It was already midnight. We had finished setting up our sleeping bags and tents. I watched as John Chou continued chatting and laughing with Old Man Naylor from the Nether Syndicate, as if they had endless things to talk about.
After a short while, John Chou and Yuna Ji walked over, one after the other, both smiling as they looked at me.
"Brother, we'll head out first." I responded with an 'oh', and it seemed Samantha Simons intended to go with them as well. After all, they were ghosts, so I didn't think much of it. The three ghosts spoke among themselves, and I watched as they flew toward the gap between the two mountain peaks. That appeared to be the entrance to the Ten Tribunal Road.
Checking the time, it was already past eleven. At that moment, I saw Old Man Naylor beckoning to me with a kindly expression. I smiled and walked over.
"Grandpa, do you need something from me?"
"Ethan, just call me Grandpa Cat. You know, I always feel there's a special connection between us."
I nodded. Maybe, deep down, I felt the same way. I sat down beside Grandpa Cat. He must be several hundred years old, but looked only about sixty, with rosy skin and white hair, yet full of vitality.
"Ah, when I was born, I was unlucky. I happened to be born on a day that didn't exist, so I lived a bit longer than most people. Hehe, as the saying goes, cats have nine lives, don't they?"
I was especially curious about Grandpa Cat, and particularly about the Nether Syndicate—such a mysterious, yet widely renowned sect. Among the Spirit Realm, many ghosts resent them.
But Grandpa Cat beside me was different. From him, I couldn't sense the fierce aura like that of Damian Chen or his senior sister. That kind of spirit—slaying resolve and conviction—was what drove them onward.
"Ethan, many years ago, I also wondered why humans and ghosts can't coexist. But I never found an answer—not even now."
I nodded seriously. It felt like this was something I'd been searching for all along—coexistence.
"The year I was born, my parents abandoned me. Heh."
My heart skipped a beat as I looked at Grandpa Cat. Every time we talked, it felt like he was telling me a story, and I felt calm and content inside.
"That year, there was a blood rain. My cruel parents threw me away because when I was born, I looked like a kitten—a freak."
I couldn't help but swallow as I looked at Grandpa Cat.
"But you know, I really am human—genuine, through and through. Luckily, a passing hunter found me and took me in, so I survived."
At that moment, I recalled that when I was in the Corpse Realm, Tantan also mentioned that nonexistent time.
"Grandpa Cat, what exactly is that nonexistent day?"
Grandpa Cat stretched out his hand, pointing at the wide gap between the two mountain peaks, and began to explain.
Originally, this world was divided into the Yang side and the Yin side—two poles that complement each other. The Yang side is the human world, built by the living, while the Yin side is the realm of the dead, formed by souls after death. The flow between Yin and Yang is a continuous cycle.
When a person dies, they become a soul, reincarnate, and become human again—an endless cycle. However, during the alternation of Yin and Yang, for various reasons, some souls become wandering ghosts, failing to reincarnate and lingering in the human world. This disrupts the cycle and causes certain problems.
An imbalance forms between the Yin and Yang sides, and the resulting mixed area is called the Yin-Yang Realm. I thought carefully about it; I had visited it before.
"The Yin-Yang Realm appears during the alternation of Yin and Yang, much like the changing of day and night. When the mixed energy accumulates to a certain day, it overshadows both Yin and Yang. Thus, in the human world, a nonexistent day appears. The power isn't as strong as it once was, but when I was born, it was at its peak. That's why I was born during that nonexistent time."
I nodded, half-understanding. Grandpa Cat kept pointing at the gap in the mountain peaks as he spoke.
"Over there, the Ten Judges of Hell created a path to channel underworld power and protect those born of Huangquan. It's another road between the human world and the underworld, extending deep into the Ninefold Abyss of Huangquan. The power within flows through this path to the human world, shielding every Hades Circle Born."
As Grandpa Cat spoke, he stood up and walked toward the gap between the two mountain peaks, motioning for me to follow.
"Ethan, look."
After we walked over, Grandpa Cat raised his Cat-Headed Cane and pointed at the pitch-black area ahead. I looked, but could see nothing.
"Can you sense anything, Ethan?"
I shook my head. Besides the fierce mountain wind blowing through the gap, I could hardly feel anything. The wind here was so strong that just standing there, I felt like I might be blown away. I couldn't help but raise my hand, but when I looked at Grandpa Cat standing in front of the gap, he seemed completely unaffected. I stared at him in surprise.
My clothes were plastered to my skin by the mountain wind, but Grandpa Cat's white shirt didn't move at all, as if there was an invisible wall in front of him.
"Ethan, try turning into a ghost."
I let out a sound of surprise, remembering what John Chou had said: on the Ten Tribunal Road, you can't use your powers, or you'll be in serious trouble.
"It's fine. We're still outside the road."
I nodded, then slowly let my baleful energy seep out, transforming myself into a ghostly form. Instantly, I felt a surge of powerful Yin energy as gusts of cold wind blew through the gap. I couldn't help but shiver.
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Wailing sounds came in waves. I stared in shock as countless white, ghost-like figures with no lower bodies drifted in the wind, sobbing and howling.
The sound was so mournful that it made my scalp tingle.
"What are those?"
"Oh, those are just spirit forms, not souls. They're fragments separated from people's souls, lingering here on the Ten Tribunal Road."
I stared in shock at these entities, unable to help myself from releasing my ghost web. Suddenly, at the entrance of the Ten Tribunal Road, a fierce red light flared, followed by a series of cracking sounds. I saw red chains flying out toward me.
"Step back, Ethan."
Grandpa Cat spoke, raising his cane. Instantly, he floated into the air and approached the red chains. He simply tapped them lightly with his Cat-Headed Cane, and with a crisp sound, the chains turned into red dust and vanished.
"Ethan, never use any powers near this road. Otherwise, the power of the Ten Judges of Hell is no joke."
I quickly withdrew my ghost web and stared blankly ahead. The road was filled with those white spirit forms, all lacking lower bodies, drifting in great numbers along the Ten Tribunal Road.
"These are born from the power of the Ninefold Abyss. Usually, when someone's soul is scattered, what's left goes to the Ninefold Abyss. Even ghosts, after their souls disperse and die, don't completely vanish, but become these spirit forms and journey to the Ninefold Abyss. The Hades Circle Born rely on these spirit forms to survive until they complete their mission."
I nodded, and Grandpa Cat continued explaining.
"Since ancient times, when humans or ghosts die completely, part of their being forms the Ninefold Abyss. As the saying goes, 'beneath the abyss lies Huangquan.' The benefit of these spirit forms is that they allow damaged bodies to recover quickly—even if your head is chopped off, there's a way to restore it."
I stared in disbelief at these wailing, white figures. They looked as if they were in great pain.
"Ethan, go get some sleep. It's late, and I have to get going too. Remember, when you pass through this road tomorrow, don't use any powers. If you don't want to see them, walk through as a human."
Grandpa Cat spoke, raised his cane, and stepped through the gap, disappearing into the darkness.
I stared at the white spirit forms, watching them gather at the front of the gap, as if trying to come out. Suddenly, one of them swelled up, its face like a white mask contorted in pain, and with a pop, it exploded.
Startled, I saw the white spirit forms gathering just beyond the entrance to the Ten Tribunal Road, as if trying to break free. For some reason, I felt they weren't just simple spirit forms.
After passing through Huangquan Road and being cleansed by resentment, I've become extremely sensitive to negative emotions like hatred and sorrow. My ghost web had just entered the Ten Tribunal Road, which is why those red chains appeared.
For a moment, my mind was flooded with sadness, anger, and resentment. Then, I noticed the white spirit forms lining up, their hollow eyes staring at me.
I wasn't mistaken—they were looking at me. Unable to resist, I walked step by step toward them. Then, a few more white spirit forms exploded and vanished. Standing at the gap, the fierce mountain wind nearly knocked me over as I stared at them intently.
"Do you have something you want to say?"