Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 24 Secret Realm
It is said that the reason for this joint mission is mostly due to the strange phenomena of demonic beasts and the advancement of cultivators.

When the topic of the mysterious realm appearing in the world comes up, everyone shakes their heads and says, "Absolutely impossible."

Even Chai Yanghui himself felt the same way.

But the facts are right in front of us. Even if it's a one in ten thousand chance, if it happens, it's one hundred percent for the disciples who are carrying out this mission.

Within the Hidden Moon Pool Valley, a group of cultivators were in complete chaos.

Tang Lin was meditating and regulating his breathing when the sudden change interrupted the flow of spiritual energy. At this moment, his spiritual energy was flowing in reverse, and his meridians were burning with pain.

Gu Qingqing's face was deathly pale, her hair was disheveled, and she clung tightly to an old pine tree in a crevice in the rock, her skirt swaying in the gale.

At this moment, Chai Yanghui no longer cared about any action plan or his status as a disciple of the three sects. As the disciple with the highest cultivation level here, he felt that he needed to take on the responsibility of being the commander.

With a loud shout, the talisman with its flowing blue jade light was summoned again, enveloping all the disciples in the valley and leaving a passage leading to Silent Valley.

"Disciples of Dongyuan Sect, leave Hidden Moon Pool and return to Silent Valley!"

Lu Ziye was a man of the world, and despite the urgency of the situation, he led these outer disciples in an orderly manner.

He grabbed Gu Qingqing, who had the weakest cultivation and combat power, and then shouted a few times at Shao Sichao, Song Yan and the others.

pity……

Although Chai Yanghui had already activated the Azure Jade Spirit Screen Talisman with all his might, it was still no match for the fluctuations caused by the appearance of the secret realm. The azure jade light on the talisman dimmed down in no time.

The cultivators in the valley suddenly felt a powerful suction force coming towards them.

Lu Ziye's Taoist robe billowed, and seven copper coins flew out from his sleeves, landing and forming the Big Dipper formation to protect the disciples of Dongyuan. Chai Yanghui then unleashed his spiritual power again, drawing three spiritual talismans in the air.

However, both the copper coin spirit array and these three spirit talismans melted away like snow meeting boiling water.

Everything happened so fast.

Song Yan was meditating to recover his spiritual energy when his consciousness stirred and he looked up at the sky.

In just a glance, the Azure Jade Spirit Screen Talisman vanished.

In the midst of the chaos, the suction force of the spatial fluctuations swept up several cultivators in the valley, along with some rocks, grass, and trees, and plunged them into it. Then, the crack seemed to have been erased, and there was no sound.

The area above Hidden Moon Pool gradually returned to calm.

"Zhang Quan! Count the number of disciples!"

"Tang Xu! Notify the sect immediately!"

The incident had already occurred, but Chai Yanghui and Lu Ziye did not panic and immediately took action.

"Fellow Daoist Wang!"

Where is Wang Xi?

The two prepared to meet with Wang Xi to discuss the sudden turn of events, but received no response for a long time.

"Senior Brother Wang...he..."

One of the Xuan Yuan Sect disciples said somewhat timidly, "He got caught up in it..."

"what?!"

Chai Yanghui and Lu Ziye exchanged a glance.

They both sensed a hint of suspicion in each other's eyes.

The spiritual energy fluctuations and the attraction of the secret realm were not strong enough for a late-stage Qi Refining disciple; they could easily withstand them by circulating their spiritual energy and resisting.

Therefore, Chai and Lu were even able to spare some of their attention and spiritual power to protect their weakest disciples while ensuring their own safety.

Why can't Wang Xi do it?
In order to protect his disciples, he got caught up in the mess himself?

Would he really be that kind...?

……

Yunlin Secret Realm.

In a lush forest, the scent of grass and trees filled his nostrils. The snapping of a dead branch under Song Yan's foot was particularly jarring in the surrounding stillness.

Ferns several meters tall drooped down liquid, whether it was dew or something else, it was hard to tell.

Song Yan pushed aside the enormous bushes and leaves, freeing himself from the edge of the muddy swamp behind him.

His body was covered in dew that had clung to the leaves.

"Ka--"

He heard the sound of a branch snapping overhead, and Song Yan quickly rolled to the side.

Half a beast bone had fallen from where they had stood, with a rusty short sword embedded in the skull and faded red and white talismans wrapped around the hilt.

"Phew..." He looked up and glanced above, and after confirming that there was no problem, he circulated his spiritual power to dispel the moisture from his body.

"hiss……"

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my right arm, which stretched backward, revealing signs of a fracture in my shoulder blade...

He chose a relatively flat spot to sit down and took out a few low-grade Qi and Blood Pills and Bone Nourishing Pills from his Qiankun Bag.

These two pills are common wound medicines, with effects similar to those found in the martial arts world, so they are not worth much money; a spirit stone can be exchanged for quite a lot.

"Luckily, I bought some things at the market before leaving..."

The bone-nourishing pill turned into a bitter liquid in my throat, and I forced myself to swallow it. The veins on my forehead throbbed with the surge of blood and qi.

After recovering for a short while, Song Yan got up and looked around.

This place is filled with ancient trees and shrouded in mist; I wonder if there are any monsters here...

Song Yan smiled wryly: "Am I really that unlucky?"

Even a cultivator like Song Yan, who didn't have a deep understanding of the secret realm, was extremely surprised by this earth-shattering change.

Secret realms and grottoes can actually be divided into many types.

One type can be completely controlled through certain mediums; these types of grotto-heavens are closer to the magical treasures of powerful cultivators.

For example, Song Yan knew that the Dongyuan Sect had a secret cave realm, which was controlled by a scroll treasure.

It is rich in spiritual energy and contains many treasures. It is only used by Daoist Li Jun, the head of the Dongyuan Sect, to reward outstanding disciples or to carry out sect selection activities.

The second category is unclaimed secret realms.

Legend has it that the secret realms and grottoes were formed from the bodies of ancient immortals and wandering immortals who perished, their bodies transformed from mountains and seas, thus becoming independent in this world. They only appeared in the world by chance.

Some of these grotto-heavens are relatively stable; once they appear, they will not disappear.

Although some secret realms appear and disappear intermittently, their appearance follows certain patterns and can be roughly predicted.

However, there are some secret realms that do not follow any rules at all; the time and place of their appearance are unknown.

Song Yan pondered, and it was obvious that what was in front of him was the third type.

It's just that I'm too unlucky; I encountered this situation on my first official mission outside the sect.

"The most urgent thing is to see if there is an exit."

As for the dangers in this secret realm, demonic beasts and spirit beasts are not too bad. At worst, one can just be careful. If one encounters a third or fourth-tier demonic beast and dies at its claws, that's just bad luck...

Fights between unfamiliar cultivators to silence witnesses, kill and plunder treasures—that is a definite danger.

But if this secret realm remains closed for thousands of years, wouldn't I be trapped here and die?
A sense of dread about an uncertain future washed over me...

For humankind, the unknown is always the most frightening thing.

Suppressing his emotions, Song Yan leaped several times and landed on top of a giant tree, gazing around.

hum-

Ok?
A commotion arose around him, and Song Yan leaped backward, using the support of several towering ancient trees to land on the ground. He pointed his sword at his side, and the peach wood Gengjin sword hung there.

The sound suddenly drew closer, and a withered leaf at his feet rose into the air, transforming into a burning paper butterfly that flew towards his face!
Just as he was about to use his sword to defend himself, he took a closer look and realized that it was an unfamiliar communication talisman.

A teleportation talisman?
Song Yan was somewhat puzzled.

If it's an acquaintance, the transmission talisman will have its own mark, but if it's a stranger, how can there be such a thing as transmitting sound over a thousand miles?

There is only one possibility: this person was nearby just now and saw me.

"In this light, it is indeed quite dangerous to climb the giant tree rashly."

Song Yan secretly made a note of it.

After a moment's thought, he still opened the communication talisman.

The talisman contains only three sentences.

"This secret realm will only exist for half an hour, and it contains low-level demonic beasts."

"This secret realm is being manipulated."

"Both of us are targets of the hunt. If we are the only ones to be encountered by that person, we are doomed."

Song Yan was stunned, and then felt a chill run down his spine.

Who is the transmitter of the voice?
Is what he said true?
He subconsciously manipulated the peach wood and metal flying sword to hover beside him, and suddenly realized that his palms were soaked, not knowing whether it was dew or cold sweat.

Most importantly, who wants to kill me?
(End of this chapter)