Return to the Netherworld! Heaven and Earth Overturned

The Yang Realm.

Within the Sky Sword Sect.

Lu Chen's consciousness swiftly returned, and his tightly shut eyes suddenly flew open, brilliance bursting forth.

He rose directly from the ground, sensing the power within his body.

"The Yang Realm's suppression is indeed still here..."

His heaven-shaking True God Third Layer strength was once again firmly suppressed by the Yang Realm, leaving him with less than even the Half-God Realm. The Godhead within him lay hidden deep in his soul, rising and falling.

Lu Chen waved his hand.

With a flash, the sword formation that had enveloped his body instantly vanished. He left at once and headed outside.

At this moment.

Within the Sky Sword Sect, countless figures had gathered.

Miao Xuanji, Miao Wu Fa, and the other members of the Space-Time Divine Clan had all assembled here.

Besides them, Li Wangshu, Yue Qingtian, Leng Feng, Zhao Shanhe, Ye Qiankun, and the others were present as well.

Even Zhao Xuantian, the Imperial Family's old ancestor, had come.

Zhao Xuantian's heart was filled with unease.

His cultivation was far too low. He had never known what was happening beyond the realm, nor had he known of the Netherworld's existence. He had originally come today to visit Lu Chen, only to hear all manner of news from them.

World destruction? The world's unsealing?

It left him utterly bewildered.

After asking further, he became even more horrified.

"Senior Lu, is what they said true? Is our world about to be destroyed?"

Zhao Xuantian's face was filled with alarm. The moment he saw Lu Chen, he hurried over.

"It may not necessarily be destroyed."

Lu Chen shook his head. "Even if the world is unsealed, it will merely expand upon its original foundation, and all sorts of ancient opportunities will reappear. But whether your dynasty can hold on afterward, I do not know."

"How could this happen?"

Zhao Xuantian was panic-stricken.

He had only just managed to cling to Lu Chen's thigh.

He had thought he was about to push the Great Yu Dynasty to its peak and achieve unprecedented glory.

Yet now, the world was being unsealed? The heavens were descending?

How many more secrets were there that he did not know about?

"I do not want this either, but there is no choice. The Netherworld has already been unsealed. The Yang Realm likely will not be able to hold on much longer."

Lu Chen replied, then looked toward the others. "Everyone, the Netherworld has been unsealed. Do not go there for the time being. Otherwise, it will be easy for the people there to restrain you. Once they imprison your souls, even returning will become exceedingly difficult."

"We understand."

Miao Xuanji nodded and said in an aged voice, "The Netherworld's unsealing came far too quickly. No one expected that four Divine Kings would appear at once in the end."

"Where does our future path lie? The Netherworld has already been unsealed. How much longer until the Yang Realm follows?"

Miao Wu Fa sighed after him.

"What a pity, what a lament. Our world has ultimately declined. Facing those Divine Kings is like a praying mantis trying to stop a chariot; every struggle seems laughable."

Even Li Wangshu, who feared neither heaven nor earth, furrowed his brow. Feeling lost before the road ahead, he said, "What should we do? Sit and wait for death, resigning ourselves to fate? Or find some faction and join it?"

"Even if we sought out a faction to join, they might not accept us!"

Yue Qingtian gently shook his head. "Did you not hear them calling us lowborn trash at every turn? In their eyes, we are ants, Otherworlders, utterly different from their lofty selves. We are not even worthy of a glance from them! Even if they were willing to take us in, could any of you endure it?"

Everyone fell silent.

That was right!

Given the arrogance of those Outer Realm enemies, even if they joined them, they would only be treated as servants and ants.

"Lu Chen, what do you think?"

Dugu Wudi looked at Lu Chen and asked weakly.

"Although the Netherworld has been unsealed, we are not without hope."

Lu Chen said, "From my observations, the Divine Kings will not personally enter the fray easily. The Outer Realm factions seem to regard this place as a training ground for their younger generation. Those Divine Kings are merely responsible for completely shattering the seal. They should leave again before long. That will be our opportunity!"

"The Divine Kings will leave?"

"But even if they leave, the remaining descendents possess Half-God and even divine-level strength."

Everyone frowned.

"That is why all of you must cultivate diligently and strive to break through!"

Lu Chen said, "If you can reach the Half-God Realm or become divine before the Yang Realm is unsealed, perhaps you may escape this calamity."

Everyone fell silent again.

Reach the Half-God Realm or become divine?

Easy to say!

But for them to accomplish it would be harder than ascending to heaven!

"I have some resources here. Everyone, take them and give them a try."

Lu Chen waved his hand, and numerous rare flowers and exotic herbs appeared before them.

Some had been obtained from the underwater Dragon Palace.

Some had been taken from the Divine Mountain.

They were no longer useful to him.

He had already reached the True God Third Layer. The essence refined from these rare flowers and exotic herbs was limited and could not satisfy his need for massive amounts of energy, but they remained useful to others.

"This is..."

"Many thanks, Young Hero Lu!"

"In that case, we shall not stand on ceremony!"

Their expressions shifted. No one refused, and in the end, they all took some.

You have done your utmost to protect this world. Your merit is boundless. Merit Points +50,000!

A line of writing emerged.

"If it is a blessing, it is not a disaster; if it is a disaster, one cannot hide from it. I will handle gathering information about the Netherworld from here on."

Lu Chen pondered.

He estimated that those Divine Kings could not possibly remain for long.

Otherwise, there would be no meaning in it as training for those from the Outer Realm.

Therefore, he intended to wait a few days before taking another look.

"Alright."

Everyone nodded in succession.

"Master, you should enter seclusion as well."

Lu Chen looked at Dugu Wudi and gave him a reassuring glance.

Dugu Wudi's expression was complicated, and he could only nod.

The crowd dispersed, leaving behind only a bewildered Zhao Xuantian.

"Then... what about me?"

Zhao Xuantian hurriedly asked.

Forget breaking through to the Half-God Realm—he had not even reached the Dharma Aspect Realm.

At this moment, he truly resembled an old rural man, completely at a loss.

"You? Eat when you should eat, drink when you should drink. There is no need to be nervous!"

Lu Chen said indifferently.

He had lived for several hundred years already. What the hell was he still worrying about?

He did not have many years left to live anyway.

Why think so much?

"But..."

"Enough. Go home, take a few more concubines, savor life a little more, have a few sons. That is all."

Lu Chen waved him away.

Zhao Xuantian stood there dumbfounded. In the end, he flew out of the Sky Sword Sect in a daze.

This was fucking...

It made so much sense.

At his age, why the hell should he still struggle? Let whatever happened, happen!

Lu Chen revealed a thoughtful expression, turned, and left. He found a quiet place and began seriously considering the road ahead.

"My strongest method at present is the sword path, but unfortunately, I lack more sword-path martial arts..."

Although he possessed the four great sword-path divine abilities.

It was still far too little!

If he could obtain more sword-path divine abilities, his strength would undergo an earth-shaking transformation.

"If all else fails, I will find a way to get them from those Outer Realm people!"

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

He had been forced to the brink anyway.

There was no need to care about certain methods.

Time passed bit by bit.

The sun rose and set.

The sun set and rose.

The Yang Realm still seemed peaceful.

Yet every day, Lu Chen used the Heaven's Secret Mirror to observe the environment beyond the Yang Realm, constantly watching for changes in the Star Chain.

Sure enough, these Star Chains underwent invisible changes each day.

After only seven or eight days, the Star Chains had dimmed greatly and were no longer as dazzling as before.

"The power of the Star Chain is dissipating. The Yang Realm's unsealing is about to arrive as well..."

Lu Chen's heart surged.

It seemed he had to speed up his improvement in strength.

"I wonder what the Netherworld is like now. I can try going there again."

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

He believed those Divine Kings should have left.

Otherwise, the various factions would be unable to contend within it.

Whoosh!

Lu Chen circulated his power, and his soul immediately left his body. He opened a passage, concealed his aura, and silently approached the Netherworld like a wisp of blue smoke.

Waves of vast, majestic, chilling aura rushed toward him.

This was an aura he had never encountered before.

The Netherworld had indeed been fully unsealed.

That aura was boundless and magnificent, like an ancient universe.

Whoosh!

Lu Chen's consciousness crossed over and immediately appeared in the Netherworld region, outside a small town. The surroundings remained dim, while the light all around carried a jade-green hue.

The pressure of heaven and earth seemed to have completely vanished.

The instant he appeared, he could feel the immense and surging divine power within his body.

The power of the True God Third Layer now advanced without hindrance.

"The Netherworld's suppression has indeed vanished completely. Even this world itself seems to have expanded many times over from its original foundation."

Lu Chen carefully sensed the changes between heaven and earth.

This was quite strange.

The previous Netherworld had been like a sheet of paper crumpled into a ball.

Now, that sheet of paper had been spread flat again, and all the portions once crumpled up had emerged.

"The Outer Realm enemies have all descended as well. There are many people from the Outer Realm spread across every direction..."

Lu Chen's eyes flickered.

But now, he needed to confirm whether those Divine Kings had truly departed.

Whoosh!

Lu Chen flashed and vanished once more.

The entire Netherworld was in turmoil.

Opportunities continuously emerged in every region.

In merely seven or eight days since his last visit, the Sword Realm had undergone heaven-and-earth overturning changes.

No one knew how many descendents had arrived.

Lu Chen concealed his appearance, turning his body into an eerie black mist as he silently entered a small town.

He was very familiar with this town. It was precisely the town where he had first arrived when entering the Sword Realm.

Many souls within the town had dim light and weak auras, and all were sighing in grief.

They were the Netherworld's original souls. After the Netherworld was unsealed, they had nowhere to go and had been reduced to the lowest stratum here.

In just seven or eight days, many souls had permanently dissipated.

Those Outer Realm Experts needed souls to refine Forbidden Treasures, so they had captured many souls.

Other Outer Realm Experts needed servants and captured many souls as well.

Yet another group of Outer Realm Experts needed to break restrictions, and they likewise seized many souls to use as cannon fodder.

For these souls, these few days had been nothing less than a catastrophe that blotted out the sky and covered the earth.

"If this goes on, none of us will be able to endure it. My soul is about to dissipate too."

"Me too. Where does our future lie?"

"The Gods and Devils beyond the realm don't see us as people. They slaughter us without restraint and use us as cannon fodder. Who can save us?"

"I miss the days when Young Hero Lu was here..."

"Yeah. I miss them too..."

Many dim souls huddled in the corners, letting out mournful voices.

"Stop talking. Be careful those lords hear you. If they do, you'll be in serious trouble."

One soul spoke up in panic.

"Serious trouble? Is the trouble we're in now still not serious enough? I only want to live an honest life, but who will let us live?"

"Exactly. They don't treat us as living beings. They use us to refine artifacts and conduct experiments. How much longer can we last?"

"The Gods and Devils beyond the realm are far too overbearing!"

Many spoke with humiliation and fury.

"Watch your tongues, watch your tongues! Do you have a death wish?!"

The soul from before hurriedly said.

Smack!

Aah!

A sheet of lightning flared up and turned into a whip, lashing viciously across that soul. The blow wrung out a shrill scream, smoke rising from his entire body as he was sent flying.

"You ignorant thing. You still dare to gossip about us here?"

Two burly figures appeared, their faces cold and stern. Both possessed human forms.

They held lightning whips in their hands, their gazes icy as they looked down from on high and lashed directly at the souls huddled in the corner.

"You swine dare show dissatisfaction? You're courting death!"

"Swine! I'll teach you to flap your filthy mouths! Keep flapping them!"

Smack, smack, smack, smack...

Aah, aah, aah, aah...

Soul after soul let out agonized screams. Sparks burst from their bodies under the lashes, and large portions of their soul forms crumbled away.

Suddenly!

One of the figures wielding a lightning whip turned cold-eyed and abruptly spun around, looking toward another soul in the corner.

This soul was dark and tall, and appeared exceptionally calm.

There was even a trace of icy chill in his bearing.

He stood utterly out of place among the souls originally gathered here.

His eyes in particular gave others a faint sense of dread.

"Who are you?"

The figure holding the lightning whip spoke coldly.

"Who cares who he is? He's not from beyond our realm anyway. As long as he isn't one of us, he's dead!"

The other figure with a lightning whip revealed a cold sneer. Without the slightest courtesy, the lightning whip in his hand blazed with dazzling radiance and lashed wildly toward Lu Chen.

As long as they were not of the same kind, everyone else was swine in their eyes.