Chapter 1276: Yang Cleansing

"This place is so cold and foreboding... Could it be that we really have entered the underworld?" Han Li murmured to himself as he swept his spiritual sense over the crimson city up ahead.

The city was quite large, but it was completely devoid of vitality. There weren't even any dogs or cats to be seen, let alone any living humans.

It was as if beyond this Ghost Gate really was a ghost city.

Weeping Soul was staring intently into the air beyond the Ghost Gate, and Han Li followed her gaze to discover that there was a large, black cloud hovering in the air above the city, and it was very eye-catching in this crimson space.

The black cloud was slowly moving like a living creature, making it appear as if there were something within it, but it also contained some type of invisible force that kept Han Li's spiritual sense at bay.

After a brief hesitation, Han Li peered into the cloud with his Infernal Devilish Eyes.

Right at this moment, the black cloud shuddered as a burst of tremendous might erupted out of it, causing the nearby space to tremble violently.

Han Li felt a sharp pain in his eyes, and blood began to flow down from their corners as he hurriedly averted his gaze.

"Master!" Weeping Soul exclaimed in an alarmed voice.

"I'm fine," Han Li reassured as he closed his eyes. "There's something very strange about that cloud, so don't try to look into it."

Shortly thereafter, he reopened his eyes, and they had already returned to normal.

"This is not a very inviting place. I think we should leave right away," Weeping Soul suggested as she took a wary glance at the crimson city and the black cloud above it.

"This crimson space is very stable, so we can't just leave as we please. Besides, we're already here, so we may as well go down there and take a look," Han Li said, then began to fly toward the crimson city.

Weeping Soul was still a little hesitant, but she raised no objections as she followed after him in silence.

The two of them descended in front of the city gates, which were wide open, and beyond it was an extremely wide road that could accommodate around a dozen horses riding abreast of one another. The road was lined with tall buildings, the doors of which were also opened up wide.

However, the city really was completely deserted.

Weeping Soul's brows furrowed slightly as she reflexively sidled up a little closer to Han Li.

"Let's go in. I'm curious about exactly what this place is," Han Li said as he stepped into the city, and as soon as he did so, he involuntarily shivered, which was slightly alarming, but aside from that, he didn't notice anything else amiss.

He turned to take a glance at Weeping Soul, but it seemed like she hadn't felt anything at all.

With their speed, it didn't take long for them to explore the entire city, and they discovered that the the facilities in the city were quite complete, and that it was really no different from the average city in the True Immortal Realm. There was furniture and cutlery in the residential buildings, and some of the tables were even laden with food, but there was simply not a single person to be seen.

"Could it be that all of the city's residents were recently abducted?" Han Li speculated.

At this moment, the two of them were standing in a residential home, and there was some tea on the table next to them.

Meanwhile, Weeping Soul was looking around in a contemplative manner, and all of a sudden, she stepped forward and picked up one of the cups of the tea from the table.

The tea was also red in color, and all of a sudden, a look of realization appeared on her face.

"Did you discover something?" Han Li asked.

"I've figured it out, Master! Come with me!" Weeping Soul yelled, then dragged Han Li out of the city to the crimson lake.

"Why have you taken me here?" Han Li asked.

"Just trust me, Master," Weeping Soul replied, then jumped into the lake so that her body was submerged within it, leaving only her head exposed.

Her brows furrowed slightly for a moment, but then quickly unfurrowed again.

As opposed to jumping into the lake with her, Han Li began to inspect the water inside with his spiritual sense.

The water in the lake was giving off a faint, glacial aura, but there didn't seem to be anything else special about it.

Right at this moment, an elated look appeared on Weeping Soul's face as she exclaimed, "I knew it! Master, come in!"

Han Li hesitated momentarily, then jumped into the lake as well.

As soon as he did so, his facial features instantly became slightly twisted in agony.

Submerged within the lake, he felt as if his entire body were being raked by red-hot daggers. He couldn't help but tremble from the pain, and his vision had also become rather hazy, as if a layer of mist had appeared over his eyes.

If the pain were purely physical, then Han Li wouldn't have been fazed at all, but it was acting directly upon his soul, and even with his tremendous mental fortitude, he was finding it rather difficult to endure.

It was as his entire body had been enveloped by a burst of invisible force that was extracting something out of his body and soul.

"This lake is filled with Three Lifetimes Water that can cleanse the yang energy from one's body. Just endure the pain for now, Master," Weeping Soul hurriedly said.

Han Li gritted his teeth and persevered upon hearing this.

Only after a full fifteen minutes did the pain begin to subside, and it quickly faded away entirely. At this moment, Han Li didn't feel any discomfort. In fact, bathing in the lake had become an indescribably blissful experience.

Han Li gently exhaled, and his vision had already returned to normal.

Right as he was about to get out of the lake, Weeping Soul suddenly grabbed onto his arm to stop him, then said in a quiet voice, "Hold on a second, Master. Take a look at the city first."

Han Li cast his gaze toward the crimson city upon hearing this, and his eyes widened in shock as he discovered that rows of guards clad in suits of crimson armor had suddenly appeared in front of the city.

These guards possessed humanoid bodies, but each of them had a single horn on their heads, and they had large ears and long tongues that drooped out of their mouths, much like a dog would stick out their tongue while panting on a hot day, lending a comical element to their fearsome appearance.

The previously completely deserted city had also become extremely lively and bustling, and countless residents seemed to have materialized out of thin air.

Not only that, but more guards clad in crimson armor had appeared above the crimson lake as well, and they were holding chains in their hands, the other ends of which were attached to struggling figures that were being cast into the lake.

As soon as these people plunged into the lake, they immediately began to scream in heartwrenching agony, and plumes of smoke came rising up from their bodies, as if they were being corroded by the lake.

However, it didn't take long for the smoke to dissipate, at which point their bodies would've already turned semi-transparent. From there, they were dragged back to the city gates by the armorclad guards, then arranged into a line to be examined before being allowed into the crimson city.

The guards paid no heed to Han Li and Weeping Soul at all, and it was as if they were unable to see the two of them.

"These armorclad guards are soul harvesting envoys of the underworld. They travel to the True Immortal Realm to harvest the souls of the deceased, and those souls are cleansed of their yang energy before being taken to the underworld," Weeping Soul said.

"That does appear to be what's happening, but how do you know all of this?" Han Li asked in a curious manner.

"As soon as I entered the Three Lifetimes Lakes, these memories suddenly surfaced in mind," Weeping Soul replied.

"How could you possibly have these dormant memories?" Han Li asked in a perplexed manner.

"I'm not sure. Maybe us Xing Beasts have some type of natural connection to the underworld," Weeping Soul speculated.

"Perhaps so," Han Li replied with a nod.

He then turned his gaze back to the crimson city as he mused, "I had always thought that the underworld didn't truly exist, but it appears I was wrong. By the way, why can't these soul harvesting envoys see us?"

"Only the deceased and those who've had all of their yang energy cleansed in the Three Lifetimes Lake can be seen by soul harvesting envoys. Even though we fall into the latter category, I used a special secret techniques to conceal our auras, so these soul harvesting envoys still can't see us. However, this secret technique only just sprang into my mind, so I don't know how well it's going to work," Weeping Soul explained.

"I see," Han Li replied with a nod, then rose up from the lake before flying toward the entrance of the city.

"Master, I just told you that I don't know how well the secret technique is going to work!" Weeping Soul hurriedly said as she followed after him.

Thankfully, they were able to remain undetected, and the soul harvesting envoys stationed at the city gates didn't have any sensory tools at their disposal, so Han Li and Weeping Soul were able to slip into the city unnoticed.

"That was way too reckless of you, Master," Weeping Soul complained.

"I have faith in your secret technique. Besides, if it wasn't going to work, then there would've been no point for us to continue hiding in the lake anyway," Han Li replied with a faint smile.

"I suppose," Weeping Soul acquiesced with a nod. "What are you planning to do from here?"

"Let's follow them and see what they do with these souls," Han Li replied as he pointed a finger at the soul harvesting envoys in the city.

At this moment, the soul harvesting envoys were escorting the souls of the deceased toward a certain direction in the city, and there were many people on the streets stopping to look and point at the procession as it passed through.

Han Li and Weeping Soul trailed the soul harvesting envoys from afar, and they quickly arrived at the entrance of a tall building.

The souls were herded into the building by the soul harvesting envoy like sheep, and Han Li and Weeping Soul exchanged a glance with one another before entering the building as well.