"Let's go. Why are we still waiting?" Yang Mon said to her senior sister stood beside her.
Yang Mon keep quiet. "This place is strange," Yang Bing whispered.
"What's strange here?" Yang Mon frowned, glancing at the grand door before them its surface embedded with ancient patterns and carved from dark, timeworn wood.
sigh..
yang bing shook her head with a soft sigh
"See, she looked around, till now we haven't seen any wandering souls or ghosts appear in this part of the place."
"So what? Is there any problem with that?" yang mon question with puzzled expression
Yang Bing placed her hand on her forehead,
she ignored her and stayed silent.
Seeing Yang Bing quiet, Yang Mon also kept her mouth shut and looked at the door.
"Observing the place and the grand door, each of them searched every inch and corner, their greed unmistakable and their impatience shining clearly in their eyes."
there is nothing here leaving that door, Yang bing thought as she glanced at the door with wary eyes, that door looks ominous its best to stay away from it until we found a way to enter inside
but at that moment two women fell under impatience didn't wait any longer and went toward the door.
"Hey, wait! What are you doing?" Yang Bing shouted, seeing the two moving forward.
"Someone's already gone inside. Humph! There's no reason for us to wait here," one woman sneered disdainfully.
Song Bing didn't say anything. she gazed solemnly though i have already warned them, but.. this might be best to check what danger is ahead
"Hey, Sister Bing, they're heading in. Let's go, or we'll fall behind."
"You just wait here. If they want to go, so be it, but we won't."
The two women came near the door their greed shone on their face stretching their hands they touched the door. the grand and dark door slightly buzzed and Immediately as the door buzzed two blood-sucked corpses collapsed to the ground. Their blood and soul energy had been completely drained by the door.
"Hiss…" Yang Mon looked at the two bodies in fright and grabbed Yang Bing's hand tightly.
Yang Bing was equally shocked her face became pale she tightly held Yang Mon's hand.
"So that's why there are no wandering souls here—any soul that touches this door is sucked dry," Yang Bing muttered solemnly horror reflecting in her eyes.
All the other cultivators beside them were also alerted. and made some distance from the door
Behind a cluster of overgrown bushes, a pair of cold eyes observed them.
Lee Xiao frowned slightly, her gaze drifting toward the line of twelve blue flames mounted evenly along the walls. Each flame burned silently, their azure glow casting long shadows across the stones.
Her eyes lingered on an empty slot—one missing flame.So that's it... these flames are the key. Someone's already entered.
.......
Song Yan held the flame in one hand and Ye Kaishan's hand in the other as they walked over a worn out bridge.
inside the door was a cave like atmosphere with damp and wet air, rocky ground and from corners some places wild grass and plants also grew
Beneath the bridge was a small pond emanating a deathly aura. still like water but menace like blood one gaze can tell the ominous feeling held inside it
"This pond looks weird," Ye Kaishan whispered.
"This pond is made from a drop of water from Styx," Song Yan said seriously. "If you enter inside without carrying this fire, your soul will be sucked in by this pond."
"What?!" Ye Kaishan slightly shocked, recalling the flames outside, which he hadn't given much thought before.
"It's an ancient legend," Song Yan explained. "A drop of water fell from the starry sky, and it's very sinister. It sucks the souls of living beings on the Soul Spirit Continent. Anyone within a hundred-mile radius will be drained dry by this drop. After great effort, the Ghost Empress subdued it."
"Since then, it has been locked behind this door, under this pond, by the Ghost Empress because it can suck souls from living beings. So there are formations suppressing this Styx Pond."
"Are we here for the drop of this Styx?" Ye Kaishan asked.
"No," Song Yan replied. "The Styx drop is not something anyone can handle. Even a soul emperor risks their life handling it carelessly."
"It can only be handled by those who have awakened death laws, curse laws, or ghost laws."
"The Ghost Empress herself comprehended ghost laws, so she was able to subdue it."
"We are here only for the 'Emperor Orb.'"
After crossing the bridge, Song Yan and Ye Kaishan stopped beneath a huge tree. The tree was leafless, but the trunk bore the weathered face of an old woman, worn by time, resembling someone who had died of hunger.
"Alright, we have arrived. "Saying this, Song Yan touched the tree and wiped some dust off its trunk.
i need some preparation before retrieving the orb, it will take some time so just rest here for some time Song Yan spoke to ye kaishan
she came near the trunk and gazed at the lifeless tree There were strange inscriptions on the trunk.
She sat cross-legged and started to recite them, but suddenly she looked at Ye Kaishan."Don't touch the tree, especially that face-like structure."
Ye Kaishan nodded
After instructing him, Song Yan turned back to the trunk and resumed reciting.
The inscriptions glowed, and slowly a spherical orb with a cyan radiance appeared, expected to fully materialize within an hour.
" sigh....now What should I do with this free time?" Ye Kaishan wondered. "She's reading the inscription, and I'm just waiting here."
Ye Kaishan looked at the face on the tree trunk. "That old face gives me a creepy feeling. What is that thing really?" he thought.
...
Outside
Lee Xiao remained hidden in the shadows, her eyes narrowing at the two lifeless bodies near the door. So, the door feeds on souls. But I need proof.
A cruel smile curved her lips.
She formed a seal and whispered, "Ghost Voice."
A faint ripple spread through the air—an almost inaudible whisper brushing against Yang Mon's ear. "That flame... it's strange. Why not grasp it? Perhaps it's the key to entering."
Yang Mon frowned, dazed by the illusionary voice. The suggestion clung to her thoughts, twisting them subtly until curiosity overcame reason.
Soon, she spoke up, "What if those blue flames are the key? Maybe we just need to take one to enter."
The others paused, hesitating. None wanted to repeat the earlier deaths, yet the idea made sense.
Yang Bing frowned but didn't argue. That's... possible.
After a brief discussion, they chose a volunteer—Luo Xuan, a bold cultivator from the Luo clan.
He approached cautiously, hand trembling slightly as he reached for one of the blue flames. When his fingers brushed it, nothing happened.
Everyone sighed in relief and removed the fire sticks from the wall.
After some hesitation, Luo Xuan touched the door.
A creepy creaking sound echoed as the door opened.
Everyone was ecstatic looking at the opened door and immediately headed inside.
After they left, Lee Xiao emerged from the bushes, took a fire stick from the wall, and headed inside as well.
Not far away, two figures observed the situation.
"Your Majesty, what should we do?" a petite girl asked a girl about her age. The woman beside her clad in crimson silk, long black hair cascading like a waterfall, her violet eyes shimmering like moonlight—gazed at the opened door.
"Let's head inside," she said to the petite girl, who appeared to be her maid. Both took fire sticks and moved forward.
.....
Near the huge tree, Song Yan was still reading the inscriptions while Ye Kaishan lay bored on a nearby stone. Ten minutes remained before the orb would fully appear.
Suddenly, Ye Kaishan's burrows furrowed as he the sensed approaching figures. Manipulating space, he detected six figures moving closer.
"Song Yan still needs some time" he frowned. "I can't let them come here. They have to stay back until She finishes to retrieving the orb."
he raised his hand and closed his eyes.
the next moment the source laws burst out of his body and danced around him at his command, his lips parted
"Time manipulation!"