Junior Sister must ascend this time!

The five people sat in a circle, using the soul energy they had previously stolen to repair their soul power.

After recovering, Pei Shubai asked, "Should we continue now?"

Yun Qing sat imposingly on the throne, thought for a moment, and said, "Going down layer by layer is too slow. The gate to the Ghost Realm hasn't closed yet. The longer we take, the more dangerous it will be for the cultivation world."

Si Mingche tapped his hand with his fan. "Junior Sister is right. We've walked for so long and we're only halfway there. If only there were a shortcut to the eighteenth level of the Ghost Realm."

Shen Qingchen sighed, "I heard my master mention the Ghost Realm. Ghosts who enter can only go down one level at a time, and very few ghosts can reach the eighteenth level. Over the past ten million years, the number of ghosts who have reached the last level can be counted on one hand."

"We know too little about the Ghost Realm. We have no idea what the Ghost Emperor's cultivation level is or what the eighteen levels are like. Forget about shortcuts, even recklessly entering the next level is risky."

Yun Qing pointed at Ah Le and said, "Don't we have a native of the Ghost Realm right here? Just ask her."

Si Mingche received the order and walked towards Ah Le, saying, "I almost forgot about you."

As he spoke, he tore off the ghost-binding talisman from Ah Le's body.

Once Ah Le regained his freedom, he resumed his frenzied attack on Yun Qing, yelling, "You killed my sister! I'm going to kill you!"

Si Mingche held the talisman between his fingertips. "If you don't behave, I'll have to freeze you in place again."

His smile was more sinister than a ghost's. "With your level of cultivation, how many punches do you think you can withstand before you dissipate?"

Ah Le swallowed hard, no longer daring to cause trouble, but his eyes were still full of hatred.

She stubbornly declared, her neck stiff, "I know you're keeping me alive only to learn more about our demon race. But I'm telling you, it's impossible!"

"Whatever you want to know, I will not tell you. I have already lost my sister, and I will never betray the Ghost Clan again! You treacherous and vicious humans, I will tell the Ghost Emperor to kill you all!"

Lu Xingzhou chuckled. "When you and your sister tricked me into coming here to kill me, why didn't you admit you were cunning?"

"When your ghost race invaded the cultivation world through the Ghost Realm Gate, why didn't you admit your own wickedness?"

"You've really gone too far with your double standards!"

Yun Qing walked up to Ah Le, shook her head and said, "What a pitiful, silly child, he can't even tell who he should hate."

"You should hate not us, but the Ghost Emperor who set the rules."

Ah Le retorted, "You're talking nonsense! The Ghost Emperor is the ruler of our Ghost Realm. He protects us and gives us a place to live..."

"In any case, everything the Ghost Emperor did was for the Ghost Realm! I will not allow you to question any of the Ghost Emperor's rules!"

Shen Qingchen interrupted her, "Is that so? But we've come down from the first floor, and all the rules here are designed to make you kill each other."

"Ghost kings are not allowed to fight each other, but they can fight those who come up from below. This results in all the ghost kings only guarding their own entrances, and no one caring about the lives of those on the upper levels."

Ghost messengers, ghost officials, ghost generals, ghost kings—one layer upon another, yet each layer is only responsible for the one above it. If the top collapses, those below remain unaware. If chaos erupts below, those above have no say.

The losing Ghost King is exiled, while the winning Ghost King guards a layer, one layer pressing down on the next, until finally all are crushed beneath the Ghost Emperor's feet, ensuring his eternal safety. The Ghost Kings cannot cooperate, because cooperation would mean joining forces to challenge the Ghost Emperor. Therefore, the Ghost Emperor orders them to watch each other, preventing any from making a move.

Ah Le bit her lip, listening to Shen Qingchen dissect her words one by one. She wanted to refute, but couldn't find the words.

She grew up in Youyan City and witnessed ghost messengers oppressing ordinary ghost citizens, ghost officials draining soul energy, and ghost generals sabotaging each other for a spot in the inner city. Her sister guarded the ninth level and never associated with other ghost kings, because association meant forming factions, and forming factions meant rebellion.

She always thought that this was the rule, and that rules were rules, and that she shouldn't ask why.

She approached the five ghosts in front of her because she felt they were different at first glance. She saw in them a trust and unity that the ghost realm had never seen before.

After a long pause, Ah Le finally said, "What you're saying... my sister has said the same things."

"My sister said that the Ghost Emperor divided the Ghost Realm into eighteen levels because he didn't want any ghost to have the chance to climb to the eighteenth level. She said that one day, a ghost will break this rule."

She smiled. "Unexpectedly, it wasn't the ghost who broke the rules."

Yun Qing didn't respond. She didn't stay with Ah Le to discuss the system of the Ghost Realm with her.

She cut to the chase, "Is there any way to directly enter the eighteenth floor?"

"If you want to know anything else, I might be able to answer you, but with just a few of you, there's absolutely no way you can get into the eighteenth floor."

Ah Le spread his hands, as if he were saying, "Even if you beat me to death, there's nothing I can do. Even the Ghost King can only enter the eighteenth level when summoned by the Ghost Emperor. My sister has endured nine levels for a hundred years and has never been there once."

Yun Qing seemed to have been inspired, "I understand, as long as I become the Ghost King, I can enter the eighteenth level."

Ah Le: ? ? ? ? Is that what I meant?

"What kind of ghost king are you, a human? Besides, even if you become a ghost king, you still can't enter without the ghost emperor's permission."

Yun Qing then asked, "Does the Ghost King have the authority to choose whether to go to the upper or lower level?"

Ah Le nodded blankly, "It's possible, but most ghost kings won't go to the next level."

"I've made up my mind, I'm going to be the Demon King!"

Ah Le: ? ? ? ? Ah? ? ?

Si Mingche and Lu Xingzhou, however, were very enthusiastic. They knelt on the ground skillfully and shouted, "Greetings, Lord Ghost King!"

Although Pei Shubai and Shen Qingchen did not kneel down, they nodded and said, "Becoming the Ghost King is a good idea."

Ah Le: ? ? ? "Are you all crazy?"

Suddenly, something dawned on her, and she said, "You want to challenge the Ghost King of the next level? And fight your way down level after level?"

"I advise you to give up on that idea. Even if you could defeat them, the Ghost Emperor doesn't allow Ghost Kings to fight each other. Those who did that before were stripped of their ghost status and thrown into the Endless Purgatory."

Yun Qing shrugged. "The Ghost Emperor didn't stipulate that Ghost Kings can't visit each other. I just went over to have some tea with them. He can't possibly kill all the Ghost Kings, can he?"

Ah Le's already not-so-bright brain couldn't process anything more. "Wait? What do you mean by 'going to visit someone'?"

Since she gained her wisdom, she had never heard of the Ghost Kings interacting with each other, but... it didn't seem like they said it was forbidden, so naturally everyone just stayed at their own level.

She suddenly realized, "You're not really the Ghost King!"

Yun Qing laughed smugly, "Whether it's up to me or not is up to me."

"I defeated your sister, and I can defeat anyone else. Anyone who disagrees is welcome to challenge me."

She raised her hand, and the ghost mark on the back of her hand lit up for a moment. "From today onwards, I'm in charge of the ninth floor."