Crossing Souls

Li Changsheng is a memory-loss survivor who makes a living as a fraudulent Daoist master in the Four Cities Ghost Market, selling useless talismans to unsuspecting ghosts. His deceptive trade is interrupted by Lou Changwang, a righteous but impulsive clerk of the Bureau of Tribulation Transference, who accuses him of fraud and traps him in a magical golden cage. The situation escalates when a Magpie Edict from the Bureau arrives, not for Lou, but for Li Changsheng. The edict appoints him as the sixteenth Chief of the Bureau of Tribulation Transference, a position infamous for its deadly feng shui that has claimed fifteen previous chiefs. The appointment shocks the market, as Li Changsheng is merely a mortal with no cultivation, yet the decree bears the Golden Merit of the Heavenly Dao.

Fleeing the greedy crowd that seeks to claim a bounty on his head, Li Changsheng accidentally crashes into a ruined Dragon God Temple. There, he performs a ritual using three sticks of incense to summon the deity, hoping to find answers about his past. The summoning succeeds, but the entity that appears is not a benevolent god. It is Feng Hui, the Lord of the Nether Palace, who was once a True Dragon. Feng Hui harbors a three-hundred-year grudge against Li Changsheng, believing him to be the treacherous beauty who betrayed and murdered him. Feng Hui attacks Li Changsheng, choking him and marking his palm with a black snake tattoo before vanishing, leaving Li Changsheng to face the wrath of the Nether Palace.

Yu Qingjian, a high-ranking official of the Bureau, arrives to escort Li Changsheng to the Nether Capital. Yu Qingjian is openly hostile toward the mortal appointment, viewing Li Changsheng as a disgrace to the Bureau. Their journey is fraught with danger as they are pursued by vengeful spirits attracted to Li Changsheng’s Golden Merit. At the Dragon God Temple, a sealing array breaks, releasing a powerful Calamitous Spirit that possesses Lou Changwang, who had followed them. Yu Qingjian attempts to use the Spirit Attachment of the legendary Du Shangheng to subdue the spirit, but the power rejects Li Changsheng, revealing a deep, unresolved conflict between the new Chief and the Bureau’s founder.

With Yu Qingjian bound by the Bureau’s suppression commands and unable to fight, Li Changsheng is forced to rely on his wits. He discovers that despite his lack of cultivation, his blood and the Golden Merit possess a latent power that repels the Calamitous Spirit. The Mountain Ghost, Du Shangheng’s legendary sword, also reacts to Li Changsheng, suggesting a hidden connection between them. Li Changsheng manages to stabilize the situation by using incense offerings to temporarily empower Yu Qingjian, allowing the Bureau official to contain the spirit while Li Changsheng works to restore the sealing array.

The story establishes a tense dynamic between Li Changsheng and Feng Hui, whose obsessive hatred masks a complex history that Li Changsheng cannot remember. Meanwhile, Li Changsheng must navigate the treacherous politics of the Nether Capital, where the Bureau of Tribulation Transference is on the verge of disbandment due to its lack of capable leaders. Yu Qingjian’s disdain slowly shifts as he witnesses Li Changsheng’s unique abilities, though he remains skeptical of the mortal’s fitness for the role. Li Changsheng’s primary goal is to survive his tenure and uncover the truth of his past, but he finds himself entangled in a web of revenge, ancient curses, and heavenly mandates that threaten to destroy him.

As Li Changsheng assumes his duties, he faces numerous challenges, including hostile ghost messengers and internal Bureau politics. The black snake tattoo on his hand serves as a constant reminder of Feng Hui’s curse and their shared history. Li Changsheng’s fraudulent nature becomes an asset as he uses deception and strategy to outmaneuver enemies far stronger than himself. The narrative follows his struggle to legitimize his position while avoiding the fate of his predecessors, all while the shadow of the Nether Palace Lord looms over him, waiting for the moment when Li Changsheng might remember who he truly is.