Yin-Yang Nodes

In this Five Turbidities, vengeful spirits have resurrected!

Okay, wrong channel.

Since the establishment of the New Heavenly Gate sixty years ago, it has been a golden age for cultivation. From the artificial Artificial Spirit Vein Project transformed the world, to the New Blessed Land Project, the New Sect Project, and the New Holy Land Project, the Spiritual Qi energy of the Heavenly Gate has increased visibly. In fact, "increased" is an understatement; it should be said that it has surged dramatically.

Although there were some turbulent periods in between, the upward trend remained unchanged.

What fueled this golden age of cultivation was the emergence of countless cultivation technologies. Not only were ancient and unattainable cultivation methods and Law Artifact replaced with more advanced versions, but even ghosts in the Underworld no longer consumed the yang energy of living people.

That's all feed-fed meat, it's not very tasty.

What usually matches this "Spiritual Qi revival" environment is the revival of spirits and vengeful ghosts.

Yin cannot exist alone, nor can Yang exist alone. Faced with such a vibrant and prosperous Yang World living, a "full-bodied" Underworld is naturally to match it.

Fortunately, the upper echelons of the New Heavenly Gate had anticipated this situation, which is why ghost cities sprang up one after another without the knowledge of most cultivators, housing ghosts and dividing yin and yang.

As the Ghost Subway —or rather, the Ghost Dragon Vein —connected these ghost cities one by one, the transportation and logistics system of the Underworld gradually took shape, and the communication and trade between ghosts became more frequent than ever before; without a doubt, the power and influence of the Underworld would also become increasingly clamorous.

The era when a thousand-year-old ghost could rule a region and dominate is coming to an end. In its place is a more complex, more organized, and more modern Underworld society.

The number of "thousand-year-old ghosts" has also surged.

"... So you mean that in this Underworld environment, ghosts will continuously improve their cultivation levels, and the consequence of this improvement is an imbalance of Yin and Yang; therefore, people like you are needed to provide yin food to the ghosts to restore this balance."

Hu Mang finally understood what was going on with the Old Third's "Underworld yellow robe".

"Yes, you can't kill all the ghosts. The more you kill, the greater the probability of a truly vengeful ghost being born. Instead of that, it's better to actively cooperate with some ghosts' breakthroughs. After all, no matter what, domesticated ghosts aren't as ferocious as the ghosts outside."

The Old Third picked his nose.

"And to be honest, ghosts who can order takeout online are basically deadbeat couch potatoes among ghosts. They don't actually have a strong desire to eat people. Otherwise, your Third Brother would have quit long ago. Why risk your life for a mere 3,000 yuan a month!"

"So, why are you doing live streaming, Old Third?"

"Make money, second brother! What will I eat if I don't?" The Old Third pulled out a stack of strangely colored banknotes and said speechlessly.

"The Underworld Bureau pays its employees with ghost money."

"..."

Hu Mang hadn't expected that the reason his Old Third started live streaming would be so... simple.

He picked up a hundred-yuan ghost money note and examined it from head to toe.

Does your boss allow you to do this?

"I don't know, but nobody stopped me, so I just did it."

Hu Mang nodded, casually stuffing the ghost money into his pocket, when suddenly a thought flashed through his mind.

"Is it possible that, besides you, all the other ghost deliverymen are actually ghosts, or at least not living people?"

Chen Xiaosan was taken aback, thought for a moment, and said, "Maybe, but I haven't met any other colleagues in person. We only have one work group for one station, and I'm in charge of the 'Great Prosperity City Station.' I've been applying to the higher-ups to assign more delivery guys. The frequency of ghost resurrections is too high now. If I keep working like this, I might just die of overwork."

"Especially with haunted neighborhoods like Many Gates Garden, you can easily get trapped if you're not careful. Once we have new people, I can have them handle the delivery for this area, and I'll focus on delivering to easier neighborhoods for you, my Third Brother."

At this point, the Old Third looked on with anticipation.

"You have an idea," Hu Mang quipped, "Then why don't you just become the station manager? Wouldn't that be safer?"

"The stationmaster needs a permanent position, my dear second brother. After my aunt finds someone, could you mention it to her and ask her to give me a permanent position or something?" the Old Third said slyly.

"I'll ask about it later," Hu Mang said after thinking for a moment. His mother's Underworld authority seemed to really have the feel of a stationmaster, such as marking different delivery points and opening different Underworld passages for different deliverymen. He would ask her about it later.

"Let's go! Let's hurry and find Auntie! How can we let Auntie disappear? Second brother, you must be filial!"

Upon hearing that he could be promoted, the Old Third immediately perked up and grabbed Hu Mang to find someone.

"Do you know where I lost my mom? Go find her then," Hu Mang continued to complain.

"That's easy. Since you've been thrown into this branch of my Ghost Dragon Vein, it means your aunt is in the same situation as you. And there are only about a dozen nodes on this Dragon Vein that lead into Yang World. If we search for them one by one, we're sure to find them."

"Moreover, Heavenly Gate Garden was formerly the 'Yin-Yang Passage.' Although the passage is now closed, there are still gaps, only a dozen or so entrances and exits. We'll spy on them one by one here, confirm the direction, and then I'll take you to the subway without a ticket. Then we'll go to that station to pick up the person. It's not that complicated. The area below is very sensitive to the control of yang energy. If all else fails, I'll take you to ask other colleagues."

"I used to interact with real people online. The first group of people I met in person were my brothers and me—they're all talented."

"So how did you study before, and who taught you cultivation?"

"I learned it online. My ability to read seems to be innate, and as for cultivation-related methods, there are people online who specifically teach me. Before, nobody paid attention to me, so I dealt with ghosts. Later, when Dachang got connected to the internet, I started harassing people online until I was selected for the Immortal Ladder Project."

"Then, Old Third, you're practically a product of a targeted training program. You were practically raised by the Underworld Bureau to deliver takeout."

"Pretty much, anyway, nobody cares about me, and I'm having a blast playing games. I've broken through level 110 in Heavenly Gate Journey to the West, did you know that, Second Brother?"

"I don't know, but I just met a guy a few days ago who plays a level 150 character; he's a demon tamer."

"Holy crap, she's that strong? Quickly bring her in and kick that good- Old Fourth out. He's always dragging us down in dungeons."

The Hu Mang followed behind the Old Third, this local tyrant, chatting idly with him while listening to him casually recount some "geographical common sense" about the Underworld.

According to the "Underworld training materials" he received, there are five super-large Ghost Vein connecting the entire Middle Earth in the entire Heavenly Gate. Of course, some sections are still under design and have not been fully opened.

The Ghost Vein where Great Prosperity City is located belongs to the Northern Ghost Vein, starting from Kunxu, connecting the Qilian Mountains, Yin Mountains, and Helan Mountains, and finally leading directly to Yanjing.

This is the main Dragon Vein, while the ghost Ghost Dragon Vein where the Old Third is located is a branch within a branch. If we divide it by location, it should correspond to the claw joint of the dragon's claw.

Even so, there are still more than a dozen ghost towns along this branch line.

If you calculate it this way, there are probably hundreds of ghost cities on this northern Ghost Dragon alone.

But when he counted the number of "thousand-year-old ghosts" in the ghost city, Hu Mang's head tingled.

"Thank you for your contributions to society. Without you delivery drivers, we'd be seeing ghosts every day," Hu Mang said sincerely.

"That's right, since even the vengeful ghosts can't eat well down there, they have no choice but to come up here to eat their fill."

The Old Third is straightforward and honest.

"Second Brother, we've arrived. This is one of the nodes of the 'Yin-Yang Passage' I mentioned, though it's blocked, of course. But we can use this to check the situation over there. I'll use some of my Essence Blood to help you 'Exit Yin and Enter Yang.'"

The Old Third walked to a door and decided to make a small sacrifice for his second brother and his aunt, who was suspected to be a high-ranking Underworld Bureau.

His ability to "Exit Yin and Enter Yang" is not only useful in magical battles, but also has a wide range of applications.

However, Hu Mang stopped the other party, and once again took out the flashlight that the security guard had given him, muttering to himself.

"Although my uncle didn't say it explicitly, I have a feeling that the brightness of this flashlight is adjustable. If it's turned up to the maximum, it should be able to peek into the inner world inside the door."

Before the Old Third could speak, Hu Mang reached out and grabbed the dead man's door that only ghosts could open—the door should have reacted strongly to the touch of a living person's hand, but it was as quiet as an ordinary door, and Hu Mang simply twisted it open.

A strong, eerie Yin Qi surged from the crack in the door, but under the beam of the flashlight, Yin Qi receded as if encountering a natural enemy.

Hu Mang turned the flashlight to its maximum brightness, and a blinding beam of light shot out from the nozzle, like a lightsaber, directly piercing through the layers of Yin Qi barriers in the haunted house, penetrating the walls, floor, and ceiling, and landing precisely on the "Yin-Yang Passage node" that Old Third had mentioned.

Neon signs hung in layers on both sides of the street, their red and blue lights flashing alternately, illuminating the entire street as if it were daytime. The song "Night Moon" drifted from a gramophone, swirling in the air.

The streets were bustling with people.

Gentlemen in long gowns smoked and chatted by the roadside, while ladies in cheongsams walked by in high heels, carrying small bags. Rickshaw drivers pulled their customers out from the street corner, and several well-dressed, slick-haired sorcerers in suits raised their glasses and laughed loudly at the entrance of a bar.

But no one cast a shadow; the neon lights shone directly on the ground through their bodies.

Their faces were uniformly pale and bluish-white, and their breath condensed into white mist in the air.

The laughter sounded hollow and distant, like an echo from another world.

The air was filled with the scents of perfume, tobacco, and food, but there was always a faint, lingering smell of candle smoke that couldn't be masked.

"This doesn't seem like modern times, but rather the recent era?"