The Shadow Attendant was controlling the Black Bear Demon Beast’s body.

Every morning, it went out as usual to find food for Li Wei.

Just as it reached the cave entrance, the Black Bear’s senses flared with alarm.

The beast’s instinct for danger made the Shadow Attendant realize something was wrong, and it slowed its pace.

But it was too slow.

"Vine Binding!"

"Mire Skill!"

WHOOSH!

Several vines grew rapidly, twining around the Black Bear’s body.

The Shadow Attendant struggled with all its might, snapping the vines.

But as it struggled, the Black Bear’s heavy body sank deeper into the mire.

In the blink of an eye, half its body had sunk into the mire, making it impossible to escape.

"Wind Cutting!"

"Ice Spike Technique!"

Magic Attacks rained down on the Black Bear, and it roared instinctively.

Its powerful will to survive allowed the Black Bear to wrest back control of its own body.

The Black Bear’s eyes turned blood-red as it struggled for its life.

By the time it crawled out of the mire, it was covered in wounds.

Li Wei was inside the cave, cultivating.

[Crystal Meditation Method (Tier One)] 6402/10000

[Fireball Skill (Tier One Great Success)] 3100/10000

[Invisible Armor Skill (Tier One Great Success)] 600/10000

[Object Control Skill (Tier One Small Success)] 5213/10000

[Great Dream Traveling Skill (Tier One)] 1200/10000

[Illusion Technique (Tier One)] 1326/10000

...

’Is there something special about this Secret Realm? It feels much easier to cultivate Fire Element Magic,’ Li Wei pondered.

"ROAR!"

Suddenly, the Black Bear’s roar came from outside the cave.

A black shadow sped toward him.

The Shadow Attendant appeared.

"The Black Bear is out of control. Four Mages outside."

Li Wei looked surprised.

"What’s going on?"

’How did we get ambushed out of nowhere?’

Li Wei understood his peaceful days were over.

He got up, activated his Invisibility Cloak, and walked outside.

When he reached the cave entrance, he saw four Mages ganging up on the Black Bear.

The Black Bear, in a final burst of strength, unleashed its astonishing potential and sent one of them flying.

But in the end, it was no match for them and collapsed.

"A Tier Two Magical Beast... they’re really tough to handle."

One of them prodded the Black Bear’s corpse with his foot and sighed.

"There’s a Tier Two Magic Core. Who gets it?"

The Mage who found the Magic Core looked at the other three.

One of them said, "Let’s check the cave for treasure first. We can decide how to split the Magic Core based on what we find."

"Good idea. Let’s hurry inside and take a look."

Li Wei froze when he heard them.

’Treasure? What treasure?’

’I’ve been living in this cave for three days and haven’t found any treasure!’

He glanced back, a seed of doubt planted in his mind.

’Could there really be a hidden treasure I missed?’

The Fire Element Mage stopped and said, "You can have the treasure. I just want this Magic Core."

The other three exchanged a look but said nothing.

A Tier Two Magic Core wasn’t priceless, but it wasn’t cheap, either.

It was a prize none of them could ignore.

Not every Mage had a wealthy family backing them.

Most had to find their own ways to earn money for Magic Materials, Magic Potions, Magic Models, Cultivation Techniques, and more.

"Hunter, don’t you want to know what treasure is inside?" the Plant Mage, Lama, said.

Hunter seemed to sense something and insisted, "Give me the Magic Core. You can split whatever treasure is inside."

The four of them stood in a stalemate.

"What treasure are you talking about?"

A voice came from inside the cave, and the group froze.

’Did someone beat us to the treasure?’

They all turned toward the cave. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Li Wei stepped out of the cave, revealing himself to the group.

Seeing his attire, they all looked astonished.

In the viewing stands, Gu Ze put down his drink and said hurriedly, "Quick, look! The Armored Man who’s been missing for three days has finally shown up."

"Haha, I told you he was in the cave."

Rota asked in confusion, "But what was going on with that Black Bear?"

"The Armored Man was in the cave the whole time, why didn’t the Black Bear attack him?"

Gu Ze was also confused.

He looked toward Li Wei and asked, "What do you think?"

The Illusory Body of Li Wei answered, "Perhaps the Armored Man knows a Charm Spell."

"A Charm Spell?"

Gu Ze and Rota exchanged a look. It seemed plausible.

Otherwise, there was no way to explain such an abnormal situation.

Li Wei’s attention was split, part of it answering Gu Ze’s question.

Meanwhile, the four Mages in front of him finally reacted.

They stared at Li Wei and said in unison, "Hand over the treasure."

Li Wei looked completely bewildered. ’What treasure?’

"What treasure?" Li Wei asked.

"You don’t know what treasure?" Lama said, staring at him.

Li Wei was still completely baffled.

The Ice Mage, Sammy, said, "There are four of us and only one of you. Hand over the treasure, and be smart about it. Otherwise, don’t blame us for what happens next."

Li Wei sighed. It seemed a peaceful resolution was impossible.

In that case, he wouldn’t be polite either.

"Shadow Attendant, go!"

Li Wei raised his hand, unleashing a Chain of Small Fireballs Skill right at their faces.

WHOOSH!

The Small Fireballs shot out, striking the four Mages, but were blocked by their Magic Shields.

Li Wei’s casting speed was simply too fast.

The four of them had no time to react.

They only realized they were under attack when their Magic Shields flared with Magic Radiance.

They scrambled to cast spells in retaliation.

"Shadow Claw!"

CRACK!

The Shadow Attendant shattered a Magic Shield with a single claw.

The other Magic Shields, already under bombardment from Li Wei’s Small Fireballs, quickly shattered as well.

POP! POP! POP!

All of them now stood exposed before Li Wei.

Li Wei ceased his attack, a Fireball hovering in his palm.

He scanned the four and asked, "Still want to fight?"

The four Mages stared at Li Wei in utter shock, as if they had seen a ghost.

They had never seen a Mage cast so fast.

Hunter couldn’t help but ask, "How are you able to cast instantly?"

"No comment."

"If you’re not going to fight, hand over your Magic Cards," Li Wei said.

The four exchanged a look and reluctantly handed over their Magic Cards.

They knew they had picked a fight with the wrong person.

Even with the four of them working together, they were completely outmatched.

Li Wei looked at the six Magic Cards in his hand, then eyed the four of them suspiciously.

"Is that all?"

Lama felt instantly mocked.

He said defiantly, "Magic Cards are hard to come by!"

Li Wei put the Magic Cards away, his expression noncommittal. "Is that so?"

The four of them felt utterly humiliated, as if they were being looked down on.

"Can we go now?" Sarah asked.

Li Wei glanced at the Black Bear’s corpse. "Hold on," he said. "Hand over the Magic Core."

All four of them clenched their fists.

"That Demon Beast was my pet," Li Wei said. "You killed it. Be grateful I’m not demanding compensation!"

Outmatched, the four had no choice but to hand over the Magic Core.

BOOM!

A loud boom echoed from behind Li Wei. Immediately after, a brilliant flare of firelight erupted from the cave.

He spun around, looking back with a mixture of shock and suspicion.

’Holy shit, don’t tell me there’s actually treasure?’

Hunter stared at the cave and whispered, "Such a strong Fire Element Fluctuation... What’s happening in there?"

Li Wei paid no mind to the four Mages behind him. Recalling his Shadow Attendant with a gesture, he headed into the cave.

Seeing this, the four of them exchanged a glance.

"Should we still go in?" Sarah asked.

"We’re going in," Hunter said. "Why wouldn’t we?"

"If we manage to snatch the treasure, we’ll just withdraw from the Secret Realm immediately. We can give up on this exchange competition. It’s not like we have any hope of winning a prize now, anyway."

The others heard this and thought it made perfect sense.

They couldn’t leave empty-handed. They had to at least get something out of this trip.