Yu Yue Secret Realm (2)
“All the disciples have gone in.”
A man dressed in scholar's robes gazed at the rift that was just about to close and murmured softly.
“Whether they went in or not doesn't matter. What counts is who brings back the most in the end.”
“Old Elder No. You sure make it sound easy. Brimming with confidence, aren't you?” Jin Lei-hyeon said to the middle-aged man embroidered with golden thread, arms crossed.
“Hah! You mind your own sect's business. I heard you've been draining all your resources lately for that Nascent Soul elder's cultivation, leaving your sect's coffers empty.”
“Our elder is still young, at least. Better than clinging to a flickering lamp on its last legs, no?”
“What nonsense is that!”
The air turned icy in an instant.
“Heh heh heh. Good thing no other disciples are around. Core Formation cultivators, reduced to bickering like children.”
An old man in a blood-red robe stroked his beard with a mocking smile.
“Haha. They're all just on edge, that's all.”
The scholar unfurled his fan halfway and continued in a grave tone.
“Things in Jin Country's cultivation world are a mess these days. Northern barbarians swarming, Eastern Sea overrun by sea demons—everyone's desperate.”
“If it weren't so chaotic, our four great sects wouldn't be gathered here like this. Heh heh.”
Jin Lei-hyeon and the golden-threaded middle-aged man kept up their verbal sparring. The man still glared at Jin Lei-hyeon with displeasure, and Jin Lei-hyeon didn't blink either. In the end, though, the scholar in civil robes was the first to sigh.
“Sigh, how long are those two going to keep at it?”
“Hmph. Their bad blood is infamous.”
The old man in the blood-red robe snorted.
The scholar folded his half-open fan and turned his head toward the now fully sealed rift.
“Five days until the secret realm's entrance opens again. Short if you think about it, long if you don't. Wonder how many will make it out alive this time. Anyway, what happens inside is up to the kids now.”
“Hmph. Kids? Inside there, everyone's a beast. Where's a kid in that?” Jin Lei-hyeon cut in shortly.
“That's why you threw in more talented disciples than usual this time, so recklessly? Qingyun Sect got greedy.”
Golden Peak Valley's Elder No chided from the side.
“Hmph.”
Jin Lei-hyeon just snorted and ignored the middle-aged man.
The scholar tucked away his fan and said quietly,
“Here's hoping five days from now lives up to expectations.”
The four Core Formation cultivators' gazes naturally converged on the sealed rift.
“Ugh... my head...”
Passing through the rift left her dizzy for a moment. She'd vaguely heard on the way that the formation randomized entrants' drop points, which explained why no other cultivators' presences were nearby.
Shaking it off, she looked around. Before her stretched a dense forest of broadleaf trees, so thick sunlight barely pierced through. It was like watching a brutal survival-of-the-fittest among the trees. Fallen leaves carpeted the ground thickly, but not a single weed poked through.
Whoa.
She took a deep breath, and cool air rushed in.
First, let's figure out where I am.
She pulled out the jade slip with the map and checked her position. Infusing it with qi revealed a faint dot.
“So this marks my location. Darkwood Forest.”
True to its name, the woods thrummed with阴 cold,阴 yin energy. Hardly any sunlight reached here—perfectly fitting.
“Hmm. Looks like I have to cross this forest to reach the depths anyway.”
The outskirts had four major terrains: forest, desert, swamp, and highlands. Only by passing through them could one enter the secret realm's core. She'd landed in the forest.
Memorizing her position, she stowed the jade slip back in her spatial pouch.
Still, better take a quick look around.
As outskirts, nothing amazing would pop up, but finding stuff on the sect's reward list would be nice. Especially since the climate here was ideal for阴 yin-attuned spirit herbs or fungi.
Plus, over five years, she'd diligently practiced spirit herb resonance—from mortal herbs to mid-grade spirit plants. Things she couldn't sense before now registered faintly. She could even distinguish them by their qi signatures.
She first pulled a Stealth Talisman from her spatial pouch. Wandering around blatantly was like begging, “Come catch me.” With rival cultivators, demon beasts, and venomous critters everywhere, no thanks.
Alright, let's go.
Applying the talisman and infusing qi made it glow faintly. Holding her breath, she moved slowly. The thick leaf litter underfoot was damp, muffling her steps.
Makes sense there are no weeds.
Trees this dense left no room for most plants. Only mushrooms and certain spirit herbs that thrived in the dark would survive.
She opened her resonance lightly. Her realm had expanded its range and variety, but processing multiple signals at once was still overwhelming. First day in the realm—plenty of time to take it slow.
Spreading thin tendrils of resonance, faint reactions flickered from spots throughout the forest. Still outskirts, so nothing intense—just weak qi. Back in her mountain village days, she'd have swept them all up, but her standards had risen.
Ignoring the minor stuff, she pressed deeper. Soon, worthwhile finds pinged.
The first was Cold Yin Mushroom, nestled under an ancient tree trunk—three ashen caps side by side.
But aren't mushrooms plants? Why the resonance?
She'd wondered during training too. Her status window called them herbs, though. Whatever—good was good.
She carefully carved out the mushrooms with chunks of bark. Might be useful for mycelium farming. Into a jade box and her pouch they went.
“Hmm~ hmm~.”
First harvest had her humming despite the caution. And nearby, another spirit herb pinged—from a rock crevice. Two dark blue leaves twisted around each other in the gap.
“Yin Marrow Grass.”
Kneeling, she squatted before it. Cold Yin Mushrooms and Yin Marrow Grass—both low-grade for low-level Qi Condensation disciples. Herbs from strong阴 yin zones stabilized meridians, like auxiliary ingredients in the Recovery Pills from the tournament.
Not enough to make her eyes light up for her current cultivation, but pile enough and it became a mountain.
“This one's age and condition are solid.”
About five years old, healthier than sect-grown ones. Wild was wild, huh.
She rose slowly, damp Darkwood air brushing her skin.
“This humidity is so sticky.”
No nearby pings, so she widened her resonance. More dots flickered about.
Just mortal herbs. Nothing good?
Moving spots, something worthwhile appeared: two flowers blooming side by side, half blue, half white petals tipped with frost-like crystals.
Azure Frost Flower. Lucky.
Low-grade, but a step above the others—prized by阴 yin cultivation arts.
“Pretty decent haul already.”
She'd barely entered and snagged three kinds. Secret realms lived up to the hype.
If the outskirts are like this, what gems await in the core?
Just these could sustain three outer disciples for a month. Not the time for such thoughts, though.
“Alright, keep it up.”
But not everyone in the Yu Yue Secret Realm enjoyed peace.
In the middle of a muddy swamp, ankle-deep in slop, three minor sect disciples panted, glancing back.
“I-it's catching up!”
The rearmost youth screamed.
Behind them rolled a small mist of fog—but closer inspection revealed swarming insects.
Splash.
The last disciple tripped. Bugs enveloped him instantly, devouring him alive.
“Aaaagh!”
The other two paled.
“W-we have to save—”
“Too late.”
The lead disciple stopped his fellow and bolted.
“Hmph. Think you can escape?”
From afar, a woman watched, red skull ornaments dangling from her.
Meanwhile, in the desert outskirts, a Golden Peak Valley disciple frothed at the mouth, collapsed. Before him loomed a Dune Demon Scorpion, its body sandy yellow. Two more Golden Peak disciples flanked it.
“Damn, still not dead!”
Gritting teeth, they split left and right. One formed a spell, the other hurled a talisman.
The scorpion bellowed, tail lashing like a whip.
“You venomous bastard...!”
But their eyes held more than fear. At the end of their gaze swayed a single red spirit herb.
On the highlands, fierce winds howled. Two massive Stone Armored Boars charged madly across gray bedrock. Blocking them stood Qingyun Sect's Jang Mu-hyeok, unmoving.
“Pathetic.”
A low, curt word. He met the first boar head-on with a punch, shattering its skull with a thud.
The second charged; he sidestepped and smashed down with his elbow, slamming it into the ground.
Glancing at the pair, he turned away—no need for further checks.
The Yu Yue Secret Realm showed many faces from day one. Some became bug food, others battled demon beasts for a single herb, and some bulldozed obstacles with raw power.
And Yeon-hwa—
She halted mid-step toward the next herb. A clash echoed from afar.