I quietly watched the Fifth Tribunal Yama. He seemed lost in thought, and for a long time, said nothing more to me. I had no idea what was going on.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve often entered other people’s memories, able to see their past. This time, it should be the memory of the Underworld Path, but the Fifth Tribunal Yama said he summoned me here. I’m a bit confused.
"This is my Memory Projection technique. I am conversing with you now, but it is my past self speaking to you."
I nodded, half-understanding.
"Underworld Enforcer Bao, why did you call me here? What exactly..."
I was very puzzled. The Fifth Tribunal Yama seemed to know everything about me, even my thoughts.
"Of course I know, Zhang Qingyuan. From the day you were born, I have known."
At this, I was extremely surprised. I looked at the Fifth Tribunal Yama and wanted to ask about myself, but from his expression, it seemed he wouldn’t tell me.
"Today I called you here simply to talk. What happens today will be known only to you and me."
I nodded, looking at the Fifth Tribunal Yama.
"In a moment, you need only follow the ghost you brought with you. He will receive guidance and lead you to the Bridge of Remorse. Once there, Mr. White will help you."
I let out an "ah" and stared blankly at the Fifth Tribunal Yama.
"Thank you, Underworld Enforcer Bao."
"I still vaguely remember, back then, all the deeds of that vengeful ghost, John Chou. Thinking about it now, perhaps when he was in my court, I should have spoken with him properly. After all, though he committed countless sins and defied the law of cause and effect, I knew very well he bore all the guilt alone. Sigh..."
Hearing this, I looked at the Fifth Tribunal Yama in surprise, then asked.
"Underworld Enforcer Bao, then why didn’t you pardon the seven of them and let them enter reincarnation?" I thought about how Mona Ouyang was willingly caught by the underworld, wanting to enter reincarnation and reunite with her old friend Ouyang Weng. Yet, she was mercilessly sentenced to Abyssal Hell.
"All things in this world are impermanent. Black and white, right and wrong, are not for us to judge clearly. Only the law can resolve such matters—impartial, with cause and effect. But behind that judgment, you must have heard Nathan Chung mention it before."
I had indeed heard hints about it from Zhong Kui in the Forest of Desire. Back then, those seven Ghost Sovereigns, including John Chou, were released from Abyssal Hell by someone in the underworld, deliberately.
"Whoever it was, the judgment sent certain people straight to Abyssal Hell. Unfortunately, that person’s scheme backfired—the seven vengeful ghosts devoured every prisoner in Abyssal Hell, growing terrifyingly powerful. Even Nathan Chung was defeated by those seven."
As the Fifth Tribunal Yama spoke, he suddenly turned his head and looked at me intently.
"Speak, Underworld Enforcer Bao. What is it that you need me to accomplish?"
"Ethan Zhang, in the days to come, I hope you can use your instincts to uncover who in the Underworld Court is plotting wicked deeds."
I let out a surprised sound—how could I possibly have such power?
"You may not now, but in the distant future, I hope you will lend your aid. After all, you still don't fully understand your own instincts."
I nodded, but then my thoughts turned to Rachel Lan, to the affairs of the Underworld, and to Old Moe. They are all people of the Underworld, forced to collect 9,999 souls before they can find peace—spending their lives gathering souls for the Underworld Court.
"Underworld Enforcer Bao, I want..."
"Ethan Zhang, this is not your concern. I am fully aware of the origins and the unreasonable burdens of those from the Underworld."
In that instant, I saw Underworld Enforcer Bao clench his fist, his stern presence radiating authority. His beard bristled, and though his hands were behind his back, his fists were tightly clenched as if in anger.
"Nine of the Ten Tribunals agreed, even that lord gave tacit approval. I stood alone, fiercely opposing the involvement of the living in these matters. But those people... sigh."
I looked at Underworld Enforcer Bao, and he was just as I had always heard—upright, impartial, and strict. The hint of helplessness on his face left me speechless. If not even he could resolve the matter, how could I possibly do anything?
Yet in that moment, I clenched my fists, my mind filled with the memory of Rachel Lan and Old Moe parting ways. The two of them hadn't spoken in years.
After Old Moe returned from the dream world, he left without a word. When I think about it, the people of the Underworld are more like walking corpses than zombies. Time and again, they witness the deaths of others and learn of their fates. It's not a pleasant thing—especially when it involves their own friends and family.
I even thought of Tong Xiaomeng. That time, Rachel Lan broke the rules and saved her.
"Underworld Enforcer Bao, I hope that one day I can free the people of the Underworld. I hope you will help me when the time comes."
I looked seriously at Underworld Enforcer Bao and spoke. He gazed back at me with equal seriousness.
"Perhaps your words will come true, Ethan Zhang. Try to coexist with the Forest of Wailing on both sides of the Underworld Path. Use your instincts..."
Then I saw Underworld Enforcer Bao wave his hand, and in an instant, I could barely see the Fifth Tribunal. Everything around me was fading away—I knew I was about to regain consciousness.
The moment I opened my eyes, I was stunned—unable to move, surrounded by endless cries of resentment. I was suspended in the air, my body enveloped entirely by black resentful energy, with only my head exposed.
The resentful energy beneath me surged up like a fountain from the earth, threatening to swallow me whole. Nearby, I saw Boss Chang lying motionless on the ground.
In the surrounding forest, the resentful energy gathered into streams of black mist, swirling upward endlessly. My body felt empty, devoid of sensation—there was nothing left inside me.
These currents of resentment that wrapped around me were pure hatred—hatred that seeped into the bones, yet powerless to change anything. That feeling filled my mind completely.
Inside, I wondered what I should do. I kept calling out to my instincts, trying to coexist with the resentful energy here. But this energy was like a wild horse, utterly beyond my control, rampaging through my body like a herd of mad bulls.
This resentful energy had accumulated for centuries, drawn from the souls trapped in this forest, until it became the vast Forest of Wailing.
No one knew where it came from, or where it should return. In the Forest of Wailing, it wandered endlessly, growing ever stronger—so much so that it now threatened the souls passing along the Underworld Path.
In my memories, every underworld registrar who emerged had to walk through a circle of red light—probably a power used by the Underworld Court to keep their registrars from being devoured by the resentful energy here.
No one cared about what happened here. Who was supposed to bear the centuries of accumulated resentment? My mind was filled with these questions.
In my memory, the Underworld Path was once beautiful, lined on both sides with vast fields of Red Spider Lilies. But now, only monstrous black trees grew along the road—an ugly, jarring sight.
"Come, join us. Hate. Rage..."
Amid the wailing around me, I heard a voice, full of temptation. Everything it said seemed so natural, so right—nothing felt out of place.
I closed my eyes and felt the resentful energy flowing through me. I was still human, and what I received was human hatred. Because humans have feelings, they also have hatred—and everything here was a convergence of human resentment.
A clear chime rang in my heart—like a bell. I saw a memory: the once-beautiful Ghost Gate, and a wind chime swaying gently in the breeze.
Suddenly, an idea struck me, and I began to smile.
"Pure hatred leads nowhere. If you have no place to return, no origin—then follow me. Go to your destination, to the place where the Red Spider Lilies bloom..."
I shouted. For a moment, I glanced at my shadow—he seemed to understand. Suddenly, I felt myself absorbing the yin energy of the Forest of Wailing in great quantities. My Specter Web stretched and extended, reaching toward the end of the Underworld Path.
Then, all at once, the resentful energy entwined around me grew gentle. I could even sense a feeling of joy within it.
For resentment with no destination, reincarnation is the only return. No matter how deep the hatred, once you fall into the cycle, everything is washed away. I remembered how, in the Corpse Realm, I killed Tan Tian with a single blow and then entered the River of Forgetfulness—those bizarre memories, the old woman washing clothes by the riverbank.
Suddenly, I saw a flash of crimson. The resentful energy that had blocked my way was now moving with me, guiding me forward.
The Underworld Path was now visible to the side. Emerging from the resentful energy, my hand regained feeling. I swept up a surge of deathly energy and tossed Boss Chang onto the Underworld Path. He looked at me with deep concern.
I began to move slowly forward. In my mind, the crimson glow was the Red Spider Lily—I had found it, the guiding flower. All I needed to do was lead this resentful energy to its destination: the Bridge of Remorse. There, at the head of the bridge, they would follow the waters of the River of Forgetfulness into the cycle of reincarnation.