Claiming the Throne of Gods, Starting from the Rebirth of Nezha
Chapter 199: The Shadow

Chapter 199: Chapter 199: The Shadow

Shen Gongbao clenched his teeth in hatred, thinking that the curses should be directed at Lu Ya instead.

Lu Ya had clearly taken advantage of everyone, leading them here only to force them to expend their efforts and treasures to solve the difficulties he faced.

Even with mana, Shen Gongbao, a cultivator of the Golden Immortal Realm, could only offer a bitter smile while fleeing from the approaching zombie at the Taiyi Golden Immortal Realm.

He wondered if he was genuinely going to have his brain devoured by a red-haired zombie as Li Zhaoran had speculated.

Shen Gongbao hardened his heart, deciding to run first and foremost. He leaped up and nose-dived into the ground, intent on using the Earth Traveling Technique to escape.

But the person rushing forward pointed at the ground before Shen Gongbao could, crashing him headfirst into the earth, his head bloodied and his entire body rigid.

"Earth Pointing to Steel Technique? This zombie, you know the skills of Brother Ju Liusun too?"

Shen Gongbao’s cries went unheard by heaven and earth alike. Fortunately, Daoist Xiao Qi from the Jie Sect intervened to hold off the attacker.

After a brief moment of chaos, the group regained their footing.

This temporary team of elites, now armed with mana, actually gained the upper hand.

Pity for Shen Gongbao.

He had originally planned to reveal his hand at the last moment to reap the benefits, but a mishap had forced him into such straits.

At this point, Lu Ya also made his move, and with his ability, he was beyond a match for these three even when they were alive.

He released three divine lights from his hand, which entered the Mud Ball Palaces of the three individuals. The two with lesser cultivation froze, then, just like powered down machines, fell straight back.

As soon as they hit the ground, the earth cracked and swallowed them up. Even as Daoist Bei Ming used mana to blast a large hole several meters deep in the ground next to them, their figures were nowhere to be found.

Only the True Person Nan Feng.

His cultivation was the highest, and when Lu Ya shook his Mud Ball Palace with Divine Arts, he momentarily regained clarity.

But that moment was fleeting, and his face twisted into an expression far more horrifying and truculent than before.

With a hoarse and dried-out throat, Nan Feng inhaled sharply like a bellows and bellowed:

"Run!"

At his shout, everyone froze, but after his cry, he too fell backwards and vanished into the earth, following the same pattern as the others.

True Person Huang Shi exhaled deeply, walked to Lu Ya’s side, and smiled, saying, "Daoist, impressive technique."

"Observation merely runs a bit deeper," said Lu Ya. "The one behind the scenes has left some remnants of Primordial Spirit Fire in these zombies to control them, immobilizing them with Divine Thought. For the time being, they can’t be used again."

He suddenly smiled and said, "Speaking of which, we truly need to thank Daoist Shen Gongbao for this. Without the Myriad Phenomena Heaven Net Formation, it’s possible the rest of us would have truly fallen to these three zombies."

Shen Gongbao’s face darkened, and he remained silent.

He turned his gaze toward the coffin in the middle of the river. The mysterious figure was now sitting atop it, resting their chin in one hand, examining the group intently.

True Person Huang Shi asked in a low voice, "Daoist Lu Ya, what is this?"

"It emerged from the coffin."

Taking a couple of steps forward, Lu Ya bowed to the shadow and said, "I am Lu Ya, a humble individual from West Kunlun, and have the honor of meeting you, Senior. Although it may be difficult, I have an impolite request to carry your coffin out of the Fir Forest."

The figure still sat cross-legged, propping their chin with one hand, seemingly uninterested, but the atmosphere suddenly shifted at that instant.

The sun had already set.

The darkness of night was like ink, so dense it was impenetrable.

It was as if even the wind had perished.

No chirping of insects, no rustling of leaves, and even breathing was inaudible.

Only an oppressive silence prevailed, like an invisible giant hand choking all vitality.

Silence, dead as death itself.

This silence is not peace, but a suffocating emptiness.

As if time had halted here, and all things met their end here.

You cannot hear your own heartbeat, yet it seems you can hear the sound of blood solidifying in your veins.

Even Lu Ya could feel it.

The invisible pressure upon his shoulders.

This pressure came from the black shadow before him, commanding him to kneel, like a sharp dagger, piercing into your heart bit by bit.

However, Lu Ya’s face showed no significant change; he knew a thing or two about the origins of this black shadow.

The origin frightened him as well, but after all, he had already stepped into the realm of Daluo Golden Immortal, and that being who was once buried in this coffin was indeed truly dead.

It took a long while, under the nearly suffocating pressure, when the black shadow finally spoke.

In contrast to its eerie appearance, its voice was full of vigor and surprisingly righteous.

"Since you knew it was an unreasonable request, perhaps you shouldn’t have spoken at all."

"Since you knew it was me here, you shouldn’t have harbored greed from the start."

"There is no light in the Netherworld, yet there is eternity; there is no sound in the Netherworld, yet there is echo. Time is like fine sand in my hands, life is like green smoke in my eyes. Life, death, reincarnation, all under my control. You mortal, how dare you come here to provoke me?"

Upon hearing these words, everyone’s hearts trembled, and that indescribable sense of oppression instantly diluted their joy of regaining their cultivation, replaced by a fear unforgettable in a lifetime.

Yet, Lu Ya just smiled and said, "Elder, for such a great being, you sure talk too much."

After saying this, he made the first move.

He took a step forward, and on the silent, desolate land of the Netherworld, paths became golden lotuses spreading across the land and riverbeds.

The black shadow, however, did not move at all. It just sat atop the coffin, yawned, and then from within the darkness, another shadow stood up from the river.

A... Lu Ya.

"Mirage and moonlight in the water, not capable of achieving great deeds."

Lu Ya sneered inwardly. It would not be enough to kill a Daluo Golden Immortal with just these tricks.

But Lu Ya hadn’t finished forming his seals when the black shadow suddenly appeared before him, smiled, and merged half of its body into his own shadow.

Lu Ya suddenly felt his Primordial Spirit stiffen, and a slightly sinister voice echoed in his mind.

"Do you think you can escape? The moment you set foot in this forest, I saw you all. I’ve lived too long to be unaware of your little schemes."

Lu Ya cast a talisman to suppress several bodies. Since the black shadow had merged into his shadow, he concentrated his energies on the reflection of himself in the water.

He said with a smile, "Elder, since you know something, why not share with me?"

"This young man is Nezha, isn’t it? I don’t know the nature of your relationship, but you wish to use his hand to obtain the Holy Artifact in my possession. Isn’t that a bit too naïve?"

Lu Ya’s expression did not change, but inside, he was startled, and he asked gravely, "Elder, since you know, why did you personally push him into that coffin?"

"Hehe, you have your thoughts, and I have my plans. The Holy Artifact has been dormant for hundreds of thousands of years; even I myself can’t awaken it, so what if he goes inside.

Moreover, although this young man has a low realm, with the Nine-Pattern Divine Pill and the Innate Divine Body, his talent is not far off from mine back in the day."

Lu Ya sneered, "Do you want to take over Nezha’s flesh?"

"Otherwise, what do you think allowed you to come here and see me? The silence and eternity of the Netherworld is the ultimate destination of all things. Do you really think you can outsmart me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Ya was shocked to find that his reflection in the water had broken free and charged not towards himself, but towards the people on the bank.

...

They entangled and contended with each other and the situation was fraught with danger. Nezha, however, locked inside the coffin, could neither hear nor see anything.

He tried pulling at his legs, but the Corpse Wrapping Cloth binding his limbs only tightened, as if intending to wrap him into a dumpling.

"Please, Corpse Wrapping Cloth is for wrapping up corpses, and I am not a corpse, right? Also, what’s with this mess? It’s just a piece of cloth to make do with, why is it made so strong? Look, now even this cloth has become tricky!"

This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶