The orange sea horizon undulates gently. John Chou and I are still waiting, uncertain when the Eye of Time will return. I feel a vague unease about the situation outside—especially regarding 001 and 007. Even though the Heavenly Soul is guarding them, I still want to go back.
"What's wrong, Earthly Soul?"
I shook my head, staring helplessly at the sea. The breeze kept blowing against my face. For those in the world of arts, this is the best of times, and the Eternal Society is thriving too. Yet, on our side, we are facing a crisis.
"Just relax, Earthly Soul. There's no need to overthink it. Whatever is meant to happen will happen. Even if you rack your brain, you won't find a reasonable solution. Remember what I told you before?"
I nodded and looked at John Chou. His expression was no longer as heavy as before; he seemed much more at ease now. I didn't understand why he said that—at a time like this, if Luoshui and the others really succeed, then Ethan Zhang will disappear from this world forever, with no chance of return.
Now I finally understand why the instinct of coexistence exists within Rachel Lan. It's because Ethan Zhang still exists in this world. Even though he's not in this space, as long as his consciousness survives at the edge of dreams—in a place called the Mirage—his instinct will not vanish.
I had thought about this before, especially after learning from the Eternal Society that Ethan Zhang survived in the Mirage. I was always doubtful, but after meeting Rachel Lan here and knowing that Ethan Zhang's instinct still survives within her, I became certain: Ethan Zhang is still alive.
"What do you think that guy is doing now?"
I asked with a bitter smile. John Chou smiled and replied.
"Probably helping someone out!"
I smiled and nodded, but at that moment, I sensed a disturbance coming from the sea horizon. Both John Chou and I felt our expressions grow tense.
"Looks like we've got some troublemakers coming our way."
I grunted, and in an instant my eyes turned blood-red. I could clearly sense that the intruder was a revenant.
"Show yourself."
I roared and transformed into a bolt of black lightning, shooting out over the sea. My Endbringer was already aimed at a seemingly empty spot above the horizon. Suddenly, a faint blue glow appeared, and a grinning face materialized before me—it was Lance Quinn. I hadn't seen him in ages, but his presence here meant Tan Tian might have arrived too.
"Hey, Earthly Soul, I'm not here to fight. Can you move your sword? I'm not tough enough to take your abuse."
Sparks crackled as black mist billowed from my body, my anger reaching its peak. With a swipe of my Endbringer, I split Lance Quinn in two, but quickly realized he'd already escaped the area. Instantly, I expanded my domain, and black lightning crackled through the air around me.
"Come out!"
With a thunderous crash, I lunged toward Lance Quinn's position and thrust my sword, but he dodged with a look of terror, sticking out his tongue at me before quickly raising his hands.
"I surrender! I told you I'm not here to fight—I'm just a messenger. John Chou, can you put the blade down?"
John Chou pressed his mountain-cleaving blade against Lance Quinn's back. Lance flashed a sly grin at me. I despise these revenants—they have no honor, just cunning and greed.
"Don't look at me like that, Earthly Soul. I didn't want this either. We weren't involved back then—if you're angry, it shouldn't be at me!"
As Lance Quinn spoke, a group of Green Wraiths approached from behind. Lance blinked at them.
"So, they've all gathered—some real tough characters here. John Chou, looks like you might..."
"Enough talk—why are you here?"
I snarled, red lightning crackling around me. If he made a move, I'd unleash my power and destroy his body—then seize his corpse jade.
"Let me put it simply—I'm just a messenger. Our boss wants John Chou and you to come outside. He's waiting and hasn't entered yet."
My lips curled into a grin, excitement and rage trembling through me. The events in the Divine Law are still fresh in my mind—I know exactly what I must do. Fury surged to the surface.
"Want to give it a try?"
John Chou looked at me seriously. I glanced at him and nodded.
"Of course."
With a crack, a rift opened in the Shadow Realm behind John Chou. In an instant, I became a bolt of black lightning, reappearing on the sunlit sea. My eyes widened—Tan Tian hovered coldly above the water, staring straight at me. I laughed and charged at him.
"What do you want, Earthly Soul?"
With a metallic clang, Tan Tian caught my Endbringer. He looked at me calmly, but my rage was about to burst. The helplessness and resentment from that day in the Divine Law drove me to want to kill Tan Tian.
"Obviously, to kill you."
Eyes wide, I roared with fury as black lightning engulfed Tan Tian. I laughed in excitement, watching as he turned to a pulpy mess, blue smoke rising from his body. But my Endbringer was still stuck in the brownish pulp.
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"Earthly Soul, you can't kill me."
"How would I know if I don't try?"
A chill swept over me as red curse marks crawled across my body. The eight ghost souls inside me fueled my power, and my Endbringer's force surged. With a snap, the brownish pulp exploded, scattering around me before drying, hardening, blackening, and finally crumbling to dust.
Strangely, I couldn't find the corpse jade. That shocked me—I searched all around, but Tan Tian was nowhere to be seen.
"Buddha Aspect."
I heard a sound from beneath my feet—it was Tan Tian's voice. Suddenly, golden light enveloped me, crackling as my skin charred. The ghostly power inside me was being purified, and the red curse marks on my skin quickly faded.
"Return to the Endbringer."
I shouted, and instantly the eight ghost souls powering me disconnected. I stared in shock at the incredible scene in the sky—strings of Sanskrit swirled around me. But as my link to the ghost souls broke, the golden light vanished.
Tan Tian stood before me again.
"I'm not here to fight. Move aside, Earthly Soul."
I glared fiercely at Tan Tian. My ghost powers were unusable now. I hadn't expected Tan Tian to use the power of the world of arts to suppress my ghostly strength. If I tried to use it, he could purify my ghost souls and hurt me.
"When did you get that kind of power?"
"Back in the Divine Law."
My eyes widened as I charged again, Endbringer thrusting straight for Tan Tian's head.
"Beast Aspect."
In an instant, Tan Tian transformed into a snarling beast. His sharp, black claws clamped down on my Endbringer with a grating screech. I felt a wild, overwhelming force compressing my body from all sides.
"I'll say it again—I'm not here to fight. Bring out Loraine Locke."
My eyes widened, but I refused to back down. I gave a cold, mocking smile.
"Tan Tian, do you really think we can just sit down and talk at this point?"
Suddenly, the clear sky turned black with clouds. The air was thick with ghostly energy. John Chou stood behind me, mountain-cleaving blade in hand.
"Old man Tan Tian, there's no need to keep talking. You're strong, sure—but do you really think you can just walk away from all of us so easily?"
Redhair spoke coldly, anger flashing in his eyes. The sea below turned black and giant waves rose—Redhair had done something. I sensed a force of calamity, just like what I felt before the Divine Law. It was all happening again.
"If we really start fighting, it won't benefit either side—especially here in the world of the living."