Seeking immortality begins with daily intelligence reports.

After cautiously advancing for more than ten miles, Li Shen could not sense the aura of a single demonic beast within the range of his divine sense.

"really."

With his guess confirmed, Li Shen continued to project his divine sense outwards and sped towards his destination.

As the sun gradually set in the west, the light in the forest became dim.

Li Shen found a secluded mountain cave to rest.

Although the spiritual energy here is relatively thin, there are no signs of demonic beasts living here, making it a good safe place.

Then, Li Shen set up three formations in succession, each a considerable distance apart, so that if the formations were triggered, there would be time to evacuate.

Immediately afterwards, the seven-colored python was released to guard the surroundings:

"We'll rest here tonight and leave early tomorrow morning."

The seven-colored python nodded slightly, coiled itself into a ball, and surrounded Li Shen in the middle, resting its head on its body, its eyes half-open and half-closed.

Li Shen took out a fasting pill, swallowed it, sat cross-legged, and began to regulate his breathing.

He opened his eyes just before midnight.

A moment later, lines of text appeared before my eyes:

Fog is expected tomorrow, especially thick in the morning.

Li Shen frowned slightly, then relaxed.

While traveling in foggy weather is inconvenient, it is actually a good thing for concealing one's tracks.

Although he deduced that the third-tier demonic beasts had all come out, nothing is absolute, and it's always good to be cautious.

The next day, before dawn, Li Shen had already gotten up.

When he removed the three formations, he checked them carefully and found that none of them had been triggered, indicating that no demonic beasts had approached that night.

"Walk."

Li Shen retrieved the seven-colored python.

Traveling during the day, Xiao Qi's large body made quite a commotion as it moved through the forest.

As dawn broke, a thin mist indeed rose in the woods.

Taking advantage of the fog, Li Shen moved swiftly through the forest.

He was very skilled at the Wind Shadow Step, and each step was extremely light, landing without a sound.

His divine sense remained within its maximum range, not missing a single movement.

Heading east.

Every half hour, Li Shen would stop, take out the ancient silk book, and search for the most unique terrain in the vicinity to match with the map, so as not to go in the wrong direction and waste time.

The fog didn't completely dissipate until the sun was fully up.

Li Shen paused to rest on the branch of a towering ancient tree, took out the silk book to examine the map again, and gazed into the distance to confirm his location.

"Less than a hundred li to go."

He calculated the time and, at his current speed, he should arrive by this evening at the latest.

The secret realm will open tomorrow, giving him ample time to find the entrance and assess the surrounding environment.

Just as he was about to put the silk scroll away, his divine sense suddenly detected something unusual.

Li Shen's expression instantly tensed up. He held his breath and focused his attention as he peered in that direction.

Three figures were standing beneath an ancient tree.

All three were dressed in loose black robes, obscuring their faces, but none of them possessed particularly high cultivation levels.

One is at the peak of Qi Refining, while the other two are at the late stage of Qi Refining.

Li Shen did not act rashly, but quickly summoned a high-grade concealment talisman to hide his aura.

The three people lingered under the tree for about fifteen minutes, seemingly trying to determine their direction.

The black-robed cultivator at the head of the group took out a map made of animal hide from his robes, discussed a few words with his companions, and then headed east.

Because of the distance, Li Shen could not hear clearly.

But the route they took coincided with his.

"It seems I'm not the only one who knows about this secret place."

Li Shen frowned slightly, thinking to himself.

Although it wasn't exactly good news, he wasn't surprised.

Although Li Shen obtained the silk scroll containing the whereabouts of the secret realm three years ago based on intelligence, the intelligence did not indicate that this silk scroll was the only clue to knowing the secret realm.

Moreover, there have been precedents, and with the righteous and demonic paths fighting for months and the impact being extremely wide, it's hard to guarantee that other independent cultivators or sect members won't take advantage of the chaos to sneak in and try their luck.

However, daring to venture into an area where third-tier monsters might be active suggests that the person possesses considerable resources.

If you encounter this, you must handle it with care.

Having analyzed the situation, Li Shen stopped thinking about it and the three of them continued on their way after walking a distance away.

As dusk fell, Li Shen finally saw the mountain, which was exactly the same as the one depicted in the silk scroll.

The mountain is not steep, but it covers a vast area and is covered by dense vegetation, so lush and green that the view of the summit is obscured.

Li Shen did not rush to get closer.

Instead, he used his divine sense to sweep it inch by inch.

There are no monsters.

Not a single one.

The three cultivators who were discovered earlier were also outside the range of divine sense.

Li Shen's gaze darkened slightly, and he became wary.

The spiritual energy here is abundant, and there are obvious signs of monster activity. Although it is impossible to determine what level of monster is active here, we should still be prepared for its sudden appearance.

Without hesitation, Li Shen summoned a high-grade concealment talisman and headed up a mountain path.

Night fell quietly, and Li Shen traveled smoothly all the way to the mountainside, where he found a place with a wide view and some huge rocks to rest.

There were still three formations, with increasing distance between them, each layer building upon the last.

The mountains were unusually quiet.

There were no insects chirping, no birds singing, only the rustling sound of a gentle breeze passing through the treetops.

Li Shen sat cross-legged and regulated his breathing, preparing to stay up all night, quietly waiting for midnight to arrive.

The intelligence emerged as expected.

Today is sunny and windless.

Li Shen couldn't help but sigh softly. Although it had nothing to do with the secret realm, it was at least a good day.

Nothing happened that night.

As dawn broke, Li Shen set off to search for the entrance to the secret realm.

Li Shen found it in about an hour.

That was on the south side of the mountain, where the rock face seemed to have been carved out by some powerful external force, creating a sizable platform.

He took out the silk scroll and compared it repeatedly to confirm that it was correct.

Just as he was about to set off, three auras suddenly appeared within his spiritual sense range.

It was the black-robed monk they had discovered earlier.

The three of them boarded a flying boat and landed on the stone platform before him.

Li Shen had no choice but to lie low for the time being. The entrance to the secret realm had not yet been opened, and revealing himself in advance was definitely not the best course of action.

Time passes little by little.

The sun rises from the east and gradually climbs to its zenith.

Li Shen leaned against the tree trunk, his eyes slightly closed, his breathing long and deep. A wisp of his divine sense remained fixed on the movements on the stone platform.

The three black-robed cultivators remained calm and composed. A whole morning passed without them making any further moves, except for the occasional whispered conversation.

It was three quarters past the hour of Wei (1-3 PM).

Li Shen suddenly opened his eyes.

Above the stone platform, subtle ripples appeared in the void.

Immediately afterwards, an extremely subtle spiritual energy fluctuation spread out from the center of the ripples, as if something was being "squeezed" out of the void.

The three black-robed monks stood up almost simultaneously.

The ripples grew larger and larger, and in the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, a two-zhang-high gash was torn open above the stone platform.

Immediately afterwards, a perfectly sealed blue stone door appeared out of thin air.

"Is this the entrance to the secret realm?"

Li Shen was quite surprised, and at the same time, his thoughts raced:

"The entrance has been revealed. If we rush over now, we will inevitably have to confront those three people head-on."

Taking on three at once isn't impossible, but these three dared to venture deep into this place; they must have some trump cards to protect themselves. Making a hasty move would be risky and the outcome uncertain.

If we make too much noise and attract the attention of the demonic beasts, that would be bad. Since I have the key, I might as well see what they're capable of first.

The moment the thought was made up, something unexpected happened.