Chapter 2175: Naihe Oblivion Ferryman

The reason for Zu An’s shock wasn’t because of their appearance. After all, he had seen a lot of grotesque alien monsters as of late. Rather, it was because these two looked a lot like the Black and White Guards of Impermanence[1]!

His gaze shifted to their black and white mourning staves. The staves had what appeared to be cloth strips bound around them, making them look like chicken feather dusters. Even so, Zu An didn’t dare to look down on them, because he could sense that both staves contained a kind of natural law power that could directly affect the soul.

“So another little ghost came. It seems our quota for the month is going to be reached,” said the Black Guard of Impermanence. He was clearly talking about something good, and yet there wasn’t a hint of joy visible on his face.

It was the White Guard of Impermanence who said with a laugh, “That’s right. We can now take a proper vacation.”

Zu An was stunned.

Why do these Black and White Guards of Impermanence sound like normal wage slaves? All they’re thinking about is when they can take time off.

But his entire body quickly went taut. He had more important things to take care of right now and definitely couldn't let these two catch him. It seemed that a battle was unavoidable.

Those mourning staves seem as if they'd be lethal in my current state. I might need to catch them off guard and ambush them to take them out in one go.

Even though that was what Zu An determined, he didn’t strike immediately. He still had many misgivings.

According to legend, the Black and White Guards of Impermanence seemed to be proper employees of the Underworld Palace, and their ranks weren’t too low either. If he immediately killed off two of their government employees right off the bat, wouldn’t that instantly turn the entire manor against him? At that time, forget about completing his mission, he wouldn't be able to easily move through Hell at all.

While he was feeling a bit conflicted, the White Guard of Impermanence suddenly exclaimed, “Hm? Why do I feel as if this little ghost is a bit special?”

The Black Guard of Impermanence was also surprised. “You’re right. He doesn’t seem to be a normal lonely and lost soul, and he also seems to be a bit strong.” He secretly raised his mourning staff while speaking.

Zu An shivered. It seemed he couldn't wait any longer. Even if he didn’t kill them, he had to restrain them first.

He was about to act when the White Guard of Impermanence suddenly said, “This person has a mysterious aura around him. Hm? So it was a colleague! Apologies for the disrespect.”

“Co... Colleague?” Zu An was about to attack, but he was stunned when he heard that. He had thought of countless scenarios, but never this one.

“Are you not?” The White Guard of Impermanence returned his mourning staff to his back. His expression immediately became rather friendly.

Zu An didn’t lower his guard. Who knew if this guy was just saying that, only to suddenly strike him unexpectedly?

He snuck the Black Guard of Impermanence a look and saw that he had put away the staff as well. The Black Guard said, “So it was a new Naihe Oblivion Ferryman. Why didn’t you say so earlier? We almost had a misunderstanding.”

Zu An was completely confused. “Naihe Oblivion Ferryman?”

Wait, the mysterious giant statue said that I shared karma with the Naihe Oblivion River, and even used it as the intermediary to send me into Hell. Is this the identity I was given?

When they saw his confusion, the White and Black Guards of Impermanence were stunned, but then they said with a smile, “This brother has just arrived in Hell, so it’s natural that you don't understand this place too well yet. Don’t think that being a Naihe Oblivion Ferryman is some arduous and thankless job like being a boatman in your past world. In Hell, it's quite the respectable position! I’m sure that this brother has accumulated a lot of achievements and virtue in your previous life to earn this position.”

“My humble self has just arrived. I still haven’t asked for these two brothers’ great names.” Zu An bowed respectfully. Since they didn’t have to be enemies, he had to improve their relationship. For all he knew, maybe he'd even be able to obtain their help later.

When they saw his friendly attitude, the White and Black Guards of Impermanence became even more friendly. The White Guard of Impermanence said with a chuckle, “We are Hell’s Black and White Guards of Impermanence. Whenever someone passes in the world of the living, we arrive to bring their soul into Hell. We sensed the appearance of a new soul and wanted to bring them to Hell, but it was actually you.”

Zu An was startled. It was just like the legends, as expected! He asked, “Could it be that this place isn’t Hell?”

“Technically, it is, but strictly speaking, you need to enter through the Hell Gates in order to be really inside of Hell,” explained the Black Guard of Impermanence.

“Hell Gates?” Zu An had heard many legends regarding the gates of hell. Many people had described themselves as making a trip around these gates whenever their lives were in grave danger. He hadn’t expected to really have to pass through them.

“Look, it’s over there.” The White Guard of Impermanence pointed forward.

Zu An looked in that direction and saw a giant decorated archway nearby. The archway had four pillars, forming three entrances. Every single pillar had a fierce and malevolent statue in front of it, likely a beast of Hell. Meanwhile, above the gates were seven towers of varying heights. They had soaring eaves and rising corners, but there were no real rooms between the towers.

Such decorated archways were quite common in the human world. The richer the clan, the more extravagant their archway would be. But this archway was very distinctive, because the decorated archways of Zu An's previous world were usually red, sometimes adorned with bright yellow glazed roof tiles. And yet, this archway was pitch-black. It was black to the point of making one’s very soul shiver. The only color that stood out came from the words written on the board directly overhead that read: Hell Gates.

Zu An shivered. He hadn’t expected the Hell Gates to look like this.

He then noticed two monsters standing off to the sides of the Hell Gates. They had human bodies, but one had the head of a bull, while one had the head of a horse. He asked in surprise, “Are these two Ox Head and Horse Face?” The mythology of his previous world was being proven true over and over!

The Black and White Guards of Impermanence explained, “They are the guards of the Hell Gates. There are some ghosts that try to flee from Hell, so these guards are in charge of capturing them and bringing them back. When some creatures that are especially powerful die and their ghosts still retain powerful fighting ability, Ox Head and Horse Face are in charge of subduing them during their capture.”

Zu An was surprised. “Then judging from what you're saying, their strength is quite great?”

“Their fighting strength is indeed quite good,” said the Black Guard of Impermanence.

The White Guard of Impermanence seemed to have guessed something and added, “We brothers aren’t weaker than them. After all, the world of the living frequently has extremely powerful beings that are troublesome to deal with.”

Zu An wondered if they had suddenly said that because they were worried that he would look down on them, so he used the chance to speak some words of praise. The two Guards of Impermanence responded to his words extremely positively.

Soon after, Ox Head and Horse Face noticed them as well. “Hm? White and Black Guards of Impermanence, who is this? Why are the two of you treating him so courteously?”

“This is a future colleague of ours, a Naihe Oblivion Ferryman. We are bringing him to his appointment,” said the White Guard of Impermanence proudly.

When they heard that he was a Naihe Oblivion Ferryman, Ox Head and Horse Face’s expressions immediately changed. Zu An actually saw a bit of flattery on their ugly faces as they spoke. “So he was the one who was newly appointed. White and Black Guards of Impermanence, the two of you are so busy that you should just leave the remaining escorting to us.”

“We just happen to be quite free today, so we’ll help brother Zu travel to take up his new post along the way. Your jobs of defending the Hell gates are extremely important, so we won’t inconvenience the two of you,” said the Black Guard of Impermanence with a darkened face.

Zu An had been thinking of using a fake name, but since the other party specialized in capturing souls, he could have ended up offending them if they were able to learn of his name through some secret method.

“It’s no trouble. These sorts of affairs should be the duty of us brothers.” Ox Head and Horse Face walked over, seeming keen on Zu An going with them.

“We have already become familiar with Brother Zu along the way, so we can take him.” The White Guard of Impermanence gripped his mourning staff, but there was still a smile on his face. “Isn’t that right, brother Zu?”

The mood immediately became a bit serious. It seemed that a conflict was on the verge of breaking out.

Zu An naturally didn’t want the White Guard of Impermanence to lose face. He agreed, but then cupped his hands toward Ox Head and Horse Face. “I’ll come to invite brothers Ox and Horse to a gathering once I’ve familiarized myself with my new post. Thank you for your warm welcome.”

“Haha, it should be the two of us who hold a welcoming dinner for you.” A smile returned to Ox Face as well; he thought,

This newcomer is quite capable.

The Black and White Guards of Impermanence gave him a look of shock. It was naturally best if they didn’t start a conflict with Ox Head and Horse Face. They had never expected this newcomer to be quite capable socially.

When they passed through the gates, the White Guard of Impermanence suddenly said with a smile, “Brother Zu, you must be curious why Ox Head and Horse Face were so enthusiastic in their greeting.”

1. Heibai Wuchang, also known as the Black and White Impermanence, are the Gods of Death from Chinese mythology, tasked with escorting the shades of the deceased down to the Chinese Underworld. The White Guard is named Xie Bi'an while the Black Guard is Fan Wujiu. ☜