Chapter 153: The Ghost King and the Ruyi Treasure Scepter

On the northern bank of Silver-Falling Lake, near the grand city of Flying Bear in Ochre Bear Prefecture, and a mere two to three hundred miles away from Peace Mountain to the northwest, the jurisdiction of the Earth Department Underworld was unprecedentedly formidable. Water demons and rogue Daoists within Silver-Falling Lake dared not easily show their faces, making this place the prime location for Peace Mountain disciples seeking candidacy as underworld officials.

Tonight, along the eastern line of the northern lake shore, it was Tian Ye, a deputy patrolling general under the command of the Night Wandering God, who was on duty.

Tian Ye did not come from a prestigious lineage; his ability to secure the underworld official position of deputy patrolling general after qualifying as a Daoist disciple was entirely due to his diligent service by the side of a True Immortal. Since taking office, he had always been conscientious and responsible in his patrols. Although he had indulged a bit too much in wine tonight, the damp breeze blowing off the lake quickly sobered him up considerably.

When the mournful sound of the conch shell rang out, he was completely alert.

With the development of the Daoist officialdom, the lowest-tier underworld official system had grown increasingly bloated, especially within the hundreds of miles under the sphere of influence of Peace Mountain. Known as a blessed spiritual land abundant with opportunities, underworld official posts in the local Earth Department were scarce and highly contested.

Tian Ye raised a hand-token inscribed with the character "Slaughter" on one side and "Crime" on the other. This was crafted from the death warrant placard traditionally tied to the backs of criminals facing execution. It was considered an underworld treasure, issued specifically to the principal and deputy patrolling generals under the Day and Night Wandering Gods.

Upon activating the "Crime" character on the back, all nearby underworld officials and ghost generals would immediately sense it.

Having done this, Tian Ye gripped the hand-token, shouted to his squad of ghost soldiers, and cautiously proceeded to investigate the sandbar by the lakeside.

On the sandbar, Wu Liang, adorned in gold and silver, blew the ritual conch and danced in a bizarre posture. Though he initially felt strong resistance in his heart, he was soon swept into a trance by the power of the conch.

The little flood dragon danced the paces of the Dipper unenthusiastically before the altar, while an increasing number of wandering ghosts gathered below it, the majority of whom were drowned ghosts.

These minor ghosts were pitch-black and dripping wet, resembling a clump of rotting water weeds fished out from the lake, with many dead fish and shrimp still clinging to their bodies.

Ji Ming twolled his blood-tumor prayer beads, the bumps spinning endlessly between his fingers faster and faster, emitting a chorus of Sanskrit chanting from each tumor.

Ji Ming joined in the chanting, and the little flood dragon echoed in harmony.

"Setting the vegetarian feast, great compassion spreading alms."
"Relieving the hungry ghosts, sharing the ritual food."
"Wandering through the void, universally delivering the boundless."
"The merit of the scorched face, the benevolent kitchen with flavor."
"The underworld seat, bestowing sweet dew."
"The king of equality, attend this evening."

"This is..." Hidden in the dark, Deputy Patrolling General Tian Ye listened to the praise chant, thinking to himself: "These are the praises of the King of Scorched-Face Ghosts. They are trying to summon the dharma consciousness of the Ghost King!"

"Not enough!"
"Not enough!"

Beneath the altar, an ever-growing crowd of hungry ghosts swarmed around Wu Liang.

"Disciple!" Ji Ming shouted sternly.

Wu Liang, whose consciousness had been hijacked, obeyed the command and blew the ritual conch with all his might.

Under the sound of the conch, the water demons near the sandbar quickly lost their minds, one by one spontaneously crawling onto the sandbar. Tian Ye, hiding on the side, turned pale with shock.

Ji Ming waved his hand toward the flesh lotus dais, and the void warriors within the celestial body leaped out one by one, roaming the lake to capture various struggling spirits and monsters.

Some monsters with complete human forms remained unaffected, kicking up towering waves outside the sandbar and roaring as they attacked. A palm strike of vital energy descended, capturing them all and slamming them down before the altar on the sandbar.

In an instant, the area before the altar was packed. The hungry ghosts gorged themselves, and the Sanskrit chanting grew louder, attracting even more water demons.

Tian Ye felt dizzy, struggling hard to maintain his composure.

He hid in the shallows,收敛 his breath and spirit, trying his hardest to conceal himself. Just then, he caught sight of a familiar figure upon the lake.

"The Flowing Catfish Wanderer, a century of cultivation, on the verge of shedding his form."
"He is a water demon on the Earth Department's wanted list, notorious for harvesting the vital essence of villagers in local towns to refine his form. I heard the number of victims he has taken exceeds a hundred. To think even he was lured here."

The stout, dark man striding across the waves wielded a steel trident, wore fine iron armor, sported a disheveled beard, and laughed heartily with a wide-open mouth.

"Which ghost or demon dares to trespass in my domain!"

The moment the words fell, a gray-hued, silvery halo rose over the sandbar, hanging high in mid-air. With a single sweep over the area, the demon's heart skipped a beat.

Instantly, his entire body felt as though it were bound by thousands of thin cords, and no matter how hard he struggled, he could not break free. In his panic, he revealed his true form as a fat catfish, only to be hoisted up and tossed onto the sandbar.

"I am..."

Before the catfish monster could state his background, swarms of hungry ghosts swarmed over him, burrowing into his flesh, his organs, and his head. In a brief moment, he was reduced to a bare skeleton.

Tian Ye clenched his jaws, the urge to retreat having already arisen, but he was blocked by the squad of ghost soldiers he had brought along. Unbeknownst to them, they had already been bewitched by the wondrous music of the conch.

At that moment, an even grander Sanskrit sound resonated. He raised his eyes and saw auspicious multicolored light descending upon the sandbar.

Amidst the swirling auspicious light, an illusory figure descended, plunging straight into Wu Liang's body. Brilliant flames surged upward, spontaneously forming a wheel of fire.

Outside the sandbar, tons of lake water evaporated instantly, creating a wondrous spectacle resembling a curtain of water vapor.

"This Ghost King's dharma consciousness is actually far stronger than the dharma consciousness of the Three Stellar Immortals of Fortune, Prosperity, and Longevity!" Just as this thought arose in Ji Ming's mind, he quickly dismissed it, thinking: "It must be the Scorched-Face Ghost King's special treatment toward Monarch Yellow-Chew. After all, having received offerings for many years in this lifetime, he probably already has a registered name in the Ghost King's heart."

"Wu Liang" sat cross-legged upon the sandbar, his gaze lowered and merciful, his hands forming the Dharma-teaching mudra.

He pressed his thumbs and middle fingers together while the other fingers naturally relaxed. One mudra was held upright, the other supported horizontally, the two merging together to symbolize expounding the Dharma to all living beings.

Unfortunately, the ghosts below could not comprehend the Ghost King's intent, nor did they understand the Ghost King's compassion. Driven solely by instinct, they only cared about filling their bellies—truly a pathetic sight.

"This almsgiving involved thirty hungry ghosts, accumulating one thousand one hundred and eighty-in underworld virtue. Do you wish to extend the borrowing time for those four underworld treasures?"

"As expected!"

Ji Ming had deduced that Yellow-Chew must have continuously provided alms to hungry ghosts to accumulate that count of three thousand in order to enter the Ghost King's service.

Now, the words of the Ghost King's dharma consciousness confirmed his suspicion. Yellow-Chew's one thousand one hundred and eighty-one underworld virtues were accumulated from his past acts of charity.

He simply had not expected that the lotus throne, prayer beads, trident haldib, and frog-mouthed conch were all borrowed from the Ghost King, and paid for using the underworld virtues accumulated from feeding hungry ghosts.

You could borrow underworld treasures from the Ghost King here, and they even offered considerate lease-renewal services? Had the underworld ghost kings' business operations become this comprehensive?!

"This disciple offers alms and summons your consciousness here, hoping to request a secret manual suitable for refining my treasured artifact into a magical treasure."

With that, he released the White Bone Heart-Gathering Bead.

"Wu Liang" merely glanced at it, then shifted his teaching mudra into the wish-granting mudra, signifying that all prayers and wishes of living beings could be fulfilled.

"This treasured artifact was consecrated with bone relics, secretly harmonizing with Buddhist intent, and it contains inner treasure light, yet it runs counter to its underworld demonic spirituality."
"To elevate this treasured artifact into a magical treasure, it must traverse the path of the wheel of life and death. I have two treasure manuals here that can assist you in accomplishing this."
"First is the Wheel Treasure, pioneered by the great Wheel-Turning King of our Buddha-Dao. If you use this precious bead as a foundation, you may forge a wheel treasure capable of 'turning flesh and blood to decay, and bringing flesh back to white bones'."

"Splendid!" Ji Ming's eyes brightened as he thought.

"Second is the Treasure Ruyi, with the 'Three-Insect Treasure Ruyi' of the Ruyi Immortal, personally passed down by the Yellow Heaven, being the supreme choice."
"Your underworld treasure already possesses life represented by the Buddhist light and destruction represented by the white bones. If you find a rare treasure capable of balancing the dual intents of life and death, you may forge one of the foremost treasure ruyis in all the worlds."

"This is even better!" Ji Ming was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Almost instinctively, he thought of his own treasure eye. That treasure eye possessed an extraordinarily high status and could be considered a divine treasure, and its power of reincarnation perfectly aligned with the Dao of life and death.

If he borrowed even a shred of its miraculous nature to forge his treasure, he would undoubtedly avoid countless detours on the path of refining a magical treasure.

"I choose the Treasure Ruyi!" Ji Ming declared.

"Mhm."

"Wu Liang" nodded slightly and said, "Since you have the ambition to forge a Treasure Ruyi, I shall charge you only eight hundred underworld virtues and impart the secret manual of treasure refining."

His hand lifted, and a symbol shaped like a Daoist handle manifested within his palm. In an instant, an esoteric treasure-refining manual flooded into Ji Ming's mind.

When Ji Ming slowly snapped out of it, emerging from the profound mysteries of the treasure manual, the physical body of Wu Liang upon the sandbar and beneath the ritual altar had been reduced to a skeleton. Bearing the dharma consciousness was still far too demanding for him.

"There are still a few hundred underworld virtues left unspent. What a complete waste."

Ji Ming picked up the conch and cast his gaze toward the little flood dragon.

"Master, I have treasures! I have treasures, and they will definitely help you refine your treasure!"

Ji Ming patted the little flood dragon on the head and muttered, "I almost forgot that the Water Mansion Dragon Palace is overflowing with treasures."

"Little fellow from Peace Mountain, you've been peeping long enough. It's time for you to come out."