Chapter 224 - 220: The Dust Settles, the Spiritual Treasure’s Ownership

HUMM. The Ancestral Dragon Coins landed, and Song Ciwan chose the southwest direction.

This was the path down the mountain. She retrieved the Ancestral Dragon Coins and immediately set off, heading down the mountain to the southwest.

All sorts of chaotic noises still echoed on the mountain, layered with the clamor of human voices, but Song Ciwan put it all out of her mind.

Empowered by her Qimen Taoist Skill, A Grain of Sand in the Sea, and shrouded by the night, she became like a wisp of wind amidst the mountain shadows, drifting effortlessly down the slope.

Suddenly, a tremendous roar erupted from the peak behind her.

Song Ciwan glanced back to see a massive cloud of dust and smoke explode from a fissure on the summit. Immediately after, several figures shot out from within the cloud.

One of them was the Red Lantern, an object that had left an incredibly deep impression on Song Ciwan!

The moment this Red Lantern appeared, countless indistinct murmurs arose once more.

The voices of men, women, children, youths, and the elderly... A cacophony of voices echoed across the entirety of Wangjiang Mountain.

The indistinct voices giggled, cursed, wept, and clamored—CRASHING, RUMBLING—before finally merging into a single chorus: "Immortal! Immortal, you never came before, so there is no need for you to be here now..."

"Immortals, all of you, fall from the mountain!"

It was like a scene replaying itself. The only difference was that this time, as the countless voices erupted, a white streak of light shot across the night sky from the east of Wangjiang Mountain, from the direction of Pinglan City’s eastern district. Like a meteor chasing the moon, it instantly struck the floating Red Lantern.

The event unfolded with extreme speed, so fast it could be described as happening in the blink of an eye.

No, in truth, it was even faster.

When the white light struck the Red Lantern, the murmurs were still echoing across all of Wangjiang Mountain.

The voices—a mixture of men and women, young and old, representing all walks of life—were still giggling. "Immortals, Immortals, you cannot escape. You may flee for a time, but you cannot flee forever..."

The echoes of their laughter had not yet faded when the words came to an abrupt halt.

The white light completely suppressed the Red Lantern. The next moment, a roar filled with pain and fury seemed to rise from the deep, endless abyss underground, a long, drawn-out cry: "AHHH—"

From the direction of the eastern district, the City God’s grand and majestic voice immediately rang out: "Silence!"

The white light bore down on the summit, skewered the Red Lantern, and flickered in mid-air. Then, it tore through space once more, disappearing into the night sky and taking the Red Lantern with it.

Now that Song Ciwan’s Cultivation had greatly increased, so too had her eyesight. Only then did she see clearly that the so-called white streak of light was, in fact, a slender, lustrous white Jade Ruyi!

The Red Lantern vanished along with the Jade Ruyi, the murmurs faded, and on Wangjiang Mountain, the fissures that had been constantly appearing and disappearing were gone—

No new fissures opened, and the old ones sealed themselves shut.

A moment later, a startled cry broke the short-lived silence on Wangjiang Mountain.

The voice sounded as if its owner had just awoken from a dream. "Th-This... Was that the City God? Did he just take away that uncanny object?"

The "uncanny object" this person mentioned was, of course, the terrifying Red Lantern!

Someone else whispered, "Was that an uncanny object? Shouldn’t it be called an uncanny phenomenon? A special, terrifying kind of uncanny phenomenon..."

The area fell silent. After a good while, someone sighed with emotion. "So the City God is this powerful..."

Another person immediately chimed in, "Thank you, City God, for saving us! Tomorrow, I will personally visit the City God Temple to offer incense and prayers to him!"

Someone else, still in a daze, mumbled, "I-It’s over? Are we... are we completely out of the Illusory Nether City? Then... what about the Spiritual Treasure?"

This person was slow on the uptake; it seemed he hadn’t grasped what had just happened at all.

Everyone had fought to the death, shedding blood over a so-called Spiritual Treasure that was nowhere to be seen, only to trap themselves in all sorts of Deceitful Realms.

Many had vanished forever within the Deceitful Realms, while the survivors were simply baffled. They didn’t know whether to feel lucky for having escaped with their lives or angry for having gained nothing...

Song Ciwan was also feeling rather confused, but in that instant, her mind stirred with a flash of inspiration.

’I think I might have figured it out!’

’The so-called Spiritual Treasure in the Illusory Nether City was most likely that Red Lantern!’

’But it’s just as one of the answers I received from the Netherworld Book said: the tale of the Spiritual Treasure is half-truth, half-lie.’

’Even if that Red Lantern truly was a Spiritual Treasure, it must have been an uncanny one, a "half-truth, half-lie" sort of treasure.’

’I have a feeling that the countless Deceitful Realms on Wangjiang Mountain, as well as the Night Parade of Hundred Demons in Pinglan City, are inextricably linked to this Red Lantern.’

’For something like that to be taken by the City God... I suppose that’s a fitting end for it.’

With that, Song Ciwan no longer lingered on Wangjiang Mountain. She turned and continued on her way down.

Whatever the people on the mountain were discussing—be it with shock, reluctance, or bewilderment—it had nothing to do with Song Ciwan anymore.

She had entered the Illusory Nether City on New Year’s Eve, and now, half a month had passed in a flash. Yet, Song Ciwan felt as though she had spent an eternity on this trial.

She found herself beginning to yearn for her former peaceful life. Fortunately, with the City God having taken away the Red Lantern, the greatest source of the chaos was gone. The Night Parade of Hundred Demons in the city should also subside soon.

’That’s good enough, isn’t it?’

Song Ciwan drifted down the mountain. What she didn’t know was that not long after she left Wangjiang Mountain, a figure slowly emerged from the Void Space above the summit.

He had sharp brows and bright, starry eyes. Clad in green robes and holding a duster, he was none other than Ye Lingguan’s head disciple, Duan Xinghun.

Immediately after, another person emerged from behind Duan Xinghun.

This man’s hair and beard were completely white, and he wore Daoist robes. He projected the profound air of a seasoned master of the Dao.

Duan Xinghun addressed him as "Immortal Venerable Xie." It turned out this man was the Earth Immortal Ancestor of the Xie Family!

Duan Xinghun had been dispatched by Ye Lingguan with a mission: hide on Wangjiang Peak and wait for an opportunity to seize the Spiritual Treasure.

Unexpectedly, the Earth Immortal Ancestor of the Xie Family had also been hiding on Wangjiang Peak. However, the Earth Immortal Ancestor had not appeared in his true form; the one present was merely an incarnation—

Of course, if it hadn’t been an incarnation—if it were his true self—he would have long since slaughtered everyone in his path and certainly wouldn’t be following behind Duan Xinghun now.

Interestingly, though both Duan Xinghun and the Xie Family Ancestor had been present on Wangjiang Peak, neither of them had intervened in any of the battles that took place there.

When the Red Lantern rose and laid out its countless Deceitful Realms, the two men had merely faced off against each other, allowing the realms to wreak havoc unchecked.

Now that the Red Lantern—the suspected Spiritual Treasure—had been taken by the City God, the Xie Family Ancestor stroked his long beard and sighed at Duan Xinghun. "My dear nephew," he said, "in this life, in one’s dealings with the world, if one is too inflexible, one can easily end up with nothing. Don’t you agree?"