After being jilted by the saintess at the beginning, why is she crying?

Ancient trees reach for the sky, vines hang down, the ground is covered with a thick layer of dead leaves, and the air is filled with a damp and decaying smell.

Lin Fengmian quickly steadied himself and scanned his surroundings.

Good luck.

This dense forest was extremely remote, quiet all around, with no trace of demonic beasts or cultivators.

The moment he landed, his immense divine sense, comparable to that of a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, poured out like a flood, spreading wildly in all directions.

Every blade of grass and every tree within a radius of dozens of miles is within sight.

He quickly got a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on around him.

There aren't many cultivators in this area, only a few scattered late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, who are fighting individually against low-level demonic beasts.

One of them was clearly unlucky, as he landed and fell into a demon's nest, where he was surrounded by dozens of first-tier demon beasts.

The man was decisive and crushed the jade pendant without hesitation.

A flash of white light, and the person was teleported out of the secret realm.

Out.

Lin Fengmian shook his head and continued his investigation.

In the southeast direction, two rogue cultivators joined forces to besiege a late-stage Tier 1 Ironback Wolf. The battle was fierce and evenly matched, with flashing blades and shadows.

In the northwest direction, a disciple dressed in the attire of the Beast Taming Mountain was driving two spirit beasts to hunt a mid-stage first-tier Crimson Flame Tiger.

There were battles in various places, but none of them were large-scale.

What truly shocked Lin Fengmian was that his divine sense, comparable to that of a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, couldn't reach the end of this secret realm for a moment.

Just how big is this secret realm?

Lin Fengmian clicked his tongue inwardly in amazement.

He withdrew his divine sense and began to consider his next strategy.

Now that we've just entered the secret realm, no one has any points yet, and everyone is busy hunting monsters to accumulate points. At this stage, fighting each other is pointless—killing someone won't earn you many points, and it's just a waste of time.

The real battle won't erupt until the last day or two.

At that time, everyone had a lot of points, and hunting down cultivators to plunder points became the fastest shortcut to getting on the leaderboard.

Lin Fengmian understood immediately and no longer hesitated.

When he unleashed the Nine Transformations of Illusion to its fullest extent, his figure moved swiftly through the dense forest like a wisp of green smoke.

Strangely, however, he circled around several times but didn't encounter a single monster.

This isn't right.

Lin Fengmian stopped in his tracks, his brows furrowed.

This dense forest is rich in spiritual energy and lush with vegetation, and should theoretically be an ideal habitat for demonic beasts. But now it is eerily quiet, without even the chirping of insects or birds.

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

Such quiet can only mean one thing—an extremely powerful demonic beast resides in this area.

Those low-level demonic beasts were either eaten or scared away.

A glint flashed in Lin Fengmian's eyes. He slowed his pace, suppressed his aura to the lowest level, and moved stealthily through the forest like a ghost.

He unleashed his divine sense, searching meticulously inch by inch.

really!

In a low-lying valley, he discovered a hidden cave.

The entrance to the cave was completely hidden by layers of vines and bushes, and would not be noticed unless one was deliberately searching for it.

Lin Fengmian flashed and quietly reached the cave entrance.

The cave was deep and dark, and a foul, fishy smell wafted through the air.

He held his breath, concealed his presence, and drifted into the cave like a wisp of smoke.

The cave is deep and winds downwards; the further you go in, the more open the space becomes.

Finally, deep inside the cave, he saw his target.

A large golden-striped thunder leopard was curled up on a huge blue stone, fast asleep.

This monstrous beast was entirely black, its fur covered in golden patterns that shimmered faintly in the darkness. It was over ten feet long, with limbs as thick as pillars and sharp claws that gleamed with a chilling light.

What's most terrifying is the faint, crackling lightning that flows around it, radiating a chilling pressure.

Peak of Tier 2!

Lin Fengmian's pupils contracted slightly.

This golden-striped thunder leopard has already touched the threshold of the third tier, just one step away from breaking through to the Core Formation stage. In this secret realm, it can definitely be considered a minor overlord.

No wonder this area is so quiet.

With this beast around, those low-level demonic beasts would have long since fled.

At this moment, the golden-striped thunder leopard was fast asleep, breathing heavily, with a trace of drool still hanging from the corner of its mouth.

Clearly, it had become accustomed to lording it over this area, had never encountered a natural enemy, and its vigilance had long been reduced to the bare minimum.

Lin Fengmian sneered inwardly.

This beast probably never imagined that a human cultivator would dare to sneak into its lair.

He approached silently, a flash of cold light appearing in his hand as the Little Heavenly Gang Sword materialized in his palm.

The sword energy was contained within, not revealing itself in the slightest.

step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Lin Fengmian approached the Golden-Striped Thunder Leopard and looked down at the giant beast that was still fast asleep.

It was even snoring.

Lin Fengmian's gaze turned cold.

With a swift movement, the sword fell!

A sharp sword light, like lightning striking down from the heavens, accurately struck the Golden-Striped Thunder Leopard's neck!

"Pfft!"

Blood splattered everywhere!

The golden-striped leopard's head separated cleanly from its body and rolled to the ground!

The enormous body twitched a few times, then fell silent.

One sword strike, a clean and swift kill.

Lin Fengmian retrieved his flying sword and looked down at the jade pendant at his waist.

A flash of light appeared on the jade plaque, and the numbers began to jump.

One thousand points.

Lin Fengmian raised an eyebrow, overjoyed.

Wow, it's worth that much!

One peak second-tier demonic beast is worth the points of ten first-tier demonic beasts!

But then he thought about it again and felt relieved.

In this secret realm, the highest-ranking demonic beast is only at the third tier. The Golden-Striped Thunder Leopard he just killed was at the peak of the second tier, already considered top-tier combat power in this secret realm.

Ordinary cultivators would be too busy running for their lives to even encounter such a situation, let alone killing it.

Getting a thousand points is perfectly reasonable.

Lin Fengmian smiled and put the leopard's carcass into his storage bag—the fur and claws of a peak second-tier demon beast were all excellent materials for refining weapons, and he couldn't let them go to waste.

Immediately, he flashed away and continued to rush into the depths of the dense forest.

……

Meanwhile, outside the secret realm.

The central square was bustling with noise.

An ancient bronze mirror hangs in mid-air, surrounded by swirling spiritual light and radiating mysterious fluctuations.

This is the Xuanjian Mirror, a precious treasure of the Great Yan Dynasty.

Light and shadow flowed across the mirror, reflecting the fierce battle scenes within the Myriad Demon Realm in real time. Although it couldn't cover every corner, eight or nine tenths of the intense duels were clearly visible.

The elders from various factions sat around the perimeter, sometimes exclaiming in surprise, sometimes praising, their discussions rising and falling.

"Look! That disciple from Beast Taming Mountain is actually fighting two second-tier demonic beasts all by himself!"

"Hun Taiqing from the Netherworld Palace is no slouch either. He killed more than ten first-tier demonic beasts with a single move. His strength must have reached the Pseudo-Core stage, right?"

"Tsk tsk, this year's Grand Prix of Talents is much more exciting than in previous years."

Amidst the discussions, a clear chime suddenly resounded throughout the entire venue!

"Buzz—!"

In the center of the square, the ten-zhang-tall black stone tablet suddenly shone brightly!