My Golden Core is a Star, do you call this cultivating?

With a single stroke.

The aura of life and death flowed along the tip of the brush, and as it moved, black and gray, red and white alternated between its strokes.

The Strange Painter was focused, pouring her life into her work.

She had learned from the Jade Maiden that the Blood-Clad Sword God was no ordinary person.

The Jade Maiden knew a bit about the things the Strange Painter had done for the Blood-Clad Sword God.

She had told the Strange Painter to take this seriously, stating that the Blood-Clad Sword God was likely forging a treasure related to the Netherworld.

However, through her conversations with Qi Qi and those powerful figures of the underworld, the Strange Painter could clearly sense the ambition of the Blood-Clad Sword God.

It wasn’t just about forging a treasure.

He was truly aiming to establish a Netherworld from myth and legend.

When the Jade Maiden had first heard of this, she had laughed in disbelief.

“A real Netherworld? Even those in the Great Supreme Truth realm wouldn’t dare to dream of such a thing. It’s just a legend.”

After all, a Yang God Heavenly Lord in the Great Supreme Truth realm typically only mastered one Great Supreme Truth.

But to build a Netherworld would require far more than one Great Supreme Truth.

Life, death, yin, yang, reincarnation... the number of Supreme Truths needed was far too many.

Even if every Supreme Truth Heavenly Lord across the Nine Heavens came together, they likely wouldn’t be able to create the Netherworld.

The Strange Painter didn’t know all the details but understood that Qi Yuan wasn’t just making empty promises.

The Brush of Mountains and Rivers in her hand trembled at that moment.

Suddenly, from the gloomy depths of the painting, a sweet voice like that of a little girl echoed.

“The Ghost Gate Pass, nine out of ten never return.”

“The Ghost Gate Pass, yin and yang twist, life and death are chaos, grandma’s here and no longer feels cold.”

The Strange Painter’s face changed slightly as she saw vague, shadowy figures emerging from the Ghost Gate Pass she had just drawn.

The figures recited nursery rhymes, their voices innocent and childlike, yet the atmosphere was eerie and terrifying.

A chill slowly crawled up her spine, and the Strange Painter felt that the shadowy figures in her painting—those little girls—were all staring at her.

Though some were walking, others gazing at the sky, and some even sleeping, all of their eyes were fixed on her.

At that moment, a voice like thunder—majestic and divine—resounded.

“The Ghost Gate Pass is complete!”

The speaker was, of course, Qi Yuan.

Standing within the Gate of Myriad Principles, he overlooked the entire realm.

As his voice fell, the Ghost Gate Pass drawn by the Strange Painter became real.

The strange little girl-like beings shifted their gaze away, now peeking at the towering, indescribable figure in the sky.

The Strange Painter’s expression grew more serious as she looked at the lifelike Ghost Gate Pass. No, it wasn’t just lifelike—it was the Ghost Gate Pass, and her heart trembled.

She couldn’t understand how she had managed to bring it into reality.

Her mind racing, she continued painting.

The Brush of Mountains and Rivers danced in her hand, and one scene after another was created.

Countless eerie energies and unseen forces rushed toward the underworld at that moment.

Qi Yuan, seated in the underworld, squinted but saw nothing.

“Are guests visiting my house?”

The guests, however, were invisible.

The other Yang God Heavenly Lords squinted, and Qi Qi also seemed to sense something, but nothing was visible.

“Yi-ya... ah... ugh!”

“Ka... zing... yah...”

Qi Yuan listened carefully with his ears, which could hear the world’s sounds, finally catching some chaotic noises.

Some were sharp and piercing, like the wails of ghosts and wolves.

He also heard crackling, like the burning of maple branches, sparks flying.

And in the midst of the sobbing, he heard the faint sound of burning paper money.

Qi Yuan was surprised. “Did some filthy creatures enter my house?”

Qi Qi, standing beside Qi Yuan, her eyes like divine blades, gazed into the underworld.

“Who dares cause trouble here!”

The majesty and mystery of the Earthly Goddess, who emulates Hou Tu, surged forth.

The underworld depicted in the Mountain and Sea Scrolls trembled and was cleansed.

Even the filthy things seemed to recognize the power of Hou Tu and what she represented.

“...Ka... plea...”

These filthy beings stopped muttering and seemed to want to communicate with Qi Yuan and Qi Qi.

However, perhaps due to the distance in time and space, their voices were unclear.

Qi Yuan’s expression remained calm, though there was a hint of resignation in his voice. “Looks like I have to play the role of a language teacher.”

As he spoke, his attire changed, and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses appeared on his nose.

Behind him, a blackboard appeared, and in his hand, a piece of chalk.

“Alright, little dirty ones, repeat after me: a, o, e...”

The Brush of Mountains and Rivers continued to move, and more and more filthy beings arrived. Qi Yuan played the role of a diligent language teacher.

But halfway through the lesson, he felt uneasy.

He didn’t have a teaching certificate—was this illegal teaching?

Then he remembered that he had a mental health certificate, so it should be fine.

Endless mountain ranges appeared, rivers flowed through the underworld, and the Eighteen Levels of Hell and the Hall of the Heavenly King rose one after another.

The Strange Painter, trembling all over, had been painting for forty-four days, and the underworld was almost complete.

At this moment, Qi Yuan put down the chalk and adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses.

He spoke, his voice like a divine edict, majestic and sacred, impossible to defy.

“Little dirty ones, have you learned? Now, can you tell me why you’ve come to visit my house?”

Unfortunately, Qi Yuan couldn’t see them; otherwise, he would have charged them for lodging.

As Qi Yuan’s voice fell, the underworld fell silent. No more wails or strange noises echoed.

But in the underworld, a pale figure—twisted and hazy, not fully solid—appeared.

The figure seemed to bow toward Qi Yuan.

A murmuring voice rose again.

“Without... soul... borrow... return...”

Saying these words seemed to exhaust all the strength of the pale figure.

The filthy beings turned to mist, flowing into the pale figure.

Finally, they condensed into a stone tablet.

On the tablet, a single character was carved: 亡 (death).

The stone emitted various eerie, mysterious auras, as if it contained the Supreme Truth of death.

[The Tablet of the Dead, seemingly from another world.]

At last, Qi Yuan’s eyes could make out something useful.

“So... the Gate of Myriad Principles is really the gate that ran away from my house? And the Tablet of the Dead, did it also escape from my house?

Where’s the well from my house? Who took it?”

Qi Yuan scanned the surroundings but saw nothing, leaving him disappointed.

At this moment, the overall structure of the underworld was nearly complete, as sketched by the Strange Painter.

What remained were only the finer details and its sanctity.

Sanctity and divine law were things that Qi Yuan needed to bestow.

Qi Yuan glanced at the Strange Painter, who, though still trembling, had eyes filled with brilliance.

It was clear she was satisfied with her work.

At that moment, Qi Yuan’s vast voice rang out again within the underworld, as though it were the voice of the Great Dao.

“The ghost realm is complete, and the mountains and rivers take shape.”

The central ghost region, its mountains and rivers, now bore imprints as Qi Yuan’s solemn voice resonated.

Every mountain became a ghost mountain.

“Eastern Ghost Emperor, Yulei and Shentu, shall guard Taoshi Mountain and the Ghost Gate Pass.”

“Southern Ghost Emperor, shall guard Luofu Mountain and command the Qiang and Man ghosts.”

“Western Ghost Emperor, shall guard Panzhong Mountain.”

“Northern Ghost Emperor, shall guard Luofeng Mountain.”

“Central Ghost Emperor, shall guard Baodu Mountain, overseeing the central ghost region!”

As Qi Yuan moved, the five Ghost Emperors, Yulei, Shentu, and others, appeared.

Their towering forms, majestic and fearsome, bowed to Qi Yuan.

“We obey the decree of the Heavenly Lord!”

The five Ghost Emperors transformed into beams of light and entered the ghost realm.

Qi Yuan continued, his voice still solemn and vast.

“The Bridge of Helplessness, the River of Forgetfulness, the Terrace of Nostalgia!”

“The Eighteen Levels of Hell, all become true hells!”

...

“The Hall of the Heavenly King shall judge yin and yang and preside over reincarnation!”

“The Ten Yama Kings shall take their thrones!”

“The Yin Heavenly King shall dwell in the Hall of the Heavenly King.”

...

“Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, enter the hells!”

“The Earthly Goddess who emulates Hou Tu shall preside over reincarnation!”

As Qi Yuan spoke, one Nascent Soul after another appeared, transforming into ghostly officials!

They bowed to the Heavenly Lord and transformed into streams of light, entering the underworld.

Qi Qi’s consciousness seemed to merge with the underworld, and reincarnation became a part of her.

The once-empty, lifeless underworld now pulsed with powerful energy.

Cold winds howled, the flames of death burned, and decay and solitude permeated the air...

The Strange Painter, witnessing this scene, was filled with excitement.

At this moment, Qi Yuan’s gaze fell upon a particular terrace.

It wasn’t the Terrace of Nostalgia, but the Platform of Reception.

On the Continent of Wangyue, he had thought about reviving the Five Patriarchs of the Five Elements.

The Platform of Reception was the place for resurrection.

“As expected, it’s still not possible.”

Clearly, though the underworld was complete, it couldn’t yet function properly.

Even the reception of spirits wasn’t possible.

Or rather, the dead were too thoroughly dead.

“However...”

At that moment, Qi Yuan’s gaze shifted to the Gate of Myriad Principles.

“The Gate of the Underworld, return to your place!”

As his words fell, the original Gate of Myriad Principles trembled, undergoing endless transformations in an instant.

The Gate of Myriad Demons... the Gate of Myriad Devils... the Gate of Supreme Truths... the Gate of Myriad Souls... the Gate of Myriad Machines!

Finally, it transformed into the Gate of the Underworld!

Cold and pale, with the Supreme Truth of yin and yang swirling around it, it seemed to lead directly to the deepest depths of hell.

Countless Supreme Truths, pieces of information, unknowns, and unknowables flowed through the Gate of the Underworld, pouring into Qi Yuan’s underworld.

Inexplicable changes took shape at that moment.

It became the gate to Qi Yuan’s house.

“Condense... the Purple Mansion!”

At that moment, Qi Yuan opened his mouth wide and swallowed toward the underworld.

Simultaneously, the first essence of Immortal Dao, the purple energy he had gathered, scattered over the entrance to the Gate of the Underworld.

“Purple as in Purple Qi!”

“Mansion as in the Underworld!”

“This is my Purple Mansion!”

With Qi Yuan’s resounding declaration, two primordial divine powers inside him began to tremble.

The blood-red demon sword flew into the Eighteen Levels of Hell, transforming into a demonic prison.

The oblivion from the Great Forgotten Heart Sutra fused with the Mengpo Soup, hiding within the River of Forgetfulness.

Purple energy flowed, vibrant and full of life, like the blessed purple energy of an immortal’s paradise.

Cold winds howled, dark and terrifying, like the eerie aura of the land of the dead.

Thus, the Purple Mansion was born!

Qi Yuan’s gaze fell once again on the Platform of Reception.

Perhaps because he had fused the underworld into his Purple Mansion, a hint of coldness entered his eyes.

As he looked at the Platform of Reception, understanding dawned on him.

“Yin and yang must balance, life and death must be in equilibrium.

Therefore, to revive the dead, one must erase the living.”

But this erasure wasn’t the same as simply killing.

“So now, it can only be considered a small underworld, unable to receive just anyone.”

Sigh, “Five Patriarchs of the Five Elements, it seems you’ll have to remain dormant a while longer.”

Qi Yuan felt a bit helpless.

This underworld was far from what he had envisioned.

For example, if he went to Blue Star now and spent some time marking all the living beings on the planet...

Then, if he killed everyone on Blue Star, they would all become spirits and enter his underworld, working for him for free.

If he wished, he could even reincarnate the people of Blue Star.

However, those who weren’t marked by the underworld wouldn’t be under its jurisdiction.

For instance, the Five Patriarchs of the Five Elements, or Zhang Sheng and Chen Jiao from Wugui City—he couldn’t currently receive them.

So this was just a small underworld.

If it were a great underworld, he could simply write the name of the Taihuang Palace’s Heavenly Lord in the Book of Life and Death, and then he would be invincible!

Of course, that was just wishful thinking.

Qi Yuan looked at his Purple Mansion.

Hmm, the entrance was bathed in swirling purple energy, the first essence of the Immortal Realm.

The purple energy was something even Yang God Heavenly Lords coveted.

Seeing this purple energy would surely tempt many Yang God Heavenly Lords.

“But... this Gate of the Underworld... feels a bit eerie. Gate of Myriad Principles, assume the form of the Gate of Supreme Truths!” Qi Yuan commanded.

The Gate of Myriad Principles seemed to understand and transformed into the shape of the Gate of Supreme Truths.

On it, countless Supreme Truths seemed to flow. Any ordinary person who glimpsed it would be lost.

Even a Yang God Heavenly Lord would be tempted to rush in and comprehend the Supreme Truths within.

After all, comprehending the Supreme Truths was extremely difficult.

The Gate of Supreme Truths offered the opportunity to have the Truths laid out before you to comprehend.

Even if your comprehension was terrible, given a million years, you’d eventually grasp at least one, right?

And if that didn’t work, you could just stay by the Gate of Supreme Truths for endless eons, and eventually emerge invincible.

“Even I’m tempted to go inside,” Qi Yuan remarked.

He briefly considered whether he should enter the Gate of Supreme Truths himself, spending hundreds or thousands of years to comprehend a Great Supreme Truth.

But after thinking it over, he dismissed the idea.

For other Yang God Heavenly Lords, the Gate of Supreme Truths was the greatest creation artifact.

With enough time, anyone could become a Great Supreme Truth master.

But for Qi Yuan, it was a waste of time.

He could break through faster by playing video games.

Moreover, he couldn’t afford to waste time.

The cultivation world in the upper realms had degenerated too much, and he needed to ascend and purify its atmosphere.

Still, the Gate of Supreme Truths had its uses for him.

First, it could block the imprint of the Great Tribulation. Second, he could use it to observe and potentially find flaws in other Great Supreme Truths.

The only thing he had to be cautious about was keeping the existence of the Gate of Supreme Truths a secret.

If word got out, every Yang God Heavenly Lord in the Great Supreme Truth realm would turn against him.

After all, the Gate of Supreme Truths held the key to every Supreme Truth.

“At last, the Purple Mansion is complete. My strength has increased... quite a bit.”

“And this time, the superpower I’ve awakened is... my voice?”

“It’s linked with my ears!”

“This superpower came a bit late!”

“Why do I feel like it’s pretty useless?”

This time, his newly awakened talent allowed him to communicate with those whose mutterings his ears could hear. He could actively engage them in conversation, though there might be some distortion due to the space between them.

Additionally, if not linked to his ears, when he activated this talent, his voice could randomly transmit to a particular entity.

“Read receipts gone wrong?”

“A treehole?”

“Am I becoming the interdimensional loudspeaker?”

Thinking this, Qi Yuan immediately tried it out.

His right eyebrow didn’t twitch.

“I’m so poor, kind soul, would anyone lend me some money?”