Realm of the Night God

Chapter 100: Funeral

Yang Haoran claimed to be an Underworld Envoy. Although the person with the face didn't seem entirely convinced, his fear of Yang Haoran was unmistakable.

"Are you truly an Underworld Envoy?" The person's tone was uncertain.

Yang Haoran chuckled and nodded, saying, "I have no reason to deceive you."

As his words fell, the soul gathering bead embedded in the ring fell off. With a wave of his hand, the soul gathering bead returned to its normal size, hovering in the air in front of the tombstone. Inside the bead, soul threads meandered mysteriously.

"They are like you, having lost their lives for various reasons. Afterward, I found them. If you doubt me, you can ask them yourself after you enter," Yang Haoran said with a smile.

Facing such undead beings, Yang Haoran could easily use force to directly collect them into the soul gathering bead. They didn't even have the ability to resist. However, he refrained from doing so because he believed in showing respect to the deceased.

Of course, if someone didn't take him seriously or had other ideas about him, that would be a different matter.

Watching the soul threads inside the soul gathering bead and Yang Haoran's eerie ghost eyes, the person believed Yang Haoran's words to some extent.

"I have one last wish. Can you help me fulfill it?" The person's gaze shifted from the soul gathering bead to Yang Haoran, pleading in their tone.

Without hesitation, Yang Haoran shook his head, saying, "I'm sorry, but that is not within my duties. I cannot help you."

Upon hearing this, disappointment flashed across the person's face. They were about to say something else, but Yang Haoran preemptively spoke.

"I have many matters to attend to, and I cannot linger here for too long. Moreover, if an ordinary person were to see me in this state, it would surely cause unnecessary trouble and misunderstandings. So, get ready. I will now bring you into the soul gathering bead and guide you away from this place," Yang Haoran said with a gentle smile to the person.

"No, I don't want to leave yet. I still have an unfinished wish!"

The person refused Yang Haoran's offer. They didn't intend to leave with Yang Haoran at that moment. After a moment of facial distortion, the person disappeared from the tombstone.

Yang Haoran sighed and shook his head. This wasn't the first time he had encountered such a situation. Although he disliked using force against ordinary undead, sometimes he had no choice. He could only do what was necessary, just like now.

With a snap of his fingers, the soul gathering bead was activated. As black Yin Qi rose, a tremendous suction force, effective only on souls, erupted from within the soul gathering bead. The person's face, which had just disappeared, reappeared on the tombstone.

Under the powerful suction force, the person's entire soul was forcibly pulled out from the tombstone and then, amidst their unwilling voice, all of it was collected into the soul gathering bead, a matter of mere breaths.

With a wave of his hand, the soul gathering bead returned to his palm. Looking at the extra soul thread, Yang Haoran said with a smile, "I apologize. If I were to fulfill every undead's wish, even with my ability to clone myself, I would still be overwhelmed. Since they have already passed away, let their past lives drift away with the wind."

As he finished speaking, the soul gathering bead quickly shrank in Yang Haoran's palm and then embedded itself above the ring.

Lighting a cigarette, Yang Haoran glanced at the new grave in front of him and sighed softly, "Everyone dies, but how many can truly let go before they die? Whose life is without regrets?"

Shaking his head, Yang Haoran exhaled a cloud of smoke heavily and turned to leave.

Back in his car, Yang Haoran continued driving home. Due to the delay, there were now more pedestrians and vehicles on the road.

To avoid causing trouble for others and himself, he maintained a steady speed, neither too fast nor too slow.

At this rate, he estimated he wouldn't reach home until well past noon, just in time to have lunch with his parents.

Meanwhile, Master Wu, who was in Lecheng, unexpectedly appeared outside the South Lake Death God Temple. Besides a young, strong bodyguard, he was alone.

Standing outside the temple gate, Master Wu took out a pendant from around his neck and carefully examined it in his hand. Although he had seen this pendant inside and out many times, he couldn't resist taking another look at it now.

It was just an ordinary-looking Death God pendant, both in craftsmanship and material. Yet, this important figure, Master Wu, treated it as a treasure, wearing it close to his body.

If Yang Haoran were here, he would easily recognize that the Death God pendant Master Wu wore around his neck was crafted by him. This pendant even bore his Yin spirit power, which he could easily sense.

Having lived to his current age, Master Wu's experience was unquestionable. Even before the haunting at his villa, he had encountered some inexplicable phenomena. It was precisely because of this that he knew Wang Yiming from the Fu Sect and the exorcist Ma Ling.

Having seen such things, he was aware of the existence of extraordinary individuals in this world. However, he had never seen gods, so he didn't believe in them.

Because of this, he didn't follow any god or believe in concepts like karma, reincarnation, or transmigration until Yang Haoran appeared, which changed his perspective.

Yang Haoran was from the Yin Division. Master Wu initially heard about it from Wang Yiming and Ma Ling, then he confirmed it by personally asking Yang Haoran.

Since there were Underworld Envoys in the Yin Division, did it mean that the supreme ruler of the Yin Division, the Death God, also existed? Was reincarnation after death really true?

Master Wu's perspective had changed as a result. Considering his advanced age and the limited time he had left in this world, he wanted to make one last effort, to do something for himself!

With his status and age, he had long lost any desire for struggle. Time hung over him like a sword at his neck, steadily approaching. He knew resistance was futile, and he had no desire to change that. After all, everyone would face that day.

But Yang Haoran's appearance gave him hope again. He felt that he wasn't completely devoid of the ability to resist. If he could summon the vigor of his youth one more time and make a final effort, perhaps it would yield unexpected results.

He wanted to live for a few more years, as many as possible. Even if he couldn't extend his life further, he didn't want to suffer after death. As an Underworld Envoy, Yang Haoran held immense value for him.

Why was he so courteous to Yang Haoran?

Why did he go to such lengths to win over Yang Haoran?

Offering money, cars, and even appearing whenever trouble arose without being asked, all of this was because Yang Haoran was too important to Master Wu at this point in his life!

There was no emotional connection between them. They were merely using each other for their own ends. Both were intelligent enough not to break that thin layer of mutual benefit.

Today, when he came to the Death God Temple, he decided to become a believer in the Death God. This was the first step in his upcoming plans!

A benevolent smile appeared on Master Wu's face, making him seem like a kind old man to anyone who saw him. He carefully tucked the Death God pendant into his bosom and then stepped into the Death God Temple.

Yang Haoran was unaware that Master Wu had already entered the Death God Temple. At this moment, he was struggling to avoid the constant flow of vehicles on the road.

Although he had held a driver's license for many years, at this moment, he could easily be mistaken for a novice. He could only control his speed and distance as best as he could to avoid becoming a danger on the road.

In his plan, getting back home for lunch should not have been a problem. However, plans often didn't keep up with changes. When he finally arrived home, it was almost dusk.

During the journey, Yang Haoran had sensed the presence of several undead beings one after another. As a Night Watch, an escort of the undead, he couldn't pretend not to notice such things. Instead of avoiding them, he was happy to guide them repeatedly.

Since cars couldn't reach these places, Yang Haoran had to park his car somewhere safe before proceeding to the areas where he sensed the presence of undead. This was quite time-consuming.

Moreover, Yang Haoran had the habit of communicating with the undead before directly collecting them into the soul gathering bead. He aimed to achieve the voluntary entry of the undead into the soul gathering bead, which further prolonged the process.

Because of this, after numerous stops and starts along the way, he didn't arrive home until almost dusk.

During this time, Yang Haoran's mother had called him several times, worried that something might have happened to him on the road. After all, with so many people and vehicles during the New Year, accidents were common.

In response, while assuring his parents of his safety, Yang Haoran asked them not to wait for him and promised to arrive home as soon as possible.

As the sun set, Yang Haoran parked his car in front of his home. Everything before his eyes felt familiar: the familiar tiles, the familiar roads, the familiar air, the familiar trees. He couldn't help but close his eyes and take a deep breath of the familiar air, feeling immensely relaxed.

The only thing that disappointed him was that he didn't see the familiar smiles of his parents, and the house's door was tightly closed, which left him puzzled.

"Strange, where did mom and dad go?"

Just as this doubt arose in his mind, the sound of drums and gongs reached his ears, followed by heart-wrenching cries.

Furrowing his brows, being born in the countryside, he was too familiar with this sound—it was the sound of a funeral procession.

Following the source of the sound, although obstructed by trees, he was certain that the drumming, gongs, and mourning cries were coming from his uncle's house.

"Something happened at Third Uncle's house? Why didn't mom and dad mention anything about it before?"

With doubts in his mind, Yang Haoran hastened his steps toward Third Uncle's house.