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Another long quarter of an hour passed, feeling as endless as if an entire century had gone by. Finally, the ghastly aura slowly dissipated and the surroundings brightened.

A wide pathway lay before them, its edges lined with the red blooms of Manjushage flowers covering the road.

Lan Xi’s heart lifted with joy; they had arrived at the River of the Netherworld, and beyond it lay the Blood Demon Sea.

Though she still couldn’t see any ghosts, the youth in purple had long since soaked through his clothes with sweat. His amber eyes were nervously scanning the surroundings, fearing the slightest mishap.

Half an hour later, Lan Xi and the youth in purple crossed the sea of flowers to reach the bridge over the Netherworld. From the bridge, they could see the foul-smelling flow of the river below, though not a sound of water reached their ears.

Lan Xi covered her nose, nearly fainting, but the obsession within her heart kept her upright.

After crossing the bridge on the Netherworld Road and following a narrow path for yet another quarter of an hour,

the stench was replaced by a pungent smell of blood. Then, the vast Blood Sea appeared before them.

Along the edge of the Blood Sea grew Blood Third Seven and various nameless herbs.

Overjoyed, Lan Xi didn’t hesitate, promptly squatting down, ready to reach out and pick the herbs.

But as she was about to touch them, the youth in purple grabbed her, "Let me do it!"

He pushed Lan Xi to the shore and squatted by the Blood Sea himself, his gaze fixed on the thick red liquid inside it. The stinging smell of blood nearly made him vomit.

His amber eyes stared into the depths of the Blood Sea, where mountains of bones piled up. Some of these bones, even hidden beneath the bloody waters, were still moving.

A dangerous aura assailed them.

He approached the Blood Third Seven with extreme caution, and then slowly began to pull the herb from the ground by its leaves.

Just as the Blood Third Seven was about to come free, a skeletal hand that had been lurking beneath the Blood Sea suddenly burst forth, grabbing the youth’s arm.

Lan Xi was startled, but the youth didn’t hesitate; enduring the acute pain, he yanked out the bones along with Blood Third Seven in one motion.

Afterward, he stood up, took hold of Lan Xi’s hand, and they began running back the way they had come.

Because he saw that with the emergence of that skeletal hand, the entire mountain of bones underneath the Blood Sea had been disturbed. The bones drifting in the Blood Sea were crawling out, converging towards them at an alarming speed.

Lan Xi felt her scalp go numb. Even without looking back, she could guess what they had encountered.

The two ran for their lives back across the Netherworld Bridge, and they didn’t look back until they reached the pathway strewn with Manjushage flowers.

From a distance, they saw the army of white bones stop at the edge of the bridge, followed by deafening roars.

Lan Xi’s palms were sweating, and looking at the youth by her side, the hand holding Blood Third Seven was still firmly clutched by a piece of bone. The bone had pierced his flesh, and his blood was dripping steadily out.

Lan Xi quickly grabbed his wrist, pulled the hand bone off his arm, and tossed it aside. She then wrapped his wound with a handkerchief.

Before she could even thank him or ask if it hurt,

the youth in purple pulled her into a sprint, "Lan Xi, if you don’t want to die, run forward with all your might. Never look back!"

He handed the Blood Third Seven to Lan Xi.

Not understanding what he meant, Lan Xi clutched the Blood Third Seven tightly, grabbed his wrist, and ran desperately.

As they ran, the youth suddenly vanished from her grasp, and Lan Xi instantly snapped back to reality, finding herself in complete darkness.

In an instant, she could no longer see anything, and all was silent around her.

"Damn you, Ya, where are you? Are you beside me?" Lan Xi called his name over and over, but only silence answered her. The penetrating cold made it hard for her to catch her breath.

Her heart was both nervous and frightened, afraid that something had happened to the youth in purple. He was the son of the Heavenly Emperor, and if any harm came to him, the Goddess Palace and the Nine Heavens would surely become sworn enemies.

But no matter how much she called out, there was no response, and she found herself surrounded by darkness, unable to see the path, unable to return.

Meanwhile, the youth in purple had intentionally let go of her.

His bleeding had alerted all the evil ghosts on the Netherworld Road, which were furiously chasing him, longing to absorb his blood and engulf him.

If he continued dragging Lan Xi along, she would be implicated too.

So, he let go and ran in the opposite direction, hoping to buy her time to escape.

Being a son of the Heavenly Emperor, the Demon Lord surely wouldn’t dare harm him directly.

He might get bitten a few times by these evil ghosts, but as long as his spirit remained, a few years of recovery would see him back as good as new. Most importantly, he had managed to protect his spouse.

Lan Xi couldn’t find a way out, unable to summon any Spiritual Energy, and engulfed by a chilling aura that left her feeling suffocated.

She didn’t know how long it had passed when her back became drenched with cold sweat. Gradually, her vision cleared and what appeared before her were clusters of green luminescence.

She couldn’t find the purple-clad youth, nor could she find the path.

She suddenly realized that the gods who bestowed life were actually not omnipotent.

For instance, she couldn’t save Shaoqing who had been harmed by the Green Snake’s innate poison.

She couldn’t heal the wounds inflicted by the Heavenly Sword.

Once she was in the Demon Realm, she was no different from an ordinary person.

In the end, she had even lost the Crown Prince, the darling son of the Heavenly Emperor.

She was very afraid, feeling unsurpassed fear and desolation for the first time.

Crouching on the ground, she was surrounded by a cluster of greenish Ghost Fire, tears about to fall.

This was the first time in her ten thousand years she felt fear.

"Lan Xi, do you want to save His Highness, the Crown Prince?" Suddenly, one of the Ghost Fires in front of her spoke.

Lan Xi swiftly raised her head and looked at the Ghost Fire, nodding again and again, "Do you know where he is?"

The largest cluster of greenish Ghost Fire circled above her head and immediately, an image popped into her mind.

The purple-clad youth she had entered with was now surrounded by Evil Ghosts. He was holding a sword, locked in a standoff, while the Evil Ghosts tried to catch the youth off guard, jumping at him to bite off the flesh from his legs. Other Evil Ghosts lay on the ground, licking his blood.

She was so frightened that she instantly froze, "Where is he, I need to go save him."

"Good! Give me a drop of your Primordial Spirit Blood, and I will guide you to save him," said the greenish Ghost Fire.

Lan Xi bit her lip, the image of the purple-clad youth being gnawed on by Evil Ghosts still in her head; she could even see the white bones on his legs.

Primordial Spirit Blood, huh?

Just one drop?

She had a total of four drops of Primordial Spirit Blood.

This was something her mother had told her—it was a secret, known only to the two of them.

Ordinary immortals only had one drop of Primordial Spirit Blood; losing it would mean death before long.

But she was an exception, hence she had four drops.

Now to give away one drop, what harm could it do, especially if it could save that bastard Ya’s life?

"Okay! I’ll give you one, but you have to help me save him. I need to see him safe before I can do so," Lan Xi said, not foolish enough to casually hand over something so precious from her body.

The greenish Ghost Fire laughed foolishly, "You better not trick me, or I’ll make sure you die with no place to bury."

Moments later, the Ghost Fire flickered a few times, and soon her gaze became clearer, she saw the purple-clad youth a few steps away.

At the same time, the purple-clad youth also saw her.

This place was simply eerie.

"Wife, are you stupid? Didn’t I tell you to run and not look back?" The amber eyes of the purple-clad youth showed a few strands of panic. Because, on the Netherworld Road, once you look back, you get lost. There’s no way out.

All you need to do is keep running. When the time comes, you’ll naturally find the way out.

Lan Xi couldn’t care less. She rushed forward and drove away the Evil Ghosts around the youth.

And upon seeing the greenish Ghost Fire, the Evil Ghosts scattered in fear.

She supported the purple-clad youth, her tone warm yet angry, "Who told you to let go of me? I’m scared. I can’t find the way out."

For the purple-clad youth to blame her now was pointless; it had been an emergency earlier, and he hadn’t had the chance to explain.

The greenish Ghost Fire fluttered to Lan Xi’s side, chattering and laughing, "Lan Xi, where’s the thing you promised me?"

"Not now, I’ll give it to you after we get out," Lan Xi naturally wanted to fight for the greatest benefit for herself.

But the greenish Ghost Fire sneered, "Trying to go back on your word? I’ll just kill you here and take your Primordial Spirit Blood then."

Lan Xi was startled and quickly explained, "What I mean is, can you send us to a place where we can see light? This place is too dark, I’m scared."

After all, this was her final line of defense, and if it came down to it, she was ready to burn a drop of her Primordial Spirit Blood and fight it out with them.

Truly, what she feared most was that the bastard Ya wouldn’t last much longer.

Especially since he was gravely injured and on the verge of collapse, barely able to stand.

After a moment of contemplation, the greenish Ghost Fire agreed.