Volume One: A Youthful Encounter in Humble Times Chapter 132: The Daoist’s Final Performance in the Mortal Realm

The question, however, remains: why is the Abyssal Return here?

The Realm of the Dead has not existed as long as the Realm of the Living, but due to the differing laws governing the two, the former can extend into places unreachable by the latter, and naturally, it possesses a deeper store of knowledge.

From her soul, the old woman recalled fragments of lore regarding the Abyssal Return. Ancient texts record: "East of the Bo Sea, at an unknown distance of hundreds of millions of miles, lies a vast chasm. It is a bottomless valley, known as the Abyssal Return. The waters of the eight wildernesses and the nine fields, along with the currents of the Heavenly River, all pour into it, yet it neither increases nor diminishes." Taken literally, it is the gathering place of all the world's waters, the final destination for every sea.

Yet, this is merely a superficial manifestation. The existence of the Abyssal Return represents the Way of the Return—the ultimate end for all things under heaven, including the dissolution of the Great Dao itself.

If this Nether Sea were truly the Abyssal Return, would that not imply it originates from a far more mysterious and unfathomable place? And if so, the Nether Beast itself must have a profound history.

The old woman had not failed to consider that the Nether Beast’s origins might be extraordinary, but she had never dared to link it to the place where all things are created and ultimately extinguished. Any connection to such a site would imply a power beyond the reach of ordinary beings.

At this thought, the old woman felt the urge to retreat. But she could not. Bound by the knowledge that her true self in the Realm of the Dead awaited the beast’s arrival, she gritted her teeth and sought a way forward.

Having dissolved into Nether-Chaos Qi within the vortex, the Nether Beast had lost all sense of its surroundings. It remained unaware that others were already plotting to claim it.

The old woman gazed into the swirling abyss, her mind racing. She attempted numerous methods, even trying to permeate the depths with the Great Dao of the Dead, hoping for a miracle. As she had feared, her efforts were swallowed whole, leaving nothing behind.

Realizing that her current strength was insufficient to uncover the secrets within, she focused her mind to contact her true self in the Realm of the Dead, reporting the situation exactly as it stood.

Upon receiving the news, the true entity in the Realm of the Dead was momentarily stunned. She had never imagined that the Abyssal Return was located within the Nether Sea—the very place described in the ancient texts as the Bo Sea.

Nevertheless, she had to secure the Nether Beast; this was her best chance.

Heaven knows how long she had coveted the Nether Dao of the beast. Ever since she discovered that the creature in Tianmen Town possessed a Dao compatible with her own, she had spent years weaving her schemes. Now that the perfect opportunity had arrived, how could she let it slip away?

But how to contend with the Abyssal Return? That was indeed a formidable dilemma.

After much deliberation, she decided to stake everything on one final gamble. She retrieved a treasure she had obtained long ago and activated it. Utilizing the connection between their souls, she forcibly tore through the barriers of time and space to transmit it to her avatar.

She knew this act would likely draw the attention of other great powers, potentially exposing her intentions, but she had no other choice.

In weighing the lesser of two evils and the greater of two boons, she concluded that the risk was worth taking. If successful, she could transcend the Realm of the Dead, ascend to the Realm of the Living, and master its Great Dao. She might even achieve the legendary state where life and death become one.

The treasure she held so dear appeared to be nothing more than a piece of bone, yet its transmission caused a violent tremor across the fabric of space and time.

At the boundary between the two realms stood a stone gate. Before it sat a woman in white sacrificial robes, her appearance elegant and ethereal, radiating a cold detachment that warned others to stay away. Sensing the unusual fluctuations emanating from behind the gate, she opened her eyes slightly, cast a indifferent glance, and remarked, "The people of the Realm of the Dead are truly relentless."

With that, she wove a complex seal and struck it against the stone gate. The gate shuddered, radiating a powerful force in all directions that firmly locked the entire Realm of the Dead.

The old woman felt her transmission interrupted and suffered internal injuries. Yet, she felt a sense of relief—her most vital treasure had already passed through. Her injuries were a small price to pay.

Still, she was astonished. "Only a few hundred years have passed; has the Boundary Warden’s cultivation advanced once more?"

On the other side, as the old woman at the vortex received the bone sent by her true self, she recognized its origin. She murmured, "To bring this out... the price she paid must have been immense."

She then forced the bone into the crown of her head, chanting, "Life born beyond the Dao, ghost bone sharing one fate, merging in contract, becoming one." Finally, she shouted, "Coalesce!"

The mysterious bone fused with her. Instantly, her aura surged, climbing until, in a mere moment, she reached the Dao Origin Realm—the very level at which the Daoist had wreaked havoc earlier that day.

With this done, she dove into the vortex. The Abyssal Return attempted to consume her, but the mysterious bone repelled the encroaching forces of the Return.

The old woman descended deeper and deeper until she reached the Nether Beast. The creature was slowly beginning to reform its body; under the influence of the Abyssal Return, most of the bone nails that had pinned it were removed, leaving only three, which allowed it to regain a sliver of consciousness and form.

Sensing the pressure from above, the beast felt an intensity far greater than what the Daoist had exerted. Although the Daoist had reached the Dao Origin Realm, he had not ascended; he was not a true immortal. Yet, the pressure the beast now sensed was the undeniable power of an immortal.

Could it be that an immortal had truly come to the human world?

The Nether Beast did not know that this situation was caused by a single, small bone.

That bone was none other than the remains of an immortal, obtained by the old woman years ago. While there might be many immortals in the heavens, none had ascended from the human realm for ages, making such remains a priceless treasure.

Beyond the profound Dao contained within, the sheer power stored in the bone was extraordinary. Even a small fragment, a jade bone reborn through the fires of an immortal tribulation, was more than enough to withstand the Abyssal Return.

And indeed, it was. Fused with the immortal bone, the old woman resisted the encroachment of the Abyssal Return and successfully descended to the side of the Nether Beast.

The shock felt by the Nether Beast was earth-shattering. It had not expected her to find a way to enter the Abyssal Return.

Using its spiritual sense, it communicated, "You are but a fragment of a soul. Even with this newfound strength, why waste your potential and cultivation for another’s ambition?"

The old woman looked at the beast, her eyes flickering. She sneered, "I thought a divine beast of your stature would be arrogant and lofty. It seems that when faced with life and death, even a divine beast is not above groveling and begging."

The Nether Beast, forced to bow under the current circumstances, would have devoured her instantly had it been in its prime. Yet, it struggled to maintain the last shreds of its dignity. Proudly, it retorted, "Say what you will, but you must admit I speak the truth. You have the capital to strike out on your own; why act as a mere servant for another?"

The old woman shook her head. "I know you speak only to stall for time, but I do not mind granting you a moment." She continued, "You are right. With this immortal bone, I possess the peak of combat power in both the human realm and the realms of life and death. I am even under the jurisdiction of the Realm of the Living now, bridging the divide between life and death. But my soul is still held in her hand. It is not that I do not wish to flee; it is that I have no choice."

She looked at the Nether Beast with a touch of pity. "Just like you—you have no choice either."

She then launched her attack. The Nether Beast exerted all its focus to evade, but as it had not fully recovered, its form remained incomplete, with those parts still bitten by the bone nails left at the bottom of the vortex to mend.

The beast's form was far from solid; a close look revealed the veins and mysterious runes within its body.

As the Nether Dao clashed with the supernatural arts of the Ghost Clan, the entire Abyssal Return began to shake. One was a divine beast likely from the Immortal Realm, the other a member of the Ghost Clan wielding immortal remains. Their conflict was far more than a simple collision of energy.

In the end, the old woman proved the more skilled. Using the Ghost Clan’s arts of Deathly Stillness and Soul-Snatching, she tightly constricted the beast, forcing it to exhaust its Nether Dao in a desperate defense.

The beast knew that if this continued, it would not be long before it was dragged away.

Even with its innate gifts, once its fatal weakness was exposed, the beast faced mortal peril. At this moment, the timing and the methods used were perfectly calculated to suppress it. For the first time, it felt the crisis of death with overwhelming intensity.

Just as it began to succumb to despair, a clear, hearty laugh echoed from above the vortex. "Do you see now? Even without me, you are not invincible in the human world."

Had the beast heard this voice before, it would have found it grating, but now, it sounded like a heavenly melody.

The Nether Beast cried out in desperate hope, "Master, save me!"