The sky was dark and gloomy, the black earth parched and barren.
This was the northern 'Ashbell' wasteland of the Undead Plane. Skeleton hordes and zombie hordes could be seen wandering the wasteland. The undead mostly moved in groups — those bold enough to act alone were exceptionally rare.
Suddenly, the shambling zombies all turned their heads toward one direction.
A rhythmic rumbling came from the ground. "Roar~~" A golden-maned zombie lifted its head and let out a bellow. The entire zombie horde began moving quickly, but in mere moments, over a dozen black shadows came charging across the distant land at terrifying speed. These shadows were the relatively powerful 'Black Knights' among the undead.
The Black Knights — the weakest among them were fifth-level undead.
This Black Knight squad numbered nineteen in total. The man at the front wore blood-red armor, his face hidden behind a visor. Cold, sharp eyes swept the surroundings through the visor's slits. The weaker undead had long fled in terror, though with the Black Knights' speed, pursuit would have been effortless.
"Ahhhh~~" The leading Black Knight threw his head back and roared in fury, as if venting something.
The eighteen Black Knights behind him were all bewildered. Their lord was a powerful Saint-level Black Knight — a 'King' even among the undead, commanding his own castle and ruling over a massive number of Black Knights. Yet today, this King was leading his knights on a wild, reckless sprint across the wasteland.
A wild sprint fueled by frustration!
"Enough. Let's return," the Black Knight leader said coldly.
"Yes, my lord."
The nineteen Black Knights turned and galloped back along their path. In the Ashbell Wasteland, every Saint-level being was a peak powerhouse. This Black Knight was one of the few newly risen elite powers on this wasteland.
"I… I've actually recovered memories from my previous life. How is this possible?" The Black Knight leader's heart was filled with shock and confusion.
"Can I… can I ever return to the Yulan Continent plane?" the Black Knight leader thought silently.
"My sons — Lin Lei and Wotton. How are they now? Over two thousand years have passed. Have they become Saint-level Dragon Blood Warriors, or did they fail to reach the Saint Realm and become undead?" The Black Knight leader's heart was in turmoil. From the moment the memories returned, his mind had not known a single moment's peace.
This Black Knight leader was none other than Lin Lei's father — Hogg!
Ever since recovering his memories, Hogg's heart had been unable to find peace. He was worried about his children. He still wanted to avenge his wife. But he knew that after more than two thousand years, Duke Pardeson of the Fenlei Kingdom had surely died of old age by now.
In the blink of an eye, forty years had passed since Hogg recovered his memories.
Atop the Black Knight castle, Hogg — still clad entirely in his blood-colored armor — sat at the highest point, gazing up at the murky sky. Suddenly, a figure came hurtling from the south at incredible speed.
"Hmm?" Hogg's eyes narrowed.
"Whoosh!" The newcomer dove straight down, impossibly fast.
"Who goes there!" Hogg barked.
"Clang!" Almost simultaneously, the masses of Black Knights within the castle rose to their feet.
"Haha…" The newcomer burst into laughter. At the same time, a terrifying pressure radiated from his body. A mighty divine aura instantly blanketed the entire castle. Every Black Knight inside felt as though doomsday had arrived, and one by one they collapsed to their knees in terror. The gap in their levels was absolute.
Hogg looked up at the person before him. The newcomer had short silver hair and a youthful, doll-like face. He appeared to be a teenager.
"Hogg?" the youth asked casually.
Hogg was stunned.
Before recovering his memories, he hadn't even known his own name was 'Hogg.' As far as he could tell, apart from himself, no one in the entire world knew his true identity. Yet this person had called him by name. "Who are you?" Hogg fixed his gaze on the newcomer. "Was it you who restored my memories?"
"I don't have that kind of power," the youth said with a light chuckle. "Restoring an undead's memories — only a High God can do that. Come with me!"
"A High God? I—" Before Hogg could even protest, a strand of divine power bound him instantly. The youth forcibly seized Hogg and took off southward at full speed. The youth muttered under his breath, "This undead was actually this far away. Coming all the way from the Netherworld to here, then having to go all the way to Nether Mountain — quite the trek."
Inside the castle, the masses of Black Knights watched blankly as their King was snatched away. They were utterly powerless.
Whether it was Lin Lei's father, or Yeru, George, Dikexi, and the others — even Bei Bei's parents — all of them were taken away by agents arranged by the Ruler of Death.
The Netherworld, at the base of Nether Mountain, in the private courtyard of the Nether Hotel.
Lin Lei sat in a chair while Bei Bei stood nearby, frowning. "Boss, we've been here for over a decade and still haven't seen anyone. How long are we supposed to wait?"
Lin Lei and Bei Bei had arrived at Nether Mountain long ago. But there were no lodgings on the mountain itself, so the Ruler of Death had arranged for them to stay at this hotel. Who could have guessed that this wait would stretch to over a decade, and Lin Lei still hadn't seen a single person.
"Just keep waiting," Lin Lei said calmly from his chair, leafing through a book. "The High God is also sending people to bring Yeru and the others. They're all in different places. My father and the rest are in the Undead Plane — flying from there to here takes quite a while. It's not that they're slow. It's just that when we flew from the Nine Hells to Nether Mountain, our speed was too fast."
Though they had traveled aboard a Metallic Lifeform, Lin Lei had used his Willpower to massively boost its speed. In under ten years, they had crossed from the Nine Hells of the Netherworld Sea all the way to Nether Mountain.
Suddenly—
Lin Lei jerked his head upward toward the sky. Bei Bei looked at him in surprise. "Boss, what is it?"
"A powerful aura," Lin Lei said in a low voice. In the Netherworld, his grasp over the surrounding space was even stronger — after all, the Netherworld's space was less stable than the Infernal Realm. Sensing a strong presence approaching, he immediately extended his divine sense…
Just a hundred miles away, a golden fish-shaped Metallic Lifeform was flying through the air. Inside were George and a gold-haired man in purple robes.
George glanced at the purple-robed man. "This seven-star Demon 'Beiveli' says he's acting under a High God's orders to bring me in. But why the High God wants to see me, he has no idea." George didn't understand either. He was merely a low-level God — one of countless millions in the Netherworld. Why would a High God want to see him?
"We've arrived," Beiveli announced.
The Metallic Lifeform dissipated instantly. Beiveli and George hovered in midair.
"Second Brother!" An excited voice rang out. In the same instant, a figure appeared before George and Beiveli.
"What kind of speed is this? I'm a seven-star Demon and I couldn't even react in time!" Beiveli was stunned. Little did he know, even Commander-level powerhouses had trouble reacting to the speed of a Highness of the Laws — let alone an ordinary seven-star Demon like him.
George's body trembled as he looked at the person before him.
A familiar silhouette, a familiar face, a familiar smile…