Twilight Boundary-Chapter 639 - 630: Great Mighty Master (Three More)

The Purple Tai Sui is the key...

Ignoring the Zhao Family friend beside him, who was visibly contorted with rage and glaring fire at the floating figure of Chen Abao, Hu Ma simply held his wine glass, pondering. The name Purple Tai Sui was one he hadn't encountered when he first embarked on the Path and his abilities were still nascent. Back then, even the Golden Silk Tai Sui was unheard of; for the vast majority, the Blood Tai Sui was considered the ultimate treasure. But now, as his capabilities had grown, the Purple Tai Sui had become somewhat unavoidable. Yet, it was excessively mysterious, unlike other Tai Suis, which allowed one to set their mind at ease.

"Miss Chen was just joking. Why get so angry, Brother Zhao?" Hu Ma finally said with a smile, raising his glass to coax Zhao Sanyi. He had countless questions he wanted to ask.

"Her? Joking?" Zhao Sanyi retorted, his face stern and his tone exasperated. "There's no one with a worse disposition than hers! She doesn't possess a single shred of the Ten Surnames' decorum!"

"Even among the Ten Surnames, she's notorious. When celebrating the birthday of the Old Master from the Undying Wang Family, she wished him a long life of a hundred years."

"When she goes to someone else's home for celebratory noodles, she'll hang up a gold lock and then instruct them that she dug it out of some grave, insisting they wear it properly so the original owner doesn't see it…"

...

Hu Ma lowered his voice. "For such a distinguished lady to enjoy your company, Brother Zhao, doesn't that just prove your magnanimity?"

Hearing this, Zhao Sanyi found his anger turning into amusement. "You've got a point! Who else but me could tolerate her?"

Initially, he had sought out Hu Ma for a drink perhaps out of boredom, or maybe just an itch to show off before this stranger.

But now, after exchanging just a few words with Hu Ma, he found himself genuinely engaged in their conversation.

His wine jug, though seemingly small, poured endlessly. Hu Ma drank with him cup after cup, asking about topics that interested him.

Hu Ma couldn't help but admit he had indeed gained some insights. In the underworld, departed beings were typically ethereal, possessing only a wisp of a Ghost. However, Tai Sui blood and flesh could grant these Ghosts more substance. Connecting this to what he knew from the mortal world, he had a sudden realization. In the mortal world, when paying respects to ancestors, people often burned incense and paper money, offering the three sacrificial animals and six domestic animals. However, those who were truly meticulous had long been using Tai Sui blood and flesh. And indeed, Tai Sui blood and flesh possessed a wondrous efficacy for such offerings, capable of increasing the substance of these yin souls. The white and blue varieties were less effective, but Blood Tai Sui was extremely potent. As for the Purple Tai Sui, it was an even rarer object, connected to the establishment of the Living Village in the underworld, as well as other crucial junctures.

Of course, Zhao Sanyi was a slippery one. He appeared candid and forthright, speaking freely, but in reality, he remained silent on the most critical details. After testing him a few times, Hu Ma realized he couldn't press further. Whenever he touched upon those key points, Zhao Sanyi would feign drunkenness, looking as if he'd had too much to drink. But once the subject changed, he'd become spirited again.

Feeling rather helpless against this slippery fellow, Hu Ma switched topics. "Brother Zhao, have you ever heard of the Big Belly Ghost King?"

When he first entered the underworld, he had heard the name but hadn't had a chance to ask about it clearly. Now was a good opportunity to inquire.

Zhao Sanyi, who seemed about seventy percent drunk, suddenly sobered up by about thirty percent upon hearing the name.

His eyes darted, fixing on Hu Ma. "Aren't you afraid the Life Nourishing Zhou Family will come after you for asking about that?"

"Huh?" Hu Ma was momentarily stunned. "Why would they come after me?"

"Heh heh, no wonder you're working as a sword catcher in the Walking Ghost Path. It seems you don't quite understand the Shousui customs yet!" Zhao Sanyi laughed. "You Shousui folk, you're formidable when alive, and often just as formidable as ghosts after death. Plenty of you end up lording over others in this underworld."

"But the Zhou Family doesn't allow that. For an Age Guard who has entered the underworld, there are only two paths upon death."

"Either they dissolve their powers, returning all their skills, and then peacefully enter their own family fireplace."

"Or, they heed the Zhou Family's summons and report for duty under them."

"Why?"

"Because the Life Nourishing Zhou Family is the main lineage of the Shousui, the orthodox dharma method. Living Shousui men must obey them, and even deceased Ghost Kings must heed the commands of their house."

...

As he spoke, he shook his head with the air of someone relishing a bit of gossip. "Of course, I'm not one to speak ill of others behind their backs…"

"But, speaking of the Zhou Family, while they are now the recognized main Shousui lineage, back then… say, just twenty or thirty years ago? Not everyone was convinced by their family, you know…"

...

Listening to him go on this tangent, Hu Ma suddenly understood. "This Big Belly Ghost King you mentioned…"

"Correct." Zhao Sanyi nodded quickly, lowering his voice. "The Big Belly Ghost King—that's a name spread by ignorant souls in the underworld, told as a ghost story to scare others. They say, 'Big Belly Ghost King, eats ghosts to fill his gut…' Of course, I actually know his dharma title was the Great Mighty Master. He was once one of the most ferocious, malevolent, and heaven-defying figures in this underworld."

"Legend has it that when he got ferocious, he could even swallow the underworld itself! People from the Zhou Family? Forget about ordering him around; they'd have to take a detour if they even saw him…"

...

Having recounted all this in detail, he seemed quite pleased with himself, shaking his head and sighing, "Of course, there are many stories like this; I just don't usually like to talk about them."

"It's not just this Great Mighty Master who once overshadowed the Life Nourishing Zhou Family's prestige. And the Noble Zhang Family, who call themselves the Haishou patriarch and specialize in Nightmare Spells—well, the most formidable nightmare curse master in their lineage's history wasn't even surnamed Zhang, you know… Just recently, I heard a funny story: someone from Witchcraft went to Shangqiao, and when the Zhu Family tried to intervene, they ended up getting a few of their people killed…"

A smile he couldn't suppress spread across his face as he shook his head. "If you enjoy hearing these kinds of stories, I have plenty more. It's just that I don't usually talk about them. I'm not that kind of person…"

...

The Ten Surnames have so much interesting gossip? Hu Ma listened, his interest thoroughly piqued. The last story sounded somewhat familiar, but the first two were genuinely thrilling…

"Of course, these stories are just for listening. Don't go inquiring too deeply…"

At this point, Zhao Sanyi suddenly lowered his voice again. "Apart from the last one, the first two happened over twenty years ago, and they have a common characteristic…"

"…they were all evil spirits!"

...

"Hmm?"

Hearing these words so unexpectedly, Hu Ma was slightly taken aback. He felt an instinctive caution, and also… an unexpected excitement…

"If it weren't for a big mouth like yours, would anyone even remember what happened twenty years ago?"

But as Hu Ma was pondering, a voice suddenly rang out, startling both Zhao Sanyi and Hu Ma.

Looking down, they saw Chen Abao…

…or more accurately, just Chen Abao's small head, her long hair cascading down like a black robe, was floating up from beneath the large, dark stone table.

She gave Zhao Sanyi a cold, eerie look, her voice like a gust of chilling wind. "How do you usually speak of our Chen Family behind our backs?"

"I didn't!" Zhao Sanyi yelped, the hairs on his skin standing on end. "Are you serious? Taking your head off just to eavesdrop?"

"If you don't say anything even when I *am* eavesdropping, how would I know what you say when I'm *not*?" Chen Abao shot him another hard look and muttered as she floated away, "The Chen Family's reputation for having 'live ghosts' must have been spread by you."

This made Zhao Sanyi shout frantically after her, "That 'live ghost' reputation spread because you people go around scaring everyone like this every day!"

Great Mighty Master? A master of Nightmare Technique? At this moment, Hu Ma paid no mind to their bickering. A peculiar thought arose within him: Was such imposing power the legacy left behind by the previous generation of Reincarnators? For so many years, he had indeed grown accustomed to the cautiousness of the current generation of Reincarnators. But the awe-inspiring dominance of the previous generation, which had once suppressed even the Ten Surnames… That was truly something to aspire to…

At the same time that Hu Ma was doing his best to cram knowledge in preparation for infiltrating the City of the Dead, Er Guotou had returned to the mortal world. Slipping into the Lifebound Spirit Temple under the cover of night, he contacted Miss Red Wine. His usual flippancy was replaced by an uncharacteristic solemnity as he said gravely, "Brother Old White and I made a trip to the underworld. We've confirmed the matter of the Demon Detection Mirror…"

"Most importantly, we unexpectedly found a clue to Tieguanyin!"

...

He meticulously recounted, bit by bit, the events concerning Tieguanyin and the Noble Zhang Family.

By the time he finished, his voice had become exceedingly grave. "Brother Old White is already planning to infiltrate the City of the Dead to investigate. If necessary, he will assassinate Tieguanyin!"

"What?" Miss Red Wine was startled by his words. "He's going?" Her voice suddenly grew heavy, tinged with a hint of indignation, as if questioning why Er Guotou himself was not going. "And what about you?"

Er Guotou didn't suspect anything else. After all, Old White was his little sworn brother, and leaving him alone in the underworld already made Er Guotou uneasy. Besides, he had already made up his mind on the way here. Hearing Miss Red Wine's words, his resolve hardened. "He's my little brother; I was the one who brought him out of Old Yin Mountain. If he's going to risk his life for the Reincarnators, how can I just stand idly by?"

"Rest assured, I've also made preparations. I'll lend him a hand, or even… stir up some serious trouble!"

...

PHEW...

Hearing him say this, Miss Red Wine finally relaxed a little, her voice low. "It won't just be you."

"Leave the other matters to me. Just take a message to Old White for me: if something needs to be done, then do it boldly. But he doesn't need to carry the entire burden himself."

"He wanted someone to investigate the Noble Zhang Family's background; we've already found out some things."

"He asked for people to go to Official Zhou to trace the source of the hungry ghost calamity; someone has already headed there."

"He needs killers…" She paused briefly here, her voice now carrying a hint of iciness. "I've already found quite a few for him…" 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"If it comes to it, and we truly clash with the Ten Surnames, so what?"