PD -Chapter 124 What Does the Underworld Look Like

“Tsk tsk tsk. I always thought the kid from the Liu family was a refined, gentle type. Didn’t expect him to be this ruthless.”

At that moment, Shen Tu had already retracted the Ghost Emperor Seal, now reduced to barely one-third of its original power. She landed beside me, looking at the Rakshasa pinned to the ground by the black sword in the mouth of Yazi, and shook her head in exaggerated disbelief.

Even I was deeply shaken. Compared to the earlier encounter with the mad Taoist’s vengeful spirit—when Chiwen appeared at the brink of life and death—that alone had already been shocking enough. But now, with three divine beasts appearing at once, the pressure they exuded made even me, just an observer, feel wary.

Thankfully, the residents of the tube building had already been suppressed into unconsciousness by the yin creatures feeding on their vital energy in the middle of the night, all trapped in a deep sleep inside their rooms.

Otherwise, if those elderly residents had seen what just happened, they would’ve likely been scared to death on the spot.

The Rakshasa on the ground, its chest pierced by the black sword, was in a grotesque state of ruin. The severed limbs torn off by the beast lay scattered everywhere—it looked like hell on earth.

Shen Tu sighed.

“This guy was supposed to be doing his duty properly back in Youdu, but instead ran to the mortal world thinking he could enjoy freedom. What bad luck. He went and provoked someone he shouldn’t have…”

The moment she finished speaking, the Rakshasa’s broken body began to disintegrate like ash in a flame, drifting away with the wind.

I looked up at the sky where Liu Xiaopeng was standing in midair. The nine-colored divine sword—Zhanxian Sword—had already vanished from his hand, and the divine beasts were gone as well.

Only Liu Xiaopeng and the woman’s faint soul remained in the air.

At that moment, the dark clouds in the night sky dispersed, and moonlight poured down. The golden glow around Liu Xiaopeng gradually dimmed.

Under the moonlight, the woman’s soul turned into specks of starlight, slowly drifting toward the sky.

“Child, you did it. Your father and I are proud of you.”

Her voice echoed through the air.

“Don’t think about us. The road ahead is still long—you have to walk it yourself.”

Her figure completely dissolved into starlight, rising gently upward, as if heading straight toward the moon. There was no sorrow in her voice—only relief and pride.

Liu Xiaopeng watched the drifting starlight. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he didn’t cry like before.

He simply stared at the fading light until it disappeared completely, and only then slowly came back to himself.

I walked over, wanting to comfort him, but I didn’t know what to say. In the end, I just patted his shoulder.

“Kid, congratulations. You’ve finally become a true member of the Liu family,” Shen Tu said as she walked over. She didn’t seem concerned about his emotions at all—only that the goal had been achieved.

Liu Xiaopeng slowly regained focus, looked at me, then turned to examine the entire tube building.

The building had been damaged in the aftermath of the battle. Especially the third floor—Room 309 was badly burned, and even the hallway and nearby vacant rooms were heavily damaged.

He stared at the destruction, momentarily unsure how to clean up the mess.

We had told the landlady we were here to remove formaldehyde, but now the place looked like it had been set on fire. Anyone would probably call the police after seeing this.

I thought for a moment and said, “We’ll have to solve this with money… I’ll call Miss Zhu Zhu right away.”

When I called her, she was still asleep. After hearing my explanation, she didn’t hesitate at all.

The Zhu family had a few redevelopment housing projects nearby. They could relocate the residents of the tube building there temporarily. As for the building and the land, they could acquire it first—and later partner with Li Zi to invest in a haunted-house-style attraction project.

I thanked her repeatedly and hung up.

By then, dawn was breaking, and it was almost five in the morning.

We rushed back to the hospital. The child’s fever had broken, and the doctor confirmed he was fine after another checkup.

We told the landlady that a fire had unfortunately broken out in the tube building, and that she and her son should stay in a hotel for a few days. We had already arranged a better place for them to move into soon.

Although she was confused and shocked, she didn’t show hostility or suspicion. For the sake of her child’s better future, she agreed to move.

After everything was settled, we returned to the office.

On the way back, I kept thinking about what came next. According to the plan, Liu Xiaopeng had successfully awakened his bloodline power. We now had the Heavenly Dragon Flame capable of refining the dark jade.

But this was only the beginning. Next, we would have to go to the forbidden realm of the living—the Youdu of the underworld—to seize the black jade.

And that step worried me deeply.

All things in the world are divided into yin and yang—life and death, light and darkness. The living belong to the human world; the dead belong to the underworld.

If we were to forcibly enter Youdu, the chance of returning alive… I didn’t even dare to think about it.

Lost in these chaotic thoughts, I sighed and turned toward the back seat where Shen Tu was resting.

I asked, “What exactly is the Underworld like?”

Shen Tu was still lounging with her long legs stretched out, eyes closed. After a long pause, she lazily opened her eyes and glanced at me.

“People in the mortal world always say the underworld is dark and terrifying, full of wandering ghosts. But how many of them have actually seen it?”

I frowned, not fully understanding.

“So… are there no ghosts in the underworld?”

She let out a faint sneer.

“When you become a ghost, then the ghosts of the underworld are no longer ‘ghosts.’”

“You’ve become a philosopher now?” I muttered. She was clearly annoying—whenever I asked something serious, she kept speaking in riddles.

Seeing my impatience, she chuckled and looked up at the car ceiling, as if lost in memory.

After a moment, she said, “My Peach Blossom Mountain blooms every year during the Ghost Festival. Ancient peach trees twist around the gates, their branches gnarled and wild. If I told you that it was the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen in my long life… would you believe it?”

I paused.

Peach blossoms normally bloom in early spring at the latest. By the seventh lunar month, it would already be early autumn. Even peach leaves would be gone, let alone blossoms.

Yet the underworld was clearly different.

I remembered the ancient records in Records of Heaven’s Secrets: the East Ghost Emperor governed Peach Blossom Mountain and the Ghost Gate. But hearing her describe blooming peach blossoms there… that was beyond anything I had imagined.

I had once thought that even if Peach Blossom Mountain had flowers, they would be twisted and dead-looking, like frozen growth—gnarled branches like ghostly claws.

But reality… seemed far stranger than imagination.