The Years When I Was the Boss of the Evil Abyss

Outside Nanwu Mountain, upon hearing that the Su family had sealed off the mountain, the cultivators present immediately turned pale. Several rogue cultivators attempted to approach, but as they neared, they were forced back several steps by the ominous wind at the mountain's entrance, clearly unable to advance further.

The group of rogue cultivators turned their gaze toward the person maintaining the spiritual boat's barrier. An elderly man with white hair, dressed in coarse cloth, with two wine flasks at his waist and a disheveled appearance, leaned against the barrier, sipping wine and resting, showing a complete disregard for the situation.

"What are you doing? Don't go forward; that's the Su family's boat guardian." Hearing the guardian's name, the rogue cultivators halted their steps.

The Su family's spiritual boats are renowned in the southern region of Donghuan. Known for their talisman formations, the Su family's boat-crafting skills are even more famous. Each spiritual boat embodies the collective efforts of the Su family over generations, considered the finest in Donghuan. It's said that the Su family's top-tier boats encapsulate the essence of all their formations and talismans. To prevent their techniques from leaking, each Su family spiritual boat has only one guardian.

Seeing the other cultivators retreat in the face of difficulty, the elder from the Lihuo Sect was satisfied and instructed others to check on the cultivators swept away by the wind.

"Most of the low-level cultivators have made it out."

"I heard that rogue cultivators from the East Sea went in, along with some others. Could they have been faster than us?"

"What are you afraid of? Senior Brother Su went in first—"

"Any missing members from the Su family?" the old man asked.

As soon as he spoke, a nearby Su family cultivator instinctively replied, "All low-level Su family cultivators are here; only those who entered with Senior Brother Su Yi are inside..."

Halfway through his sentence, someone beside him nudged his shoulder, signaling him to stop. This time, the spiritual boat they used wasn't the usual one for Su family outings. Due to the frequent use of boats recently, the Su family elder had temporarily requisitioned an old, dust-covered boat from the family's collection, along with an obscure guardian—only known by the surname Qi, fond of drinking, with nothing else known.

The Su family cultivators were somewhat perceptive; the accompanying elder interacted little with this guardian, avoiding him in many matters.

The white-haired old man remained silent, listening to the surrounding discussions while sipping his wine. His gaze shifted from the distant Su family elder to the ominous Nanwu Mountain.

...So, everyone is accounted for. Who was that figure I saw earlier? But what does it matter to me? The old man closed his eyes; after all, he's just the boatman now.

The Lihuo Sect elder looked toward Nanwu Mountain, observing the increasingly fierce ominous wind, and turned to the Su family elder: "Several of our Golden Core cultivators have entered... but is this really safe?"

Most cultivators were drawn by the mountain's ominous energy, seeking to eliminate demons, train, and gain some credentials. However, the Lihuo Sect was well aware that this fissure was unusual. The sealing patterns were peculiar, yet capable of concealing the mountain's ominous energy entirely, likely set by a powerful cultivator, possibly indicating a rare opportunity.

Evil spirits are a minor concern; the seal is the major issue.

If this is the resting place of a fallen great cultivator, then the first discoverers—the Su family and the Lihuo Sect...

"The stronger the spiritual energy, the more it attracts evil spirits. To venture deeper into Nanwu Mountain, we must rely on Golden Core cultivators." The Su family elder observed the ominous mountain and the half-opened seal at its entrance, speaking slowly: "This seal on Nanwu Mountain was likely set by someone to ward off enemies. If it hadn't cracked, we wouldn't have discovered the mountain's secrets."

Such resting places often contain extraordinary treasures.

Had it not been for the Lihuo Sect's familiarity with the area, the Su family wouldn't have immediately cooperated with them upon discovering Nanwu Mountain's secrets, establishing boundary markers to contain the information, preventing other forces from seizing the opportunity... Who could have anticipated the sudden arrival of so many eager cultivators?

The elder of the Lihuo Sect wanted to say more.

"Rest assured, it's our young master who has entered. Although he's only at the Golden Core stage, with his abilities, the Yin energy outside Nanwu Mountain is merely a trifle," the elder of the Su family said gravely. "Moreover, inside..."

"Inside?" The Lihuo Sect elder suddenly recalled that before news about Nanwu Mountain spread, the Su family had already sent people in, but that group of cultivators had since disappeared. Otherwise, they wouldn't have had to send their young master, Su Yi, personally.

"With so many evil spirits roaming the nearby towns, the persistent Yin energy in Nanwu Mountain, and the malevolent entities sealed for centuries still inside, do you think those rogue cultivators who entered can come out alive? Beyond the place of seated transformation, there's a living tomb."

"If anyone entered... and died in the living tomb, they have only themselves to blame." The Su family elder looked at Nanwu Mountain with determination and said leisurely, "After all, our family's sealing of the mountain is for the greater good."

In the deep mountain path of Nanwu, the surrounding withered trees were twisted and askew, showing signs of upheaval.

On the decaying branches and leaves, when Su Yu regained consciousness, the raging wind had ceased. He reached out to touch the damp ground, and a stronger stench hit him, prompting him to sit up. As he moved, he immediately noticed his injured broken leg.

The leg had been simply bandaged, but the bone was already twisted and deformed, piercing through the flesh, sending waves of pain directly to his brain.

Where is this?

Oh right... he seemed to have been swept away.

Su Yu felt his mind clearing a bit. He looked up, noticing that the incessant noises had diminished. The chaotic, colorful smoke above had disappeared, returning to the slow-drifting mist he initially saw. He now realized that what he could see was likely influenced by the "eye" in his dantian—his naturally blind eyes could now perceive different things.

Observing the silently operating totem within him, he could even feel the sticky Yin energy around him seeping into his body. After a moment's observation, he quickly assessed his surroundings, used a withered tree to stand up, and was about to move forward when he noticed a strange sensation on his ankle.

What's that?

Looking down, he clearly saw a chain on his uninjured ankle. The chain's color resembled the milky white Yin energy floating near his internal totem, interspersed with faint traces of blood red, extending from his ankle into the distance, making it particularly conspicuous.

Previously, with his muddled consciousness and the sudden appearance of many strange things in his vision, he hadn't noticed this binding on his foot.

He moved slightly; the chain on his ankle felt light, with a slight resistance, indicating something was on the other end.

He gave it a tug but couldn't pull it.

So heavy? Su Yu frowned slightly and applied more force.

Zhang Fugui was jolted awake. Upon regaining consciousness, the chain on his ankle tightened sharply. With a forceful yank from the other end, his entire spirit was irresistibly dragged over a dozen steps.

When he tumbled beside Su Yu, still dazed from the rough handling, he exclaimed, "D-Daolord!?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Su Yu remembered... it was the little ghost he had spared.

Seeing Su Yu, Zhang Fugui was overjoyed. Heaven knows, when he was swept away by the wind, he thought he was doomed. Initially, he had tried to escape with a few ghostly companions, but the attempt failed; his greedy friends perished. Now, with Nanwu Mountain's entrance sealed, he had been swept back into the mountain by the Yin wind, his future uncertain, not knowing where to go.

Now, seeing the Daolord again felt like finding his anchor. Forgetting the recent dizzying ordeal, he hurriedly approached Su Yu. "Daolord!"

As the white figure drew near, Su Yu stepped back half a pace.

Realizing his abruptness, Zhang Fugui scratched his head sheepishly but didn't dare stray far from Su Yu.

Seeing the white figure remain still, Su Yu paid him no further mind.

He looked up, vaguely noticing the surrounding white mist drifting in a particular direction.

"Daolord, where are you going?"

Seeing the young man move, Zhang Fugui intended to follow. After two steps, noticing the direction, he broke into a cold sweat and quickly grabbed Su Yu. "That place is off-limits. Deep in the mountains, it's all big ghosts' territories... they're all fighting over minor spiritual veins."

Hearing this, Su Yu asked in confusion, "Minor spiritual veins?"

Zhang Fugui was taken aback. Wasn't this common knowledge in the cultivation world? He dared not question further and cautiously replied, "I only heard about it after I began cultivating... The ghosts in the mountains mentioned... They said that a thousand years ago, a great demon destroyed the Hall of Ten Thousand Treasures in the human realm, causing the spiritual veins to collapse. Countless powerful beings fell, leading to the decline of the Eastern Huan cultivation world for several centuries, until the discovery of the sites where these mighty beings had passed away."

Ghosts like them rely on yin energy for cultivation, but the essence of heaven and earth comes from all things' spiritual veins. Cultivators absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for their practice. The decline of spiritual veins limited cultivators' training, causing their progress to stagnate... It's rumored that some of these fallen cultivators' resting places contain remnants of spiritual veins from a thousand years ago, known as minor spiritual veins. Although not as potent as those from a millennium past, they are sufficient to establish new spiritual veins, addressing the issue of scarce spiritual energy for cultivators.

Zhang Fugui didn't know much but had heard some ghosts mention that the overabundance of yin energy in Nanwu Mountain, coupled with strange seals, might indicate it was also the resting place of a great being from a thousand years ago.

Su Yu spoke with a hint of weariness, "Even a little ghost like you has heard these rumors; how could they not know?"

"Huh? Who are 'they'?" Zhang Fugui realized something, "Are they here for..."

The group of cultivators outside was likely after something within the mountain. Su Yu said no more, but his thoughts seemed to be clearing up.

This wasn't the first time he'd felt this way; it was the same when he fell off the cliff... Thinking of the cliff, fragmented memories surfaced in his mind, lingering on the oncoming fierce wind and the dazzling lights in his vision.

Who was he? He was Su Yu.

How did he get here...?

Fell off a cliff.

Zhang Fugui noticed Su Yu's odd behavior, "Daoist, are you alright?"

Su Yu held his forehead as disjointed memories resurfaced.

At that moment, a peculiar hand seal emerged in his mind through a totem. In an instant, Su Yu recognized it as the same seal he had instinctively used when he fell off the cliff to slay the evil ghost.

Thinking of cultivators' techniques like talismans, hand seals, and formations, Su Yu knew these were methods of cultivation. However, when he tried to delve deeper, he found no clear understanding, as if he had never studied them in depth.

Now, this hand seal appearing in his mind had intricate patterns, combined in a perplexing way. Yet, just by looking at it, Su Yu instinctively knew it was a hand seal, not a formation or talisman. With a mere glance, he subconsciously began to trace it, as if he innately understood its flow, evoking a sense of déjà vu.

Su Yu's fingers lifted, and the yin energy coiled in his dantian seemed to move with his intent, circulating around the totem, flowing along his meridians outward. However, shortly after, the energy lost direction, faltered after a few breaths, and promptly retreated back to the dantian.

He paused, realizing he knew how to form the hand seal but not how to activate it.

At that moment, his hand, braced against the tree trunk, slipped forward. As his right foot landed, he heard a cracking sound.

An overwhelming stench of decay was unavoidable. In an instant, Su Yu felt a chill.

He looked to the side and, in the dim, misty view, saw a series of black dots.

"What is that?" Su Yu asked.

Zhang Fugui turned his head and saw pairs of eyes staring at them from within the withered forest.

In the gloomy, barren woods, figures stood silently.