Legend of the Archaic Epoch
In a world where life and death intertwine, Ji Ning wakes up to find himself in the underworld—the legendary Yin Cao Di Fu, the realm of the dead. He is now a ghost, stripped of his mortal identity and status, marching in an endless line of lost souls. The scene is a grim one: towering, terrifying ghost soldiers wield crackling whips of electricity, driving the dead forward through their path of afterlife judgment. Among the ghosts are the remnants of once-powerful kings, warlords, and arrogant warriors—none spared the harsh reality that in death, they are nothing. Rank, wealth, and power all vanish, leaving only the vulnerable, fragile soul.
Ji Ning is no different. He has vague memories of his death but doesn’t recall how he got here. His soul drifts through the ranks of the dead, surrounded by a cacophony of grief and denial—newly deceased spirits weep, scream, and rage at their fate, still clinging to the notion that they are alive. Even those with ties to great power, like the self-proclaimed "Prince" with three thousand soldiers, are quickly silenced by the cruel lash of the ghost soldiers' whips. The air crackles with energy as Ji Ning listens to their futile cries, wondering how someone from a modern society could end up in such a fantastical place. He had never heard of cavalry units of three thousand in today's world; something is clearly off.
As Ji Ning trudges forward, barely daring to speak lest he be beaten like the others, he begins to notice the depth of the underworld’s complexity. Long lines of white-clad souls stretch into infinity, each line seemingly endless, and every few moments, a new ghost appears out of nowhere, taking its place at the end of the queue. The souls come from all walks of life: commoners, warriors, lords, and even monstrous creatures like the son of the Great Snow Mountain Demon King, who arrogantly threatens the ghost soldiers, only to be swiftly beaten into submission. It becomes clear that in the underworld, previous life status means nothing. Regardless of their former power or grandeur, the dead are all equal here—equally insignificant.
Time loses meaning for Ji Ning. He walks in silence, with no hunger, no need for sleep, and no hope for escape. The journey through this eerie landscape feels eternal. He has heard that the afterlife has different stages, each more terrifying than the last, but no one knows what fate awaits them. There are whispered rumors that some souls, particularly strong or notable in life, may be summoned for judgment or even reincarnated, while others may face eternal suffering.
