The boy that covered in golden light stared at Chenwu's lifeless body. Deep emotion birthed on his golden pupils as he looked at the dead body. He conflicted for some time at something and finally took a deep breath, then he flew towards the end of the valley.

After a few moments of flying the boy reached the end of the valley and ceased his flying.

He saw an enormous tree at the end of the valley. It was almost comical. A tree had huge branches that pierced into space and traveled through an endless void. Branches pierced into heaven while roots pierced into the earth. In front of the tree, there was a lake that constantly nourishing the tree.

There was a black dragon that spitting fire from its breath and venomous snake guarding the place. But when the boy entered, Dragon opened its left eye and closed as if it didn't mind boy intrusion. The snake didn't even flinch.

Boy flew past the guardians and arrived before lake that nourishing tree, and he saw an old man nailed to the tree and bound in the chains. The boy quietly watched the old man and didn't disturb his rest. But the old man seemed to have sensed his arrival and opened his eyes.

Despite the old man nailed to a tree, he didn't look in pain but brimming with vitality. When the old man opened his eyes, there was an only expression that could be discerned. He was lonely.

"Who are you?" A boy asked the old man when he opened his eyes.

The old man laughed jolly at his question and asked back, "Is that you want to know the boy?" His voice was light and melodious to listen.

The boy looked deeply into the old man as if trying to find something but shook his head in defeat and said "No!"

"Then?" The old man asked playfully.

"Why did you pull my soul from the soul realm?" the boy asked what he wanted to know.

The old man shook his head coolly and answered, "Not you." And he turned his head towards the direction that Chenwu's dead body laid and said "Him" as if he could see Chenwu regardless of the distance between them.

"I am Chenwu." Boy answered.

"Do you think I couldn't discern between real and fake," Old man's voice articulated all over the valley and added "Soul demon."

Boy's expression finally changed when he heard old man words. He was not Chenwu but a soul demon in the soul realm. When Chenwu died, his soul left the mortal realm and entered the soul realm.

The soul realm divided into two parts. One is heaven and the other is hell. Depends on their karma that accumulated in the mortal realm, they will enter the respective world.

If one accumulated good karma, they will enter the soul heaven where they can enter Samsara and reincarnate. And the other was hell. If one accumulated evil karma, they will enter hell and take soul punishment. In the worst case, hell incinerate the soul into nothing.

But before they can enter heaven or hell, every soul enters the place called 'field' where both good and evil exist. In the field, some souls can enter neither heaven nor hell. They called exiled souls. And also called soul demons.

Soul demons are pitiful. Because of the curse they have been inflicted on, as long as they are in the field, they cannot die. So they often deceive newly arrived souls and invade his/her consciousness and escape from the fields.

How do they deceive newly arrived souls?

They cannot deceive everyone but the people who died in regret. World laws have never been unfair. Since soul demons transpired to curse, world laws gave soul demons a special ability.

They could see through the soul memories. When Chenwu entered the soul fields, the soul demon saw Chenwu's heart. Soul demon found Chenwu's parents died and he regretted that he was not strong enough to save them.

Negative feelings lead to hollow souls. Hollow souls are souls that weakened by negative feelings, such as regret, fear, and sadness.

At the right time, the soul demon deceived Chenwu and seized his consciousness. he was so happy that he could escape from this bloody 'field' and what made him happier was Chenwu had good karma and he qualified to enter Heaven.

He thought he was so lucky to find Chenwu but who would've thought, before he could enter the heaven, mysterious energy intruded into the soul realm and forcefully pulled him into the mortal realm.

Since the old man in front of him found him, he decided to drop the act and acted brazenly.

"What if you know I am soul demon?" affirmed the soul demon who seized Chenwu's consciousness and scowled at the old man "It's not like you can do anything to me with your pathetic state." As he pointed the nails and chains that preventing the old man from leaving.

"You mean this?" The old man looked at the nails and chains and said "They are here because I'm allowed them to." As he said that, the old man waved his hands and nails and chains disappeared.

"You!!" Soul demon staggered and took few steps back in horror.

"Leave his soul." The old man finally said with a deep and commanding voice.

Soul demon scared witless and tried to escape from the crazy old man. But before he could escape, dragon and snake that guarding the entrance sealed his escape.

"Good Job" Old man raised his thumbs at guardians and praised, then he turned towards the Soul demon and laughed lightly as he declared, "You can't escape little demon."

"Y-you, who are you?" soul demon almost petrified in shock. He thought dragon and venomous snake were just guardians. but he didn't dare to imagine in his wildest dreams that they were old man pets.

The old man didn't answer his question but said "Since you occupied his consciousness, leave your memories as compensation" speaking up to this point, the old man made strange seals.

The moment he finished the hand seals, the water that nourishing the enormous tree shot to the air like geysers.

"Ahhhhh!!!!" Soul demon screamed in pain when water touched him. he was petrified and couldn't dodge even if he wanted to. wherever the water touched, golden rays that covered his body disappeared.

From the beginning to the end, the old man didn't even frown and silently watched. Screams stopped after a while and Chenwu's soul appear amid the water.

After soul demon killed, golden rays that covered Chenwu's body disappeared and a clear picture of his soul displayed. He looked exactly like an actual body with the same facial and body structure, though he was naked.

When the soul demon seized Chenwu's consciousness, he could still see and hear what was happening outside. So he knew what happened between soul demon and old man.

Even though he didn't know why the old man helped him, he was grateful to him, so he expressed his gratitude as he cupped his hands "Thanks for saving me, elder." with a slight bow.

Old man swayed his hands in disapproval and said, "It's nothing." And added, "You can call me Shuang."

Chenwu felt weird when the old man asked him to call Shuang. They were not acquainted before, that's for sure, and he didn't have any close relationship between them so he hesitated to directly call his name.

Old Shuang chuckled when he saw Chenwu was hesitating and said, "If you think that's inappropriate, call me old Shuang."

"Old Shuang." Chenwu instantly called without hesitation. It's better than calling a name.

----------------------

Even though Chenwu did not experience the world, he knew there was no free lunch in this world. So he presumed that there's got to be something old man sought from him and asked, "Why did you help me, old Shuang?"

The old man raised his brows at his question and answered after a while, "Because I need your help."

"My help?" Chenwu startled at his reply. Old Shuang in front of him was definitely strong. When he entered the soul realm, he saw many experts, but he didn't intimidate by them as he was feeling now. So he wondered how can he help such a strong man.

"How can I help you with my non-existent strength?" Chenwu asked him as he knew he was an ant in front of the old man.

The old man shook his head and said, "Even though I am strong, I can't escape from this valley. Because of the seal that placed on me." And looked at Chenwu, then continued, "You have to lift the seal."

"How can I -" Chenwu about to say he was too weak but interrupted by Shuang "You are too weak now. So you have to come after you become strong."

"But I am dead?" Chenwu uttered in question.

"I'll help you create the body, and you help me leave from this damn place." Old Shuang spoke in a positive voice and asked, "Fair enough?"

Chenwu didn't think much about it, he wanted to live and take revenge for his family. So he was more than happy to accept the deal. "Deal."

The old man laughed cheerfully and picked the fruit from the enormous tree and threw at Chenwu's soul "Catch it."

Chenwu startled when he saw old Shuang threw the fruit. He was a soul, and he thought he couldn't touch anything, but strangely he could touch the fruit and didn't pass through him. So he confused and looked at Old Shuang.

Old Shuang laughed and explained, "It's called Yin-Yang fruit. It will help you construct your body."

Chenwu's eyes brightened when he heard Shuang's explanation and ate the fruit in one go. The moment he ate the fruit, the enormous tree in front of him withered.

A bright and evergreen tree that stretched through the nine heavens instantly turned into a lifeless tree.

Chenwu's eyes widened in shock and looked at the old man to ask what's happening, but before he could ask, he forcefully drifted into sleep.