Chapter 55: Yellow Springs Fire
A visibly cold wave of murderous intent enveloped the three men from all sides. Hundreds of vacant-eyed ghost officials formed an impenetrable circle, their spears pointed in unison at the three "outsiders" within. The combined pressure emanating from thousands of powerful souls threatened to completely freeze the dim world. "This is serious trouble," Mo Li's voice echoed through the soul connection, a hint of uncontrollable nervousness. "Chu Yun, how many times can you use that 'ultimate move'?" "I don't know." Chu Yun's face was grave. He had just used a tiny bit of Taiyi Qi, but it had already depleted nearly one-fifth of his soul's energy. With thousands of ghost officials before him, even if he burned his own soul dry, he probably wouldn't be able to purify even one-tenth of it. "We can't fight head-on," Li Ge's voice remained calm, yet incredibly serious. "There are too many of them. If we get entangled, we'll be worn down to death here." "Then what should we do? Fight our way out?" Mo Li asked. "Kill?" Li Ge shook her head. Her gaze swept over the glazed ghost messengers, a complex mix of emotions in her eyes. "They were once the guardians of order in the underworld. They're not our enemies, just... victims being controlled." "It's already this time, and you're still being soft-hearted!" Mo Li fretted. "They're trying to kill us now!" "I'm not being soft-hearted," Li Ge looked at her, speaking word by word. "I'm just wondering if there's a way... to escape without harming them." "How could there be a way to have the best of both worlds?" "Maybe... there is," Chu Yun, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke. He looked away from the murderous ghost messengers and instead at the palm of his hand. There, a gentle, vibrant golden energy slowly flowed—the "life" form of Taiyi Yuan Qi. In his dream, he had used this power to purify the loneliness at the core of his nightmare. What effect would it have here now? A bold, even crazy, idea germinated in his mind. "Li Ge," he looked at Li Ge, "you just said that your ghost doctor's skills can temporarily disrupt their mental fluctuations, right?" "Yes." Li Ge nodded, "but I need to get close to them." "Mo Li," he looked at Mo Li again, "Can your mechanical skills create a 'sound' or 'light' that can attract their attention on a large scale?" "No problem." Mo Li answered immediately, "My 'tremolo bat...
A chilling murderous intent, like a visible tide, enveloped the three from all sides. Hundreds of vacant-eyed ghost messengers formed an impenetrable circle, their spears pointed in unison at the three "outsiders" within. The combined pressure emanating from thousands of powerful souls threatened to completely freeze the dim world.
"This is a big problem." Mo Li's voice echoed through the soul connection, with a hint of uncontrollable nervousness, "Chu Yun, how many times can you use that 'ultimate move'?"
"I don't know." Chu Yun's face was extremely solemn. He had just used a tiny bit of Taiyi Qi, but it had already depleted nearly one-fifth of his soul energy. And with thousands of ghost messengers before him, even if he burned his own soul dry, he probably wouldn't be able to purify even one-tenth of it.
"We can't fight head-on." Li Ge's voice remained calm, yet unusually serious. "There are too many of them. If we get entangled, we'll be exhausted to death here."
"Then what should we do? Fight our way out?" Mo Li asked.
"Kill?" Li Ge shook her head. Her eyes swept over the dull-eyed ghost messengers, revealing a hint of complex emotions. "They were once the guardians of order in the underworld. They are not our enemies, but merely... victims who are being controlled."
"It's already this late, and you're still being soft-hearted!" Mo Li was getting anxious. "They're trying to kill us now!"
"I'm not soft-hearted." Li Ge looked at her and said word by word, "I'm just wondering if there's a way... that doesn't hurt them and still allows us to escape."
"How is it possible to have the best of both worlds?"
"Perhaps... yes." Chu Yun, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke. His gaze wasn't directed at the murderous ghost messengers, but towards his palm. There, a gentle, vibrant golden energy slowly flowed—the "life" form of Taiyi Yuan Qi. In his dreams, he had used this power to purify the loneliness at the core of his nightmares. What effect would it have here? A bold, even crazy, idea germinated in his mind.
"Li Ge," he looked at Li Ge, "you just said that your ghost doctor skills can temporarily disrupt their mental fluctuations, right?"
"Okay." Li Ge nodded, "But I need to get closer to them."
"Mo Li," he looked at Mo Li again, "Can your mechanical skills create a 'sound' or 'light' that can attract their attention over a large area?"
"No problem." Mo Li replied immediately, "Although the power of my 'Soundbat' will be greatly reduced here, it is still no problem to cause some chaos."
"Okay." Chu Yun took a deep breath, his eyes becoming extremely determined. "Then let's... take a gamble. Listen to my commands."
The next second, the ghost messengers outside the encirclement moved. Without waiting, they simultaneously let out a roar that was not human, and rushed towards the three people like a tide!
"Now! Mo Li!" Chu Yun shouted.
"Watch me!" Mo Li shouted, and dozens of translucent mechanical bats made of precision parts instantly flew out of her soul. The moment they appeared, the bats simultaneously emitted an extremely piercing, high-frequency sound.
"Buzz—" The sound waves spread indiscriminately in all directions. The ghost messengers at the forefront froze at the sound. Their minds, already sluggish due to the manipulation of the silk threads, became even more confused by the sound waves. They began to wave their spears recklessly, some even attacking their "comrades." The entire encirclement was instantly filled with... chaos.
"Li Ge!" At the moment of chaos, Li Ge's body moved like a ghost. She didn't retreat, but instead rushed forward against the chaotic torrent of ghosts! In her hands, dozens of long black needles, as thin as cow hair, formed from the condensation of Yin Qi, appeared at some point.
Like a top-tier dancer, she danced gracefully on a "stage" teeming with deadly weapons. Every sidestep, every sidestep, she precisely dodged the deadly spears. And with each strike, a long black needle pierced the back of a ghost officer's neck—the "center" where they were controlled by the puppet's threads. The ghost officer pierced by the needle didn't fall, but his frenzied attacks became noticeably slower and more hesitant. Li Ge, using her uncanny skills as a ghost doctor, created... a precious window of opportunity for Chu Yun.
Chu Yun lived up to her expectations. He didn't gather any more offensive talismans, but closed his eyes and immersed himself completely in the Taiyi Qi within him, the form of "life." He no longer tried to "purify" the evil spirits within the ghost messengers. Instead, he shifted his focus and began to "feel"—to feel the "obsession" that those ghost messengers possessed before they were controlled by the Shadow Pavilion's sorcery, the "guardians of order" they possessed.
He slowly released his Taiyi Qi. It was no longer the dazzling golden light of dominance, but a softer, warmer, faint golden halo like spring sunshine. The halo slowly spread outward from Chu Yun. It had no offensive power, no purifying power, but was like a pair of gentle hands, gently caressing the violent ghost messengers whose minds had been temporarily disturbed by Li Ge's silver needles.
"Wake up..." Chu Yun's will was transmitted along with the halo, "You... are not puppets of killing. You are... the guardians of the underworld. Your responsibility is to extradite the souls of the dead and maintain order, not... wield the butcher knife against innocent people."
The moment the warm halo touched the ghost's body, a miracle happened.
The violent movements of those ghost officials slowly stopped, and the red light in their empty eyes, which were filled with bloodthirsty red light, faded away at a speed visible to the naked eye, replaced by a trace of...struggle, pain and clarity.
"Who... am I?" "What... am I doing?" "Where... is this place?" Confused and bewildered thoughts emerged from the depths of the ghost messengers' minds. They stared at the long spears stained with a chilling murderous aura in their hands, then at the three "living beings" before them who didn't belong in the underworld. Their faces revealed complex expressions filled with pain and guilt.
"Ugh...ah..." They all let out a suppressed wail filled with both resentment and relief, then slowly lowered their spears. Their bodies could no longer maintain their form. Like the ghost messenger before them, they transformed into points of light, dissipating into the dim sky. They were...free.
"Success..." Mo Li was speechless as she watched the incredible scene unfold before her, watching the ghost messengers voluntarily abandon their attacks and choose to dissipate. For the first time, she clearly felt a gentler yet more powerful force that didn't rely on "destruction" or "creation."
"Chu Yun..." Li Ge retreated to Chu Yun's side and looked at him, his eyes filled with unprecedented shock and complexity. "What... did you do?"
"I didn't do anything." Chu Yun slowly opened his eyes, his face paler than before, his soul becoming somewhat ethereal. Guiding thousands of powerful souls simultaneously was still a huge burden for him. "I simply..." He looked at the dissipating ghost messenger, a trace of pity in his eyes. "I awakened the last trace of goodness in their hearts... 'goodness'. They weren't 'purified' by me, but chose 'liberation' of their own accord."
This discovery stirred indescribable complex emotions within Chu Yun: a sense of surprise at a newfound understanding of his own power, but more so... a heavy sense of sorrow. He realized that the power he held in this utterly decayed and twisted underworld might not only be a weapon of war, but more like... a spark. A spark that could reignite the long-extinguished flames of order and hope in this "dead" world.
"Let's go." He gathered his thoughts and looked at the dark, dim yellow plain ahead. "We still have a long way to go."
Without stopping, the three continued their journey deeper into the underworld. The deeper they went, the more horrifying the sights became. They saw the long-collapsed Mengpo Pavilion. The cauldron in front of it, which should have been used to boil the water of the River of Forgetfulness, had dried up to the bottom and was covered with cobwebs. They saw the giant stone disk that should have slowly rotated, sending the souls into the six realms of reincarnation, now covered in thick dust and completely stopped. They saw countless more powerful ghost generals, yakshas, and even legendary underworld gods, even more thoroughly contaminated by the Shadow Pavilion's sorcery, wandering the land numbly like the walking dead.
The entire underworld has turned into a huge "ghost den" full of despair and death.
The three of them were like three tiny glimmers of light walking in this boundless den of ghosts, and could be swallowed by the darkness at any time.
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