Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 434 Evil Ghost, Concealment without Reporting

The Judge heard Chen Nuo’s words, and his expression gradually turned solemn, "Shopkeeper Chen mentioned this case, and I do remember it. Some time ago, Black and White Impermanence reported that they were escorting a woman’s soul, and were about to reach the Naihe Bridge when, out of nowhere, she mustered the strength to suddenly break free from her shackles and escaped. This indeed matches what Shopkeeper Chen described. Could it be the same person?"

"It’s probably the same one," Chen Nuo said indifferently, "but when I encountered her, half of the woman’s soul was already missing."

The Judge’s expression became even more serious as he said, "She’s still lingering in this world?"

"What?" Chen Nuo asked, "Do you know something?"

"This Evil Ghost has been out for quite a long time now," said the Judge. "At first, it increased its mana by devouring Wandering Ghosts without us realizing. We were only puzzled as to why the number of Wandering Ghosts was decreasing. Later, I suspect it must have consumed all the Wandering Ghosts in that area and then turned its attention to the souls of those on the brink of death."

"Then why didn’t you capture the Evil Ghost?"

"It’s not that we didn’t want to catch it; the Evil Ghost is extremely cunning and elusive," the Judge sighed. "We’ve sent out many Yin Envoys, but to no avail, and some were even consumed by the Evil Ghost. As it devoured more and more souls, its strength grew stronger and it became even harder to catch."

"How come there’s not a single piece of news from the Heavenly Court about such a major event?" Nezha wondered aloud. "Logically, this should have been reported to the Heavenly Court, and the Jade Emperor would have sought divine officials to help. How come I’ve never heard of this matter?"

Caught off guard, the Judge hemmed and hawed for a while, then said, "It’s not that we didn’t want to report it. Recently, there was the Buddhism Dharma Banquet, and we thought it wasn’t an urgent matter, so we planned to report it after the banquet was over."

Chen Nuo was furious, "This isn’t an urgent matter?"

"We also didn’t want to dampen the spirits above, so we thought we would report it after some time," the Judge explained.

Chen Nuo was almost amused by anger, "You didn’t deal with it when it was just eating Wandering Ghosts, and you didn’t handle it when it started consuming the souls of the newly deceased either. Is there anything more important than the Buddhist Dharma Banquet that you have to wait until the situation is unmanageable before reporting?"

"We were considering the Heavenly Court as well," the Judge explained. "The Buddhist Dharma Banquet was a busy time, and it didn’t seem right to bother then."

"So, you think that concealing it and not reporting it is the right thing to do?" Nezha, too, was getting angry, as he valued collective honor highly.

"Those who have just passed away could have been reincarnated as human beings, but now they’ve been consumed by the Evil Ghost. Not to mention reincarnating as humans, they can’t even become beasts anymore. Moreover, as the Evil Ghost’s strength grows, by the time you think of reporting, it’ll already be too late!"

Unable to hold back his anger, Chen Nuo snapped, "An Evil Ghost that could have been vanquished with a wave of a hand now requires a massive amount of manpower to eliminate. What if there are further losses? Can you bear the responsibility for that?"

The Judge was at a loss for words; indeed at that time, he hadn’t thought it through, only wanting to avoid troubling the higher-ups if it could be resolved here.

But no one expected the Evil Ghost to be so cunning, and years had passed without capturing it, which was when they planned to report.

But coincidentally, just as they were about to report, the Buddhist Dharma Banquet occurred, so the matter was shelved. When they were ready to report again, Nezha and Chen Nuo came knocking at their door.

"Shopkeeper Chen, weren’t you going to tell me about that woman?" After waiting a while, the Judge changed the subject.

Chen Nuo, in his anger, had almost forgotten about the matter, so he released the woman’s soul from the Magic Artifact.

As soon as she was released, the woman immediately knelt on the ground. She had heard the conversation between Chen Nuo and the Judge while inside the Magic Artifact and knew that, although it was not entirely related to her.

But by striking a deal with that evil ghost and even letting it devour her soul to increase its power, she too acted wrongly.

The Judge looked at the kneeling soul of the woman and said, "Which woman is this?"

"Yes, I just happened to encounter her daughter in the human world. Her daughter possesses Yin-Yang Eyes and can naturally see souls. This woman has been taking care of her daughter in the form of a soul," Chen Nuo said.

The Judge carefully examined the woman’s soul, "Three Souls and Seven Spirits, she’s already lost one soul and four spirits."

"The woman knows she has made a mistake and does not seek the Judge’s forgiveness, only asking that her daughter not bear the blame for her wrongdoings," the woman said with a trembling voice to the Judge.

"Be assured of that. The Underworld does not have rules of joint responsibility. Even if you were a terror in your past life, it will not affect your daughter’s life or death," the Judge said, "Everyone has their own karma; your karma will only have repercussions for you and won’t involve others."

Relieved, the woman said, "That is good, as long as it doesn’t affect Xi."

The Judge returned to his desk, flipped through the Book of Life and Death, and found the name of the woman, "Lady He, died of illness in the spring of the second year of Wude, at the age of thirty-eight."

The woman nodded, "Yes, that’s me. Judge, what punishment will I receive?"

"You’re aware of your wrongdoing!"

The Judge heavily set his pen on the desk, "One’s lifespan is predetermined at birth. Even if you cling to this world, it will not make any difference to your daughter’s fate."

"I know that staying will not change Xi’s life. I just wanted to watch her grow up. She’s so sensible, and I don’t want her to suffer any harm."

"From the moment she was born, people claimed she brought bad luck. For her sake, I endured the world’s scorn. Now that I am dead, it’s difficult for a young girl to live peacefully in this world. I just hope she doesn’t get hurt, that’s all."

The Judge had seen many such cases. He wouldn’t absolve this woman just because he felt pity for her, "You are confused! Do you realize that by making a deal with that evil ghost, you might have forever vanished from this world, turned to dust and smoke? Do you understand that?"

The woman smiled bitterly, "I have considered such a situation. But I thought, if I could see her for one more day, that’s one more day. Whatever punishment you give me, I’ll accept it!"

Chen Nuo’s task was simply to bring this woman to the Underworld; he had no intention of pleading for her.

The woman did things without consideration of the bigger picture, focusing only on the immediate.

Since the ghost was malevolent, it naturally wasn’t of a benevolent kind. It spared her from Black and White Impermanence not out of kindness, but to claim her soul.

The woman’s soul was not strong; in just three months, half of her soul was devoured. It seems it was taken into account that the woman had no power to resist.

"Alright, since you admit to everything, I won’t question your crimes further but will proceed to sentencing," the Judge taking up his pen, marking on the woman’s page.

"Lady He, for colluding with an evil ghost and evading the Underworld for more than three months, you are now punished to be reborn into the path of livestock. As you have lost one soul and four spirits, you will not be subjected to corporal punishment. Considering your good attitude, you will only have to go through three cycles of Reincarnation before you can be reborn as a human. Do you accept this verdict?"