txolops Chapter 148 Wuji Kingdom - Underworld
Chapter 148 Wuji Kingdom - Underworld
Li Fa used a spilled water bowl to collect the bodies of the Queen and the Crown Prince. After leaving the well, he found a secluded spot and revealed his true form.
He held the alms bowl in his hands, pondered for a long time, and thought to himself, "I have obtained the body, but the soul is not inside. Could it be that the soul is being held captive elsewhere?"
Thinking of this, he pondered, "If their souls are truly detained, they cannot exist in the mortal world. They must be in the underworld. In that case, I will go down to the underworld to find the whereabouts of their souls."
Having made up his mind, he mounted the black tiger, patted its head, and shouted, "Let's go!"
The tiger's four hooves created clouds, but it wasn't going up into the sky; instead, it was burrowing into the ground.
Then, the Netherworld Black Tiger let out a low roar, and a crack appeared in the ground, accompanied by a chilling wind and eerie ghostly energy. Li Fa felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and he had entered the Netherworld.
How can this be proven? There is a poem to prove it. The poem says:
A chilling wind swept across the land, stirring up dust and creating a gloomy atmosphere; a black tiger cleaved the earth, entering the gates of hell.
A trail of cold smoke shrouds white bones, and a thousand layers of black mist lock away wandering souls.
The path to the underworld is treacherous and silent, while hell is cold and filled with the flames of karma.
Alone, I descend the path to the underworld, seeking to return the soul to the mortal realm.
Not long after Li Faxing arrived, a majestic pass appeared in front of him. Above the pass hung a huge plaque with the three large characters "Fengdu City" written in silver strokes and iron lines, shimmering with dark light.
When he looked up, he saw two ghost soldiers standing before the pass, one with an ox's head and the other with a horse's face. Upon seeing Li Fa, they did not stop him, but instead bowed and said, "Is it the Imperial Censor who has arrived? The Emperor requests your presence!"
It turned out to be the Great Emperor of Fengdu in the Northern Underworld. He was the Son of Heaven of the Underworld, ruling over the entire underworld. As soon as Li Fa entered the Underworld, the Great Emperor knew something was amiss.
Although he couldn't sense Li Fa, he could sense Xuan Hu's location, so he sent someone to investigate.
Then, how did the Great Emperor know about the Black Tiger? It turns out that the King of Wuji Kingdom was originally supposed to be sent to Baolin Temple by the Night Wanderer, but unexpectedly, he was carried away by the Black Tiger. The Night Wanderer then informed the Great Emperor, and the Great Emperor became aware of it.
Upon hearing this, Li Fa straightened his clothes and followed the ghost soldiers into the pass.
Passing through numerous halls and pavilions, we arrived before a magnificent palace. A plaque hung above the hall, inscribed with "Fengdu Palace," flanked by couplets:
You are a treacherous villain in this world, committing all sorts of heinous crimes.
The underworld, throughout history, has spared no one.
The palace doors swung open, and Li Fa entered with his head held high.
In the hall, a high table was set up, behind which sat a great emperor, wearing a flat-topped crown and a black dragon robe. His face was as red as a jujube, and his eyes were as bright as stars; he exuded an imposing aura without anger. This was none other than the Great Emperor of Fengdu in the Northern Underworld.
The civil and military judges, the ten underworld generals, and various ghost kings stood in solemn silence on the left and right.
Li Fa stepped forward and bowed respectfully: "This humble Daoist, Dengzi, pays his respects to the Great Emperor."
Upon hearing this, the emperor said, "So you are Plasma. You certainly have some nerve, daring to impersonate me and conduct a night trial of the King of Wuji Kingdom at Baolin Temple!"
Li Fa was startled and thought to himself, "This is bad. Is the Great Emperor going to come and punish me?"
Just as he was about to defend himself, the Emperor said again, "Although you are using my name, you are doing the right thing. The King of Wuji Kingdom has been wronged for three years, and the Underworld has known about it for a long time, but it was inconvenient to intervene because of the Buddhist community. You have tried him for me, which has relieved me of a worry."
Upon hearing this, Li Fa secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
The Emperor then said, "I observe that you possess extraordinary courage and supernatural powers."
The underworld is currently lacking an Imperial Censor to oversee the investigation of grievances in both realms and to investigate illegal activities.
Since you have referred to yourself as my physician, I shall indeed appoint you as the Grand Censor of Fengdu. Are you willing?
These words shocked the entire hall.
The judges on the left and right, as well as the underworld general, all turned their heads and whispered among themselves.
Li Fa was also taken aback, his mind racing: This Fengdu Emperor is the supreme ruler of the underworld, second only to the Jade Emperor and Buddha.
The official position he was granted, though not as prestigious as that in Heaven, was nonetheless a genuine position of a righteous god.
If one obtains this official position, one can move legitimately between the realms of the living and the dead, and will no longer need to use someone else's name.
Moreover, he was about to investigate the whereabouts of the Queen and the Crown Prince's souls. Wouldn't it be more convenient to act if he held an official position in the underworld?
Without further hesitation, Li Fa straightened his clothes and bowed, saying, "Your subject kowtows to thank Your Majesty for your great favor!"
The Emperor nodded slightly and ordered the judge to bring the official robes, seal, and waist token, which were then bestowed upon the Emperor on the spot.
Li Fa took it and saw that the waist tag was engraved with six seal characters: "Fengdu Imperial Censor".
The Emperor then said, "As the Imperial Censor, you have the authority to investigate grievances in both realms. May I ask what important matter brings you to the Underworld?"
Li Fa said: "I have heard that punishment and execution shall stop at the individual, and calamity shall not extend to the innocent. The ancients said: 'The crimes of fathers and sons, brothers, shall not be related.' For revenge is righteous; indiscriminate killing is violent."
If one acts impulsively out of anger and murders his wife and children, how is he any different from a jackal? Now, someone, seeking revenge, has killed his wife and children, and their souls are imprisoned—is this not an injustice?
Upon hearing this, the Emperor laughed and said, "So you've come for the souls of the Queen and Crown Prince of Wuji Kingdom."
Upon hearing this, Li Fa bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise. This is precisely why I have come."
The Queen and the Crown Prince's physical bodies have been rescued by me, but their souls are nowhere to be found. I have come to the Underworld to inquire about them.
The Emperor pondered for a moment and said, "You don't know, the souls of the Queen and the Crown Prince are not in the Underworld."
Li Fa was taken aback: "Not in the underworld? Then where is it?"
The Great Emperor said, "The two of them were originally mortals whose lifespans had not yet ended, but someone used a supreme treasure to forcibly draw out their souls, causing their physical bodies to appear dead."
Such methods do not harm life, nor do they lead to reincarnation; therefore, the soul is not under the jurisdiction of the underworld. Although I am the ruler of the underworld, I have no authority over Buddhism.
Upon hearing this, Li Fa said, "The souls of those two were actually drawn out by a supreme treasure. No wonder they seemed to be dead? But what kind of treasure was it?"
The Great Emperor said, "It is the Divine Dividing Jade Disc."
Li Fa asked, "May I ask Your Majesty, what is the Divine Dividing Jade Disc?"
The Great Emperor said, "This is the treasure of the Great Savior of Suffering, and someone borrowed it from the Heavenly Venerable."
Upon hearing this, Li Fa thought to himself, "It must be that Bodhisattva who went to the Heavenly Venerable to borrow this treasure."
After thinking for a moment, he asked, "In that case, does Your Majesty know where that soul is now?"
The Great Emperor said, "It is with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. That Bodhisattva made a great vow, 'I will not become a Buddha until hell is empty,' and he resides in the netherworld, dedicated to saving the souls of the dead."
The Buddhist sect, through him, temporarily stored those two wisps of souls in his temple, intending to return them to their physical bodies once the affairs of the Wuji Kingdom were resolved.
Upon hearing this, Li Fa thought to himself: The Buddhist sect has truly amazing methods! Manjushri Bodhisattva's scheme even involved Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.
He immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I wish to go to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva to retrieve those two wisps of souls. I beg Your Majesty's permission."
The Emperor nodded and said, "Since you are my Underworld Censor, it is fine for you to go see him. However, although Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is compassionate, he is not of the same school as my Xuanmen, and may not be willing to give it to you easily. You will have to find a way yourself."
Li Fa said, "Your subject understands."
The Emperor then said, "Go now. If you encounter any difficulties, you can use this token to summon ghost soldiers and demons to help you."
Li Fa thanked the Emperor, left the palace, mounted the black tiger, and headed straight for the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha's sacred site.