The serpent’s head thundered down and rolled across the river surface, cold snake blood spilling throughout the river.
A cavity of snake blood to honor the wronged souls, ten lifetimes of resentful bones to slay the river demon!
That figure standing beneath the overcast sky, ghost qi surging to the heavens, red robes vivid and bright, bone blade pale and desolate, a pair of dark eyes, deep and burning with an inner flame.
……
The illusion in the mountains suddenly shattered. The waters of Jiuqu River still flowed peacefully. Birds skimmed across the sky, silver fish rode the waves, and several wild deer stood at the edge of the grass-covered riverbank, heads lowered to drink, completely unaware of the scene that had just unfolded across hundreds of years.
A hundred years in illusion, but an instant in the mortal world—none among the living were aware, except for……
Li Chi looked toward the riverbank before him. That place had once been a ferry crossing and had once been an altar, though both had long since been destroyed, leaving only a few broken stones.
Upon these broken stones, a seated figure had appeared at some point, facing the river with their back to Li Chi, a white bone blade resting horizontally across their knees.
That back was blurred and indistinct, trapped and confused, yet only the white bone blade on the knees was clear. Though it had just appeared there, it also seemed as if it had been sitting there for a very long time.
“Ghost King… Ten Lifetimes Manifestation,” Li Chi said.
The Ghost King’s Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was the most special manifestation among all the Ghost King’s severed aspects. More precisely, compared to the other aspects, the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was more like a lingering shadow. The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation had always been unclear because it had never truly been severed.
Among the Ghost King’s aspects, the Wedding Robe Manifestation carried the heaviest resentment, the White Bone Manifestation was the most desolate and still, while the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation embodied ten lifetimes of suffering, ten lifetimes of injustice, ten lifetimes of rage, and ten lifetimes of confusion.
Whether the Wedding Robe Manifestation or the White Bone Manifestation, when not controlled by the Ghost King’s consciousness, they had no awareness of their own and could only act on instinct. But the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was different.
Though the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation had never truly been severed, it possessed independent consciousness—one with the Ghost King, yet also separate.
“Why have you awakened me?” asked the figure sitting with its back to Li Chi. It was a calm yet peculiar voice, both clear and hoarse, both young and ancient, seeming unlike any voice yet capable of becoming any voice.
“Since slaying the river demon, fellow daoist has remained in this place. How long have you been sleeping?” Li Chi asked calmly.
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was silent for a long while. “……Always sleeping, never awakened.”
A mortal dies ten times, the Ghost King is born. The River God perishes, all resentments are calmed—this was the Ghost King’s great obsession and great vow across ten lifetimes. Now that the river demon was slain, the great obsession was dissolved, the Ghost King’s divine consciousness returned to clarity. From that moment, a shadow was left here. For hundreds and thousands of years, the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation grew increasingly trapped, and the shadow became increasingly substantial. The more substantial it became, the more blurred it grew. The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation had never truly been severed, and thus had never truly awakened.
“In this long sleep of a thousand years without waking, what did fellow daoist see?” Li Chi asked.
“After slaying the river demon……” The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation fell silent for a moment. “The many water ghosts who died from the River God sacrifices had their resentments dissolved and re-entered the cycle of reincarnation. I refined the river demon’s head into Shekou Cliff and gathered the remaining vengeful ghosts who still harbored obsessions under my protection.”
She gathered the wronged souls in the river, and thus also gathered the wronged souls on both banks. They entered under her protection, learned how to avoid having their divine consciousness affected by resentful evil, and set foot on the proper path of ghost cultivation. But… what truly counted as calming all resentments?
Just like that black dog named Little General—though normally calm and alert, when encountering an obsession from a past life, he would be trapped by resentful evil, his behavior becoming abnormal. Could this method of cultivation truly be considered calming resentment?
Not to mention these ordinary ghost creatures—even she herself….relied on the Aspect-Severing Method to entrust all her resentment to the Wedding Robe Manifestation.
How could resentment be calmed?
“And then traveling along the river, gathering resentful bones……” The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation’s voice was vast and distant. “As I gathered the ghosts along Jiuqu River and taught them the proper methods of ghost cultivation, I also saw both banks……”
The river waters flowed abundantly, nourishing both banks. Beyond these small villages harmed by the river demon, there were ferry crossings connecting the kingdoms of Lu and Liang, as well as thriving cities that had formed.
Where human prosperity flourishes, resentment and injustice dwell; where song and dance bring peace, wronged souls weep.
Not just Jiuqu River—the entire world was like this.
Heaven and earth are vast, with resentful bones buried everywhere; time is endless, with resentments constantly born. Even in this Jiuqu River she had already traversed step by step, new wronged souls would continue to emerge.
When would resentment end?
“……Resentment not calmed, obsession not eliminated. If the resentful evil in my body cannot be fully dissolved, I can never advance further on the cultivation path. Even if my power increases, my realm remains forever trapped, and I constantly worry that the evil will consume my divine consciousness.” The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation spoke to this point, then fell silent for a long time. When it spoke again, its voice was even more empty and distant. “The river demon is dead, the obsession eliminated. If I calm the resentments and allow all the vengeful ghosts harmed by the river demon to find liberation, does that count as calming all resentments? If there are no more vengeful ghosts in Jiuqu River, does that count as calming all resentments? If I teach all ghosts the proper methods of ghost cultivation, does that count as calming all resentments?”
Why must I calm the resentments of all living beings to be considered as having calmed all resentments? If I am trapped in this realm and restricted by evil, with my current cultivation, how could I possibly calm the resentments of all living beings?
She was trapped by all living beings, but as long as she changed her mindset and decided to stop here, releasing the obsession of “calming all resentments,” she could step into a new realm on the proper path of ghost cultivation and no longer worry about resentful evil affecting her divine consciousness.
Should she continue calming the resentments of all living beings, or should she let go of her obsession and enter a new realm?
“But I… am unwilling to do so!” the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation said.
The waters of Jiuqu River flowed endlessly, the reeds on both banks turning from green to yellow.
The Ghost King had never been able to advance further on the proper path of ghost cultivation, and the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation had never been able to awaken. She wanted to advance further, yet was unwilling to let go of this vow.
She feared neither suffering nor lacked perseverance. If she could slay the river demon across ten lifetimes, she would not fear doing the same across a hundred lifetimes, a thousand lifetimes to calm the resentments of all living beings. But the world was such… even if she spent a thousand lifetimes, ten thousand years, could she truly calm all the resentment in the world?
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation dimly saw the heavily resentful Wedding Robe Manifestation with phoenix eyes glaring angrily: Without power, how can the vow be fulfilled? If not for accumulating resentful evil power through ten lifetimes of reincarnation, how could the river demon have been slain? It seemed she also saw the desolate and still White Bone Manifestation with calm in its eyes: Why not first let go of this vow? Wait until cultivation breaks through and strength grows sufficiently, then return to calm the world’s resentful evil.
But could a vow that could be let go still be called a vow?
What level of strength would be sufficient to achieve this vow?
The Wedding Robe Manifestation glared angrily: Foolish!
The White Bone Manifestation sighed: Obsessed!
Another voice seemed to echo in her heart: You are merely a shadow, not truly an aspect. Let go, dissipate, free yourself from the inner demon, step onto the proper path. With your own cultivation, you will surely attain the righteous dao.
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was confused and trapped, as if deeply mired in a quagmire. Let go? Dissipate?
Suddenly a voice asked: “Who traps you?”
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation answered distantly: “The resentments of living beings are not calmed, therefore they trap me.”
“Where are the living beings?”
“Living beings are everywhere in heaven and earth.”
“Where are you?”
“I am here.”
“Are there living beings here?”
“There are no living beings here, only me.”
“Since there are no living beings, where does the injustice of resentment come from? How do living beings trap you?”
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was dazed, murmuring: “No living beings… where does injustice come from… how do they trap me… living beings… me… injustice……”
“Look down!” A shout like thunder struck the heart.
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation instinctively looked down, only to see the river water reflecting a figure with a blurred face. Ten lifetimes of reincarnation, the face was naturally different each time. The ripples in the river water pulled the reflection even more blurred and indistinct—this face could be any face.
“Why are you unwilling?” that voice asked peacefully.
“Because,” the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation’s figure suddenly solidified, tears rolling from its eyes, “the injustice is in me, the resentment is in me—I am the living beings!”
“The proper path of ghost cultivation… the proper path of ghost cultivation……” The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation repeated these words, then suddenly began to laugh, the sound growing louder and louder, like rolling thunder. “What proper path of ghost cultivation is there? What dissolving of resentful evil? What calming all resentments? Ghosts are born precisely from resentment and injustice!”
“My proper path is to bear the resentful evil and strike down injustice!”
The moment these words were spoken, the evil aura between heaven and earth suddenly condensed. The Wedding Robe Manifestation in vivid red robes suddenly appeared and walked straight toward the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation, merging into one. The desolate and tranquil White Bone Manifestation appeared and lightly collided with the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation, also merging within… After all the Ghost King’s aspects merged into one body, a tall figure in white robes suddenly appeared—this was the Ghost King’s true form. The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation stepped forward and plunged into the true form, disappearing from sight. Only the white bone blade remained in the Ghost King’s palm, emitting a joyful, light hum.
The white-robed Ghost King closed her eyes for a moment. All resentment was calmed and settled. The waves in the Black Water Pool that had surged restlessly due to evil aura suddenly ceased.
Bear the resentful evil, strike down injustice! From this moment forward, all resentful evil would become the blade striking toward injustice!
The Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was the Ghost King’s great vow.
……
A moment later, the Ghost King opened her eyes. Divine light shone brilliantly in them, having completely swept away all confusion.
Beside her, the deity in white robes smiled, his bearing ancient and refined.
The Ghost King’s gaze fell upon him. She had already recognized who this deity was, having taken the form of a white-robed scholar.
That time when Little General lost his divine consciousness and entered Shuigu Town, she had sensed a gaze falling from the remnants of the Daqing Mountain range. The aura on that little girl who was protecting Mu Chao’s reincarnated body was also similar to this one. Though there had been no further contact since then, she had learned from the local earth god of Shuigu the name of this deity who had settled in the abandoned residence of the Li Manor.
The Ghost King bowed respectfully. “Nu Xu thanks you for your guidance.”
Li Chi smiled, accepting the bow calmly, and said, “Fellow daoist’s great vow is to bear resentful evil and strike down all injustice in the world. However, to accomplish this, fellow daoist must know one more thing.”
He pointed with his finger, and the river surface immediately began to ripple with waves. Another illusion quickly formed.
Rising from the river waves, this section of the river and the banks along it changed appearance like water ripples. Nu Xu recognized this place—a section of Jiuqu River downstream. In the surrounding marshes, verdant green emerged from the withered yellow. Such a strange appearance had only occurred recently……
A thunderclap annihilated the strange locusts, torrential rain regenerated the vegetation of the world. Such a grand undertaking… she wondered which great power had intervened… Nu Xu dismissed these stray thoughts and looked carefully at the illusion.
A wild crossing used for smuggling, young people waiting for a boat to Liang Kingdom… Nu Xu’s pupils suddenly contracted. She saw that small boat rising from the river bottom!
The illusion progressed. The evil god disguised as the pale-faced boatman finally revealed his hideous true form at night. He summoned sinister cold mist from the river surface, and within it, shadowy and indistinct, were countless hidden water ghosts……
“He feared fellow daoist, so he dared not act on Jiuqu River,” Li Chi said slowly.
“Yes,” Nu Xu replied.
Though the pale-faced evil god had summoned sinister cold mist, he had not acted. What he feared was the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation guarding Jiuqu River. Though the Ten Lifetimes Manifestation was trapped in confusion at that time and had not truly awakened, dealing with him would not have been difficult.
However, the strange thing was this: the pale-faced evil god’s abilities were vastly different from the Ghost King’s, yet he had ferried on Jiuqu River and summoned so many water ghosts, and the Ghost King had never noticed.
Li Chi waved his palm, the water rippled, and the river section in the illusion remained unchanged, but time flowed forward, revealing instance after instance of the pale-faced boatman ferrying on the river. The peddler going to Liang Kingdom for business, the refugees fleeing to Lu Kingdom, Chang’an Du’s father… countless people full of hope were buried by him in Jiuqu River, turned into desperate vengeful ghosts, yet day and night he extracted their resentful evil……
The white bone blade trembled, emitting a long, desolate cry.