Zhou Fu hesitated, wondering whether to tell him the truth.
Although he could claim to be Zhou Fu, the real Zhou Fu was already dead.
"Master, I actually..."
Just as Zhou Fu was about to reveal the truth, Yu Daochen interrupted him, "If there's something you don't want to say, then don't. Everyone needs to have their own little secrets. Perhaps you're not telling me because it's for my own good."
Seeing Yu Daochen say this, Zhou Fu simply lowered his head and replied with a hum, "Alright, Master."
The atmosphere turned somewhat somber.
Yu Daochen understood.
Since the young man's heart wasn't here, there was no point in forcing him to stay by his side.
Some things couldn't be held onto, and even if grasped for a moment, they would eventually fly away.
Yu Daochen felt less sadness now and more a sense of release.
His original intention was simply to confirm if the young man was truly alive.
Now that he was certain the young man was fine, it was better to let go and allow him to pursue what he wanted.
Perhaps this was fate.
If it couldn't be changed, why not accept it with equanimity?
"Alright."
Yu Daochen patted Zhou Fu's shoulder, withdrew his hand, and a smile appeared on his face. "Since you've made up your mind, go and do what you want to do."
"Mm."
Zhou Fu nodded, unsure of what to say, always feeling like he had let his master down.
Yu Daochen looked at Zhou Fu and continued, "But remember, you are my disciple, and you always will be. If you ever encounter something you can't resolve in the future, come to Jiangdu to find me, understand?"
"I understand." Zhou Fu nodded.
His heart was filled with nothing but gratitude.
He finally understood why Zhou Fu had dragged his dying body to the valley.
Why he had knelt and begged him so earnestly.
At the time, he hadn't understood, but now he did.
Seeing Zhou Fu nod, Yu Daochen continued, "I can't teach you much more now, but remember this: the martial world is treacherous, and the most terrifying thing is not evil spirits, but human hearts!"
Zhou Fu nodded and replied, "I understand, Master."
Seeing Zhou Fu's obedient demeanor, just like before, Yu Daochen smiled with relief.
"You rascal, no matter how much trouble you cause outside, if you can't handle it, come back and find your master. Even if you bring down the sky, I'll be here to shield you!"
As the saying goes, a day as a teacher is a lifetime as a father.
In Yu Daochen's heart, the young man was less like a disciple and more like a younger brother.
Now that things were decided, their hearts were open to each other.
Zhou Fu helped Yu Daochen walk towards the city.
Not long after they started walking, a figure appeared and blocked their path.
Yu Daochen took a closer look and saw the person wearing the uniform of an ancient constable, with a large, blood-red character "差" written on the chest.
The black official hat on his head bore four characters: "活人退避" (Living people, retreat).
Upon seeing this, Yu Daochen smiled and clasped his hands, saying, "I, Yu Daochen, greet you, Lord Ghost Messenger."
Zhou Fu beside him also bowed, "I, Zhou Fu, greet you, Lord Ghost Messenger."
Yu Daochen had seen the bodies of his old classmates lying on the ground as he walked, but he hadn't seen any evil spirits.
It seemed this Ghost Messenger had saved his old classmates.
These officials of the underworld who roamed the human realm were generally divided into two types.
One type was the special Ghost Messengers, who were under Old Huo's command.
The other type was the Ghost Messengers specifically responsible for escorting the souls of the deceased, and these were under the command of the Black and White Impermanence.
It was very simple to distinguish between the two. Old Huo's subordinates wore armor or similar attire.
As for the Black and White Impermanence, who were responsible for escorting the souls of the dying, they wore clothing similar to constables.
This Ghost Messenger wore black attire, suggesting he was a subordinate of Black Impermanence.
The Ghost Messenger waved his hand, his pale face expressionless, and slowly said, "Two friends from the human realm must have encountered people from the Cult of Deities, correct?"
"That's right." Yu Daochen nodded, lost in thought.
From the Ghost Messenger's tone, it seemed he already knew that Zhang Ming was from the Cult of Deities.
Seeing Yu Daochen nod, the Ghost Messenger's expression became slightly grave, and he continued to inquire, "Then where is he?"
Yu Daochen knew that concealing the truth would be of no benefit to him, so he replied, "I killed him."
"You killed him?" The Ghost Messenger frowned, then glanced at Zhou Fu beside him before looking back at Yu Daochen, "I'll have to trouble both of you to accompany me to the underworld."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Fu beside him immediately panicked.
He didn't have a soul in the first place; how could he go to the underworld?
Yu Daochen also noticed Zhou Fu's distressed expression and asked the Ghost Messenger, "May I ask, Lord Ghost Messenger, what is the purpose of bringing us down?"
The Ghost Messenger did not answer, but instead said, "This matter is of great importance and cannot be disclosed to you two. Just accompany me down, answer a few questions, and we will bring you back."
Yu Daochen frowned, not knowing this person's background. Going down so blindly, he wouldn't even know how he died.
What if this person was a spy from the Cult of Deities?
He had heard about this from Old Huo during a tea chat.
It was possible that the underworld also had spies from the Cult of Deities.
From Old Huo's tone at the time, he seemed quite certain that there were informants from the Cult of Deities in the underworld.
Although he was a thousand percent confident he could handle this Ghost Messenger in a fight, if his soul were captured and pulled down, he would truly be like a skilled embroiderer with no thread to use.
In a soul state, he couldn't use any techniques. No matter how powerful he was, he could only be beaten.
However, given the current relationship between the human realm and the underworld, he couldn't resort to violence against this Ghost Messenger.
The matter of the Cult of Deities was already causing widespread panic in both the human realm and the underworld.
If any further conflict arose now, it would only add to the chaos.
Damn it, this guy wasn't Old Huo's subordinate, otherwise, he could just use Old Huo to pressure him.
It wouldn't be so troublesome.
Even now, he could still use Old Huo to pressure him, but since this guy's superior wasn't Old Huo, it might not be effective.
What if this guy didn't fall for it and directly reported to his superiors, even the King of Hell, to impeach Old Huo?
Then he would have truly harmed Old Huo.
As Yu Daochen was worrying, he suddenly thought of something and said, "Lord Ghost Messenger, I recall there's a regulation between the human realm and the underworld that if someone from the underworld wishes to bring a cultivator from the human realm down for questioning, they must obtain the consent and approval from the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. May I ask if you have such documentation?"
The human realm and the underworld had signed a regulation a long time ago.
If the underworld wished to bring down a cultivator from the human realm for questioning, they had to obtain the consent and approval from the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs.
This was also to prevent cultivators from the human realm from colluding with underworld officials and becoming corrupt.
This regulation, once enacted, completely stopped those who used underworld Ghost Messengers to act recklessly.
To put it simply, it meant that the underworld should manage its own affairs, and even if the human realm was in chaos, it was not their place to interfere.