"Judge? Is that like Old Cui?" I asked, finding it surprisingly simple. Old Cui seemed to be at my level.
"Not Old Cui, it's Judge Commander."
Ah, I understood. The Eight Great Yin Messengers also had ranks. Xie Bi'an was towards the end, seventh, with less authority than those ranked higher. The Judge seemed to be around second or third.
"Then for this matter, should I find Wu Zhao?" I asked again.
"Yes, finding her is effective."
"Alright, thanks a lot, my little An'an." I joked, making it seem like I was quite familiar with the White Impermanence Commander. It wasn't for the middle-aged man's benefit; we usually spoke like this on the phone. No matter how I teased her, Xie Bi'an remained very cold, which only made me more inclined to provoke her.
"...Can you not call me that? Doodoodoo..."
The middle-aged man was already dumbfounded. Seeing that I had finished my call, he finally dared to speak, "Who exactly... are you!"
"That's not important. Wait a moment, I'll ask the Judge Commander." I dialed again, reaching Wu Zhao.
"Oh my, Lord Wu, what brings you to grace my presence today!" Wu Zhao greeted me with a nearly overwhelming embrace, almost making me react—if I weren't facing dozens of ghosts.
The middle-aged man knew I was talking to the Judge Commander. Hearing our intimate conversation, he immediately collapsed. Perhaps he was thinking, "Is this something I'm allowed to hear?"
When faced with someone actively trying to seduce me, I've always been quite serious. After a brief exchange, I got straight to the point with Wu Zhao.
"Well, it's not impossible, but it would be rather troublesome," Wu Zhao said cautiously.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"According to the rules, for these serious offenders, their place in the Book of Life and Death is already designated. Upon entering the Underworld, they're directly sent to the eighteen layers of hell. They must endure their sentence in hell for as long as their earthly punishment dictated. Death row inmates are thrown in directly and never retrieved. There's only one exception."
"What exception?" I asked.
"Performing meritorious deeds while awaiting punishment. Only then can a red circle be drawn around their names in the Book of Life and Death, exempting them from the suffering of the eighteen layers of hell. But the problem is... they are already dead. How can they perform meritorious deeds?"
"Can they go to the Underworld first and then perform meritorious deeds? I heard you're at war, and the Underworld is short on people, right?" I asked.
"Once they enter the Underworld, they're immediately sent to hell. How can they earn merit? This is beyond our control, even the King of Hell cannot change it. In your mortal world's terms, it's a kind of... natural law?"
A vicious cycle. They were already ghosts; to earn merit, they could only do so in the spectral realm. But once they entered the spectral realm, the opportunity for merit was gone.
"Is there... no other way?" I sighed.
Hearing my sigh, Wu Zhao quickly comforted me, "Cheng Feng, don't rush, don't rush. Let me think, let me think... There is another method, and that is for them to earn merit in the mortal world as ghosts."
"How do they do that?" I asked.
"How to do it... they can only help catch ghosts. I'm afraid they might refuse, as it could lead to their destruction. If they encounter a powerful ghost, their souls could be scattered, and they wouldn't even be able to enter the Underworld, vanishing forever."
Indeed, why would a woman trouble another woman? And why would a ghost be willing to catch other ghosts? Moreover, wouldn't that be considered a sin?
I looked at the middle-aged man. As expected, his face showed difficulty. Compared to the ghosts of Black Mountain Fort, perhaps due to the immense advantage of the magnetic ore, they were complacent and lacked combat readiness. They were all ghosts of the red qi. Sending them to catch other ghosts would be akin to sending them to their deaths.
Another vicious cycle. To earn merit, they needed to catch ghosts. To catch ghosts, they risked annihilation. But their plea was to avoid both annihilation and the eighteen layers of hell.
"Are there no other options..." I could only ask again.
"Uh..." After a moment of silence, Wu Zhao said, "There truly are no other options."
"Alright, let's leave it at that for now. I'll contact you again if anything comes up."
"I'm sorry to have disappointed you, Lord Wu," Wu Zhao said, her voice a little choked.
"It's alright, this is a matter of duty, and it's not your fault," I reassured her.
After hanging up, the middle-aged man looked very disappointed. His form gradually faded, perhaps waiting for me to deliver their "fatal blow"...