Afterlife Department

"His eyes are already cured? Are you sure?" Yi Bing asked with his brows knitted as he looked at Huo Ling who was sitting silently on the side after Ruan Yu checked him.

"Yes, and yes, I am sure." Ruan Yu answered as he wrote on the paper with his fountain pen. "Even I am surprised. If you didn't tell me Hai Ba's diagnosis of Huo Ling, I would doubt that this guy is really half-blind before." He said and looked at Huo Ling.

Yi Bing frowned. "How did this happen?" he asked.

Huo Ling just sat there and quietly listened to their conversation. If it was just any other person, well, okay, grim reaper, who is asking this question, one would think that they don't want for Huo Ling's half-blinded to be cured. But, this is Yi Bing, the morally upright and model grim reaper. He doesn't have any reason to wish for Huo Ling to not be cured, especially since Huo Ling is his apprentice, and also the one he likes.

Ruan Yu also knows that Yi Bing is asking him without any ill intention, so he patiently answered. "That light that hurt Huo Ling's eyes actually came from himself, right, as well as from the spell that is locking the Soul-Trapping Sword?" he asked.

Yi Bing nodded as an answer. "En." He has already told Ruan Yu everything.

"Since you told me that the spell was done by Shen Taizi, then the spell shouldn't be harmful to us grim reapers." Ruan Yu spoke. "But, because Huo Ling used a spell to unlock that spell, then naturally, it is the counterpart of Shen Taizi's spell thus he was hurt." He looked at Huo Ling.

Huo Ling. "…" so you are actually saying that I done this to myself?! He thought and bit his tongue to keep himself from retorting.

Yi Bing saw Huo Ling's misgivings and he awkwardly coughed. It was him, after all, who instructed Huo Ling to do that counter-spell since this is a part of Huo Ling's task. He also can't rely on Qian San, Wu Ling, Shi Yi and Qi Bai who knew nothing about spells.

Next time, if they were ever to work with the Collection Department again, he would request Shi Jiu and Shou Ji to send for someone knowledgeable.

"But, Hai Ba said that it would take at most three days for his vision to return…" Yi Bing still feels worried.

"Because the spell came from himself." Ruan Yu answered. "You didn't tell this to Hai Ba, right?" he sharply asked.

Huo Ling looked at Yi Bing and didn't make any comment. He has seen many things when he was still alive, so he knows that there are also internal strife in the Afterlife Department.

"En." Yi Bing answered.

Ruan Yu shrugged. "That light came from Huo Ling himself, thus it naturally recognizes Huo Ling so it didn't harm him for long. Thus, he became half-blind for a moment." He explained.

"I see." Yi Bing sighed in relief. It all comes down to affinity. "If Huo Ling is completely cured now…" he said.

"He is." Ruan Yu assured Yi Bing.

Yi Bing knows his friend's skills so he is confident. "Huo Ling." he called.

"Yes?" Huo Ling answered.

"What did you tell Hai Ba when he saw that your vision was completely cured?" Yi Bing asked.

"Oh, that…" Huo Ling scratched his head. "I just said that it must be due to my age, so I self-heal very fast." He answered.

Yi Bing and Ruan Yu. "…" clever.

Ruan Yu laughed. "Indeed. Unless a soul cultivates, then the older soul indeed would be weaker compared to younger souls, just like the humans." He said.

Yi Bing nodded in affirmation.

"So that's how it is!" Huo Ling exclaimed and immediately took down notes of this. "How does a soul cultivate?" he asked.

"For the soul assignments, reincarnation is already a cultivation for them." Ruan Yu answered. "As for the grim reapers, the reincarnation cycle that they have gone through before also counts. That is why there are some grim reapers who are stronger than the others, setting aside their innate talent." He explained.

"I see…" Huo Ling muttered.

"Of course, there are also those grim reapers who have only undergone one or two lifetimes." Ruan Yu said.

"Why?" Huo Ling asked.

Ruan Yu stared at Huo Ling before he smiled. "You already know that the grim reapers have sinned in their life that is why they have become grim reapers as their punishment, to serve other souls… right?" he asked.

Huo Ling nodded. "Yes." he answered.

"A soul that committed a heinous crime when it was alive would immediately become a grim reaper, heedless of its reincarnation cycle." Ruan Yu said. "In short, it depends on the weight of their sins. For ones who have lighter sins, they would continue with their reincarnation in order to collect merits in their next lives so that the sin that the punishment that they will face due to the sin that they have committed in their past life would become lighter." He explained.

"Oh! So that is how it is!" Huo Ling said.

Ruan Yu nodded. "For example, a kidnapper would still be given a chance to reincarnate to collect merits. The grim reaper assigned to him would ask if whether he wants to become a grim reaper and serve the other souls forever, or continue reincarnating until the end." He said. "If he still hasn't paid for his crime committed before, but reached the end of his reincarnation cycle, he will be granted a new life, but as an animal or a plant or a rock. Of course, he wouldn't remember everything that happened to him again." He finished.

Huo Ling stared at Ruan Yu in a daze. "How many cycles will be given to that kidnapper?"

"That would depend on how storng his soul is." Ruan Yu answered.

Huo Ling's brows suddenly knitted. "What if this evildoer's soul is super strong?" he asked.

"He will directly be recruited as a grim reaper." Ruan Yu said.

Huo Ling then remembered that there was really that case. The first and foremost case: a soul that committed a sin would become a grim reaper. "Thank you, senior, for telling me this." He said as he kept his notes.

"Let's go." Yi Bing, who has been silent since earlier, spoke. "I will send you to the Pathway of the Clouds after you visited Zhuo Xia." He said.

Huo Ling nodded. They then bade goodbye to Ruan Yu before they left.

Lowe Heaven, Pathway of the Clouds.

"Thank you very much for your help." Zhuo Xia said and respectfully bowed to Huo Ling.

Huo Ling smiled. "It is fine. Your next life will become better." He told him. 𝑓𝑟eℯ𝒘𝗲𝑏n𝑜𝚟𝙚𝒍.𝒄o𝐦

Zhuo Xia nodded and then walked together with Wu Tong, Yu Qiao, Zhang Yi and Ping Kun. They already have forgiven Ping Kun since what has happened has already happened. They are already dead and can go to their next lives so what if the point in still hanging onto the past? They also asked about their master, Huai Sen – or Luo Zhou. They just told them that Luo Zhou has already went to his reincarnation.

Hearing that, the five of them sighed in relief and Ping Kun cried, regretting what he did and he apologized. Then, they decided to go to their reincarnation.

Huo Ling watched the five of them leave, until he saw Zhuo Xia suddenly stopped. "???" his brows knitted when he saw that Zhuo Xia just stood in the middle.

The souls around him are already walking away, since as the souls walk farther in the Pathway of the Clouds, their memories would become hazy, and then they would be rained with Meng Po's soup, completely erasing their memories of their past life.

But, Zhuo Xia stood in the middle.

"Zhuo Xia…" Huo Ling was about to call him when they suddenly heard rushing footsteps behind them. Before Huo Ling could turn, someone has ran past them and ran towards Zhuo Xia who is standing alone in the middle.

"Zhuo Xia!" a familiar voice called.

Huo Ling's eyes widened when he saw who it was. It was a soul, and the familiar handsome, young face that looked gloomy now is filled with life as he approached Zhuo Xia.

Huo Ling's mouth fell open in shock. "He…!" he exclaimed and tugged Yi Bing's sleeve. But, he didn't hear Yi Bing answer. He turned and saw that Yi Bing was also surprised.

"… he really managed to arrive." Yi Bing finally spoke and smiled as they looked at Zhuo Xia and Mu Li.

Zhuo Xia is crying while Mu Li held Zhuo Xia's hands with his trembling hands as they were reunited after death.

"You really died… you could have still lived…" Zhuo Xia said as he looked at Mu Li.

Mu Li smiled. "If I stayed longer, wouldn't I have missed you?" he said and hugged Zhuo Xia tightly.

The grim reapers were also dumbfounded by Mu Li's sudden arrival.. But, none of them could be more dumbfounded than Huo Ling and Yi Bing when they saw the grim reaper who was following Mu Li.