Chapter Eight: The Predicament of the Underworld River (Part Two)

At that very moment, countless silvery-gray vortexes, surrounded by swirling pale currents, slowly descended above the great cocoon. Shi Jun, upon seeing this, was startled and quickly made a gesture to the young man beside him, pointing up at the sky, warning him to be careful.

The young man lifted his head, his expression unchanged and his demeanor calm. He made no move, but immediately shut his eyes, his lips moving rapidly as if reciting an incantation.

Shi Jun felt slightly reassured, thinking that this androgynous fellow was no ordinary character; at the very least, he could remain unruffled in the face of danger—something Shi Jun himself could not do. Perhaps the man possessed some real abilities. It was a pity they could not communicate. Otherwise, Shi Jun would have liked to ask for advice on how to escape their predicament. Now, all he could do was hope that this mysterious youth would display his powers and resolve the chaotic situation. If so, perhaps he and Hu Hai might yet survive.

* * *

In truth, this passing inhabitant of the cocoon was not the high master of the underworld that Shi Jun imagined, but rather a young demon named Modo, who had ventured into the underworld to seek treasure and attempt his tribulation.

Like all cultivators in the realms of immortals, demons, and spirits, Modo—regarded as the most promising star of the demon world in centuries (as he himself claimed)—had recently found his cultivation hindered by agitation and restlessness, as if he had reached a bottleneck. No matter how hard he tried, he could make no further progress. Realizing he had reached the threshold of his first tribulation, he was overjoyed—for, given his years of training, it was unusually early to reach such a stage compared to his peers in the demon realm. Modo was not sure if he could survive the tribulation, but he was unwilling to simply sit and wait, so he decided to make a journey to the underworld.

His fellow disciples were unanimously pessimistic about Modo’s decision to attempt the tribulation. Everyone knew that he was notorious for being lazy, playful, and inattentive in his studies, and that his experience and cultivation were a disgrace to the master who had painstakingly taught him for centuries. It was only by sheer luck and a fortuitous spiritual encounter that his powers had increased so rapidly. But with his current level of cultivation, to attempt the tribulation was practically courting death.

Had no one tried to dissuade him, Modo might have reconsidered. But his brothers all urged him against it with such obvious lack of faith that he felt his reputation was at stake. Was he, the unparalleled prodigy of the demon world’s new generation, really so unworthy in their eyes? Hmph, he would show them what he was capable of!

After boasting and swaggering before his friends and brothers, Modo bade them farewell, vowing that they would soon hear of his glorious success. For all his apparent arrogance, he was not wholly careless. Before setting out, he stealthily crept into his master’s forbidden vault and stole a treasure—the Sky-Stealing Cocoon, the orange-yellow cocoon he later traveled in.

The journey was fraught with peril, but with the power of the Sky-Stealing Cocoon, he managed to avoid disaster. Yet, deep within the gray mist, he happened to stumble upon Shi Jun and Hu Hai being attacked by the combined forces of the blue phantoms and the vortexes, and thus was drawn into the fray, leading to their eventual encounter here.

* * *

In fact, the place where Shi Jun, Hu Hai, and Modo now found themselves was called the Nether River, the outer boundary of the underworld and the sole passage into it. The gray-white mist that enveloped them was the very body of the Nether River, interwoven with copious amounts of nether dust and blue souls. These substances mingled to create a vast and natural barrier, tightly shrouding the underworld. Only those with the unique constitution of the underworld’s denizens could pass; for others from the immortal, demon, or spirit realms, crossing this barrier was nearly impossible.

The gray-white vortexes that Shi Jun and the others saw were actually special life forms formed from the accumulation of nether dust. The underworld’s inhabitants, though powerful, were not immortal. Most would eventually reincarnate, and only those with considerable cultivation remained as spirit bodies. If they reached the stage of tribulation and failed to pass (for tribulation in the underworld was vastly different from that in the other realms), they would dissolve into nether dust. Some nether dust retained much of its former owner’s power, and a trace of lingering spiritual energy. When enough of this dust gathered in the Nether River, it would transform into another form of life—the Nether Stream. These entities, though devoid of consciousness and peaceful by nature, possessed a strong sense of and aggression toward any being not of the underworld’s constitution. They would never attack an underworld inhabitant, but would not permit outsiders to pass easily.

Within the Nether Stream also resided another spirit-based creature—the Blue Phantoms. These were the blue, ribbon-like fish that Shi Jun first saw, capable of transforming into threads. Unique to the Nether River, the Blue Phantoms were parasitic and shared a special bond with the Nether Stream, able to direct it in attacks and even merge together in countless numbers to form various powerful shapes with immense destructive force.

Ordinarily, Shi Jun and Hu Hai would have encountered only minor difficulties on their journey—largely because of their unfamiliarity with the environment. With the token of the underworld and the protective barrier it provided, they should have been able to pass safely into the underworld. The barrier, cloaked in the aura of the underworld, would have concealed their outsider status from the Blue Phantoms and the Nether Stream, which would not have attacked.

The token, being an artifact of the underworld, emitted a strong aura that felt familiar and comforting to the Blue Phantoms. Thus, at first, they only gathered around the barrier in a display of affection, with no malice at all.

But Hu Hai, acting recklessly, tried to take photographs of the Blue Phantoms. The flash startled them, and in a frenzy, they summoned the Nether Stream to attack together...

* * *

Modo was ill-fated; the Blue Phantoms’ attention had originally been focused on Shi Jun and Hu Hai. But the powerful demonic aura emanating from the Sky-Stealing Cocoon incited their fury, and the brunt of their assault shifted to Modo. Countless Blue Phantoms and Nether Streams quickly surrounded the cocoon and attacked in waves.

The Nether River roiled with violent currents and dazzling lights. The Sky-Stealing Cocoon’s immense magical power vaporized the attacking Blue Phantoms and Nether Streams, but the resulting shock waves compressed the cocoon, causing it to groan audibly as its orange-yellow glow dimmed.

When Modo first glimpsed Shi Jun and Hu Hai, wrapped in the token’s barrier, he intended to call out for help. But he soon realized they were in no better shape than he was, so he tried to propose an alliance to weather the crisis together. To his frustration, sound could not travel in the Nether River, and his efforts were wasted. He only made himself more flustered, with no response from the others.

Now, seeing Shi Jun’s warning gesture, Modo realized that the Blue Phantoms and Nether Stream were about to launch an even fiercer assault. He simply closed his eyes and silently prayed to the demon god, hoping for a miracle to save him from disaster.

* * *

Shi Jun, unaware that the stranger was simply closing his eyes to await death, thought this “master” was focusing his energy to cast some powerful spell, and pinned all his hopes upon him. But after a while, as the Blue Phantoms and Nether Stream intensified their assault and the protective sphere around himself and Hu Hai was battered more and more violently, Shi Jun noticed that the “master,” for all his muttering, had achieved nothing. Only then did he realize that the “master” was probably no stronger than themselves, and his heart sank—this was a matter of life and death!

Earlier, during a brief respite, Shi Jun had keenly noticed that the silvery-blue light from the token was indeed the key to their protection. The closer their bodies were to the token, the less damage they suffered. Unfortunately, as the attacks continued, the light sphere was shrinking, now barely large enough to enclose them both. He had no idea how much longer it could hold out.

With bloodshot eyes, Shi Jun saw that Hu Hai had fallen half-unconscious, still gripping his hands tightly. His face was pallid, all his usual vitality gone. Shi Jun’s heart ached: there was no remedy for regret now. Had he known the journey to the underworld would be so perilous, he would never have let Hu Hai study the token so casually, dragging him into this mess.

Lost in these thoughts, he suddenly realized the sphere had shrunk further. He saw clearly that Hu Hai’s backpack was now outside the protective light, and in the blink of an eye, it was shredded to dust. The sphere was now their sole hope of survival, but it could no longer shelter them both. If only one person remained inside, perhaps it could last a little longer.

With this realization, Shi Jun gritted his teeth and tried to gently free the hand not clutching the token, but Hu Hai, even in his stupor, held fast and would not let go.

After a moment’s hesitation, Shi Jun summoned all his strength to pry himself free, forcibly pressed the token into Hu Hai’s clenched hand, and then, without hesitation, released him entirely.

Instantly, an overwhelming force enveloped Shi Jun. For a moment, he felt no pressure or pain at all. His body floated weightlessly out of the sphere’s protection. Silence fell about his ears, as if he had fallen into an endless gray nightmare, and he could only sense his heart thundering ever faster, as if it would burst from his chest...

In the next instant, Shi Jun lost consciousness completely.