A stroke moved across the paper.
The aura of life and death coursed at the tip of the brush. As it moved, black and gray, red and white alternated between the strokes.
The Eccentric Painter was intensely focused, applying her very life to the scroll.
From Yu Nü, she had already learned that the Blood-Robed Sword God was no ordinary figure.
Yu Nü was also aware of what she was doing for the Blood-Robed Sword God.
Yu Nü had told her to do a good job and remarked that the Blood-Robed Sword God was likely refining a Dharma treasure related to the Yin Realm.
Yet from her conversations with Qi Qi and those Netherworld mighty figures, the Eccentric Painter could clearly sense the Blood-Robed Sword God's ambition.
It was by no means merely refining a Dharma treasure.
He truly intended to assemble the mythological Netherworld.
When Yu Nü first heard of this, she had chuckled helplessly.
"As for a true Netherworld, even those in the realm of Great Ultimate Reason dare not claim they can reach it. It is nothing more than a legend."
After all, a Yang God Heavenly Venerable in the realm of Great Ultimate Reason typically mastered only a single Great Ultimate Reason.
Yet to construct a Netherworld, the Great Ultimate Reasons required were far more than just one.
Life, death, yin, yang, samsara... and so on—the Great Ultimate Reasons required were simply too numerous.
In all likelihood, even gathering all the Ultimate Reason Heavenly Venerables of the Nine Heavens would not suffice to build the Netherworld.
The Eccentric Painter did not know that much, but she understood that Qi Yuan was not merely talking.
The Mountain and River Sheji Brush in her hand trembled at this moment.
Suddenly, from the painted scene ahead where her brush fell amidst the gloom, the sweet voice of a little girl seemed to echo.
"The Ghost Gate, nine out of ten never return."
"The Ghost Gate, yin and yang inverted, life and death disordered, when Granny comes, she fears no chill."
The Eccentric Painter's expression shifted slightly. On the Ghost Gate she had painted, hazy and indistinct, numerous phantoms appeared.
They chanted nursery rhymes in voices innocent and pure, yet profoundly eerie and terrifying.
A chilling thrill and dread slowly crept up her spine. For some reason, the Eccentric Painter felt as though all the eyes of those little girls among the phantoms that abruptly emerged in the painting were fixed upon her.
Even though some were walking, some were looking at the sky, and some were sleeping, everyone's eyes were staring straight at her.
Right then, a voice resounded like thunder, sacred and majestic.
"Ghost Gate, take form!"
The speaker, naturally, was Qi Yuan.
He stood within the Gate of Myriad Manifestations, looking down upon this realm.
At his words, the Ghost Gate painted by the Eccentric Painter materialized into reality at that very moment.
Those strange beings resembling little children finally turned their gazes away, stealthily looking toward the towering, boundless being high in the heavens.
The Eccentric Painter's expression tightened. Looking at the lifelike Ghost Gate—no, it *was* the Ghost Gate—her heart was shaken to the core.
She could not comprehend at all how she had truly managed to manifest it into the world.
With an impassive expression, she continued to paint.
The Mountain and Sea Sheji Brush glided through her fingers as scene after scene came to life.
Countless gloomy auras and invisible entities surged madly into the Netherworld at this moment.
Seated within the Netherworld, Qi Yuan squinted, yet could see nothing.
"Has a guest arrived at my home?"
The guests before him, however, were unknowable.
The other Yang God Heavenly Venerables squinted, and Qi Qi seemed to sense something as well, yet could see nothing at all.
"Ee-ya... ah... nve!"
"Ha... ceng... ya..."
Qi Yuan listened intently. With his ears that could hear the sounds of the world, he finally caught a few chaotic, disordered noises.
These sounds were either shrill and thin, or like ghostly wails and wolf howls.
He also heard crackling noises, like maple twigs burning, sending sparks flying.
Amidst some whimpering, he even caught the sound of joss paper burning.
Qi Yuan was surprised. "Unclean things have come to my home?"
Qi Qi stood beside Qi Yuan, her eyes sharp as divine blades as she looked toward the Netherworld.
"What petty scoundrels dare make mischief here!"
The majesty and mystery belonging to Sovereign Earth Empress Houtu swept out at this moment.
The Netherworld within the Mountains and Seas Picture Scroll convulsed and was cleansed.
Even those unclean things seemed to realize Houtu's immense might at this moment, along with what she represented.
"...Ka... beg..."
Those unclean things no longer babbled nonsensically; they converged into a single sound, seemingly trying to communicate with Qi Yuan and Qi Qi.
However, whether separated by time or space, nothing coherent could be heard.
Qi Yuan looked calm, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness. "It seems I must act as a Chinese teacher for once."
At his words, the clothing on his body shifted, and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses rested upon the bridge of his nose.
Behind him, a blackboard appeared, and a piece of chalk rested in his hand.
"Little unclean things, repeat after me: a, o, e..."
The Mountain and Sea Sheji Brush continued its work, and the unclean things grew more numerous, while Qi Yuan played the part of a dutiful Chinese teacher.
Halfway through teaching, however, he felt a little guilty.
He had no teaching certificate; did this count as illegal tutoring?
Then he remembered that he held a certificate of mental illness, so it was no big deal.
Rolling mountain ranges continually emerged, the rivers of the underworld flowed, and the Eighteen Levels of Hell and the Hall of the Son of Heaven rose one after another.
The Eccentric Painter's body trembled and shivered. She had wielded the brush for forty-four days, and the Netherworld was now near completion.
At this moment, Qi Yuan set down the chalk and pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses with his hand.
He spoke, his voice ringing like a decree—majestic, sacred, and inviolable.
"Little unclean things, have you learned? Now can you tell me what you've come to my house for?"
Pity Qi Yuan could not see them, or he would have charged them lodging fees.
At Qi Yuan's voice, the Netherworld fell into complete silence, and he no longer heard those ghostly wails, wolf howls, or inexplicable sounds.
Within the Netherworld, a white figure seemed to appear—twisted, ethereal, and insubstantial.
Yet one could tell that the white figure seemed to bow toward Qi Yuan.
A murmur arose at that moment as well.
"Soul... less, borrow... return..."
Speaking these words seemed to expend all the strength in the white figure's body.
All the unclean things turned ethereal in an instant, surging into that white figure.
Finally, they condensed into a stone stele.
Upon the stele, a single character was carved: "Deceased."
All sorts of bizarre auras hung about the stele, mysterious and unknown, as if containing the ultimate principle of death.
[Stele of the Deceased, seemingly from an otherworldly realm.]
Qi Yuan's eyes could finally perceive useful information.
"So to speak... the Gate of Myriad Manifestations is a door that ran away from my house, and the Stele of the Deceased is also a stele that ran away from my house?
"Where is the well from my house, then? Who carried it off?"
Qi Yuan looked around, but saw nothing, feeling somewhat disappointed.
By this point, however, the overall structure of the Netherworld had been fully outlined by the Eccentric Painter.
All that remained lacking were the details and the sacred sanctity.
Sanctity and divine principles had to be bestowed by Qi Yuan.
Qi Yuan looked toward the Eccentric Painter. Though trembling all over, her eyes were radiant with brilliance.
Evidently, she was extremely pleased with this painting.
Just then, within the Netherworld, Qi Yuan's vast voice rang out once more, like the sound of the Great Dao.
"Let the Ghost Domain take shape; let the mountains and rivers form!"
Upon the mountains and rivers formed from the Central Ghost Domain, an imprint seemed to descend in response to his solemn words.
Mortal mountains transformed into ghostly mountains.
"Eastern Ghost Emperors Yulei and Shentu, govern Mount Taozhi and the Ghost Gate!"
"Southern Ghost Emperor, govern Mount Luofu and lead the Qiangman ghosts!"
"Western Ghost Emperor, govern Mount Panzhong!"
"Northern Ghost Emperor, govern Mount Luofeng!"
"Central Ghost Emperor, govern Mount Baodu and preside over the Central Ghost Domain!"
Following Qi Yuan's voice, the Five Direction Ghost Emperors, including Yulei and Shentu, manifested one after another.
Their figures were towering and solemnly awe-inspiring. They bowed with hands clasped toward Qi Yuan.
"We obey the Heavenly Venerable's decree!"
The Five Direction Ghost Emperors transformed into five streaks of light, shooting toward the ghost domains.
Qi Yuan did not pause, his voice solemn and boundless.
"Let Naihe be the bridge, Wangchuan be the river, and Wangxiang be the platform!"
"Let the eighteen levels of prison all become hells!"
...
"Hall of the Son of Heaven, judge yin and yang, decree samsara!"
"Ten Courts of Yama, take your respective places!"
"Son of Heaven of the Netherworld, reside in the Hall of the Son of Heaven!"
...
"Lord Ksitigarbha, enter Hell!"
"Sovereign Earth Empress Houtu, govern samsara!"
Following Qi Yuan's voice, Divine Infants appeared one by one, transforming into underworld officials!
They bowed to the Heavenly Venerable before turning into streaks of light and entering the Netherworld.
Qi Qi's consciousness seemed to merge into the Netherworld as well; samsara became a part of her.
The once-empty Netherworld, previously like a lifeless shell, now harbored many formidable dormant auras.
Gloomy, deathly silent, blazing and scorching, decayed and desolate...
Watching this scene, the Eccentric Painter's eyes filled with excitement.
At this moment, Qi Yuan's gaze fell upon a certain platform.
This platform was not the Wangxiang Platform, but the Reception Platform.
Back on the Wangyue Continent, he had thought of reviving the Five Ancestors of the Five Elements.
The Reception Platform was the place for revival.
"As expected, it still won't work."
Evidently, though the Netherworld was formed, it could not function.
Receiving departed souls was currently beyond its power.
Or rather, those who were dead had died too thoroughly.
"Still..."
At this moment, Qi Yuan turned his gaze toward the Gate of Myriad Manifestations.
"Gate of the Netherworld, return to your post!"
At his words, the Gate of Myriad Manifestations shuddered, and endless transformations occurred across it in an instant.
Gate of Myriad Demons... Gate of Myriad Fiends... Gate of Ultimate Principle... Gate of Myriad Spirits... Gate of Myriad Mechanisms!
Ultimately, it transformed into the Gate of the Netherworld!
Grim, snow-white, with the ultimate principles of yin and yang circulating across it, as if leading straight to Avici Hell.
Countless ultimate principles, countless pieces of information, countless unknown things, and countless unknowable entities entered Qi Yuan's Netherworld through the Gate of the Netherworld at this moment.
An ineffable change took shape.
It had become the front gate of Qi Yuan's home.
"Condense... the Purple Mansion!"
At this moment, Qi Yuan opened his mouth wide and inhaled sharply toward the Netherworld.
Simultaneously, the purple qi he had previously gathered—the paramount qi of the immortal path—scattered, showering down before the Gate of the Netherworld.
"Purple for purple qi!"
"Mansion for the Netherworld mansion!"
"This is my Purple Mansion!"
With Qi Yuan's resounding shout,
two origin divine abilities within his body trembled violently.
The blood-red demon sword flew into the Eighteen Levels of Hell at this moment, transforming into a demonic prison.
The oblivion of the Great Oblivion Heart Scripture seemed to blend into Meng Po's soup, also concealing itself within the River Wangchuan.
Purple qi drifted, teeming with vitality, like the purple of an immortal blessed land.
Yin winds howled, dark and dreadful, like the mansion of a realm of the dead.
With this, the Purple Mansion was achieved!
Qi Yuan's gaze fell once more upon the Reception Platform.
Perhaps because he had refined the Netherworld into his Purple Mansion, a hint of grimness lingered deep within his eyes.
Looking at the Reception Platform, he seemed to understand something.
"Yin and yang complement each other; life and death exist in balance.
"Therefore, to revive the dead, one must erase the living."
Yet this kind of erasure was different from killing people.
"So for now, it can only count as a minor Netherworld. It cannot receive just anyone.
"Sigh, Five Ancestors of the Five Elements, it seems you'll have to stay dead a while longer."
Qi Yuan was helpless.
This Netherworld was currently far inferior to what he had imagined.
For example, if he went to Blue Star right now, spent some time imprinting every living creature there,
and then killed everyone on Blue Star,
everyone on Blue Star would turn into departed souls, enter his Netherworld, and work for him for free.
If he wished, he could also allow the people of Blue Star to reincarnate.
However... those without the Netherworld's imprint fell outside his Netherworld's jurisdiction.
For instance, the Five Ancestors of the Five Elements, as well as Zhang Sheng and Chen Jiao in the City of No Return, could not be received at present.
Thus, this was only a minor Netherworld.
If it were a grand Netherworld, he could simply write the name of that fellow from Taihuang Palace into the Book of Life and Death to kill him directly. Wouldn't he be invincible then?
Of course, that was merely wishful thinking.
Qi Yuan looked at his own Purple Mansion.
Well, purple qi permeated its entrance—the paramount qi of the immortal world.
Even Yang God Heavenly Venerables coveted purple qi immensely.
Seeing this purple qi, many Yang God Heavenly Venerables would undoubtedly be tempted.
"Still, this Gate of the Netherworld... is a bit too grim. Gate of Myriad Manifestations, shift into the form of the Gate of Ultimate Principle!" Qi Yuan called out.
As if able to understand human speech, the Gate of Myriad Manifestations actually assumed the appearance of the Gate of Ultimate Principle.
Upon it, countless ultimate principles seemed to circulate. A single glance from an ordinary person would cause them to lose themselves entirely.
If a Yang God Heavenly Venerable saw it, they would itch to charge straight inside to comprehend the ultimate principles within.
After all, ultimate principles were difficult to comprehend.
The Gate of Ultimate Principle laid ultimate principles right before your eyes to ponder.
Even with the poorest comprehension, one could surely comprehend one in a million years, couldn't they?
If all else failed, one could simply hole up inside the Gate of Ultimate Principle for endless ages and emerge completely invincible.
"Even I feel a bit tempted to go inside," Qi Yuan remarked with a sigh.
In truth, an idea had crossed his mind: should he enter the Gate of Ultimate Principle and spend several centuries or tens of thousands of years to comprehend a Great Ultimate Reason?
On second thought, he decided against it.
To other Yang God Heavenly Venerables, the Gate of Ultimate Principle was the paramount creation oddity.
As long as one obtained it and had sufficient time, achieving a Great Ultimate Reason was guaranteed.
To Qi Yuan, however, it was too much of a waste of time.
Instead of spending that time comprehending, he might as well play games to break through.
Besides, he could no longer afford to waste time.
The cultivation atmosphere in the Upper Realm had deteriorated to such an extent; he had to ascend and purify the environment.
Even so, the Gate of Ultimate Principle still held many uses for him.
First, it isolated the imprint of the Great Tribulation. Second, through simple contemplation, he could see whether he could spot the flaws in other Great Ultimate Reasons.
The only thing requiring caution was that news of possessing the Gate of Ultimate Principle could not be exposed.
Otherwise, Qi Yuan might draw the enmity of all Yang God Heavenly Venerables in the realm of Great Ultimate Reason.
After all, the Gate of Ultimate Principle recorded every ultimate principle.
"I've finally attained the Purple Mansion. The boost in strength... is passable.
"My superpower this time actually involves... the mouth?
"It even synergizes with my ears!
"This superpower came a bit late!
"Why does it feel so useless?"
The talent he had awakened this time was that when his ears caught stray mutterings, he could activate the talent to initiate a conversation with that person. However, due to distance in space, there might be a certain degree of distortion.
Furthermore, when not linked to his ears, activating the talent allowed his spoken voice to be transmitted randomly to some being.
"Read and reply with nonsense?
"A confessional tree hollow?
"Have I become a little loudspeaker for the heavens?"
With that thought, Qi Yuan immediately gave it a try.
His right eyebrow did not twitch.
"I'm so broke! Any kindhearted person willing to lend me some money?"
Chapter 398