Chapter 602: Chapter 602 Punishment

Suddenly, the Judge saw the two most conspicuous people sitting there and his figure instantly stiffened. His originally somewhat slow footsteps hastened considerably, even carrying a sense of urgency.

Soon, he came before the crowd and cleared his throat before speaking, “Ahem, who has summoned this Judge here?”

Even though the people present were from the Hidden Family, they had never thought that one day they would actually see a Judge.

Over the years, although they from the Hidden Family had been practicing in the depths of Changbai Mountain, with many families possessing the spell to capture ghosts, things like the Netherworld Messengers of hell were still very distant to them.

But now, who had they seen! It was a Judge, and he had actually appeared here. Moreover, for some reason, despite the Judge’s posture being so high, they somehow felt respect emanating from him, and even a hint of an implicit low stance.

“It was I,” Zhong Niangyao looked at the Judge with a smile that was not quite a smile, her demeanor casual, “Does the Judge not wish to come here, or do you blame me for it?”

“That’s not the case,” the Judge immediately denied, but then felt his denial might have been too hasty, which wasn’t good, and quickly added, “I was just curious. May I know why the lady has summoned me?”

“It’s nothing too important,” Zhong Niangyao stretched out her hand, pointed at Huang Wan, and said, “Judge, please take a good look, does this fall under the jurisdiction of your hell?”

Suddenly pointed out by Zhong Niangyao, Huang Wan felt a chill in her heart, and an overwhelming sense of dread arose within her as the Judge’s gaze suddenly fell upon her.

Just moments ago, she had merely been bluffing, never anticipating that Nianyao would summon a Netherworld Messenger, let alone the Judge himself.

Yi Huai, standing beside her, was not doing much better. Although he wasn’t the target of scrutiny, having a Judge from hell look at a living person like this would make anyone’s skin crawl.

Upon seeing Huang Wan, the Judge immediately recognized her identity and he flipped open the Book of Life and Death in his hands. Huang Wan’s life deeds instantly appeared in the book.

After perusing the Book of Life and Death, the Judge’s expression shifted from composed to somber as he fixated his sharp gaze upon Huang Wan, “Your lifespan was due to end twenty-three years ago, at which time you should have gone to hell for reincarnation. However, you stole someone else’s vitality and have clung to life in this world for twenty-three extra years.”

Confronted with that piercing gaze that seemed to see through everything, Huang Wan subconsciously tried to avoid it. Nevertheless, she felt as if she could not hide anywhere from that omnipresent scrutiny.

After he finished speaking, the Judge glanced over Yi Huai, but said nothing.

Faced with the Judge’s demeanor, Yi Huai was far from relieved; on the contrary, he felt even more fearful.

Almost all of the spells that extended Huang Wan’s life were his doing. If Huang Wan ended up in a bad situation, his own end would not be any better.

Zhong Niangyao smiled slightly and spoke up, “Judge, how do you plan to deal with this Huang Wan in hell?”

Watching Zhong Niangyao’s smiling expression, the Judge couldn’t help but shiver. He composed himself, hurriedly saying, “Huang Wan has seized another’s vitality, against the Heavenly Dao, such an offense cannot be tolerated by natural law, it is a grave sin. Now she has but a few days left to live, and when she dies, a Netherworld Messenger will come to take her soul to hell for judgment.”

Zhong Niangyao nodded, then continued, “So, what kind of punishment will she receive?”

“This–” The Judge showed an expression of difficulty.

Lu Yichen’s icy gaze swept over immediately.

Jolted, the Judge spoke up formally, “Huang Wan, for seizing another’s vitality and evading hell’s reach, defying the Heavenly Dao, after death, she will have to endure the tortures of reincarnation from the first to the Eighteen Layers of Hell for three hundred years, until her sins are atoned for, only then can she be reincarnated.”

As the Judge’s words were spoken, Huang Wan began to tremble uncontrollably. Even without knowing what the punishments of the Eighteen Layers of Hell were, she understood that they represented the most severe penalties of hell and would undoubtedly be harsh.

“Is that so?”

Zhong Niangyao’s face remained smiling, her true feelings obscured whether she was satisfied or dissatisfied, “To just go through punishment for three hundred years before once again being reincarnated seems rather lenient!”

The Judge’s body froze for a moment before his expression became more solemn, and he continued, “Of course, it’s not possible for her to reincarnate as a human again. The opportunity to become a human is so precious; how can it be wasted on someone like her? The moment Huang Wan violated her fate, it was decreed she could not simply reincarnate as a human again. She must first go through a thousand reincarnations as less sentient beings before having a chance to return as a human.”

But that’s only a possibility; as for whether she could really return as a human, no one could say for certain.

Zhong Niangyao nodded in satisfaction and then turned her gaze to Huang Wan, who looked as if she might collapse any moment, and spoke with a smiling tone, “I told you just now, what happens to you after your death is none of my concern. Now do you believe it?”

“The Eighteen Layers of Hell, you’ve heard of them, right? But maybe you don’t understand them that well. The first is the Tongue-Ripping Hell, the second is the Scissor Hell, the third is the Iron Tree Hell…”

“And another important point, each hell is twenty times more painful than the previous one and with doubled longevity. By then, you will feel that the pain you’re experiencing now is nothing but a tickle.”

With every word Zhong Niangyao uttered, another shade of despair crept onto Huang Wan’s face.

At this moment, Huang Wan was utterly despairing; for most people, death would be a release from tremendous suffering, but for her, it signified the beginning of an even deeper agony.

Without waiting for Huang Wan’s response, Zhong Niangyao turned her head to Yi Huai and continued, “As for your fate, I won’t ask. However, I believe you already have a clear idea.”

After saying this, she cast a meaningful smile in Yi Huai’s direction.

Seeing Zhong Niangyao’s smile, Yi Huai shivered involuntarily. Yet he lacked the courage to ask about his own fate.

Considering how severe Huang Wan’s punishment was, he couldn’t dare to imagine what would become of him.

Zhong Niangyao had no intention to pursue the matter further. She looked at the Judge and, with a smile, said, “Thank you, Judge, for taking the trouble to make this trip.”