The Path to Immortality Begins with the Life-Extending Lamp

Chapter 90 The Eastern Courtyard of the Netherworld

"With Jiazi Linglong at the head, and Liu Ding and Liu Jia commanding the gods, it can be considered complete!"

Looking at the twelve figures standing in the courtyard, Li Qing sighed deeply.

The Six Paths Paper Gods, led by Linglong Chang, are the Six Guardian Fighting Gods, specializing in killing and fighting, roaming and disappearing, bringing rain to the land, and their breath becomes wind.

The newly compiled Faceless Rogue is the Six Ding Rogue Spirit, specializing in relieving calamities and protecting altars. It is led by the Faceless Rogue who carries the "Big Rat" talisman, and uses ghostly spells to protect the area.

"The Six Ding Rampaging Spirit is refined using Hundred-Eyed Spirit Paper, and it is considered a legitimate paper rampage, but it still needs time to be nurtured and refined."

Having gained some understanding of the "Six Ding and Six Jia," Li Qing took out several Netherworld Pearls from his mustard seed pouch and refined the original Yin and Netherworld Qi within them into talisman seeds, placing them between the eyebrows of the Twelve Rampaging Soldiers to enhance their cultivation!

Then, peeling off the talisman carried by the faceless madman, one could see that the talisman, printed with the "Big Rat" inscription, had become increasingly perfect.

In the Three Elements Cauldron Cooking Diagram, the three-legged cauldron has transformed into a single character for "cauldron," and the three ghostly hands are slowly transforming into three characters for "father," "son," and "grandson," representing the Daoist principles of bells and cauldrons.

The inscription on the tripod, depicting father, son, and grandson, forms the foundation, with the tripod itself resting on top. Against the dark background, amidst the trampled remains of armored soldiers, figures slowly emerge, vaguely wielding long scythes and pitchforks...

This chapter's Humanity Talisman Diagram, bathed in resentment, is almost complete!

Li Qing untied the talisman, took off the scroll, and threw it at Chang Ling. Instantly, the giant rat talisman appeared as a cloak on its body.

This "Dingmao" is nine feet tall, dressed in plain clothes with no face, and has a bruised ghostly hand hanging down in his sleeve. He carries a talisman and a book to resolve grievances, but he has taken a different path from the Liujia Douchang.

Among the many faceless demons, it is the most powerful, no less so than the Xingchang among the Six Jia Fighting Demons. Its pair of cursed, bruised ghost hands have protected Li Qing for a long time.

"The Six Jia shall preside over the battle, and the Six Ding shall chant the incantation!"

Li Qing nodded slightly, quite satisfied with the twelve guardian soldiers that had already taken shape. With a flick of his finger, he hung the names of the Six Ding and Six Jia on the "Royal Carriage." In an instant, the twelve soldiers turned into spiritual light and disappeared from the spot. Only the twelve life tablets of the Six Ding and Six Jia were hanging under the Hunyuan Canopy in the carriage.

Thus, with the protection of Tai Sui, this royal carriage was able to ward off disasters and safeguard the Dao, and thus sought out the ministers and assistants of alchemy to achieve common understanding of the Great Dao.

At this very moment, the Soul Banner, the Royal Carriage, and the Mad Daoist Techniques were all successfully completed.

Li Qing pondered for a long time in the underworld, anticipating that traveling to the Beast Taming Immortal Sect on the black ship would inevitably be inconvenient.

Why not take this moment to figure out the "Eternal Regret Scissors"?
Even in the east courtyard of the Underworld Four-way Garden, did Li Qing see the radiant pavilion through the paper figure that day? Or perhaps, could he take the opportunity to explore it?
This is also a good opportunity to test the killing power of these Ghost Scissors.
After putting away the royal carriage, Li Qing lingered in front of the west wing of the front courtyard, his thoughts swirling. After only a few breaths of hesitation, he calmed himself down, entered the west wing, and took out the "Eternal Regret Scissors" from under the cabinet in the alcove.

"In the netherworld, even the Ghost Scissors are subject to the control of the underworld, unable to vent their resentment, and unable to open the ghost realm."

"How much bloodshed does it still have left now?"

Picking up the roll of paper, Li Qing unwrapped the spirit paper one by one, revealing the ghost scissors inside. The scissors were ancient in shape, with plum blossom patterns, and their aura was solemn and restrained, but they were covered with a layer of smudges, as if they were stained with something unclean. There were also strands of black hair that were bound and entangled around them. The moment the spirit paper was unwrapped, a strong smell of blood rushed out.

This is an extremely terrifying forbidden object. Even in the Qishan Underworld, its vengeful intent is still not quite docile, and it faintly reveals signs of evil blood on the handle of the Ghost Scissors.

"this thing……"

Li Qing frowned, clearly extremely wary of this object.

But this is a forbidden artifact of the magic weapon level! If nothing unexpected happens, for someone of Li Qing's background, this "Eternal Regret Scissors" obtained by chance may be the only ancient treasure he will ever be able to come into contact with in his entire life.

He was neither like Bu Lingxu, who had the blessings and favor of the Taiyi Jiangzhen lineage, nor like the eldest son of a clan, who inherited a family treasure.

Tiannan Temple possesses two sacred treasures, but among the second-generation disciples, the four abbots are highly respected and capable of upholding them; among the third-generation disciples, the abbot Chen Jin, the Taoist of Dingshan, and Bai Qingye are also capable of undertaking the task…

But it is impossible for him, Li Qing, to inherit it, because before he joined Tiannan Temple, he held the talisman of the Yin family!
Li Qing has a clear understanding of her own position.

No matter how perverse and terrifying this forbidden ghost scissors was, he had no choice but to figure it out, break it, control it, and rely on it.

With one hand tightly gripping the handle of the ghost scissors, an overwhelming hatred surged straight to the top of his head, followed by strands of resentment. Strands of black hair climbed up Li Qing's right arm, and the resentful hair made him feel a sharp pain!
The primordial Yin Qi instantly materialized, surging from Li Qing's meridians, forcefully resisting the cursed hair strands, only managing to prevent them from advancing any further beyond his arm.

"Hmm... With the suppression of the Underworld, the terrifying magical power of this forbidden artifact, the Ghost Scissors, should have been reduced by about 80%!"

Recalling the bitterness of that day, Li Qing had an epiphany. Holding the Long-Hate Ghost Scissors at an angle, she slowly left the west wing.

With three fingers spreading the handle of the ghost scissors, the original underworld courtyard immediately darkened in Li Qing's eyes. The Eternal Regret Ghost Domain tried to expand, but was suppressed by the countless ghost restrictions that lit up throughout the underworld, forcibly holding it back down. This Eternal Regret Ghost Domain was even more ferocious than the Ghost Mother, so it was no wonder that this thing could directly kill a Purple Mansion Daoist simply by displaying its sharp edge.

Benedict! Benedict!
Just as Li Qing took the ghost scissors and left the front yard, the ghost mother walked in woodenly from the back garden. At this moment, the ghost mother had already styled Li Qing's hair and applied makeup to her face, showing a beautiful face. Her painted appearance was even more stunning.

He slowly walked up to Li Qing, his empty eyes staring at the strands of hair wrapped around Li Qing's right arm, seemingly a little displeased.

"I wish to expand the Underworld and explore the eastern courtyard. Would Sister Cui like to join me?"

Seeing the Ghost Mother approach, Li Qing immediately closed the Ghost Scissors, moved the blade away, and asked softly.

Little did they know that the Ghost Mother either hadn't heard Li Qing's invitation clearly, or that the Underworld itself had some kind of constraint on the ghosts and gods within.

She did not respond to Li Qing, but instead presented a lotus flower emerging from the water in the back garden to Li Qing. Regardless of Li Qing's willingness, the overwhelming yin energy froze him in place and forcibly fed the lotus flower into Li Qing's mouth.

"Ugh...you!"

Before Li Qing could even move, the ethereal flower, as beautiful as a lotus emerging from water, was forcibly stuffed into her mouth. "Cough, cough, cough!"

The celestial flower seemed to melt instantly upon entering his stomach, transforming into a cool breeze that permeated Li Qing's entire body in the blink of an eye, almost giving him a chill.

But in the next instant, Li Qing immediately felt refreshed. In his Niwan Palace, the visualization of scattered white bones became more and more active, and between the dragon bone spine and the dantian, purer primordial qi was flowing out like a spring.

Perhaps it was because his strength had caught up and he was able to digest the spiritual creatures in the garden, or perhaps the Ghost Mother had become more discerning and chose a milder one. In any case, this fairy flower did not have a serious impact on Li Qing.

After seeing that Li Qing had accepted her gift, the Ghost Mother's empty eyes seemed to have lost some of their gloom. However, after standing there for a moment, she remained silent, turned around, and with her hairpins dangling faintly, headed back to the east wing.

"Logically speaking, she is one of the lords of the Underworld, so the Underworld doesn't suppress her power much!"

"Is the master of the underworld forbidden from entering other courtyards? Unless, of course, the underworld has collapsed..."

Having traveled to and from the Netherworld for quite some time, Li Qing had also summarized the general rules of this underworld.

If one seeks help from the Ghost Mother in the mortal world, she always responds; however, in the underworld, she is subject to great restrictions!
"It's alright. According to the contract in the underworld, the two of us only have the front yard and the garden in the passageway. If it were according to the usual underground lord's decree, this wouldn't be considered a good treatment!"

Let's take a look around the east courtyard; that's one of the main courtyards.

Li Qing had already gained a general understanding of such a mansion in Penghai Yinfu. Perhaps there would be more in the east wing?
In any case, within the underworld, seven-tenths of the Ghost Scissors' ferocity was suppressed, leaving only three-tenths, which was probably enough to threaten the wandering ghosts. If he wanted to understand the function of the Ghost Scissors, there was nothing else to do but wield this forbidden weapon and engage in a battle!
A hint of domineering aura rose in Li Qing's heart. He held the ghost scissors in his right hand, raised his left hand, and lifted a small black banner four inches high. With a stride as if a dragon were moving and a tiger was striding, he directly crossed the second courtyard and slowly opened the east gate of the Four-way Garden.

In the ancient system of the former dynasty's residences, the front and back were divided into the main courtyard, while the left and right sides were divided into the side courtyards. The main courtyard was in the middle, the back courtyard was where the concubines lived, and the east and west side courtyards were mostly used by the children.

The main courtyard is the most prestigious, followed by the east courtyard for the legitimate family, then the rear courtyard for relatives, and the west courtyard for the next most important family.

Pushing open the gate to the East Garden, Li Qing surrounded himself with the Heavenly Mansion Profound Qi, held up the Ghost Scissors in one hand and the Myriad Souls Banner in the other, his eyes suddenly turning ashen.

However, when Li Qing opened the courtyard gate, the scene that came into view startled him!
The gate to the east courtyard creaked open, and several bamboo branches immediately drooped down from the entrance. The wildly growing bamboo blocked most of the courtyard corridor.

"Huh? Jade Green Bamboo?"

The bamboo craftsmanship of Jinhua Prefecture is renowned throughout Jiangnan. Its joints are like jade, and its color is dark purple, resembling a combination of green and purple jade. Compared to other similar bamboos, this "green jade purple bamboo" is slender and has distinct joints, making it a rare and precious specimen.

In front of the east courtyard of the Underworld, the first thing you see are these two clumps of purple bamboo on the left and right. Perhaps these were the favorite plants of the Lord of the Underworld eight hundred years ago, planted on both sides of the gate of the east courtyard. However, they have been neglected for a long time, and the two clumps of purple bamboo have spread wildly.

Li Qing drew the Soul Banner, and in an instant, two sharp golden energies, one golden spear and one silver axe, shot out. In just three rounds, they chopped down the messy welcoming bamboo.

After leaving a wide entrance, he ignored the scattered bamboo branches on the ground and instead looked directly into the east courtyard.

This courtyard was completely different from what Li Qing had imagined—a three- or four-section layout!

The entire massive east courtyard was a single, unified structure, about ten zhang in length on the left and right and twenty zhang in length in front and behind. The courtyard was decorated with bamboo and willow trees, and there was a row of side rooms built along the eaves in front and behind. Only on the far right was there a unique three- or four-story pavilion.

With its ancient blue bricks, intertwined bamboo and willows, and the East Garden pavilion nestled among them, the view evokes the image of a hermit in a bamboo grove, revealing a secluded and tranquil atmosphere.

As soon as the commotion started in front of the east courtyard, several figures dressed in simple, ancient clothing floated up from the two side rooms on the north and south sides and quickly surrounded them...

(End of this chapter)