The Unruly Immortals

"Leave the Three Realms, break Reincarnation...̷͎̱̫̗̗̹̥̟̬̲̲͉͇͉̦̼̞͆̾͑̓͛̀̒͆͆͑ͯ͋ͭͬͤ̏ͬͮͤ͘͠͏̸͏̵̬̰̹̬̘͍͖̤̮̮̣͇̥͉̹̝̰͕̼̫̣͔͙̫̋ͬ̇̅ͤ̀̚ͅ҉̷̸̷̨͍̺̟̳͔̞̙̳̳͕͖̬̮̳̥͇͚̝̘̞̯̦͂̿͆ͯ̋̒̇ͨ́͋̄̃͌̉̈ͮ̿̾ͬ̋̌̂͑ͤ̓ͭ̀͒̌̑̒̎͊͆The Three Realms are only consciousness, all dharma is only perception..."

As Bai Lingmiao's slender fingers brushed over the Heavenly Spirit Cover of the human head, the eyes of the head closed forever, and the corners of its mouth subtly lifted into a smile, finally liberated from this Endless Purgatory.

Bai Lingmiao gently held the dead head and once again asked the willow tree before her, "Can I trade this for information now?"

"Yes! Absolutely!" The heads in the willow tree spoke in unison, as if fearing Bai Lingmiao would regret it if they were a second too late.

If anything is considered the most precious and treasured in this land of karmic obstacles, it would undoubtedly be Death.

In this place, every existence wishes to trade everything for eternal peace.

"Xinsu and the others are to the east!"

"There's a river in the east!"

"Not far, just thirty miles!"

"Once you cross the river, follow the mountain path into the mountains!"

"As long as you enter the mountains, you might encounter them!"

"There are quite a few of them, about ten or more! Not easy to deal with!"

The heads eagerly provided information about Heart Pan.

Upon hearing there were more than ten Xinsu, Bai Lingmiao was overjoyed, knowing she had indeed come to the right place.

"We've spoken! Let us die! Hurry!! We want to die!!"

"Don't go back on your word! If you don't let us die, we'll haunt you forever!"

Heads fell from the tree like hail and rolled around Bai Lingmiao, like a pack of puppies begging for food.

As Bai Lingmiao's hand brushed over their Heavenly Spirit Covers, the heads gradually quieted, their faces showing peaceful smiles.

Witnessing this, Tuoba Danqing's eyes reflected extreme longing, as he has yearned for death for years. With nothing to eat, suffering endlessly from hunger without dying, constantly tormented by hunger.

Death would mean the end of all torment, a powerful lure for him.

However, as he neared Bai Lingmiao, he shook his head forcefully and turned away. "No! I can't! I must live and get out! I need to avenge Feng Erniu!!"

Suddenly, he burst into mad laughter, "Hahahaha!! Feng Erniu! Bet you didn't think I'd get out! Wait for it! I'm going to kill you! I will surely kill you!"

As the heads gradually perished, the lush willow tree quickly withered, eventually turning black and cracking.

At that moment, Bai Lingmiao grasped why they weren't insane; the life was in the willow tree itself, and the heads were merely its tools for speaking.

Having completed the trade with the heads, Bai Lingmiao led the others toward the East.

With a target in mind, Bai Lingmiao and her companions pressed forward with determination, reaching the river mentioned by the heads in less than a day.

On the still river sat a solitary floating bridge, with a sign next to it reading, "Nei River."

"Neihe Bridge?" Bai Lingmiao pursed her lips as she and her companions cautiously crossed the floating bridge.

Surprisingly, nothing transpired on the bridge, and they safely reached the other side, facing the mountains where the ten or so Xinsu awaited.

The mountains in the dark loomed like sleeping giants, overwhelming in presence. A gravel path stretched from Bai Lingmiao's feet deep into the mountains.

"Be careful, ten or more Heart Pan could make for quite the spectacle if they go mad."

Bai Lingmiao nodded, recalling how other sects had managed Li Huowang as she entered the mountain.

Once inside, Bai Lingmiao instructed Bai Lu to call out to the forest, reassuring them not to be tense, for they meant no harm.

"Everyone! Come out, I can free you from this endless torment, regardless of Xinsu or Heart Turbidity's torment!"

Bai Lingmiao's actions signaled sincerity in wanting to engage without malice.

Ultimately, she chose not to mimic others in how they treated Xinsu, perhaps because Li Huowang was Xinsu, believing Xinsu could reason. A win-win scenario should be apparent to any rational person.

After two miles down the gravel road, Bai Lingmiao and company were stopped by a disheveled-haired woman.

"Go back..." she said hoarsely to Bai Lingmiao.

The attitude of the other made Bai Lingmiao clench her sleeves tightly.

"We're here to help, don't be afraid, I'm here to save you," Bai Lingmiao quietly stepped forward.

"Get lost!" With a roar from the woman Xinsu, the ground erupted as a stone sphere occupied the entire road, rolling towards Bai Lingmiao and companions accompanied by a rumbling sound.

The Divine Strikes of Bai Lu swiftly moved ahead; thirty-six men crouched simultaneously and thrust up violently, sending the stone sphere flying away.

They were about to encircle the woman Xinsu but halted immediately, for no other reason than that ten others appeared alongside her.

These people varied in height and gender, dressed in rags like a group of beggars.

However, the Bai Lus were cautious; these were Xinsu, with the ability to create something out of nothing, difficult to encounter even among Heavenly Spirit treasures worth a fortune.

"Miss Bai, perhaps we should retreat, these Xinsu may well all be mad by now, reconsider our plans after we get out," Tuoba Danqing advised beside Bai Lingmiao.

"We're not mad."

Bai Lingmiao looked up to find a dark-skinned man, judging from the bone ring decorations in his hair, likely a Qingqiu Person.

"Not mad, yet behaving as such! Can't understand human speech? Hurry and come with us! We have a way out! Do you intend to stay here forever?" Second God's words received no approval from the other.

"Out? Out for what? To become festival rats, chased down by everyone?" questioned the leading Qingqiu Xinsu.

"We have a method to remove the Innate Qi from your bodies, allowing you to live as ordinary people," Bai Lingmiao pleaded again.

"Hmm! Ordinary people? We've suffered so much, just to become ordinary people?"

Hearing this, Bai Lingmiao grew anxious, "You don't plan on going out; are you seriously thinking of staying here forever? Here, where not even death exists, what exactly do you intend to do?"

"What do we intend to do? Become the Ten Kings of Yama!"

Hearing this, Bai Lingmiao and the others were momentarily stunned, at a loss for words.

The Qingqiu Xinsu gestured to the ground, "Do you think this ghost place is somewhere else? This ghost place is the underworld! It's in such a state simply because no one governs!"

"As long as we become the new King Yamas, not only will we achieve immortality but also rank among the Immortal Rank!!"