Chapter 83: Netherlife

After treating several ghosts and spirit demons, I unexpectedly obtained eighteen pieces of Nether Crystals, three spirit herbs each valued at over ten thousand contribution points, as well as some peculiar fruits and ores whose purpose I could not discern but which clearly were not ordinary. The only thing that left me somewhat dissatisfied was that, despite treating several more ghosts and spirit demons, the Nether Threads never appeared again.

At this moment, some special energies swirling about me in the surrounding currents were finally exhausted. I was terrified, but fortunately, I remained undiscovered—though no more ghosts or spirit demons came to me seeking healing. It seemed the energy capable of repairing souls was now completely depleted from the aura enshrouding me.

Just then, I suddenly noticed that a golden-armored zombie held a bracelet in its hand. At first glance, my heart began to pound wildly. It must be something valuable!

I hesitated, suppressing my fear, and approached the golden-armored zombie. Its crimson eyes swept toward me, making me tremble to my very core; I felt as though it could crush me with a single finger.

I stretched out my hand, pointing at the bracelet on its wrist. The golden-armored zombie let out a low growl, and to my surprise, I actually understood—it wanted me to trade something for it.

I laid out everything I had obtained so far. Somehow, I felt that the bracelet was worth any price. The zombie glanced at my offerings and growled again—a refusal.

My heart itched with longing, as if a thousand ants were crawling inside me. I racked my brains, trying to think of a way to acquire the bracelet from this zombie.

Suddenly, I remembered I still had two zombie fingernails—rewards I had received after resolving a past karmic debt, though I had never known their purpose. I took them out.

The instant the golden-armored zombie saw those nails, its eyes flared with blood-red light. With a single motion—so swift I could not react—the fingernails vanished from my hand, and the bracelet appeared on my wrist.

Immediately after, the zombie vaulted away, transforming into a streak of golden light and disappearing, as if afraid I would change my mind.

I examined the bracelet closely. I had no idea what material it was made of, but when I looked at it, I felt as if its pulse was resonating with my own heartbeat and breath.

I reached out and gently stroked it. The bracelet was as smooth as a mirror. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my finger, and fresh blood welled out instantly.

I jerked my hand back, but saw my blood being rapidly absorbed by the bracelet. In a flash, a ring of clasps emerged and pierced into my wrist—I could feel them burrowing into my very bones.

The intense pain made me groan, cold sweat pouring down like rain. The bracelet began to melt, merging with my flesh and bone. Soon, it vanished entirely, leaving only a circle of tattoo-like marks branded onto my wrist.

This reminded me of the Nether Dragon’s Eye on my chest—could the two be related? I tried probing it with my spiritual sense, but sensed nothing at all.

Strange. This thing surely had some use, but I was completely at a loss as to how to activate it.

For the time being, I put it out of my mind and, taking advantage of a moment when the patrolling ghost warriors were distracted, quickly approached the giant stone in the center—shaped like a colossal eye.

I reached out to touch the stone. It felt like ordinary rock; nothing seemed amiss.

But just then, a ghost warrior riding a spirit demon rapidly approached.

I spun and pressed myself against the stone.

But at that instant, I suddenly felt myself sinking backward.

A sensation of weightlessness overwhelmed me, and in a dizzying swirl, I fell downward.

Thud.

I landed heavily, shook my head, and staggered to my feet, still dazed.

Before me was a dim, eerie blue light. As I looked up, my heart seemed to stop for a beat, and I unconsciously held my breath.

Suspended above me, floating naked in the air, lay a woman, pale-skinned and beautifully curved, her hair cascading down like a waterfall. All around her, streams of blue light surged, pouring into her body.

I stepped back a few paces and realized there was an array of blue talismans spinning in this space, and the woman grew more familiar the longer I looked.

“Lu Zhiruo!” Recognizing her face, I was utterly shocked. That famous singer I had met by chance—how could she be here?

As more and more blue light poured into Lu Zhiruo, I frowned and leapt up, dragging her down from the talisman array.

Suddenly, Lu Zhiruo’s eyes snapped open, blazing with blue light.

I knew this was bad, but before I could react, a tremendous force erupted from her body, pressing me to the ground instantly as her hands closed around my throat.

My face turned ashen, but I abruptly opened my mouth and, with lightning speed, stabbed a soul-fixing needle into the center of her brow. The blue light in her eyes dimmed, and her grip loosened.

Seizing the chance, I broke free and kicked her in the chest, then leaped to my feet, formed a Soul Suppressing Seal with my hands, and struck her.

Countless streaks of blue light surged from her body and faded in an instant.

I withdrew the needle from her brow, and she slowly regained consciousness.

“You… why are you in my dream?” Lu Zhiruo looked at me with a peculiar innocence, clearly thinking she was dreaming.

I couldn’t help but laugh. Given the circumstances, it really did seem unreal. I cleared my throat, replying, “Of course, I wanted to…”

At this, I licked my lips and grinned mischievously.

“No, I… I haven’t even dated anyone yet! How could I…” Lu Zhiruo shook her head repeatedly.

“Well, maybe we can start dating first?” I continued to tease her.

Lu Zhiruo seemed conflicted, which surprised me—shouldn’t her first reaction be to call me a toad for overreaching?

Suddenly, I tensed and spun around, plunging my Bloodshard Blade into the neck of a figure wreathed in ghostly green light and shaped almost like a human.

It was a Netherling!

I withdrew the blade and a spray of green blood erupted, splattering all over Lu Zhiruo.

She froze, then screamed.

At that moment, a group of green-skinned Netherlings erupted from the talisman array, howling as they rushed toward me.

With a furious roar, I brandished the Bloodshard Blade and charged into them.

Flashes of blood-red light burst like lightning; with each flash, a Netherling fell.

Before long, a dozen or so Netherlings lay dead, their blood pooling on the ground.

“Huh!” I exclaimed in surprise. I sensed a current of energy being drawn from the corpses of the Netherlings, instantly replenishing the mana I had just expended in my core.

Just then, I heard the clattering of teeth.

Turning, I saw Lu Zhiruo hugging herself, shivering violently—she must have finally realized this was no dream.

“Are you alright?” I asked her.

“I am not!” she bit her lip, glaring at me. “Can you at least give me something to wear?”

“Of course.” I took off my outer robe and tossed it to her.

She turned her back to me, fumbling awkwardly as she put it on.

“Where are we? What did you… do to me?” she asked, still trembling.

“When I arrived, I found you here. I saved you,” I replied.

“Then why is there a shoeprint on my chest?” she demanded, embarrassed and annoyed.

I chuckled and chose not to answer.

While searching for an exit, I asked, “Think carefully—how did you end up here?”

Lu Zhiruo thought hard and said, “I remember my sister and I were visiting the Sand Cave Buddha statues in the Thousand Faces Sand Caves. I went to the bathroom, and then I lost consciousness. When I woke up, you were here.”

“That is odd,” I said, glancing at her. Lu Zhiruo had clearly been abducted here by the Netherlings—likely the lower-tier ones that had escaped, planning for a stronger Netherling to possess her.

There had to be something special about her to make her a target.

I examined her carefully with my Yin-Yang Eyes, but found nothing unusual. If there was, I should have noticed by now.

“So where exactly is this? And what are those monsters?” Lu Zhiruo asked.

“I don’t know where this is either. As for the monsters, you could call them Netherlings,” I replied. Since she was already here, there was no point in hiding the truth.

“Netherlings?” Lu Zhiruo muttered, struggling to comprehend. The world seemed so different from what she knew—ghosts she could accept, given all the ghostly incidents in the world, but Netherlings? What were they? Was this hell?

I ignored the stunned and bewildered Lu Zhiruo; her reaction was better than most. When Chi Yun had gone through the zombie incident, she had fared no better.

I circled the area, but found no way out. Yet I distinctly remembered entering here from the underworld beneath the Sand River. How had I gotten in?

My eyes fell upon the blue talisman array at the center.

Perhaps this was the only entrance and exit.

I beckoned Lu Zhiruo over. When she didn’t respond, I simply pulled her to my side.

I attempted to activate the talisman array, but when I poured my mana into it, it disappeared without a trace.

“Maybe it needs Nether Crystals?” I thought to myself, since Nether Crystals were of Nether origin.

I took out two Nether Crystals and channeled their energy into the array.

Instantly, the talisman array flared with blue light, engulfing both me and Lu Zhiruo.

In the next moment, we appeared in a stone valley as a blue talisman array glowed beneath us.

“Damn, what kind of ghost place is this?” I looked up. The sky was gray and oppressive, hanging so low it seemed within reach.

The energy here was unmistakably that of the Netherworld.

Could it be…

Suddenly, thunderous explosions erupted in the distance, firelight illuminating half the sky.

“That’s the fluctuation of magical power,” I said, my gaze sharpening.