Nether Spring's Shadow Flees Back to the Great Desolation, Tribulation Waves First Settle as Undercurrents Surge

On the edge of the Netherworld's cold pond, a chilling wind howled, stirring the dense, unmoving malevolent energy.

Tongtian felt the power of a complete transformation coursing through him. His late-stage Quasi-Saint magical power was like a dormant Great Desolation behemoth, capable of stirring up monstrous waves with a mere thought. This new magical power, infused with the characteristics of both Chaos and the Netherworld, was not only more potent than before but also gave him a peculiar sense of control, subtly resonating with the Nine Netherworld environment.

"Master, your cultivation..." Saint Mother Wudang exclaimed, both surprised and delighted, sensing Tongtian's unfathomable aura, which subtly blended with the Underworld's environment.

"A slight improvement," Tongtian nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the distorted, dim surroundings. "Empress Pingxin's message mentioned that the Western Teachings and Chan Teachings are conducting a large-scale search?"

"Indeed!" Wudang's expression turned serious as she quickly replied, "According to the Empress's message, the collapse of Dukong Hall and Ksitigarbha's severe injury have spread. Saint Zhunti is enraged and has personally issued a decree, ordering all Western Teachings forces in the Underworld to pursue your whereabouts with immense rewards offered. Guangchengzi and others from the Chan Teachings have also seized the opportunity, using the pretense of 'maintaining Underworld order' to dispatch numerous disciples into the Netherworld, while actually setting up checkpoints everywhere. The main passages out of the Underworld, such as the Ghost Gate Pass, the end of the Yellow Springs Road, and even some hidden Yin-Yang rifts, are now under strict surveillance."

Hearing this, a cold glint flashed in Tongtian's eyes. The swift reaction of the Western Teachings and Chan Teachings was within his expectations.

"Does Empress Pingxin have any further instructions?" he asked gravely.

"The Empress said that while she can temporarily suppress dissenting voices within the Witch Tribe and restrict some actions of the Western Teachings and Chan Teachings under the guise of reorganizing the Underworld, she cannot openly obstruct their 'search for a wanted criminal.' She advised us to be extremely careful and provided another escape route." Saint Mother Wudang produced a black jade talisman condensed from the power of Reincarnation and handed it to Tongtian. "This is a temporary pass for the Spring of Rebirth. The spring is located at the most remote section of the River of Forgetfulness's bottom, extremely hidden, and connects to a desolate ancient battlefield ruin in the Great Desolation, untouched by humans. However... the space near the spring is extremely unstable, and powerful vengeful spirits and spatial rifts make it exceptionally dangerous. Even ordinary Grand Unity beings would not dare to tread there lightly."

Tongtian took the jade talisman, feeling the gentle yet mysterious fluctuations of Reincarnation power from his fingertips. With a brief scan, he knew the talisman could indeed guide them and temporarily stabilize the passage.

"Seeking stability through danger, excellent," Tongtian put away the jade talisman. "The more perilous the place, the less those bald donkeys and hypocrites will dare to set foot. We'll leave from here."

Without further hesitation, the dark gray Chaos-Netherworld magical power around him flowed, completely concealing his and Saint Mother Wudang's presence, as if they had become part of the Netherworld itself, undetectable by ordinary divine sense.

Their figures flickered, like two wisps of smoke blending into the shadows. Following the hidden route provided by Empress Pingxin, they avoided several patrols of Buddhist soldiers and Chan Teachings disciples, silently heading towards the most desolate region downstream of the River of Forgetfulness.

Along the way, they indeed saw the tense atmosphere of the Underworld. Squadrons of Vajra protectors in golden armor and cultivators in Eight Trigrams Taoist robes patrolled in tandem, their expressions stern. Powerful divine senses swept over the area like combs, again and again. Important passage nodes were guarded by conspicuous Buddhist formations or Taoist restrictions, their lights flashing, maintaining strict vigilance.

However, Tongtian's current cultivation and his affinity with the Netherworld's power far exceeded their imagination. He could often sense the patrol routes in advance, either perfectly hiding amidst the dense death qi and malevolent energy of the Underworld, or slipping through the subtle gaps of the restrictions at the last moment, always narrowly avoiding all detection.

Saint Mother Wudang followed closely behind, her reverence for her Master deepening. She felt as if her Master had merged with the Netherworld Underworld, walking through the gaps of shadows and death as if on level ground.

Several hours later, the two arrived at an extremely remote stretch of the River of Forgetfulness. Here, the river water was no longer murky yellow but a bizarre, pitch-black hue. The surface was calm and waveless, yet it exuded a heart-palpitating coldness and stillness. The riverbanks were lined with jagged rocks and withered Netherworld trees. No ghostly figures were visible, and even the sound of the wind seemed to have been swallowed.

Following the jade talisman's guidance, Tongtian located a seemingly ordinary rock face on the riverbank. He activated the talisman, and a faint dark light shone on the rock face. The stone rippled like water, revealing a deep, downward-sloping cave entrance just large enough for one person to pass through. Bone-chilling Netherworld winds poured out, accompanied by the faint wails of countless vengeful souls and the piercing sound of space being torn apart.

"Stay close to me," Tongtian grunted, stepping into the cave first. Saint Mother Wudang followed without hesitation.

Upon entering, it was as if they had entered another world. The passage wound downwards, its walls no longer stone but composed of distorted spatial barriers and solidified resentment. It was bizarre and perilous. Formless vengeful spirits that could erode the primordial spirit shrieked and lunged at them, and hidden spatial rifts suddenly appeared, emitting a destructive suction force.

Tongtian's expression remained unchanged. A phantom image of the Chaos Bead appeared above his head, casting streams of dark gray energy that protected them. The vengeful spirits that struck the energy dissolved instantly like snow in spring, their screams fading. When encountering spatial rifts, he either sensed them in advance and skillfully avoided them, or directly punched out. His Chaos-Netherworld magical power was incredibly domineering, capable of forcefully shattering even small rifts!

As he moved forward, he felt an unparalleled freedom. This place, which deterred even Grand Unity Golden Immortals, had instead become a proving ground for his new strength.

Saint Mother Wudang followed behind, her heart pounding with both fear and excitement. Her Master's strength had reached such a level!

After an unknown amount of time traversing the deep, winding passage, a faint light finally appeared ahead, along with even more violent and chaotic spatial fluctuations.

At the end was a vast underground cavern. In the center, a constantly rotating vortex of black light swirled – the Spring of Rebirth! Around the spring, space was covered in cracks like a shattered mirror. Countless powerful vengeful spirits, like a black tide, roared and danced around the spring, attempting to stop anyone from approaching.

Combat had already erupted near the Spring of Rebirth!

Several monks dressed in Western Teachings robes, forming a rudimentary Buddhist formation, were struggling to fend off the attacks of the vengeful spirits, appearing harried and disheveled. They had clearly discovered this hidden passage and intended to set an ambush or investigate, but they had underestimated the danger of this place and were trapped by the vengeful spirits.

Tongtian's eyes turned cold. What a narrow encounter!

He did not reveal himself immediately but remained hidden to the side, observing with cold eyes. The strongest among the monks was only at the peak of Grand Unity Golden Immortal. Under the onslaught of endless vengeful spirits and the occasional spatial rift, the Buddhist formation's light rapidly dimmed, and they were clearly close to collapsing.

"Senior Brother! We can't hold on! Quickly send for help!" a young monk cried out in terror.

"Silence! The energy here is too chaotic, a distress signal can't get through! Hold on until our seniors sense something is wrong!" the middle-aged monk leading them shouted sternly, blood spilling from his mouth. Before he could finish, a massive spatial rift silently appeared behind the Buddhist formation, instantly engulfing two monks, who didn't even have time to scream!

The Buddhist formation instantly broke! The remaining monks turned ashen, their eyes filled with despair.

Just as countless vengeful spirits swarmed forward, ready to tear them apart and devour them, Tongtian moved! He wasn't saving them; his target was the Spring of Rebirth!

His figure was like lightning. Disregarding the vengeful spirits lunging at him, the dark gray magical power around him erupted, forming a ferocious vortex. Wherever it passed, vengeful spirits shrieked as they were drawn in, shredded, and devoured, becoming nourishment for his magical power!

He was like a gray sword, unstoppable, charging towards the spring!

The Western Teachings monks, who had already closed their eyes in resignation, saw a terrifying figure flash past. The surrounding vengeful spirits were cleared in large swathes, and they were stunned. When they finally saw the face of the figure, they were utterly terrified!

"The demon Tongtian!"

Tongtian couldn't be bothered with these insignificant individuals. He reached the edge of the spring, sensing the chaotic yet stable spatial passage power within. He shouted to Wudang, "Let's go!"

He grabbed Saint Mother Wudang, his magical power surging, transforming into a dark gray stream of light, and plunged fiercely into the swirling black spring!

"Stop him!" the leading monk instinctively roared, but no one dared to move.

The spring fluctuated violently for a moment before quickly returning to its original state. The vengeful spirits, having lost their target, turned all their rage and greed towards the remaining Western Teachings monks...

After a dizzying spatial journey. Tongtian and Saint Mother Wudang stumbled out from an ancient altar in a desolate valley.

The sky was a hazy gray, the land a dark red, and the air filled with a faint scent of blood and rusted metal. Scattered around were countless broken weapons and the massive, withered bones of unknown creatures.

This was the ancient battlefield ruin mentioned by Empress Pingxin, located on the western edge of the Great Desolation, untouched by humans.

"We're finally out," Saint Mother Wudang sighed in relief, still shaken.

Tongtian stood with his hands behind his back, gazing into the distance, his eyes seeming to pierce through infinite space, seeing Kunlun Mountain, Spirit Mountain, and the Heavenly Court.

His journey to the Underworld, though fraught with peril, had yielded immense gains. Not only had he rescued and reshaped Sanxiao, forged a good relationship with Empress Pingxin, and thwarted the schemes of the Western Teachings and Chan Teachings, but his own cultivation had also broken through to the late stage of Quasi-Saint, his foundation becoming more complete. He had also acquired a mysterious fragment from another world.

More importantly, he had glimpsed the Western Teachings' insane plan regarding the calamity of other worlds and the secret of the Chaos Demon Gods potentially suppressed deep within Reincarnation.

The situation in the Great Desolation, stirred by his actions, had become even more unpredictable.

"Master, where do we go next?" Wudang asked.

Tongtian withdrew his gaze, his eyes deep and cold. "First, we'll find a hidden place to stabilize my cultivation and refine that fragment from another world. Then..." A cold smile curved his lips.

"It's time to let those disciples on the Investiture of the Gods know that their Master has returned." "Some interest needs to be collected first." He stood on the desolate ancient battlefield, like a peerless divine sword about to be unsheathed, his killing intent soaring to the heavens.

The Great Desolation, with his return, was destined to be turbulent once more.