"Wang?! Wang?!" Sang shouts and shouts at the tree but all they can hear is excruciating painful screams of agonies that want people to cover their own ears to lessen the sharp loudness and turn blind eye to the pain.
The Oak Tree is red like it's on blazing fire but there is no actual flame. No cracking of wood nor burn smells. But one would think that is the least to be concerned about when painful screams fill the area in unorthodox looking surroundings.
"Wang?! Wang Zheng!?" Sang cries out while punching the Oak Tree trunk but the tree spirit never replies to his pleas.
"Little angel, what is going on!?" Yunlan asks, feeling sick to his stomach. For an unknown reason, the voices, screams, the image in front of him reminds him of judgement day in Hell where all sinner's sins are being weighted for their annual cleansing period.
"It's a judgement punishment... day. If I'm not mistaken, it the day when hell lords burn every sinner in the Hell on the Rightful Flame. The purpose of the ritual is to rule out sinners who had paid their due sins in Hell so they can move onto gate of reincarnation; and those who is not rule out by the Rightful Flame, they will continue to receive their due punishments in the hell....until next Judgement Punishment Day" Little devil answers instead because heaven's beings don't know anything about how Hell works like how devils don't know anything about how Heaven lords rule their perspective beings.
The only exception to this rule is Archangels and underground Rulers who have free access to both realms. Of course, that doesn't mean either being can visit another realm without prior notice, or it would be considered as an attack.
"A what now?" Lin Jing asks, surprised and confused but this question is ignored when Shen Wei asks.
"If what you say is right, then I would assume this ritual only occur under 7th level of Hell... why is this Oak Tree going through that?"
"7th Level?" Lin Jing asks again, but Guo helpfully answers him since others ignore the poor guy who is totally confused.
"There is total of 7 floors or 7 underground levels in Hell like there is total of 7 level of skies in Heaven. Each level carries a different severity of sins for Hell. And I believe 7th level is the deepest and most tortures floor for heavy sinners or at least I have read" Guo Changcheng explains.
"Thanks Guo!" Lin Jing replies with thankful pats on his back.
"I don't know, master. I never heard of such thing too, but this cannot be anything else." Little devil said, feeling worried and puzzled.
What had become of Hell since we went to sleep? Little devil questions himself.
"Everyone, answers would be helpful, but I think getting our little tree spirit out is more important at the moment." Yunlan hurries to alert others when he sees the tree slowly deeming down and tree trunk starting to turn black like it about to break down any moment.
"Would same method even work now?" Little angel worriedly wonders aloud.
"What do you mean by that, little angel?" Little devil questions.
"I dispelled the trap on Sang Zan, breaking the magic circle. It worked out fine since he was the only soul that was trapped. But now, there are many souls and the moment they sense a way out, they will cling to it to escape their pain." Little Angel explains but he is interrupted by Shen Wei.
"What are you trying to say, little angel?"
"Master Wei, what I'm saying is that if I were to use same method to dispel the trap, I cannot be sure that whoever get out will be Wang Zheng..."
"Is there a way to fix that?" Zhao Yunlan asks this time.
"I don't know. Maybe if we can single out the person, we want to free... just maybe..." Little angel ponders more so to himself than others.
"How? I will do anything. Just free my Wang, please!" Sang pleads, making others feel sorry for him.
"Sang, I would love to do it, but I really don't know... I'm sorry." The little angel said guilty and Sang drops to his knees and cries.
"Why don't we try calling her name and if she can response to us, we can ask her to escape the moment she sees the escape out before others?" Lin Jing suggests making others think.
"I have been calling her name since we came here, but she hasn't response to any of my calls..." Sang said, feeling helpless and broken.
"Isn't there anyway we can get her attention with force that she can't ignore?" Guo asks, making the little angel's eyes sparkle with hope.
"That's it! Guo, you are a genius!" Little angel chirps happily making others look at him for an answer, but he is too busy digging something out that he did not notice it.
"Little angel, mind telling us what you just discovered?" Yunlan asks and others nod, even Guo who has no idea how he is genius.
"Like Guo Changcheng said, if we demand her to escape before anyone while I break the magic circle, she will have no option but to do that!" Little angel answers while drawing similar yet different diagram surrounding the flameless inflame Oak Tree, but his answer is too short for others to understand.
"But, Sang just said that he couldn't get her attention. If she doesn't answer her soulmate, I don't know who else could..." Shen Wei expresses his worry, in agreement with others except Sang and little devil who finally understood what little angel talking about.
"Master Shen Wei's demand!" Both little devil and Sang Zen shout in unison making others startle and jump.
"What about my demand??" Shen Wei asks, after breathing in and out to slow down his jumping heart.
"Master Wei, have you forgotten about what I said to you about master's demand and his followers?" Little Angel asks back.
"Oh, you mean about how I can order little devil to control his power when he is not in control? But I thought that only applies to him since he is my familiar?" Shen Wei honestly asks.
"Yes, but your guards also share the same faith as us, your familiar. And since both Wang Zheng and Sang Zan were and are your followers to this day, you have that authority over them." Little angel patiently explains but he never stops drawing his dispelling magic diagram.
Okay, this rare patient of little angel is only reserve for his beautiful devil and Master Wei.... Others can dream about it, but dreams are dreams.
"Okay, I will help if it works! How will I do that?" Shen Wei finally asks the question little angel is waiting for him to ask.
"I want you to concentrate and try to reach her mind. Like how you can telepathically speak to little devil. If you feel both your minds are connected, just demand her to be the first person to escape when there is an opening."
"How will I know that I successfully demand her, and she understood my command?" Shen Wei worriedly asks.
"Don't worry, master Wei. If she response 'Yes, my Lord" after your command, that means she is under your command or hypnotizes. She will be in that state until she succeeds in her master's order or if master breaks the order himself." Little devil clarifies.
"Okay, I will do it then. Little angel, should I do that now or after you start breaking the spell?" Shen Wei asks.
"Do it now, so when I break it, she can leave right away. I do not want the door to be left open for long. I will start casting my reversal spell after you get her under your command. And the rest of you, step away about 5 meters. Only Master Wei and Master Yunlan stay here." Little angel barks out orders while others comply.
"Ready, Xiao Wei?" Yunlan asks knowing that his lover is under pressure.
"I'm scare Ah Lan... what is I don't..."
"Ssshhh... I know my Wei's potential. You can do anything if you put your mind to it. I believe in you, Wei. Do you believe in me?" Yunlan asks while drawing soothing circles with his thumps on the back of Shen Wei's hands.
"You know I believe in you, Ah Lan." Shen Wei replies making Yunlan smile.
"If you believe in me, then please believe in what I say about yourself. Trust yourself..." Yunlan urges and finally Shen Wei is feeling a little calmer now, not quite at ease yet. But he knows that he is running out of time because half of oak tree trunk is dried and black out like after forest fire.
You can do this! Focus, Shen Wei! Focus!
Tree Spirit? Can you hear me? Please try to response...
...
Why is it not working? Wait, let's be more demanding, demanding!
Wang Zheng! Can you hear me? Respond to your master now!
Yes... My Lord.
Yes! I got her.
Wang, I want you to leave the tree the moment you see door open. You must be the first person. Is that clear!?
.. First to leave... Yes, my Hell King.
Great! Don't make me disappoint in you, Wang Zheng!
Yes, my Lord.
"I think I got her!" Shen Wei happily said making Yunlan and little angel smile happily.
"I knew you can do it, my love~~" Yunlan said and gives a quick pack on Shen Wei's cheeks, making him blush.
"Ah Lan!"
*Chuckling sounds* "Ah~~ Why are you so cute?!" Yunlan asks, making poor Shen Wei's face turn bright red.
"Master, you can flirt later. I kind of need your blood here." Little angel reminds, making Yunlan pout and Shen Wei giggle
"Fine...!" Yunlan whines like a child that is being asked to stop playing with his favorite toy for dinner.
After many struggles, Yunlan is able bite hard enough to make his finger bleed. When Little angel gets all the ingredients, he asks both Zhao Yunlan and Shen Wei to leave him and joins others.
"Will you be okay, little troublemaker?" Yunlan teases but his tone is filled with worries for his little familiar.
"What do you take me for?! I'm the most magnificent being. And I am NOT a TROUBLEMAKER!!" The little angel roars but both Yunlan and Wei are already leaving him behind while chuckling.
If the little angel still can be narcissistic about himself, then he is good as new, so they leave him feeling at ease.
"Master Shen Wei and Master Zhao Yunlan! Are you able to grab her attention?" Sang worriedly asks the moment two love birds reach the group.
"Sang, I was able to command her... but stop calling me Master. Just call me Shen Wei if you still feel uncomfortable around us. I'm not anyone's master." Shen Wei requests, making Sang smile at him. His lord is still the same even after reincarnating. He never treated any close guards or his trusted people like their lord but more like a friend, a companion.
"Okay, Shen Wei. And thank you for helping me and my Wang. But I have something to confess. I'm sorry for confessing now instead of before." Sang confesses guilty while avoid looking at either Shen Wei or Zhao Yunlan face when he said that.
"What you need to confess, Sang?" Yunlan asks, feeling worried about his Wei's safety.
........Confession...in... progress.......
By the time Sang finished confessing about the caster or at least what he thinks he knows to everyone, they all were blinded by bright light that is coming from where little angel is located.
After a moment and many blinking to readjust their eyes sights, they see little angel faint on the ground and another bright light cracking open from the Oak Tree and slowly a white figure step out. Everyone is holding their breaths. And once the figure fully steps out from the tree, the Oak Tree turns gray and decays instantly and before anyone knows it, it scatters into ashes and the Oak Tree is gone, agonies screams replace by silence and ashes flooding in air. It's almost become too quiet for everyone and the figure that came out also faint near little angel, alarming everyone.
"Little angel! Wang!" All shout and run towards them.
"Everyone let's take them to the Inn. Everything else, we can discuss later." Yunlan orders and the last part he directed at Sang who is carrying his Wang.
My my my~~~ what do we have here.... so, you finally reincarnated...oh great general? HAHAHAhahha, this will be fun~~~ A figure flying above said before disappearing without the group noticing him.
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A/N: 2 chapters update, today~~~ Enjoy😊