This forty-meter-long dark purple greatsword, condensed from Extreme Yin Qi by Zi Kui, could sever the karma of wandering souls and completely erase them from the Yin and Yang Worlds.
This blade was called “Ghost & God Subduer.”
Once the ghost blade was drawn, thousands of wandering souls bowed their heads.
Seeing the countless wandering souls behind Zi Kui bowing to her in submission, the black-clothed men were unimpressed:
“Your blade should only be able to destroy wandering souls, right? It probably has no effect on the living, correct?”
Just as Ji Ruohan’s sharp sword could not harm evil spirits, the black-clothed men were certain that Zi Kui’s greatsword could not harm the living of the Yang World either.
“Mm, this blade cannot harm people.”
Zi Kui nodded, but then changed her tone:
“But it can directly take your souls.”
In her dark purple pupils flickered dancing flames, and those flames were the very souls of the group of black-clothed men before her!
To Zi Kui, the black-clothed men’s physical bodies were merely empty shells, and the Soul Flames within them, already like candles flickering in the wind, were her true prey!
The greatsword named “Ghost & God Subduer” was raised high above the head and brought down heavily!
In an instant, the River of Forgetfulness seemed to split in two, and the dark purple Extreme Yin Qi rolled like tidal waves, sweeping toward those black-clothed men.
The attack range of this strike was extremely wide; even though the black-clothed men were all listed on the Blacklist of Evildoers, with formidable strength and agile movements, they could not dodge it!
In the air, there was only a momentary scream of misery, then it abruptly ceased.
Fortunately, Ji Ruohan reacted quickly; the moment the ghost blade was raised, she brought Tu Li, Fang Tianhai, and the others far away. Otherwise, their souls might have been reaped by Zi Kui’s ghost blade as well.
After the aftermath of that strike dissipated, the black-clothed men still stood in place, but their eyes had lost their light, like empty shells.
The flickering flames in Zi Kui’s eyes went out, proclaiming that these black-clothed men had been annihilated, soul and all.
And the green lamp they had held was also destroyed in an explosion; the malevolent spirits imprisoned within were also erased from the Yin and Yang Worlds by Zi Kui’s ghost blade.
Zi Kui withdrew the ghost blade, and the host of wandering souls behind her also vanished.
She slowly cast her gaze toward the shore, looking at Ji Ruohan and the others.
“Living beings. Haven’t seen them in a long time.”
She spoke.
Hearing this, Ji Ruohan felt a slight stir of emotion.
That remark from Zi Kui had a very clear meaning.
Only Ji Ruohan, Fang Tianhai, and the others counted as true living beings, while those black-clothed men from earlier had been classified as dead from the start—they just happened to still be able to speak for the time being.
“You… You are the Lord Ferryman?”
At this moment, Fang Tianhai stepped forward slowly, his old cold legs trembling uncontrollably. Finally, he fell to his knees with a thud and kowtowed, saying:
“Dear Lord Ferryman… Please forgive the crimes I have committed!”
Regarding the riot he had caused at the River of Forgetfulness back then, Fang Tianhai still felt guilty in his heart.
He repented at every moment, but day and night he dreamed of the wails of the ordinary people who should not have been affected, crying out before death. This tormented Fang Tianhai, causing him immense pain.
If not for his hot-headedness and stubbornness back then, breaking the formation that the Daoists had set up with all their might…the riot at the River of Forgetfulness would have only been confined to that small area within the formation and would not have affected anywhere else.
Fang Tianhai looked around.
Beneath the beautiful cherry blossom trees covering the mountain, a village once stood. Now it had turned into ruins, becoming nourishment for the flowering trees.
In the decades Fang Tianhai had spent in seclusion, he had secretly gone to the River of Forgetfulness countless times to pay respects to the deceased he had killed, but he had not sought their forgiveness.
Because Fang Tianhai knew that he had not yet completed his atonement and had no face to ask those people for forgiveness.
So this time he came to the River of Forgetfulness precisely to eliminate unstable factors, to make amends for his mistakes, and to exchange this for forgiveness.
Although Fang Tianhai had not contributed much this time, after witnessing Zi Kui’s power, he still stepped forward involuntarily.
Not only to Zi Kui, the Ferryman, but also to those wandering souls, he begged for forgiveness.
After hearing Fang Tianhai’s words, Zi Kui’s calm, unruffled eyes glowed with a faint light, passing through his physical body and gazing at his soul.
It was a pitiful soul tormented by self-blame and guilt, caught in endless suffering.
Zi Kui was considering whether to help him, but she looked up at the still-unceasing gloomy rain and said calmly:
“Now is not the time to talk about this.”
The unrest at the River of Forgetfulness had not yet subsided.
The earth began to tremble faintly, as if something was slowly awakening.
“That annoying feeling is back.”
Zi Kui looked at Ji Ruohan and the others on the shore and said slowly:
“You all, leave quickly.”
“But… Lord Ferryman…”
Before Fang Tianhai could finish, Zi Kui interrupted him in a deep voice.
“Otherwise, you will die, you know?”
Her usually emotionless tone carried a chilling warning.
Fang Tianhai broke out in a cold sweat. Zhou Qingwen quickly helped him up and headed outside the River of Forgetfulness.
Ji Ruohan, however, did not leave.
As a Disciple of Sword Pavilion, she had more or less guessed something.
Just as Zi Kui turned to leave, Ji Ruohan asked in a low voice:
“That power at the source of the Rot Qi—is it already out of control?”
Zi Kui stopped, turned around, and looked at Ji Ruohan.
“Those troublemakers earlier dug open a fissure.”
She replied:
“Now it seems to have grown bigger. I have to go fill it.”
Zi Kui spoke of terrible things with a blank expression, making Ji Ruohan’s heart race.
Her guess was indeed correct.
The terrifying Rot Qi was precisely a certain power that festered deep within the River of Forgetfulness, and the Everlasting Tribulation Sword, only one of its variants, had already brought a century of bloody legacy to this world.
If the root of the Rot Qi—that mysterious and powerful force—were to pour out completely, what kind of disaster would it bring to this world?
“Can you… do it?”
Ji Ruohan swallowed, and asked Zi Kui nervously.
“Whether I can do it or not, I have to do it.”
Zi Kui replied:
“This is my mission.”
And just at the moment Zi Kui finished speaking, an accident occurred.
The ground around the River of Forgetfulness began to crack and shatter, and thick Rot Qi gushed out from the broken earth.
The entire land began to tremble violently. The Ancient God’s Power suppressed beneath the earth seemed about to break through the seal and bring calamity to the world!
Clearly, that fissure was growing larger and larger, as if it would collapse the next second!
Ji Ruohan had no choice but to quickly retreat from the River of Forgetfulness.
As she retreated, she called out loudly to Zi Kui:
“Hey! Be careful!!”
But she received no response from Zi Kui.
Ji Ruohan didn’t know what method Zi Kui would use to fill that fissure.
But when she saw Zi Kui’s expression, as if she were going to her death, she suddenly realized.
‘She couldn’t be planning to sacrifice herself… to fill that fissure, could she!’
Ji Ruohan was greatly alarmed, and at the same time, a voice involuntarily sounded in her heart:
‘What can I do for her now? Can I help her in any way?’
Ji Ruohan’s chivalrous spirit made her unwilling to simply leave the River of Forgetfulness like this.
But after much thought, Ji Ruohan could think of no way to help her other than to quickly leave and not cause trouble for Zi Kui.
Just as the ground beneath her feet was breaking apart and a large amount of Rot Qi surged toward Ji Ruohan, forcing her to retreat step by step, a familiar wind suddenly blew from the horizon.
Then, that familiar voice came from above:
“Disciple, if you refuse to leave, are you waiting for me to collect your master’s dead body?”