Xun Kun felt Yunxi's idea was audacious to the point of madness, yet thinking of the anomalies he had already observed on Azure Star, he decided it was not impossible to try. He said,
"Ran Xi, are you confident? As far as I know, this world is not connected to the Underworld. If we want to borrow a road through the Underworld, we must first link this small world to it. That will not be easy."
Yunxi thought for a moment, then said, "After I advanced to Golden Core, I was once mistakenly transmitted to the mortal world. While training there, I helped the Underworld's Black and White Impermanence resolve a troublesome case. To thank me, they gave me some soul stones and a stick of soul incense. They said that if I ever needed help, I could light the soul incense to summon them."
Xun Kun had not expected Yunxi's connections to reach the Underworld. The corner of his mouth lifted despite himself as he smiled. "Since you have acquaintances down there, the plan is feasible. But the first step is still to reconnect the Underworld and this small world; otherwise nothing afterward can proceed."
Yunxi nodded and voiced her concerns. "You are right; the difficulty lies exactly there. According to what I have learned, reincarnation here is controlled by humans, and without a third party supervising, fairness is hard to guarantee.
Moreover, when people die, their souls are neither purified nor stripped of memory before being sent into a new body. The burden on the soul grows heavier, its power slowly weakens, and after rebirth many collapse mentally.
Most crucial of all, no new souls are being born. Once the existing souls are exhausted, no new life will arise. Species other than humans on Azure Star are already marching toward extinction." Xun Kun nodded. "Agreed. That outcome is inevitable. The situation is still temporarily manageable, so we have time to search for a solution.
What I am curious about is how the people here seized control of reincarnation. The title 'Soul Chaser' comes from the Underworld. That proves that at least before they fully mastered the technique of rebirth, this small world was connected to the Underworld. How was that connection severed later?"
Yunxi spread her hands. "The special department has not responded to me yet. I wanted to search souls directly, but their souls are too fragile to withstand it, so I had to give up.
Also, before meeting back up with you, I did not want to act rashly. I let the special department 'monitor' me for now. When Han Lian and Yun Chen arrive, we will visit the special department's headquarters and dig out everything we do not know."
"You are adapting well to this small world. You even thought to show your face on the star net so we could find you, which greatly reduced the chance of us missing one another."
Yunxi was forthright. "What could I do? I landed straight on a film set, and the person I helped, Xia Mengmeng, happens to be an actress. Here we are equivalent to black accounts without identity jade slips. I could only ask Xia Mengmeng to help find you three. She found nothing, so I resorted to this. Judging by the result, it worked."
Xun Kun nodded with a smile. He had always felt Ran Xi carried a bit of luck.
After that Yunxi took out her phone and light-brain, and the two discussed Azure Star's technology.
Two days later, both Yunxi and Xun Kun received a message from Han Lian. They exchanged a look, then drove out of the Film City again.
When they got out of the vehicle, they saw a line of nine black sedans under military escort pull up not far away. The door of the center car opened, and Han Lian, dressed in white ceremonial robes, stepped out.
With a flicker of her figure she appeared before them, at last showing a genuine smile. "Ran Xi, Xun Kun, you are both unhurt?"
"I am fine."
"I reunited with Ran Xi two days earlier than you."
After a few brief words, Yunxi arched a brow. "So you made friends with the military? All these people to 'escort' you?"
Han Lian spread her hands. "Escort, nothing. They are guarding me, afraid I will run. In their eyes I am a powerful visitor from beyond the stars."
Yunxi pressed her lips into a smile. She had of course noticed the bright gazes of those soldiers. They were sizing up her and Xun Kun as well, no doubt lumping the two of them into the same category of visitors from beyond.
"Now we are just missing Yun Chen. I wonder where he fell."
Han Lian sighed.
"Do not worry. He has already cultivated the golden body. In a low tier plane like this, he can protect himself. Let us wait a little longer. If he has not come in three days, we will shake these people and move."
Yunxi disliked being monitored, so she sent the words by sound transmission directly to the two of them.
Han Lian and Xun Kun both nodded. The three boarded the RV and did not return to the Film City.
Once inside, Yunxi activated an isolation array disk. Only then did they speak freely. The information Han Lian brought was even more explosive, helping Yunxi connect what was happening across Azure Star into a clearer picture.
"Tsk tsk. I do not know whether to praise these Azure Star people as clever or mock them as fearless in ignorance, daring to meddle with life and death."
Yunxi stroked Li Li's head and shook her own helplessly.
Xun Kun was impressed and exasperated in equal measure. "Since we entered the path, we have sought longevity, and the road of cultivation is full of thorns and trials. Even so, we do not dare to manipulate others' fates at will.
How is Azure Star's approach different from that of evil cultivators? No wonder there is backlash. Those soulless monsters are likely products of countless cycles of rebirth where the filth and resentful miasma carried by the soul polluted the body."
Han Lian nodded. "Xun Kun's analysis is sound. I tried to search those humanoid monsters' souls and discovered they had none at all. They only hunt by instinct."
She took out the image jade at her waist and played back the scene of her slaughtering the monsters that had escaped the laboratory.
Yunxi frowned more deeply after watching. The situation was worse than she had imagined.
Xun Kun was thinking even further. When he finished, he said, "If these monsters are controlled by evil cultivators, they will certainly become a force multiplier. If refined into evil puppets, their destructive power will be greater still."
All three felt a headache coming on at the thought.
Han Lian rubbed her brow. "That was only a portion of the monsters from a research base at the desert's edge. Are there others elsewhere? How many? We do not know.
And by you and Xun Kun's analysis, as souls are annihilated, this kind of monster will become more numerous. The entire population of Azure Star could become such creatures; it is only a matter of time."
Silence settled in the RV. The problem was thornier than they had estimated.
Li Li swiveled his head, taking in their expressions, then gave two soft chirps to Yunxi. "Zūnzhě, those who brought Han Lian Zūnzhě just now, their souls were very clean, with no impurities and no resentful evil miasma. The only issue is that their souls are thin, fated not to live long, and they cannot reincarnate again."