Closing the panel, Zhang Deming returned to his senses. Just then, Qing Xiaolu, who had been hiding somewhere, flew out.

"You of the Human Race are truly terrifying! You can even kill the bizarre Demon Beasts of the night!" Qing Xiaolu said, flying down and looking at the two recovering men.

Zhang Deming and Li Shifan turned to look at him. Zhang Deming asked, "This type of Demon Beast shouldn’t have much intelligence, right? Does it have a sense of territory?"

Qing Xiaolu replied, "I’m not sure. But the original Demon Beast, the one that becomes bizarre, does have a sense of territory.

It’s the severely infected Demon Beasts that, when killed at night, can possibly have this kind of mutation."

Zhang Deming mused, "So, you’re saying it’s highly unlikely another Demon Beast like that will appear around here, right?"

Qing Xiaolu nodded. "Yes, that should be right."

Zhang Deming turned to Li Shifan and said, "Alright, let’s pack up. We just need to move a short distance."

"If we don’t move, we might attract something, and that would be just our luck."

"But it’s not a good idea to travel far on a night this dangerous. It’s too risky."

Li Shifan nodded. Although he was rather seriously injured, he agreed with Zhang Deming and didn’t start treating his wounds on the spot.

The two of them packed up and left the combat zone.

Zhang Deming pushed his Reconnaissance Spiritual Eye to its limits. After carefully moving a few miles, they stopped again beside a giant tree so thick it would take several people to wrap their arms around it.

"Let’s rest here. It’s too dangerous to travel at night."

"We’re far enough from the battle site now; we shouldn’t get caught up in any trouble," Zhang Deming said.

The two men nodded in agreement.

Li Shifan sat down directly at the base of the tree and began to treat his wounds.

With a subtle shift in his expression, Zhang Deming summoned jade-green vines from the ground. They sprouted up, winding around the massive tree and enclosing a large area.

On the outside, he made them look like a single vine plant growing up the tree, but the inside formed a space like a large, domed tent.

Zhang Deming tossed out a few low-level Array Cards to conceal their auras.

Another vine, brimming with Life Force, sprouted in front of Li Shifan, and several vibrant green leaves unfurled from it.

Zhang Deming said, "Here. This should be good for your injuries. Have some."

Li Shifan opened his eyes and, without a word, plucked the jade-green leaves before him and swallowed them. He then immediately closed his eyes again to continue his recovery.

Seeing this, Zhang Deming didn’t disturb him further. He glanced up at Qing Xiaolu in the tree, then casually tossed out a retractable tent.

The tent expanded to its full size, and Zhang Deming ducked right inside.

As he felt his depleted Spiritual Power rapidly replenishing, Zhang Deming lay down and went to sleep. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

······

The night passed without incident. When Zhang Deming awoke, it was already the next morning.

Thanks to years of habit and his formidable regenerative abilities, Zhang Deming woke up early, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

He extended his hand, formed a quick seal, and cast the Little Cloud Rain Skill. A miniature cloud, acting just like a showerhead, appeared before him.

After washing up, Zhang Deming began his morning exercises in the open space.

Just then, Li Shifan opened his eyes and quietly watched Zhang Deming practice his swordsmanship.

After a good while, when a light sheen of sweat had formed on his forehead, Zhang Deming concluded his practice.

Li Shifan spoke up. "Senior Brother Zhang, your Talent must be incredible, right? Your Tier Two Sword Control Skill feels several degrees more masterful than what a Sword Body failure like me can manage."

"It’s embarrassing to admit, but this is my core Foundation Establishment Sword Skill, and I doubt I’m even as proficient with it as you are now."

Zhang Deming shook his head. "You’re still terrible at flattery. Once you condense a Rune Core at Foundation Establishment, your Techniques are already far beyond the Mastery Level."

"The enhancement from that advancement alone makes it much better than what I have now. Next time you try to flatter me, at least be a little more convincing, will you?"

Li Shifan paused, not refuting Zhang Deming’s statement.

But he wasn’t just flattering him; he genuinely believed Zhang Deming’s Talent was terrifying.

’It’s a Tier Two Swordsmanship, and how long has it been? Even if a Spirit Nurturing Bead helps you get started, you still have to rely on your own comprehension to reach the Mastery Level.’

’He couldn’t have just brute-forced it with a massive number of Mastery Level Spirit Nurturing Beads, could he?’

"By the way, how are your injuries?" Zhang Deming asked, looking at Li Shifan.

Li Shifan replied, "Not fully healed. I reckon it’ll take another day or two, but it won’t affect my normal movements much."

Hearing this, Zhang Deming turned to Qing Xiaolu. "In that case, let’s get going. Little guy, let’s try to get you home early today."

Qing Xiaolu nodded. "Okay!"

With that, the three of them set out.

Qing Xiaolu flew above their heads, indicating the way.

Zhang Deming kept his Reconnaissance Spiritual Eye active, carefully surveying their surroundings, while Li Shifan followed silently.

Although there were plenty of Demon Beasts in the forest during the day, it lacked the eerie atmosphere of the night and was much safer. It wasn’t even as wild as the Hengduan Mountain Range.

Thus, with Zhang Deming’s Spiritual Eye scouting ahead, the trio reached their destination just after noon.

It was a massive canyon, encircled by several high mountains. The canyon itself was shaped like a gourd, with an entrance a few dozen feet wide.

Qing Xiaolu looked at the entrance, overjoyed. "We’re finally home!"

He immediately flapped his wings and flew into the canyon.

Li Shifan and Zhang Deming glanced at each other. Considering it was the home of the Flower Demon Elves, and Zhang Deming had already managed to get the gist of their situation from Qing Xiaolu on the journey, the two of them entered the canyon without much hesitation, following close behind Qing Xiaolu.

As they ventured deeper, the canyon path widened. After they had traveled some distance, the view before them suddenly opened up.

They had passed through the forest at the mouth of the canyon and entered the first basin of the gourd-shaped valley.

The area was vast, and it was still a forest.

But the species of trees was completely different from those outside. They were a rare type called Snow Crystal trees, and they were quite beautiful to behold.

Shaped like willows, their branches were a stark white, and a shimmering light flowed along the weeping boughs.

Strange, miniature flowers bloomed on them, and a faint, sweet fragrance permeated the entire valley.

Among the trees, nestled in many of the tall, flowering ones, were exquisite treehouses that looked as fantastical as something out of a fairy tale.

"What do you think? Our homeland is beautiful, isn’t it!" Qing Xiaolu said, turning back to look at Li Shifan and Zhang Deming.

Zhang Deming nodded. "Yes, it’s certainly beautiful."

Li Shifan said, "It feels a little unreal."

Zhang Deming replied, "Well, it is the home of the Flower Demon Elves, and they’ve been isolated from the rest of the world for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. It would be strange if it *didn’t* look like a fairy tale."

"I have to admit, this expanse of crystalline, flowing white isn’t what I expected, though."

"I was expecting it to be jade-green!"

Upon hearing this, Qing Xiaolu’s expression instantly fell. "We did used to live in the Jade Forest," he said, "but the entire Royal Race died, and no new royal Bloodline has awakened."

"We couldn’t live in the Jade Forest anymore, so we had to move to the Snow Crystal Forest."

Zhang Deming looked at him and offered a comforting word. "It’s okay. Things will get better. Besides, this place is beautiful, isn’t it?"

Qing Xiaolu composed himself. "Come on, I’ll take you to see the elders."

"The tribe hasn’t seen any humans in many years. The elders should be very happy to see you."

Zhang Deming shook his head. ’Little guy, your elders might not be so happy to see us.’

’It’s true that without the help of the Human Race, you lost your protection.’

’But this is a Secret Realm, after all. For your kind, it’s not as dangerous as the outside world, and you don’t have to worry about other Cultivators trying to capture you.’

’Add hundreds or thousands of years of freedom to that, and it’s bound to change how you think.’

’After all, when there’s no danger, you don’t need protection.’

’Under these circumstances, a race that’s been free for who knows how many years... well, normally, none of them would willingly return to a state of being kept, admired, and played with like pets.’

Li Shifan and Zhang Deming exchanged a glance and silently followed behind Qing Xiaolu.

As they passed through the dreamlike Snow Crystal Forest, after the initial awe wore off, Li Shifan no longer felt its beauty. Instead, his most profound feeling was one of desolation and bleakness.

There were many treehouses around, but he couldn’t tell if it was just his imagination—it felt as though most of them were deserted, as if they hadn’t been inhabited for a very long time.