CHAPTER 374: CHAPTER 374: THE ENEMY APPEARS, ENTERING THREE LIVES MOUNTAIN

In the area near the Realm of the Dead and Three Lives Mountain.

Johnnie looked at the cold, eerie fire in front of him, his eyes flickering as he thought about what came next.

The Red-Haired Ghost King was lying on a nearby rock, looking exhausted. His red ghost hair was unusually weak and lifeless.

As for Dragon Soul, he was keeping an eye on the White and Black Reapers, making sure they didn’t lose their direction.

"Johnnie, we’re about to enter Three Lives Mountain. It won’t be as safe as now. The Celestial Spirits probably already know what we’re up to. They’ll definitely try to stop us." the Red-Haired Ghost King finally broke the silence.

He continued."Besides the Celestial Spirits, there might be other strong ghosts coming. Some believe the Celestial Spirits are here to save the Realm of the Dead."

"Why?" Johnnie asked, curious. How could anyone think that the Celestial Spirits, who were actually invaders, were here to save the Realm of the Dead?

But after thinking for a moment, he could kind of understand. The Celestial Spirits could absorb the negative energy from wicked ghosts, who were trying to eat normal ghosts. Since the wicked ghosts didn’t want to lose control, they supported the Celestial Spirits.

Johnnie slowly stood up and looked at the three huge mountains in the distance, their peaks disappearing into the sky. He took a deep breath.

He was a little nervous. After all, as just a soul, he couldn’t use the same power as he did in the real world.

That was also one of the reasons he wanted to bring the White and Black Reapers along. But unfortunately, throughout the journey, the Red-Haired Ghost King had tried many times, and none of them could wake them up.

At that moment, the Red-Haired Ghost King looked at the thread on Johnnie’s wrist and asked."Your Soul Power is all back now?"

Johnnie nodded. All of his Soul Power had been restored, but it took a long time and a lot of effort.

If there are more enemies coming up, Johnnie wouldn’t have time to recover his Soul Power.

He looked down at his wrist. The thread was still there, but it had become even more faint. He didn’t have much time left.

"Let’s go." Johnnie said slowly.

The Red-Haired Ghost King didn’t get up right away. He kept looking at Johnnie, his eyes full of thoughts. Then he suddenly asked."Johnnie, you’ll help the Terra Lady escape, and bring the Realm of the Dead back to normal, right?"

Johnnie gave him a strange look. Why would he ask that?

The Red-Haired Ghost King smiled and continued."Before, I was controlled by the Celestial Spirits, and I did a lot of bad things. I killed many innocent ghosts."

"Devouring normal ghosts is wrong, but they had no choice. If they didn’t, they would disappear completely."

"Nature has no compassion, the world has no virtue. But people, or ghosts, can’t be without feelings or morality." Johnnie thought for a moment, then said quietly.

The Red-Haired Ghost King was surprised for a second, then nodded firmly. "Yes, that’s exactly it."

"I don’t understand why some ghosts, who are forgotten, only have one path left: to eat each other."

"But I know, as long as we try, we can change something, right?"

This time, it was Johnnie who nodded.

Johnnie actually respected the Red-Haired Ghost King. He wasn’t the kind of ghost who only cared about himself.

In a world about to face great danger, ghosts like him were the ones who could make a real difference.

"Oh, by the way, you never told me your name." Johnnie suddenly remembered.

The Red-Haired Ghost King stood up slowly, looked up at Three Lives Mountain, and said."Pax."

...

In front of Three Lives Mountain.

The White and Black Reapers were wandering aimlessly in the distance behind Johnnie. Dragon Soul was flying in the air, and the Red-Haired Ghost King was floating behind Johnnie.

Now they faced a choice: which of the three mountains—Past, Present, or Future—held the Terra Lady?

Splitting up was obviously out of the question. They didn’t have enough people to begin with, and if they split up, they wouldn’t be able to keep the White and Black Reapers following them.

So they had no choice but to pick one mountain and go in.

Dragon Soul and the Red-Haired Ghost King both looked at Johnnie, waiting for his decision.

Johnnie took a deep breath. The Past was the past—something that couldn’t be changed. He didn’t think the Terra Lady was in the Past Mountain.

As for the Present and Future Mountains, he thought for a while and finally chose the one that represented the Present.

The Future was too far away. Most people could only control the now.

Johnnie made up his mind and started walking toward the Present Mountain.

Dragon Soul and the Red-Haired Ghost King followed without hesitation.

At that moment, the White and Black Reapers, who had been wandering aimlessly, suddenly stopped.

The White Reaper’s Stable held a staff that radiated thick darkness, and the Black Reaper’s Virtue’s chains clinked and moved as if ready to attack.

Johnnie sensed something was wrong. He turned back and saw, out of nowhere, several figures behind them.

"Human, stop!" A Ghost King with strong Soul Power spoke coldly.

The Red-Haired Ghost King recognized the ghost and whispered to Johnnie."I know this one. His name is Netherfire Ghost King. He’s way stronger than me. The others around him are probably Celestial Spirits’ puppets."

"Red-Haired, why have you betrayed Holy Mother?" The Netherfire Ghost King shouted.

The Red-Haired Ghost King took a few steps forward, standing in front of Johnnie. He kept a calm face and said."Betrayal? If you’ve never been loyal, how can it be betrayal?"

"Besides, it was you who betrayed the Realm of the Dead."

The Netherfire Ghost King sneered. "Foolish. You should know the power of the Holy Mother. Only by following her can you become stronger, and..."

"Idiot!" The Red-Haired Ghost King didn’t want to waste words. He immediately used his red ghost hair.

A sea of red ghost hair floated in the air, moving gently like a thick forest of red trees. It radiated a strong Soul Power.

The Red-Haired Ghost King looked back at Johnnie, took a deep breath, and said firmly."I’ll handle these enemies with the White and Black Reapers. You and Dragon Soul don’t need to worry about this. Find the Terra Lady first."

Johnnie didn’t hesitate. He knew exactly what to do. But he still said."Be careful."

Dragon Soul looked at the Red-Haired Ghost King for a moment and said."Sorry, I thought you were a real bad guy at first. When this is all over, I’ll buy you a drink."

The Red-Haired Ghost King laughed loudly. His red ghost hair moved even more wildly. He stepped forward, one foot after another, toward the enemies.

Johnnie and Dragon Soul quickly entered the Present Mountain.

"Boom!"

"Die, Red-Haired!"

"You’re the ones who should die!"

"Crash!" "Sizzle!" The sound of sticks hitting enemies and chains rubbing against each other kept coming from behind.

Dragon Soul glanced back now and then, while Johnnie kept his eyes on the front.

He knew clearly—only by finding the Terra Lady quickly could the Realm of the Dead return to normal.

As the sounds grew quieter, Johnnie and Dragon Soul moved deeper into the Present Mountain.

The environment here was strange. Trees and rocks all had a semi-transparent color, and their reflections could be seen faintly in them.

Johnnie didn’t have time to enjoy the view. He quickly led Dragon Soul up the mountain.

After a while, Johnnie suddenly noticed something strange. The scenery around them was exactly the same as when they first entered.

If he listened closely, he could even hear the sound of the battle at the mountain’s base.

"Strangely, we’ve been walking for a while, but it feels like we haven’t moved at all." Dragon Soul said, looking confused.

Johnnie stopped walking immediately. He frowned and looked around carefully.

"Is this a hallucination?" Dragon Soul asked.

Johnnie shook his head. He didn’t think it was a hallucination.

The Present Mountain represented the now, but they kept moving and still felt like they were standing still.

Why was that?

Johnnie’s mind raced. Then he suddenly had a thought. He spoke quickly to Dragon Soul:

"What is the most important thing for the present?"

"Of course, finding the Terra Lady." Dragon Soul answered.

Johnnie’s eyes lit up. "Exactly! For the present, the most important thing is having a goal—searching."

He closed his eyes, then opened them again. As he looked around, he saw that all the semi-transparent trees, leaves, grass, and rocks now showed a clear arrow pointing in a direction.

Without hesitation, Johnnie walked in the direction of the arrow. Dragon Soul was on his shoulder, following closely.

But after walking for a while, Dragon Soul suddenly said."Johnnie, we’re back where we started."

"Back where? No, I saw a small pavilion just ahead. Can’t you see it?" Johnnie asked.

Dragon Soul widened his eyes and stared at the direction Johnnie pointed. But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t see the pavilion Johnnie was talking about.

To him, everything here looked exactly the same as when he first entered the mountain.

Johnnie quickly realized what was going on. He said quickly."I think this Present Mountain changes based on what’s in our hearts—our goals."

"Think about what you want to do, and push all other thoughts away!"

Dragon Soul followed Johnnie’s words and started thinking hard. Soon, when he opened his eyes again, he saw the small pavilion Johnnie had mentioned.

They ran toward it quickly.

But another problem popped up. Even though they could see the pavilion, no matter how much they walked, the distance between them and the pavilion never changed.