By the time Nana Toki and her crew reached the northern Netherworld City, nearly two months had drifted past like pale moons slipping behind cloud.

The days ran longer than planned, but the harvest wasn’t bad. Blue Magpie kept coasting, loafing like a lazy cat in sun, yet rose to Nascent Soul, first tier. Nana, grinding through stone and grit, had only clawed up to Golden Core, third tier, since leaving the Wildbeast Wasteland a year ago.

Body-tempering is a road of wet moss and distant fog. Frustration cooled first, then acceptance; along the way she dug out a few fierce body-cultivation manuals. She braided them with her old inner arts, and the climb didn’t look hopeless.

She wondered how that Heavenly Ascent Sect disciple she’d let go had chosen. Either way, in these two quiet months, no more Heavenly Ascent Sect hounds showed to bay at their heels.

When calm is too smooth, something crooked lurks under it. Nana felt the prickle, then shelved it. The urgent task was to net the Eight Cornered Ghost Algae Fish from the Nether River, and snap the Protagonist Lord’s golden finger stashed in Netherworld City.

Netherworld City only surfaces when midnight inks the sky thick. When Nana reached the river mouth, the sun hung like a brass coin at noon. Night lay far off, a black tide waiting to turn.

“Then let’s catch the Eight Cornered Ghost Algae Fish first.” Nana eyed the boundless, mirror-dark water, rolled her sleeves like lifting a curtain of clouds, and headed for a dive. Fish-catching? That was her playground.

She’d barely taken a few strides when the System tugged her back. “Host, don’t rush! The Nether River is dangerous!”

“Dangerous? I don’t see it.” At the bank, Nana peered in. Ripples glittered like scaled light. The water lay clear as glass. Below, schools wove through the hush like silver threads—peace from shore to floor.

The System went quiet. This Host looked sharp most days; why pick now to be dense?

“Host, don’t underestimate it. By day it mimics any ordinary river, but it holds deep, dark text.” The System produced a tiny porcelain bowl, crouched, and ladled one bowlful from the Nether River. It set the bowl before Nana, voice steady. “This river bridges the human and demon realms. Its nature is extreme yin. The chill rivals the Demon Realm. If a Nascent Soul expert wades in unprotected, even bones won’t bother to show.”

Her mood sank like a stone hitting silt. “So the Eight Cornered Ghost Algae Fish can’t be caught?”

“Not impossible. You don’t have to net every fish yourself. The auction houses or markets inside Netherworld City may sell them.”

“This ghost place has auctions and markets?” Nana blinked. “Isn’t it a ghost city?”

“It is. But it runs like any city. The natives are bodies shaped from lingering obsessions, like smoke given flesh.”

“...”

“How do we get inside?” Nana scanned the bank. “The city appears on the river. We can’t enter the water, so we can’t reach it.”

“No worries, Host. After midnight, a ferryman will drift along the Nether River. We take his boat straight in.”

The Heavenswallow Serpent, guarding Blue Magpie at her side, gave the System a longer look. “You’re well traveled for a little thing. You’ve been to Netherworld City before?”

“Mm... first time.” The System scratched its head, sheepish as a child. “Books and rumors, that’s all.”

The Serpent said nothing, just nodded once and let silence fold. It made sense. The System looked fifteen at best, soft-featured like a lantern boy, with not a flicker of Spirit Energy. A trip to Netherworld City would be a tale in itself.

With hours yet till dusk, Nana settled for an inn nearby. In the mundane world, plenty of cultivators pass through to reach Netherworld City. Ancient texts whisper of treasures and secret realms beyond counting. Snag even one, and fate turns like windfall rain.

That’s not strange. Netherworld City itself is a riddle—what lies within, what will rise—everything is mist.

And that’s why, year after year, a flood of cultivators surges in like a tide to explore.

“Esteemed guests, staying the night?” Barely seconds after Nana crossed the threshold, a waiter in clean, simple garb hurried from behind the counter, voice smooth as warm tea.

Nana gave him a quick once-over, then nodded. “Two rooms.”

She hadn’t expected mortal staff with no Spirit Energy running the place. If a cultivator blew hot here, the inn would eat dust and silence.

“Waiter! Two premium suites for me!” The shout hit like a drum just as Nana reached for coin.

She jumped, then turned. Two men and two women strode in—silk shining, jewels gleaming—obvious noble heirs out to temper themselves. They moved in a knot, led by a tall, broad-shouldered man.

Standing before him, Nana found the height gap almost comical, like a bamboo shoot facing a pine.

“Ah... apologies, sir.” The waiter winced a smile. “Our last two rooms were fully booked by this young lady. We’ve got no spares. If you don’t mind, another inn would welcome you.”

“But Senior Brother Chen,” the woman at the tall man’s side leaned in, sweet as syrup, “little me can’t walk another step. I don’t want another place. Let’s stay here, please?” She glanced at Nana’s group. “Since those sisters booked the rooms, we’ll pay double. Big Brother Waiter, give them to us.”

Damn. And my say in this?

The waiter’s eyes slid to Nana, hopeful, asking like a sparrow at the window.

“No.” A door shut inside her voice.

“This girl looks refined,” the tall man’s companion offered, trying to smooth the air. “Probably not short on coin. How about this? I’ll trade you one bottle of top-grade pill for both rooms.”

Nana flicked him a longer look, then her interest dried up like rain on hot slate. Barrier-Breaking Pills smooth and harmonize Spirit Energy—fine medicine, sure.

But she didn’t cultivate qi. Useless to her.

“Not swapping. If you want beds, ask other travelers. I plan to nap before night.”

She turned, ready to take Blue Magpie and the others upstairs like swallows to the eaves.

“Hold on!”

The tall man stepped in, blocking her like a slab of cliff.

“What now?” Nana lifted her eyelids a hair, gauging him. Don’t tell me you’re about to force some cliché heroics.

“Don’t make me feed you courtesy you won’t swallow.” His tone sharpened, iron scraping stone. “My junior offered a Barrier-Breaking Pill for two shabby rooms. That’s a blessing your ancestors couldn’t brew in eight lifetimes. Refuse, and you’re spitting on the Heaven’s Path Sect.”

His words dropped, and the inn’s buzz faded to a hush, like wind leaving bamboo.

“Did you hear? Heaven’s Path Sect!”

“That’s one of Central State’s top gates...”

“What’s Heaven’s Path doing in Netherworld City...?”

“Dummy, treasure-hunting. What else?”

“Looks like a show. Those women are in trouble.”

The chatter flitted like sparrows; Nana only felt the noise pecking at her ears.

Heaven’s Path Sect? Never heard of it.

She knew the Heavenly Ascent Sect. She knew the Ancient Tremor Cult. The rest—blank pages and dust.

“If you smart girls know what’s good for you, take the pill and leave.” The leader’s smile turned thin as a razor. “Otherwise... heh. I can’t promise you won’t meet an accident.”

“Accident?”

Nana tilted her head, eyes cool as river shade. “Is that a threat?”

It was light, almost idle. Yet the tall man felt cold creep up his spine like frost on bark, straight to his crown.

This woman... wrong in uncanny ways.

“Good dogs don’t block the road.” Nana’s voice lilted, then snapped. “If you steal sleep from my beauties, can you pay that debt?”

She moved like a gust. One palm tapped, and the man staggered back more than ten steps, boots thudding like dropped stones.

“You—!”

“Right. My room’s on the second floor, last door down.” Nana’s words strolled, her gaze cut. “If you want trouble, hurry. If you’re short-handed, go call more. I won’t wait long. If I’m asleep when you bang on my door, I can’t promise your body won’t wake up missing something.”