Chapter 5 — Even Hell Can't Stop You

But Lam Viet didn't let me go. He suddenly rushed forward, hugged my shoulders tightly, forcing me to face those bloodshot eyes, each word he uttered... weighed like a thousand pounds: "Listen to me!" “The King of Hell never misremembers.” “If he's not in the file, then there's only one possibility —” He stopped, his hands shaking slightly, his lips pursed as if he couldn't bear to continue. A moment later, Lam Viet's voice was hoarse, each word falling as cold as ice: "His soul... had an accident on the way to the underworld." “So… he never entered the underworld.” “And so… he forever missed his chance to reincarnate.” At that moment, my heart felt like it was broken into a million pieces. The noise, the wind, the whole world around... all disappeared in a soundless void. There's only one question left, so painful it's suffocating: "If... he never entered the underworld... Then where is my A Viet... now?" 8 If A Viet cannot enter the underworld, cannot be reincarnated... Then won't he... become a wild ghost? I don't accept! A good person like you... How could he lose his soul, be blown away by the wind, alone in the cold darkness? Are not! Absolutely not like that. A thought flashed in my mind - if I could only find him, everything could still be saved. As long as I find A Viet, I won't let go anymore. I grabbed Lam Viet's wrist, almost begging: "Lam Viet... can you... help me find him? I beg you... help me just this once." Lam Viet's eyes trembled slightly, layers of pain like ripples at the bottom of a deep lake. His voice was hoarse, as if it took all his strength to say: "If I could find it...I would have helped you find it a long time ago." “I asked Black White Impermanence, two years ago, not a single soul was left behind.” Oh! It was like a rock fell straight into my heart. The whole world collapsed in an instant. I stood still, feeling my entire body's strength being drained away. My heart was so suffocated that I had trouble breathing, my eye sockets were burning, but I couldn't shed a single tear. There was chaos in my head, it was as if it was broken into a thousand pieces. Lam Viet looked at me, his face tense and serious, his lips pursed tightly as if in a fierce struggle. His eyes hid something, as if he wanted to say, but in the end he just sighed, his voice low: "Maybe... there is another possibility." I raised my head, my eyes filled with tears, staring at him. “Possibility… what?” Lam Viet looked at me, his eyes sparkling with a complex light, both hopeful and miserable: "Maybe... he's not dead."

“…Not…dead yet?” There was a buzzing sound in my head, it was empty. This statement only lasted for exactly one second, I immediately shook my head and flatly denied it. “No… No way.” I engrave that memory deep in my heart, it cannot be wrong. That day, in my arms, A Viet's body was cold. I remember every detail clearly. A Viet died to save me. The moment the car lost control, he had a chance to live, but... he turned the steering wheel hard towards me, shielding himself with his body. So, I... am still alive. I muttered tremblingly, my voice cracking: "No... he's dead... I touched his body, cold as ice, how could he not be dead..."

However, even though A Viet was "dead", I couldn't find him in either realm: • The Yang world no longer exists. • Hell is also invisible. So… where did my A Viet… go? In his chest, a frantic sound of doubt flared up, tearing apart his reason: “That's not true… Someone is lying to me.” I pushed Lam Viet's hand hard, stepped back, and stood up quickly. My arms and legs were weak, but I still clung to the edge of the table to keep my balance. My breathing was rapid, each word escaping like blood: "Can't trust anyone... I have to find A Viet myself!" Having finished speaking, I turned around and rushed out of the room. Yes, I have one last way. Just go to the pawn shop, just give something of enough value, they will find A Viet for me. Even if I have to trade my lifespan in the next life, even if I have to become a wandering ghost forever, as long as I can find you - I have no regrets. 7 I dragged my weak body, gritted my teeth and ran straight to the pawn shop, almost without stopping. There was only one thought left in my mind - to find A Viet. Almost there, suddenly a strong force hit me on the back of my neck, a wave of dizziness struck me, my eyes went dark — ... And I fainted. When I opened my eyes again… The first thing that entered my vision was — A giant eye. Me: “…” Wc?! What the hell is this? A giant version of… eye candy? I tried to tilt my head back to avoid it, but found that my hands and feet were tied tightly with ice-cold rope, making it impossible to move at all! It was dark all around, only the sound of cold, damp breathing remained. I tried to roll my eyes, but I couldn't see anything clearly except the blinking pupils in front of me. So, a one-eyed ghost, staring at each other in the dark. Tense atmosphere? Are not. It's annoying to die. That eye... kept spinning, blinking like a motor. I almost went crazy, I just wanted to smash it with a punch!

“Hey, can you roll away? Get out of my face!” As soon as the words finished, the giant eye "popped" back as if it had a spring inside, disappearing into the darkness in front of it. Right after that, wisps of green smoke rose from deep in the darkness, and a tall figure slowly walked out. I squinted my eyes and looked closely, feeling familiar. …Wait… Isn't this the same devil as before?!

I widened my eyes, thousands of question marks lined up in my head: According to the script, after escaping the battle yesterday, this guy should have gone around sucking up tears everywhere, causing chaos in the underworld, so why would he kidnap an anonymous little devil like me? It bent down, glanced at the business card around my neck, the corners of its lips curled into a cold smile, and its hoarse voice said: "Oh... ghost color? It's very rare in the underworld." Me: “…” Demonic color? Your grandfather is the devil! My whole family, forever and after, is a ghost! I rolled my eyes, not bothering to get involved, simply asked directly: "Say! What are you making me do?" The devil snorted, gently lifted my chin with one finger, the corner of his lips curled into a contemptuous smile, "tch tch" twice: "If you look closely it's... normal. Why would the King of Hell look at someone like you?" Me: “…” That look full of contempt made my blood rush to my brain, so angry that I almost lost my soul on the spot! But then... one sentence of it stunned me: "King of Hell." I suddenly narrowed my eyes, a guess flashed: "Could it be that... you intend to use me to threaten Lam Viet?" The devil looked at me, not answering, but the corners of his lips curled up, his smile so cruel that it made my heart cold. … Don't deny it. I burst out laughing, my voice full of sarcasm: "Ha! Did you forget to bring your brain when you went out? Use a small one." An anonymous ghost like me to threaten the King of Hell... You came up with this trick, pretty good!" The devil didn't pay any attention, he just slowly turned around, his dark red eyes flashed like blood, his voice was hoarse: "Last time... I hit with a full force attack. With a little devil like you, the soul should have disappeared on the spot. But you… are still alive.” “Do you know why?” As soon as his words fell, the smile on my lips... suddenly froze. That's right. That attack, just half of it, was enough to erase my soul. But I'm... okay again. A memory suddenly popped into my head - The image of Lam Viet's face that day... pale as ashes. His hand... was cracked and full of burns, and I easily escaped his restraints and ran straight to the pawn shop. At that moment, my heart suddenly tightened. It was Lam Viet who saved me. In order to save a little devil whose soul was about to disappear, he... transferred a part of his cultivation to me. I remember Manh Ba once said: "The power of the King of Hell... comes from the Fire of Hell. But to control it, you need an extremely high level and a strong enough body. If you forcefully use it, you will be attacked by earth fire, your skin will be burned, and your heart will be burned." That means... Lam Viet uses his cultivation to protect me, which means... he himself has to endure the backlash from the earth fire. I... saved Lam Viet because I wanted to know A Viet's news. But what about Lam Viet... You saved me... for what?