Day of Ascension

Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang exchanged a glance, secretly delighted.

As the saying goes, serving a king is like serving a tiger. Although Zhou Qiyun was not a king, he was capricious. He could decide to kill them at any moment.

But now, Zhou Qiyun was surrounded by the Underworld Court Emperor and a group of ghost Exorcist Immortals. Even if he managed to break through the encirclement, he would likely be severely injured, making it difficult for him to capture them afterward.

In other words, now was the best time to escape!

Suddenly, another terrible shockwave slammed into Dazhong. A deafening clang rang out as the falling bell was thrown high into the air, tumbling and rolling before disappearing into the distance.

”It’s okay, we’ll be okay.”

Xu Ying acted like a seasoned veteran and reassured everyone. ”I’ve seen this sort of thing plenty of times. Master Zhong will definitely pull through. Right, Master Zhong? Master Zhong? Master Zhong! Wake up! Don’t worry, he passes out all the time. He’ll be fine in a moment.”

Dazhong swept across the mountain and flew an unknown distance. He crashed to the ground, bounced up again, crashed once more, and tumbled and rolled countless times before finally coming to a stop.

Yuanqi was the first to roll out of the bell. He lay face up on the ground, limp and lifeless. His bones had been shattered again. Xu Ying felt numb and sore all over. His legs were weak, and he barely managed to walk out of the bell.

Behind him, Yuan Weiyang stepped out of the bell, but he stumbled and fell to the ground. He tried to stand, but his legs were too sore to support him. He sat down and massaged them instead.

Uncle Xiao leaned against Dazhong and vomited.

To protect them and carry them away from the Underworld Court, Dazhong had expanded to nearly ten zhang across. Consequently, he absorbed more attacks directed at them, suffering severe damage. He had fallen into a deep sleep and could not shrink back down.

Xu Ying tried to transfer some vital energy to him, but he did not awaken.

Xu Ying told Yuan Weiyang, ”A Qi Cultivator proficient in spatial mystic arts severely injured Master Zhong. Although the external wounds have healed, the internal injuries remain. He always steals my vital energy to heal—”

”Siphoning, as Master Zhong calls it,” corrected Yuanqi.

Xu Ying stepped forward and painstakingly helped the great snake reconnect his dislocated bones. ”He always siphons my vital energy to heal his injuries. Anyway, this deep slumber shouldn’t be anything serious. As long as I cultivate diligently and supply him with vital energy, he’ll wake up eventually.”

Yuan Weiyang came forward to help move the great snake. ”If Master Zhong can’t wake up, how are we supposed to take him with us?”

Xu Ying shrugged. ”No need to worry. Master Zhong likely made arrangements before he collapsed.”

Once Yuanqi’s bones were set, he gradually recovered his strength. Xu Ying walked more than thirty steps forward, yet nothing happened behind him. He wondered, Could Master Zhong have forgotten?

Yuan Weiyang was also somewhat surprised and puzzled. Xu Ying took another step forward, and the great bell suddenly rang and shuffled forward after him.

Xu Ying was overjoyed. ”As expected, Master Zhong didn’t forget!”

He ran forward, and the great bell followed him, clanging loudly and kicking up rolling dust clouds. Yuanqi, Yuan Weiyang, and Uncle Xiao were nearly choked by the dust and hurried ahead of it.

This was, after all, the domain of the Underworld Court, home to countless demons and monsters. Hearing the commotion, they all raised their heads from the shadowy mountains and ghostly ravines to look over.

A scene that defied belief unfolded before their eyes. They saw an absurdly massive bell chasing three people and a snake with frightening ferocity. The demons and monsters were astonished.

”Is that a... bell ghost? Do they exist?”

An old ghost sighed. “The world’s growing more chaotic by the day. All sorts of ghosts are appearing.”

The demons and monsters craned their necks. ”Where are they even going? Are they newly dead? Even the Underworld Court has no control over that part of the underworld. Are they heading there because the normal underworld is just too safe for them? Are they trying to get themselves killed?”

”Why not stay behind and let us eat them instead?”

Xu Ying and others had never been here before and had no idea where they were. Desperate to break free from Zhou Qiyun’s control, they headed toward the Heavenly God Palace. However, the underworld was full of mountains, so they lost their way.

Looking up, Xu Ying saw that the night was deep and darkness obscured the surroundings. At some point, a dense fog had risen and spread across the ground, swallowing the path ahead.

The fog was heavy and clung to the ground. It reached their thighs; as they walked through it, their trousers were soaked. Xu Ying activated his primordial qi to dry his clothes. Looking up again, he saw a waning moon hanging above the willow branches.

He activated his sword qi. Suddenly, sword qi flowed from the sword case on his back and enveloped him. Its circulation around him grew increasingly faster.

Swish!

Xu Ying soared. The great bell behind him roared and followed him upward.

Below, Yuanqi and Uncle Xiao hurriedly looked up. He had become a blur racing higher into the sky, with the great bell close behind.

Suddenly, another streak of light flew up beside them. It was Yuan Weiyang.

The sword qi around the two dimmed slightly as they came to a stop in midair. Sword qi continued to whirl around them at high speed, forming something like a shuttle.

Xu Ying and Yuan Weiyang looked around. White mountain ranges stretched in every direction beneath a blanket of mist. The fog made it impossible to determine their bearings. Even the Underworld Court had vanished from sight.

Yuan Weiyang landed gracefully. ”I have good news and bad news. The good news is that Zhou Qiyun can’t find us. The bad news is that we can’t find anything either. We’re lost.”

Xu Ying descended from the sky. The great bell crashed onto the ground behind him with a deafening boom.

The bell’s toll seemed to startle something in the mist, making it scatter. There were many of them, but they were small and impossible to detect within the mist.

Uncle Xiao shouted and unleashed his primordial qi and divine sense. The fog within a hundred mu rapidly cleared.

Although the things in the fog were moving very fast, Uncle Xiao was a Great Exorcist. His magical power was immense, and his aura was overwhelming. They had no chance to hide and were exposed.

These were pale little ghosts no older than three- or four-year-olds. They were white, and each wore just a pair of white shorts. They scurried about on all fours at incredible speed.

In the blink of an eye, they ran away without a trace.

Uncle Xiao breathed a sigh of relief. ”They’re just little ghosts.”

”Hee hee.” The laughter of the little ghosts came from the fog.

The fog soon rolled in again, engulfing the surroundings. Xu Ying walked forward and saw that tall willow trees surrounded them, their branches swaying in the night.

The little ghosts darted through the fog, appearing and disappearing without warning. Occasionally, they climbed into the willow trees, crouched among the branches, and incessantly giggled at the group.

The way they climbed was equally strange. Their feet were as nimble as those of apes. Grasping the bark, they scampered up the trunks as though walking on level ground. They also jumped around like apes.

”Ah Ying, where are we?” Yuanqi asked from the rear. He yawned and dragged himself forward. ”I’m so sleepy... I have no energy left.”

Xu Ying stopped. ”I’m wondering if we should just... give up. Wait for Zhou Qiyun to rescue us. We are really lost—... Xiao Qi, what’s wrong?”

Yuan Weiyang looked over at Yuanqi and jumped in shock. In the blink of an eye, the giant fat serpent had become emaciated, breathing faintly.

Snow-white ghost children crawled on his back. They grinned as they puckered their lips and sucked away his Yang qi mouthful by mouthful.

Several little ghosts blew at his three Yang flames. They had already extinguished two!

The last Yang flame burned atop Yuanqi’s head. It blazed the brightest and still remained lit, yet it swayed violently and could go out at any moment.

Just what are these little ghosts? Then Yuan Weiyang spotted a ghost child sitting on Uncle Xiao’s neck. It grinned as it covered his eyes with both hands.

Uncle Xiao’s eyes were wide open, and he was speaking to a willow tree. From his words, it seemed that he thought the willow tree was Yuan Weiyang!

”A ghost is blinding him!” exclaimed Yuan Weiyang in shock and anger.

Uncle Xiao still walked forward, but only the ghosts knew what he actually saw.

Xu Ying also saw the little ghost riding Uncle Xiao’s back. He reached out to grab it. ”What kind of thing is that?”

Yuan Weiyang saw Xu Ying’s hand pass straight through the ghost child without touching anything.

These little ghosts were souls, so they had no physical bodies. Since Xu Ying had not learned any exorcism techniques involving souls, he could not touch them.

Yuan Weiyang suddenly noticed his vision tilting and hurriedly asked, ”Demon King Xu, is there a little ghost on my back, covering my eyes?”

Xu Ying looked over and saw that two little ghosts had jumped onto Yuan Weiyang’s back. One covered her eyes while another grinned and plugged her ears with two fingers. A third ghost child climbed onto her back and blew at the two Yang flames on her shoulders.

Xu Ying quickly asked, ”Brother Yuan, have you learned any soul-related exorcism arts?”

Unfortunately, Yuan Weiyang could no longer hear him or see where he stood. The ghost children had already distorted both her sight and hearing.

Xu Ying was both shocked and furious, but he noticed that the ghosts attacked everyone but him.

He suddenly recalled that he had consumed many Myriad Spirit Pills, turning his soul into an almost solid, eternal true spirit. When he had the white-bone soul-striking whip in his hand, he could make even the gods of the broken temple world howl in pain!

”My soul is extremely powerful, so they don’t dare attack me. But how do I bring out its power?”

Inspiration suddenly struck him. When he was practicing the Grand-Unity Guiding Method during his Gate-Knocking Stage, he could clearly sense the growth of his soul. He immediately circulated the method and carefully sensed his soul. At the same time, he recalled how Master Zhong’s bell had once shaken his soul from his body.

With a thud, Yuanqi collapsed to the ground. The great snake was reduced to skin and bones, his mouth agape as he slept soundly. The little ghosts continued to blow on the Yang flame atop his head relentlessly.

This Yang flame burned the brightest and could not be extinguished quickly. Once it went out, the owner’s lifespan would be exhausted, and he would become a ghost.

”You bastard, what do you want to do to my young master?” Uncle Xiao suddenly shouted. He lunged at a willow tree, having mistaken it for someone else. Every strike was ruthless.

Yuan Weiyang still retained his reason, but he knew the ghost children had obscured all five of her senses. Anything he said or did could be a mistake. Thus, he simply stood quietly in place.

Meanwhile, Xu Ying’s perception of the soul gradually sharpened, and the fusion between his divine sense and soul also deepened with each passing moment.

Suddenly, he raised a hand to the spot between his eyebrows.

Xu Ying was in a trance. He looked back and saw himself lying on the ground. Once again, his soul had become so powerful that his body had expelled it. His soul had become so powerful that his body could not contain it, and it expelled the soul.

He disregarded that for the moment, however. Letting out a roar, he unleashed the radiance of his Eternal True Spirit, and brilliant soul-light burst forth in all directions.

Swish!

The little ghosts screamed in succession. They twisted into balls as the soul light illuminated them and fell off Yuan Weiyang, Uncle Xiao, and Yuanqi.

Following the Grand-Unity Guiding Method, Xu Ying’s soul boosted his primordial qi, making the light around him grow even brighter. The ghost children screamed as the radiance suppressed them and shrank further.

Xu Ying’s soul light stopped intensifying. He looked at Yuanqi and found the snake fast asleep, with the Yang flame above his head still burning. He breathed a sigh of relief.

As for Yuan Weiyang and Uncle Xiao, they had also regained their senses.

Xu Ying breathed another sigh of relief and relaxed slightly. Xu Ying relaxed slightly. As the soul-light dimmed, the ghost children slowly climbed back to their feet. Awe filled their faces. They muttered incomprehensible words of flattery in ghost-speech while backing away.

The little ghosts that had been devouring Yuanqi’s Yang qi jumped onto the snake and spat out the stolen Yang qi. Soon, his other two Yang flames rekindled and gradually grew strong again.

As the little ghosts returned the stolen Yang qi, they stared at Xu Ying with a forced smile and spouted a string of nonsense, as if whispering secrets. Then, they slowly retreated into the mist and disappeared.

“These little ghosts bully the weak and fear the strong.” Xu Ying couldn’t help but shake his head, waking Yuanqi.

Yuanqi was still confused. ”What happened? How did I fall asleep?”

Yuanqi was a Gate-Knocking Stage Qi Cultivator, while Uncle Xiao was a Great Exorcist. Yet those seemingly harmless ghost children had deceived them both and nearly killed them. The thought put Xu Ying on guard.

”Something’s not right with this place. Everyone, be careful. Stay close together, and let’s get out of this willow forest!”

***

In the Underworld Court, Zhou Qiyun approached Yama’s Palace slowly, enduring the attacks of a group of Exorcist Immortals. When he reached the last few steps of the Yama’s Palace, his aura surged, and he went head-to-head with the Underworld Court Emperor.

The shockwaves from the clash of exorcist arts even shook the magnificent Radiant Vestige lands of sublimation of the Underworld Court.

The ghost Exorcist Immortals within the lands of sublimation all hesitated to act, fearing the consequences.

Inside the Yama’s Palace, the Underworld Court Emperor ceased his attack.

Zhou Qiyun walked up the last stone step and entered the hall. An immortal with refined features sat inside. A sword wound marked the spot between his eyebrows, where a blade had pierced straight through his forehead. A closer inspection revealed that the killing blow had come from an eight-facet sword.[1]

Yes, he was a corpse.

His Primordial Spirit hovered behind him. This spirit had clashed with Zhou Qiyun.

“Head of the Zhou clan, your strength has surpassed that of the Emperor Zhidao Dasheng back then. You have combined qi cultivation and exorcism arts, and you are starting to display the bearing of a grandmaster,” said the Underworld Court Emperor in praise.

”Your lifespan is coming to an end. If you have come here to take the throne, then I can only step down and let you inherit the position of Underworld Court Emperor.”

Zhou Qiyun sat down on the ground, looked at him, and said calmly, ”I have not come here to usurp the power of the Underworld Court.”

The Underworld Court Emperor asked in confusion, ”Then is your purpose the same as Emperor Zhidao Dasheng? Do you wish to sign a pact with me, one that places the mortal realm under your rule and the underworld under mine?”

He laughed and continued, ”I can sign that pact. However, when you no longer have the strength to back it, it will be nothing more than a piece of waste paper, not even worth using to wipe your ass.”

Zhou Qiyun shook his head. ”I did not come here for anything related to the mortal realm.”

The Underworld Court Emperor’s expression gradually turned solemn, and he said in a deep voice, ”Then what brings you here?”

Zhou Qiyun enunciated each word. “I seek to undergo a tribulation and ascend!”

1. The eight-facet (or eight-sided) jian is a type of Han Dynasty sword whose blade is ground into eight facets, so its cross section looks like a flattened octagon. ☜