Chapter 1494: River of the Underworld

The seven-colored flames of the Awakening Lion gradually dissipated.

A bone-chilling cold enveloped their bodies. They opened their eyes to find everything around them dim and deep, as if they were at the bottom of the deep sea... After a brief pause, everyone looked up simultaneously toward the only source of light in this dark world.

It was a River of the Underworld.

The river floated silently like a glowing ribbon suspended in the sky. A faint, aurora-like, breathtaking light poured from it, so beautiful that one couldn't look away once they saw it.

Gradually, their gazes became unfocused, and they subconsciously began to drift toward it...

"Wake up, all of you!"

The [Thought] character mantra mixed into Sun Bumian’s voice, instantly roaring and echoing in their ears!

Their unfocused pupils immediately regained clarity. They frowned simultaneously, no longer looking at the river flowing in the sky, but turning their gazes to the ground.

"The River of the Underworld is the destination of the dead, the end of death... If the living stare at it for too long, their souls will be dragged away."

Sun Bumian’s voice sounded calmly.

"You die just by looking at it a few times?" Jian Changsheng couldn't help but say, "That’s too overbearing!"

"I told you, the danger of the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury is far beyond your imagination," Sun Bumian looked back behind him. "Now that we’ve crossed the Ghost Gate and entered the world of the dead, the aura of the living on us is as conspicuous as a torch in the dark... Soon, those annoying leeches will find us."

"Leeches?"

"The six great Envoys of the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury... oh, now there are five."

"The one like [Empty Death] during the Heaven-Reaching Star position?" Jian Changsheng didn't care much, "He did seem quite powerful then, but now... it doesn't feel like much."

"No, an Envoy in the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury and an Envoy who has left the Treasury are two completely different concepts."

"Have you forgotten? The ability of the Ghost Path Envoys is to control ghosts. Their own strength grows continuously with the scale of the ghosts they control... In the outside world, they don't have enough ghosts, but here, ghosts are almost inexhaustible!"

"Most importantly, they can invoke the abilities the ghosts had while they were alive, and the souls of everyone who has ever died in the world come here... This means that if they want to, they can use the abilities of every person who has ever existed in history."

"In the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury, each of them can rival a god."

Hearing this, everyone’s faces turned grim.

"In that case, we will avoid direct combat with them," Chen Ling said rationally. "Plum, it’s up to you."

Jiang Xiaohua nodded slightly. The bandages wrapped around his upper body fell off one by one, and the power capable of shielding all auras spread through the air, masking the aura of the living on the five of them.

When it came to infiltration and concealment, the 6-series were already quite experienced.

"Where is the Dao Foundation of the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury?"

"On the other side of the River of the Underworld, there is a Temple of the Dead. The Dao Foundation of the Ghost Path is there."

"So, we have to cross the River of the Underworld?"

"That’s right."

Sun Bumian nodded slightly, "But the danger of the River of the Underworld is far beyond your imagination... The living will lose their way if they walk on it, and the width of each section varies. If you’re unlucky, at best you’ll be trapped for decades, and at worst, your soul will leave your body, becoming a part of the river."

"Not again, buddy... it’s down to luck again?" Jian Changsheng had a miserable expression.

"Don't worry, we’ll carry you," Chen Ling replied.

"...Really, Brother Worry-Free?"

Chen Ling: "..."

"Hurry, they’re coming!" Sun Bumian seemed to sense something and spoke immediately.

The five of them didn't hesitate, clustering around Jiang Xiaohua and approaching the ribbon-like flowing River of the Underworld.

Just ten seconds after they left,

two figures streaked across the sky and landed slowly before the Ghost Gate.

Ghostly, snow-white robes fluttered silently.

Their eyes were both closed gently. One had reddish corners of the eyes, looking cold and slightly angry; the other had curved eyebrows like crescent moons, looking as if they were smiling yet not. At the center of their foreheads, each was adorned with a touch of bright red cinnabar, dazzlingly eye-catching in the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury.

Ghost Path Ancient Treasury Envoys, [Red Mouth], [Speed Joy].

"Ghost Gate fluctuations, aura of the living..."

"How long has it been since the aura of the living appeared in the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury?"

"Can't remember... maybe, hundreds of years?"

"Is it that annoying auspicious omen?"

"I think I smell him, but there are others."

"It wasn't enough for him to come and cause trouble himself, he actually brought people this time?" Red Mouth snorted coldly, "What does he think our Ghost Path Ancient Treasury is, a tourist attraction?"

"They found a way to mask their aura; we have to find them."

"The Ghost Path can calculate their location..."

"In the world of the dead, they cannot escape the palm of the Ghost Path."

……

Above the dim earth.

Several figures sped along silently.

For some reason, ever since entering the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury, Chen Ling felt his chest heating up continuously, as if something was burning silently... Subconsciously, he reached into his robe and took something out.

He saw the heating object and was slightly taken aback.

[Bai Qi Order].

"Is it you...?"

This token was something Chen Ling had obtained while in the Soldier Path Ancient Treasury.

At the time, he had found Bai Qi’s tomb and refused the request to "kowtow three times and bow nine times to receive your divine power." Back then, the Mockery Calamity inside him seemed to have had a faint clash with this Bai Qi... After that, this token was spat out, and the characters on it changed to "Help me be reborn, fulfill your wish."

Since then, Chen Ling had kept this token with him, and it hadn't reacted for a long time. But as soon as he entered the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury, it started heating up...

Could Bai Qi’s desired resurrection have something to do with the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury?

"Diamond 6," Chu Muyun’s voice suddenly sounded.

"Hmm?"

"Is it true that in legends, one can see the souls of the departed through the River of the Underworld?"

"It’s true," Sun Bumian explained earnestly, "The Ancient Treasury contains all the 'information' since the birth of civilization. Like all other Ancient Treasuries, what the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury contains is all the 'ghosts' in history... that is, the souls of the dead."

"All the souls of the dead gathered together become the River of the Underworld."

Chu Muyun’s expression softened slightly, but the next second, Sun Bumian’s tone shifted:

"But if you’re trying to find the soul of a specific person through the River of the Underworld, it’s almost impossible..."

"Why??"

"Throughout history, how many humans have there been? Hundreds of billions? Trillions? Their souls gathered in the River of the Underworld are an unimaginable astronomical number... Unless you have a specific method, trying to find a specific person in the River of the Underworld is as slim a chance as finding a single grain of sand in a desert."

……

……

There are a lot of foreshadowing and characters involved in the Ghost Path Ancient Treasury, so I’m taking a day off today to organize my thoughts.