Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

If someone invites you to visit the underworld, would you go or not? Or, to put it another way, is this invitation trustworthy? Visiting the underworld sounds like someone telling you to die.

If the person speaking in this scenario were an ordinary person, Song Tao would think the other person was crazy. If the person speaking were the legendary Ox-Head and Horse-Face, he would think he was insane, having such a bizarre dream for no reason.

But now, when Song Tao was bedridden and delirious, he saw a strange minor official leading a horse with a tuft of white hair on its forehead approach his house and say these things in front of Song Tao's sickbed.

This isn't madness; it's more like he's been ill for a long time and his time has come.

When Song Tao saw this obviously strange minor official leading a horse, ignoring his own courtyard walls and windows and coming straight to his bedside, he had already begun to accept that he was already dead. But the other party quickly explained that he was going to take him to the underworld to take an exam.

Upon hearing this, Song Tao's first thought was, "Do we have to take an exam to be reincarnated now?" But then he thought again, "That doesn't make sense. I've only ever heard of having to drink Meng Po's soup and cross the Naihe Bridge to be reincarnated. I've never heard of having to take an exam after death."

Since it wasn't him who died, and it wasn't Ox-Head and Horse-Face or Black and White Impermanence who came, Song Tao once again regarded it all as a strange dream he had in his delirium due to his illness. He was just about to lie down again when the official opposite him became adamant and kept urging him to continue his journey.

Left with no other choice, Song Tao, despite his illness, got up and rode off on horseback.

Strangely enough, even though he was bedridden, the moment he mounted his horse, his pajamas instantly transformed into everyday clothes, his hair was combed, his previous ailments disappeared, and he felt completely relaxed.

Song Tao rode on his horse, with an unfamiliar minor official leading the way. He couldn't see how he was led out of his house, and he felt that the scenery around him was changing unusually fast. In the blink of an eye, they were on a road they had never seen before.

The feeling was strange. The official was leading the horse slowly, but Song Tao could not see the scenery around him. He only knew that it was a very unfamiliar road. He could not feel the temperature, and he could not even tell whether it was night or day.

In no time, they arrived at a city. The surrounding area looked extremely prosperous, like the capital of a country. However, the scenery was so blurry that they couldn't even see the people around them clearly. In Song Tao's eyes, he couldn't see the liveliness; instead, he felt a bit desolate because he couldn't even hear the voices of others clearly. It was as if he had been led into a dream world on horseback.

"Excuse me, where is this place...?"

Just as Song Tao was about to ask where he was, the scene before him changed again. The once distant gate of the Prince's mansion suddenly appeared in front of him, and his eyes were filled with the magnificent gate.

Moreover, the scenery was no longer blurry; it was a real, clear door. The sudden change made Song Tao feel somewhat uncomfortable, and he couldn't help but raise his hand to rub his eyes.

When he lowered his hand, he found that the surrounding scenery had become clearer. At the same time, many minor officials dressed similarly led horses, each carrying a scholar-like figure. They were of various ages, the youngest looking barely fifteen or sixteen, and the oldest nearing seventy, appearing to have one foot in the grave.

No, if this really is the underworld, then it's not just one foot in the coffin; all the scholars present are probably already in their coffins. Recalling what the official had told him earlier, this somewhat offensive thought surfaced in Song Tao's mind.

Upon arriving at the gate, the officials leading the horses gestured for the scholars to dismount. They chatted amongst themselves and discovered that each of them came from a different region, and could hear various accents as they spoke.

Apart from a few who were bedridden like Song Tao, and a few who had already died, the rest were brought in while they were asleep, all to participate in this exam.

"So this is the underworld?"

Compared to the others' slight fear, a young man was bold and looked around. This man was Dou Xu. He had visited the land of bees in his dream, helped Xi Fangping write a lawsuit, and had already experienced many strange things.

After Xi Fangping took his father home, he explained the situation to Dou Xu at the address they had left before. The lawsuit was successful, and the Xi family got justice. As one of the participants in suing the King of Hell, Dou Xu was very curious about what the underworld was like.

Little did anyone expect that one day he would come to the underworld because of his participation.

Once all the scholars who had come to take the exam had arrived, the main gate opened, revealing a magnificent hall and rows of tables in front of it, with writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones already laid out, just waiting for the examinees to enter and take their seats.

Further up in the main hall, more than a dozen officials were already seated, but due to the distance, no one could see their faces clearly.

But the one sitting in the very center, even if you can't see his face clearly, the scholar can recognize him from his attire. He has seen him countless times in the temple; he is none other than Guan Yu, the God of War.

Aside from this person, there is another very conspicuous person on the side. The difference is that Guan Yu is too recognizable, while this person is too eye-catching.

In addition, his brilliance was purely physical. While others wore official robes and hats, he was different; he was covered in jewels, a dazzling array that shone brilliantly. He didn't need any special glow; the sheer reflection of light from his jeweled attire was enough to make him dazzling.

"Friend, we seem a bit out of place."

Although the person sitting next to him doesn't stand out at first glance, a closer look reveals that he is out of place.

The yin-yang symbol and the whisk clearly indicate that this is a Taoist priest, yet he is sitting with this group of officials.

The two probably also knew that

"so what?"

Shu Loulongsu didn't care at all about being out of place on his side. What he wanted was to be magnificent, unique, unconventional, and normal.

Besides, the two innate beings and the officials of the underworld are separated by a style of painting, so it would be even more magical if they could sit together to supervise the exam, so why would they need to be sociable?

“It always feels weird.”

Judge Lu invited him to the Underworld to observe the examination. Liu Qingyuan was not very interested at first because he knew that this matter would not go wrong. The examinees were just ordinary scholars, but the examiners were powerful beings from the Underworld. Moreover, the scholars were brought to the examination in spirit form, so they could not use any tricks.

But when he asked again, he learned that Guan Yu was the examiner. Great! Liu Qingyuan immediately perked up. He didn't care about anything else, he just wanted to see Lord Guan and join in the fun.

But if he came alone, he felt something was missing. After asking about the specific time, Liu Qingyuan rubbed his hands together and pulled Shu Loulong Su out.

It's you I've chosen! Your magnificent dragon head will bring a touch of Confucian brilliance to the gloomy underworld!

These officials and scholars all studied Confucianism, so it was indeed a bit conspicuous for a Taoist like Jianzi Xianji to be here. Although the Underworld has developed to the point where it is considered a representative case of the convergence of the three religions, Liu Qingyuan still felt that something was not quite right.

After thinking it over, he realized that his all-white outfit might not fit the art style, and he felt uncomfortable being the only one with an outdated style. So he called up a more eye-catching partner.

"The fact that I am in the underworld with you is already absurd."

Shu Loulongsu waved the precious fan in his hand. Because of the height, the people below could not see their faces clearly. With Shu Loulongsu holding up the fan, he directly blocked half of his face. When the people below looked up, they could only see the fan surface inlaid with countless pearls and gems.

"Then we can say that we're now in the same boat, sharing life and death."

Now that they are both in the underworld, having come together with the same purpose, and now sitting together, isn't that practically the same as dying together?

"This kind of sharing life and death is unnecessary. If you want to talk about fairness, you should let Ao Xiao Hongchen do it."

Shu Loulong looked at the scholars who were gradually taking their seats below. Their place was protected by a special barrier, so the conversations above would not affect the exams below.

“How could you say that, my dear friend? When I heard about this exam, the first thing I thought of was sharing it with you. See, our friendship is truly stronger than gold.”

"Your unbreakable friendship is the one that drags me down to the underworld the moment I see it?"

Taking your best friend to the underworld together? What a crazy move! People who don't know better might think you're inviting a friend, but they might think you're going to die with your enemy.

"But Long Su, didn't you also come without hesitation?"

"I have to thank Jian Ziru for pulling me away without hesitation."

They were even dragged to the underworld as soon as they appeared, without any preparation.

Soon, all the scholars took their seats, and the examination officially began. Song Tao was still a little intimidated when he first saw the deity Guan Yu. The dozen or so people in the hall also created a sense of oppression. When choosing a seat, he chose a spot near the outside of the hall, where there were two tables. A scholar had already taken his seat before him.

The exam began, and Song Tao looked at the test questions that had been handed out. There were only eight words on them: "One person, two people, with intention, without intention."

This exam was very stream-of-consciousness in every aspect. Liu Qingyuan and Shulou Longsu could sit in their seats and do nothing, yet they could still see the whole picture and understand the candidates' movements, including the exam questions and the answers they wrote.

Song Tao wrote very quickly. Liu Qingyuan clearly saw that after receiving the exam question, he wrote down the sentence: "Those who intend to do good will not be rewarded even if they do good; those who do evil will not be punished even if they do evil."

What does my friend think?

Well, this answer is quite appropriate in a somewhat idealistic place like the underworld, but it might not work in reality.

"You want to talk to me about good and evil?"

Shu Lou Long Su increasingly felt that this was a life of carefree laughter in the mortal world. If all else failed, he could ask Fo Jian Fen Shuo about this problem, but it was definitely not suitable for him, Shu Lou Long Su.

"No, I'm just asking for your opinion on this answer."

Whether I have the will or not is irrelevant to me; I can simply be carefree and at ease.

He's a former villain; asking him about this is less appropriate than asking how to punish evildoers.

Seeing that Song Tao's answer was being passed around among the officials, it seemed that they all agreed with it. Shu Loulongsu leaned his head back and continued to wave the precious fan in his hand.

"This kind of question, and this kind of answer, is only suitable for this place, a world after death, a world of reckoning. Put it in the mortal world, ha."

"Why did you say this?"

An official nearby overheard their conversation and asked out of curiosity, "They are indeed selecting officials from the underworld, but whether they are scholars or high-ranking officials, they are all connected to the mortal world."

Why did Shulou Longsu say that the questions they came up with and the answers they were praised for were not suitable for the mortal world? These scholars all came from the mortal world, so their answers must have been based on mortal thinking.

"Of all virtues, filial piety is the most important; judge by intention, not by deeds, for if you judge by deeds, there are no filial sons in poor families. Of all vices, lust is the worst; judge by deeds, not by intention, for if you judge by intention, there are no perfect people in the world."

Amidst the crisp sound of the jade stones colliding, came the following saying: "Those who do good with good intentions will not be rewarded; those who do evil without intentions will not be punished." This is a very idealistic standard. It is difficult to tell from appearances whether a person's good or evil deeds are unintentional or deliberate.

To make a completely accurate judgment, aside from mind-reading or being asked to be completely honest, the only other option is probably to wait until the person dies and let the underworld and the Book of Life and Death make the judgment.

If someone intends to do good but is not rewarded, does that mean their good deeds are not recognized? If someone does evil unintentionally but is not punished, does that mean someone who accidentally kills someone will not have to pay any price?

"I never imagined that even the underworld could be so idealistic."

"Even in the underworld, it's not impossible to be a little idealistic."

Compared to Song Tao, Liu Qingyuan preferred the answers of the others, but setting aside worldly matters, Song Tao's idealistic philosophy was indeed more suitable for the equally idealistic underworld.

While observing, he saw several familiar faces inside, such as Dou Xu, whom he had met in Yuan Wuxiang of Juan Shoutian, and the unlucky guy who had been captured and made a male concubine and had cursed insects placed on him by the illegal transmigrators. However, he did not see Zhu Erdan.

It's possible that Zhu Erdan had just had his heart transplanted and hadn't completely shed his reputation as a fool, which is why he wasn't chosen by the underworld. It's also possible that Judge Lu was afraid of being discovered, so he directly excluded Zhu Erdan from the list.

Compared to Song Tao, Liu Qingyuan valued the scholar sitting on the same side of him more. This scholar, surnamed Zhang, wrote about clear rewards and punishments and detailed classifications of the process of good and evil deeds.

But the two of them were just there to observe. They only casually mentioned who they thought was better, providing a range of choices. Ultimately, the decision was still made by the people of the underworld.

Then, the remaining people selected a few suitable candidates and assigned them according to the main missing areas in the local City God Temples. Finally, a list of names was drawn up.

Among them, Song Tao was selected to serve as the City God in Henan, but he refused because he had a mother who was over seventy years old at home. To take up a post in the underworld meant dying on the spot and becoming a ghost to take up the post. If he died, his elderly mother would have no one to take care of her.

Therefore, Song Tao requested that he could wait until he had finished serving his mother and had no more attachments in the mortal world before taking up his post. Several other scholars felt the same way; they were all still young and had elderly relatives to support.

One of the selected elderly gentlemen was quite straightforward. He only said that he would go back and make arrangements for his affairs after his death, and that he would come back as soon as he finished. He seemed to be in a hurry to go back and hang himself.

Come to think of it, this old gentleman looks to be over sixty years old and seems to be just a scholar. At this age, the chances of taking the imperial examination in the mortal world are slim. Rather than failing the exam and wasting his life, he might as well die a few years earlier and become an official in the underworld.

Being chosen to be the City God is a rare opportunity; once it's gone, it's gone forever.

Dou Xu didn't get anything, but instead of leaving with the other unsuccessful scholars, he stayed and kept his eyes on Liu Qingyuan and Shu Loulongsu.

First of all, these two looked out of place with the others and didn't seem like officials of the underworld at all. Then, for some reason, when Dou Xu looked at them, he was reminded of Juan Shoutian and Yuan Wuxiang, whom he had met before.

Dou Xu's intuition told him that there was a connection between them.