Chapter 337: Paper Boat Crossing the River, Paper Man Protecting Life

The Yin River rolled back and hung down at the horizon. Wisps of black air seeped out through the fragmented sky and gathered into a large turbid current.

This black river appeared in the world not long after the blockade of heaven and earth was broken, and it stained a large area of ​​the sky. Perhaps because its source was not here, or perhaps because it itself was hidden, although there were turbid currents hanging, there were no strange fluctuations. It just sank quietly to the edge of the sky, and then turned back in the cracks of the sky, reaching the invisible depths.

"Do you really want to set foot in the source of the Yin River, the deep place?"

Li Jiufeng blinked and looked at the black river above her head: "Although I don't know where that place is, it is definitely not the fairyland. With your strength, you may not be able to come back if you go there."

Gu Chen smiled and touched the black cloth on his eyes. There was no eyeball behind it, only two shriveled holes: "Now I am almost dead, my five internal organs and seven orifices do not have any yang energy, my five senses and seven perceptions are dull, I am more like a living dead than those soldiers, do you think I will be afraid?"

He looked at Li Jiufeng. Not only was he not afraid, but he was also not afraid of the black dragon that had abandoned its human form and transformed into a mountain. Gu Chen stood up calmly: "Just wait for my safe return. Before I come back, try to reduce external exploration as much as possible."

Outside, the yellow sand is rolling, but here is a paradise. Relying on a little land, they can barely live a self-sufficient life. He said: "From now on, everything depends on you, the Dragon King of the Dry Sea, who has carved a prison in the rolling yellow sand."

Having said that, Gu Chen knew clearly that Li Jiufeng had turned into a mountain and could not move at all. If the Fallen Immortal attacked, he would not only have to deal with its offensive, but also have to protect Longcheng and resist the spread of pollution. He would not have much power to fight back and could only be beaten. It was because the Fallen Immortal was stupid that he had a chance to breathe.

"Wait," Li Jiufeng suddenly said, "Although I can't go with you, there is someone who can. Maybe he can help you. It's better than being alone."

Gu Chen turned around and saw a familiar figure, Wang Si Xingdou, a Pure Yang Taoist monk, Yan Jing. However, compared with a few years ago, he looked much older. He must have used some method to shorten his lifespan.

"Brother Gu, long time no see."

Yan Jing nodded at Gu Chen and said, "Long time no see." The situation was quite different, it could be said to be a complete change.

Gu Chen was delighted to see his acquaintance. He told him about the past without much hesitation, and the two of them fell into the depths of the Yin River together.

As soon as they crossed the broken cave entrance filled with darkness, they seemed to have come to another world. In front of them was a dark river, and in the distance was a deep and turbid current, surging and rolling away, with no end in sight. There was only a place to stand under their feet.

Countless mountains and rivers were broken, and the shadows of broken walls and ruins rose and fell in the Yin River, as if this Yin River had buried half of the world, with countless ruined palaces, temples, and strange mountains piled up.

Gu Chen and Yan Jing felt a chill in their hearts, because in addition to those broken scenes, there were other things. On the ruins floating in the river, there were twisted figures standing.

Most of the figures were illusory, connected with the wasteland beneath their feet and the aura of the Yin River, obscure and deep. When they saw the two people appear by the river, some of the figures stood up and looked, while others wandered around, as if they had not seen them.

Yan Jing touched his head and found no sweat. With his current body, it was difficult for him to perform body movements such as sweating and exhaling. However, under the gaze of those figures, he still felt a faint sweat on his forehead.

He walked to the river bank. The water was surging and splashing, making waves, as if it was a real river. But when Yan Jing got closer, he felt that the black turbid current had a deep suction force, pulling him tightly.

He thought about it, as if confirming something, and took out some sundries from his arms and threw them into the Yin River one by one. When he saw that those pieces of paper, feathers and other small objects did not spin on the water surface and sank to the bottom of the water like falling rocks, he broke free from the suction, stepped back, and turned to look at Gu Chen.

"Brother Gu, this Yin River has appeared once before. At that time, Da Chong had not yet been established, but the capital of the previous dynasty collapsed overnight due to the chaos of immortals and gods, which led to the Yin River and swallowed up half of the old capital. This river is so heavy that not a single feather can float on it. If you fall into the river, you may have to shed a layer of skin to get out. This is because this river looks like a river, but in fact it is a huge tomb, carrying people and things that have disappeared from all dynasties, turning into strange creatures standing in the river. Only this dead thing can hang on the river. If brother Gu wants to reach its source and cross the Yin River, I'm afraid it will take some effort." Yan Jing said, looking at the shadowy figures.

Gu Chen frowned: "Brother Yan, is there no way to avoid it?"

Although he was not afraid of the phantoms, there were too many of them and they were above the Yin River. It would take a lot of effort to deal with them. What's more, he didn't know what else was hidden in the Yin River.

Yan Jing thought for a moment and said, "Yes, it depends on how brave you are."

"I'm not afraid of death, so what should I be afraid of?" Gu Chen responded.

Yan Jing clapped his hands: "In this case, please let Brother Hu and Gu die!"

Seeing that Gu Chen did not react, he sighed and said, "Although my Pure Yang Dao is not at its peak, it has a long history. The classics in the sect have mentioned that the essence of this Yin River is to cross the dead but not the living. We are born with a Yin energy, and the practice method is to live towards death. For example, ordinary mortals lack half a breath of Yang energy and have a little more Yin energy. All they need to do is sacrifice their lives to imitate death, or maybe they can give it a try."

Seeing Gu Chen nod, a stack of white paper appeared in Yan Jing's hand. It was not pure white, but pale. If you touched it, you could feel the residue of gloomy white powder on your hand.

He unfolded a large piece of white paper, opened his mouth and sucked his finger, then separated the paper with the blood from his fingertips. Strands of blood fell on the paper and were absorbed in an instant, leaving only a red mark on the edge.

Yan Jing folded the paper three times and twice, and it took shape into a paper boat. It was extremely thin and light, with awnings at both ends that could accommodate one person lying down.

"This Yin material is not easy to make. It uses a lot of Yin bone powder and evil blood. It was originally used to make talismans through two hands. Now that it is used here, it is not a waste."

Yan Jing took the paper boat. The boat looked big, but it seemed as if it was nothing in his hand. He opened his mouth and spit out a stream of Yin Fire, burning the bottom of the boat. He loosened his hands slightly, and the paper boat floated lightly on the Yin River, swaying up and down with the water.

He took out another candlestick, motioned for Gu Chen to come forward, took the blood from his fingertips and dripped it into the candlestick, and a candle with dark flames lit up.

Gu Chen was half dead, his body was in a mess, his blood was like mercury, extremely viscous, and no longer flowing. The drop of blood sank on the lamp table like asphalt.

Yan Jing nodded with satisfaction, placed the candlestick on the bow, and took out some white paper and cut it into shapes, making several paper figures, both male and female, with blush painted on and eyebrows drawn on, with superb skills, as if they were real people.

He tapped his forehead, and a black line came out along his finger and was thrown onto the paper man. A few children's laughter was heard, and the paper man moved and then stood still. Yan Jing stuffed the paper man into the boat.

Gu Chen watched his movements and thought to himself: “Brother Yan, your method…” It seems like a sneaky method.

After Yan Jing finished the arrangement, he said nonchalantly: "I met a fallen immortal some time ago. He had no choice but to shorten his life span and turned from Yang to Yin. The Yangming Fire that he had nurtured for many years has gone out. Now he can only use ghostly Yin methods such as raising ghosts to exorcise ghosts, drawing talismans and dotting eyes."

"The Pure Yang Dao has been completely eradicated in my lifetime."

(End of this chapter)