Chapter 154

Xie Xubai lowered his brows slightly, watching Lü Xiangcai's unguarded, or rather, deliberately unguarded, light steps, and in a flash, he understood what the other was thinking.

Clearly, Lü Xiangcai was mindful of the agreement to be judged, and had come to face his death.

As expected, Lü Xiangcai stopped in front of him, pleading pitifully, "Xie Xubai, you know my personality, I'm always very thin-skinned. If I were really put in prison clothes and taken to court to be pointed at and cursed by everyone, I couldn't stand it. I'd rather die here."

Lu Xiangcai opened his sleeves, pointed to the sky, and laughed brightly, "Besides, look how wonderful this place is."

Xie Xubai looked over in that direction.

The scene before me is hardly anything to be proud of.

The vengeful spirits of the entire village were awakened and rushed into the illusion. A vast and complex black aura of resentment surged and gathered here, forming a massive storm that could destroy everything in its path.

In the storm, only grotesque faces could be seen rushing past, howling incessantly. Pupillary black eye sockets faced downwards, dripping with blood and tears, staring intently at Lü Xiangcai, who was protected by golden light, revealing a chilling hatred and murderous intent.

Demons danced wildly, and ten thousand ghosts wailed.

In this situation, taking one more step forward would likely result in being torn to shreds by sharp claws; even the most brutal form of torture in the fifteen levels of the underworld is no more severe.

“Those who hate me or have been harmed by me are basically all here.” Lu Xiangcai put his sleeves back and raised his head leisurely to look around at the vengeful spirits. “Letting these guys witness my death might make them think more clearly, and they might even be able to find peace and ascend to heaven on the spot.”

"I guess it's a fitting end for me to die, to shine and contribute to this beautiful world, don't you think?"

Xie Xubai silently looked at Lü Xiangcai, and after a moment, raised his hand, a faint golden light gathering in his palm. The light was gentle and warm, not intense or dazzling.

He looked up and asked in a low voice, "Do you really think so?"

That's of course impossible.

Lu Xiangcai felt that he was petty, vindictive, and that his magnanimity was mostly an act.

He was a coward who clung to life and feared death; otherwise, why would he have lingered on until the very end, unwilling to atone with his death?

Lu Xiangcai turned to him with a smile: "Do you want to hear the truth?"

Before Xie Xubai could speak, Lü Xiangcai smirked, "Forget it, forget it. I used too many foul words, and saying them would only offend your ears. They want me to die again, so let me die. Debts must be repaid, and that's the end of it."

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment and softly called out, "Xie Xubai..."

It's time for you to get started, just like we agreed.

"I……"

I'm a little scared, actually I'm very afraid of pain, and I've been too embarrassed to tell anyone, so could you please hurry up? Considering how long I've been your support staff.

As he was about to speak, Lü Xiangcai met Xie Xubai's eyes, and in that instant, his breath caught in his throat, and his heart skipped a beat.

Just as Xie Xubai could see his unwilling struggle at a glance, he could also sense something from Xie Xubai's seemingly calm eyes.

Lu Xiangcai suddenly realized that whether it was pleading for mercy or a casual remark, it would cause the person in front of him who cared about him pain. His act of forcing Xie Xubai to do it was no less than stabbing the other person in the heart.

Xie Xubai was that kind of person; he could be silently saddened for half a day even when the welcoming pine tree at the company entrance died.

Lu Xiangcai couldn't help but recall the day he first met Xie Xubai. The management, who had just come back to life, started to stir again. He added cognitive interference to himself and infiltrated the lower levels to conduct a secret investigation.

The sky was overcast that day, with a torrential downpour and thunder. He stared at the missing cash flow deficit in the electronic report, feeling utterly fed up with this endless cycle. Then, in a fleeting glance, he caught sight of a shadowy figure in the rain.

The figure drew closer, jogging as it rushed in through the torrential rain; it was a young man in his early twenties.

He was tall and slender, with an unremarkable appearance, but his clear eyes shone brightly in the soft white light of the porch lamp.

The young man's shoulder was soaked by the rain. He had just returned from completing the registration procedures at the human resources department when he was caught by the passing manager, who berated him for being improperly dressed and damaging the company's image. The manager threatened to deduct his salary, and the manager's arrogant and domineering attitude made Lu Xiangcai sneer repeatedly.

Although he disapproved, he had no intention of standing up for himself. He crossed his arms, propped his head up, leaned back in his chair, and watched with glee as the young man was thoroughly berated.

Many of his colleagues shared his sentiment of watching the drama unfold. With Yan Shuo in hiatus and management acting erratically and irresponsibly, those people were being exploited to the point of exhaustion, and they found a twisted pleasure in seeing others suffer.

Some people even made gloating bets on how long the gambling boss would yell at them this time, and when the young man, who was just entering society, would be driven to the brink of collapse by the yelling.

To their disappointment, the young man whispered something, and the arrogant manager's expression suddenly changed. He turned and stormed off.

The HR assistant who was leading the way had already turned and slipped away when he sensed something was wrong. Hundreds of eyes on the floor were fixed on the young man.

The young man stood still for several seconds before finding his seat by following the number, finally standing next to Lü Xiangcai.

Lu Xiangcai raised an eyebrow in surprise.

The table next to him had been empty for dozens of previous resets. Thinking about it carefully, this person was a bit strange; he seemed familiar, yet also seemed not.

Seeing the young man silently pull out a chair and sit down, Lü Xiangcai, unusually kind, comforted him, "Alright, alright, don't be sad. That fatso has always been the same kind of bullying person. Not long ago, he even made several people cry. Even if you didn't do anything wrong, he'll still find fault with you."

“…Hmm?” The young man suddenly came to his senses.

He paused for a moment, then smiled gently and said, "Thank you, I'm fine. Do you know who takes care of those two welcoming pine trees by the entrance?"

Lu Xiangcai was taken aback; he hadn't expected him to say that.

The young man stood there for several seconds at the door, and he thought the young man was embarrassed and indignant. But it turned out he was observing the two welcoming pines.

Lu Xiangcai peeked inside and saw that the two trees had withered and black bark, and their branches and leaves were bare. They looked like they were about to die, and even a god couldn't save them.

Come to think of it, with so many monsters gathered in the company, and the air thick with decay and filth, even an iron tree couldn't withstand it.

Of course, he couldn't tell the truth to an ordinary person. Seeing that the young man seemed a bit concerned, he casually said, "They're usually cleaners, but they don't really care. I heard that the former company had a problem with the location when it was established, which ruined the feng shui. The people were fine, but the plants didn't live long and had to be replaced every so often."

"I see." The young man turned his head, turned on his computer, and smiled slightly. "My name is Xie Xubai. We'll be colleagues from now on. It's nice to meet you."

Early the next morning, Lü Xiangcai saw a figure standing next to the two neglected welcoming pines.

The young man bought odorless organic fertilizer and nutrient solution at his own expense, trying to save the dying Welcoming Pine. Lü Xiangcai just smirked, treating it as a bit of fun.

He didn't expect that the young man would persist for more than half a month, and that the withered branches of the welcoming pine tree would actually sprout a few vibrant new green shoots.

Unexpectedly, the young man was quite adept at getting along with others and quickly became friends with his fellow new employees. Even some of the more critical older staff members had a good opinion of him.

Sometimes when he's tired and impatient from working overtime and wants to yell at someone, a hand will naturally reach out from the side, holding snacks like chocolate, fruit gummies, or individually wrapped sandwich cookies.

The young man looked at him, who was stunned, his bright, curved eyes shining like moonlight on a tranquil sea: "Have something sweet to relax?"

Those were just ordinary little things, polite exchanges between colleagues, nothing to worry about.

One night, the managers of the sales department and the design department got into a fight, causing two floors to collapse. The reception desk, workstations, and even the two welcoming pine trees near the entrance were all damaged.

Lu Xiangcai looked at the two managers struggling in the mess, and the broken remains of the Welcoming Pine branch, and his eyes slowly narrowed.

He suddenly felt an urge to punch someone.

The next day, when the young man went to work, he saw the damaged gate and ceiling, frowned, and first asked if there were any casualties. When he learned that there were none, he breathed a sigh of relief. He turned his head and found that the welcoming pine tree had been replaced with a new one, and suddenly froze.

Lu Xiangcai leaned back in his chair, twirling his pen as if casually watching the young man.

He saw the young man's smile slowly fade, and his narrow eyebrows furrowed, as if he were somewhat sad.

The young man stood silently for two minutes, then reached out to the new welcoming pine tree, gently stroking it, and silently said: I'm sorry.

Strangely enough, Lü Xiangcai remembered that scene for a long time.

One day, he saw that the people in the General Management Department had suddenly replaced the potted plants with plastic models. The craftsmanship was superb, and they looked lifelike and lush.

It was by some strange twist of fate, or perhaps it was a premonition.

Lu Xiangcai turned to the young man and asked, "Did you arrange this?"

How could an intern possibly be expected to be obedient? The young man was both amused and exasperated: "What? It's just that the supervisor felt that the Welcoming Pine was always dying, which was unlucky, and it was troublesome to replace it every now and then, so I recommended a landscaping company."

Lu Xiangcai raised an eyebrow, recalling that the young man seemed to have visited the General Management Department frequently a few days ago, and asked lazily, "It's just two potted plants, and they belong to the company, not yours. Why bother?"

Xie Xubai paused, then smiled helplessly, "Actually, it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing, but when I found out that it really could be raised, it was quite touching."

"They tried so hard to live, it would be such a pity if they died."

Looking back on that period, nothing major happened. It was just routine, nothing special, but it made Lü Xiangcai feel relaxed.

Perhaps it was because the snacks were a little sweet, or perhaps it was because life was finally not monotonous, but suddenly a young man I had never seen before appeared at the empty workstation next to me.

Now they're all gone.

He was going to die, a complete and utter death, the kind where his soul was scattered and his spirit was utterly destroyed.

Lu Xiangcai's lips moved, his Adam's apple bobbing painfully, as if to swallow the unknown fear in his heart, and he smiled more easily: "Anyway, it's nice to meet you, so I'll leave you here."

Just now, he changed his mind.

He cannot die at Xie Xubai's hands.

Xie Xubai will be heartbroken, he definitely will.

The illusion suddenly trembled, and a large amount of thick red mist appeared out of nowhere, which surrounded the two of them with violent winds and waves. The airflow swept away in an instant, and most of the vengeful spirits lingering outside the golden light protective shield were knocked over!

Despite being restrained by handcuffs, this was his domain of the Demon King.

Lu Xiangcai's eyes suddenly changed, becoming sharp and resolute. He reached his hand into the air current, and the air current was as sharp as a blade. With a crack, the golden handcuffs were instantly cut into pieces!

He dared not look at Xie Xubai's expression, and without lingering for a moment, he turned and rushed out of the illusion, his heart pounding rapidly.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

There was no movement behind him; Xie Xubai didn't chase after him to grab him.

Lu Xiangcai sensed something was wrong and couldn't help but glance behind him.

In that instant, countless golden chains suddenly shot out from all directions, binding his hands and feet and rendering him unable to move!

Xie Xubai raised his head and walked towards the horrified Lü Xiangcai: "You were agonizing over this for so long just now, so you wanted to run away?"

The golden light he held in his palm remained unmoved amidst the clash of red mist and storm of resentment, like an ancient lamp gently radiating its glow.

The light was not strong, only a small ball, but the halo that emanated from it was vast and far-reaching. Unbeknownst to many, it silently seeped into the red mist and storm of resentment, taking control of the entire situation.

Lu Xiangcai never expected that Xie Xubai, who had been silent just now, was actually trying to control the Ghost King Domain, and he never expected that he would be subdued.

Even though his domain wouldn't resist Xie Xubai, and even though Xie Xubai was a distinguished guest, this situation still greatly shocked Lü Xiangcai.

For the first time, he clearly realized just how terrifying Xie Xubai had grown.

He struggled, but the chains tightened even more. After all, it was a sealing technique personally taught by Pei Yuheng; it wasn't so easy to break free.

Seeing Xie Xubai walking towards him step by step, Lü Xiangcai smiled awkwardly: "Actually, I didn't intend to run away, do you believe me?"

Xie Xubai smiled, "I don't believe it."

He said, "You want to trap me in this illusion, then run outside the Red Shade Ancient Town and let the rules tear you to pieces, but you overlooked one thing."

"Didn't you just ask me what I was going out to do?" Xie Xubai glanced to the side, meeting Yan Shuo's deep eyes through the illusionary screen. "President Yan just came by. I asked him about something. He said that the secretary of Shengtian Group has been abducted, and there's a huge backlog of work that he can't handle. He probably won't let you commit suicide."

Lu Xiangcai never expected Yan Shuo to come. His right eyebrow twitched wildly. Seeing Xie Xubai approaching him with a ball of light in his hand, he worriedly shouted, "You know he's here to capture me, yet you still try to kill me in front of him? Are you out of your mind?"

This isn't a threat; it's genuine worry. Yan Shuo is ruthless and decisive, and also incredibly possessive. Regardless of trust or esteem, in his bizarre mindset, his subordinates are his private property, and any unauthorized action by others is a declaration of war.

Xie Xubai paused, then announced loudly, "President Yan, I—"

"Do whatever you want." Yan Shuo's cold and indifferent voice came in, seemingly having no intention of standing up for Secretary Sheng Tian. "If you break it, just put it back together. It's fine."

"..." Lu Xiangcai, "???"

When the rival company tried to poach me and a few of our key employees, you didn't have this attitude!

And when did you two become so close?

Xie Xubai suddenly chuckled and turned to Lü Xiangcai: "You heard that."

Before Lü Xiangcai could speak, a golden ball of light suddenly appeared, enveloping his body.

He suddenly closed his eyes in alarm, and was surprised to find that it didn't hurt at all. It was like the midday sun in the early winter, with waves of warmth dispelling the chill from his limbs.

He was almost lost in this warmth, his eyes unfocused, his mind blank, his consciousness detached, and his body suddenly felt very light, a lightness he had never felt before. The burden in his heart gradually dissipated, like floating in a soft, ethereal cloud.

As Lu Xiangcai's last remaining consciousness lingered, he couldn't help but wonder... Is this what death is?

Kill him now! Or I'll kill you!

Why don't you just die? Why are you still alive?

[Lü Jiu, you are heartless and utterly depraved! You deserve a terrible death!!]

A series of harsh and vicious curses rang in his ears, and Lü Xiangcai chuckled softly.

If he had known that death wasn't so terrible, and could even be so comfortable, he would have died sooner.

Suddenly, Xie Xubai's gentle voice came from above, pulling Lü Xiangcai's scattered will back a little.

“I know all about your crimes, and some karmic consequences must be settled,” Xie Xubai said. “But that’s enough.”

His voice was slightly deep, and he spoke in a normal tone, but every word seemed to carry a solemn and sacred rhythm, spreading outwards like golden light without any doubt, as if proclaiming a judgment, shaking into the ears of every vengeful spirit in the ancient town of Hongyin.

"You have already received enough punishment: drowning to repay your life, suppressing your soul for a hundred years, and being shattered to pieces."

Upon hearing these words, Lü Xiangcai's heart was suddenly filled with a turbulent storm, trembling uncontrollably. He couldn't believe it, his lips quivered, and emotions suppressed for over a hundred years erupted, indistinguishable between excitement and grievance.

He wanted to open his eyes and see Xie Xubai, he had a very strong desire to see this person, but his consciousness wandered in the golden light for a while before finally being gently pulled into the consciousness space that Xie Xubai had specially created.

When he regained consciousness, Lü Xiangcai opened his eyes in the warm golden afterglow and saw a face he hadn't seen for many years.

Gu Nan's spirit looked at him with red eyes, tears streaming down her face with guilt and defeat: "I'm sorry, Ajiu, I'm so useless."

Outside the realm of consciousness, the vengeful spirits were furious.

They did not accept Xie Xubai's verdict, refused to listen to anything, and only wanted revenge and to vent their anger.

Xie Xubai's power was too great, and they could do nothing against him. They roared in mid-air, tears of blood streaming down their faces: "He drowned to repay his life, and we were trapped and killed! He suppressed our souls for a hundred years, and we were also suppressed for a hundred years, unable to be reborn! He was shattered to pieces, and we also suffer the pain of decay every moment! The underground is dark and damp, and maggots and ants are gnawing on our bones!"

"I hate it! I hate it so much! Why should we forgive them?! We will never forgive them! We will fight to the death until our souls are scattered!"

Xie Xubai lowered his brows, looking at the tide of vengeful spirits in the sky with a sense of melancholy and pity: "I know."

He sighed, "No one can forgive you for yourselves, not a single person."

Apart from the bandits in Hongyin Ancient Town, the captured villagers did not harm anyone else except to retaliate against Lü Xiangcai.

No, it cannot be said that there were no other "people".

A shrill scream came from afar as Luo Futu and his men, who had been suppressed and rendered powerless, were seized by the limbs of the vengeful spirits.

The vengeful spirits didn't want them to die too quickly or easily, so they grinned maliciously and slowly scraped their claws into the flesh and meridians, taking a full ten minutes to tear off a piece of bloody flesh.

One of the vengeful spirits suddenly floated down, stopped outside the golden light, stared at the "sleeping" Lü Jiu, and then looked at Xie Xubai.

He said, "I hate it so much."

"I hate it so much."

What did we do wrong?

Xie Xubai recognized that this vengeful spirit was the victim who had questioned Lü Xiangcai about why he had been captured.

He was abducted in the first half of his life, his legs were broken, and he was forced to beg by the Luofu Temple. In the second half of his life, he was rescued and rushed back to his old home, only to find that his elderly parents had exhausted their wealth searching for him and were ill. Unable to bear the pain of losing their son, they were driven to the brink of madness and were vaguely suffering from dementia.

He endured his grief and worked hard to find a job, but before he could support his parents, he was taken back by Lü Xiangcai and died without ever seeing them again.

The vengeful spirit stared at Xie Xubai, still muttering hatred. As it muttered, blood began to seep from its dark, pupil-less eye sockets again.

It opened its throat and cried out loudly, pouring out its grievances to heaven and earth.

"I hate it so much!"

"Why can't we leave even though he's dead?"

"How many more times do I have to kill him?"

"How long will we continue to hate him?"

"It hurts so much..."

The inability to support his parents is a lingering hatred that the vengeful spirit cannot let go of. This hatred becomes a shackle, binding him tightly, constantly reminding him of the painful past, and growing ever stronger with time.

It doesn't have such a tenacious and resolute mind, unlike most vengeful spirits. Tormented by hatred for hundreds of years, it can't remember anything but hatred.

It was this one word that sealed its fate and prevented them from ever being reborn.

Xie Xubai suddenly raised his finger, and golden light wrapped around Lü Xiangcai several times to reinforce and protect him.

He looked up at the vengeful spirit, then slowly surveyed the overwhelming tide of vengeful spirits.

Amidst the tide of vengeful spirits, wailing and howling filled the air. There were wicked ghosts whose crimes were unforgivable, and there were vengeful spirits who could not find release. They grinned, struggled, acted recklessly, and suffered, trapped in this endless human hell.

Xie Xubai's calm and gentle eyes reflected the scene before him. His long, narrow eyebrows were slightly lowered as he walked straight out of the area protected by the golden light.

He stood there completely defenseless within the attack range of the horde of vengeful spirits.

The little tentacles looked on, increasingly uneasy, and rushed in to hook his foot: "Bai Bai, what are you trying to do? You don't want them to kill you, do you?! No!"

Xie Xubai lowered his head, and the golden light picked up the small tentacle. He chuckled, "How could that be? I value my life. There are still many things I haven't done. I still want to take you and everyone else on a trip."

He used his mental power to send the small tentacle out of the illusion and into Yan Shuo's hands.

He had actually shielded the illusion from the others, so that Pei Yuheng and the others could not sense what was happening inside, except for the evil god.

Yan Shuo pressed down on the grotesque little tentacles, looked up at him, and suddenly said, "I have seen many people who try to shoulder the burden of saving all living beings, but in the end, they all do not live long."

Xie Xubai countered, "Did they ultimately succeed?"

Yan Shuo disagreed, saying, "Even if it were achieved, it would only be the existence of a short dynasty or a period of time. What would be the point?"

“Of course it’s meaningful. People only live for a hundred or two hundred years, so every extra year is a year more.” Xie Xubai smiled brightly, showing a completely different sense of satisfaction and contentment from the pessimistic Yan Shuo. “Besides, it’s not just a period of time. As the sun and moon rise and the mountains and rivers turn, there will always be people who follow in their footsteps. Haven’t you seen many such people?”

Yan Shuo frowned slightly, a strange feeling suddenly welling up inside him.

Unlike previous moments of appreciation, this time there was more panic than appreciation.

He should have realized long ago that when Xie Xubai resolutely abandoned ordinary comfort and chose to become a god in order to protect his family, he was destined to embark on an even more rugged and dangerous path for a grander "ambition," even at the cost of sacrificing himself.

It's too late to regret it now that things have come to this.

He did not want his light to fade.

It's hard to say how powerful Xie Xubai will become in the future, but He has the ability to stop him now.

Just before Yan Shuo was about to make a move, he and Xie Xubai made eye contact.

He knew that Xie Xubai feared Him, not because of temperament, but because of the disparity in power and the suppression of biological instincts. Perhaps out of gratitude for His care and help, Xie Xubai always appeared gentle, soft, and obedient when facing Him.

But now, that usually gentle gaze has changed.

Just like Xie Xubai every time he makes a decision, he becomes firm and resolute—even if mountains collapse and the earth cracks, nothing can stop his determination.

Dazzling and irresistible.

Yan Shuo felt as if he had been struck in the chest by something heavy, and he couldn't speak for a long time. He took a deep breath, his face grim, and tried to press his temples, but he couldn't suppress his wildly pounding heartbeat.

"Useless." He cursed himself.

Xie Xubai, still in the illusion, had already withdrawn his gaze, lowered his eyelashes, subtly touched his gold-rimmed glasses, and then placed his hand on the vengeful spirit.

The vengeful spirit has no physical form; it can only be touched through spiritual power. A chilling aura emanated from the point of contact, and Xie Xubai's fingers turned white from the cold.

He raised his head, his eyebrows and eyes were clear and handsome, his expression tolerant and compassionate. The golden light made his sideburns stand out clearly, and his profile was clear and deep, like an ancient Buddha statue with brocade flowing like gold on the top of a snow-capped mountain at sunrise.

As if chatting with family or catching up with friends, he spoke gently, "Give me all your pain and hatred."

The next second, golden light shone brightly!

Author's Note:

Ahem, long time no see, everyone! I'm sending out 100 little red envelopes as compensation (covering my face with a pot on my head).