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

The Azure Secret Realm wouldn't even affect any of the major celestial domains, and its entrance should be extremely well hidden.

That should be the case, in theory.

Of course.

"A spiritual vein..."

In front of the mountain gate of the Qin Sect.

Yunping'er walked down the string-like staircase with light, slow steps, with the ever-well-behaved red-haired little girl Lin Yuan beside her.

In the descriptions of Qin Zong and others, there appeared things that even she had never heard of before.

Spiritual veins.

According to Grandma Nine Fingers, the entrance to the Azure Secret Realm is now located deep within the spiritual vein, which is currently controlled by the Immortal Capital. The spiritual vein is geographically located a great distance from the Extreme Heavenly Sky, and can almost be considered the central area under the jurisdiction of the Immortal Capital.

But the problem lies with the spiritual veins.

Yunping had absolutely no recollection of spiritual veins; it was as if they had appeared out of thin air. Moreover, Grandma Nine Fingers' description of the Azure Secret Realm was also quite problematic.

the reason is simple.

The entrance to the Azure Secret Realm should, in theory, be constantly changing.

Yes.

The Azure Secret Realm was created by two individuals of the Twenty-One Ultimates. It is a secret realm that was constructed by itself. The secret realm itself can even be seen as an extension of the two ultimates. In other words, the entire secret realm can be said to be alive.

It will not stay in one place for too long. Although its activity range is limited to the Extreme Heaven Domain, it will definitely not linger in the depths of the spiritual vein for so long, as Grandma Nine Fingers said.

Did the leader of the Qin Sect deceive them?

No.

impossible.

Yunping'er had the confidence to see through people's hearts, and in her opinion, Grandma Nine Fingers was not lying.

But if what she said is true, then why is this Azure Secret Realm so different from what Yunping'er imagined?

"Sister Ping'er... oh no, teacher."

As Yuan'er climbed the stringed ladder, she stared blankly at Yun Ping'er: "You... are the teacher, right?"

"Although I didn't say it explicitly just now..."

"But...you're the teacher, right?"

Yunping glanced back at Lin Yuan and noticed the little girl's sparkling, watery eyes. She reached out and gently patted the little girl's head.

Yuan'er felt a familiar warmth coming from above her head. She closed her eyes comfortably like a kitten, enjoying the caress just like before.

"Feel sorry."

Words full of apology came from Yunping'er's mouth.

A wisp of smoke rose from her body, her long hair vanished, her full breasts suddenly shrank, and even her exquisite face, which had once been breathtakingly beautiful, became an ordinary, unremarkable man's face.

But only this face could make Xiao Yuan'er feel incredibly secure and at ease.

"I'm so sorry for making you wait all these years... Little Kite."

"teacher……"

With tears welling up in her eyes, Lin Yuan threw herself into Yun Ping's arms, rubbing her face against his snow-white clothes, letting her tears fall onto Yun Ping.

He stroked Lin Yuan's trembling body in his arms, his gaze darkening, filled with apology and heartache.

Despite his long experience and long life, he was still human. Seeing Yuan'er in this state, he could no longer maintain his aloof and superior master demeanor.

Besides, he was in the wrong in this matter.

One can imagine the loneliness and helplessness of leaving their precious apprentices stranded in this increasingly chaotic world.

Whether it's Lin Yuan, Zhang Ruoxue, or that silly Ye Yuchan.

Because of my departure, they must have gone through an extremely difficult time.

This might be considered a kind of training for them, but it is also a kind of pain.

The tears that slid down her cheeks were proof of her loneliness, helplessness, and despair over the past twenty years.

The only difference is that Yuan'er vented her feelings, Ruoxue vented them through the process of becoming a saint, while Ye Yuchan... never said it out loud.

Yuan'er cried for a long time in Yunping's arms.

a long time.

This was the first time Yunping had ever seen Lin Yuan cry so hard, her face streaked with tears. It made him feel as if a heavy stone was pressing on his heart, and he could hardly bear it.

Finally, perhaps the little girl was too exhausted from crying, or perhaps she had cried all her tears out... Xiao Yuan'er stopped crying, but she seemed to slowly fall asleep.

Lin Yuan's tense nerves finally relaxed, and in that instant, she felt a sudden sense of relief, allowing all the pent-up fatigue to rush into her body.

And so, I slowly drifted off to sleep.

After noticing that Yuan'er's breathing gradually calmed down, Yunping carefully picked up Lin Yuan in a princess carry. Looking at little Yuan'er's red eyes, Yunping's heart felt as if something had tugged at it.

He smiled faintly and said softly, "You're such a grown man, yet you still act like a child."

Logically speaking, it has been twenty-two years since I last saw Lin Yuan.

Although she still looks like a doll, she should have matured a lot by now.

But... now it seems that he is still that little child in front of me.

Holding the sleeping Yuan'er in his arms, Yunping continued to walk slowly, first manipulating his spiritual energy to temporarily block Yuan'er's hearing, so as to prevent the girl from being woken up.

Just as Yunping stepped down the Tongxian Ladder and arrived at the foot of Wufeng Mountain...

"Old Liu..."

The character "氓" (máng) was not used.

A silver-haired maid-dressed girl, who had been waiting impatiently for some time, rushed over, but before she could utter her words of dissatisfaction, she saw Lin Yuan in Yun Ping's arms.

She immediately covered her mouth to avoid making any noise that might wake Yuan'er, while glancing enviously at Lin Yuan in Yun Ping's arms.

"Don't worry, I've blocked Yuan'er's hearing, she won't be woken up."

"Ah... oh."

Ye Yuchan blinked, about to say something to express her dissatisfaction at being left stranded at the foot of the mountain for several hours, but the words stuck in her throat.

The reason was simple: she was more concerned about Lin Yuan's condition than about her own displeasure.

"How is Senior Sister Yuan'er?"

"She is very tired."

"I can see that—" Ye Yuchan looked up at the Qin Sect atop the Five Peaks Mountain and asked, "Has the matter of the Qin Sect been resolved?"

"Hmm. Before long, the Qin Sect will probably move to some secret realm to lay low."

"..."

Ye Yuchan's lips twitched twice, and her dead fish eyes, just like Yun Ping's, hung high: "Looks like you've gotten yourself into quite a bit of trouble."

"It's alright, this trouble won't last long."

"Huh?" Ye Yuchan was taken aback.

Yunping revealed a mysterious smile, but said nothing about it.

His gaze shifted to Zhang Ruoxue, who was snoring near the foot of the mountain not far away, Gu Xingzhuo, who was meditating quietly in the distance, and Lu Yingqiu, who was scolding a scholar disciple...

"all in all--"

Yunping walked over to the crowd.

"Let's talk about your second senior brother first."

……

……

"Spiritual veins...?"

Lu Yingqiu couldn't help but frown.

Her gaze shifted to Lin Yuan, who was sleeping soundly on the soft bed beside her, and a trace of unreadable sadness flashed in her eyes.

She took a deep breath and looked at Yunping with an uncertain expression.

"Um... Master, are you sure Master... is really in the Azure Secret Realm?"

"Judging from the current situation, that should be the case."

Yun Ping nodded and, under everyone's gaze, said, "My divine sense has recovered somewhat. Xiao Jiang is not currently in the three Heavenly Domains, nor has he left any trace in the Void Realm between the Heavenly Domains. In other words, he should be in the Extreme Heavenly Domain."

"If nothing unexpected happens, it should be inside the Azure Secret Realm."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yingqiu, despite her petite appearance, adopted a stern and murderous demeanor.

She took a deep breath, her face slightly cool: "If the Sect Master of the Qin Sect is not lying, then the source of the spiritual vein should be that Azure Secret Realm."

"Source?" Ye Yuchan frowned. "What do you mean?"

"That's how it is—"

Ning Xuchen, who looked like a scholar, swallowed hard and spoke in front of everyone. As the youngest in the family, he always felt an invisible pressure, and his voice sounded a little shaky: "The appearance of the spiritual vein was very sudden. In fact... that spiritual vein looked like it suddenly appeared."

"It is not a secret realm created by man, nor does it seem to be a treasure land bestowed by heaven. Rather, it is a spiritual vein area with rich spiritual energy that was formed in just a few days."

“We’ve discussed spiritual veins in our sect before, but no one connected them with the Azure Secret Realm. Now that I think about it…” Lu Yingqiu lowered her eyes, her tone heavy with a tone that didn’t match her appearance: “It’s probably because the people of Xiandu tampered with the Azure Secret Realm, causing the spiritual energy within it to dissipate, which in turn made the spiritual energy in the surrounding area more and more concentrated, thus forming a special spiritual vein.”

Zhang Ruoxue was a little confused. She turned her head and looked at Yunping.

"This sounds a bit far-fetched, is it even possible... to create a spiritual vein like this?"

"can."

Yunping's answer was very affirmative.

"If it were any other secret realm, perhaps it wouldn't have this ability. But within the Azure Secret Realm, the two extremes of Azure Star Soil and Paradise of Living Beings can nourish countless living beings on their own. Not to mention a single spiritual vein, there are countless spiritual veins within the Azure Secret Realm."

"The slight spiritual energy emanating from the entrance is enough to affect the surrounding area."