Zombie Bodyguard

"Second Miss, stick close to Lingyu later. I'll take on those ghost messengers. It's been too long since anyone has stirred up the Underworld; even a small ghost can get arrogant. It's time to let them know the Human Realm isn't to be trifled with," Lin Tian said excitedly.

At this moment, he somewhat understood Sun Wukong's mindset from "Journey to the West," when he caused havoc in both Heaven and the Underworld. They were too arrogant and looked down on everyone, as if others were mere pawns while they were the masters.

Zhang Lingyu shook his head helplessly and said, "That's how it's always been in the Netherworld. Why bother getting angry with them? Besides, you have the Ksitigarbha Order; why fight them?"

"Alright, let me stretch a bit before I take out the Ksitigarbha Order. The faces of those arrogant ghost messengers should turn green from anger, hehe," Lin Tian said mischievously.

Saying so, the three of them arrived at the entrance of the Ksitigarbha Hall, but unexpectedly, there were no ghost messengers outside. The streets were empty, completely different from the layers upon layers of ghosts when they first entered.

"Did they retreat?" Xiao Manxuan looked around and said curiously.

"Retreating? Unlikely. Retreating on their turf would be ridiculous—they'd lose face and have no way to manage the other wandering souls and evil ghosts. The ghost messengers would love nothing more than to parade us around to show their authority," Lin Tian scoffed.

Often, ghost messengers act without regard for reason; anyone who dares to resist will have their soul seized. Even if you can't be thrown into reincarnation, they'll show you the might of the Netherworld. That's what Lin Tian couldn't stand about the Netherworld.

Lin Tian and the two women stepped out of the Ksitigarbha Hall onto the street, and suddenly, there was a sound. Dark fog enveloped the street, and when it cleared, the street was filled with rows of Yin Soldiers and ghost messengers stretching far into the distance. It was truly a supernatural phenomenon.

"We're surrounded," Lin Tian said.

"You are surrounded. Surrender peacefully to suffer less," a voice rang out from the ranks of Yin Soldiers. It had a familiar tone—often heard in TV dialogue.

The Yin Soldiers parted, and a group emerged. Leading them were three figures; Lin Tian recognized two of them. The one in black iron armor was the City Guardian General of Fengdu City, Lord Luo.

The other was dressed in a black robe—Black Impermanence, who had previously intercepted Lin Tian. The third wore a white robe; apart from the color, his attire was identical to Black Impermanence—clearly White Impermanence.

Behind the trio were several others; Lin Tian, with sharp eyes, also spotted the two Soul Ferrymen amongst them.

"I've never known what surrender means," Lin Tian said with a cold laugh to the leaders who appeared.

"You trespassed into the Netherworld, took souls without permission—you challenge our laws," Black Impermanence also replied coldly.

"Your laws of the Netherworld are your problem; they do not govern the Human Realm or me. My friend isn't dead yet, and you captured her soul. According to Human Realm law, that's murder. I'll accuse you of murder instead!" Lin Tian shouted defiantly.

"Human Realm law?" scoffed the City Guardian Lord Luo, disdainfully. "Your Human Realm law wouldn't dare control us; what a joke. Is today's Human Realm still the same as before? The Human Realm has declined—who among you is king, who stands for you?"

"Who defends your laws? Don't bring up Human Realm law with me; this is the Netherworld. Our territory, our rules," Lord Luo sneered, looking down at Lin Tian.

Lin Tian looked back, unfazed, and said, "Doesn't the Netherworld have the Book of Life and Death? You seize souls without consulting the Judge, meaning there are no real laws here. You do as you please but talk about your laws—you're fooling ghosts!"

"Oh right, you are ghosts, haha," Lin Tian chuckled lightly, causing Zhang Lingyu and Xiao Manxuan to laugh as well.

This rascal truly feared neither heaven nor earth, even driving ghost messengers mad, the two women thought simultaneously.

"You..." Lord Luo indeed struggled to speak in anger, glaring at Lin Tian before saying, "Such a sharp tongue, such audacious lies."

"How we act is not for you to dictate. Whether one enters reincarnation or Wangsi City, it is predetermined," Black Impermanence said coolly.

Anyway, Netherworld leaders never mention unauthorized soul seizures. They've likely done it often before—it's trivial in their eyes, with no one to hold them accountable.

"Why waste words with them? Seize them," White Impermanence said plainly, waving his hand as a group of ghost soldiers charged forth.

Lin Tian did not retreat but advanced, flashing into the ghost soldier ranks, taking them down with single punches. These little ghost soldiers couldn't withstand Lin Tian's fist strength.

This level of destructive power stunned all the ghost soldiers and messengers. In that moment of shock, Lin Tian suddenly shifted form, diving in and out until he had seized two ghost messengers.

What Lin Tian grabbed were the two Soul Ferrymen. He laughed coldly, saying, "Everything started because of you. Had you not seized my friend's soul, none of this would have happened. Plus, you smeared us with your tales before your top bosses, didn't you? Otherwise, there wouldn't be such an extensive deployment to capture us."

"Release them!" Black Impermanence shouted angrily, embarrassed to have subordinates snatched right before him.

"Alright, let them go," Lin Tian sneered wickedly, crushing the two Soul Ferrymen with a forceful grip; they exploded into black mist, vanishing instantly.

"Don't they revive? I didn't kill your ghost messengers," Lin Tian said coolly.

"Indeed stubborn!" Black Impermanence didn't care for the Ferrymen's fate—only his authority mattered. He snorted disdainfully, rushing forward.

Joining him was White Impermanence. Each wielded a Mourning Staff, swinging simultaneously at Lin Tian. Shadows of black and white flashed, dazzling the eye—the wailing of ghost souls seemed to emanate from the staffs, spirit-seizing.

"You think I'm unarmed? My fists are my weapons," Lin Tian scoffed, charging into the shadows, enduring the Mourning Staff's strike yet landing punches on Black and White Impermanence.

The double Mourning Staff's power was notably stronger. Lin Tian's soul-out-of-body feeling was clearer, but the zombie body seemed to forcefully bind the soul within—untouched by the staff's effect, perhaps because zombies lack souls.

Had it been Zhang Lingyu, her soul might've been seized; whether her Heavenly Master's garb could resist was unknown.

Both Black and White Impermanence took punches from Lin Tian, and the mighty force sent them flying into the ghost soldiers.