Refining the Mountains and Rivers

The waves flowed and the face became clear. Surprisingly, it was the teacher up above whose eyes were closed. He looked at Qin Yu and said, “There are many secrets hidden on you, and even I cannot see them clearly. But, my intuition tells me that your survival will have an immeasurable effect on the living world, so I reminded you and warned you repeatedly to not continue forward.”

“This city is doomed to perish…perhaps you have already guessed that the power of the abyss has corroded this land, and he and I have merged into one whole, unable to be divided again. While I am still myself, leave, and tell the entire living world that no one is to ever attempt entering the Path of 10,000 Souls.”

Qin Yu suddenly said, “This should be the second time we met, right? When I passed through the Three Mountains Test, you also appeared.”

The teacher was silent for a moment. “You have sharp senses so you should be able to judge that everything I’m saying is true.”

Qin Yu said, “You want to seal away the Path of 10,000 Souls!”

The teacher said without expression, “Since there is no other way to continue suppressing the power of the abyss, this is the best choice.”

He turned, about to leave. After giving Qin Yu one more warning, he had no intention of staying any longer.

“Wait!” Qin Yu’s thoughts raced. “I want to know, what are the secrets of the Path of 10,000 Souls?”

The teacher didn’t turn around. “The inheritance is flawed to begin with. I won’t give it to you.”

“No! I don’t want the inheritance, I only want to know how to undo the Path of 10,000 Souls.” Qin Yu bowed as he spoke. This simple gesture caused wounds to break open all over his body and fresh blood to spill out. But what was strange was that the blood didn’t dye the well water red, instead simply disappearing.

“You want to undo the Path of 10,000 Souls?”

“My wife is a fragment soul of a cultivator that practices the Path of 10,000 Souls. I hope that she can continue living.”

The teacher said, “Just give up. The Path of 10,000 Souls is wrong to begin with and isn’t complete. And, the fruits that are borne from a wrong foundation cannot be altered.”

Qin Yu didn’t stand up. “There are no absolutes in this world. Even if it exists, it is only within a relative range. So there has to be a way to undo the Path of 10,000 Souls. I beg you to help me. No matter what the price is, I am willing to pay it!”

“It’s just a woman. Let alone the numerous secrets hidden on your body, with just your current cultivation you can obtain endless women. Is it really worth it to save her?”

“It’s worth it!”

The teacher fell silent as if he was deep in thought. After a long time he opened his mouth and said, “Qin Yu, I might know a way to undo the Path of 10,000 Souls. But if you fail, you and the entire city will be destroyed together.”

“To be honest, I am not optimistic that you can do this. The best path for you to take is to immediately leave…now, tell me your answer.”

Uncertainty clouded Qin Yu’s eyes. He was afraid of death and if possible he didn’t want to place himself in a dangerous situation. And according to the teacher’s words, the difficulty of undoing the Path of 10,000 Souls was far harder than he imagined.

In other words, even if there came a day where he obtained the qualifications to talk directly to Peach Blossom Spring, he might not be able to save Ning Ling.

“Besides the method you mentioned, is there another way to undo the Path of 10,000 Souls?”

The teacher was silent, and this silence represented his opinion.

This was the only chance!

Qin Yu took a deep breath, his eyes flashing with resolve. “I would like to try it.”

The teacher turned around and looked deeply at Qin Yu. “When death comes for you, I hope you won’t regret the choice you made now.”

Shua –

His figure vanished from sight. In the next moment, a blood red color gushed out within the pure well water, rapidly spreading outwards.

Bang –

Bang –

The two hearts within Qin Yu’s chest wildly beat. He was unable to suppress the instinctual desire that came from his very marrow.

Without needing to stimulate himself, all of his pores opened and began to absorb the blood red strength that was mixing into the well water.

At the private school’s backyard, the teacher opened his eyes. “You may all leave.” The tense group of people felt as if they had been pardoned from death. They quickly bowed and rushed out.

If they didn’t leave now, then when?

“Hold on.” The teacher pointed a finger, “The two of you can stay behind.”

Pure Summer and Peaceful Nun stiffened. Even though they absolutely did not want to remain here, their instincts told them that it was best not to resist.

Or even if they tried to resist, their fate would be more miserable than what it was now!

Yun Feng and the others let out breaths of relief. Without even casting glances of sympathy at the two black robed lords, they lifted Jiang Yuanyi up and ran away.

What nonsense, if they didn’t hurry and run away now, what would they do if that teacher decided there weren't enough people and asked one more of them to stay behind?

As for the promise of the two black robed lords…

They might not even come out with their lives, so what was the point in thinking of all this? This time’s opening of the Path of 10,000 Souls was far too strange and unpredictable. It was completely different from the information provided by their families.

Based on this, even if their family blamed them in the future they would be able to pass it onto someone else. It was their information that was mistaken! Did they not know how difficult it was for them to survive?

In truth, after leaving the private school and vowing that they would never approach this place again, Yun Feng and the others didn’t know how difficult it was to survive in this city.

Because the true despair had yet to arrive!

In a corner of the private school’s backyard, several bamboo chairs were randomly placed around. They were used for temporary rest during work time.

The teacher walked over and sat down. He indifferently glanced at the neat rows of vegetable plants. Its expression was faint and it was impossible to guess what he was thinking.

Pure Summer shook Peaceful Nun’s hand, hinting for her to not say anything unnecessary. He said, “My lord, I am willing to stay here and obey your orders. May I ask if she can leave?”

Peaceful Nun’s eyes fiercely flew open, “Pure Summer!”

“Shut up!” Pure Summer roared out loud. He fell to his knees, “If my lord agrees, I vow that from here on out I will forever obey your orders!”

The teacher glanced at him and said, “Xia Houbo was your ancestor, right?”

Pure Summer was startled. With a look of awe, he respectfully nodded.

“And this woman, she is a descendant of the Sun Family.” The teacher had a faint look, “In the past, when your ancestors helped in constructing the Path of 10,000 Souls they were tempted by the traces left behind by the abyss. Their actions allowed the power of the abyss to leak out, making the entire Path of 10,000 Souls a failed project. For this crime, ten clans within your bloodline should have their souls wrenched out and refined!”

Puff –

Peaceful Nun’s legs softened and she slumped to the floor. By her side, Pure Summer wasn’t any better off. His face was pale and streaming with sweat.

Just now, when the teacher spoke, they felt as if they stood on the edge of destruction.

As if they would crash into it at any moment and be torn to shreds, never to be reincarnated!

After an unknown period of time passed, the two regained their composure and looked up at the silent teacher. Their pupils shrank with fear and alarm.

At this time, there was the sound of splashing water. Qin Yu flew out from the well head and landed on the ground.

Pure Summer and Peaceful Nun saw Qin Yu and their eyes brightened. They wanted to speak but they held it in.

Qin Yu furrowed his eyebrows. He had no idea why these two people were here, but it should be the teacher’s intent. He suppressed his thoughts and cupped his hands together, “Greetings, mister.”

He now knew the identity of this other party – he was the self-condensed consciousness of the Path of 10,000 Souls. Or, perhaps he could be called the incarnation of the city…he had merged together with the abyss, light and darkness within him.

What he faced now was the city’s light side. Otherwise, with just a wave of the teacher’s hand, all three of them would be turned to ashes.

The teacher looked at Qin Yu and directly said, “There’s not much time remaining so I will get to the point. Listen closely.”

“In ancient times, in the great war against the abyss, humanity paid a steep price. Innumerable powerhouses perished. Finally, they managed to slay a powerful King who descended from the abyss. But although his body was dead, his soul was still alive. After careful research, it was discovered that there was a great secret hidden within the soul of this King.”

“After that, the Path of 10,000 Souls was constructed. An all-encompassing array formation was laid down and the Abyssal King’s soul was suppressed here. The power of the array formation grinded away at the soul and extracted the source. This is the reason for this city and the Path of 10,000 Souls’ inheritances.”

The teacher’s voice quieted, “…But in fact, this wasn’t the plan at the beginning. They hoped to find someone that could absorb and refine the source left behind by the Abyssal King, taking over his identity and returning to the abyss.”

“After all, through the countless years, while innumerable frigid battles occurred between the living world and the abyss, and humanity was even nearly destroyed and occupied by the enemy, the most ridiculous thing is that we still have no idea about the situation within the abyss.”

Pure Summer and Peaceful Nun’s eyes were wide open. As they looked at the teacher, their faces were pale and covered in beads of sweat.

The two of them had obtained the approval to enter the Path of 10,000 Souls, so they had to be outstanding geniuses of their families. Their wisdom and intelligence were top class.

While they didn’t have any concrete evidence, Qin Yu’s attitude and the teacher’s actions made it easy to guess his status.

Of course, the most important point was that since their ancestors participated in the construction process of the Path of 10,000 Souls, they already knew that this city had its own will.