nagpurpolice Chapter 25 [Salvation from the Netherworld: The Boat of Vengeful Souls]
Chapter 25 [Salvation from the Netherworld: The Boat of Vengeful Souls]
Lin Mo focused his inner gaze on his dantian, carefully sensing the surging spiritual energy within his body.
If it was called a "cup" before, it can now be summarized as a "bowl".
The most direct benefit of a leap in spiritual power cultivation is a significant increase in the number of times cards can be used to unleash skills.
The predicament of exhaustion and lack of energy that I experienced when fighting the leader of the vengeful spirits will be greatly alleviated in the future.
Lin Mo slowly got up, stretched his muscles and bones to get used to the new strength, and then checked out of the room.
He hailed a taxi on the roadside and drove straight towards the Ping'an residential area where he used to live.
More than half an hour later, the taxi stopped at the entrance of the residential area.
Lin Mo paid the fare and got out of the car. As soon as he stepped into the gate of the residential area, he sensed that something was wrong.
In the past, security guards would patrol the entrance of the residential area.
In addition, there were elderly men and women sunbathing and chatting.
But now, the entire neighborhood is quiet; there's not a single person in sight.
A thin layer of fallen sycamore leaves had accumulated on the roadside, but no one was cleaning it up.
The access gate to the apartment building not far ahead was wide open.
A draft blew in, making a whooshing sound, conveying an indescribable sense of desolation and loneliness.
Lin Mo frowned and walked towards his building.
Not long after I walked, I happened to run into several moving company workers carrying furniture and hurrying downstairs.
He stopped and casually asked, "Sir, why is this neighborhood so deserted?"
The worker wiped the sweat from his brow and said breathlessly, "They've all been moved away!"
Didn't this neighborhood experience a mutation a while ago? Quite a few people died, causing widespread panic. Who would dare to live here?
Although the police department claims to have resolved all the intrusion variants, who can guarantee that it won't happen again next time?
In reality, everyone knows perfectly well that the Public Security Bureau is too busy taking care of itself to have any extra energy to deal with ordinary people like us.
Therefore, many people are listing their houses for sale at low prices and moving to the city center, since it's much safer there!
He paused, then added, "As for those who have no money, they can only stay and pray that the police department will actually do its job."
Young man, if you're living here, I advise you to move out as soon as possible.
After saying that, the workers carried their things and hurriedly walked away.
Lin remained silent.
He had long anticipated this day would come.
Ping'an Residential Area is located on the outskirts of Wushan City, surrounded by numerous fissures. Although far away, it is inevitably affected, and residents fear attacks from the aberrant creatures, so their relocation was to be expected.
[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 202ᴋᴋs.ᴄᴏᴍ]
Lin Mo shook his head, ignored him, and continued walking forward.
Looking along the road, many residents' doors and windows were wide open, and the houses were empty, clearly indicating that they had been abandoned.
Houses for sale were plastered all over the walls, with ridiculously low prices.
It's less than half the market price, and the owner's contact information is still on the label.
It's clear that the residents moved out in a hurry.
Lin Mo walked silently into the apartment building and took the elevator to her floor.
As soon as I stepped out of the elevator, I saw that my neighbor's door was wide open.
The place was completely empty; all the furniture and appliances had been moved out.
All that remained were scraps of paper and packing tape, indicating that they had been completely moved away.
Lin Mo paused, just about to take out his keys to open the door.
Just then, my phone vibrated; it was a message from Fang Chuchu.
He clicked on it, and it was a voice message.
The gist is that her parents found out about the mutant outbreak in the neighborhood and were very worried about her living alone, so she has moved back to the city to live with them.
As for her apartment in Ping'an Community, it has already been listed for sale online.
She bought the apartment together with her sister Lin Mo, but now that Lin Wan has disappeared, she doesn't plan to live in this neighborhood anymore.
She asked how things were going with Linmo Academy and said she could visit her house if she had time!
Lin Mo stared at the message in silence for a moment, then quickly replied with his fingertips: "I just got back to my apartment complex."
Fang Chuchu replied instantly, telling him to be careful and to call her anytime if anything happened.
Lin Mo replied, "Okay, be careful too," and then put away his phone.
He opened the door, and the furnishings inside were exactly the same as when he left, without any signs of being disturbed.
It was just covered with a thin layer of dust.
The items on the card-making table in the corner of the living room were also present, neatly arranged with spirit liquid, drawing pens, and blank cards.
Lin Mo walked to the card-making table and took out the materials from his bag one by one, lining them up in a row.
【Heartache and Grief】(Purple)
[Water Ghost Spirit] (Green)
[Demon Fangzhijian] (White) [Demon Clothes and Linen] (White) [Ferryman's Powder] (White)
Lin Mo first picked up the [Heartbreak Core] (purple), poured his mental energy into it, and instantly the complete image of the material appeared in his mind.
This is an irregular polyhedron about the size of a fist, deep purple and translucent.
Inside, there was a constantly moving black thread, like a living thing, and faint cries could be heard coming from within.
This core of grieving master is the culmination of the vengeful spirits' lifelong resentment after devouring countless lives. It possesses two unique characteristics:
One is the "Resentment Mark," which can apply a unique mental mark to the target, making it difficult for the marked person to escape tracking;
Secondly, there is the "prestige of leadership," which has a natural, slight suppressive effect on lower-level undead creatures.
If nothing unexpected happens, it will be another card that counters spirits.
Lin Mo pondered in his mind that his first two cards, [Nine Songs - Mountain Spirit], were geared towards ranged output and summoning, while [Du Shuo Gatekeeper - Shen Tu Yu Lei] was geared towards defense, garrisoning, and protection, thus establishing a complete offensive and defensive system.
Its only obvious weakness is its speed.
He stroked the card face of [Heartbreak Core], and instantly made up his mind.
The third card is used to craft a vehicle card to compensate for the lack of movement speed.
After a moment of contemplation, Lin Mo had a preliminary idea in mind:
Using the core material of "Grief and Resentment" as the main material, it gathers spirituality.
【Gui Fang Zha Jia】is the hull frame of a boat, providing a solid foundation for the vehicle.
【Oni-i-mabu】is the sail of a ship, used to harness the wind.
The core power source is the "Water Ghost Spirit," which propels the boat forward.
【Ferryman's Powder】is a ferrying component, which aligns with the idea of ferrying souls from the underworld.
In this way, the card-making formula becomes clear:
【Pudu Boat】 = 【Grief of the Lord】 + 【Ghost Frame】 + 【Ghost Clothes】 + 【Water Ghost Spirit】 + 【Ferryman's Noodles】.
As for the card design, Lin Mo plans to draw inspiration from Taoist traditions and the Pudu boat, a traditional folk custom associated with the Ghost Festival.
This is an image of a vehicle directly related to guiding the souls of the dead, carrying the profound meaning of saving all living beings and sending them to the other shore.
Combined with the characteristics of the Grief-Induced Core, the power of grief and resentment under the command of the vengeful spirits can be used to carry the souls of the dead across the River Styx.
Wonderful, wonderful!
Having finalized his plan, Lin Mo took a deep breath and composed himself.
He did not immediately enter the space of his mind, but first carefully checked the spiritual compatibility of each material to ensure there were no problems.
The biggest taboo in card making is a conflict of spirituality in the materials. Once a problem arises, it can lead to dementia at best, or even death at worst.
After completing the inspection, Lin Mo closed his eyes, slowly releasing his mental energy to envelop all the materials and drawing tools on the table, as his consciousness continued to rise...
The next moment, he arrived in the familiar space of his mind.
All around was quiet, with only thick fog flowing by.
Lin Mo raised his hand and waved it, and five material cards immediately floated in front of him.
Apart from the main material, all other materials reveal their true forms.
Lin Mo took a deep breath and slowly wrote in the air.
In an instant, a great light shone forth from within my heart.
Thousands of points of light intersect and finally slowly converge to form the three characters "普渡舟" (Pudu Zhou).
Without pausing, Lin Mo waved his hand and began to construct the narrative.
The belief in the Ghost Festival boat originates from the core doctrine of "saving the souls of the dead" of the Lingbao School of Taoism during the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Through a thousand years of integration between Buddhism and Taoism and the evolution of folk customs, it has gradually formed a complete mythological system.
[The earliest example can be traced back to the *Lingbao Wuliang Duren Shangpin Miaojing*, where the term "great Dharma ship" is used as a metaphor for the Taoist vow to save the deceased from the suffering of birth and death.]
[Subsequent texts, such as the *Taishang Dongxuan Lingbao Jiuku Miaojing* and the *Shangqing Lingbao Jidu Dacheng Jinshu*, further concretized it into the "Soul-Crossing Ritual Boat" in Taoist rituals, becoming the prototype of a core ritual implement for breaking through hell and delivering the souls of the dead in Taoism.]
[After the Song Dynasty, the Ghost Festival (Zhongyuan Festival) and the Buddhist Ullambana Festival (Yulanpen Festival) became deeply integrated, and the Taoist Zhongyuan Pudu ritual flourished. The originally abstract "Dharma boat" was formally solidified into the Pudu boat, becoming the core carrier for "opening the gates of hell and delivering wandering souls" on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month every year. It completely moved from being a symbol of Taoist temple rituals into the folk tradition, becoming a universally recognized boat for ferrying souls across the underworld.]
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Taoist classics such as the *Taishang Lingbao Zhongyuan Pudu Keyi* and the *Yuli Baochao*, along with folk religious texts, further refined the mythological setting of the Pudu boat.
Meanwhile, folk legends about it are recorded multiple times in strange tales such as *Zi Bu Yu* and *Yue Wei Cao Tang Bi Ji*, ultimately making the Pudu boat one of the four major symbols for ferrying souls in the Chinese underworld system, alongside the Naihe Bridge, the Wangchuan Ferry, and the Youdu Black Water Ferry.
……
As Lin Mo wrote faster, the four pieces of material that had revealed their forms were completely integrated into the main material.
On the card, in the originally empty void, the phantom of a small boat floating on the turbulent black water slowly emerges.
The outline of the boat gradually solidifies as the text unfolds.
As the final step was taken, the entire card suddenly burst forth with a dazzling light.
Countless mysterious runes condensed in the void, swirling around the card like swimming fish, and were eventually engraved on the back of the card, forming a wondrous pattern.
The card emitted a low tremor, accompanied by the faint sound of churning black water, and suddenly flipped over, revealing the phantom image of a lone boat sailing in the boundless black water on the card face.
After examining the blurry card surface, Lin Mo stretched out his finger, gathered a wisp of spiritual power at his fingertip, and began to draw the card pattern.
After breaking through to the mid-level Black Iron Card Maker, his movements became more skillful and his control over his mental power became more precise.
The pen tip moves, spreading layers of dark lines, from deep to light, from rapid to slow...
Time passed slowly, the spiritual light in the mind's space grew brighter and brighter, and the drawing of the card pattern gradually came to an end.
Finally, the last stroke of the card pattern was completed.
A dazzling blue light burst forth from the space of the mind, which then slowly coalesced into the prototype of a card.
On the card, a small boat formed from gray-black resentment floats silently, its hull covered with underworld runes, and a ghostly green lamp hangs at its bow, faintly glowing in the darkness.
The boat moved silently, leaving a trail of faint black mist behind it.
"It looks good!"
Lin Mo gave a compliment, then immediately checked the card's attributes.
Card Name: [Netherworld Salvation - Vessel of Vengeful Souls]
Position: Funerary Objects
Type: Vehicles/Equipment/Source Cards
Spirituality: Rare, Bright Blue Edges, Black Iron
Star rating: ★★
characteristic:
【The Boat of the Dead】: Deploys the vengeful spirit boat. Card makers and their teammates can glide at low altitudes or hover above the water. The speed in water is twice that at low altitudes.
[Ghostly Trail]: During the journey aboard the Wraith Ship, the crew's aura is concealed, making them difficult to detect.
[Wailing Drive]: The Vengeful Spirit Boat can be used for a limited time each day. After the time limit is exceeded, it needs to absorb spiritual energy to recharge.
skill:
[Universal Salvation - Departure] Unfolds the Soul-Swept Ship, its hull emitting a faint, eerie light, providing the occupants with "Soul Protection," increasing their resistance to spirit-type attacks.
[Ferrying & Travel] The Wraith Boat ignores terrain obstacles and can travel through areas that conventional vehicles cannot pass through, such as swamps, thorns, and shallow water.
【Nether River - Rapid Travel】Greatly increases the movement speed of the Wraith Boat for a short period of time.
"A two-star blue card?"
Lin Mo's eyes flickered slightly, but his face did not show any surprise.
Firstly, the quality of the materials used to craft this vehicle card is generally not high.
Aside from the main material, [Heartbreak Core], which is purple quality, the other auxiliary materials don't even reach blue quality.
Even half of them are made of the most basic white materials;
Secondly, the narrative structure of this card is far less detailed and rich than when crafting [Nine Songs - Mountain Spirit] and [Dushuo Gatekeeper - Shen Tu Yu Lei].
The quality is naturally not very high.
Although it's only a two-star blue card and not top-tier, its skills and characteristics are very practical.
Especially the last one, [Styx - Rapid Travel], is simply an excellent way to escape.
And with this vehicle card, I'll never have to take regular transportation again when I go out!
District 9 has always had a relaxed jurisdiction over vehicle trucks. No procedures or registration are required, and drivers can freely drive vehicle trucks without being intercepted by the police or the truck driver alliance.
However, the situation is completely different in Zone 1 and Zone 2.
You must first register with the Truck Drivers Alliance and obtain the corresponding vehicle truck driving license before you can legally drive a truck.
Even the flight altitude is strictly limited; it's quite complicated.
Playing with the [Netherworld Salvation - Vengeful Soul Boat] card in his hand, Lin Mo suddenly felt a surge of excitement and couldn't suppress the urge to try it out.
He immediately put away the card, turned and left the room, quickly walked out of the Ping An residential area, found a sparsely populated park, and prepared to test the power of this vehicle card.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Mo slowly channeled his mental energy into the card.
In an instant, a wisp of azure light swept out from his palm, carrying a faint chilling aura, and swayed gently in mid-air.
The next instant, the wisp of spiritual light suddenly surged, transforming into a dense, grayish-black mist that rapidly condensed and took shape in front of him...