Slaughter gazed at me in silence. After a long moment, I stood up. He had been urging me repeatedly, telling me to remember something. I had to recall what he hinted at, because something crucial was hidden within.
So Slaughter kept pressing me, telling me to hurry and remember.
"Once you remember everything, you'll understand."
I sat quietly on the ground, knowing I had to examine the missing pieces of my memory.
After a while, I entered my instinctual space. Oddly, my Seven Ghost Souls were gone—I couldn't even sense their presence.
"What's so strange about that? The Ghost Souls are a key part of constructing the ghost domain. With that powerful explosion just now, they, like your ghost domain, have simply returned to nothingness for now. Once your Ghost Souls fully recover, they'll return."
I glanced at my shadow.
"Do you know something too?"
"See for yourself. The timing is perfect—just as John Chou planned."
I swallowed. A white mist appeared above, and I slowly floated upward. Images from my memories began to surface. I followed the memories and started to watch.
I don't know how much time passed. I swallowed and came to a stop in front of a blood-red fragment of memory—this was the missing piece from before.
"Is this the place?"
My shadow shoved me and burst out laughing.
"Wait, John Chou."
There was a sharp snap.
I saw myself blocking John Chou's hand as he reached for my forehead, staring at him in confusion.
In that instant, I remembered. That night, before heading into Hades Village, John Chou lifted the King of Hell's Token from me. The red light that appeared then, and the gentle voice—it was Lord Tai Shan of the Seventh Tribunal.
"What's wrong, brother? It's for your own good. With your current strength, if you knew too much, you'd easily leak secrets."
I pouted, feeling a surge of resentment.
"At least tell me what it is before erasing my memory. It's always like this—keeping me in the dark."
John Chou patted my shoulder.
"They say the less you know, the less you worry. Isn't that right, brother?"
In the red glow nearby, a crimson figure emerged—the Equality King, ruler of the Abyssal Hell. John Chou and the other seven had all been imprisoned there, in what is known as the Abyssal Hell.
"You just said you wanted to borrow the Abyssal Treasure Mirror from the Lord of the Ninth Tribunal. What was that about?"
John Chou gave a wicked smile and glanced at the Equality King.
"What do you think, Old Lu? Should we tell Ethan Zhang?"
I looked at the Equality King, thoroughly annoyed, treating John Chou like a child.
"Tell him, John Chou. This is too important. The monster you raised is yours to handle, and it's about to wake up."
John Chou flashed a mysterious smile at me.
"Brother, let me put it this way: That little cat has been acting up lately, doing a lot behind the scenes. When we go to Hades Village, he'll definitely follow us. I'll find a chance to test him, and if he hasn't changed his mind, I'll deal with him myself."
I gasped, eyes wide, staring at John Chou.
"Wasn't Grandpa Cat the one you saved? You taught him so much—why?"
"People change, Ethan Zhang. So many years have passed, and that little cat has become a real monster."
I stared at the Equality King in shock, completely lost as to what was going on.
"The last time I saw that little cat—even if it was just for a moment—I could feel it. He wants to kill me."
"No way. Grandpa Cat helped you so many times, and even helped me."
I immediately retorted, but John Chou just shook his head.
"I know exactly why he wants to kill me, but you don't need to know. Brother, I just want to borrow your body for a while."
I raised both hands, looking at John Chou in bewilderment.
"What do you want to do?"
Suddenly, a blinding red light pierced my eyes. I turned my head and saw a massive bronze mirror, nearly a meter long, slowly floating out. Its frame was pitch black, decorated like interwoven clouds. The surface was a dull yellow, perfectly smooth, but it reflected nothing. John Chou gripped the mirror in one hand.
"Here, brother—take it. Point it at me."
I hesitantly took the Abyssal Treasure Mirror from John Chou and stood it upright, aiming it at him. John Chou knelt on one knee, his right hand pressed flat against the left side of his chest.
"This is my Verity Incantation, brother. Remember it well—if you ever need to unlock everything, this is what you'll need. I'll find a way to create the opportunity for you to use this incantation. As for you, only you can bear my Bloodbane Power..."
In an instant, my eyes widened as a rumbling sound echoed through my mind.
"I—Hungry Ghost—Hell—Beast—Sanzu Crossing—Sixfold Journey—Born in slaughter, thus committing countless sins. No hope in past lives, only dust in future ones. Alas, the heavenly way has fallen, the ghost way runs rampant, mortals dream on, gods and Buddhas abandon us... Since the day I perished, I feed on ghosts, delight in humans, roam the three paths, slaughter, blood, sever..."
Suddenly, red blood began to flow from John Chou's body as if pouring out underwater.
"Sanzu... open..."
A sizzling sound filled the air. Six blood-red characters—Hungry Ghost, Hell, Beast—appeared above his head.
With a crack, a black chain suddenly appeared behind John Chou, binding him. Then a black beast—part dog, part lion—bit into his body. Above his back, a white ghost with two horns, a blue face, and fangs pressed its hands onto his shoulders, wailing.
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I had seen this scene before. Suddenly, the bronze mirror in my hands began to tremble. With a whoosh, the three entities binding John Chou and the six blood-red characters above his head were all sucked into the mirror, sinking into its surface. John Chou collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.
"It's done, brother. The Blade, Blood, and Fire—the three things that sealed me, all from the Sanzu, are now inside the Abyssal Treasure Mirror. Only this mirror is strong enough to suppress them."
As John Chou spoke, he pressed a hand onto me. With a squeeze and a burst of red light, I cried out as the entire mirror sank into my body.
"What are you doing?"
I hurriedly pushed him away and checked my body, but nothing seemed different.
"Brother, whenever you need these things, just recite my Verity Incantation and they'll appear. The Abyssal Treasure Mirror can only temporarily suppress the power of Blade, Blood, and Fire. Your instincts aren't complete yet, and your Ghost Domain hasn't awakened, so you can't fully control them. But once your instincts and Ghost Domain are complete, you'll be able to master all three. When it's time to break through the Sanzu, I'll need your help, brother."
A hand landed on my shoulder. I quietly watched John Chou. What he said was so unbelievable, I couldn't make sense of it at all.
"You don't need to understand now. Just keep this memory, brother—my Verity Incantation."
I nodded. Though I didn't understand what John Chou was planning, it was the first time I'd seen him so sincere.
"Can you tell me, John Chou? What are you really planning to do?"
John Chou smiled gently. I blinked, utterly surprised.
"To destroy the Abyssal Pit, I must rely on my Bloodbane Power. Only then can it be completely destroyed."
A hand pressed against my forehead.
The memory broke off here. I woke up, looking at my shadow. In that instant, I understood everything John Chou had said.
John Chou sealed his power—Bloodbane Power—which is why he's so weak. So that's how it is... heh...
A wave of desolation rose from deep within me. I clenched my fist. My shadow placed a hand on my shoulder.
He knew he'd be killed by that damned cat, and yet he went anyway—to create the chance to destroy the Abyssal Pit.
The Blade, Blood, and Fire seals kept rejecting John Chou, so his Bloodbane Power couldn't be released. Sometimes a little leaked out, but now it's different. Those three seals are now stored in the Abyssal Treasure Mirror, inside my body—I can control them, I can feel them.
The moment this memory returned, I felt it. I stretched out my hand, a red glow appeared, and the Abyssal Treasure Mirror materialized before me.
"Go on, Ethan Zhang. Those people have almost found your location."
I nodded and slowly dissolved into black particles, disappearing from the instinct space.
As soon as I woke, I sensed a crowd of Nether Syndicate Operatives gathering outside my room. They had locked onto my location and set up all sorts of spells.
Step by step, I walked over and opened the door. With a crash, I nearly lost consciousness as a club struck the back of my neck, and I collapsed to the ground.
I was back in the Nether Pit, surrounded by hundreds of Nether Syndicate Operatives. The sky was black, the ground covered in silvery-white sand. I saw Long Kun walking toward me.
"You're out of options now, Ethan Zhang."
I stood up, quietly looking around, and smiled.
"Yeah, I'm out of options..."
I lifted my head, paused, then continued.
"Want to know? Want to hear John Chou's Verity Incantation? Let me tell you."