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Yan Chixia himself wasn't sure if he should go up and ask, since once they were in the underworld, he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't be the one who dragged them down.

If he's like this, then the even weaker Zhi Qiu Yi Ye is even more so.

Chapter 401 Always Being Pressed Down by a Mountain

"Lord Black... Black Mountain..."

In a daze, Pudu Cihang found himself in the underworld and hurriedly bowed to the Black Mountain Demon.

"Hmm, well done, Great Sun Tathagata." Black Mountain sat calmly in his seat and said to Pudu Cihang in a calm tone.

"I dare not... I dare not..." Pudu Cihang didn't even dare to raise his head, and Qianzu obediently remained motionless on both sides of his body.

Sitting on the emperor's throne, controlling the dynasty's fortune, and possessing the golden body of the Great Sun Tathagata, Pudu Cihang was far more arrogant than he is now. Back then, in his eyes, he was almost on par with the Black Mountain Demon. But now, he has completely lost his confidence.

"I think you're not just afraid, you're very bold." The Black Mountain Demon twisted the skull in his hand slightly, making a sound like a pair of walnuts. "Who gave you permission to attack Fu Tianchou?"

“M-Master…” Pudu Cihang’s voice trembled.

"Me? I didn't." The Black Mountain Demon continued to exert pressure. "Indeed, in this world, is there anyone who dares to give orders to the Great Sun Tathagata?"

Pudu Cihang shifted his body slightly. He certainly couldn't admit to taking this initiative on his own. Even if the Black Mountain Demon and he himself knew who came up with this terrible idea, they absolutely couldn't say it out loud.

"It was the Tree Demon Granny! She was the one who suggested I speed things up and sabotage the human race's resistance flag!"

After thinking for a while, Pudu Cihang finally came up with the best scapegoat.

"Oh?" The Black Mountain Demon stood up, glanced at Pudu Cihang's enormous body, and said, "Then I have some very regrettable news to tell you."

"The tree spirit you spoke of is dead, and it died a clean death!"

"Yes!" Pudu Cihang said with his head down. He already knew about this news. After so many years in the human world and occupying the throne, he had access to various information channels, making him just as well-informed as the Black Mountain Demon. At least, that's how things were in the human world.

"Really? I don't get the feeling that you're sad at all." The Black Mountain Demon continued to ask, stepping directly onto Pudu Cihang's back with his right leg.

The shell made a cracking sound.

"The tree demon deserved to die. It misled me into making the wrong choice and directly interfered with the master's plans!"

Despite the pain, Pudu Cihang continued, knowing that the Black Mountain Demon did not necessarily intend to kill him.

Otherwise, given the weight of the Black Mountain Demon, even if it wasn't its true form, it would have been half-dead from that impact.

"Boring, get lost," the Black Mountain Demon said, kicking someone.

Pudu Cihang turned around and ran outside, its thousands of feet moving up and down like an excavator.

"and many more."

Just as Pudu Cihang was about to leave, the voice of the Black Mountain Demon came over, and Pudu Cihang froze on the spot.

"Since you can't go back to the human world, go to the eighteenth level of hell. Even if you're a waste, you've lived for so many years, you should be able to be a guard, right?"

"Yes..." Pudu Cihang replied unwillingly. His status had plummeted from the top in the human world to a mere guard in the underworld. The speed of his fall was astonishing, but he had no right to refuse.

After Pudu Cihang left, an old demon emerged from the darkness. "My lord, that monkey is causing trouble again."

"Ignore him, keep him locked up, and check all the energy channels around him. I don't want to see him resonate with the outside world again," the Black Mountain Demon ordered.

"Yes, sir." The old demon obeyed and turned to leave. The reason he had been able to work under the Black Mountain Demon for so long was because he had his own ideas and would do whatever he was told.

Not long after the old demon left, the ground beneath the Black Mountain Demon's feet suddenly trembled and then sank several centimeters.

One…two…three…fifty-nine…

The Black Mountain Demon kept track of it in his mind.

A loud rumble resounded, and the ground began to shake.

This monkey! It's incomprehensible, indestructible, impervious to water and fire, and untouched by any evil!

The Black Mountain Demon was very troubled by this. Fortunately, he had found an opportunity to suppress the monkey under his true form, Black Mountain. Otherwise, this vast underworld would have been in a terrible state.

As the suppression dragged on, the monkey not only didn't weaken, but instead showed signs of growing stronger. Moreover, its resistance to pressure was increasing, and it was now constantly optimizing its methods of resistance.

At first, it would stay stable for several days after being pressurized, but now it starts acting up in less than a minute. If this continues, who knows when it will break free.

"Ghost Face!" the Black Mountain Demon shouted after thinking for a while.

"My lord, what are your orders?" A ghost covered in wounds floated over.

Ghost Face was originally thrown into the eighteenth level of hell to repay his blood debts with the pain of his soul. Later, after the Black Mountain Demon rose to power, the underworld and the netherworld were in complete chaos, and he was "rescued" and became the Black Mountain Demon's subordinate.

Many ghosts in the underworld follow the Black Mountain Demon for similar reasons, but they, like Pudu Cihang, have no other choice.

The Black Mountain Demon's true form runs through all eighteen levels of hell, from the lowest to the highest, and some parts of hell are even built on his body.

It was precisely because of this that when the Black Mountain Demon had other ideas, he was able to seize the opportunity to wipe out all his enemies in the underworld and completely seize power.

"Go and see those extraterrestrial visitors. I need a more efficient way to extract the power of the sun!" The Black Mountain Demon's face revealed a cruel expression.

"Yes, sir!" Ghost Face replied.

"If they don't cooperate, throw half of them into the Reincarnation Pool. The Toad Demon said he has figured out how to use the Reincarnation Pool, so we can give it a try," the Black Mountain Demon continued.

The Black Mountain Demon has controlled the underworld for quite some time, but he has never fully extended his influence to the human world.

One of the main reasons is that he and those ghosts simply don't know how to use many of the facilities and magical artifacts in the underworld. Those things are highly specialized and can't be easily created by just messing around with them.

The original Yin soldiers of the underworld were one thing, but the number that surrendered and the number that resisted to the end were roughly equal. However, the vast majority of Yin officials were still very tough, preferring to be scattered rather than bow down to the Black Mountain Demon.

After numerous attempts, the Black Mountain Demon realized that this would only turn some facilities from being unusable to being unusable by his own side. So, the Black Mountain Demon had no choice but to imprison them in Hell, preparing to try to wear down their resistance through gradual, persistent effort.

"Sir, what if they cooperate?"

“If you cooperate, choose one-quarter,” the Black Mountain Demon casually remarked.

Many of the mental defenses of these extraterrestrial beings are ineffective against the methods used here. The Underworld can obtain important information by directly reading soul fragments, which is also one of the ways the Black Mountain Demon verifies whether those guys are honest or not.

Chapter 402 Snakes have their way, rats have their way

In the human realm, at the garrison of the Sirius Army.

“Every day, we send out a group of soldiers to clear out the demons and monsters in the vicinity. However, every time we clear out a batch, new ones immediately take their place, with an interval of only one or two days in between,” Zhuge Wolong explained. “When the general was still alive, he often said that these things were probably planted by someone from the ground, and that they were impossible to kill completely.”

"Now that we know the problem lies in the underworld, we can explain everything."

While listening to Zhuge Wolong's words, Lin Zhengying's gaze remained mainly on the soldiers who were going to war.

Judging from the freshly dried blood on their bodies and the murderous intent they exuded, none of these men were new recruits.

This is both good news and bad news, because the Sirius Army's manpower source has clearly run into problems.

"The general returned to the capital to solve this problem." Zhuge Wolong guessed what Lin Zhengying was thinking. "After more than 20 years of fighting, we have exhausted an entire generation. In addition, the situation in other places is getting worse and worse, so our troop strength has actually been decreasing."

"We can barely hold out for the clearing operations in this area, but we don't have the resources to go to other areas as we used to."

Zhuge Wolong's voice was filled with worry about the future. The army was already small, and now the commander-in-chief had sacrificed himself. Even if many corrupt officials hidden in the dynasty were exposed, it would not help the Tianlang Army in its current situation.

"So, you want to solve this once and for all." Zhao Li brandished the gun in his hand. He wasn't very optimistic about these people. He couldn't even guarantee a safe journey to the underworld, let alone these people.

"It's not a one-time solution, it's a do-or-die situation!" Zhuge Liang corrected, "Come with me."

Following Zhuge Wolong's footsteps, the group arrived at the military camp, where a somber atmosphere permeated the air, as news of Fu Tianchou's death had already reached them.

Under Zhuge Wolong's guidance, Lin Zhengying and his group met the key figure of this trip, a Taoist priest who was even more incompetent than Zhi Qiu Yi Ye.

Dark clouds covered his face, and his forehead was dark; it was clear that yin energy had entered his body, and the balance of yin and yang had been completely disrupted.

This person's behavior made Zhao Li even more incredulous.

"Ahem, humans have their ways, and rats have their paths." The Taoist priest coughed twice, seemingly sensing Zhao Li's distrust. "My family has made a living for hundreds of years by performing rituals such as spirit writing, summoning spirits, and walking corpses."

Zhao Li didn't quite understand what this meant, but Lin Zhengying's eyes lit up.

“It seems this fellow Taoist understands.” The Taoist gave Lin Zhengying a knowing smile. “The competition in this line of work is fierce. In order to gain an advantage, my family spent a lot of money to pull strings with a few minor officials in the underworld.”

"So you know some off-the-beaten-path streets that aren't officially registered?!" Lin Zhengying blurted out.

Clearly, this operation is a clear violation of the law, somewhat similar to smuggling, but it is indeed difficult to completely prohibit such things.

He thought he already knew what the other party wanted to do, but after Lin Zhengying finished speaking, he saw a regretful look in the other party's eyes.

“Fellow Daoist, your vision is still not broad enough.” The Daoist said, taking out a rolled-up talisman from his robes. “Even remote paths could have been discovered long ago. To be absolutely sure, there is only one way: dig your own path!”

The Taoist priest pointed his finger at the talisman diagram, and amidst the chaotic dance of the talismans, a coordinate appeared.

"This path relies on a weak space, and it can be opened with just two coordinates. Ours is calculated using talisman diagrams, while the coordinates for the underworld are provided by those underworld officials."

"Because the coordinates change in real time, the path is only open for a short time and the location can be changed at any time, making it even harder to be discovered."

Zhao Li listened in awe. These people were truly talented when it came to pulling strings; this was already incredibly well-protected.

"So, how do we get the coordinates from over there? And..."

Lam Ching-ying raised a question: the underworld is in such chaos, who knows if the underworld official who made the promise to this Taoist priest is no longer there.

“I always thought it was because of his job change that the transaction hadn’t been answered. After two such instances, I stopped asking.” The Taoist priest said, pulling out a notebook with several coordinates written on it. “After I learned that something had happened in the underworld, I realized what was going on and tried the coordinates they had given me before. I found that the last one worked.”

"Obviously, without someone specifically responsible for maintenance and inspection, our coordinates no longer need to be changed, since the person who was checking and setting them is gone."

“I reckon the road is in this state because it’s been neglected; it’s all dead ends,” Zhao Li interjected.

“Actually, there’s another problem,” the Taoist interrupted Zhao Li. “In the past, when we made transactions, he would usually ask about the situation or bring the spirit over. So I’ve never gone through this passage to the underworld. Therefore, I don’t know the location of the last coordinate or what the situation is like in the vicinity.”

Zhao Li was a little nervous when he heard there were still problems, but he relaxed now. This matter was troublesome for them, but it was a trivial matter for Zhao Li.

A faint ghostly aura emanated from Zhao Li's body, forming a misty veil around him.

At the same time, lividity began to appear on Zhao Li's skin, and his appearance changed from a spirited young man to an old ghost who had been dead for a long time.

"How about this?" Zhao Li asked in a hoarse voice.

In his role as the ferryman, he usually uses this appearance, which is more in line with the perception of the underworld by many newly deceased souls, and it is also relatively intimidating. Although it has not changed for a long time, he can still change it so easily now.

“It’s worth a try,” Lin Zhengying nodded. As long as the coordinates didn’t lead directly to the Black Mountain Demon’s lair, Zhao Li shouldn’t be discovered.

After reaching a consensus, the Taoist priest slowly opened the passage according to the two coordinates, and a thick yin energy immediately emerged from it, rushing towards his face.

Despite the overwhelming yin energy, the Taoist priest took two deep breaths of relief. This was unavoidable; having been in contact with the yin realm for so long, his living body was more suited to it than the human environment. Fortunately, although his body was leaning towards the yin realm, his spirit and will remained on the same side as humanity.

Once the passage was fully open, Zhao Li didn't hesitate and took the lead. He would go first, and if there were no problems, the others could go in later to avoid being caught in one fell swoop.