719: Scene of Hell

Lingxiao Palace.

"They went to the Netherworld."

"I know, let them cause a ruckus."

Bathed in radiant light, two colossal figures stood beneath the vaulted ceiling.

Laojun gazed at the Heavenly Emperor for a long moment, then suddenly chuckled, "You look like you're quite displeased."

The Heavenly Emperor remained silent, but the shimmering light around him indicated a turbulent state of mind.

Under Laojun's 'pressure,' he finally sighed and said, "I kindly supported the human emperor, but the human emperor didn't even give me Face, and now this troublemaker has appeared. Who knows how much turmoil the Three Realms will Face in the future."

"Was that support?" Laojun's eyes narrowed slightly. "It was merely exploitation. The human emperor isn't foolish; do you still expect him to be grateful?"

"Furthermore..." Laojun said mercilessly, "He helped you break free from the constraints of the investiture of the gods; you should be thanking him."

The Heavenly Emperor argued, "I did thank him; I left the divine position for him."

"That was clearly something you didn't want."

Laojun shook his head, stood up, his colossal figure momentarily eclipsing the sky, then dissolved into dust.

Before leaving, he said to the Heavenly Emperor, "You wouldn't really want to keep the investiture of the gods for yourself, would you? The order of the Three Realms is changing; let's not cling to old things. Let's all be more dignified."

"Dignified..."

Watching Laojun disappear, the Heavenly Emperor fell into deep thought.

How could he not know that the era of the investiture of the gods would eventually pass?

His act of keeping the investiture of the gods also went against the original intention of his scheme for the human emperor's tribulation.

It was just... when the Chan teachings declined, and he had the power to control the investiture of the gods alone, an evil thought sprouted in his heart.

The Heavenly Emperor knew very well that when the Lord of the Three Realms harbored evil thoughts, it spelled disaster for all living beings.

Only then did he realize that this human emperor's tribulation was not only aimed at the Chan teachings but also at himself.

After a long silence, the Heavenly Emperor looked down.

In the empty Lingxiao Palace, his murmured whispers echoed.

"Qin Yang, Yang Jian, Nezha, the mischievous monkey..."

"Please... help me Undergoing Tribulation."

... "How about letting Qin Yang in?"

In the Netherworld, the Emperor of Fengdu, seeing that the Heavenly Emperor had not responded for a long time, knew that no reinforcements would be coming.

Since the Heavenly Emperor didn't want to offend the human emperor, why should he go against him?

Besides, the human emperor was here to retrieve those hundreds of millions of foreign souls.

Those people were not on the Book of Life and Death anyway, so letting them go was not a violation.

As for Yang Jian and Nezha...

"Just put on a show."

"As long as they don't enter the ghost city like the monkey did."

"Otherwise, where would I, the Emperor of Fengdu, put my Face?"

Thinking of this, the Emperor of Fengdu issued a command to all the souls in the Netherworld.

"Act! Capture Yang Jian and Nezha!"

Instantly, the Ten Underworld Marshals outside the city heard the command.

The Emperor of Fengdu had made it very clear: capture Yang Jian and Nezha, and don't worry about the human emperor.

For a moment, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, this wasn't a life-or-death battle.

"Formation up!"

With a sharp cry from the Day and Night Roaming Gods.

The one hundred thousand Yin soldiers, already in Formation, moved swiftly, transforming into a rolling, eerie green tidal wave, sweeping from all directions towards the three individuals in the center.

Yang Jian opened his Heavenly Eye and immediately spotted a flaw, saying to Qin Yang, "This Formation seems to have a loophole."

Qin Yang nodded slightly; he had also used "True Dragon Qi Observation" to discern the Formation's weakness.

On the side facing him, the Yin soldier Formation was loose, and there was no Netherworld Generals leading it.

The Formation's focus was entirely on Yang Jian and Nezha.

Logically, the Ten Underworld Marshals could not make such a mistake.

The only possibility was that they intentionally let him go, but Yang Jian and Nezha had to be stopped.

"It seems this Emperor of Fengdu has high emotional intelligence," Qin Yang chuckled softly.

Immediately, he said to Yang Jian and Nezha, "I'm in a hurry, so I'll break through the Formation first."

Yang Jian, being meticulous, had the same suspicion as Qin Yang and smiled, "Consider it playing along with their act. If you need help inside, just let me know, and I'll immediately break through the Formation to assist you."

Qin Yang nodded and said, "You are still being suppressed by the investiture of the gods, so I'll leave some helpers for you. Have fun."

With that, he slightly raised his hand and called out, "Proclaim, Chinese Divine Generals."

"Zilong, heed the proclamation."

"Zhang Liao, heed the proclamation."

"Guan Yu, heed the proclamation."

... "Bai Qi, heed the proclamation."

Accompanied by one response after another.

The divine generals descended into the Underworld amidst wind, fire, thunder, and lightning.

Seeing Guan Yu, the divine general with fire wheels on his back and riding an Azure Dragon.

The Ten Underworld Marshals all cursed in their hearts!

They were letting him in, so why did he have to summon Lord Guan?

Did he think they could win against Yang Jian and Nezha, or what?

Just as the Netherworld Generals were secretly lamenting, Divine Guan Yu had already opened his eyes.

At this moment, Ox-Head and Horse-Face, Black and White Impermanence, the Day and Night Roaming Gods, and other paired combinations immediately split up.

This Lord Guan was most skilled at cleaving through combinations!

... While the Netherworld Generals were in disarray, Qin Yang instantly moved and entered the ghost city.

Compared to the wailing ghosts and raging flames outside the city, Qin Yang inside was completely unhindered.

He simply followed the Yellow Springs water downwards, taking in the sights of Hell along the way.

The first level, Tongue-Pulling Hell, had blood-stained, grayish-green steps, with condemned individuals suspended high on torture racks, their jaws pierced and hung by iron hooks, the muscles at the base of their tongues snapping with a crisp sound as they were pulled.

The second level, Scissor Hell, featured countless rotating sharp blades floating in a purplish-red mist, resembling rapidly spinning fans.

The condemned were swept into the blades by the Yin wind, dismembered and cut into fragments, only to be restored to their original state, then immediately sent into the second 'fan'...

"I'm impressed..."

After only passing through two levels of Hell, Qin Yang was already somewhat moved.

He felt that this Eighteen Levels of Hell was even more brutal than his human emperor banner.

If these scenes could be projected onto the human world, crime rates would probably plummet, right?

"I can learn from this to establish the future Land of the Dead."

Qin Yang thought to himself.

There was no Hell in the Myriad Realms, and even true gods could not control Reincarnation.

According to Zhang Lingxiao's prophecy, he would also obtain the Hell Path here.

This gave Qin Yang the possibility of establishing a "Land of the Dead" in the Myriad Worlds.

This journey through the Eighteen Levels of Hell would be a good opportunity to inspect the Netherworld's infrastructure, which he could then transfer wholesale to the Myriad Worlds.

[Iron Tree Hell: Bronze tree roots pierce the sky, dried human skins hang from barbs, the condemned writhe among the branches, every struggle causes new shoots to emerge from wounds, and blooming iron flowers gnaw at exposed organs...]

[Steaming Cage Hell: Brass cage grates are burned translucent by ground fire, steam carrying the scent of charred flesh rises, the curled bodies of the condemned swell and burst within the cage, then reassemble...]

[Blade Mountain Hell: The mountain is composed of densely packed, jagged blades, and as the condemned climb, the blades move on their own, pulverizing broken limbs and dragging out intestinal lines from the abdominal cavity...]

Qin Yang walked, taking notes, as if on an overseas inspection tour.

Soon, he had passed through sixteen levels of Hell and reached the seventeenth.

This level of Hell had no shrill wails but gave an extremely oppressive feeling.

Innumerable wisps of wandering souls floated in the Void Realm.

They drifted aimlessly here, constantly murmuring the same phrase.

"Who am I..."

This Hell was named Oblivion.

The souls who arrived here would lose all memories and fall into the torment of confusion, never to be reborn.

The souls couldn't remember who they were, but Qin Yang recognized them.

With just a glance, he saw a very familiar-looking person among the countless wisps of souls.

"Lin... Xiao'er???"