Chapter 526: Waiting Three Years on the Bridge of Helplessness (Extra Chapter for the Dog Lord)

## Chapter 533: Waiting Three Years on the Bridge of Helplessness

Several months later.

“I seem to have been here before.” Li Sansheng looked around in a daze. “However, in my memory, there was an endless stream of dense crowds, an endless Yellow Springs Road. Yet now, there are only sparse people queuing.”He was a little puzzled. His memory fragments were few, but they had never been wrong. Could it be that something had changed?

He turned his head and saw a magnificent black city in the distance, still under construction. Massive black square stones were neatly piled, forming a majestic and vast structure. High up, on some stones, strange beings held pieces of paper, reading them with great interest.“What are they doing? How odd. But the Yellow Springs Road is long, and with no one queuing, I can reach the Bridge of Helplessness quickly.”“Wait, why did I say ‘Bridge of Helplessness’?” He was confused again.

He arrived at the Bridge of Helplessness unimpeded, where there were still only a few scattered people. He stood on the Stone of Three Lives and began to view his past and present lives.“So, I am myself.” After seeing it, he understood everything.

In this life, although his aptitude remained poor, he had experienced the chaos of Xiaoguo. This event, in the long history of the Human Dao, was considered a super-event, a terrifying dark age. Zhang Xiao, the Blade God and first Tyrant Heavenly Emperor in the history of the Mortal Dao, had challenged the Celestials with astonishing talent, but ultimately perished.Despite his extremely poor talent, as a refugee who had narrowly escaped Xiaoguo, he was born with early wisdom. Relying on business acumen and intelligence, he built a considerable enterprise. He should have married and had children, but faint memory fragments vaguely tied him down, making him desperately want to find someone.

Thus, after achieving success in his career, he abandoned wealth and status, spent his entire fortune, and searched for an entire lifetime. Finally, in his old age, he passed by a village and suddenly felt an inexplicable pull. He walked in and saw a teenage girl who was mentally unstable. His tears began to flow uncontrollably, and he sobbed, knowing immediately that this was the person he had been searching for.

It was said that the girl's parents were also refugees from Xiaoguo, having fled while she was pregnant. However, the child hit her head during birth and remained confused and listless. He had raised her for half her life, yet she never regained her senses. He himself had passed away from illness at ninety-seven and arrived here.“I’ve waited for several lifetimes, yet we can’t be together in the end.” He wiped away his tears, looking at Meng Po before him, who was no longer the mysterious reincarnation entity of old.A thousand years of glances, several lifetimes of bitter waiting; the karmic ties of reincarnation began then, and would not end here.

“One life wrong, every life wrong.” His face was bitter. The overlaps in reincarnation, the cycle of rebirth, never allowed for a perfectly timed encounter.Suddenly, Meng Po put down a book with a strange title and looked up.“19476, I’ve heard of you. Your next life will be in the Mortal Dao.”

Li Sansheng was silent for a moment. “Can I wait?”“Oh?” Meng Po asked.“Wait for her to die, wait for a perfect timing, and be reborn together.” He took a deep breath.

Meng Po immediately smiled. “Do you know that waiting like this is mostly futile? Even if you’re the same age, you might not remember her, might not find her, and still miss her in the vast crowd. Moreover, waiting will heavily waste your reincarnation time, making it not worth the gain.”Li Sansheng pursed his lips and said resolutely, “I want to wait for her. If anyone dies at ninety-seven, I will wait three years on the Bridge of Helplessness.”

Meng Po smiled. Three years on the Bridge of Helplessness was equivalent to thirty years in the Mortal Dao. Perhaps that would be enough time. Li Sansheng eventually left the Bridge of Helplessness, wandering aimlessly.

Meanwhile, at the construction site of Fengdu City, a foreman was working hard. A voice came from afar, “Have you heard? The person who left the poem on the Bridge of Helplessness has appeared again!”“Yes, what a devoted lover! ‘If anyone dies at ninety-seven, I will wait three years on the Bridge of Helplessness’ — another new poem!”Zhang Xiao’s eyes immediately widened, and his mind went blank with a jolt.

Only then did he realize he had forgotten his task of keeping an eye on the newcomers arriving on the Yellow Springs Road. He hadn't expected to have missed the person, who must have already left and entered reincarnation. His heart was filled with intense regret.“Damn it!” He remembered his mission, bearing the rise and fall of the entire Human Dao, feeling utterly distraught. “I deserve to die a thousand times, damn it! The fate of the Human Dao rests on me, but the ‘Records of the Alchemist Emperor’ misled me!”

At that moment, a voice from afar called out, “The celebrity is here!”Zhang Xiao was startled. He hadn't left yet. He couldn’t help but quickly walk over.Li Sansheng was also surprised, staring blankly at the man who strongly resembled Zhang Xiao, the warlord and formidable ruler, but now looked like a rural foreman. He couldn't help but murmur to himself, “This person bears some resemblance to that hegemon who dared to defy the heavens.”

“Brother, come here for a moment.” Zhang Xiao had completely remembered his main task.Then, Li Sansheng felt his worldview being shattered. It truly was the legendary ruler Zhang Xiao, and such convoluted events had happened to him in the Underworld. What was even more shocking was that this first Heavenly Emperor of the Mortal Dao actually had a request for him.“I can’t do it,” Li Sansheng quickly shook his head, knowing his own limitations.

“But only you can barely remember this place, possessing memories of your past life,” Zhang Xiao stared intently at him. “And I have a plan: since your talent isn’t strong, I can train you here. Though I don’t know how much you’ll remember in your next life, or how much will turn into instinct…”Li Sansheng was still hesitating.

“Don’t rush.” Zhang Xiao took a deep breath, knowing this person was currently the Human Dao’s only hope. “Though your talent is weak and not geared towards combat, your ability to vaguely remember reincarnation is still your greatest advantage. I’ve comprehended two unparalleled martial arts techniques from the ‘Records of the Alchemist Emperor,’ boosting my combat power severalfold. If I were to challenge the Celestials again, I might gain a significant advantage. But I can’t take them with me after death. You’re different; if I teach them to you, you might be able to…” He had learned some astonishing secret techniques from the ‘Records of the Alchemist Emperor.’

Li Sansheng looked at the newspaper, utterly bewildered. In all his years of reincarnation, this was the first time he’d seen something so bizarre.“This is a very interesting newspaper. It can help you pass the time, and some of the data inside is incredibly strange and can inspire us,” Zhang Xiao said. “Many things in the Underworld align with the rules of heaven and earth and should not be underestimated.”Li Sansheng immediately adopted a serious expression.

After all, he had to wait here for that person to arrive, so looking at it now wouldn’t hurt. He could become a permanent resident of the Underworld alongside Zhang Xiao.Zhang Xiao wasn’t afraid that Li Sansheng would become obsessed. He whispered to himself, “At worst, I’ll just drive him away later. Even if I get engrossed, it doesn’t mean I can’t kick him out.”

Zhang Xiao made up his mind and continued, “Speaking of which, recently in the Underworld, besides the newspaper stand, they’ve also set up a ‘Combat Pavilion.’ Perhaps it holds a great secret. Though named ‘Combat,’ it’s already profound. You can go and see it, perhaps comprehend some rules of heaven and earth. It’s not officially open yet; only us foremen who are building Fengdu are qualified to try it. I’ll take you to have a look.”

With that, the two of them arrived in front of a bulky, thick rectangular machine with several strange black and white buttons, similar in shape to the Stone of Three Lives.“What is this?” Li Sansheng asked.“I’m not sure, but the Combat Pavilion might help you improve and train your talent and skill in combat,” Zhang Xiao said with a serious and solemn expression. Having read the novel, he naturally knew its profundity and that it absolutely shouldn’t be underestimated.

“I see,” Li Sansheng’s expression also became serious. His poor combat talent had always been a sore point for him. Now, with such a mysterious item, his eyes gleamed with warmth, and he felt a faint sense of anticipation.

“Calm down,” Zhang Xiao’s expression grew serious. “Perhaps this is your opportunity to save the Human Dao—to train your combat talent!” He took out a few coins. “It says it requires coins to use. Though it’s my first time using it, let’s try it together and improve our combat skills!”“Understood,” Li Sansheng replied with a solemn face.

As the coins were inserted, and under their solemn gaze, the machine’s screen gradually lit up with large characters:“King of Fighters ’98”