Qin Nan rushed towards the teleportation array he had come from, using the thunder bead given to him by Huo Ming to activate the array with the power of thunder.

Not long after, a flash of light appeared, and when Qin Nan opened his eyes again, he was back in the small space he had been in before.

However, the small space, which resembled a grave, was now empty and desolate, devoid of the green barrier, and there was no one waiting for him.

Qin Nan sat there, motionless, showing neither disappointment nor expectation.

He knew it was his imagination, that it couldn't be real.

Qin Nan lowered his head and couldn't help but smile bitterly. In the end, he had been hoping for too much—hoping for reunion, hoping for a better future.

But he was born to sacrifice; he is Bai Ze's shadow, the price paid to bear auspicious omens.

Even so, he truly exists, he is alive, he has a heart, he has feelings, and he feels pain.

He shouldn't have been so greedy, so greedy for things that didn't belong to him.

Overwhelmed by grief and pain, Qin Nan was momentarily lost in thought. For some reason, it seemed as if something was guiding him, making him recall all the painful things and the thousands of years of abandonment.

Everything was filled with utter despair. When Qin Nan realized something was wrong, his consciousness was swallowed by darkness, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

“I told you that Zai Zai would do a good job. You have to believe in Zai Zai! The divine fire has been lit, and the waters of the Underworld River will gradually recede. As long as we wait for Zai Zai to come out, take him away, and then seal this place, there will be no trouble in the Underworld.”

"Hmph, that's for the best. If anything happens to the kid, I'll never forgive you!"

Su Kun and Sang Wusheng swam out of the water and had just used their magic to dry themselves when Sang Wusheng saw Qin Nan lying unconscious on the ground.

Sang Wusheng: "Anan!"

Sang Wusheng rushed over to check on Qin Nan's condition. Su Kun was startled and quickly came over to help Qin Nan up.

Qin Nan was in a deep sleep and did not respond to any calls. Su Kun gently patted his face, but there was still no response. He raised his hand and covered Qin Nan's back, and the powerful wood energy, carrying a continuous stream of life force, poured into Qin Nan's body.

However, after a while, Qin Nan still showed no signs of waking up. His body was healthy, but he remained unconscious.

Sang Wusheng: "Su Kun! Didn't you say there wouldn't be any problems?! What's going on?"

Su Kun was also frustrated: "This shouldn't be the case, and the baby wasn't injured."

Just as the two were fretting, the stone slab beneath Qin Nan, which was engraved with a teleportation array, suddenly shattered.

Su Kun: "The little one has indeed finished what he needed to do. There shouldn't be any problems. The little one was able to use that dark power to find the earth's core and set up the formation. There's no way anything could harm him. Strange!"

Sang Wusheng: "What's the use of talking nonsense? Let's go. If you can't cure it, find someone who can. We can't stay here any longer."

Su Kun helped Qin Nan onto his back, and together with Sang Wusheng, they went into the water and entered the passageway inside the barrier.

After entering, Su Kun blocked the passage behind him, removed the barrier, and then quickly left.

As they left, Su Kun withdrew the power he had left on the tunnel walls, and the entire tunnel began to heal from its collapse.

After the three of them left the passageway and entered the Underworld River, Su Kun withdrew all his power, and the barrier and passageway disappeared completely.

They swam back to shore. Su Kun carried Qin Nan on his back and held Sang Wusheng in one arm, then flew towards where Qin Nan's beast form was.

————

Bai Hao awoke from his reverie, abruptly opening his eyes and sitting up. The Bai Ze clan members were all sitting to the side. The elders of the clan had complicated expressions when they saw him wake up. They all thought Bai Hao was a junior, but they never expected him to be the ancestor of all the Bai Ze clan members.

The younger generation, however, are different; after all, among their peers, they have an advantage.

Bai Muqiu, in particular, immediately came over when Bai Hao woke up.

Bai Muqiu: "Brother, wait, no, it should be ancestor!"

Bai Hao blinked, came to his senses, and raised his hand to tap Bai Muqiu's forehead.

Bai Hao: "If you can't speak properly, then shut up. It was all an accident. How long have I been asleep?"

Bai Muqiu: "Two days."

Bai Hao: "The blockade in the Netherworld can only last for three days. We must set up the barrier again tomorrow."

Bai Muqiu: "Huh? You're going to die again?"

Bai Hao: "...Go ahead and die. I have already devised my own cycle of reincarnation. Each Bai Ze is an independent individual and possesses the power I once had. There is no need for anyone to die. According to my original plan, it can be done by using some external objects."

Bai Muqiu: "That's good, but what about Qin Nan? He's still in the Netherworld. The barrier is sealed, what will happen to him?"

Bai Hao: "I'm going to find him."

Bai Muqiu: "You're going to the underworld?"

Bai Hao: "I've already broken my promise once. This time, even if I die, I'll go with him!"

Bai Hao vanished in a flash, leaving only one sentence behind.

"If I don't come back, the barrier will remain in place."

Bai Hao left the house. The divine beasts were still gathered at the Xuanwu clan's place. The situation in the Netherworld was temporarily stable, but the seal of the black chains made all the beasts feel uneasy, and no beast left.

The human race and some of the gods also stayed behind to observe.

Bai Hao saw the Vermilion Bird and other beasts approaching him, but at this moment, he had no intention of responding.

He left with only the words "I'm going to find Qin Nan" before quickly departing.

Upon reaching the chain seal on the rift in the Netherworld, Bai Hao raised his hand and made a hand seal, using divine power to temporarily create a gap, and then seized the opportunity to leap into it.

This is Bai Hao's first time in the Netherworld.

desolate.

Loneliness.

It was pitch black.

His heart ached terribly. Mo had stayed in this place for thousands of years, simply because he had forgotten it.

Bai Hao's eyes reddened as he searched everywhere in this endless abyss for Qin Nan's figure.

There are far fewer ghosts in the underworld now. Bai Hao remembered that painting, so it was used here?

But what if they take it away?

He paused for a moment, then flew towards a place with fewer ghosts.

Finally, Bai Hao spotted the obvious and enormous body and excitedly sped up to Qin Nan's beast form.

However, half of this beastly body had already been devoured by the original little seed, which had grown into a sapling.

Bai Hao raised his hand in disbelief and touched the beast's body; it was cold and lifeless.

His heart was ice-cold, but thankfully he still retained his rationality.

Qin Nan had told me to take him home, so it's impossible that he would offer himself to this seed. This beast body must be a corpse.

Bai Hao forced himself to calm down, and then checked the area, but as expected, he could not find Qin Nan's soul.

Qin Nan must be alright. He took away the painting to prevent the ghosts from interfering with the growth of the seed. He must have done something else.

Bai Hao thought for a moment and then sat down in front of the tree.

Qin Nan will definitely come here. This time, let him wait.

Looking up at Qin Nan's half-destroyed beast body, he couldn't reconcile it with the image of Mo who used to fawn over him in his memory.

The delicate beast that once lived under his protection now stands alone, enduring hardship in this endless abyss.

He should hate himself, hate himself for breaking his promise, hate himself for not coming to find him.

This time, it won't be like that. He's coming. We're waiting for him to come back and take him home.

And this time, they have a home too.