Mutated Tao

“Everyone, charge! Kill those soldiers and snatch the Book of Life and Death! This place is ours!” Yuen Er shouted, leading everyone to charge into the city.

Bai Lingmiao was surprised to see them use techniques from various sects rather than cultivating “Truth.”

They were just like Li Huowang, learning techniques from other sects.

Soldiers poured out nonstop from the city, and Bai Lingmiao's doubts increased. “The Cow-head, Horse-face, and even the Black and White Impermanence… Is this really the underworld? Is my family here, then?”

Bai Lingmiao halted her wandering thoughts, noticing the others were engaged in a fierce battle. She retrieved a bunch of prayer beads made from human bones. Every time she rotated it, a soldier who had been severely wounded would die.

As Bai Lingmiao chanted, the Second Deity took control of her lower body.

Her snarling face split open as she rapped her black fingernails on her drum.

“Step firmly and stand tall! Wear your armor while you hold the whip! I call for the Red family before the Yellow! I call for the pythons and spiritual ferret to bring the King of Sadness!”

In no time, her beast-like features melded together, and multiple organs extended out of her body. With her limbs contorted inside out, the Second Deity charged forward, leaving a trail of blood in her wake.

Despite the relentless steam of soldiers pouring from the city gates, Yuen Er and the others had finally glimpsed a glimmer of hope in the fallen soldiers littering the ground. This breakthrough invigorated them and motivated them to fight even harder.

As more and more bodies piled up around them, something unexpected happened. The wind carried down a judge of the dead, split in half. One half had a snarling beast face, while the other had a rotting face

The Second Deity stopped chanting from the shock. “There’s actually a judge of the dead here! This is the underworld!”

Bai Lingmiao momentarily halted, then quickly resumed her chanting while tightly gripping her prayer beads.

The judge stood atop a roof and observed everything below it. It stared with an unblinking eye at them, and its voice resembled an actor in the theater. “Ehm, such impudence~”

It raised its brush and wrote furiously in a purple book.

As it did, the corpses on the ground revived and surrounded Bai Lingmiao’s group.

Bai Lingmiao's chanting came to an abrupt halt, her lips trembling. Her gaze was fixed on the book held by the judge.

“That thing is real! They are telling the truth! It’s the Book of Life and Death! I can revive my entire village with it!”

The Second Deity howled and shouted, “Grab it!”

Everyone, from the Strayed Ones to the white donkeys, ignored their enemies and rushed towards the judge.

The judge scoffed and raised its brush. It looked at one of the white donkeys before crossing something in the book. Without warning, the white donkey collapsed, lifeless.

The moment the judge looked at the Strayed One with the unruly beard, Bai Lingmiao appeared behind the Strayed One.

The judge crossed another name off his list, and Bai Lingmiao placed her hands on the Strayed One’s head.

With a swift stroke, the judge crossed out the name, but the bearded man was still alive. The book had not taken his soul.

Bai Lingmiao held onto the Heavenly Dao of Death, so she would’ve been embarrassed if she hadn’t been able to intervene.

“Do not be afraid. It cannot decide your fate with me here! Grab the book!”

Upon hearing her, everyone stopped defending themselves. They charged recklessly at the judge, allowing the soldiers to attack them relentlessly. Since they couldn’t die, there was no reason to defend themselves.

Now that the book had become useless, the judge panicked. Despite crossing off name after name, no one died. It floated upwards to retreat.

“Immortal Families! Don’t forget to bring the three treasures when you are here! Find the Immortal-Shackling Chains, the Horse Saddle, and the Soul Imprisoning Bottle! Toss them towards the enemies to stop them from fleeing and escaping!”

The sound of the drumbeat paused as the Second Deity raised her drum whip and swung it towards the judge floating in the air. Then, she made a pulling motion downwards.

The judge fell down, as if it were truly bound by something.

The judge tried to get up, but it was too late. The white donkeys had already hurled their Saintess into the air, sending her soaring toward it.

The Second Deity let out crazy laughter as she sunk her black fingernails into the judge’s face. She pulled and tore out the judge’s cheek.

As the Second Deity attacked, Bai Lingmiao held onto the Book of Life and Death and pulled it hard.

She wept with joy as she held the Book of Life and Death in her hands. Though it was slightly larger than she was, its weight didn’t matter—she could finally bring her family back to life!

Her triumph lasted only a single moment. The soldiers began retreating like a tide as another judge floated down with another Book of Life and Death.

Moments later, a second judge appeared and floated down, then a third, and so on, until there were nine judges before her.

Bai Lingmiao clutched the Book of Life and Death against her chest, her voice trembling with shock. "What’s happening?"

Yuen Er approached her while leading the other Strayed Ones. “There are ten palaces, so naturally, there are ten judges! Don’t you know that?”

“Who told you that there are ten judges?”

“My grandmother! Everyone in my village says that. How could you not know that?”

A terrifying thought gripped her as she processed his words.

“Sorry, I underestimated you. I never thought you could actually kill the judge. I suppose you could do it nine more times?” Yuan Er said, firmly gripping his own weapon.

The Second Deity heard Bai Lingmiao’s question in her heart and immediately warned Yuen Er. “We can deal with nine judges, but we cannot deal with the hellhounds of the Underworld Palace.”

“Hellhounds?”