Having cultivated myself into an immortal, all I want to do is raise female disciples.

She had assumed that Lin Yuan had come to try and become the Qin Immortal—after all, if a ninth-level Qin master could create a piece that would make everyone in the Qin Sect bow down in submission, she would be qualified to become the next Qin Immortal recognized by the Qin Sect!

Lin Yuan had been in the position of a ninth-level qin master for several years. During these years, she had never come to the Qin Sect. Qin Shishi simply assumed that she had gone into seclusion to seek a way to break through.

"Then what do you want to ask...?" Although it wasn't a question about playing the zither, Qin Shishi was still happy to answer Lin Yuan's questions. She patted her chest and smiled, "As long as it's something your older sister knows, I certainly won't hide it from you."

"Ah."

Lin Yuan nodded slightly, then raised her head and stared at Qin Shishi with her bright, clear eyes.

"Sister Shishi, have you ever heard of..."

"The Azure Secret Realm?"

……

……

This statement came out.

Qin Shishi frowned, looking back at Lin Yuan with a face full of confusion.

Azure Secret Realm.

These four words are familiar to any cultivator who has ever lived in the Extreme Heaven Domain.

That place is where one of the twenty-one ultimates is hidden, and what the twenty-one ultimates are probably self-explanatory.

"You're going to the Azure Secret Realm?"

"Yes." Lin Yuan nodded firmly.

"Why?" Qin Shishi asked, puzzled. "Why would you go to such a dangerous place?"

"A place of trouble?"

Lin Yuan blinked; she had never heard of any danger in that Azure Secret Realm.

If I remember correctly, after leaving that airspace, didn't Senior Brother Gu Wangjun and the newly arrived Junior Sister Duan Xingchen go to the Azure Secret Realm?

That place is home to the two ultimate realms: the Land of Life and the Azure Star Land. These two realms are the most gentle and peaceful of all twenty-one realms.

People say that not just anyone can enter the Azure Secret Realm, but once inside, most people will never even think about coming out.

Because that place is simply a paradise.

It is said that those who enter the Azure Secret Realm will have their inner impurities cleansed, and as long as they are in the Azure Secret Realm, they will forget all unpleasant things, their thoughts will be clear, they will have a great enlightenment, and even the difficulties in cultivation will be swept away.

Of course, this is just a rumor, containing some truth and some falsehood, and no one knows for sure.

But everyone agrees that this Azure Secret Realm is a paradise, so why does Qin Shishi say that it is a place of trouble?

"It seems you really didn't know, Yuan'er..."

Qin Shishi sighed and rubbed her forehead, her tone tinged with displeasure: "The Azure Secret Realm was taken over by the Immortal Capital a few years ago, and now it has been completely incorporated into the Immortal Capital's territory."

"Given to Xiandu..."

Yuan'er was startled, but then she sensed something was wrong.

If, as Qin Shishi said, the Azure Secret Realm has already been occupied by the Immortal Capital...

[Then how did your senior brother enter the Azure Secret Realm?]

The little queen inside her voiced the questions that had been swirling in Yuan'er's mind.

That's right.

Jiang Yuetian had absolutely no connection with Xiandu, so how could he possibly break through Xiandu's defenses and step into that azure secret realm?

Could it be that Jiang Shengxuan is lying?

No, probably not.

The moment the thought of doubt arose, it was immediately dismissed by the little queen.

[That little demon, under my oppressive presence, wouldn't even dare to lie. Besides, as an important figure in the Demon Dynasty, how could he not know about the Azure Secret Realm? Why would he bother telling such a lie that will be exposed so quickly?]

"So you mean... Senior Brother really only used some unknown method in that secret realm?"

That should be the case.

"Yuan'er?"

Seeing Lin Yuan suddenly start to space out, Qin Shishi reached out and waved her hand in front of Yuan'er's eyes twice.

"Ah...it's nothing, it's nothing." Lin Yuan, who had just finished talking to her second personality, quickly laughed twice and then asked, "Um...Sister Shishi, do you know where the Azure Secret Realm is?"

"Yuan'er, what are you going to do in that Azure Secret Realm...?"

Lin Yuan's gaze darkened, and her tone became three degrees heavier: "Some...personal reasons, I suppose."

Qin Shishi wasn't stupid. Seeing Yuan'er's appearance, she knew she shouldn't continue to inquire about the reason.

She sighed deeply. Although she really wanted to stop Lin Yuan, the girl didn't seem like she would listen to advice.

That being said—

"I'm sorry, Yuan'er."

She shook her head apologetically: "I don't know much about the Azure Secret Realm. I only know that it was occupied by the Immortal Capital a few years ago, but I don't know where this secret realm is."

“Okay…” Lin Yuan nodded slightly, a hint of disappointment appearing on her face.

Having arrived at the Qin Sect, Lin Yuan had no other choice. In this Extreme Heaven Domain, she only knew people from the Qin Sect, and the only place she could go was the Qin Sect. If there was no news of the Azure Secret Realm from the Qin Sect, she would probably be like a headless fly, wandering aimlessly in the Extreme Heaven Domain, praying for divine protection.

"but……"

The sudden change of topic completely erased the disappointment on Lin Yuan's face.

Qin Shishi glanced at the old woman sitting on the ancient wooden bench not far away, listening to a little tune, and said, "If it is Grandma Nine Fingers, she should know where the Azure Secret Realm is."

"After all, she is the current sect leader of the Qin Sect."

Little Yuan'er's eyes lit up, and she looked at Grandma Nine Fingers in the distance with excitement.

As long as someone knows the location of the Azure Secret Realm, that's enough!

As for the time, she can wait.

"After this birthday celebration, I'll trouble Sister Shishi to take me to see Grandma Nine Fingers!"

Qin Shishi smiled slightly and agreed, "Okay."

……

Perhaps it was because the atmosphere between the two was too good.

Perhaps it was because Qin Shishi's appearance stood out exceptionally within the Qin Sect.

But the two of them had just sat down and finished talking, and before they could even enjoy the birthday celebration, a man's fawning voice reached their ears.

"Isn't this Miss Qin, or Senior Qin?"

Qin Shishi was very familiar with the owner of that voice.

Her delicate face suddenly turned into a bitter expression, and she turned her head away with a look of helplessness.

Sure enough—

"Huang Luo...it really was you..."

Looking at the young man dressed in the robes of a disciple of the Qin Sect, whose appearance was fairly handsome, Qin Shishi's lips twitched.

The person she least wanted to see in the Qin Sect...

He appeared before me with a glass of wine in hand and a broad smile on his face.

13. Visiting the Immortal Capital

Speaking of Huang Luo, he can be considered a musical prodigy.

He joined the Qin Sect two years ago. Originally a young man from the Yifan family, he possessed extraordinary talent in the Qin art. In just two years, he had already advanced to the sixth-level Qin master, and now he is only one step away from becoming a seventh-level Qin master.

Throughout this process, it was Qin Shishi who guided Huang Luo.

Although Qin Shishi's status within the Qin Sect is neither high nor low, she is respected by many within the sect.

Firstly, because Lin Yuan, the renowned ninth-level master of the qin, was brought to the Qin Sect by Qin Shishi, and Qin Shishi was also the person most closely related to Lin Yuan.

Out of consideration for Lin Yuan, a ninth-level master musician, no one in the Qin Sect dared to gossip about Qin Shishi.

Secondly, Qin Shishi is a disciple personally taught by Grandma Nine Fingers.

That's right.

If this were in any other sect, Qin Shishi would be the undisputed chief disciple, a position that no one, except the sect elders, would dare to provoke.

However, the situation is different here at the Qin Sect. Grandma Nine Fingers has a heart that loves talent. Anyone who is interested in and has talent in playing the qin will be taken under her wing. Therefore, Qin Shishi is just one of Grandma Nine Fingers' disciples and does not deserve the title of chief disciple.

That being said, anyone who dares to provoke Qin Shishi still has to consider the feelings of Grandma Nine Fingers.

Huang Luo naturally dared not provoke Qin Shishi.

Although Qin Shishi's face was full of disgust, Huang Luo hadn't actually done anything too outrageous.

To put it bluntly, he's just a persistent nuisance.

He had been trying his best to stick himself to Qin Shishi like a clingy plaster.

"I didn't expect to see you here, Senior Sister Qin. I thought you would be sitting with the elders."

Huang Luo, holding a wine glass, sat down next to Qin Shishi while chatting and laughing.

Qin Shishi glanced coldly at Huang Luo, then moved closer to Xiao Lin Yuan, giving Huang Luo a threatening look: "Huang Luo, I told you not to get too close to me."

"I'm just here to offer a toast at this rare birthday banquet."

As he spoke, Huang Luo handed the wine glass to Qin Shishi, a fawning smile on his face: "Senior Sister Qin, is it too much to offer a toast like this?"

The rich aroma of wine wafted over, and Xiao Yuan'er felt a pungent smell assail her. She immediately blocked her sense of taste and released the spiritual energy contained in her double pupils to protect her body and expel all the wine fumes that dared to invade.

—This little girl is the type who doesn't drink at all; she could get completely drunk just from smelling it.

However, Qin Shishi resolutely refused Huang Luo's request: "No need, Junior Brother Huang Luo, I don't like drinking."

"Oh, okay." Huang Luo nodded quickly, put the wine glass back on the table, and then took out a yellow book from his pocket, secretly recording it with his spiritual energy: "So Senior Sister Qin doesn't like to drink, I understand..."