Villains: Starting with the Landlady

"So, over all these years, has anyone else reached this place?"

They exchanged a glance and shook their heads. Lyle spoke first: "Not for at least fifty years. Ancient teachings say that the true chosen one will come here, pass the Mother Tree's test, receive the ultimate reward, and break the curse here so we can leave..."

As they recounted their stories, Lingyun gained a general understanding of the situation.

They were not native to the Dragon Kingdom, but foreigners who fled there thousands of years ago due to war. Later, a mysterious figure promised them a safe place to live, and they were lured there.

The mysterious person left them some special cultivation methods to keep them young forever, but the price was that they had to guard this place until the chosen one arrived.

The entry of outsiders will disrupt the purity of the secret realm, but if the purity drops to a certain level, even the chosen one will get lost in the fog and never find their way.

The implication is that they will be trapped here forever.

Therefore, they established a strict security system from that time onwards. The arrival of the chosen one would ring the alarm bell in the village, and the entire island would hear it. But Ling Yun's arrival did not cause a sound, so he was not the chosen one.

They were also unwilling to harm lives indiscriminately; often, the first arrow was a warning, the second a cripple, and the third a kill.

"I am not the chosen one, so why did you invite me here? Aren't you afraid of polluting the purity?"

Ling Yun accepted the fruit tea from Lyle, took a sip, and his eyes lit up: "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Lyle's eyes sparkled as she looked at Ling Yun. She rested her head on her hands and sat quietly to the side, admiring Ling Yun's stunning good looks.

Bellamy ignored his daughter's expression, suppressed his own racing heart, and slowly said, "Because you are destined to be broken."

Chapter 181 Ancient Secret Technique [Bonus Chapter for Donations]

"A person whose fate is ruined?"

Ling Yun glanced at Bellamy, whose gaze held an unfathomable quality.

“Yes, you are burdened with a great deal of karma.” Bellamy sat upright, her beautiful figure appearing even more graceful. “Because of my own abilities, I can see things that ordinary people cannot. You carry the karma of many destined individuals, all of whom you have subdued. Therefore, you can also break through the secret realm, allowing us to go to the outside world.”

Ling Yun tapped the table lightly with his fingers. It seemed that this Bellamy was quite capable; at least it was clear that he had plundered quite a few "protagonists."

"So, can you take me to the Mother Tree now to participate in the trial?"

"I'm sorry, since you are not the chosen one, you need to make some preparations before you can participate in the test. You can stay here with us tonight."

Ling Yun looked at the clear blue sky outside and nodded.

"For the rest of today, let Lyle show you around the secret realm."

"Then thank you very much, Elder Bellamy."

"Well, you're welcome."

Lyle stood up with a smile and led Lingyun away from the cabin. Just before leaving, Lingyun glanced back and noticed that Bellamy's face was slightly flushed, though he didn't know why.

After the two left the village, Lyle first led him to the east, where there was a steep mountain peak with a very good view from the top.

"Master Priest."

Several guards emerged from the surrounding area, bowed to Lyle, but looked at Ling Yun with a hint of curiosity and shyness.

"You all go ahead and get busy, you don't need to follow us."

"Yes."

The guards hid in the woods again; without using X-ray vision, they would be very difficult to spot.

Lyle sat on a large rock and beckoned Lingyun over.

The two sat side by side and chatted for a while. Then Lyle pointed into the distance and said, "Actually, I once secretly tried to leave this place and take a boat out. I kept rowing eastward, and even though I didn't turn around and the direction was always right, I ended up going back the way I came."

"If the secret realm is not broken, I'm afraid you won't be able to leave on your own."

“Yes,” Lyle sighed, “but it’s different for outsiders. Even if you stumbled in by accident, it’s very easy for you to get out.”

Thinking that Li Zishi's original destiny was also to reach this place, Ling Yun couldn't help but ask curiously, "Lyle, do you have a saying here that one must be loyal to the chosen one?"

"No, at most we'll give the chosen one some material compensation... Besides, we don't have anything good on our island."

Ling Yun nodded. Although the women in the Immortal Spirit Secret Realm spoke the same language as modern Mandarin, their thoughts and lifestyles were quite different. He thought to himself, perhaps there was some kind of magical power that kept the people in the secret realm closely connected with the outside world, causing them to change together.

"Okay, let me take you to other places. This place is quite big."

Lyle was an optimist, and even when he mentioned he couldn't leave the island, he wasn't upset. He got up, dusted himself off, and pulled Lingyun to other places. Of course, they couldn't go to those forbidden areas.

Later that evening, Lingyun had dinner at Bellamy's house. The island still had many wild animals and livestock, and since it was located in a large river with fresh water, there was no shortage of resources.

After they finished eating, Bellamy had Lyle get Ling Yun a loose-fitting, specially made robe, and then told him to take a bath and change. He also prepared a room for him to rest.

"Elder Bellamy, what exactly is this ancient secret technique?"

Lingyun has now become the key to unlocking their bonds, and their fates are naturally intertwined, so this somewhat sensitive issue is not a big deal.

“An ancient secret technique… All I know is that this technique can help one understand the human heart.”

"People's hearts?"

"Yes, that's all the mysterious figure said at the time... Moreover, this secret technique has great energy and can only be obtained by people with pure minds; otherwise, it will cause chaos."

Bellamy, seeing Ling Yun listening attentively, continued, "But he also said that if the person who arrives is not the chosen one, but the one who breaks fate, then it can only mean that fate has already been reversed, and the ancient secret method should be handed over to him, but the process will be changed."

Ling Yun only half understood what he was hearing, but he roughly realized that he was also destined to have this secret technique, although it was different from the way that the chosen ones naturally acquired it.

"Mr. Ling, please come with me."

Bellamy led Lingyun to the back of the house, to a pool of water shrouded in mist. The water wasn't deep, only about a meter deep in the middle; if you squatted down, your head would just be above the surface.

"To participate in the Mother Tree's test, one must be pure in body and mind. After you soak here, you can wash away all impurities, eliminate the karma on your body, and avoid being entangled in karma in the future, or even creating negative karma."

Ling Yun remained noncommittal, but still responded. After Bellamy left, he took off his clothes, folded his clean robes on the shore, and slowly walked in.

When he was soaking in the water, he clearly felt much more relaxed.

"Nana, could I really be entangled in karma because of my plundering?"

Yes, Master, but these karmic consequences have no effect on you. If you learn methods to control them in the future, you can transfer the karma to someone else, causing them to be entangled and die. However, this method is ultimately somewhat despicable; if it can be cleansed, it wouldn't be a bad thing.

Xiaona is like this: if it's something that won't harm him, she generally won't remind him, since no one knows if they'll need it in the future.

However, Ling Yun also disliked things like cause and effect. After all, the death of the "protagonist" would be attributed to you. If there were too many of them, other people would probably have died a violent death long ago.

Just as he squatted in the water, preparing to close his eyes and enjoy the moment, he heard the sound of rushing water again...

Chapter 182 Elder Bellamy

Lingyun dressed and sat in the middle of the pool.

Bellamy, who had come over, turned solemn and gestured for him to close his eyes. Then, he cupped the water in his hands, moved it above his head, and murmured something in a language that Lingyun couldn't understand before slowly separating his hands.

The water flowed from her palm and dripped onto his head, instantly making Lingyun feel more relaxed. It was much more efficient than letting him soak slowly on his own.

“Mr. Lingyun, please come with me to the shore.”

"it is good."

Ling Yun stood up abruptly, and the two quickly walked towards the shore.

The water was not deep near the shore, so Bellamy sat down with her back against the shore and let Ling Yun sit down with his back to her as well.

After a long time, Lingyun lay on the ground with his eyes closed. The woman gently hummed a song with incomprehensible lyrics. The song seemed to fly in from beyond the heavens, carrying countless moments of tranquility and peace, which slowly lulled Lingyun to sleep.

The final step in washing away all the superficiality is to eliminate impurities from the body.

With Bellamy's help, Ling Yun completely eliminated the cause and effect in less than half an hour this time.

Looking at his sleeping, handsome face, Bellamy's eyes were filled with countless emotions.

"Mr. Lingyun, please get some rest for the night. Tomorrow, I will personally take you to the trial grounds."

The next day, when Ling Yun woke up, he found himself lying in the room Bellamy had prepared for him, still wearing the robes he had changed out of.

He blinked in confusion. He remembered taking a bath in the pool last night, and then Bellamy came over.

Then Elder Bellamy helped him quickly resolve the cause and effect, but how did he end up back?

The door opened, and Lyle walked in carrying a wooden tray: "Lingyun, breakfast is ready. After you finish eating, you can head to the Trial Grounds to undergo the Mother Tree's test!"

"Where's your mom?"

"Hmm?" Lyle tilted his head. "She's naturally preparing for the ceremony."

Ling Yun didn't ask any further questions. Clearly, Lyle didn't know what had happened between the two of them. After quickly finishing his meal, he followed Lyle outside with a hint of anticipation for the ancient secret technique.

At this moment, all the women in the village, except for the guards and special groups, gathered here, all staring wide-eyed at Ling Yun. The expectation in their eyes made Ling Yun feel somewhat helpless.

These women have never seen the outside world in their lives. Now that they've finally found him, if he fails, although they won't blame themselves, he'll probably be too embarrassed to stay any longer.

"Mr. Lingyun, let's go."

Bellamy wore a moon-white long dress, which was quite gorgeous and clearly not something that people with their semi-wild lifestyle could make.

Bellamy held the wooden ritual implement in her right hand and extended her left hand to him. Ling Yun understood and gently took it. The two walked together into the depths of the island.

On the way deeper into the area, Ling Yun couldn't help but ask, "Elder Bellamy, does the chosen one also receive the same treatment as me? Stripped of all worldly adornments, even you have to change into this attire?"

“If he is the chosen one, we must strictly keep a distance of 3 meters from him, not touch him, and only guide him to the path to the mother tree, without following him.”

Although there was no direct answer, Ling Yun understood that this was clearly prepared for him, a person destined for misfortune.

“Mr. Lingyun, you don’t need to worry. There are some things I won’t do with other people.”

Her last words were not spoken from the perspective of an elder, but came entirely from her heart.

Ling Yun tightened his grip on her small hand and said softly, "After I pass the test, I will take you home."

"Although we can travel to the outside world, most of the women in the secret realm are still used to life here and may not leave... However, from now on, unless an external force forcibly breaks through, only you can freely enter and exit this place. Ordinary outsiders cannot find this secret realm, and it will completely belong to you. Similarly, this is also the difference between you and the chosen ones. After all, you are the one who defied destiny and is unique in the world."

"I'm becoming increasingly curious about who that mysterious person was back then."

Bellamy smiled and shook his head: "We don't know either. We can't even see her face clearly. It's just that her voice is said to have a kind of majesty that is rare for a woman."

"female?"

"Yes, it's a woman."

During their conversation, the two had arrived at the depths of the island, which was also the most strictly guarded forbidden area in the entire secret realm.

The group, consisting of three priests, two elders, and more than ten guards, completely sealed off the entrance.

"Elder, this is the one whose fate has been broken."

"Yes, please open the entrance, I'll take him in."

Because those with broken fates look no different from ordinary people, and because there are concerns that letting people in at will would lower the purity level, only core personnel know about those with broken fates; the guards and ordinary villagers are unaware of the situation.

Of course, if someone truly has a broken destiny arrives, these guards alone will not be able to stop them, and it will inevitably attract the attention of key personnel at the priest and elder levels.

After several priests and elders worked together to draw a strange symbol, the tree branches in front of them slowly faded away, revealing the shape of an archway.

Bellamy gripped Ling Yun's hand, took a deep breath, and led him inside.

After the two of them went inside, the place returned to calm. The group once again joined forces to seal the entrance, and then looked outwards with even greater seriousness, wary of any creatures that might approach.

Chapter 183 Mother Tree Maya

As soon as the two entered, another flash of white light appeared before their eyes, and then their vision changed.

The tree-lined path they had just passed through had vanished, replaced by a vast, open plain and towering trees that seemed to blot out the sky and stretch endlessly before them!

"Bellamy, you've brought the one who will break your destiny."

A clear, ethereal voice came from above, and soon a female humanoid creature, over 2 meters tall, with long green hair, wearing clothes woven from branches and leaves, and with a beautiful figure, slowly descended from the sky.

"Yes, Lady Maya."

Bellamy knelt down and bowed, then raised the wooden ritual implement with both hands and handed it to her.

With a flick of her finger, the avatar of the Mother Tree sent the staff flying, transforming it into a stream of emerald green energy that merged into her body.

Lingyun curiously used the search function to see if it would have any effect.

Name: Maya

【Age: 2734】

[Value: 230, F]

[Rating: 98]