The tremors gradually faded, and I slowly landed on solid ground. The cracks beneath my feet had vanished completely. I watched the screen in silence—Lord Shenyan looked revitalized, his presence unmistakably strong.
Even though I wasn’t there in person, I could sense Lord Shenyan’s power had returned in full. That earth-shattering blow had split open Judge Bane’s Great Summoning Hell. Now, Judge Bane gazed at Lord Shenyan, his face grave, keeping his distance—clearly wary of Shenyan’s might.
“What’s wrong, old man? Not coming up here?”
Redmond kept talking, his face relaxed. All his wounds had healed. He tugged at his suit collar, crossed one leg over the other, and dropped into his seat with a casual air.
A faint blue aura curled around Lord Shenyan’s body. I couldn’t tell exactly what kind of power it was, but I knew one thing: anyone who got close to Lord Shenyan would have their strength leveled out. If Judge Bane approached, their power would become equal—only skill and experience would decide the outcome.
In this, Lord Shenyan clearly outmatched Judge Bane.
Judge Bane glanced at the torn cloth on his shoulder, frustration simmering beneath the surface. He looked around, then slowly floated higher, surveying everything below with a cold gaze.
“Still not interested in talking, old man? You know Lord Shenyan’s instincts, but you might not know mine. Want to keep testing your luck?”
“Hmph. Just a villain, yet you dare claim justice.”
Lord Shenyan said nothing. He simply raised his sword, eyes locked on Judge Bane with a predatory glare.
Just then, a streak of crimson light shot across the distance, blazing toward Judge Bane like a meteor and arriving in a flash.
"It's the Infernal Judge."
I muttered to myself. From the newcomer’s attire—a deep green ceremonial robe embroidered with ornate patterns and ornaments, a beaded crown atop his head, a scholarly air, a thin mustache, narrow cheeks, and wide-set brows—I could see he was nothing like Judge Bane. This Infernal Judge exuded no real authority.
"Why are you here?"
"That’s Lord Quintus, master of the Fourth Hall of Hell."
Master Zachary Wu spoke up. I nodded and kept watching as Lord Quintus shook his head in resignation.
"Judge Bane, I just felt a disturbance in hell. Your domain was split open, so I rushed over. Clearly, it wasn’t my imagination—what exactly happened here?"
Lord Quintus looked as if he had no idea what was going on.
"This has nothing to do with you. Go back. I’ll handle it myself."
Judge Bane spat the words, his face twisted with resentment. Lord Quintus glanced at Redmond and Lord Shenyan, then at the Blue Wraiths behind them, and finally at the Underworld Magistrates and Hell Judges gathered in the small pavilion.
"Resolve it? How exactly do you plan to resolve this? The whole underworld knows what happened—the massive disturbance just now has drawn the other Infernal Judges here. I intercepted them and asked them to wait. I came to see for myself."
"I owe you one. But I'll handle it myself."
"Ha! So this is the secret you've been hiding from us, Judge Bane. Hah."
A wild, booming voice echoed across the scene. Another crimson meteor plummeted down, exploding in a burst of red light. A figure with a long beard, a fierce face, clad in a yellow robe and crowned with beads, landed at Judge Bane’s right.
"That's King Taishan."
I recognized him instantly. I’d heard that voice before—there was no mistake.
"Didn’t I tell you to wait? Why did you come over?"
King Taishan smiled, swept his gaze across the scene, and spoke.
"Can’t even handle a few ghosts, Judge Bane? Want me to lend a hand?"
"No need."
Judge Bane rejected him outright. Suddenly, King Taishan swept his arm toward Redmond and Lord Shenyan’s side—boom! My eyes widened as both Redmond and Lord Shenyan were hurled from their positions.
A massive, mountain-like force crashed down, almost transparent, slamming into the ground with a thunderous roar. Cracks spidered out and a huge chunk of earth caved in.
"What are you trying to do?"
Judge Bane grabbed hold of King Taishan’s hand.
"What do you think? I’m trying to end this quickly. If word gets out, we’ll all be disgraced."
"I don’t need you interfering here. I’ll say it again—this is the Great Summoning Hell, not your Blazing Hell."
With a buzz, two fierce beams of red light collided, splitting apart in an instant. A crack split the ground and started spreading, the earth trembling beneath our feet.
"Can you all just stop? Do you want those kids to laugh at us?"
In a flash, Lord Quintus grabbed Judge Bane and King Taishan’s hands, pulling them apart.
Redmond laughed from a distance, glancing around at the chaos.
"When you came in, did you find any way out?"
Redmond muttered, and Lord Shenyan shook his head.
The underworld has been completely sealed. There’s no longer any passage to the world of the living.
Redmond’s face grew serious as he glanced at the three bickering Judges, then he managed a faint smile.
"Looks like we’ll have to go big. I’ve always hated gambling."
Lord Shenyan smiled, the corners of his mouth lifting.
"Count me in."
"You blockhead! You’re tackling something this big without talking to us first? If you don’t have the right skills, don’t take on the job!"
"What did you say?"
Faced with King Taishan’s provocation, Judge Bane glared at him, furious—he looked ready to fight right then and there.
"Enough! Are you children? How old are you all? What’s the point of fighting—if there’s a problem, solve it. What’s with all the shouting? Or do I need to invite Lord Ksitigarbha to come and preside over this mess before you’ll stop?"
The three Judges froze, then looked off into the distance. A warm yellow glow appeared, growing closer—it was Granny Meng. But I was stunned: she was riding a wildly exaggerated black motorcycle, its engine roaring as she approached.
With a screech, Granny Meng parked the motorcycle. The bike was covered in a riot of colorful, mysterious designs—none of which I could quite decipher.
"Why are you here too, Granny Meng?"
Lord Quintus muttered helplessly. Granny Meng swept her gaze over the three Judges.
"Reincarnation’s been shut down. What on earth are you doing? You’re disrupting my work! Do you even know how many souls will miss their chance to reincarnate while hell is closed? Those lost souls can only wait. If a baby is born in the living world now, it’ll have no spirit—just a mindless shell. And the ghosts who miss their window for reincarnation must wait for the next round. Have you all lost your minds? Well? Speak up! Just now you were all yelling—what happened, cat got your tongue?"
Granny Meng’s voice rose higher and higher. The three Judges didn’t even dare to breathe, at a loss for words.
"It’s like this, Granny Meng—please, just wait a little longer..."
"You’re the ones running hell, and you do this? If you have something to say, go explain it to all those souls waiting to reincarnate. I’m done here."
The three Judges hurried to Granny Meng’s side—Judge Bane and King Taishan each took one of her hands, while Lord Quintus patted her on the back.
"Let’s talk this through, Granny Meng. Don’t you have a way? Just slow down time for now—once this is over, you can fix the timing between the underworld and the world of the living."
Judge Bane barely finished speaking before Granny Meng spat in disdain.
"That’s a useless idea—how could you even think of it? I’ve already figured out a real solution. If you want to resolve this, do it now and don’t waste my time! Those two kids over there may be tricky, but if you three attack together, you’ll finish them off in no time. And I’m here too!"
Granny Meng turned her razor-sharp gaze on Lord Shenyan and Redmond. Redmond’s smile froze instantly.
"Granny Meng, and both of you, please stay out of this. This is my hell—I have my pride. If you interfere, how will I hold my ground in the underworld from now on?"
Redmond broke into a smile, and Lord Shenyan’s expression relaxed a little as Judge Bane slowly floated toward them.
"Wait—where’s Ethan Zhang? Where did that kid go? I need to find him."
I stared at the screen in surprise as Judge Bane waved his hand, conjuring a ring of crimson light. King Taishan dove into it with a whoosh.
"Ethan Zhang!"
I whipped my head around just as King Taishan, looking furious, stormed up to me and grabbed my collar.
"Where’s that treasure armor I gave you?"
I let out a startled cry, but King Taishan just glared at me, his anger barely contained.
"I’ll ask you again—where’s the treasure armor I gave you?"
I shook my head and replied.
"It’s already been shattered."
"Nonsense! That Prison-Guard Armor can’t just break. Who did you give it to?"
I stared at King Taishan in confusion. The armor had protected me once, then shattered—I had no idea where it went.
Just then, I noticed Master Zachary Wu and Chen Mingyuan standing stock-still, like statues. I brushed King Taishan’s hand away.
"What did you do to them?"
"Just made them freeze and disappear for a bit—why are you so worked up? Now hurry up and tell me, where’s the armor?"
I shook my head again. King Taishan pressed his hand down on my head, gritting his teeth as he spoke.
"That bastard Yin Choujian—damn it, he tricked me! Where is he?"
I looked at King Taishan in surprise. I honestly had no idea what he was talking about. What did this have to do with Yin Choujian?