“I’ve heard the sixth prince has finally stepped out of the Katsumi Palace?”

“Oh my! Yes! My cousin who works there said that he walked out in absolute rage. No one dared to ask why. “

“I heard it's because he found out about Princess Aika’s favourite pastime. “

“What nonsense? He would have known about that ages ago! As if he is any better!”

“But then who would dare injure her so badly. Is there such a soul? A demon? Hmm?”

“Shhhhh look, those are her palace guards. Who are they bullying today?”

Two seven-feet demons dragged a body behind them, wrapped loosely in black cloth. It looked like a bloody corpse. The occasional groaning was the only indication that the man was alive, just barely.

The man must have lost consciousness so when he finally opened his eyes, his arms were tied up above him and his body hung over a tub of strange smelling water.

“Awake?”

Zhang Xiyu thought that he was hallucinating when he saw the same man from those paintings stand in front of him. There was nothing much to note about his appearance except that he reminded him of a snake.

He opened his mouth to speak but choked on his own blood.

“Zhang Xiyu, is it? Wherever did you get the guardian’s dirk?” Liu Lei closed the distance between them. His manic eyes bored right onto Zhang Xiyu.

In a dreamlike state, Zhang Xiyu turned his head towards the palace guard whom he swiped the dirk off.

A defeated look crossed over the guard’s face as he slowly kneeled. Before his knees even touched the ground, his head lopped off and got smashed like a bloody pancake.

“Well, that is one offender gone. About Blazebeast? Guess I will have to borrow him later from Foghand…...”

Liu Lei grinned. “Now then. To the main course.”

Zhang Xiyu felt the withdrawal of suspension, his body falling straight into the acidic water. The acid permeated down his throat and nose, his skin burned, and he suffocated down the water. Just when he thought he was going to die again, harshly, he was pulled up.

“That’s a special something my darling in the chamber of steam made-”

Zhang Xiyu felt mortified. His bones creaked under the immense pain and tears ran down his face. I can breathe. I can breathe.

“Hey! I forgot to introduce myself.”

Liu Lei did a sloppy bow. “Liu Lei. The Sixth Prince of Hell.”

“Now, how did you even manage to scratch my wife? No……...how is your skin even intact after that dip.”

Yes, Zhang Xiyu did in fact feel a bit better. As if his body was healing itself at a slow but steady pace. He thought it was just a perk of being a ghost.

Liu Lei was lost in thought. His hands grazed Zhang Xiyu’s almost smooth hand. Could it be…...?

“Mi!”

A man covered from head to toe in dark clothes flashed beside him.

“Your Highness.” Mi kneeled.

Liu Lei grit his teeth. “Bring me my wife! At once!”

“Yes!” Mi seemed to completely vanish in another dimension.

The room went silent. Sounds of acid dripping down his body synced with the steady flow of the dead guard’s blood. Oh, I am in deep shit.

He looked down at his pathetic state. When will it stop burning? Why am I always burning? Flames leapt in front of his eyes. Red embers bursting into a bright orange akin to the wings of a giant phoenix.

Make it stop……...

“Ahh!” a woman’s scream broke through his trance.

After adjusting his blurry vision, he saw Liu Lei lift Aika by her hair. He leaned into her ear and whispered something that made the woman shake in fear.

Zhang Xiyu blankly watched Liu Lei then throw her body at a wall as if she were a simple ragdoll.

What in the fuck am I witnessing?

Liu Lei spat. “So fucking lax! You put down your guard so much, a random ghost can kill you! Is this your legacy? Do you wish to turn me into a joke?”

Aika’s eyes reddened with anger. “I am sorry! How many times must I apologize?”

She pointed at Zhang Xiyu, who was trying his best to keep a low profile.

“Why is he still alive? Do you have no balls?”

Zhang Xiyu cried silent tears. This bitch.

Liu Lei whipped his head around at him. His fists clenched. He stepped forward but then restrained himself. It makes sense now. All of it makes sense now.

“I can’t kill him anymore.”

“What?” Aika screeched. When she saw that Liu Lei really had no intention to kill him, she leaped at the hanging Zhang Xiyu.

She barely moved one step and she was kicked back down by her dear husband.

Zhang Xiyu thought, ‘Ah. This domestic violence is really tiring me out now.’

But then again, I stabbed her too…….

“He’s not our property anymore.” Liu Lei hissed.

“Huh?”

“. . . . . .”

“Mi!” Liu Lei yelled in frustration.

“Yes, My Lord.” Mi came back to service.

“Pack him up. Send him to the Fourth Prince’s Court. And pick up my invitation card.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

Zhang Xiyu internally groaned. Why don’t they just kill me already? This is so mentally exhausting……...

He sighed. I am already dead.

_________________________________________

Four strings floated in the air parallelly. A pale hand gently strummed the strings slowly, softly. Peach petals fell lightly, colouring the river pink. The music pursued the mellowness of autumn. All forgotten, all forgiven. Nature patiently awaits a new season, like the youth who waits for their lover.

Yuan Hai held the season in his grasp. His indigo hair flowed down his broad shoulders, bringing out the contrast with the white yukata he wore. Today, he was in a good mood.

The notes ascended with an indescribable excitement. A small smile crept up his delicate face.

“Your Highness.” An old butler kneeled outside the moongate. The melody subsided in a gentle end.

“Peizhi.” Yuan Hai said softly, allowing him to speak.

“The sixth prince has delivered his gift. This servant has given the invitation to his man.”

“Hmm.”

“What is the condition of our pawn? He isn’t broken too much, is he?”

Peizhi sharply inhaled. “Considering the traces on his body, it’s a miracle that he looks far from broken.”

“Hahaha- “His composure dissolved under his unrestrained madness.

“I’ve found it. The perfect vessel. The perfect soldier to brave the Kaigan Pit.”

“The Kaigan Pit?” Back in the Katsumi Palace, Liu Lei paced around restlessly while Aika lay upon the soft bed, using her soul power to slowly heal her wounds.

“That’s just a little entertainment show. The gambling gets pretty serious at times but the desperation before the ghosts die is just- “

“-delicious. So worth it. “She licked her lips.

 “But so what if he wants a player to represent his court? Why the fuck are you so scared?”

“Scared? What?” Liu Lei snapped out of his thoughts.

“Me? Scared?”

She sighed. “I don’t know what else to call this…...”

“Scared? No. I am just a bit- no it’s a fluke anyways.”

“Less talking to yourself, more talking to me.” Now she was really annoyed.

“The Kaigan Pit. Seashore. Do you know why it’s called that?” Liu Lei slumped down on a chair.

“Hmm…… something about an artefact. That the courts used to send actual warriors to get it from the pit but like no one returned. With time they believed that it didn't exist so they all gave up and just used it as a place for the best survival show in all hells.”

“. . . . . .”

“What?!”

“What if- maybe- it really exists.” Liu Lei thought about the small blue fragment that was trapped in Aika’s villa. It is useless. It is hostile. It is useless.

He picks up the glowing invitation from the table near him. He finally got an invitation to the judge chambers that overlooked the Kaigan Pit, after fifty whole years. A random dying ghost was of no value compared to this.

No need to overthink it. Yuan Hai is just a weirdo.

Meanwhile, Yuan Hai sat patiently by Zhang Xiyu’s bedside

waiting for him to wake up. He had a silly thought, should I peel him an apple? Yuan Hai silently laughed. What if I make them into little rabbits? Oh, this is too funny.

So, when Zhang Xiyu woke up, he went right back to sleep.

That is enough weirdos for one day.

Yuan Hai coughed and asked. “Awake?”

What is this strange sense of déjà vu?

“Get up or I’ll rip your lung out.”

Zhang Xiyu sat up politely. “Who are you?”

“Yuan Hai. The fourth prince. You can call me your saviour.” He smiled.

Zhang Xiyu further enforced his guard up. Saviour? Yes. He did indeed save me.

He looked at the image of purity that the man loved to radiate and was reminded of that Portuguese villa. There is no place for such a character in this setting.

Zhang Xiyu stood up calmly and slowly inched towards the window. “Ah. That is really truly venerable of you. You really are too kind. Really, um, grateful for your help. Saving a random ghost ha ha- “

A string as thin as a needle circled around his neck. It looked harmless, something one would swat away as if it were lint. But the stinging pain around his neck stopped him in his tracks.

“I don’t run a charity Mr. Zhang nor am I dutiful.”

He towered above him. “I would like to trouble Mr. Zhang to show me his gratitude with other means.”

The Hellscroll moves again.

___________________________________

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Loud cheers filled up the arena. Demons from far away travelled here to submit their fighting ghosts. The ticket counter became the prime area for brawling matches between the demons while another officer set up a small counter for unofficial betting. A fight to death between the desperate ghosts, the winner gets the right to not get bullied again and have a small home anywhere in the realm while the winner’s owner gets riches beyond any mortal king’s treasury.

Such was the idea of peak entertainment in that century of hell.

Knowing that Lord Enma has been away for business for a long, long time, there was no shortage of these ghosts in hell. In fact, this competition also takes care of the population problem that hell is currently facing. The princes thought, what a noble idea. And so, there came in the sponsors of this whole arrangement.

Loud gongs matched the hearty, passionate shouts of the demons. Their lords, their idols, the seven princes have finally arrived.

They made their way to the box which floated above the bright stage, giving them the best view in the house. Its official name was the judge chambers as anyone sitting there would have to act as one of the umpires, to maintain the fairness and honour in this competition. There is no need to explain how that panned out in reality.

The commentator had his own podium. His eyes shone with anticipation as he twirled his long beard. He would now announce the entry of every prince.

“Please Welcome! The lord of the Sanzu River! Godfather of the Shui Gui! Master of the Yaoguai- “

The man just went on and on. “-the prince who holds one twenty-six wins of the Kaigan Pit! Give a round of applause for! The First Prince, Lord Ren Jiang!”

A tall handsome figure, dressed in a deep blue kimono, walked up to the box. With every movement, the blue kimono would flow akin to the tide of a river. Ren Jiang gave a small nod and the noise from the crowd subsided.

“Next up! The lord that encloses the sweltering heat of our lovely hell! The overlooker of the mountain portals! And! The prince who holds ninety-four wins of the Kaigan Pit! Let’s welcome the second prince! Lord Ren Shan!”

The crowd went berserk again. Another man dressed in emerald green walked up to the box. He wore a single diamond earring on his left ear. Ren Shan too gave a small nod to appease the crowd. He leaned over a bit to make sure that his representative for this year was well settled.

Meanwhile the third prince had already arrived at the scene. “Ren Shan, you are concerned about your player?” He Bolin teased him.

“Little brother, after your little stunt last year, can you blame me for being a bit cautious?”  Ren Shan smiled, his eyes narrowing to contain his hostility.

“Get that tension up! The master of the Umibozu! The leader of administration- “

Zhang Xiyu looked at the excitement with dead eyes. He dragged his feet to follow Yuan Hai to the spotlight. He had already forced himself to come to term with his situation. He must be Yuan Hai’s pawn for now.

He looked around the joyous faces of the demons. It is not just a game.

Suddenly, he grabbed Yuan Hai’s wrist. Zhang Xiyu ignored the man’s irritation and asked. “How did you find me? We have never met before. Are you spying on Liu Lei?”

Yuan Hai pulled back his wrist and held Zhang Xiyu’s shoulder. “You better keep that wild idea to yourself. Why would I spy on my dear brother, hmm?” his smile laced with underlying threat.

Yuan Hai patted him on the back. “Now go! You don’t have to win this. But don’t you dare try to return without doing your job.”

Zhang Xiyu who was planning to make a run for it. “. . . . .”

“-and! The eighty-one wins holder of the Kaigan Pit! Please welcome, Lord Yuan Hai!”

“Hey! You can do it! Believe in yourself, young ghost!” and with that Yuan Hai was gone.

Zhang Xiyu sighed and went to the player’s section. There was a separate seating with seven seats for the representatives while the other uncountable ghosts were stuffed inside another room. Three seats were already filled. The one representing the first prince was a huge burly man. His biceps were bigger than Zhang Xiyu’s face. On top of it, he looked focused. Zhang Xiyu skipped past him. The third prince’s representative looked like a mirror image of the first one in terms of composure and strength. The only anomaly was the one representing the second prince.

He was far from focused. His eyes darted anywhere and everywhere. As if he was looking for an escape….

Zhang Xiyu made a mental note to follow him later.

“-the lord who is here after five whole decades! The legendary ban has been lifted! Let us all welcome the sixth prince, Lord Liu Lei!”

“Sixth prince! Sixth prince! Sixth prince!”

Liu Lei walked up with Aika by his side, his face red with embarrassment.

“Are you the guy who stabbed our princess?” Liu Lei’s representative player stood behind him.

“Stabbed? The princess-consort?”

“Aika was stabbed?”

Whispers spread throughout the arena. A ghost stabbed one of the strongest demons in hell.

Zhang Xiyu felt like first stabbing the guy behind him and then himself. “Of course not. Are you high?”

“He’s saying no.”

“He’s lying.”

“Why would he lie? If it were me, I would brag about it till the cold hells!”

“Exactly! Liu Lei left him alive after that? Must be a rumour.”

“Silence!” the commentator screamed.

The arena went deathly quiet. “All the princes have arrived! Let us have a round of applause for our judges and sponsors tonight!”

The place again turned boisterous. No one cared about some strange rumour anymore but Zhang Xiyu knew he had to kill this whistleblower before he left.

“Demons and our dear royalty! In the name of King Enma! Round one of the Kaigan Pit!”

“Commences!”

______________________________