Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

What do ghosts in the underworld look like? That's a lot to say. Some have blue faces and fangs, and are hideous; others look human and are indistinguishable from ordinary people at first glance; still others have rather peculiar appearances, such as missing arms or legs, or a bloody skull on their body. This is because they died tragically in life, and their appearance at the time of death was preserved and brought into the underworld. Before being reincarnated, these ghosts will maintain this appearance, and you can tell how they died just by looking at their appearance.

But sometimes, seeing such ghosts can evoke some subtle feelings. Some of their forms tell of the torment they suffered in life, and they have to carry that torment into the underworld.

In the desolate fields, a man with a slightly strange posture walks forward. He is a young man in his prime, with regular features, wearing simple coarse linen clothes. He is an ordinary peasant, but when you get closer, you can see that he is strange.

Starting from the top of his head, a bloodstain ran straight down the person, extending downwards as if to split him in two.

No, not like. He had already been sawed in half, and he was not human at all. He was now just a soul. No one knew who was so cruel as to saw his soul in half. A person who has been sawed in half can walk, relying on the belt around his waist and the clothes on his outside. But even so, he walks very strangely, and his speed is even slower than that of a living person.

But no matter how slow it was, he insisted on moving forward. This person was named Xi Fangping. If one were to delve into his lifespan, he could have lived for at least several more decades. He should not have died at such a young age, and he should not have appeared in this place as a spirit.

The reason things turned out this way is because Xi Fangping stopped eating and drinking, and eventually his soul left his body and went to the underworld. Now, he still has the chance to go home and return to the world of the living, but he is unwilling to go back. The things he needs to do and the places he needs to go can only be done in the form of a ghost.

He was going to apologize to the gods in heaven, to the King of Hell, and to the City God, to seek justice for his unjustly accused father.

Xi Fangping was unaware that two ghost messengers were already following behind him. The scars on his body were from when he resisted Yama in the underworld. Knowing that he would not get justice if he kept dragging things out, he gave in first and planned to appeal to the higher authorities after leaving the underworld.

The King of Hell was wary and realized that this man was very stubborn. He guessed that Xi Fangping would not obediently go home, so he specially arranged for two ghost messengers to bring him back if the situation was true.

The two ghost messengers followed Xi Fangping for a while and found that the kid was indeed not behaving himself. Although they couldn't tell where he was going, it was definitely not in the direction of Xi Fangping's own home.

Just as they were about to show themselves and take Xi Fangping back, they suddenly saw two beams of light approaching them, heading straight for the person struggling to move forward.

Xi Fangping is now considered half a ghost. Ordinary people can't see him, and anyone who can appear with light can't possibly be an ordinary person. Therefore, the two ghost messengers decided to check what was going on first.

"Friend, what's wrong with you?"

With something on his mind and his sawed-off body not yet healed, Xi Fangping wasn't a real ghost. He could only imitate a living person and walk on two legs, which made his steps difficult. He just kept dragging his body forward with his head down and didn't notice that two beams of light had landed beside him until the other party spoke up.

The moment he looked up, Xi Fangping felt like he had become a living person again. Otherwise, why would he feel that the light in front of him was dazzling, like when he looked up at the sun at noon?

Two people were standing in front of him. Xi Fangping couldn't see their faces clearly, but he could see two colors, one gold and one silver, which were extremely dazzling.

First, there was gold, the most visually striking color at that moment. The headdress of the person in front was gold, the robes were gold, and the hair was mixed with gold. The various shades of gold shimmered under the light, like a walking golden sun. Xi Fangping thought that perhaps even the legendary three-legged golden crow was no more impressive than this.

The one who spoke up was another person. Unlike the dazzling gold, the other person was mostly silver-white, with silver clothes and white hair, which made him look less domineering than the people around him, but in terms of dazzlingness, he was no less impressive.

In this monotonous wilderness, the two seemed like the sun and moon that had fallen from the sky to the ground, radiating dazzling light, truly possessing the appearance of immortals.

"Immortals...we beg the two immortals to uphold justice!"

As Xi Fangping thought this, he knelt down in response. He had originally intended to complain to the gods, and now that he had seen these two, he naturally kowtowed directly.

These two radiant immortals could not possibly be like Yama or the City God, who were incapable of distinguishing right from wrong. One was like the blazing sun, and the other like the bright moon. If it weren't for their difference in gender, Xi Fangping would have thought he had met the legendary Xihe and Wangshu.

"An immortal? I, the young master, am not worthy of such a title. Please rise, my friend."

Yuan Wuxiang and Juan Shoutian were just passing by. The surrounding area was desolate and wild, and they didn't pay any attention to the scenery. It was Juan Shoutian who saw Xi Fangping. This person was clearly a ghost, but he was walking like a living person, and his walking posture was very strange, as if he couldn't find support.

As they got closer, they saw the vertical slit on the other person's body and realized that walking in that posture was no wonder it was so difficult and strange.

If this person died from this wound, then the person who did it is utterly inhuman; being cleaved in two is a truly gruesome death, even in the realm of suffering. If this torment occurred after death, then the person who did it is utterly depraved; to torture the soul like this after death.

Although Xi Fangping was covered in wounds, he walked forward with great determination, unlike a tormented zombie. That's why Yuan Wuxiang asked him if there was anything he could do to help this young ghost. But he didn't expect that the man would kneel down and shout that he wanted to seek justice.

“My friend and I are merely practitioners passing through, far removed from the true immortals you imagine.”

When Yuan Wuxiang went to help the young man kneeling in worship, Juan Shoutian, with his special vision, discovered two ghost messengers hiding in the shadows. Compared to Xi Fangping, who could only be considered half a ghost, the two underworld ghost messengers had a much stronger yin aura.

The two guys were lurking in the shadows, acting suspiciously. Juan Shoutian didn't care what they were there for. In his eyes, they didn't look like good people at all, so he decisively drew his sword.

"Who is this deity?"

Not only Xi Fangping, but the ghost messengers hiding behind also mistook the two for immortals. After all, with their entrance accompanied by dazzling light effects, it was hard not to think they were immortals.

However, compared to Xi Fangping, they, as ghost messengers, had seen more. Most of the gods had a dazzling light on their bodies, and their clothes were not usually so uniform in color. Just by looking at their attire, it was impossible to tell where they came from.

"That golden head has a Tai Chi symbol on it, is it from Taoism?"

"I've never heard of a Taoist immortal dressed like this before... Hey? Run!"

They quickly stopped worrying, because Juan Shoutian's sword shadow had already closed in on them, and golden sword energy similar to his own swept across the sky and earth, startling Xi Fangping, who had just been pulled up.

"Did you find anything?"

It's impossible for Juan Shoutian to suddenly draw his sword at thin air. Yuan Wuxiang looked at the rapidly spinning Taiji diagram on the opponent's sword and knew that he had made some discovery.

"Two sneaky flying insects."

For him, it was just an ordinary sword strike, but for the two ghost messengers facing them, it was a sword strike aimed at taking their lives. Juan Shoutian loved to watch the sunrise, and his own cultivation technique was closely related to the sun. Ghosts in the underworld are most afraid of sunlight.

When Xi Fangping first saw them, he found them dazzling and eye-catching. Besides the fact that the light effects on these two were indeed very bright, this might also be part of the reason. Xi Fangping was not a ghost who was formed through proper means, and he was focused on seeking justice for his father, so he didn't have time to consider what he should be afraid of now.

Suddenly attacked, the two ghost messengers immediately appeared. Since these two were souls without physical bodies, it was easy for them to dodge. However, this sword strike made them realize that the other party was not to be trifled with. Therefore, when they saw Xi Fangping, they didn't even say anything harsh and immediately disappeared underground, probably returning to the underworld.

"They're underworld messengers. Yama clearly let me go, so why are there still messengers following me?"

Xi Fangping naturally recognized them. In the beginning, these were the two ghost guards who had been holding him captive. Now that he had been released, they were supposed to follow him.

"Yama?"

Because of some unpleasant memories, Juan Shoutian first thought of another Yama, and frowned slightly when sheathing his sword.

But Xi Fangping didn't see any of that. The people here only knew that there was a King Yama in the underworld, and for various reasons, Xi Fangping kept avoiding Juan Shoutian's gaze. Not to mention his expression, he hadn't even seen what this golden-clad deity looked like yet.

"Yes, this humble citizen wishes to sue the King of Hell in the underworld, he..."

"Hold on."

Seeing that the man was about to kneel again, Yuan Wuxiang quickly pulled him back. Given Xi Fangping's injuries and the fact that he was not even half-kneeling, he was afraid that the man would kneel down and fall apart in the next second.

Strangely enough, Xi Fangping is currently in the form of a soul, while Yuan Wuxiang and Juan Shoutian are both living people. It's unclear whether they received some special treatment here, but Yuan Wuxiang, being a living person, was able to encounter Xi Fangping's soul and even pull him up.

“As I just said, I am just a passing cultivator, not someone you are looking for. However, seeing your appearance and the ghost messengers following you, you must have suffered injustice. If you need help, just say so.”

Injustices need not be covered up.

Xi Fangping looked so miserable that everyone worried he might fall apart on the spot, so the two found a place to sit and let him talk slowly.

Although the two men before him denied being gods, their extraordinary appearances and noble demeanor, coupled with their willingness to draw their swords against the underworld messengers, suggested that even if they were not gods, they must be extraordinary individuals who had transcended worldly affairs. Along his journey, Xi Fangping had not encountered a single fair person, and now that he had met them, he couldn't help but begin to tell his story.

Initially, Xi Fangping's father was an upright man who abhorred hypocrisy and preferred to tell the truth. He himself was taught the same thing, which led the father and son to offend many people. Before his death, Xi's father said that the wealthy businessmen he had offended in the past had already made arrangements for everything in the underworld, and that they would be tormented there after his death.

Hearing these words, Xi Fangping couldn't rest easy. His father was an upright man who had never done anything wrong. Why should a good person suffer? After burying his father, Xi Fangping decided to go to the underworld to file a complaint. He refused to eat or drink and forced himself to endure until his soul left his body. In the end, he really went to the underworld and saw his father.

At this time, Xi's father was shackled and covered in wounds. The wealthy merchant had bribed the ghost messengers to torture him day and night. Xi Fangping was furious at the ghost messengers' actions and turned to report the matter to the county city god. However, the wealthy merchant had already bribed everyone, so when the county city god refused, Xi Fangping went up to the city city god. However, the city city god had also been bribed. Xi Fangping was not satisfied and continued to appeal to the county city god.

The first two city gods accepted bribes and delayed Xi Fangping's complaint again and again, citing insufficient evidence. The county city god did not delay. He did not ask any questions, but directly tortured Xi Fangping severely and arranged for ghost messengers to take him home.

After experiencing such a thing, how could Xi Fangping be willing to accept it? He did not return to his physical body to be resurrected. After the ghost messengers left, he went to the underworld and directly complained to Yama. As expected, the city god took advantage of the time on the journey to negotiate and bribe Yama as well. He also severely tortured Xi Fangping and did not mention what he wanted to complain about at all.

Xi Fangping was truly stubborn. Even when Yama forced him to submit, he refused. First, he was burned on a bed of fire, and then he was sawed in half. After going through all this, he realized that he couldn't get justice from Yama, so he pretended that he would not pursue the matter any further, and was finally released.

It was impossible not to complain. Since things were like this in the underworld, he complained to the gods in heaven, which led to the current situation.

"So that's how it is. I never imagined the underworld had become so corrupt."

The corruption of the underworld, where everyone colluded, is truly lamentable. Xi Fangping's perseverance and filial piety are also admirable. Looking at the two ghost messengers who ran away, Yuan Wuxiang and Juan Shoutian guessed that Yama hadn't really let him go, and there would definitely be more trouble in the future.

"Which deity are you planning to complain to? If you don't mind, we're willing to escort you all the way and make sure you're not hindered along the way."

Given Xi Fangping's seemingly fragile state, it's impossible to know when he'll reach his destination.

"Thank you, both immortals!"

“I told you I’m not an immortal. Stop kneeling like that. If you keep kneeling, both Fangxiu from Peking University and I will feel guilty.”

"...Very well, may I ask how my two benefactors are addressed?"

Xi Fangping couldn't help but glance at Yuan Wuxiang's hand holding his. There was something he hadn't said: when the other man helped him up, he felt like a living person, but he didn't feel the warmth a living person should have in his hand. Even if the immortal in front of him, as bright as the silver moon, was wearing gloves, it shouldn't be like this.

He even felt that the other person's hand was a bit strange; apart from the temperature, the texture was also strange.

"I am the Silver General Manager Yuan Wuxiang. You can call me by my name, or Little General Manager, or you can take a different approach and call me High-End Silver. The one next to me, dressed in all gold, is the Nameless Swordsman Juan Shoutian, or you can call him Bei Fangxiu. There are many names, choose whichever you like."

"Xi Fangping hereby thanks the two benefactors for their help. If I am able to be reincarnated normally in the future, I will definitely serve them like a slave..."

"No need, let's get down to business."

This child is indeed a bit stubborn; he keeps either expressing gratitude or kneeling in worship.

"In the underworld, officials protect each other, using their power and money to oppress people. Everyone in the world says that Erlang Shen is a relative of the Jade Emperor. In terms of power, going to him might give me a glimmer of hope. I want to go south to find Erlang Shen and seek justice!"

"Alright, we'll go with you, but before that, you'd better fix this crack in your body."

Having a goal is a good thing, but the injuries on his body also need to be treated as soon as possible. Xi Fangping was sawed in half and could only walk by being tied up with a belt and clothes. It was really worrying to see him like this.