Fourth Realm

"Hidden Person, come with us. The Hidden Lord sent us to pick you up."

Hidden Fifteen and Hidden Sixteen appeared on the seawall and spoke through telepathic communication.

"Please wait a moment."

Li Weiyi put away the two banners, knowing that the arena couldn't be set up any longer. He looked at Hidden Eleven and Zhu Yuzhao, who were engaged in a fierce battle at sea, and said, "How about we join forces and fight back?"

Hidden Fifteen said, "Many experts under the Young Venerable have not yet revealed themselves. We should not linger here. Your safety is more important than anything else. Hidden Nine and Hidden Eleven have their own missions. The battle to establish their reputation must be fought. The Jiu Li Tribe needs to use the Qianlong Lantern Festival to rebuild the prestige of the Myriad Ancient Clan."

Knowing that the situation was out of control and that staying there was indeed dangerous, Li Weiyi, along with Hidden Fifteen and Hidden Sixteen, went up the sea embankment and headed towards Zhuo Garden.

The injured Qi Wangshu and Zuoqiu Baiyuan had already been taken back to the city by the martial arts practitioners of the Zuoqiu Courtyard.

As they were about to enter the inner city, Li Weiyi stopped and looked into the distance.

Amidst a deafening roar, a massive white tiger leaped onto the city wall and landed atop the three-story tower.

At the same time, a long, drawn-out voice drifted from afar. "Zuoqiu Ting, accompanied by eleven members of his Zuoqiu Courtyard, pays homage to the Young Venerable and requests Young Venerable guidance."

Having repelled the Coffin Mountain Four Truths, Hidden Nine, wielding unparalleled demonic power, strode down the long street, carrying his axe, and charged swiftly towards the city wall. Finally, he abruptly stopped on the ground below the city wall, forming a combined attack with Cangli, one on earth and one on heaven.

Zhuo Garden, located in the southeast corner of the inner city of the South City, is another secret stronghold of the Jiu Li Hidden Gate.

After Qin Garden was exposed, all the young hermits lived there.

When Li Weiyi, Hidden Fifteen, and Hidden Sixteen returned, Hidden Lord had already returned from Peach Plum Mountain and was instructing Yao Yin on how to control the God of Jiu Li's Combat Intent and the power contained within those intentions.

It can be said that, apart from Li Weiyi, Yao Yin is the most precious treasure that Hidden Lord cherishes.

"You came back alive?"

Hidden Lord asked a question with a hint of sarcasm.

Hidden Fifteen and Hidden Sixteen wisely left to observe and comprehend the Silver Skeleton Celestial Clan skeleton.

Li Weiyi naturally knew that Hidden Lord would definitely use this opportunity to persuade him to leave Qiuzhou city, so he said, "Everything is going as planned, and it's relatively safe. Aren't you worried about them?"

Even if things get out of control, we can't back down now; we need to steer the conversation elsewhere.

From Zhuo Garden, one can see clusters of auspicious clouds and mist on the city wall in the distance.

Hidden Lord walked to his side, glanced indifferently at the direction of the city wall, and then looked away. "There won't be a fight! Phoenix-born Unicorn-young and Ge Xiantong were both badly injured in their battle, and they probably haven't recovered yet. There are only about ten days until New Year's Eve. If they start a war with the Jiu Li Tribe and Zuoqiu Courtyard at this time, wouldn't the other parties be overjoyed?"

"Then why did they take action?" Li Weiyi asked.

The Hidden Lord said, "You're not very capable, try to guess."

"Could it be that they want to use this opportunity to force out the true strength of the Jiu Li Tribe and the Zuoqiu Courtyard?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Weiyi shook his head. "No, even if they were to take action, it should be the Imperial Court that probes the situation. With Phoenix-born Unicorn-young injured, it's impossible for him to become a stepping stone for Ge Xiantong."

"Could they have come for me?"

Li Weiyi looked at the smile in Hidden Lord's eyes and shook his head again, "That's even more impossible! Perhaps Cang Jin's target is me, but the others' target is definitely not me. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to leave Soldier Ancestor Marsh."

Li Weiyi firmly believed that a group of people aiming for the top score in the college entrance examination would not possibly consider him, a student with excellent middle school exam results, as a threat or opponent at this crucial moment. They could easily eliminate him, but such a large-scale conflict would be highly unreasonable.

The Hidden Lord said, "Do you know how many people have fallen into your arena betting schemes these past few days, not only losing all their possessions but also flocking to Thousand Mile Mountain to borrow money?"

"Was everything voluntary? I tried to persuade them, but I couldn't," Li Weiyi said.

Hidden Lord said, "Because they are caught up in the game, they lose their reason. This is true for those who lose money, and it's also true for those who win... aren't they?"

Li Weiyi's eyes widened in surprise, then she was struck dumb, her face turning deathly pale. She suddenly realized the root of what had happened that day.

Gamblers who lose money are certainly driven by their gambling instincts.

Gamblers who win big, constantly tasting the sweetness of victory, are they not driven by greed and the lure of wealth?

It's hard for anyone to stop.

The former will certainly suffer the destruction of their family and the latter will also be unable to escape being beheaded. This is because the money comes too easily, it is right in front of them, and it will inevitably arouse jealousy and bring about disaster.

"They came for the Spring Coin, Blood Crystals, Thousand-Year Elixir, and Magical Artifacts."

Li Weiyi muttered to himself, then smiled bitterly, reflecting on his mental imbalance over the past few days.

I thought I had always been very rational and had made many arrangements, but...

He truly did not realize the dangers that enormous wealth could bring, nor did he restrain himself in time, allowing the wealth to grow wildly, ultimately causing a great disaster and nearly killing Qi Wangshu and Zuoqiu Baiyuan.

If it were truly a martial arts contest from the start, even if someone of the same skill Defeat All Enemies Within Five Moves, it wouldn't cause much of a stir.

"Contentment prevents disgrace, and knowing when to stop prevents danger. This saying is indeed true. It is very dangerous to be unable to control one's greed and to acquire wealth that one cannot manage," Li Weiyi said.

Seeing that he already knew where he went wrong and had the ability to reflect on himself, Hidden Lord smiled with satisfaction, "The wealth you've accumulated these past few days is something even I'm tempted by, let alone them. You should know that those young experts in the Five Seas Realm are already willing to take risks for a single Thousand-Year Elixir."

"It's a pity they were all stolen!" Li Weiyi sighed.

Hidden Lord bluntly asked with a smile, "Were they really all taken away?"

Of course not.

Li Weiyi had already stored the precious items he had won in the first four days, such as the Thousand-Year Elixir and the rare high-level magic artifacts, into his storage bag.

But this doesn't mean he didn't care about the five large chests of wealth that were stolen.

Now all we can do is pray to the gods and Buddhas, hoping that Zuoqiu Courtyard can capture that female thief, or at the very least, that she can escape alive. If she is also killed on the way because of her greed, Li Weiyi won't even know who the creditor is if she wants to get her money back.

Seeing his downcast mood, the Hidden Lord assumed he was still reflecting on his actions and said, "Experiences aren't scary; what's scary is not experiencing them. Only through continuous experience can you find the weaknesses of human nature within the Seven Emotions desires, and constantly correct and remedy them. True knowledge comes from countless trials!"

For the next few days, Li Weiyi spent his time at Zhuo Garden healing his injuries and cultivating his inner energy.

During this time, he met with Qi Xiao and learned about the female thief's situation. Although he failed to capture her, it seemed that the other side's forces also failed to subdue her.

It was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

"Help me investigate the people of the Sui Sect and keep a close eye on them," Li Weiyi said.

"Were they from the Sui Sect? They stole our money?"

Qi Xiao was furious, as if what had been stolen from him was not money, but his wife and children.

"Don't alert them, wait for my news," Li Weiyi said.

"Fine, those sons of bitches from the Sui Sect, they've dared to steal from me! Don't worry, the Qi Family has eyes and ears South City, they won't escape." Qi Xiao considered himself a calm person, but this time he lost face and money, and he was truly enraged!

As Lunar New Year's Eve draws ever closer, the festive atmosphere in Qiuzhou City grows stronger.

Those who could live in the state capital were almost all martial arts practitioners or mind masters. Many of them did not leave because of the upcoming Qianlong Lantern Festival, but instead looked forward to it.

After all, the influx of young martial arts practitioners from various states has made them incredibly wealthy.

On the eve of New Year's Eve, Li Weiyi finally completed the cultivation of his third Qi Sea.

After taking the Crimson Haze Exotic Medicine, he successfully broke through to the Fourth Realm of the Five Seas.

The Fourth Sea is the main sea, and the process of opening it up is extremely long. Even with the Spatial Power of the Buddha's Sarira assisting, it still took several hours to expand.

Li Weiyi used his mental power to look inside and, as everyone had said, the Fourth Sea was more than ten times larger than the first three combined.

The first Qi Sea, in all directions.

The second Qi Sea a depth of sixty-three squares.

The third Qi Sea is approximately 380 square meters.

He roughly estimated that the fourth Qi Sea was about 8,000 cubic meters in size, so vast that it was unbelievable that it was an internal world within a small lung.

It resembles a grand hall, twenty meters in length, width, and height, capable of storing magical energy as vast as a lake or the sea.

"No wonder everyone says that the Fourth Realm of the Five Seas are worlds apart. Opening up the main sea is indeed different; you no longer need to conserve your magical energy as much as before."

"Moreover, my magical energy seems to have reached the fourth-order level as well."

Li Weiyi felt a sense of ease and joy, as if the clouds had parted and the sun was shining. If he could fill his fourth Qi Sea to its fullest potential and reach a state of perfection, even without joining forces with those seven little guys, he would be fully capable of competing with top experts in the Five Seas Realm who were cultivating to the Seventh Sea.

After trying it out and breaking through his cultivation level, he used the springs in the palms of his hands to absorb Dao Fruit, and his Qi accumulation speed more than doubled.

If one continues to accumulate Qi step by step in this manner, it will take two to three years to cultivate the fourth Qi Sea to perfection.

Of course, he couldn't wait. Remembering the agreement he had made with his Coffin Master, he decided to directly implant the Dao Fruit into the fourth Qi Sea. So, he activated the Dao Ancestor Taiji Fish and entered the Blood Mud Space in the Microscopic World.

Within the Blood Mud Space, the Seven Phoenix Wing Moth Emperors had grown to six inches in size, equivalent to a normal cultivation level at the Fifth Realm of the Five Seas. However, their combat power was likely to be unmatched among martial artists of the Sixth Sea Realm.

As their cultivation level increases, the amount of medicinal herbs they require increases for every inch they grow.

From five inches to six inches, it consumed two Thousand-Year Elixir and three Xihe Flower from Li Weiyi.

I can't even imagine how many Thousand-Year Elixir I'd have to feed them to grow to seven inches long.

However, as their cultivation level increases, their special abilities gradually become more apparent.

One of the little creatures, which Li Weiyi called "Three Phoenixes," could unleash Golden Crow Flame that even his protective aura couldn't withstand, burning through it.

Li Weiyi used a mid-level magical artifact sword for testing.

The sword was severed by its wings, and the broken edge showed signs of melting.

Sitting down next to the Coffin Master's coffin, Li Weiyi explained his purpose.

The Coffin Master asked, "Is today the end of the year?"

"When I came in, it was already bright outside; it was the last day of the old year," Li Weiyi said.

Coffin Master said, "Eight thousand cubic meters is still considered quite large. We can risk directly inserting the Dao Fruit. Given the speed at which the Dao Fruit naturally releases its magical energy, it will fill the Qi Sea in just a few breaths, like a storm vortex. If it cannot be removed in time, there is a possibility that it might rupture the Qi Sea. This is one of the risks!"

"Secondly, the magical energy within the Dao Fruit is not something you cultivate. Once it enters your body on a large scale, it will cause strong rejection. It may even lead to situations where the magical energy becomes uncontrollable during battle."

"Therefore, martial artists who use this technique to quickly accumulate energy must spend a long time in seclusion to refine and master it."

"Now the question is, the last batch of invitations for the Qianlong Lantern Festival, as well as the rules, will be distributed and announced tonight at the Peach Plum Mountain."

"First, it's uncertain whether you'll be able to get the last batch of invitations. Second, it's uncertain what the rules are, and whether a battle will break out tonight?"

"You'll need at least a few days of seclusion to begin the initial tempering and temporary integration. I suggest you return from Peach Plum Mountain tonight before deciding whether to implant the Dao Fruit into your fourth Qi Sea; that would be safer."

(It takes several days to get the update schedule back on track after each disruption, please understand.)