Chapter 39: The Strange Door

"Speak! I'll tell you everything! Just please, stop swinging that thing!"

"The whole story has to start with Xihua Valley. The reason Xihua Valley is so terrifying is primarily because there is a gateway in the deepest part of the valley."

"The gateway connects to those horrific beings, but for now, it seems restricted; only one 'King' can emerge every year."

"A King?"

It was the first time Yang Xuan had heard this term; he wasn't sure what kind of existence it referred to.

"They are the lords of terror that tower above us all!"

"Humanity is absolutely no match for them!"

Tower above them?

Yang Xuan was somewhat surprised. The limping ghost before him had already reached the peak of the Ghost Emperor level. Could there really be something in this world even more terrifying than a Ghost Emperor?

"They are immortal and indestructible; no one can deal with them!"

"My plan was to open the gateway, but that requires a grueling sacrificial ritual."

"Once the gateway is opened, those horrific beings will be able to enter this human realm. When that happens, the world will be plunged into catastrophe!"

The limping ghost spoke with growing excitement, his eyes flashing with undisguised ambition.

"So that’s why you were so desperate to collect the Evil Spirit Pills and the Soul Clan Banner?"

"Exactly!"

"To put it bluntly, both the Evil Spirit Pills and the Soul Clan Banner are merely sacrifices meant to open that gateway."

"These two items are the most powerful things I know of. Using them, I could definitely blast the gateway open!"

Blast it open?

Following this logic, the limping ghost intended to use these two items for a massive explosion?

"Is there anything else you’re keeping from me?" Yang Xuan raised the Soul Clan Banner as a threat.

Terrified, the limping ghost scrambled backward, begging for mercy.

"Spare me, my lord! I truly have nothing else to tell you!"

Yang Xuan fed him another vitality pill and continued to brandish the Soul Clan Banner. Unlike before, he didn't hold back, swinging it until he was completely exhausted.

Twenty-three times in total.

He had broken the record set by every previous user of the Soul Clan Banner.

At the entrance of the cave in Xihua Valley, Yang Xuan led the machete-wielding imp deeper inside. Inside the cave, the limping ghost was left completely naked, his hair entirely blown away, and his only remaining leg had been severed at the thigh.

He was now a completely legless ghost. Feeling the agony in his stumps, resentment surged within him. Especially when Yang Xuan, just before leaving, had remarked, "What’s the point of keeping one leg? You’ll be a cripple for life anyway; I might as well help you out by making sure you aren't one."

The ghost had initially thought that by submitting to Yang Xuan, he might get his crippled leg healed. Who would have thought that in the next second, his only remaining good leg would be gone too?

"Hmph, you just wait! As long as I have a breath left, I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth!"

But then, a problem arose: without legs, how was he supposed to move? He couldn't just crawl on his hands, could he?

As Yang Xuan ventured deeper into Xihua Valley, he noticed that the trees and beasts were more than twice as strong as those outside. Perhaps because of the presence of the Soul Clan Banner in his hand, they encountered no danger on their way to the valley's depths.

Upon reaching the innermost part of the valley, he found a bizarre-looking door standing before him. It looked ancient, carved with strange symbols, and a faint, sinister energy radiated from its center.

"This must be it."

After confirming, Yang Xuan tried to force the door open. He exhausted every trick in his repertoire, but the door remained unmoved, not even showing a single scratch.

"It seems I'll have to pay a visit to the Special Agents Department and talk to Du Qing to understand the situation."

Two hours later, at the entrance of the Special Agents Department.

Yang Xuan pushed the door open to find the place in complete chaos.

"Yang Xuan? You're here? I don't have time for you right now; find a spot for yourself. The organization is facing a crisis—the Evil Spirit Pills have been stolen."

Yang Xuan had already anticipated this.

"Du Qing, wait! I have something to ask you!"

Yang Xuan grabbed Du Qing by the arm and pulled him into a room, then recounted what had happened in Xihua Valley.

"Every word is true?" Du Qing, skeptical, asked him to confirm repeatedly.

"It’s the truth."

"The Evil Spirit Pills were stolen by them, too."

After a moment of silence, Du Qing looked at Yang Xuan with a burning gaze.

"As a member of the organization, are you determined to contribute to our cause?"

"Organization? I never joined any organization!"

Yang Xuan’s denial left Du Qing feeling helpless, yet he had no recourse. The kid had said he was "considering it" before, and now that the department had even lost their siren, Yao Ji, he still refused to mention joining. "Cunning and slippery" was the only way to describe him.

However, the reality was that the Special Agents Department had become somewhat dependent on him. When Yang Xuan was around, tasks were always handled quickly. It wasn't that the department lacked the ability to do things, but if there was a faster way, who would want to continue crawling like a turtle?

"So, what do you plan to do now?" Du Qing feigned indifference.

He didn't believe Yang Xuan could sit still. Once he knew the functions of the Soul Clan Banner and the Evil Spirit Pills, even he would be tempted.

"What else? I’m just going to walk away from it," Yang Xuan said nonchalantly.

Old fox Du Qing was definitely interested; otherwise, he wouldn't keep trying to play games. Since that was the case, he shouldn't blame Yang Xuan for playing along.

"You have the Soul Clan Banner, and you’re only missing the Evil Spirit Pills to open the gateway! How can you just walk away? What a waste of potential!" Du Qing said, acting as if he were heartbroken.

"What else can I do? Go steal back the Evil Spirit Pills? I’m not doing that. Besides, I don't know anything about that door."

Yang Xuan made a move to leave.

Du Qing panicked and quickly grabbed Yang Xuan’s sleeve. "Don't go yet!"

"What now?" Yang Xuan raised an eyebrow at Du Qing. "Or are you planning to go steal the Evil Spirit Pills back yourself?"

"Do I look like I have the ability to do that?" Du Qing snapped. "Why don't you join our organization? Then we can work together to retrieve the pills, and when the time comes, I’ll tell you everything about that door."

He finally realized it. Yang Xuan had come to see him specifically because of that door. He had deliberately told him about the Evil Spirit Pills just to fish for information! How could someone be this calculating?

"I don't want to join the organization yet. As for the Evil Spirit Pills, they’re useless to me anyway."

"You!"

"I'm heading back. Let me know when you've made up your mind."

Leaving those words behind, Yang Xuan walked away the way he came.

It seemed the gateway was just as important to Du Qing and his people as he had suspected; otherwise, Du Qing wouldn't value the Evil Spirit Pills so highly, nor would he be so secretive about the door. Since they weren't willing to tell him, Yang Xuan decided he would investigate it himself.

It would just take a bit more effort.

The road to Xihua Valley remained as quiet as before, yet the more peaceful it seemed, the more Yang Xuan felt that the depths of this mystery ran far deeper than he had imagined.