Absolute Destiny Game.

Chapter 549 "Sigh"

His heart was pounding with anxiety, but after the King of Hell took his seat, he didn't immediately ask for help. Instead, he enthusiastically offered wine and food, as if he were simply hosting a banquet for a distinguished guest. As an immortal, Xiao Jie had keen spiritual senses and wasn't afraid that the other party might tamper with the food and drink. So he opened his heart and began to enjoy the food.

He picked up a slice of "Netherworld Spirit Rhinoceros Meat" as thin as a cicada's wing, put it in his mouth, and found the meat to be extremely tender, melting in his mouth. A cool yet powerful spiritual energy instantly spread throughout his body, invigorating his spirit. He then tasted a bite of "Nine Netherworld Cold Lotus Soup," the soup of which was icy cold, yet exceptionally smooth. After swallowing, a strange sweetness and fragrance lingered in his throat, as if it could cleanse his soul.

Then, I took another sip of the "Millennial Soul-Saliva Wine." The wine was viscous and initially extremely spicy, like flames burning my throat. But in an instant, it transformed into a warm, soothing current that sank into my dantian, nourishing my immortal essence. At the same time, an indescribable, mellow aroma rushed to the top of my head, making me slightly intoxicated, as if I were about to leave my soul, yet I was firmly held in place by my immortal body. The experience was extremely wondrous. These delicacies and wines of the underworld tasted completely different from those of the mortal world, yet they offered a unique and unforgettable experience.

After waiting and exchanging toasts for several rounds, the King of Hell never mentioned anything of importance. Instead, he chatted amiably, inquiring about the customs and traditions of the mortal realm and the recent developments in the Lonely Cloud Prefecture of the Immortal Realm. His words were witty and his attitude friendly, showing no airs of a regional emperor, nor any sense of distance. If one did not know the inside story, one might really think that Xiao Jie and this King of Hell were old friends who had known each other for many years.

"Immortal Venerable has come from afar. If you have any troubles or trivial matters in my Netherworld, please feel free to speak up!" King Yan Qin Chuan patted his chest and spoke with utmost sincerity. "As the Lord of the Netherworld, I, Qin Chuan, dare not claim to be omnipotent, but it is only right that I do my duty as a host and help the Immortal Venerable resolve his troubles! Please do not stand on ceremony with me!"

Xiao Jie sighed inwardly. The more polite the other party was, the more it proved his guess was absolutely right! They definitely wanted something, and something much bigger than that! It was just that the other party was extremely shrewd and had likely already guessed his intention to refuse, so they used this clever tactic of "feigning reluctance" and "retreating to advance," subtly dragging him into the situation with "friendship" and "hospitality." Once he asked for a favor, he would owe them a huge debt, making it perfectly reasonable for the other party to then make further demands.

But now that things had come to this, he couldn't leave his teammate unattended. If he didn't speak up now, and brought it up separately after the banquet, it would seem pretentious and put him in a more passive position. He could only nod and respond accordingly.

"King Yama's hospitality is truly unbecoming. As a humble man from the mountains, to be treated so well by the ruler of a realm makes me feel uneasy. However..." He changed the subject, "I have indeed come to the Underworld with an important mission. Since King Yama is so generous and righteous, I will not stand on ceremony any longer."

"Oh? What is it, Immortal Venerable? Please speak freely!" King Yama put down his wine cup and showed an expression of serious listening.

"I have several old friends who unfortunately passed away half a month ago, and their souls must have wandered into the underworld. I was wondering if I could find their souls and help them, so that I could put an end to this worry and pursue the Dao in peace."

"Hahaha! I thought it was something earth-shattering!" Yan Jun Qin Chuan burst into hearty laughter upon hearing this. "Such a trivial matter is nothing to mention! Immortal Venerable may not know, but in the past, many old friends from the Immortal Realm have asked me for similar requests. For me, it's just a matter of lifting a finger, a small thing, absolutely no problem! Immortal Venerable, please tell me the names and hometowns of your friends, and I will immediately arrange for people to go to the 'Mirror of Reincarnation' to check their whereabouts!"

Without wasting words, Xiao Jie recited the names of his fallen teammates one by one: "Ye Luo, An Ran, Wo Yu Cheng Xian, Wen Tian Wu Ji... Oh right, and Han Luo, Wo Yu Feng Tian, ​​Ting Yu..." At this point, a thought suddenly struck him. This was a rare opportunity; perhaps he should...

"I wonder if finding these people will be troublesome. There are also some... well, just ordinary friends I met by chance, who suffered together that day. If it's convenient—"

"No trouble at all! Absolutely no trouble!" King Yama waved his hand, exuding an imposing aura. "As the ruler of the Underworld, I hold a portion of the reincarnation authority. I can search for any soul that has wandered into the Underworld, as long as it has a name! Whether it is alive or dead, and where it is, can be known with a glance in the Mirror of Reincarnation! Let alone ten or eight people, even thirty or fifty, or one or two hundred, it would not be difficult! Immortal Venerable, please just tell me all at once!"

Xiao Jie thought to himself, "Then I won't hold back!" He immediately recited the names of all the "cannon fodder" players who died during the siege of Hongchen Daoren.

He had memorized all these names in his notebook. Since becoming an immortal, his memory had reached the level of photographic memory. Now, he could clearly recall those names and recite them one by one.

Finally, he also mentioned several players he had teamed up with before, such as "Fondant Cake", "Ramen Guy", "I Don't Eat Beef", and so on.

The King of Hell listened with a smile, seemingly happier the more requests Xiao Jie made. He immediately beckoned, and a ghost official responsible for recording stepped forward, holding a judge's pen and a copy of the Book of Life and Death, to copy down the names Xiao Jie had mentioned. After Xiao Jie finished reading, the King of Hell whispered a few words in the ghost official's ear, seemingly instructing him to prioritize and expedite the process. The ghost official bowed, accepted the order, and quickly left.

"Rest assured, Immortal Venerable! I have already made arrangements for them to search as quickly as possible! As long as the soul has not yet been reincarnated, its whereabouts will surely be found. The search will take some time, so let us stay here and enjoy ourselves while we await good news!"

After he finished speaking, he clapped his hands. Instantly, the sound of string and wind instruments rose again, and a group of ghost maidens dressed in light gauze, with graceful figures and beautiful faces, floated into the hall and danced to the music.

These ghostly maidens possessed skin as pale as snow, yet as delicate as jade. Their eyes were deep, seemingly containing the entire silent night sky, and their lips were as red as blood, carrying a touch of tragic beauty. They wore semi-transparent ink-black or dark red gauze dresses, the hems of which revealed slender ankles as they fluttered. Their dance was graceful and alluring, with a ghostly lightness and ethereal quality, possessing both the charm of classical Eastern art and a Gothic mystery and cold elegance.

Their dance was eerie and captivating, accompanied by ethereal and distant underworld music, creating a unique atmosphere in this Hall of Hell. Xiao Jie, watching with interest, sipped his Soul-Salivating Wine and admired the dance of the ghostly maidens, thinking to himself: "You know what, even though this is the underworld, the final resting place of the dead, this King Yama... seems to be living a pretty carefree and comfortable life."

"King Yama is having a good time here, it's enviable," Xiao Jie casually remarked.

Upon hearing this, the Yama King's hearty smile suddenly froze, instantly revealing an extremely realistic solemn expression. Then, without warning, he let out a heavy sigh filled with worry and helplessness: "Alas—!"

Oh no! It's coming! Xiao Jie's heart skipped a beat. Sure enough, it was waiting for him here!

He was determined not to cooperate, pretending not to hear the sigh, as if he were completely captivated by the Oni Princess's dance, and picked up his wine glass and took a sip.

The wine glass had barely been set down, and before he could even pick up his chopsticks, he heard the King of Hell let out another, even heavier, more sorrowful sigh, the volume rising slightly: "Alas—!!"

Xiao Jie was almost choked by the second sigh. He coughed twice to cover his embarrassment, and then, as if he were starving, he quickly picked up a piece of meat steak that smelled temptingly of roasted meat from some kind of animal and took a big bite. He buried his head in his food and chewed very hard, making quite a loud noise.

Yan Jun Qin Chuan, watching from the side, saw Xiao Jie's "lack of romantic understanding," and his smile almost crumbled. His lips twitched, and his face seemed to darken. Suddenly, he abruptly raised his hand!

In an instant, the music stopped abruptly! The dancing ghost princess froze in place! The civil and military officials, ghost generals and judges who had been whispering and urging each other to drink and eat also seemed to have been muted, each one sitting up straight in complete silence!
The entire vast and magnificent Temple of Reincarnation instantly became deathly silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop! Only the sound of Xiao Jie crunching his food stood out starkly against the backdrop of silence…

Xiao Jie's chewing motion slowly froze, a sigh escaping his lips, knowing there was no escaping it. He slowly turned his head and saw King Yama Qin Chuan staring intently at him with an extremely complex gaze, a mixture of heaviness, helplessness, and expectation. Then, as if using all his strength, he let out a third sigh, the longest, most mournful, as if bearing the weight of the entire underworld's rise and fall:
"well--------!!!"

Xiao Jie resignedly put down the pork chop in his hand, sighed helplessly, and asked, "Your Majesty... why do you keep sighing? Have you encountered some difficulties?"

Upon hearing Xiao Jie finally speak, the heavy expression on Yan Jun Qin Chuan's face instantly melted away like ice meeting the sun. Although he still tried to maintain a solemn demeanor, a glimmer of triumph flashed deep in his eyes. With a wave of his hand, the frozen music, dancing, and conversations around him immediately resumed, restoring the previous liveliness as if the eerie silence had never happened.

Then, he sighed heavily (this time sounding much more "sincere"): "Alas! I shouldn't have bothered the Immortal Venerable with such mundane matters, but since the Immortal Venerable wants to know so much, I can only tell you everything I know."

"My lord, you are unaware of my plight! I was just overwhelmed with emotion upon hearing your envy of my joy here, and thus I lost my composure and sighed deeply! I fear... I fear that we will never again enjoy such a peaceful and blissful scene, that we will be unable to savor it!"

Now that he'd fallen for the trap, Xiao Jie stopped pretending and followed up by asking, "Why do you say that, Lord Yama? Could it be... that the Underworld has encountered some huge trouble?"

"Ah!!!" Yan Jun Qin Chuan slapped his thigh suddenly, his voice rising eight octaves, as if he had finally found someone to confide in. His face showed an excited expression that said, "Immortal Venerable, you are truly insightful." "This is indeed a huge problem! Originally, Qin Chuan was really ashamed to talk about this matter, and even less wanted to disturb the Immortal Venerable's leisure with such a troublesome matter, but... but since the Immortal Venerable is so concerned and inquiring, I can no longer hide it and not answer!"

Xiao Jie rolled his eyes inwardly, mentally cursing, "Damn it... do you think I wanted to know?! Wasn't it you who went to great lengths, sighing and muting yourself, to force me to ask?!"

But when you're under someone else's roof, you still have to consider social etiquette.

He immediately showed a concerned expression, "If you have any difficulties, Lord Yama, please come forward. Perhaps—this humble immortal can offer some relief."

Finally, King Yama Qin Chuan dropped all pretense, leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice, and uttered a shocking statement...

(End of this chapter)