Chapter 25

Little Qi Wu only understood life in terms of life and death. She asked, “What is sacrifice?”

The on-duty officer beside her was silent for a moment, not immediately answering. Su Wen gently stroked her head and said, “Sacrifice is when someone uses their own life to protect others.”

Little Qi Wu’s eyes widened slightly, and she was momentarily speechless. She recalled the general she had encountered earlier at the Netherworld Gate, standing on the battlefield, also protecting others.

She whispered, “Such an extraordinary person.”

[Forever remembering the martyrs.]

[Salute.]

But then she thought of Judge Dad and the Emperor. Judge Dad had always been guarding the Netherworld Gate, and the Emperor was also protecting the Underworld at the Netherworld Gate. They were also using their lives to protect everyone. Little Qi Wu suddenly turned around and tightly hugged Judge Dad.

Then she looked at the ghost sitting on the ground, pursing her lips lightly. It took her a while to recover from the ghost’s emotions. She softly asked using the Mystic Seal, “What is your name?”

The ghost’s voice abruptly stopped, and its gaze slowly fell on the little child in front of it. “Are you talking to me?”

Little Qi Wu nodded gently, “Yes.”

“Aren’t you human? Can you see me?”

Little Qi Wu whispered, “This king is not human; this king is Lord Yama.”

“Lord Yama,” the ghost chuckled, though it was unclear whether it believed her or not, as if talking to itself, “Is Lord Yama here to take the lives of those people?”

But as the ghost spoke, it seemed to remember something. Its eyes suddenly widened, and it struggled to stand up. Leaning on the bulletin board, it slowly walked step by step toward the exit, muttering, “No, faster, I can’t die, not a single one can die.”

Little Qi Wu anxiously asked, “Where are you going?”

But the ghost seemed not to hear her and quickly disappeared through the fire station’s gate, leaving only the words, “Not a single one can die.”

The on-duty officer, seeing the father and daughter suddenly standing still, initially thought they were also mourning the martyrs. But when Little Qi Wu suddenly turned her head anxiously toward the gate, it startled him. “Mr. Su? Little one?”

Su Wen hummed in acknowledgment, withdrawing his gaze from the bulletin board and gently pressing Little Yan Wang’s head against his chest. “It’s alright.”

The on-duty officer said, “Let me escort you out.”

“Alright.”

After leaving the fire station, no one spoke for a while. Wang Yang, as the cameraman, didn’t know how to prompt them on what to do next, so he simply stood with the father and daughter.

Until Little Qi Wu tightly clutched Su Wen’s clothes and suddenly whispered, “Dad, don’t sacrifice yourself.”

Su Wen was momentarily stunned.

At this moment, the barrage of comments gradually increased.

[What does that mean? Is Su Wen really in a special line of work?]

[Su Wen just explained the meaning of sacrifice to the kid, and now the kid says this. It seems Su Wen’s profession is indeed related to that in some way.]

[Alright, everyone, let’s not speculate anymore.]

[I wonder how the fire is going.]

[I just checked the scene; the fire is huge and keeps spreading to higher floors. I hope everyone is safe.]

Originally, the program team and the fire station had arranged a visit to the fire station, but now it was clearly inappropriate, so they had to call it off urgently. Li Ke called Su Wen, indicating that they could now have free time and arrange their schedule as they pleased.

Su Wen softly asked Little Qi Wu for her opinion, “Shall we head back first?”

“Alright.”

After hailing a taxi and driving for a while, the driver seemed to remember something and turned on the navigation to check the traffic conditions. He then said with some difficulty, “Sir, let me explain first. There’s a fire on Maple Forest Avenue right now, and it’s blocked off. We’ll need to take a longer route. It might cost a bit more.”

The mention of a fire reminded Little Qi Wu of what she had learned today about firefighters. Those firefighters she saw earlier must have gone to put out the fire. She leaned against the car window, silent.

Su Wen acknowledged with a hum.

At that moment, Little Qi Wu suddenly spotted the ghost she had seen earlier. He was walking hurriedly through the crowd on the sidewalk, weaving past people. Coincidentally, the taxi stopped at a red light.

Little Qi Wu rolled down the window and stared intently at the ghost.

He seemed lost. Although he was moving forward, he was visibly panicked, constantly looking around.

Ghosts and Gods have keen hearing, especially when it comes to the voices of ghosts. Little Qi Wu heard him say, “Where are you? Where are you?”

Remembering Judge Dad’s warning not to stick her head out of the car window, Little Qi Wu rested her fingers on the window and asked, “Who are you looking for?”

The ghost turned at the sound of her voice. “It’s you again, little kid.”

Little Qi Wu corrected him, “Ben Wang is not—”

Before she could finish, the ghost had already floated over. He didn’t have time to waste. “You can see me. You can talk to me. You can ride in a car. Take me to find them! Please?”

Little Qi Wu asked, “Find who?”

“My teammates,” the ghost said. “Those uncles you saw at the fire station.”

He clenched his hands tightly. “I can’t fall behind. Without me, they’re in more danger. Little kid, can you help me?”

Little Qi Wu wanted to say, “But you’re already a ghost. There’s nothing you can do.” But recalling the ghosts who had followed them into the car, she couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

She turned to Judge Dad for help.

Without turning his head, Su Wen pulled Qi Wu into his arms and simply said, “Get in.”

The ghost was momentarily stunned, but there was no time to hesitate. He immediately got into the car and sat beside Little Qi Wu. Worried that his clothes might dirty the car, he pressed himself against the door, seemingly unaware that he was already a ghost.

The light was about to turn green. The driver was about to make a U-turn when he suddenly heard the handsome man in the back say, “Don’t change the route.”

The driver asked, “What?”

“Go to Maple Forest Avenue,” Su Wen said, slightly raising his eyes. “Where the fire is.”

The driver: “?”

【???】

【But seriously, isn’t this a bad time to go check it out?】

【It does seem a bit inappropriate. This isn’t the kind of attention to seek.】

【I wonder why he suddenly changed his mind. Just a few seconds ago, he agreed to take a detour, but as soon as he held Zai Zai, he decided to go to the scene.】

【What was Zai Zai looking at out the window? As soon as she turned to look at Su Wen, he changed his mind.】

【Every time I watch this livestream, I feel like I’ve missed some important plot point. It’s like time travel—I can’t keep up with the pace.】

【+10086】

The customer is king. Although the driver didn’t understand, he figured that with the cameraman in the car, they might be going to film some material. So he stepped on the gas and sped off.

The ghost was anxious and didn’t have the time to wonder why Su Wen and the child could see him and talk to him. Once in the car, he kept his head down.

“Faster, faster.”

The traffic broadcast was advising vehicles to avoid Maple Forest Avenue, so the road wasn’t crowded, and they arrived at the scene quickly. However, the area was blocked off, and they couldn’t get close.

The driver said helplessly, “We can only go this far. The road ahead is sealed off.”

He then added, “You must be filming a show, right? Please be careful.”

Su Wen paid the fare, “Thank you.”

The production team was initially worried that Su Wen was trying to capitalize on the situation, which could lead to negative publicity. But Li Ke reconsidered, thinking that Su Wen’s unique profession must have its reasons, so he didn’t intervene.

After getting out of the car, Little Qi Wu watched as the ghost dashed off like an arrow, “Thank you!A certain distance from the burning building was cordoned off with a police line. Some people who were stuck there, along with nearby residents, were watching from outside. Su Wen stood at the edge of the crowd, holding Little Qi Wu.

Suddenly, two figures appeared, “Lord Yama, Judge.”

Little Qi Wu was surprised, “Black and White Impermanence?”

“Yes.”

Little Qi Wu asked, “Why are you here?”

White Impermanence explained, “There’s a major fire here. In such cases, we usually stay to see if there are any new souls.”

Normally, only one local Impermanence Envoy is needed to guide souls. Only in situations where many people might die would both be dispatched, and sometimes even Impermanence Envoys from other regions would assist.

Little Qi Wu grew nervous. She took out the Book of Life and Death from her small backpack and carefully looked through it, but didn’t find any new names.

She looked up and asked Judge Dad in confusion, “There are no names.”

Su Wen appeared calm, “Then there are no deaths.”

Little Qi Wu sighed in relief and craned her neck to look inside, but it was too far, and she couldn’t see anything except the flames on the building. She noticed something flying in the sky and remembered her teacher saying it was a helicopter.

This reminded her that she could fly!

Little Qi Wu immediately turned around, “Dad! Qi Wu wants to go!”

Su Wen looked up at the sky and knew what Little Yan Wang was thinking. He used the Mystic Seal to remind her, “Lord, you can’t fly here.”

Little Qi Wu nodded in disappointment. She was really worried about the firefighter uncles, afraid they might sacrifice themselves like those ghosts.

【Where does she want to go? Does she want to go inside and take a look?】

【Something’s not right. Little Qi Wu and Su Wen shouldn’t be the type to act out of place like this.】

【Why isn’t Su Wen saying anything?】

Black and White Impermanence stood respectfully to the side, watching the ambulances come and go. White Impermanence sighed, “I hope no one gets hurt. This kind of scene is really heartbreaking.”

Black Impermanence nodded in agreement, “Shall we go in and check the situation?”

White Impermanence replied, “Sure.”

Just as the two Impermanence Envoys were about to report to their superiors, they saw Lord Yama looking at them eagerly: Huh? What’s going on?

Su Wen lowered his gaze and suddenly asked, “Lord, why do you want to go?”

Little Qi Wu twisted her fingers nervously and said uneasily, “Qi Wu is worried about the uncles.”

“Hmm?”

“Making sacrifices is something that makes people very sad,” Little Qi Wu whispered. “When Qi Wu was at the fire brigade, I could feel that those ghosts were all very sad.”

The Little King of Hell was much more sensitive to emotions than ordinary ghosts and gods, something Su Wen knew well.

In his mind, Su Wen recalled the sudden words of the Little King of Hell earlier, “Dad, don’t sacrifice yourself,” and he felt a bit dazed.

As the King of Hell, she would witness many such scenes in the future, and she needed to have compassion for all living beings.

Sometimes, it was hard to tell whether this was a good or bad thing for the Little King of Hell.

After a long while, Su Wen said in a deep voice, “Alright.”

“I will take the Lord there.”

With that, he carried Little Qi Wu to a tree, sat down on a small stone step as if no one else was around, and held Little Qi Wu close, burying her face in his chest.

[What’s going on? Is Zai Zai going to sleep?]

[Is this the place to sleep?]

Su Wen asked, “Lord, can you use your Dharma Body now? Use it to enter.”

Little Qi Wu nodded.

Only then did Su Wen look up and say to Wang Yang, “We’ll rest for a while, don’t worry.”

“Ah, okay…” Wang Yang was momentarily stunned. “Ah?! What? Here?!”

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the two of them sat quietly on the ground, with Su Wen slightly bowing his head as if he had fallen asleep.

Wang Yang: I’m numb, these two really don’t care about hiding.

[I don’t understand, can someone explain?]

[Su Wen looks like he’s in the same state as when he was meditating in the temple earlier.]

[Folks, I have a not-so-mature idea, mysticism…]

[Wow…]

[Either they’re crazy, or they’re on a level we can’t comprehend.]

Seeing this, Li Ke immediately notified Wang Yang via phone: “Don’t keep filming them, capture some of the scene appropriately, and we’ll arrange to switch the camera here.”

With that, the feed was switched back to the Temple of the King of Hell.

[Damn, is the production team playing dirty?]

[The familiar formula, the familiar taste, the familiar dog, I suddenly feel things are even more complicated!]

Meanwhile, through astral projection, Su Wen took the Little King of Hell and the Black and White Impermanence Envoys through the crowd and quickly flew to the fire scene.

The scene was far more shocking than it had appeared from downstairs.

Little Qi Wu watched as the neatly dressed firefighter uncles shuttled back and forth in the corridors.

Cheng Donghan shouted commands, “The fire is intense over there, go this way! Be careful!”

A team member yelled, “Captain! There’s still someone here!”

Cheng Donghan glanced around and immediately went over, carrying the injured person on his back. “Cover your nose with a wet towel!”

The injured person, terrified, cried while covering their mouth and nose, unable to stop asking in a muffled voice, “Am I going to die? Am I going to die?”

“Talk less,” Cheng Donghan scolded, causing the person behind him to tremble. He took a deep breath, “You won’t die. We’ll do everything we can to ensure no one dies.”

He silently carried the injured person through the safe passage.

Other firefighters came and went, some extinguishing the fire, others rescuing people. No one spoke much, only patting each other’s hands when they crossed paths.

The Black and White Impermanence Envoys were astonished at the sight, “There are so many ghosts here!”

Little Qi Wu saw the ghost missing a leg again, kneeling in a corner of a room, desperately trying to move a burning table. “Someone! There’s someone!”

But he couldn’t touch anything; his hand just kept passing through the person’s body.

The person hiding in the corner cried out, “Help! Help!”

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here to save you, I’m here to save you,” the ghost firefighter said anxiously, sweating profusely. “Come and help, there’s still someone here!”

Behind him were the ghosts he had seen earlier at the fire brigade, each one anxiously searching every corner, afraid of missing anyone.

They shouted to the ghost kneeling on the ground with a broken leg, “Team Leader Zhou! We can still save them, we can still save them! There’s someone here!”

Team Leader Zhou turned and shouted, “Save them if you can! Hurry up! Not a single one can die!”

A ghost firefighter seemed to go mad, trying to pull the survivor, but each time he missed. He collapsed to the ground, crying, “Team Leader Zhou, we can’t save them, we can’t save them anymore.”

Team Leader Zhou pushed aside the burning objects, muttering, “We can, we definitely can.”

Little Qi Wu floated in the air, her body trembling slightly, unable to control the urge to move forward and help them, but Judge Dad held her back.

Su Wen gently hugged her, “Lord, the life and death of the Human Realm, we cannot interfere.”

“Judge Dad,” Little Qi Wu looked at those helpless people, tears streaming down her face, “But they’re in danger!”

“Yes,” Su Wen covered her eyes, “I know.”

Ghosts and Gods cannot interfere with natural life and death; it would violate the laws of both realms and incur divine punishment.

As the King of Hell, Qi Wu would eventually have to understand this, even if it was cruel.

Though she couldn’t see the scene, the cries kept flooding her ears. Little Qi Wu tightly gripped the hem of the Judge’s robe, her voice choked with sobs, “Dad…”

Team Leader Zhou was still struggling with those who hadn’t been rescued. The people inside cried, and he cried too, “We can save them, if I hurry up, we can save them!”

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, covering his face and weeping, with his sacrificed teammates behind him, “I wasn’t fast enough, I failed you, I couldn’t save you.”

The ghost team members looked at the fire, rushing in again and again, “No one can die, not a single one.”

At that moment, firefighters from the Fourth Squadron ran in, checked the situation, and immediately reported back, “Captain Cheng, there’s still someone in this room!”

Cheng Donghan, who had already carried one person down and returned, stepped into the room.

The trapped survivor saw their savior and immediately shouted, “Save me!”

“Don’t be afraid,” Cheng Donghan walked over, braving the fire, passing through Team Leader Zhou’s body, and clearing the obstacles, “We will save you.”

At that moment, the burned obstacles collapsed, falling towards Cheng Donghan. Team Leader Zhou shouted, “Be careful!”

The survivor also shouted, “Be careful!”

Cheng Donghan dodged in time, but his arm was still hit.

A team member ran over, “Captain, are you okay? I’ll handle it!”

Cheng Donghan cursed, “Handle what? Quickly search for other survivors! Hurry up!”

Team member: “Yes!”

After the team member left, Cheng Donghan handed a wet towel to the survivor, turned around, and bent down, “Get on.”

The survivor didn’t know what to say, only knowing to obey.

And Cheng Donghan didn’t know that he was now face to face with the tearful Team Leader Zhou, who stared at him as if in a daze.

After the injured climbed onto Cheng Donghan’s back and the two of them went out, Team Leader Zhou slowly turned his head, as if relieved, and said, “We saved them.”

At the positions where the other ghost team members were, all the injured had been discovered and rescued.

When the last person was carried away by Cheng Donghan, the ghost team member who had been sitting on the ground crying in despair leaned against the wall, wiped his face, and laughed and cried.

With all the injured rescued, all the members of the Fourth Squadron returned to continue extinguishing the fire, aiming to minimize the damage as much as possible and ensure there were no more casualties.

Cheng Donghan led the team and charged into the sea of flames once again. Even with his hand injured, he gritted his teeth and commanded, “Don’t just stand there! Move faster! Complete the task quickly!”

Then he added, “Everyone, pay attention to your own safety. Make sure you all get out safely! That’s an order.”

“Yes!”

Team Leader Zhou stood in the gradually extinguishing fire, looking at Cheng Donghan’s injured arm, and slowly smiled.

The fire was finally extinguished, and there were no fatalities.

The firefighters still had to complete the final cleanup work, but they all breathed a sigh of relief. They sat in the open space after the fire, replenishing their fluids and resting, giving each other high-fives, but they were too exhausted to speak, just exchanging smiles.

Beside them, all the sacrificed firefighters also sat there.

Cheng Donghan said, “Congratulations to us for completing the mission successfully once again, surviving a great disaster.”

The other team members smiled and said in unison, “There will be blessings to come!”

Cheng Donghan looked at the ground, suddenly smiled, and said softly, “Team Leader Zhou, all members of the Fourth Squadron have completed the mission successfully, not a single one missing.”

Team Leader Zhou stood in the ruins, opposite Cheng Donghan, and said with a smile, “I saw it, good job, you guys are really amazing.”

After the cleanup work was done, all the firefighters withdrew, but the ghosts remained at the scene.

This time, they were not in a hurry to follow the vehicles back. Instead, they watched as the members of the Fourth Squadron left.

They stood in a row, just like they did at the fire brigade, neatly saluting the departing fire trucks.

Black and White Impermanence saw this scene and hesitated, saying, “Should we take them away now?”

Coming here, they didn’t encounter any deaths, but they did see a bunch of previously undiscovered ghosts.

As if hearing the voices, the ghosts looked up. Team Leader Zhou recognized Little Qi Wu, “It’s you, little friend.”

Black and White Impermanence: Wow, that’s Lord Yama.

Little Qi Wu had experienced too many emotional ups and downs today, her eyes still red, but she could still sense the relief emanating from the ghosts before her.

She landed in front of the group of ghosts.

The ghosts recognized her: “It’s you, little cutie! Are you a ghost too?”

“Nonsense,” Team Leader Zhou glanced at the man beside Little Qi Wu, as well as Black and White Impermanence, recalling the details from earlier. He smiled and said, “This is Lord Yama.”

Little Qi Wu asked again, “What’s your name?”

Team Leader Zhou replied, “Zhou Changhong.”

He then turned to introduce his team members behind him: “We are from the Third Firefighting Squadron of North City. These are my team members, Qin Feng…”

Little Qi Wu opened the Book of Life and Death, found their names, and as her small hand touched the pages, memories of the sea of fire flooded her mind.

All the members of the Third Squadron had sacrificed their lives in a massive fire while trying to save the last injured person.

Zhou Changhong’s voice echoed again: “Faster! We can still save them!”

“Team Leader Zhou, we can’t get out.”

“Then we won’t. Let’s save the person.”

Little Qi Wu stood before the firefighters, tears streaming uncontrollably: “You’re amazing, you’re truly amazing.”

Zhou Changhong stepped forward, knelt on one knee before Little Qi Wu, and hugged her: “This is what we should do. How can Lord Yama cry?”

Little Qi Wu cried even harder, sobbing as she hugged him: “Can Qi Wu hug you? If Qi Wu hugs you, you won’t feel pain anymore.”

“Of course.”

“That would be great, but won’t I dirty Little Yan Wang? I’m very dirty.”

“Never mind, I’ve never hugged the King of Hell before.”

Zhou Changhong and the firefighters behind him came forward one by one to hug Little Yan Wang. Strangely, after the hugs, the restraints they had always felt on their bodies disappeared.

Su Wen slightly lowered his eyes: “My Lord, it’s time for them to report to the Underworld.”

“Okay,” Little Qi Wu sniffled, “We’ll meet in the Underworld.”

The ghost firefighters were amused: “Alright, see you in the Underworld. Thinking about it this way, the Underworld doesn’t seem so scary anymore.”

Little Qi Wu wanted to give them candy but then remembered she was in her Dharma Body. She quickly said, “Wait a moment!”

She said seriously, “Qi Wu will give you candy.”

The firefighters: “?”

Su Wen smiled slightly: “My Lord’s Karma will ensure you have a good life in the future.”

Then they definitely had to take it!

A group of ghosts followed Little Qi Wu downstairs. Wang Yang had already finished filming the necessary footage and was feeling troubled when he suddenly saw the two big figures wake up simultaneously. He quickly aimed the camera at them.

Li Ke also immediately switched the camera back.

[Wow, they finally woke up. Did they plan this? The fire’s over, and you wake up. Did you go save the world or something?]

[I want to see what you’re going to do!]

As soon as Little Qi Wu woke up, she went to rummage through her backpack, but to her surprise, the firefighters didn’t follow.

Su Wen reminded her: “The firefighting team was originally protecting them. Now that they’ve come out, they must have been taken back.”

Little Qi Wu nodded anxiously, “Dad, let’s go back!”

“Alright.”

Under the audience’s anticipation, Su Wen and Little Qi Wu once again set off on their journey back to the firefighting team.

[I don’t get it, are they really just riding the hype?]

[Nonsense, if they were, they’d let us watch!]

They soon arrived at the fire station, and sure enough, the ghosts were standing at the entrance, waving at Little Qi Wu when they saw her.

The firefighter on duty at the entrance asked in surprise, “Why are you back?”

The fire station was currently under reorganization, so it shouldn’t be open for visits.

Little Qi Wu tilted her head up and said, “Qi Wu and Dad came to see Team Leader Zhou and the heroes of the Third Squadron.”

The duty officer was stunned, “How did you know…”

Could it be that she saw it on the photos earlier? But the photos only had names, how did she know it was the Third Squadron?

“Come in first,” the duty officer led them once again to the photo wall filled with pictures.

The firefighters of the Third Squadron joked as they looked at their own photos.

“I still looked more handsome back then, right?”

“If I had known, I would have smiled more. This is like a public execution.”

Little Qi Wu opened her backpack and took out all the candies, laying them out one by one.

Then she read out the names of the firefighters from the Third Squadron one by one.

“Zhou Changhong, Qin Feng…” Her voice was tender yet incredibly soothing, “Qi Wu wishes you all smooth sailing and long-lasting happiness in the future.”

Black and White Impermanence exchanged glances: Since when did the Lord know how to use idioms?!

[I’ve been looking for a while, but I haven’t seen anything about the Third Squadron. The question is, how did Zai Zai know?]

[Don’t ask, just say it’s the blessing of Lord Yama.]

[Keep it low-key, low-key.]

After Little Qi Wu finished speaking, she added earnestly, “Lord Yama, bless you all.”

In front of her, a row of martyrs stood in formation, saluting her with a military salute.

Little Qi Wu imitated them, also saluting.

Zhou Changhong spoke up, “Thank you, Lord Yama.”

“Lord Yama, your merit is immeasurable.”

The other team members also shouted in unison, “Lord Yama, your merit is immeasurable!”

At this moment, Cheng Donghan, who had received the news, arrived. He was originally supposed to go to the hospital but decided to stop by the station first. Seeing Little Qi Wu’s display, he asked, “What’s the little one doing?”

Little Qi Wu turned around and said, “Looking at the heroes.”

“Uncle Cheng, you’re also a hero.”

Cheng Donghan couldn’t help but laugh, “Thank you.”

Little Qi Wu walked up to him, “Uncle, can Qi Wu give you a hug?”

Cheng Donghan nodded, “Of course.”

He crouched down and hugged Little Qi Wu, immediately feeling the pain in his hand lessen.

But before he could speak, he heard Little Qi Wu whisper softly in his ear, “Uncle Cheng, Uncle Zhou said: Good job, you’re amazing.”

Cheng Donghan was slightly taken aback and instinctively looked toward the photo wall. Zhou Changhong’s photo seemed to be smiling at him.

At this moment, Little Qi Wu had already let go, “Uncle, remember to see a doctor. Goodbye.”

After Little Qi Wu left, Cheng Donghan walked over to the photo wall. The duty officer smiled and said, “That little girl is really something. She came in and said she wanted to see the heroes of the Third Squadron. How did she know?”

Cheng Donghan didn’t say anything, just looked at Team Leader Zhou’s photo.

Suddenly, he remembered that every time they returned from a mission, Team Leader Zhou of the Third Squadron would pat his shoulder and say, “Good job, you’re amazing.”

He smiled softly and said, “Perhaps, because she really is a little temple priest.”