Chapter 119: Chapter 118: Advancing to the Secret Realm

After a few questions, Bai Zichen finally understood the whole story.

Lu Song knew the Secret Realm was in the direction of Feiyue Lake, so he had been paying close attention ever since the land reclamation war began.

He was terrified that the reclamation teams would discover the Secret Realm’s location.

This time, he heard from a disciple returning from the front lines that the Blood Wolf pack in the valley where the Secret Realm was located had been completely wiped out. He also learned that the land would later be granted to meritorious Loose Cultivators, which sent him into a panic.

Even though no one could enter the Secret Realm without the Ink Jade Ring to guide them.

But if the area became the clan lands of a Loose Cultivator Clan, it would be much harder for him to explore the Secret Realm. It would inevitably cause a huge commotion.

The thought of the Secret Realm slipping away from him made Lu Song panic, and he rushed over to request an audience.

"Are you sure the reclamation team only wiped out the Blood Wolves and didn’t discover the Secret Realm?"

Bai Zichen already had an answer in his heart, but he still wanted to confirm it with Lu Song one more time.

Behind a Secret Realm, there was a high probability of finding a barren wasteland, but there was also a small chance of finding a world-altering opportunity.

Every time an Ancient Secret Realm was discovered, it would still attract hordes of Core Formation True Men, all for that slim chance.

As long as a Secret Realm had any value, that value was unimaginable.

If that Secret Realm had truly been discovered, the land reclamation war would have been halted. All efforts would be focused on cracking the Secret Realm first.

"I’m sure. That disciple was bitten on the thigh while clearing out the Blood Wolves, which is why he was rotated back to the Sect... He said the main force responsible for this was a group of Loose Cultivators. The Sect only sent a small team to assist and quickly withdrew the main battle array."

Lu Song stared at him with pleading eyes. It was impossible for him to enter the Secret Realm on his own.

Even with the Blood Wolves gone, transfer stations had been set up along the route, and he could run into Sect Cultivators at any moment. For a mere servant disciple to reach the destination without being discovered was an impossible task.

"Give me the location. I’ll go check it out first... If it’s viable, I’ll take you with me when I get back, and we’ll try to enter the Secret Realm together!"

Bai Zichen stood up and paced back and forth before quickly making his decision.

The allure of an Ancient Secret Realm was something he simply couldn’t give up.

He unfurled a map and was about to have Lu Song point out the location when his Elder Token began to flash rapidly, summoning him to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall immediately.

"Wait here. I have urgent business to attend to. I’ll be right back."

Bai Zichen’s sword light descended. The Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, once crowded and bustling, was now much more spacious.

In the main hall of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, he saw Gu Xisheng buried in a mountain of documents.

He hadn’t seen him in a year, and Gu Xisheng had aged visibly. There were gray hairs at his temples, and he was massaging them with his hand, a deep exhaustion on his face.

"Junior Brother Bai, you’re here? Sit. We’re waiting for one more person."

Gu Xisheng barely lifted his eyelids, his body remaining still as his Spiritual Pen flew across the scrolls, marking them with approvals.

Including the newly dispatched Cultivators, the entire reclamation force had swelled to over five thousand Cultivators.

For such a massive number, the daily consumption of food, clothing, and resources added up to an astronomical figure.

Gu Xisheng had to make the most accurate judgments in the shortest amount of time: which resources were essential and needed immediate resupply, and which could be delayed.

Which team was on the verge of collapse and needed to be pulled back to recuperate, and which area needed fresh reinforcements.

Bai Zichen didn’t wait long before a tall female Cultivator with a slender waist and long legs walked in. It was Lan Hong, the only Elder whose seniority was lower than his. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"You’re both here. I won’t waste time with pleasantries, I’ll get straight to the point... The pressure on the front lines is immense. You may have only reached Foundation Establishment about a year ago, but you still have to bear your responsibilities."

Gu Xisheng pulled out a thick book and began comparing the names inside.

"The Sect has decided to establish a temporary Talisman Making base at the fifth transfer station... Junior Sister Lan, you are a Tier Two Talisman Master. You are to depart immediately for the fifth transfer station. In addition to helping Senior Brother Zhang maintain the Guardian Array, you will also take on the duty of Refining Talismans."

"The Talisman Hall plans to refine fifty thousand basic Fire Element Talismans at the fifth transfer station within three months, to be used in the final decisive battle."

"I will not fail the trust you’ve placed in me, Senior Brother."

Lan Hong nodded and answered without hesitation.

"Junior Brother Bai, I know that you have always been known for being outstanding in Combat... You are to take a Wind Shuttle and depart in three days. You will be assigned to the main reclamation force to prepare for the assault on Monkey Mountain and establish the sixth transfer station!"

Gu Xisheng turned his head slightly and announced the other mission.

Comparing the two, Bai Zichen’s mission was clearly riskier.

After all, he would be facing the very front line. When the assault reached Feiyue Lake, he would be among the first wave of Cultivators to battle the Demon Beasts in the lake.

"Three days... Can it be a few days later?"

Bai Zichen wasn’t bothered by being assigned to a combat team; he had been prepared for it.

It was just that the timing was inconvenient. He had been hoping to take advantage of this window of time to explore the Secret Realm before the land reclamation war ended.

If a Loose Cultivator Clan truly put down roots there in the future, even if their strength was negligible, they would have a certain degree of protection as long as they were recognized by the Qingfeng Sect.

The difficulty of sneaking into the Secret Realm undetected without taking lives would increase immensely.

"Impossible! There’s no room for bargaining in the land reclamation war. Your tardiness alone could trigger a change in the entire offensive."

Gu Xisheng’s face hardened as he raised a heavy jade seal from his desk.

"Senior Brother Wei has lent me the Sect Leader’s token, the Dragon Emperor Seal. For all matters concerning personnel deployment and resource allocation in the land reclamation war, I can temporarily exercise the Sect Leader’s authority... Junior Brother Bai, you have a limitless future. Don’t sabotage yourself over such a trivial matter."

"Junior Brother Luo and Junior Brother Gong will also be departing with you this time. They’re bringing several high-powered Treasures. Conquering Monkey Mountain won’t be a problem!"

Gu Xisheng assumed Bai Zichen was shirking battle out of fear, so he brought up other examples.

"Among the True Disciples, only Su Li, who is at Qi Refining Great Perfection and preparing to enter seclusion today to break through to Foundation Establishment, has been allowed to remain in the Sect. The other five True Disciples have all gone to the first transfer station to relieve Junior Sister Long, who was guarding the Grand Array there. And Junior Sister Long, having been relieved, will also be heading to the front lines."

"I understand. I have one request I hope Senior Brother Gu can grant... I am at the final step of a Secret Technique I’m cultivating. It will be perfected soon, in a few days at most. Is it possible for me not to take the Wind Shuttle, and instead travel to Monkey Mountain on my own later? I absolutely will not be late."

A headache pulsed in Bai Zichen’s head. Right now, he was just trying to buy as much time as he could, even if it was just a day or two.

"Fine. As long as you appear at Monkey Mountain on time, there will be no problem. No one will blame you."

Gu Xisheng gave him a deep look, then buried himself in his paperwork once again.

"Coward. So what if your cultivation is fast!"

Walking out of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, Lan Hong snorted coldly as she passed by Bai Zichen, then strode away on her long legs.

Bai Zichen was slightly stunned, realizing that his words had caused Lan Hong to misunderstand.

But he had no time to worry about that now. He had more important things to do, and every second counted.

He returned to Moon-Locking Pool, grabbed Lu Song, and tossed him onto the Colorful Cloud Robe. With a single flicker, the white cloud was outside the Sect Grand Array.

"Junior Martial Uncle Bai, didn’t you say you were going to scout ahead first and we’d leave together when you got back?"

Lu Song sat amidst the rosy clouds, not daring to speak. Only when he saw the Colorful Cloud Robe getting farther and farther from the Sect did he ask quietly.

"The situation has changed. There’s no time to make two trips."

His plans had been disrupted, and Bai Zichen was in a bad mood.

The Colorful Cloud Robe took a wide, circuitous route. Only after confirming that no one was following did he increase altitude and fly out at full speed.

Because they had to avoid the transfer stations and the Wind Shuttle route, the Colorful Cloud Robe could only fly a winding path.

Lu Song hadn’t been to the valley in many years. Relying on memory to give directions, he made several mistakes in a row.

It wasn’t until they were getting closer that the area became familiar, and he remembered the scene of himself lying on the ground, watching the Blood Wolf pack for months on end.

They encountered many Flying Demon Beasts along the way, avoiding them whenever possible.

When they couldn’t, he would strike decisively to avoid attracting more of them.

A white Sword Light flashed, and a rain of blood fell from the sky, the Flying Demon Beasts dropping to the ground.

"Junior Martial Uncle Bai, that’s the place."

Lu Song pointed toward a completely unremarkable valley, neither precipitous nor towering.

Bai Zichen landed his sword light from a distance and gestured for Lu Song to follow, cautiously advancing into the valley.

His Divine Sense was already spread to its maximum range. He discovered that the valley was empty of people, with only a few stray Blood Wolves wandering about—likely new Demon Beasts that had moved in recently.

Lu Song excitedly pulled an Ink Jade Ring from his storage bag. It emitted a faint black light, and the direction its fluctuations pointed was precisely the location of the Secret Realm.

Bai Zichen carefully grabbed the two lunging Blood Wolves by the neck and flung them away with force.

To be safe, he didn’t even plan to kill anything in the valley, lest he leave any traces behind.

After all, the fate of every Ancient Secret Realm was different.

Good ones, like the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect’s Secret Realm that produced Clear Spirit Jade Marrow, had lasted for centuries.

Bad ones, like the Secret Realm Master Ge Cang once experienced, yielded only a large number of puppets, including Mud Spirit Puppets, and collapsed into a spatiotemporal vortex the moment he left.

"This is it!"

Lu Song’s voice was trembling. The Secret Realm that had appeared in his childhood dreams and haunted his thoughts for decades was finally before his eyes.

The glow on the Ink Jade Ring stopped wavering and settled down quietly.

Bai Zichen glanced around. This place was supposed to be a wolf’s den. He could still see clumps of wolf fur on the ground and smell the rank stench that had built up over the years.

"This doesn’t look like there’s an entrance. Whatever method you have, you should use it now."

He swept the area with his Divine Sense several times. It was just an ordinary wolf’s den in a stone cave, without even a single crack.

Lu Song nervously took off the Ink Jade Ring and suddenly asked, "Junior Martial Uncle Bai, if we really find Treasures in the Secret Realm, how will we divide them?"

"Any shareable Secret Cultivation Technique Manuals, we will both copy a version... For multiple Treasures, we will take turns picking. For single Treasures, those that enhance Cultivation will go to you, and those that increase combat power will go to me... If the value of what I take far exceeds yours, I will definitely compensate you in other ways in the future."

Bai Zichen understood Lu Song’s feelings perfectly. A Qi Refining Cultivator had no power to resist a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. The stronger one’s word was law.

He was afraid that once they entered the Secret Realm, Bai Zichen would take all the rewards, and all his efforts would be for nothing.

"I naturally believe in Junior Martial Uncle Bai’s promise. There’s no need to swear on your Dao Heart."

Lu Song’s expression changed, becoming firm and determined. He circulated his Magical Power and forced out a mouthful of Essence Blood, spraying it onto the Ink Jade Ring.

The ring absorbed all the Essence Blood, and its black glow took on a hint of crimson.

Spurred by the Essence Blood, the black glow suddenly flared, forming a huge opening that swallowed Bai Zichen and Lu Song whole.

The void created by the black glow lasted only a few breaths before it rapidly shrank and vanished.

Only the howls of a few Blood Wolves remained in the valley, and dry leaves swirled on the ground, as if no one had ever been there at all.