31: Chapter 31 The Worship of All Gods and the Wanderer

Pei Fei did not let his sister linger near the purgatory. Covering her eyes, he led the group through this scene of carnage.

Further ahead, the view suddenly opened up.

A magnificent black palace, so towering it seemed to prop up the heavens and earth, stood amidst the clouds. In front of the hall was a white jade plaza large enough to hold ten thousand people, flanked by nine colossal dragon pillars, creating a magnificent spectacle.

This was the Senluo Hall.

It was also the core location where the Underworld held its daily morning court and decided the major affairs of Yin and Yang.

At this moment, the plaza was already filled with the high-ranking core combat power of the Underworld, standing in formation.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face stood on the periphery holding steel forks, the Day and Night Patrol Gods surveyed the void, and the Lady Meng stood hunched over in a corner...

And at the very front of the imperial steps stood ten figures radiating terrifying auras, standing respectfully with hands clasped behind their backs.

King Qinguang, King Chujiang, King Songdi... King Yanluo...

These ten figures, who were top-tier magnates controlling life and death in any supernatural legend—the Ten Kings of Hell—were currently as still as statues.

The moment Pei Fei stepped onto the high platform with Pei Duo.

Led by King Qinguang, the Ten Kings of Hell, the Underworld Marshals, and thousands of Yin Spirits in the plaza all lifted their battle robes simultaneously.

"Boom—!!"

Thousands of knees slammed heavily onto the white jade ground, the sound like thunder striking down, scattering the dark clouds overhead.

"Your servants welcome Your Majesty! We pay respects to the Eldest Princess—!!"

The sound wave swept across the firmament like a tsunami, carrying a faith and pressure capable of crushing the heavens, echoing incessantly within the Luofeng Mountain range.

Ten thousand gods worshipped, the sovereign ruled the world.

Xu Mo and Lin Sa only felt a 'buzz' in their minds, their vision going blank.

They stared blankly at the scene, looking at the young figure standing on the high platform with flowing robes.

If last night's imperial feast was a display of 'privilege,' then this scene now was 'power' itself.

What kind of immense might was this?

What kind of prestige did this command?

Pei Fei slowly lowered the hand that had been covering his sister's eyes.

Pei Duo trembled her eyelashes, and through the gaps in her fingers, she saw the scene that would be etched in her memory for life, shaking her very soul.

Beneath her feet were thousands of gods and demons bowing their heads; beside her was her brother, who commanded all ages.

Pei Fei stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the gods kneeling below. His expression was calm, as if this was as commonplace as breathing.

He slightly turned his head and glanced at his sister, who was completely stunned, a faint curve appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"Did you see it clearly?"

Pei Fei's voice was soft, yet it clearly reached every corner of the venue.

"This is how things are done in our family."

...

As the Ten Kings of Hell and the Underworld Marshals withdrew, the clamor subsided.

Pei Fei waved away those attending him and turned toward the rear hall.

"Follow."

Pei Fei's tone was indifferent; he did not look back.

Xu Mo and Lin Sa exchanged a glance, their hearts sinking, their hearts instantly leaping into their throats.

What they witnessed just now was the 'prestige' shown to outsiders, a deterrent;

The private summons now was the 'substance' concerning their very lives.

The Imperial Study was furnished minimally.

There was a huge black jade desk, behind which hung a 'Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains' painting that seemed somewhat out of place here.

Pei Fei sat casually in the grand armchair and pointed to the two meditation cushions below the steps: "Sit."

Pei Duo, however, was quite familiar with the routine. She immediately flopped onto the soft couch beside her brother, fiddling with the black jade pendant in her hand, looking curiously at what seemed like just an ordinary study.

"Do you know why I kept you two behind?" Pei Fei picked up the ink-jade paperweight on the desk and toyed with it in his hand.

Xu Mo had just settled onto the cushion when he heard the question and immediately prepared to kneel again, but he was stopped by a gentle force.

"Sit and talk," Pei Fei glanced at him. "Here, there's no need for those superficial formalities."

Xu Mo swallowed, pushed up the non-existent glasses on the bridge of his nose, and said cautiously, "Your Majesty wishes to... offer guidance to this subject?"

"Guidance is an overstatement. Consider it saving your lives."

Pei Fei's words were like a basin of ice water poured over their heads, instantly extinguishing the vanity and arrogance that had risen in their hearts from the 'Worship of Ten Thousand Gods.'

"Xu Mo, Lin Sa, do you think that by latching onto my leg, you can walk sideways in the Thriller Game from now on?"

Pei Fei's deep eyes were like two sharp swords, piercing straight into their hearts:

"If it weren't for the fact that the Vampire Count happened to be making a living on my territory during this s-rank instance, and was suppressed tightly by my jade pendant, do you think you mortals, with your mortal flesh and blood, could have survived even a few seconds?"

The silly smile on Lin Sa's face instantly froze.

The image of the newcomer being instantly killed by the Skin Flayer flashed through her mind, as well as the terrifying sight of the Count's mere glance that nearly crushed her kneecaps.

Yes.

This was the tragedy of mortals.

No matter how deep their schemes or how good their skills, before a powerful anomaly, they were merely ants—at best, slightly stronger ants.

"What about next time?" Pei Fei's voice held no warmth. "Next time, if you enter a dungeon in the core of the Western Underworld, that is the territory of Hades and Satan. My reach won't extend there.'"

"How will you die then?"

Silence as if death had fallen.

Xu Mo's face turned deathly pale. He had only focused on the joy of becoming an 'Imperial Guard with a Sword,' forgetting that he was essentially a rusty iron knife, struggling even to cut vegetables, let alone slay gods.

Without strength, the so-called 'Imperial Relative Guard' was merely a slightly higher-grade cannon fodder!

"Your Majesty!"

Xu Mo no longer hesitated. He flipped over and knelt, his head hitting the black jade floor with a heavy 'thud.' "I beg Your Majesty to show us a path! As long as we can survive, as long as we can protect His Highness, we will never flinch, even if it means walking through mountains of blades and seas of fire!"

Lin Sa also knelt down, her gaze resolute. She wasn't foolish; she knew this was their only way to live.

Pei Fei looked at their reaction, a flicker of satisfaction crossing his eyes.

Being afraid of death was a good thing.

Only those who feared death would unleash unimaginable potential to cling to life.

"Get up," Pei Fei said.

Pei Fei waved his hand casually.

"Clatter."

Two waist tokens, neither metal nor jade, entirely pitch black, traced perfect parabolas through the air and landed precisely in front of the two.

The waist tokens were only palm-sized, and they felt bone-chillingly cold to the touch.

The front was engraved with a ferocious and ancient character 'Ling' (Order), while the back was engraved with 'Xu Mo' and 'Lin Sa' respectively. Faint red light flowed within the strokes.

"This is..." Xu Mo held the waist token with both hands, his hands trembling.

"Since you are guards for the 'Imperial Relatives,' you can't exactly be unregistered."

Pei Fei leaned back in his chair: "From this moment on, you are hereby enfeoffed as 'Walkers of Impermanence' of the Underworld, granted a Seventh-Rank Yin Official post. Though you are living people, you will receive the blessing of the Underworld's fortune."