Afterlife Department

"Do you think the soul has already changed?" Huo Zichu asked in a low voice as they watched the policemen conduct their procedures. 

Some chided Huo Ling's colleagues that they shouldn't just enter an unknown place without knowing exactly what it is. 

"I think so." Huo Huainan answered. "It's already an hour passed of his birthday." He said as he looked at his wristwatch again. 

Huo Zichu made an imperceptible sigh. She could still remember that time when the Soul Society came to their house and told them that the child she gave birth to will die at the age of twenty-three. How devastating was that? She just gave birth with too much difficulty, only to receive a bad news that her child will be short-lived. 

But, the Soul Society told them that it is not the death that they thought it to be. In fact, the soul of the child will only change.. And so, their child continues to live. One could imagine the shock they received. What do they mean that the soul of their child will change? That their child's soul is a foreign soul, not of this world's? They could have just told them that their child is a monster! 

As parents, naturally, they didn't hate their child. However, they started to feel estranged towards a newborn baby. Day after day, they wondered if their child would really turn into a monster. Huo Zichu blames herself for giving birth to such a strange being. Thus, she and her husband had a cold war, and she moved out of their home, leaving the child to her husband and his father. 

Huo Huainan, although also feels strange towards the child, but the child grew up to be smart and lovable. His feelings then started to change and he grew to love the child. He urged his wife to return, but she still didn't, since she doesn't believe him, and she didn't see the child grew up. It was Huo Huainan's father that was very fond of the child, telling them how can the child be a monster when Huo Ling is the most adorable child in the world? 

When Huo Ling started to feel alienated from his classmates who have their mother, he asked his father and grandfather where is his mother? Was she dead? Then, he'll always pray for her every night and not bother his father and grandfather, always asking for her. What an understanding child! It was this scene Huo Zichu saw and she cried. She realized how wrong she was. She then hugged him tight and vowed to never leave him. 

But, things started to turn strange again when Huo Ling found out about their family's history. Every eldest child of the family has the right to know of their family's history, since they will be the heir. And so, Huo Ling insisted to also go to the tombs. A fight broke out between Huo Zichu and Huo Ling. Huo Zichu doesn't want Huo Ling to go in the tombs, as she knew that there are evil elements in the tombs, and she doesn't want for those evil elements to affect Huo Ling, now that she has learned to love Huo Ling. She doesn't want for Huo Ling's soul to change. 

But, Huo Ling insisted to study archaeology. Thus, she left their home again, leaving Huo Ling become closer with Huo Huainan and his grandfather. 

"We haven't even bade goodbye to him…" she muttered. 

Huo Huainan looked at her before he sighed and hugged her to comfort her. 

Finally, Huo Zichu cannot hold back anymore. Her eyes reddened and her tears fell. The last time she had a conversation with Huo Ling was that time they had a fight. They parted with a bad end. She went with Huo Huainan to follow Huo Ling, hoping she could reconcile with Huo Ling. But, who knew she will never meet Huo Ling again? 

Not only Huo Ling's soul left his body, but they couldn't even find Huo Ling's body at all! Huo Zichu can't stand that there was no closure between her and Huo Ling. She blames Philip for him not doing his job as an Observer to Huo Ling. In fact, she had secretly hated the Soul Society ever since they gave her son, Huo Ling, a death sentence when Huo Ling was just born. Thus, she doesn't like Philip, and is blaming him that Huo Ling's body is now missing along with him. She actually thinks Philip has already abducted Huo Ling. 

This Soul Society is abominable! Her hatred just increases the more she thought about it. 

"Zichu." She heard Huo Huainan call her. He patted her back to console her. "I know you love xiao Ling. Xiao Ling is a good kid. Bright, lively. Very adorable." He said. "I love him too, as well as father." He took a deep breath. "In fact, this is better this way." He told her. 

"What?!" Huo Zichu glared at him. Her tears are streaming down her pale cheeks, which made Huo Huainan's heart ache for her. 

"Don't get me wrong. It's not as you think." Huo Huainan said. "What I mean that this is better, is that xiao Ling doesn't need to learn the truth." He said. "Xiao Ling doesn't have to know that we once scorned him, were afraid of him. He doesn't have to know about the Soul Society, and his body being a vessel. Xiao Ling – " he sighed. " – should move on untainted." 

Hearing her husband's explanation, Huo Zichu sobbed. "No… no… my xiao Ling…" she cried as she buried herself in her husband's arms. 

Rourou, Zhou Cheng and the others heard Huo Zichu's cry and they felt guilty. They lowered their head in self-blame. If not because of them, Huo Ling wouldn't leave, then wouldn't die. It was their fault, pestering Huo Ling until Huo Ling gave in because he can't bear to refuse them. It was their fault. They indirectly killed Huo Ling. And now, Philip is missing. They figured, with how strange the mausoleum is, Philip must be also dead like Huo Ling. 

Suddenly, they heard a policeman spoke. "But… was there really a mausoleum like this here?" he said as he looked at the mausoleum with his eyes squinting because of the glaring sun. 

His colleague heard what he said and he exclaimed. "Oh! Now that you mentioned it…!" he said as he went back to the police car and took out the map. "Look here." He said and pointed something on the map. 

"Oh! You're right!" the first police said. "There really is no mausoleum indicated here!" he said. "That's why I felt it so strange earlier…" he muttered. 

Rourou, Zhou Cheng and the others were shocked and a chill ran down their spine when they heard what the policemen said. "What?! Are you sure?!" they asked and immediately surrounded the two policemen to look at the map. 

Huo Huainan and Huo Zichu looked at each other. Earlier, when they received the distress signals from Huo Ling's group, they didn't think for a second and just followed the direction where the signals are coming from. Added to the fact that they also didn't hear a single response from Philip, they then guessed something was wrong. Because they panicked and they are worried for Huo Ling, they didn't bother to check any map and just rushed head-on to the location. 

Now that they've heard what the policemen said… everything is really strange. Huo Ling's group, on their way back, encountered a sudden sandstorm and got lost. Philip, at the least, is an Observer from the Soul Society. Thus, he must have some skills. But, Huo Huainan and Huo Zichu heard nothing from him, and didn't see any sigh of him, not even his shadow. 

"No way!" Andy exclaimed. He has long been suppressing his frustration because of the policemen's presence. But, now that everything has come to this – two people are missing, and the policemen saying that there is no mausoleum that is supposed to be here… who wouldn't go mad? "This can't be happening!" he said. "We're already stuck here for hours! I can't stand it anymore! I'm going home!" he said before he marched to his car and went inside, then loudly slammed the door shut. "I don't want to wait here to die!" 

"ANDY!" Zhou Cheng and Rourou called. They sighed when Andy ignited the car and drove away. 

"Eh?! Hey, kid!" the policemen called to stop him, but then Andy continued to drive away. 

Rourou and the women weakly collapsed on the sand, crying in despair. "How can this happen…?" they sobbed. 

The policemen looked at each other. "Sirs." Zhou Cheng called. "Are you really sure there's no mausoleum recorded on the map?" he asked. 

The policemen nodded. "That's right." They answered. "If there is, we should have long gone had it inspected by the government." They said. 

Zhou Cheng knew they are telling the truth. With the strange things happening lately, he can't help but shiver in fear. Huo Ling went missing, and then Philip. Like Andy said, should they wait for their death?