The Nineteenth Level of Hell Chapter 3

  "You dare to deceive me, King Yanluo! Tell me, what benefits did you receive from that man named Xiao Cheng? Why didn't you bring his soul to the underworld? Why did you let him continue to do evil in the world?" King Yanluo was furious. As the highest ruler of the underworld, he had always been known for his fairness and integrity. But he never expected that his subordinates would also engage in such shameful acts of bribery and corruption. What's more, he never thought that the ones who committed such despicable acts were none other than Niu Tou and Ma Mian, whom he had always trusted.

  "Your Honor, it's a miscarriage of justice! Even if we had a hundred guts, we wouldn't dare do such a thing! Your Honor, King Yanluo, we can swear to heaven that we have indeed brought the soul of that person named Xiao Cheng to the underworld and kicked him into the 19th level of hell. Now that little scoundrel must be suffering the punishment of having his soul bitten by the yaksha in the 19th level of hell." As soon as they saw King Yanluo's anger, Ox Head and Horse Face, who were trembling with fear, hastily knelt down on the ground and cried out in grievance.

  "Nonsense! If you really brought the soul of that person named Xiao Cheng to the underworld, then why is his name still on the Book of Life?" The enraged King Yanluo's nose was crooked with anger as he shook the red Book of Life. Good, you two scoundrels, ironclad evidence and yet you still dare to deny it?

  "This...” Ox Head and Horse Face were completely stunned. Yes! Although they had already brought the soul of that person named Xiao Cheng to the underworld, why was his name still on the Book of Life? Was there a mistake in the Book of Life? Impossible, absolutely impossible. As the treasure of the underworld, the Book of Life is absolutely infallible.

  "Bring in the guards! Take these two corrupt officials, who have abused their power for personal gain and tarnished the reputation of the underworld, away!" Yama, the King of Hell, was furious at seeing these two scoundrels still trying to deny everything despite the evidence, and he bellowed loudly towards the outside of the hall.

  "Yes, Lord Yanluo." With the response, a large group of short and thin, dark-skinned, extremely ugly ghostly attendants rushed in from outside the door. The ghostly attendants swarmed forward, pinning down Ox Head and Horse Face firmly to the ground.

  "Your Honor, King Yanluo, spare our lives! Your Honor, King Yanluo, spare our lives!" The faces of Ox-Head and Horse-Face turned pale. They knew that the dignitary before them was always stern and impartial, just and incorruptible. What he hated most in his life was for the people of the underworld to engage in corrupt practices, take bribes, and bend the law. If someone dared to commit such a serious offense, their fate would be miserable beyond compare.

  "You two bastards! Since you dared to do such a thing, you should have expected this outcome. Take them away!" At this point, King Yanluo was already furious.

  "Yes, Lord Yanluo." The ghostly attendants hastily raised the ox head and horse face high above their heads and proceeded to walk out of the hall.

  "Hold on!" Just at this critical moment, an exceptionally calm and gentle voice sounded. Immediately following, a person slowly walked out from the depths of the grand hall.

  "It's you, Magistrate Choi!" After clearly seeing the person's face, the enraged King Yanluo slowly regained his composure. This was a relatively slender but spirited middle-aged man. His face was slightly gaunt, with a white complexion and a faint mustache, and his appearance was quite ordinary, except for those extremely clear eyes that seemed to possess a magical power, a kind of power that seemed to be able to see through people's hearts. Anyone who had such piercing eyes would never forget them at first glance.

  Cui Panguan, named Ke, was a person from the Sui and Tang dynasties. In the seventh year of the Zhenguan era (633), he entered officialdom and became the magistrate of Changzi County in Luzhou. It is said that he could "handle matters in the daytime and judge cases in the underworld at night, distinguishing between humans and ghosts with a clarity similar to that of the gods." This man was not only intelligent and wise but also upright and unselfish, earning him the appreciation and respect of Yanluo Wang, who considered him an indispensable assistant.

  "Magistrate Cui, look at this! These two scoundrels are corrupt and deceitful, ruining the reputation of our underworld. Now that we have solid evidence, there's no room for denial. You, who have always been impartial and just, surely wouldn't want to plead on behalf of these two rascals, would you?" As soon as Magistrate Cui appeared, King Yanluo's anger dissipated somewhat.

  "No, sir. I didn't mean that." Magistrate Cui slowly shook his head, "It's just that I've worked with Ox Head and Horse Face for so many years, and I know their character better than anyone. I can guarantee with my own integrity that they are absolutely not the kind of people you imagine them to be!"

  "Choi Pangwan, then I ask you, if those two bastards really dragged that guy Xiao Cheng's soul to the underworld, why is his name still on the Book of Life? Can't even the Underworld's treasure, the Book of Life and Death, be wrong? This is clearly just those two bastards lying!" King Yanluo's anger flared up again.

  "Sir, it's unjust! It's unjust!" Ox Head and Horse Face shouted again.

  "You scoundrels, at a time like this, you still dare to quibble?" The furious Yanluo Wang's eyes were wide with anger. These two scoundrels, corrupt and lawless, had committed heinous crimes in the underworld. Having committed such great sins, they didn't even know how to repent, but instead tried every trick in the book to weasel their way out. These two scoundrels were simply... simply...

  "Alright, everyone calm down." Judge Choi hastily waved his hands at the ox-headed and horse-faced men, "Don't panic, I believe you two aren't lying!"

  "Sir, please calm down! I also believe that the Book of Life will not be wrong!" Judge Cui looked at Yanluo Wang's face which was pale with rage and nodded to stop him from speaking further.

  "Since Ox-Head and Horse-Face said they had already brought Xiao Cheng's soul to the underworld, but the Book of Life shows that a person named Xiao Cheng is still alive in the world. Judge Cui took a deep breath and sighed, "So the only possibility is... Ox-Head and Horse-Face have taken the wrong soul!"

  "Has his soul gone astray?" Niu Tou Ma Mian exchanged a glance, their faces greatly changed. "Wait, Judge Cui, food can be eaten in disorder, but words cannot be spoken in disorder. We personally heard that guy say he's called Xiao Cheng. How could it be mistaken?" At this time, Niu Tou Ma Mian was extremely frightened, knowing that bringing a person with unfinished lifespan into the underworld would violate heavenly rules, resulting in severe punishment of being struck by five thunders and complete annihilation of the soul.

  Yanluo Wang's face also changed greatly, he quickly checked the book of life and death. Finally found that the book of life was missing a name, while the book of death had an extra name. No mistake, it was Xiao Chen, not Xiao Cheng!

  "It's all over!" The exhausted King Yanluo slowly collapsed onto his throne, the Book of Life and Death slipping from his hands. Judge Cui hastily picked it up, and after carefully examining it, his face also underwent a drastic change.

  "You two bastards, look at the good deed you've done!" Looking at Ox Head and Horse Face, who were kneeling on the ground with pale faces, trembling all over, and not even daring to breathe, King Yanluo was both angry and hateful. Putting aside his usual impartiality and incorruptibility, he had never been one to show favoritism or bend the rules. To wrongly detain someone's soul was already a grave sin, let alone allowing their spirit to be devoured, causing them to lose their soul completely. Ox Head and Horse Face had committed such a heinous crime, and their fate would be nothing but annihilation. But these two guys, after all, were his trusted subordinates, who had served under him for so long. He also had a certain affection for them, and the thought of them losing their souls was unbearable! You... you're so stupid!

  "But that's not all. Arbitrarily pulling the souls of innocent people who have not yet lived out their allotted lifespan into the underworld, causing them to lose their souls and become nothingness, is a serious matter that goes against the heavenly way. If this matter is discovered by Heaven, not only will Ox-Head and Horse-Face be punished, but it will also implicate the vast majority of people in the underworld." The nearby Magistrate Cui's tone was also unusually low and solemn.

  "We were wrong, we know we were wrong, please have mercy on us!" The brain went blank as the cow-headed and horse-faced men continuously kowtowed. Would their souls scatter? Would they completely disappear into nothingness? No!

  "You two bastards, this isn't just a mistake, you've committed an unforgivable sin!" Even the normally stoic Yanluo Wang's voice was trembling. Why? Why did you have to do it like this?!

  "Alright, adults, since the matter has already occurred, blaming them would be of no use!" On the side, Judge Cui finally lifted his head, "The most important thing now is to hurry to the 19th level of hell, where Night Yasha is. We can only hope that poor kid named Xiao Chen is lucky and hasn't been swallowed by Night Yasha yet. If he's still alive, perhaps things haven't reached an irretrievable state." Judge Cui's slight sigh indicated that he also knew the possibility was extremely slim.

  "You two fools, why don't you hurry up?" A glimmer of hope appeared in King Yan's eyes, but it quickly dimmed. It was probably too late already.

  "Yes, yes!" Niu Tou and Ma Mian struggled to get up from the ground, then stumbled and staggered out. Oh heavens, please bless us brothers, and that little guy Xiao Chen is still around. Hey, Xiao Chen, you're our own dad! Our own grandpa! Dad! Grandpa! We brothers beg of you, you must hold on!

  "Ah!" After who knows how long, Xiao Chen finally smashed onto the cold ground. Xiao Chen got up from the ground with a grunt. Huh? When did I recover my ability to move again? And why didn't anything happen after falling from such a high place? Not even a little pain could be felt?

  Isn't he already dead? Xiao Chen finally accepted this cruel fact.

  Xiao Chen looked around, and apart from the faint glow of phosphorescent fireflies, there was a pervasive eerie atmosphere everywhere. The constant rustling sounds that echoed in his ears made him feel a chill run down his spine. "What kind of place is this? It's so terrifying?" Xiao Chen had only heard scary stories about ghosts when he was young. But now that he had become a ghost himself, he realized that even ghosts could feel fear.

  Wait, who? Xiao Chen's hair stood on end! Because he suddenly felt something behind him was moving at his waist.

  "Who?" Xiao Chen mustered up the courage to continue asking, but there was still no response. Xiao Chen gritted his teeth and suddenly turned around. Behind him, a creature with a cyan face, fangs, blood-red eyes, two horns on its head, and an entirely black body that was extremely ugly was staring at him with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, its mouth dripping with crystal clear **

  "My goodness! Monster!" The ugly and terrifying creature scared Xiao Chen's legs soft, and he fell to the ground with a thud.

  "Who's the freak, you little brat?" The ugly and terrifying creature slapped over with a palm, "Let me tell you, I'm Yasha, in charge of the 19th layer of hell, responsible for devouring the souls of the ten most heinous sinners."

  Generally, when people are born, they will die. After death, the underworld will use their deeds in the mortal world as an important basis for reincarnation. If one was good in their past life, they will be rewarded in the next life. If one was evil in their past life, they will suffer in the next life. The more evil one did in their past life, the more suffering they will endure in the next life, and may even fall to being an animal in the next life. However, among these wicked people, there is a small group of them whose crimes are unforgivable.

  As for these guys who have incurred the wrath of heaven and men, and are detested by both gods and humans, the underworld's punishment for them is to completely deprive them of their right to reincarnation, letting them thoroughly scatter and never be reborn. The ones executing this task are the Yaksha in charge of the nineteenth layer of hell, and the method of execution is also very simple, which is directly devouring the opponent's soul.