"Waa... waa..." At this moment, dense dark clouds covered the sky above Night Raven Alley, and the mournful cries of crows suddenly echoed across the wilderness, immediately followed by signs of trembling from the ground beneath their feet.

Old Liu remained highly vigilant, his Thin Blade still gripped in his hand. He looked up at the sky but couldn't spot a single crow. Confused, he asked the old woman, "Priestess, what is this incessant crow cawing about? Where are the crows?"

The old woman didn't look up but pointed a finger toward the houses flanking them. "This is the curse of Goddess Mèishū upon her own kin. Do not be afraid; those things are about to emerge."

"Those things!" Yexiu's ears immediately pricked up with alarm. At that instant, the doors of the houses lining the village path seemed to fly open simultaneously. The creaking sound of those ancient wooden doors momentarily formed a distant, hypnotic melody, and the scent of Corpse Flowers in the air grew increasingly potent.

"Damn these Corpse Flowers!" Old Liu, perhaps feeling his body reacting poorly, pulled a small vial from his waist pouch and dripped some of its contents into his nostrils. Only then did he look at Yexiu with an air of relief. "This is Isolation Scent; it can neutralize the toxicity of the Corpse Flowers. Want a bit?"

Yexiu chuckled as if unconcerned and waved away the bottle he offered. "Master, I can handle a bit of floral fragrance."

"How can I compare to a dead man like you!" Old Liu enjoyed provoking Yexiu, though when he uttered the word 'dead man,' his eyes clearly weren't looking at Yexiu.

Yexiu followed the sound of his voice and looked over. By this time, figures of varying heights were standing by the doorways of the houses on both sides. Strangely, their eyes were rolled back, their bodies were slumped over in a decidedly chaotic manner, and the sounds issuing from their mouths were the very 'waa, waa' calls of crows—these were clearly not normal people.

"Dead men? They are worse than dead men," the old woman shook her head and continued to lead the way, the tapping of her staff remaining the sweetest sound in Night Raven Alley.

Yexiu finally understood why this place was called Night Raven Alley; it meant people cried out chaotically like crows. But why were these people exhibiting such phenomena? Yexiu asked urgently, "Priestess, you say these people are cursed by Goddess Mèishū. As far as I know, during the reign of Xia Jie, there was no woman named Mèishū, nor did Dà Yǐ Xǐ have a sister."

"Do you think these fellows will suddenly rush us?" Old Liu held up his Thin Blade, cautiously watching everything around him. However, those creatures, having stepped out of their doors, did nothing but mimic the eerie crow calls; they seemed utterly oblivious to the presence of Yexiu and the others.

"Relax, they won't move at all. Goddess Mèishū bestowed longevity upon them, but the price was becoming walking corpses that could only mimic crows," the old woman glanced back at Old Liu, a faint smile touching her lips. "The price of eternal life is a lifetime of ignorance and oblivion. Which would you choose?"

Immortality. Another world grappling with the elusive nature of eternal life. Yexiu's thoughts instantly flashed back to the Bone Gatherer's Tomb. The longevity arts of the Bone Sect were what the Esoteric Sect sought—bones incorruptible meant the body was everlasting. The concept was simple, but the actual process of achieving longevity, perhaps even Hong Ling of the Bone Sect herself did not know. Tracing longevity back further to the ancient era of Fuxi, the perfect symbiosis between man and serpent could extend lifespan to some degree, but ultimately, Fuxi's descendants chose their own unique tribal survival method to seek longevity. The longevity of the Ancestor of the Styx, the Asura race, involved transferring essence through mysterious flesh lineages. And now, the Goddess Mèishū mentioned by the Priestess could grant longevity, but at the cost of becoming mere walking husks. All these threads seemed to foretell the final enigma of the Nine Poisonous Fiend Array.

The old woman clearly sensed Yexiu's confusion. She placed both hands on her staff, her voice heavy with gravity. "Goddess Dà Yǐ Xǐ was the White Lotus of the Heavens, dwelling in the Pure White Pool since antiquity, never stained by the mud it grew in—utterly precious. Later, during the chaotic wars of the early Xia dynasty, the Pure White Pool was polluted by bloody waters, turning thick and black, and the White Lotus of the Heavens nearly withered."

Yexiu swallowed hard. Historical records contained no mention of Dà Yǐ Xǐ being a White Lotus of the Heavens, but the Priestess had no reason to lie to him about this matter.

"In his youth, Xia Jie was spirited, launching campaigns east and north. Passing by the black pool, he felt deep pity for the White Lotus. So, he personally placed the white lotus into the Jade Waters of the Western Sea, thus completing Goddess Mèishū's final cultivation," the old woman’s eyes misted over slightly as she spoke. It was difficult for her, as no one in Night Raven Alley could listen to her stories. "To repay his kindness, Goddess Mèishū expended her entire cultivation to take human form, using the opportunity of the Shi Clan's defeat to serve Xia Jie faithfully, remaining by his side until the end."

"If Goddess Dà Yǐ Xǐ was born naturally, how could she possibly have a sister?" Old Liu voiced his doubt.

Yexiu smiled faintly. This story was comparable to that of Xu Xian and the White Snake Maiden. Yexiu was only curious about what the Death God lineage was doing during their era; how could a once great and universe-shaking race suddenly vanish without a trace?

The old woman waved her hand, signaling Old Liu not to interrupt, and immediately resolved the question. "Unbeknownst to all, the moment the White Lotus of the Heavens was carried out of the dark pool water by Xia Jie, a pure black lotus germinated within that pool. The black lotus radiated a powerful spiritual energy, and crows often rested upon it. As time passed, this black lotus was also carried by crows to Xia Jie's imperial palace, transforming into a woman identical to Dà Yǐ Xǐ, named Mèishū—Dà Yǐ Xǐ's younger sister."

"Hoo..." Yexiu rubbed his eyes. The old woman had completely overturned Yexiu's historical perception. Dà Yǐ Xǐ was universally recognized as history's foremost femme fatale; if the Priestess’s account was true, that established history needed a serious revision.

"Mèishū was inherently dark-hearted and capricious. She never allowed herself to appear at the same time as Dà Yǐ Xǐ. And Xia Jie, infatuated with beauty, indulged Mèishū's petulance all the more. Coupled with Mèishū's intense jealousy towards Dà Yǐ Xǐ, who shared the same cultivation source, the historical accounts of Dà Yǐ Xǐ causing the ruin of the nation arose," the old woman turned and continued leading the way, her voice bleak. "The Xia Dynasty fell, not by Dà Yǐ Xǐ's hand, but by Mèishū’s vengeance against her sister, which tragically cost the life of the one Dà Yǐ Xǐ loved most: Xia Jie."

"Hey, Priestess, can you tell us what this has to do with Mèishū's vital essence?" It seemed Old Liu had little patience for this tale of palace intrigue and was eager to interrupt the old woman. "Goddess Mèishū succeeded; she took revenge on Dà Yǐ Xǐ by killing the man she loved most. What does that have to do with Night Raven Alley? Why did Mèishū turn these people into beings that are neither human nor crow?"

"Mèishū successfully caused the death of Xia Jie, the man Dà Yǐ Xǐ loved most, but at the moment of his death, she realized that she, too, had loved that man." The old woman stopped walking and pointed ahead. "We have arrived. This is the Soul Tomb: The Eternal Lotus Dream Palace, which Goddess Mèishū built for Xia Jie."

A Soul Tomb? Could there be Soul Stones essential for a Death God's cultivation inside? Yexiu tilted his head, looking toward the end of the flagstone path. There, a crystal-like palace towered into the clouds. Its walls were almost perfectly reflective, explaining why he hadn't noticed it from a distance—it reflected almost every house in Night Raven Alley. This was certainly a product of advanced technology, and it belonged to the last monarch of the Xia Dynasty.