Chapter 1374: Forbidden Secret Realm [1]

There were four main groups who arrived at the Forbidden Secret Realm, but they weren't the only ones.

Aside from the four great clans who were participating, several smaller influences from the Eastern Region were given the chance to prove their worth through this expedition.

Their younger generations would experience trials and triumphs, and when they came out, they'd become people worthy of representing the Veritas Clan as its vassals.

Whatever rewards they gained inside were theirs alone. The Veritas Clan would never interfere and try to take a reward by force, but many chose to offer their gains to them regardless.

Otherwise, if the Veritas Clan truly desired something another party gained in the secret realm, they'd pay for it properly and give the clan in question a rise in status matching their achievement.

Because of this system, the smaller influences were all eager to have their geniuses show their mettle and prevail. They lined up around the area as the anticipation for the coming event rose.

The four major clans of the Eastern Region were also participating. They didn't require much status since they were already at the greatest height they could reach, but with their loyalty, it was only granted that they'd enter and try to aid the Veritas Clan to their greatest capacity.

Nevertheless, when the geniuses and their protectors exited their spirit ships and reached the ground below, the main players whom everyone focused their attention on naturally came from four influences.

The Veritas Clan, the Vega Clan, the Kyushu Federation, and the Straea Clan.

Of them, two were allied, while the other two were individual wolves hungry for a piece of the delicious meat known as the Forbidden Secret Realm.

Each of the four had six geniuses who were given the right to participate. They faced off in a mental battle the second they met each other, their auras both concealed and openly provoking their opponents.

Damien watched as the more well-known geniuses approached each other and began a battle of words. He watched as the more high-spirited ones challenged each other and raved at the opportunity to battle.

'Ah, youth.'

He smiled slightly. He remembered the days when he was in that position, a young genius who wanted to challenge the world.

Standing as someone who had been on top of the world before, all these small things seemed novel to him. Whether it was the mind games of those who were intelligent or the aura battles of those who weren't, they all reminded him of experiences from the past that shaped him into what he was today.

'There are a lot of secret realms throughout the cosmos, and they're pretty much the main challenge for the younger generation who wants to grow, but there's a reason for that. No matter what other method there is, this one is always the best.'

Even the Dimensional Leaderboard relied on secret realms of its creation to raise the geniuses of the lower universe.

Was there a better method?

The geniuses would be forced to challenge themselves with real-life experiences, and because most secret realms had restrictions, they would be able to do so against people of their own level without being impeded by people they didn't have a chance to defeat.

'The fall of most geniuses happens because of that. People who don't want to see them grow cut them down before they can. And unlike the usual secret realm...'

This one didn't have much of a power restriction.

It only had a limit for the number of people who could enter at each stage.

For instance, there were Godly protectors next to the Young Master and Young Lady of the Veritas Clan, along with the top geniuses of the other clans, a total of eight across all four great clans.

That was the maximum number of Gods allowed by the secret realm. If another God tried to enter after them, they would either be suppressed down to the Demigod level or just banned from entering the secret realm at all.

'We waited for two days in the spirit ships before descending, so I can only assume the secret realm will open soon...'

He glanced over at Celeste, the woman he was protecting this time around.

'She's not like the rest. I understand why she'd be excluded on the spirit ship since that's exclusively amongst the Veritas Clan members, but even here, she's not interacting with anyone.'

It was a little confusing from his perspective. Celeste was an energetic person. She always found time to annoy him with her overly positive attitude, and she didn't seem to have a bad personality that would drive people away from her.

But when she was around people of her own generation she never showed that side of her. It wasn't that she became cold and ruthless, it was more like she put on the guise of a weak and vulnerable individual without the confidence to approach others.

'Is she someone who likes to toy with others?'

He didn't really care about her habits, but he needed to know her general demeanor if he wanted to plan for the future.

From what he'd seen so far, she didn't overtly go looking for trouble, but she seemed like someone trouble would be attracted to regardless.

'Hmm...'

Damien shrugged.

'At this point, it's already useless to speculate. After all...'

He glanced at the sky.

Some others sensed it too.

Space was fluctuating imperceptibly. With every passing second, its chaos became more pronounced until even the weakest among them could clearly feel the changes.

'It's time.'

As if it was waiting for Damien's declaration, the entrance to the Forbidden Secret Realm ripped open.

A large, swirling, galaxy-like portal formed where the space tore, opening the way to heaven.

No words needed to be said. This wasn't the first time the secret realm had opened and it wouldn't be the last.

Those who were impatient rushed ahead instantly, and those who were cautious waited a bit longer before entering, but regardless of their nature, they all entered within a minute.

As for Damien and Celeste...

"Shall we go?" She said in a peppy tone.

"I'm just here to protect you, so do as you please," Damien responded stalely.

"Tch, you're no fun."

Celeste pouted a bit, but it was just for show. She'd already begun moving towards the portal.

Damien pulled out the small jade token he was given, one connected to a similar token Celeste held. This would allow him to be teleported to the same location as her without fail, since everyone would be spread out randomly when they entered the realm.

And as she walked in, he walked in as well.

Under the familiar feeling of reality itself twisting and morphing into something entirely different, he arrived in a new plane.

And he immediately felt it.

'This...'

He took in a deep breath of the air.

His eyes narrowed.

His heart pounded.

'There's something here.'

There was definitely something in the secret realm that was related to him, something absolutely critical.

He didn't know what it was, but since he was here, he wouldn't leave without finding it.

He smiled to himself.

'I knew it wouldn't be a normal secret realm expedition, but I didn't expect that there'd be something like this.'

The mysterious treasures of the most important secret realm in the Eastern Region...

Just what did they have to offer?