103: Heavenly Fire True Lord, the Secret Realm is a Gu

As Qi Yuan's voice fell, the Immortal Cave sank into a long silence.

Only the faint mountain wind wailed outside the window, its sound intertwining with the dim glow of the fluorite in the room, reflecting the solemn and complex expressions on the faces of Qi Xuanqing and Qi Xuanlin.

The dangers of the Secret Realm described by their father...

One in five survives, not even one in ten... behind these words were countless corpses and shattered paths of the Dao.

Neither of them spoke.

It wasn't that they had nothing to say, but they knew that any words at this moment would seem pale.

The Opportunity for Foundation Establishment meant everything to those born into a small Family, a fact the three of them understood perfectly well.

It was almost the only possibility to break their fate and escape the cage.

Even though their father was a First-Rank High-Grade Talisman Master and their Family background was gradually thickening, gathering the resources needed for a single foundation establishment pill was still extremely difficult for the Qi Family.

It might even require exhausting two generations of savings and gambling the Family's future.

In the silence, Qi Xuanqing slowly stood up, walked to his father, and gave a deep bow. When he raised his head, his eyes were firm.

“Father, I understand.

Going to the Secret Realm this time is perilously unpredictable. As the eldest brother, I will naturally do my best to look after Xuan Lin and Xuan Tong.

I will certainly not let our Qi Family disciples perish outside or kill each other within.”

His promise was not made of grand words, yet every word weighed a thousand catties.

Qi Yuan looked at him, a hint of gratification passing through his eyes, but more of it was deep-seated worry.

Ten years of planning, countless resources secretly tilted, reserves of Talismans, and the laying of connections... everything he could do, he seemed to have done.

The remaining path, after all, had to be forged by the children themselves.

Whether they succeeded or failed, he really seemed... powerless.

He ultimately just nodded, raising his hand to gently pat his son's shoulder; a thousand words turned into a single sigh.

Time does not stay, and the seasons flow like a stream.

In the blink of an eye, another cycle of spring and autumn passed.

The agreed-upon time for the Secret Realm to open was already approaching.

Deep within the vast mountains on the border of Yunliao Prefecture and Linchuan Prefecture...

The desolation and silence of the past had long been replaced by a solemn and grand aura.

In the depths of the mountain range, on a piece of open ground that had been carefully leveled and set with layers of Restrictions, a huge Formation was slowly “awakening.”

The Formation patterns were complex and mysterious, outlined with precious Materials such as Void Gazer stones and Star Sand, deeply imprinted on the nodes of the Earth's Spiritual Veins.

Countless Spirit Stones were embedded in key positions, emitting a misty spiritual light and resonating with the earth spirit qi.

This caused the surrounding space to produce distorted ripples, with the faint sound of wind and thunder brewing at the Formation diagram.

This Formation, named the “Two Realms Dragon Guiding Array,” was a fourth-tier teleportation Formation. It was difficult to arrange for any power below the Nascent Soul level, and the resource cost was astronomical.

At this moment, above the Formation, two figures stood in the air.

The person on the left wore a simple Daoist robe, with white hair and a white beard, and a lean face.

Holding a horsetail whisk, his aura was ethereal and detached, as if he had merged with the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

He was precisely the one presiding over this calculation of heavenly secrets, the Imperial Enshrined Master, Celestial Rain Master.

He looked at the Formation below where spiritual light flowed and the aura grew increasingly immense, his brow furrowing slightly.

“Fellow Daoist Zhao.”

Celestial Rain Master's voice was clear and high; he turned his head to look at the person beside him.

“Using such a fourth-tier ‘Dragon-Attracting Formation’ costs an enormous amount. Even for the Southern Yue Zhao Family, I'm afraid it's not a small sum.

Just to open a Secret Realm and bring in some Qi Refinement juniors... is it perhaps too much of a fuss?”

The person beside him was a middle-aged man dressed in a crimson brocade robe.

This person had a majestic face, and firelight seemed to flow when he opened and closed his eyes. His aura was blazing and majestic, like a restrained sun.

Just standing there made the surrounding air heat up faintly.

He was precisely the current head of the Zhao Family, the Guardian Immortal Clan of Southern Yue Province—Zhao Xicheng, Daoist title ‘True Monarch Tianhuo.’

In the battle that wiped out the Profound Purity Sect over a hundred years ago, he killed the Middle Stage Nascent Soul Qing Xuanzi in three moves. Relying on this towering military merit, he was enfeoffed with the entire Southern Yue Province.

Zhao Xicheng heard this, his eyes holding an indiscernible meaning. His gaze fell on the Formation below, and his voice was low.

“Fellow Daoist Celestial Rain, if we can use this Secret Realm to add a few more ‘Foundation Establishment’ seeds with the hope of reaching the Nascent Soul stage for my Southern Yue Zhao Family, or even the Zhao Kingdom's imperial Family, what do a few expenses matter?”

Celestial Rain Master's brow furrowed even tighter. He stroked his snow-white beard and pondered.

“That may be so... but let me say the unpleasant words first.

I, this old Daoist, at the cost of sacrificing my Lifespan, have deduced the general location and descent time of this Secret Realm; that is already my limit.

The specific situation inside the Secret Realm, whether the space is stable, the amount of earth spirit qi, or even if there are unknown dangers... I dare not guarantee.

If the prediction is wrong, or the value of the Secret Realm itself is not as expected... Clan Leader Zhao, my old bones cannot withstand your ‘True Monarch Tianhuo’ interrogation.”

Zhao Xicheng laughed loudly, his laughter like muffled thunder rolling through the valley, making the spiritual light of the Formation below ripple slightly.

“Fellow Daoist Celestial Rain, you must be joking.

I, Zhao Xicheng, naturally trust your Heavenly Secret Arts. However...”

He stopped laughing, and his eyes suddenly became sharp as they swept toward Celestial Rain Master. Although that blazing pressure wasn't released intentionally, it made the air freeze.

“If something goes wrong and causes my Zhao Family to waste so many resources for nothing... Fellow Daoist must have heard of my, Zhao Xicheng's, temper.”

Celestial Rain Master's face twitched slightly, and he felt a secret chill in his heart.

He had naturally heard of this ‘True Monarch Tianhuo’s’ prestige and methods; he was definitely not an easy person to deal with.

He composed himself and asked the doubt that had been circling in his heart for a long time.

“Clan Leader Zhao, I still have one thing I don't understand.

Since the location of the Secret Realm and the method of reception have been determined, if it's only to cultivate core disciples, wouldn't it be more secure to carefully select a dozen or so people and send them in quietly, each with the hope of attaining the Dao?

Why bother making such a grand display, inviting all the immortal clans in the prefecture, and even attracting the covetous eyes of other provinces?

When the time comes, it will be a mixed bag, and the slaughter inside the Secret Realm will be tragic. If your Family's juniors are unfortunate...”

The smile on Zhao Xicheng's face disappeared completely.

He cast his gaze toward the distant rolling mountains, his voice devoid of any emotion.

“The land of one Family is just a pond; what kind of true Dragon can it raise?

Even if there is unpolished jade, without being tempered by ten thousand stones, it's hard to become a great vessel.

My Zhao Family has been newly established for a hundred years. What we need are not ‘seeds’ carefully nurtured in a greenhouse, but ‘wolf cubs’ who can fight their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, possessing both Heart-Nature and means!”

He paused and continued, every word seemingly carrying iron and blood.

“More than ten years ago, I intentionally let the news leak.

In these ten years, which families in Southern Yue Province have been secretly accumulating strength, which disciples have been desperately improving, which people harbor ill intentions, and which forces want to fish in troubled waters... I have seen it all.

Southern Yue Province has been at peace for too long. Some families have become so comfortable that they've forgotten the essence of the cultivation world... it's time to stir things up.”

Hearing this, Celestial Rain Master's expression changed slightly, a flash of realization in his eyes, which then turned into deeper wariness.

“The Clan Leader wants to... use the Secret Realm to ensure the survival of the fittest and reorganize the layout of Southern Yue Province?”

Zhao Xicheng was noncommittal, only saying indifferently:

“How can one provincial territory be enough to stretch one's limbs?”