Evan Chu and his three companions froze, hearts sinking. Was this some kind of cosmic joke? First step into the Netherworld and they were already in deep trouble—talk about rotten luck! Worse, they couldn't risk a head-on clash with these guards right now. All they could do was grit their teeth and watch helplessly as the soldiers strode toward them, humiliation burning in their chests.
"Who are you people? Why are you here? Judging from your faces, you must be humans—did you come from outside?" one of the guards barked, suspicion and hostility thick in his voice.
Fortunately, Evan and his group could understand the guards’ language—if they hadn’t, things would be a hundred times worse. Evan forced down his frustration and quickly said, "Brother Guard, we just came from another city and honestly don’t know the rules here. Please, can you make an exception for us?"
"Make an exception? Kid, you’re dressed to the nines—don’t tell me you don’t know the rules. There’s an entrance fee for this city. Or do you want us to come and take it from you ourselves?" The guard sneered, eyes cold.
"Of course, of course!" Evan said with a smile, then took out a high-grade Starstone from his storage ring. He wasn’t sure if Starstones could be used as the entrance fee here—this was just a test. If it didn’t work, he’d have to think of something else.
The guard stared at the Starstone in Evan’s hand, eyes wide. "What the hell is that? Never seen anything like it! Kid, you aren’t trying to pass off some worthless junk and fool me, are you?"
"You must be joking, sir! This is real treasure—overflowing with powerful energy. If you absorb it, your strength will shoot up like crazy. If you don't believe me, just try it!" Evan said, bowing his head and sounding so respectful it made Ryan Ouyang and Ethan Fenn both want to explode. Evan Chu, bowing and scraping before some random guard? The humiliation was suffocating, but there was no other choice.
When had Evan Chu ever bowed and scraped before anyone? Even knowing the Netherworld was a deathtrap, this was humiliation he could barely swallow. Ryan Ouyang and Ethan Fenn both turned away, faces burning with frustration and shame, unable to bear seeing their leader forced so low.
"Thank you, sir. If we ever get our hands on something good, we’ll make sure you get your share!" Evan said, swallowing his pride and forcing himself to sound grateful.
"Smart kid. Since you’re obviously new here and clueless about the rules, I’ll give you a tip: in Shadowlin City, there’s an inn called Joyous Arrival Inn, run by a super-strong human expert. Go stay there—you might actually get some help." the guard said, tossing the Starstones into his pocket.
Evan nodded, then entered the city with Ethan Fenn, Roxanne Lin, and Ryan Ouyang. Ryan couldn’t hold back anymore. "Evan, you really swallowed your pride back there—bowing and scraping to some gate guard? What are you thinking?" he demanded, voice full of indignation.
Roxanne Lin and Ethan Fenn also looked at Evan, hoping for an explanation. Evan snorted, "You think I wanted to? We don’t know a damn thing about this place. Every move has to be careful, every step calculated. Did you see what happened? We got what we needed. If we’d fought those four guards, we’d have tipped off the real heavyweights of Shadowlin City. You want that kind of trouble?"
Evan hadn’t expected the guy to be so reasonable—just four high-grade Starstones and they were done. But he couldn’t show a hint of relief; instead, he had to act like handing over the Starstones was tearing his heart out, every second a fresh humiliation.
"You’re right," Roxanne Lin admitted. "But not being able to read the writing here is our biggest headache. We need to find the Joyous Arrival Inn fast. None of us are veiled—we stick out like sore thumbs. If we don’t hurry, someone’s bound to notice."
"Now that we're in the Netherworld, we have to treat every step like walking a razor's edge. We talk things over before acting—no rushing in, no reckless moves! Once we understand the lay of the land, every scrap of humiliation and bitterness we've swallowed today will be paid back a hundredfold! But now isn't the time. Do you really think I'm some soft persimmon anyone can squeeze?" Evan said, his eyes flashing with defiance.
The four hurried on. The Netherworld’s buildings looked like those in the Azure Tide Ruins—maybe the whole world was similar. But there was one thing that set this place apart: no sunlight, no stars, no moon, no night, no day—just endless dark-red sky. Evan wondered if people here ever slept, and if so, how they even told time.
They passed building after building, all with signboards covered in strange writing none of them could read. They searched for what felt like forever, but the Joyous Arrival Inn was nowhere to be found. Disappointment gnawed at them, frustration mounting.
"Evan, do you think that guard was messing with us? We’ve been walking forever and there’s still no sign of the Joyous Arrival Inn!" Roxanne Lin said, voice tinged with doubt and exhaustion.
"This city is massive—almost as big as the imperial capital of the Heavenly Dragon Empire, maybe even bigger. We haven’t even crossed half this street yet, so it’s no wonder we haven’t found it. Let’s keep moving," Evan said, refusing to let doubt creep in.
Roxanne Lin, Ethan Fenn, and Ryan Ouyang all agreed with Evan, so they pressed on. After a while, they finally spotted a few shop signs with writing they could actually read. The moment they saw it, relief flooded through them—they couldn’t help grinning.
Evan stopped in front of a general store, where a middle-aged man was quietly watching him. Evan straightened up, forced a polite smile, and asked, "Excuse me, sir—could you tell me the way to the Joyous Arrival Inn?" (To be continued.)
Roxanne Lin and the Soaring Feather Young Lord also looked at Evan, hoping he’d explain. "You think I wanted to? We know absolutely nothing about this place, so we have to tread carefully. The point is, we got what we needed. If we’d argued with those four guards, we might’ve alerted the real powerhouses of Linsha City.
I’m strong, sure, but the people here are definitely no pushovers. Just look at those gate guards—the weakest was at least seventh-layer Divine Martial Realm. I don’t want to be hunted across the Netherworld the second we arrive."
"You’ve got a point," Roxanne conceded. "But not being able to read the script here is our biggest problem. We should hurry up and find the Joyous Arrival Inn. None of us are veiled, so we’re way too conspicuous—someone’s bound to notice."
"Now that we’re here, we have to be careful about everything. Talk things through before acting—never be reckless. Once we figure out how things work here, every bit of humiliation we’ve swallowed will be paid back in full. But now’s not the time. You really think I’m some pushover who’ll let anyone walk all over me?" Evan declared.
The four of them quickly headed onward. The Netherworld’s buildings were much like those in the Azure Tide Ruins—in fact, the whole Netherworld was pretty similar. The only real difference was the sky: no sunlight, no stars or moon, no night or day, just a constant dark-red glow. Evan wondered if people here ever slept, and if so, how they kept track of time.
Along the way, they saw plenty of buildings with writing on them, but none of the four could read the script. After searching for ages, they still hadn’t found the Joyous Arrival Inn, and couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed.
"Evan, you think that guard was messing with us? We’ve been walking forever and there’s no sign of this Joyous Arrival Inn," Roxanne said.
"This city is huge—almost as big as the imperial capital of the Heavenly Dragon Empire, maybe even bigger. We haven’t even crossed half the street yet, so of course we haven’t found it. Let’s keep going," Evan said.
Roxanne and the others agreed, so they kept moving. After a while, they finally spotted some shop signs written in characters they could recognize, which made them all very happy.
Evan stopped in front of a general store, where a middle-aged man was quietly watching him. Evan politely asked, "Excuse me, sir—could you tell me how to get to the Joyous Arrival Inn?" (To be continued.)