Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Yan Lie was also on the border. He was a second-tier high-grade alchemist, and every day, cultivators lined up to have him refine pills. He was busy from morning till night.

As for the Shen family, who are at the Core Formation stage—Lin Zhao's current strength and reputation speak for themselves, so the Shen family would have to think twice before trying to harm him.

It has a bit of a "fox borrowing the tiger's power" feel to it.

The most important thing is to refine pills to earn resources while keeping an eye on Luo Yu and the others to prevent any accidents from happening to them.

Hmm. Another nanny.

It can only be said that even without Lin Zhao, these few people are not afraid of ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators. They have strong combat power, intelligence, and logistical support behind them.

As long as they don't venture deep into the secret realm, they can roam freely on the outskirts.

----

Time flies, and three months have passed in the blink of an eye.

Ye Xiaoxiao, Lin You, Luo Yu, and He An spent three months exploring the secret realm, and they had already explored most of the outer areas.

The four of them worked together more and more seamlessly. Ye Xiaoxiao set up the Fire Separation Formation, and seven Fire Separation Magic Artifacts were deployed simultaneously, giving them complete control over an area of ​​one mile in radius.

Lin You moved through the formation, his sword energy sharp and focused on killing.

Luo Yu stood at the very front, wielding two top-tier first-grade magic artifacts—one for offense and one for defense—along with the powerful vitality brought by the minor completion of the Hundred Beasts True Technique. He was responsible for front-line defense, a typical tank, capable of withstanding damage without a problem.

He An used his foundation-building cultivation to hold the line.

The combined strength of these individuals was more than enough to contend with ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators, not to mention that each of them had the trump card of Lin Zhao to protect their lives.

After three months, he had accumulated quite a few good items in his storage bag, which was a considerable harvest for an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator.

However, Ye Xiaoxiao and Lin You are both comparable to Foundation Establishment cultivators, and they are aiming for high-grade Dao Foundation. As for Luo Yu, needless to say, his Hundred Beast Spirit Body is all about resources, requiring a large amount of demon beast essence blood.

These external resources are of little use to them in breaking through to the Divine Gate; they need a better opportunity.

"I've heard that there's a second-tier Fire Spirit Marrow deep within the secret realm, which is extremely effective at tempering one's divine sense," Lin You said, sharing some of the latest information. "But the depths are too dangerous; we need a detailed map and route."

He An hesitated for a moment before speaking, "How about we go ask Senior Su?"

"What about Sister Su..." Ye Xiaoxiao hesitated for a moment, "She wouldn't easily give us information about the depths of the secret realm, would she? The elders don't want us to venture into the depths."

Lin You's eyes darted around, and she suddenly smiled, "Then we'll say that Uncle sent us. Sister Su has to give Uncle face, right?"

Ye Xiaoxiao and Luo Yu exchanged a glance, both feeling that the idea was somewhat unreliable.

But Lin You had already stood up: "Let's go, let's give it a try. At worst, we'll be kicked out."

On the east side of the Cangyun Mountain border camp, there stands a wooden house. But upon closer inspection, one can see that every wooden plank is engraved with intricate array patterns, with a faint spiritual light flowing through it—this is a second-tier low-grade magic artifact that can block divine sense detection and withstand attacks from Foundation Establishment level cultivators.

Su Qianxue was counting spirit stones in the room. As she counted, she kept accounts, a faint smile playing on her lips. Her intelligence business had been exceptionally good lately, earning her a large amount of spirit stones.

"Sister Su—" Lin You's voice came from outside the door, crisp and clear, with a touch of deliberate sweetness.

Su Qianxue's hand trembled, and the spirit stone almost rolled to the ground.

She quickly swept the items on the table into her storage bag, her smile vanishing instantly, replaced by a cold and aloof demeanor. She straightened her clothes and sat up straight.

"Come in."

The door opened, and four people filed in. Lin You led the way with a fawning smile on her face. Ye Xiaoxiao followed behind, looking somewhat uncomfortable. Luo Yu lowered his head, looking like a guilty thief. He An walked at the back with an expression that said, "It's none of my business."

Seeing this, Su Qianxue knew what was going on. She sighed, "You want information from the depths of the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm?"

Lin You nodded, explained her purpose, and added at the end, "My uncle agreed to let us go."

Su Qianxue raised an eyebrow, looking at her with a half-smile: "Lin Zhao agreed?"

The four of them nodded in unison. Su Qianxue looked at them and remained silent for a while.

Deep within her consciousness, a phantom Ice Heart Mirror glowed faintly.

Lin You's is a drawn sword, its sharpness fully revealed and impossible to conceal; Ye Xiaoxiao's is an array plate, calm and reserved, with meticulous thoughts; Luo Yu's is a flying cub, its claws and teeth not yet fully developed, but already showing the appearance of a fierce beast; He An's is a stone, heavy and reliable.

At that moment, the reflections of the four people in the ice mirror were all swaying slightly—a sign of their guilty conscience.

Lin Zhao agreed? You're kidding me.

Su Qianxue lowered her eyes; of course, she wouldn't expose them.

Lin Zhao had previously spoken to her – let these younger ones go to the secret realm, don't stop them, but don't let them run wild, you still have to keep them in check.

Su Qianxue looked up and suddenly smiled.

"Alright, since Lin Zhao agreed, we'll let you off the hook this time, out of respect for him."

She took out a jade slip from her storage bag and tossed it to Lin You: "The route map to the depths of the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm and the location of the Fire Spirit Marrow are all inside."

Also, here's a piece of news for you—things have been a bit unsettled deep within the secret realm lately. Several Foundation Establishment cultivators have gone missing, and there are suspected high-level demonic beasts lurking in the area. Be careful, and come back as soon as you get the items.

Lin You accepted the jade slip, and the four of them bowed in unison: "Thank you, Sister Su!"

Su Qianxue waved her hand, signaling them to hurry up and leave. She had already thoroughly investigated the information about the Fire Spirit Marrow area.

That area is relatively safe. Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators might not fare well if they went in, but with the strength and survival skills of these four people, as long as they don't venture too deep, there shouldn't be any major problems.

Moreover, those active there are mostly surviving cultivators from the Heavenly Fire Dynasty, and they have a lot of intelligence cooperation with her, so she only needs to give them a greeting.

The door closed, and the room became quiet again.

Su Qianxue leaned back in her chair and gazed out the window for a while, lost in thought. She had a gathering that evening with the remaining cultivators of the Heavenly Fire Dynasty.

Those people have been having a hard time lately. Their dynasty has been destroyed, the Core Formation cultivators have died, and tens of millions of mortals have been displaced and scattered across dozens of camps of varying sizes in Dingfeng Plain.

Meanwhile, the cultivators from outside the region searched for treasures and explored their former homeland, renaming that scorched earth "Heavenly Fire Secret Realm".

There was nothing they could do but watch helplessly. But even a broken ship has some nails, let alone a dynasty that once had a Core Formation cultivator.

They still have some wealth, which is the envy of many outside cultivators. Recently, quite a few people have been secretly eyeing them, hoping to take advantage of their misfortune.

Meanwhile, the remaining cultivators of the Heavenly Fire Dynasty are trying to save themselves, and the most important thing is to produce another Core Formation True Person in a short period of time.

But it's too hard.

She suddenly stopped, took out a jade slip from her storage bag, and placed it on the table.

Those were some intelligence she had compiled during this period—information about the depths of the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm, and also about the powerful forces secretly spying on the remaining cultivators of the Heavenly Fire Dynasty.

She stared at the jade slip for a while, then put it away.

Although she sympathized with those people, it didn't mean she would give away the intelligence she had painstakingly collected for nothing.

For the previous six months, she had also followed Lin Zhao into the depths of the Heavenly Fire Dynasty, rescuing people time and time again, burning several pieces of her clothes in the process.

She owes them nothing.

Let's wait and see what price they can offer.

The light on the table cast her shadow on the wall, quiet and still, like a cold statue.