C1912 God Forging

In the midst of the vast ocean that separates the Land of Quiescence and Euwrea, there lies a solitary black stone island.

This island brims with shadow energy, and it is here that Han Qi, who had been secluding himself from the world, suddenly felt an icy shiver run through him.

"Sect Master."

Using a mystique, Han Qi whispered, and the jade pendant around his neck glowed with an aquamarine light.

In the span of a single breath, Han Miaoyuan appeared, his brow furrowed with concern. "What's the matter?"

"My Demonic Vessel, along with my soul, should have perished in the Wraithlands."

Han Qi's expression was somber. As a Lunar Spirit, the pinnacle of necromancy, he was severed from his real body upon entering the Wraithlands.

He was oblivious to the actions of his Demonic Vessel in the Wraithlands.

Yet, if the Lunar Spirit were to die, his real body would sense it.

Han Qi had faced innumerable perils with Han Miaoyuan's assistance to elevate his Lunar Spirit to its supreme state in the Wraithlands. He had vast, unrealized ambitions.

To his dismay, the God of Ghosts he had painstakingly refined in the Wraithlands had inexplicably perished.

He was eager to journey to the Wraithlands to uncover the cause of death for the Shadow-Form God of Ghosts into which he had invested his all.

But the current state of his real body's cultivation was negligible.

"Don't lose heart. Unlike Matina and Wagner, you are one of the Everlands' humans, and your real body is still alive," Han Miaoyuan reassured him, patting his shoulder encouragingly.

With a soothing voice, he continued, "Ah Qi, as long as the foundation of your human lineage remains intact, forging a new Lunar Spirit will be no issue. There's no need for you to venture into the Wraithlands anymore. Here in the Land of Terror of our Everlands, I can help you ascend once more to the status of a God of Ghosts!"

"Youyu, now that the Path to Godhood has been carved out, we'll simply reclaim what you've lost."

"And one more thing..."

"Cao is nearing readiness. Once he solidifies his realm and gains the Earth Core's endorsement, he will rise as the new dragon slayer!"

"Three years is more than enough time for us," Han Miaoyuan declared, his spirit undaunted. He harbored no concern for the impending arrival of the Boulderdawn's experts. In fact, he looked forward to it.

Relocating the human population on a large scale from the Everlands was a necessary move. Yet, when he sought the Will of Everlands' guidance, he received encouragement and praise. It seemed that even the Will of Everlands believed the time was right.

The moment had come for the Everlands' humans to branch out into the Star River and extend their influence to its fullest potential. Bolstered by the support of the Will of Everlands, Han Miaoyuan was filled with immense confidence and courage, driving the initiative forward with vigor.

Now, it wasn't just the lower realms of various sects that were moving; even those from the Human Empire who had previously opposed them were granted passage. Countless mortals, cultivators, sects, and clans boarded the Voidfarer, carrying vast resources as they migrated to star domains shielded by walls. Soon, the reach of the human race would span across the Star River.

...

Wraithlands.

"When you become a God of Ghosts, will you consider returning to the Origin Realm?" Kaiya asked, nudging Yu Yuan's real body with her sturdy shoulder. She offered him a juicy root from a magic plant, her demeanor easygoing as she watched Yu Yuan atop the ancient tree. "You'll thank me later," she said with confidence.

Despite Youyu's setback in the Origin Realm at the hands of Jihui, and with both Wagner and Matina, two Gods of Ghosts, ensnared, along with one of her own devil souls, she appeared utterly unfazed. She even leisurely nibbled on a magic plant from the Wraithlands.

Yu Yuan declined the proffered item, showing no interest in any edible offerings from the Wraithlands. His focus was entirely on his Lunar Spirit, which was undergoing refinement by the Undead Lord. As the Lunar Spirit transformed, pale white strands of Mind Magic intertwined like a dense network, and his dominant soul assimilated a wealth of knowledge. This knowledge overlapped with memories already within his dominant soul, indicating he had previously grasped parts of it.

He instinctively knew that the overlapping knowledge originated from the Root of the Lunar Meridian.

"The folks from the Everlands will catch wind of Han Qi's demise, but there's no cause for concern. He, Youyu, Wagner, and Matina—they were never truly part of our circle. Their deaths are inconsequential."

Kaiya's excitement was palpable, her crimson lips curling into an ambitious grin. "The Wraithlands always need a God of Ghosts. If you're the last one standing, then you'll have the final say over the entire realm."

"That wouldn't be too bad, would it?"

She appeared utterly indifferent to everyone and everything beyond Yu Yuan, including Matina, who she once knew well. "My father, you, and I—we are the true unity of Boulderdawn."

Yu Yuan felt a heaviness in his heart.

He pondered the fact that the Undead Lord was now privy to the truth and had seen the humans of the Abyss through him. Bertain must also be aware of the connection between humans and the Abyss. Could things really continue as Kaiya suggested?

Not far off, a conversation unfolded.

"Lord Wagner's ascension to God of Ghosts was nothing like this."

The Skeleton Horse, its emerald-like eyes swirling within the green flames, suddenly articulated in human speech.

"You can talk?" Yu Yiyi exclaimed, astonished.

With a snort, the Skeleton Horse retorted, "Obviously."

It stamped its hooves, perched atop a jutting rock face on Shadow Mountain, gazing at Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit ensconced in the ancient tree's canopy. "In his time, Lord Wagner had to scour far and wide for Shadow Moon Essence, a quest that spanned hundreds of years on its own."

"To refine those droplets of liquid in the Levi River took nearly a century."

"Lord Wagner was the first to detect the constraints of his realm. He constructed the altar to reach out to the Undead Lord, seeking to connect with the elusive ruler of the Wraithlands, hoping to be noticed and earn its recognition."

The Skeleton Horse gazed mournfully at the ancient tree, its branches and roots plunged into the Levi River, actively drawing together Shadow Moon Essence and droplets of refined liquid to create a fog of shadow energy that bathed Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit.

"Lady Matina, the path to ascension was just as arduous back then."

"Yet, when it came to him, everything... somehow became so effortless!"

The Skeleton Horse was quite displeased.

It knew all too well that forming a God of Ghosts in the Wraithlands was no easy feat; no one achieved it overnight.

Both the current Gods of Ghosts and those who had perished before had endured numerous trials, many of which were deliberately orchestrated by the enigmatic Undead Lord.

The purpose was to test whether the Ghost Kings had the heart and potential to be chosen by it.

Even those recognized by it had to toil for centuries, perhaps even millions of years, enduring rigorous training before they could one day sense its permission.

Only when it felt the elusive approval of the Undead Lord, whose movements and traces were unknown, would it initiate the breakthrough of a God of Ghosts.

In the past, Gods of Ghosts had to depend solely on themselves. So why did everything change with Yu Yuan?

This Undead Lord, residing within the ancient tree, amidst the souls of numerous malevolent spirits, seemed determined to create a God of Ghosts for Yu Yuan, regardless of his willingness. This shattered the Skeleton Horse's preconceptions about the making of a God of Ghosts.

It had neither seen nor heard of a God of Ghosts in the Wraithlands being created in such a manner.

Even the mysterious and awe-inspiring Undead Lord seemed to have become peculiar.

"Don't take offense at what I'm about to say. Wagner and Matina, your influence is confined to the Wraithlands. Beyond your domain, in the vast expanse of the starry sky, they really don't amount to much. Otherwise, the Undead Lord lurking in the Everlands wouldn't have failed to return."

"Heh, I've managed to slay another Undead Lord from your Wraithlands within the Everlands itself, stripping away the essence of his soul."

"And Yu Yuan's influence beyond our world, within the Everlands, is surely stronger than mine!"

Kaiya carried herself with great confidence.

She gazed at the ancient tree without a hint of fear, knowing that the Undead Lord, bound to the Wraithlands and burdened with additional duties, would hardly be her match in other Star River worlds once outside its home realm.

Were it not for her concern over disrupting the Everlands' cycle of reincarnation, she would have already reduced that Undead Lord to ashes. Thus, she felt no need to regard this peer Undead Lord with the same reverence as the Skeleton Horse.

After an indeterminate amount of time had passed.

Whoosh!

A wisp of a residual soul suddenly drifted out from the Thornsnare, catching Yu Yuan, Kaiya, and the Undead Lord by surprise.

"..."