"""

As soon as the curse left her mouth, it was considered a great violation for Dong Guifei, a nun who adhered strictly to her vows.

But at this moment, she could no longer care about such matters. Her long, cascading hair whipped upward, sharp as blades, piercing the ground beneath.

The paper figures that were drawn upward began to stabilize, faintly gaining a footing of their own.

And yet, Chaos remained unsatisfied, stretching out its sound.

A thunderous roar erupted, shaking the heavens. The drawn-out tone accompanied an overwhelming suction, thousands upon thousands of souls swept by shadowy winds were pulled into Chaos's gaping maw.

Dong Guifei struggled to hold her ground. She suppressed the surging effects of the medicine, barely stabilizing herself, yet her peripheral vision caught a subtle detail.

The ground was splitting open.

At first, the fissure was thin, barely as wide as a finger, but it gradually widened and expanded, showing signs of collapsing entirely. Then, in an instant, like a mountain suddenly crumbling, the entire ground shattered.

The inky-black hair lost its place to anchor, and hundreds of paper figures burst into the air.

Dong Guifei's face drained of color entirely, save for her cheeks.

High above the sea of clouds, Yin Weiyin saw Chen Yi being drawn in, and her expression changed slightly. Sword in hand, she rode the wind, unleashing hundreds and thousands of gusts of fierce wind that swept upward like a colossal hand, attempting to drag them back.

The two opposing forces pulled back and forth,

but under the abyssal maw of Chaos, even hundreds and thousands of fierce winds scattered apart.

It was akin to a black hole.

Chen Yi watched as the abyss drew closer and closer, but his expression did not change.

In that instant, he chanted the spell to Open Heaven Eye.

Though it lasted only for the span of a breath, instantly shuttered shut due to insufficient Primordial Qi,

he caught a glimpse. Deep within Chaos, there seemed to be something lurking.

The sky plunged into darkness, sand and stone flying as chaotic scenes unfolded within the canyon, beyond any normal description.

Yin Weiyin could see Chen Yi's figure drifting toward Chaos, like a kite with its string about to snap.

"Come back."

At first, the voice from the sea of clouds was soft.

It had the elegance of an Immortal descending to the mortal realm, lofty and unquestionable.

She may have once used him as her cultivational furnace, subjecting him to endless abuse and exploitation in the process. Though they were close now, it was far from enough to wipe away their grievances with a laugh.

But...

What's the point of dwelling on it?

Compared to the path to eternal life, it all seemed so trivial.

Thunderous flames and lightning erupted above the sea of clouds, stirring fierce winds. For a moment, three thousand bolts of lightning-fire bent to her command.

Lightning and fire intertwined, rushing toward Chaos with unstoppable force.

Boom!

Explosive roars, scorching echoes, and piercing cracks abruptly burst forth—all enveloped in flashes of searing light, then consumed by the quiet after the storm, extinguished in the vortex's depths.

The true fire scattered, the lightning extinguished, all swallowed into Chaos's gaping maw, an abyssal pit seemingly bottomless and terrifying.

Yin Weiyin's brow furrowed, a ripple of displeasure sweeping through her Heart Lake, the water trembling.

"Come back!"

Her voice grew heavier.

The endless lightning and fire rose once more. At the peak of Nascent Soul cultivation, such power was terrifying, crushing the uprising dead souls below and challenging the fierce beast, Chaos.

Chaos roared, as if roused to fury, its sound stretching louder and longer. The sound waves shattered the lightning-fire before it could reach Chaos, crumbling mid-air.

For the first time, the female crown's expression showed traces of panic.

Even when she struggled with all her might, she couldn't pull Chen Yi back.

She did not understand why she wanted to save him,

For if he was to die, no one would stand in the way of her ascent to immortality.

And yet, in this moment, she couldn't bear to see him swallowed by Chaos.

"Get back here!"

Yin Weiyin issued a commanding roar. The sea of clouds churned and surged, unleashing eight thousand gusts of fierce wind simultaneously.

With the long winds rolling through the clouds, lightning flared up suddenly. The massive stone door hummed loudly amidst drifting smoke and dust, a spectacle of power.

The fierce winds parted in explosive force, tugging at Chen Yi, wrapped in the paper figures. Yin Weiyin raised one hand, her five fingers gradually clenching, as though she were wrestling with Chaos itself.

"I can hold you!"

From the throat of the ethereal female crown came a voice that seemed almost like a hoarse roar.

She wanted to hold onto him.

For no discernible reason, she desperately wanted to hold onto him.

She was truly mad!

Blood crept into Yin Weiyin's eyes as her five fingers clenched with all her might, the fierce winds clashing with the vortex, reversing the currents to drag Chen Yi and others back. Beneath her feet, the canyon ground, the sea of flowers—they were no more. Mountains crumbled and fell apart as cracks split the earth, the misfortunate dead wailing and screaming, shredded by the chaotic winds, leaving behind nothing but devastation.

"Roar!"

Chaos stretched its sound for the third time.

It seemed to have noticed Yin Weiyin's struggle against it.

The vortex spun faster than before, its terrible draw consuming thousands upon thousands of ghost souls. In their wake, the Underworld itself seemed emptied of one layer.

Yin Weiyin drew in a deep breath, her true fire blazing stronger, the surging waves within her Heart Lake raging. This was a method that traded lifespan for Primordial Qi.

The fierce wind howled louder, shrieking almost mournfully, gathering together into visible white threads spiraling endlessly.

These wind threads desperately pulled at Chen Yi and his companions, one after another, hundreds, then thousands, growing denser and thicker, frantically dragging them back.

"Roar!"

Chaos stretched its sound for the fourth time.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Yin Weiyin's eyes widened gradually.

It was the sound of one wind thread after another breaking.

The chaotic fierce winds scattered into the dark void...

Above the sea of clouds, a sudden scream of desperate helplessness rang out:

"Chen Yi!"

But nothing would stop for the female crown's cry.

Even if the stone door was already close to fully shut.

Chen Yi's figure, however, drifted further away, like a kite that had severed its string.

Yin Weiyin tried with all her might to pull him back, but the fierce winds shattered completely, scattering mid-air. And so, that ghostly Nascent Soul moved—it soared upward, darting toward Chen Yi!

She wanted to hold onto him!

The ghostly blue Nascent Soul lunged toward him, attempting to seize his hand, but Chen Yi turned his head. His hand stretched into mid-air.

Yet—it fell just short.

The raging vortex immediately tore Chen Yi and the paper figures violently, the turbulent winds like seas and mountains separating Chen Yi from the Nascent Soul. The Nascent Soul, as if suddenly losing its tether, was swept into Chaos by the roaring winds.

Amidst the crossing gusts and chaotic waves, the Nascent Soul's figure blurred gradually,

bringing to mind the ghostly girl he had encountered upon entering the Underworld.

Indescribable emotions surfaced within him, this moment delivering unclear clarity about what it meant…

In this instant, as the stone door loomed near, his sword in hand, he charged forward, plunging himself into Chaos!

Chen Yi's figure, along with the paper figures, vanished together, consumed within Chaos's belly.

Yin Weiyin turned deathly pale, her body wavering, barely holding herself upright. She strained to raise her hand, commanding the paper figures to wrap around him.

It was the last thing she could do.

With a deafening roar, the Array reversed, and the stone door shut completely.

The female crown above the sea of clouds felt her cultivation slowly begin to decline, descending gently from the mist to collapse amidst the devastated canyon below.

She managed to support herself with the Peach Wood Sword, struggling to stand.

Her hands and feet felt icy cold as she stood motionless before the stone door, trying to reach out her hand but unable to touch anything but its cold, hardened surface.

Two tears slid down.

Ascending to Immortality—does it not mean slaying demons and vanquishing evil?

But now, had the demon truly been vanquished?

If it truly had been, why couldn't she keep him?

And what of repaying him after ascending...?

"…So it was all lies!"

Yin Weiyin's heart twisted in agony, as though rebuking her own broken promises.

Her hand trembled against the stone door,

"All lies…"

Tears fell relentlessly.

In faint recollection, upon reflection, she realized just how many falsehoods and hollow words she'd spoken...

As this ignited clarity surfaced, far from relief, tears continued to fall uncontrollably.

Perhaps one day she'd comfort herself by rationalizing that it was merely hare-shares-sympathy, that she didn't truly care for him.

But for now, all she knew was her tears...

......

Yin Weiyin didn't know how long she'd stood by the stone door.

Perhaps not long.

The tears had dried, though stains clung to her cheeks.

In the chaotic canyon, faint sounds began to emerge.

The ghost messengers from the Rewarding Virtue Division bore somber expressions.

After the canyon split wide open, the underlying surge of ten thousand ghosts running rampant was due to their handiwork, all to feed Chaos as it broke through the stone door.

Yet now, they witnessed the door tightly shut, saw the corpse of their Supervisor Du Wei,

and also… the one who had sealed the stone door.

"Which Daoist dares to…"

One ghost messenger raised the Demon Suppressing Sword, shouting in wrath,

"By what nerve did you dare to thwart our Rewarding Virtue Division?!"

The female crown slowly turned her face, the dried streaks of tears making her gaze hollow and lost.

Standing alone with only herself,

she slowly lifted the Peach Wood Sword.

"The Taichua Goddess, Yin Weiyin."

Her voice was hoarse, enunciating each word:

"This task… is to subdue demons, vanquish evil, eradicate wickedness, and suppress corruption."

The sword's edge pointed forward.

For some reason, her sorrowful tone sent chills down everyone's spine.

Especially when her name was spoken aloud.

However, she was after all only one person.

The ghost messengers were prepared to move forward when—

Bang!

A monk's staff broke through the air, piercing into the rocky ground, rousing a fury of sand and stone.

"What manner of demons are you?!"

The Crazy Sutra Master's figure parted the thinning mist, descending immediately between both sides.

His hair and beard bristled, his eyes blazing.

In his grasp hung the severed head of General Horse Face, still sizzling with sinister aura.

The Crazy Sutra Master didn't know where that sharp-tongued boy had disappeared to, but seeing those surrounding his companion, he charged with urgency.

The sight of General Horse Face's severed head was enough to startle the ghost messengers from the Rewarding Virtue Division.

But shock quickly melted into fury.

The deputy supervisor stepped forward, his expression filled with murderous intent:

"Kill the monk; seize the Daoist!"

The order given, ghost messengers advanced, some wielding the Demon Suppressing Sword, others the Soul-Hooking Chains, others the Evil Suppression Spear or the Righteous Enforcer Hammer, their approach carrying the air of demon-slaying justice!

The Crazy Sutra Master began chanting the Rebirth Mantra, his monk's staff raised high.

At a precarious standoff, a dense fog began to rise within the canyon.

It was the mist of the Underworld, but it grew heavier and darker, ghostly silhouettes seemingly kneeling within.

The deputy supervisor turned his head toward the fog with confusion, only to be struck by a bone-shaking terror as he trembled uncontrollably.

In the devastated canyon below, a regal imperial palanquin suddenly appeared.

From the direction of the ghost city, the sound of hoofbeats echoed.

Within the dense fog, a dark and oppressive cavalry approached, their steeds carrying the cold winds of the Underworld, all trailing after the path of the imperial palanquin.

Fear gripped the deputy supervisor and the rest of the ghost messengers alike.

They fell to their knees, trembling, as the palanquin's veiled curtain stirred ever so slightly, their heads bowing low as if they had done so countless times across unending years.

Within the palanquin emerged the unmistakable presence of the Yama King's Dragon Robe.

Black and deep purple dual dragons intertwined, vying for the Li Pearl in the center—a robe rich in magnificence and authority, standing supreme above the Underworld itself.

"We pay respects to His Majesty, King Yan!"

The trembling voices carried the weight of realization, dread blooming within the deputy supervisor and ghost messengers alike.

King Yan had left the ghost city.

Which meant…

King Yan… was no longer mad...

And hence...

The deputy supervisor's eyes slowly drifted upward, locking onto the imposing figure. His gaze gradually widened...

Reflected in his eyes was not the original face of King Chujiang.

But a new one.

A face aged yet brimming with regal authority, born to embody the nine-five supreme ruler.

It was the face of Emperor of Great Yu!

At King Chujiang's sudden descent, Crazy Sutra Master instinctively stepped back but still shielded Yin Weiyin.

The female crown seemed to come to some awareness as she stared at the one who now presided over the Underworld.

For a while, her lips trembled and, with unmistakable shock, uttered two words:

"Father King?!"

"""

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.