Du Yu said goodbye to Zhang Youren and found a deserted corner. He waited a while longer before Xiao Qi finally contacted him.
"Du Yu, are you finished over there?" she asked, panting.
"I'm done. How about you?"
"I've informed the Northern Yin Great Emperor of Fengdu and the Eastern Peak Great Emperor of Mount Tai," Xiao Qi said. "The Ten Courts of Yama and the Five Directions Ghost Emperors brought dozens of high immortals to help. They're clearing the rubble and counting how many souls were scattered."
"That's great..." Du Yu slowly sat down. "Find a suitable moment to bring me back."
"All right," Xiao Qi said. "But it might take a while. Don't wander off. I'm the only one handling the recall, after all."
Du Yu nodded. "Why would I wander off? My heart's already flying home like an arrow."
Xiao Qi said nothing more, presumably having gone to prepare the recall. With nothing to do, Du Yu wandered around the mountain.
"I wonder what this mountain's called. I should've traveled more when I was alive..."
Then Du Yu reconsidered. A mountain from thousands of years ago was bound to look very different from its present-day self. Even if he had been here before, he might not recognize it.
"Besides, I didn't have any money."
As he wandered aimlessly, Du Yu suddenly spotted something wriggling in the distance. Its stark whiteness made it quite conspicuous.
"Holy crap..." Du Yu froze. "A giant maggot?"
He worked up his courage and approached for a closer look. The wriggling creature was actually a white snake, trapped beneath a piece of jade and unable to move. Du Yu recognized the jade as material used to build the Investiture Altar. Nezha had shattered it earlier, sending it flying here, where it happened to