I swallowed hard, quietly watching the monk before me. He made a Buddhist gesture, his face gentle with a kind smile.
"Benefactor Zhang, I was rude just now. Please do not take offense."
"Are you the Saint of the Underworld?"
I asked, and the monk nodded.
Just one of countless faces. Ethan Zhang, Tan Tian may catch up soon. I hope you can help me with something.
"Go ahead."
I looked seriously at the Saint of the Underworld. The kindness faded from his face, replaced by a trace of helplessness.
"Benefactor Zhang, let me first share a story of karma with you, then I will tell you a few things."
Sorry, Ethan Zhang. Only John Chou himself knows the reason. I do not.
The Saint of the Underworld continued, speaking of the story of karma he had mentioned earlier.
"Benefactor Zhang, please make yourself comfortable. There's no need to be formal."
I responded and casually lay down on the grass.
"The Flame Envoy became the Hell Realm, the Treasure Child became the Hungry Ghost Realm, the Mighty Envoy became the Animal Realm, the Compassionate Lady became the Asura Realm, the Treasure Lady became the Human Realm, and the Capturing Envoy became the Heavenly Realm. This is the origin of the Six Paths of Reincarnation."
"So, are you saying you created the Six Paths of Reincarnation?"
The Saint of the Underworld nodded.
"Amitabha. Yes and no. They arose because of me, were born through me, and yet perished because of me. But now, I can no longer control these things. All things follow karma—though I started it, I did nothing more. Such is virtue, such is sin."
"Saint of the Underworld, why does John Chou want to destroy the Sanzu Force?"
Although part of me didn't want to ask, hoping John Chou would tell me himself one day, facing the Saint of the Underworld now, I thought maybe he would know.
"Sorry, Benefactor Zhang. Only John Chou himself knows the reason. I do not."
The Saint of the Underworld continued, speaking of the story of karma he had mentioned earlier.
Originally, the Saint of the Underworld was just an ordinary monk, but he possessed an unwavering obsession with the Buddha. His cultivation advanced rapidly, but this came with consequences—he violated the cosmic order of that era, and upon death, was cast directly into Hell.
At that time, the three rulers of the Old Hell neglected their duties, allowing chaos and disaster to spread across both the Living World and the Underworld. Rebellious evil spirits ran rampant everywhere.
The rulers—Emperor God, Xiao Yan, and Illusionborn—were powerless to restore order. Initially, the Saint of the Underworld merely wished to negotiate with them; he could not ignore the suffering souls in Hell. He sought to guide them to the Western Pure Land, believing in the equality of all beings. Thus, he began his arduous cultivation within Hell.
To make the souls in Hell aware of the Buddha's existence, the Saint of the Underworld tirelessly carved Buddha statues and copied scriptures day and night in the Kalan Mountains of Hell.
This persistence and compassion finally bore fruit. Some souls saw and learned of the Buddha, and through the Saint of the Underworld's sanctuary, they were guided out of Hell's sea of suffering and sent to the Western Pure Land.
Rebellions broke out across the eight provinces of Hell, but gradually, the Emperor God noticed the Saint of the Underworld's actions. He captured and imprisoned him in his own realm, yet could not harm him—as if they existed in different worlds, unable to truly intersect.
Still, the Emperor God could imprison him. He could not allow the ruler of Hell, burdened by his father's sins after the gods departed, to waver in the slightest. The other two rulers felt the same.
At first, the Saint of the Underworld tried to negotiate with the three rulers, hoping to establish a more reasonable system of reincarnation. Otherwise, Hell would become overcrowded, the vessel unable to bear so many souls, eventually causing catastrophic impact on the Living World.
As expected, the situation worsened. In desperation, the Saint of the Underworld was forced to act. With the help of ten evil spirit collaborators and a special woman, they fought the three rulers of Hell in a war lasting centuries.
Eventually, the battle ended, but Hell was left in ruins. The Saint of the Underworld watched countless souls drift aimlessly, and finally made a vow: Hell shall not be empty, I shall not become a Buddha.
After making this vow, the Saint of the Underworld began constructing an orderly and reasonable system of reincarnation. He used his own incarnations to form the Heavenly Realm, Human Realm, Hell Realm, Animal Realm, and Hungry Ghost Realm.
Initially, there were only five realms, but the system had a major flaw and could not function properly. In frustration, the Saint of the Underworld communicated with the five realms he created and discovered a crucial missing link: human nature is both good and evil. This duality caused problems in the cycle of reincarnation.
Out of necessity, the Saint of the Underworld used the powerful force of the Heavenly Realm to create the sixth realm—the Asura Realm.
With the Six Paths of Reincarnation in place, everything fell under the control of the Underworld and became orderly. The Saint of the Underworld withdrew into meditation, focusing on Buddhist cultivation. Because of his vow, he could not transcend Hell or reach the Western Pure Land—since the souls in Hell could never be fully emptied. He questioned himself and his own Buddha nature.
He stopped concerning himself with the Six Paths, entrusting all management to the Ten Yama Kings.
However, many major upheavals occurred during this period—events the Saint of the Underworld could not have foreseen. These upheavals led to serious problems.
The Six Paths of Reincarnation began to move toward destruction.
"Why did it come to this?"
I stared in shock, eyes wide. The Saint of the Underworld shook his head.
"Words cannot express it all. Each link of karma connects to the next. These are seeds I planted myself, and now I must reap the bitter fruit."
The Saint of the Underworld continued his story.
The first upheaval began in the Asura Realm, which waged constant war against the Heavenly Realm for supremacy. In the end, Heaven completely suppressed Asura, and the two realms became irreconcilable.
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Afterward, the Hell Realm and Hungry Ghost Realm began to fight, eventually dragging the Animal Realm into the conflict. So the chaos in the Sanzu Force isn't just John Chou's doing—part of it is caused by his Bloodbane power, but the greater reason is the infighting among these three realms.
The mechanism that maintained balance has failed. As the human population grows, so too does the number of lost souls.
Countless souls await the Six Paths of Reincarnation. Most have already lost their consciousness and only need to complete their punishment to reincarnate, but their resentment toward the Six Paths cannot be erased.
Hell is overwhelmed by problems, and the Living World faces seven powerful evil spirits causing havoc, along with the Immortality Society. Neither the world of humans nor ghosts has any peace.
All this chaos is the complete opposite of what the Saint of the Underworld intended when he founded the Six Paths of Reincarnation.
Now, the situation is most dire—the darkness that transcends Yin and Yang has begun to seep in, and the former rulers of the Old Hell seek to return to the Underworld and reclaim their power.
"Can Emperor God and the others really come back?"
My eyes widened in shock. If Emperor God and the others truly return, Hell will once again be plunged into war.
"Benefactor Zhang, you should already know what those in the darkness want—they aim to completely replicate everything about the realms of Yin and Yang."
I swallowed hard. The Saint of the Underworld made a Buddhist gesture, then bowed respectfully.
"There's no need for that, Saint of the Underworld. You did nothing wrong—it's just those people..."
"Amitabha, Benefactor Zhang. The cause lies with me, so naturally the result does too. Now, I hope you can help me with something."
As he spoke, the Saint of the Underworld suddenly looked up. With a thunderous sound, Tan Tian appeared before me. All the flowers and grass around us instantly withered. Tan Tian stared coldly at the Saint of the Underworld.
"You alone can't resolve this chaos. If you truly want to fix things, you need a power that can suppress the fourth level of ultimate darkness. Seek help from the Dao, Saint of the Underworld."
My eyes widened. I couldn't understand why Tan Tian would say this. He should be the executor of the Dark Banquet's plan, hoping to create a mirror world and find a way to restore emotions. But now, his actions seemed to be helping us.
"Tan Tian, the Dao is elusive, supreme yet inactive. I am powerless to act, so..."
Tan Tian turned to look at me.
"You need to figure something out, Ethan Zhang, or the Living World will surely be affected."
"What can I possibly do?"
I asked immediately. Tan Tian stared at me in silence, and the Saint of the Underworld stood up as well.
"Didn't you meet the Dao Ancestor before? In that darkness, it's the closest place to the Dao's world. You just have to find someone from the Daoist sect, then use the Buddha's image to break through the darkness and reach the Dao's world. I think the Dao Ancestor will help you, because you have a deep connection to the Dao—that's why he helped you in the Shadow World."
I swallowed hard and looked at Tan Tian.
"What is it you really want?"
Tan Tian shook his head.
"The most important thing now is to stabilize that darkness, not make it disappear. Otherwise, I won't be able to recover my emotions."
The Saint of the Underworld gradually faded away. Now, Tan Tian and I were back beside the Sanzu Force. He stared at the Sanzu Force, then burst out laughing.
"This is truly interesting. John Chou, that guy, I didn't expect he'd plan things out this far. When I get back, I need to have a good talk with him."
As Tan Tian spoke, he quickly grabbed me and flew toward the Sanzu Force. I stared in shock, eyes wide.
"What are you doing?"