90: First encounter with the Underworld Moon Empress

The moment they crossed the misty boundary, a powerful resistance surged from all directions.

Su Lin felt the demonic Qi shield Ye You had set up tremble violently, emitting a faint hum.

Even more terrifying, a bone-chilling coldness permeated everywhere.

This was not merely low temperature, but a sinister chill that targeted the Divine Soul.

Seeing that something was amiss, Ye You quickly set up another shield around Su Lin.

"Revered Master, concentrate," Ye You's voice resounded directly in Su Lin's mind, "The black mist here will erode Divine Sense."

Su Lin had already noticed it.

He tried to release his Divine Sense, at the Soul Transformation Stage, to explore the surroundings.

However, as soon as his Divine Sense left his body, it was instantly swallowed by the black mist outside.

He couldn't even extend his Divine Sense three feet beyond the shield.

"This mist doesn't just devour Divine Sense," Su Lin said in a deep voice, "It's also absorbing spiritual Qi."

"This seems to be Ten Thousand Soul Death Qi."

Ye You explained as she plummeted rapidly while holding him.

"It's the product of countless living beings' grievances after death combining with the yinpulse of this place.

That Empress certainly knows how to pick a spot."

Su Lin could feel that the mist was composed of Death Qi with an unimaginably high density.

In such an environment, the strength of any living being would be suppressed to the extreme, while the power of ghost Cultivators or demonic Cultivators would be greatly amplified.

Ye You's shield was continuously being consumed.

The black mist, like living creatures, furiously impacted the dark green light, trying to penetrate it.

Ye You snorted coldly.

The demonic Qi fluctuations on her body suddenly intensified, and the dark green light surged, forcibly pushing away all the black mist attempting to approach.

The speed of their descent accelerated again.

Su Lin couldn't see outside and could only estimate the time.

They had been plummeting at a terrifying speed for at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn; the depth of this basin far exceeded his imagination.

Finally, the darkness ahead was no longer purely black.

A faint glimmer of light seeped up from below.

The two landed.

Ye You released her arm, gently placing Su Lin on the ground.

Su Lin's feet touched the hard black rock.

A layer of white frost adhered to the rock surface; this was not condensed water vapor, but a lifeless chill, a coldness that sought to penetrate his bones.

A faint blue light of unknown origin barely dispelled some of the darkness.

It also cast an ominous hue over the vision.

This place resembled an enormous underground cave, or perhaps the ruins of a buried palace.

As far as the eye could see, there were broken stone pillars, crumbling walls, and mountains of...

Puppets.

Su Lin's breathing hitched slightly.

The number of these Puppets was countless, extending from beneath their feet to the horizon.

Their appearance was exquisite, their attire luxurious, and their features carved lifelike; there were men, women, old, and young, and even some non-human, exotic forms.

"Puppets made from Divine Souls?"

Su Lin approached and observed carefully.

"Puppets are generally not made of such soft materials."

"These are soul effigies, created by stripping the Soul from living beings and sealing them into specially made bodies using secret techniques, condemning them to eternal torment and turning them into playthings."

Ye You's blood-red eyes swept over this endless forest of Puppets.

"It seems that Nether Moon Empress knows how to amuse herself."

Just then, the eyes of a beautiful palace attire puppet, closest to them, subtly shifted, its hollow gaze locking onto Su Lin and Ye You.

Immediately after, she emitted a stiff voice:

"Invade... disturb... Empress... slumber... die..."

Before she finished speaking, the palace attire puppet suddenly raised her arm, bringing with it a sinister wind, and lunged straight for Su Lin's face!

Before Su Lin could react, Ye You had already stepped in front of him.

A dark green demonic Qi shot from her fingertip, accurately striking the palace attire puppet's forehead.

The Puppet's forward momentum abruptly ceased.

She hung in mid-air, then fell straight backward, crashing to the ground, her limbs shattering.

The fall of the palace attire puppet activated the other Puppets.

From all directions, among the mountains of soul effigies, countless pairs of eyes simultaneously turned.

Their targets were all locked on Su Lin and Ye You.

"Die..."

"Die..."

A piercing sound erupted, and all the Puppets stood up; their massive numbers surged from the darkness, rushing towards the two.

Ye You frowned, showing impatience.

She no longer suppressed her power; her Body Integration Stage demonic Qi radiated outwards from her.

A dark green energy shockwave swept across the entire space.

The leading group of Puppets, upon contact with the energy, instantly ceased movement.

Cracks appeared on their exquisite body surfaces, rapidly expanding and spreading throughout their entire forms.

Bang.

The group of Puppets shattered, turning into a pile of wreckage.

This power spread extremely quickly, clearing an area of a hundred zhang in the blink of an eye.

All activated soul effigies disintegrated completely.

Ye You cleared the obstacles, and the two continued forward.

The Death Qi here was even denser, and the faint blue light came from a type of crystal embedded in the rock walls.

Su Lin felt that his cultivation was suppressed here, and the circulation of his spiritual Qi became sluggish.

Noticing Su Lin's abnormality, Ye You's tail wrapped around Su Lin, continuously supplying spiritual Qi to his body.

"Revered Master, the altar from that dog's memory is just ahead," Ye You whispered.

Su Lin and Ye You passed through the area strewn with wreckage.

The space ahead suddenly opened up.

A massive black platform appeared before them.

This platform was entirely constructed of black stone, with an uneven surface.

Within the uneven patterns, dark red light slowly flowed, emitting a strong scent of blood and a chilling sensation.

Several broken giant stone pillars stood around.

"It looks like interesting toys have arrived."

A cold yet somewhat playful voice drifted down from above.

Su Lin and Ye You looked up simultaneously.

They saw a figure casually sitting on the top of the tallest broken stone pillar.

It was a young girl who appeared to be about sixteen years old.

She wore an elaborate black dress, her skin was unusually pale, and her long dark hair fell to her waist.

Her eyes were pure ink black, without pupils or whites, and her gaze was hollow as it locked onto Su Lin and Ye You.

The girl wore boots, and her pale legs swung gently in the air, her posture relaxed.

"Hmm? There's also a Body Integration Stage Cultivator? This is getting interesting!"

Ye You's pupils instantly contracted.

She took a step forward, completely shielding Su Lin behind her, and vigilantly stared at the girl on the stone pillar.

"Are you the so-called Nether Moon Empress?"

The girl on the stone pillar chuckled, seemingly pleased with the title.

She leaped down from the top of the stone pillar, her black skirt spreading out in the air.

Then she landed lightly barefoot on the black platform, standing opposite Su Lin and Ye You, ten zhang apart.

Her pure black eyes ignored the surging aura of Ye You, and instead, she looked Su Lin up and down with interest.

"A Body Integration Stage demon..."

"And an even more interesting human."