Nine of the Ten Yama Kings Assembled

"Your Highness, you jest. Even if this old man were to self-destruct here, I'm afraid I still wouldn't be able to hurt you."

Mu En knew his own limits very well. At his level, even if he self-destructed here, the outcome would simply be his death and Xu Feng's survival.

"Oh, good that you know."

Even without using his Martial Soul, Xu Feng carried more than a dozen Rank 9 defensive Soul Tools, all of which remained activated at all times. Even the full-force self-destruction of an Ultimate Douluo could not blow him apart outright.

"This old man has only one purpose in coming here."

Mu En knelt directly before Xu Feng. The Dragon God Douluo, who had enjoyed glory his entire life, knelt before a young man at this moment, at the very end of his life.

"This old man has already dismissed Shrek Academy's students. I beg you once more: please do not slaughter these children. They are only children. If you are willing to agree, every treasure of Shrek Academy will be yours."

Xu Feng immediately put away his spectator's attitude. Sure enough, this Dragon God Douluo, whom people across the continent admired, truly was somewhat different from Shrek Academy.

"Hmph. If I fight my way in and kill all of you, they'll still be mine."

Although Xu Feng respected him, he would not treat this as a bargaining chip. After all, if he simply fought his way in, those things would have been his to begin with. They could not serve as terms for an exchange.

"This old man is willing to serve you as an ox or horse, to obey your commands for all eternity."

This was the only thing Mu En could offer now. He would serve Xu Feng as a slave for eternity, and he was certain Xu Feng possessed the ability to make that happen.

"Interesting. Then I'll grant your wish."

Xu Feng took out the List of Gods. He truly intended to make Mu En a god, but this time, he did not plan to make him a god of the Netherworld. After all, what the Netherworld needed most was fairness and impartiality, and soul beasts did far better than humans in that regard.

Although Yaoling and the Evil Monarch were only two Yama Kings, the current Netherworld was managed by the two of them in perfect order. The main reason was that neither of them distinguished between their own kind and outsiders.

Even if a member of their own race died for no apparent reason, they judged the case as it should be judged. There had never been any favoritism or bending of the law. Mu En, however, was different. No matter how honest he appeared, he was still a Shrek man, and letting their own people off easily was practically in Shrek people's blood.

Forget about a crucial position like a Yama King. Xu Feng felt that even if Mu En were made Black and White Impermanence, or Ox-Head and Horse-Face to capture ghosts, he would probably show favoritism.

However, Xu Feng found it somewhat regrettable to let someone as agreeable as Mu En simply die and enter reincarnation. He might as well assign him to the Celestial Court. Besides, having a Shrek man do this would be quite interesting.

"I! Confer upon you the title of Eastern Sea Dragon King! You shall govern all matters of the Eastern Sea, all aquatic clans, and all faith! I order you to resolve this matter within three days. If you fail, this transaction shall be void!"

As the decree of the List of Gods descended, Mu En directly transformed into a half-dragon. If he could complete this transaction, he would be able to fully transform into a dragon and become the true Eastern Sea Dragon King. At the same time, he could protect the children he wished to save.

But if he failed, the transaction would be void. He would never be reincarnated, and every promise would be nullified.

"This!?"

Mu En immediately understood the importance of this decree. Xu Feng was testing his attitude, forcing him to choose between Shrek Academy's millennia-old faith and the lives of those children.

After all, the purpose of this decree was to cut off the Sea God's faith. To any Shrek person, that was an unforgivable crime of treason. Yet if he did not do it, those children would die.

Xu Feng's decree also carried another meaning: he did not trust Mu En. Unless Mu En accomplished something, he would never gain Xu Feng's trust.

Mu En's guess was indeed correct. Xu Feng would rather trust a fence-sitter than people like these fanatics. As long as a fence-sitter was given enough benefits, they would not betray him. But fanatics were different. Unless their faith was shattered first, even if they remained under him, they would only be useless wastes occupying space.

"Your subject accepts the decree and gives thanks for Your Majesty's grace!"

Mu En made his choice. He chose the future. He chose to let those children live, rather than continue preserving the so-called glory and faith of Shrek Academy. Even if the enemy of that choice was the Sea God from ten thousand years ago, he was willing.

After Mu En left, Xu Feng suddenly remembered something. Wasn't Ah Yin parasitizing the Golden Ancient Tree now? Thinking of Tang San's mother, Xu Feng immediately thought of two people—or rather, two enforcers.

The moment Xu Feng thought of what would happen next, he found it amusing. He decisively chose to travel to the Douluo I timeline, and this time, he arrived directly at Spirit Hall.

"My young friend, why did you suddenly contact this old man? What business do you have in coming to ten thousand years ago?"

Qiandao Liu had not expected that, while he was watching the show, Xu Feng would suddenly contact him and say that he wanted to come to their era from ten thousand years in the future.

"Qiandao Liu, I'll be direct. I want two people from your Spirit Hall. In exchange, I can give Spirit Hall the positions of seven Yama Kings."

Xu Feng's words left everyone present stunned. The positions of seven Yama Kings were no empty titles. They were seven genuine divine positions!

One had to know that on Douluo Continent, divine positions were supreme existences that countless powerful individuals could spend their entire lives pursuing without ever reaching. Yet Xu Feng had casually promised seven of them. What sort of people in Spirit Hall could possibly be worth that price?

"Damn! Seven divine positions!?"

Golden Crocodile Douluo was the first to recover. His voice was filled with disbelief. As a senior worshipper of Spirit Hall, he understood the value of divine positions. They were not something just any random nobody could lay their hands on.

"Who in Spirit Hall is worth that much?"

Azure Luan Douluo could not help speaking either. She silently calculated whether it could be Bibi Dong or Qian Renxue. But even they might not be worth seven divine positions! No matter how she looked at it, Spirit Hall was getting an enormous bargain, yet that only made her more uneasy.

Qiandao Liu did not respond immediately. His attention was not on those two people, because even if Spirit Hall handed over its current Pope, Bibi Dong, and his granddaughter Qian Renxue, they would still be nowhere near worthy of seven divine positions.

In other words, the positions of these seven Yama Kings must conceal some unknown secret.

"My young friend, I would like to know why you are giving us these seven Yama King positions."

Xu Feng had long expected that Qiandao Liu would not be easily blinded by profit. Although this chief worshipper of Spirit Hall seemed old-fashioned and stubborn, his calmness was one of the qualities Xu Feng valued most.

"That's right. I assume you saw the conferment of those two Yama Kings. The position of Yama King is responsible for the laws of punishment and reincarnation in the Netherworld, so one must be fair and impartial."

"Whether human or soul beast, everyone has selfish desires. Once selfishness takes hold, it becomes easy to show favoritism and act corruptly. Your Spirit Hall may be domineering in its conduct, but at the very least, you are people who can be considered fair and impartial."

Among the Ten Yama Kings, the two most important positions were King Qin Guang, who was responsible for judgment, and King Lunhuan, who was responsible for reincarnation.

Now, judgment had been handed to Yaoling. That fellow was his loyal dog and absolutely trustworthy. But there had never been anyone to oversee reincarnation.

In the current Netherworld, the guilty could be judged by the Evil Monarch, while the innocent, because no one was responsible for reincarnation, could only wait for now.

Those innocent souls remained in the Netherworld, waiting day after day without knowing when they could enter reincarnation again. This situation could not continue, so this time, Xu Feng had come not only to take the two enforcers with him, but also to settle the matter of King Lunhuan.

After listening, Qiandao Liu understood. Xu Feng had chosen them because, in some respects, they truly were the most suitable candidates.

But this suitability was not absolute. If they missed this opportunity, they might never receive such a good fortune again.

"So that's how it is... We agree!"

Xu Feng signed their names onto the List of Gods. Qiandao Liu would become King Lunhuan and oversee reincarnation in the Netherworld, while the remaining six worshippers became the other six Yama Kings. Together with the already-conferred Yaoling and Evil Monarch, nine of the Ten Yama Kings had now been assembled.

As for what happened next, all that could be said was that Qiandao Liu truly deserved to be called a gentleman of the Douluo I era. While the other worshippers were still immersed in the joy of becoming gods, he alone asked about the current state of the Netherworld.

When he learned that, due to the absence of King Lunhuan, no one was overseeing reincarnation and souls could only wait in misery, even Xu Feng failed to react before Qiandao Liu directly killed himself. If they chose to become gods in their physical bodies, they would have to wait until Xu Feng became a god so that his own divine power could forge divine bodies for them.

But if they chose to become gods as true spirits, the List of Gods would provide that portion of divine power. Qiandao Liu could not bear to see souls waiting in the Netherworld for reincarnation, so he decisively chose to begin work early.

The biggest difference between the two was that those whose true spirits entered the List of Gods would never be able to advance further in this life, while those whose bodies entered it could continue growing in the future.

"Then, Your Majesty, who are the people you want?"

After Qiandao Liu's body was reconstituted by the List of Gods, he immediately changed how he addressed Xu Feng. That "Your Majesty" came out remarkably quickly.

"They are Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo of your Spirit Hall. I need them to do something."

Xu Feng intended to make these two enforcers into Black and White Impermanence. He also wanted to see whether this Chrysanthemum Douluo looked like the manga version or the animated version.

"Hurry and bring those two people here..."

Qiandao Liu had just turned to tell them to summon the two when he discovered that his old brothers were moving even faster than he was. The moment Xu Feng mentioned Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, they had already set off.

Not even a minute later, the two were brought over. Xu Feng stared at Chrysanthemum Douluo in a daze. How should he put it? He looked neither like the manga version nor the animated version. He looked like the manga version rendered in 3D. If Xu Feng had not known beforehand that he was a man, he would not have been able to tell at all.

"Damn, does Gui Mei eat this well every day?"

Jiang Mo Douluo's single remark immediately drew everyone's attention. The way he said it made it sound as if he had never seen Yue Guan before.

"Yeah, I remember Yue Guan not looking like this. Did you catch the wrong person?"

Mighty Lion Douluo looked at Guangling Douluo. If his memory was correct, Yue Guan was supposed to be a dead effeminate. When had he become such a beauty?

"Fourth Brother didn't catch the wrong person. This guy specifically got himself a disguise Spirit Bone. That effeminate appearance was his disguise. This is his true form."

When Guangling Douluo first saw him, he had thought Gui Mei was truly wild, actually bringing someone into his room. Then he suddenly sensed that this person was a Titled Douluo, so he released his Martial Soul and pressured him on the spot. When he saw the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, he was utterly dumbfounded.

The Soul Power Level was right, the Martial Soul type was right, their relationship was right. Other than his appearance not matching, everything else matched. So they simply captured him and brought him over.

"No way, Yue Guan. What's wrong with you? You specifically got a disguise Spirit Bone and wasted it on something like this."

Golden Crocodile Douluo could not understand it at all. There was a fixed limit to how many Spirit Bones each person could absorb. Getting a Spirit Bone specifically for this, wasting one slot just for a disguise, was completely incomprehensible to him.

"My lords, may I ask what instructions you have for the two of us?"

It was Yue Guan's first time being watched so closely by all seven great worshippers. He would be lying if he said he was not nervous. However, since the seven great worshippers had specifically summoned them, they likely had some task for the two of them.

"We can do anything, at any time."

Gui Mei stated that they could do anything, because for the two of them, even as Titled Douluo, they had to learn to read the room if they wanted to survive in Spirit Hall. They were nominally Bibi Dong's people, but in reality, anyone from Worship Hall could kill them.

So if Worship Hall gave them a direct order, they had to carry it out. It was just that doing so would put them in a position where they offended both sides.

However, what happened next was clearly beyond the two men's expectations. They had never imagined that, after suffering through half their lives, such a good thing would still be waiting for them.

"From today onward, the two of you are no longer members of Spirit Hall."

Qiandao Liu's single sentence frightened them to tears. They immediately knelt on the ground and continuously kowtowed. "Chief Worshipper! The two of us have never harbored any intention of betrayal! We have always been utterly loyal to Spirit Hall!"

"It's not that we're sending you to die. Well, no, it seems you really do need to die once."

Qiandao Liu thought about it. The strength of these two would certainly not be of any help to His Majesty, and since His Majesty had specifically sought them out, it was likely to make them gods. So they did need to die once.

Upon hearing that the two of them needed to die, they nearly fainted from fright. Fortunately, Xu Feng stepped forward.

"From today onward, the two of you are my subordinates. You will also become important personnel of the Netherworld. This is an opportunity to become gods. Do you want it?"