Hell Emperor.

Chapter 386 Xia Wei - Going Her Own Way

[Records in the Book of Life and Death:]

[In the autumn of the 639th year of the Moro calendar, the ghosts of the Golden Wheel Palace gathered together to rebel. The special ghost officer Ren Changhong was ordered to suppress the rebellion and kill more than 20,000 evil ghosts.]

Xie Xinyu finished writing the report in the Document Hall, threw down the judge's pen, put away the remaining pages, and said with his chin supported by both hands: "It's finally over. I have been working so much recently that I don't have much time to soak in the hot springs..."

Thinking of the beauty of the Warm Soul Nourishing Spring, Xie Xinyu also showed some anticipation.

Outside the Document Hall, Shan Yao knelt on the ground, with a hint of shock still in his eyes.

Beside her, Sheng Jiang also had a serious look on his face. If he hadn't insisted on keeping his sister, Shan Yao would have died at the hands of the special ghost just like those ghosts.

"How could this happen..." Shan Yao murmured, the panicked wails of the ghosts still lingering in his ears.

"I'm going to the Witch Temple to find the witch elder who saved me. Do you want to come with me?" Sheng Jiang sighed and asked.

Before this, Shan Yao had repeatedly persuaded Sheng Jiang to stay in the Golden Wheel Palace and serve here, but after what happened, she could no longer say the original words, and finally changed her words and said: "...I will go with you."

Inside the Soul-Nourishing Spring, Ye Jie's arms trembled. He took out the seven stitched pages, and his expression changed slightly: "It's Xiao Wei, she's looking for me."

In the warm pool, Nan Linghe smiled, her face also rosy from the warm water vapor: "This soul-nourishing spring is so warm, it's such a pity that Sister Xia Wei can't come... Is there any way to let Sister Xia Wei come here as well?"

Ye Jie thought for a moment and replied, "If ordinary people want to enter the underworld without the help of magic weapons, they have to wait until they become immortals. With Xiaowei's qualifications, it should be soon..."

Thinking of Xia Wei, Ye Jie couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

Just as Xia Wei was calling him, Ye Jie decided to go to the human world to see what was happening there.

Coming to the human world, the autumn wind blew across Ye Jie's clothes, and withered yellow leaves floated down from his head. He raised his hand, slowly picked up one of the leaves, and felt it carefully. There was a bit of sadness and coolness hidden in the fallen leaves. It seemed that the winter solstice on earth was not far away.

Heavy footsteps came from behind Ye Jie. Xia Wei stopped behind him. Her body trembled, her teeth clenched, and her fiery eyes were filled with lingering anger. The source of the anger was directed at Ye Jie in front of her!

Feeling the murderous intent that was sharper than a knife, Ye Jie turned around in shock. Seeing Xia Wei's extremely angry look, he couldn't help but feel a little confused: "Xiao Wei, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so unhappy?"

"Master... people are killing each other for the sake of longevity, and the world is in chaos. But is this your fault?" Xia Wei gritted her teeth, and there was still a hint of luck in her tone. She hoped that the master would tell her that what the ghost said before was a lie, and these things had nothing to do with the master.

However, Ye Jie's words made Xia Wei's heart sink completely: "If you are talking about the longevity trade, then it is indeed promoted by me. However, I did not let people kill each other. That was people's own choice."

Xia Wei was in great pain, filled with grief and anger, and her tone was choked with sobs: "Master... why did you do this? Why did you make the world fall into despair? Why did you turn the world into purgatory?"

Ye Jie glanced at her and sighed, "I just wanted to help them, but they misinterpreted my meaning."

"Help?" Xia Wei looked incredulous. "When the Yangshou trade was launched, the people of the world suffered terribly. It was clearly harming them, so how could you ask for help? Why on earth would Master promote the Yangshou trade even at the cost of causing suffering to the people of the world?"

At the side, Li Fei'e also noticed the tense confrontation between the two. The purple butterfly on her shoulder folded its wings and lay down. She hurriedly notified the sisters in the underworld and asked them to come quickly.

Ye Jie slowly raised his head, his eyes fixed on the empty void:

"You know what? Not everyone can live to the moment of their natural death. The world is so big, so vast, and every moment there are people who die unexpectedly, die prematurely, are bitten to death by monsters, are beaten to death by enemies, die in battles, and die in natural disasters. To live to the moment of their natural death, you need chance and luck."

After a pause, Ye Jie continued, "Among all the living beings in the world, the ones I want to help the most are those who are about to starve to death. I hope that the life service ghost messenger can find those hungry people and let them use their life span to exchange for a full meal for themselves. This is the purpose of my promotion of life span trade."

Xia Wei looked incredulous, not daring to believe what Ye Jie said: "Should the entire continent suffer for the sake of those who are about to starve to death?"

Ye Jie simply replied: "All things are based on the balance of yin and yang. When one thing grows while the other declines, one is full and the other is empty. When you decide to help one group of people, there will definitely be another group of people who will suffer as a result. There is nothing we can do about it."

Xia Wei refused to believe anything and shook her head like a rattle: "I don't believe it. There must be something else going on! Hungry people are not worth promoting the longevity trade and causing chaos in the world. Master, why are you doing all this?"

"Just starving people? It's easy for you to say that."

Ye Jie's face darkened, and he showed a rare seriousness on his face: "You are the reincarnation of a noble immortal, and you don't understand the feeling of hunger. I don't blame you, but I understand those starving people because I died of starvation! I hate people who waste food the most. Sometimes I think that if I hadn't starved to death, maybe I could live to be sixty or seventy years old, but all this is empty talk. I starved to death at the age of fifteen. Before I starve to death, even if I am asked to give up twenty or thirty years of my life just to have a full meal, I am willing to do so. It's a pity that it is just a luxury."

Xia Wei's face trembled: "Master..."

Ye Jie took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. The divine dragon energy emanated from his body and he announced to the whole world: "Now, I have become the Lord of Yama Palace, and I can finally fulfill my lifelong wish! As long as those starving people have one hour left to live, they can ask the ghost messenger for a full meal. From now on, no one in the world will starve to death, only die of old age. Many years ago, 'hunger' killed me, but today, I have defeated 'hunger'!"

At this time, everyone who heard the news and rushed over also heard what Ye Jie said, and fell into deep thought.

Xie Xinyu said with emotion: "It turns out that Brother Jie insisted on promoting the Yangshou trade, not just to do business with the Yin merchants, but because he had such a long-cherished wish..." Hua Xiaomei looked at Ye Jie, and tears of emotion welled up in her eyes: "What every ghost remembers deep in his memory and can never forget is his own death. No matter how many years have passed, it is difficult to let it go. No wonder he is so persistent in the matter of the Yangshou trade..."

Ren Changhong pursed his lips lightly, and there was a bit more pity in his eyes when he looked at Ye Jie: "I didn't expect that Ah Jie actually carried such a heavy wish. When this is over, I have to comfort him."

"Master, but..."

After learning the secret, Xia Wei's voice choked with sobs, but she still refused to give in: "To die of hunger and to die of wasting one's life for a few full meals, aren't they both death? What's the difference?"

"I think... there is still a difference." Ye Jie said firmly, "It is better to eat a full stomach before going on the journey than to die on an empty stomach."

"You still can't help those hungry people out of their plight just by doing this!" Xia Wei argued, "If you want to help those hungry people, you can use another method. You can directly let the ghost messenger bring them food, without having to use their life span. It's not enough to just give them food. You have to find a way for them to survive. You have to guide them, lead them, and find a direction for them to move forward. How can a full meal solve this problem?"

At the end, Xia Wei raised her eyebrows and growled shrilly, her words full of dissatisfaction: "You didn't help those hungry people at all, you just pushed them from one fire pit to another! Not only that, you also caused more people in the world to suffer!"

Ye Jie held his forehead with his hand, his head aching: "Of course I understand what you said, but that's not what I can do. If everything has to be done by the Lord of Yama Palace, then what are the human kings and immortals in heaven for? They should guide people, lead people, save the hungry, and eliminate wars! You should ask, where are those noble kings and those upright immortals? All I can do is to let those hungry people have a full meal before they die!"

"You are the Lord of Yama Palace, you can definitely do more than that! Master, have you forgotten what you said? The greater the power, the greater the responsibility, but what have you done now? Why don't you abolish the life trade now!"

The cold wind blew Ye Jie's robe rustling, and the only sound carried by the wind was Xia Wei's angry questioning.

Under Xia Wei's questioning, Ye Jie was speechless. Finally, he turned his head away, not daring to look directly into her fiery eyes, and sighed:

"Do you think that without the life trade, conflicts and oppression between people will be reduced, and no one will starve to death in this world? It's not me who makes people cannibalize and oppress each other, that's people's own nature. People in the world are foolish and blind, fighting to the death for petty gains. I just unlocked a few administrative options, and they started killing each other. How can it be my fault? If everyone in the world is clean and self-disciplined, adheres to their original intentions, and is not moved by temptation, how can the world be in chaos?"

At the end, Ye Jie narrowed his eyes, and Xia Wei's thin body was reflected in his pupils: "You said that I turned the world into purgatory? I don't have such great ability. This world is purgatory. I can't change them, and you, can't change them either!"

Xia Wei realized what Ye Jie said, her body trembled, but she still insisted: "There will always be a way!"

"There won't be a solution." Ye Jie retorted, "If even the immortals can't solve the problem, how can you solve it? If you still have the cultivation that was the best in the three realms and overwhelmed all the immortals in your previous life, maybe you really could have a solution. But now, you can't save the people of this world."

"I will!" Xia Wei screamed, a roar that resounded through the sky, "I will save them! I will save all of them!"

Ye Jie said nothing, but saw a flash of cold light in front of him. Xia Wei raised the eighth-grade Qingfeng sword in her hand, and the tip of the sword pointed directly at Ye Jie with righteousness.

"Master... The Yangshou Trade has caused unrest in the world, and all living beings have been displaced and are suffering. All of this is because of you. It is not too late to turn back now. I beg you to take back your order and abolish the Yangshou Trade, otherwise..."

Xia Wei's voice was choked with sobs, and there was a bit of unspeakable pain in it.

On one side, there is her master whom she is deeply attached to and with whom she has shared life and death; on the other side is the justice that she has always adhered to and her unyielding nature. When the two conflicted, Xia Wei's heart was in unbearable pain, almost making her unable to breathe, and she had to make the most painful decision.

"How about otherwise?"

Ye Jie looked incredulous: "Why do you treat me like this? Am I not your family? Why are you pointing a sword at your family?"

"Master, you leave me no choice! For the sake of justice in the world and for all living beings, please revoke your order and abolish the life span trade!" Xia Wei had tears in her eyes, but she emphasized her tone and did not give in.

Ye Jie stood with his hands behind his back, showing no intention of engaging Xia Wei in combat. He remained unmoved even when a sword was pointed at him:
"Xiao Wei, the so-called justice and ideals are all false. The only real things are your partners and your family. Family means mutual tolerance. For the sake of family, what's wrong with abandoning the world? I know you are very angry, but can't you tolerate me this time and pretend not to see it?"

Seeing that the situation was not good, the others beside Ye Jie also tried to persuade Xia Wei.

Hua Xiaomei advised, "Sister Xia Wei, this matter was not entirely Brother Jie's idea. We all voted and agreed. Don't blame him. If you want to blame someone, blame all of us."

Xie Xinyu also reminded: "Sister Mei is right. Besides, the people who are suffering are all from Dongsheng Shenzhou. You are born in Nanzhanbuzhou just like us. The people here are not your same race or hometown. Why do you care about them?"

Li Fei'e blinked, listening to the argument between Xia Wei and Ye Jie, not knowing which side to stand on, so she looked to Shen Qingge beside her for help, but she heard her master say, "This is an internal matter of Yama Palace, let the Palace Master decide, no one else needs to interfere."

Ren Changhong also advised: "Xiao Wei, you are not as knowledgeable and experienced as everyone else, so just leave this matter to us and don't worry about it."

The repeated persuasion of the crowd could not change Xia Wei's stubborn heart. Once she made up her mind about something, nothing could change her mind. She was as stubborn as iron and insisted on her own way.

"Maybe I am not as knowledgeable as everyone else, but I know what is right and what is wrong! Master, what you did is wrong. If you don't take back your order, for the sake of world peace and to protect the people from suffering, I have no choice but to eliminate you with my own hands!"

Ye Jie's pupils shrank and he stood there in a daze. Xia Wei's words made his heart ache. He could never have imagined that the disciple he had personally taught, who had shared life and death with him and never left him, would actually break up with him completely for the so-called justice.

(End of this chapter)