Chapter 59 The Love between Human and Ghost (2)

Chapter 59 The Love between Human and Ghost (2)

Ye Shaoyang’s words stunned Hu Shuai. He shook his head in denial, “No, no! We don’t care, isn’t it fine as long as both of us are in this willingly?”

Ye Shaoyang explained as calmly as he could, “It’s not as simple as that. Upon death, our souls need to check-in to the underworld. Then, we have to cross the River of the Past and walk the Helpless Bridge to reincarnate into our next lives. This is the rule of life. It cannot be avoided, and everyone goes through it. If you try to break this rule, the consequences can be dire.”

Hu Shuai collapsed on the bed. He covered Liao Qingqing with both his arms, as he tried to make sense of the situation. But there was no way he could let her go. He shook his head and widely grinned, “No no no! I don’t want her to go on to her next life! Brother Shaoyang, aren’t there many souls still wandering here on earth? It wouldn’t hurt anyone to add her to the list! Why can’t she stay? I can be with her for the rest of my life! When I’m finally done, we will go for reincarnation together.”

These words angered Ye Shaoyang. He yelled, “Anyone who dies can only stay in the mortal realm for seven days. Stay another day more, and you have to suffer in hell for a whole year in the Underworld! You can live till you are a hundred years old and nothing will happen to you, but what about her? Imagine her having to go to the Underworld after so long! Do you know how long she would have to be tortured in Hell? Have you even considered this?”

Hu Shuai was stunned, but he argued nonetheless, “Well then, we will not check-in to the Underworld. We will linger here after we both die and be a couple of wandering souls!”

Ye Shaoyang sarcastically laughed, “Easier said than done. Firstly, any soul that lingers in the mortal world will face a Heavenly Tribulation once every century. If you can’t make it, it’s guaranteed that you will vanish without even a soul left. Secondly, you are a human, and she is a spirit. You can’t have any physical interaction, and she can’t even have your family name. I don’t think you can bear this. No marriage for life and your family lineage will end with you since you can’t have kids with her.”

Hu Shuai was more determined than ever, “Firstly, a hundred years from now, I would be dead anyway. We will face Heavenly Tribulation together. If we can’t make it, so be it. Secondly,” Hu Shuai paused and smiled, “Not a problem at all. As long as Liao Qingqing is by my side, I can go through a whole life like this. I can do it.”

Ye Shaoyang shook his head and put up three fingers, “Thirdly, I am an Arbiter. I preside over the rules of the underworld here in the mortal realm. It’s my responsibility to send any wandering soul I meet to the Underworld. It’s the same as any criminal that a cop must send to jail no matter how pitiful they are. If a police officer fails to do that, they are responsible for it. To me, a spirit is a spirit. There’s no other option. I must transcend the spirit. Get it?”

Ye Shaoyang raised his right hand, which held an ancient Chinese coin. He said in a cold voice, “We are friends. I don’t want this either, but it’s a responsibility that I bear. Please don’t make me do this the hard way.”

Hu Shuai clenched his teeth and grabbed a knife from the bed. He aimed the knife at Ye Shaoyang and warned him in a shaky voice, “Brother Shaoyang, do not force me!”

“Don’t you dare!” Xiao Ma picked up a stool on the floor and stood in front of Ye Shaoyang, “After everything Little Ye went through to save Liao Qingqing, is this how you want to repay him? He did this for her own good, so why are you pointing that knife at Little Ye? I dare you to try and harm him!”

Li Duo tried to calm Hu Shuai down too, “Hu Shuai, put down your knife. We can talk this out. There’s no need for a standoff.”

Hu Shuai sighed and shook his head in despair. He placed the knife on his own neck and said, “Since there’s no other option, I guess I’ll join Liao Qingqing for reincarnation then…. ”

Before he could finish his sentence, Li Duo rushed over and grabbed the knife from him.

Hu Shuai did not resist, but he turned toward Ye Shaoyang with a sad smile, “It’s ok. I’ll kill myself at home. If someone wants to die, there’ll always be a way. Brother Shaoyang, all I ask from you now is to transcend us together. I don’t want to reach the Underworld without her by my side.”

“I don’t care if you are alive or dead! I’ll do what I have to do!”

Ye Shaoyang pushed Hu Shuai aside, and he arrived before Liao Qingqing. He looked at her and sighed helplessly. He took out a talisman paper and initiated the ritual, but suddenly, someone tightly grabbed his arm from behind. It was Li Duo, who was trying to stop him.

“Brother Shaoyang,” Li Duo begged, “Can’t we just let her go?”

“Let her go? I’m helping her!” Ye Shaoyang yelled out in anger, “Letting her stay would harm her. I don’t need to give any of you an explanation! Let go of me!”

“Little Ye, this…. ” Xiao Ma put down the stool and started to plead as well.

“Go away! All of you, get out of the way!”

Ye Shaoyang’s current state terrified Xiao Ma and Li Duo. They had never seen Ye Shaoyang lose his temper like this before. Ye Shaoyang forced himself out of Li Duo’s grasps and stuck the talisman paper on Liao Qingqing’s forehead. He started to chant the Chant of Transcendence. Hu Shuai knew he could not stop Ye Shaoyang anymore, so he prepared himself for suicide. Liao Qingqing’s figure grew fainter and fainter. Soon, she became as light as a stream of smoke. Then, she attached herself to the talisman paper. By the time her entire body had attached to it, Ye Shaoyang had finished his chant too. Ye Shaoyang took a deep breath and threw the talisman paper into the air, “Liao Qingqing, life and death are destined, go to the Underworld like you should.”

Usually, the talisman paper would float to the north and disappear into the Ghost Kingdom. Instead, the talisman paper dropped to the floor. Ye Shaoyang froze. This was not a good sign. He picked up the talisman paper and flicked it with his middle finger. Liao Qingqing bounced out of the talisman paper and fell onto the bed. Ye Shaoyang asked, “What have you done?”

Liao Qingqing gave him a bitter smile and remained quiet.

Ye Shaoyang grabbed her hand to sense her condition and received a shock. Stunned and angry, he yelled, “You have disintegrated a thread of your soul!”

“Yes, brother Shaoyang. I’m now an incomplete spirit. The Underworld will not take me. If you must forcefully send me to the Ghost Kingdom, I can only go to the Mountain of Great Yin.”

Ye Shaoyang sat on the bed, as he let out a long sigh. This was indeed true; the Underworld would not take an incomplete spirit for a simple reason: In the Book of Death, the spirit and soul must match one another like an identification card on earth. This was the only proof of identification in the Underworld. An incomplete spirit cannot be sent for reincarnation because the other half of the soul would be lost in the middle. This was why Ye Shaoyang did not immediately transcend her when he found her two hun and four po. But now, Ye Shaoyang faced something worse. He could find a lost soul, even if it became a primordial spirit. But Liao Qingqing had disintegrated a thread of her soul, so there was no way he could find it. There was no way she could enter the Underworld without this thread of her soul. In fact, many spirits lingered on earth because their soul had been disintegrated.

It was usually rare for a spirit to disintegrate its own soul, and there was actually a simple solution. As long as she regenerated her soul, she would be complete in three to five years. But Ye Shaoyang knew the game that Liao Qingqing wanted to play, and it was all in her own hands. She could use three to five years to regenerate her soul, or she could take thirty-five years. In the end, it was all up to her own will now. A sorcerer can catch spirits or kill specters, but regenerating souls was something out of their hands. It was a matter of a spirit’s own will.

“Unbelievable! You are killing me!” Ye Shaoyang was incredibly mad, and he could imagine himself slapping Liao Qingqing into non-existence now.

Liao Qingqing kneeled before Ye Shaoyang with tears all over her face, “Brother Shaoyang, I know your actions were for my own good. But this is my own choice. Please let us be.”

Hu Shuai joined Liao Qingqing and kneeled on both his knees.

Xiao Ma scratched his head and asked, “Little Ye, would it help if I joined them and kneeled at you?”

“No need for that! Get out! Just get out!” In the end, Ye Shaoyang got out of the room instead and slammed the door. He sat on the sofa; he could feel steam coming out of his nostrils. Sure he was angry, but Liao Qingqing’s choice to disintegrate a thread of her own soul surprised him even more. She had become an incomplete spirit just to be with Hu Shuai. It was really a scene out of a movie.

Since he could do nothing, he calmed himself down after a few minutes. Then, he summoned Liao Qingqing, “Liao Qingqing, come here.”

Liao Qingqing came out just as he had requested and was about to kneel. Ye Shaoyang gestured, “No need for that. Since you choose misery, there’s nothing I can do. Remember, this is your own choice, so don’t blame anyone if you face Heavenly Tribulation or another powerful sorcerer trying to kill you.”

He wanted to warn her to not cause anyone harm, but on second thought, Liao Qingqing was someone he could trust on this front. So, he waved his hand and said, “You can go now. Don’t let me ever see you again.”

“Brother Shaoyang, thank you for letting us go.” Liao Qingqing bowed to him, and happiness was evident on her face. She looked at Hu Shuai with eyes full of love, “Take me home, my love.” Then, she attached herself to the talisman paper. Hu Shuai carefully placed the talisman paper in his pocket and came to the living room. He wanted to thank Ye Shaoyang again, but Xiao Ma stopped him. He ushered Hu Shuai out of the house, just in case Ye Shaoyang changed his mind.

Li Duo followed with a satisfied look on his face.

Xiao Ma returned to the living room and smiled at Ye Shaoyang, “Little Ye, time for dinner.”

Ye Shaoyang let out a long sigh. He took out a small ceramic bottle and passed it to Xiao Ma, “Pass this to Liao Qingqing. This bottle has my seal on it. It can’t be easily opened. There are many sorcerers out there. Remind her to stay in the bottle and cultivate. As long as she doesn’t encounter any sorcerer more powerful than me, she will be fine. Also, tell her that if one day, Hu Shuai no longer loves her and meets someone new, do not interfere. Tell her to come and look for me if that happens; I will help her.” Xiao Ma’s face instantly turned happy. He took the bottle and ran out of the door.

Minutes later, he joyfully returned and smiled at Ye Shaoyang, “All done. Little Ye, I knew you wouldn’t be that cruel.”

Ye Shaoyang laid on the sofa, exhausted. He was silent for a while. When he finally spoke, he asked Xiao Ma, “Do you guys really feel that I’m a little cruel?”

“No, it’s not that,” Xiao Ma waved his hand and denied these words. He smiled awkwardly and tried to explain, “It’s just that, you know, you have your own principles.”

Ye Shaoyang asked, “Tell me, in the Legend of The White Snake, do you know why Fa Hai wanted to capture Bai Suzhen?”

Xiao Ma answered wittingly, “Fa Hai liked Bai Suzhen. He was jealous that she didn’t like him back.”

Ye Shaoyang was at a lost for words for a moment, “It’s because Fa Hai was a sorcerer. A sorcerer’s job is to catch spirits and defeat devils. Imagine encountering a spirit and allowing it to stay on earth to be with a human. It’s against the rules of the universe. There are going to be consequences. Of course, Hu Shuai and Liao Qingqing are both in love now. But consider this: Liao Qingqing is a spirit, so she can never appear in front of anyone. Hu Shuai is a human. He cannot be seen with her, and he cannot be with a human girlfriend either, let alone getting married and have kids. Do you think he can take it after some time?”

“He might be fine for three years or five years. But how about after ten or twenty years? Can you guarantee that he would still treat her the same? And what if he really breaks up with her one day? Would Liao Qingqing’s love for him turn into hatred? After all, she sacrificed so much for him. What would she do to him in revenge? Remember, she is a spirit, and by that time, she would become a somewhat powerful one too.”

Xiao Ma did not think of all these things. He frowned for a while, but in the end, he shook his head in disbelief, “I trust Hu Shuai. Liao Qingqing has sacrificed so much for him. He is going to appreciate all these things. He will never have a change of heart.”

“Let’s hope so. Otherwise, I would’ve committed a great sin.” Ye Shaoyang could only sigh.