I'm caught in the cycle of endless competition, you're waiting for me in the apocalypse.

Suddenly, the sky darkened, and the world turned upside down...

When An Xin plopped down on the ground, the stones hurt her, instantly waking her up... But when she opened her eyes, well... everything was black...

"Is this hell?" An Xin groped around and slowly got up.

"Yes, this should be the border between the eight hot hells and the eight cold hells." Di Ting appeared out of nowhere, his voice ethereal and uncertain in this world.

An Xin continued to grope around, trying to grab onto something to steady herself. She spoke in a trembling voice, "I...I can't see anything? Xiao Jiu, where are you?"

“Here, here…” Di Ting moved closer to An Xin and nudged her calf: “Touch my body and come with me.”

"Okay, take it easy..."

..........................................................................................

"Can you see anything? This is already the border of the Eight Great Hot Hells." Using the light from the distant volcanic lava, Di Ting nudged An Xin's hand with its head again.

"Hmm, we can see a bit more now! You know, even though the volcano is over there, it's not hot at all, the temperature is quite pleasant." An Xin nodded, thinking to herself that what people fear most is the unknown. Being unable to see in such a terrifying hell had truly made An Xin anxious the whole way.

"..." Di Ting remained silent for a moment.

"The hell realms, besides the eight hot hells and eight cold hells mentioned earlier, also include the near-border hells and the solitary hells. Beings enter their respective hells due to their evil deeds. It should be said that, except for the solitary hells, the other hells are created by the collective karma of all beings. Each being who commits evil deeds will go to their own exclusive hell according to their own karmic retribution, suffering all kinds of punishments and endless torment. Only after eliminating the corresponding karmic obstacles can they be reincarnated again..." Di Ting, leaning against An Xin's feet, slowly paced to let her keep up. Along the way, He used a calm voice to explain to An Xin the various punishments in the hell realms, showing her the horrors of hell.

Because of the detailed explanations, An Xin listened quietly throughout the journey, much like a primary school student visiting a museum, often asking "Why?"

Di Ting, the guide to hell, was diligent and attentive, constantly monitoring his surroundings. He tried to find clues about his master, or perhaps some kind of opportunity. Unfortunately, he found nothing except for the adorable An Xin. Even the mournful cries of the beings being punished in the various hells seemed distant. This left Di Ting quite perplexed…

After "visiting" for an unknown amount of time, An Xin stopped and gestured for Di Ting to rest: "Xiao Jiu, how much longer do we have to walk? Why am I not hungry after all this time? What about you? Aren't you going to eat anything?"

“You are a soul now, so you don’t need to eat. You just feel tired when you’re low on energy. Just rest and recover. By the way, you don’t know how to cultivate. Come on, I’ll teach you the most basic cultivation method.” Di Ting patiently taught An Xin: “Cross your legs, close your eyes, take a deep breath… Yes, that’s it. As expected of a five-life virtuous person, you are kind-hearted and gentle. You’ll be able to sit cross-legged properly in a little while.”

"Does this show that you have a kind heart? Wouldn't practicing more yoga make you more flexible?"

"If you know real yoga, practicing it more can have a positive effect on your body and mind... Meditation, contemplation, yoga, enlightenment and other practices can all greatly improve your spiritual power. If you can eliminate distracting thoughts, it is an even greater good thing that can increase your merits."

"I see, okay, I'll give it a try!" An Xin closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly calmed down...

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Endless night, utterly silent...

Those beings in the hell realm who have committed evil deeds are filled with remorse and suffer greatly from punishment, unable to escape for thousands or even tens of thousands of years. Their relatives from past lives are too ashamed to see them, and even if they meet face to face, they can never take their place...

As time passed, a faint silver glow began to appear around An Xin, making her stand out amidst the desolation.

Diting was the first to sense the changes around him, waking up from his meditative state, opening his eyes, and carefully observing Anxin.

—This little girl has good comprehension; she's already started cultivating. Although she doesn't have much usable spiritual energy yet—after all, there's only so much spiritual energy to burn in Hell—she's still a genius, one in a million, to be able to gather this much spiritual energy in such a short time.

Di Ting did not awaken An Xin, but silently guarded her side...

And so, a long time passed before An Xin slowly awoke from a profound and mysterious state… The pain she had felt upon arriving in Hell was gone, and her mind was clear. Opening her eyes, she was no longer surrounded by darkness, but instead saw the scene of Hell itself.

"Xiao Jiu, are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here. How are you?"

"It feels so good. No fatigue, no hunger, and my mind is clearer than ever before. By the way, how come I can see the scenes of hell over there?"

"..." Di Ting was speechless again. Was this the kind of human who could gain the master's attention and be so favored? "Xin Xin, how far can you see the scene of hell?"

"It's alright, about 500 meters... These punishments are terrifying, and these people are so pitiful..." An Xin frowned.

“There is always something hateful about a pitiful person!” Di Ting shook his head. “It’s quite good. To have such an effect on the first time of meditation. You should know that most sentient beings can only meditate for a few minutes without distracting thoughts when they first start cultivating.”

"Am I that strong? Hahahaha..." An Xin roared to the sky.

"Stop smug. You've only improved a little bit. You're so easily flattered that you're already getting cocky. Any low-level hell envoy here could easily kill you!"

"Little Jiu Jiu~ You have to praise me, okay? That way I'll be motivated to work harder~" An Xin reached out her mischievous hand, pinching the little bit of fat on Di Ting's cheeks and stretching them apart. She gently swayed from side to side, acting all cute...

"Let go, let go of your stinky paws, I'm drooling..."

"Okay, by the way, Xiao Jiu, you've taken me to so many places in this hell, can't we get out yet?" An Xin tilted her head slightly, imitating Di Ting's cute manner.

"Uncle, I don't know. If you don't have enough spiritual power and good fortune, you can't open the map and instructions for the scroll of good fortune. We can only proceed cautiously, feeling our way across the river."

"Hmm, I have an idea. Do we have to travel through all the paths of hell before we can get out?"

"I don't know, but we have no choice but to give it a try! Come on, Xinxin, let's hit the road!"

"..." If An Xin hadn't just been a soul, or hadn't spent so long wandering in hell, she might have thought that the Black and White Impermanence, the Ox-Head and Horse-Face, had come to take her soul upon hearing the words "on the way."

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"The last Avici Hell!" Di Ting was becoming increasingly confused. In the endless, long years of his beastly life, he had never experienced such a life without any ups and downs. This little girl had simply been observing the journey, occasionally asking a question or expressing her feelings, saying how terrifying it was, but she herself showed no fear or dread. She didn't shout or scream, didn't wander off recklessly, and showed no signs of helplessness or anxiety... she was just remarkably calm.

"This is the place where beings who commit the five heinous crimes and slander the Dharma reside... Look, there are endless nails on the ground. Evil beings will roll on them until their skin is torn and their flesh is mangled, on the verge of death. Then everything returns to nothingness, and the evil beings return to their original state, continuing to roll on these nails... Born and dying, their suffering is boundless and endless... until their sins are eradicated..." The voice of Di Ting grew deeper and deeper, fading into the distance...

"Can I go in and take a look? The ancients talked about rolling on a board of nails. In ancient novels, before beating the drum to appeal for justice, weren't they all punished with caning or rolling on a board of nails? I've wanted to see this for a long time." An Xin excitedly rubbed her little hands together. Her impatient look made Di Ting's teeth ache.

"Go, go, go... be careful, or you might accidentally roll onto a bed of nails and end up riddled with holes and completely battered..."

"This imagination...this focus...sigh...you really need at least ten or eight years of reading novels to reach such a pinnacle!" Di Ting thought helplessly.

"Okay, I'll be careful." An Xin turned around and strode towards the large patch of nails. Her proud and imposing manner made it seem as if she was going to her execution.

But just as An Xin reached the nail board, she suddenly stopped, scratched her head, and looked around with a look of disbelief.

"What are you standing there looking for, you idiot? Didn't you want to see the nail board?"

"But it's gone... This whole patch of nail-studded ground has disappeared..." An Xin turned around and looked at Di Ting.

"Gone? How could it...go away?"