Ghost Stories Series 10

Chapter 25

The ghost soldier was taken aback and said, "But..."

"Don't worry, I'll take responsibility for whatever happens."

The ghost soldier breathed a sigh of relief. No one was someone a nobody like him could afford to offend, so he bowed and said, "Please come in, everyone."

So everyone entered the Underworld. "Wow! Tingting, when did you become so cool?" Ling'er looked at her old friend.

"It won't look impressive if it's not cool~" Tingting shook her white cloak and laughed.

"By the way, you just said I'm a friend of the Queen of the Underworld. What if you get into trouble if I'm found out?" Ling'er asked, a little worried.

"How could that be? The Queen of the Underworld herself said you're her friend. If anything is wrong, it's not my fault. Don't worry, I'll be fine." Then she added, "Wait here for a moment, I'll go in and report and then come out."

Everyone nodded. Ling'er surveyed her surroundings. Unidentified flowers and plants dotted this legendary place where rivers of blood flowed—so beautiful. What kind of woman would the Queen of the Underworld be? Surely a woman of unparalleled beauty, a sight to behold, yet why did she claim to know her? Could it be…?

Just then, Tingting came out from inside, followed by a tall and handsome man.

"Ling'er, unfortunately, the King and Queen of the Underworld went out yesterday and may not return for ten days to half a month. Let me introduce you, this is the King of the Underworld's capable assistant, Lei Ting." The moment the man called Lei Ting's eyes met Ling'er's, he trembled all over and blurted out, "Holy Lord?"

Ling'er looked around and said to Lei Zhu'er, who was standing next to her, "Hey! Zhu'er, he's calling you!" Upon seeing this, Lei Zhu'er stepped forward and whispered a few words in Lei Ting's ear. Lei Ting nodded, but his eyes never left Ling'er.

“Miss Ling’er, neither the King of the Underworld nor the Queen of the Underworld are here. If you have any instructions, please tell me and I will do my best to assist you.”

Ling'er scratched her head and laughed, "Don't be so polite. It's nothing really. We just want to find a soul to ask some questions."

"Oh? What's that person's name? Are there any distinguishing features?" Lei Ting asked respectfully.

"Uh... I don't know her name, but I know she's from the Nuwa clan."

Upon hearing this, Lei Ting said, "I'm sorry, Miss Ling'er, the souls of the Nuwa clan are not under the jurisdiction of the Underworld. I'm afraid you won't be able to find her here."

"Where can we find it?" Teardrop asked hurriedly.

"In...in the Realm of Light!"

"What? The Realm of Light?" Ling'er suddenly felt she had heard of the Realm of Light somewhere before, but couldn't remember where. Tears of Tears stamped her foot and said, "I should have known it would be there." Hu Yishiba and the three others asked simultaneously, "What is the Realm of Light?"

Lei Ting looked at Lei Zhu'er, then at Ling'er, and after thinking for a moment, said, "The Realm of Light is another space. Like the Human Realm, the Underworld, and the Extreme Realm, these five coexist. The Realm of Light is the place where gods and immortals reside in the traditional human sense."

"Five? How can there be five?" Eighteen counted on her fingers. "There are clearly four."

"Yes!" Hu Yi looked at Shi Ba with rare approval.

“And the Dark Realm!” Teardrop said bitterly.

"What is the Dark Realm?" It feels so familiar. Could it be that Master or Senior Brother mentioned it before? Ling'er wondered.

"Never mind, Master, let's go to the Realm of Light first. We need to solve that case first," said Teardrop.

Ling'er nodded, then turned to Lei Ting and said, "Thank you for your help. Since time is of the essence, I won't bother you any longer. I'll have to ask you to take care of Tingting from now on."

Lei Ting clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Miss Ling'er, you flatter me! If you ever need my help, please let me know."

The group emerged from the Underworld. Tingting originally wanted to come along, but Leiting forcefully stopped her. The Realm of Light would cause her great harm as a ghost messenger. Ling'er didn't want to be separated from her either, but since Leiting had said so, the two had no choice but to part ways tearfully, promising to reunite when Ling'er returned from the Realm of Light. The journey was uneventful, unlike their time in the Extreme Region. Ling'er wondered how Chang Xiao was doing; it had been half a month since she'd last seen him. His warm smile was always so familiar, so unforgettable, yet so alluring that she felt a sense of resistance. Ling'er didn't understand why she resisted that smile. She longed to find Leizhu'er and ask her, but she couldn't muster the courage.

“Master, we’re almost at the Realm of Light. Let’s go together,” said Teardrop.

"Why?" the three men asked in unison, their understanding growing stronger lately.

"Because that place will cause you harm."

"No! I'm going!" Hu Yi threw a tantrum, clinging tightly to Ling'er's arm. "If Hu Yi goes, I'll go!" Shi Ba chimed in.

"Even the eighteenth one went, how could I not go?" the arrogant man blurted out.

"Anyone who can withstand three of my moves can follow me." Tearsdrop smiled, but everyone felt a chill run down their spine when she smiled.

"You three be good and wait here obediently. If you get hurt, Zhu'er and I will have to take care of you. We'll come back once we've figured things out." Ling'er knew they wanted to protect her.

Hu Yi was about to say something more when he saw Lei Zhu'er raising her fist, and he swallowed his words back.

Ling'er and Leizhu'er entered a primeval forest. The tall, lush trees blocked most of the sunlight, making it look eerie and terrifying. "Zhu'er, how much longer?" Ling'er wiped the sweat from her brow. There was no way to go anywhere. If it weren't for Leizhu'er leading the way, she would never have believed that the entrance to the Light Realm was here. "We're almost there." Leizhu'er wielded her sharp sword, clearing away the branches and vines blocking their path.

Sure enough, the trees ahead gradually thinned out, and a huge lake appeared in the distance. The two arrived at the lake's edge; the water was unfathomably deep. Ling'er looked at Leizhu'er in bewilderment. Leizhu'er closed her eyes and chanted incantations she couldn't understand. Moments later, the once mirror-like surface of the lake rippled, and a huge whirlpool spun rapidly in the center. A familiar feeling filled Ling'er's body. Just as she was about to continue thinking, a splitting headache struck her head, and then she lost consciousness.

When Ling'er opened her eyes, Leizhu'er was anxiously channeling her spiritual power into her body.

"Master, are you feeling better?" Before she could finish speaking, tears streamed down her face like beads.

Ling'er smiled slightly: "See, I'm fine now, aren't I? I don't know what happened, but my head suddenly started hurting. Now I'm all better." She looked around at her surroundings. This must be the legendary fairyland. The breeze carried the sweet scent of flowers, and birds she had never heard of before were flying in the air. The distant mountains and the nearby water echoed each other, making her feel that all the adjectives she used to use were so inadequate and powerless.

"Pearl, have we arrived?" Ling'er asked softly. Such a fairyland made one reluctant to disturb its tranquility.

“Yes, Master, what do you think of this place?” Teardrop helped her up.

"What a nice view!"

"Besides thinking it's beautiful, what else is there?"

"Anything else?" Ling'er looked at her, puzzled.

At that moment, a murderous aura swept over them. Without thinking, Ling'er pulled away her tears. Before the two of them could react, a flying knife pierced Ling'er's right arm, and instantly, blood stained her entire sleeve!

"It's been so long since I've had someone with such strong spiritual power serve me as a snack! Hahaha!" A woman's figure appeared before me.

"Who are you?" Tears stepped forward and pointed at the ugly woman.

"You don't even recognize me! Little girl, you're truly blind!"

Tears welled up in her eyes, her face deathly pale. She bit her lower lip tightly. It was all her fault for being careless; otherwise, how could her master have been injured? Ling'er knew that the ugly woman was doomed. She looked at the pitiful ugly woman and gently shook her head.

"You will die a terrible death! Sanctification!" As soon as Teardrop said this, the space around her began to distort, her long hair flew wildly, and the hem of her skirt fluttered incessantly! She revealed herself to be a human-headed snake.

Seeing this, the ugly woman broke out in a cold sweat. She blamed herself for being too hasty and forgetting to assess her opponent's strength. Now she was in a bind; she couldn't run away, and could only endure it!

Tears rushed towards her with lightning speed, her fierce moves sending the ugly woman's whip flying in a single strike. Then, her snake tail swept across, sending the woman flying ten feet away like a kite with a broken string.

"Zhu'er!" Ling'er cried out, "Don't kill her yet!"

"She deserves to die!" Tears gritted her teeth as she stared at the ugly woman in the distance, who was spitting out mouthfuls of blood.

"But have you forgotten why we came? Leave someone alive, and we can ask them questions!"

"Master, your wound..." Upon hearing this, Tears had already returned to human form. Seeing Ling'er's wound oozing blood, tears fell again. She tore a piece from the hem of her skirt and carefully bandaged Ling'er's wound. It was completely unimaginable that this pitiful girl was the same demonic figure just a minute ago.

"I'm fine, just some minor injuries. Look at you, you're crying again!" Ling'er comforted her as she walked towards the ugly woman.

Why did you ambush us?

"Because... cough cough, I need to become stronger..." the ugly woman gasped.

"You think you have the ability to absorb our spiritual power?" Teardrop pointed her sword at her.

"I...I have to fight this battle, otherwise, it will be worse than death!"

"Why?" Ling'er asked, puzzled.

"Because I'm ugly, everyone looks down on me! But... but I don't want to look like this, so I have to become strong so that people can... respect me!" The ugly woman's tears flowed down her face, mingling with the blood at the corner of her mouth.

“Have you ever thought that even the most beautiful person will grow old one day? Beauty is just a shell that will change sooner or later. You've cultivated yourself, how could you not know this? Besides, even if you become powerful, if you do evil and bully the weak, others will still look down on you.” Ling’er sighed, her shoulder injury throbbing slightly. She dared not let Lei’er see it, otherwise this woman might not even have the chance to be ugly.

"Thank you. No one has ever spoken to me so calmly before. They all look at me with disgust."

"If all else fails, you can always go to a beauty salon for plastic surgery!" Teardrop felt a little sorry for her, after all, it's not easy for a woman to be as ugly as her.

"Beauty salon? What's a beauty salon?" the ugly woman asked.

"Why should I tell you? I haven't even settled the score with you for hurting my master!" Teardrop said bitterly.

"Forget it, she's injured too, consider it punishment!" Ling'er said. She didn't want to take her life unless it was a heinous crime.

Hearing this, Teardrop could only nod. Her mistress was still so soft-hearted, unchanged through countless reincarnations. Was this her flaw? Yet, it was also precisely what she admired most about her. But could such soft-heartedness bring her happiness? Didn't they say good people are rewarded? Why did she always end her life heartbroken? Could that hateful curse follow her through every reincarnation? Teardrop looked at Ling'er with heartache. She must do everything in her power to protect her, to prevent her from suffering any harm in this life. But did she have the ability?

"Zhu'er? What's wrong?" Ling'er asked, puzzled.

"It's nothing. Pearl obeys her master in everything. Since the master doesn't want to kill her, then let her go!"

Tears welled up and she sighed softly, “Wait a minute! Do you know that a new spirit from the Nuwa clan has arrived here?”

"The Nuwa Clan? Are you talking about Qingluo?" The ugly woman breathed a sigh of relief; at least her life was no longer in danger.

"I don't know her name. Can you find this Qingluo?" Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Yes, Meiniang will take you two to find her right away!" she said, staggering to her feet.

"Your name is Meiniang, right?" Ling'er asked.

“Yes…” She lowered her head and grinned.

Ling'er looked at the scenery along the way and didn't notice Lei Zhu'er's tightly furrowed brows. After walking for about half an hour, the three of them saw a thin figure sitting by a stream not far away, appearing and disappearing in the distance.

"Qingluo, someone is looking for you here!" Meiniang said.

"Qinglu greets the Holy Maiden!" a timid female voice rang out.

Qinglu knelt before Leizhu'er, her translucent body still trembling.

"Get up. How do you know me?"

"Replying to the Holy Maiden, Qingluo is also from the Nuwa clan, so naturally she knows the Holy Maiden." She lowered her head.

"Raise your head and let me see you!" Tears welled up as she pulled Qingluo's hand. She had a feeling that this poor girl must be the clansman whose boyfriend had killed her.

To everyone's surprise, as soon as Qingluo raised her head, she froze as if struck by lightning, her whole body trembling uncontrollably. She immediately knelt down and said, "Greetings, Holy Lord!" This time, she knelt before Ling'er.

Ling'er didn't know why she was trembling so badly when she saw her. Also, who was this Holy Lord she was talking about? First it was Lei Ting, and now it was Qing Luo. Why did they all react the same way when they saw her? Ling'er looked at Lei Zhu'er in confusion, but the latter just looked away and helped Qing Luo up, saying, "Get up."

At this moment, Mei Niang, who was standing to the side, suddenly realized and said, "Could it be... could it be...?" She finally understood why she had been seriously injured by the other party in just two moves!

Tears nodded and said, "Yes, you can go now, but you must remember that you are not allowed to do anything wrong again. If I find out, I will not forgive you!"

"Thank you for sparing my life, Holy Lord!" After saying this, he kowtowed three times and turned to leave.

“Zhu’er…”

"Master, do you want to regain your memories?" Teardrop knew what she wanted to ask her.

Upon hearing this, Ling'er hesitated. If everything in the past was painful, should she know it? After a moment, she shook her head.

Laugh, how did you hurt me in your past life? Why do I subconsciously resist knowing about my past? But how could this smiling, self-centered person hurt himself?

"Qingluo, we know about what happened to you!" Ling'er changed the subject, smiling at the still trembling Qingluo, trying to ease her fear.

"How did you know?" Upon hearing this, Qingluo's face turned deathly pale, devoid of any color.

"You don't need to be afraid of us, we're here to help you!" Tears gently patted her shoulder. The Nuwa people were always gentle, charming, and well-educated. She must have suffered a severe blow to be like this, trembling even when she saw strangers! Thinking of this, Tears felt a pang of pain in her heart. No matter what, she had to get justice for Qingluo, otherwise she would be unworthy of being a member of the Nuwa people!

Qingluo closed her eyes in anguish; the memories were all heart-wrenching. "How...how could he possibly kill me?" Before she could finish speaking, tears streamed from her closed eyes.