Baiting With One's Own Body

Chen Shi hesitated for a moment, then told the truth, saying, "A barren mountain suddenly appeared near our village. There's a temple on the mountain, and my cultivation speed is very fast there. It's just that the temple was smashed by a stone from outer space, so I plan to find another one."

"Cultivating in an ancient temple?"

Granny Sha was surprised. She looked at him deeply and reminded him, "Little Ten, you no longer have a Divine Embryo. Do you know what it means to not have a Divine Embryo?"

Chen Shi smiled broadly, "I know. Granny, I want to find a place like that to speed up my cultivation. Then I can retake the county exam and re-cultivate a Divine Embryo. I'll aim to become a recommended scholar..."

Granny Sha interrupted him, "Without a Divine Embryo, it means you can never cultivate true qi, and it means you're a cripple from now on!"

The smile on Chen Shi's face stiffened, and he stammered, "If, if I pass the exam to become a recommended scholar, I can get a good job, and Grandpa won't have to work anymore at his age. I..."

"You can never cultivate a Divine Embryo again!"

Granny Sha's expression turned serious, and she interrupted him again, "The Divine Embryo is bestowed by a True God from outer space, it's not cultivated. A True God's blessing can only be received once in a lifetime, there are no second chances! Little Ten, don't be a daydreamer!"

Chen Shi's face turned pale, and his body swayed as if he couldn't stand steady. He argued, "Granny, I can definitely re-cultivate a shrine! If I cultivate a shrine, and the True God from outer space sees how hard and diligent I am, perhaps he will bestow his blessing upon me again..."

Granny Sha shook her head and said coldly, "It's absolutely impossible, abandon this delusion. Little Ten, it's fine to be an ordinary person in this life, go home."

Chen Shi was extremely disappointed and walked out with his head down.

Granny Sha shook her head, "Silly child, still thinking you can cultivate a Divine Embryo again..."

She sighed. The Chen Shi of the past amazed the world, but unfortunately, that Chen Shi had his Divine Embryo stolen.

The Chen Shi of today is just a cripple who cannot cultivate.

After a while, Granny Sha walked out of the courtyard and was stunned.

She saw Chen Shi sitting on the stone steps outside her door, not having gone home.

"Little Ten, why haven't you gone back yet?" Granny Sha asked.

"Granny, I want to grow up quickly and not make Grandpa worry about me."

Chen Shi lowered his head, looking at the ground, "I don't want Grandpa to work everywhere at his age, I don't want him to become like this because of me. I just want to have some ability myself, to take care of Grandpa. I don't want Grandpa to be so tired at his age, I want Grandpa to enjoy his life..."

Hearing this, Granny Sha couldn't bear it and said, "If you want to know about this place, you can, but you have to help Granny with something."

Chen Shi's spirits soared. He quickly wiped away his tears and smiled, "Just tell me, Granny!"

Granny Sha smiled, "In my early years, I lost something in the River of Forgetfulness. This treasure is my favorite, and I've been thinking about it day and night all these years. Help me retrieve it from the River of Forgetfulness, and I'll tell you where that temple is."

Chen Shi hesitated.

Granny Sha sneered, "Are you scared? If you're scared, then go back and be an ordinary person honestly!"

Chen Shi gritted his teeth fiercely and looked up, "I'll do it!"

He stuck out his neck, exposing the most vulnerable part, and said, "Granny, kill me, and I'll go to the River of Forgetfulness to get the item for you! Just be quick, I'm a bit afraid of pain."

Granny Sha was both angry and amused, and a little touched.

I thought he was scared, but I didn't expect that his hesitation was because he believed he had to die to go to the River of Forgetfulness. The terror between life and death is immense. He is willing to die for the sake of re-cultivating a Divine Embryo. His steadfast Dao heart is rare in this world. Perhaps, he will achieve something in the future.

Thinking of this, Granny Sha smiled, "Why would you need to die to go to the River of Forgetfulness? If one can only go to the River of Forgetfulness after death, wouldn't that tarnish my reputation? Don't worry, you don't have to die."

Chen Shi was both surprised and delighted.

He had indeed undergone a great psychological struggle just now before deciding to die to go to the River of Forgetfulness. He never expected to enter the River of Forgetfulness alive!

Granny Sha went inside and took out an iron chain, weighing over thirty pounds, and tied it to Chen Shi.

Chen Shi's body had been getting stronger and stronger recently, and his strength had increased, so he didn't feel the weight.

"It's not easy to go to the River of Forgetfulness. This river is the river of souls in the underworld. After people die, Yin messengers will come to the mortal world to capture the ghosts who are attached to the mortal world and row across the River of Forgetfulness into the underworld."

Granny Sha then brought out a bundle of hemp rope, dozens of feet long and very tough. The other end of the rope was tied to a large hook, very big, with a sharp tip, like a fishhook, but it probably weighed over ten pounds.

Chen Shi had fished before and seen fishhooks of all sizes, but he had never seen such a large fishhook. He wondered, What kind of fish is Granny going to catch with such a big hook? And with such a big hook, the bait must be very large too?

Granny Sha, carrying the hook and rope on her back, walked towards the outskirts of the village. Chen Shi quickly followed.

Although the old woman was very old, her steps were light, and Chen Shi had to give his all to keep up.

They walked for more than ten miles and arrived at the mouth of the Yudai River, where it flowed into the Dejiang River. The Dejiang River's water surged and flowed rapidly. Following this great river, it was less than two hundred miles to the estuary.

"All the flowing river water in the world is connected to the River of Forgetfulness, so one can enter the River of Forgetfulness through these rivers."

Granny Sha chose a large tree by the river and tied the rope to it, saying, "It's easy for ghosts to enter the River of Forgetfulness, but it requires some skill for a living person to enter."

She grabbed the fishhook, her cloudy old eyes flashing with a cunning light, and chuckled, "There's a large fish in this river that can travel between the mortal and spirit realms, called Gu. Gu likes to eat people. When Gu eats people, it will swallow the hook. The hook will cause Gu pain, and it will flee into the underworld, entering the River of Forgetfulness."

Chen Shi's heart skipped a beat, "Granny, is this fishhook going to be hooked into my mouth and come out of my chin?"

He knew he was the bait.

Granny Sha shook her head.

Chen Shi's face turned pale, "It comes out of my stomach?"

Granny Sha came behind him, passed the unbelievably large fishhook through the iron chain, and smiled, "Do you think I'm treating you like an earthworm and threading you through? If I did that, wouldn't your grandfather come after me for his life?"

Chen Shi was slightly relieved and asked, "What did Granny drop into the River of Forgetfulness?"

Granny Sha's eyes flickered, "A bronze lamp with a handle. The light isn't very bright, but you can see it from afar."

Chen Shi asked doubtfully, "When did Granny drop it?"

"It's been nine years."

"The bronze lamp was lost nine years ago? Why didn't you look for it before?"

Chen Shi became even more confused, asking, "Where was it lost? If I go into the water from here, can I find that lamp?"

Granny Sha's gaze flickered, and she snapped, "Why so much nonsense? Are you going or not?"

"I'll go! Of course, I'll go!"

Chen Shi hesitated for a moment, then asked, "After I'm swallowed by the big fish, how can I get out of its mouth?"

"How would I know? I've never been swallowed before."

Granny Sha grew more flustered and said, "You'll know when you go down. Don't worry, if you find the lamp, just pull hard on the rope. I'll be holding the rope on the bank, and I'll sense your movement. I just need to reel in the rope, and you can return to the living world. Nothing will happen!"

Chen Shi inquired, "I have one more question, Granny. Have you tried this treasure-hunting method before?"

"Of course, I have!"

Granny Sha smiled broadly and urged, "Go quickly and come back quickly, so your Grandpa doesn't worry!"

Chen Shi carefully entered the water. It wasn't that he was timid, but he felt that using himself as bait to catch a big fish that could travel to the underworld's River of Forgetfulness, and then searching for treasure in the river, was somewhat unreliable.

The Dejiang River's current was swift, and the rushing water felt like a dozen people pushing him, making it difficult to stand firm.

Chen Shi looked out at the river's surface and saw that large and small whirlpools were moving downstream. It was clear that the current was even fiercer in the deeper parts!

"Probe a little deeper into the water!" Granny Sha urged from the bank.

Chen Shi shouted, "Granny, if I can't find it, you have to tell me where that temple is!"

Granny Sha repeatedly agreed.

Chen Shi continued to walk into the deeper water, dragging dozens of pounds of chains and fishhooks. He worried he wouldn't be able to swim. If he drowned in the river...

"Granny will also summon my soul, so I won't die anyway!"

Chen Shi's courage grew, and he walked deeper and deeper.

Seeing him enter the water, Granny Sha's heart tightened. She muttered to herself, "The ancient books describe this method: using a person to lure the Gu fish that travels between the yin and yang realms. However, the books don't say how a person can get out of the fish's mouth."

She was uneasy. The great Gu traveled between the yin and yang realms, and using a person to lure it was also a first for her.

She wasn't sure if it would succeed.

Suddenly, Chen Shi's foot slipped, and he sank into the water, making Granny Sha's heart clench!

But the next moment, Chen Shi surfaced again.

After his recent cultivation, his body was much stronger than before. If he had been carrying dozens of pounds of weight previously, he would have been dragged to the bottom and unable to move. But now, he could swim to the surface with ease.

Granny Sha breathed a sigh of relief. Just then, a loud splash echoed from the river. The water surged, creating a wave two or three zhang high. A giant tail flashed through the waves, its dark blue scales reflecting the sunlight, giving them a metallic sheen!

That tail looked much larger than any fishing boat on the river!

"So big?" Granny Sha was stunned.

Chen Shi also heard the sound and quickly looked up, but he could only see the vast expanse of water. He couldn't see what was moving its body on the surface.

He felt a bit panicked. He heard Granny Sha's voice from the riverbank: "I see a great Gu! Swim a little deeper to lure it into eating you!"

Chen Shi shouted, "Granny, where is the Gu? I can't see it!"

Granny Sha peered into the river. The swift current churned, as if some colossal creature was moving rapidly underwater. Vaguely, she saw a head larger than a house beneath the water, its mouth wide open, revealing two rows of sharp, steel-like teeth.

Granny Sha's heart skipped a beat again. This Gu was too big; it exceeded her expectations!

Moreover, looking at the fish's teeth, Chen Shi would likely be chewed to pieces before even being swallowed!

"The rope in my hand probably can't withstand this giant fish. A gentle tug from the great Gu would snap it! Even if the great Gu couldn't break it, its teeth could cut through it!"

Thinking this, she immediately grabbed the rope with both hands and pulled it back and forth, dragging Chen Shi towards the shore.

Chen Shi also sensed a colossal creature rapidly approaching him underwater, and he couldn't help but feel terrified. He immediately swam with all his might towards the shore, following the rope.

"Crack!"

A thunderous roar erupted from the river's surface. Chen Shi looked back and his eyes widened. He saw a dark blue fish the size of a small mountain leap out of the water, its shadow eclipsing the sun. It opened its abyss-like mouth and lunged towards him!

"Bang!"

The great Gu slammed back into the water. Granny Sha felt a sudden, powerful tug on the rope in her hands, dragging her towards the river!

The next moment, the large tree the rope was tied to began to shake under the immense force, its trunk tilting towards the riverbank!

Granny Sha pulled with all her might, but before she could regain her footing, the rope suddenly snapped with a loud crack and flew out of the water, landing on the bank!

Granny Sha stared blankly. She saw the large fish swimming away rapidly in the water. Suddenly, a blue light erupted from beneath the water, and the fish vanished!

"It's over, it's over..."

Cold sweat beaded on Granny Sha's forehead. Her body trembled as she shakily reeled in the remaining rope. She saw that the break in the rope was incredibly smooth, as if it had been cut by the great Gu's teeth.

"Little Ten was probably chewed to pieces by the great Gu. Even if I know how to summon souls, I can't bring him back... How am I going to explain this to Old Chen?"