I quietly watched The Undertaker. His face was tense, and he kept glancing over his shoulder, as if afraid of something. At that moment, I noticed that the distant black humanoid figures were gathering once again.
And they began moving toward us. Suddenly, Future Ethan Zhang raised the Phantom Greatsword, crouched, and swung it in a powerful arc. Instantly, a violent black vortex erupted in the distance, shredding the surrounding black figures and the stones that had clustered together.
The Undertaker’s face relaxed a little. He sighed, then quietly watched Future Ethan Zhang.
"You seem to know a lot about these things."
"Because I personally destroyed the Shattered Unreal Realm of the future."
I stared at Future Ethan Zhang in astonishment, while The Undertaker’s face showed disbelief—but he quickly nodded.
"So that’s it. No wonder the Unreal is collapsing—it’s because the future part has already been destroyed."
But what concerns us most now is the matter of the Dark Seed. According to The Undertaker, to endlessly supply darkness that shields and protects the world of yin and yang, the Dark Seed must absorb darkness from the living world. As the number of ghosts increased, they adopted human methods. But then, the power of Buddhism and Taoism began to descend into the darkness, and this darkness encountered new problems.
"So what exactly are you doing now?"
I asked, troubled by this question. The sentient weapons in the Twin Emperors’ Domains—Future Ethan Zhang had mentioned them to me before—those weapons forged in darkness and now possessing self-awareness are the greatest threat to this darkness. After the Founding Emperors entered the darkness, the will of darkness could no longer affect them, so they began to reshape that darkness to some extent.
At that time, seven Ghost Lords appeared, taking control of the ghostly realm within the living world. All power converged upon the seven ghost domains they ruled. Because of this, people born from the Dark Seeds were often devoured by malevolent spirits—their bodies and substitute souls were imbued with darkness, making them the perfect food for most ghosts.
With Dark Seeds in the living world unable to draw power to sustain the darkness—and compounded by the influence of Buddhism and Taoism—the will of darkness began to fade. To ensure the survival of this dark realm, the Dark Banquet was convened.
Many people in the living world, their souls tainted by negative forces in the womb or corrupted during reincarnation due to problems with the Sixfold Cycle, were born inherently dark. These people carried darkness from birth.
Those born to darkness could, thanks to the will of darkness and the soul technology developed by the Dark Banquet, enter this realm directly from the living world. Not only were they unaffected by the dark power—they continuously released darkness, providing strength to this place.
Many of these people came from the arts and sorcery world—they were indispensable to the darkness. Thus, the three founders of the Dark Banquet absorbed them into its ranks. That’s why we saw those bizarre figures dwelling in the darkness when we arrived.
Some ordinary people, lacking any concept of time in the darkness, gained immortality. Gradually, their bodies were completely eroded by the power of darkness, and they lived as perpetual sources of dark energy. The ring-shaped city was built for this very reason.
Now, the two most troublesome issues—the Ghost Ancestor and the Buddhism and Taoism problem—have been resolved. All that remains is to find the shadow side of Li Er. His shadow side has always lived in the world of shadows, which is why we partnered with that world. Our ultimate goal is to find Li Er’s shadow side, but that world is vast and impossible to search thoroughly. Unexpectedly, after Ethan Zhang entered that world, he found Li Er—perhaps fate itself guided him.
I swallowed and quietly watched the Undertaker. He stood up and sighed helplessly.
"We must find Li Er. If we do, he can provide immense power to this darkness, since he himself was once a person formed by a Dark Seed. Through self-cultivation, he gained extraordinary strength. His shadow side was completely purged by his own power, but to possess great light, one must also have shadow as contrast. Thus, Li Er’s shadow side remains powerful."
I responded with a hum, then asked.
"So what exactly do you want me to do?"
The Undertaker looked at me, then spoke.
"It’s only a hypothesis, but after you saw that sudden darkness in the Infinite Cycle, we speculated that Li Er’s shadow side might also be within that endless cycle. Your task is to find him, because only he might have the power to do what’s needed."
I hummed in response. There was nothing else I could do. If I found Li Er’s shadow side, maybe I really could awaken my own shadow side, so that the yin and yang within my soul could finally coexist in balance.
"No time to waste. You should go back now. I’ll take care of bringing this little girl back to the Dark Place. The rest is up to you, Rachel Lan."
Past Ethan Zhang smiled and stood up, quietly watching from the edge.
"Whenever you’re ready, we can go. Rachel Lan, I’ve already found the path back to that cycle."
As I stood up, Sylvia Blue woke up as well.
"You’re leaving already? So soon? Why not stay for a meal before you go?"
"Sylvia, things are urgent right now."
Future Ethan Zhang said, and Sylvia responded with an 'Oh.' I stepped next to Past Ethan Zhang, quietly waiting as he used his power to send us back into that cycle.
"You go first. I’ll be right behind you."
Future Ethan Zhang spoke as Past Ethan Zhang put his arm around my waist.
"Be careful. It’s time to go."
I hummed in response, feeling a warmth spread through me. In an instant, Past Ethan Zhang pulled me downwards; we fell rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, a massive rift opened before me, surrounded by blinding white light. The force swept away all obstacles, and Past Ethan Zhang and I plunged into the darkness. I felt the world spinning; when I opened my eyes again, I was standing alone in the woods atop the mountain near the small village.
"I’m back again."
I stretched, smiling. Everything was clear in my mind now. All I had to do next was find a way to lead the Infinite Cycle out of that endless loop.
"You’re leaving already? So soon? Why not stay for a meal before you go?"
"Sylvia, things are urgent right now."
Future Ethan Zhang said, and Sylvia responded with an 'Oh.' I stepped next to Past Ethan Zhang, quietly waiting as he used his power to send us back into that cycle.
"You go first. I’ll be right behind you."
Future Ethan Zhang spoke as Past Ethan Zhang put his arm around my waist.
"Be careful. It’s time to go."
I hummed in response, feeling a warmth spread through me. In an instant, Past Ethan Zhang pulled me downwards; we fell rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, a massive rift opened before me, surrounded by blinding white light. The force swept away all obstacles, and Past Ethan Zhang and I plunged into the darkness. I felt the world spinning; when I opened my eyes again, I was standing alone in the woods atop the mountain near the small village.
"I’m back again."
I stretched, smiling. Everything was clear in my mind now. All I had to do next was find a way to lead the Infinite Cycle out of that endless loop.