Holding hands

Chen Gong, Luo Feng, the team leader of the Thunder Sound Temple, and others from the Summer, Autumn, and Winter Domains had just finished a bitter battle.

Before they had even fully dealt with the Nascent Soul Perfection Stage guardian beasts in their respective areas, they heard the terrible news that the Legacy had already been taken, and their faces instantly turned incredibly ugly.

Who on earth had obtained the Legacy?

They had no way of knowing!

"Let's go!" Chen Yuan pulled Xu Nuo, landing on a tree in one step. He formed a seal to set up a formation, letting the dense leaves cover them as they quietly observed the entrance to the main hall.

The Summer Domain and Winter Domain within the main hall dissipated automatically after the announcement of the end, and the Cultivators from the four major areas regrouped in the open space of the canyon in front of the main hall.

Chen Gong's face was livid. He and the group from the Thunder Sound Temple had fought the Burning Heaven Flame Lizard in the Summer Domain for a long time, suffering significant losses, yet they hadn't even seen the core of the main hall before the Legacy was taken!

His gaze swept over everyone present, eventually fixing on the teams from the Xuantian Sect and the Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion.

"Luo Feng! And you from the Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion! Did your people take the Legacy?!"

Chen Gong's voice was ice-cold, carrying the tone of someone coming to settle scores.

The pressure of his Nascent Soul Perfection Stage cultivation pressed down on these two parties without any concealment.

Behind him, the Disciples of the Kunxu Holy Land all had malicious looks in their eyes, their spiritual power surging secretly.

Although the leading monk of the Thunder Sound Temple recited a Buddhist chant and appeared peaceful, he was equally ill-intentioned.

Luo Feng of the Xuantian Sect frowned. He had led his team to tangle with the Shadow Demon Leopard in the Autumn Domain and had also gained nothing.

Facing Chen Gong's questioning, he snorted coldly: "Chen Gong, stop spouting nonsense! My Xuantian Sect Disciples act with integrity; if we had obtained the Legacy, why would we need to hide it? It is your Kunxu Holy Land that remains unclear about the previous matter at the Guanghan Immortal Palace, and now you want to use the same old tricks to provoke a conflict?"

The cold young man from the Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion was even more direct. The long sword in his arms hummed, and his Sword Qi became awe-inspiring: "Chen Gong, if you want to fight, then fight; why look for excuses? Do you think my Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion is afraid of you?"

Seeing the atmosphere suddenly become tense, the leader of the Thunder Sound Temple, Hui Chan, hurriedly spoke up to stop them: "Wait a moment, fellow benefactors. The teleportation portal to the main hall is random, and each area should have had its own Disciples enter. We only need to ask to know which area obtained the Legacy."

On the treetop, Chen Yuan watched this scene and raised an eyebrow. "I thought they were going to fight! It seems this bald donkey isn't stupid."

With no more show to watch, Chen Yuan pulled Xu Nuo and left the treetop, using the master-servant contract in his mind to locate Qin Shi.

Ten thousand miles away, inside a cave.

"After you go out, if you don't want to die, use this Ten Thousand Mile Teleportation Talisman to leave."

"Yes!" Qin Shi hurriedly took the Ten Thousand Mile Teleportation Talisman, carefully placed it into his Storage Ring, and left respectfully.

At this moment, inside the cave, only Chen Yuan and Xu Nuo remained. The cave was quiet; it seemed they could hear each other's heartbeats.

"How... how much longer are you going to hold my hand?" Xu Nuo knitted her willow eyebrows. Her voice was cold and clear, but one could clearly feel it trembling.

However, Chen Yuan held her hand even tighter. He turned around and looked down at her hair, "Am I not allowed to hold your hand?"

As soon as these words came out, Xu Nuo's brain instantly crashed. She felt dizzy and didn't know how to respond.

In front of the main hall ruins, based on the descriptions of the Disciples from various factions, a conclusion was reached: the entire Secret Realm had been divided into three areas.

After all, the Spring Domain where Chen Yuan was located only had a group of Disciples from small factions and some Loose Cultivators.

However, Chen Gong frowned deeply, realizing something was wrong. The Summer Domain where he was located had a hot climate, while some Disciples who were teleported to the Winter Domain described a winter scene. What the Xuantian Sect side described was a scene of desolate autumn winds. It seemed one was still missing!

"Spring!" Chen Gong looked up. Adding Spring corresponded perfectly to the changing of the four seasons. So, which faction had entered the Spring Domain?

Soon, the information was summarized. The leader of the Thunder Sound Temple, Hui Chan, and some of his Disciples confirmed they had been teleported into the Winter Domain and encountered the Ice Crystal Black Turtle, with sporadic Disciples from the Kunxu Holy Land and the Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion as witnesses. Chen Gong of the Kunxu Holy Land and his main force were teleported into the Summer Domain and fought a bitter battle against the Burning Heaven Flame Lizard, which was also witnessed by Disciples from the Thunder Sound Temple and other factions. Luo Feng of the Xuantian Sect and Zhao Wuji of the Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion, along with most of their Disciples, were assigned to the Autumn Domain and entangled with the Shadow Demon Leopard; there were also Disciples from the Kunxu Holy Land who could testify that they had not entered the core area, let alone obtained the Legacy.

Three major factions, three areas, clear clues that cross-verified each other. However, the result made everyone's face look ugly. None of the three parties had actually obtained the Legacy!

"This is impossible!" Chen Gong stepped forward abruptly, his aura surging, his eyes as sharp as knives. "Summer, Autumn, Winter—there is still one missing! It is Spring! There must be a Spring Domain!"

As soon as he said this, Luo Feng, Zhao Wuji, and Hui Chan all looked solemn, instantly realizing the truth. The Reincarnation of the four seasons required all of them! The Legacy must have fallen into that unmentioned Spring Domain!

"The Spring Domain!" Chen Gong's gaze was like lightning, sweeping across the entire crowd, his voice carrying a sense of oppression. "Everyone present, who was teleported into the Spring Domain?" He focused his gaze on the groups of small and medium Sects and Loose Cultivators.

However, the response he received was a sea of confused head-shaking and whispers. "Spring Domain? Never heard of it..." "We were all assigned to these three domains..." "Yeah, I didn't see any separate Spring Domain team." Almost everyone indicated they hadn't entered it, as if the Spring Domain didn't exist at all. Even the group of Loose Cultivators who had entered shook their heads blankly. This was because Chen Yuan had long ago used methods to confuse the perception of those Loose Cultivators.

The scene fell into silence. Chen Gong's face was so gloomy that water could drip from it. He absolutely did not believe that the Legacy would disappear into thin air, and even less did he believe that a group of Loose Cultivators would have the ability to snatch the Legacy right under the nose of a Nascent Soul Perfection Stage guardian beast and leave silently.

The only explanation was that someone had lied! A faction had secretly dispatched unknown elites to enter the Spring Domain and had successfully deceived everyone! His gaze swept fiercely across Luo Feng, Zhao Wuji, and Hui Chan again. Xuantian Sect? Nine Heavens Sword Pavilion? Or Thunder Sound Temple? One of them must be acting!

Feeling Chen Gong's suspicious gaze, Luo Feng laughed in extreme anger: "Chen Gong, are you suspecting my Xuantian Sect of playing tricks behind the scenes? That is simply absurd!"

Zhao Wuji held his long sword and sneered without speaking, but his Sword Qi became increasingly sharp.

Hui Chan pressed his palms together, lowering his eyes: "Amitabha, Benefactor Chen, groundless suspicion only adds to your Karmic Obstruction."

No one was willing to admit it, and no one could find evidence. Trust had long since vanished in the face of the immediate benefits. In the tense and confrontational atmosphere, time passed bit by bit. The four major factions kept each other in check; no one dared to make the first move easily, fearing that others would reap the benefits. As for the small and medium factions and Loose Cultivators, they were even more terrified, fearing they would be crushed to pieces if dragged into the conflict of the top factions.