Chapter 123: Storm In The Secret Realm
Behind Huanglong Immortal stood four or five Foundation Establishment cultivators on the dragon's back, including his disciples and trusted members cultivated by Huanglong Immortal City.
Fu Xuemei was absent from this group.
The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm is reputed to have a 40% mortality rate, with unknown and unpredictable dangers. As a cultivator with earth spiritual roots and a strong background, she did not need to risk her life unless she was not satisfied with True-Dan and wanted to attempt the extremely difficult Golden-Dan.
After Huanglong Immortal City, other forces arrived en route. Their representatives were either Fake-Dan cultivators or early-stage Core Formation cultivators. These forces included the seven great cultivation families, other immortal city forces, and some merchant organizations.
Among these was the Beast Taming Zhou Family, led by a short, wrinkled old man at the Fake-Dan stage, likely the Zhou Family's Fake-Dan ancestor. Following the Zhou ancestor were a male and a female Foundation Establishment cultivator. The girl in the yellow dress at mid-Foundation Establishment stage was Zhou Qingxuan, a familiar face to Lan Chang'an. He was slightly surprised as this girl, with her high-grade spiritual roots and excellent beast taming talents, was highly valued in the Zhou Family. It was unexpected to see her participating in the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm.
...
Two days later, a massive golden boat flew in, carrying the cultivators of Jin Yun Valley. Leading them was a rotund, red-faced middle-aged Core Formation cultivator. Onboard were thirty Foundation Establishment cultivators, including Zhao Siyao and Zhang Tieshan.
That evening, a giant piece of gray-black wood, several dozen zhang long, came flying through the air with immense spiritual pressure. More than thirty cultivators stood on the branches. Leading them was a youthful, refined, and imposing Core Formation cultivator with red lips and white teeth, known as Lingyu Immortal from the Qingzhu Sect. He looked only sixteen or seventeen years old but his actual age was at least three hundred years old.
Lan Chang'an found this unsurprising; in his previous lifetime, he had even seen a six- or seven-year-old child-like Nascent Soul True Monarch.
"Blackwater Sandalwood, almost fourth-rank!" Seeing the giant wood under Lingyu Immortal's feet, Lan Chang'an felt a surge of desire. However, this wood had been refined into a half-finished flying magic treasure, making it unsuitable as raw material for treasure talismans.
"Chen Fuhai is here too?" Lan Chang'an noticed a familiar plump middle-aged man among the Qingzhu Sect's crowd, making him frown and heighten his alertness.
The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm only restricted cultivation levels, not age. Each major sect's Foundation Establishment cultivators could only enter the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm once in their lifetime. Young or old cultivators were generally unsuitable: the former lacked sufficient cultivation, and the latter, with declining strength, couldn't make significant progress even if they obtained opportunities. Hence, most entrants were mid to late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, aiming for breakthroughs or opportunities for Core Formation.
With ten days remaining until the secret realm opened, the Nascent Soul-level power "Flame Departing Palace" arrived late. Their flying treasure was a massive cloud-like cloth carrying over sixty cultivators, led by a fairylike, white-browed elder known as Yuxiao Immortal. Various sects and other Immortals greeted him respectfully.
Lan Chang'an didn't recognize many from the Flame Departing Palace except for a young man with short hair in a black robe, whom he had almost clashed with over the Golden Nan Spirit Bamboo. He only knew this man's surname was Wu, a mid Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The last sect to arrive was the "Xuan Yin Pavilion" from the southern part of the Liang Kingdom, farthest from the secret realm's entrance. A half-mu ancient five-story pavilion descended from the sky, and a group of graceful female cultivators emerged from the pavilion, their voices like the songs of birds and the whispers of swallows, drawing the attention of male cultivators from all directions.
Xuan Yin Pavilion, a righteous sect for female cultivators, was led by a Core Formation woman named Ni Yue Immortal, a palace maiden with a lovely face, exquisite features, lips as red as cinnabar, and a peerless aura.
Palace Maiden Ni Yue's Daoist name was "Ni Yue," and she was known among those present as either "Ni Yue Immortal" or "Fairy Ni Yue."
The nearby male cultivators cast stunning gazes, but didn't dare to keep staring.
...
At this point, most of the notable forces from the Liang Kingdom's cultivation world had arrived. Lan Chang'an observed that even the mighty seven great cultivation families had only one or two slots each, while Huanglong Immortal City, the largest loose cultivator city in the Liang Kingdom, had five slots. Other than sects, all other factions have to pay to get a slot.
With some days remaining before the secret realm opened, cultivators from various forces either meditated quietly, reconnected with old friends or gathered intelligence.
Half a day later, two Foundation Establishment cultivators flew from the Jin Yun Valley's camp—Zhang Tieshan and Zhao Siyao.
"Fellow Daoist Lan," they greeted him.
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, Fellow Daoist Zhao," Lan Chang'an replied, standing up.
"Fellow Daoist Lan's cultivation has advanced steadily since his Foundation Establishment, truly a case of accumulation leading to rapid growth," Zhang Tieshan remarked, noting Lan Chang'an's third level Foundation Establishment level.
This cultivation progress was relatively slow compared to others within the Foundation Establishment Realm. Most Foundation Establishment cultivators began with mid-grade spiritual roots, with a decent chunk of them starting with high-grade spiritual roots.
"Far from comparable to you two," Lan Chang'an humbly replied. His Evergreen Technique had a slow pace during the Qi-Refining stage, akin to low-grade spiritual roots, but now matched middle-grade spiritual roots in the Foundation Establishment stage.
Zhang Tieshan's cultivation advancement, however, was truly astonishing. With low-grade roots, he'd originally fallen behind Zhao Siyao by several years in reaching Foundation Establishment. Yet now, his cultivation had completely caught up to hers.
The three, who had known each other for over seventy years, sat together and chatted amicably for two hours straight.
Zhao Siyao and Lan Chang'an had long since discussed the matter of the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm two years ago.
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, do you need any superior-grade second-rank talismans?" Lan Chang'an set up a soundproof barrier, so only the three could hear.
"Superior-grade second-rank talismans? Of course, I need it! This is a scarce item for all cultivators entering the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm, so the more the better.," Zhang Tieshan replied, eyeing Lan Chang'an.
Having experienced Lan Chang'an's capabilities during the Evil-Faced Flying Eagle incident, Zhang Tieshan knew he wasn't merely an innocent, good-natured person. His strength was outstanding among his class, he practiced body refining on the side, and his talisman art exceeded expectations.
"I can sell them to you at half price..." Lan Chang'an handed over a jade slip, just as Zhao Siyao had suggested back then. However, certain high-end resources were not included in Zhang Tieshan's jade slip.
"No problem, I happen to be short on spirit stones," Zhang Tieshan agreed after a brief pause.
Lan Chang'an sold him four superior-grade second-rank talismans. As for the puppets, he did not bring them out, although Zhang Tieshan's character was good, his relationship with him was somewhat superficial compared to Zhao Siyao's.
Before leaving, Lan Chang'an transmitted a message, "Be wary of Chen Fuhai from the Qingzhu Sect once inside the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm."
"Chen Fuhai?" Zhang Tieshan and Zhao Siyao exchanged puzzled looks.
Privately, Lan Chang'an warned Zhao Siyao, "There may be problems with Chen Fuhai. Keep your distance if you encounter him in the secret realm."
"Mm." Zhao Siyao nodded, her clear, elegant eyes gazing at him without asking for further explanation.
Zhang Tieshan, who didn't receive the private warning, appeared thoughtful.
Back in the Jin Yun Valley camp, Zhang Tieshan cautioned a trusted late-stage Foundation Establishment female cultivator, "Senior Sister Yu, watch out for Chen Fuhai in the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm. This person's strength is not simple."
"Chen Fuhai?"
In the secret realm, apart from the inherent dangers of the environment, the greatest threats came from other Foundation Establishment cultivators, particularly those from rival sects.
Cultivators with good relations within the same force often exchanged intelligence, such as which cultivators were strong and should thus be avoided, or which ones could be safely provoked.
"Senior Brother Qian, I just received some new intel: Chen Fuhai from Qingzhu Sect, his strength surpasses the average Late Foundation Establishment cultivator."
"Chen Fuhai is deeply mysterious, perhaps he will be among the most formidable competitors at this entrance to the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm."
"When we Chen Fuhai, don't let your guard down."
Within half a day, nearly half of the Foundation Establishment cultivators in Jinyun Valley's small circle had learned that "Chen Fuhai is very strong." Only Zhao Siyao had been informed that Chen Fuhai had "problems", so it was best to stay as far away as possible.
...
Besides collaborating with Zhao Siyao and Zhang Tieshan, Lan Chang'an also conversed with Zhou Qingxuan. Maintaining her youthful appearance, she seemed playful yet unreliable. This time, he didn't offer discounted talismans but expressed a willingness to buy certain resources at high prices.
Zhou Qingxuan, and by extension, the Zhou Family, weren't as trustworthy. She had once sold him a problematic pill, showing her unpredictable nature.
"We need those resources too," Zhou Qingxuan said, uninterested in collaboration, but added with a teasing glint, "But if you sell us your beast-taming secret or help heal our rare, sickly spirit beasts, we might consider it."
Lan Chang'an shook his head. "My skills are limited; I'm unable to assist." He did not stay to chat further with Zhou Qingxuan.
From a distance, the Zhou Family's Fake-Dan old ancestor noticed their brief exchange, showing a slight interest in Lan Chang'an.
...
Days passed, and the five major forces' Core Formation cultivators, including those from Flame Departing Palace, presented blue-gold tokens. Their combined True-Dan level power activated the tokens, generating five massive pillars of light. These beams struck the hundred-zhang-high green-black stone wall, creating a pentagon-shaped formation.
The stone wall trembled, forming a gigantic gray vortex above it, opening a mysterious passage. The ancient atmosphere of a bygone era emanated from within, creating an unstable resonance with the Liang Kingdom's cultivation world.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Foundation Establishment cultivators with green jade tokens in their hands were surrounded by green-black light, and entered the secret realm one after another.
...
"The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm lasts for a month," Lan Chang'an meditated, hoping Zhang Tieshan and Zhao Siyao would return with some gains. Within a few days, the expressions of several Core Formation cultivators from the major sects turned grave.
The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm had a high mortality rate. As they waited, they monitored soul tokens to track casualties. If a particularly extreme situation arose with widespread deaths, they could forcibly close the secret realm.
Crack! Crack!
Every so often, a soul token shattered, signaling a death. "Yuxiao Immortal, the death rate seems faster than the last two times," several Core Formation cultivators observed, looking at the white-browed elder from Flame Departing Palace.
Huanglong Immortal remained silent, his expression stern. Already, one of the five slots from Huanglong Immortal City had perished.
"Everyone, don't panic. The death rate is within the normal range, just slightly faster than the last two times," Yuxiao Immortal reassured them, stroking his beard.
Crack!
His eyelids twitched as a soul token in his storage pouch cracked.
(End of Chapter)