Chapter 615: All Good Thing Must Come to an End

The knowledge that the Second King Yanluo was soon about to leave for good, and the fact that he would have no choice but to stand alone made him extra dedicated and serious about learning the ropes about being the King Yanluo of Hell.

Without even realizing it, they had already drawn close to the end of the month of intensive learning.

Granted, it had been impossible to impart everything he knew to Qin Ye, especially since most things could only be learnt through practical experiences. That said, they still focused on the more important aspects that were crucial to his role, such as the composition of Hell, functions and distribution of official positions, key locations in Cathay, dangerous locations and potential pitfalls, and so on and so forth.

“Answer - Unrelated. They are aspects of Hell that are specifically designed to strike fear and awe into the hearts of Yin spirits. All of them can be subsumed under the Courts of the new Hell. Therefore, there is no need to consider these aspects at all, much less bother to rebuild them.”

Qin Ye continued with his test paper, “Discuss the relationship between City Gods, Emissaries of Hell and Lords of the Land. Answer - They are different on a qualitative level. Even though the City Gods can broadly speaking be considered a type of Emissary of Hell, they are in charge of the affairs of the mortal realm. Their role is to inform Hell as soon as they discover anything amiss in the mortal realm. Not only do they act as the ears and eyes of Hell in the mortal realm, their role even extends to prevention of disasters that result in great attrition of numbers in the mortal realm, such as the flood of 1998, the earthquake in 2008, and so on and so forth.”

“On the other hand, the scope of authority of an Emissary of Hell is far more restricted in that they would only be called upon to reap a soul when a person is knocking on death’s door. Their authority lasts only for a period of seven days, or until the soul steps onto the Naraka Bridge, whichever is shorter. In reality, this might even be something that takes only one day. Previously, Emissaries of Hell would treat their soul-reaping assignments as a publicly-funded trip to tour the mortal realm. Even though things now are slightly different, I don’t see a need to ban such frolics. After all, if everything is done in moderation, the delay might give the souls in the mortal realm some time to say their parting goodbyes to their loved ones. Meanwhile, the only thing we need to do on our end is to instill some integrity on the part of the Emissaries and prohibit publicly funded food and drinks during their travels. Some Emissaries of Hell…”

Meanwhile, the Second King Yanluo simply sat behind, observing everything Qin Ye had written and nodded repeatedly in approbation. His wealth of experiences told him that Qin Ye was already starting to show signs of lateral thinking, which is one of the necessary features of a good King Yanluo of Hell.

As soon as he turned back, he was astonished to see that the Second King Yanluo’s body was slowly but surely beginning to turn transparent.

“That’s right. It’s time to go.” The Second King Yanluo glanced longingly at his surroundings, “The Green Lotus Cave will vanish together with me. You’ve done well on the written test. You’d at least be awarded 80 marks for all of your answers. There are no problems with your basic theory. The only area you might need some work in is your understanding of the actual practice of these theories.”

“All good things must come to an end.” The Second King Yanluo smiled, “As a King Yanluo, you’ll have to get used to living with the vicissitudes of life. This is part of the Heavenly Dao, and it is also how these Three Realms work. This is but farewell. There’s nothing to be sad about.”

Qin Ye felt a lump swell up in his throat. He wanted to crack a joke to cut through the somber atmosphere around them right now, but he couldn’t help but speak his mind, “You know, you’re actually alright, despite your tomfoolery at times… Sigh…”

“I’m afraid not. I don’t belong here in the Three Realms. Alright.” The Second King Yanluo raised his hand to pat Qin Ye’s shoulder, only to realize that his hand went straight through Qin Ye’s body. He paused for a moment, and then chuckled softly, “As a King Yanluo, you’re not allowed to reveal such weak expressions. Listen well, I’ve got a few parting words for you.”

The Second King Yanluo retracted the smile on his face, “Allies can never be trusted - no matter how close they appear to Hell! The netherworld is an even more cutthroat place than the mortal realm. Betrayal is but part and parcel of international politics!”

“In other words, the responsibility of creating a new Hell rests entirely in your hands. Remember this - you must not be soft-hearted! Kill all who you need to kill, regardless of who it may be! Besides, the examinations and tests may be over, but the heavenly realm, including the Jade Emperor and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, are still watching you.”

“Thirdly…” The Second King Yanluo suddenly smiled, “Do you still recall how… Ashmound City still hides a secret?”

“Whenever you feel confused, open it and take a good look at it. I believe… it wouldn’t be long before you might need it…” The Second King Yanluo revealed a mysterious smile on his face, “Last but not least, always keep in mind the ironclad rules of Hell.”

Whoosh… With that, his body abruptly transformed into a bright light and beamed away. Meanwhile, the entire Green Lotus Cave began to shake violently.

“Farewell…”

………………………………………………….

It was the Golden Hall, replete with the familiar vermillion pillars and Torch Dragon lampstands. He took in the sight, and he couldn’t help but wonder how things were like back then when Fengdu dominated the entire netherworld - Was it just as magnificent and luxurious as this back then?

Truth be told, he had long since wanted to get out of the abyss of endless tutoring under the Second King Yanluo of Hell, so he should have been delighted at his graduation from the same. However, he couldn’t bring himself to celebrate.

“Where did this stupid dog come from?” Qin Ye shook his head and remarked under his breath. Then, sighing, he began to mull over how he was planning to tell Arthis and the Harken about the Second King Yanluo’s departure.

… WTF?!

Is this… your true form?!

“Speaking of which, you look like you’ve recovered even more. I mean, you’re able to reveal your true form… I mean, you can shapeshift now? Did the Second King Yanluo help you with your recovery?”

Qin Ye: ???

Qin Ye: #^*$&@#?!

“Can’t you see that I won’t be able to keep up with the pace of your feet with my tiny paws?! A pooper scooper like you should have the self-awareness befitting of a pooper scooper!” Before Qin Ye could even react to the situation, the Harken immediately showered him with insults. Qin-no-dignity-Ye immediately rushed over and held up the Harken in the air, and patted it on the head lovingly.

The Harken bit down on his arm ferociously, “Daddy?! Hmm?! A walk?! Hmm?! You should be glad I haven’t swallowed you up at once, understand?!”

After a painful tussle, the man and the dog finally managed to come to a ceasefire. Incensed, Qin Ye picked up the dog and walked outside. At once, the splendour of Ashmound City filled his eyes, while the netherwind howled softly, easing his heart.

Sure, it might only have been a fragment of the glory of the ancient Hell, but he could still see ghastly figures drifting about everywhere he looked, like a vast network of constellations drifting about in their own axes in the skies.The bright light from the sea of pavilions out there appeared to a silent chorus, singing praise to their king, declaring themselves loyal subjects to their only king. This was his city. This was his kingdom.

“But you haven’t actually witnessed the old Hell. Fengdu was orders of magnitudes more prosperous than Ashmound City could ever be. We’re talking about the sheer sight of interweaving civilizations from various dynasties, from Xia, Shang and Zhou, to Tang, Song and Ming. There was even the celebration of the culture of foreign underworlds in various parts of Hell, including churches, Buddhist temples, Taoist Temples, as well as other lesser-known sects and religious institutions… What the hell?!”

“What’s the matter?” Qin Ye stared back at it in astonishment.

Without hesitation, Qin Ye activated the shard of King Yanluo’s Seal, and they promptly transformed into a mighty nethergale that vanished from Ashmound City. Moments later, they appeared in the old Hell.

Krr… krr… Qin Ye could hear a sea of crunching sound, almost as though everything that had been submerged was slowly but surely being devoured and eaten up. Qin Ye glanced around. Something told him that something was amiss, but he couldn’t quite put a finger on it.

Qin Ye nodded, and then shook his head once more, “Just a little… It feels like something has vanished, but… I can’t quite put my finger on it.”

“That shameless oaf actually had the gall to steal Ksitigarbha’s divine oaf as he left!! Can’t he spare a thought for Hell at all?! Shameless! How utterly shameless!!!”