Book 07 Chapter 208: Yinggou
“Let me go!” Dongfang Lifespan and Chunshen Lifespan screamed in terror.
Although the Unborn Man sought to capture them, Kong Xuan’s superior strength proved decisive. He grasped them in his hands first. Their struggles were futile against his power.
“Lord Kong, might you hand these two over to me to deal with?” the Unborn Man asked hopefully.
Kong Xuan, however, took no notice of the Unborn Man and presented the two men to Gu Hai.
“Your Reverence, these two intruders ambushed us using information from somewhere. I have devoured their ghosts. The masterminds behind these foul deeds are at your disposal,” Kong Xuan said respectfully.
Under Gu Hai’s intense gaze, Dongfang and Chunshen were gripped by a paralyzing fear.
Escape was a distant dream. The restrictions of a consummate Heavenly Palace Realm cultivator were difficult to overcome.
“An ambush? We already know from where without even thinking. If it’s not the Heavenly Demon Holy Land, it’s the Huang Heavenly Dynasty!” Gu Hai retorted coldly.
“We were wrong, Imperial Emperor Gu! Please spare us. The Heavenly Demon Holy Land deceived us!” Chunshen Lifespan pleaded in sheer terror.
“Yes, please show mercy, Imperial Emperor Gu! We are willing to pledge our allegiance to you. Please take us in!” Dongfang Lifespan echoed in a panic.
Gu Hai fixed them both with a chilling glare. “We do appreciate your abilities, but we utterly despise your characters. Lifespan Chunshen, your contributions led to the demise of the two hundred million citizens of Three Mountains City. As for Lifespan Dongfang? Haha! A sly trickster. We have crossed paths before. You always seek glory at the expense of your master. We can’t afford to keep you around!”
“No! We promise we won’t do it again!” they both cried out in terror.
“Your Reverence, should we kill them?” Kong Xuan asked.
Gu Hai simply nodded.
“Wait!” the Unborn Man called out in desperation.
“Huh?” Gu Hai turned his attention to the Unborn Man.
“Your Reverence, can you let me handle these two? Lifespan cultivators are very special. Each has a lifespan physical soul that can leave the body. Even if we kill these two, a new Lifespan Dongfang and Lifespan Chunshen will appear elsewhere in a short while,” the Unborn Man explained.
“Oh?” Gu Hai responded, perplexed.
“Just like Lifespan Beiming. The Six Paths Immortal killed him when Long Zhanguo rebelled against Heaven, but another Lifespan Beiming emerged in this world. Even if they die, a new Lifespan Dongfang and Lifespan Chunshen will appear, and the new ones will avenge them!” the Unborn Man continued.
“Regardless of whether there will be a new Lifespan Chunshen or Lifespan Dongfang, these two have committed heinous crimes and must die!” Gu Hai declared sternly.
Clearly, he rejected the Unborn Man’s request.
“Your Reverence!” the Unborn Man called out again.
“Yes?”
“Didn’t you ask me the other day about how to open a permanent pa.s.sageway between the land of the living and the nether realm?” the Unborn Man reminded solemnly.
“Oh?” Gu Hai queried, puzzled.
From the side, Long Wanyu frowned. “Don’t lie to my brother-in-law. I wasn’t aware that maintaining a pa.s.sageway between two realms was possible.”
The Unborn Man felt a bit bitter. His daughter was not supporting him.
“Is it impossible?” Gu Hai turned to Long Wanyu.
“I don’t know!” Long Wanyu shrugged.
“Yes, it is possible!” the Unborn Man quickly countered.
“Oh?” The crowd turned their attention to the Unborn Man.
“When I said there was no way that day, that is not entirely true. The method is quite special,” the Unborn Man explained.
“What kind of special method?” Gu Hai asked, puzzled.
“The method involves crafting a ritual array that serves as an entrance to both realms. The ritual array’s foundation is quite rare and unique. Furthermore…,” the Unborn Man began, sighing.
“What’s the foundation?” Gu Hai asked with some misgivings.
“A lifespan cultivator!” the Unborn Man declared solemnly.
“A lifespan cultivator?” his listeners echoed in surprise.
“Yes, we will use a lifespan cultivator to form the foundation of the ritual array. We won’t kill the lifespan cultivator, only suppress them within the ritual array. They will be trapped in it, living a life that wishes for death. The ritual array will endlessly convert natural Lifespan Energy into energy for the pa.s.sageway between the two realms, thereby maintaining a permanent doorway between the two realms!” the Unborn Man elaborated.
“Unborn Man, you…you…you will suffer a terrible fate!” Lifespan Dongfang and Lifespan Chunshen roared in horror and anger.
Gu Hai glanced at the two men.
“Your Reverence, if you give these two to me, I’ll ensure the creation of a pa.s.sageway between the two realms. From then on, the Han Imperial Dynasty can freely travel between the two realms with no hindrance,” the Unborn Man stated respectfully.
Gu Hai stared at the Unborn Man for a moment and then asked, “Why didn’t you mention this before?”
“Because I’m also a lifespan cultivator,” the Unborn Man replied with a wry smile.
His implication was clear. I’m also a lifespan cultivator, so was I supposed to suggest using myself as a material for the array?
Of course, Gu Hai did not believe the Unborn Man’s excuse and instead turned to Long Wanyu.
“I know nothing about this. Lifespan cultivators only appeared after my death.” Long Wanyu shook her head.
“Please, Your Reverence, grant your approval!” the Unborn Man begged.
Gu Hai looked from Lifespan Dongfang and Lifespan Chunshen to the Unborn Man and asked, “How long will it take to set up the array?”
“If Your Reverence provides a.s.sistance, we can complete the ritual array within half a year,” the Unborn Man replied confidently.
“Very well, we will a.s.sist you fully,” Gu Hai agreed with a nod.
Gu Hai was indifferent to the dreadful fate awaiting Lifespan Dongfang and Lifespan Chunshen, for they had committed countless atrocities. They had brought this fate upon themselves. If not for their numerous sins, Gu Hai might have been willing to take them under his wing. But alas…
“Yes! Your Reverence, rest a.s.sured!” the Unborn Man answered.
The Unborn Man promptly stepped forward, applied restrictions to both lifespan cultivators, and took them from Kong Xuan.
“Roar!”
The roaring in the Yellow Springs Sea grew louder.
At the same time, a complex ritual array emerged on the sea surface, giving rise to a tremendous suction.
This force pulled everyone towards the gigantic ritual array. However, they managed to resist with their high cultivation levels.
“This is strange. This force seems to be targeting only us. Why aren’t the surrounding plants and rocks being pulled in?” the Mosquito Daoist wondered aloud.
“Ah!”
“Help!”
“Put me down!”
Frantic screams echoed from afar. Struggling spirits came from every direction of the nether realm, being dragged towards the Yellow Springs Sea. Once they touched the water, they vanished without a trace.
“This suction only targets souls? What exactly is beneath?” Kong Xuan’s expression darkened.
Boom!
Suddenly, a thunderous report reverberated. The ritual array split open from the center, and the Yellow Springs Sea parted strangely, revealing something on the seafloor.
The innumerable ghosts drawn from all around entered the body of a man dressed in a crimson robe.
The hood of the crimson-robed man, leaning on a cane, concealed his appearance. A b.e.s.t.i.a.l growl came from beneath it. The teeming spirits disappeared into the hood as if into a bottomless pit.
The crimson-robed man sat on a coffin. The faded Yellow Springs water, known as Weak Water, flowed unceasingly into the coffin.
At the sh.o.r.e, Gu Hai’s expression sank. Pulling in Yellow Springs water was an exceedingly arduous task even for the Gu’s Immortal Firmament. What on earth is inside that coffin that it can absorb the essence of Yellow Springs Weak Water?
“Who is that crimson-robed man on the coffin? Why does he give me an eerie feeling?” the Mosquito Daoist wondered in surprise.
Everyone looked at the man and the coffin, perplexed.
“The shaman race’s first elder?” The eyes of Lifespan Dongfang, who had been restrained far away, suddenly lit up.
“What shaman race’s first elder?” Lifespan Chunshen inquired with a hint of fear.
“Didn’t he die? Didn’t Jiang Lianshan kill him? Why is he here? This aura… It’s him, the first elder of the shaman race, the one who brought countless shaman race secret techniques to Jiang Lianshan. First Elder, save me! I’m Lifespan Dongfang, First Elder!” Lifespan Dongfang called out in joy and excitement.
In the distance, the crimson-robed man rose slowly to his feet.
Upon standing, he revealed limbs devoid of skin, baring b.l.o.o.d.y muscle. Everyone was taken aback.
“Where is Jiang Lianshan? Why was the ritual array activated before the appointed time?” The crimson-robed man spoke with a bone-chilling voice.
“A shaman?” Kong Xuan’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Sniff! The blood-robed man took a sniff.
“A consummate Upper Heavenly Palace Realm animal spirit? Are you from the Heavenly Demon Holy Land?” the crimson-robed man inquired indifferently.
“No!” Kong Xuan responded coldly.
“That’s good, then! Ha! Hahahahaha!” the crimson-robed man guffawed.
“What do you mean by ‘That’s good’?” Kong Xuan furrowed his eyebrows.
“You’re not that old white tiger. I can feast freely. My strength hasn’t fully recovered, as it is not time yet. You’ll make perfect blood nourishment for me!” the crimson-robed man announced nonchalantly.
“Blood nourishment? Haha! You’re quite confident!” Kong Xuan chuckled coldly.
The blood-robed man did not rush to attack but respectfully saluted the coffin after stepping off.
“From now on, the revival of the shaman race depends on you!” He respectfully addressed the coffin.
He then gently nudged the coffin.
Crack!
The coffin lid opened. Instantaneously, vast, white, cold energy billowed out of the coffin.
Whoos.h.!.+
The white, cold energy surged out, filling the Yellow Springs Sea. In mere moments, the entire Yellow Springs Sea, spanning millions of kilometers, froze solid.
The roiling cold energy even targeted Gu Hai’s group.
Long Wanqing’s expression darkened as she waved.
Boom!
A nether river appeared; its water absorbed the cold and successfully blocked the cold’s invasion.
After the Yellow Springs Sea froze, the coffin apparently vaporized the frozen sea and absorbed it entirely.
“The Yellow Springs Sea is made up of Weak Water. What is in that coffin that it could absorb all the Weak Water?” the Mosquito Daoist exclaimed.
“The Yellow Springs Sea was completely sucked up by a monster in the coffin?” Long Shenying’s face sank.
“There must be a water-attributed monster inside. Meow!” Mao Tianyun’s fur bristled.
All the white, cold energy was drawn into the coffin. Even the crimson-robed man had a layer of frost on him, but just then, the interior of the coffin came into view.
A young girl lay inside. She appeared to be asleep, with her eyes closed and a sweet smile on her face.
“Jingwei?” Gu Hai’s expression changed.
Isn’t that girl Jingwei? Jiang Lianshan’s youngest daughter, Jingwei, Ba’s younger sister. However, Jingwei is a soul body, and she is possessing Lin Waner’s body. But this is…?
“Jingwei’s corpse? It didn’t get eaten by the fish but fell into the Yellow Springs Sea?” Lifespan Dongfang was shocked.
“Jingwei’s corpse? Jingwei’s corpse lies in the coffin. What is Jiang Lianshan up to?” Gu Hai exclaimed, taken aback.
“Your Reverence, I sense intense Zombie Energy!” Long Shenying said in awe, looking at the sleeping girl in the coffin.
Buzz!
The young girl in the coffin slowly opened her eyes.
Whoos.h.!.+
The temperature across millions of kilometers instantly plummeted. Goose-feather-like snow fell in the blink of an eye. An extreme cold descended upon the land.
“Heavy Snow Falling for Five Hundred Thousand Kilometers?” Gu Hai’s eyebrows shot up. He remembered the Yuan Imperial Dynasty’s Imperial Emperor Xi Yu, who cultivated Yinggou’s body, could cause a snowfall across a million kilometers.
Today, the snow blanketed millions of kilometers around them.
“The water-attributed zombie ancestor, Yinggou? I’ve felt this aura once before. Yes, it’s Yinggou.” Houqing, in his weakened state, revealed a shocked expression.
“Yinggou? Jiang Lianshan turned his young daughter’s corpse into the zombie ancestor Yinggou?” Gu Hai’s pupils constricted.