February 7.

Atop the altar, countless green banners swayed, dancing with the wind. The people of Ancient Chu revered shamans and spirits, deeply believing in matters of ghosts and gods. From the altar's vantage point, hundreds of shamans dressed in colorful garments could be seen, waving flags and singing fervently.

"Soul, return!"

Amidst the misty haze, the resounding voice seemed to pierce straight into the heavens, even the fierce winds paused at the sound.

Yin Weiyin stood upon the high platform. She had already changed into a plain white ceremonial robe, its sleeves billowing fiercely with the wind. She faced southward, gazing down at the hundreds of shamans as well as the tens of thousands of departed souls within Yama Hall. As the esteemed Princess, her eyes bore no dignity, only confusion.

It was as if she had no idea what was going to happen, as if she was entirely unprepared for what was about to come.

The shamans' singing grew louder, nearer, reverberating through the universe of the underworld.

Beside her stood none other than the Emperor of Great Yu.

In this moment, an barely concealed excitement laced his voice:

"The time has come, Wei Ying."

The time has come...

Has the time truly come?

As the words landed in her ears, Yin Weiyin once again looked over the ghastly city below. Pavilions, towers, and high-rising edifices stretched endlessly. Riders in dazzling attire waved banners with precision, pale-faced servants knelt in unison, all eagerly awaiting.

They were all waiting for this moment.

And yet, confusion gripped her heart.

Ever since arriving in this ghost city, there was only confusion. Even though the Great Yu Emperor treated her like his own, answering countless questions, she remained hopelessly bewildered.

Was she truly about to... ascend to immortality?

So close, so seemingly effortless, even her ignorance could never have foreseen it.

But none of this awaited her hesitation.

From a distance, she saw the ghosts led by the City God, clasping their hands, bowing deeply, and prostrating. The eerie mist spread along with the gathering of souls, followed by a resounding rumble as the city gates of Yingdu, closed for countless years, slowly creaked open.

Yin Weiyin's eyes widened gradually.

A gigantically silhouetted figure loomed in the darkness, its body without claws or ears, sightless though it had eyes. Its surface lacked any aperture. With its appearance, all surrounding light seemed to have been drawn into its vast form, dimming the entire heaven and earth.

Chaos!

It devours all.

Yin Weiyin froze where she stood, instinctively extending her hand as if to reach out.

"Come back..."

Before she could rush forward from the high platform, a fierce wind suddenly surged, halting her in place. Turning back, she was met with the solemn visage of the Great Yu Emperor.

"What are you intending to do?"

"I…"

Yin Weiyin did not know how to respond.

Lowering her gaze, she saw the intricate patterns beneath her feet — serpentine coils, tangled and interwoven, converging with the altar into what formed the Soul Ascension Map.

This was the epicenter of the array, leaving no room for arbitrary departure.

Chaos appeared dormant. Beneath its hulking mass, monstrous specters bore the crushing weight: long-tongued hanging ghosts, swollen, pallid water ghosts, bloated famine beasts with stomachs as vast as cattle — each raising Chaos inch by inch toward the cosmic altar.

Chaos loomed closer.

Infernal ghostly flames ignited, illuminating the altar. Their glow quietly displayed the many dimensions of life in the ghost domain. At the very moment Chaos was delivered to the center of the altar, the throng of ghosts seemed to hold their breath. Under the flames, the faint rise and fall of Chaos's slumber could be seen, along with the fervent rush of Huangquan River's waters.

The mist remained thick and unmoving. The Great Yu Emperor descended from the high platform, stepping into the void. Today, he was not garbed in the King Yan's serpent robe, but instead wore the regal imperial robes of the Emperor adorned with golden dragons. Twelve strings of jewels dangled, exuding unwavering majesty of the supreme ruler.

"Within the cave lies mystery, the shifting balance of realms, heaven and earth overturned, rendering me transcendent…"

His voice was steady yet calm, and with each utterance, the entire altar moved in response.

The ghosts' breaths faltered, caught in fleeting whispers.

The ritual was now open.

As the Great Yu Emperor recited his chants, the statues of the Four Symbols and the Twenty-Eight Stars upon the altar shuddered faintly, while below, the Huangquan River roared with turbulent waves. Water vapor twined with the fluttering green banners, rising gradually into the air.

When the vapor touched the body of Chaos, a hole was bored into its immense form, as though creating an aperture within its vast expanse.

On Chaos's body were arrays inscribed by Yu Zhenyuan's divine patterns. Even as its flesh was pierced, bringing untold agony, it remained asleep, unawakened.

Thousands of Soul Summoning Banners flapped wildly in accompaniment of the Great Yu Emperor's incantations. The souls across the entire ghost city seemed to rise, gently converging toward Chaos, as gusts of yin wind swept back and forth in chaotic streams.

The Huangquan River began to reverse its flow along Chaos's form, and the merging souls were absorbed into its currents as well.

The path to immortality seemed to manifest along with the gathering of spirits, eventually taking shape.

It was the Eternal Road as seen within the underground palace — piercing straight through the heavens of the underworld.

The shamans in their vibrant garb sang louder, higher, as one, repeating "Soul, return!"

But Yin Weiyin's face betrayed dissonance with the event of immortal ascension, her gaze fixed unwaveringly upon the massive Chaos. Her fingertips trembled lightly.

As though the rushing river eroded past wounds, a faint pain stirred.

It felt as though he had gone far, far away...

"Soul... return."

She murmured endlessly.

With immortality within her reach, she still wished for his return.

She still recalled how, at the brink of being swallowed by Chaos, he fought tooth and nail, calling out to her again and again, pleading her to return...

With the altar's operation, one aperture after another was opened within Chaos. Within the dreary darkness of the underworld, celestial clouds began to emerge — ethereal and elusive. Sometimes dense, sometimes sparse, the ghostly blue flames gradually transformed into golden-yellow hues. In this moment, Yin and Yang seemed to intertwine and shift.

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