Chapter 57: Ghost City

Qin Shu: I’m safe, thanks for your concern, bro.

He first replied to Zhao Gongqian’s message, then asked Lu Yixi about the situation.

Qin Shu: Yes, I’ve left Nine Yong City. Is the Wang Family only offering rewards there?

At the Lu Family mansion in Nine Yong City, Lu Yixi marked Qin Shu’s messages as high priority. He read them immediately and responded promptly.

Lu Yixi: Good to hear you’re gone. It’s not just there—the Wang Family has also put up bounties in Shanghua City, Qianshan City, Tiefeng City, and Chiwind City, the four nearest large cities. The reward is either a top-grade spirit artifact or one hundred million spiritual soul coins. Grandmother told me this; if you’re in any of those cities, be extra careful. Oh, and whatever you do, don’t go to Shanghua City.

Qin Shu was amused. Am I really that valuable?! Then, a bit confused, he sent a message back: What’s the matter?

Lu Yixi: The monster king of Cu Yue Mountain, up north, got angry and fought a big battle with the lord of Shanghua City. According to Grandmother, the city lord couldn’t beat him.

Qin Shu: Is this Cu Yue monster king very strong?

Lu Yixi: Extremely strong. He’s a true immortal realm cultivator, even higher than the lord of Shanghua City. He’s the mountain spirit of the Cu Yue Mountains, so his combat power is stronger than most ordinary true immortal cultivators when he’s nearby. I heard the lord of Shanghua City had to self-destruct a magical item just to drive him off.

The gathering places around the Cu Yue Mountain Range have all been evacuated, and it’s unlikely anyone will venture into the mountains for the next few decades. Everyone’s afraid of provoking the Cu Yue Monster King and risking his self-destruction, which would be extremely dangerous.

From your current location, you can safely head east, south, or west, but it’s best to avoid going north.

She assumed Qin Shu hadn’t left the Nine Yong City area and took great care to advise him.

Qin Shu responded, I understand. Thank you very much. However, I’m afraid I might not be able to fulfill our agreement.

Lu Yixi said, That’s alright. My grandparents will arrange everything for me. Don’t worry about it. Um, I’m guessing we’ll meet again in the future, right?

Qin Shu replied, Yes, we will.

Lu Yixi expressed relief, That’s good. You must be inconvenienced by being out in the wilderness; I won’t keep you any longer. Goodbye.

Qin Shu bid her farewell, Goodbye.

After their conversation ended, Qin Shu gazed at Shanghua City located to the exact north. Should he go or not?

Regardless of whether it was the top-class spiritual artifact or one hundred million spiritual soul coins, the allure was undeniable! While the Void Comprehension and Void Transformation awakened beings might not have been particularly interested, the Primordial Infant and Primordial Spirit realm rogue awakened beings were likely deeply tempted. Surely they’d be willing to do anything to acquire such riches, right?

However, safety within cities was far from guaranteed.

After extended contemplation, Qin Shu decided to continue heading north towards Gao Ya City.

Before embarking on his journey, he needed to make a stop at the Abyss.

To him, the Abyss world was, to a certain extent, even safer than the present reality. Moreover, both he and Xiao Yan required a suitable opponent to gauge their capabilities.

Xiao Yan had already become a fourth-rank monster, while Qin Shu, though still in the late stages of Core Formation, possessed a physical strength surpassing that of a fourth-rank awakened being, comparable to the most formidable beast’s body.

It was crucial to adapt to this power in advance.

His decision not to teleport directly from the Cu Yue Mountain Range earlier was due to a strict taboo: A misstep could inadvertently plunge an entire region into the Abyss, pulling him along with it.

Having emerged now, such concerns no longer applied.

Nor did he need any special preparations. With a flash of golden light, he vanished from his original position.

He materialized in the midst of a vast, desolate plain. Lying at its heart, dozens of kilometers away, stood a massive turquoise stone city. Its walls were perfectly preserved and astonishingly high—rising over a thousand meters and disappearing into the clouds.

As far as the eye could see, figures clad in long robes—the “people”—entered and exited through the city gates.

Qin Shu felt as though he had been transported to an ancient world, inhabited by individuals who appeared perfectly normal.

Above the city walls, a group of female soldiers dressed in black armor patrolled cautiously.

Everything before his eyes told him this was a perfectly ordinary world, but the truth was, he was in the Abyss, where everything exuded an uncanny strangeness.

Behind him flowed a vast circular river, its waters crystal clear. A group of young women were disembarking from a thatched boat, and upon seeing Qin Shu, their eyes sparkled with interest.

One particularly beautiful girl stepped forward and called out tentatively, “O mighty warrior, what brings you here? Why so still?”

Qin Shu felt a chill run down his spine; they could speak. He turned his head to look at her; such a pure soul indeed.

He realized that each of these women standing before him had no feet touching the ground, yet they gazed back with smiles, almost like perverts eyeing up a perfect beauty.

“You must be a newly awakened being,” the first woman said, her voice betraying none of the intentions her words suggested. “What a pity, you’ll have to stay here forever.”

The other women echoed her sentiment, remaining at a distance.

Qin Shu tried his best to recall all the information he’d gleaned about the Abyss, but he couldn’t find anything related to this particular situation.

Alert and ready to defend himself, he asked, “Could you please tell me where exactly I am?”

“Oh, this is Xi Liang City,” the woman replied with a delicate giggle, her body trembling. Her laughter emitted soul-waves, intending to bewitch Qin Shu.

Qin Shu noticed but remained unfazed; such a level of enchantment had little effect on him. Pretending to be entranced, he asked, “Xi Liang City? Where is that?”

“Isn’t it Xi Liang City?” The woman drifted closer to Qin Shu, her voice alluring. “Why don’t you come inside with me and find out? It’ll be pure ecstasy!” As she spoke, her slender hand reached out towards Qin Shu.

“Ecstasy? I think it’d be more like being devoured alive by you lot,” Qin Shu’s gaze hardened. Without hesitation, he opened his mouth and spat out a stream of green flames.

The fire engulfed the woman instantly, wrapping her completely.

Ahhhh!

The woman screamed, her powerful soul force surging forth. Within the green flames, a purely black mist emerged, overpowering the flames.

Pure evil souls are pure indeed!

The woman’s appearance transformed completely: she was now clad in dark robes, her hair pitch-black, her skin snow white. Her eyes were entirely inky, lacking any hint of white. She emanated the aura of a fourth-order being, but it seemed slightly hollow.

A rift opened at the back of her head, generating a force that instantly drew in the soul behind her. Then, with a mouth split to her ears, she let out a furious roar.

Soul waves coalesced into tangible black ripples, swiftly bearing down on Qin Shu.

The encompassing field was vast—there was nowhere to hide, no escape.

A five-colored aura blazed to life around Qin Shu as he summoned the protection of the Five Directional Flags.

The black ripples pierced through effortlessly, causing no harm. In fact, it seemed this was no attack at all.

The soul wave continued unimpeded, striking the city walls ahead.

In an instant, the walls turned from azure to ebony as a cacophony of ghostly wails filled the air. At the heart of the city, a black pillar of light shot skyward.

The Abyss’s essence condensed, revealing an enormous face looming above.

Qin Shu felt the piercing gaze of an immense power.

“What a handsome young man. Guards! Seize him and bring him to me. I must savor this treat.”

The voice—clearly a woman’s—was crisp and melodious, like the song of a thrush, yet carried a hint of imperiousness.

Qin Shu’s scalp tingled with unease; the owner of that voice was undeniably powerful. Could this Abyssal realm be incomplete? he wondered.

There was no room for caution here. The Thunder Flame Tiger Roar Blade materialized in his hand as he channeled a torrent of Karma True Yuan into it. With a swift backhanded strike, he unleashed a thunder flame blade glow that cleaved the approaching fourth-rank vicious ghost in two. The ground split open beneath it, leaving an eighty-meter-long gash in the earth.

He followed up with the Cloud Banner, summoning bolts of golden lightning that crackled outward.

With a swift turn, he obliterated what remained of the ghost, dispersing its very soul.

He then transformed into light and swiftly fled the spectral Western Liang Ghost City.

“Need a boat, sir?”