The underground river water splashed upward, soaking her robes and hair. Along with the bone-chilling cold, it also brought piercing pain. Her limbs and bones felt as if they had been shattered, every inch of her body seeming to endure needle pricks and axe cuts!

This long-absent agony almost instantly crushed Jian Chou!

Even forcibly summoning her spirit and circulating the soul power within her body, she couldn’t suppress this pain at all.

It was as if… this pain came from the tearing of her soul…

This overwhelming, terrifying sensation…

How similar it was to what she had encountered at the thirteen hundredth foot of Black Wind Cave that day!

Deep white blood flowed into the river water.

Jian Chou began coughing, enduring the pain throughout her body as she reached out to brace herself against the rocky bottom of the underground river, struggling to rise. But in that instant, the pain suddenly intensified!

“Splash!”

Another sound of water splashing arose!

Jian Chou’s entire body collapsed back down again.

“Cough, cough, cough…”

The violent coughing could no longer be suppressed.

In the dim space, the firefly-like dark lights had been scattered almost completely.

The cave entrance that Jian Chou had seen earlier remained pitch black, slanting downward at an angle, extremely deep, as if one could never know where it truly led.

A strong sense of unwillingness rose from the depths of Jian Chou’s heart!

She could barely control her body’s trembling, for the intensity of the pain had reached such a violent degree that she could not bear it at all.

But what was even more unbearable was that kind of despair—hope right before her eyes, yet completely untouchable!

So close…

So close…

Everything in Shijiu Zhou lay before her eyes!

Clearly, she could touch it with just a stretch of her hand, but only now did she realize that tiny distance was actually a chasm, actually divine punishment!

A simple step, as difficult as ascending to heaven!

Those old friends and enemies, those companions and opponents…

Only at this moment did Jian Chou realize that emotion buried deep in her heart—loneliness. Far from the crowd, and far from the “homeland” she was familiar with.

It turned out that, without knowing when, that human isolated island that had brought her pain had already been replaced by the wind and moon of Yashan.

That was a brand permanently etched in her heart.

Deeply.

Jian Chou’s eyes suddenly felt somewhat hot.

She gazed at that pitch-black cave entrance, struggling to calm her emotions, clenching her teeth, forcing herself to regain composure and maintain her bodily posture, waiting for the pain caused by her earlier movement to slowly withdraw from her body.

Within Black Wind Cave, there had always been a mysterious force.

This force was the reason she couldn’t enter, but the damage it caused was only momentary, not lasting.

As long as she regulated her breathing, she should be able to recover.

Jian Chou’s coughing gradually subsided, her rapid breathing also becoming calmer.

The soul pearl at her brow center, which had stopped due to the sudden injury, slowly began rotating again—she needed to draw the earthly yin essence from her surroundings to repair her wounds.

The ancestral aperture at her brow center where the soul pearl resided also lit up with a faint purple glow at this moment. The imperial purple patterns covering the deep white soul pearl traced brilliant light as it rotated…

At that moment, Jian Chou heard inexplicable sounds of air being torn!

In the profound and mysterious rocky cave, those countless firefly-like lights that had been scattered by the waves suddenly seemed drawn by something, all flying toward Jian Chou’s brow center!

Too fast!

Like meteors, they rushed toward her swiftly from all directions!

“Puff!”

Jian Chou had just developed a sense of caution and defense when those countless glowing lights had already plunged directly into her brow center, disappearing into her ancestral aperture in the blink of an eye!

In her mind, she heard sounds like water drops falling into a lake.

Each light point was only the size of a grain of rice.

When it reached Jian Chou’s brow center, its snow-white color suddenly changed, transforming into the same imperial purple as the patterns on Jian Chou’s soul pearl!

One by one, one by one…

More and more!

In just a blink of an eye, Jian Chou’s brow center seemed to have become a giant funnel!

Countless snow-white light points, once they passed through her brow center, transformed into imperial purple, completely merging with her soul pearl…

At the same time, a gentle, nourishing power also spread to all parts of Jian Chou’s body through this deep purple light.

It was like bathing in the radiance of the red sun…

Warm.

Comfortable.

The injuries on her body began healing at an extremely fast pace!

Jian Chou was immediately greatly astonished.

She raised her eyes to look around: these cave-filling light points had originally been scattered by that snow-white bird claw that had grabbed her and brought her here. Now they were all gathering because of her soul pearl, transforming into imperial purple and condensing on her soul pearl…

Half purple.

Sixty percent purple.

Seventy percent purple.

…

The coverage of imperial purple was still slowly increasing.

That was a gradually intensifying, majestic aura.

Jian Chou could feel that as more imperial purple covered it, the entire soul pearl emanated an increasingly faint but heart-palpitating aura.

Yet she felt somewhat bewildered, not knowing what this actually meant.

“It means thou mayest enter and rule Eight Directions City, take thy seat in the Hall of Yama Kings…”

Just at this moment, a weathered sigh suddenly came from the deep rocky cave in front of Jian Chou—precisely the place where she had been unable to take even a single step!

There was actually someone in this rocky cave?!

Jian Chou was immediately greatly shocked.

She almost immediately wanted to grip her magical artifact tightly, but just as she moved her fingers, she discovered she couldn’t move at all. Her entire body was wrapped in that layer of imperial purple light, as if encased in a sculpture!

“What kind of expert are you, sir?”

“Ancient remnant race, not human…”

The response was still that same weathered voice from before.

However, it was still continuously approaching!

It was as if the owner of the voice was rapidly approaching the cave entrance while speaking!

Whoosh!

Jian Chou even heard faint wind sounds!

She almost thought that a fierce beast, a powerful enemy, would immediately burst from that black cave. Who would have thought that what appeared at the cave entrance was actually a patch of snow-white light!

Just like the bird claw that had seized her and brought her in earlier!

That was a color as pure as ice and snow, not only clean itself but seemingly able to wash away all impurities in the world. Just looking at it made one feel that all distracting thoughts and desires in one’s mind disappeared completely.

Initially, it was just a patch of light.

But soon, it gathered at the entrance of Black Wind Cave.

The cave entrance that had previously allowed Jian Chou to step foot seemed to encounter a transparent barrier when the snow light surged forward.

All the snow light accumulated at the entrance, forming a mass.

They, or it, continuously gathered and compressed, actually gradually outlining a snow-white circular totem on this transparent barrier!

The outer part had skulls, ghosts, auspicious clouds, and thunder patterns gathered together, compactly forming a circle that became the outermost decoration of the totem. At the very center, however, was a snow-white bird pattern.

Two snow-white wings were enormous, occupying the most space in the entire totem, appearing magnificently imposing. However, the pattern that appeared above the totem instantly scattered this imposing magnificence, transforming it into a terror and mystery belonging to ancient times!

Those were actually nine bird heads!

Sharp beaks with barbs gave a sense of sharpness; the three white feathers on top of their heads, like ruyi patterns, had a ethereal and transcendent sense of purity.

If there were only one, it would merely make people feel pleased and delighted.

But when the number reached “nine,” what remained for people was only the eerie and shocking sensation of gasping in shock!

Not to mention, besides these nine bird heads, there was actually a bare neck section nearby, faintly depicting dripping blood!

This was clearly the remaining neck section after someone had severed one head.

The snow-white totem emanated blinding light.

Line after line of runes were carved on the snow-white bird’s body and wings. The aura from ancient times was archaic and aged, possessing a mystery that people dared not touch, yet also having a gentleness that put people at ease…

However, in Jian Chou’s mind, there was only the thunderous sound of explosions!

Countless images, countless sounds, all surged out like a tide, impacting her entire being…

Ten necks, nine heads!

Carrying ghosts and returning!

Tracing upstream from the tail of Nine-Head River in Shijiu Zhou, bringing all the countless souls of the world to the peach forest at the easternmost extreme of Shijiu Zhou.

On the southeast branch of the Eastern Extreme Peach Blossom Tree was where the ghost gate opened!

This totem before her eyes was actually the Nine-Headed Bird!

The legendary Nine-Headed Bird that guided human souls into reincarnation!

For a moment, Jian Chou’s mind and spirit were somewhat dazed, not knowing how to react.

Instead, the snow-white bird on the totem seemed alive, with one bird head actually turning toward Jian Chou.

The bird head’s eyes projected sharp gazes, and the tightly closed beak also opened at this moment.

This totem actually spoke human words!

“Thou art a cultivator of Yashan, and I bear no ill will. Today, breaking through realms to invite thee here is merely because I see thou bearest countless opportunities and fates. In the future, thou mayest assist in matters of reincarnation, so I wish to borrow thy strength…”

This voice had a strange stiffness and weathered quality, coming from the totem on the entrance barrier, reverberating and filling the entire dark space, stirring up countless echoes.

Listening to it, Jian Chou actually got goosebumps all over.

The moment she saw this totem, she had already made countless speculations and prepared herself accordingly. Yet when she clearly heard the content of what this totem said, she still couldn’t control the turmoil in her heart…

Another one who had seen through her identity!

“No need to worry. This realm is a fractured realm. Since I was sealed here, no one from the extreme region has been able to penetrate this realm and glimpse the situation.”

As if sensing what she was thinking, the totem’s voice sounded again.

Jian Chou furrowed her brow.

At her brow center, the surrounding light points were still continuously gathering. On her soul pearl, a large area of imperial purple had already covered it, and it was clearly already ninety percent complete.

Although she didn’t know what this meant, the comfort her body felt couldn’t be faked.

Jian Chou connected the events before and after, thinking carefully. She understood that a being like this totem, or rather the Nine-Headed Bird, even in a “sealed” state, could easily kill her.

So the possibility that the other party was helping her was actually quite high.

It was just what it had said…

Jian Chou looked toward the totem, directly meeting one of the nine heads. After hesitating for a moment, she still respectfully spoke: “Junior Jian Chou, indeed a cultivator of Yashan, trapped in this realm by coincidence. I wonder, senior, what is your background and how should I address you?”

“Background?”

From within the Nine-Headed Bird totem came a voice mixed with memories, as if this question from Jian Chou had stirred up the past, all the recollections.

At that moment, endless snow-white light actually blazed forth!

The feeling of having her mind and spirit swept away appeared again. She actually felt her consciousness transform into a ray of light, merging into this patch of snow-white radiance…

Thus, the endless star river spread out.

The nearly eternal universe also slowly unfolded.

A snow-white great bird spread its wings, slowly passing through the void of the universe. On its back, a towering figure stood vaguely…

“My name is Nine-Head, originally the mount of Great Lord Pangu.”

“The Great Lord led the human race in migration, splitting the chaos of ten thousand ages with one axe, entering this realm, making the stars of the universe their home, and establishing reincarnation…”

“From then on, I governed the duty of guiding and ferrying living souls.”

It was the snow-white Nine-Headed Bird, from the westernmost tail of Nine-Head River, flowing upstream.

On the vast land of Shijiu Zhou, countless souls emitting faint light were all attracted by it, gathering at the riverbank. When it passed by, they threw themselves upon it, lodging under its wings…

Thus, crossing the Left Three Thousand of the Central Domain, Mingri Xinghai, reaching the easternmost extreme of all Shijiu Zhou…

That was the edge of the Shijiu Zhou land. Across a narrow strait, the opposite side was actually the Human Isolated Island!

Only in this strait, there wasn’t a single fish or shrimp, much less any spirits, demons, or beasts. One couldn’t even find half a trace of life—

Except for that peach tree growing in the center of the strait!

With intertwined roots and vigorous branches, it had stood in this strait for who knows how many years. The tree was full of blooming peach blossoms, and its flourishing branches and leaves actually covered the entire strait!

It was too large, standing in the strait like a vast forest!

The Nine-Headed Bird carried those countless living souls and cast them toward the southeast branch of this peach tree…

Thus, a pitch-black great door instantly opened.

Inside the door was the extreme region’s ten thousand li of evil soil that Jian Chou was already very familiar with…

Black mountain ranges, withered grass everywhere.

Vaguely there were city walls, built on barren soil…

Only, this scene was actually inverted!

As if Shijiu Zhou and the extreme region could be folded together through this middle stretch of land—like a mirror image!

“Coming from remote antiquity, passing through ancient times, I have ferried countless living souls…”

“The underworld of the extreme region gradually grew stronger.”

“Unexpectedly, heaven and earth have spirits. The reincarnation rules that the Great Lord established in former years actually gave birth to spiritual intelligence from the void…”

The reincarnation rules gave birth to spiritual intelligence?

Suddenly, Jian Chou felt a bone-chilling horror—

The scene before her eyes collapsed with a thunderous crash.

In the blink of an eye, a dark water surface appeared before her, with a walkway extending from the edge toward the center.

Standing at the end of the walkway and looking down, the water was shallow, seeming to be just a pool.

Below the water surface, however, were vaguely visible deep purple spinning wheels, enormously large, with flowing light like runes flashing between them.

One living soul after another walked onto the walkway and threw themselves into the pool water!

Thus, all past karma was forgotten.

Their souls, in the rotation of the wheels, went from one wheel to another, finally transforming into vast points of light and disappearing on the final wheel…

Above the water surface was a blurry phantom.

It was like a book with archaic golden characters carved on it. Every time a living soul entered the reincarnation pool, the text on the book pages would change accordingly.

Jian Chou vaguely understood: this should be the Reincarnation Pool, and as for this book, its outline…

In her mind, the statue of Lord Qin Guang suddenly flashed!

—The Book of Life and Death!

Almost the instant these three words surfaced, something transparent from the edge of the Reincarnation Pool suddenly pounced over, sweeping past from above the Book of Life and Death!

Rustle!

The originally open and flat book pages suddenly began flipping rapidly, and the golden characters on them also trembled incessantly!

A stream of purple smoke actually emerged from the pages in this brief moment, floating above the Book of Life and Death.

In the blink of an eye, who knows how many years passed…

That endless purple smoke gradually thickened, as if crossing some boundary, finally condensing into a deep purple soul pearl—

Imperial purple!

That was actually the color Jian Chou had seen!

The color of her own soul pearl at this moment!

After this soul pearl appeared, it instantly shattered.

The scattered purple light, like fragments of purple jade, actually assembled on this Reincarnation Pool into a vague human form, gradually becoming complete as time passed…

Crown covering, imperial robes adorning.

He had majestic brows and eyes, with a fierce aura hidden deep in his pupils. He merely reached out and grasped that phantom-like Book of Life and Death in his hands!

“Rumble!”

At that moment, the entire extreme region shook!

All living souls in the entire world looked up to the sky and howled!

Countless golden lights emerged from this Book of Life and Death, then were drawn back like a great whale sucking water, thus actually transforming into a real Book of Life and Death…

He stood on the Reincarnation Pool, and at this moment, had already taken control of reincarnation!

Jian Chou knew this person—

Eight Directions City, the First Yama King, Lord Qin Guang!

“Lord Qin Guang was born from the reincarnation rules of the extreme region and is himself a rule.”

“Once rules have spiritual intelligence, it becomes the most terrifying thing in this world. In the days that followed, other cultivator souls who were unwilling to leave gradually gathered in the extreme region…”

Thus, before Jian Chou’s eyes, Eight Directions City gradually took shape, and the seventy-two cities became increasingly prosperous…

The entire extreme region was clearly another empire.

“By the end of ancient times, which is sixty years ago.”

“The extreme region suddenly cut off reincarnation from Shijiu Zhou for unknown reasons. At this point, many cultivators in Shijiu Zhou noticed this matter and wanted to take action to correct it. Who would have thought the extreme region would not allow it, and soon a war broke out between the two realms…”

On the ten thousand li of evil soil, countless black ghosts and demons jumped out from the ground; flowing Yellow Spring water washed over, bringing countless earthly yin essence to nourish and supplement the evil spirits.

At the other end of the evil soil were countless cultivators from Shijiu Zhou wearing long robes…

In a brief glimpse, Jian Chou actually saw several familiar faces among them…

However, in the blink of an eye, all the scenes darkened.

“This battle was called the Yin-Yang Realm War by later generations.”

“In this battle, I followed Great Lord Pangu’s command to guard reincarnation, was killed by the Eight Directions Yama Hall, had my Nine-Headed Bird body destroyed, leaving only remnant soul, sealed here.”

“The thousand cultivators of Yashan were implicated by Shijiu Zhou, all perishing, their souls scattered…”

“Until now, it has been nearly six hundred years…”

The aged voice, carrying an inexplicable heaviness, slowly pulled Jian Chou back from all those visions.

She blinked, and what she saw before her was again that enormous snow-white totem.

At this moment, all nine heads of the Nine-Headed Bird had turned to look at her.

She was somewhat stunned.

Never had she imagined that Lord Qin Guang in the Eight Directions Yama Hall had such a terrifying background.

What kind of terrifying existence must that be? A rule itself!

Everything became crystal clear.

But at the same time, countless doubts arose from her heart.

Why did Lord Qin Guang suddenly cut off the reincarnation of Shijiu Zhou cultivators?

What exactly happened in the Yin-Yang Realm War that caused the thousand cultivators of Yashan to perish? What meaning was hidden in the Nine-Headed Bird’s words “implicated by Shijiu Zhou”?

“Senior Nine-Head, I wonder…”

Jian Chou wanted to ask for clarity and opened her mouth to inquire.

Who would have thought that just as she began to speak, the Nine-Headed Bird’s voice also rang out: “Thou hast doubts in thy heart. If thou returnest to Shijiu Zhou, thou canst fully resolve them all…”

Jian Chou immediately frowned and said no more.

The Nine-Headed Bird’s voice, however, continued.

The tone was hoarse, impossible to distinguish male or female, or perhaps…

There was no male or female at all.

“After the Yin-Yang Realm War, both realms were locked and sealed by great formations. Black Wind Cave is the same—one cannot return to Shijiu Zhou from here.”

“The only way out still lies before the Liberation Heaven Creation Array.”

“Thou art from the Yashan sect, thy soul incomplete. Even with imperial purple qi surrounding thy soul pearl, thou canst not succeed. I have a request, earnestly hoping Young Friend Jian Chou will consent. Though I cannot repair thy soul for thee, I can assist thee in shattering thy soul pearl in one step and ascending to Jade Nirvana.”

Shatter the soul pearl in one step!

Ascend to Jade Nirvana!

Jian Chou’s eyelids twitched, almost not daring to believe her ears. Looking at the totem, her gaze couldn’t help but show several parts of hidden shock!

Pangu split open the chaotic universe, and the Nine-Headed Bird, this kind of terrifying existence, was his Great Lord’s mount.

Even as a remnant soul, it had the ability to drag her from the eighteenth level of hell and isolate the connection between the tripod ring and the outside world. Its power was evident.

The other party actually said it would help her shatter her soul pearl and transform to Jade Nirvana?

Her soul pearl had always had a crack, like thunder ready to explode at any moment, not knowing when it would cause her death and dao extinction.

When cultivating in Shijiu Zhou, Fudao Shanren had also mentioned that leaving the body would mean certain death.

From this, one could see how dangerous having an incomplete soul was!

Even if the other party said it couldn’t repair her soul for her, couldn’t eliminate the danger when she cultivated, if she could ascend to Jade Nirvana in one step, it would be of great benefit to her!

However, where in the world was there a free lunch?

At this moment, all the light points had completely merged into Jian Chou’s brow center.

The last trace of deep white color on her entire soul pearl was also covered by the purple light points. In the blink of an eye, it was already one hundred percent imperial purple!

Except for that one crack, it was nearly perfect!

A faint purple glow seeped from her brow center ancestral aperture into her eyes.

For a moment, there was actually a strange aura of power flowing from her entire body. Even just sitting cross-legged on the underground river, she possessed a lofty majesty!

But this feeling came so naturally that Jian Chou didn’t even notice much of an difference.

She slightly furrowed her brow, looking toward the Nine-Headed Bird totem. The caution in her voice remained unchanged: “Senior Nine-Head has a connection with Yashan, and just now aided this junior. Jian Chou is infinitely grateful. But I wonder, in helping me, what exactly do you seek?”

“This matter is not difficult. When Young Friend returns to Yashan, thou needest only report to thy sect elders, Fudao Shanren, that my remnant soul still exists.”

On the snow-white totem, the Nine-Headed Bird’s eyes were filled with gloom, and it sighed.

“In the Yin-Yang Realm War, the internal grudges of Shijiu Zhou—please ask him to temporarily set them aside, concentrate forces, first attack the extreme region, and restore reincarnation!”

First attack the extreme region and restore reincarnation!

Jian Chou gasped in shock, unable to speak for a moment!

The Nine-Headed Bird, however, shifted its gaze to look at some place in the void, as if seeing through the void to something else…

Its voice gradually became cold.

“However, among Young Friend’s companions, there is an ephemeral creature that is the most evil great demon born of heaven and earth! Restoring reincarnation is of utmost importance. If this demon learns of it, it will surely ruin the great plan…”