Living in the deep palace

The Netherworld Black Ship, this colossal vessel carrying the resentment of countless eras of the dead, turned its bow under the will of the Immortal Emperor Su Chen.

It no longer drifts aimlessly on the edge of eternal night to guide wandering souls, but has transformed into a sharp sword that cuts through the darkness, cleaving through the waves and heading at full speed toward the deepest part of that forbidden zone of eternal night—"the underworld".

The ship sliced ​​through the air with a deep rumble, like the low growl of an ancient beast.

Su Chen sat upright on the highest watchtower of the black ship, beneath him a throne of bones hastily constructed from countless skulls. He rested his chin on one hand, his eyes, a mixture of gray and black, piercing through layers of mist as he gazed at the ever-changing scene before him.

As the black ship ventured deeper, the original pure darkness began to fade, replaced by a chilling, withered yellow.

At some point, the void beneath the ship transformed into a raging, roaring river.

The river water was a murky, yellowish-brown, emitting a pungent, fishy stench. It stretched for thousands of miles, its waves surging and crashing. With each wave, countless distorted human faces could be seen wailing and struggling, trying to grab onto anything that passed by and climb ashore.

"The River of the Dead..."

Lady Kugu stood beside Su Chen, looking down at the chilling river below. Even though she was already a Taiyi Golden Immortal, she felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Dao Ancestor, is this the legendary Yellow Springs Water that is said to reach 'the highest heavens and the deepest hells'? It is said that even a feather cannot float on this water, and birds cannot cross it. Once any living being comes into contact with it, its body will instantly turn into pus, and its soul will be forever trapped at the bottom of the river, never to be reborn."

"Not only that."

Su Chen spoke calmly, his fingers lightly tapping the handrail, "This river contains the fragments of memories and obsessions of all the dead from countless eras in this desolate region."

"Rather than water, it is more accurate to say that it is... a manifestation of the suffering of all living beings."

Su Chen stretched out his hand and grabbed at the Yellow Springs River below.

Wow!

He forcefully pulled a turbid column of water into the air. As soon as the water column left the river, the shrieks of millions of ghosts emanated from it, transforming into countless ferocious ghost claws that grabbed at Su Chen's palm.

sizzle-

When the ghost claw touched the layer of hazy, chaotic energy on Su Chen's body, it instantly produced a loud bang, like cold water being poured into a hot oil pan.

Those resentments that were enough to corrode the physical body of a Great Luo Golden Immortal were like snow meeting the scorching sun in front of the [Chaotic Longevity Body], quickly melting and disintegrating, and finally turning into wisps of pure gray energy that drilled into Su Chen's palm.

"It tastes a bit bitter, like stale Chinese medicine dregs."

Su Chen frowned and casually dispersed the water column.

"But the essence of this Yellow Spring Water is extremely high. If I could refine the entire stream, it would add a true 'moat' to my Realm of Immortality."

Refining the Yellow Springs?

Lady Bone and Giant Spirit One behind them felt a chill run down their spines.

This is a forbidden object in the world, something that others would avoid like the plague, yet our own Dao Ancestor actually thought of bringing it home to use as a moat?
Let alone a celestial being.

Even someone at the fifth level of the Eternal Realm probably wouldn't dare to have such thoughts.

But... my lord has it.

This is absolutely crazy!
"However, now is not the time to drink water."

Su Chen's gaze sharpened as he looked towards the end of the Yellow Springs River.

There, a colossal pass, so majestic it could blot out the sky, slowly emerged from the mist.

It was a colossal gate entirely constructed from the bones of unknown mythical beasts.

Two towering white bone pillars, each ten thousand feet tall, pierced the sky. Countless chains were wrapped around the pillars, and hanging from each chain was a mummified corpse swaying in the wind—there were angels with wings on their backs, demons covered in scales, and even a few corpses that emitted a faint golden light and resembled Buddhist Arhats!

Between the two pillars hung a huge plaque, on which three large characters, written in divine blood, flowed—

【gate of hell】!
"The Gates of Hell... the entrance to the underworld."

Su Chen stood up, his chaotic robe fluttering in the wind.

"It seems that the master we are looking for is already waiting to greet us at the door."

……

On the verge of death.

A chilling wind howled, and a ghostly aura filled the air.

The once empty pass is now filled with countless ghostly soldiers and generals.

These ghostly soldiers were not mindless monsters like the Night Beasts, but rather a regular army clad in black iron armor, wielding standard long spears, and forming a disciplined array! They exuded a dense aura of Yin energy, and their eyes flickered with ghostly blue flames; their numbers numbered in the millions!

At the very front of those million ghost soldiers, a white bone chariot pulled by nine skeletal dragons floated in mid-air.

On the chariot sat an emperor dressed in a black robe with nine dragons and wearing a flat crown.

His face was as handsome as jade, yet deathly pale, devoid of any color. A vertical crack ran across his brow, resembling a closed eye. Nine black halos surrounded him, each enacting a gruesome death—beheading, slow slicing, burning, drowning…

This is the ruler of this underworld, one of the true overlords deep within the Void Domain—

[Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor]!
Peak of the Great Luo Golden Immortal!

But here.

With the support of his domain, he is not much inferior to those in the fifth realm!
"How dare you, you inhuman intruder! How dare you trespass into the Netherworld and plunder my Netherworld Black Ship!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor's voice was icy cold, as if it came from the depths of the Nine Netherworld Hell, carrying an unquestionable majesty.

"Where's the ferryman? Tell him to come out and face his death!"

With the Ghost Emperor's furious roar, a million Yin soldiers stepped forward in unison, slamming their long spears to the ground.

Boom!
A deafening roar shook the Yellow Springs River, causing it to surge back thousands of feet!

The immense military aura and death energy converged, transforming into a ferocious demonic form that roared deafeningly at the approaching dark ship.

Faced with this overwhelming pressure.

The Dark Ship did not slow down; instead, it surged forward like a raging bull, increasing its speed once again!
"To be led to death?"

Su Chen stood at the bow of the ship, facing the million Yin soldiers and the high and mighty Ghost Emperor, a contemptuous smile on his face.

"That faceless guy has already been eaten by me."

"As for you..."

Su Chen stretched out a finger and pointed at the Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor.

“Your ferryman owes me toll fees. You are his master, so this debt should naturally be settled on your behalf.”

"Are you going to obediently open this door and let me in to move my things, or..."

Su Chen licked his lips, his eyes flashing with a sudden burst of purple light.

"Let me eat you up, and then step over your corpse to go in?"

mad!
Extreme madness!

On someone else's territory, facing a million-strong army and a powerful demon emperor, they still dared to utter words like "cannibalism"!

"court death!!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor was furious.

In this Netherworld, he is Heaven! He is the Law! Even the Nine-Headed Lion Ancestor of yesteryear, or even a Fifth Realm expert, would treat him with utmost respect and deference.

How dare some wild brat, who appeared out of nowhere, humiliate him like this?

"To devour the ferryman alive? What arrogance! I'll see if your appetite matches your boast!"

"Generals, obey the order!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor waved his hand.

"Form the 'Ten Thousand Ghosts Devouring Immortals Formation'!"

"Tear this ship, along with all the ants on board, to shreds!"

"kill!!!"

A million ghostly soldiers roared in unison, transforming into a black tide that surged towards the black ship.

"Giant Spirit," Su Chen called out without turning his head.

"My subordinate is here!"

Giant Spirit One, unable to contain its fighting spirit any longer, charged to the bow of the ship, wielding its two-zhang-long Sky-Splitting Axe. "Take your men and clean up these scum for me."

"The road to hell is a bit dirty."

"Yes!!"

With a sinister laugh, Giant Spirit One leaped from the bow of the ship, crashing into the Yin Soldier formation like a heavy bomb!
"Giant Spirit Guards! Charge with me!!"

"Chop the hell up!!"

Three thousand giant spirit guards followed closely behind, like tigers descending a mountain, charging into the flock of sheep.

Boom boom boom!
The battle broke out instantly.

The [Sky-Splitting Axe] wielded by the Giant Spirit Guard, forged with Su Chen's divine metal and enhanced by chaotic energy, possesses a natural restraining effect on these Yin soldiers. Each swing not only carries a terrifying gravitational force that immobilizes the Yin soldiers, but the demon-dispelling properties on the axe blade can also directly shatter their souls!
"Ahhh-"

Screams came and went.

The supposedly indestructible Yin Soldier Iron Bucket Formation was instantly torn open with a huge gap under the unreasonable and violent charge of the three thousand Giant Spirit Guards!

At the same time, the 10,000 Changsheng Guards on the ship, under the command of Lady Kugu, activated the array cannons on the airship.

"Eternal Life Divine Light Cannons, fire in unison!"

shhhhhh!
Ten thousand beams of azure light poured down like a torrential rain. Each beam that fell cleared away the Yin soldiers in an area, forcibly purifying the death energy into vitality.

"What...what kind of army is this?!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor's eyes twitched slightly as he looked at the battle below.

His ghostly soldiers were tempered with the waters of the Yellow Springs, impervious to ordinary immortal arts. But the axes wielded by those brutes were the bane of ghostly soldiers! One axe blow, and men and their armor were shattered!

"You do have some skill; no wonder you dare to act so arrogantly in front of me."

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor snorted coldly, his gaze fixed on Su Chen, who stood motionless at the bow of the ship.

He knew that although this army was strong, its core was that young man in the green robe.

"In that case, I, the Emperor, will personally send you on your way!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor slowly stood up, and the vertical mark between his eyebrows suddenly split open!

hum-

A blood-red eyeball was revealed.

This eye has no pupil, only a constantly rotating... gear!
That's a phantom of reincarnation!

"Netherworld Divine Power - Six Paths Judgment!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor formed hand seals, and a beam of blood-red divine light shot out from the Samsara Eye between his brows, heading straight for Su Chen.

This light was extremely strange; it did not harm the physical body or the soul, but directly affected "lifespan" and "fate"!
Anyone who is touched by this light will have their lifespan cut off in an instant and will be forcibly reincarnated into the cycle of rebirth, becoming an animal or a hungry ghost!
"The law of reincarnation?"

Faced with this attack that would strike even a Great Luo Golden Immortal with fear, Su Chen neither dodged nor evaded.

He simply raised his hand, and in his palm, the grayish-white leaf belonging to the [Withered and Flourishing Branch] slowly emerged.

"Playing with lifespan?"

"Don't you know... I am the Ancestor of Immortality?"

"You dare to talk about reincarnation in front of me?!"

Su Chen flipped his hand and directly met the crimson divine light!
……

"boom!"

The crimson light of reincarnation clashed violently with the withering and flourishing energy in Su Chen's palm in mid-air.

There was no earth-shattering explosion as one might have imagined; instead, there was an extremely eerie silence.

Two completely different laws are eroding and devouring each other.

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor's [Six Paths Judgment] aims to strip away life force, forcing the opponent to experience birth, aging, sickness, and death, ultimately turning into dust; while Su Chen's [Law of Withering and Flourishing] is "the extreme of death is life," nurturing life in withering and burying death in life, forming a perfect closed loop.

sizzle-

Su Chen's hands quickly withered and aged, his skin covered with age spots, as if the power of reincarnation was forcibly stripping him of his time.

"Hahaha! Even a Taiyi Great Perfection cultivator will die within three breaths after being struck by my Six Paths Divine Light!"

Upon seeing this, the Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor let out a triumphant laugh.

"What good is your physical body, no matter how strong? Can it withstand the erosion of time? Can it withstand the cycle of fate?!"

"Give me... the chance to die of old age!!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor increased his magical output, and the crimson divine light became even thicker, attempting to envelop Su Chen entirely.

however.

Three breaths have passed.

Ten breaths passed.

Su Chen not only didn't die of old age, but instead... smiled.

He raised his hand, which was as withered as tree bark, and gently squeezed it.

"Is this what you call reincarnation?"

Su Chen's voice was still young and powerful, even carrying a hint of mockery.

"It's too rough."

"Merely accelerating the passage of time and stripping the body of its vitality, do you dare to call it reincarnation?"

"You don't understand... what true life and death are!"

Om-! ! !
Within Su Chen's body, the [Withered and Flourishing Branch] suddenly trembled.

A tremendous surge of life erupted from his heart and instantly flowed toward his withered hand.

Visibly, the age spots faded quickly, and the withered skin became plump and radiant again, even more resilient than before, exhibiting a chaotic jade-like luster!
Reverse the signs of time!

Rejuvenate!

“No… This is impossible!!”

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "How could anyone in this world possibly reverse reincarnation?! This violates the ironclad laws of Heaven!!"

"The way of heaven?"

Su Chen took a step forward and instantly disappeared from the bow of the ship.

The next instant, he appeared directly on the Nine Nether Ghost Emperor's bone chariot!

"My path is the Way of Heaven!"

"Eternal Life - Fourth Branch - Law of Heaven and Earth!!"

boom!
Su Chen's body swelled in the wind, transforming into a chaotic giant ten thousand feet tall in the blink of an eye!
He was like an ancient divine mountain, sitting directly on the head of the Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor, obscuring the light of the entire Ghost Gate Pass.

"Get down here!!"

Su Chen reached out and ignored the cutting of the nine protective light wheels. He grabbed the Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor by the neck and lifted this overlord of the underworld off the chariot like a chick!

"Insolence!! I am the Lord of the Nine Netherworlds!!"

The Nine Netherworld Ghost Emperor struggled frantically, his Samsara Eye between his brows shooting out thousands of blood-red rays, and he even summoned a top-grade acquired spiritual treasure—the Yama Sword—in his hand, frantically slashing at Su Chen's arm.

Dangdang Dangdang!
Sparks flew everywhere.

The Yama Sword, powerful enough to shatter stars, only left white marks when it struck Su Chen's arm, which was covered in chaotic energy!

Chaotic Immortal Body + Giant Spirit Divine Power!

This is absolute power suppression!
His Immortal Chaos Body and the Great Luo Immortal Fruit already made him absolutely invincible below the fifth realm! As for the fifth realm, that depends on the opponent's strength...

At least for now, Su Chen is definitely stronger than when he killed Ming Lian! (End of Chapter)