Chapter 246
Chapter 246
Hua Jiunan froze. “General Li, there is such a rule?”
“Can’t I simply take my mother and Uncle Snow Corpse back the way we came?”
Chen Daji cut in as well.
“Yeah! I’ve got lots of friends around here.”
“Brother Ox, Brother Horse, Brother Little Face, and Grandma Meng Po all look after us.”
Li Guang sighed helplessly.
“If matters were so simple, I would have sent the Great General and his wife back to the mortal realm long ago. There would have been no need to wait until now.”
“To prevent chaos between yin and yang and keep old debts and grudges from spilling across the boundary, the Emperor of Fengdu established a rule long ago.”
“Except for those of us with special status, any dead soul returning to the mortal realm must drink Meng Po’s Soup. No one may defy this rule.”
“Otherwise, they will invariably be declared a fugitive by the Underworld Court. There has never been an exception!”
Chen Daji muttered to himself.
“Drink Meng Po’s Soup? Wouldn’t that make you forget everything?”
“What good would it do to go back to the mortal realm like an idiot?!”
“You wouldn’t even be able to beat Fatty Zhao or a paper effigy…”
That was the crux of the problem. Everyone smiled bitterly and shook their heads.
Eighth Master Chang suddenly thought of something. He secretly poked Chen Daji with his great tail.
“Hey, little bastard, are you this stupid because you drank too much Meng Po’s Soup before reincarnating?”
Chen Daji was about to fire back, but after thinking it over, he realized that was entirely possible!
He thought to himself,
*No, I’ve got to find a chance to talk to Brother Little Face.*
*At the very least, he owes me a few treasures to compensate for the damage to my intelligence…*
While Chen Daji plotted how to shake someone down, Hua Jiunan made his decision.
Others could afford to wait. His mother could not.
If she remained in the Yin-Yang Realm much longer, her soul might scatter into oblivion.
Since Challenging the Ghost King was the only road open to them, they had to take the gamble.
When Hua Jiunan voiced his decision, to his surprise, no one objected.
Chen Daji, Zhao Fei, and the others had already cast life and death aside when they chose to accompany him on the Guoyin journey.
The habitually most cowardly Eighth Master Chang was the first to speak.
“Let’s do it! The worst that can happen is we die!”
“Um… just one little question. General Li, does the Ghost King run fast? Can he catch me?”
At that, Eighth Master Chang stole a glance at Li Guang.
Only after seeing that he was not angry did he continue.
“There are some things you might not know, so let me explain.”
“Ever since the young master physician passed down his Daoist lineage to me, I’ve gotten even faster.”
“Put it this way. I could let you gallop off on horseback for half the time it takes an incense stick to burn, and I’d still catch up easily…”
One cart makes a rut for the next.
Now that even Eighth Master Chang had declared himself, the others naturally refused to show weakness.
Chen Daji looked a little bashful.
“Big Brother Li Guang, if I die here, can my ghost go back to Hemp-clad Mountain and get married?”
“A real man has to keep the promises he makes to other people, right…?”
Zhao Fei looked rather shy as well.
“G-Grandpa Li Guang, if I die and turn into a ghost in the Yin-Yang Realm, could you bring my wife here?”
“It hasn’t been that long. She… she probably hasn’t reincarnated yet, right…?”
“It would be even better if you could bring my son-my ‘grandpa’-down here too. Then our family of three would be reunited…”
Young Monk Wuxin was as timid as ever. Clutching tightly to the hem of Hua Jiunan’s clothes, he whispered nervously,
“Namo Amitabha Buddha.”
“Big Brother, I’m hungry, and a little scared…”
Even with Li Guang’s steady temperament, the sight of them left him speechless.
Did every last one of them think Challenging the Ghost King was a joke?!
A footrace?
And if they could not outrun him, they would simply turn into ghosts on the spot, bring their wives and children down, and live happily ever after in the Yin-Yang Realm as one big family?!!
Li Guang shook his head hard to banish those absurd images, then said gravely,
“From ancient times to the present, there has been only one outcome for those who fail at Challenging the Ghost King: their souls scatter into oblivion!”
He expected those words to frighten Chen Daji, Zhao Fei, and the others.
Instead, they merely exchanged helpless looks and sighed in unison.
Each drew his weapon and clambered noisily onto Eighth Master Chang’s back.
“Giddyup! Eighth Master, charge!”
“Stick your neck out, you get the blade; pull it back, you still get the blade!”
“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go beat the hell out of that bastard Ghost King!”
Hua Jiunan burst into laughter, heroic spirit surging through him.
With two brothers like these in this life, why should he fear death?!!!
“Uncle Snow Corpse, Mother, let’s go! We’ll fight our way all the way back to the mortal realm!”
The Snow Corpse was already peerlessly brave. Had he not been worried about the danger to his beloved, he would have risked his life long ago.
He threw back his head and roared, then smashed one fist into the enemies strung along his iron chain, scattering their souls into oblivion.
Afterward, he embraced Hua Jiunan, cupped his hands to Li Guang, and raced toward Two Realms Mountain in enormous strides.
Eighth Master Chang swept Hua Jiunan onto his back with his great tail and followed close behind.
“Hold tight, young master physician. Off we go!”
General Li Guang watched Chen Daji’s retreating figure, brilliant light surging in his eyes.
“Good Brother, how could I let you fight alone?!”
With that, he snatched up his great saber, mounted his horse, and headed outside.
But the moment he emerged from the Xiaoyu Mountain pass, the soldiers under his command blocked his way.
A fierce general at their head asked solemnly,
“Where are you going, General?!”
Li Guang did not conceal his intentions.
“Two Realms Mountain. I will fight to the death beside my brother.”
The fierce general wasted no words. He led all the Hundred-Battle Warrior Spirits onto their horses.
“The General has given his command. Point our blades toward Two Realms Mountain!”
Warhorses neighed and soldiers roared.
“Where our sabers point, none can stand against us! Kill! Kill! Kill!”