“This thing is called a Life Binding Lock. If you feel your heart is tied to someone, give it to them. But I think it’s ominous, so I might as well call it a ‘One Corpse, Two Lives Lock’.”
“My father created it too late to use it. In my generation, I didn’t know who to give it to. What? Do you want it?”
“Alright, alright, I know you dislike me. I’m old enough to know better. But speaking of which, I’ve brewed so many wines, why do you only like Cicada Dew Sorrow?”
“Drink too much of one wine, and it always turns bitter.”
The searing flames seemed to weave into the faces of those who had fallen to him. They grieved, raged, cursed, or begged pitifully, finally coalescing into a passing phantom.
“… You’ve dug out so many hearts, but what about your own?”
Ying Zeywei slowly surveyed his surroundings. He would soon be consumed by the Destruction Iron’s fire, yet none of these mortal enemies cheered for his demise.
If anyone wanted to kill him the most, Ao Guang would certainly be among them. However, even he didn’t strike out of hatred now, only asking coldly:
“Do you have anything to say about Nan Rao?”
“She destroyed my Dao’s heart but furthered my great cause… I don’t regret killing her.”
Ordinary people would turn to ash in an instant under the Destruction Iron’s flames, but Ying Zeywei’s cultivation was formidable. Though the Destruction Iron’s wound was irreversible, he hadn’t died immediately.
He looked back at Qi Yang, whose ghostly aura was already dissipating, and said, “With Destruction Iron in your heart, you’ll perish body and soul after I die. Destruction Iron in the heart… Destruction Iron in the heart…”
Nan Yan’s face was blank. She had experienced the power of a small Destruction Iron Arrow up close and knew its excruciating pain. Yet she never imagined Qi Yang would hide Destruction Iron in his heart to wait for this moment.
When the Life Binding Lock activated and the Destruction Iron was taken, he would simultaneously be burned to oblivion by the Destruction Iron.
Such love, such fate… how could she ever repay it?
Blood soaked half of Nan Yan’s body. Her fingers trembled as she clutched Qi Yang’s back. “Shao Cang, Shao Cang… Brother! Dragon Lord! Please save him! Save him!”
Even before Nan Yan spoke, Mu Zhanting and Yin Ya had rushed over with grim expressions. Mu Zhanting tried to absorb the remaining Destruction Iron with the Great Sun Fire Essence, but it had been buried in Qi Yang’s heart for too long, severely damaging his internal organs. Even forceful absorption was like a drop in the ocean.
“You actually—”
“It’s alright.” Qi Yang still refused to let Nan Yan see his current state. He turned back to Ying Zeywei with a smile. “Master, you might be strong without human emotions, but I, who still linger in the mortal realm, have ultimately won.”
This disciple of his—stubborn, extreme, unscrupulous. He had always hoped this disciple wouldn’t become like him, yet he had to admit that Qi Yang was the most similar existence to him in the world.
But even though they were so alike, as they faced death, one was enemies of the world, while the other was surrounded by those who knew and cared for him.
“Is it worth giving up godhood to indulge in the mortal realm?” Ying Zeywei asked, his gaze fixed.
“All beings experience the changing seasons; nothing remains eternally strong. Even gods will eventually fall,” Qi Yang answered.
“Good.”
With this sigh, everything before him began to blur. As his hands started to dissolve into fiery dust, Ying Zeywei chuckled softly.
Like raging flames consuming his last bit of spiritual energy, a faint, ethereal smile rose in his eyes. Even at his final moment, he showed not a shred of regret.
“Shao Cang, one last lesson—gods indeed fall, but gods will never fall before mortals.”
Everyone’s expression changed. The next moment, the entire sky collapsed. Simultaneously, the light in Qi Yang’s eyes faded. He slowly released Nan Yan and floated into the air.
“Shao Cang?”
Nan Yan tried to grab him but caught nothing… He seemed to have lost his physical form.
The Destruction Iron wound in Qi Yang’s chest rapidly healed as Ying Zeywei’s fifth-stage celestial tribulation energy dissipated. But his eyes grew increasingly ethereal and indifferent. Even hearing Nan Yan call his name, he only turned back dispassionately before flying towards Fengdu in the sky.
“Those few people aren’t enough to birth a true Emperor of Fengdu. The sacrifice of a fifth stage celestial tribulation cultivator… that’s sufficient.”
Ying Zeywei watched Qi Yang. The flames consumed his form, but his voice, still unrepentant of his chosen path, lingered:
“When the Dao gives birth to heaven, someone must become a god.”
The Lord of Dao-born Heaven, having cultivated for 647 years, sacrificed himself, taking from heaven and earth to return to the great Dao of heaven and earth.
“He… he’s sacrificing himself to become Fengdu!” Ao Guang didn’t say much more. He grabbed Mu Zhanting and reached for Nan Yan, but she had already rushed into the forming Fengdu with Qi Yang.
Mu Zhanting anxiously tried to grab her but felt his soul waver. Fengdu seemed to be calling to his soul; even approaching slightly felt like being sucked in.
Ao Guang also gave chase briefly but noticed that Nan Yan’s soul didn’t scatter as she neared Fengdu. He had to temporarily abandon the pursuit and lead the others away from Fengdu’s range.
“Dragon Lord, what will happen to Qi Yang?”
“What will happen? Whatever happened to Ying Zeywei will happen to him!” Ao Guang snapped.
“Huh?”
At that moment, the red lotus left behind by Jiming slowly bloomed. A pillar of light formed by Buddhist scriptures hummed as it shot out from the lotus core, standing between heaven and earth to block Fengdu from descending.
Then, Jiming’s figure reappeared beside the red lotus, his gaze fixed unwaveringly on the direction Nan Yan had gone.
“Jiming! Why didn’t you bring Nan Yan out?!” Ao Guang was so angry he could hardly restrain himself from cursing. It was clear that entering Fengdu was a matter of life and death.
Jiming gazed at the netherworld in the sky as if he had long known this would happen. “This is A-Yan’s destiny. You, I and all living beings cannot interfere.”
…What does that mean?
…
Nan Yan discovered that after entering Fengdu, she no longer had a shadow.
She seemed to have become one of the many ghostly figures in the city. She couldn’t feel any spiritual power but wasn’t attacked by the ghosts either.
Most of these ghosts had bewildered eyes and emitted an ominous black mist. In contrast, Nan Yan appeared as a solid human figure, leaving faint white light with each step.
She had followed Qi Yang here but lost sight of him upon arrival. Instead, the surrounding netherworld scenery increasingly resembled the mortal world she knew.
Walking step by step through Fengdu, the ghostly figures around her began to show signs of mortal life—peddlers carrying loads, farmers with hoes, and women selling wine. If not for their bizarre death states, she might have thought this was some human realm.
“No, this is too strange.”
Nan Yan stopped as two playful ghost children stumbled past her legs. The shock on her face deepened.
She had seen similar cities in the Youquan River, but there the evil ghosts only knew how to eat people. This place was more like the original human world.
After a moment of silence, Nan Yan tried to speak with a begging ghost by the road: “Excuse me, where is this?”
The poor ghost raised a face missing half its flesh and said, “You’ve come all this way and don’t know this is the netherworld? What a muddle-headed ghost you are.”
“The netherworld?”
“Yes, and in a while, the entire human world will be the netherworld.” Finishing, the begging ghost heard a dog bark in the distance. He spat and picked up his broken bowl, limping away. “What rotten luck. No money when alive, still a poor ghost when dead. Might as well go to the city gate and swallow some newly arrived ghosts to fill my stomach…”
Nan Yan called after him: “Can’t you leave Fengdu?”
The poor ghost suddenly grinned: “Then why don’t you deliver me? I was killed by wild dogs. Go kill those two dogs at the end of the street, fulfill my wish, and I can leave Fengdu.”
As he spoke, Nan Yan suddenly saw visions of his past life.
The poor ghost had been a gambler in life, losing all his fortune and ending up on the streets. One day, while wandering, he saw a pair of wild dogs with a litter of puppies in an alley corner. Taking advantage of the adult dogs’ absence to find food, he killed and ate all the puppies out of hunger. That night, wracked with stomach pain, he was found by a pair of wild dogs. One tore off half his face, the other ripped out his throat, and they died fighting each other.
“You look like an outsider cultivator. In this netherworld, I’ve heard that if cultivators redeem enough evil spirits, it becomes their merit. With enough merit, you can ascend directly. How about it? Those two are just wild dogs. Beat them to dust, and I’ll instantly become your merit.”
Nan Yan pondered for a moment, then said, “Thanks for the advice.”
“That’s more like it!” The poor ghost suddenly grew excited, pointing his broken bamboo stick at the wild dogs at the alley’s entrance. “Those two stinking mutts beat them, beat them hard for me—”
Before the ghost could finish, Nan Yan expressionlessly placed her palm on its crown. Its expression froze for an instant before it completely vanished into dust.
The surrounding spirits glanced over, but most remained impassive, quickly going about their business.
Nan Yan slowly walked toward the end of the street. The two resentful wild dogs approached her, their surrounding dark aura gradually dissipating. Their soul images became clearer, and they wagged their tails at her with a whimper before transforming into points of light and ascending.
Nan Yan saw two small golden light points merge into her body. To her surprise, she realized that the karmic burden she had accumulated over the years had slightly diminished.
The Seven Buddhas’ Karma Scripture was a dead end from the start. While cultivating by slaying demons and eliminating evil, one would accumulate countless karmic burdens. This karma could make one powerful but could also lead to becoming a madman who only knows how to kill.
With the Buddha Bone Zen Heart, Nan Yan wasn’t afraid of her mindset degrading, but the karmic burden would still prevent her from ascending. However, the merit of redeeming lost souls here could reduce her karmic burden.
“I see…” Nan Yan looked down at the gently glowing Reverse Samsara Mirror in her palm. “Is this your reward for me? If I redeem Qi Yang, will I achieve perfect merit and attain true Buddha-hood?”
The Reverse Samsara Mirror continued to rotate silently, seemingly not denying her assumption.
Nan Yan closed her hand, having made a decision.
The street, constantly gaining new ghosts, seemed to grow livelier. Among the sea of dark spirits, a figure emanating a faint white light stood out.
“Excuse me, have you seen Qi Yang?”
“He’s about this much taller than me.”
“Yes, his eyes are red.”
As she inquired along the way, all spirits, even the evil and fierce ones, were willing to communicate with Nan Yan. However, she hadn’t gained any clues until a light rain began to fall from the sky.
“So it rains in Fengdu too…”
The spirits gradually quickened their pace and left. Soon, only Nan Yan remained standing in the empty street. As she stood there bewildered, a shadow fell over her head.
Looking up, she saw an umbrella. Following the handle, she was surprised to find that the person holding it was Nan Yi.
“Uncle!” Nan Yan exclaimed joyfully, “So you were here!”
Nan Yi’s reaction was a bit slow, but he still recognized Nan Yan. He spoke gently, “Why is Ah Yan here? Let Uncle send you away.”
Nan Yan was stunned. “Uncle, aren’t you coming with me?”
Nan Yi shook his head slightly, not answering Nan Yan’s question. Instead, he asked, “Where’s Ying Ze Wei?”
Nan Yan bit her lower lip and said, “He’s gone. We avenged you. I’ll ask Father to complete your soul, and we can still—”
“Jiao Niang is with you, right?” Nan Yi seemed unwilling to say more. As he spoke, two seeds flew out from Nan Yan’s sleeve, one of them emitting a faint blue light.
Nan Yi looked at it tenderly. After a moment, he said, “I have no more attachments. I just want Ah Yan to be safe from now on.”
“Uncle?”
Nan Yi smiled, his form gradually transforming into points of light that merged into the other seed. At the same time, a large amount of golden merit light flew into Nan Yan’s body.
“I know who you came to find, but he’s already a god of this netherworld. Uncle hopes that even if you can’t wake him up, you’ll have a way out. Take this umbrella and go see your grandfather. We’ll all help you.”
Nan Yi said no more. Before Nan Yan could stop him, he had already merged into the seed and disappeared.
Nan Yan seemed to understand something. She carefully put away the seeds and picked up the paper umbrella hovering beside her, continuing forward.
The surroundings gradually changed. Soon, she saw a misty coastline with a burly man standing on a reef by the shore.
This man had phoenix eyes and a fierce countenance, but his expression was soft as he gazed at the Chongming birds circling in the distance over the vast sea.
Nan Yan knew without a doubt that he was the Vermilion Emperor, her grandfather.
“You’ve come,” the Vermilion Emperor said without much preamble as if he had long known of her existence. “I was murdered by the Dao Ancestor back then. This remnant of my soul remains here to pave a path for my descendants.”
Nan Yan felt a pang in her heart. She looked up at the mournfully crying Chongming birds and asked, “What about Grandmother Danying?”
The Vermilion Emperor’s expression became desolate. “She will never forgive me, even though I only learned later that the deaths of my friends and brothers that year were fabricated by Suihan Zi to be the work of the demon race, used to provoke me into seeking revenge against them.”
Nan Yan couldn’t offer any consolation. With the fall of their nation and family, regardless of the reason, Grandmother Danying could never forgive him.
“How did Grandfather come to know all this?”
The Vermilion Emperor gave a cold laugh. “All departed souls in the netherworld come to know everything on their own. Suihan Zi has already received the punishment he avoided for years. Although I admire the Fengdu Emperor who made this decision, he comes from Suihan Zi’s lineage, so I don’t trust him. You foolish child, why try to redeem him? Wouldn’t it be better to take this opportunity to ascend to the higher realms?”
Nan Yan remained silent. Seeing her stubbornness, the Vermilion Emperor sighed softly and transformed into Nan Yan’s merit.
“I thought the daughter I doted on had finally stopped being foolish, but I never expected my granddaughter to be… Well, go then.”
Just as the Vermilion Emperor disappeared, Nan Yan saw the circling Chongming birds suddenly dive towards her. When they were within a few zhang, they too dispersed into points of light.
Danying had never forgiven the Vermilion Emperor, but she still left with him.
Nan Yan stood blankly by the sea for a long time. Suddenly, a warm hand gently patted her head.
“See? Your grandfather deserved it.”
This light, familiar voice made Nan Yan’s eyes widen. Without hesitation, she turned and hugged the speaker.
“Alright, alright, you’re too old to be acting spoiled.” Nan Rao’s appearance was unchanged, without a trace of ghostly aura. She smiled at her grown-up daughter.
Nan Yan didn’t care. After calling out “Mother” several times, she finally looked up at Nan Rao with tear-filled eyes.
This time, there was no need for confirmation. There was no more heart demon. This was the mother she had been longing for.
“Mother, please don’t go to the Pure Land. I don’t want any merit. I just want to take care of you, let Big Brother and Second Brother take care of you too.” Her eyes stung. After so many years, Nan Yan finally showed her childish side. “My only wish was to see you…”
“I can choose not to reincarnate, but are you sure that seeing me was your only wish in coming here?” Nan Rao gently stroked Nan Yan’s head. “If Fengdu falls, this city will be lively. Promise me, don’t let those bastards fight over my beauty again, okay?”
“…Mother.”
Nan Rao said, “Don’t worry. Your grandfather and uncle became weary of life due to a karmic bond, but your mother is different.”
Nan Yan: “Oh?”
Nan Rao said seriously, “Your mother has several karmic bonds.”
Indeed, one of them even led to her peaceful passing, yet she remained unabashedly flirtatious after death. Truly worthy of being the Nan Fangzhu whose name made men tremble.
“Mother, I have something to tell you,” Nan Yan said.
“Go ahead.”
“Father is just outside the city. His Fifth Decline consciousness can perceive heaven and earth, so he should have sensed you already.” Nan Yan added, “He’s a Buddhist cultivator after all, and his cultivation is higher than mine. Even if I wanted to help you transcend, he wouldn’t let you go to the Pure Land.”
Nan Rao was silent for a moment, recalling her years-old torturous love. She hugged Nan Yan tightly, kissed her twice, left two pieces of merit, and turned to run: “To hell with the Pure Land, I’m not going! Daughter, find out where I’ll be reborn, and we’ll meet in the next life!!”
The sky was still covered in thick clouds, but Nan Yan’s heart suddenly brightened. She threw away the umbrella and took a step forward. In the next moment, she saw a familiar-looking cloud stairway.
A slender figure stood silently before the cloud stairs as if he were the embodiment of all of Fengdu.
Nan Yan walked to his side without a word. Looking sideways, she saw that Qi Yang’s eyes once filled with laughter, had now dimmed, shrouded in a layer of chaotic gray mist.
“Stop this. Return those souls still carrying the breath of life to the living world.”
Qi Yang seemed to have reverted to the aloof young man Nan Yan had seen in the Reverse Samsara Mirror, but now his expression was even colder, more like a true god of the netherworld.
“You’ve seen it. The world of the dead is ultimately simpler than that of the living, isn’t it?” The cloud stairs before Qi Yang gradually became enveloped in gray mist. “I thought I had etched you into my bones, but I didn’t expect to forget so quickly.”
Nan Yan quietly looked at him as Qi Yang spoke intermittently of things he had been reluctant to say.
“Just now, I considered letting him kill you.”
“I want too much, and you can promise me too little.”
“I don’t even know how to keep you by my side.”
As he said this, the chaos in Qi Yang’s eyes deepened.
“It’s laughable, isn’t it? Even though I’ve come to the place where we first met, I’m slowly forgetting. How can you redeem me? How can you stop me? With Buddhist scriptures or the righteous path of the mortal world?”
Nan Yan still didn’t speak. Qi Yang laughed desolately one last time and turned around. Just as he was about to take a step, Nan Yan grabbed his left hand.
“This time, I won’t try to redeem you.”
“…”
“They’re right. A thousand or ten thousand words about the mortal world and redemption can’t compare to one promise of not leaving, not abandoning.”
Nan Yan spoke each word deliberately, the golden light of merit scattering from her body. Amidst the firefly-like lights filling the sky, her eyes shone brightly.
“The celestial realms above, the Pure Land – I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay right here, right by your side.”