Dao of the Bizarre Immortal

Chapter 933 - Strayed Ones

“Hellhounds?” Yuen Er asked, dumbfounded.

“Yes, Hellhounds! We obtained that information from the archives of the Surveillance Bureau. Regular people wouldn’t know about this,” the Second Deity said. “It has three heads and devours the souls of people. None of us will survive when it appears!”

The Second Deity suddenly turned and stared into the darkness with fear. “Look! It’s appearing! The Hellhound is coming!”

As the Strayed Ones stared into the darkness with fear, a Hellhound emerged from the black fog. It was rotting and emanating the air of death, striking fear in everyone’s heart.

When Bai Lingmiao saw the Hellhound appear out of nowhere, she understood everything. She looked at the Book of Life and Death in her hands with despair.

She released her grip. The book slipped from her fingers, tumbling to the ground with a soft, devastating thud.

“She’s lying...” Bai Lingmiao said.

“What?”

Bai Lingmiao pointed at the Hellhound with her trembling fingers. “There’s no such thing as a Hellhound in the Underworld. It’s just something she made up. Have you not noticed that the things she’s making up are becoming reality?”

Bai Lingmiao closed her eyes and clasped her head in pain. “There’s no Underworld! There’s no Book of Life and Death! You were all deceived! The dog, the book, this entire place—you created it all! You are all Strayed Ones! Whatever you think is real will become real! If you think that this is fake, then everything will disappear!”

Her words were like a beating hammer that struck their hearts. A wind blew past, and the bodies of the nine judges slowly turned translucent. No one died, even as the judges continued to cross out names on the books. Soon, they disappeared in front of them.

The judges weren’t the only ones disappearing. The soldiers, the city, and even the Hellhound disappeared.

Bai Lingmiao looked at the disappearing Book of Life and Death and cried. Her tears stained her eye mask, and they dripped onto the ground.

The Second Deity felt irritated, but in the end, she sighed and turned around to give Bai Lingmiao a gentle hug.

The two of them shared the same body, bearing the burden together.

Bai Lingmiao sobbed. “I... I thought it was real... I thought I could revive them using the book... Now... it feels like they died again in my heart...”

“I understand. I know. Don’t be sad. Be happy for a bit. See, we get to take back eleven Strayed Ones.”

The Second Deity couldn’t do much except lick the tears off Bai Lingmiao’s cheek using her snake-like tongue.

Bai Lingmiao's heart felt like it was being torn apart. However, she quickly composed herself, remembering the dire situation outside.

She took a deep breath before speaking. “Let’s go out. We can help you escape your suffering. You won’t be stuck between two worlds anymore. No matter who deceived you before, I’m sure no one will trick you again once you become regular people.”

The Strayed Ones found themselves uncertain about what to do next, as their years of perseverance turned out to be nothing more than dreams. They silently trailed behind Bai Lingmiao.

They walked back out and saw that the entrance to the underworld and the Yellow Spring Road had disappeared. They had confirmed everything.

A lone Strayed One couldn't accomplish it all, but the presence of all eleven was enough to achieve this.

What exposed this as a sham was that none of the eleven Strayed Ones knew what the underworld looked like. They had simply fabricated it based on hearsay.

They returned to the place where Bai Lingmiao had originally come from. However, Bai Lingmiao stopped in front of the underground chamber.

“Wait here. I will chant and conduct the ceremony right now. Once it’s done, the exit will appear. We can use the exit and get out from the Muddled One’s Karmic Obstacle.”

Bai Lingmiao sat down and started the chant. “The rain of Mandalas, the red spider lilies, and the sandalwood fragrance that pleases the hearts... Everything is but karma. The earth is pure and serene... At that time, the four assemblies were all joyful, their bodies and minds at ease, experiencing what had never been before... A light between the eyebrows illuminates the east, and the eighteen thousand worlds appear golden...”

Her chanting caused the space before her to quiver, with two different forces colliding.

As she continued to chant, the vibration grew stronger and stronger. Only when she completed her chant did the sound of shattering glass fill the air. Right before her, a circular hole materialized, leading to the main branch of the White Lotus Sect in Shangjing.

As soon as everyone went into the hole, it disappeared.

The Second Deity was confused and intrigued. I didn’t know that the Lotus Sutra of Wondrous Dharma had such power. I remember it was used to calm one’s heart.

Bai Lingmiao shook her head and looked at the eleven Strayed Ones behind her. It doesn’t matter. This will work as long as they trust me, especially since we have eleven Strayed Ones.

Bai Lingmiao had learned a lot about Strayed Ones from spending so much time with Li Huowang. She made sure none of them suspected her words.

Since they could construct an entire underworld, forming an exit would be a piece of cake.

"Miaomiao, you're back! How did you get out?" Chun Xiaoman's voice rose in shock as she guided a group of White Lotus Sect devotees to encircle Bai Lingmiao.

Bai Lingmiao didn’t want to talk much and shook her head, her voice tinged with exhaustion. "Put the Muddled One back in the coffin. I'll take the Muddled One and the Strayed Ones to the Surveillance Bureau."

Bai Lingmiao was about to say something else when she turned around and saw Tuoba Danqing struggling painfully on the ground.

She rushed to help him up, horrified to see his muscular frame withering at an alarming pace. He was rapidly turning into a skeleton.

“He’s dying from hunger,” the Second Deity said

The consequences of prolonged starvation within the Muddled One's Karmic Obstacle were becoming horrifyingly clear.

Tuoba Danqing was fundamentally different from the eleven Strayed Ones—if they believed they weren't hungry, they wouldn’t feel hungry.