in an orderly manner to the stall, drank a bowl of Meng Po soup, and headed to the Tenth Hall to enter the cycle of rebirth and be reborn.

Su Xing's eyes followed Meng Po's movements, sensing a mysterious charm. It seemed like a thin veil, but he couldn't quite articulate it. He was also curious about the other drawers on the pushcart, which Meng Po had never opened.

Many ghosts passed, but the queue didn't shorten. Su Xing, bored, observed the ghosts coming to drink the Meng Po soup.

The ghosts were of various kinds, some human, some animals, some ordinary, and some were fierce ghosts like decapitated ghosts, evil ghosts, and vengeful ghosts. But no matter what kind of ghost, none could resist Meng Po's mesmerizing voice.

"Come, come, a bowl of Meng Po soup, and you'll be carefree in your next life."

"Old lady opens her golden mouth, and any ghost will come forward. Drink the delicious Meng Po soup and be reborn in a daze." Su Xing, bored, muttered to himself. He pondered why he hadn't lost his memory after drinking the Meng Po soup but had no clue.

"Is it because of the merit of my soul, or the Lethe fish balls, or drinking too much from the Yellow Springs?"

As Su Xing thought, a dark cloud rolled in from the distance and quickly arrived.

On the dark cloud stood a large demon with wings on its back and three horns on its head, exuding a ghostly aura, and behind it was a fierce ghost with raging flames.

This large demon had received an urgent notification while escorting the fierce ghost and hurriedly flew to this place.

"Old lady Meng Po! King Yama has summoned you! The Empress is having a difficult labor!" The large demon stood on the dark cloud, shouting anxiously.

"What!"

A moment of silence, and the little demons and ghosts were thrown into chaos. Meng Po was shocked but quickly regained her composure and shouted to the ghosts, "Little demons and ghosts, maintain your formation, don't panic. I will go to the Empress Hall immediately!"

The little demons and ghosts quickly calmed down, their bone whips cracking to maintain order, showing their well-trained discipline and also indicating Meng Po's high status.

Meng Po nodded in satisfaction and looked at Su Xing.

Su Xing's heart sank, knowing that Meng Po's gaze at this moment was not a good sign.

"Young man, old lady has to go to the Empress Hall to assist the Empress in childbirth. You must guard the stall and serve the ghosts the Meng Po soup. The safety of the underworld and the order of the Six Realms of Rebirth are now in your hands!" Meng Po firmly grasped Su Xing's hand, her face solemn.

"Me?" Meng Po put a big responsibility on him, and Su Xing's legs went weak, grabbing Meng Po's withered arm, "Old lady, I can't..."

"Old lady knows you can do it! I knew from the first moment I saw you that you have the makings of a Meng Po!" Meng Po's figure moved like a ghost, her shadow flickering, and the dark cloud rose under her feet, flying to the large demon's side, "Let's go!"

"Yes!" The large demon tightened the chain, firmly restraining the fierce ghost, and the dark cloud rolled, its sound like thunder, as they hurriedly headed to the Empress Hall in Fengdu!

"Truly, when the King of Hell has a child, even the ghosts are anxious. The Empress Hall must be in chaos." Su Xing sighed, imagining the frantic scene of ghost servants and officials, then slowly walked to the stall, picking up a large blue-and-white porcelain bowl in one hand and a copper spoon in the other, "Line up, I'm the Meng Po now!"

The underworld was a realm of the dead, and most of its residents were already deceased ghosts, filled with the aura of death. According to the rules, there was no possibility of giving birth, and no way to pass on the lineage. Therefore, in this vast underworld, there were very few midwives, and Meng Po was the only one in Fengdu.

However, nothing in the world is absolute, and there are always exceptions to the rules. Some ghosts, with their cultivation reaching the pinnacle, could transform yin into yang, and there was a glimmer of hope. Thus, like living beings, they could have the ability to give birth and have offspring.

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