“This matter seems far too serious,” Xu Zimo said.

“We’re only here to pick a stalk of Nine-Nether God-Grass. We don’t want to get entangled in the academy’s affairs.”

He wasn’t afraid, just pragmatic. The risk and reward clearly didn’t match. He wasn’t here to die for the Celestial Sage Academy.

“Don’t be so hasty. Hear me out first,” the old man said with a calm smile.

“Beyond the Mortal Ascension Heaven lies the Ghost God Heaven. There are seven gateways between the two, and Celestial Sage Academy happens to guard one of them. If you lend us your help, we can later offer you free passage to the Ghost God Heaven whenever you wish to go.”

“What level of cultivation is this Evil Spirit Ghost God at?” Xu Zimo asked after a brief pause.

“When the Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss was first sealed, it was already at the Arcane Immortal realm,” the old man explained. “After three million years of absorbing countless Evil Spirits, its exact strength is uncertain, even I cannot say for sure. But you need not fear. This time, your only task is to draw the Ghost God out. If we fail to subdue it, we’re prepared to abandon the Celestial Sage Academy entirely and move on to the Ghost God Heaven ourselves. This path leads directly to the Ghost God Collegium. If you’re interested, we could even recommend you there.”

“We’ll only be responsible for drawing the Ghost God out. The rest is your problem,” Xu Zimo said firmly.

“No issue,” the old man replied with a smile.

He extended his right hand, and a beast-skin scroll appeared, rotating slowly in his palm.

“This is the map of Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss. It marks both the location of the Nine-Nether God-Grass and the seal where the Evil Spirit Ghost God is imprisoned.”

Xu Zimo took the map, examined it briefly, then nodded.

“Qingfeng, take them to the Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss,” the old man instructed.

A young Daoist in green robes stepped forward and gestured for them to follow.

As Xu Zimo and his group departed, Lu Changyou, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. “Chancellor, you already know about the Lu Clan and the Vice-Chancellor, don’t you?”

“The Vice-Chancellor is dead. The Lu Clan has been annihilated. Let this matter end here,” the old man said calmly.

“Annihilated?” Lu Changyou asked in shock.

“Yes. While you were ascending the mountain,” the old man replied.

For a moment, Lu Changyou could only marvel at the Chancellor’s vast power. Though he remained within the academy, nothing that occurred on Celestial Sage Mountain escaped his awareness.

It was as if an invisible hand covered the entire mountain.

“Do you think they can handle it?” Lu Changyou asked, glancing in the direction Xu Zimo had gone, his voice tinged with worry.

“Whether they can or not, it’s come to this point,” the old man said.

“The Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss can no longer be suppressed. Either the Ghost God dies, or we abandon Celestial Sage Academy. There is no third option.”

“I understand,” Lu Changyou said with a nod.

Following the Daoist boy Qingfeng, Xu Zimo and his companions made their way deep into the academy.

There were few students about, and they passed only a handful along the way.

Finally, they reached a massive gate.

Evil energy swirled thickly around it, and the surrounding trees were all black, each one twisted as though it bore a ghastly, screaming face.

“I can only escort you this far,” Qingfeng said with a smile.

He waved his sleeve, and the ancient gate slowly creaked open.

A flood of dense, suffocating miasma poured out from within.

Qingfeng’s eyes shone with focus as he raised his hand. The surrounding formation whirred to life, and beams of golden light shot forth, suppressing the rampant evil energy.

Xu Zimo peered through the gate. Beyond it stretched a narrow world, not vast, but dominated by a single bottomless abyss.

All the black mist seemed to emanate from that chasm.

“So this is the Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss,” he murmured.

“Judging by its scale, it’s anything but simple,” Xie Changliu said in awe.

“The map marks eight levels within the Blue-Parasol Ancient-Abyss,” Xu Zimo explained. “The Evil Spirit Ghost God is sealed in the eighth. The Nine-Nether God-Grass grows below the third.”

The two of them stepped to the edge of the abyss and leapt down.

The depths seemed endless. The cliffs were charred black, as though burned by divine fire.

Twisted vegetation clung to the walls, some resembling man-eating flowers, others demonic vines.

As they descended, countless vines lunged toward them.

Xie Changliu’s sword sang, unleashing waves of sword intent. The surrounding space shattered, and the vines were sliced to pieces.

The farther they went, the denser the vines became, until they formed cage-like barriers.

Xu Zimo let out a cold snort as the Nomological Truth of Fire burst from his body.

He swept his hand, releasing a torrent of fire that consumed everything in sight. Explosions crackled like thunder through the abyss.

“Careful!” Xie Changliu shouted suddenly.

From the cliff wall, a colossal figure burst forth and slammed into Xu Zimo.

As he was knocked back, Xu Zimo caught a full glimpse of the creature.

It was a massive white serpent, nearly a kilometer long and a hundred meters thick.

Its eyes gleamed with malice, its tongue flicking in and out, and its scales shimmered with a wicked sheen.

With a sweep of its tail, the cliffside crumbled, boulders crashing into the depths below.

“Kill it,” Xu Zimo commanded coldly.

Since his weapon, Shadow Tyrant, was still in the process of refinement, he fought bare-handed.

The Power Vortexes within his body spun violently as the Heaven-Shattering Giant manifested behind him, towering and immense.

The giant stepped on the cliff wall and struck the serpent with a thunderous palm.

The white serpent roared, thrashing wildly, and hurled the giant away.

But the Heaven-Shattering Giant bellowed in defiance, charging once more, its massive arms locking tightly around the serpent’s body.

“Sever its head!” Xu Zimo shouted.

Above them, countless sword lights gathered. Xie Changliu stepped into the air, his Sword God aura bursting forth.

In that instant, all the surrounding sword intent vanished, leaving only a single, breathtaking streak of light.

The sword flash cut through the darkness of the abyss, erasing everything in its path.

The serpent’s enormous head was cleaved clean off.

A geyser of bluish blood erupted as its body convulsed, then plummeted into the depths below.

“Help me! Please, help!”

A faint, desperate cry echoed up from the abyss.

But it faded quickly, swallowed by silence.

“You heard that?” Xie Changliu asked.

Xu Zimo nodded. He had indeed heard someone calling for help.

“Keep going down,” he said. “Finding the Nine-Nether God-Grass is what matters. Whatever else happens, even if Celestial Sage Mountain collapses, it’s not our concern.”

The two continued their descent.

At the base of the abyss, a long stone platform jutted out from the mountain wall, as though it had been forged directly into the rock.

Upon that platform stood a host of ghosts, grotesque, black-skinned creatures dressed in all manner of tattered garments.

At their front was one bearing a long saber, its entire body shrouded in sinister energy.

It fixed its gaze on Xu Zimo and Xie Changliu, then raised its arms.

At once, the entire abyss trembled.

The walls shook, space itself shattered, and a massive formation activated, enveloping the two of them completely.