Netherworld

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Netherworld (幽冥界)
Alias(es)	Great Netherworld; Netherworld Realm
Species/Race	Primordial realm / underworld
Affiliation	Originally tied to the Earthly Dao Lineage; later the foundation of the Ghost Dao and Netherworld Lineage 31 32 100
Occupation/Role	Receives, purifies, guides, judges, and reincarnates souls; base of the Ghost Dao 14 71 100
Status	Active; undergoing continued refinement and expansion 100 121
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Awakening will and foundational laws	3	Hun Wusheng's arrival and Yang God Transformation cause the realm to develop the Laws of Yin-Yang Transformation and Life-Death Transformation; the Netherworld's will begins awakening.
Early resource development	4	The Netherworld favors Hun Wusheng with Chaos Soul Demon God inheritance and resources, encouraging the growth of the Yin-Yang Ghost Clan and its own rules.
First major perfection	14	Jiang Chen purifies Blood Sea negative energy; the River Styx Land and Huang Quan are established to guide and baptize souls.
Rebirth of the Eighteen Layers	31 32	Tai Ming refines the Heart of the Netherworld, becomes sovereign, and integrates the Lineage of Ghosts and Gods into the Eighteen Layers, completing an internal life-and-death cycle.
Opening and civilization	48	The sealed deeper layers reopen; the Netherworld Ghost Clan emerges, and an organized Ghost Dao cultivation civilization develops.
Nineteenth-layer and samsara refinement	71	Tai Ming integrates spiritual treasures into the Minor Samsara System, establishes the Eighteen Hells, and opens the nineteenth layer, the Abyssal Netherworld Hell.
Expansion with the reborn Primordial World	86	The nineteen layers expand alongside the reconstructed Primordial World; Yin Veins and Netherworld routes spread throughout the Primordial lands.
First true ascension	99 100	The Netherworld Demon God's merger and Tai Ming's preparations trigger a comprehensive promotion, strengthening its origin and elevating the Ghost Dao's standing in the Primordial order.

Background / History

Creation and early state

The Netherworld was created by Yue Jianshi from boundless Earthly Vein origin and the mysteries of the Three Thousand Chaos Demon Gods. It began as an experimental ground rather than a realm intended to rival the Heavenly Realm; Yue Jianshi later divided it into eighteen layers and left behind Earthly Dao power. 100

Before Tai Ming's arrival, its uppermost Nether Land was a desolate expanse of gray Nether Qi inhabited by wandering Nether Souls: spirits of the unreincarnated dead with no destination. The realm's creation was attributed to a supreme divine being, though its full origin remained unknown at the time. 1

Hun Wusheng's transformation into a Nether Soul changed the realm's laws. His Yin-Yang-based cultivation brought life to the stagnant Nether Land, causing golden-and-black souls to appear and prompting the Netherworld's will to awaken. 2 3

Tai Ming's inheritance

The Heart of the Earthly Path regarded Hun Wusheng—later Tai Ming—as the Netherworld's Child of Destiny. His strength and the realm's prosperity became directly linked, while the Heart and the Netherworld's will supported his plans to create the Yin-Yang Ghost Clan and Corpse Clan. 11

Tai Ming eventually refined the Heart of the Netherworld and became the realm's sovereign. Through the Netherworld Ghost Seal, he integrated the Lineage of Ghosts and Gods into the Eighteen Layers, establishing the Netherworld as the core territory of his Ghost Dao rather than merely an Earthly Dao inheritance ground. 31 32 100

Structure and Locations

• Nether Land — The first layer, originally a barren gathering place for newly formed souls. It was later revitalized by the arrival of the Styx, Huang Quan, and the Ghost Clans. 1 14 31
• Eighteen Layers of Netherworld — The main body of the realm. Deeper layers contain increasingly ancient and powerful souls; the seventeenth layer serves as a Dao Field for Grand Unity Ghost Gods, while the eighteenth is Tai Ming's personal Dao Field. 31 48
• Abyssal Netherworld Hell — The nineteenth layer, opened through the Abyss Hell Grand Formation. It is intended to imprison errant Grand Unity cultivators in an abyss from which even they cannot return. 71
• Netherworld Blood Sea — A neighboring forbidden zone saturated with killing, death, yin, and other Negative Energies. It threatens to erode the Netherworld but also supplies the foundations for the Corpse Dao, the Styx, and several Netherworld-born beings. 5 12 14
• River Styx Land / Ming He — A purified river system connected to the Netherworld Blood Sea that guides the souls of deceased beings into the Netherworld. 12 14
• Huang Quan — The Netherworld's water veins, established to baptize souls and remove their delusions; failed baptism results in eternal damnation. 14
• Oblivion River — A river that later spread through the Eighteen Layers, branching from the Bridge of Helplessness and bordered by seas of Shore Flowers. 48

Systems and Functions

Soul Guidance and Baptism

The River Styx Land connects the Netherworld to the death veins of the Primordial World, vastly increasing its ability to receive souls. Huang Quan then baptizes those souls, creating a process of purification before their later fate is determined. 14

• The Styx draws souls from across the Primordial World into the Netherworld. 14
• Huang Quan removes delusions from souls that successfully endure its baptism. 14
• The number of souls entering the Netherworld surged after the two systems were established. 14

Minor Samsara System

Tai Ming integrated multiple innate treasures into a realm-wide Minor Samsara System. The treasures can draw upon one another and the Netherworld's power, enabling the realm to defend itself even in his absence. 71

• Ghost Gate Pass
• Netherworld Path
• Nine Netherland Homesick Platform
• Bridge of Helplessness
• Three Lives Stone
• Oblivion River Soul-Entrusting Tree
• Sin Mirror 71

Reincarnation through this system progressively purifies reborn beings from the influence of past lives. Even Grand Unity cultivators risk being cast into the mortal world and struggling to recover if forced into reincarnation. 71

Ghost Dao Enfeoffment

The Netherworld Ghost Seal contains the Innate Netherworld Emperor God Conferment Divine Restriction, a Ghost Dao counterpart to the Great God Conferment Technique. Through it, Tai Ming can enfeoff ghosts and gods and establish their karmic positions. 22

• The Underworld Emperor is the seal's karmic incarnation and governs the Lineage of Ghosts and Gods in Tai Ming's place. 22
• The number of ghosts Tai Ming can transform is constrained by Primordial Wilderness order and the needs of the Yin-Yang Ghost Clan. 32
• The accumulated power of Ghost Gods can empower the Underworld Emperor to contend with enemies at the Grand Unity Origin Realm. 99

Hells and Punishment

The Eighteen Hells were established across the Netherworld's layers as instruments of punishment and a deterrent against those who accrue harmful karma within the Netherworld Lineage. 71

• Eighteen Hells — Punitive domains distributed through the Eighteen Layers. 71
• Abyss Hell Grand Formation — Used against internal threats and incorporated into the nineteenth-layer Abyssal Netherworld Hell. 71
• Netherworld Dao Positions — Offices intended to govern the realm's future order, including three supreme positions and numerous lesser divine posts. 71

Inhabitants

• Yin-Yang Ghost Clan — Tai Ming's original Ghost Clan, formed from souls transformed through Yin-Yang power. Its reproductive limitations were remedied after the Styx and Huang Quan emerged. 3 14
• Ghost Soldiers and Ghost Gods — Enfeoffed spiritual beings forming the Lineage of Ghosts and Gods under the Underworld Emperor's authority. 22 32
• Netherworld Ghost Clan — A later race with autonomous cultivation ability, high adaptability, and the potential to learn both Ghost Dao methods and other Great Daos. 48
• Nether Clan — A race representing death, born after the Netherworld absorbed the Great Daos of the five invading Demon Gods. 98
• Corpse Clan — A related but distinct lineage founded by Jiang Chen. Its Corpse Dao uses Negative Energy and supports the Netherworld's wider development. 13 43

Dao Positions

Rank	Positions
Supreme Dao Positions	Netherworld Yinming Heavenly Son, Great Emperor Beiyin; Netherworld Yama Heavenly Son, Great Emperor Fengdu; Netherworld Samsara Heavenly Son, Great Emperor Pingxin 71
Major offices	Netherworld Five Sacred Ghost Emperors; Ten Palace Yama Kings of Reception; Lords of Judgment of the Eighteen Hells; Lord of the Abyss 71
Proper Gods	365 Netherworld Proper Gods 71
Auxiliary Gods	129,600 Netherworld Auxiliary Gods 71
Minor Gods	840 million Netherworld Minor Gods 71

Relationships

• Tai Ming / Hun Wusheng — Sovereign of the Netherworld and founder of its Ghost Dao-centered order; he refined the Heart of the Netherworld and repeatedly advanced the realm's systems. 31 32 100
• Heart of the Earthly Path — Early guide and collaborator that communicated with the Netherworld's consciousness, supported Tai Ming's plans, and temporarily managed the realm during his absences. 12 42
• Jiang Chen — Tai Ming's Corpse Dao incarnation; purified the Netherworld Blood Sea's Negative Energy and enabled the formation of the River Styx Land. 13 14
• Underworld Emperor — Tai Ming's karmic incarnation and the supreme governing deity of ghosts and gods beneath Tai Ming. 22
• Daoist Nether River — Innate Divine Being born from the Nether River; his Slaughter Great Dao is rooted in the purified Blood Sea-derived river system. 32
• Daoist Yellow Springs — Innate Divine Being born from Huang Quan, carrying the Great Dao of Soul Depravity. 32
• Divine Venerable You Quan — Netherworld guiding envoy who sacrificed his body and banner to further the realm's perfection, later receiving a temporary Dao Position from Tai Ming. 99
• Shen Ji / Tai Xu — Lord of the Virtual Primordial World and a key ally who defended and stabilized the Netherworld during the five Demon Gods' invasion. 91 92

Major Arcs

Perfection through the Blood Sea

Tai Ming's plan to improve the Netherworld centered on using Jiang Chen's Corpse Dao Body to neutralize the Netherworld Blood Sea's corrosive Negative Energy. This effort created the River Styx Land and Huang Quan, improved soul collection, and allowed the Yin-Yang Ghost Clan to flourish. 12 14

Rebirth under the Ghost Dao

After gaining the Heart of the Netherworld, Tai Ming incorporated the Lineage of Ghosts and Gods into the Eighteen Layers. The resulting internal cycle gave wandering souls a destination, established a stable reincarnation source for the Ghost Clan, and led to the births of Nether River and Yellow Springs. 31 32

Opening of the Netherworld

Following the defeat of the Limitless Demon God, the deeper layers were gradually opened and the Netherworld Ghost Clan emerged. The realm developed buildings, food, transport, social divisions, and a formal Ghost Dao cultivation system, transforming it from a desolate underworld into a functioning civilization. 48

Invasions and ascension

The Netherworld endured attacks by the Dragon, Phoenix, and Kirin Races, which plundered its reserves and reduced its origin and fortune by thirty percent. Tai Ming allowed this trial as a necessary baptism for the Ghost Dao's growth. 81

Later, five ancient Demon Gods attempted to seize the realm by reviving the Netherworld Demon God. Tai Ming had anticipated this danger: the Netherworld's treasures, Ghost Gods, and Underworld Emperor subdued the revived being, whose eventual merger with the realm triggered its first true ascension. 91 98 99

Notable Quotes

“In the name of the Netherworld Earthly Path, I decree the River Styx Land to guide the souls of All Beings.” 14

“Daoist Yellow Springs emerges today; the Nine Nethers gestate the Yellow Springs, the Blood Sea births the primordial spirit; the souls of all beings have no crossing, and only when all are ferried will I achieve Nirvana.” 32

Trivia

• The Netherworld was initially not designed as a competitor to the Heavenly Realm; Yue Jianshi treated it as one of several experimental grounds. 100
• Its scale exceeds that of the Nine Heavens Realm in layer count, though its Dao Positions remain less mature and its overall foundation still trails the Heavenly Realm. 31 100
• The seventeenth and eighteenth layers once contained imprisoned remnants and obsessions of Chaos Demon Gods. 44 48
• The Netherworld's rise enabled the Ghost Dao to emerge as a new major Dao beyond the established Heaven, Earth, and Human Daos. 100