Upon hearing Ye Luo’s words, Xiao Jie’s heart trembled.
Han Luo’s soul... in the Nether River?
He looked at the crimson, murky river in front of him, the seemingly endless wide river surface, his fingers holding the mouse trembled slightly.
All along, he carried a sense of guilt about Han Luo’s death, like a soldier who survived the battlefield, always asking why he survived and not his comrades.
Did Xiao Jie also ask himself that question? After all, Han Luo died following him on this adventure.
He often told himself that he would revive Han Luo, revive his good brother, if given the chance.
But deep down, he always had a subconscious feeling that reviving Han Luo wasn’t realistic, even a delusion.
Constantly telling himself these words was more like self-encouragement, self-comfort, or perhaps, compensating for the guilt he felt over Han Luo’s death.
As long as he carried this goal, as long as he constantly reminded himself of it, he wouldn’t feel guilty about Han Luo’s death—after all, wasn’t he doing his best to revive him?
But deep down, he never truly believed he could achieve this goal.
Now that Ye Luo had spoken these words, suddenly everything seemed to become real.
"Are you serious, Ye Luo?" Xiao Jie asked, somewhat incredulously and expectantly. "The souls of dead players are all in that Nether River?"
Ye Luo’s voice remained calm, "Theoretically, yes. At least, according to the game’s background. The Jiuzhou World is a world of the living. When the people living there die, their souls drift into the Netherworld and end up in the Nether River.
Since players die in the game, they’re also part of this world. Their souls should naturally follow the laws and rules of this world and, like the NPCs, end up in the Nether River for rebirth.
The reason I chose to become a Nightwalker was to change professions to a Huangquan Envoy for one goal—to recover Ting Yu’s soul.
Because only the Huangquan Envoy can open the passage to the Netherworld and retrieve people from the Nether River."
Ye Luo’s voice finally became excited as he spoke.
It was as if he was explaining, or perhaps muttering to himself.
"And now, thanks to you, I’ve finally done it. Ting Yu must be waiting for me somewhere. After all, when she brought me into the game, she said she wouldn’t let me be alone. No matter what happens, she’d always come back to my side."
Hearing Ye Luo’s words, Xiao Jie also perked up. Since there was really a chance to revive his brother, he had to give it his all.
"But how can we find them?" Xiao Jie hesitantly asked as he looked at the Nether River before him.
The vast Nether River stretched endlessly, countless souls drifting within. Some were lifelike, vivid as though they were still alive, while others appeared translucent, and some were nothing but faint shadows.
Clearly, the clearer the appearance, the more recent the death. Those translucent souls seemed to be almost dissolved by the Nether River.
"I don’t know." Ye Luo’s answer left Xiao Jie speechless.
"Aren’t you a Huangquan Envoy? Don’t you have any special authority?"
"Maybe in the future, but for now—I can only open the passage."
Xiao Jie sighed. He understood why. Professional skills also needed continuous improvement. Ye Luo had just changed professions and was a novice among novices; he wasn’t strong yet.
Since Ye Luo had no solution, Xiao Jie could only come up with his own.
Xiao Jie approached the riverbank, looked at the crimson river water.
If it was like real river water, couldn’t he just swim in to find someone? If he transformed into a Jiao Long, he could move freely in the water.
But who knew if it was dangerous?
The Netherworld’s air could reduce ordinary people’s attributes and health; the Nether River might have other side effects too.
"Big Orange—come out!" Xiao Jie summoned Big Orange.
"Go for a swim." Xiao Jie said to Big Orange.
Big Orange widened its tiger eyes, "Roar, are you crazy, master? This place looks terrible! You want me to go in the water?"
"Just go. It’s just a river, what’s to fear?"
Big Orange rolled its eyes but had no choice but to reluctantly step into the water under its master’s command.
It tentatively dipped a paw in, and nothing happened.
Xiao Jie was a bit surprised, huh, nothing happened.
Big Orange dipped another paw, still no health drop or poison, curse, or any other DEBUFF.
Finally gathering courage, it jumped into the river.
It floundered in the shallow waters by the bank for a couple of minutes before swimming back.
"I don’t feel anything." Big Orange replied, a bit puzzled.
Xiao Jie thought it was safe, so he stepped into the water too. The moment he was in, a row of red text appeared on the screen.
System prompt: Due to the Nether River, you lost 125 Experience Points.
System prompt: Due to the Nether River, you lost 125 Experience Points.
System prompt: Due to the Nether River, you lost 125 Experience Points.
The system prompt flooded the screen, with a frequency of once per second. In the blink of an eye, he had lost over a thousand Experience Points, scaring Xiao Jie to quickly retreat back to the shore.