New Chapter: Passing By

The Void Golden Lotus, like a streak of fire in the universe, flashes by at lightning speed, its fragrance refreshing and invigorating, drawing one's spirit from a great distance.

It is as large as a small mountain, with twelve petals shimmering with golden light. It travels through the void and moves on its own.

The Wu Tian shone its crystal-clear light through the top of its head, and finally its trajectory could be observed, but it missed it several times.

The black Fishing Net was also in pursuit, descending from the sky, but was stopped by Wang Xuan in time. He waved his sleeves, and a killing formation diagram intertwined, blocking its path.

"Alright, we'll split it evenly once we get out!" Wu Tian flapped his black wings, and with a boom, the void exploded. He rushed through, not having time to say anything more, because the Void Golden Lotus was too fast.

After briefly blocking the way, Wang Xuan did not make another move and moved aside, watching as the large black net flew away and rushed towards a place where flames were boiling.

"Are there any good things in there?" Wang Xuan gazed into the distance.

In the boiling lava, golden-red loaches swam about, their bodies glowing with divine light. The Fishing Net truly lived up to its name; I ran over to scoop them up.

"Fire dragons that can be used in medicine?" Wang Xuan followed and scooped up three more from the lava. That was all that was left; almost all of them had been caught. There were originally hundreds of fire dragons in the red lava, but they had all disappeared.

He gasped; the people on the Floating Boat Pure Land were sure to be stuffed this time.

Wang Xuan turned and left, beginning to collect strange objects. But none of them could compare to the vast black net, which covered everything and left nothing but barren land in its wake.

In the secret realm, no powerful primordial beasts or ferocious birds of prey were seen for the time being; only a few low-level auspicious birds and small beasts were observed. Otherwise, the restrictions in those medicinal fields would not have been able to protect the immortal Immortal Medicine.

"Nice one!"

Finally, Wang Xuan encountered another much-needed "main medicine," a crimson glow that sped through the void, a piece of Heavenly Phoenix True Bone surrounded by rune flames.

This is the bone of the Undying Heavenly Phoenix. Theoretically, it should be able to undergo rebirth, but for some reason, this bone encountered an accident and is now unable to regenerate.

The crimson fire was terrifying, burning Wang Xuan's palms with intense pain. The rank of this Heavenly Phoenix in its lifetime was astonishing; even now, intricate patterns still appear and disappear on its bones.

He clashed with it several times, chasing it for over a hundred miles before finally managing to suppress it and take it away.

The secret realm was vast. After obtaining the Heavenly Phoenix True Bone, Wang Xuan was in high spirits. If things continued this way, the medicinal wine to aid in cultivation would be ready, and he could indeed brew it.

Suddenly, an eerie atmosphere filled the air, and a huge shadow was cast in the distance, which was then illuminated by boundless golden light.

An extremely powerful raptor appeared. When its enormous body flapped its wings, the peaks and mountains below trembled, and some were even blown off the ground.

These are all sacred mountains, each with its own restrictions, making them very difficult to destroy. Yet, that ferocious bird was able to uproot them by fanning them.

"Golden-winged Great Peng, Super Peerless?!" Wang Xuan's expression turned solemn.

"Dead!" Wu Tian appeared carrying a huge Void Golden Lotus, which he had caught up with and plucked. He saw the ferocious bird in the distance and his expression turned serious.

"Yes, it's a puppet!" Wang Xuan nodded.

It seems this secret realm is not as peaceful as imagined; there are still great dangers within.

In this area, the black Fishing Net collided with the Golden-winged Great Peng, creating a massive, overwhelming attack, aiming to collect the terrifying, enormous ferocious bird as its raw material.

There was clearly a problem ahead; Golden-winged Great Peng blocked the way. Its wings were like celestial blades capable of destroying everything, slicing through the void and tearing apart the giant black net.

Wang Xuan decisively turned back, first digging up the rare items that were easy to obtain, unwilling to waste even a moment.

Most importantly, he was very interested in the mountain where the scarecrow was located and wanted to try his sword there again.

A moment later, when the sword light flashed again, Wang Xuan was cut in half at the waist. A large patch of Blood Water on the ground was crimson, quite gruesome. He had rarely encountered such a tragic situation on his journey.

This time, in particular, no runes lit up to help him restore his physical body and spirit.

His expression was solemn. He knew he could die here if he wasn't careful, so he had to be cautious. But he was unwilling to give up and wanted to continue testing his sword.

"Puff!"

This time, he was severed at the shoulder, his intestines spilling out onto the ground. The soaring Sword Dao Patterns pierced a large hole in the sky above the secret realm.

Wang Xuan's expression was serious as he attacked again, confronting the scarecrow. He consistently employed swordsmanship, unleashing one sword wheel after another, countless strands of sword energy. He was like the sun Shine Upon across the world, his sword light everywhere.

Finally, the rotten wooden sword in the scarecrow's hand broke off again. Wang Xuan was pierced through the forehead by the Broken Sword and fell straight backward.

This time, he was in a daze, his primordial spirit was in that terrifying Broken Sword, and he felt the supreme sword dao, as if a sea of stars had exploded in his spiritual realm and then extinguished, a scene of the Cosmic Birth and Death.

Is that the true meaning that a sword should originally possess?

If it weren't for the scarecrow standing here, but rather the creator of the scriptures, and he were to strike with his sword, that primal sword light could cause the Cosmic Birth and Death, and could destroy all things and all spirits.

At this point, Wang Xuan believed that this must be the sword path left behind by the Supreme Being.

This time, just as he was about to use the Undying Silkworm Regeneration Technique, a stream of light flowed from the platform, covering him, healing his injuries, and tempering his body and spirit.

After his pierced head was restored to its original state, his spiritual practice improved, and the second page of scripture flowed from the scarecrow, illuminating his heart.

Wang Xuan understood that only by demonstrating exceptional skill during the confrontation, striking the scarecrow or damaging its wooden sword, could he receive this reward.

"It's been so many years since we've had someone like you." On the mountain, a half-skeleton struggled to sit up from the earth and rocks, shaking off the dust.

His condition was unusual; he should have died, but a faint flame of spirit still flickered within his shattered skull—a lingering obsession that hadn't been completely extinguished.

"Who are you?" Wang Xuan asked in surprise. He had previously thought that there were only skeletons under the ground, and that it was just an inanimate object.

"I died, only a wisp of the resentful sword intent from back then remains, but after this awakening, it will soon dissipate," the remains said.

His body was riddled with sword holes, most of his skull was missing, and every bone had a sword wound. He had exhausted himself to death while testing his sword here.

Sure enough, he nodded and said that back then, he had become obsessed with sword practice and fought against the sword intent left behind by the "False Saint" at all costs, resulting in his own defeat and death.

"False Saint?" Wang Xuan asked in surprise.

"How much time has passed that later generations no longer know the origin of the scarecrow? One of the False Saint, who was strangled by our ancestors, left his true swordsmanship here..."

Wang Xuan remained silent. The so-called False Saint were probably the ancestors of Bai Hong, Jin Yao, and others, who were despised and slandered by their enemies and were not given respect.

However, their adversaries did not completely deny their techniques. Leaving the scarecrow was to give their disciples and descendants a chance to test their swordsmanship. Those who truly had the talent for swordsmanship could obtain the inner scriptures.

"You're quite remarkable. The scarecrow contains four sword manuals, and you've already obtained two of them. That's truly rare," the skeleton said, treating Wang Xuan as one of his own and automatically considering him a member of the True Saint lineage, assuming that the secret realm had reopened.

Wang Xuan didn't explain, and continued practicing his swordsmanship. He was very interested in the four volumes of sword manuals. Then, the bloody scene reappeared, during which he was repeatedly slashed to pieces.

"Incredible! You're just a true immortal, yet you dare to come here to test your sword. I had already reached the Heavenly level back then," the skeleton said wistfully.

In that era, he was regarded as a sword prodigy, but he went mad from practicing swordsmanship and died tragically here in the end, never obtaining the supreme scripture.

To his astonishment, Wang Xuan swung his sword one last time, fiercely battling the scarecrow and shattering its wooden sword completely.

Of course, he himself also "died a heroic death," having now completely obtained the four pages of the true scripture.

"Incredible." The sword intent within the skeleton dissipated into a stream of light. Seeing that a future genius had reached this point and obtained the False Saint's sword manual from the scarecrow's body, he felt as if he had been freed from this burden.

Wang Xuan's departure meant that every minute of delay was a silent missed opportunity and destiny.

In the distance, the Golden-winged Great Peng had long since disappeared, taken away by a large black net.

Wang Xuan also ventured into this problematic area of the secret realm. Then, he saw terrifying Fist Light, blinding Black Feather flying swords shuttling through, Dark Light obscuring the sky, and Wu Dalang fighting fiercely with someone.

In that area, countless figures surged about. Wu Tian was fighting with a group of people and was surrounded and attacked. He was covered in burly men and was overwhelmed.

However, he did not encounter any danger. People were torn to pieces from time to time, killed by the Black Feather sword light, or blown apart by the pair of Black Feather fans he carried.

"There are Soul-Returning Flower here, at least four, deep within this Corpse-Raising Ground!" Wu Tian shouted, introducing the situation.

The Soul-Returning Flower is extremely rare. Even if one's primordial spirit is shattered, destroyed, or scattered, it can be used to reassemble a powerful primordial spirit. It is the most exquisite treasure in the world and is priceless!

These burly men are all zombies, not a single one of them is alive. They are ancient people from some unknown era. They must have been very strong and incredibly powerful in life. The weakest of them is at the True Immortal level.

In the distance, a group of zombies came charging towards them. They were almost indistinguishable from living people, with rosy complexions, no Death Qi, and immense strength; they were all Heavenly-level monsters.

When Wu Tian smashed the head of a Heavenly-level monster, its brains splattered out, making him question his existence. How could the taste be so similar to that of the Calming Soup? He was a little confused.

Wang Xuan also made his move, unleashing a killing formation that cleaved some zombies in two, slicing their bodies apart.

"What are you daydreaming about? Come on, let's go pick the Soul-Returning Flower!" Wang Xuan called out to him.

"Did I... really drink a bowl of a million-year-old zombie's brain matter?" Wu Tian was uncertain. What exactly were the ingredients of that Calming Soup?

However, now was not the time to hesitate. They joined forces and charged in, venturing deep into the Corpse-Raising Ground. Covered by a massive black net, they were entangled with several terrifying creatures. These giants were enormous, each hundreds of meters tall, not through any magical means, but simply because they were born that way.

Ultimately, they were shredded by the black net and were not collected as materials.

Wang Xuan and Wu Tian acted swiftly, each picking two Soul-Returning Flower. The black net didn't stop; it turned over the Corpse-Raising Ground, where the Yin energy was overwhelming. In the place where the Death Qi was at its extreme, they found three more Soul-Returning Flower. The Fishing Net was instantly pulled away and they went far away.

"There are too many good things, which makes me a little scared. Will it alert the so-called True Saint?" Wu Tian was unsure. They had swept up many rare items, all of which were legendary treasures, some of which had long been extinct in the outside world.

"It's alright. Just keep an eye on that big black net. We'll run away whenever it leaves!" Wang Xuan said.

The two separated again to avoid competing and wasting each other's time. They and the black net were like three arrows charging forward, continuing their search for destiny.

Wang Xuan sped for five hundred miles, no longer interested in ordinary rare objects, and went straight for the legendary top-tier Divine Item. Because he was "picky" and went too far, he had already surpassed the black net.

He suddenly stopped and saw a Thatched Hut, covered in dust, as if it had been neglected for many years and was long abandoned and silent.

However, the moment Wang Xuan approached this area, something was triggered. The Thatched Hut and courtyards glowed, runes lit up, and then the door was pushed open.

Someone stepped forward and exclaimed in surprise, "There are still hundreds of years to go, yet the secret realm has opened ahead of schedule?"

"Wait, who are you? An enemy has intruded into the secret realm!" The man was alert and immediately sensed the anomaly with his divine sense. The void around him collapsed, and blinding runic light rose from his flesh and blood, ready to strike deadly!

"The world changes, and people come and go. I'm lost. I just happened to pass by here," Wang Xuan said.