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The curtain fell on the incident in Barren Sands City. The appearance of a Subterranean Beast King was a clear indication that they couldn't carry on with their mission. Besides, they'd already lost too much.

After Chen Guangfa's death, Xue Mo became silent and listless, just like after the incident that triggered Anti-Upheaval's initial decline.

She grew more sullen by the day, and soon, no longer managed Anti-Upheaval's affairs. Ye Zichen was injured and couldn't help either, so soon, the society's affairs fell into Li Hu and Luo Zi's hands.

In the blink of an eye, two months passed in silence.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Someone was at Ye Zichen's door.

After two months of silent recuperation, plus all the luxurious medicines Xue Mo had sent him, Ye Zichens wounds healed miraculously quickly. Although his shattered meridians had yet to fully knit together, he could already move and take care of himself.

"Go take a look." There were two attendants standing in his room. They weren't yao from the Yao-Sealing Pagoda, but rather, servants Xue Mo had hired to look after him as he recovered.

They nodded and opened the door. Xue Mo stepped inside. "How are your injuries? They won't have lasting effects, will they?"

Xue Mo took the initiative to start joking around with Ye Zichen. It seemed like the pain of losing Chen Guangfa and her self-recrimination was finally starting to fade. Or perhaps, instead of fading, it only became deeper, so deep that she buried it in the depths of her heart.

Either way, this was a good start. At the end of the day, she was still the pillar of the Anti-Upheaval Society.

If she collapsed, it was no good for the society, much less for her.

"I'm full of vim and vigor. I should be set for the rest of my life." The incident in Barren Sands City had brought them much closer. He lost his former aversion to her, and now felt nothing but friendship born of shared life-and-death experiences.

"That's good." She nodded, seemingly relieved, then tossed Ye Zichen a spatial ring.

Ye Zichen looked at her in befuddlement, only to hear her say, "It's ten-thousand-year black jade. Weren't you always going on about it?"

"But wasn't the mission canceled? Where did you get it?" said Ye Zichen, picking the ring up.

"Yes, it was canceled, but the results of our investigation were still an enormous help to the city lord. Also, that beast king was captured alive, and it shared all sorts of useful intelligence. Most importantly, it confirmed that some yao are indeed corroborating with demons. The city lord decided to give us our reward anyway, so I decided to offer you the ten-thousand-year black jade."

Ye Zichen wasn't overly surprised. He'd already known most of that already. "Thank you."

He lifted the ring and smiled. He really did have an urgent need for the black jade, so he didn't refuse. Instead, he scanned the ring's contents with his divine awareness.

When he saw the sheer quantity of the stuff, his eyes immediately widened. "This is way too much! Waah, do you really think I'm some sort of nouveau riche? There's no way I can afford to buy all that!"

"I don't need your money. It's for you," said Xue Mo as if it didn't matter.

"Are you really that well off?" Her familiar tone reminded him of Zuo Mo. Back in the Lower Three Realms, she'd said something similar to him once.

"What are you trying to say?"

"Nothing." Ye Zichen smiled, then put the ring away.

There was absolutely no need to fuss over the price of the black jade. Based on Xue Mo's deep relationship with Zhao Qianhe, she was obviously deeply connected to the Sea of Innocence.

If Ye Zichen absolutely insisted on paying, he'd just seem stubborn.

Besides, he naturally wouldn't take her black jade for nothing. He'd have lots of opportunities to repay this favor in the future.

Xue Mo looked Ye Zichen twice over, then said, "It seems like you're healing well. Do you mind if I ask what you need so much ten-thousand-year black jade for?"

"To condense my dharma body," said Ye Zichen directly.

"Are you serious?" Xue Mo's eyes widened. "Just what technique are you using? What kind of technique uses ten-thousand-year black jade?"

"The Devil Dharma Body. Have you heard of it?"

Xue Mo shook her head. She knew every single one of the record hundred and eight dharma body techniques, but had never heard of the Devil Dharma Body.

"You're awesome! For this Devil Dharma Body to be so expensive, it must be strong! In the future, you're sure to become the top war god of Anti-Upheaval. Work hard, boy! I have high hopes for you, so don't let me down!"

"I definitely won't disappoint my dear leader." Ye Zichen chuckled. He was excited about the Devil Dharma Body's future strength too.

Xue Mo wanted to laugh, but couldn't.

Ye Zichen noted her change in mood. He couldn't help but ask, "What is it?"

"Guangfa's family has been sending him messages saying they miss him and asking when he can visit." Xue Mo bit her lip, and her eyes reddened. "I…. didn't dare respond…."

When she saw her barely repressed tears, Ye Zichen couldn't help but sigh.

He could understand her feelings, but once someone died, they couldn't come back…

Wait, no! Couldn't Emperor Hades find and restore the souls of the dead?

"Xue Mo, when someone dies on the Divine Mountains, their souls go to the River Styx too, right?"

"Mmhm." Xue Mo nodded. "It's not just the Divine Mountains either. The dead of all three upper realms all wind up in the River Styx. I asked my dad earlier to ask Emperor Hades to find Guangfa's soul and bring him back to life, but Emperor Hades is in seclusion. All I can do now is wait for him to exist seclusion, then beg him to bring Guangfa back. It's just, I don't know how long he'll be in seclusion for, or how long I can keep Guangfa's family in the dark."

Emperor Hades was in seclusion.

The way Ye Zichen saw it, most likely, Emperor Hades just didn't want to help.

"That little pipsqueak!" Ye Zichen couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Xue Mo didn't quite catch it, and seemed confused. Ye Zichen hurriedly changed brushed that aside, and said, "Nothing… so, Emperor Hades said he's in seclusion, right?"

"He didn't say it. His disciple said it."

"So that's how it is. Go find someone to open a path to the lower lands. Once I've condensed my supreme dharma body, I can lead you to Emperor Hades' palace."

"You?" She didn't quite believe him. Not even her father had seen Emperor Hades. How could Ye Zichen possibly have met him?

"You don't believe me, do you? Do you want to revise Chen Guangfa or not?" said Ye Zichen irritably.

"Of course I want to!"

"Then do as I say and find someone to open up a path. Once I condense my supreme dharma body, we can head out. I guarantee that I can get you into the palace!"

When she saw the certainty in his eyes, for some reason, Xue Mo actually started to believe him a little.

She nodded forcefully, then dashed out of the room. When she saw her mad scampering, Ye Zichen couldn't help but shake his head. Next, he took out his dharma body technique, his eyes blazing with desire. "Hey, my precious treasure. We finally meet again."