Chapter 2: The Flowers of the Other Shore, The River of Blood in the Underworld!_1

[Ding! "The Grand Cosmic Scripture’s" potential has been fully unearthed, and rereading it will no longer grant Divine Skill levels.]

[Please replace the book!]

As Chen Chang’an was lost in his thoughts,

a voice echoed in his mind.

Hearing this voice,

Chen Chang’an couldn’t help but sigh in disappointment.

"Alas, all the potential has been exhausted again."

Over the past ten years, his gains from reading had been significant.

But there was one aspect that deeply troubled Chen Chang’an.

That was, the scripture vault no longer had enough books for him.

There were many, very many books in the scripture vault.

An array of stars, and aside from the Cultivation Techniques that were not included, it basically had everything else.

However, even with so many books, after ten years of reading, almost all the books in the scripture vault that could enhance Divine Skills had been nearly depleted.

"The Grand Cosmic Scripture" was one of the last few whose potential had not been completely tapped.

Originally, Chen Chang’an had planned to use "The Grand Cosmic Scripture" to raise his "Divine Demon Dao Treasury" skill to the eighth level.

But now it seemed hopeless.

Nevertheless, the seventh level would have to suffice. Coupled with his other Divine Skills, it was almost enough.

With that thought, Chen Chang’an put away "The Grand Cosmic Scripture" and quickened his pace.

In no time, he arrived in front of a lonely tomb overgrown with weeds.

Atop the tomb, several Spirit Fruits and Spiritual Wine were offered.

On the tombstone in front of the grave, six bold characters were inscribed:

Tomb of Dao Ran Mountain’s Thirty-Seventh Mountain lord - Beloved teacher Yang Han.

This was the old mountain lord’s tomb. After the old mountain lord passed away,

Chen Chang’an had taken care of his funeral and ultimately, as per the old mountain lord’s wishes, buried him here.

Kneeling down in front of the grave, Chen Chang’an first bowed in respect.

Then, standing up, he skillfully cleared the weeds off the tomb.

He also burned a few incense sticks and inserted them.

Only then did he sit quietly in front of the tomb.

"Old man, I’ve come to visit you again."

"But after I see you this time, I’m going to have to leave the mountain."

"I didn’t want to leave, truly."

"But Li Daoran, that guy, is saying he wants to erase your Dao Paths, so I must go."

"Trust me, this time I leave the mountain, I’ll definitely find you a disciple with heaven-defying talent."

"And then I’ll ensure that your Dao Ran Mountain’s legacy is continued."

Continuing the legacy of Dao Ran Mountain was the old mountain lord’s greatest wish before he died.

Chen Chang’an now carried this wish.

He couldn’t understand why the old man was so obsessed,

But the little old man had been quite good to him.

Since it was his wish, Chen Chang’an would fulfill it for the other party.

"However, old man, you might have to wait a bit longer for this,

Before that, you’ll have to wait for me to take care of another matter."

Having said that, Chen Chang’an stood up.

Then, he reached into his chest,

And the next time his hand appeared, he held a mask.

The mask was crafted from bronze, dark as ink,

Its mere appearance was enough to send shivers down one’s spine.

Nevertheless, Chen Chang’an seemed quite accustomed to its terrifying aura.

The next moment, he donned the bronze mask.

As soon as the mask was on, Chen Chang’an’s entire aura transformed dramatically.

No longer the gentle and peerless noble young man,

But a boundless demon as if emerged from the depths of Hell!

"Annihilate, Shatter!"

The very next instant,

Chen Chang’an pointed forward with his hand.

Afterward, endless Dao essence emerged from him.

Then,

in a mysterious flow, a space vortex suddenly appeared in front of Chen Chang’an.

Seeing the space vortex appear, Chen Chang’an didn’t hesitate and stepped into it with a stride.

Buzzing~!

When he appeared again, he had arrived at a place tens of thousands of miles away.

Here, Heaven and Earth were both dim,

and in the sky, a blood moon hung.

It was clearly daytime, but it was exceptionally dark here.

On both sides of the street, soldiers shrouded in black clothing knelt in neat rows.

Silence reigned.

Only when Chen Chang’an passed through the middle did the sound of his shoes tapping on the stone slabs echo through the air.

At the place where Chen Chang’an had arrived, there was a gate ahead.

Hanging above the gate were three powerfully vigorous characters—

Hall of Reincarnation!

Below the gate of the Hall of Reincarnation stood eight towering yakshas with blue faces and fierce fangs, their bodies enveloped in a sinister aura.

They were holding steel tridents and halberds, standing on both sides, their eyes filled with defiance!

"Salutations to Lord Emperor Song!"

After Chen Chang’an passed by, the eight blue-faced yakshas immediately knelt on one knee and greeted him.

They bowed their heads, not daring to make eye contact with Chen Chang’an, their eyes full of awe and reverence for the higher-up!

"Lord Emperor Song, [Meng Po] and Yanluo King are waiting for you in the Rebirth Hall; please proceed directly there."

"Mhm."

Chen Chang’an nodded and walked straight past the eight figures.

With one step, he covered thousands of miles.

Meanwhile, it wasn’t until Chen Chang’an’s figure was no longer visible that the eight gatekeepers dared to raise their heads.

"Damn, that scared the life out of me, ’Emperor Song’s’ pressure has become even stronger; could it be that he’s broken through to the eighth realm?"

"Who can say otherwise? Five years ago, ’Emperor Song’ could pin a seventh realm Sword Master of the Xuantian Sword Sect to death with a single sword strike and withstand the eighth realm Ancient Buddha of Buddhism."

"Now, even to say that he has broken through to the eighth realm doesn’t seem impossible!"

"Come on, who spread that false info, who said ’Emperor Song’ would arrive later? How come he came so early?"

"It almost resulted in us not being prepared to welcome him."

"Damn it, I wish I knew who spread those fake messages, I’ll make sure they get what they deserve."

"Alright, stop the chatter; we should stand guard at our posts first."

"Otherwise, if we miss greeting some other important person, we might not be so lucky to be standing and talking anymore."

...

Meanwhile, Chen Chang’an, who had entered the gate, stopped by a rapidly flowing black river.

On the riverbank, several exceptionally delicate flowers swayed in the wind.

Beneath the flowers, bones were strewn haphazardly.

Chilling and terrifying.

"Greetings to Emperor Song."

Chen Chang’an didn’t have to wait long.

Almost the moment he arrived at the river’s edge, a voice emanated from the river.

Then, the black water of the river suddenly parted from the middle.

Next, a sinister path leading underground appeared in the middle.

Seeing the path, Chen Chang’an stepped forward and crossed into it.

Soon, he arrived inside a grand hall.

In the center of the grand hall was a large stone table.

Around the stone table, there were chairs.

The four chairs corresponded to the ones with the most power in the Hall of Reincarnation, aside from the most mysterious Demon Master Yin Tianzi.

The Hall of Reincarnation held a high status in this world, as the foremost of the Demon Gate.

It was the "one hall" among the ten respected Sects, with an extraordinary position.

Chen Chang’an started to lay out his plans for the Hall of Reincarnation ten years ago, beginning as an ordinary minor official.

Eventually, he became the Hall Master of one of the four major side halls, the Emperor Song Hall, known outwardly as Emperor Song!

Now, it had been five years since he became Emperor Song.

According to the rules of the Hall of Reincarnation, the masters of the four halls must attend a summit meeting at least once every year.

This time, Chen Chang’an came specifically for this reason.