Reborn As A Dragon Girl With A System

Ghostly trees and flowers filled Angelica's eyes. This was the realm of the dead. Not a single thing could be considered alive here, but for those living here, the concept of being alive was a foreign idea. In the realm of the dead that had the river of reincarnation running through it, the ghostly entities that lived here called this place their home, could not be considered dead if you looked at things from their perspective. 

That was because the realm of the dead was their home, the place where they lived. Although it could be said to not be the friendliest of places as the souls that lived here also had to be careful. It was a custom for stronger souls to devour smaller souls to grow even stronger. But the act of soul-devouring also caused some to lose their mind and become monsters who lived to feed off souls. 

These monsters would no longer be able to control their own hunger and ended up losing their forms, turning into huge monsters called Nis. Angelica knew a lot about these things since she had spent so many years researching souls. The realm of the dead was a place no living could enter. Those who did not wish to stay in the realm of the dead could just jump into the river of reincarnation and hope to be reborn. Yes, it was hope. Not everyone was able to be reborn. As the river itself also needed a source of power to send souls off to other planes, it would also consume souls in order to power itself. Only certain souls were never consumed, like the goddess of death and the goddess of life. Their souls could never be consumed. This was because they were created to be necessary existences.

As for Angelica, if she were to fall into the river of reincarnation. Not only would her soul that was in the realm of the dead be sucked in, but the ten percent she left in her body would also be sucked out of her and then thrown into the river of reincarnation. She would then have to hope she would be able to reincarnate after. 

But from her current position, she was far from the river. The river itself cut through the realm of the dead in front of the only path that led to the trial to become the Ghost Empress. Only by sitting upon the throne within the ghost palace and looking down over the realm of the dead from the mountain peak, the ghost palace stood on would she be considered to have passed the trial and officially become the Ghost Empress. 

From the sounds of it, it all sounded simple, but it wasn't even close to being a simple task because the first task was to cross the river of reincarnation. A place that one could not fly over. One had to take a boat to get across, and if they were lucky, they would be able to reach the other side. 

What awaited her beyond that even Angelica did not know. She could only wait and see for herself what the rest of the trial would be like. One thing she did know was that the trial was never just a single person trying to pass it. Although it was a female-only trial and no males were allowed to even step foot on the opposite shore, there were always thousands of women from young to old who tried their luck. The thought of ruling over the realm of the dead was just too great of a temptation for those who died and came to the realm of the dead.

But this also made the tests more dangerous. It meant that Angelica would need to be extra careful during her trial, or she might end up dying to the person next to her. While the trial was open all the time, it was also done in an orderly fashion. From what she read, the first part of the trial had an order of things. Only so many people were allowed to attempt to cross the river of reincarnation. 

"Hmm… As far as I know, I will need to find a ferryman. Only by finding a ferryman can you cross the river successfully." The ferryman was either male or female and were experts in crossing the river of reincarnation. They could take you across the river and drop you off but finding one was very hard.  The reason it was important to have a ferryman was because once out on the river, while you would not capsize, the river would play tricks on your mind. Only those with a strong mind could cross the river. 

Stories stated that there were many who went out with their ferryman and only to stand up on the boat and under the watchful eyes of many dive right into the river. Some even went into a panic, not only jumping into the river but also dragging their ferryman with them. 

This did not mean ferrymen were the only option for crossing. One could also build or buy their own boat. Once they did, they could try to cross the river on their own and try to deal with the tricks of the river. "I will spend a few days searching for one, but if I can not find them, then I will just build my own boat. Although I am not one hundred percent sure on the specifics for crossing the river alone, I think I should be able to make it."

With this thought in mind, Angelica set off across the field as she made her way towards the closest town, which was nothing more than a dot in the distance. She wondered why that old man had to put her down at such a distance from the town. 

---

While Angelica was heading to the closest town in the realm of the dead, Rain was staring at an old man in front of her. The same old man who handed her her Mama's message. "You need something?" She was not happy at all seeing this old man after knowing that he was the one who took her Mama away.

  "Do you wish to catch up to your sisters and father?" The old man asked.

"Is that not why I am standing on a mountain of corpses now?" Rain asked. She was highly annoyed with the old man's question.

"What if I said I can send you to a place to gain greater power? But be warned, to get this power will not be easy. "