In Chinese mythology, the dead must pass through the Gates of Hell and travel the Road to the Yellow Springs. The River of Forgetfulness forms the boundary between the road and the underworld. Its waters are blood-yellow, filled with the lonely ghosts and spirits who cannot be reborn. Insects and snakes swarm beneath the surface, and a foul wind blows across it. A bridge called the Bridge of Helplessness spans the river. An old woman named Granny Meng sits beside it. Anyone who wishes to cross the River of Forgetfulness must cross the bridge and drink Granny Meng’s soup to forget their past life. Those who refuse to drink cannot cross the bridge or be reincarnated.
Two ingredients in Granny Meng’s soup must be sought in the human world: human tears and incense ash. The human world is a strange place. It is home not only to people, but also to ghosts, spirits, monsters, demons, and Taoist practitioners who have cultivated for a hundred years without aging. And so, the adventures of one god, one ghost, and one cat in the human world are full of twists and turns. Some stories are based on real events.
