Chapter 1283: Another One

"Master Xue Li, now that you've returned, all we need to do is gather our scattered forces and recuperate for a hundred thousand years or so, and we'll definitely have an opportunity to exact our vengeance on the Reincarnation King!" Yin Luo declared.

"A hundred thousand years is too long. I want revenge now, and an opportunity has already presented itself," Xue Li said in a cold voice.

"What are you referring to, Master Xue Li?" Yin Luo asked.

"Didn't you feel like there was someone familiar among the three people that you were pursuing just now?" Xue Li asked.

Yin Luo's brows furrowed slightly in contemplation upon hearing this, and moments later, his eyes abruptly lit up as he exclaimed, "Now that you mentioned it, that black-robed woman's abilities were rather similar to those of the Infernal King!"

"That's right! I am already 90% sure that she is the reincarnation of the Infernal King. If we want to defeat the Reincarnation King and seize back the underworld, then we have to awaken her memories and work with her," Xue Li said.

"In that case, should we stop pursuing them then?" Yin Luo asked.

"There's no need to continue pursuing them, but you must also make sure to not lose track of them," Xue Li replied.

"I understand, Master Xue Li. I'll send people to track them right away," Yin Luo said as he cupped his fist in a respectful salute.

"I'll leave it to you then. I have to go into seclusion for some time to rest and recover from my lingering injuries," Xue Li said, then sprang up into the air before flying away into the distance.

......

There was a winding river that was filled with flowing, murky, red water in front of a shadowy mountain range.

The river originated from a valley thousands of kilometers away, and it flowed all the way to this point, where the terrain was much more level, before pooling into a large river bank.

Han Li's trio descended upon the river bank, and Jin Tong turned back to take a glance behind them before remarking, "It looks like those guys haven't come chasing after us."

Han Li also took a backward glance, then turned an inquisitive gaze to Weeping Soul.

"I can't sense them anymore, either. It seems like we've managed to open up some distance on them," Weeping Soul confirmed.

Han Li nodded in response, then began to inspect his surroundings, and it was clear from his reaction that he didn't like what he saw.

The white river bank beneath his feet was riddled with bones from both humans and demon beasts, and they were piled on top of one another to form mounds that varied drastically in size.

Han Li crouched down and scattered the layers of bones on the ground with his hands, then grabbed a fistful of the white sand underneath to discover that it was all bone powder.

"Where did all these bones come from?" Weeping Soul asked.

"They most likely came from upstream, and they've been piling up here for so long that the bones on the bottom have already completely decayed and disintegrated into powder," Han Li said.

Right at this moment, an unnatural gust of wind came sweeping toward them from the upstream direction, raising a small cloud of bone powder from the ground, and tiny specks of fire began to appear within the cloud.

Immediately thereafter, a green flame rose up over the red river, then came drifting toward Han Li's trio, and within the green flame was an indistinct human face that was wearing an unsettling smile.

"What the hell is that supposed to be?" Jin Tong asked.

Weeping Soul's nose wrinkled slightly, and it seemed as if she were preparing to suck the green flame into her belly, but Han Li raised a hand to stop her as he said, "Hold on a second, it seems to have something to say."

As soon as his voice trailed off, a faint voice really did ring out in an intermittent fashion from within the green flame.

"Go to... the river... valley..."

The voice sounded extremely elderly and frail, like the final words of an old man on his deathbed, and it only uttered those five words before fading into silence.

Immediately thereafter, the green flame also descended into the river and vanished out of sight.

Han Li's brows furrowed slightly as he cast his gaze toward the shadowy mountain range in the upstream direction.

The dark clouds there were so low that they had almost devoured the summits of the tallest mountains in the mountain range, giving the entire place an even more eerie and forbidding appearance.

"Do we go, Uncle?" Jin Tong asked.

"That ghostly flame seems to have come from a soul fragment, but what could it possibly want from us?" Han Li mused.

"Could it be some type of trap?" Weeping Soul asked.

"I don't think so. We've only just entered the underworld, and even running into that ghostly army was only a chance encounter, so it's impossible that anyone would've set a trap here for us in advance," Han Li replied with a shake of his head.

"Who cares? Let's just go and take a look," Jin Tong said in an unfazed manner.

"We don't know where to go anyway, so we may as well go and take a look at what's in the river valley. Perhaps we'll be able to find some leads on the Yama Manor," Weeping Soul chimed in in agreement.

"Alright, let's go and take a look, but make sure to be on your guard," Han Li cautioned, and with that, the three of them set off for the river valley upstream.

It didn't take long for them to reach the entrance of the river valley, on either side of which was a sheer cliff face with two natural walkways on their surface.

Han Li's trio made their way up from the path on the left onto the walkway on the left cliff face.

Standing on the edge of the walkway, they could hear the deafening sound of churning water nearby.

The entrance of the valley was tapered like a funnel, and as a result, the water of the red river that flowed to this point instantly became compressed and far more turbulent.

Han Li's trio observed the choppy water for a moment, then continued to make their way along the walkway.

Upon entering the valley, they discovered that it was shaped like a gourd. The entrance was very narrow and tapered, but the area beyond it gradually grew wider, and the water became calmer and calmer as a result.

Han Li's trio stopped in their tracks upon reaching the central point of the valley.

The river channel here had already expanded to several thousand feet wide, and at its center was a large island of sand.

The island was completely with some specks of golden interspersed throughout, giving off faint glimmers of a golden sheen.

At the exact center of the island stood a withered, black tee that was around thirty to forty feet tall, and it looked as if it had been scorched by fire. It had been completely carbonized, and there were even what appeared to have been some carbon crystals on its surface.

What was most strange of all was that there was a charred, black body hanging from the highest branch of the tree. The body appeared to have belonged to a human, and the branch was pierced through its chest, while a square, black box with side lengths of around a foot was being held in its arms.

"There are residual soul fluctuations on that body, but they're very faint. He seems to be the one that was communicating with us earlier," Weeping Soul said.

Han Li released his spiritual sense to scour the entire area, and only after ensuring that nothing was amiss did he drift down onto the island, followed closely by Weeping Soul and Jin Tong.

As soon as Han Li landed on the ground, a faint rustling sand rang out, and the ground beneath his feet was quite loose and loamy.

Weeping Soul crouched down to pick up a handful of sand, and after a brief examination, a surprised look appeared on her face.

"Is there something wrong with this bone powder?" Han Li asked.

"The bone powder isn't anything special, what's remarkable is the golden sand interspersed throughout," Weeping Soul replied.

"What's so special about it?" Han Li asked.

Right at this moment, a gloomy voice rang out from the body on the tree.

𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"It's Soul Scattering Sand, which, as the name suggests, is able to scatter souls, and it's the most sought after material for ghostly cultivators cultivating the laws of souls."

Han Li's trio looked up in unison upon hearing this, right as a plume of white smoke emerged to envelop the entire body.

The cloud of smoke took on the form of a thin, elderly daoist priest with a benevolent appearance, and around him was a blanket of mystical clouds, while the area behind him was illuminated by five-colored light.

All that he was missing was a pet crane to complete the image of an unfathomable daoist master.

A mysterious smile appeared on the elderly daoist priest's face as he extended a daoist salute while chanting a daoist prayer.

HanLI's trio exchanged a few glances with one another, then turned back to look at the elderly daoist priest as if they were looking at an idiot.

An awkward silence ensued, one that was only broken as the elderly daoist priest cleared his throat and said, "I am Grand Elder Tian Qianzi of the Zenith Daoist Sect in the Celestial Origin Immortal Region of the True Immortal Realm. Over a million years ago, I was banished here by my enemies. It appears that fate has brought us together on this day. If you can free me from this place, then I will be sure to compensate you handsomely."

He snuck a glance at Weeping Soul as he spoke, indicating that he cared a great deal about her reaction.

"That sounds a little familiar, Uncle," Jin Tong exclaimed as she put on an expression of mock surprise.

"He's following almost the exact same script as Xue Li from before," Weeping Soul chuckled.

"Is this a script that all of you people from the underworld follow when you're trying to trick someone? Where's the creativity?" Jin Tong sneered in a derisive fashion.

The elderly daoist priest's expression changed drastically upon hearing this, and he hurriedly asked, "You've already met Xue Li?"

"We have, and we were tricked by him earlier. It seems like you're very familiar with him," Han Li replied with a hint of mockery in his eyes.

"Not at all. In fact, we're sworn enemies," the elderly daoist priest hurriedly replied with a shake of his head.

"Oh? Aren't you supposed to be from the True Immortal Realm? How are you sworn enemies with someone from the underworld? Would you care to tell me how you became enemies when you're in two different realms?" Han Li sneered.

The elderly daoist priest knew that his ruse had been exposed, and he sighed in a defeated manner, "I should've known better than to try and trick you cunning bastards of the True Immortal Realm."