Bitter Realm: My Feet Step Through the Flames of War

Shi Zhijialan's expression was solemn. The massacre of the Eagle Clan by the Mahayana Lingyun Temple was an internal secret of the Western Buddhist Realm, and very few people knew about it. However, as a key figure and successor of the Western Buddhist Realm, Shi Zhijialan naturally knew the inside story.

"What does Lord Wu mean?"

"Like the seal that swallows the evil mouth, there will always be a time to break it. I must enter the Heavenly Dao of the White Feather Realm and meet with the Great Abbot."

"Amitabha! If the Heavenly Dao seal of the White Feather Realm is broken, the disaster that the Bitter Realm will face will be no less than that of the Yama Ghost Prison. Martial Lord, please think carefully!"

Luo Hou reached out and patted Garan: "Therefore, I ask the Holy Balance One to join me in searching for the sun's homeland."

Shi Zhijialan was a man of utmost sincerity and integrity. The matter of Yama's Ghost Prison was resolved satisfactorily, which not only saved his life but also saved the entire Buddhist world of Xihuang. This great favor was enough for him to go through fire and water for Wu Jun.

"The Martial Lord has given the order; how dare I disobey?"

After everyone rested for a while, they left Xuan Ge at Xihuang Temple, while Xiang Ling and Nan Feng were ready to provide backup at any time.

The remaining personnel split into two groups. One group, led by Fawei Jingang, entered the Yama Ghost Prison through the Tunshou Evil Pass, and discussed with Lie Hongjiao before deciding on a plan to enter the Nipo Dark Realm.

The other route, naturally led by Shi Zhi Jialan, followed a winding path along the western border, chasing the sunlight.

At this moment, a great battle is taking place in the Mud Goddess's Dark Realm.

"Come on!"

"Kill them!"

"Ho ho ho~"

"Pfft~ Ah!"

The two sides are vying for Platform Nine of the Yin-Yang Station. The Yin-Yang Station is a vital transportation route in the Dark Realm of Mud, forming the main artery of the Dark Realm together with the Yin-Yang River, one by water and one by land.

The Yin-Yang Station was originally under the jurisdiction of the Dark Lord, Dark Spirit Yanmo. The four marquises were each in charge of the four purgatories: Blood Wheel, Ice Charcoal, Soul Devouring, and Soul Rift. There were also two officials in charge of daily affairs.

But from some point onward, the four lords began to fight each other openly and covertly, encroaching on each other's borders, and there were even cases where two or three purgatories were set up on a certain border at the same time.

This means that souls entering this place will be punished two or three times.

As a result, a large number of souls were annihilated, losing the opportunity to be reincarnated.

One of the two judges, the Judge of Good and Evil, was very dissatisfied with this and complained to the Lord of Darkness more than once. The Lord of Darkness was also very angry each time, but each time the matter was left unresolved.

The undercurrents eventually turned into an open war.

The Yin-Yang Station only has three platforms: number 77, number 9, and number 4. Blood Wheel Prison King Qin Guang and Ice Charcoal Prison King Bian Cheng occupied number 77 and number 4 early on, leaving the remaining platform number 9 to be contested by Soul Devouring Prison King Bi Yuan and Soul Rifting Prison King Li Wen.

Knowing that Qin Guang and Bian Cheng were just watching the show, Bi Yuan and Li Wen had no choice but to fight. It was like irrigating farmland; the waterway had been blocked by two dams, and the remaining water flow was very small. Could they still share the water with others?

The sounds of battle shook the heavens and the earth. Battle Platform No. 9 was occupied by the blue Soul Devouring Purgatory warriors one moment and then taken over by the black Soul Rift Purgatory warriors the next. The blue and black colors kept changing, and blood stained the thick layer of bone ash on the ground.

At the very back of the blue army, two figures hunched over, whispering furtively.

"Su Huanzhen, you have to think of a way quickly! Half of my three souls and seven spirits are missing. If I can't get out soon, I'm doomed."

"Don't worry, my friend, if anyone's going to die, it'll be me first."

"Uh... You can be resurrected after you die, but I only have one life. If I can go back alive this time, I will retire and stay at home with Qingyi."

(This volume is mostly original content and not very related to the main plot, hehehe~)

Chapter 484 Meeting old friends

Su Xianren has been missing in the Bitter Realm for a long time.

After the disbandment of the Demon Devouring Immovable City, Su Huanzhen, in order to help Shezhi Duo find his lost half, used a secret technique with Qu Shitu to enter the Mud Goddess Dark Realm. Unexpectedly, they never returned, and the three of them were trapped there.

To make matters worse, the four warlords were constantly fighting for territory, leaving the three of them with no time or space to search for their lost items.

Fortunately, Shezhiduo was half-human and half-ghost, and neither the servants nor the ghosts of the Mud Goddess's Dark Realm could smell her aura, which allowed her to avoid the chaotic army.

Su Huanzhen and Qu Shitu fared much worse. They were dragged out wherever they went and went through several battles. Their situation only improved when their three souls and seven spirits slowly dissipated.

The two were currently caught up in the army of the Soul Devouring Purgatory, charging towards Station Nine. Excited soldiers surged forward around them like a flowing stream, but the two quietly retreated.

They had retreated to the very back of the army; any further retreat would expose them, as the number of ghost soldiers ahead was dwindling. Su Huanzhen even sensed the commander's dissatisfaction.

Unfortunately, his cultivation was suppressed here, and his true essence was gradually being lost. It was already difficult enough to preserve even a remnant of his soul.

What's worse is that she's been separated from Shezhiduo, and now no one knows where she is or if she's in any danger.

Qu Shitu was already timid, and now he was even more terrified, muttering to himself:

“Su Huanzhen, the remaining payment for the renovation of Cuihuan Mountain has not been settled, and there is still a set of top-quality teapots that has not been brought in.”

"Su Huanzhen, if I die here, who will tell Qingyi?"

"Su Huanzhen, guess what Qin Jiaxian is doing right now?"

"Su Huanzhen..."

Su Huanzhen smiled good-naturedly and said, "My friend, we have been through so much together and overcome so many difficulties. Believe me, this place is definitely not where we will die."

"Su Huanzhen, you make it sound nice. If I die, you should find someone else to be your friend in your next life."

“Yes, I’ve set my sights on you.”

There was no escaping it. The blue flag planted on platform number nine was pulled out and torn to shreds. Then, a massive army of black soldiers flooded the platform, cheering loudly.

"Platform Nine belongs to the Soul Rift Purgatory!"

"Soul-Splitting Purgatory! Soul-Splitting Purgatory!"

"Long live King Liwen!"

Soon, a majestic man emerged from the black army, dressed in a black robe, wearing a royal crown, with a face as black as the bottom of a pot, a short beard like steel needles, and eyes as wide as copper bells.

He raised his hand, and the cheers stopped abruptly.

"I am delighted by the bravery of all my soldiers in fighting the enemy. I hereby issue the order that all soldiers who participated in the battle on Battle Platform Nine may freely consume the dead souls within the Soul Rift Purgatory for the next three days!"

This commendation immediately caused an uproar in the army. After death, the souls of humans arrive in the dark realm of Niva, where the two judges first determine good and evil. The good are reincarnated, while the evil are sent to the four great hells to be punished according to the severity of their crimes.

The wicked are only punished as they deserve, and after their sentences are served, they are dealt with again. No one in the underworld or the Netherworld is allowed to devour the souls of the dead.

Unexpectedly, Li Wen dared to do such a thing, allowing the army to feast for three days.

Upon hearing this, Qu Shitu's legs immediately went weak. If Su Huanzhen hadn't caught him quickly, Qu Shitu would have been lying on the ground, trampled into a pulp by the retreating remnants of the army.

Just as the two were about to retreat into the remnants of the blue army, they heard Li Wen loudly proclaim, "Soldiers of the Soul Devouring Purgatory, those who wish to join the Soul Rift Purgatory will be treated equally to serve me!"

Upon hearing this, the routed soldiers, who had been fleeing in all directions, returned to Platform Nine from all sides.

"Su Huanzhen, what should we do now?"

"These ghost servants have long since mutated, and are now only driven by a thirst for the dead. They are even more terrifying than hungry ghosts."

"Oh dear, you need to think of something quickly. We can't just go and eat souls with them."

"Let's get through this crisis first, then we'll blend into the Soul Rift Purgatory."

Fortunately, the routed army was in disarray, and Su Huanzhen and Qu Shitu were mixed in among them. They were quickly incorporated and followed the black army toward the Rift Soul Purgatory headquarters.

Su Huanzhen glanced back and saw two more people wearing royal crowns beside Li Wen, one in red robes and the other in white. They must be Qin Guang and Bian Cheng, who had come to congratulate Li Wen.

Ok?

We need to find a way to make these three fight again.

The Soul-Devouring Purgatory is relatively weak, with a total population of about 100,000 including all the ghost messengers, yamen runners, and service personnel. The other three prisons have between 150,000 and 200,000 people.

The Mud Goddess Dark Realm is sparsely populated, with a total population of less than a million, yet it covers an area the size of the Western Martial World.

No matter how big it is, it's useless. The land here is made up of the ashes of people who died millions of years ago. The people do not engage in production. They live by absorbing the evil thoughts and resentment of the dead souls. The more evil someone is, the more they like them.

As Su Huanzhen spent more time in the Mud Realm, his understanding of this strange realm deepened. The Four Hells were originally meant to punish evil, but the extremely cruel tortures only intensified the evil intentions of the wicked, filling the Mud Realm with evil energy.

Punishment can never turn an evil person into a good one.

Lost in thought, Su Huanzhen and Qu Shitu followed the army to the Soul-Splitting Purgatory.

This is a towering pavilion in the sky, three hundred feet high. The pavilion has five floors, and the punishment is divided into five levels according to the severity of the evil deeds. Those who commit the least evil deeds are punished on the bottom floor, those who commit the most serious evil deeds are punished on the next floor, and those who commit the most heinous crimes are hung on the fifth floor.

The so-called "soul splitting" refers to the division of a person's seven souls. For the evil ones of the fifth level, their seven souls are torn into billions of particles, and this process never stops.

The constables went up and down the stairs to hang and release people, and the pavilion was filled with mournful wails, long and short, big and small, which converged into a tide of despair that swallowed up Su Huanzhen and his companion.

The victorious army and the surrendered enemy troops poured into the pavilion and began to scramble for food, feasting heartily.

The sounds of chewing, laughter, cries of pain, and sobs...

The unbearable pain finally broke Qu Shitu, and he fainted. Just as Su Huanzhen was about to collapse, a pair of hands supported his back.

Then a deep voice sounded in my ear: "Come with me."

The man behind him picked up Qu Shitu and, with Su Huanzhen in tow, skillfully passed through the army and turned into a small house behind the pavilion.

When she turned around, she saw a familiar face.

"Su Huanzhen, it's been a long time."

"How could it be you? Zou Shan Qi Yi!"

“A long time ago, I entered the Dark Realm of Mud Goddess on the orders of Lord Wu. I waited in vain for news from him, and the magic threads connecting the puppets in the Underworld were also severed. I had no choice but to seek refuge with Marquis Li Wen and obtain the position of strategist here.”

Su Huanzhen sincerely praised, "As expected of Zoushan Chess Master, whose wisdom is unparalleled in the world, I deeply admire him."

"In front of Su Huanzhen, who dares to claim to be the most intelligent? Qi Yi is a ghost and has mastered many underworld spells, which is why he was able to gain the trust of Marquis Li Wen."

"One should not underestimate oneself. I happen to have a favor to ask. My friend Shezhi has been separated from his family. Here are the details..."

Upon meeting Zou Shan Qi Yi, Su Huan sincerely made a great vow, but where is She Zhi Duo now?

Chapter 485 The Antlered Monk and the Fortune-Telling Beauty

Far from the chaotic Yin-Yang Post Station, a monk with deer antlers on his head and a staff in his hand led the Xuanming Clan step by step.

After being rescued, Xuanming followed this strange monk and traveled almost all over the Mud World.

The monk was quite skilled; even when ghost messengers passed right in front of them, they couldn't detect their presence, leading Xuanming to suspect that the monk was already dead.

But he was very anxious. As a lone soul who had smuggled himself in, Xuanming was captured in this chaotic world. No matter which hell he was assigned to, he was in danger of being reduced to ashes.

Furthermore, his mission was not completed; without finding Zou Shan Qi Yi, he could not return to the intermediate realm.

Every day, every minute here is a crisis.