My CEO Harem Cultivation System

Pure brightness and white light filled his entire vision—until the glare ended and he ended up somewhere else. Li Yang had been to Shanghai just moments ago, but now he wasn't sure where exactly this place was, except for the fact that this was a new location.

The Grim Reaper's tattered black cloak fluttered behind him and might have been the only dark thing in his current perspective.

"Your view will readjust to the immaterial plane," Thana said. 

Li Yang narrowed his eyes and found that while the light was gone, the blank state of the world around him was ever present. He might as well have been tossed into a blank canvas. 

The only color that he saw in this world was that of the Grim Reaper, himself and… 

Thana glanced over her shoulder and looked at him. Once again, the visage of her pale light yellow eyes and white hair framed over her face was a little bit unnerving. 

Li Yang had already stared into the face of a god, but there was an uncanny aura about this woman that kept him on guard.

Thana droned on to him, sounding a little bored. "Unlike your little friend floating here, cultivator or not, most don't visit the place… I actually doubt people like you visit this place. Your people who pursue immortality will consider walking here as a death wish." 

"I guess camouflage doesn't work that well here, expected." Bao grumbled and reappeared in Li Yang's vision.

The Grim Reaper was already moving ahead of him and it seemed like she was walking on nothing. A bridge that consisted without anything in particular. A thin air of nothing.

Li Yang blinked once—thought he saw the world around him shift, but then it reverted back to pure white except for the outlines and traces of building-like objects in the edge of his vision.

He followed after the Grim Reaper wordlessly.

At least until he reached beside her and asked, "Is this place supposed to be like a background of pure white without anything identifiable?"

"Hah!" A snigger escaped the Grim Reaper's lips. "Did you hear that?"

"I have ears." Bao rolled its own eyes. "He doesn't know shit."

The two of them seemed to have reluctantly acknowledged each other.

Moreso than Li Yang himself.

"Well, if this subservient creature of yours does not tell you anything." Thana motioned to their surroundings. "This plane tends to be a representation of what the individual deems it to be. Most of your people have trusted that there's always a glimmering white light at the end of the tunnel, so that's what I assume to be the same for you."

"Even if I know I'm not dead yet?" Li Yang asked. He didn't quite react to the initial statement, but Bao seemed to have frozen in place when the Grim Reaper said.

Thana continued to walk. She didn't miss a step as she stepped forward into seemingly nowhere. It was almost as if they weren't going anywhere at all and simply standing in place, but he trusted her to be actually moving and not messing with him.

"Yes… Well, whatever, who knows? You might die here, but at least we're actually at our destination now. Open your eyes now, we're at the train station. Took us quite a while, huh?" 

Li Yang frowned at that. He didn't like how the Grim Reaper acted like they'd walked for so long when it was barely three minutes or anything like that. On top of that, was the way she phrased things. "My eyes are already—"

Thana was suddenly beside him and her hand covered his eyes—her skin didn't feel like a chill of death as he expected it to be. When she removed her hand, Li Yang saw a completely different place.

It wasn't unlike a normal human station, except for the fact that there were various entities roaming across the brick floors of the place. There were wooden benches occupied by what appeared to be a long-eared spirit like being, there was an extremely obese-like dark shadow that stood close enough to the railtracks.

And several more other creatures beyond his own imagination.

Thana waved a hand in front of him and planted her scythe lazily into the floor.

"Welcome to the Afterlife Station, stay in one place and don't hop into trains to find your friend or whoever she actually is, I'll ask around—what's her name?"

How could he have gotten distracted? 

"Luo Ju Di—"

"Alright, stay here and don't talk to strangers. I mean that!" Thana said loudly as she could have possibly done. The Grim Reaper walked towards one of the available ticket booths and leaned in front of the counters.

All around them, other spirits and souls went about their business as if they didn't notice the Grim Reaper… and a living person?

Li Yang didn't quite enjoy being treated like a kid. He looked over his shoulder once to check what exactly they'd been walking through… and quite unlike his initial vision of seeing traces and outlines of buildings, the man found himself in an underground station.

At least, Li Yang thought he saw a flight of stairs in the distance.

"Your perception helped you easily arrive here without getting lost," Bao grumbled underneath its breath. "Not sure if it's your own mental self-defense mechanism or that Grim Girl did it for you, she's actually easier to deal with than most Grims, I suspect."

"What do you mean?"

"Her cloak is ugly as hell." Bao flicked a paw. 

"Ah, hierarchy is still prevalent here." Li Yang said underneath his breath.

"We have a train station and you have bored Observ—er, interested deities from the Heavens watching you struggle through the obstacles that they've placed in front of you. Only the top-top couldn't care less about this at all." 

"Top-top, huh?" Li Yang said. 

"Forget I said anything."

"Hey, I'm back and you seem to have really stayed in one place." Thana looked at Li Yang in surprise. She raised a brow and stifled an amused tone. "Most people in search of their loved one's soul would have ran ahead to the trains already and tried to get aboard it."

Li Yang sighed inwardly. "I don't think it would harm me to follow your suggestion. You know this place more than me."

"Alright, I got good news and bad news."

"Bad news."

"Your friend or whatever isn't here," Thana said. She gazed around their surroundings and affirmed that there was no human soul currently roaming around the station. 

"... and the good?"

"My job here is done, I brought you here." Thana raised the blunt end of her scythe and pointed behind him. "You can get back to the mortal plane."

"I don't think we made any agreement like that and I'm going anywhere until I see her for myself." Li Yang frowned. 

Thana stared at him. "Then we're going to need more details. Her name didn't pop up among those who traveled and neither is she here in the station or else you would have had a teary reunion."

"Chunhua told me that it was some kind of beast-transforming entity that's a death or soul collector that took her, so if they can't identify Luo Ju Di—then that creature. Surely you know your fellow soul-collectors."

"That's vague as shit," Bao said. "But I guess you can't expect much from a kid."

"Did you just say beast?"

Li Yang glanced at the Grim Reaper. "Then you must know what I'm trying to say?"

For a Grim Reaper supposed to be separate from emotions, Thana's eyes darkened slightly. 

"Sluagh? They've managed to steal a soul before an actual death representative got to it. If that's what took her—then she really won't be here."

"A Slaugh…?" 

"They're the reason for unexplained death, souls getting lost. Usually they come to pluck weakened souls as gigantic birds, but they can also appear as emaciated beasts if they prefer." Thana looked around the station and then back at the man. 

There was still that determined look on his face.

Thana grunted. "I suppose if that's what took her… I'm liable to help you."

"Then where do we go?"

"...well, this is where the worst news comes in now. There are too many Slaughs in this plane so I hope that you can actually put your sword to use. We'll have to cut through them and hope that this Luo Ju Di's soul ain't eaten yet." 

.

.

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Taiga leapt into the portal and found herself in the spirit world. 

At least that was how her ancestors might have called it. This kind of place wasn't something that she was used to… feeling more at ease by having a more physical body.

All around her, several dark trees that reached far beyond than possible stretched out and hovered over her. It was an intimidating nightmare-fueled atmosphere that made the tigress spirit freeze uncertainly.

In the mortal realm, or physical earth--she was on top of the food chain. A real tiger on the prowl, but around here… 

Taiga raised a hand and watched fire appear within it. It was a good thing that she managed to cultivate her soul for a bit, but she was still in a small pinch. All around her came the sound of large and piercing bird cries in the air.

The first gigantic bird swooped in.

Taiga's claws managed to cut that one down and she watched her fellow spirit consumed by the flames and disappearing. However, that was just the first of them.

When she glanced up, there was an entire flock above the skies.