Using the MC system to pretend spiritual revival

Chapter 257 The Ghost Messenger Zhang Hanwen

The towering, dark city walls and the swirling gray fog obscured the red light that illuminated the distance.

After some people turned off their lights, this ancient city, nestled in the shadows, seemed to have a touch of the long night.

In the sparsely populated streets, Zhang Azhuang's robust figure moved swiftly, skillfully weaving through the crowds.

Finally, amidst the bowing paper figures dressed as servants on both sides of the gate, they stepped into the Zhang residence, which they had visited just a few hours earlier.

They traveled quickly, and the servants along the way all bowed respectfully and stepped aside.

With a creak of the hinges, he stood before the still-lit table, bowed, and clasped his hands in greeting:
"Master! Everything has been arranged. The family has settled in and has not shown any unusual behavior."

His gruff voice, heavy with seriousness, paused, a flicker of doubt and hesitation in his eyes, but he continued:
"...Well, I don't know why, but that person insisted on being transferred to that miserable place in hell, and even went so far as to give a big gift for it."

As he spoke, he reached into his pocket and took out a small badge that reflected a golden luster. But before he could take a step forward, the figure who had been listening quietly since entering the door suddenly beckoned.

The small gold ornament held in both hands seemed to be drawn up by some invisible force, and finally gently landed between a pale, slender finger.

"Since he wants to, let him go. Wherever he is, isn't he under the watchful eyes of the Underworld? It makes no difference."

The voice, though authoritative, was devoid of any discernible inflection. A metallic clanging sound, as if being handled, echoed in the quiet room.

After a while, Zhang Acai, who was standing with his head bowed, heard voices spoken again:

"You deserve a share in the nation's merits."

"Hmm... It just so happens that there is a vacancy for a clerk in the Punishment Division. If we put in more effort, there will be many opportunities when the spiritual energy surges."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang A, who understood the meaning behind the words, trembled slightly with barely suppressed excitement.

That's a clerk!

The next step was the patrol, where the head of the household was level with the chief clerk.

Although it's something that will happen hundreds or thousands of years from now, the thought still makes me incredibly excited.

After finally managing to suppress the turmoil in his heart, he heard voices coming from inside.

The person stopped what they were doing and looked up in their direction:
"There are more and more evil spirits and demons in the human world. Before long, the Yama Palace will probably intervene."

"Be more diligent in your cultivation; you should at least reach the eighth rank before that."

"You should know that there are quite a few people in the mortal world who have successively entered the ninth-grade Foundation Establishment stage. As a soldier, your own strength should always be the most important thing."

Upon hearing the words, Zhang A, who was still secretly excited, felt a chill run down his spine. He then bowed solemnly and spoke earnestly:
"Thank you for your guidance, Patriarch! I understand now, and I will definitely strive to improve my cultivation in the future!"

Upon hearing this, the figure behind the desk nodded slightly.
"No need to thank me. We're all from the same family, so it's only right that I offer some pointers."

After saying this, he lowered his head again among the books on the table, and said without looking up:

"Alright, it's getting late, you may leave."

After the words were spoken, the person behind the desk fell silent, with only the rustling sound of pages turning.

"Yes!"

Zhang A was already used to this. His patriarch seemed to have a particular fondness for reading. Whenever he came, no matter when, he would spend the whole day reading whenever he had free time, completely oblivious to what was happening outside.

After bowing respectfully once more, he turned and left, closing the door behind him.

"Creak—~"

As the door closed and the figure walked away.

The tall figure leaning over the desk suddenly stopped moving.

Putting down the comic book he had acquired during his travels in Yinghua Kingdom a few days prior, Lü Gu straightened up and looked through the dark wooden window at the figure walking away along the stone steps of the courtyard. He couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth slightly:

"It's truly flawless; only a real person can capture that human quality..."

Previously, he had divided himself into eight parts and assigned them to various locations. As the one who contracted the entire construction of Hell, he was arguably the busiest of all the perspectives.

Whether it's the various cities and famous scenic spots in the underworld, or the eighteen levels of hell, a great deal of effort was put into them.

But what really troubled him was the issue of personnel. He could use cattle, horses, and villagers for construction work, and control large-scale operations with a simple thought. However, getting the original inhabitants needed in the underworld was a different story.

For roles like Yama, the judge, and the executioner, the newly developed highly intelligent creature "Ox and Horse 2.0," which combines the intelligence of the Heavenly Realm boss, is perfectly capable of fulfilling these duties.

After all, many positions only require immense and terrifying strength, and the rest just need to be able to talk. The boss's intelligence level is sufficient to remember the character settings and conduct dialogues, so overall it's not bad.

However, some of the lower-level characters will inevitably come into contact with real people, and it is easy to leave loopholes, since Lu Gu cannot control things online all the time.

The pursuit of fully automatic, hands-free operation is the goal of every Minecraft player. This is documented in the Electricity Technology website, and Lu Gu naturally shares this pursuit. Only when everything is built and can run naturally can it be considered complete.

For example, the previous two-bird response program and the later Trial Realm Sakura version both fall into this category.

Initially, the basic framework of Fengdu City was established based on a Nether fortress that originated in the Soul Sand Canyon. Until a few days ago, Lu Gu personally handled some of the NPC matters.

The ghost constable who just left and is now called Zhang A is the first real-life NPC.

That was a stroke of genius, a brilliant idea combined with instruction testing.

At that time, in front of the newly built Reincarnation Platform, Lü Gu was still wondering whether to put a medicine-refining pot in the Meng Po soup or just build one out of blocks. Zhang A, who had just died not long ago, happened to cross the Naihe Bridge and came to him.

Although some time had passed, Lü Gu still clearly remembered the expression on the other person's face when they stood in front of him, dressed as an ancient civil official.

She looked completely numb. After glancing at the medicine-refining cauldron next to her, she directly asked herself for the Meng Po soup.

His appearance successfully piqued Lü Gu's curiosity.

With the construction of the underworld underway, many people who have died for various reasons are being sent there every day through pre-programmed procedures.

Some were overjoyed, some were terrified, and some were even in a frenzy, but those who appeared completely serene and enlightened were truly rare.

After some conversation, Lü Gu learned that the tall, muscular, square-faced man in front of him was named Zhang Hanwen.

It's a fairly common name, but it feels particularly jarring when applied to someone else.

He was born in a village dozens of miles away from Picheng in Shu County. His life was full of ups and downs and he did not achieve anything remarkable.

When I was young, my parents suffered an accident and were killed, leaving no descendants. They were forced to leave the old house with only the remaining money and food.

After a long and tiring journey, upon arriving in the city, I was mistakenly introduced to a factory by an intermediary.

Naturally strong and tall, he cherished this opportunity and accepted all kinds of heavy and tiring work.

However, when he went to collect his wages at the end of the month, he was told that he was not a factory employee and that his salary was handled by a dispatch agency, unlike the other employees in the factory. In the end, Zhang Hanwen, clutching only 300 yuan, was kicked out.

He wanted to find the agent who introduced him to him and demand an explanation, but he found that the agent had moved and he didn't even have a cell phone anymore, so he had no way to find them.

He was an unregistered resident, and in that turbulent period, no one was willing to hire such a person.

Out of desperation, he sold his blood, took odd jobs, and learned to sleep under bridges to make a living, trying his best to reduce his survival needs.

Without too many twists and turns in his mind, people live simply to live, and Zhang Hanwen lived for 14 years.

He huddled in a damp bridge archway during countless storms, feeling the pain of illness robbing him of his life, but as the sun rose, he pulled through again. His parents gave him a healthy body, but he couldn't tell whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Another year passed, and he turned 30. The changes over the past 10 years have been enormous; the ground under the bridge has been repaired again and again, and the jagged edges are painful to the touch.

Perhaps it was due to his age, but he felt he couldn't keep up anymore.

Holding a portion of his salvaged possessions, he strolled through the bustling streets. At 30, his steps were already somewhat sluggish, and his vision was a little blurry.

He walked for an unknown amount of time until he saw a temple. Incense smoke curled around it, chanting filled the air, and it was resplendent in gold and jade.

He saw circles of people dressed in various styles, lining up to place incense sticks on the altar, handing over their colorful banknotes, and leaving happily with a Buddhist chant.

He was puzzled, but after listening again and again, he finally understood that it meant he had been given a peaceful and prosperous next life.

He raised his hand and pressed it against his chest, feeling his body growing weaker and weaker. He had a feeling that he might not make it through this summer and would have to stay in the summer.

Watching the satisfied crowd leave one by one, I hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and joined the long queue.

Let's buy an afterlife.

And so they lined up from dawn till dusk.

With heavy steps, he dragged his dust-covered body and tried his best to imitate the previous incense sticks, carefully placing them on the edge of the full stove.

Then, with careful and clumsy movements, he pulled a plastic bag from inside his shirt close to his chest, fiddling with it repeatedly.

Finally, he poured out a few neatly folded bills and a few coins and handed them over.

Following the example of those who came before, he put his hands together in prayer position.

"May Buddha protect us... Amitabha..."

His words were already somewhat slurred, but he still tried his best to make his movements precise and bowed deeply.

But then he heard a vague, indistinct sound. His ears felt as if they were covered by a cloth, and he couldn't hear clearly. He just felt like someone was calling him.

I wanted to get up and take a look, but my body felt a little unresponsive, and the sounds around me quickly merged into a short, piercing buzz.

In the final, rapidly darkening vision, he saw several familiar bills and coins being swept away, bouncing and rolling away on the ground.

He instinctively reached out to grab it, but lost his balance and fell to the ground.

Before his consciousness completely faded, he finally heard the static that had been ringing in his ears:

"...This amount of money isn't even enough to buy incense and candles. Take the money and leave quickly, don't block the way for the other worshippers..."

After that sound, everything went black, and I was completely cut off from this world...

When I opened my eyes again, I was already standing in front of a huge city gate.

The vague memories from the stories his parents told him when he was a child gave him a vague sense of where he was.

Many people were there, some dressed in work uniforms, others in white funeral clothes; some were in a hurry, while others looked up and sighed.

It wasn't as eerie and terrifying as I had imagined. Everyone had a different expression, but at this moment they seemed no different from me.

He followed the flow of people, traversed the Road to the Underworld, and ascended the Terrace of Longing for Home.

People lined up and stood in front of a pool of water. Some wept uncontrollably, while others remained silent. The expressions of the crowd were varied.

But when it was his turn to step forward, he only saw a stagnant pool of water.

The crowd continued to move forward, but the previous shouting and yelling had ceased, and the atmosphere became silent and oppressive.

The sound of waves crashing grew louder as the procession approached a murky river and stood before a tombstone that seemed magnified countless times.

The tombstone was polished to an extremely smooth finish, so smooth that it reflected the face of the person like a mirror.

As the crowd surged forward, it seemed that everyone here knew what this thing was for. Many people hadn't even stepped onto the steps before their legs gave way and they collapsed to the ground with a thud.

He was then picked up by a tall, blue-faced, fanged ghost and taken to an unknown location.

But he also realized what was in front of him.

The Stone of Three Lives.

According to legend, this is a process that people inevitably go through after death, which can reveal the cause and effect of their past life and the confusion of this life.

Thinking of those childhood memories that had become somewhat blurred in his mind, fragments of images, as indistinct as if seen through a veil of water, involuntarily surfaced before his eyes:

It was a small tile-roofed house with a high courtyard wall. From his perspective, it was very low, and his parents always seemed so tall.

I can't quite remember what the people in the picture look like anymore, but I know that my father had a heavy accent and always smelled of smoke, and my mother's voice always echoed around the various things in the house.

We can eat the grapes behind the yard every year. They taste great, and the New Year celebrations are very lively with delicious food.

As these beautiful memories are repeated time and again, the perspective in the blurry images gradually rises, and the parents appear to shrink.

Then came a heavy rain, followed by a sudden flash flood. Two coffins were placed in the main hall of the house, and two more graves were added to the hill behind.

The neighbors and relatives who came and went all changed. The east family borrowed a house for their wedding, and the west family borrowed a stove for cooking. In just a few days, it seemed that they suddenly lacked everything.

In the end, amidst both overt and covert exclusion, he was forced to embark on a life of wandering and hardship, living only to survive.

As the memories unfolded, the image gradually became clearer. The short figure of the boy in my memory blurred and grew taller, transforming into a disheveled and unkempt appearance.

Unbeknownst to him, the people in front of him had already gone far away. Standing in place, he could look directly at the towering Three Lives Stone in front of him without any obstruction. Its smooth, mirror-like surface now clearly reflected his own image.

He didn't know if he was just getting lost in memories or if this was the effect of the Three Lives Stone, but it didn't matter.

He took one last look at his reflection, then stepped onto the long, rocky bridge over the murky river...

(End of this chapter)