First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1014 - Opening the Path of Samsara

“Was that chaotic stretch I found within the Path of Samsara the source of the Netherworld?” Su Yi asked directly.

“That’s right. According to the Record of the Netherworld, although the Netherworld is vast beyond measure, its source is located in an unknown stretch of the Path of Samsara. Based on what you just told me, that chaotic stretch has to be the source of the Netherworld!” Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer said straightforwardly, not bothering to hide his excitement.

“That so? Then what was up with the Tree of the Ten Thousand Worlds of Samsara?” asked Su Yi.

“That’s the Xiantian sacred tree born of the Netherworld’s source. The ancient records of the Infernal Palace say that since it was born of the Netherworld’s source energies, it’s also referred to as the World Tree of the Netherworld!

“The source of the Netherworld is a stretch of chaos full of the endless profundities of the Laws. And these profundities take shape through the Tree of the Ten Thousand Worlds of Samsara.

“Rumor has it that its leaves and branches connect to countless worlds and planes! Thus, before the natural order of reincarnation was broken, those who entered the cycle of reincarnation could be reborn in different worlds.

“Simply put, the Path of Samsara is actually a manifestation of the Laws within the Tree of the Ten Thousand Worlds of Samsara.”

Su Yi nodded. This was more or less in agreement with his hypotheses. Reincarnation meant rebirth and a new life. This power was dark and mysterious, while the Tree of the Ten Thousand Worlds of Samsara served as a tunnel to reincarnate into new worlds. It delivered those undergoing rebirth, enabling them to realize new life within different planes of existence.

Su Yi then went on to ask various questions. Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer was quite cooperative, and he answered every last one of them. Even when he didn’t know the answer, he patiently explained what he could.

Before long, he’d cleared up most of Su Yi’s doubts.

The Infernal Palace had fallen in ancient times, and the powers it controlled at its peak—like the Ten Yama Kings and the Bureau of the Six Paths—had all gone up in smoke.

Even its final Infernal Monarch, Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer, had only narrowly escaped death by hiding within the Disc of the Six Paths.

And all of this was due to an incomparably strange catastrophe!

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer called this catastrophe the Burial of the Dao. After it befell the Netherworld, it shattered the natural order of reincarnation. The skies of the Reincarnation Grounds had been fragmented ever since, and both the Sacred Tree of Samsara and the Reincarnation Pool were badly damaged.

Even the Ten Courts of Hell had been destroyed completely, and their ruins were now known as the Mausoleum of the Gods!

After he awakened from his long dormancy, Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer discovered that a long time had passed. The world was much the same, but everyone he’d once known had passed away. In the years that followed, he’d continuously sought out the truth of the Burial of the Dao. In particular, he wanted to know the origins of this catastrophe.

Unfortunately, countless years had passed, and all of this history had long since been shrouded in dust. Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer failed to learn anything at all.

In the end, he focused his attention on repairing the Reincarnation Grounds, restoring the natural order of reincarnation, and rebuilding the Infernal Palace!

“A catastrophe actually destroyed the natural order of reincarnation, and consigned even a faction as enormous as the Infernal Palace to the long river of history? That really is strange.” Su Yi’s brow furrowed.

The way he saw it, the power of reincarnation was born of the Netherworld’s source. It would have been fair to call it the supreme power of the Laws within the Netherworld; there was no need to even question its strength.

If that weren’t the case, why would both the Nine Heavens Pavilion and the Church of the River of Stars come from outer space just to investigate the secrets of reincarnation?

Even the leader of the Church of the River of Stars, the Fisherman, had come in person—or rather, as a clone—all for the sake of acquiring the complete mysteries of reincarnation!

It was easy to imagine how wondrous and mighty this powerful was.

Yet this supreme natural order had been severely damaged in an ancient catastrophe.

That was far too unsettling.

Just where had this catastrophe come from? And just how powerful was it?

Su Yi couldn’t even guess. All he could say with certainty that the Burial of the Dao was likely even more terrifying than Celestial Laws like Heavenly Prayer and Cosmic Silence!

“Old Monster Su, there’s something I’d like to ask of you.” Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer took a deep breath and gazed solemnly at Su Yi.

Su Yi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “You want me to guide you to the Netherworld’s source?”

“That’s right!” Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer’s eyes blazed with fervent eagerness. “I want to repair the shattered natural order.”

After a moment’s silence, Su Yi said solemnly, “I can help you, but all I can say is that repairing the natural order of reincarnation will be harder than ascending the heavens. You have almost no hope of success.”

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer grinned. “Even if there’s only a thread of hope, I’ll give it everything I have. Even if I fail in the end, I won’t have any regrets.”

Su Yi made no further attempts to dissuade him. Instead, he nodded. “We can leave once I fully recover. Before that, I think you’d best meet with your grand-disciple.”

With that, he waved his sleeves through the air and summoned the old blind man from within the Seed of the Azure.

“Founder!?” The old blind man couldn’t help but blurt. His face filled with excitement.

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer instantly looked conflicted, and he led the old blind man away for a private chat.

Su Yi, meanwhile, rose from his wicker chair and kicked the unconscious Cui Longxiang. “Quit pretending. Come on, get back on your feet.”

Cui Longxiang shuddered from head to toe, then sat up and said awkwardly, “Heh heh, I just didn’t want to disrupt you two old-timers’ conversation.”

“Drop the nonsense. Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer and I will be leaving for the Netherworld’s source soon. Take the Netherworld King with you, leave the Reincarnation Grounds, and wait for us at Allriver Mountain,” ordered Su Yi.

Cui Longxiang nodded.

He’d already heard all of Su Yi’s conversation with Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer, and he was naturally well aware that not just anyone could visit the Netherworld’s source.

Shortly afterward, Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer and the old blind man returned.

The old blind man was obviously in high spirits, but Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer’s expression was overcast, and he sighed, “That punk Pi Mo really crossed a line.”

There was no doubt about it. He’d already learned that his disciple, the Master of the Blood Coffin, had died at Pi Mo’s hands.

“I’ll get justice for you,” said Su Yi. “And for myself while I’m at it.”

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer nodded, then said no more on the subject.

Then, Su Yi personally escorted Cui Longxiang, the Netherworld King, and the old blind man out of the Reincarnation Grounds. Once they’d left the hidden realm, they proceeded to Allriver Mountain to convene with Ye Luo, the old rooster, and the others.

When Su Yi got back, he calmed his heart, meditated, and recovered.

A full day passed before he got up and gazed at Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer, who was already ready and waiting. “The Path of Samsara is perilous and unpredictable. You’d best be prepared.”

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer grinned. “With such a trusty guide to lead the way, what do I have to fear? Even if we encounter unforeseen dangers, I can seize the opportunity to taste the wonders of reincarnation and rebirth.”

Su Yi said no more. He simply got started.

His hands overlapped, and wisps of inscrutable, mysterious power surged continuously from his fingertips.

Whoosh~

Off in the distance, the leaves of the cloud-piercing Sacred Tree of Samsara rustled. Half of the tree glowed with vibrant, misty green light, while a murky gray aura of death permeated the other half.

Immediately afterward, the almost desiccated Reincarnation Pool boiled over, and the waters manifested of the Laws of Oblivion rippled and surged, forming a massive, unfathomable whirlpool.

As the whirlpool revolved, the entire hidden realm trembled, and the skies manifested of the fragmented natural order of reincarnation reacted as if they’d been summoned. All of them surged toward the Reincarnation Pool.

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer looked a bit dazed. This scene was far too familiar to him.

Back then, he’d stood there and watched as Su Yi grasped the mysteries of the Reincarnation Pool and opened the Path of Samsara!

Now, a similar scene played out before his eyes once more.

About ten minutes later.

Su Yi’s hands slowly rose through the air.

Boom!

Within the massive whirlpool of the Laws of Oblivion, the countless accumulated fragments of sky interwove and caught ablaze. The lights of both of the contrasting halves of the Sacred Tree of Samsara surged like mad and fused with the blazing fragments of sky.

Then, amidst the raging, misty light, a mysterious doorway slowly opened in the air.

Heaven and earth trembled, and wind and thunder ran rampant.

The dense aura of the power of reincarnation flooded out of the doorway and permeated the air, as mysterious as could be.

The Gate of Reincarnation!!

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer’s breathing sped up with obvious excitement. “Old Monster Su, has your mastery of the profundities of reincarnation reached perfection?”

Su Yi shook his head. “Laws of Rebirth aside, I’ve mastered the Laws of Oblivion, the Laws of Withering and Flourishing, and the Laws of the Far Shore, but I’ve yet to master the last, most central of the five: the Laws of the End.”

He’d grasped the Laws of Rebirth atop the Platform of Rebirth in his past life.

He’d gleaned enlightenment into the Laws of Withering and Flourishing from the Sacred Tree of Samsara, and the Laws of Oblivion from the Reincarnation Pool.

As for the Laws of the Far Shore? They were also known as the Power of Deliverance. He’d learned them as he reincarnated, deriving them from the Netherworld’s source.

Each represented a portion of the profundities of the secrets of reincarnation, and Su Yi had emblazoned each of them into the Sword of the Nine Hells in his past life.

Now that he’d returned to the Imperial Realm, he’d regained control over the profundities of these four Laws.

“The Laws of the End…. so that’s it,” said Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer. He suddenly took out two things and passed them to Su Yi. “I’ll have to trouble you to watch over these for me.”

One of the two treasures was the Disc of the Six Paths, while the other was a jade record that Su Yi had never seen before.

It was only about the size of a fist, and it was shaped much like the page of a book. It bore some resemblance to the Night Watchman’s Book of Diting.

However, it was missing a corner, and spider web-like burn marks spread across its surface. It seemed as if it had been damaged.

“What is this?” Su Yi couldn’t help but feel surprised. As small as it was, he sensed a mysterious, intimidating aura emanating from the jade record. It was boundless and ethereal, heavy, and serene.

Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer was suddenly incomparably solemn, even a bit pious as he said softly, “This is the Record of the Netherworld, the treasure only the Infernal Monarchs of the Infernal Palace can wield, as well as a Xiantian divine artifact with origins that can be traced back to the Netherworld’s beginning!”

The Record of the Netherworld!

Su Yi’s eyes lit up. So, it’s that treasure!

There were too many rumors about the Record of the Netherworld to count, and each made it seem more miraculous than the one before. It was full of legendary splendor!

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