Chapter 165: The Place of Separation

“What is the black hole? Chengyi, you are familiar with this formation. Think about it carefully. How could you not know what the black hole is?” The master looked at me sideways, his eyes full of reproach. He was obviously asking if my master had taught me seriously according to the instructions he had left, and if I had studied this formation seriously.

I was embarrassed and scratched my head, explaining, “Grandmaster, I know that the core of this formation is a large-scale guiding spell, but a guiding spell is only for guidance. How can it have the effect of opening up space and creating a hole?”

“That is the large-scale guiding spell, but the power of this formation is very great. Do you know the essence of the guiding spell? It seems unremarkable, but in fact it guides the way of space. Otherwise, do you think that ghosts and humans will coexist in the same world? Wouldn’t that be chaos in the world of the living?” The master said, and I don’t know what he was thinking about. He even had a thoughtful expression in the back.

“Is the black hole the way to hell?” Ru Yue couldn’t help but ask.

Upon hearing this, the master smiled and said, “That black hole is a path that leads ghosts to their destination. As for what lies at the end of the path, whether it is hell or not, I cannot know either.”

Even the master doesn’t know? This made me think, and I remembered the hungry ghost realm that my master mentioned when he crossed over the hungry ghosts, and I remembered the misty and empty Kunlun… Or, sometimes, as Taoists, we really only know what to do and what the effects will be after we do it, but we don’t know the real reason.

Even my master, who I thought was omnipotent, didn’t know all the secrets hidden in this world, let alone the universe. As for Kunlun, I already wanted to ask my master about it.

I looked at my master, and at that moment, the great formation had completely hidden itself. The color of the purple-red sky had slowly faded, revealing a hint of the true nature of the blue sky. I believe that with time, this place will eventually return to normal under the influence of this great formation.

The master avoided my gaze and said to us, “I will take Xiao Chengqian to collect the spirit of the dragon first. After the spirit is completely purified, let him rest and purify the spirit of this kid alone.”

The Grand Master was referring to Zhu Zhuo, who had just woken up. He was confused by his sudden appearance here, but I explained to him in a low voice. From his expression, it was almost as if he had turned to stone. He couldn’t imagine that his decision to gamble would have such a result.

“Master…” I took the opportunity to speak up, and the master just casually calculated with his fingers and said, “Wait a minute, there will be a group of uninvited guests coming here soon. Let’s help the kid collect the spirit first, and then talk about other things.”

Xiao Chengqian’s process of absorbing the spirit of the dragon was extremely smooth. He and the master went to recover the spirit of the dragon alone. I thought it would take a few hours for them to return, but I didn’t expect them to return in less than an hour.

At first, I thought it had failed, but seeing Xiao Chengqian’s unusually excited look, I knew I was wrong and it must have succeeded.

Over there, the ferryman kept saying something to Huigen. Judging from Huigen’s serious expression, he must have been passing on some teachings to Huigen. After all, he was Huigen’s master, and it was normal for him to take the time to give Huigen some guidance at a time like this.

When the master returned, the ferryman stopped his guidance and said, “The matter here is over. Only after passing through the great formation has this place truly become a world of ghosts, a good world. We humans should leave.”

The master said thoughtfully, “That’s fine. Let’s go beyond the boundary stone. Beyond the boundary stone is where the world of the living and the world of the dead intersect.”

The ferryman nodded and said, “Then let me ferry one last time here.”

Hui Gen looked at the ferryman with concern. The ferryman did not look at Hui Gen, but walked straight ahead, heading for the old ferryboat.

Ten minutes later, we were all on the ferry, waiting to leave after we finished with Zhu Zhuo.

Looking at the calm lake and the slightly changed scenery, I felt a sense of melancholy. This battle was actually very tragic. Chengxin and Tao Bai were still in a coma, and everyone was exhausted to the limit. If it weren’t for the reason that there was no heaven in the dream world, I think that the magnificent Da Shu would have to be performed at the cost of our lives.

Just like Chengqing’s borrowing of life! Fortunately, it was only borrowed in a dream, otherwise the consequences would have been that I would have to live with guilt and unease for the rest of my life…

I should be the most miserable, my soul is traumatized! This is actually somewhat different from the depletion of spiritual power, which cannot be replenished by anything like essence. It is the soul itself that is traumatized. At first, I couldn’t think about it so much, but now I think that there is probably no way to prevent the reappearance of Sister Jenny this time.

However, I don’t have the same pain as last time. My thoughts are still the same as they were at the beginning. This is the fate of my sect. Not to mention the soul being injured, even if I risked my life, what would it be? At least… at least I have exchanged it for the peaceful world here.

While I was thinking, Jueyuan had already completed the liberation of Zhu Zhuo and floated over.

After receiving the Dharma from Master Hongren, Jueyuan’s whole demeanor was different. Although he looked a bit weak, he was more elegant and detached from the world, with a sense of independence and purity. However, his compassion was still a bit lacking compared to that of Master Hongren.

Jueyuan jumped onto the ferry, and the ferryman picked up the pole and lightly tapped it once, and the boat left the shore and headed toward the middle of the lake.

The cabin was quiet, with only the sound of the boat breaking the water. Everyone looked at the place that had been completely changed, with complex expressions in their eyes. That was a place where we had fought with our lives. It should have left more than just memories…

“With the Buddha’s light as the foundation, the power of the spirit floating in the air, the suppression of the great formation, and the hidden path of reincarnation, only the vengeful ghosts who have a heart to return can find a proper way out. The stubborn ones are also suppressed by the great formation, tempering their evil spirits. This place has truly become a transit point for the world’s orphans and wild ghosts. It’s really good.” The ferryman rowed the boat ahead and suddenly spoke in the midst of the quiet.

“Yes, in fact, I’m not sure I can summon the four spirits’ projections through the final core array. I estimate that I can at most summon some of the four spirits’ power, but I didn’t expect the heavens to be so merciful as to send down the four spirits. With the four spirits at the end of the line, this array has been operating safely for a thousand years, so it shouldn’t be a problem.” The master also chimed in.

It turns out that when they were put in, it was not intended to borrow their power, but to summon the power of the four spirits through their bloodline. However, I frowned slightly and asked the master, “What about a thousand years later?”

“Haha.” The master smiled and then looked at me and said, “There will always be talented people in the world. At that time, there will naturally be people like you and me who will work hard for the peace here. Unless it is a thousand years later, the human nature will not progress but regress, and it will completely go down the wrong path. But I don’t think it will be like that!”

I nodded. In fact, it’s not just us and the master. The power of the sealed soul, the sudden emergence of the power of thought… The journey was not long, and before we knew it, the boat had already docked.

We all disembarked, and the ferryman, with a complex look on his face, touched the oar in his hand, then threw it away and sighed, saying, “For so many years, my boat has ferried many monks and Taoists. This time, finally, someone can take the boat and go back the way they came. I am very happy. After so many years of ferrying, I can finally have a happy ending.”

While he was talking, the ferryman suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. It seemed that his injury had flared up! Hui Gen quickly went forward to help the ferryman, who reached out and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with a heroic gesture, saying, “It’s fine. I’ve lived long enough. In the end, I can still clear my mind and do some good deeds. What else is there to be dissatisfied with?”

Hui Gen was speechless, but the ferryman said happily, “Let’s go. We’ll talk over there. Beyond the boundary stone is where we mortals should be.”

The master nodded and walked gracefully at the front, Hui Gen’er followed the ferryman, and we carried the unconscious Chengxin and Tao Bai at the back.

The red spider lilies that covered the mountains and fields were extraordinarily beautiful, and together with the setting sun in the sky, it was as if the whole world was about to burn up. In the quiet, it was breathtakingly beautiful.

This world, which was originally full of a strange deathly atmosphere, has regained another kind of beauty. It is not vitality, but it is like life burning to the end, able to be brilliant without regret.

The hill was not high, and after twenty minutes or so, we arrived at the boundary stone.

This boundary stone still exudes the atmosphere of ancient vicissitudes. This time I finally found a contrast for it, just like the threshold I encountered in the technique of thunder punishment, just like the atmosphere of the rotating black hole.

They are the same existence. Looking at it, I couldn’t help but think, is the natural formation here really the work of heaven and earth? Otherwise, how could there be such a boundary stone?

When I touched the boundary stone, I no longer felt the same sense of familiarity that had worried me before. Instead, I felt a sense of solemnity and peace. I knew in my heart that the familiarity I had felt that day was because the soul of my master had been hidden in the boundary stone.

I was a little dazed, but Chengqing took me a few steps past the boundary stone. Outside the boundary stone, it was like another world, the road we came from. The difference was that the withered grass had inexplicably turned green, but the souls attached to it were no longer there. There was a guiding path here, so they didn’t need to be attached like this.

The master stood outside the boundary stone, his hands behind his back, looking into the distance. He suddenly said, “This place will be our parting place, won’t it?”