Chapter Sixteen: The Body of Absolute Yin

After all, Chu Tiange was still within the Morning Immortal Sect and had no choice but to hand the Yin Pearl over to Xiao Shijing. After a round of bargaining, the price rose to fifty-two top-grade spirit stones.

The plan of the Three Teachings and Nine Sects was an impressive scheme, and Xiao Shijing even brought up the Divine Abyss.

The name of the Divine Abyss had spread throughout the Six Paths and Eight Desolations; it was one of the oldest ruins in existence, containing untold secrets.

Legend spoke of a boundless Yellow Springs Sea that divided the heavens and the earth—a great river separating the world of the living from the land of the dead.

It was said that all manner of strange and perilous things lurked within the Yellow Springs Sea, and even the edge was so dangerous that even true immortals could perish there if they were not careful.

To reach the Yellow Springs Sea, one could in theory use another world to fill and bury it, but the price would be that the other world would be eternally submerged beneath the Yellow Springs.

Only then could one reach the very center of the Yellow Springs River, cross to the other shore, and attain eternal life.

Of course, this method was purely theoretical and had never been accomplished. Neither the world of the living nor the world of the dead would consent to become a stepping stone, and humans and ghosts could not coexist in peace.

No one in history had truly reached the edge of the Yellow Springs, nor had anyone ever ventured into the depths of the Divine Abyss. The Divine Abyss was too terrifying, filled with the aura of death that extinguished all life, concealing countless unknown and dreadful things, swarming with bizarre, mysterious entities and powerful, enigmatic beings.

Yet it was also said to hold unimaginable opportunities.

Through the ages, countless mighty beings, seeking another chance at life, had entered the Divine Abyss without hesitation, only to lose themselves forever, never to return.

Whether fiends or cultivators, once lost, they were doomed to endless wandering for all eternity.

Rumor had it that the world inside the Divine Abyss was not an isolated realm but was interconnected with countless spaces.

It was a miraculous domain formed by the evolution of nature itself, each realm hiding its own peculiarities. Unless one's lifespan was near its end, no one dared to trespass lightly, for the dangers were overwhelming.

One had to guard not only against strange and unknown beings but also for one's own safety, as one might be swept into another space at any moment.

Therefore, though all knew the Divine Abyss was a treasure land rare through the ages and a bridge to immortality, few truly dared to venture deep inside.

Thus, when Ning Wujue appeared, it shook the entire Azure Profound Continent. All sought to learn the path to the Divine Abyss from him, hoping thereby to retrieve the ancestors of their sects and clans who had entered the Divine Abyss.

What struck the greatest terror about the Divine Abyss was that it was everywhere, reflecting across the heavens. Aside from certain times when it would open, it appeared without pattern, swallowing anyone nearby into its depths.

Perhaps one day, while eating, squatting in the latrine, sleeping, giving birth, or even sharing a moment of intimacy, the entrance to the Divine Abyss might silently appear, and before you realized it, you would be swallowed whole.

It was said that Ning Wujue was seized by the Divine Abyss while squatting in an outhouse; at that time, everyone in the Morning Immortal Sect was gripped by panic, terrified of becoming the next victim.

Fortunately, the entrance then was small, and only three people were taken. Of those, only Ning Wujue ever returned.

When the entrance to the Divine Abyss appeared, even those at the peak of the Transcending God Realm were utterly helpless, with no power to resist.

Historical records recounted that a thousand years ago, True Lord Azure Profound, the founder of the Azure Profound Immortal Dynasty, was swallowed by a sudden divine radiance during a public teaching, vanishing ever since.

The world was shocked—after all, True Lord Azure Profound was at the very pinnacle of the Transcending God Realm, with a lifespan that nearly touched the Immortal Path. Even such a figure could not escape the fate of being devoured by the Divine Abyss.

In his past life, Chu Tiange had once imagined using the Yin Pearl as a boat, to harmonize Yin and Yang, journey into the depths of the Divine Abyss, break through the barriers of the Yellow Springs, directly enter the great river, and seek the far shore—only thus could he pursue a higher realm and quell the calamity of the Netherworld.

But this was merely a plan, one difficult to realize. With his power, it was impossible to reach the depths of the Divine Abyss.

Yet, if he could gather the peak powers of the Azure Profound Continent, perhaps there remained a chance to set foot upon the Yellow Springs River.

When this calamity ended, the three of them emerged from the cellar.

The Jia residence was a vast expanse of white, blanketed in snow and bitter cold.

The heavy rain was gone. Moonlight, which once more bathed the peaks at night, returned.

Now, the entire mountain town was desolate and lifeless. As all its people were frozen in ice, the malice that haunted it gradually faded; all resentment, slaughter, and jealousy would dissipate, leaving only sorrow to linger.

This mountain town, after enduring the vicissitudes of time, the rise and fall of ages, had only the transmission of malice as its eternal constant.

In the end, Lu Shiqi hardened her heart. In the cellar, she had already shrouded the entire mountain town in chill, sealing its inhabitants forever within. Only thus could the Yin Pearl not rapidly collect all the malice.

Chu Tiange’s expression changed slightly.

Lu Shiqi seemed to sense the ripple of his gaze, turned to him, and said, “I have sensed the only true purity in this world; how could I bear to erase it?”

As she finished speaking, the ground beneath the distant eaves began to crack, and a blade of grass broke through the ice, reaching for the moonlight.

Beneath the moon, two figures appeared.

A madwoman in red stood at the doorway of a dilapidated house, holding the hand of a girl of about five or six.

The little girl's face was rosy, still bearing traces of snow water, her petite form wrapped in an old, ill-fitting robe, but nothing could hide her innocence; she seemed a little fairy newly arrived in the world.

She looked curiously at the visitors, then turned to the madwoman, pointed at Lu Shiqi, and said, “Mother, this elder sister is so beautiful. Will Weiwei be as pretty as her in the future?”

The madwoman smiled and gently stroked her hair, speaking softly, “Silly child, when you grow up, you’ll be as beautiful as your sister.”

“Wow, I can grow up too?” the little girl cried out in delight. “I thought I’d end up like my little sisters, made into buns.”

The madwoman touched her head and murmured tenderly, “Weiwei, you can grow up. When you’re as beautiful as your sister, Mother will braid your hair for you, and then you can tie your hair just like your sister.”

“Yes! Weiwei wants to tie her hair too!” The girl cheered, her eyes filled with hope.

Lu Shiqi watched this scene, her emotions in turmoil.

From the moment she first arrived at Filial Piety Town, she had sensed a pure, extreme Yin constitution—just like her own, born of the shadow of the underworld.

That presence held no malice, a solitary lotus in the mire. She had not acted, waiting all this time for that person to appear.

Now she had, standing before her. Yet Lu Shiqi could not feel joy.

She saw the spiritual aura on the woman in red fading, the power of the underworld’s shadow slipping away; soon, the woman would be nothing but a rotting corpse.

“Weiwei, shall Mother hold you tonight as you sleep? I’ll tell you a story, all right?” The woman looked at the girl and then at Lu Shiqi.

In Lu Shiqi, she sensed the same aura as Li Lingwei, and perhaps only one who shared her fate could care for Li Lingwei in days to come.

Lu Shiqi nodded. “Tonight, let us stay here.”

She knew there was little time left for this mother.

Tonight would be the final reunion for mother and child.