Chapter 15 The Deal
Large wings unfolded, black snow swirling.

This scene was recorded on the murals at the end of the Underworld Palace.

The Traveler, having journeyed for hundreds of years, finally encountered the Underworld Lord from the Five Continents during an exploration of the "Old World."

No one knows what the two "Divine Seats" discussed after their meeting.

But… this history was not lost!

The black gemstone recorded everything!

Gu Shen held his breath, afraid of disturbing the transmission of this wisp of spirit… He never expected that this black gemstone contained such important "transaction information."

According to his previous deductions, the Traveler built a divine palace for the Underworld Lord, and the Underworld Lord opened a portal for the Traveler.

But after the portal shattered, Gu Shen felt something was wrong.

The Traveler was not quite the same as the one recorded on the murals.

The Traveler he saw was too large and clumsy.

The "giant black-winged creature" in the spiritual image exuded a powerful divine pressure, and at a glance, one could tell… it was a highly intelligent "transcendent being"!

What shocked Gu Shen the most was that the Traveler could speak the language of the Five Continents!

"I brought them."

The Underworld Lord was shrouded in black mist.

He wore a large robe, with a strand of dark flame burning above his brow.

Illuminated by the Underworld Fire.

He looked like a ghost immersed in a dream, his robe fluttering, the edges blurring, appearing extremely unreal… This was because an entire Divine Domain was carried on his person.

Unlike the other Divine Seats of the Five Continents, the Underworld Lord did not have his own sacred land. He wandered about, and he himself was an entire legion.

His Divine Domain, the Underworld, was naturally carried with him.

In the howling black snow.

In the lacquer light of the fluttering robe.

To mortals, the Underworld Lord was an unseeable black mist, an untouchable dream.

But as a fellow Divine Seat, the Traveler's gaze could clearly penetrate the robe.

Black wings slowly stirred.

The Traveler stood with folded arms, hovering above the mountain peak, patiently waiting.

"Rumble…"

In the black snow, a faint sound of void shattering rang out. The Underworld Lord slowly raised his arms, and behind his fluttering robe, doors appeared one after another.

This was the gift he brought.

"Doors to the New World."

A hint of a relaxed smile appeared beneath the Underworld Lord's black robe, "With these doors, you can stop wandering, escape the endless shackles of fate, and reach the true 'Other Shore'… However, I need to remind you that the place behind these doors may not be the pure land you dream of."

The Traveler remained calm.

He looked at the suspended doors, not rushing to inspect the goods, but instead asked, "If I go in now… what will happen?"

"Most likely… you'll die."

The Underworld Lord shrugged, honestly saying, "I'm only responsible for opening the doors, not for persuading. But one thing is certain, if you take your people in like this, the doors are likely to be met with tens of thousands of Source Energy Cannons… I've demonstrated the power of those things to you. Although they're not as powerful as the Annihilation Storm of the Old World, they're more than enough to blast those Winged Servants to smithereens. Your people will migrate to a new graveyard."

The Underworld Lord paused slightly and smiled, "But it doesn't matter, we can continue the 'deal'… For some non-intelligent creatures, sometimes death is a new beginning. If you want those Winged Servants to stand up, I can help. But that requires another 'price'."

"…"

The Traveler fell silent.

He looked at the doors, his expression uncertain, and continued to ask, "In the New World… how many guys like you are there? How strong are they?"

"Including me, there are seven."

The Underworld Lord still smiled, reaching out to touch his brow, and asked in return, "You should know very well, how can there be weaklings who can successfully fuse with 'this thing'?"

Seeing this… perhaps because the spiritual fragments of the black gemstone resonated with Gu Shen's spiritual sea.

He vaguely sensed the Underworld Lord's spiritual fluctuations.

Although he was smiling.

But the face beneath the black robe seemed to be gritting its teeth… Clearly, when the Underworld Lord said these words, there was a hint of resentment in his heart.

The Traveler glanced at the Underworld Lord.

He directly asked, "Then… of these seven, how many are stronger than you?"

This was a very pointed question.

"Heh…"

The Underworld Lord mockingly shook his head.

He narrowed his eyes and said softly, "Are you serious?"

At the top of the Black Snow Mountain, there was silence.

"With your wisdom… don't you know what I'm doing…"

The Underworld Lord first chuckled softly, then his voice grew louder and louder, and finally he spoke in a low, dignified voice, "They fear me, they exile me, they want to take away my 'Fire'… But unfortunately, they will never succeed. When the River of the Underworld is laid, and the Pure Land takes root, among the Seven Gods, I… am the strongest!"

This voice caused a wave of snow to roll on the summit of the snow mountain.

The black snow in the sky exploded.

Invisible thunder rolled everywhere!

Even Gu Shen, who was "observing," felt a tremendous impact.

Among the Seven Gods, I am the strongest!

What powerful confidence was this… In other words, what kind of taboo must the Underworld Lord be attempting?

The Traveler quietly watched this scene.

Under the cover of the black snow, Gu Shen could not see the faces of the two Divine Seats clearly – the taboos of the gods could not be spied upon, but he vaguely felt that the aura emanating from this "Traveler" was somewhat familiar.

Perhaps, he had seen it somewhere?

Could it be… another similar dream?

Such an inexplicable thought was impossible to trace to its source.

Gu Shen continued to "watch." After this slight snow tide shock, the picture pieced together by spiritual fragments became a bit more blurred.

"You need… endless 'transcendent source material'…"

The Traveler was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "I can provide it, but before it is 'completed', I can only provide half."

To build a perfect Pure Land.

For the Susu Xuan tree to take root and sprout was only one condition.

More importantly… the Underworld Lord wanted to build an "Undead Legion", under the projection of the "Pure Land Divine Domain", to be used by him. This required countless transcendent source materials to resist the iron laws of the transcendent world and realize this miracle beyond life and death.

Within the Five Continents, there might be a certain amount of "source material."

But those were "resources" firmly held in the hands of the Highest Council… It was too difficult for him to collect them.

Coincidentally.

The Traveler, who lived in the Old World, possessed this most scarce "resource"… They lived on the wastelands, constantly fighting against "order collapse." The first thing the entire race learned was how to collect scattered "transcendent source material."

The transcendent source material of the Old World was vast and boundless, inexhaustible and inexhaustible.

"Half?"

The Underworld Lord frowned.

Endless source material, providing half… What did that mean?

The black wings stirred slightly.

The Traveler took out a shiny "black gemstone", his voice very clear, without any emotion, "This 'black stone' can accommodate endless spirits, this is the 'half' that I provide."

The Traveler released his hand.

The black stone floated.

"Accommodate… endless spirits?"

The Underworld Lord stared at the black gemstone with some suspicion. He had never seen such a bizarre thing.

The texture of this stone was somewhat like… jade?

The Old World was too large.

The abilities and knowledge possessed by the Traveler as the Eighth Divine Seat… were exactly the missing piece of the puzzle for the Five Continents.

"The reason why I say this is 'half' is because this thing can prove that I can produce a divine object that can contain 'endless source material'…" The Traveler said, "If you want to lay the River of the Underworld, then use this 'black stone' as the core. No matter how much spirit you inject into it, it will not break."

The Underworld Lord took the black gemstone and gently rubbed it.

The picture was silent.

Obviously, at this moment he took the black stone, somewhat disbelieving, but as he injected spirit… a smile appeared on the face beneath the black robe.

"Interesting…"

The Underworld Lord said quietly, "I accept this 'black stone'. I'll leave these doors here."

"Very good, then next is the second half of the transaction -"

The Traveler calmly said, "In order to ensure that you will help us return home… I think we should follow the usual practice and make an oath to ensure the 'immaculacy' of the transaction."

To link with the fire seed and "fate" to make an oath.

For the Divine Seats, this was the best and fastest way to gain each other's trust.

"Okay."

The Underworld Lord smiled, "But this time… how about we change the way?"

The Traveler frowned slightly, "Change the way, what way do you want to change?"

"Curse."

The Underworld Lord said softly, "To me, even oaths linked to fate are not trustworthy… I don't believe in anything in this world, I only believe in the fear in the hearts of living beings."

"…" The Traveler remained silent.

"So, I hope to use a 'curse' to ensure the smooth progress of the second half of the transaction." The Underworld Lord smiled, "We use the 'fire seed' to curse, and accept each other's curse… If anyone violates the oath, then the curse will be triggered, and they will swallow the consequences."

This transaction, having reached halfway, had no possibility of retreat.

But the conditions proposed by the Underworld Lord were more extreme, and more… sharp.

"No problem."

Unexpectedly, the Traveler agreed directly without any hesitation.

"Okay…"

The Underworld Lord spoke first, saying quietly, "I curse with the 'Underworld Fire'. If you violate the oath, you will lose your fire seed, your body will be shattered, your spirit will be annihilated, everything you cherish will be taken away, you will lose everything, and even if your consciousness remains, you will still be entangled by misfortune and will never be able to escape."

What he said was law.

After the Underworld Lord spoke, a wisp of Underworld Fire surged out and swirled on Black Snow Mountain.

"I accept this curse."

At the moment the Traveler spoke.

The Underworld Fire swept out and crashed into his brow.

The Traveler used almost the same words and said in a low voice, "In the name of the 'Traveler', I curse… If you violate the oath, then you will lose your fire seed, your body will be shattered, your spirit will be annihilated, everything you cherish, such as the 'River of the Underworld', 'Pure Land', will be taken away, you will lose everything, and you will never be able to take it back!"

The huge black wings stirred, stirring up boundless snow.

Strands of black light intertwined at the top of Black Snow Mountain.

The Underworld Lord looked directly at the black light and smiled, "I accept."

He released his spirit, allowing this wisp of curse to enter his spiritual sea.

The contract took effect.

The black gemstone trembled violently.

A ray of black light soared into the sky from the snow mountain and shattered the sky.