Chapter 405: Chao Chao Summons Help
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
“Though you were not born of us, in our hearts, you are no different from a daughter.”
“Ah, when we found you, famine was rampant.”
“The village chief gathered everyone, hoping each household could spare some food. Who knew? You ate a little less, we skipped a few meals, and somehow, we raised you on the food of a hundred families.”
“Separated by life and death, we thought regret would remain forever. Seeing you alive brings us peace.” The village chief smiled kindly, wanting to pat Madam Ning’s head, but his hand passed through her body.
“Your father only wants you to know—we do not blame you. Live well…”
“Also, beneath the blue stone slab in the village ancestral hall, a keepsake lies hidden. When you have time, retrieve it.”
The village chief hesitated for a moment.
“When we found you, you were surrounded by wolves, tigers, and leopards. That year, famine had left the mountains barren of food, yet those beasts protected you. You are a child of fortune.”
“After we took you in, wild chickens and ducks with broken necks often appeared at our doorstep. You have always been loved by small creatures.”
The village chief continued his reminiscing as if he had returned to the past.
Xie Yu Zhou crouched at the doorway, both fearful and curious.
“Why are they becoming transparent?” Xie Yu Zhou pointed at the old village chief.
Madam Ning was startled and looked up at her gathered kin.
Only then did she realize their figures were slowly fading away.
Yet the village chief remained calm, even relieved: “The Su family has long used formations to imprison us, waiting for the day we would vanish completely.”
“We held on just to see you one last time. Now that our wish is fulfilled, we can leave in peace.”
“Ning’er, do not fear.”
The old lady of the Ning family wailed, “Go to the underworld, be reborn…”
An elderly aunt sighed, “We have lingered in the mortal realm for nearly forty years. The underworld has already marked us as wandering ghosts. We have no chance of reincarnation.”
She looked regretfully at the two children. Her grandson had yet to grow up, and even reincarnation was beyond reach.
Madam Ning nearly fainted. Their village was slaughtered, and now they couldn’t even reincarnate?
She watched them turn to ash before her very eyes.
Lu Chao Chao coughed lightly.
“Actually… there might still be a way.” She spoke hesitantly.
The weeping halted, and all eyes turned to her.
“I have some connections in the underworld. Maybe I could summon someone to help? See if a backdoor exists?” Lu Chao Chao tugged her pigtails. It had been thousands of years since she last reached out, but surely the ties remained?
The village chief’s eyes widened. He knew Lu Chao Chao was capable and immediately asked,
“Truly? Do you know the ghost wardens?”
“If you can find Black and White Impermanence, they might grant leniency.”
“I heard the Judge is strict and impartial. If he learns of this, there will be no hope.”
“Chao Chao, you actually have connections in the underworld?” Old Madam Ning was stunned. She knew her daughter’s children were exceptional, but this was the first time she witnessed true skill.
“Just a little,” the little one replied humbly.
“Ning’er, your descendants are remarkable. You truly are blessed.” The village chief chuckled, wondering whether Lu Chao Chao’s connection was merely a ghost warden or something more.
“I’ll summon them. You ask yourselves.”
Lu Chao Chao jumped off her stool and, seeing the full moon high in the night sky, realized it was already late.
She had Xie Yu Zhou bring three incense sticks. Holding them before her chest, the incense ignited without flame.
Murmuring, she let the smoke rise straight into the sky.
The moment she released them, the incense hovered in midair.
Nothing seemed to change, yet everything felt different. Xie Yu Zhou touched the goosebumps on his arm and fearfully ducked under the table.
The temperature in the room plummeted. The spirits shivered to their very cores.
As soon as she finished speaking, a towering figure appeared silently by the doorway.
He was larger than most, his face solemn, his brows exuding an oppressive might that turned Madam Ning pale. It felt like a heavy blow to her chest—this was not someone she could even look at.
The spirits needed only a glance before dropping to their knees, dumbfounded.
This… this…
Why did he seem so familiar?!
Xie Yu Zhou, oblivious, laughed, “Huh? He looks just like the Great Emperor Feng Du we honor during the Ghost Festival…”
Mid-laugh, his smile froze. Damn it, he couldn’t laugh anymore.
Expressionless, Xie Yu Zhou turned to Lu Chao Chao. She was the only one still sitting, utterly unfazed.
“This… this is your idea of using a backdoor?”
You summoned the Great Emperor Feng Du himself?!
The emperor radiated majesty, his mere presence quelling evil. The already fading spirits trembled even more violently.
Step by step, the emperor approached Lu Chao Chao.
“You are still alive?” His voice bore no emotion, making it impossible to discern his feelings.
Lu Chao Chao swung her legs casually on the chair.
“I called you today for a favor.” Knowing how to speak when seeking help, she was very polite.
“Good, good. You live, that is enough. Did you summon me because you have decided to overthrow the Celestial Realm?”
“The Celestial Realm is not what it once was.”
“They are ungrateful! They deserve destruction!”
“I command the Ten Yama Kings and the Ten-Direction Ghost Emperors. They are at your disposal.”
“My advice is to attack from the east first. The eastern forces are weak. The west has Tathagata, and the south holds the Southern Celestial Gate…” The emperor’s eyes burned with rebellion.
“When do you plan to act? I must return and mobilize my forces, ready to answer your call.”
Lu Chao Chao’s mouth fell open.
She swallowed hard.
“What is your request?” the emperor pressed.
Lu Chao Chao hesitated, glancing past him awkwardly. “I have some elders who were wronged, their spirits imprisoned for forty years, on the brink of fading.”
“I summoned you… to pull some strings for their reincarnation.” Her voice carried a hint of guilt.
At first, she thought the request was grand.
Now, it felt far too small, and she couldn’t step down from this stage.
The Great Emperor Feng Du: …
His expression grew taut.
“You called me—not for conquest, but for reincarnation? Lu Chao Chao! How impressive!” He pointed at her in exasperation. If not for the many onlookers, he would have cursed outright.
The spirits couldn’t even lift their heads. The emperor wanted rebellion?
He sought to defy the Celestial Realm?
Help! Perhaps being scattered was preferable—this was knowledge they should not possess!
The emperor cast a glance at Lu Chao Chao’s tiny limbs, clearly unimpressed.
“Place them in good homes. If possible, let them be reborn as a family again,” she said without shame. “Also, the Su family—have they arrived in the underworld yet?”
“Let the Ten Yama Kings interrogate them properly. I do not wish to see them in the mortal world again! Whether the Eighteen Levels of Hell or the Animal Path, there must be a place for them.”
The emperor sighed, appearing utterly uninterested. “As you say.”
No rebellion? Then what was the point of summoning him?!