"Very well, since you are not convinced, I can only arrange for your reincarnation. In your next life, you will be a woman, and one who retains her memories," the judge said.
Upon hearing this, the boy couldn't help but recall Hu Yuan, who had transformed from a woman to a man. He then imagined what Hei Feng would look like as a woman and hastily said, "I advise you to follow me. At the very least, I can preserve your masculinity."
Hearing this, Hei Feng hesitated, then looked down at the boy and said, "That's exactly what I intend to do."
"Then you are my subordinate from now on," the boy said, indirectly taking advantage of the situation.
To avoid the judge noticing his reluctance, Hei Feng forced a smile and said, "Alright, Big Brother."
The boy felt pleased upon hearing this.
"The matter is settled. Quickly find a way to capture the vine spirit and those two hundred and fifty demon souls," the judge instructed.
"Judge, what about me?" the black-clothed underworld official pointed to himself.
"You have never made a low-level mistake. Making one this time is considered normal. Just continue to guard the prison properly," the judge said casually.
The boy laughed, "Excellent."
However, the black-clothed underworld official couldn't be happy. In his view, making even one mistake was a grave error. He felt the judge's judgment was not appropriate.
On their way back, the boy tugged at the judge, who seemed displeased since they had left, and said, "I don't think you should be thinking about other matters right now. I think you should focus on repairing the barrier."
Upon hearing this, the black-clothed underworld official was suddenly reminded of the damaged cave and the key stolen by the vine spirit. He clenched his fists and said, "You're right."
"Big Brother, you change your mind so quickly?" Hei Feng asked, peeking at the black-clothed underworld official.
"Not as fast as you," the black-clothed underworld official replied, extending his hand and conjuring paper, which he handed to the boy. "Here, once you go up, use the previous method to have him press his blood seal." He pointed at Hei Feng.
"Understood," the boy nodded.
Hei Feng glanced at the boy, then at the black-clothed underworld official who was about to cast a spell to leave, and said, "Can't I just follow you?"
"You just agreed with the judge. If you want to go back on your word, I can escort you back," the black-clothed underworld official pointed towards the path leading back to the judge.
Hei Feng's eyes darkened.
"Let's go," the black-clothed underworld official said, turning around and disappearing.
The boy's lips curved into a smile as he looked up at Hei Feng and asked, "Why insist on a demon blood seal? Isn't your blood sufficient?"
Hei Feng sighed, ignored the boy, and walked forward.
The boy frowned and followed Hei Feng. "Why are you ignoring me?"
"I always said that people from the mortal world are troublesome. As expected, you're quite cunning," Hei Feng said as he walked.
The boy walked alongside Hei Feng. "What do you mean by that?"
"It means nothing," Hei Feng said, staring straight ahead.
"You still say you mean nothing. Look, your face has fallen to your feet. Just say it if you're unhappy with me," the boy said, tilting his head up.
Hei Feng sighed. "You're so smart, you can see what I mean. Why pretend? There's no one else around."
"I understand," the boy suddenly said.
Hei Feng nodded slightly. "As expected of someone from the mortal world, you're indeed cunning."
The boy didn't care about Hei Feng's words and said, "You're just annoyed that we've gotten involved with you, aren't you?" He pointed at Hei Feng.
Hei Feng rolled his eyes. "You know it yourself, you little schemer."
"Can you stop calling me that?" the boy asked, sounding annoyed.
"Then tell me, what should I call you if not that?" Hei Feng asked without even looking at the boy.
"You just called me Big Brother, and now you're changing your tune. I wonder who's more cunning, acting one way with the judge and another way with me."
"If I hadn't called you that, I would have become a woman. And not only that, but I would have to remember my past life after reincarnation. I can't stand that feeling," Hei Feng said, stopping in his tracks.
"You agreed to confess, and the judge told you to follow me, and now you're unhappy. I..."
"It's always been the soul spirits flattering me. Now I have to follow a mere brat soul spirit. It's simply unfair."
"Before today, I was a soul spirit, but now I'm not," the boy said firmly.
"What's your name?" Hei Feng suddenly asked.
The boy paused and said, "My name is Xiao Ge Ban."
"Xiao Ge Ban is just a nickname, not a name," Hei Feng said casually.
The boy looked down and said, "Where I come from, most of us on duty don't have names."
"I do," Hei Feng said, patting his chest.
"I don't know when the rules changed, but in fact, neither the underworld official who came with me nor I have names," the boy said seriously.
"Is it because they're afraid you'll have too many attachments, so they abolished the naming system?" Hei Feng guessed.
"Probably," the boy nodded.
Hei Feng squatted down, looking at the boy's dejected expression. "I can work with you, but only if you listen to me," he said, patting the boy's shoulder.
"You..."
"Don't 'you' me. Agree or not. If you don't agree, I'll continue to be moody, making your work difficult," Hei Feng said, reaching out to touch the boy's small belly. "You won't even have a smooth flow of energy."
"Alright, but in front of that underworld official, you have to pretend to obey me. Can you do that?" the boy asked pitifully.
Hei Feng hesitated for a moment and then said, "Fine, I agree to it, you little runt."
"Do you know where Mu An Xiao is?" the boy asked.
"I... might!" Hei Feng replied uncertainly.
The boy looked at Hei Feng's uncertain expression. "Do you know or not?"
"That guy is always roaming around. If you ask me for a specific location," Hei Feng shook his head, "it's impossible."
"Then what do we do?" the boy looked distressed.
Hei Feng frowned, lowered his head, and sniffed the boy's scent. "Why do you have an immortal aura?"
"Immortal aura," the boy repeated. His mind raced, and he took out a strand of hair left by the green-robed man from his怀 and said, "A cultivator gave this to me. I think I can lead you to Mu An Xiao." Just then, a wind blew in very timely. The strand of hair in the boy's hand, after the wind passed, disappeared.
The boy didn't notice the hair strand leaving. "What a cold wind."
Hei Feng looked down at the boy's empty hand and said, "The hair is gone."
Upon hearing this, the boy's eyes widened. He looked down at his hand and exclaimed in surprise, "Where's the hair?"
"The hair..." Hei Feng blinked unnaturally and looked up at the branches swaying in the wind. "It was probably blown away."
"What do we do?" the boy pouted.