The Long Journey to Immortality

If they were to hone their teamwork on the branch school's arena, then it would all be observed by those with ulterior motives.

However, before setting off, Han Lu had one small suggestion.

"How about we try to maintain the secret connection and head to Master's residence?"

Han Lu was already thinking about taking it a step further and seizing every opportunity to practice this very useful "Hundred Thoughts Gathering Spirit" secret technique.

[Author's Note] Work resumed today. However, there are definitely no workers on site; it's probably just a two-person shift system each day.

Chapter 515 Golden Core Cultivators in the Secret Realm

Just as Han Lu had thought, maintaining the secret technique while moving was several times more difficult than communicating and speaking with one's mind while sitting still.

While still in the state of casting the secret technique, the three of them had just stepped out of Han Lu's courtyard when a third of the silver-white threads connecting them had already broken.

The remaining threads broke completely after ten breaths.

Such results were even worse than when the three of them first tried to use the secret technique.

Han Lu had no solution to this either. She explained, "When the distance between us changes, these threads become increasingly difficult to control."

"If everyone were to fly on their swords and fight in all directions, it would be even more difficult to maintain this secret technique."

Han Lu was slightly annoyed. "I just hope that in these two months, we can become more proficient in using this technique, or find the trick to other control techniques."

Despite the unfavorable situation, the three remained generally optimistic.

It is merely a secret technique that requires cooperation between the three to fully utilize, which is certainly not an insurmountable hurdle for the three who have had a smooth journey on their cultivation path.

She tried to use the secret technique again, but it was interrupted after only a hundred meters. So Han Lu decided to temporarily abandon the idea of ​​practicing while walking.

Meanwhile, Yi Qiyan kept asking about Wen Erya and Han Lu's master, Piaomiaozi.

She felt that the Golden Core senior who could teach such outstanding young cultivators as Han Lu and Wen Erya must be an extraordinary being, and naturally she was full of curiosity.

Han Lu and Wen Erya had no ill feelings towards their master, Piaomiaozi, but they couldn't bring themselves to say too many nice things that didn't actually exist.

The two spoke frankly, trying their best not to tarnish Piaomiaozi's image as a "good person" in Yi Qiyan's mind.

There are also Golden Core cultivators like Piaomiaozi in the Five Poisons Sect.

However, Yi Qiyan had never seen a Golden Core cultivator as lucky as Piaomiaozi, who could very well become "wealthy" in the sect because of his two disciples.

"This senior, Piaomiaozi, seems quite impressive."

Yi Qiyan can only be described as "you are a good person".

After all, the other party was a Golden Core cultivator, and the master of Han Lu and Wen Erya.

You can't say bad things about someone.

Upon arriving at Piaomiaozi's residence, Wen Erya explained the purpose of their visit and introduced Yi Qiyan to Piaomiaozi.

Since the news of Yi Qiyan joining Han Lu and Wen Erya's team had already been posted on the internal bulletin board, Piaomiaozi, as their master, naturally knew that a holy maiden from the Five Poisons Sect had become a friend and teammate of his two disciples.

After chatting for a while, Piaomiaozi generously lent the three of them his long-unused space and, in his capacity as their master, gave them a few words of advice.

"A major competition is not a big deal on your path of cultivation."

"Don't worry too much about the results in the competition."

"What you can gain in the competition are experiences and lessons that you can't get by hiding in your room to cultivate. These are the most valuable assets for your generation of young cultivators."

Piaomiaozi's words were mainly directed at Wen Erya.

Compared to Han Lu or Yi Qiyan from Southern Xinjiang, Princess Wen Erya, the thirteenth princess, is definitely a flower in a greenhouse.

Even after experiencing the ancient cultivation realm, this remains true.

"If you have any questions during your cultivation practice, feel free to ask me." When he said this, Piaomiaozi didn't seem very confident.

If it weren't for the vast difference in their cultivation levels, he would have even thought that this disciple, who was able to return to the Central Plains from the Great Yu Dynasty single-handedly, had already surpassed him in combat strength.

Han Lu was already used to Piaomiaozi's attitude towards her and Wen Erya.

After exchanging a few polite words, she inquired about the details of the Grand Competition Secret Realm from Piaomiaozi, a Golden Core cultivator who had been cultivating in the sect for over 130 years.

Although the secret realm was established by Nascent Soul cultivators, Han Lu's intuition told her that Golden Core cultivators would definitely contribute to the secret realm project in the Grand Competition.

After pondering for a moment and discerning what could be said and what could not, Piaomiaozi spoke and told the three stories about exploring secret realms that ordinary disciples were unaware of.

As an unexpected bonus, Han Lu, Wen Erya, and Yi Qiyan listened very attentively, afraid of missing a single detail.

After Piaomiaozi mentioned it, Han Lu and the others realized that when many Foundation Establishment disciples entered the secret realm, the Golden Core cultivators also sneaked in to maintain order within the secret realm according to the sect's instructions.

This order has two aspects.

On the one hand, it is to eliminate the demonic beasts with excessively high realms and strength in the secret realm, so as to prevent the birth of Golden Core realm demonic beasts and spirit beasts in the secret realm during the years or decades when the secret realm is idle, and to take advantage of the secret realm's opening to slaughter Foundation Establishment disciples.

This will take place before the Secret Realm Exploration Exam begins.

On the other hand, they secretly observe and intervene when necessary to stop any fights that cross the line recognized by the cultivators of the Central Plains, so as to prevent their own disciples from dying at the hands of their own people while fighting for the Spirit Rhinoceros Pearl in the secret realm.

After all, no one can guarantee that there are no "psychological abnormalities" among the disciples participating in the secret realm exploration exam.

Teams like Han Lu, Wen Erya, and Yi Qiyan, who can take on ten opponents at once, are seen as unstable by the Golden Core cultivators.

Finally, Piaomiaozi concluded, "Loss mitigation was a task that I and the other elders carried out in the secret realm."

"The elders' principle is to avoid interfering with the examinations as much as possible."

"I'm telling you all this to remind the three of you not to act recklessly in the secret realm."

"Although I am your master, I do not know if any other fellow disciples have offended you."

"If you really want to seek revenge in the secret realm..." Piaomiaozi found a suitable word, "you can, but remember, know when to stop."

As a Golden Core cultivator from the Central Plains, Piaomiaozi naturally had a heart that yearned for peace and harmony.

However, he would not interfere with his disciples' reasonable demands, allowing his disciples to be bullied and treated unfairly.

But after saying this, Piaomiaozi thought about it carefully and realized that the probability of his disciple being bullied by a few "bad guys" among his fellow disciples was extremely low. It was already good enough that he could refrain from bullying others.

Han Lu and Wen Erya repeatedly assured each other.

Yi Qiyan simply nodded, feeling that she should be an outsider in this matter.

After saying this, Wen Erya jokingly asked Piaomiaozi if she already knew the theme of this secret realm.

Piaomiaozi naturally didn't reveal the question at all, only saying, "You can guess for yourselves."

Unexpectedly, after hearing what Piaomiaozi said, Wen Erya became convinced that Piaomiaozi really knew the answer, and actually made up a few topics.

Every time Wen Erya spoke, she paid attention to Pian Piaomiaozi's expression.

Unfortunately, Golden Core cultivators not only have strong control over their spells, but they also have far superior control over their facial expressions compared to ordinary people.

Wen Erya couldn't see any difference, so she had to give up the idea of ​​getting this sensitive information from Piaomiaozi.

Chapter 516 Everything is Ready

Seeing that Wen Er Ya was no longer interested in him, Piao Miao Zi resumed his previous smiling expression and spoke gently to his two beloved disciples.

"Alright, stop asking about things you shouldn't be asking about. Go practice now, I'll help you unlock the restrictions in the training room."

"Practice hard and strive to get into the top three, earn some honor for yourself, and make your teacher proud."

As he spoke, Piaomiaozi led the three of them a hundred steps deeper into his residence, where they arrived at a large hall.

The hall is about the size of four arenas in the branch school.

The room was brightly lit, and runes were carved into almost every blank space on the walls.

A stone tablet stands at each of the four corners of the hall.

These four stone tablets together form a defensive formation.

When the formation is activated, it can not only shield against external divine senses, but also reinforce the house and block spells, so that a Golden Core cultivator like Piaomiaozi will not accidentally demolish his house while cultivating inside.

This formation has extremely strong defensive capabilities, and naturally, activating it requires a considerable amount of spirit stones.

Facing his two disciples, Piaomiaozi was too embarrassed to ask for payment.

He braced himself and pretended to be a big shot in front of the two "second-generation immortals," keeping the matter to himself and taking on the cost of the spirit stones needed to operate the formation.

After the formation was activated, Piaomiaozi said, "This formation can withstand a blow from a high-grade spiritual weapon."

"You can practice here; I won't disturb you any longer."

"If there's anything you don't understand, feel free to ask."

Piaomiaozi couldn't tell whether he genuinely wanted to give his two disciples enough freedom, or whether he was worried that they might raise some cultivation questions that he couldn't answer.

In short, he left the three of them in the "training room" and went alone to tend to the rare flowers and plants he had planted in the courtyard.

As soon as Piaomiaozi left, the three of them entered the formation. Without wasting a moment, they immediately began to try out the various small combinations they had come up with on paper, selecting the reasonable and useful ones for further practice.

This is a process that is both interesting and tedious.

The fun lies in experiencing the beauty of cooperation, achieving a result where "1+1+1" is greater than "3", and gaining a sense of satisfaction from it.

The tedium lies in the fact that reaping this fruitful result requires a great deal of time and countless attempts.

During the trial, a small mistake by one of the three people may force them to try again.

These repeated failures also tested the not-yet-fully-secure cooperative relationship among the three.

Fortunately, Han Lu mediates the situation, always raising her hand to take the blame when things go wrong.

This allowed the special training to continue.

As for the secret technique of "Gathering Divine Power," the three of them temporarily set it aside.

If even walking normally cannot maintain the secret technique perfectly, how could those silvery-white threads possibly keep the three of them firmly connected during a fight?

The three of them were not the type to have unrealistic ambitions. There's no need to try running before you've even learned to walk.

On the first day, the three practiced in Piaomiaozi's "training room" for an hour and a half before disbanding due to Wen Erya's lack of spiritual power.

Compared to Han Lu and Yi Qiyan, who are in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, Wen Erya is indeed the weakest of the three.

This also made the already competitive thirteenth princess, Wen Er Ya, put in 120% of her energy during training.

After a day, the three tested seven or eight small tactics "on paper" and found one that could actually be used.