Sea of Bitterness and Naihe, Ghost Tree and Jade Flowers

The long river of standing corpses seemed endless, but Xue Baizhi and Elder Qin pressed steadily onward.

In the silent cavern, the only sound was the rustle of their hemp shoes against the black stone beneath their feet.

Su Che followed slowly behind.

The farther they went, the stronger the faint, haunting fragrance grew.

Su Che felt no effect from it himself, but he noticed something amiss with Elder Qin.

The Great River Alliance elder, who had attained Reverted Elixir, was plainly not himself. His temperament had suddenly become unstable.

One moment cold, the next hot; irritable and impulsive.

At first, Elder Qin had moved with care. Later, he began knocking over the standing corpses around him, sometimes deliberately, sometimes not. Now he shoved them aside without restraint.

More curious still, Xue Baizhi did nothing to stop him. She merely stood to one side and watched.

Su Che could not be sure he had seen it right, but there seemed to be a trace of amusement in the way Xue Baizhi looked at Elder Qin.

After an unknown length of time, they finally reached the end of the river of corpses.

A dim light fell ahead, at last piercing the darkness that had seemed too thick to dissolve.

The space opened up before them.

The Corpse River continued, but a whole new expanse was now visible ahead. Cold, ghostly light crossed the deep space and settled slowly on the ground.

The black earth ended there as well. Basalt-like stone, cold and hard, stretched to its limit; beyond it lay a somber sea.

Its waters were pitch-black and gave off a bitter chill. Before Xue Baizhi and Elder Qin had even reached the shore, frost had formed across their bodies.

At the boundary where sea met stone stood a giant tree.