Time passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the day to head to the Restraint Officers' Hall.
However, what surprised Ren Qing was that Song Zongwu did not come to the door as agreed, but instead delivered a note to him through the Nether Crow.
There wasn't much information on the note, mainly mentioning that the advancement to Ghost Envoy Realm was to be carried out in a place called "Nether Feather."
Ren Qing had never heard of "Nether Feather."
He was puzzled and carefully examined the map gifted by Song Zongwu several times, but still couldn't find anything called Nether Feather.
Ren Qing silently speculated that, unsurprisingly, it should be related to the giant Nether Crow, perhaps that individual was also a Yin Runner Realm cultivator.
It was just that due to mutation, they had completely taken on a beast form.
Ren Qing patiently waited for half a day. Just as he was preparing to head to the Restraint Officers' Hall on his own, Zhang Qiu suddenly appeared at the Corpse Burners' Hall.
Zhang Qiu was carrying a bundle on his back, and the aura emanating from his whole body was extremely heavy.
The bundle occasionally squirmed slightly, and faint crying sounds could be heard from within.
Zhang Qiu's expression softened as he said, "Ren Qing, it's just right that Lin Cheng is also going to Nether Feather, so Elder Song entrusted me to bring you along."
Ren Qing's mouth twitched slightly, this kind of behavior was indeed Song Zongwu's style.
Presumably something came up at the last minute, so after delivering the information about Nether Feather, he couldn't leave and had no choice but to entrust someone else.
Most likely it had to do with handling matters related to the land, since as a vessel containing a Supernatural Remnant, its importance was clear at a glance.
"Then where's Lin Cheng?"
Ren Qing instinctively swept his gaze behind Zhang Qiu. Although he couldn't see clearly, he could obviously sense it was a living being.
Zhang Qiu hesitated for a few breaths and then sighed.
He removed the cloth wrapping from the bundle on his back, revealing a half-meter-sized piece of amber stone, within which was sealed a silver snake.
The silver snake was motionless, but the baby's crying sound was coming from its mouth.
Ren Qing noticed that the silver snake actually had a human face, vaguely resembling Lin Cheng's features, but it seemed to possess no intelligence whatsoever.
Zhang Qiu didn't explain much, but it was probably a kind of spell with a great cost that caused Lin Cheng to fall into a semi-dormant state.
Ren Qing thought carefully, for someone to be turned into a snake by a spell indeed felt oddly bizarre.
As for whether Lin Cheng could recover from his injuries, it would depend on whether he could advance to the Ghost Envoy Realm; only the shedding of a snake's skin could save his life.
"Senior Zhang, where exactly is Nether Feather within the Restraint Officers' Hall?"
Zhang Qiu was somewhat surprised, not expecting that Ren Qing didn't know.
He vaguely replied, "Actually, it's related to the Nether Crows who deliver messages; it's difficult to explain clearly."
Ren Qing asked curiously, "Advancing in Nether Feather, how is it different from the outside world?"
"This method of advancement carries less risk, but only applies to the Ghost Envoy Realm."
Ren Qing silently pondered, unsure what form it would take.
He didn't continue speaking, nor did he intend to take on the burden of helping Lin Cheng, after all, his relationship with the other was merely a fleeting acquaintance.
Ren Qing and Zhang Qiu stepped into the doorway constructed from bone keys, and immediately arrived at the Restraint Officers' Hall, once again, it was the familiar drizzling blood rain.
Zhang Qiu looked around, then took out a piece of black-gray feather from his chest and dripped some blood onto it.
The feather absorbed the blood and then spontaneously ignited without flame.
Smoke and dust dispersed.
Before Ren Qing could react, the massive shadow in the sky was already right before his eyes, a testament to the flying speed of the giant Nether Crow.
The fog spread, and the nearby Restraint Officers tactfully distanced themselves from the ribcage.
Zhang Qiu cupped his fists in salute and said respectfully and loudly, "Senior Zhun, I entrust my nephew Lin Cheng to your care."
Ren Qing was slightly stunned, a Nether Crow named Zhun?
Zhun seemed to sense what Ren Qing was thinking and said in a deep voice, "My surname was originally Sun, but over time I've long forgotten it, so everyone calls me Zhun."
Then he opened his mouth and inhaled, sucking Ren Qing and the amber into his back.
The thick feathers that seemed like steel felt incredibly light underfoot.
Zhun had no interest in dealing with Zhang Qiu.
With a spread of his wings, he flew into the distance, and in the blink of an eye he had rushed to the top of the stomach wall, surrounded by clouds formed from blood mist.
Ren Qing opened his mouth slightly, could it be that Nether Feather referred to the back of the Nether Crow?
"Senior Zhun, is it possible to attempt advancement just by staying here?"
Zhun replied impatiently, "What's the rush? You're not the only ones, there are still three more reserve members. Just wait a bit."
Ren Qing immediately shut his mouth. These Yin Runner Realm cultivators all had strange temperaments, and the information stream couldn't even read their techniques.
Only after learning the techniques possessed by someone like Song Zongwu or Ksitigarbha could the information stream take effect.
He sat cross-legged and visualized The Blindless Method, quickly entering a state of neither joy nor sorrow, and could even clearly feel a separation of soul from body.
Zhun glanced at Ren Qing from the corner of his eye, his expression somewhat appreciative.
He didn't know about the relationship between Song Zongwu and Ren Qing, he simply felt that the youth's talent and temperament were both outstanding.
Moreover, Ren Qing clearly had mastery over multiple techniques, which indicated unfathomable talent, undoubtedly with potential for the Yin Runner Realm.
As for Lin Cheng, Zhun didn't care at all.
In his eyes, Lin Cheng's body had been completely corroded by the mutation of the Snake Molting Method, even if he could advance to the Ghost Envoy Realm, it would be impossible for him to master any other techniques.
His potential was ultimately limited.
Still, Lin Cheng retained hope of advancing to the Yin Runner Realm.
But compared to Ren Qing, who had multiple paths to choose from, Lin Cheng could only place his hopes in the Snake Molting Method not hitting a severe bottleneck.
Ren Qing immersed himself in cultivation.
By the time Zhun landed again, Ren Qing could clearly feel three others climbing onto the crow's back, but they said nothing and remained silent.
Ren Qing opened his eyes and found that he actually recognized two of them.
The most familiar was Zhang Mu.
Ren Qing wasn't surprised that he had chosen to advance to Ghost Envoy Realm, he could sense Zhang Mu's aura had become more reserved, indicating some recent gain.
The other was a tall middle-aged man, whose cultivation technique seemed related to eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, his facial features were several times larger than normal.
The last was a woman, wearing leather clothes, her cropped hair messily tied up.
Ren Qing had previously encountered her outside Chen Shi's Eight Extremities Leg Technique martial hall, she had transformed into a leopard-woman to kill a monster possessed by the Divine Leg Sutra Supernatural Remnant.
She had originally been a member of the Blood Dog Gang, Ren Qing didn't know why she had joined the Restraint Officers' Hall.
Leopard-woman Zhou Mei glanced at Ren Qing, then closed her eyes to rest.
Zhang Mu, on the other hand, came over on his own: "Didn't expect that you, Ren Qing, would be able to advance to Ghost Envoy Realm so soon after becoming a reserve member."
Ren Qing smiled and replied, "It's just that my foundation from before was relatively solid, so my cultivation progressed faster."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Mu seemed like he wanted to say something but hesitated. After a long pause, he finally said softly, "Ren Qing, you could've waited to consolidate your foundation longer, advancing in Nether Feather carries too many uncertainties..."
Ren Qing looked a bit surprised: "Huh?"
Zhang Mu had just wanted to explain clearly when Zhun suddenly picked up speed.
"Everyone, be careful. Next, we are entering my nest, Nether Feather!"
Zhun's feathers gradually turned translucent, and his wings beat the air.
Ren Qing's pupils shrank, he saw Zhun flying directly toward the wound on Avici Hell's stomach wall, then plunging in headfirst.
It wasn't the return to the mortal world he had imagined, rather, a familiar feeling welled up within him.