Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

After wandering for several days, he collapsed from exhaustion in an underground fissure surrounded by monsters, already in grave danger. When he woke up, he was rescued by a small team.

There were four people in the team. One was a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stage, and the other three were young cultivators at the tenth level of Qi Refining. The group dragged the unconscious man out of the monster horde, fed him healing pills, and planned to take him back to Dingfeng Plain for a rest.

Zhu Yan slowly opened his eyes and found himself lying inside the spirit boat. Through the cabin door, he could see several figures in front of him.

It is Lin You, Ye Xiaoxiao, Luo Yu, and He An.

He didn't want to involve others and planned to leave alone after waking up, but when his eyes swept over the Cangyun Mountain insignia on everyone's robes, he suddenly hesitated.

Now he is surrounded by enemies and desperately needs a safe place to hide. Dingfeng Plain is already a place of trouble, and Tianhuo Secret Realm is even more dangerous. The forces of those Core Formation True Persons are everywhere, and there is nowhere for him to stay.

Only the Cangyun Mountain base under the Yunhai Cangming Sect, backed by the Holy Sect, made those forces wary and dare not act recklessly.

Lin Zhao, the guardian of Cangyun Mountain, is a prodigy of the Holy Sect. He has certain principles and courage, so it is unlikely that he would betray him.

Having survived this chase, Zhu Yan dared not trust anyone. Faced with the terrifying pressure of a Nascent Soul Dharma Body, ordinary people would avoid it at all costs, and no one dared to rashly offer help.

He suppressed his thoughts and did not reveal his true identity. He lied and said that he was an ordinary rogue cultivator who had unintentionally offended his enemies and was being hunted down.

He An glanced at him indifferently, and seeing that his breathing was steady and he meant no harm, he acquiesced to taking him along.

The spirit boat changed direction and flew towards Dingfeng Plain, but the return journey was already fraught with thorns, a hundred times more difficult than the way there. The outer perimeter of the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm had been completely sealed off.

Behind the scenes, the Core Formation cultivator gave the order: entry was permitted, but exit was not. A large number of Foundation Establishment cultivators guarded various key locations, rigorously checking every cultivator who wanted to leave.

Zhu Yan dared not show himself or reveal his whereabouts, so He An could only lead the team on a detour, choosing only the most dangerous and desolate places on the outskirts.

After three days of careful travel, they still couldn't avoid the danger.

A group of cultivators blocked their way. Without asking any questions, they attacked without hesitation, clearly intending to ambush and kill. The ten Foundation Establishment cultivators were menacing, their spiritual energy surging, and every move was ruthless and deadly.

He An stepped forward and fought desperately to resist the attack, while Lin You and Ye Xiaoxiao activated their magic artifacts to protect the spirit boat and try to break through. Zhu Yan suppressed his cultivation level and clenched his fists, but dared not reveal any of his strength. He could only watch helplessly as everyone fought a bloody battle.

The fierce battle lasted only the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, but the other side eventually retreated on their own initiative—not because they were no match for them, but because a mysterious cultivator had secretly helped them.

A faint beam of light pierced through the air from afar, accurately killing the leader of the Foundation Establishment cultivators, before disappearing completely without leaving a trace. No one could detect its origin.

Over the next three months, they faced more than a dozen similar attacks. Each time they were in dire straits, a mysterious force would intervene, blocking the most fatal attacks and helping them escape danger.

Zhu Yan understood; this was another force operating in the shadows.

He couldn't figure out the other party's true identity, nor could he understand why the other party had offered help. However, he clearly realized that he had already become a pawn in the game between two powerful forces, and he had no choice in the matter.

The situation in the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm also deteriorated rapidly over these three months.

On Dingfeng Plain, the surviving cultivators of the Tianhuo Dynasty were completely embroiled in infighting. Some sought to protect themselves by joining the opposing forces, while others turned against each other and killed one another in order to seize the remaining cultivation resources.

Large-scale battles broke out in various camps, with even Core Formation cultivators clashing with each other. The aftershocks swept in all directions, even affecting the mortal camps on the border of Dingfeng Plain, which were completely turned into battlefields.

Unable to return to Dingfeng Plains or break through the blockade to reach the Cangyun Mountain outpost of the Zixuan Dynasty, Lin You and her group could only wander back and forth between the border of Dingfeng Plains and the Heavenly Fire Secret Realm, like lambs being driven by wolves, with nowhere to settle down.

These past few months have been the most thrilling days that Lin You, Ye Xiaoxiao, Luo Yu and the others have experienced. They also realized that something was very wrong. The "ordinary rogue cultivator" they rescued was definitely not simple. There were too many people chasing him, and they were chasing him too frequently, far exceeding the scope of ordinary enemies.

As they fled, they discovered something strange: despite the large number of pursuers, someone always came to their rescue whenever they were on the verge of death.

The two forces involved were not the same person or the same group; they were clearly two forces secretly checking and balancing each other.

They didn't press Zhu Yan for his true identity, not because they didn't want to know, but because they dared not ask. They had already been unknowingly drawn into this terrifying conflict and were powerless to extricate themselves.

Lin You didn't understand the power struggles and schemes between these forces. She only knew that without those secret helpers, even if they had nine lives, they would have died in countless ambushes long ago.

They chose to remain silent, but Zhu Yan was filled with guilt and self-blame. He had dragged these innocent young people into this doomed vortex. With no other choice, Zhu Yan took out a warm jade talisman from his pocket and handed it to Lin You beside him.

Lin You took it with a puzzled look, then looked down and was instantly stunned. This was Lin Zhao's exclusive jade talisman, with his unique divine sense imprint on it. She would never mistake it for something else.

"You know my uncle?" Lin You looked up, her gaze fixed on Zhu Yan, her tone tinged with shock.

Zhu Yan didn't hide anything and nodded slightly.

Lin You remained silent for a moment, then solemnly handed the jade talisman back without asking any further questions. The person holding this jade talisman was someone Lin Zhao approved of, and they should do their best to protect them within their capabilities.

Moreover, by now, they are already deeply entrenched in the situation and can no longer extricate themselves.

Regardless of Zhu Yan's true identity or what terrifying enemies he has provoked, those pursuers will not show any mercy just because they are from Cangyun Mountain.

The only way to survive right now is to safely deliver Zhu Yan to Cangyun Mountain and find Lin Zhao.

As for what happens next, they are powerless to do anything about it.

This escape was not without its rewards. Under the constant pressure of life and death, Lin You and Ye Xiaoxiao broke through their spiritual barriers one after another within two months.

Their spiritual consciousness surged, their magical power increased dramatically, and their control over magical artifacts reached a new level. The two of them were now comparable to ordinary early Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Although Luo Yu did not break through the Divine Barrier, he broke through to the fourth level of the Heavenly Heart Technique. He could transform into a demon beast during the Qi Refining stage, and his strength was approaching the Foundation Establishment threshold.

Unfortunately, in this storm that swept through more than a dozen Core Formation cultivators, Foundation Establishment cultivators were not even worth mentioning.

Even Yan Chiheng was caught up in it. He was hunting monsters deep in the secret realm when he received Lin You and the others' distress signal and rushed over to join them, but he was also unable to escape.

The pursuers were clearly more wary of him—not only of his combat prowess and the Core Formation jade talisman in his hand, but also of the Cloud Sea Azure Sea Sect behind him.