Ten Thousand Soul Banner: Deceased, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?

Chapter 1226: Chapter 1222: Sword Soaring Across the Sky

Shen Siyuan stood on the balcony as Duoduo had already stepped forward holding the Qiankun Umbrella.

The umbrella spun, and a clear halo rippled out like water waves, enveloping everyone in an instant. The surroundings quickly shifted from the coastal coconut wind and sea charm of Bin Hai to the familiar bluestone courtyard and large floor-to-ceiling glass windows of the villa in Siming City.

"Brother, how do we proceed now?"

Duoduo stood by with the umbrella handle in hand, waiting for Shen Siyuan’s command to spin the Qiankun Umbrella and transport them to their desired destination.

Dou Dou and Xiao Yue also stood nearby, curiously watching him.

However, Shen Siyuan shook his head and said, "The place we are headed to this time is new to us, and your Qiankun Umbrella cannot directly take us there."

"I can fly over," Dou Dou immediately raised her arm and said.

Shen Siyuan reached out to pat her little head, "You all return to the Ten Thousand Soul Banner first, and come out when I call you."

Without waiting for their refusal, he pinched a finger formula, and the Ten Thousand Soul Banner appeared in his palm. With a gentle wave, the three little ones were instantly drawn into the banner.

He did not reabsorb the Ten Thousand Soul Banner into his Sea of Consciousness but instead transformed it into a black cloak with purple edges, draping it over himself.

Then he looked towards the northwest; his destination this time was the Xuzhou Territory, as he aimed to gain control of the Xuzhou Netherworld.

He walked into the courtyard, raised his finger, and a clear sword hum suddenly pierced the night’s silence.

The Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword shot out of his sleeve, hanging steadily in mid-air in the courtyard.

On the body of the sword, golden, wooden, water, fire, and earth spiritual lights flowed ceaselessly along the sword’s spine.

The golden light was sharp and fierce like cold stars splitting the sky.

The green meaning was dense and lush like ancient trees’ roots intertwined.

The water light was soft and moist like moonlight condensing into dewdrops.

The red flame was intense like flowing fire falling to the ground.

The yellow light was heavy like the deep abyss of the earth.

The five spiritual lights intertwined and merged with each other, drawn together by the Primordial Magnetic Power, forming layered vivid halos around the sword body. Even the night wind around was stirred by this power, swirling around the sword with a gentle hum.

Shen Siyuan grasped the sword hilt, his mind slightly moving, and the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword buzzed, enveloped in boundless spiritual light, swiftly headed north.

The sword pierced the night sky, with the five flowing spiritual lights rapidly stretching out into a long rainbow traversing the sky.

Red, green, yellow, white, and black intertwined yet seamlessly unified, wrapped in a faint purple magnetic halo, resembling a star river cleaving the curtain of night in the deep blue satin-like sky.

This long rainbow arced from south to north. Below, in towns and villages, the occasional passerby looked up, mistaking it for the rare fire meteor streaking across the sky, stopping to marvel.

Shen Siyuan swept past the waterways of Jiangnan at a speed difficult for the naked eye to track, heading towards northern Huizhou.

The Sword Qi of the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword was restrained, forming an invisible barrier around him, blocking the howling night wind entirely.

Shen Siyuan looked down, observing as the mountains and rivers below receded swiftly. The graceful landscapes of Wan Nan unfolded before his eyes bit by bit.

The view first revealed endless indigo mountains.

Wan Nan is filled with hilly and mountainous terrain, where the remaining ranges of Huang Mountain and Jiuhua Mountain crisscross, and peaks and ridges overlap, forming ink-colored silhouettes within the night, like a long painting of landscape inked in strokes.

Between steep cliffs grew sprawling seas of bamboo and ancient pine forests. As the night wind blew through, the vast bamboo sea surged with dark green waves, and the pine waves echoed. From several dozen feet high, it seemed one could hear the clear and melodious sound.

Nestled in the valleys were ancient Huipai villages scattered like stars, their white walls and black tiles shimmering with a faint silvery glow under the moonlight. Occasionally, a few homes still had dim lights burning, like scattered gold fragments on a black velvet cloth, arranged along the winding banks of the Qingyi River and Xin’an River.

The river water, like a ribbon, shimmered with moonlight’s glint, winding and bending along the valley’s terrain, like silver ribbons entwined amidst the indigo mountains.

Occasionally, fishing boats docked by the riverbank, with a single fishing light flickering, reflecting distantly with the star river in the sky, softening and enchanting the landscape of Wan Nan with the gentle allure and grace of Jiangnan’s waterways.

The flying sword continued northward, the mountains gradually transitioning from steep peaks to gentle hills, with fields spreading out in the night. Patches of rice fields glowed with a faint green shimmer, and the village lights grew denser, adding a touch of plain openness to the originally graceful mountainous scenes.

Unsure of how long the swift travel lasted, the view ahead suddenly opened wide. A massive water vein stretching south to north, like a sleeping giant dragon, lay across the North China Plain and the Huaijiang Hills. It was the border river dividing north and south, separating Xuzhou and Yangzhou in the Ancient Nine Provinces—the Huai River.

Shen Siyuan’s mind moved, and the speed of the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword slowed, hovering several hundred feet above the Huai River.

Looking down, the Huai River’s surface stretched endlessly. It was the flood season, with the vast river water rushing ceaselessly from west to east, its murky waves crashing against the banks with dull roars.

Even in the silent deep night, the river’s imposing momentum that swallowed rivers and crossed the Nine States couldn’t be concealed.

The bright moonlight spread over the surging river surface, breaking into countless points of silver scales, swaying with the waves, as if the entire river was adorned with flowing starlight.

On the river occasionally sails a thousand-ton freight ship by night, its searchlights piercing the waves, advancing slowly. The ship’s lights are as small as fireflies on the vast river surface, highlighting the boundless expanse of the Huai River.

The scenery on both banks is completely different.

The northern bank is Xuzhou Territory, the endless plains stretch to the horizon in the night, merging with the sky in the distance, representing the vastness and weight of the Central Plains.

The southern bank remains the water network of the Huaijiang Hills, with crisscrossing channels and scattered lakes, embodying the gracefulness and vitality of the Jiangnan region.

A river separates not only the southern and northern terrains but also Yangzhou and Xuzhou within the Ancient Nine Provinces.

Shen Siyuan gazes at the surging Huai River beneath him, his eyes slightly dark.

Once past this river, it’s Xuzhou Territory. Once he steps into Xuzhou, he will enter Xuzhou Netherworld.

And once he fully controls Xuzhou Netherworld, he can completely link it with the Yangzhou Netherworld he holds in his hand. The Yin turbidity, fortune, and earth veins of both states will connect as one, and the authority over the Netherworld he commands will rise another level.

With his mind made up, Shen Siyuan lightly flicks his fingertips, and the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword lets out a clear, resonant sword cry once more.

The brilliant five-colored rainbow around him gradually converges, leaving only a faint halo of Primordial Magnetism enveloping the sword body, sweeping towards a solitary peak on the southern bank of the Huai River, in northern Anhui.

This mountain peak stands alone by the Huai River shore, though not as rugged as the Wan Nan mountain ranges, it rises from the ground, allowing one standing on its summit to take in the rush of the whole Huai River and glimpse the expansive plains of northern Xuzhou from afar.

The flying sword gathers all its spiritual light, landing silently on the flat ground of the mountain top.

Shen Siyuan’s toes touch the ground, his wrist slightly shakes, and the Five Elements Primordial Magnetic Sword transforms into a streak of flowing light, disappearing into his sleeve.

The night wind atop the mountain, carrying the river’s moisture, rushes against him with a chill.

Below are jagged green stones, where hardy wild grass grows in the cracks, rustling in the night wind.

He lifts his gaze, to the left is the relentless Huai River, waves crashing endlessly; to the right are the rolling Huaijiang Hills, indigo mountain silhouettes stretching towards the southern sky, overhead is a starry sky, a star river hanging low, seemingly within reach.

Shen Siyuan stands with his hands behind him on the mountain peak, his gaze crossing the Huai River towards Xuzhou Territory in the north, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes.

He waves his arm, the wide-sleeved cloak he wears seems to shimmer with starlight, as three little companions freshly captured in the Ten Thousand Soul Banner immediately appear by his side.

It’s time for Duoduo to shine.

Being needed is something truly delightful.

Duoduo holds the Qiankun Umbrella high in her hand, while Dou Dou mutters quietly beside her, thinking how to get the umbrella from Duoduo.

As Duoduo turns the umbrella handle in her hand, they instantly vanish from the mountain top.

The nearby star rivers and evening winds, Huai River wave sounds, instantly dissipate, as the world spins around them, stepping into Xuzhou Netherworld Territory.

The sight before them holds no trace of vitality.

The sky is tightly covered by a thick and heavy leaden gray-black cloud, no sun, no moon, no stars are visible, only occasionally a few strands of ghastly green light slip through the gaps in the clouds, sweeping like ghostly fire across the land, tinting every scene with a chilling dead air.

The Yin Wind rampages, mixed with a biting chill.

Before their eyes lies a boundless gray-black wasteland.

Below their feet are scorched earth mixed with fragments of bones and gravel, hard underfoot, making a fine "crunch" sound.

There grows no life from the earth, only clusters of gray-black Nether Grass, its leaves as thin as cicada wings, shattering to dust at a touch, sometimes accompanied by a few gnarled dead trees, branches twisted like ghost claws, bare without a leaf, hanging with remnants of lonely souls and decayed chains, the wind making them creak like bones grinding together.

Flocks of Yin Crows land on the dead trees, their scarlet eyes fixed on intruders, occasionally letting out a hoarse cry echoing far across the desolate wasteland.

Across the wasteland, open blackened holes are everywhere, these are the caves where dead souls reside, deep inside with scattered ghostly blue flames, occasionally emitting rustling sounds and whispered murmurs, mixed with the Yin Wind blowing outwards, sending chills down one’s spine.

Dou Dou subconsciously tightens his grip on Shen Siyuan’s garment, shrinking behind him, even his usually fearless nature softening somewhat.

At the end of the wasteland lies the transverse Netherworld River, a turbid stream stretching endlessly, its waters black with dark red hues like coagulated blood mixed with silt, the river’s waves beating the banks emit not a roar but countless weeping whispers of dead souls.

On the river surface float decaying boards of ancient warships, broken spears, rusty armor plates, carried unwittingly eastward by the currents.

The banks are rugged with rocks, the riverbed embedded with countless horse and soldier skeletons, amidst the turbulent currents, one can hear the clash of weapons and shouts, as though the Soldier Souls are trapped in this treacherous riverbanks, forever unrestful.

Duoduo instinctively tightens her grip on the Qiankun Umbrella, Xiao Yue also steps forward slightly, the Soul-hooking Chain silently circling her, the Three Pure Ones Bell at the end making not a sound.

The ghastly green light once more slips through the clouds, sweeping over Shen Siyuan’s figure, his wide sleeve cloak made by the Ten Thousand Soul Banner rustling in the Yin Wind.

This place is indeed far more eerie than Qiongzhou Netherworld and Yangzhou Netherworld.

At that moment, a writhing mass of dark clouds drifts toward them from the sky.