Dreaming for 10,000 years

Chapter 247 Zhong Kui
In front of the sedan chair, Zhong Kui was wearing a bright red official robe, a black gauze hat, a leopard head with round eyes, a black face and curly beard, and an ugly face. He was riding on a black ghost horse.

The horse was majestic and tall, its hooves stamped on the ground silently, and its eyes flickered with green ghostly fire.

On both sides of the sedan chair, dozens of little ghosts were walking around, with different appearances. Some had green faces and fangs, some had long tongues hanging down to their chests, and some had double horns on their heads. However, they were all dressed neatly and held gongs, drums, banners, and flower baskets. It was very lively and bustling.

The sound of gongs and drums was low and eerie, and the sound of suona was sharp and long, interweaving together to form a gloomy yet somewhat festive piece of music.

But the tunes they played were too different from those in the mortal world, and they had a vibe that was only for ghosts.

The sedan was carried by eight tall ghosts who walked in unison. The curtain of the sedan swayed slightly with their steps, and a woman wearing a phoenix crown and a gorgeous wedding dress could be vaguely seen sitting in the sedan.

The sound of gongs and drums became louder and louder, and Zhong Kui and his party gradually approached. Fang Bude saw Zhong Kui and took the initiative to clasp his fists and salute, with a bit of respect and smile on his face: "Congratulations! Congratulations!"

A few days ago, he had met Zhong Kui.

Before, Zhong Kui's sister had found him and secretly bribed him, hoping that he would make the death of Li Tieguai, one of the Eight Immortals of Ghosts, more painful.

Fang Bude was very conflicted, because he advocated that the execution should be done cleanly and completely. After thinking for a long time, Fang Bude came up with a compromise, which was to let his apprentice do the execution.

It was just that the apprentice lacked experience, and instead of killing Li Tieguai with the strike, he made Li go crazy with pain and almost hurt other people by mistake. In the end, he still had to kill Li Tieguai with the strike.

The younger sister bribed the executioner in the mortal world, making it difficult for the executioner. Zhong Kui explained and apologized to Fang Bude specifically for this matter.

“Congratulations! Congratulations!” Zhong Kui also clasped his fists in return, his voice as deep as a bell.

But Zhong Kui was quite surprised. A few days ago, he came here and saw that it was full of ghosts.

He knew very well that Fang Bude held in his hand a golden sword that had killed nine hundred and ninety-nine evil men. The sword was stained with the blood of countless evil men and was almost an evil weapon.

Only by drinking the blood of a righteous person can it turn evil into good and become a righteous golden sword that can kill ghosts and humans.

Therefore, Zhong Kui knew that there was a ghost seeking revenge, but he just warned him. He calculated the time and planned to pass by this place when his sister got married today. He gave instructions so that Fang Bude could also borrow the golden sword to not only kill ghosts, but also become his adjutant.

Isn’t this a great idea that allows you to have the best of both worlds?

It’s just… the streets are clean now, there’s no ghostly aura at all.

It was actually this group of people who looked the most eerie.

Could it be that I came at the wrong time?

Zhong Kui was puzzled and couldn't help asking, "Brother Fang, I passed by this place a few days ago and saw that it was full of ghosts. Why is it so quiet today? Have you killed those evil ghosts?"

Fang Dede replied: "Thanks to the help of the brave men around me, the evil ghost disappeared." After he said that, he turned sideways and pointed at Shi Fei beside him, with a hint of gratitude and admiration in his tone.

Looking at Shi Fei beside Fang Bu De, Zhong Kui secretly calculated with his fingers, trying to find out Shi Fei's origins. But no matter how he deduced, Shi Fei's fate was like a fog, difficult to calculate.

"I wonder who your master is?" Zhong Kui asked Shi Fei cautiously. In this world, anyone who can exorcise ghosts must have a background. Even the sorcerers claim to be the disciples of someone.

"He's just a nobody in the martial arts world!" Shi Fei waved his hand and said.

He looked at Zhong Kui with curiosity. He had to admit that Zhong Kui was really ugly! His face was like a knife and an axe, with high brow bones, a sunken nose, and thick lips.

It is said that Zhong Kui was a Jinshi in the Tang Dynasty. He failed to pass the imperial examination due to his ugly appearance, so he angrily hit his head against a pillar in the palace and died. Later, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang dreamed of Zhong Kui catching ghosts. After waking up, he ordered his portrait to be hung in the palace to ward off evil spirits.

In the underworld, Zhong Kui is ranked among the four great judges and is the top figure under the King of Hell.

"So! Very good!" Zhong Kui glanced at Fang Debude and sighed in his heart. It seemed that he could only wait for Fang Debude to die of old age.

Fortunately, Fang is not too old, it will only be about 10 to 20 years.

"My younger sister is getting married today. I'll come to talk to you someday, Brother Fang!" Seeing that Shi Fei was unwilling to reveal his background, Zhong Kui had some doubts in his heart, but he did not ask more questions. He said a polite word to Fang De and was about to leave.

Fang Bu De heard this and said respectfully, "Please do as you please, Judge Zhong! If you have time in the future, you can come to our inn and we will definitely have wine and food for you!"

"No problem! No problem!" When Zhong Kui heard the word "wine", he burst into laughter, gently waved the whip, and continued to escort his sister's wedding sedan forward.

Zhong Kui sent his younger sister's wedding sedan to her husband's house. After a lively conversation, he was warmly entertained by her husband's family and sat in the seat of honor. After three rounds of drinks, he was already tipsy.

The next day, he returned to the Hades Palace drunk and suddenly thought of Shi Fei again. Yesterday, he didn't have enough tools to figure out Shi Fei's origins, but at this moment, he became more and more curious.

He couldn't figure out Shi Fei's cultivation level, and couldn't tell which powerful person Shi Fei was, disguised as, playing around in the world.

In the Three Realms, many powerful beings were unable to show up for various reasons, so they transformed themselves into mortals and wandered around the world. Even a judge like him had to understand the principle of "seeing but not seeing, hearing but not hearing".

But... when he saw Shi Fei, he didn't seem like a mortal, a noble, or an immortal or monster. There was an indescribable strange temperament about him, which was very strange!
So, he couldn't suppress his curiosity and decided to open the Book of Life and Death to find out.

The Book of Life and Death is kept by Cui Yu, one of the four great judges, and records the life and death cycles of all sentient beings.

Although all four of them are judges, they have different responsibilities. Cui Yu is in charge of the Yin Law Department, who rewards the good and punishes the evil, manages the Book of Life and Death and the Soul-Catching Pen, and is specifically responsible for extending the lifespan of those who do good and sending the evil to the Yin.

Although Zhong Kui could not rewrite the Book of Life and Death himself, as a judge, he could still look through it at will.

He opened the Book of Life and Death and carefully searched for the records of Fang Bude and Shi Fei.

As he flipped through the pages, Zhong Kui's expression gradually became serious. According to the Book of Life and Death, Fang Bu De should have committed suicide yesterday to achieve the Golden Sword Transformation.

Several evil ghosts among the Eight Ghost Immortals should have been captured by Zhong Kui himself, and the rest should have been killed by Fang De's disciples. However, reality was very different from the records in the Book of Life and Death.

"How could this be?"

Zhong Kui frowned, and his doubts grew even more intense. He continued to search for Shi Fei's records, but found that Shi Fei's name was not even in the Book of Life and Death!
(End of this chapter)