"You're quite right. I am the King of Hell, in charge of life and death in the mortal world," the old man said with an air of dignity. "And who are you? Judging from the golden light around you, you're... a dragon? Could the meager spiritual energy in this world have given birth to a golden dragon?" He was shocked.
He had been in charge of the Underworld for not less than a hundred years, if not a thousand, but he had never heard that dragons actually existed.
Si Mo, who was not born from the spiritual energy of the weather, replied expressionlessly, "I'm from another world. I'm not a local dragon." He was hatched after his mother carried him for ten years and then incubated him for decades.
"I see. Then, Dragon God from another world, why did you forcefully open the Ghost Gate of my Underworld?" the King of Hell stroked his beard.
He accepted this easily. It was easier to believe that the golden dragon was from another world than a local one, as the spiritual energy composition of this world was not supposed to be able to hatch a god.
"I just want to send some ghosts who have been wandering in the mortal world for years into the Underworld to reincarnate," Si Mo said indifferently.
"The Dragon God from another world is so kind-hearted," the King of Hell said.
Si Mo: "..." He always felt that the tone of this sentence was strange. It didn't sound like a compliment but rather a veiled mockery. Of course, he could admit that he was not really kind-hearted. He was just getting paid to do a job.
The King of Hell continued, "But the Underworld has its own rules. The Ghost Gate opened for these souls once when they left their bodies, but they refused the invitation of the Underworld. The Ghost Gate will never open for them a second time."
"Tsk—" This reasoning didn't hold water with Si Mo. The King of Hell's lofty attitude made him eager to break these so - called rules.
Hearing them chatting back and forth, Rong Lan tugged at Si Mo's coat and whispered, "Does the King of Hell look scary?"
The black veil covering her eyes had loosened and fallen to the ground during their conversation. After the veil fell, she really wanted to open her eyes to watch the excitement, but she was also afraid of being scared.
Hearing Rong Lan's voice, Si Mo stared at the King of Hell seriously for three seconds, then tilted his head slightly so that the little fox hiding behind him could hear. "In my opinion, he's not scary. He just looks like an ordinary person. If you're curious, you can open your eyes and have a look."
The King of Hell noticed the considerate gesture of Si Mo and only then did he notice that there was a person hiding behind Si Mo. But...
That person looked so strange!
Was that on her head a decoration or something?
"Is it bright or dark around here?" Rong Lan asked uneasily.
If the environment was dark, she thought she could suppress her curiosity.
Si Mo looked around. "It's not dark. It's about the same brightness as before you closed your eyes."
Hearing this, Rong Lan tentatively opened her eyes a slit. After confirming that the brightness was acceptable to her, she shook her fox ears, summoned up her courage, peeked out from behind Si Mo, and looked up in the direction of the Ghost Gate.
The next second—
"Ah—Ghosts—"
"Ah—Ghosts—"
Two screams rang out almost simultaneously.
Si Mo's face darkened as he repelled the suddenly attacking ghosts. His golden pupils were cold. After the King of Hell came out, the ghosts attached to the pillars had calmed down. He thought the ghosts were afraid of the King of Hell and wouldn't dare to act rashly with him around. However, it seemed the ghosts were just biding their time to surprise him?
He wasn't scared by the ghosts' attacks, but the little fox, who had finally opened her eyes, was scared by the close - up face of a ghost.
That was fine. It was normal for the timid little fox to scream. But!
Why was the King of Hell screaming? He saw the King of Hell, who had been pretending to be dignified just now, so scared that his long beard was standing on end. But he didn't know what the King of Hell had seen to be so frightened.
Was there something scarier than the ghosts here?
The little fox, who had been face - to - faced by the ghost, was almost crying. Just like the last time when she was scared by the little ghosts, she squatted down in fear and closed her eyes tightly.
Only this time, her hands subconsciously covered her fox ears.
Si Mo sighed. While guarding against the ghosts, he comforted the frightened little fox. "It's okay. I've driven away that ugly thing that got close just now."
Ghosts: "???" Ugly thing? How could he talk like that?
Out of the corner of his eye, Si Mo saw a ghost stirring. He gave it a cold look and suppressed them with his dragon might.
"What was that just now?" Rong Lan's voice was tinged with sobs.
Si Mo patted the little fox on the shoulder. "I'm not quite sure. It should be the gate - guarding ghosts of the Underworld. Get up. They won't come close again. If they do, they'll be completely destroyed."
Ghosts: "???" So fierce?
They immediately didn't dare to act rashly anymore and even shrank back into the Ghost Gate.
Rong Lan took three deep breaths before mustering up her courage again. She carefully looked up and glanced at the Ghost Gate.
Si Mo thought the little fox was okay. Just as he was about to turn around, his arm was grabbed by the little fox. He looked down and saw the little fox's helpless and pitiful face after the scare.
"Pull me up. My legs are weak and I can't stand up." What she had just seen had caused her great trauma. She would probably have a nightmare tonight.
The little fox's voice was so weak. Si Mo twitched the corner of his mouth and reached out a hand to her. "Do you regret coming with me now?"
"I do regret it," Rong Lan said as she leaned on Si Mo's arm to stand up and firmly hid behind Si Mo. Her fox ears drooped weakly.
This afternoon when they were discussing, Si Mo had advised her not to come. But out of curiosity about the unknown, she had insisted that she would be brave.
However, she had overestimated herself.
"You! You! What kind of demon are you!" Rong Lan wasn't the only one who hadn't recovered. The King of Hell, who had also been severely frightened, was still in a state of shock.
Si Mo looked at the King of Hell, who had lost his composure in fear, with a puzzled expression. "Why are you so surprised? Haven't you seen a fox spirit before?"
Rong Lan nodded in agreement with Si Mo. Exactly! Haven't you seen a fox spirit before?
"I really haven't," the King of Hell said honestly. "You're probably not a local fox, right?" The spiritual energy composition of this world was not supposed to be able to give birth to spirits. As the King of Hell for over a hundred years, he was seeing for the first time a human with animal ears on her head. Even though the little girl was cute, he was almost scared out of his wits.
Seeing someone who seemed even more scared than herself, Rong Lan was less afraid. While sizing up the legendary King of Hell, she replied, "I'm also from another world. I'm not a local fox."
"You scared me to death," the King of Hell said. Fortunately, she wasn't a local fox. If she were, the world would be in chaos. "It's strange. Why are there so many people from other worlds lately?"