Chapter 104: Baby Teeth Weights
Xiao Wu was also shocked, but there was also a hint of...strangeness in his shock. His gaze flickered between Yin Weihuai and Qing Bai.
"How do you know these are nine-year-old baby teeth?" Qing Bai's expression was relatively calm, but his eyes, which had always been calm and deep, suddenly became agitated, and it was hard to tell whether he was questioning or curious.
Although Qing Bai spoke softly and gently, Yin Weihuai felt as if he was being stared at by a beast, and his hair stood on end... Fortunately, it was a young beast that had never seen blood, otherwise... he would be embarrassed.
"Ahem... I've had the pleasure of seeing it before..."
Yin Weihuai wanted to brush it off, but Qing Bai didn't give him a chance: "Have you ever had the honor?"
Qing Bai suddenly lowered his eyes, his fingertips stroking the white crescent moon on his palm, and he spoke slowly, "Under what circumstances would it be possible for Lord Yin to have the good fortune to see nine-year-old baby teeth?"
"..." These words sounded like pure curiosity, but there was a hint of awkwardness between the lines, which made Yin Weihuai silently reflect in his heart which word in his sentence violated the taboo of this little girl.
After much thought, Yin Weihuai couldn't figure it out, so he just said honestly, "It was a coincidence... One year, the Naihe River suddenly rose, and the tide crashed against the shore, sweeping away many ghosts waiting to drink the soup and be reincarnated. Half of Meng Po's cauldron was filled with Naihe water. The underworld then sent many ghost officials to guard both sides of the Naihe Bridge, wielding ropes and setting nets, ready to catch ghosts at any time. I, a new employee in the underworld, was one of them."
Xiao Wu couldn't help but complain, "Why is it always the Nai River that has problems? Honestly, our water conservancy projects in the underworld are just too lame!"
Yin Weihuai glared at Xiao Wu and said, "How dare you talk like that! We don't even have water conservancy projects in the underworld!"
Xiao Wu: “…Okay.”
"Besides, the Nai River is different from ordinary rivers in the world..." As for how it was different, Yin Weihuai didn't intend to elaborate, saying only, "Anyway, the situation was very serious. Although the ghost officials in the underworld were guarding it with all their might, they were still struggling and exhausted."
"Later, some profound Yin Lord figured out the reason. He said the Nai River was flooding because of the resentment and evil spirits that had accumulated at the bottom of the river for millennia. To restore the Nai River to its calm, a 'suppressant' with sufficient energy, noble origin, and a majestic and righteous aura was needed..."
Qing Bai: "So they set their sights on Jiu Nian?"
Although he was just a nameless new employee in the underworld back then, and had no say in such a major matter concerning the underworld's fundamentals, he still felt a little embarrassed to hear Qing Bai's blunt words. Yin Weihuai laughed dryly: "This... After all, the underworld is full of ghosts, big and small, old and new, and there has always been a strong sense of yin. Aside from that bald... Bodhisattva in the Eighteen Layers of Hell, only Master Jiunian is worthy of the noble and majestic title."
Seeing Qing Bai frown, Yin Weihuai quickly sped up his speech and finished, "It is said that Master Jiunian's family was born noble, and their whole body is full of treasures, especially the two that fell off when they reached adulthood..."
The word "baby teeth" was truly detrimental to the dignity of such a situation, but Yin Weihuai, the True Nine-Leaked Fish, who was severely lacking in modern education, couldn't find a suitable term to replace it. After a pause, he could only mumble, "Unfortunately, Master Jiunian didn't agree, and the Underworld couldn't force it... The Nai River is flooding and waits for no one, so the Yin Lords and Ghost Kings had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and transfer Master Jiunian to the Samsara Platform adjacent to the Nai River, as a symbol of subjugation with his true body."
"Nine Years Lord went there with pleasure. For hundreds of years thereafter, the Nai River was indeed calm, and there was no trouble on the river and below."
After hearing Yin Weihuai's words, Qing Bai's hand holding the nine-year-old baby tooth suddenly tightened.
His expression wasn't particularly pleasant. Perhaps it was anger? Or perhaps injustice. In short, it was an extremely intense and extreme emotion. Just when Yin Weihuai thought he would be unable to resist saying something, he actually spoke, but it was a light and airy one: "Why didn't he agree to use his lost tooth as a talisman to calm the Naihe River's turmoil?"
Isn't the so-called centuries-long "real body suppression" just another way of saying it? Any normal person would choose to use "external possessions" that have fallen off and are no longer valuable to them as a prison.
Qing Bai's emotions and words were so mismatched that Yin Weihuai was stunned for a moment before he said uncertainly, "Maybe... he's afraid of cause and effect?"
"After all, it's a legendary beast, and its teeth aren't something we ordinary people can casually replace or fill. In a world where even hair, nails, and birthdates matter, teeth that only shed until adulthood are incredibly significant. Perhaps they can be considered a part of the body? To some extent, they represent the will of Master Jiunian. If they were used for anything, the implications would be... profound."
"Besides, the Naihe River is not just a small ditch. It's easy to suppress it, but it's hard to collect it..."
Yin Weihuai's explanation was so logical and well-reasoned that he almost convinced himself. Then he suddenly realized, "That's not right! If it's so important, why would he give you this tooth as a talisman?!"
Zhen Naihe is afraid of cause and effect, but Hu Lingxi is not afraid of cause and effect?
There's something wrong with these two! Definitely something wrong!
Looking at his boss who had finally reached the edge of the truth through his own 'hard work', Xiao Wu chuckled: "Yeah? Why is that?"
Qing Bai: “…”
Yin Weihuai looked at Xiao Wu suspiciously, thinking that this girl knew something.
Unfortunately, at this moment, the notice he had expected to summon him for questioning suddenly arrived. Not only was it late, but it was also accompanied by two "guides", who happened to be one black and one white, which was ominous in every sense.
Yin Weihuai wasn't panicking. Once the doors and windows were closed, he was able to rationally arrange his funeral arrangements: "Looks like I still have to go to the underworld... Xiao Wu, please take care to send Xiao... Qing Bai back to the human world. Remember to avoid ghosts on the way."
Since the nine-year-old adults had placed the milk tooth that the underworld had targeted on Xiao Lingxi, what else did he have to worry about? If he could calm the Nai River, how could he not protect a cub?
Xiao Wu nodded in agreement, still a little worried: "Can you come back?"
She had no intention of changing her boss for the time being. Besides, a new emperor appoints new ministers. If Yin Weihuai unfortunately passed away, she might have to be buried with him as his confidant.
Yin Weihuai sneered, looking very disapproving: "Don't worry, you won't be able to change your boss in the short term."
"If I fail over such a small matter, then wouldn't my thousand years in the underworld be in vain? At worst, there's still Lord Jiunian. If anything goes wrong, I'll say that Lord Jiunian is forcing me. He's a divine beast, what can I do? I'm just a weak, pitiful, and helpless little Yin Lord~"
Xiao Wu finally felt relieved when he heard his boss's familiar and mean-spirited wavy voice.
Qing Bai, who was assigned to the task, offered, "Don't bother Miss Wu. I memorized the way here, so I can go back on my own... There are so many ghosts along this road, it's really hard to avoid them. Besides, Miss Wu is no unknown figure in the underworld. If she runs into one or two nosy people, it would be easy to get entangled."
Qing Bai glanced at the tightly closed door. Two ghostly figures, one black and one white, stood outside the main door like gods. To be honest, Yin Weihuai's current situation was a lesson for him.
"Have you memorized the way to the underworld?" Yin Weihuai seemed to have heard something incredible. After a moment of shock, he found an excuse for Qing Bai: "As expected of a person born in the Nai River, he is naturally adapted to the environment of the underworld..."
How many newly appointed ghost messengers can get lost and end up traveling across cities or provinces when they go out to arrest a soul, thus causing many jokes in hell, not to mention the new ghosts who are arrested after death. They are so confused that they can't even tell the directions, let alone recognize and remember the way... The unique climate environment of the underworld is indeed weird and unpredictable. Occasionally, some experienced old ghosts will get lost if they are not careful. Therefore, ghost messengers in the underworld usually travel with two ghosts.
Compared with those ordinary ghosts, isn’t Xiao Lingxi, who mastered the route after just one visit, a gifted person?
"...But you don't have to worry about Xiao Wu," Yin Weihuai said with a smile as he adjusted his clothes, which had returned to their original state. "She has her own 'talents' as well."
After saying that, he turned into smoke and walked out through the door. Not only did he not give Qing Bai a chance to politely refuse, he also caught the 'Black and White Door God' who was peeking outside the door and trying to eavesdrop by surprise.
Yin Weihuai left, striding forward with his head held high, taking the lead as if he was the one escorting the prisoner to confess his crime and be executed, or there were two prisoners at that, leaving Qing Bai and Xiao Wu to watch his tall back gradually disappear into the distance.
When Qing Bai turned around again, Xiao Wu beside him had also changed. The beautiful girl turned into an ordinary black-faced ghost. In one hand, she was holding the beautiful head with only half of the hair braided. With the other hand, she opened the four-layer double-door mahogany cabinet against the wall. A quick glance showed that it was quite full... full of heads of various styles and faces.
Qing Bai seemed to understand what Xiao Wu's 'talent' was.
While Qing Bai was lost in thought, Xiao Wu had already settled her pretty head, and then wrapped herself in a straight black robe that covered her curves perfectly. She hung the soul-catching lock, a uniform equipment of the ghost officials in the underworld, around her waist, and instantly blended into the team of ghost officials who were hurriedly leading a string of ghosts without any pressure.
Little Limited Ghost Messenger Skin Wu: "Shall we go?"
Qing Bai nodded.
Although Yin Weihuai always acted like a dandy and hedonistic young man, the fences of the Shangjing Underworld were surprisingly tight. The Yin Lord's abduction didn't cause any commotion, and everyone continued to perform their duties in a chaotic yet orderly manner. Of course, it's also possible that the ghost officials were so busy with their work that they didn't even notice their leader had been running back and forth several times.
But it did make it easier for Xiao Wu and Qing Bai to walk out of the gate of the underworld quietly.
After leaving the gate, Xiao Wu was not in a hurry to send people out of the underworld of Shangjing. Instead, he confidently led Qing Bai through twists and turns to a secluded and quiet path where there was no ghost or smoke. Then he untied the soul-hooking lock from his waist and smiled at Qing Bai. That face that was almost ordinary and casual, and would never attract any extra attention no matter where it was in the crowd, suddenly became wretched because of this smile, and it unexpectedly made it more recognizable.
Xiao Wu, who was recognizable for his wretchedness, pulled the soul-binding chains through the air, gesturing up and down and left and right at Qing Bai's body, as if trying to find the most suitable way to bind him. He kept saying, "Don't resist, I'll be quick, it will be over soon... Please don't resist, the more you struggle, the more you suffer. It's better to just endure it honestly, so that everyone will be better off..."
Qing Bai: “…”
A ghost official who accidentally got lost and passed by, with a long string of ignorant ghosts in his hand like he was flying a giant centipede kite: "!!!"
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