Chapter 153: Lord of the Underworld

“Absolutely not!”

“Please forgive us, Your Excellency! Please forgive us!”

“We came with sincerity—offense was never our intent!”

Cries for mercy echoed from all sides. Even Shi Zhiyuan, the high-ranking federal envoy, had shed his arrogance completely.

Before such power that transcended the mundane, things like family background or political status were meaningless illusions.

Yet none of them knew that deep within the spiritual veins of Mount Beimang, four hundred ghost soldiers were straining to manipulate the ghost fog, shaping it according to Lu Yan’s will.

That mighty gaze swept coldly and indifferently over everyone present.

Lu Yan understood well—he couldn’t actually kill any of these representatives.

These people were Golden Core elders or influential figures in the Xianxia version. If any of them were to die under these current circumstances, it would unleash endless trouble.

Still, he had to instill fear into these factions.

As thoughts raced through his mind, Lu Yan quickly made a decision.

“Sigh… Forget it.”

Lu Yan exhaled softly, and the overwhelming pressure dispersed without a trace.

“You’ve chased all the way here because of my own dereliction of duty. The Beimang Forbidden Zone fell out of the Underworld and into the mortal realm, prematurely triggering the tide of spiritual revival.”

The crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief—yet within his words, they also grasped critical information.

Such as: this mysterious figure came from the Underworld, and that the origin of the Forbidden Zone and the spiritual revival could be traced back to it.

But soon, they realized something was off.

Though this figure from the Underworld had said to let it go, he showed no intention of leaving, nor did he dispel the surrounding endless black mist.

The seasoned elites representing their respective factions were not fools. After a brief moment of contemplation, they understood exactly what this meant.

Chu Zhuoqun was the first to act, stepping forward with respectful deference:

“The turmoil at the Forbidden Zone is by no means your fault, Your Excellency. There’s no need to blame yourself.”

“Since the zone has descended into the mortal world, as representatives of worldly powers, we naturally share responsibility. Please, grant us your guidance—how might we resolve this calamity?”

Lu Yan nodded with satisfaction.

“You have insight. A reward!”

At his words, a spiritual herb surged up from within the Forbidden Zone like a flying sword and landed gently in Chu Zhuoqun’s hand.

Chu Zhuoqun was overjoyed at the gift, while the other factions looked on with envy.

They now understood Lu Yan’s attitude, but it was too late. Chu Zhuoqun had been the first to respond correctly—and thus, reaped the benefits.

More importantly, they now knew that this deity of the Underworld was not a bloodthirsty killer. If they played their cards right, perhaps they too could earn some spiritual treasures.

“The so-called Beimang Forbidden Zone is actually a fragment of the Underworld’s realm, once connected to Mount Beimang during ancient times.”

“After the spiritual energy dried up, my Lord used divine power to sever the Forbidden Zone from this world.”

“But recently, a ghost god emerged within it.”

“He sensed the tide of spiritual revival approaching and used his tomb on Mount Beimang as an anchor. Harnessing the upheaval of spiritual energy, he forcibly linked a portion of the Forbidden Zone to the mortal world—thus triggering the spiritual revival prematurely.”

The crowd was shaken, even Chu Zhuoqun—still holding the spiritual herb—was dumbfounded. That treasure in his hand now felt more like a hot potato.

Without a doubt, Lu Yan’s next move would involve them dealing with this ghost god.

“After the incident, I immediately dispatched ghost generals to sever the link between the Forbidden Zone and the outside world, to prevent the ghost god from breaking free and returning to the mortal realm.”

“However, the spiritual veins of Mount Beimang had already formed. With them as a bridge, the ghost god used his tomb in the real world as a foothold and summoned tens of thousands of nether ghosts to resist me.”

“Though I slew the ghosts, I missed the critical window to retrieve the ghost god and return him to the Underworld.”

“As a result, he gained a foothold, binding himself to the tide of spiritual revival. Killing him now would disturb the flow of Heaven’s Will itself.”

Lu Yan sighed, and silence fell over the representatives.

Only one thought filled their minds—

“Please don’t ask us to go find that ghost god!”

But Lu Yan, of course, wouldn’t let them off so easily.

“I want you to go to the tomb left behind by the ghost god on Mount Beimang.”

“Destroy it. Sever the anchor tying the Forbidden Zone to this reality.”

“Once the link is broken, there will be no more hauntings, and after the zone returns to the Underworld, the fully-formed spiritual land and veins will be yours to use.”

Though it sounded like a generous promise, to these factions it was clearly a suicide mission.

Lu Yan made it sound simple: just destroy the ghost god’s tomb.
But if that tomb was so crucial, how could the ghost god not defend it?

If it were truly so easy, why hadn’t Lu Yan gone himself?

Still, no one dared say any of this aloud.

Just then, federal envoy Shi Zhiyuan stepped forward, expression stiff:

“May I ask… is there perhaps another way to deal with the Forbidden Zone’s threat?”

“Of course there is.”

Lu Yan replied without hesitation.

Everyone’s eyes lit up.

“It’s nothing difficult. The ghost god of the Forbidden Zone, aside from anchoring himself through his tomb, can also bind to this world through human perception of Mount Beimang.”

“The spread of strange phenomena, the online discussions about the ancient battlefield—all of it creates wishpower. To a ghost god, wishpower has weight. Those discussions you think are meaningless? They are, in fact, anchors.”

Chu Zhuoqun suddenly understood:

“So if we simply suppress all information about Mount Beimang—make people forget—we can remove this anchor and destabilize the link?”

“Precisely.”

But after Lu Yan said this, the crowd fell into an awkward silence.

They looked at one another.

Because they realized… they’d already done this before.

The news blockade they had enacted—it matched the method Lu Yan just described!

“This…”

“You don’t need to consider that method anymore,” Lu Yan said coldly.

“When the ghost god used Mount Beimang as an anchor, I immediately petitioned my Lord to intervene.”

“My Lord deemed it my failing and did not retrieve the ghost god directly. Instead, He gave me a chance to atone.”

“He rewrote the perception of all sentient beings in this world, erased all memories of Mount Beimang, and manipulated the flow of order so that factions like yours would naturally block any related information. He nearly removed the wishpower anchor completely.”

“But in the end, the ghost god launched a desperate counterattack, sending ancient battlefield souls into the mortal world. During the ensuing battle, the Underworld’s ghost soldiers were filmed—exposing the incident.”

“You factions, out of selfishness, abandoned the blockade and allowed the news to spread. The wishpower of billions flooded the world, overriding the altered memories and strengthening the anchor instead.”

“If not for your betrayal, we would have resolved this long ago.”

Everyone was dumbfounded.

As memories flashed through their minds, everything suddenly made sense. The inconsistencies in the news blockade were now explained.

Many of them had been part of that initial suppression effort—they remembered how Mount Beimang had gone from viral sensation to total erasure in just two days.

Back then, they hadn’t thought much of it.

But now, thinking back… it felt like an invisible hand had swept across the entire world, erasing memories without a trace.

Such power was beyond comprehension.

Their souls trembled.

In that moment, the figure of the Lord of the Underworld—though unseen—loomed impossibly large in their hearts.

Even the so-called all-knowing gods of legend seemed lacking by comparison.

And as Lu Yan shamelessly took credit for the Urban Heaven’s Will’s cognitive manipulation—raising the prestige of his Underworld persona—an intense resentment suddenly swirled around him.

Lu Yan could clearly sense it.

It was the weakened Urban Heaven’s Will, sulking like a kitten whose fish had been stolen.

It bared its claws and hissed in protest—but was completely harmless.

(End of Chapter)