The Tongtian Crown, with twenty-four beams, adorned with a golden Boshan, and a crimson gauze robe embroidered with cloud dragons and red-gold threads. A crimson gauze skirt, a white silk square collar, white socks and black shoes—this was the ceremonial attire worn by emperors of the Song Dynasty during sacrifices to the heavens and earth, the grand court assemblies of the New Year and Winter Solstice, and major investitures.

However, the cloud dragons on this deity appeared somewhat ferocious, and their color was black, resembling the Yama King.

This Song Dynasty deity emerging from the Dongyue Temple began to walk towards the First Red Post. In his hand, he held a peculiar weapon: a pillar axe, a small axe-shaped jade or crystal attached to a staff four or five feet long, used for ceremonial purposes.

Seventy-two Red Posts, seventy-six copper bells, the seventy-six offices of the Underworld.

He glanced at the high heavens. Between the stars of the night sky, the national prestige still permeated, but it was vastly different from the past. This was all thanks to the Fire Lord's rebellion. The Taiyin Tribulation Fire had pierced through the Great Thousand, and the national prestige had been torn open with a gaping hole.

Everything that should have been given to her had been given, and though the final step hadn't been completed, it could only be said that she was too incompetent.

"The person possessed is merely an Earthly Illumination God, equivalent only to the fourth realm, fetal breathing, and cannot unleash the full power of this incarnation."

The Earthly Illumination God was a spirit passed down from the Eastern Han Dynasty, a common employee of the Underworld, not particularly strong, but more powerful than a minor ghost.

This deity was shrouded in an eerie aura as he emerged from the Dongyue Temple and entered the First Red Post.

"First Red Post, the Chief Clerical Office, this office is in charge of the signature seal for detaining souls. When a mortal's lifespan is exhausted and their soul needs to be taken, this office signs the seal, and only then can the ghosts and gods execute it."

"You are the Chief Clerical God? Although the First Red Post is only responsible for signing seals, and is not the strongest of the seventy-six offices of the Underworld… It has been sixty-four years since I last saw the state of things here. Now, only a weak god of the Divine Power Realm remains?"

"You cannot receive stronger Underworld masters?"

In the eyes of this Song Dynasty deity, the Chief Clerical God's divine power was only equivalent to the sixth Divine Power Realm.

The Underworld spirit guarding the Red Post saw him.

"You are not a righteous god of the Ming Dynasty! You have no national prestige! What kind of attire do you wear? Who are you, daring to trespass into the Underworld Red Post at night!"

Holding the pillar axe, the deity walked into the Red Post: "I am the god who governs the fate of all living beings under Heaven! Your fates are exhausted, and I have come to take the Three Law Books for my use!"

The Underworld spirits were dumbfounded. They had spent their entire lives reaping the souls of others, but how could their own souls be reaped today?

They stood up, ready to stop him.

"Taiyin Law Officer, Blue-Faced Giant Ghosts, capture this fiend!"

The Chief Clerical God gave the order. Immediately, the Underworld spirits acted. The Taiyin Law Officer and two blue-faced giant ghosts, with chains wrapped around their bodies, rushed towards the uninvited guest.

Chains wrapped around him, and an iron axe descended upon his head, but the Song Dynasty deity felt nothing. He smiled and said, "Do you think you are stronger than me?"

In his eyes, the Taiyin Law Officer was merely equivalent to the fifth Manifestation Realm, and so were the two blue-faced giant ghosts. These spirits were much weaker than they had been thirty-one years ago.

The Chief Clerical God narrowed his eyes. Of course, that's what he thought. Judging by his cultivation, the deity before him was far inferior to the spirits here. Moreover, the other party did not seem to be a human who had become a god, but a wild god. The strength of wild gods was inferior to that of human gods because wild gods themselves were transformations of the spirits of heaven and earth and could not receive heavenly divine positions.

"Insolent little wild god!"

"Wild god? I am no wild god. I am your ancestor. You are merely receiving divine positions, while I am a true god."

In the next moment, a large amount of black mist poured out from the seven orifices of the Song Dynasty deity. This black mist engulfed the First Red Post, and everything became pitch black. It drilled into the seven orifices of all the Underworld spirits present!

...........

Outside Zhengyang Gate, in the western ward.

In the inn closest to the gate, Old Man Lei Xuan raised his head from a slumped, dazed state. His door was closed, and someone else had entered.

Liu Mengyin had come to find him again.

"What is it? Here to see the Underworld Bell-ringer again?"

"No, I just wanted to ask if you have any records of gods and ghosts. Last night, you seemed to know a lot about these things?"

Liu Mengyin stroked his little mustache, looked around, and said strangely, "There aren't many people here today."

Old Man Lei Xuan said, "Of course. During the day, the Eastern Depot spies and the Embroidered Uniform Guards were dispatched, and the guards in the city were also mobilized to search the Yellow Heaven Sect followers house by house, taking away those portraits and incense burners, and destroying them in a concentrated manner. Don't you know about such a big thing in the Ministry of Rites?"

"The guests have all been driven away, ruining my livelihood for the day."

Liu Mengyin wrung his hands, "Your emperor went to court this morning. It was really interesting! The emperor's eloquence is really good!"

Old Man Lei Xuan said, "Was it about the Forbidden City catching fire and being burned down?"

"How did you know?"

"Who doesn't know? Those ministers quarreled from the Meridian Gate to the inner city gate. I don't know how many people heard it."

Old Man Lei Xuan chuckled, "Shuntian is not too big, but not too small either, but any news spreads extremely quickly from inside. You probably don't know how frequently those palace people come and go."

While chatting with Liu Mengyin, he looked in the direction of the Underworld's First Red Post. Although separated by countless walls, bricks, stones, and roads, Old Man Lei Xuan's eyes already reflected the scene in front of the First Red Post.

Then he blinked, and the scene in his eyes disappeared.

He looked back at Liu Mengyin and asked, "Are you asking about various matters of gods and ghosts because you want to write a book?"

"Doesn't Korea prohibit writing these books about gods and ghosts? And how is the situation with the Japanese pirates over there? Have the coastal cities they occupied been returned?"

Liu Mengyin's face darkened, "No, they have attacked again. We even asked the Celestial Dynasty to send troops before, and now they are probably fighting."

Old Man Lei Xuan nodded, "The Japanese pirates, they respect power but do not cherish virtue, their thieving hearts will not die."

Liu Mengyin was also sad. In fact, the reason why the Japanese pirates occupied the coastal cities and did not return them, and the two sides had a brief "stalemate negotiation," was because both the Ming and Japan had hidden dragons and crouching phoenixes, each deceiving their own monarchs, saying that the other side had surrendered.

Old Man Lei Xuan smiled and turned back to ask, "Books about gods and ghosts are not easy to write. Words carry mystical power. Some things cannot be said. If they are said or written, they will produce incredible changes. For example, creatures in books, or gods and monsters manifesting. As the saying goes, the more you talk about it, the more it becomes a reality."

"I used to know a person who also wrote books about gods and monsters. As the saying goes, 'What you think about during the day, you dream about at night. What you think and hope for, you can see all day long.'"

"These things are not easy to write because if they are written and deliberately spread, then they will really become 'real.' This is the mystery of the collective 'will' of people."

Liu Mengyin showed a thoughtful expression, but what he was thinking was... what could I write that would become real?

Isn't this too good?

"What are you thinking about? Are you thinking about writing about a female ghost or something?"

"I am a virtuous gentleman, how could I write such things!"

Old Man Lei Xuan chuckled, showing an expression that said, "I understand." Then he said meaningfully:

"Korean official, I have a big story here, about the palace. Would you like to hear it?"

"It is a curse that has plagued the Ming Dynasty's royal family for sixty-four years, and the true form of this curse, that shadow hidden in history, actually starts from the Qin and Han Dynasties, and goes down to the Yuan and Ming Dynasties."

"And the story begins in the twelfth year of the Jiajing era..."