This way, I only need to stay in the eighteenth level of hell and cultivate until I'm invincible.
Unfortunately, cultivating in the underworld is far inferior to cultivating in the immortal realm. After several months, my cultivation showed no signs of improvement.
"As expected, this is a desolate place. If I were in the Heavenly Court, I would have already reached the Profound Immortal realm, feasting on immortal peaches and living a leisurely life."
The thought of immortal peaches made Shi Jian's mouth water incessantly.
In these past few months, he had inquired extensively about matters in the Heavenly Court.
Official positions in the Heavenly Court were far more comfortable than those in the underworld. If one were lucky, they might even get to eat immortal peaches, which could slightly increase one's cultivation.
"Senior Brother, a batch of souls has completed their sentences and can be processed by the Reincarnation Department."
Daoist Qianhe produced a thick ledger and flipped through it.
After confirming the completion of sentences for some souls, he would escort thousands of them to the Reincarnation Department.
The Reincarnation Department was presided over by Granny Meng, who specialized in brewing Meng Po's soup to wash away all memories from souls, preparing them for their next reincarnation.
"Junior Brother, you shall stay here and keep watch. I will take these souls to the Reincarnation Department."
Seeing no improvement in his cultivation, Shi Jian decided to take this opportunity to explore the underworld.
It didn't matter if he was present at Guangjiu Hall or not. Without the Judge's official seal, these souls couldn't escape the eighteenth level of hell.
Furthermore, the souls were very weak. Any Earth Master could easily slaughter them here.
Let alone ghost attendants wielding mourning staffs. The souls in the underworld dared not rebel.
"Alright, Senior Brother, be quick!"
Daoist Qianhe agreed to this. After ten years of the tongue-pulling torture, the souls were unlikely to cause any major trouble.
"Junior Brother, I'll leave the management here to you."
At some point, Shi Jian produced an official seal that resembled an imperial jade seal.
The moment the Judge's seal appeared, the gate leading out of the eighteenth level of hell slowly opened.
Some restless souls, seeing the gate of the underworld open, attempted to break free from the ghost attendants' control.
"You still dare to think of escaping Guangjiu Hall? Increase the intensity, ghost attendants, and teach these restless souls a lesson."
Upon hearing Shi Jian's command, the ghost attendants tightened their grip with iron pliers, increasing the intensity of the tongue-pulling.
Several souls, unable to withstand the tongue-pulling torture, began to wail.
"Senior Brother, don't worry. With the ghost attendants here, these souls wouldn't dare to act presumptuously."
"Then you keep a close eye on these souls."
When the gate of the underworld fully opened, Shi Jian, using his teleportation ability, took over a thousand souls to the Reincarnation Department.
The Reincarnation Department was relatively vast compared to the other five departments. It was said that souls who drank Meng Po's soup had to cross the Bridge of Forgetfulness before they could reincarnate.
Beneath the Bridge of Forgetfulness was the River of Forgetfulness, and on its banks grew the Forget-Me-Not flowers.
"Is this the Reincarnation Department?"
Shi Jian, along with a few ghost attendants, escorted over a hundred souls into the Reincarnation Department.
Before them stood a large iron pot emitting an unpleasant odor.
Granny Meng, holding a ladle, stirred the contents of the iron pot.
"What wind has blown Judge Master to my humble abode?"
Granny Meng, holding the ladle, stopped stirring as she saw the Meng Po's soup was ready. She then turned her gaze towards Shi Jian and his party.
"Granny Meng, this Judge Master has personally brought you people."
"For such a small matter, you've come all this way yourself. This old woman is truly honored."
After a few exchanges with Granny Meng, Shi Jian instructed the nearby ghost attendants to feed the souls the Meng Po's soup.
As the souls approached the iron pot, they merely sniffed the aroma of the Meng Po's soup and almost collapsed.
"Hurry up and drink the Meng Po's soup. If you miss the optimal time for reincarnation, you will continue to suffer the tongue-pulling torture."
The soul at the front, eager to reincarnate, took a deep breath, picked up a bowl of Meng Po's soup, and drank it down.
After drinking the Meng Po's soup, the soul then proceeded towards the Bridge of Forgetfulness.
"Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone!"
Beside the Bridge of Forgetfulness, Shi Jian noticed a Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone, and his curiosity was piqued.
According to mortal records, the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone could reveal one's past life, present life, and future life.
"Can this thing truly show me my past and future lives!"
"Naturally. Throughout the three realms, only the Reincarnation Department of the underworld possesses the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone. There is only one such stone in all the three realms."
Granny Meng explained the origin and function of the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone from the side.
However, Shi Jian, being somewhat skeptical, didn't quite believe that anything could truly reveal past and future lives.
He placed his hand on the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone, but after several minutes, the stone remained unresponsive.
"Granny Meng, are you perhaps playing a trick on this Judge Master?"
"Why is this stone not reacting at all? I thought it could truly show one's past, present, and future lives."
Seeing that the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone did not react, Shi Jian immediately lost interest.
"Impossible. How could the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone be faulty? It was working perfectly just a few days ago."
Granny Meng examined the Three Lives Stone closely and, upon finding no damage, breathed a sigh of relief.
To confirm the stone's functionality, she grabbed another soul and brought it before the Three Lives Stone to test it.
After a few seconds, the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone displayed images of the soul's past life, present life, and future life.
The soul's past life was that of a beggar, its present life was that of a wealthy gentleman, and its future life would be that of a large yellow dog.
"You scared me! I almost thought the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone was damaged."
Seeing that the Three Lives Stone was operating normally, Granny Meng picked up a bowl of Meng Po's soup and poured it into the soul's mouth, washing away the images it had just seen.
"Strange, why can't I see my past, present, and future lives with the Three Lives Stone?"
Shi Jian, about to continue his test, was immediately stopped by Granny Meng.
"Judge of Thunder Punishment, please refrain from playing with the Three Lives, Three Worlds Stone. If it were to be broken, neither of us could bear the consequences."
Granny Meng warned Shi Jian and then turned to prepare the ingredients for brewing Meng Po's soup.
"What are you all still looking at? Get back to work for this Judge Master."
Shi Jian did not want to trouble Granny Meng further. He moved away from the Three Lives Stone and began observing the banks of the River of Forgetfulness.
The waters of the River of Forgetfulness were a bloody yellow. Within the river, countless lonely souls and wild beasts, insects, and snakes were present.
These lonely souls and wild beasts were those who could not reincarnate. They were subsequently thrown into the River of Forgetfulness by order of the Ten Yama Kings, to suffer the torture of being gnawed by snakes and insects.
Souls who had drunk Meng Po's soup walked across the Bridge of Forgetfulness, looking with fear at the lonely souls and the snakes and insects in the River of Forgetfulness.
"Judge Master, all souls have drunk Meng Po's soup and have crossed the Bridge of Forgetfulness. Our mission is complete."
"Let's go, we're returning to Guangjiu Hall!"
Shi Jian did not wish to linger in the Reincarnation Department, finding the pungent smell of Meng Po's soup unbearable. He quickly bid farewell to Granny Meng and fled back to the eighteenth level of hell.
Compared to the Reincarnation Department, it was better to be in the eighteenth level of hell.
Although the scenery there was not as good as in the Reincarnation Department, at least there was no pungent smell of Meng Po's soup.
In the entire underworld, only the Reincarnation Department had relatively pleasant scenery.