Defense Map Complete, Wuchen Secret Realm Begins New Journey

The moment the crow flew towards the west of the city, I had already turned and left the plaza. Ye Qingwan followed behind, her steps as light as if she were afraid of disturbing something. I didn't return to my residence but instead skirted the east corner gate of the Ji Manor and, using the darkness as cover, slipped into a bluestone path that had been abandoned for many years. This path led deep into the Forbidden Ground, a place even the guards usually avoided.

She didn't ask where I was going, just followed silently.

I knew she was waiting for an answer. But she couldn't know everything yet.

The entrance to the secret chamber was hidden in a crack in the back wall of the old ancestral hall, with three ancient arrays barring the way. The first was the Soul-Locking Breath-Stillness Array, which sensed spiritual power flow; the second, the Spirit-Sensing Array, could discern the authenticity of an aura; the third, bloodline verification, non-direct lineage members were forbidden. Three years ago, when my Dao Bone was still intact, I could break through them with ease, but now I had to act like a mortal, painstakingly grinding out a gap.

I squatted down, my palm pressed against the ground.

The Pseudo-Primordial Body quietly circulated, drawing in wisps of scattered Remnant Dao aura into my body, then releasing it in reverse along the meridians, simulating the natural flow of Spiritual Energy. The array patterns flickered with a faint light a few times, as if their senses were being deceived, and slowly dimmed. The first layer was passed.

The second layer was more troublesome. The Spirit-Sensing Array didn't rely on spiritual pressure but specifically identified bloodlines and aura traces. I took out a small piece of dried medicinal residue from my sleeve—it was a remnant of the Impurity-Dispelling Powder Ye Qingwan had left here years ago. She had concocted medicine here once to avoid detection. The scent had long since faded, but the array still recognized this unique bitter fragrance. I crushed it and sprinkled it before the door. The medicinal scent spread, and the array patterns trembled slightly before finally falling silent.

The last layer relied on blood.

I bit my fingertip and pressed a drop of blood onto the bronze door ring. The blood bead seeped into the gap in the door, spreading along the ancient patterns. A moment later, a low "click" sounded, and the stone door slid inward.

A cold wind hit me.

In the center of the secret chamber, a bronze cauldron floated quietly, the ninth Remnant Dao Crystal slowly rotating above it, emitting a faint golden light. This was the last one I needed. For three years, I had used the System's assistance to collect these scattered fragments of the Heaven-Slaying Origin left from ancient battles, containing broken rules of power. Ordinary people would be incinerated upon contact, but only the Heaven-Slaying Origin could contain them.

I walked forward slowly and reached out to take the crystal.

The instant it left the cauldron, an invisible wave exploded from within me. A phantom image appeared behind me—a dark silhouette like the chaos at the beginning of creation, coiled like a dragon, yet seemingly with countless runes flowing and perishing within it. It wasn't an illusion, but a sign that the Heaven-Slaying Dao Foundation was about to condense. I immediately took out the incomplete scroll of the Nine Revolutions Profound Art to wrap the crystal. The broken runes lit up automatically, suppressing the leaking Dao rhythm.

At the same time, I sat down cross-legged, using the Pseudo-Primordial Body as a vessel to forcefully press the erupting Origin deep into my bone marrow. My heartbeat gradually stabilized, and the phantom image dissipated, as if it had never appeared.

But I knew that in that brief moment, if any Sky Patroler had passed by, they would have noticed something.

I closed my eyes and meditated for a moment, confirming my aura was stable before getting up and putting away the crystal. I also took out the Jade Slip from my bosom, and with a slight movement of my fingertip, I completely inscribed the Blood Demon Sect's defense map into it. The locations of the nine checkpoints, patrol rotation times, and hidden sentry distributions were all clearly presented. This was intelligence provided by Yan Jiuxiao, which I had reorganized into a truly usable map.

After finishing this, just as I was about to leave, the wooden door was pushed open.

Ye Qingwan stood at the doorway, her gaze fixed on the lingering air ripples behind me. There were still faint traces there, like the after-effects of ripples on water, only detectable by those extremely sensitive to Dao rhythm.

She didn't retreat, nor did she speak.

I knew she had already guessed many things. From the moment I revealed my skills in the black market to her witnessing this anomaly today, each event brought her closer to the truth.

"How much have you been hiding?" she finally asked, her voice very soft, yet undeniable.

I didn't evade.

"Enough to survive," I said.

She stared at me, her eyes sharp. "What was that just now? That aura... it doesn't resemble the inheritance of any sect."

"It's not an inheritance," I tossed the Jade Slip to her. "It's the reason you can't enter the Secret Realm."

She raised her hand to catch it. The moment her fingertips touched the surface of the Jade Slip, a faint golden light traced across her skin for a moment. Her pupils contracted, but she didn't let go.

"The Blood Demon Sect has set up seven checkpoints on the outer perimeter, one every hundred feet, with two guards on duty at night, equipped with tracking spirit hounds and heart-viewing mirrors," I said, looking at her. "If you go alone, you'll be discovered before you even get close to the mountain gate."

She looked down at the Jade Slip, her knuckles tightening slightly. "And you? Do you think you can get away unscathed?"

"I can," I said. "Because I understand how to hide better than they do."

She looked up at me, her gaze complex. "So, you plan to stay like this forever? Hiding in the shadows, controlling everything? Letting everyone think you're a good-for-nothing, and then when no one's paying attention—suddenly make a move?"

I didn't deny it.

"See you in the Secret Realm in three months," I said. "Don't be late."

With that, I walked past her, the hem of my clothes stirring up a gust of wind that extinguished the only remaining lamp on the stone platform. The moment the flame died, her shadow flickered on the wall, as if reaching out to grab me, but stopped in mid-air.

I didn't look back.

As I walked out of the secret chamber, the night wind blew through the dilapidated eaves of the ancestral hall. I concealed my aura and returned along the original path, my figure melting into the darkness. Behind me, the stone door slowly closed, as if it had never been opened.

And at this moment, the three strands of Heaven-Slaying Origin within me flowed stably, and the ninth Remnant Dao Crystal had settled deep within my bone marrow, faintly resonating with the other eight. The System's thoughts surfaced silently: Remnant Daos Unite, Heaven-Slaying Dao Foundation Will Commence.

For the next three months, I would continue to be the forgotten useless young master.

Until the day the Secret Realm opened.

Ye Qingwan was still standing there, clutching the Jade Slip in her hand.

She didn't chase after me, nor did she call out to me.

But the direction of her footsteps as she turned changed—not back to her own residence, but towards the deepest part of the medicinal hut.

There lay her rarely used alchemy furnace and a long-sealed copy of the Archaic Forbidden Formula.

She began to search for medicinal herbs.

Some things were already in motion.

I watched her for a while from the distant rooftop, then leaped down, disappearing into the night.

After returning to my residence, I took out an iron box from under the bed, opened it, and found nine small porcelain bottles neatly arranged inside, each containing a sample of the Remnant Dao Crystal's aura. I placed the ninth bottle in, closed the lid, and tapped it three times gently.

A faint vibration came from the bottom of the box, a hidden rune lit up, and then extinguished.

The setup was complete.

As soon as the Secret Realm opened, these pre-laid fuses would transmit outwards along the earth veins, forming a temporary interference field.

Enough to allow me to evade the first wave of pursuit.

I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes.

I could still faintly hear the sound of her flipping through the medicinal texts.

Tomorrow, she might come to question me further, or she might choose to act alone.

But it didn't matter.

What I had to give, I had already given.

What I had to do, I had already started.

The rest would depend on three months from now.

Moonlight slanted through the window, falling on the Jade Slip on the corner of the table.

There was a newly carved mark on it—the last one I had etched just moments ago.

It represented the blind spot of the seventh checkpoint.

My finger lightly traced the carving, pausing for a moment.

Then I gripped the edge tightly.