Netherworld.
Pale gray clouds drifted across the sky, while the sun cast a cold white glow.
The mountains below lay silent. At bends in the valleys, Black Cold Wind occasionally appeared, then spun in a circle and vanished abruptly.
At one moment, a Black Sphere two or three stories tall suddenly appeared in the sky.
A Black Smoke Ball trailing a long tail shot out from within it like a falling meteor, flickering with Ghastly Green Flame as it slammed straight toward the ground.
Boom!
At the foot of a small mountain, rows of trees toppled over. Broken branches and shredded leaves flew everywhere as the Black Smoke Ball blasted out a crater seven or eight meters wide, sending dust, dirt, and shattered stones spraying in all directions.
When a breeze dispersed the dust, a five- or six-meter-tall giant with indigo-blue skin lay sprawled at the bottom of the crater, his eyes closed and heat radiating from his body.
Before long, the giant shrank like a deflated ball, returning to normal human size in just a few breaths.
Only after quite a while did Chen Mu, his clothes in tatters, regain consciousness and slowly open his eyes.
Dazed, he looked at the cold white sun overhead and felt the faint chill within its rays. A relaxed smile appeared on his face.
"The Netherworld's sun... it's been a long time."
Two days later, in a small hill hollow twenty li from where he had landed, the thatched-roof Wooden Cabin produced by Nether Demon Heaven had been moved out of Thousand Lantern City and hidden amid the forest.
Chen Mu lay in a Rocking Chair on the porch, letting the Netherworld's distinctly cold wind blow over him as he narrowed his eyes.
The Netherworld's environment was hardly ideal, but compared to