Chapter 56: Ghostly Guidance
After several days of wandering in this silent and dangerous ghostly den, Chu Yun and Mo Li both felt an unprecedented sense of exhaustion and oppression. The laws of this place inherently and constantly repel and suppress those from the mortal realm. Chu Yun constantly had to devote a portion of his mind to maintaining the three of them in a state of half-life and half-death, counteracting this erosion, and his soul energy was rapidly depleting. Mo Li was no better. Her delicate mechanisms felt like rusted iron here, struggling to operate. Each activation required several times more mental effort than in the mortal realm. They were like two people trapped in the deep ocean, unable to swim. Every step forward was a formidable effort, and the journey was arduous. But Li Ge was completely different. In this environment filled with yin energy and the spirits of the dead, her unique ghostly healing skills felt like a home turf, flourishing like a fish in water. She could easily distinguish which ghosts were "puppets," completely corrupted by the Shadow Pavilion's sorcery, beyond redemption, from which were merely "wandering souls," swept away by the chaos of the underworld and still retaining a shred of consciousness. "Wait a moment." Li Ge suddenly stopped in front of a large, abandoned, half-collapsed archway. Chu Yun and Mo Li immediately became alert. Mo Li asked, "What's going on? An ambush?" "No," Li Ge shook her head, looking towards the archway's shadow. "There's an 'old man' there." Chu Yun followed her gaze and saw only a blurry, almost fading black shadow. The shadow's presence was so faint that if Li Ge hadn't warned him, he wouldn't have even noticed its presence. "Wait here for me," Li Ge said, and slowly walked towards the shadow. She didn't release any energy, simply standing quietly before the dark figure. Using a strange rhythm that soothed the soul, she spoke directly to the spirit: "I mean no harm, I just want to ask a few questions." The dark figure seemed to sense the familiar aura of her shared "yin," and its blurred outline undulated slightly. Li Ge said nothing more, simply reaching out and drawing a trace of the purest ghost doctor's Yin energy from her soul. This Yin energy transformed into a translucent black butterfly, fluttering down upon the dark figure. "Buzz—" The moment it touched the butterfly, the dark figure, which had nearly dissipated, suddenly condensed a little, its blurred outline becoming clearer, revealing the vague outline of a hunchbacked old man. "Who... are you?" A voice filled with vicissitudes and...
After several days of walking in this dead and dangerous ghost cave, Chu Yun and Mo Li both felt unprecedented fatigue and depression. The laws here had a natural and constant rejection and suppression for those of them who came from the mortal world.
Chu Yun constantly had to devote a portion of his mind to maintaining the three of them in a state of "half-life, half-death" to combat this erosion, and his soul energy was depleting rapidly. Mo Li was no better. Her delicate mechanisms, now like rusted iron, struggled to operate, each activation requiring several times more mental effort than in the mortal realm. The two of them were like two people trapped in the deep ocean, unable to swim. Every step forward came at a huge cost, and the journey was arduous.
But Li Ge was completely different. In this environment filled with yin energy and the spirits of the dead, her unique skills as a ghost healer felt like home, unimpeded. She could easily discern which ghosts were "puppets," completely corrupted by the Shadow Pavilion's sorcery, beyond redemption, and which were merely "wandering souls," swept away by the chaos of the underworld and still retaining a glimmer of consciousness.
"Wait a minute." Li Ge suddenly stopped in front of an abandoned, half-collapsed huge archway.
Chu Yun and Mo Li immediately became alert. Mo Li asked, "What's going on? Is there an ambush?"
"No." Li Ge shook his head and looked towards the shadow of the archway. "There is an 'old guy' there."
Chu Yun followed her gaze and saw only a blurry, almost fading black shadow. The shadow's aura was so faint that if Li Ge hadn't reminded him, he wouldn't even have noticed its existence.
"Wait for me here," Li Ge said, then slowly walked towards the shadow. She didn't release any energy, but simply stood quietly before the shadow, speaking directly to the soul with a strange rhythm that soothed the soul: "I have no ill intentions, I just want to ask a few questions."
The shadow seemed to sense the familiar "yin" aura of her, its blurred outline undulating slightly. Li Ge said nothing more, simply reaching out and drawing a trace of the purest ghost doctor's yin energy from her soul. The yin energy transformed into a translucent black butterfly, fluttering down onto the shadow.
"Buzz--" The moment it touched the butterfly, the black shadow that was about to dissipate actually condensed again, and the blurred outline became a little clearer, and the appearance of a hunchbacked old man could be vaguely seen.
"Who... are you?" A fragmented thought, full of vicissitudes and fatigue, came from the shadow. "You smell... very ancient... very similar... to... a 'master' who once... extradited me..."
"I'm just a 'doctor' passing by." Li Ge replied calmly, "I saw that your 'soul fire' was about to go out. With my limited strength, perhaps I can help you say a few more words."
"Doctor..." The old man's soul gave a silent, self-deprecating laugh. "There's nothing here that can be cured. Everything... is over..."
"Tell me, what exactly happened here?" Li Ge asked, "Why did the reincarnation cycle stop? Why did the ghost messenger become a puppet?"
The old man's spirit fell silent, as if lost in painful memories. After a long moment, his desperate thought rang out again: "It's... 'him'."
"he?"
"A new... 'king'." The old man's soul wavered violently, filled with fear. "He... isn't from our underworld. He brought... a group of people with 'shadows' on them and broke in."
"He is powerful, unimaginably powerful. Our former 'King' couldn't withstand a single blow from him. He overturned everything, tore up the Book of Life and Death, sealed the Wheel of Samsara, and used a sinister 'contract' unlike anything we've ever seen to control all the ghost messengers and generals. He said... he wanted to establish a completely new, absolute... 'order.'"
Hearing this, Chu Yun and Mo Li's hearts sank. The usurping King of Hell, the Shadow Pavilion, the absolute order—all the clues matched up.
"What about the original gods of the underworld?" Li Ge continued to ask, "The Judge, the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced God, the Black and White Impermanence...are they also under control?"
"Judge..." The old man's spirit wavered violently again, this time filled with grief and indignation. "He... refused to surrender. He led the last of his men loyal to their former master into a final battle with the new king."
"Then what?"
"And then... they all lost." The old man's spirit dimmed. "All the 'Old Gods' who refused to submit were suppressed by the new king using even more terrifying means."
"Where is the suppression?" Li Ge asked.
"Hell... Hell..." When the old man's soul conveyed these three words, even Li Ge, who had been calm all the time, trembled uncontrollably.
"Infernal Hell?"
"Yes." The old man's spirit was filled with fear. "That's the deepest, most terrifying forbidden place in the underworld, where the most vicious demons, whose sins are so deep that even the eighteen levels of hell can't wash them away, are imprisoned. The new king imprisoned the judge and his men there. He said... he wanted to use the power of the 'old gods' and the 'resentment' of the deepest reaches of the Avici Hell as 'fuel' for his 'ritual'."
"I know... that's all I know." The old man's spirit grew weaker and weaker, almost unable to maintain its form. "Go quickly... child... leave this cursed place... there is no... hope here..."
After saying this, his newly condensed soul could no longer hold on and completely turned into specks of black light and dissipated into the air, without even having time to say "thank you".
Li Ge stood there silently, watching the dissipated soul. After a long silence, he turned around and returned to Chu Yun and Mo Li: "You all heard it."
"Yes." Chu Yun nodded, his face so solemn that water could almost drip out of it. "A new King of Hell who usurped the throne, a group of accomplices from the Shadow Pavilion, and an evil ritual that requires the sacrifice of 'old gods' and 'resentment'. What a grand undertaking."
"Our troubles are far greater than we imagined." Mo Li's face was no longer relaxed. "Not only do we have to face the mysterious new King of Hell and the core forces of the entire Shadow Pavilion, but we also have to face the 'Unending Prison' where countless ancient demons are imprisoned. This is simply an impossible task."
"No, there's a more troublesome problem." Li Ge looked at them and said slowly, "Aren't you curious about who the original 'king' of the underworld was who the old ghost mentioned was overthrown?"
Chu Yun and Mo Li were both stunned.
"According to legend, the supreme ruler of the underworld should be... the Ten Kings of Hell." Chu Yun said.
"No." Li Ge shook his head. "The Ten Kings of Hell are merely the 'officials' responsible for the specific trials. Above them, there is a true, supreme 'king' who has existed since the birth of the underworld. His name is... Ksitigarbha."
When Li Ge uttered this name, both Chu Yun and Mo Li felt a deep sense of shock and awe. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, who vowed not to attain Buddhahood until Hell was empty, was a true "great god" in legend, on par with the gods and Buddhas in heaven, with unfathomable compassion and magical powers.
"Even he... was defeated by that new Yama in one move?" Mo Li's voice was filled with disbelief. "Who exactly is that new Yama?"
"I don't know." Li Ge shook his head, "But what is certain is that his strength has far exceeded our comprehension. This time we may have kicked a piece of iron plate harder than the sky."
"So... are we still going?" Mo Li looked at Chu Yun, his eyes filled with struggle. Go? Go to a place where even Ksitigarbha was defeated in a single blow, and challenge the unfathomable New Yama? This wasn't just "seeking death," it was simply dying without even knowing how.
Chu Yun said nothing, but silently walked to the collapsed archway and looked at the two blurred characters on it, written in ancient characters, which were full of solemnity and order - "Fengdu". He knew that this was the true gate to the heart of the underworld as said in the legend.
He looked at Li Ge, then at Mo Li, and suddenly asked, "Are you afraid?"
Li Ge and Mo Li remained silent, but their eyes gave the answer: fear. How could they not be afraid? Facing an unknown and terrifying existence that even legendary gods could easily defeat, any rational person would feel fear.
"I'm scared too," Chu Yun said frankly. He smiled, a smile that, after recognizing all the despair and danger, had become incredibly relaxed and relieved. "But there's no turning back, is there? We're like three passengers trapped on a sinking ship. We may not know how to fix it, but if we don't even try, we'll end up sinking to the bottom of the sea with it. So, even if there are mountains of swords, seas of fire, or an endless abyss ahead, we can only... give it a try."
"What's more..." The corners of his mouth curled up with a trace of confidence and arrogance. The golden light belonging to Taiyi Yuanqi, which was unique and surpassed all laws, flashed on his body. "...I have this."
Li Ge and Mo Li looked into his eyes, filled with confidence and fighting spirit. Their hearts, frozen by fear, seemed to be reignited by this light. Yes, they didn't necessarily have to lose.
"Unending Hell, huh?" Mo Li took a deep breath, his eyes rekindled with the excitement and desire for a challenge typical of a craftsman. "I'd really like to see what this legendary 'prison', where even the ancient demons couldn't escape, is like."
"Let's go." Li Ge said concisely.
The three of them no longer hesitated, got themselves in order, and then walked side by side over the collapsed archway representing "Fengdu".
Behind them was a dead and desolate plain; in front of them was an even more dangerous unknown road leading to the core of the underworld.
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