Chapter 169

The last time Xie Bi An remembered seeing the Southern Miao Jade Puppet was when Zhong Kui gave the soul-hooking lock and Ting Mo to Fan Wu She. A man with a big heart like Zhong Kui would not have checked his treasure trove very often, but the fact that Jiang Qu Lian had tried to get the jade puppet for so many years without success was proof that Heaven Master Palace was not so easy to enter.

After that, Jiang Qu Lian had indeed entered Heaven Master Palace once --- on New Year's Eve, but that night he was highly on guard against Jiang Qu Lian, fearing that the jade puppet would be stolen, so it was highly unlikely that Jiang Qu Lian would have gotten it that night. He probably had taken advantage of their months of stay in the human realm and came ‘uninvited’.

Xie Bi An said angrily, "This bastard, he still got it. Master will definitely not forgive him if he knew.”

Fan Wu She muttered to himself irresolutely, "We have been away from the Underworld for several months, and only Bo Zhu has stayed behind, so he does have many opportunities to take advantage of."

"But if the Heaven Master Palace’s boundary was broken, Master would definitely be able to detect it when he returns. How did Jiang Qu Lian steal this puppet without anyone knowing it?"

"He must have used some tricks that we don't know about." Fan Wu She said in confusion, "Why is Jiang Qu Lian so obsessed with the puppet and why does he visit the earth so often? Isn't it harmful to those in the underworld to immerse themselves in Yang energy for a long time?"

"That's what Master and I have wondered. When Master asked him about it, he only said he liked the hustle and bustle of the human realm. Master fears that he has some conspiracy and is afraid that he will harm people, not even daring to give him the jade puppet. He is bound to be planning something."

"Official Lord Cui has sent Day Patrol and Night Patrol to trail him several times, but their difference in cultivation level are too big and he always escapes from them. This man was recommended by Great Emperor Ji Kang to become a prison warden of hell, but after he became a warden he revealed his true nature and gradually did not care about Great Emperor Ji Kang, but he has never let anyone catch him in the act. Official Lord Cui and master were both very wary of him, but there was nothing they could do about him.” Xie Bi An sighed, "This man is so evil and cunning that even master cannot detect his limits; he is a ghost after all, and earth is full of 'human cores’ for him. We’re afraid he's up to no good.”

"Senior brother, it's useless to fret about what he wants now. We'll find out sooner or later. For now, it's better to find the snake pearl as soon as possible."

"Yes, if he really dares to do evil, he will definitely pay the price."

The two of them searched two more stone rooms and finally found the snake pearl that Meng Po wanted. They took the pearl and returned the way they came without delay, but then an accident happened. The stone room they had returned to was not the one they had first come down from the secret passage, and naturally they could not find the flight of steps back to Jiang Qu Lian’s bedchamber. It was such a simple road that there was little chance for the both of them to go the wrong way at the same time, but they went back and forth again and again, and finally decided that there was something odd here. These stone rooms were somehow shifting positions and they were trapped in them without noticing.

"So there was  this trick waiting for us." Fan Wu She grunted coldly, "The boundary is only a hindrance in getting in. Seems like getting out is even harder."

Xie Bi An pondered, "What kind of mechanism is this? Formation? An illusion? We've fallen for it without realizing it." He walked around the stone room a few times and felt the stone wall carefully, but found nothing. "It must not be a mechanism, otherwise there wouldn't be no sound at all, and there is no sign of any formation. I've never heard of such a clever formation."

"... illusions?" Xie Bi An's heart sank. After all, he had never been troubled by a not very powerful illusion until today, and his head ached at hearing these words.

Fan Wu She recited the Pure Mind Technique once, feeling clear in his mind and nothing unusual: "It doesn't seem like an illusion spell either. That's strange, what exactly is going on?" Even though there's no illusion spell, Xie Bi An didn’t feel relaxed at all. If it had been an ordinary illusion, they would have been able to break it, but now they didn't even know what kind of trap they had fallen into, so how could they escape?

The two of them continued to search for clues in the stone room, deliberately leaving markings in the rooms they walked through, and then entering and leaving together, never moving separately. This time, however, the stone room did not change, except the passage which they had come from had disappeared into thin air and could not be found in any way. The whole underground palace, with a total of 24 stone rooms, was soon walked through before they realized that it had been turned into a secret room.

Although only 10 minutes had passed, Xie Bi An was already getting anxious. His temperament was originally very stable, but this time he was both worried about Zhong Kui and regretted that he had taken Fan Wu She to the Three Lives Stone, so that they would not have encountered Meng Po. Even if they had encountered Meng Po and heard those words, he should not have trespassed into the Red Palace so impulsively. Now trapped in the underground of the Red Palace, there is no telling how many hours will be delayed.

As soon as Fan Wu She took a look at Xie Bi An's frowning face, he knew what he was thinking: "Senior brother, don't worry, we'll find a way out soon."

"Mm, of course." Xie Bi An gathered himself up, "If we can't find the secret passage, we'll look for the main entrance. The entrance to the underground palace is such a big door, it must be hidden behind one of the walls of the stone room."

They began to use the most stupid method; trying wall by wall.

The silver light in Xie Bi An's hand flashed and his sword flew, spraying out in a flash like a blooming thunderbolt. The sword Qi struck the wall, leaving brand new crater marks.

Fan Wu She walked over and touched the sword marks with his hand, "Senior brother's Zongxuan sword technique has improved by leaps and bounds. The depth of each sword mark is exactly the same."

"Now we both know why I learned the Zongxuan Sword so quickly." Xie Bi An said with a bitter smile, "Emperor Kong Hua had reached the eighth Chongtian of the Zongxuan Sword during his lifetime, so in that case, I also have the potential to do so, but unfortunately, your master on Mount Qingcheng only taught you up to the sixth Chongtian, and now he is nowhere to be found, and the Zongxuan Sword has long been lost, sigh."

"That master of mine was only at the seventh Chongtian, but I don't think the Zongxuan Sword has really been lost. Such a powerful sword technique, there must be someone who secretly inherited it. When everything is over, you will have the opportunity to continue to practice." Fan Wu She patted the dirt crumbs off his hands, "This wall is solid."

They tried one by one with this method and finally found something unusual. One wall was hollow and when the sword Qi was slashed at it, it was clearly different from the others.

With his spirit lifted, Xie Bi An drew out his Wuqiongbi, injected his spiritual energy and drew a circle the size of a pot on the wall, and then crisscrossed at the center of the circle: "Break!"

The center of the circle shattered in response to the sound, and the stones and dirt fell to the ground, and one after the other they tumbled through the center of the circle, expecting to see the main entrance of the underground palace, but instead they found themselves in another secret passage.

The two men looked at each other and could only explore further.

The further they went, the more they could feel the heat coming in. A red dot appeared in the distance, growing larger and clearer. When they finally emerged from the not-so-long passage, they were both stunned by the sight before them.

A mountain, a red volcano, the black walls which were cascading with red-hot lava were so hot it could have cooked a man alive, and they were in the interior of a volcano! A cone-shaped hill hung in front of them, dotted with tiny, honeycomb-like holes that were lit and dimmed. Beneath their feet, the lava was flowing, and above their heads, is the endless darkness.

Both of them knew what this place was.

The cruelest place in Jiuyou, the most intimidating division of the Underworld, where ghosts are punished for their sins. This is ------ Hell.

----

Edited on 9 May 21 (Emzie)

 

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