You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

The reggae was so shocked by what it saw that its eyes almost popped out of its sockets!

Yin Shuai?

The living man before them, whom the villagers regarded as their food and sustenance, was actually the legendary Yin Shuai?
I……

Did I just threaten a Yin General?
Lei Gui's face turned pale with fright. He tiptoed, trying to escape, but then he saw the hanged ghost turn his gaze towards him, slam his mourning staff on the ground, and sneer, "Where is Village Chief Lei going?"

Village Chief Lei quickly stopped and said with a dry laugh, "I was just worried about disturbing His Excellency and Lord Yin's conversation, so it's better to stay away."

Chen Yang ignored the reggae.

These wandering spirits and evil spirits are trapped in Baizhong Village and cannot leave... unless they find out that the well is connected to the human world!

I'm more interested in Qi Jingfeng, though.

Since he is a Yin general under the command of the King of Bazhong Mountain and holds an official position, why would he come to the human world?
Why were they suppressed in the Ghost Realm along with these dead souls and evil spirits by the Qingwei Sect Master?

Most importantly...

He was surrounded by an incredibly dense, murky mist, clearly indicating that he had been invaded by "heretical forces." Why then did he not lose his mind?
The village of Bazhong is shrouded in a murky mist, and the appearance of the ghosts and evil spirits in the village has been distorted, but they have not lost their minds!
Qi Jingfeng did not hide anything and recounted his past in detail.

It turns out that he did not "smuggle" himself into the human world, but was sent by Master Wang to do "official business". However, he was unexpectedly invaded by "heretical" forces, lost his mind, and caused trouble everywhere. That's why Master Qingwei imprisoned him in the Ghost Realm.

"Oh?"

Chen Yang asked in surprise, "Since you have been invaded by heretics, how are you able to regain your sanity now?"

Qi Jingfeng said, "This Ghost Domain is a prison space created by the Qingwei Sect Master. There is no Great Dao or spiritual energy in it. After I was imprisoned in the Ghost Domain, the external Dao in my body gradually began to recede, thereby restoring my sanity."

That's it!

The principle behind Liu Bowen's later severing of ninety-nine dragon veins is the same.

Chen Yang chuckled and said, "You're quite lucky..."

Qi Jingfeng gave a wry smile and said, "However, this situation did not last long. After I regained my senses for a while, this ghost realm suddenly collapsed, the space shattered, and the Great Dao and spiritual energy came from the outside, causing the dormant external path within me to revive again!"

"Having learned from my first experience of being invaded by external forces, this time I held out for eighteen years before the external forces within my body finally erupted..."

"Four hundred years later, the Great Dao within the Ghost Realm fell silent once more, and I gradually recovered..."

After a conversation, Chen Yang roughly determined that Qi Jingfeng's arrival in the human world should have occurred before the upheaval in the underworld a thousand years ago, when the path between Yin and Yang had not yet been severed.

And the Ghost Realm collapsed...

Perhaps it was the turmoil in the underworld and the severing of the path between Yin and Yang that caused the disturbances!

As for the Great Dao falling silent again in the Ghost Realm four hundred years later, it was probably caused by Liu Bowen severing the ninety-nine dragon veins.

Qi Jingfeng said, "After the second outbreak of the external forces within my body, I quickly lost control, which affected the entire Ghost Realm. The remaining souls and evil spirits within the Ghost Realm were also invaded by the external forces, resulting in their mutation."

“Until recent decades, the Great Dao has revived, and the external paths within me have begun to erupt and spread again… But over the past few centuries, I have become familiar with the characteristics of these external paths and have found a way to coexist with them!”

"The village of Bazhong is now shrouded in turbid mist, but the other wandering spirits and evil spirits have not been invaded by the heretical forces because I have absorbed all the heretical forces in this ghostly realm into my body!"

Coexisting with heretics?
Is it possible to remain rational?
Chen Yang's eyes lit up, and he laughed heartily, "Brother Qi, with your abilities, why worry about not being able to achieve great things? The human world has suffered from the invasion of heretics for too long. If you can solve this problem, I will definitely ask Lord Cui to recommend you for a position in Fengdu City after we return to the underworld, and promote you to a higher rank!"

Qi Jingfeng shook his head.

"I am already at my limit to maintain the balance between my own Great Dao and the external Dao. I don't even dare to cultivate, for fear that my growth in cultivation will disrupt this balance."

Is that so?
Chen Yang asked, "Didn't you try to refine the external path within your body?"

Qi Jingfeng: "The heretical path is difficult to eradicate; at least with my current cultivation level and the methods I possess, I cannot refine it..."

Chen Yang laughed and said, "It's alright. Once you go down there, there will be strong people to help you get rid of the evil forces."

Qi Jingfeng said with a wry smile, "This place has been sealed off by the Qingwei Sect Leader, so there's no way to get out."

"If we couldn't get out, how did we get in?"

Chen Yang's words made Qi Jingfeng's eyes, which were shrouded in the murky fog, light up. His voice trembled as he said, "Village Chief Lei, quickly... gather all the villagers and tell them that Lord Yin Shuai is going to take everyone away from this place!"

Village Chief Lei was overjoyed and immediately turned and ran away.

He arrived at the center of the village, activated his cultivation, and shouted, "All villagers of Baizhong Village, assemble immediately! Your Excellency has an important announcement to make!"

As soon as he finished speaking, gusts of cold wind blew in, turning into ghostly shadows upon landing.

Within minutes, three hundred and sixty ghostly figures had gathered around Village Chief Lei. His gaze swept over the many villagers of "Baozhong Village," and he frowned, asking, "Where are Heiwa and Lao Ba?"

Many villagers shook their heads, saying they hadn't seen them. A little imp said, "Village chief, a few days ago I saw Uncle Heiwa and Uncle Lao Ba leave the village. Oh, and... they also took the red-haired corpse from the village entrance!"

Everyone knows that there is a red-haired corpse at the entrance of Baizhong Village.

The corpse was ancient; it was originally a dead human, but it was mutated due to the influence of heretics.

But Heiwa and Lao Ba...

Where can I go?

At this moment, Yang Shuai walked out from behind and said, "Village Chief Lei, is the Blackie you're talking about a hanged ghost with a completely black body and a face as black as charcoal?"

Village Chief Lei nodded in agreement, then asked in surprise, "Has the Underworld Messenger ever seen Heiwa?"

Yang Shuai then asked, "Is Lao Ba a ghost with a blue face and fangs?"

Village Chief Lei nodded again.

Yang Shuai said, "They went to the human world to cause trouble and even tried to kill me, a messenger from the underworld. They have now been sent to the underworld... I reckon they're almost at the gates of hell by now!"

Village Chief Lei remained silent with a sullen face.

But the other spirits and evil spirits were making a huge fuss.

"world?"

"Baozhong Village was sealed off by the Qingwei Sect Leader, with no way to escape. How did they get out?"

"Could it be... that the seal has been broken?"

"Wait... a ghost messenger?"

A vengeful ghost glared menacingly at Yang Shuai and said coldly, "Are you a ghost messenger?"

Yang Shuai sensed the malice of the vengeful ghost and gripped the mourning staff in his hand, saying, "That's right!"

The vengeful ghost turned to look at Village Chief Lei and said in a deep voice, "Village Chief Lei, why have the underworld messengers come to our Bazhong Village? We have been suppressed by the Qingwei Sect Master for over a thousand years. Do these underworld messengers still not want to let us go? Do they want to exterminate us?"

"Hmph, a mere underworld official dares to cause trouble in our Baizhong Village... Folks, since we're sealed here with no way to escape, and can't leave for eternity, why don't we all join forces and kill this underworld official!"

"Who dares to be presumptuous?"

Qi Jingfeng's voice suddenly rang out!

A turbid mist churned around him as he strode towards Chen Yang from afar, angrily saying, "How dare you! You caused so much trouble back then, and even after being suppressed for a thousand years, you still haven't shown any remorse?"

"Do you want to continue being suppressed here?"

"Your honor!"

"Your Majesty..."

Many "villagers" bowed in greeting, while the vengeful ghost who had spoken earlier said, "Your Excellency, although being suppressed here has deprived us of our freedom, at least we can still live. If we were to fall into the hands of these underworld officials, wouldn't we be subjected to soul-snatching and sent to the eighteenth level of hell!"

A ghost chimed in, "That's right... Legend has it that each of the eighteen levels of hell is more terrifying than the last. Once you're cast into one, you'll suffer endless torture, unable to live and unable to die!"

Qi Jingfeng said, "The underworld will judge you based on the good and evil you have done in the human world, but... as long as you can go to the underworld, it means that you have the opportunity to be reincarnated. If you stay here, when this space collapses again, everyone will surely die!"

A ghost shouted, "Even death is better than being thrown into the eighteenth level of hell! Have you all forgotten those ghosts who escaped from the eighteenth level of hell back then?"

"If they weren't tormented beyond endurance by the eighteen levels of hell, why would they need to come back?"

Qi Jingfeng was about to offer further advice when Chen Yang interrupted him.

"Brother Qi."

Chen Yang said calmly, "I know that you have spent a thousand years with them and have developed some feelings for them... but this concerns the laws of the underworld, so why waste words?"

boom!
A tremendous surge of Yin energy erupted from Chen Yang's body!
With a thought, the "parade banner" flew into his hand. He held the banner in his right hand and waved it with one hand—

Wow!

Thick black smoke rose from the "Patrol Banner," transforming into a massive black cloud that enveloped the entire Bazhong Village. The skull embroidered on the "Patrol Banner" flew out, transforming into a giant hundreds of feet in size, with green ghost fire burning in its eye sockets. It could fall and devour the souls of the dead with just a thought from Chen Yang!
Chen Yang exuded an astonishing aura and coldly said, "I'll give Brother Qi some face... If you surrender, I'll take you away from here and send you to the underworld!"

"Anyone who resists... well, this commander also knows a thing or two about martial arts!" (End of Chapter)