H-Houtu?
What does that mean?
Qian Duan and all the members of the Nine Palaces Chamber of Commerce were so frightened that their seven apertures smoked, but what shocked them even more was the way the King of Equality knelt down.
A legendary powerhouse, one of the Yama Kings… Just what kind of existence could make him kneel?
Then they saw Jiang Ke’er sigh softly, step forward, and gently help the King of Equality to his feet.
Hey! Come back! How can you touch such a powerful being?
“No need for such formality. I’ve only just inherited the Succession of Houtu, so I cannot accept this kneel from a senior like you,” Jiang Ke’er said.
Hearing Jiang Ke’er’s words, Qian Duan felt as if his mind was buzzing.
Houtu… refers to… her?!
That means… he had been clashing with the master of Underworld Province, the legendary Houtu, this whole time?
No wonder she dared to claim she was the boss of the Stone Guardians at the gate!
Qian Duan was so terrified he almost wet himself.
That’s right, the boss of those Stone Guardians is the King of Equality… but the King of Equality’s boss is her!!!
No, no, calm down, this has to be some kind of illusion!
The Underworld Province has been in ruins for years, the King of Equality couldn’t possibly still be alive—she must be controlling corpses, putting on a show!
Fake! It’s all fake!
If it were real, I’d already be dead for sure.
Better to strike first, can’t let her toy with me anymore… Die!
“Attack together!” Qian Duan shouted, drawing his sword and slashing forward!
“Insolence!”
The King of Equality’s eyes widened in fury, and with a thunderous roar that echoed throughout the Beginner’s Realm, he sent a shockwave that instantly blasted Qian Duan and all the Cultivators out of their bodies!
Qian Duan drifted helplessly in the air, staring down at his blood-soaked body below, desperately trying to dive back in, but he couldn’t touch it no matter how he struggled.
“No, this can’t be, this isn’t real!” Qian Duan wailed.
“Senior, I’ve heard that the Yama King can investigate all the deeds of a soul’s life. In your opinion, how should these people be dealt with after death?” Jiang Ke’er asked.
The King of Equality reached out, his palm swiftly and skillfully grabbing Qian Duan’s soul, who screamed in agony as his very essence compressed, condensed into the King of Equality’s palm and transformed into a book with a blood-red cover.
The moment the King of Equality saw this book, he frowned.
“A red cover means great evildoing in life. He can be sent directly to the Eighteen Layers of Hell. After suffering torment, he’ll be cast into Lower Reincarnation… But since the Wheel of Reincarnation has already collapsed, he’ll be sent to Hell for now and await judgment.”
It seemed that Underworld Province once had a highly efficient system—just by the color of a book’s cover, one could basically judge a person’s life.
But Jiang Ke’er thought of a question and couldn’t help but ask seriously, “Back then in Underworld Province, how was ‘evil’ defined? What kind of person was considered evil, and what kind was considered good…?”
“That is for Your Highness to decide!” the King of Equality answered respectfully.
Jiang Ke’er’s heart pounded wildly and she drew a sharp breath.
She suddenly understood why Underworld Province had perished.
Everything in the world has an end. No living being wants to suffer terrible punishment and torment after death.
So, the rules set by Underworld Province directly controlled the values and behavior of the living in the Yang Realm.
All living beings had to act according to the standards of good and evil set by Underworld Province—otherwise, they wouldn’t have a good end after death…
In this way, Underworld Province basically controlled the thoughts and operating principles of all life across the Nine Provinces!
Unless one achieved Longevity Equal to Heaven, attaining the realm of Eternal Life.
That’s why Cultivators pursued Eternal Life like madmen—essentially, it was extreme fear of death and the world beyond…
The more they yearned for Eternal Life, the more they loathed Underworld Province. Sooner or later, Underworld Province would attract the wrath of all living beings.
After all, this power was far too great.
Jiang Ke’er’s head was about to explode.
She suddenly felt that the name “Houtu” seemed to carry a weight she simply could not bear.
To rebuild Underworld Province would mean standing against all living things, the whole world as an enemy!
But she also clearly understood the terrifying power the Succession of Houtu represented.
If she abandoned the responsibilities of Houtu, and let it fall into the hands of some great villain… or simply someone whose values clashed utterly with hers, that would be the true catastrophe!
Ahead lay mountains of knives and seas of fire; behind her, only certain death.
But in the end, Jiang Ke’er only smiled.
Damn!
Since there’s no choice, there’s no need to be pretentious.
She believed she could do it.
Maybe she was still immature now… but one day, she’d deliver an answer she’d be satisfied with.
“In that case, we’ll follow the old rules for now and send him to the Eighteen Layers of Hell… By the way, may I take a look at this Book?” Jiang Ke’er said to the King of Equality.
“Of course,” the King of Equality replied, pulling Qian Duan’s conscious soul from the book.
Qian Duan screamed as the King of Equality stuffed him into the Gourd hanging at his waist.
“This Gourd contains the Eighteen Layers of Hell?” Jiang Ke’er asked curiously.
“Indeed,” the King of Equality first handed over the book detailing Qian Duan’s life to Jiang Ke’er, then removed the Gourd.
“My life is almost at its end,” the King of Equality’s gaze revealed a hint of exhaustion.
“Inside this Eighteen Layers of Hell are many wicked souls that once plagued Underworld Province. The Cultivators of the Robbery Immortal Palace came to seize it, and I barely managed to hold them off… Now, I can no longer fulfill my duty, so I must entrust this Gourd to Your Majesty Houtu.”
Jiang Ke’er was stunned. She hadn’t expected the King of Equality, who appeared so vigorous, to actually be at the end of his strength.
Taking the Gourd, Jiang Ke’er felt a heavy weight in her heart, but she nodded solemnly.
Seeing Jiang Ke’er did not refuse, the King of Equality finally breathed a sigh of relief, and his face visibly grayed at an astonishing speed.
“To witness the birth of Houtu, I can die without regrets,” the King of Equality used the last of his strength to gently tap his finger on Jiang Ke’er’s forehead.
“I have served for three thousand six hundred seventy-three years, guarding the Avici Hell without failing the trust of Master of Earth… Now, I return the authority of the King of Equality to the new Houtu. Once Underworld Province is rebuilt, the Wheel of Reincarnation shall turn again…”
After saying this, the stern old man’s body drifted apart, turning to dust, his soul completely spent.
Fortunately, he departed with a smile. Before death, perhaps he felt pride at successfully fulfilling his mission.
Jiang Ke’er raised her hand.
Now that she had obtained the authority of the King of Equality, she stretched out her hand toward the remaining souls of the Nine Palaces Chamber of Commerce Cultivators and easily transformed their souls into books.
All of them had blood-red covers.
Without even thinking, Jiang Ke’er swept them all into the Gourd.
Bowing in the direction the King of Equality had departed, Jiang Ke’er waved her hand. “Let’s go.”
Only then did Changsun Qingyue, Jie Shui, and Mu Guoguo dare to breathe normally.
When the King of Equality was present just now, facing such an ancient and terrifying powerhouse who ruled over the punishments of the dead… they hadn’t even dared to breathe.
And yet, even such a being had to kneel in submission before Jiang Ke’er.
So powerful! Only now did they realize just how much power was hidden in the name Houtu.
Before, they thought it was just like being a village chief—a small official…
After all, Underworld Province was gone, and there were only a few Underworld Province Remnant Clan left, so what power was there to wield?
At this moment, their eyes were filled with admiration as they looked at Jiang Ke’er.
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