Storm Mountain was a colossal peak rising from the northeastern corner of the Netherworld, so tall that only its lower half could be seen from afar, the rest disappearing straight into the dark clouds, its upper reaches completely invisible.
The mountain was composed entirely of bare black stone—no grass or trees could survive on it. From a height of over a thousand zhang, fierce Netherworld winds began to howl across its surface. An ordinary person would have no chance of climbing higher; merely stepping into its vicinity could instantly transform them into a black ice sculpture.
This brutal environment made the area around the mountain even more oppressive and terrifying than usual. Arcs of lightning flashed and crackled ceaselessly overhead, while bone-chilling winds shrieked along the ground, sending sand and stones flying—it was like stepping into a realm of ghosts.
Such a place thick with Netherworld Qi was, ironically, a favorite haunt of the powerful Netherworld beasts. Several of the fiercest creatures had always made their lairs nearby.
But on this day, an uninvited guest arrived at Storm Mountain.
The enormous corpse of a beast some thirty to forty zhang tall crashed to the ground in a burst of silver light. The body rapidly withered and shrank, losing all sign of life in the blink of an eye. Only then did the silver light envelop the massive cloud of black energy and streak away into the distance.
A majestic roar echoed from far off, shaking heaven and earth with its resonant boom.
Moments later, a silver giant ape ten zhang tall appeared beside the slain beast's corpse, arriving in a few powerful leaps. The ape was savage and fearsome, every movement radiating an indescribable, overwhelming presence. Perched on its shoulders sat a man and a woman—Han Li and Mei Ning.
Han Li swept his gaze over the Netherworld beast's corpse below, slapped his palm lightly, and gracefully floated down to the ground.
A flash of cold light, and the beast's skull split open beneath his foot—but it was completely empty inside.
Han Li showed a flicker of disappointment, but his expression quickly returned to normal.
He had already accumulated over a hundred Netherworld beast crystals. He knew that the lower-tier beast herds certainly still contained crystals, but he had no time to hunt them all down one by one. He had to reach the top of Storm Mountain before the next rift opened.
At that moment, Mei Ning also leaped down from the giant ape's shoulder.
The ape flashed with silver light and shrank down to a foot-sized creature—the very same Weeping Soul Beast, though its fur had remained silver-white.
Han Li turned to watch the Weeping Soul Beast's transformation and couldn't help but smile.
Some time ago, he had been taking the Weeping Soul Beast around to slaughter powerful Netherworld beasts. After consuming a large number of beast spirits, the creature had suddenly gained the ability to transform into a giant ape. Before long, its fur had also changed to this conspicuous color.
This had surprised even Han Li himself.
According to the jade slip Yuan Yao had given him on how to refine the Weeping Soul Beast, a true Weeping Soul Beast possessed no such shapeshifting ability. After advancing, its fur should have turned pitch-black instead.
However, this beast had been an incomplete product from the start—it had never been fully refined. And the Netherworld beast spirits in this realm seemed to be fundamentally different from the spirits of ordinary creatures in the outside world. These two coincidences coming together had produced this unique evolution.
It wasn't what people commonly called a "mutant spirit beast," but it was absolutely a form of evolution unlike anything seen before.
Han Li had no idea whether continuing down this path would make the beast more powerful than a true Weeping Soul Beast, but he was more than happy to let this transformation run its course.
After all, the true refinement method for a Weeping Soul Beast was far too gruesome. Even though Han Li was no saint, he could hardly bring himself to carry out the subsequent refinement steps as described.
Now that the Weeping Soul Beast had shrunk, it shot a streak of silver light into Han Li's sleeve and promptly fell into a deep sleep.
Han Li chuckled softly, lifted his head, and gazed at Storm Mountain in the distance. A solemn expression settled over his face.
The last few powerful Netherworld beasts lurking around Storm Mountain were no match for the current Weeping Soul Beast. The one that had just been killed was the final one in the area.
From now on, they could climb the mountain openly and without hindrance.
"Let's go. We need to reach the summit before the next rift tears open, or we'll have to wait another several months," Han Li said slowly, giving the distant giant mountain a few long looks.
"Brother Han is right! Though the rifts open for different lengths of time, the people here have learned their general patterns. The next opening is in about half a month. If we miss this chance, I'm afraid we'll have to wait another six months." The beauty beside him tucked her snow-white neck a bit against the chill, her cherry lips parting in agreement.
Han Li gave a faint smile upon hearing this and set off with the woman in long strides toward the giant mountain.
A quarter of an hour later, the two of them stood at the foot of Storm Mountain.