A Weak Secret Realm World

"Look, that's Qin Luan from Wind Stabilizing Temple!" People shifted their gaze to the fuming Song Ying, and finally someone spotted Qin Luan. From the tone, Qin Luan was someone with a bit of a reputation.

As for Jiang Li, utterly unremarkable, clearly not a formidable figure—ignored.

"I heard this guy was picked up by the Wind Stabilizing Temple's master. When he tested his talent at eight years old, he turned out to have a Lightning Single Spiritual Root. For a time, all the major sects extended olive branches, but he refused them all."

"Everyone thought that even with good talent, without the backing of a major sect, he'd just waste it. Who would've guessed that relying on his own insight and lucky encounters, he'd surpass all the sect's chosen disciples!"

Spiritual roots also had grades. The best were Heaven and Earth spiritual roots, followed by single spiritual roots, and the worst were Five Elements spiritual roots.

Among single spiritual roots, the five most common were Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Variant roots like Wind and Lightning were rarer. Variant single spiritual roots were half a grade better than ordinary ones—though not as good as Heaven and Earth roots, they were still the ceiling of single spiritual roots.

"Why are you pretending not to see me!" Song Ying planted her hands on her hips, glaring at Qin Luan with puffed cheeks.

"If I hadn't seen you, how could I have introduced you to Brother Kong?" Qin Luan said with righteous confidence. "I just don't want to deal with you."

Seeing the two about to start arguing, Jiang Li asked, "Brother Qin, do you know who that person over there is?"

Qin Luan thought for a moment, then indicated he couldn't recall. Song Ying noticed that Jiang Li seemed to be on good terms with Qin Luan, possibly a friend, so she answered for Qin Luan's sake.

"That's Li Litong, a true disciple of Stone Dragon Gate. I heard his aptitude and comprehension were both quite ordinary before, but ever since he fell off a cliff, it's like he had an epiphany. His cultivation skyrocketed—from Foundation Establishment early stage to late stage in just half a year. I fought him and won easily, but I felt he was holding back, not showing his real strength."

Jiang Li nodded, then gestured for them to continue arguing.

Amid their bickering, the Profound Mystery Realm finally opened.

The number of people who could enter the Profound Mystery Realm was fixed at eight hundred slots. After all eight hundred disciples from the various sects had entered, Jiang Li, as the eight hundred and first, unhurriedly stepped into the realm's entrance.

Everyone thought he was some rogue cultivator trying to sneak in, only to find that he actually entered the Profound Mystery Realm without being expelled by it.

Had they miscounted? As soon as he entered the realm, Jiang Li felt a repulsive force, like a three-year-old child trying to push away an elephant—exerting all its strength but unable to budge it.

Soon, the realm seemed to realize it couldn't drive away this uninvited guest, so it gave up on futile efforts and concentrated its power on testing him.

What appeared before Jiang Li was a stream formed by spiritual water condensed from spiritual energy. A single sip was worth three months of cultivation for a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Nearby, a wooden qin played naturally, and cranes danced gracefully to the music. In the distance, floating immortal mountains drifted—a scene of celestial beauty that made one reluctant to leave.

Jiang Li was drawn in by the scenery, involuntarily walking over to the wooden qin, chopping it down, and staring at the cranes.

The cranes sensed danger and tried to fly away, but Jiang Li grabbed them firmly.

Soon, smoke rose beside the stream, and the aroma of roasted meat drifted far and wide.

A weak cry for help came from not far away. Just from the voice, one could imagine its owner must be a beautiful, delicate woman.

Jiang Li turned a deaf ear and continued focusing on roasting the meat.

The sound drew closer and closer, finally arriving before Jiang Li.

"Hero, save me!"

A stunningly beautiful girl was barely clothed—her clothes must have been torn while running, revealing glimpses of her figure. She looked pitiful, enough to stir a man's protective instinct.

Jiang Li was a proper man, so he kept roasting the meat.

The girl was stunned by his attitude of destroying the qin and cooking the cranes, as if she'd never seen such a situation. But remembering the villains chasing her, she quickly begged Jiang Li for help.

"Hero, please save me! There are thugs trying to assault me! If you can save Chun Er, Chun Er is willing to give herself to you, and all my family's wealth will be yours!"

The girl named Chun Er bowed deeply, revealing a expanse of white chest far beyond her peers.

Testing cultivators this way—which cultivator could withstand it?

Jiang Li withstood it.

He saw at a glance that the girl was about sixteen, with strength only around Qi Refining First or Second Layer. In the Nine Provinces, that talent was practically first-class cripple.

If someone like her could escape, her pursuers couldn't be too strong.

Sure enough, before Chun Er could speak again, the pursuers caught up from the mountain, surrounding Chun Er and Jiang Li with cruel smiles.

These people were slightly stronger than Chun Er, roughly at the level of Qi Refining Two and a Half Layers.

Normally, Qi Refining Stage only had layers one through nine, with no such thing as half a layer. But today, seeing these poor souls' meager cultivation, Jiang Li specially added a new realm for them.

Qi Refining Two and a Half Layers—the Human Emperor's mercy.

"Little girl, run! Let's see where you can go!" The leader grinned lecherously, and without seeing what came next, one could guess his intentions. "Today, you and your boyfriend die together!"

"He's, he's not my boyfriend!" Chun Er's face flushed bright red.

Those people didn't care about Chun Er's reaction. The leader gave the order, and they were all tossed down the mountain by Jiang Li.

Before they could even launch a group attack.

"Benefactor, thank you for saving my life. This humble girl has no way to repay you except by offering myself to you!" Chun Er's eyes flickered, filled with affection.

Jiang Li naturally wouldn't refuse Chun Er's goodwill. He said gently, "Next life, then."

Chun Er: "...Benefactor sure knows how to joke. Please, benefactor, come to Chun Er's village for a visit, as thanks for saving my life."

The realm's spiritual energy density was several times higher than the Nine Provinces. On the way to the village, Jiang Li saw that even the wild fruits by the roadside counted as Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, highly beneficial even for Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators.

If a Foundation Establishment cultivator came here, they'd probably want to live in the realm permanently.

It was really a wonder that Chun Er, surrounded by so many Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, could still maintain her Qi Refining One and a Half Layers cultivation.

Chun Er's village was quite alluring. According to her, all the village men had been conscripted into the national army and sent to the battlefield. Ten years passed, and not one returned, leaving only a group of widowed beauties and innocent young girls.

These beauties and girls were enchanting in appearance. When Jiang Li arrived, he felt as if he'd stepped into the Red Dust Pure Land.

Chun Er also said that the country was now fractured, torn apart by war and conflict, with few men left, leaving behind many widows and young women—and none of them were any less attractive than the women in this village. With Jiang Li's earth-shaking cultivation, if he were to throw himself into the battlefield, he would surely unify the realm and claim supremacy.

Through his conversation with Chun Er, Jiang Li learned that the people of the Secret Realm could not cultivate immortality; they could only train their muscles and bones to enhance their martial arts. Those Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures were useless to them.

Chun Er was considered talented, having reached the Acquired Realm at a young age. Above the Acquired Realm was the Innate Realm, and above that was the rare Grandmaster!

The Grandmaster Realm existed only in legends!

And according to Chun Er's description, the Grandmaster Realm was equivalent to the seventh to ninth layers of Qi Refining!

Jiang Li gasped sharply after hearing this, and the entire Secret Realm dropped several degrees in temperature.

What a weak Secret Realm world!