Chapter 652: First Entry into the Underworld

Darkness! Boundless darkness! The sky is black, with only a small crescent moon hanging high above! This was Zhang Nuo's first impression after entering the Underworld!

In the Underworld, there is no alternation between day and night; there is only eternal darkness! In this realm, perpetual night is its defining feature! If not for that crescent moon shedding a faint white light, this would be a place where one could not even see their own fingers!

High above a wasteland in the Underworld, nine cultivators clad in white stood silently. This was a place only souls could reach, and for all of them, it was their first time here. Everywhere they looked, the scene was deathly still; even the plants lacked a shred of vitality! The withered trees could not even produce a single green leaf, yet they lived on stubbornly, as if they had grown accustomed to this way of existence!

On the wasteland, wandering lonely souls could be seen everywhere, and occasionally one could see a few powerful lonely souls devouring the weak ones! Beyond the deathly silence, the nine felt killing intent! The pervasive killing intent of the Underworld!

In the Underworld, if a lonely soul wishes to become powerful, it must rely on devouring its own kind that are weaker than itself to increase its strength! As the number of lonely souls grows, those powerful lonely souls have become the greatest headache for the mighty beings of the Underworld. If things continue this way, the powerful lonely souls will break the rules of the Six Paths of Reincarnation, thereby causing the Underworld to lose its ability to manage souls!

This is why the Underworld wants to merge the various realms, making them all part of the Underworld's forces. Once the major realms are merged, the Six Paths of Reincarnation will no longer appear, and the final outcome will be a situation where the Underworld dominates alone. As for this matter, Jiufang Yi still has not figured it out; he always feels that the Underworld's actions must have some ulterior secret behind them!

As for what that matter is, he does not know. Regardless of what the Underworld's true purpose is, just based on the fact that it is merging the major realms, they must stop its actions! Not only for the sake of all living beings, but also for themselves!

"With the nine of us together, our target is too large. From now on, we split up and head toward the Ten Kings Palace of the Underworld. The final target is the palace where Zhuanlun Wang resides. It is said that the 'Chaos Insect King' is sealed there!"

As he spoke, Jiufang Yi flipped his hand and took out eight Jade Slips, handing them to the others respectively.

"This is a map of the Underworld. Although it is incomplete, it is enough to guide us into the core area of the Underworld! Take care, fellow Daoists!"

Jiufang Yi said this last sentence with deep meaning. It was obvious that even he could hardly protect himself on this trip to the Underworld. Even though they were all at the Great Accomplishment Stage, capable of turning clouds and rain with a flip of their hands in their respective realms, they felt no confidence when facing this terrifying existence that is the Underworld!

Zhang Nuo took the Jade Slip into his hand and, after releasing his Divine Sense into it, his expression changed slightly. The territory of this Underworld was much larger than he had imagined. Just the time required to enter the core area would be no less than ten years. And this was because they were all at the Great Accomplishment Stage; if it were other cultivators, they wouldn't even dream of formally entering the true Underworld within fifty years!

After giving some other instructions, the nine people flew off in different directions. After bidding farewell to the few he was familiar with, Zhang Nuo transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the night!

Three months later, in a valley, light flickered in Zhang Nuo's hand as he put away the Zhutian Blade. Before him lay two powerful lonely souls that had fallen. The strength of these lonely souls was comparable to that of a Refining Void Stage expert, but such strength meant nothing to Zhang Nuo!

He looked up at the night sky—pitch black! There was no starlight, only that crescent moon visible everywhere! The pale moonlight spilled across the entire Underworld, and a feeling of loneliness and misery welled up! It forced him to think of past heartbreaks!

He sighed softly. In the three months since entering the Underworld, Zhang Nuo had already slain many lonely souls; he didn't even know which one this was that lay dead before him!

Because these powerful lonely souls had fused the power of many others, they could become materialized. However, once someone broke this balance, they would once again turn into masterless souls, continuing to wander in the Underworld. Only when they shed the turbid Qi from their bodies could they once again enter the Six Paths of Reincarnation!

His escape light rose again, and Zhang Nuo flew toward the location marked on the map in the Jade Slip!

Three years later, when Zhang Nuo arrived at a mountain range, Xuan Jin suddenly spoke!

"Master! Could we stop here for a few days?"

"What is it, Xuan Jin?"

Hearing Xuan Jin's words, Zhang Nuo stopped abruptly.

"Underground here, there is a precious mineral vein. Not only is there a large amount of green gold copper, but there are also several other types of metal! I think if I can swallow them, I might be able to produce Five-Colored Profound Crystal Stone!"

Zhang Nuo's eyes lit up! The Five-Colored Profound Crystal Stone held a great temptation for him. Even though his cultivation had advanced to the Great Accomplishment Stage, Xuan Jin had never produced a five-colored Mysterious Crystal Stone!

"Calculating the time, we might be ahead of schedule, so a few days' delay won't be a big deal! Go ahead!"

As he spoke, Zhang Nuo landed on the ground, and then Xuan Jin flashed and separated from his body, turning into a Golden Light that dove straight into the ground!

A few days later, when Xuan Jin appeared before Zhang Nuo again, he looked as if he were drunk; Golden Light flickered on his face, and he swayed as he walked!

When he first saw Xuan Jin, it truly gave Zhang Nuo a fright, and he thought something had happened to him. But later, from Xuan Jin's explanation, he understood that it was because he had eaten too much!

Due to the special existence of the Underworld, unlike the other realms, the ores underground were rarely mined, so the reserves were naturally extremely vast. To be able to stuff Xuan Jin like this, it must have been a significant quantity!

Letting Xuan Jin return to his body, Zhang Nuo was just about to rise and fly away when suddenly, a white streak of light streaked across the sky. This streak of light was extremely conspicuous in the night!

Startled, Zhang Nuo released his Divine Sense to scan it, only to discover that the cultivator in the light was only at the Golden Core Middle Stage!

Since it was a Golden Core cultivator appearing in the Underworld, they were certainly not their companion. Zhang Nuo's eyes rolled, and his escape light rose as he gave chase!

The cultivator flying ahead suddenly felt a massive Spiritual Pressure coming from behind, and his heart sank! A Great Accomplishment Stage cultivator! It couldn't be one of the Ten Kings of the Underworld, as the Ten Kings generally wouldn't come to this kind of place!

Before he could react, the streak of light behind him caught up in a few flashes, and at the same time, the cultivator within the light reached out and grabbed at the void!

Instantly, the cultivator driving the white light felt the surrounding void tighten, and he could not move forward even an inch!

Landing on the ground in terror, the light faded to reveal a man of about fifty years old, wearing a green robe and holding a small banner about four feet long! Several Underworld Fowen were inscribed on the banner's surface; it looked like a Dharma Treasure capable of sensing lonely souls!

At this moment, Zhang Nuo also landed before this person. A cold, piercing gaze swept over him, making the green-robed man shiver violently!

"I do not know which senior you are! This one, Bai Xiao, pays his respects!"

Although he discovered that Zhang Nuo was not a cultivator of the Underworld, this fellow named Bai Xiao still said this in fear and trepidation.

"Which palace are you from?"

Looking at Bai Xiao's cultivation, Zhang Nuo guessed that the other party was likely from one of the forces of the Ten Kings of the Underworld. Sure enough, just as he expected, Bai Xiao immediately replied with a trembling voice:

"This junior is a subordinate of Songdi Wang, here this time to search for a few escaped lonely souls!"

"Songdi Wang!"

Zhang Nuo's expression darkened, because Songdi Wang ranked third among the Ten Kings, and he was in charge of the Black Rope Great Hell, which held countless trapped souls! In terms of overall strength, Songdi Wang's lineage was not particularly powerful!

"Do you have a detailed map of the Underworld on you?"

After pondering for a moment, Zhang Nuo asked again!

Bai Xiao's face turned bitter. The other party wanted a detailed map of the Underworld, so he naturally didn't have good intentions. If the secrets of the Underworld were leaked from him, even if he returned to Songdi Wang, it would be very difficult to answer for it! He might even be sentenced to the punishment of soul-destruction for this!

If that were to happen, all the hard work he had put in to reach this position would be for nothing! Just as Bai Xiao hesitated for a moment, killing intent erupted in Zhang Nuo's eyes!

"Since you refuse to take it out yourself, don't blame this Emperor!"

After speaking, Zhang Nuo flashed strangely and arrived before Bai Xiao. He quickly spread his five fingers, spiritual light bursting between them! He pressed heavily onto the top of Bai Xiao's head!

Using the Soul Searching Technique on a Golden Core Middle Stage cultivator was a simple task for Zhang Nuo! Because the difference in their cultivation was too great, Bai Xiao didn't even have a chance to resist and was struck immediately!

A moment later, Bai Xiao's body collapsed to the ground like a pile of mud, while Zhang Nuo's expression was grave, his eyes filled with shock!

It turned out that in the process of searching Bai Xiao's soul, Zhang Nuo unexpectedly discovered that much of the information in the other party's mind had been placed under some kind of powerful Restriction, which would automatically destroy itself once touched by an outsider!

Even so, Zhang Nuo still learned a little bit about the Underworld. After thinking carefully for a moment, he rose to continue his journey!

To have placed a Restriction in the minds of his own subordinates was enough to show that the Underworld had reached a very critical period; anyone who might leak information had been specially handled!

He wondered how the others were doing and if they had made any discoveries! Thinking this, Zhang Nuo's figure vanished into the night!