Inside the grand hall.
"Who among you will go first?"
Gui Wa repeated from above the circular platform.
Its voice, carried by ghostly energy, permeated every corner of the grand hall.
There was no fear that anyone wouldn't hear.
Yet, despite this, the entire space fell into silence.
"Ahem..."
The gazes of the seniors fell upon the drunken juniors, contemplating whom to push forward for a performance.
Suddenly, there was a 'thump' from a corner.
Meng Po casually tossed aside her empty wine pot and slowly rose from her seat, a strange smile on her face.
"I'll go! Hiccup~"
"It's just a performance, hiccup~ I'll definitely give you an unforgettable annual gathering, hehehehe..."
Seeing this, Gui Wa shifted its position, baring two rows of sharp teeth.
"Then let us invite Meng Po!"
The ghost messengers seated were very supportive, especially the seniors who were watching and drinking. They all shouted:
"As expected of Meng Po, go on!"
"Give us a brilliant performance! We're looking forward to it!"
"Be bold, anything is fine!"
...
Amidst the cheers, Meng Po flew up from the air and gracefully landed on the circular platform.
Her movements were light and agile, her face fair, and her eyes bright, showing no sign of being drunk.
With a wave of her hand, a large jar appeared on the platform.
The jar was a meter tall and half a meter wide, with black patterns on its body, resembling clusters of black flames, quite eerie.
The water inside rippled, but it was unclear what lay within.
"It's the New Year, and as Meng Po, I'll make a special New Year's soup."
As Meng Po spoke, with a twist of her wrist, a large ladle over a meter long appeared in her hand.
"It's absolutely one of a kind."
A jar? Making soup?
Seeing this, many captains instinctively became vigilant and subconsciously looked towards King Jian'an.
King Jian'an also noticed these gazes, and his face immediately darkened.
Among the ghost messengers present, almost every one or two had a dark past.
Fortunately, Meng Po seemed to be making soup for the sake of making soup, with no intention of doing anything else.
The large ladle was placed into the jar, and it began to stir quietly.
Once she started making the soup, she became quiet and focused, just as she was when making Meng Po's soup in the past.
While stirring, she paid attention to the heat, while stirring, she looked at the heat...
As she stirred, she suddenly felt something was wrong and tilted her head to look outside the jar.
Where was her heat?
Where was the fire?
How could she make soup without fire?
Meng Po suddenly looked up, her gaze fixed on the ghost fires flickering in the grand hall.
She reached out and grabbed a handful of ghostly white and ethereal blue ghost fires.
Then, she slapped the side of the jar, simple and crude.
"Light the fire!!" Meng Po commanded.
This slap stunned both types of fire.
The black flames attached to the black patterns on the jar: "???"
They had their own fire, why use those inferior flames??
As long as the master willed it, they would ignite.
"???"
The ghost fires were even more bewildered.
They were responsible for illumination!
Not contracted for the fire-lighting industry...
Why were they suddenly disliked?
Meng Po's eyes narrowed, "Are you going to burn or not? If not, I'll extinguish you now!"
Boom—!
Clusters of ghost fires instantly flared up, the ethereal blue and ghostly white flames mixing together, almost enveloping the entire jar.
"Hiccup~ Can't this burn?"
Meng Po looked at the soup that was starting to heat up, then let out a satisfied hiccup and continued stirring with the ladle.
While stirring, she occasionally added some ingredients.
The black flames, which couldn't activate without orders: "..."
"Pfft fufufu..."
On their seats, many seniors covered their mouths and chuckled.
This scene was simply too amusing, hahahaha...
...
"Hehehehehe..."
"I see a strong survival instinct in these ghost fires (dog head)."
"It seems that whether it's an egg or ghost fire, it's not easy to survive, hahahahaha..."
"Ghost fires: Am I not having an easy time?"
Seeing this, the viewers in the live stream were also amused, almost spitting out their melon seeds.
It was dinnertime in the human world, but not a single person was willing to leave.
The number of viewers in the live stream only increased.
For them, food must be eaten, but the live stream must also be watched!
There are entertainment galas every year, but an underworld annual gathering is not guaranteed.
Watching Meng Po make soup, ghost fires struggling for survival, isn't that wonderful?
"We are now broadcasting the [Ghost Fire Survival] segment. Please hold back your laughter; we are professionals..."
"To be frank, I am also a professional fire-lighter (dog head)."
"You in front, this is clearly the [Meng Po's Culinary Delights] segment. Be professional and don't misreport the program."
...
Amidst the viewers' program announcements, in the live stream feed—
The jar in front of Meng Po began to bubble and gurgle, its color turning a dark black.
Gui Wa, the host for the evening, naturally leaned closer and asked:
"What has Meng Po-sama added to it? What does the soup taste like?"
Meng Po looked up at him and said expressionlessly:
"They are all very ordinary things, but when combined, they will have very wonderful effects."
"Soon, it will be ready soon..."
Gradually, a peculiar aroma began to waft from the jar, rivaling the scent of wine filling the room.
This aroma attracted many captains to lift their heads from their tables and look towards the jar.
They saw the black medicinal soup swirling and churning with the ladle...
As if some strange creature might suddenly fly out.
Wait!
Is it their imagination?
Did a skull-like thing just emerge?
The captains looked at Meng Po, then at the soup, then at the soup and then at Meng Po.
Is this thing really meant for them to drink?
...
Some seniors with prior experience had already begun to cast protective shields, covering themselves and their dining tables.
Whether they could drink it or not, it was better to be safe!
Just then, a smile appeared on Meng Po's face, "It's ready!"
Without giving the captains a chance to react, she suddenly slapped the side of the jar.
Clang—
All the soup in the jar flew up, but it seemed to be wrapped by something invisible, not a single drop spilling.
"Special edition New Year's soup is here!"
Meng Po extended the ladle over a meter long in her hand, twisted her waist, and directly spun the mass of soup in the air.
In an instant, the pot of soup was divided into small portions, each flying towards the ghost messengers present.
They automatically fell into the white jade bowls placed before them.
Even Lord Yama received a cup.
However, there were exceptions.
Splat splat splat!
Clusters of soup directly hit the protective shields cast by the seniors beforehand, sliding down along the shields.
Before the seniors inside the protective shields could smile, in the next second, they discovered...
This soup was actually corroding their protective shields!
"!!!"
Their expressions immediately changed.
Is this really meant for them to drink!?
Is Meng Po planning a murder at the annual gathering?!
Splat!
Another cluster of black soup hit the protective shield, emitting a faint corrosive sound.
Splat!
Splat splat!
One cluster, two clusters, more soup came flying, and the protective shields rapidly dissipated.
These seniors panicked and quickly got up to move away from their seats.
Without the protective shields, the soup fell onto the seats, onto the dining tables...
Corroding a large area.
Only when a cluster of soup fell into the white jade bowl on the dining table did the poisonous rain stop.
Meng Po stood on the circular platform, holding the ladle, and said expressionlessly:
"Special edition New Year's soup, please drink."
"..."
The seniors who had moved away from their seats looked at the bubbling black soup in the bowl and fell silent.
This is blatant murder!
So, who was it that got Meng Po drunk? Who would dare to drink this poison?!
...