The Scarlet Cliff Celestial Tome spun like a myriad of cherry blossoms within the sight of Ye Xiu and Lao Liu. When the serpentine script of the Tome dissipated, the scene around them was no longer of the mortal realm. It was an inverted world: trees, laden with ice shards, hung suspended upside down in mid-air, the soil clinging to their roots hovered even higher, and the rows of forest were laid out in an intricate, orderly pattern resembling a Bagua diagram.

Lao Liu gently set down the heavily injured Ye Xiu. He tilted his head up, staring at the dense canopy above, and couldn't help but marvel at the natural spectacle. "What a marvelous sight. Is this truly the Earth Vein Interminable Realm?"

"This is not the Interminable Realm; it is merely the Scarlet Cliff Graveyard!" A voice drifted down from the sky. A dark silhouette hovered coldly at the center of the Bagua pattern. This figure was clad in a black cloak and wore a mask—pure black, featuring only a ghastly, gaping maw painted in crimson.

"Who are you!" Lao Liu, sensing danger, immediately shielded Ye Xiu. He raised his Thin Face Saber toward the figure. The person wore shackles on both hands and feet, appearing much like a prisoner. "Who are you?"

"Who am I? Heh heh. I am merely a warden of this Scarlet Cliff Graveyard." The black-masked figure gave no name. He twisted his neck and chuckled. "I have been imprisoned within this Ghost Path Bagua for many years. To finally encounter living souls today—I have waited long enough since the forging of the Scarlet Cliff Graveyard, which few have visited."

Ye Xiu's superficial wounds had mostly healed. He glanced furtively around. This world was not simply inverted; an inverted Bagua pattern had materialized beneath his and Lao Liu's feet as well. Their standing spot seemed to be the projection of the world above their heads. "You say this is the Scarlet Cliff Graveyard, not the Earth Vein Interminable Realm?"

"The Earth Vein Interminable Realm? Hmph, you mean that wretched place!" The black mask boomed, and the figure plunged into the ground. Moments later, he reappeared rising from the earth right beside Ye Xiu. "The Scarlet Cliff Graveyard is indeed connected to the Interminable Realm. Unless one is from the Four Clans within the Interminable Realm, they wouldn't know how to pass through smoothly. That is why you encountered me..."

Hearing this, Lao Liu knew the visitor meant trouble. He drew his Thin Face Saber and pointed it at the masked figure. "Who exactly are you? If passing requires defeating you, then let us begin."

"Oh? You too are a practitioner of the Ancient Esoteric Path?" The black mask instantly recognized the Thin Face Saber in Lao Liu's hand. His silhouette flickered again, descending from above. "If I told you that I, too, was once part of the Ancient Esoteric Path, would you believe me!"

"Enough nonsense..." Lao Liu was growing impatient. He threw his Thin Face Saber aside, and the Illusory Fire Beast materialized and lunged toward the black mask. However, as the Fire Beast entered the forest canopy above, it became utterly disoriented. Though the black mask was clearly there, the beast could not locate its target.

The black mask's laughter was eerie. He flicked his finger, and a drop of water floated towards the Fire Beast, striking it such that it cried out miserably and retreated behind Lao Liu. "I see your yet-unmastered Thin Face Saber can conjure an Ancient Divine Beast. Someone with high cultivation must have instructed you."

"Don't underestimate the situation. This realm is vastly different from our previous experiences," Ye Xiu said, rising now. He patted Lao Liu's shoulder. "According to Dao Wan Deng, this Scarlet Cliff Celestial Tome domain is merely a profound checkpoint, designed solely to prevent outsiders from barging into the Interminable Realm. It's better to ascertain the situation before fighting."

Lao Liu nodded and recalled his Thin Face Saber, asking carefully, "Since you are so familiar with my Ancient Esoteric Path, why do you appear to be imprisoned here? Could it be..."

"Indeed..." The black mask interrupted Lao Liu, caressing the mask on his face with a sorrowful cry. "I am a successor of the Ancient Esoteric Path's Curse Faction. Because I secretly studied the Book of Forbidden Curses, violating the sect rules, I was struck by a curse backlash. That idiot, the Limitless Dao Master, used the Grand Profound Dao Curse to imprison me here, forcing me to guard the first gate to the Interminable Realm for eternity, while also watching over the master of the Scarlet Cliff Graveyard."

"Limitless Dao Master?" Lao Liu certainly did not know this person, but he had heard the name mentioned by Dao Wan Deng before. He scrutinized the black mask; the figure exuded a profoundly sinister aura, unlike that of a true Dao cultivator. "Although I belong to the Ancient Esoteric Path, I am unfamiliar with the people you speak of. I only need to know how we can pass this first profound checkpoint."

"The master of the Scarlet Cliff Graveyard?" Ye Xiu was more focused on this phrase. He had initially assumed the Scarlet Cliff Celestial Tome was just an ordinary stone tablet, never imagining it contained a graveyard. He sighed and swept his gaze across the world again—only a forest, gloriously mirroring itself above and below, met his eyes. Towering trees grew from the heavens into the earth, and from the earth into the heavens, their arrangement forming a Bagua, which seemed connected to Daoist sorcery.

The black mask flickered, instantly liquefying into a stream of black water that flowed into the forest. When he reappeared, he was suddenly behind Lao Liu, his speed terrifying. At some unknown moment, he had coiled his chains around Lao Liu's neck. "Hahahahaha! Do you know? Passing through here demands the price of life. Are you willing to pay it?"

"So... so fast..." Lao Liu froze, daring not to move. He presumed the black mask had no immediate desire to take his life. "You want us to break this Ghost Path Bagua formation?"

Ye Xiu looked at the deep crimson mouth painted on the mask and quietly replied, "He doesn't want us to break the formation. I suspect he hopes we can break the Grand Profound Dao Curse and set him free..."

"Clang..." Hearing Ye Xiu's words, the black mask was satisfied and lowered his hand, the chains on his body emitting a heavy sound. He walked before Ye Xiu and asked, "Are you Death God? Or a very clever Death God! Correct. If you help me break the Grand Profound Dao Curse, I will tell you how to navigate the Ghost Path Bagua formation, allowing you to reach the second profound checkpoint."

Lao Liu regained his composure, lowered his stance, and looked at the chains connecting the black mask's hands and feet, impatiently stating, "What Grand Profound Dao Curse? Aren't those chains what confine you? Can't we just cut them off!"

"It is these chains, yes, but do you know the origin of the Ghost Suppressing Chains?" The black mask tugged at his arm, and only then did the other ends of the chains become visible, descending from the forest above. The chains plunged deep into the ground, capable of extending or shortening, but their source remained unseen. "The Ghost Suppressing Chains are not so easily severed!"

"What if we use the divine weapon, Abi?" Lao Liu grinned, his body vibrating as the Demon-Breaking Sword shot out from its scabbard instantly. The cold light alone seemed to lower the temperature of the surrounding air considerably. "Did you think I only possessed the Thin Face Saber as a weapon!"

"This power..." The black mask had initially underestimated the strength of Lao Liu and Ye Xiu. Now, witnessing the Netherworld Saint Sword Abi before him, a trace of fear surfaced in his eyes. "How can a Dao practitioner possess such a supremely Yin and evil treasured sword!"

Lao Liu offered no further explanation to the black mask. He raised the Demon-Breaking Sword in his hand and roared fiercely, "Use your hands to pull the Ghost Suppressing Chains taut! Watch me cleave them in one strike!"

"Whoosh..." The black mask yearned for freedom; he had awaited this moment for a very long time. "Quick! Quick! Quick!"

"Clang..." Lao Liu brought the sword down with immense force. The edge of the Demon-Breaking Sword, incredibly sharp, rebounded when it met the Ghost Suppressing Chains. Lao Liu felt a searing pain tear through the web between his thumb and forefinger. "Impossible... What kind of chain is this..."

The black mask watched the divine weapon fly back and felt deeply disappointed. He shook the chains and roared skyward, "How can this be? Isn't the Netherworld Saint Sword a legendary divine weapon? How can it fail to break a mere chain? Limitless Dao Master, how long do you intend to keep me confined!"

Ye Xiu certainly knew the power of the Demon-Breaking Sword—it was a divine weapon forged by Yama. It shouldn't have met such powerful resistance. "Lao Liu, what is happening?"

"There's no way. These Ghost Suppressing Chains don't seem to be physical iron; I suspect a curse has been layered upon them," Lao Liu said, seeing the black mask's despair, and tried to comfort him. "If this sharp tool doesn't work, we still have another divine artifact. Ye Xiu, try your Heaven-Gazing Sword!"

"Heaven-Gazing Sword? The possession of the Death Realm Sword Demon, Ba Fang Gu Ling?" The black mask was a notable figure within the Ancient Esoteric Path. The King of the Death Realm plunged the entire world into chaotic war, and the renown of the Death Realm Sword Demon echoed across the cosmos. His sword was certainly a subject of common discussion. "Who exactly are you two? Divine artifacts are rare in this world, yet they have all fallen into your hands."

Ye Xiu did not answer the black mask's question. At this moment, with the Heaven-Gazing Sword in hand, a vast, radiant crimson aura illuminated the entire scene. He thrust the sword upward, striking directly at the Ghost Suppressing Chains held by the black mask. This blow shook heaven and earth and sent the black mask reeling onto the ground.

"Useless..." The black mask was dizzy from the impact. He looked up to see his hands were still firmly bound. "It seems the Limitless Dao Master's Grand Profound Dao Curse is not something that can be solved merely by breaking the chain. Unless one penetrates deep into the Grand Profound Dao Formation, there is no way to undo it."

"I refuse to believe it." Though still injured, Ye Xiu's malevolent energy was rising. He stamped his foot and leaped toward the Ghost Suppressing Chains above. The Heaven-Gazing Sword met formidable resistance; his eyes flashed, and several crimson beams shot out, attacking the chains simultaneously. Clang, clang, clang sounded several times, and the Ghost Suppressing Chains swayed violently as if caught in a gale, yet they remained completely undamaged.

"Hmph! It seems there's no other way," Lao Liu observed that Ye Xiu had expended his full effort. An idea struck him: without the black mask's help, they likely could not pass this Ghost Path Bagua. "Where is the casting location of the Grand Profound Dao Curse? To break the curse, we must penetrate the heart of the formation."