168: Chapter 168 Attack on the Secret Realm, Thunderous Counterattack

Beyond the silver light gate lay another world.

Lin Wan only felt a flash of light before his eyes, a slight ripple in space, and the next moment, his feet were firmly on the ground.

A rush of Immortal Qi, so thick it was almost impenetrable, mixed with an ancient, vast, and wild aura, surged toward him.

He steadied himself and vigilantly looked around.

At this moment, he was in the middle of a vast, boundless primeval forest.

The towering ancient trees had grown for who knew how many tens of thousands of years; their trunks were so thick that dozens of people would need to join hands to encircle them, and their branches and leaves blotted out the sky, with only sporadic spots of light filtering through the layers of leaves to form mottled shadows on the ground.

The air was humid, filled with the fresh scent of vegetation and the decaying smell of soil, while the faint, low roars of unknown Yao Beasts in the distance added to the sense of primality and danger.

"So this is the Donghua Secret Realm..." Lin Wan quietly spread his Divine Sense, covering a radius of nearly a hundred miles.

After breaking through to the Earth Immortal Realm, both the strength and range of his Divine Sense had greatly increased, allowing him to perceive everything around him more clearly.

The forest was full of vitality, but also fraught with danger.

He could perceive that hidden upon those ancient trunks, beneath the thick fallen leaves, and within the deep caverns were many powerful auras, among which were not a few Earth Immortal-level Yao Beasts.

Even in the depths of the forest, there were a few obscure and terrifying auras that made him feel a trace of trepidation; they were likely Heavenly Immortal-level existences.

"Danger and Opportunity truly coexist," Lin Wan thought to himself.

The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in this Secret Realm was several times thicker than in the outside world, and it seemed to contain a trace of ancient Origin aura; cultivating here would yield twice the result with half the effort.

Those Spirit Medicines and Ores were likely extraordinary as well.

"The most urgent task is to determine my location, search for Opportunity, and at the same time... guard against those with ill intentions." Lin Wan's eyes turned slightly cold.

Before entering the Secret Realm, he had sensed a few obscure, malicious gazes.

With his current Divine Sense strength, he could perceive more clearly that the malice was no illusion.

This Secret Realm would likely not be peaceful.

He took out the Secret Realm Jade Slip.

Besides serving as a proof of teleportation, the Jade Slip also included a brief map, marking the general areas of the Secret Realm and several known locations where significant Opportunity might exist, such as the "Ancient Immortal Medicine Garden," "Meteor Valley," and "Earth Fire Spiritual Vein."

However, the map was very rough, with most areas left blank, requiring exploration on his own.

"My current location should be on the outskirts of the 'Vast Ancient Forest' in the Secret Realm." Lin Wan compared the map and roughly determined his position.

The Vast Ancient Forest was the largest primeval forest in the Secret Realm, occupying nearly thirty percent of its area.

With Yao Beasts running rampant and no shortage of Spirit Medicines, it was the first stop for many Cultivators to explore.

"I will look around first, familiarize myself with the environment, and incidentally search for any Spirit Medicines that can improve my cultivation or strengthen my Physical Body." Lin Wan made up his mind, chose a direction, and with a flicker of his figure, began to weave through the towering ancient trees like a ghost, without making a sound.

He did not fly; in such an unknown primeval forest, flying at high altitudes made one too obvious a target, so it was safer to sneak along the ground.

After breaking through to the Earth Immortal Realm, Lin Wan's speed and movement techniques had also improved significantly.

He circulated the "Chaos Reincarnation Sutra," perfectly fusing his own aura with the surrounding environment, and like an invisible shadow, he wove through the ancient forest without alerting any Yao Beasts.

After traveling for about half an hour, Lin Wan stopped before a valley where the Spiritual Qi was exceptionally dense.

The entrance to the valley was narrow and covered by dense vines; had his Divine Sense not been sharp, he would have almost certainly missed it.

Inside the valley, the Spiritual Qi was thick like mist, and a faint treasure light emanated from within.

"There is a Spirit Medicine, and its grade is not low." A trace of joy flashed in Lin Wan's eyes.

He probed the valley with his Divine Sense and discovered that no powerful Yao Beasts were entrenched within, only a few "Iron-Armored Lizards," equivalent to the Human Immortal Realm, guarding a small, entirely emerald-green plant that emitted a faint fluorescent glow.

"Jade Profound Heart Grass, three thousand years old, the main ingredient for refining 'Jade Profound Heart Pill,' which can stabilize the Divine Soul and improve Comprehension Ability. Not bad." Lin Wan recognized the Spirit Medicine; it was indeed the main ingredient for refining the Jade Profound Heart Pill, which was of great use even to Earth Immortals.

Although he did not need it now, it was a good material to trade or use for Alchemy in the future.

"I might as well use this to practice and familiarize myself with the power of an Earth Immortal." At a thought from Lin Wan, his figure moved like a ghost, instantly appearing in the valley.

Those few Iron-Armored Lizards had not even reacted before their skulls were pierced by a few Chaos finger strikes Lin Wan casually flicked out, killing them on the spot.

Dealing with these Human Immortal-level Yao Beasts was, for the current Lin Wan, simply effortless.

He carefully dug out the Jade Profound Heart Grass by the roots, placed it into a specially made jade box, sealed it, and stored it in his Storage Ring.

This jade box was something he had prepared in advance, capable of keeping the medicinal properties of the Spirit Medicine from dissipating to the greatest extent.

Just as Lin Wan put away the jade box and prepared to leave the valley to continue his exploration, his brows suddenly furrowed.

In his Divine Sense perception, three obscure auras were stealthily closing in on the valley where he was from three different directions.

These three auras were deliberately restrained; had Lin Wan's Divine Sense not been powerful, they would have been almost impossible to detect.

Moreover, these three auras all carried a cold killing intent, and their target was clearly him!

"They are here." Lin Wan sneered inwardly; sure enough, someone could not hold back and had made a move in the Secret Realm.

After breaking through to the Earth Immortal Realm, his Divine Sense had greatly increased, making his perception even sharper; the movements of these three people were as clear as fireflies in the night to him.

He did not leave immediately but instead stood calmly in place, as if admiring the scenery of the valley, waiting for the prey to arrive.

A moment later, three figures appeared like ghosts at the three exits of the valley almost simultaneously, forming a triangular Formation that surrounded Lin Wan.

The arrivals were two men and one woman.

The leader was a tall, thin middle-aged man with a sinister face, dressed in black, with a cold, sinister aura, and a cultivation level of the Middle Stage Earth Immortal.

To his left was a burly, bald man with a face full of excess flesh, holding a door-sized mountain-splitting giant axe, with a violent aura; he was also a Middle Stage Earth Immortal.

To the right was a curvaceous woman in red with an alluring face, holding a crimson whip, her eyes bewitching and soul-snatching; she was also a Middle Stage Earth Immortal.

The three auras connected, faintly forming a combined attack Formation that blocked all of Lin Wan's escape routes; it was clearly premeditated, and they were well-coordinated.

"Kid, your vigilance is not bad; you actually didn't run." The sinister man looked at Lin Wan and laughed sinisterly, his voice like a night owl, making one's blood run cold.

"Run? Why would I run?" Lin Wan turned around, his gaze sweeping over the three of them calmly, as if looking at three ants. "Just relying on you three Middle Stage Earth Immortal trash, you want to kill me?"

"Arrogant!" The bald man was furious upon hearing this, his voice like a booming bell. "Kid, don't think that just because you showed off a bit at the Ascension Conference that you are invincible!"

"In the Secret Realm, no one can protect you! If you are sensible, hand over what you obtained in the Ascension Tower, as well as the Cultivation Technique and Divine Ability you practice, and I can give you a quick death!"

"Why waste words with him! Just take him down, search his soul and refine his spirit, and all his secrets will be spilled!" The woman in red licked her red lips, a trace of cruelty and greed flashing in her eyes. "Such a tender Genius, his Divine Soul must be delicious..."

"Do it!" The sinister man stopped wasting words, gave a low shout, and the three of them attacked simultaneously!

The sinister man formed seals with both hands, black Qi rolling around him, transforming into countless jet-black ghost claws that, accompanied by the shrill sound of ghost wailing, grabbed at Lin Wan from all directions.

The claw wind was sharp and contained deadly poison; he was clearly practicing some kind of sinister and evil Cultivation Technique.

The bald man roared, his body surged in size, muscles knotting like a humanoid Vicious Beast, as he swung the mountain-splitting giant axe, bringing with it a violent gale, and hacked down at Lin Wan's head!

This axe strike was heavy and powerful, with the might to split mountains and crack the earth; he clearly followed a power-based path.

The woman in red let out a coquettish laugh, and the crimson whip in her hand struck out like a poisonous snake, instantly transforming into a sky full of whip shadows, coiling toward Lin Wan.

On the whip burned strange red flames, emitting a scorching and bewitching aura; it could not only harm the Physical Body but also bewitch the mind.

The three of them used their full strength from the moment they attacked, well-coordinated, sealing off all space for dodging; they clearly intended to kill with one strike and finish the battle quickly.

Facing the siege of three Middle Stage Earth Immortals, Lin Wan's expression did not change, and a cold arc even curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Just right, I will use you to test my skills."

He did not move, only slowly raised his right hand, and toward the sky full of black ghost claws grabbing at him, he lightly clenched it.

"Chaos, Return to Ruins."

An invisible force of Chaos, centered on Lin Wan, suddenly expanded.

The moment those black ghost claws touched the force of Chaos, they were like snowflakes meeting a blazing sun, making a "hissing" sound as they rapidly dissolved, decomposed, and turned into the most primitive Origin Qi, being swallowed and assimilated by the force of Chaos.

In the blink of an eye, the sky full of ghost claws vanished without a trace.

"What?!" The sinister man's expression changed drastically. His "Hundred Ghosts Soul-Devouring Claw" was a Profound Rank High Grade Divine Ability, incredibly sinister and poisonous, and had once severely injured a Late Stage Earth Immortal Cultivator; how could it be neutralized by the opponent so casually?

At the same time, Lin Wan used his left hand to form a sword finger, and toward the mountain-splitting giant axe hacking down at his head, he pointed a finger.

"Reincarnation, Tribulation Finger."

A gray-black finger strike, launched later but arriving first, silently struck the blade of the mountain-splitting giant axe.

"Crack..." With a crisp sound, the Low Grade Immortal Artifact-level mountain-splitting giant axe, in the bald man's terrified gaze, developed fine cracks on its blade, which rapidly spread!

Immediately afterward, the light on the axe body dimmed rapidly, losing its spirituality, as if it had experienced the erosion of endless years, becoming decayed and unusable!

The Divine Sense the bald man had attached to the giant axe was also eroded by a strange force of finality, and he groaned, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

"My Mountain-Shaking Axe!" The bald man was both shocked and angry. This giant axe had followed him for many years and was his most prized weapon; how could its spirituality be destroyed in a single exchange?

"Little brother, what a cruel heart you have." A flash of fear crossed the red-clad woman's eyes, but her hands did not stop. The myriad whip shadows transformed into a crimson giant fire python, which opened its massive maw and lunged towards Lin Wan to devour him. The searing flames scorched the air, causing it to distort.

"Mere parlor tricks." Lin Wan didn't even look, just opened his mouth and inhaled.

"Whoosh—"

That seemingly ferocious giant fire python was actually swallowed into his belly in one gulp! The connection between the red-clad woman and her long whip was instantly severed. She spat out a mouthful of blood, her face turning deathly pale, and her eyes filled with shock. Her 'Crimson Refined Fire Python Whip' was crafted from the essence of earth fire; its flames were venomous and could burn through metal and melt iron, yet it had been swallowed in one bite?

"The Chaos Physique can refine all things. How dare you show off mere earth fire in front of me?" Lin Wan sneered. He cultivated the Chaos Reincarnation Sutra and had condensed a Chaos Immortal Body. His body contained its own Chaos, capable of refining and assimilating the vast majority of energy attacks. To him, the red-clad woman's flames were nothing more than a supplement.

"This target is tough! Form the Three Talents Ghost Evil Formation!" The sinister-looking man finally realized they had kicked an iron plate and shouted sternly. The three of them retreated rapidly, simultaneously throwing out three pitch-black small banners. Positioning themselves on three sides, they instantly set up a Formation filled with sinister Yin Qi, trapping Lin Wan within it. Inside the Formation, ghosts wailed and wolves howled, chilling winds roared, and countless spectral images of fierce ghosts emerged, baring fangs and brandishing claws as they lunged at Lin Wan.

"A Formation? You are showing off before an expert." Lin Wan shook his head and took a step forward. The Chaos Reincarnation Domain unfolded silently, instantly covering a radius of ten zhang.

Gray Chaos Qi permeated the area, with faint shadows of Reincarnation emerging within it. The Yin Qi ghost Domain formed by the so-called 'Three Talents Ghost Evil Formation', the moment it touched the Chaos Reincarnation Domain, dissolved and disintegrated rapidly, just like snow meeting boiling water! Those spectral images of fierce ghosts didn't even have time to scream before they were swept up by the power of Reincarnation, turning into the purest Soul Power to nourish Lin Wan's Divine Soul.

"A Domain?! You are at the Peak of the Earth Immortal Realm?!" The sinister-looking man screamed in terror, his eyes filled with despair. A Domain—that was the hallmark that only Earth Immortal Peak, or even Heavenly Immortal, experts could master! This young man before him was actually at the Peak of the Earth Immortal Realm? How was this possible? Didn't the intelligence say he was at the Peak of the Human Immortal Realm?

"Run!"

Without any hesitation, the sinister-looking man turned and fled, not even bothering with the three small banners. The bald, burly man and the red-clad woman were also terrified to the point of Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, fleeing in different directions.

"Want to run now? It's too late." Lin Wan's gaze turned cold. His figure flickered, and he vanished from the spot like a ghost.

The next moment, he appeared behind the bald, burly man and struck his back with a palm. Chaos power erupted, instantly destroying the bald man's protective immortal light and shattering his heart meridian. The bald, burly man couldn't even manage a scream before collapsing with a boom, dead, his eyes still retaining expressions of unbelievable terror.

Lin Wan didn't even look. His figure moved again, appearing beside the red-clad woman, and he tapped her forehead with one finger. The power of Reincarnation invaded, instantly annihilating her Divine Soul. The luster in the red-clad woman's eyes rapidly dimmed as she collapsed limply to the ground.

Finally, Lin Wan took one step, crossing a distance of a hundred zhang, and blocked the path of the sinister-looking man who was running the fastest.

"Senior, spare me! Senior, spare me! It was me who was blind and offended you! I am willing to serve you like an animal, just please spare my life!" The sinister-looking man was scared out of his wits. He knelt on the ground with a thud and kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy. He regretted it so much that his guts turned green; if he had known Lin Wan was this terrifying, he wouldn't have dared to provoke him even if he had a hundred times the courage.

"Who sent you?" Lin Wan looked down at him from above, his voice icy.

"It... it is the Xuan Yin Sect! We are outer Sect deacons of the Xuan Yin Sect! It was the Sect Elder who ordered us to find an Opportunity in the Donghua Secret Realm to eliminate you, Senior, and seize the secrets on you!" To save his life, the sinister-looking man betrayed his Sect without hesitation.

"Xuan Yin Sect?" Lin Wan raised an eyebrow. He had some impression of this Sect. In the Donghua Immortal Domain, it was a second-rate Sect that was both righteous and evil, acting in mysterious ways with ruthless methods, and it did not have a very good reputation.

"Besides you, who else did the Xuan Yin Sect send in? What about other factions?" Lin Wan continued to ask.

"Besides... besides the three of us, there should be two other teams. As for exactly who they are, I don't know; we acted separately. As for other factions... I heard that the Tian Sha Sect and the Black Flame Valley also seem to have made moves, but whether their specific target is you, Senior, I do not know." The sinister-looking man replied tremblingly.

"Tian Sha Sect, Black Flame Valley..." A cold light flashed in Lin Wan's eyes. It seemed that quite a few people were eyeing him. These factions were mostly green with envy over his performance at the Ascension Conference and coveted the secrets he possessed.

"Senior, I have said everything I know, please spare..." Before the sinister-looking man could finish speaking, he felt a chill at his forehead. A cold power that ended everything instantly destroyed his Divine Soul consciousness. The last image in his eyes was Lin Wan's cold and ruthless gaze.

"Soul Search." Lin Wan couldn't be bothered to listen to his nonsense and directly cast the Soul Search technique. He would not show the slightest mercy to people who wanted his life.

A moment later, Lin Wan released his hand, and the sinister-looking man's corpse collapsed limply to the ground. Judging from the information obtained from the Soul Search, these three were indeed outer Sect deacons of the Xuan Yin Sect, ordered to enter the Secret Realm to intercept and kill him. The Xuan Yin Sect's understanding of him was limited to his performance at the Ascension Tower and the Ascension Conference; they knew he might have secrets, but they didn't know exactly what they were. Additionally, the people the Xuan Yin Sect sent into the Secret Realm this time, besides their team, indeed included two other teams, led by Earth Immortal Late Stage experts who were even stronger. The Tian Sha Sect and the Black Flame Valley also seemed to have sent people, but whether their target was him, these three were not high-ranking enough to know.

"Earth Immortal Late Stage..." A flash of gravity crossed Lin Wan's eyes. With his current strength, dealing with Earth Immortal Middle Stage experts was like chopping melons and vegetables. But Earth Immortal Late Stage experts had already touched the threshold of the Law, and their strength was several times greater than that of the Middle Stage, so they could not be underestimated. If he were besieged by several Earth Immortal Late Stage experts, or encountered a Heavenly Immortal, it would be dangerous.

"I must increase my strength as soon as possible." Lin Wan collected the three people's Storage Rings and the three small banners, flicked out a few wisps of flame, and burned the three corpses to ashes, destroying the evidence. Although he was not afraid of the Xuan Yin Sect, he did not want to leave evidence and add unnecessary trouble.

After dealing with the scene, Lin Wan did not leave immediately but took the three small banners into his hands to study them. These three small banners were all Low Grade Immortal Artifacts, covered in sinister Yin Qi, and painted with evil ghost patterns; they were Magical Artifacts for setting up Formations. However, the Materials were ordinary, and the refining technique was crude. Lin Wan didn't think much of them and tossed them into a corner of his Storage Ring, preparing to melt them down later to extract the Materials.

He checked the three people's Storage Rings again. As expected of Earth Immortal Middle Stage Cultivators, their net worth was quite substantial. Added together, there were nearly ten million Low Grade Immortal Crystals, some Earth Rank Medicinal Pills, Talismans, Materials, and a few pieces of Low Grade Immortal Artifacts. For ordinary Earth Immortals, this was a considerable amount of wealth, but for Lin Wan, it was just average. The only thing that caught his attention was a fragmented beast skin map.

This beast skin map looked ancient, with some simple lines and markings drawn on it. One of the markings was circled in red ink, and next to it were a few blurry ancient characters— "origin spirit immortal milk".

"origin spirit immortal milk?" Lin Wan's heart stirred. He remembered seeing relevant records in the 'Immortal Realm Strange Tales' rewarded by the Ascension Tower. origin spirit immortal milk is an extremely rare Heaven and Earth spiritual object, born where the Earth Vein Spiritual Eyes converge, and it takes ten thousand years to condense a single drop. This object contains the purest Heaven and Earth Origin Spiritual Qi; it can cleanse the Immortal Body, perform Purification on Immortal Origin, improve cultivation, strengthen the Divine Soul, and has miraculous effects on Earth Immortal and Heavenly Immortal Cultivators, even assisting in breaking through Bottlenecks—it is priceless!

"These three actually have a map to the origin spirit immortal milk? Is it real or fake?" Lin Wan carefully examined the beast skin map. The map was drawn very roughly, and many places were blurry, but he could roughly tell that the marked location seemed to be in the depths of the Secret Realm, in a place called the "Earth Vein Spiritual Cave".

"Regardless of whether it is real or fake, since I've encountered it, I must go take a look. The origin spirit immortal milk is of great use for me to consolidate my Earth Immortal cultivation, and even to push for the Earth Immortal Middle Stage." Lin Wan put away the beast skin map. Although this map was fragmented, it was still a clue. There were countless Opportunities within the Secret Realm; perhaps he really could find the origin spirit immortal milk.

"This place is not suitable for staying long; I should leave first." Lin Wan's figure flickered, turning into a wisp of blue smoke, and he disappeared into the vast ancient forest.

Not long after Lin Wan left, several figures appeared silently in the valley. Looking at the traces of the fight on the ground and the energy fluctuations that had not yet completely dissipated, their expressions all became somewhat ugly.

"It's those three waste from the Xuan Yin Sect; they are dead." A figure entirely shrouded in a black robe, revealing only a pair of cold, sinister eyes, said in a hoarse voice.

"Such fast speed, such ruthless methods. All three were Earth Immortal Middle Stage experts, yet they were killed in such a short time, not even having the chance to crush their Jade Slips to escape." Another person said in a deep voice, a flash of apprehension crossing their eyes.

"It seems the intelligence was wrong. That Lin Wan is likely already at the Earth Immortal Realm, and his combat power far exceeds those of the same stage. Notify the others to be careful and not to act alone. Once the target is found, send a signal immediately, gather manpower, and ensure a kill in one strike!" The leader, a middle-aged man with a feminine face, had cold light flickering in his eyes.

"Yes!"

Several people quickly dealt with the scene, wiped away the traces, and then, like ghosts, disappeared into the depths of the ancient forest.

A hunt targeting Lin Wan had just begun. And Lin Wan, amidst hunting and being hunted, was constantly searching for Opportunities and improving his own strength. The origin spirit immortal milk, the Earth Vein Spiritual Cave—what else would be waiting for him?