Chapter 56: Ghost Messenger - Ranking
In the Pingdeng Hall, the announcement of the ghost messenger event continued.
"This year's winner of the title of the Best Ghost Messenger of the Witch God Temple is—Witch Ina! She earned a total of 2.7 million Yin De throughout the year!"
The person whose name was called by Di Ting was a young girl with a cold temperament. She was wearing a red and white witch's costume with wide and flowing cuffs. She was bowing to the ghosts around her calmly.
"Next is the Tianxuan Palace. In the twelfth year of the Zhenguan calendar, the best ghost messenger in spring was Ghost Messenger Cheng, who earned a total of 270,000 Yin De..."
Ghost Messenger Ba looked tense. Di Ting had already announced the best ghost messengers in the eight palaces, reading out the names of the elites one after another, and finally reached the Southern Continent. After passing the Tianxuan Palace, it would be the turn of the Guangwang Palace.
Looking at the ranking on the performance list, Guicha Ba's heart was pounding. Although no matter how he calculated it, he should be the best ghost messenger in Guangwang Palace this year, the bright red name of Guicha Jie ranked second was so glaring that it made him feel like a thorn in his throat.
Ye Jie's sudden rise in rank actually posed a serious threat to it. Under normal circumstances, considering the amount of Yin De it had gained in Guangwang Palace, that would have been impossible.
"Hmph, Ghost Messenger Jie... You've always been ranked last, but this time you're actually qualified to be ranked behind me. You should be proud of this, but this winter's Best Ghost Messenger title must be mine!"
The Ghost Messenger Ba growled angrily, and his gaze towards Di Ting also turned hostile. Only when everything was settled could he feel at ease. He cursed inwardly, "Hmph! Why is this monster speaking so slowly in his announcement? Damn it, stop being such a turtle and read it to me faster!"
On the stage, Di Ting paused in his words, and his amber eyes, as big as copper bells, accurately locked onto the ghost catcher Ba in the crowd.
Locked by the breath of the divine beast, Guichaba knew that he had spoken out of turn, so he remained silent and waited quietly for the final outcome.
However, offending the mythical beast that symbolizes auspiciousness also caused Guichaba's luck to be damaged invisibly. Di Ting looked at it carefully, deliberately dragging out the sound, and wanted to say a sentence for half a day.
Guichaba was defeated and had no words to say. He could only grit his teeth secretly. No matter what, the final victory would definitely belong to him.
…………
The top of Black Mountain.
After all of Hengshan Bandit's men jumped in, Ye Jie took the soul-calling banner into his arms, looked around, and said loudly:
"I don't know which sir has secretly protected my life. Please show yourself now."
There was no one around, and the only answer to Ye Jie was the gusts of cold wind blowing from the cliff.
Ye Jie was unwilling to give up and continued, "The Heart-Destroying Devil Palm of the Peak Third Stage Bandit Hengshan, even if it was just a ranged attack, was definitely not something I, a mid-second stage, could withstand. My soul should have been shattered. But under his full-strength palm, my soul and body remained intact, without even a scratch. This is all thanks to the senior's secret protection. Please come out and see me. Ye Jie wants to personally thank you."
At Ye Jie's call, ripples appeared in the space ahead, and someone really moved over.
The person was a woman with shark teeth, triangular eyes, and lifeless eyes. She exuded a deep air of fatigue from head to toe. Even the power of the fifth-level immortal realm could not cheer her up.
Ye Jie recognized her identity as Guazi, one of the head maids in the wine country. He clasped his fists and said, "Thanks to Miss Guazi's help, Ye Jie was able to save his life and avoid a disastrous end. This life-saving grace..."
Before Ye Jie could finish, Guazi waved his hand and said weakly, "It was Aunt Meng who told me to do this. If you want to repay her, just do it. Aunt Meng just happened to have something to ask you, so why don't you come with me."
"Looking for me at this time..."
Ye Jie was stunned, his face showing difficulty. He was concerned about the safety of his apprentice. When he saw Xia Wei leaving, his brows were furious and he was afraid that something unexpected would happen. With Xia Wei's stubborn and even paranoid personality, who knows what trouble she might cause.
However, it was neither reasonable nor moral to reject Guazi who had just saved him. Ye Jie sighed slightly and moved away with Guazi. He could only pray in his heart that Xia Wei would not cause any trouble.
After returning to the familiar wine country, Ye Jie's eyes froze. He saw that the sky above the wine country, which had been clear and bright before, was now covered with layers of dark clouds. In the dark clouds, thunder was raging and electric arcs were surging, which looked like a precursor to the coming storm.
Guazi moved forward. Although Ye Jie had some doubts in his heart, he could only suppress them for the time being and followed Guazi, quickly climbing to the top floor of the wine country.
Stepping into the Jinxiu Hall on the top floor, Ye Jie also saw many familiar faces, including Yulan holding a pipa, Fuling holding a folding fan, Mint with cat ears, Bailuo sitting on a floating chair, and the other two head maids, all waiting here.
Unlike the cheerful and festive atmosphere in the wine country in the past, this time, all the head maids were frowning and looked depressed.
The sentimental Yulan was secretly wiping away her tears. Now that she saw Ye Jie coming, she could no longer suppress the sadness in her heart. She threw herself into Ye Jie's arms without saying a word, leaned on his shoulder, and sobbed softly.
"It's okay... I'm here with you."
Ye Jie reached out, patted Yulan's back gently, and comforted her in a slow voice.
After Ye Jie's repeated comfort, Yulan's expression improved a little, but she was holding Ye Jie's hand and was unwilling to let go. Then she heard Ye Jie ask:
"Can anyone tell me what's going on here? Why do you all look so worried? Is there some bad news?"
Fuling waved her folding fan and sighed, "It's not bad news. In fact, it's good news. But parting is hard to avoid... Sigh. After Aunt Meng left, the wine village felt like it had lost its backbone. Without the ghost immortal to take charge, many things will become quite troublesome from now on."
"Leave..." Ye Jie was stunned. Thinking of the thunderclouds gathering over the wine country, he suddenly understood, "Could it be that Aunt Meng is planning to..."
Bai Luo, sitting in the chair, took over and said, "The deadline has arrived. Aunt Meng has done her best to delay the arrival of the calamity clouds, but it is ultimately impossible to escape the life-threatening immortal calamity. Ghost Messenger Ye Jie, now it is your turn to take action."
"So that's how it is..." Ye Jie thought thoughtfully.
"Now is not a good time to reincarnate. The news of the Demon King's reincarnation has caused panic among the people of Jambu Continent. I really don't understand why Aunt Meng insisted on reincarnating in Jambu Continent..." The heroic head maid holding a green bamboo spear spoke slowly. Yulan introduced her identity to Ye Jie. Her name was Yunzhu.
Bohe put his hands behind his head, and the cat ears on his head drooped down. "Aunt Meng's thoughts are beyond our control. All we can do is find Aunt Meng's reincarnation as soon as possible and protect her all the way. If anything happens to her, I will never forgive myself for the rest of my life."
Yulan glanced at Ye Jie who was so close to her and said softly, "With Brother Jie here, I believe the matter will be resolved satisfactorily. He is the destined person that Aunt Meng has found."
Upon hearing this, Ye Jie clasped his fists towards the head maids and said, "Ye Jie will do his utmost to fulfill his mission."
As they spoke, a breath of fresh air, like a spring breeze, finally arrived, and Aunt Meng, the master of the wine country, finally arrived. She was dressed in a gilded fairy dress, with a phoenix hairpin on her head. She was plump and looked wealthy. Her eyes were smiling, and her expression was leisurely, as if she was about to enter not an unknown afterlife, but an ordinary outing.
"Aunt Meng...you are finally here."
"We will protect everything in the wine country and wait for your return."
Seeing Aunt Meng coming, the head maids gathered around her chattering, their words full of reluctance to leave.
Aunt Meng smiled and waved her hand: "Well, separation is always heartbreaking, but I believe that fate will bring us together again. You know, the word fate is so wonderful, don't you think? It's destined to be with you?"
As she spoke, Aunt Meng raised her eyes slightly, and her beautiful eyes, like a clear lake, swept over Ye Jie who was standing beside her.
Ye Jie bowed and said, "If Aunt Meng says yes, then of course it is."
Aunt Meng raised her hand and snapped her fingers. The space around them changed, and in an instant, they arrived in front of a rushing river. A bridge stood there, and the bridge was filled with purple-red mist, which seemed real and illusory, like a dream and smoke. In the middle of the bridge, an old woman with a hunched back was standing, and it seemed that she had been waiting here for a long time.
…………
Inside the Equal Hall, Di Ting's tone was neither hurried nor slow, revealing the carefree and relaxed demeanor of the divine beast:
"After the ranking announcements for the first nine halls, it's finally the turn of the last of the Ten Halls of Yama. Let's take a look at the ranking of Guangwang Hall..."
In a corner of the hall, listening to Di Ting's slow tone, Guichaba felt anxious and wished he could rush onto the stage and recite the next content on behalf of Di Ting.
It couldn't help but glance at the rankings again. Seeing that Ye Jie's Yin De had stopped at 350,000, and his ranking had not changed, and that he had long lost the possibility of sprinting to the top of the quarter, it finally felt relieved and laughed out loud: "Huh, Ghost Messenger Jie? You are too young to fight me. Now, it's time to reap the victory!"
On the stage, someone was listening attentively and reciting aloud: "In the twelfth year of the Zhenguan calendar, the best ghost messenger in the spring of Guangwang Palace was Ghost Messenger Ba, who had earned a total of 294,000 Yin De..."
Hearing the familiar name, the ghosts in Guangwang Palace cast their eyes of envy and admiration at the red demon ghost with its arms folded, praising him repeatedly:
"Ghost Chaba is really great."
"You are worthy of being the pride of our Guangwang Palace!"
"The glory of Guangwang Palace is all carried on Guichaba's shoulders!"
On the luxurious steps, Di Ting continued, "The best ghost messenger of the summer is Ghost Messenger Ba, who has earned a total of 342,000 Yin De..."
This time, even Ghost Messenger Tiger, who was ranked high in the Guangwang Palace and ranked fourth, couldn't help but cast his eyes on Ghost Messenger Ba: "This person is extremely talented. He has risen to prominence in just a few years. Although he is only at the third level, he can barely fight with me. He is truly a rare talent."
Even Xie Bian looked at Guichaba with an icy gaze: "You may be quite capable, but do you have what it takes to survive the upcoming Ten Palaces of Hell and the chaotic fight between the ghost officials?"
Di Ting continued, "The best ghost messenger in autumn is Ghost Messenger Ba, who has earned a total of 331,000 Yin De..."
Seeing that someone had won the position of the best ghost catcher for three consecutive quarters, this time, even the Lord of Guangwang Palace, who was sitting on the throne of Yama, cast his admiring eyes on the red demon ghost, and the judges around him could not help but applaud the ghost catcher.
Amidst the compliments of the crowd, Guichaba gradually lost himself and raised his hands, ready to welcome the victory.
…………
When they arrived at the Naihe Bridge, the rolling clouds of disaster also followed. Aunt Meng took out a lifelike clay figure from her arms, and then took out a palm-sized wooden nameplate and showed it to Ye Jie.
Looking at the brand, Ye Jie was stunned: "Is this... Divine Phoenix Wutong wood?"
Aunt Meng smiled slightly: "Do you know what it is used for?"
Ye Jie nodded. "I've heard that it's the paulownia wood that the phoenix used to rest on during its rebirth. If you make a nameplate out of it, engrave your desired name on it, and carry it with you when you reincarnate, you can be sure of that name in your next life. The phoenix only exists in the heavens, where immortals gather. I've never seen paulownia wood before, but seeing it today, I know it's true."
"In order to obtain this small piece of Divine Phoenix Wutong wood, I have thought of many ways."
Aunt Meng's face showed a pained look, and she showed Ye Jie the name on the name tag: "'Meng Junyao', this is my name, and I will use this name in my next life. Maybe in reincarnation, I will forget everything, but I don't want to forget even my name."
Ye Jie secretly sighed. There was a clay man made of the soil of the Styx to determine the appearance of the next life, and there was a nameplate made of the wood of the Divine Phoenix to determine the name of the next life. The immortals were indeed very creative in their pursuit of reincarnation methods.
Then Aunt Meng asked, "In my next life, she had the exact same name and the exact same appearance as me, but tell me, is she still me?"
Ye Jie pondered for a moment: "She is still you, but not the same you. Although the soul is the same, her personality and the kind of person she will become are all shaped by her fate."
Aunt Meng remained silent. She hung her nametag in front of her. As the calamity clouds intensified, blazing lightning ripped through the sky, she shook her head gently, clearing away the worries in her mind. She smiled and said, "No matter what, my dear, I'll wait for you to find me in the next life. Give me your Ghost Messenger Order."
Ye Jie did as he was told and handed the ghost messenger order engraved with the word Jie to her. She slowly stepped onto the bridge and looked back with endless nostalgia in her eyes. Her figure disappeared in the thick mist.
At the same time, the torn pages in Ye Jie's arms also vibrated violently like never before!
【Book of Life and Death:】
In the winter of the twelfth year of the Zhenguan reign, the immortal holding the Ghost Messenger Jie's token successfully underwent a third-grade reincarnation.
【A second-level ghost messenger charges a one percent guide fee.】
【Ghost Messenger Jie gained one million Yin De.】
Next to the cold words, Aunt Meng's plump, round, happy and kind face was painted with bright red cinnabar.
After watching Aunt Meng go away, Ye Jie put the torn pages back into his arms and remained silent for a long time.
…………
Inside the Equal Hall, the long-awaited announcement finally arrived at the final moment:
"The best Ghost Messenger of the winter is Ghost Messenger Jie, who has earned a total of 1.35 million Yin De."
"This year's winner of Guangwang Palace's Best Ghost Messenger is—Ghost Messenger Jie! He earned a total of 1.34 million Yin De throughout the year!"
As soon as these words fell, the ghosts in Guangwang Palace who were congratulating the ghost catcher Badao suddenly stopped their compliments and cheers, and were completely dumbfounded.