The giant statue replied, “Normally, that is indeed the case, but I have some special privileges at my disposal and only need his soul to leave his body. I can help his soul carry attributes of the deceased so Hell accepts him.”

“My soul leaving my body?” Zu An frowned. “Is it the yin soul, yang soul, or primordial spirit?”

At the earth immortal rank, one gained the ability to control these special soul bodies. Of course, because his cultivation method was a bit special, he wasn’t as strong in such aspects as the proper cultivators like Zhao Han.

“The yin, yang, and primordial spirits are only rough outlines created by your world. To put it simply, the soul leaving the body is a unity of these three souls. Apart from lacking a flesh body, it won’t be any different from the normal you,” replied the giant statue.

“But from what I know, if you don’t have the protection of your physical body, your soul becomes extremely weak and lacks a root, preventing you from using many of your skills. At that point, even if he enters Hell, wouldn’t he just be courting death?” Shang Liuyu asked fearfully.

“There is no need for you to worry about that. My secret technique is sufficient to prevent him from being affected. That is, apart from some few special skills like his purification skill. He will have the attributes of the departed himself, so using that skill might just result in his own purification,” the giant statue said with a laugh.

Shang Liuyu now felt a bit more at ease. She couldn't help but look at Zu An to see what he thought.

Zu An began to think to himself.

Is this mysterious guy really trustworthy? What if he's lying to me, and when my soul leaves the body, he’ll use that chance to attack? If that happens, my soul form won’t be able to defend myself that well at all.

But this giant statue did seem quite sincere, and everything made sense as well. He also needed to stop the Skin-Flaying King.

The giant statue suddenly added, “Hm? I just realized that there was someone close to the Naihe Oblivion Water who shares tremendous karma with you.”

“Who?” Zu An was immediately surprised.

“Sorry, but this touches upon the laws of the world, so I cannot tell you,” said the giant statue. “But trust me, you are destined to go to Hell.”

Zu An was speechless. He was hesitant, but Mi Li suddenly spoke in his head. “Trust him.”

Zu An was stunned. He reflexively asked her for more information, but Mi Li didn’t respond. After a moment of silence, he nodded. “Fine!”

Shang Liuyu was a bit worried. “Ah Zu…”

Zu An gently patted her hand to console her. “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

He didn’t trust this giant statue, but rather trusted Mi Li. To be honest, even though he had so many sweethearts, he seemed to spend the most time alone with her. The two of them knew each other through and through, and he had almost no secrets from her.

Of course, this woman seems to have been acting a lot more mysterious recently…

That giant statue said, “That’s good. Relax your mind and follow what I say…”

Then, Zu An sat down cross-legged as the giant instructed. The Naihe Oblivion Water floated in front of him. Shortly after, a transparent figure floated out from the top of his head. He was shocked to discover that he could see his own body, and he could even see Shang Liuyu nervously guarding him.

Is this the feeling of what comes after death?

His expression suddenly changed, because he sensed an irresistible force pulling him along. It seemed to be dragging him toward the pitch-black abyss below. It was the power of some kind of natural law, so it was completely impossible to go against.

Just then, the giant statue shouted, “Why aren’t you swiftly returning to where you should be?!”

Then, the Naihe Oblivion Water entered Zu An's soul body, to his horror. He knew that the Naihe Oblivion Water erased all of one’s memories. If he ended up forgetting all of the people and things of this life, that would be far too cruel. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to stop the process. He could only watch as the Naihe Oblivion Water entered his body and seemingly merged with his soul.

Hm? Wait, my memories still seem to be fine?

It seems like the giant statue’s secret technique really is quite amazing.

Shang Liuyu was horrified when she sensed that there was no life left in Zu An’s body at all. “Ah Zu?” She raised her head and stared hatefully at the giant statue, exclaiming, “You killed him?!”

“Of course not. He is only feigning death. Once his soul returns to its original location, he will be reborn.” The giant statue looked at Zu An and sighed. “Old friend, I didn’t expect you to be so different now. You actually have so many beauties around you.”

Zu An was stunned.

Did I used to be a saint who didn’t touch women?

That’s impossible, right?

The giant statue pointed a finger, and a streak of dense white mist surrounded Zu An’s soul.

Zu An could sense that the white mist was the purest energy of the deceased, but it was entirely different from the death energy from before, because there was also a holiness to it. He couldn't reconcile these two entirely different attributes with each other, but that was the reality before him nonetheless.

Soon after, his soul condensed together and gradually materialized again. It didn’t seem much different from before. Only now did Shang Liuyu see him; she looked at his physical body, then glanced back and forth a few times with a completely shocked expression.

Zu An couldn't help but help her wipe the tears that appeared from her beautiful eyes. “Is big sis Shang shedding tears for me?”

The giant statue was stunned when it saw that.

This guy didn’t forget to flirt even in this kind of situation…

“Ah Zu!” When she heard his familiar voice, Shang Liuyu couldn't resist the strong emotions she was feeling. She threw herself straight into his arms and hugged him tightly; she almost seemed afraid that he would disappear if she loosened up even a bit.

This was a rare chance to see Shang Liuyu so emotional. Zu An felt warm inside couldn't help but return her hug.

When she felt that his body was just like his physical one, and that apart from lacking its usual warmth, that it wasn’t all that different, Shang Liuyu quickly asked, “Do you feel any danger? Will you be able to come back?”

Zu An voiced his confirmation. “I feel pretty good, as if I can return at any time.”

The giant statue said, “You absolutely must not. I have finally managed to condense your current form with such difficulty. I definitely do not have the energy to do it again.”

“Thank you. Even though I don't know who you are yet, I believe that we were definitely good friends in the past.” Zu An cupped his hands toward the giant statue.

“Hah, now you’re starting to carry a bit of your shamelessness from before,” the giant statue replied, leaving Zu An a bit speechless.

“Um… How do I join in that trial? Should I just jump down?” Zu An looked down at the incredibly dark abyss. Even with all of his knowledge and experience, he still couldn't help but shiver.

“That’s right. As for the karma you share with the Naihe Oblivion River, since the identity I forged for you is related to the Naihe Oblivion River, you’ll be able to find out yourself,” replied the giant statue. “Once you’ve succeeded in the trial, you’ll naturally know how to return.”

Shang Liuyu hurriedly asked, “What if he fails to win that trial? How will he return then?”

The giant statue remained quiet. He didn’t respond.

Shang Liuyu’s heart immediately hit rock bottom.