Chapter 136 — Soul Summoning
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 6 of 6
The old man's hands were still raised high in midair, but his head was slowly sinking.
Ming Li and the King of the Underworld shot to the shaman's side like lightning and caught hold of his body, yet still his head sank slowly, inexorably downward. Only in his mouth did he seem still to struggle to say something.
The King of the Underworld and Ming Li pressed desperately close to the shaman, and amid those sounds, already thick and indistinct, they could catch only a few broken fragments:
"Mm... the Nine Nether... mm-mm... the utmost yin... mm... not... this..."
The voice sank lower and lower into silence, and at last the old man's head dropped to his chest, and he spoke no more.
A chill pierced to the bone, as though they stood in the deepest icy hell of the underworld. The two men stood woodenly, staring at it all in disbelief.
The scattering red radiance faded away, and the surging river of blood grew still. The blood-traced lines, drained of their power, could no longer hold the fresh blood in check, and it flowed bright and wet across the ground.
The pale smoke upon the Bell of Union and Joy was drawn back in as a great whale draws water, vanishing into the bell. A faint golden light welled up once more, setting the bell off in dazzling brilliance.
With a gentle sway and a clear, ringing chime, the Bell of Union and Joy slowly descended and returned to the hands of Bi Li, who lay upon the cold ice-jade platform, as quiet as before.
A deathlike stillness spread through the ice-jade chamber, lingering long and refusing to disperse, until there was not the slightest sound left at all...