Ascension Day

Xu Ying felt like he was being watched. He glanced around, but there were simply too many stone statues, and most of them looked alike. He couldn't tell which one was staring at him.

Just then, the sound of stone scraping against stone reached him again.

Xu Ying looked toward the sound but couldn't identify which statue had made the noise.

"Lord Zhong, the Plague God doesn't hold grudges, does he?" he asked in a low voice.

"He does!"

Da Zhong also remembered Xu Ying whipping the Plague God and said quietly, "Remember last time? After you hit him, he immediately poked you with a finger. Not only does he hold grudges, he remembers them with perfect clarity!"

Xu Ying felt his back start to itch. "Can I open my Celestial Eye to check my back?" he said. "I'm afraid the Plague God's tentacles have already pierced my heart from behind."

Da Zhong hurriedly said, "Don't! Have you forgotten what just happened? If you open your Celestial Eye, all these Celestial Gods will notice you. Their divine will will flood your mind! You'll end up just like the skeletons at the bottom of the cliff!"

They were walking on a narrow, winding mountain path. Below were steep cliffs where countless skeletons, unaware they were dead, were not only climbing up but also frequently fighting each other over treasures. Down in that chasm, all sorts of treasures were piled up like mountains, tempting them with endless desire.

These were people influenced by the will of the Celestial Gods, dead but not knowing it, forever trapped in a daze.

Yuan Qi felt a slight itch on his back and lifted his tail to scratch it.

When Xu Ying saw this, his blood ran cold, and his own back felt even itchier.

Again, the scraping sound of moving stone echoed—heavy and grating. Xu Ying looked up and saw a giant stone statue twisting its head like an owl, looking down on him from above!

The statue had a triangular head, pointed at the top, with a bizarre face.

'Is that the statue of the Plague God?'

The thought had barely crossed Xu Ying's mind when the scraping sounds multiplied. One by one, the stone statues slowly turned their heads, and pair after pair of strange eyes fixed upon him.

The statues, each a thousand zhang tall, remained silent.

Faced with such a bizarre situation, Zhou Qiyun couldn't help but grow tense. He looked up and announced in a clear voice, "I am following the example of the Emperor of Ultimate Dao to visit the Yin Court. I am merely passing through this Treasure Land and hope that you Upper Gods will grant me passage!"

An ancient will stirred in the sky, each movement like a crack of thunder, followed by a deep RUMBLE.

It was the Celestial Gods whispering.

Their words were ancient beyond measure, different from human language and from the speech of ghosts. They were abstruse yet grand, with simple syllables that held profound meaning.

Although Xu Ying, Zhou Qiyun, and the others did not understand the Divine Language, they felt the vastness of the gods' thoughts as soon as they came into contact with that thunderous will.

The Celestial Gods whispered that there was a blasphemer among them. He who blasphemes against the Celestial Gods violates the Celestial Rules and must be judged by the Celestial Principle and punished by Celestial Law.

Zhou Qiyun was startled and uncertain. He turned to look back at Xu Ying.

A chill ran through Xu Ying's heart. He whispered, "Lord Zhong, can you hold off the Plague God?"

Da Zhong knew the situation was serious. It said in a deep voice, "I can't beat the Plague God right now, but I can hold him off for a bit! It's a shame the Big Locust Tree is dead. If you had cultivated there for a while longer and let me steal more of your Qi Blood, I could have held out for longer."

Zhou Qiyun looked up at the sky and said in a clear voice, "Esteemed Upper Gods, might there be some room for negotiation?"

Above the Celestial God Hall, the ancient will roiled. This was celestial might, declaring that the Celestial Principle allows for no favoritism. When the Celestial Rules are broken, no one has the chance to bend the law for personal reasons. There is only Celestial Punishment.

Zhou Qiyun turned and said, "Xu Ying, I've done all I can. Forgive me, but my hands are tied. Yuan Weiyang, let's go."

Yuan Weiyang hesitated. The old servant in green robes, Uncle Xiao, shook his head gently and whispered, "Young Master, think of the Yuan Family."

Yuan Weiyang fell silent and followed Uncle Xiao.

Xu Ying shouted, "Brother Yuan, take care of Yuan Qi for me! Xiaoqi, you go too."

Yuan Qi hesitated, but Xu Ying whispered, "If you stay, I won't be able to protect you. You'll only be a distraction. Zhou Qiyun is an old acquaintance of the Niu Family. Go with him. He won't mistreat you."

Yuan Qi slithered forward and said, "Ying, I'll wait for you outside!"

They sped away, leaving Xu Ying alone on the long mountain path, flanked by cliffs with a ten-thousand-zhang abyss below his feet.

The Celestial God Hall suddenly plunged into darkness, leaving only a single beam of celestial light shining down from above, landing on Xu Ying. He could no longer see his surroundings. He could only raise his head to see the huge stone statues, their forms faint and indistinct, hidden in the darkness around the light.

The scraping sound of moving stone continued, and the celestial might grew heavier. One by one, the thousand-zhang-tall stone statues turned to look at Xu Ying. The ancient will continued to churn restlessly above the Celestial God Hall as more than ten thousand Celestial Gods audited Xu Ying's sins.

Xu Ying looked up and saw the celestial light in the air gradually form a scroll. An unheld brush began to move on its own, writing his crimes upon it.

"First day of the third month, reported by the Yin Court: The criminal, Xu, committed deicide at Lingling Jiang Family Field. The punishment is execution."

"Second day of the third month, reported by the Government: The criminal, Xu, committed murder at Stone Mountain in Lingling. The punishment is execution."

"Third day of the third month, reported by the Yin Court: The criminal, Xu, committed deicide at Jianshan Village in Lingling. The punishment is execution."

"Fourth day of the third month, reported by the Yin Court: The criminal, Xu, committed deicide against twelve deities at Lingling Xiaoshan. The punishment is execution."

"Fourth day of the third month, reported by the Government: The criminal, Xu, murdered four people at Lingling Xiaoshan. The punishment is execution."

...

Xu Ying threw his head back and shouted, "Enough! Stop reading! I did it all, and my conscience is clear about every single act! You Celestial Gods who control the Celestial Dao, you only want to punish me because I whipped and burned the Plague God. What does any of this have to do with what I did before? My life is worthless, so if you want to kill me, then come on! There's no need for this hypocritical act!"