84: Chapter 84: The Origin of This Realm

Xiao Yuan stood in the distance, silently watching the still-blooming lotus.

Actually, he also wanted to take down that lotus. After all, the Seven-Color Lotus was quite valuable, and a single stalk could be worth nearly ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Although he was already not short of Spirit Stones, who would complain about having too many Spirit Stones?

But the greed in his heart was still overpowered by a strong sense of crisis.

That dark shadow just now was clearly the Yao Beast guarding the Seven-Color Lotus, and its strength was definitely at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, or even the Peak.

The Secret Realm suppressed the Realms of Cultivators, but the suppression on Yao Beasts was very weak!

Therefore, it was not surprising that a Tier 2 Peak Yao Beast appeared.

Not to mention that this Yao Beast was also extremely adept at concealment.

To take risks for a Spirit Medicine he did not need was truly not worth it!

Taking one more glance at the Seven-Color Lotus, Xiao Yuan turned and left.

In the evening, Xiao Yuan came to a stone forest.

A fierce battle had just taken place here.

Dozens of corpses were scattered all over the ground, some from the Qi Condensation Stage and some from the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Fresh blood dyed the stones red, and a strong smell of blood permeated the air.

Several survivors were rummaging through the Storage Pouches on the corpses, arguing endlessly over a stalk of Spirit Medicine, a piece of Spirit Stone, or even a Magical Artifact.

"This is mine!"

"Bullshit! I saw it first!"

"Shut the fuck up, all of you! I will kill both of you, and all the items will be mine!"

Puche—!

Someone else fell.

Xiao Yuan watched from afar, a chill rising in his heart.

This was the cultivation world.

For resources, fathers and sons turned against each other, brothers became enemies, and friends stabbed each other in the back.

He remembered when he had just transmigrated over, that weak self who could be trampled to death by others at any time.

If not for the creation cauldron and those fortuitous encounters, would he now be one of those corpses?

"Strength..." He muttered, "Only strength is the capital to survive."

He turned around and continued his journey.

Behind him, the sounds of killing were still continuing.

But it had nothing to do with him anymore.

Xiao Yuan traveled swiftly all the way, and finally arrived at the agreed rendezvous point—that abandoned Stone Hall.

According to the map markings, this should be the most conspicuous landmark in the central region of the Secret Realm, visible from tens of miles around.

At this time, it was also said to be the safest, with no Yao Beasts within tens of miles around, but relatively speaking, Heaven And Earth Treasures were also extremely rare.

Most of the time, this was a place for various forces to rest and regroup.

When Xiao Yuan saw the outline of the Stone Hall from afar, he wondered if Su Li had arrived.

But before he even got close, he saw from afar that many people were gathered there.

On the open space in front of the Stone Hall, there was a dark mass of heads!

He was completely stunned.

Logically speaking, no one would come to this place within the first half a month.

After all, everyone was fighting for Heaven And Earth Treasures elsewhere at this time; who would have time to come over and rest?

But what was this situation now?

A rough count showed at least over a hundred people!

The Disciples of Spirit Beast Mountain wore animal-skin robes, the Cultivators of Wanfa Sect wore cyan Daoist robes, the people of Xuanyin Hall were shrouded in black robes, full of Yin Qi; the Disciples of Jade Maiden Palace fluttered in white robes, mostly female Disciples, forming their own group.

There were also the teams from the Four Kingdoms, with distinct flags, each occupying a piece of territory.

What surprised Xiao Yuan the most was that the people of Yinluo Sect were also there!

A dozen or so people in black robes gathered in a corner, leaving an isolation zone around them that no one dared to approach.

Judging by their attire, these people were not the Loose Cultivators recruited by various forces. After all, those recruited Loose Cultivators, although they would wear the clothing of various Sects, still had subtle differences.

And the attire of these people was obviously that of the Core Disciples of various forces.

"What the fuck?" Xiao Yuan rubbed his eyes, complaining inwardly, "Is this a resting spot, or a tourist attraction?"

He counted the forces present: Spirit Beast Mountain, Wanfa Sect, Jade Maiden Palace, Xuanyin Hall, Qing Country, Jing Country, Yinluo Sect...

Goodness, except for Tianjian Sect, Medicine King Valley, Wuyuan Country, and North Chu Country, which didn't come, all the other four forces were complete!

Xiao Yuan's mouth twitched.

When he originally chose this place, it was because he felt the Stone Hall was conspicuous and easy to find.

No one would be here temporarily, but who would have thought that everyone felt it was conspicuous and all ran here?

"Now we're in trouble..."

He glanced over the crowd and saw several familiar faces on the side of Jade Maiden Palace.

Su Ruotong! She was dressed in white with a gentle temperament, talking to her fellow Disciples beside her.

Ye Qingcen! She was also in the team with a cold expression, but the corners of her eyes and brows carried a hint of faint arrogance.

The only one not seen was Su Li.

Nor was Luo Ziyan seen.

Xiao Yuan's thoughts raced as he quietly circulated the Great Turtle Breathing Technique.

His bones clicked softly, and his facial muscles twitched slightly—in the blink of an eye, he had changed his face.

A common face, the kind that could never be found if thrown into a crowd.

"It will be troublesome if the people of Jade Maiden Palace recognize me." Xiao Yuan muttered, blending into the crowd.

Seeing Xiao Yuan appear wearing the attire of a Loose Cultivator recruited by Tianjian Sect, the crowd all frowned. Some had unkind eyes and murderous intent, while others gloated and wore mocking expressions.

However, these people were clearly waiting for something. After the initial surprise, they no longer paid attention to him, instead fixing their gazes tightly on the gate of the Stone Hall ahead.

Xiao Yuan found an inconspicuous corner, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes to rest his mind.

However, his perception quietly spread out, covering a range of tens of meters around him.

Su Ruotong and Ye Qingcen's gazes had swept over him once, and then they looked away nonchalantly—sure enough, after disguising his appearance, no one could recognize him.

Xiao Yuan felt reassured in his heart and began to quietly observe his surroundings.

People from various forces gathered in twos and threes, some whispering in low voices, some closing their eyes to regulate their breath, and some vigilantly staring at people from other families.

The atmosphere seemed calm, but undercurrents were surging secretly.

Just at this moment, a few low voices came from not far away.

Xiao Yuan's ears twitched, and his perception quietly probed over.

Those were three Disciples of Wanfa Sect, all at Qi Condensation 9th Layer, sitting together with their heads close.

"Senior Brother, are we really waiting here? Will the Stone Hall really open?" A round-faced Disciple asked in a low voice.

The sharp-mouthed Senior Brother next to him nodded: "Rest assured, the news cannot be wrong. The Seniors of our Wanfa Sect went in last time the Secret Realm opened."

Another tall and thin Disciple lowered his voice and said: "Yes, and I heard that this Secret Realm has a huge background!"

"What background?"

The tall and thin one looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to them, and then said mysteriously: "Do you know how the cultivation world we are currently in came to be?"

The round-faced Disciple and the sharp-mouthed Senior Brother looked at each other and shook their heads.

The tall and thin one lowered his voice and said: "I heard from the Sect Elders that our world was called 'Honghuang' in the extremely distant past!"

"Honghuang?"

"Right! At that time, the Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth was a hundred times, a thousand times richer than now! Ten thousand races stood tall, and all kinds of races—Yao Race, Demon Race, Spirit Race, Human Race... all vied for hegemony on the Honghuang land!"

The tall and thin one said with dancing eyebrows, "Later, in order to vie for the position of Dominator of Honghuang, the ten thousand races fought countless heaven-and-earth great battles, fighting so hard that heaven and earth shattered and the sun and moon lost their light!"

The round-faced Disciple listened in astonishment: "And then?"