Twilight Boundary

I always felt like this person had suddenly snatched my words away...

Why were the code names for Reincarnators all alcohols? Hu Ma had wanted to ask this question for a long time. When he first encountered Er Guotou, he thought maybe choosing such a name made it easier to be noticed by other Reincarnators. Later, when he met Miss White Wine, he found it rather intriguing.

However, influenced by these two, he casually chose the code name Old White, feeling like he instantly blended into their circle.

But now, seeing another one named Sweet Potato, he couldn't help but wonder if all Reincarnators chose names after alcohol from their original world as their code names.

Was it some kind of unspoken rule or just a habit?

If it was a tradition left by predecessors, could it be that the first pioneer to choose such a name was someone who owned a distillery?

Also, wasn't anyone worried about duplicate names?

...Or maybe by adding the place name in front, like "I'm Old White from Old Yin Mountain, and you're Sweet Potato from Wutong Town?"

But if he had been the one to ask first, he would have asked all these questions. Since the other party had snatched the topic, Hu Ma merely pondered for a moment, projecting an air of seasoned calm as he softly countered, "Aren't you one too?"

Sweet Potato hastily said, "I only chose this because I had previously contacted Miss White Wine, so I wanted something similar. I originally wanted to be called Red Wine, but she..."

Hu Ma asked, "What happened?"

Sweet Potato took a moment to respond, a bit embarrassed, "She said I wasn't worthy!"

Hu Ma immediately understood. 'Seems like he's a rookie, not much experience, so dealing with him will be quite reassuring.'

'Newbies are the most reassuring.'

"Anyway, it's great that you're here, buddy."

While Hu Ma was contemplating, Sweet Potato seemed even more excited than he was. His voice was faintly high-pitched, reminiscent of a child whose voice was breaking, making it ambiguous whether he was male or female. Hu Ma couldn't tell if he was deliberately affecting this tone or if it was his natural voice.

Sweet Potato continued, "I was really worried you wouldn't come. Our Wutong County is a small place, I can't find other Reincarnators, and I couldn't leave to search in a bigger city. Luckily, Miss White Wine introduced you."

'At least in Wutong County, people come and go. Our Old Yin Mountain is truly desolate...' Hu Ma thought, but he maintained a composed demeanor and said in a steady voice, "I am well acquainted with Miss White Wine. She was unable to get away, so she entrusted me with this trip. Let's discuss business. She mentioned you have a deal here that's worth a considerable amount of silver?"

"Silver?"

Sweet Potato sounded rather surprised. "Silver? What's silver in comparison?"

"Although I haven't collaborated much with other Reincarnators, I know they possess great Divine Skills. Who would be so lacking as to labor for the sake of silver? What I'm after this time is a treasure!"

Hu Ma suddenly felt as if he'd been insulted, but he didn't know how to retort. After a brief silence, he simply maintained a steady appearance and asked, "What treasure?"

"It's a treasure from our Execution Soul Path, not of much use to outsiders."

Sweet Potato quickly clarified, "But if you help me out, I'll owe you a huge debt of gratitude."

"There's only one piece of this treasure, so I fear I can't share it with you. Besides, outsiders don't need it. However, anything else, whether it's tasks or other treasures you want, as long as I have it, we can negotiate. If it's really not feasible, I can even get you some Blood Food Pills."

Surprised at his words, Hu Ma asked hastily, "How many?"

After thinking for a while, Sweet Potato said, "At least seven or eight."

Hu Ma sighed. "That's not worth my involvement. If you're truly in a difficult situation, then exchange it for silver. Although it's not much, ten or twenty thousand taels would still be useful."

"HISS..." Sweet Potato was taken aback, whispering, "Brother, did you reincarnate into an affluent family?"

"Looking down on Blood Food Pills, yet casually mentioning tens of thousands of taels of silver?"

Hu Ma realized that Miss White Wine was a meticulous person. She had arranged this task without revealing information about either party, which made him feel more settled. He neither confirmed nor denied, simply stating calmly, "Let's focus on business first."

"How do you want me to assist you?"

Sweet Potato exhaled, then said quietly, "The treasure is right here in Wutong County, and it will soon mature. I need to obtain it before then."

"However, to be fair, I'm not the only one eyeing this treasure. Many skilled individuals have also arrived. I don't worry about the others, but there is one person I'm not confident I can deal with alone. Having someone to cooperate with would put my mind at ease."

Hu Ma frowned slightly. "Who is it?"

"It's Lu Xiujin, the Eldest Young Master of the Lu Family, who are major rice merchants in Wutong County."

After a moment of silence, Sweet Potato frankly explained, "Don't be deceived by his appearance as a carefree, rich young master. Years ago, he secretly apprenticed himself to a jianghu Master, learning the trump card of yellow official paper."

"In recent years, he hasn't been lenient about taking lives. The runaway maids from his household and the unclaimed bodies under the stone bridge are actually the handiwork of this illustrious Eldest Young Master."

"Secretly, he's already joined the green clothes gang, which gives him some small influence. Now he's vying for this treasure to do a great deed for them. But don't worry, I've made quite a few plans, and our advantages are pretty similar."

"People from the green clothes gang?" Hu Ma was slightly startled. Quietly assessing the situation, he whispered, "Such people might be hard to deal with, mightn't they?"

"Indeed, the older one gets in the jianghu, the more cautious one becomes. Brother, your prudence is something I need to learn from..." Sweet Potato sighed with sentiment. "But rest assured, we have the advantage of preparedness against their lack of it, so the advantage is certainly ours."

"Moreover, you don't need to worry about him. Although he's cunning and has a trump card, I know all the moves he knows. I know what he's planning and what his weaknesses are, and I can tell you everything in advance."

What? Hu Ma was genuinely surprised by this.

People in the Path were very secretive about their trump cards. How could they be so easily uncovered? Once exposed, wouldn't their lives be in the hands of others?

"Haha, not only do I know his trump card and weaknesses, but he also knows mine." Noticing Hu Ma's surprise, Sweet Potato chuckled. "Because we share the same Master. He is technically my senior brother, and now we're both after this treasure, which was planted by our Master."

"Whoever gets the treasure will gain face for our lineage and can become a Worship in the green clothes gang."

"Of course, weaknesses aren't usually revealed to others. In this world, it's a taboo to mention such things, and no one within the Path would ever leak them. But what do I care? Revealing it to a Reincarnator doesn't count as leaking."

Listening, Hu Ma remained outwardly unfazed, silently contemplating. He couldn't deny that this was a frightening aspect of Reincarnators.

Some people survived in this world because of their trump card, but once a trump card was revealed, it was no longer a trump card. It was like a Magician; a fantastic, unbelievable magic trick could lose its mystique instantly with an explanation, becoming dull and mundane. Neither the Magician, his Disciples, nor his assistants would ever disclose this secret, lest they become public enemies.

But Reincarnators evidently lacked such conviction. If they wanted to speak, they would.

Of course, even though he understood this clearly, he intentionally asked nonchalantly, "Then since you've told me, aren't you afraid..."

Weren't there life-or-death struggles among Reincarnators for the sake of profit? By divulging his Path's secrets and weaknesses to him, wasn't Sweet Potato afraid that Hu Ma would turn around, kill him, and seize the treasure?

"What's there to be afraid of?" Sweet Potato was slightly taken aback by this question, then responded curiously, "Even if you covet the treasure and plan to trick me, aren't you afraid Miss White Wine will come after you?"

Hu Ma pondered. He was indeed wary of the enigmatic Miss White Wine. But how did that explain Sweet Potato's seemingly carefree attitude?

"Haha, there's also an even more crucial point." Sweet Potato said, "Miss White Wine is the only Reincarnator I know, and she told me about a commonality among us Reincarnators."

"She asked me if I'd ever considered this: why do many impoverished people we see, despite their own difficult lives, remain very kind and dare not do anything against their conscience?"

Not expecting the question to be turned back on him, Hu Ma paused briefly before replying nonchalantly, "Because of their nature?"

"No." Sweet Potato explained, "Miss White Wine said it's due to a very simple reason: they believe in an afterlife, they believe in heaven and hell."

"Because they believe, even when destitute, they dare not commit evil deeds. They fear descending into hell when they die, fear reincarnating as pigs or dogs to suffer in their next life, fear that the suffering of this life will continue after death..."

"In some respects, we Reincarnators are like them."

"We Reincarnators were all brought to this world by some mysterious force. Whether we are transmigrators or Evil Ghosts reborn, none of us can say for sure. Therefore, we also can't be sure if there truly is a Netherworld with Ten Halls Yama awaiting us."

"If there truly is, then once we die and our actions in this world are brought to account, what then?"

"Then there's another point. Since the awakener exists—um, the voice that awakened us from chaos—if he could awaken us, doesn't that also imply he's always watching us?"

"If we scheme against and harm each other for petty gains, wouldn't he consider us bad apples and kick us out?"

This was indeed the first time Hu Ma had consciously considered such a problem. He had never seriously discussed the issue of mutual trust among Reincarnators with Er Guotou or Miss White Wine.

Now, listening to Sweet Potato explain it, the more Hu Ma thought about it, the more sense it made. However, he didn't let this show, merely listening in silence. After a long moment, he gently exhaled and said, "Alright, let's get down to business!"

"How should I cooperate with you?"

Sweet Potato smiled, clearly reassured. "Then it's simple. The first step is for you to find my senior brother."