Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

The body that floated to the surface from the bottom of the pool was that of Crown Prince Zhao Li.

The "evil spirit" that had invaded his body had retreated, and he was now just an empty shell.

There were many ghostly hands on the surface of the pool, all coveting this body and trying to take advantage of the situation.

Upon seeing this, Yan Zhengchu bent down and scooped Zhao Li out of the pond.

At that moment, the entire secret room began to tremble slightly.

But this time, the commotion didn't occur at the top, but at the bottom.

Xia Ximo had just regained some strength when he heard the sound and couldn't help but open his eyes to observe the situation.

Ren Fengjue tightened his embrace around her.

He looked back and saw Yan Zhengchu not far away seemingly talking to a "person," but in the darkness, apart from a thin layer of smoke, he couldn't see anything clearly at all.

Xia Ximo, however, was different. She saw the messengers of the underworld, who came with their underworld officials.

They're probably here to deal with the souls in this pool.

"They even know when to come."

She snorted coldly, causing Ren Fengjue beside her to think she was talking about him, and he was slightly taken aback.

He was about to explain when Xia Ximo turned to look at him, "I wasn't talking about you."

"..."

Over there, Yan Zhengchu was having a polite conversation with the Soul Reaper; it seemed this wasn't their first meeting.

"I was just worried about where to put all these souls in this pool, but thankfully the messenger has arrived."

The soul-reaping messenger was incredibly tall, clad in a black robe, and holding a soul tablet; his true appearance was impossible to discern at a glance.

It gently beckoned, and a group of underworld officials behind it stepped forward with soul locks.

"I will take away the vengeful spirit, but the living soul's lifespan has not yet ended. I humbly request that you, young Taoist priest, show me the way."

Yan Zhengchu remained respectful, saying, "Of course, of course."

He then seized the opportunity to ask, "May I ask, envoy, besides the Yin spirits, Yang spirits, and essence blood, is there another crucial element within this 'Blood Array'?"

The Soul Reaper glanced at him, his presence imposing without anger.

"Why is the young Taoist priest asking this?"

Yan Zhengchu remained neither humble nor arrogant, saying, "It's just that my grandmaster's notes didn't record the details, so I wanted to ask him for clarification on his behalf."

The Soul Reaper smiled and said, "Telling you won't hurt. These three things you mentioned are indispensable. Blood is formed from corpses and bones."

"As for why it turned into this, it was because of a mouthful of 'ghost and god saliva'."

Yan Zhengchu was startled. "Ghosts and gods?"

The Soul Reaper's smile faded, but he said, "That's all I can reveal."

Yan Zhengchu quickly asked, "There's one more thing..."

"Um?"

The Soul Reaper was subtly displeased, and the chill emanating from him sent shivers down one's spine.

Yan Zhengchu was also terrified, but such opportunities were rare, and he had to ask.

"Regarding my junior uncle Ren Yao, since his soul has neither entered reincarnation nor is he in the mortal realm, is he still in the underworld?"

He asked all the questions in one go.

The Soul Reaper glared at him.

With just one glance, Yan Zhengchu immediately sat down in shock, trembling all over.

"How dare you!"

Enraged, the Soul Reaper unleashed a howling wind, shouting, "I remember telling you this ten years ago!"

Ten years ago, Yan Zhengchu was only fourteen years old, yet he did something astonishing that no one else in the entire Yunhe Mountain dared to do.

He used the "soul-guiding technique" to separate his own soul from his body and trespass into the underworld, hoping to find out the whereabouts of Ren Yao's soul.

At that time, the patrolling ghost messengers discovered that a living soul had broken in, which alarmed the entire underworld.

Upon learning this, the Earth God smiled knowingly and ordered the Soul-Reaper to escort the guest away.

Back then, the teenager was fearless and much more assertive than he is now, and he immediately demanded, "Give me back my martial uncle!"

The soul-reaping messenger remained silent, dragged him out of the underworld, threw him back to Yunhe Mountain, and left him with the words: "Don't come back, don't ask any more questions."

At this point, Yan Zhengchu no longer possessed the "tiger's courage" he once had.

Startled by the Soul Reaper's words, he immediately backed down.

"Alright, alright, if the messenger won't say, it must be the order from above."

The Soul Reaper snorted coldly, but said, "Your master is named Celestial Mystery Master. Don't you know that heavenly secrets cannot be revealed?"

"Some things will naturally come to a conclusion when the time is right."

Yan Zhengchu nodded hurriedly in agreement, secretly wanting to ask something else, but was glared at again.

"Don't ask."

"..."

The spirits in the blood pool have been successively locked up by the underworld officials.

The soul-reaping messenger waved the soul tablet, about to leave, when a clear, cold voice echoed softly.

"Wait!"

This is the language of the soul, transmitted through soul power, and cannot be heard by mortals.

Even Yan Zhengchu needed to rely on magic to know even a little bit about it.

At that moment, he was completely unaware.

The soul-reaper paused upon hearing the voice.

It knew perfectly well that this person was not someone to be trifled with.

Xia Ximo had gradually recovered his soul power. Although he appeared motionless, he was actually saying, "You've taken away all these souls who died unjustly. What am I supposed to save?"

Soul Reaper: "This is the will of the Earth Lord."

Xia Ximo wasn't buying it at all. "Don't try to intimidate me with your earthly power. At least leave me one."

"..."

The Soul Reaper hesitated for a moment.

Knowing full well that if he didn't comply, the other party would definitely turn against him.

If a real fight breaks out, not only is there no chance of winning, but it would also be difficult to explain back home.

It immediately said, "In that case, the wisp of vengeful spirit above will be entrusted to Miss Mogu."

Xia Ximo responded calmly.

The soul-reaper stood there for a while, but heard no movement, before leaving with the underworld messengers.

The secret room lacked that chilly atmosphere, so Yan Zhengchu couldn't help but breathe on his hands.

It's so cold.

I can't understand how I had the guts to go to a place like the underworld when I wasn't even fully grown up yet.

Just then, a noise came from the entrance to the secret room; Yu Lang had entered with a lantern.

His arrival finally brightened the dimly lit room.

Xia Ximo left Ren Fengjue's embrace and stood up, and the latter helped her up.

Yu Lang entered the room full of curiosity, only to find a pool of bloody water, which immediately caused him to gag repeatedly.

Heavens above, why does he always have to run into such sinister things?

He sighed and muttered to himself, "Won't there be more skeletons to retrieve down there?"

Ren Fengjue then walked to Crown Prince Zhao Li's side and asked Yan Zhengchu, "Crown Prince... is there any hope for him?"

Yan Zhengchu glanced at the countless souls in the pool and pondered, "We need to see if his soul is still here."

As he spoke, he took out his cinnabar magic brush and began drawing talismans along the edge of the pond.

Once the soul leaves the body, it will fall into chaos. If no one guides it, it will drift away and become a wandering spirit.

These living souls are currently trapped in the sinister formation. Although they will not dissipate, they are completely unconscious.

Influenced by the talisman, they were drawn together and slowly gathered at the edge of the pool, transforming into human form.

Yan Zhengchu gazed at the wisps of souls with blank expressions, sighed softly, and then reluctantly asked, "What is your name? Where do you live?"

Although Yu Lang couldn't see the ghosts, he watched with great interest.

A short while later, she couldn't help but ask Ren Fengjue, who was standing beside her, "My lord, before I came in, I heard them say that the corpses outside could move. Is that true?"

Ren Fengjue tried to keep his distance from the blood pool to avoid scaring them.

He glanced at Yu Lang, but then instructed, "I'll trouble you, Young Master Yu, to report the identities of the remains below, along with those from Fu Lou."

Yu Lang's lips twitched; he wished he could rush out the door immediately.