Chapter 987 : A Soul Adrift in the Netherworld

"Mutual Tribulation..."

Eldrin Chen felt the will of heaven and earth, yet remained silent, standing there quietly.

After a long while, he suppressed the thoughts swirling in his heart and continued speaking softly, "My disciple's soul has scattered to the winds. I wonder if there is still any chance for salvation."

The will of heaven and earth remained silent for a long time before finally speaking, "In the past, Alistair Ye made a great vow: he would not ascend to immortality until the Sea of Blood [a legendary, vast ocean of blood] was cleansed. A wisp of his will resides within the Eastern Barrens Sea of Blood."

"However, his True Spirit [the core spiritual essence of a being] has likely already entered the Netherworld [the realm of the dead]. To rely on this insignificant wisp of will to recall his True Spirit from there and use it to reconstitute his Primordial Spirit [the complete, cultivated spiritual form of an advanced practitioner]... that will be no easy task."

Upon hearing this, Eldrin Chen's brow furrowed slightly. All living beings of heaven and earth possess three treasures: the physical body, the soul, and the True Spirit.

Among these, the physical body is precious—it is the vessel for consciousness within the Mortal Dust [the mundane, physical world], capable of carrying a cultivator's soul and Primordial Spirit. It is the indispensable raft that ferries a practitioner across the worldly sea before achieving immortality.

The soul is where the consciousness of all living beings resides, with the Life Soul [the core soul tied to one's individual life and fate] as its primary component. When combined with the Heaven Soul and Earth Soul, it forms a cultivator's Primordial Spirit.

This soul is the seat of a cultivator's Path Fruit [the metaphysical fruit of one's cultivation, representing attainment and power] and is the very foundation of the practitioner. Once the soul is lost, the remaining body is merely an empty shell.

Therefore, a cultivator's soul is of paramount importance. As long as the soul is not utterly annihilated, even if only a remnant wisp falls into Reincarnation [the cycle of death and rebirth], there remains a possibility of recovering memories and regaining one's original self. This chapter is part of a larger work available at http://www . audio-novel.com.

Among these three treasures, the True Spirit [the fundamental, indestructible spiritual essence of a being] is the most mysterious and truly indelible existence.

Legends speak of the True Spirit possessing Immortality and Indestructibility; even a Great Encompassing Golden Immortal [a supreme immortal realm] could not utterly erase it. Even if a cultivator's soul were scattered to the winds, a single wisp of their True Spirit could enter the cycle of reincarnation and eventually give birth to a new spirit.

Yet this newly born spirit would bear no connection to its past life. Even if it could once again Ascension and Attainment of the Path, it would no longer be the person from before, its former memories forever lost.

In that battle, Alistair Ye's spirit was completely shattered, with only a single wisp of his True Spirit descending into the Netherworld [the realm of the dead and reincarnation]. Should that True Spirit one day be reborn, it would no longer be the Alistair Ye he once knew.

It was precisely this knowledge that filled Eldrin Chen with such profound grief.

Now, hearing the will of heaven and earth declare that a fragment of Alistair Ye's will was anchored within the Eastern Barrens Sea of Blood, Eldrin Chen could not help but reveal a flicker of wild hope.

To retrieve Alistair Ye's True Spirit from the depths of the Netherworld using merely the power of a wisp of will would be a task as difficult as scaling the heavens themselves.

Even though Eldrin Chen could now be considered an Immortal [a being who has transcended mortality] within the Mortal Dust [the mortal realm], he feared he still lacked the power to accomplish such a feat.

Yet, even so, this represented the only glimmer of opportunity in Eldrin Chen's eyes.

"Perhaps there is still a chance."

Eldrin Chen murmured, his expression grave as he spoke, "If we could use that wisp of will to call back the remnant soul of Verdant Peak..."

"...and then, through a world-shaking method, reforge his soul, perhaps we could find for him a single chance at Reincarnation [the cycle of death and rebirth]."

The Will of the World trembled slightly upon hearing this. After a moment, it replied with a note of helplessness, "To retrieve his True Spirit [the core spiritual essence of a being] from a mere wisp of will... I fear even an ordinary Earth Immortal Patriarch [a powerful cultivator who has attained the Earth Immortal realm] might not be capable of such a feat."

"Your Life Path Principles [the fundamental laws governing life and vitality] are indeed among the most formidable Path Principles [the fundamental laws of reality and cultivation], but even they have their limits."

"I understand..."

Eldrin Chen whispered, nodding slowly. "That is why I must become stronger. If I can comprehend five Path Principles, wielding the power of the Primordial One Limitless Path Principles [the supreme, boundless law from which all others are said to derive], perhaps I can wrest his True Spirit back from the grasp of the Lord of the Underworld Court [the ruler of the realm of the dead]."

"The Primordial One Limitless Path Principles!"

Even the supremely impartial Will of the World seemed to pause for a beat, as if struck by a flicker of astonishment.

It remained silent for a long while before speaking again, its voice measured. "His True Spirit has only just entered the Netherworld [the realm of spirits and the dead]. Swiftly within a century, or slowly within a millennium, it will be cast into the cycle of Reincarnation. Your time is not plentiful."

"It is enough."

Eldrin Chen murmured softly to himself, then his Primordial Spirit [the spiritual core of a cultivator] transformed into a streak of light and departed. In a whirl of heaven and earth, it returned to his physical body.

Upon his return, Eldrin Chen immediately went into the Eastern Barrens Blood Spring [a forbidden land of blood and spiritual energy] and sought out a wisp of consciousness belonging to Alistair Ye.

Thereafter, he turned and flew deep into the boundless earth's depths, finding Exquisite Jiang, who was recuperating from her injuries, within that bottomless Netherworld [the underworld realm of spirits and the dead].

"Husband!"

Seeing Eldrin Chen, Exquisite Jiang was quite moved.

Eldrin Chen, however, shook his head and then channeled the power of the Life Path Principles Power [the fundamental laws governing existence and cultivation] to heal her. Experience the full epic at audio~novel.com.

Exquisite Jiang's injuries from this battle were severe; her Supreme Lunar Immortal Body [a rare and powerful physique attuned to lunar energies] was grievously wounded. Even with Eldrin Chen's mastery of the Life Path Principles [the fundamental laws governing life and vitality], he could not fully restore her in a short time.

Only after her condition stabilized did Eldrin Chen withdraw his hand.

A long while later, Exquisite Jiang's wounds were mostly healed. Gazing at Eldrin Chen's white hair, her heart ached, and she asked with concern, "Husband, what shall we do next?"

"Comprehend the Path, and ascend to Immortality!"

Eldrin Chen was utterly serene, stepping forward with an air of tranquil composure.

Having secluded himself in cultivation for several centuries, Eldrin Chen had not only perfected the Primordial One Indestructibility Golden Body but had also grasped the power of the Primordial One Heavenly Metal Path Principles. He was now but a single step away from comprehending all five Path Principles [the fundamental laws governing reality and cultivation].

To simultaneously cultivate five Path Principles and awaken the power of the Primordial One Limitless Path Principles required immense foundational accumulation, which he had long since achieved. All that remained was the final spark of enlightenment. Eldrin Chen felt this profound intuition within the depths of his being—that ultimate threshold was now within his reach.

At this thought, he drew a deep breath and took Exquisite Jiang's hand. "Walk with me," he said softly. "Let us see the Mortal Realm [the world of ordinary mortals] one last time, before I ascend."

"Yes…"

Exquisite Jiang nodded, her fingers tightening around his.

"…"

Eldrin Chen led Exquisite Jiang towards Myriad Ruins Province, and before they knew it, they stood before a solitary, nameless cliff on Green Chariot Mountain.

Gazing at the lonely precipice, Eldrin Chen smiled and squeezed Exquisite Jiang's hand. "I remember," he began, his voice tinged with nostalgia, "as a youth, I would come here every dawn and midnight to breathe in the morning mists and Moonlight Essence [the refined spiritual energy of moonlight], using them to transform the Primordial Chaos Violet Aura [the primordial purple energy of creation]."

"Who would have thought that after thousands of fleeting years, with the world and its people so changed, this simple ancient cliff would remain utterly unchanged."

"Silas has been most thoughtful." Exquisite Jiang's eyes shimmered with emotion, and she sighed softly before saying, "I heard that for thousands of years, she has come here every year, using her spiritual power to nurture this mountain."

Upon hearing this, Eldrin Chen's gaze flickered, but in the end, he said nothing more.

The two descended from Green Chariot Mountain, passing through familiar places like Spirit Isle Lake, Sunward Market, and Verdant Ink Mountain. Before they knew it, they had arrived at Heavenly Ruins Mountain.

Though the landscape had long since changed and the people were no longer the same, Eldrin Chen could still vaguely discern the former appearance of Heavenly Ruins Mountain.

And across this vast, untamed Great Wasteland, snow had begun to fall, as if recreating the scene from days long past.

Remembering that this was where they had first met, where their story truly began, Eldrin Chen couldn't help but chuckle wryly. "I still recall back then, you were already the foremost Violet Sanctum [the third major realm of cultivation, where one opens the spiritual sea within the dantian] expert in Chu Nation, while I was merely a Vital Essence Refinement Minor Cultivator [the foundational first realm of cultivation, focused on refining the body's vital energy]."

"I truly never imagined then that you and I would end up walking this path together."

Exquisite Jiang opened a paper umbrella, her elegance and grace now surpassing what it was a thousandfold in those bygone days. She took Eldrin Chen's hand and soared with him to the peak of a certain Nameless desolate mountain.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with him, gazing upon the solemn, snow-clad expanse of the Great Wasteland, she finally spoke with a smile. "I, Exquisite Jiang, have lived my life guided by my own heart's desires. Why should I care about differences in cultivation level or status?"

"Looking back from today, the choice I made back then was not wrong."

Speaking to this point, a wave of inexplicable emotion washed over her. "For us cultivators, a lifetime of cultivation—those fleeting thousands or even tens of thousands of years—passes like a wisp of smoke before the eyes. The most precious thing is to never forget one's original intent [the pure purpose one held at the beginning of their path]."

"Looking back now, I have achieved that." The story continues at audio–novel.com.