In the blink of an eye
Behind them
Two formless, ghostly black shadows slowly emerged from the shadows of the palace chambers.
Hei Chang whispered in confusion, “Your Highness, weren’t you planning to temper Little Highness’s disposition? Why did you allow Bai Chang to break the defensive barrier?”
He was finding it increasingly difficult to understand the King of Hell…
Yan Yi’s gaze followed the petite figure, his eyes flickering slightly as he said, “Yuan’er’s nature is too playful; it cannot be changed overnight.”
“But Elder Weng Ze will soon return with the magical instrument. If Little Highness wishes to break through the 190,000th layer of cultivation technique, she must devote herself to cultivation for five hundred years!”
“No matter, take it slowly. This palace can wait.”
“Your Highness! The outer realms are unstable now. The Immortal Lords of the Heavenly Realm, the Sovereign of the Demon Realm, the Dragon King, even the Fox King of the Demon Realm are all restless. How can we say our Ghost race won’t be shaken?”
Yan Yi turned to look at him, his powerful aura pressing down as he coldly gazed down and said, “This palace said it can wait!”
Hei Chang trembled, quickly bowing his head in salute. “Hei Chang has overstepped. Your Highness naturally has Your Highness’s considerations.”
“Send people out to monitor the other Five Great Clans. If there is any unusual movement, report it immediately.”
“F-Five Great Clans? But the Human race, should we also…”
“Hmm,” he responded faintly, his figure vanishing silently into the empty stillness of the dark night.
Hei Chang respectfully bowed his head in salute before turning to carry out the assigned task.
…
Hell
Within the third layer palace
That soft, small figure gently stepped onto the long sword enveloped in countless rising mists, unable to contain her excitement and joy as she said, “Sister Bai Chang, if I stand on it, will it fly?”
“No, I will teach you how to control this sword.” Bai Chang stood opposite her, waiting until Little Highness had steadied herself before slowly beginning to cast the spell.
“Little Highness, follow me and chant… Cangqiong, heed my command…”
Little Dumpling nodded, clenched her small fists, looked at the long sword beneath her feet, and stammered, “C-Cangqiong, heed my command…”
“That’s not right, Little Highness,” Bai Chang felt utterly overwhelmed. The spell she had just begun to cast vanished in an instant.
The Cangqiong Hao Sword, which had just begun to react, also fell silent in that moment, becoming completely still.
However, seeing Little Highness’s bewildered, innocent, and pitifully wronged expression, Bai Chang couldn’t bring herself to scold her.
“Th-then, how should I chant it?” Little Dumpling looked at her somewhat helplessly, then glanced down at the long sword hovering in mid-air beneath her feet.
“You must become one with it in thought; you must sense its presence.”
“Become one in thought?” Little Dumpling furrowed her delicate brows. Her pure, exquisite eyes were filled with ignorance of all these things and the innocence preserved under protection.
How does one become one in thought? Like how Father Lord taught—when casting magic, empty the mind, see nothing?
“Cast aside all distracting thoughts. In your mind, think only of this Cangqiong Sword. When you sense it, quickly issue it a command.”
Little Dumpling thought of nothing, slowly closing her eyes and gradually withdrawing her hands backward. Mimicking Sister Bai Chang’s earlier movements, her two small, fair hands swiftly flipped to the front, overlapping in motion. Suddenly opening her eyes, she felt the tremor of the Cangqiong Sword beneath her feet and shouted, “Cangqiong, heed my command—”
“Chi!” The Cangqiong Hao Sword immediately responded to the summons, soaring into the sky, circling through the dark misty clouds, and breaking free from midair.
“Ahhh!!”
“I’m flying!!”
“Sister Bai Chang, I’m flying!!”
Little Dumpling cheered joyfully in the dark night sky, almost dancing with excitement to express her inner elation.
Bai Chang looked at her with pleasant surprise and encouraged, “You’re amazing, Little Highness! You learned it after just one try?”
When she had first learned to wield this Cangqiong Sword, she had fallen several times. If not for her brother protecting her by her side, she might have ended up with a scarred face.
Yet this was only Little Dumpling’s first attempt at casting the spell, and she already remembered it so clearly. Truly worthy of being King Yama’s Little Daughter.
Little Dumpling waved happily at her, her lake-blue dress swirling gracefully in the air. The Cosmic Bag and Cosmic Bells hanging at her waist jingled like musical instruments accompanying her dance, making her look incredibly beautiful.
“Sister Bai Chang—!!”
“I want to fly over there. How do I do it?”
Bai Chang smiled at her and said, “Now, the Cangqiong Hao Sword obeys your command. Wherever you want to fly, just tell it directly.”
“Really? Then can I go find Father Lord too?”
“Find… find who?!” Bai Chang nearly bit her tongue, thinking to herself that this was bad.
Little Dumpling pointed happily in the direction of the upper two layers and shouted down to her, “I! Want! To find Father Lord!”
“No—”
“I want! To show Father Lord that I! Can fly!!”
“No, no, no, you mustn’t, Little Highness—” Bai Chang shook her head frantically. If King Yama found out she was teaching Little Highness these messy things again, he would surely kill her.
“Sister Bai Chang! I’m off now!” Little Dumpling was solely focused on finding her Father Lord to show off her newfound flying skills, paying no heed to Bai Chang’s words.
“You mustn’t, Little Highness!!” Bai Chang’s pretty face instantly paled, turning even ghastlier than the evil ghosts in the Eighteenth Layer of Hell.
“Little Highness, you mustn’t let King Yama know.”
The moment she cried out, Little Dumpling had already steered the Cangqiong Hao Sword farther and farther away.
“Little Highness?!”
Bai Chang was so frightened her soul nearly flew out after her. Flustered and helpless, she muttered, “It’s over, it’s over. This time, I’m really done for.”
…
First Layer of Hell
Front Hall
The Ghost Servant Mao Ding bowed respectfully and reported, “Your Highness, members of the Devil race are waiting outside Hell.”
“The Devil race?” Yan Yi set down the crystal bead in his hand and slowly rose to his feet, his eyes cold and inscrutable. “Did they state their purpose for coming?”
“They did not, Your Highness. Will you see them?”
“This Lord will go out and take a look,” Yan Yi vanished from the hall in an instant. In his original spot, only a dense, impenetrable black mist remained, with no trace of a figure.
Mao Ding acknowledged with a “Yes,” then silently disappeared from the hall as well.
In the blink of an eye, the two figures had already stepped out of Hell, standing at the boundary between the underworld and the endless white mist of the outer realm.
Here, the howling cold wind was biting and piercing, while drifting clusters of white fog hung thick and hazy, resembling a boundless, starry river path with no end in sight, or even more like the vast, limitless expanse of a setting sun.
“Who goes there?” the Ghost Servant Mao Ding shouted toward the approaching figure.
The Devil race’s High Priest Mo Han, who had come seeking medicine, bowed respectfully to the figure shrouded in black mist and exuding an aura of coldness. “Greetings to the King of Hell.”
“I am the Devil race’s High Priest—Mo Han, here specifically to pay my respects to the King of Hell.”
“So it is Lord Mo Han.” Yan Yi chuckled softly, his tone not particularly warm but rather polite. “May I ask what brings Lord Mo Han to my Hell?”
“Your Highness!” Mo Han clenched his hands, his gaze hopeful as he looked at him and asked, “The journey has been long. Might I be permitted to enter and request a cup of tea?”
The implication was that what he sought was not suitable to be discussed openly. He wanted to enter Hell.
But they had just been punished by the Immortal Lord Yu Heng from the heavens, and now they were coming to the Ghost Clan Hell to ask for tea. If word got out, wouldn’t it seem as though the Ghost Clan Hell was easily swayed?
Hah, their Ghost Clan Hell was not a place just anyone could enter, especially now when he had no desire to confront Yu Heng.
Because Yan Yi simply did not have the energy to involve himself in their schemes and deceptions.
“Mao Ding, see the guest out.”
“Yes, this Ghost Servant understands.”
Without even glancing at him, Yan Yi turned coldly and strode away into the mist.
Mo Han grew anxious and hurried forward. “Your Highness! King of Hell! You cannot stand by and watch us perish. Please, allow me to enter…”
Mao Ding swiftly stepped forward, his ghostly mist transforming into a spectral blade as he confronted him. “Halt! The Hell is a restricted area. How can anyone think they can enter as they please?!”
Mo Han, desperate to save his own Little Crown Prince, could no longer afford to hesitate. With a wave of his hand, he used his Spell Power to send Mao Ding tumbling to the ground, then quickly pursued the already distant figure of Yan Yi. “My apologies, but I have no other choice.”
Mao Ding was forced into a somersault, struggling to regain his footing in the fierce, cold wind before returning to his original position, only to see that Mo Han had already forced his way inside.
Mao Ding glared fiercely at Mo Han’s retreating figure, summoning his Art Magic as he roared in anger, “Where are the denizens of the Ghost Domain?!”
“Your Ghost Servants are here.”
“Apprehend this intruder. Do not allow him to enter the prison.”
“Yes, your Ghost Servants obey.”