New Times, New Hell

Chapter 75 - Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost

Yu Zhengdu calculated the time to himself and realized that he couldn’t keep dragging things on. If twenty four hours actually passed, he would really be done for. While Ghost Mother seemed to be in a good mood, he asked, “May I ask what I have to do to leave the Hungry Ghost Path?”

Ghost Mother lifted her gaze from the phone to glare at Yu Zhengdu. Suddenly, she burst into laughter. “You’re still thinking about leaving?”

Yu Zhengdu froze. “Can’t I?”

Ghost Mother stared at him for a long time before abruptly spinning the phone in her hands. “This is called a phone, right? From now on, it belongs to me.”

Yu Zhengdu: “……” = = How come ghosts take advantage of people when they’re already suffering too?

But the situation was out of his control. Yu Zhengdu was forced to nod, “……Okay.”

Ghost Mother instantly became happier. She no longer obligated Yu Zhengdu to eat anymore. Cheerily, she said, “With these recipes, I don’t believe that I won’t be able to enlighten my unmotivated hungry ghost sons in the future.”

Upon seeing this, Yu Zhengdu couldn’t help sighing to himself, even the Ghost Mother of the Hungry Ghost Path can’t escape the fate of worrying for her children.

“Because you’re so sensible, I’ll tell you the truth.” Ghost Mother put the phone away and told Yu Zhengdu, “Don’t even bother thinking about how to leave the Hungry Ghost Path. With that kind of time on your hands, you might as well wonder how you’re going to survive in the Hungry Ghost Path in the future.”

“Are you going to stay here?” Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost used his short little hands to clap off to the side. “That’s great. I’m finally going to have a friend from now on.”

Yu Zhengdu didn’t seem even the slightest bit excited about making a new friend. His expression became solemn. “What does that mean? Could it be that there are no ways to return to the mortal realm?”

“Return to what mortal realm?” Ghost Mother cackled. She glanced outside the cottage at the dark forest and blue ghostly fires. “This is the mortal realm.”

The Hungry Ghost Path and mortal realm were layered atop one another. The Hungry Ghost Path was in the mortal realm, only, those in the mortal realm couldn’t see the Hungry Ghost Path and those in the Hungry Ghost Path couldn’t see the mortal realm.

This path had been created because of the ignorance of all living beings. The karma of all living beings could oppose Mount Meru, could emerge victorious against the largest ocean, could obstruct the Noble Path.

The ghosts in this path had once debauched their morals, committing crimes of the body, crimes of speech, and crimes of thought. In this lifetime, they would be submerged here in intense pain. The only way to escape this path was to repent day and night, gathering good karma to erase the sins from the past life. This way, they would be able to reincarnate.

However, the beings of this path were often tormented by starvation and extreme thirst. They did everything they could for food, minds muddled and unable to determine right from wrong. Additionally, there were no opportunities for them to do good. Thus, they could only suffer the consequences of their karma day after day, living out their long and pained ghostly lives. When their suffering and pain eventually balanced out their bad karma, they would finally be allowed to return to the paths of reincarnation.

This was the only way to escape the Hungry Ghost Path. But for Yu Zhengdu, this only solution couldn’t even be used either, because he didn’t originally belong to this path. Thus, there was no way he could reincarnate from it.

“Since historical times, Underworld spirits have often accidentally entered the Hungry Ghost Path. However, a thousand years ago, there truly was one person who opened the enchanted barriers to the Hungry Ghost Path and saved those innocent spirits.” Ghost Mother gazed at Yu Zhengdu. “What a pity. That person no longer exists anymore. From what I know, these days, the Heavens and Hell have already collapsed. If you can only search in the mortal realm, there is no entity strong enough to open the Hungry Ghost Path. So……”

A hint of pity appeared in her eyes. “Just obediently stay in the Hungry Ghost Path.”

Yu Zhengdu’s heart went cold. “There’s no other way?”

“There is.” Ghost Mother’s smile became even more wretched. “Provide salvation for all the beings in the Hungry Ghost Path. Make the Hungry Ghost Path disappear.”

Yu Zhengdu: “……I’d better start thinking of ways to open the enchanted barriers.”

“You?” Ghost Mother started cackling again. “I urge you to give up on such a goal. It’d be impossible for you to open the barriers. Might as well figure out these recipes with me instead.”

Yu Zhengdu tensed. He said, “If the barriers cannot be opened, then how did I end up in here?”

His words seemed to have caused Ghost Mother to remember something. Only to see Ghost Mother furrow her brows and reveal a confused expression. “Speaking of, recently, the Hungry Ghost Path truly has become very strange……”

“Strange in what way?” Yu Zhengdu asked.

Ghost Mother was just about to start speaking when they suddenly heard a loud “huhu——” from outside. A wild, out of the ordinary, gust of wind blew past, causing the cottage to shake incessantly. The door rattled in place, almost as if the entire room was only a second away from being swept up into the sky.

Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost was so scared he dropped under the table and covered his head. He cried, “Mom, didi is back again. I’m so scared!”

“You have a didi?” Yu Zhengdu’s expression was bewildered upon hearing this. “Why are you scared that your didi’s back?”

“His didi is Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost. I gave birth to him a few months ago.” Ghost Mother’s gaze darkened. “He’s one of the things that has become strange in the Hungry Ghost Path.”

Yu Zhengdu furrowed his brows. “What do you mean?”

Ghost Mother: “Look outside.”

Currently, the cottage door had already been blown open by the wind. From outside the door, they could barely make out the trees in the forest that had been blown into forty-five degree angles because of the roaring wind. And then, with a “hong——”, the original darkness outside suddenly became illuminated by fire. Like agile snakes, stream after stream of fire abruptly appeared from far away, causing the area surrounding the cottage to become as bright as day.

After those large flames, an enormous black shadow almost the size of the trees slowly emerged from the forest. His voice was raspy and low, bringing with it an indescribable chill. “Mom, I’m back. Have you given birth to any didis or meimeis for me recently?”

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost: body as big as a Bodhi tree, flames bursting from its mouth. After ingesting food, the food would instantly turn into fire, causing its stomach to be consumed by burning. These ghosts were destined to forever feel hungry and parched.

Ghost Mother took a step forward, blocking Yu Zhengdu and Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost from view. She glared at the black shadow outside and coldly said, “Torch, haven’t I told you already? I won’t care what you do anymore, as long as you never come back.”

“I don’t want to make things difficult for you either,” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost said. “But I’m so hungry. Recently, there haven’t been any new ghosts at all. It’s been so long since I’ve eaten, Mom. Take pity on me. Hurry and give birth to a few didis and meimeis for me to eat, okay? Otherwise, you can also give Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost to me to eat……”

Yu Zhengdu only felt chills run down his body. He looked at Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost in shock, softly asking, “Your didi eats ghosts? And eats his own brothers and sisters?”

Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost trembled from where he was hiding under the table. Upon hearing this question, he still didn’t dare to make a noise. He only carefully nodded.

Ghost Mother: “Torch, what you’re doing now is increasing your bad karma. If this carries on, you will be trapped in the Hungry Ghost Path forever, never able to reincarnate.”

“Hahahahaha, Mom, you think I don’t know?” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost asked. “There’s another way to leave the Hungry Ghost Path……”

In the flames, Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost slowly revealed his features. His entire body was ashen white; there were long furs on his face. Sharp fangs could be seen in his opened mouth. As he opened and closed his mouth, fire continuously sprayed out.

Yu Zhengdu abruptly widened his eyes. Not because of Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s terrifying appearance, but because that face was one he recognized.

At the beginning of the year, the escaped Minan serial killer at the Ancient Well Reincarnation Point, Hong Gentou, had transformed into a malicious ghost and ultimately been thrown into the Hungry Ghost Path.

This Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost looked exactly like Hong Gentou after he had become a malicious ghost&#k2026;&#k2026;Of course, he had clearly already evolved to the point of being able to blow fire now.

In accordance with when Ghost Mother gave birth to Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost, this directly coincided with the time Hong Gentou had been thrown into the Hungry Ghost Path.

Yu Zhengdu’s throat tightened. A true evil ghost would be an evil ghost regardless of where they ended up.

At this time, Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost had also discovered his presence. His dark, resentful eyes slightly narrowed. He stared for a bit, then slowly licked his lips, revealing a malignant smile. “I remember you. So he really managed to get you here……”

Yu Zhengdu latched onto the clues in his speech. He furrowed his brows and asked, “Who is ‘he’? Jiang?”

“Don’t you know yet?” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost squatted down. Across the black lake, his head was still frighteningly large. It almost took up all the empty space left by the door. He was like a cat awaiting a mouse: not in a rush at all. In a teasing tone, he said, “Originally, he could always manage to get the spirits of those stupid death replacers for us to eat every month. What method did you use? To cause those people who were looking for death replacements to all fail? He couldn’t catch any more spirits, so could only catch you and bring you here.”

The ill intent in his smile became more and more obvious. He also seemed quite pleased. “If there’s anyone to blame, that’d be yourself. You thought you were so smart, but actually set yourself up for failure. Just like when you guys threw me into the Hungry Ghost Path back then. You thought that you would be able to torture me. Didn’t expect me to become even stronger, right?”

Following Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s words, Yu Zhengdu slowly organized the hints in his mind.

So the reason Jiang had kept collecting the spirits of those people who had found death replacements was to place them in the Hungry Ghost Path to feed these ghosts. But after the Life and Death Accounts system had gone online, Luofeng had basically entirely ended all possibility for death replacements. Jiang could no longer find any spirits hidden from Hell’s searches. No wonder he hated him and had called his spirit away to throw into the Hungry Ghost Path despite the threat of being discovered by Hell.

However, there was one thing Yu Zhengdu couldn’t understand. Why was Jiang feeding the hungry ghosts here? What was his goal?

Compared to Yu Zhengdu, Ghost Mother was much more surprised. She stared at Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost and yelled, “Torch, why can you remember the events of your past life?”

Though the hungry ghosts born into the Hungry Ghost Path also had the five supernatural faculties just as normal Underworld spirits did, their purvenivasanusmrti abilities were very limited. They couldn’t see too far into the past and could only barely remember that they had committed wrongdoings in a past life, resulting in such punishment.

They definitely wouldn’t be able to remember as clearly as Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost could.

“Mom, have you not discovered yet?” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost slowly turned to look at Ghost Mother. “In the Hungry Ghost Path right now, I’m not the only ghost who remembers their past life.”

“Who did it?” Ghost Mother’s gaze became colder and darker. “What else do you know?”

“Hahahahahahaha,” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost leaned back again and cackled wildly. “I also know that as long as I eat a thousand ghosts, I’ll be able to become a Heinous Ghost. Then, I’ll have the power to pass through the Great Netherworld Sea and return to the mortal realm.”

Ghost Mother’s expression abruptly changed. “Who is the one who told you these things?”

“Being a hungry ghost is really so painful and tormenting……” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost ignored Ghost Mother. He returned his gaze onto Yu Zhengdu, eyes filled with boundless desire for revenge. “I’m so hungry, truly so hungry. While on the run as a human, I once went three days and three nights without eating. But that doesn’t compare to now. Each bite I eat turns into magma that burns me from inside. Every drink I take turns into lava that travels through my intestines……”

“And I’ll never forget who sent me to this place. Even if my stomach burns with extreme pain every time I eat a ghost, I will still eat them one by one. I want to return to the mortal realm and find you guys for revenge——”

By the end, his voice was filled with endless hatred.

Under his frightening gaze, Yu Zhengdu maintained a rare calm. Expression unchanged, he said, “This evil ghost, I hope that you can take a good look at something. You got thrown into the Hungry Ghost Path because you yourself did wrong. It has nothing to do with anyone else.”

“Hehehehehe……” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost naturally wouldn’t listen to his words. He wildly laughed. “I told Jiang that leaving you in the mortal realm would definitely bring continuous trouble. Why not capture you and bring you here for me to eat? This way, things can end once and for all……”

Yu Zhengdu: “……” He had been confused. Cleaning out the death replacement phenomena mainly relied on the system. He hadn’t actually shown his face before. How could Jiang so accurately pinpoint him? So it turns out this was because Hong Gentou had tattled on him.

He guessed that Hong Gentou might not even be completely sure about the true sequence of events. He had only been determined to publicly take revenge for personal matters.

After Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost finished speaking, he vigorously shook his head. He opened his mouth and released a startling roar. Following his roar, a gust of wild wind blew out of his mouth. Only to hear sounds of “hualala.” The cottage Yu Zhengdu and them were in, along with all the furniture, suddenly got swept up into the sky. Things flew everywhere.

Yu Zhengdu shook vigorously because of that wind and almost got swept away. Fortunately, at this critical moment, Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost – who had been hiding under the table – lunged over and grabbed his ankle. He used his own enormous body to barely manage to stabilize the other.

“Hahahahaha, I’m determined to see if there’s anyone who can save you this time——” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost took a step into the black lake and reached out his hairy hands in the direction of Yu Zhengdu.

Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost started wailing in fright. “Mom, hurry and save Milk Tea Didi——”

Yu Zhengdu: = = Can you not call me that!

In the violent wind, Ghost Mother took a step forward and spread her arms. She suddenly opened her mouth. With a roar, a stream of blackish-purple venom sprayed out from her mouth, landing on Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s arm.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost hadn’t thought that Ghost Mother would act. In a moment of surprise, the venom hit its target. His arm instantly blistered frighteningly. He quickly pulled his arm back, expression livid. “Mom, what is the meaning of this?”

“Don’t call me Mom. You have the memories of your past life. You’re not my son.” Ghost Mother’s gaze was ice cold. “I absolutely refuse to tolerate hungry ghosts who still have their past memories remaining in the Hungry Ghost Path.”

The Hungry Ghost Path was originally a place to allow previously evil people to repent and wash away their sins. However, these hungry ghosts with their memories often wouldn’t feel regret. Instead, they would bring even more bad karma to the Hungry Ghost Path.

“You don’t want to be my mom anymore?” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost stood up. His body was as big as a Bodhi tree, causing a gigantic shadow to fall over Yu Zhengdu. “Just as well. I’ll eat you and Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost too. I’ll help you get rid of the pain of extreme hunger.”

“No!” Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost shook while burying his face in the ground. “Didi, you can’t be like this——”

But how could Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost listen to him? His body grew bigger and bigger. “All those that have captured me and harmed me, I won’t let a single one of them go——”

Both his hands were like two enormous doors. They swung powerfully from both sides, desiring to smash together.

His palms got closer and closer to each other, bringing with them a sweeping wind. If not for the fact that Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost was holding onto Yu Zhengdu’s legs, he wouldn’t even be able to stand up straight, not to mention escape.

He could practically predict the instant that he was going to be smacked into a spirit pancake. At this moment, though, the nails of Ghost Mother’s right hand suddenly grew exponentially. In only the blink of an eye, they had already reached a length of greater than a foot. Connected to Ghost Mother’s tiny body, this looked extremely strange.

However, those nails were impossibly hard, long, and sharp. Only to see Ghost Mother reach a hand out and wave, piercing towards Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost palm at an incredible speed. The nails instantly stabbed through his palm.

Black blood poured out, turning the dirt of the little island black as well.

“Huhu——” Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost howled. His furry face abruptly became extremely grotesque. He shouted, “You think you’ll be able to take me on like this?”

He released a growl and raised both hands into the air. Using Ghost Mother’s nails, he picked her up too.

“Let the flames in my throat burn you into ash——”

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s huge head leaned back. The crescent moon in the sky illuminated every single one of the hairs on his face. His mouth was open as wide as possible. Stinky, sticky saliva coated his fangs. He appeared almost as if he were a giant monster opening his beastly mouth. He lifted Ghost Mother so that she was above his mouth.

“Aaah, Mom——” Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost wailed, attempting to charge forward. But it was already too late.

Ghost Mother had already been lowered right next to Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s lips.

In the moonlight, the clothes on the woman’s body suddenly ripped open. At the same time, her body rapidly expanded, growing bigger and bigger. Quite soon, Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost could no longer support her body weight. He could only howl and throw her away.

With a loud “dong——”, Ghost Mother landed in the forest on the other side, crushing a small patch of trees.

As all the ghosts watched, she slowly stood up. At this time, she had already become the same size as Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost.

Only to see that she was completely undressed. Her skin was dark and rough, full of large bumps. Her legs were a mix between those of a tiger and those of a dragon. Her enormous head was filled with terrifying facial features. The nails on her right hand were still impossibly long, but now, these nails didn’t seem so strange compared to her body size. Her left hand, though, also contained a huge mouth. It had the same fangs as Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost.

Ghost Mother, also known as Ghost Aunt Goddess, had the paws of a tiger and dragon, the eyebrows of a python, and the eyes of a jiao.

Only now did Yu Zhengdu realize: the appearances and skills of the hungry ghosts of the Hungry Ghost Path were all inherited from their mother.

Ghost Mother sprayed out a sticky, smelly venom from her mouth. She leapt up and landed on Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost removed his feet from the black lake and charged at Ghost Mother as well.

Two gargantuan evil ghosts fought in the forest, causing the trees to shake as if in the middle of an earthquake. With the naked eye, it was easy to tell that trees were incessantly being knocked down as their battle carried on. A chilly wind rushed past, bringing with it that foul odor. This almost caused Yu Zhengdu to vomit on the spot.

During the fight, they heard Ghost Mother release a disbelieving shout, “Impossible, you can’t possibly defeat me——”

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s brazen laughter shook the earth. “You don’t know yet, right? I’ve already eaten nine hundred ninety nine ghosts. As long as I can eat one more, nobody in the Hungry Ghost Path will be able to do anything about me anymore.”

Following his declaration, he caught Ghost Mother with both hands and lifted her high into the sky, then tossed her over.

With a loud “dong——”, Ghost Mother landed in the black lake, causing enormous waves of black water and mud to splash out. This mixture landed all over Yu Zhengdu and Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s voice covered the entirety of the space above the forest. It closely pressured them. “You thought that just because you hid your ghostly offspring away, I wouldn’t have any ghosts to eat?”

“If not for the fact that I’m only one step away from success, why would I let you know that I still have my past memories?”

Ghost Mother’s roar was long and sorrowful. “Who? Who gave you ghosts to eat? Who is keeping Heinous Ghosts in the Hungry Ghost Path?”

Yu Zhengdu’s heart skipped a beat. At this time, even the stupidest person would be able to guess who it was.

Jiang.

Only, who was Jiang? A normal ghost definitely wouldn’t be able to open the Hungry Ghost Path and keep his little pets here.

However, the situation left no time for him to ponder. Under Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s immense pressuring, Ghost Mother stood up once again. Her enormous body bathed in the moonlight; she released a deafening growl.

Because of this, the mountains, forest, and soil all started shaking.

As she growled, Yu Zhengdu could feel the dirt beneath his feat continuously tremble.

The water in the black lake bubbled. Shortly after, hungry ghost after hungry ghost revealed their terrifying appearances from that muddy swamp.

They were all barely clothed, dark, and skinny. Their skin was glued to their bodies, revealing the shapes of their bones. They reached out with their boney hands and crawled out of the swamp, moaning as they lunged at Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost.

“So hungry, we’re so hungry——”

“Give me food, I want to eat——”

“All food turns into fire and ash, all water turns into lava——”

“I’m so thirsty, so pained——”

“I’ll never dare to again——”

Ghost Mother spread her arms. “My ghostly offspring, kill Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost——”

The hungry ghosts climbed onto Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s giant figure. They resembled the hungry ghosts who wanted to climb out of Hell’s doors as described in Buddhist scriptures. In that cold moonlight, they were a sea of bodies. Similar to the first time witnessing the appearances of all possible ghosts, this caused chills to run down one’s body.

However, Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost didn’t seem frightened by this scene at all. He even released an overjoyed sound. “No wonder I couldn’t find your ghostly offspring at all. So you hid them all here. Personally witness as I kill and eat all of your ghostly offspring. I’m going to leave the Hungry Ghost Path today. Hahahahahaha——”

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s sharp hands squeezed the ghosts who had crawled onto his face. He tossed them all away before sucking in and then releasing his stomach. With a “hong——”, a sea of fire erupted from his enormous, grotesque mouth.

The fire pillar lit the forest up, illuminating the innumerous ghosts and traveling towards Yu Zhengdu.

A sea of fire spread. Numerous ghostly offspring released wails and howls of despair in the flames.

Yu Zhengdu was shocked. The flames had already reached him. At this time, a large black shadow covered him. Ghost Mother had stepped in front of him.

“Needlepoint, hurry and run——”

Only now did Yu Zhengdu remember Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost, who was still holding onto his ankles. At such a critical moment, Ghost Mother had acted in the same manner as all other mothers – protecting her own child even though it put herself in danger.

However, she very quickly got slapped away by Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s large hand.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost took big steps forward. He reached a hand out and grabbed Yu Zhengdu, then lifted him up.

“I’ll give you the honor of being the 1000th ghost I’ve eaten. The one who helps me leave the Hungry Ghost Path!”

Yu Zhengdu floated in midair and watched as Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost opened his mouth as wide as possible, revealing his throat. That was a deep tunnel. Inside, flames that would never be put out flared. All food, ghosts, spirits, etc. would turn into ash after passing through it.

Yu Zhengdu thought fuck. His forehead and palms started sweating.

It couldn’t be. Was he truly going to end here today?

From afar, Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost’s wailing sounded out. “Mom, hurry! Hurry and call more ghosts over and save Milk Tea Didi——”

Ghost Mother panted and cussed, “The other ghosts aren’t my offspring. I don’t know where they are right now. You think I can summon them whenever I want?”

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost burst into laughter. “So what if they come? Right now, is there anyone else who’s my match in the entirety of the Hungry Ghost Path?”

Yu Zhengdu suddenly had an idea. Ghost Mother couldn’t summon any more ghosts, but maybe he could.

Previously, Shang Que had taught him his personal heart seal, the Ghost King of Luofeng Mountain’s magical seal. He had once used that heart seal to summon a homebody ghost.

Though it might be a bit difficult to completely turn the situation around, no matter what, he needed to at least try.

As soon as he realized this, he hurriedly closed his eyes and, under the great stress from Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost, did his best to focus completely. He quietly read over the initiating incantation for Shang Que’s magical seal.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s gaze returned from where it had been on Ghost Mother. He discovered that something was off and slightly narrowed his eyes. “What are you doing?”

Yu Zhengdu had already finished chanting the incantation. He wiped his sweat and had an expression that said I’m leaving everything to fate now. He answered, “Summoning a ghost.”

Whether or not he would succeed was all up to destiny.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost snorted once again after hearing this. “Didn’t you hear what I just said? Right now, in the Hungry Ghost Path, everything is my food——”

Ghost Mother heaved out a long sigh too. With a slurred, hopeless tone, she said, “No matter who you call right now, they’d only help increase his power……”

Before she could finish speaking, large gusts of Underworld wind suddenly started blowing from all around. They whistled and roared, louder and stronger than any gust of wind before. In an instant, they caused Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost’s flames to grow.

Along with the wind came the rumble of thunder.

All the ghosts instinctively leaned back to look up. They finally discovered that at an unknown time, the crescent moon in the sky had already been covered by layers of clouds. These dark clouds were like an ocean, vicious and absolute: they covered every inch of the sky. The dark, black sky and sea of flames on the ground created a striking contrast, increasing the tension.

Needlepoint-Throated Hungry Ghost was so scared he once again covered his head and started trembling. “Aaah, what’s this?”

Ghost Mother stared at those thick clouds covering the sky, dazed. In complete disbelief, she looked at Yu Zhengdu. “Who did you summon?”

Yu Zhengdu’s own expression was bewildered too. Even today, he still hadn’t gotten a good grasp of the magical seal. He himself didn’t know what he had summoned.

With a “kacha——”, a flash of lightning split open the gloomy clouds in the sky, separating the darkness into two halves.

Innumerous bolts of thunder fire landed on the ground after this, their blazing flames painting the sky and ground red.

In the flames, the newcomer revealed his original form.

That was a massive black shadow that connected the earth and the sky. One could faintly make out the shape of armor and a cape, billowing in the wind.

Before him, Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost, who was actually as tall as the trees in the forest, suddenly seemed impossibly miniscule. He only barely reached the other’s calves.

Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost stared in disbelief at this horrifying figure. Fear and horror emerged in his eyes. “W-who are you?”

The black shadow slowly lowered its head. Something the shape of a crown could be barely discerned atop it.

Only to see Ghost Mother’s eyes widen more and more. Finally, she yelled in disbelief, “G-G-Ghost King of Luofeng Mountain?”

Upon hearing this, Yu Zhengdu froze. He stared at the barely visible figure hidden behind the flames and asked, “Xiao Shang, is that you?”

“It is,” Shang Que’s voice gently rang out.

A wild wind blew past, causing Torch-Throated Hungry Ghost to fall over.

But Yu Zhengdu didn’t fall down with him. Instead, he was gently picked up by a gust of Underworld wind and carefully placed on the ground.

After he regained his balance, he finally realized that it hadn’t been the wind that had picked him up, but a familiar figure.

The thunder fires extinguished. The horrifying black shadow disappeared along with them, leaving only the person before him. That devastatingly beautiful face, forever well-kept suit, and frail appearance that he had never seen before.

“I finally found you.” Shang Que’s gaze was directly on him. Only around twelve hours after Yu Zhengdu’s disappearance, he had already lost his usual calm.

“Xiao Shang, how come you’ve become so frail?” Yu Zhengdu’s expression tensed. Almost instinctively, he reached out and caressed Shang Que’s face.

Shang Que’s heart finally managed to fall back down from his throat. Upon seeing Yu Zhengdu’s reaction, he revealed a faint smile. “I’m fine, you don’t need to worry……”

“How could I not worry!” Yu Zhengdu was in great pain. “Your face is the most valuable thing in our company! It absolutely cannot collapse!”

Shang Que: “……”

The author has something to say:

Yu Zhengdu: The Heavens can collapse, the earth can collapse, but Boss’s face cannot collapse!