"One disappearance is already troublesome enough. If two were to disappear, I wouldn't know what to do. But, Lingsha, don't worry. If one day you really disappeared, I would definitely go looking for you too, until I found you. Even though you sometimes say I'm stupid, you're the first person besides my father to be kind to me. I know you're actually very, very good to me."
Facing Han Lingsha's question, Yun Tianhe scratched his head and spoke with a serious expression. "So no matter what happens, I'll go looking for you. You're even more important than Mengli..."
"Wait, wait, stop! I only asked one question. Why are you rambling on about all this?" Before Yun Tianhe could finish, Han Lingsha interrupted him, her face flushed with embarrassment.
"But you were the one who asked me. Now you don't want me to talk? If you didn't want to know, why did you ask?" Yun Tianhe looked at Han Lingsha with confusion. Although Yun Tianhe had become more perceptive since his days on Qingluan Peak, there were still some things he didn't quite understand.
"Right now, getting to the ghost realm is the priority. The divine dragon said his spell has a time limit." Han Lingsha quickly changed the subject.
"Right, Mengli. Let's hurry." At the mention of Liu Mengli, Yun Tianhe immediately prepared to step into the teleportation circle.
"Tianhe, Lingsha, wait a moment." Murong Ziying called out to stop them and cautioned, "The ghost realm is different from other places. Once we enter, don't act recklessly."
"Don't worry, Ziying. We understand." Han Lingsha smiled and nodded at Murong Ziying, then quickly stepped into the teleportation circle with Yun Tianhe following closely behind.
Watching the two disappear, Murong Ziying sighed deeply in his heart. He glanced at Daniel, and the two of them also stepped into the teleportation circle.
"Is this the ghost realm?"
Emerging from the teleportation circle, the four of them looked at the bustling city ahead. Except for Daniel, who remained relatively calm, Yun Tianhe and the other two were completely stunned. No matter how they had imagined it, they never expected the ghost realm to look like this—so similar to the human world.
The only difference was that the people in the city came in all sorts of forms, not just pure humans.
The real ghost realm was vastly different from the game. In fact, the ghost realm wasn't just filled with various spirits; it also had its own native lifeforms, known as the ghost race.
"Based on the timeline, Tian Guihuang probably hasn't been sealed in the Demon Locking Pagoda yet."
In *Xianjian 1*, Tian Guihuang was the leader of the Tian Gui race in the ghost realm. However, Daniel wasn't sure exactly when he was sealed in the Demon Locking Pagoda.
"This place feels so eerie. It's really uncomfortable." After regaining her composure, Han Lingsha's face immediately turned pale. Even though the city looked prosperous, it was still the ghost realm, filled with heavy yin energy. With Han Lingsha's constitution, it was natural for her to feel uncomfortable in such a place.
"Lingsha, are you okay?" Yun Tianhe immediately asked with concern.
"It's nothing serious. It's probably just the environment here." Han Lingsha quickly smiled and assured him that she was fine. Then, pointing at the floating palace in the city, she said, "The Hall of Impermanence. The Shadow Branch—could it be there?"
"Alright, let's go there and find the Shadow Branch right away." Yun Tianhe immediately prepared to fly on his sword toward the Hall of Impermanence, but was quickly stopped by both Murong Ziying and Han Lingsha.
"Tianhe, we can't fly on our swords here. It'll expose us," Han Lingsha hurriedly explained.
"Also, we don't know what the Shadow Branch looks like. We'll probably need to investigate inside first."
"Lingsha makes a good point. But the divine dragon's spell has a time limit. We need to hurry." Murong Ziying nodded in agreement with Han Lingsha's suggestion.
"Then once we enter the city, we'll split up to investigate. That'll be faster."
After discussing their plan, the four of them quickly headed toward the city ahead. Due to the time constraint, they didn't fly on their swords, but their speed wasn't slow either. Soon, they entered the city and immediately split up. Han Lingsha and Daniel went off on their own, while Yun Tianhe and Murong Ziying stayed behind to wait.
These two weren't skilled at gathering information. If they were in the human world, it wouldn't matter much—at worst, people would just ignore them. But in the ghost realm, sending them to gather information would likely lead to exposure.
"The Hall of Impermanence, the Wheel Mirror Platform... So the Shadow Branch is just a type of tree branch from the ghost realm."
Through chatting with ghosts and eavesdropping on ghost soldiers' conversations, Daniel quickly figured out the general situation of the Hall of Impermanence and the appearance and location of the Shadow Branch.
The floating palace was indeed the Hall of Impermanence, and the Shadow Branch was inside. For Yun Tianhe and the others, the Shadow Branch was naturally very important—otherwise, they wouldn't have ventured into the ghost realm to obtain it. But in the ghost realm, the Shadow Branch wasn't considered valuable at all.
It was standard equipment for ghost soldiers in the ghost realm, completely worthless and unwanted by anyone.
However, this was only true in the ghost realm. If placed in other worlds, the Shadow Branch would be a rare treasure. After all, ghost soldiers could use it to bypass most barriers.
In the past, when ghost soldiers accidentally left Shadow Branches in the human world, they were fought over by countless people. The scene was no less intense than the battles over the Demon Sword.
Especially for those cultivating immortality, the Shadow Branch was extremely precious.
"The Shadow Branch is inside the Hall of Impermanence." After learning about the Shadow Branch, Daniel quickly returned to where Murong Ziying and Yun Tianhe were waiting and shared all the information he had gathered. Shortly after, Han Lingsha returned, deep in thought. The information she had gathered about the Shadow Branch was similar to Daniel's, but in other areas, her knowledge far surpassed his.
Of course, this was because Daniel hadn't paid much attention to other information. With Yun Tianhe now equipped with his "cheat," the next steps would be straightforward.
"How can these people do such things just to become immortals?" What weighed heavily on Han Lingsha's mind wasn't the information about the Shadow Branch, but something else entirely.
For example, there was a man who, in his pursuit of immortality, sacrificed his wife and child to refine a pill, hoping to ascend to immortality through blood sacrifice. It had to be said that this man was even more insane than the King of Huainan.
In the end, this man reaped what he sowed. After consuming the pill, he didn't achieve immortality but was instead poisoned to death. Then, in the ghost realm, he met his wife. What followed was quite interesting—the man was constantly being punished in the ghost realm, while his wife would visit him every day to watch his torment. This had been going on for hundreds of years.
It had to be said that when women got ruthless, it could be truly terrifying.
Judging by the timeline, this man lived around the same time as the King of Huainan. That era seemed to heavily promote the idea of refining pills to achieve immortality.
There were many such examples in the ghost realm, which was why Han Lingsha looked so troubled. Han Lingsha had always considered herself willing to do anything to achieve immortality, but compared to these people, she was actually quite kind.
The ghost realm dealt with such people very harshly. Not only would they be punished for over a thousand years, but they might also be reincarnated as something other than humans for several lifetimes.
"I'll handle the Shadow Branch. I'm much stronger than you. You guys wait here. Oh, and by the way, try to find a way to leave the ghost realm."
After a brief silence, when Han Lingsha suggested that she would steal the Shadow Branch, Daniel immediately stopped her. Given how little the ghost realm valued the Shadow Branch, Han Lingsha could probably obtain it too. However, this was a rare opportunity, and Daniel wanted to see what the Shadow Branch was really like.
For example, could it bypass the barriers set up by the three Sanctums in the Marvel universe? Although the Shadow Branch had a reputation for being able to bypass any barrier, based on Daniel's experiences so far, it couldn't possibly be omnipotent. Could it really bypass barriers to enter the demon realm?
"Alright, since that's the case, while Daniel goes to get the Shadow Branch, I want to go somewhere." Han Lingsha initially wanted to insist, as she considered herself a master thief and believed she was better at sneaking around than Daniel. But then she seemed to remember something and quickly gave up.
"Lingsha, where do you want to go?"
"The Wheel Mirror Platform." Han Lingsha immediately explained her goal. The Wheel Mirror Platform allowed one to meet the spirits of deceased loved ones who hadn't yet reincarnated.
Han Lingsha wasn't sure if the person she wanted to see had reincarnated, but even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance, she wanted to try.
Murong Ziying initially wanted to object, as he didn't want to complicate things in the ghost realm. But after hearing Han Lingsha explain the purpose of the Wheel Mirror Platform and being asked if he had any loved ones he wanted to see, he fell silent.
Although Murong Ziying appeared cold and aloof, he was actually warm-hearted.
Similarly, Yun Tianhe also wanted to see his deceased parents and naturally agreed. Yun Tianhe still had some memories of his father, Yun Tianqing, but almost none of his mother, Suyu, as she had died when he was very young.
"I don't have any loved ones I want to see. After I get the Shadow Branch, I'll meet up with you as soon as possible." Deep down, Daniel also had people he wanted to see, but unfortunately, the Wheel Mirror Platform in this world didn't have the power to let him meet them.
"The Ten Yama Kings... I wonder how strong they are."
Standing below the Hall of Impermanence, Daniel looked up at the floating palace and muttered to himself. The ghost realm was vast, and the area they were in was just one small part of it.
The ghost realm was the final stop and starting point of reincarnation, existing deep within the earth. It contained the Gate of Ghosts, the Naihe Bridge, the Cao Government Office, ten Yama Palaces, twelve Magistrate Offices, and eighteen levels of hell.
The Hall of Impermanence was under the jurisdiction of the Black and White Impermanence. Since ghost soldiers frequently traveled between the ghost realm and the human world to collect souls, the Shadow Branch was kept here.
The Black and White Impermanence, Ox-Head and Horse-Face—these figures might sound like lowly positions in the ghost realm, but in reality, their strength and status were far higher than most people imagined. Don't underestimate the village chief.
Just look at *Naruto*—how many people fought tooth and nail to become the village chief?
"Ugh, guarding this place every day is so boring. The Shadow Branch isn't even rare in the ghost realm. Who would want to steal it?" Inside the Hall of Impermanence, in the room where the Shadow Branch was stored, one of the two ghost soldiers on guard duty yawned.
Ghosts in the ghost realm were similar to humans in the mortal world—they could get tired, needed rest, and so on.
"The Shadow Branch might not be rare, but it allows us ghost soldiers to travel freely between the six realms. For beings from other realms, it must be a treasure they'd kill for. Plus, this assignment is really easy. Do you want to be transferred somewhere else?" the other ghost soldier said quietly.
"That's true. But we're so close to the Wheel Mirror Platform, and we've never even been there once. It's a bit of a shame."
"Do you have any relatives left in the ghost realm?"
"How would I know? Even if they reincarnated, they wouldn't tell us."
The ghost realm was vast. Finding a specific ghost in such a vast place wasn't easy. The Wheel Mirror Platform was created to solve this problem.
"Reincarnation isn't necessarily a good thing. If you're reborn as a human, that's fine. But if you end up in the animal realm or something, it's better to just stay in the ghost realm."
"Ten branches should be enough. Can't be too greedy."
While the two ghost soldiers were chatting, Daniel took the opportunity to sneak into the room. He cut ten branches from the massive Shadow Branch tree and then quietly left.
"I've got the items. How are things on your end?" After leaving the Hall of Impermanence, Daniel immediately headed for the Wheel Mirror Platform. In front of a massive, intricately designed mirror covered in incomprehensible patterns, he found Yun Tianhe and the others, along with a young man who looked strikingly similar to Yun Tianhe. This was undoubtedly Yun Tianqing.
No wonder the Pei Constable in Shouyang County and Elder Qingyang had mistaken Yun Tianhe for someone else. The resemblance between the two was uncanny. Perhaps due to practicing immortal cultivation techniques, Yun Tianqing's appearance hadn't aged.
"Greetings, Senior Yun."
"Tianhe has caused you trouble."
"Senior, you're too kind. Tianhe is my friend. What trouble is there between friends?"
Daniel had traveled to many dimensional worlds, but he had rarely formed close friendships with the protagonists. For example, with characters like the shameless Zhang Chulan, Naruto, and Luffy, Daniel had only exchanged brief greetings. Yun Tianhe was one of the few he had developed a good relationship with.
"I never imagined the Qionghua Sect's ascension plan would end like this. It's a shame Suyu never got to know."
Before Daniel arrived, Yun Tianhe and Murong Ziying had already explained the current situation of the Qionghua Sect to Yun Tianqing. Originally, Yun Tianqing had felt deep guilt over the losses the Qionghua Sect suffered when he and Suyu fled. He had stayed in the ghost realm, refusing to reincarnate, waiting for Xuanxiao to appear so he could personally apologize.
But now, his son had come to the ghost realm to tell him that not only were they not at fault back then, but they had actually saved the Qionghua Sect. This left Yun Tianqing at a loss for words.
In fact, when Yun Tianqing first saw Yun Tianhe in the ghost realm, he was shocked. No matter how calm he was and how much he had taught Yun Tianhe to be indifferent to life and death, seeing his child die so young still filled him with sorrow.
"Mother..." Suyu had already reincarnated, and Yun Tianhe was somewhat disappointed. Deep down, he had really wanted to meet her.
"Suyu's personality was gentle on the outside but firm on the inside. Once she made a decision, no one could change it."
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Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 677)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 1059)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1418)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1422)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1452)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1504)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld!(Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 703)
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