Secret Realm (Two Chapters Combined)

The snowy night in the mountains and forests was an endless expanse of darkness; one could only feel the icy chill of the snowflakes, like willow catkins, constantly brushing against one's cheeks.

He circulated his Cultivation Method to ward off the cold, and wisps of blood-red light quietly appeared in Xu Yuan's eyes, making the surrounding dark forests clearly visible.

As they hurried along, the cold wind whistled past their ears, and all they could see was Ran Qingmo's graceful figure strolling through the dark forest.

She deliberately maintained a pace that he could keep up with.

Compared to Ran Qingmo's ethereal and otherworldly demeanor, Xu Yuan's way of traveling was quite un-cultivational, resembling those ninjas he had seen in his previous life who swung their arms and ran through the forest.

About an hour later, the forest disappeared, and a frozen river appeared before them. Ran Qingmo landed beside the river valley.

Xu Yuan stopped a few meters behind her and subconsciously glanced back.

Tianyan was still there, following about three meters behind.

A pair of golden pupils stood out against the dark, snowy night, though he was a bit short.

Xu Yuan glanced down with eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty light.

She was still barefoot, her slightly oversized palace dress trailing on the snow, leaving ripples in her wake as she walked.

They were barefoot on such a cold snowy night, didn't they feel cold?

With high cultivation, one can truly do whatever one wants.

Ran Qingmo continued to lead the way, Xu Yuan also withdrew his gaze. The silence lasted for about fifteen minutes before one of the three suddenly spoke.

It wasn't Xu Yuan, but Ran Qingmo, who was leading the way. Her voice was very soft:

"Tianyan, why... why are you here?"

As she spoke, she stopped leading the way and turned back to quietly look at the little girl who was lagging behind at the back of the group.

In the darkness, the wind and snow were heavy, yet all was quiet.

Xu Yuan also stopped in his tracks. He felt that Ran Qingmo and Tian Tianyan should be acquaintances, so it was no wonder they hadn't said a word to each other.

Tianyan did react to Ran Qingmo's words. His golden eyes, which were particularly conspicuous in the darkness, calmly glanced at Ran Qingmo before turning his gaze back to Xu Yuan.

Well, here comes a little girl who talks even less than Ran Qingmo.

From now on, I'll call you Little Ice Block.

Of course, if he were to actually take action, Xu Yuan would still hope that she would turn into a solid block of ice.

Ran Qingmo's clear eyes flickered slightly as she glanced at Xu Yuan and carefully transmitted her voice:

"Xu Yuan, why is she here?"

Xu Yuan sighed and shrugged:

"I don't know. Old Man Luo said it was because I deviated from her deduction that she came looking for me. I guess she's been following us for a while now."

He paused, then added a reminder:

"Also, she can hear Tianyan even without needing to transmit her voice."

Ran Qingmo glanced at Tianyan again.

Tianyan also glanced at Ran Qingmo.

Ran Qingmo first withdrew his gaze, pondered for a moment, and asked in a low voice:

"Will she be in danger if she comes with us?"

Xu Yuan shrugged:

"I'm not sure, but it's highly likely. I ruined her vision of the future, and she went to great lengths to find me. It's unlikely she would do that just to see me."

The Great Yan Empire is vast, and finding someone in this immense world is truly difficult.

Upon hearing this, Ran Qingmo drew her sword, held it in her hand, and stared at Tianyan. Waves of Source Qi emanated from her body.

"I'll hold her off, and you escape with Mr. Luo?"

This time, Ran Qingmo did not use telepathy.

A clandestine plot, made without any attempt at concealment.

Upon seeing this, Xu Yuan immediately glanced at Tianyan.

The little girl remained unresponsive, acting as an indifferent bystander.

Xu Yuan shook his head:

Old Man Luo said she might be a second-rank official.

" At the Origin Beginning Realm, I might be able to escape," Ran Qingmo said softly.

Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

There is a major hurdle between a second-grade Origin Beginning and a third-grade Grandmaster. Many geniuses are stuck here for their entire lives, and the difference in combat power must be quite significant.

Back then, above the Jingjiang Xu Estate, when faced with the approaching mysterious Origin Beginning, Zhou Chen and Si Ziyu were instantly drained of their Qi.

However, Xu Yuan believed that Ran Qingmo could escape from Origin Beginning's grasp.

Old Man Luo and Xu Changge had a very high opinion of Ran Qingmo, roughly equating him with one of the most invincible people of the same level.

While invincible among those of the same level, though not to the point of being able to fight opponents of higher levels as when one's cultivation was lower, one should still have a certain degree of confidence in escaping.

But even if Tianyan is only a second-rank cultivator, he can't be an ordinary second-rank cultivator.

The cultivation Cultivation Method passed down by the Heavenly Oversight Pavilion Master are no joke.

Thinking of this, Xu Yuan glanced at her and continued:

"It could be a second-rank official, or it could be a first-rank official."

Upon hearing this, Ran Qingmo fell silent. After a long pause, she suddenly asked:

"Um... is your brother Xu Yuan still there?"

"."

Xu Yuan rolled his eyes and turned to Tianyan, asking:

"Hey, Tianyan, is Xu Changge there?"

"."

Tianyan stared at him quietly.

"Oh, looks like he's not here."

Xu Yuan smiled, then turned to Ran Qingmo and asked:

"After you rescued her, she remained silent like this too?"

Ran Qingmo recalled briefly and nodded:

"Hmm, more or less."

Xu Yuan looked at him strangely and asked:

"Ran Qingmo, you dared to bring a little girl with this kind of personality into such a dangerous place as Nine Abyss Gorge. Don't you find that strange?"

Ran Qingmo was quiet for a moment, then tilted her head and asked:

"Hmm, what's strange?"

"."

Xu Yuan remained silent, glancing at Ran Qingmo and then at Tianyan.

Different appearances, same expression, belonging to the same world, but you are different now.

He suddenly became curious about the scene of Ran Qingmo taking Tianyan on his travels in Nine Abyss Gorge.

The two ice blocks, one big and one small, probably couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

Xu Yuan collected his thoughts and said:

"Hmm, there's nothing strange about it. By the way, how much longer until we reach the entrance to the secret realm?"

Ran Qingmo hesitated slightly upon hearing this:

Are you taking her with you?

"If we can win, we won't bring it."

We've arrived.

As she spoke, Ran Qingmo pointed ahead.

Xu Yuan looked in the direction Ran Qingmo's slender finger pointed, but the snowy night in the mountains was too dark. Even with his current cultivation level, Xu Yuan could only see a distance of about 100 meters around him, thanks to the Origin Source Qi he could see.

After walking a little further, Xu Yuan paused slightly.

In the darkness, the heavy snow continued to fall tirelessly from the sky.

This is a lake at the foot of a waterfall, surrounded by withered trees. The waterfall has stopped flowing, and the lake surface, which is twenty feet in diameter, is frozen over.

In the middle of the frozen lake, a hundred meters away, a giant tiger with fleshy wings on its back lay quietly on the ice.

Even though the group had approached within a hundred meters, the Qiongqi- like behemoths showed no sign of moving.

After walking a while longer, Xu Yuan finally understood.

The reason it was so quiet was probably because the giant tiger's head had been pierced by an icicle, and spiderweb-like cracks were spreading from the thick ice beneath it.

Xu Yuan also roughly identified the breed of the big cat based on its characteristics.

Cloud Wing Tiger.

It looks intimidating, but it's really just for show; its strength is far inferior to the previous White Fierce Bird.

Of course, saying that the Cloud Wing Tiger is not strong is only from the perspective of cultivators. To ordinary mountain people, it is a mountain lord that feeds on humans.

No wonder all the mountain villages in the Guanyin Mountain Range have been abandoned.

Including the White Fierce Bird we ate tonight and the Blood Tooth Porcupine we ate the day before yesterday, there are already three powerful demonic Demon Beast. There must be countless other ferocious beasts entrenched in the mountains and forests. This Guanyin Mountain Range is almost a den of Demon Beast.

Composing himself, Xu Yuan looked around. Finding no entrance behind the interrupted waterfall, he turned and asked:

Is the entrance at the bottom of the lake?

"Um."

"How do we get in?" Xu Yuan asked.

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly saw out of the corner of his eye that Ran Qingmo had taken out his Black Sword and then swung it downwards towards the frozen lake.

A flash of sword light streaked across the snowy night in the mountains and forests, a blue gleam passing by.

After a moment of silence, the wind swept through, and the snow that had settled overnight flew everywhere, creating a scene like a fairyland.

With a single stroke of the sword, the entire lake was neatly cleaved open, and the chilling sword intent spread down to freeze its surface before the water on both sides could flow back to the center.

A small ice canyon formed by the lake water appeared in Xu Yuan's eyes.

Ran Qingmo turned around and said calmly in a soft voice:

"Let's go, the entrance is at the bottom of the lake."

Containing his amazed gaze, Xu Yuan walked to the lakeside, glanced down, and frowned slightly.

This small lake is only twenty feet in diameter, but its depth is almost pitch black.

"Do you need me to carry you?" Ran Qingmo asked as she walked to Xu Yuan's side.

Xu Yuan shook his head. "No need."

That's at least a hundred meters high, but who would be foolish enough to jump right off?

Splash--

The wind blew her clothes, Ran Qingmo jumped down.

"."

Xu Yuan smacked his lips, glanced back at Tianyan, and said:

"Tianyan, if you don't kill me, I'll go into the secret realm."

"..." Tianyan stared at Xu Yuan, his golden eyes gleaming, but he remained silent.

Xu Yuan sighed, activated his internal Cultivation Method, and leaped into the air, weaving between the ice layers on both sides before finally landing safely at the bottom of the lake.

Upon entering the lake, Xu Yuan was immediately drawn to a dark purple portal.

The portal was nestled among the sand and stones at the bottom of the lake, its light swirling and emitting faint fluctuations of Source Qi.

"Is this the place?" Xu Yuan asked as he walked up to Ran Qingmo.

"Hmm." Ran Qingmo nodded. "The entrance to the Sword Sect's secret realm that my master took me to looks like this."

Seeing this, Xu Yuan hesitated for a moment and asked, "Is there anything I should be careful about when going in?"

Although he had entered countless secret realms in the game Cangyuan, this was his first time in reality.

Ran Qingmo shook her head:

"No, you can just go in."

Xu Yuan pondered for a moment, then began to search his mind again for relevant information about this secret realm.

About half a minute later, Xu Yuan prepared to take Ran Qingmo's hand.

If you don't go together, the entrance to this secret realm will randomly teleport you to different locations within the realm.

But as soon as Xu Yuan took a step, he felt his hand being held by someone else.

It wasn't Ran Qingmo, because her hands were very small.

Looking to the side, he saw that Tianyan had jumped down at some point and appeared silently beside him, even reaching out to grab him.

Xu Yuan tried to pull his hand out, but couldn't.

With a slight effort, Tianyan's petite body was flung around in the air from the bottom of the lake.

He landed lightly on the ground, and Tianyan stared at him with the same expression as before.

Xu Yuan looked at Tianyan as if he were looking at a lunatic, but his heart sank slightly.

He originally intended to use this teleportation mechanism to shake off Tianyan, but the other party seemed to know about the strangeness of this secret realm entrance!

Just as I was thinking,

A cold glint flashed unexpectedly from the dark lakebed!

Ran Qingmo drew her sword.

With a speed that Xu Yuan couldn't even see clearly, he slashed down at Tianyan's thin arm with his sword.

In the blink of an eye,

"Stop."

A child's innocent voice murmured from the bottom of the silent lake.

In an instant,

As if time had stood still, the Black Sword instantly froze at a distance of one foot from Tianyan, unable to advance an inch further.

Ran Qingmo gripped her sword, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.

A moment of silence,

A wisp of cold blue light emanated from the blade, causing the Black Sword, which was suspended in mid-air, to tremble.

Tianyan's eyes were calm, his small mouth slightly open:

"Seal up."

The blue, cold light on the sword blade vanished instantly.

Upon seeing Tianyan's bizarre methods, Xu Yuan didn't hesitate and immediately spoke up:

"Ran Qingmo!"

"."

Ran Qingmo didn't turn around, but stared at Tianyan. She had discovered something from the probing earlier.

Xu Yuan exhaled and said softly:

"Ran Qingmo, let her hold on if she wants. If there's any real danger, Old Man Luo has already taken action. He should know something about the Yantian Art."

This old man is probably spying on us now.

Even with the ideological imprint still intact, he was still considered half one of us.

Ran Qingmo hesitated slightly, but still put the sword away.

Tianyan then lowered his eyes.

Xu Yuan smiled slightly, took Tianyan's hand, and extended his hand to her:

Let's go.

Ran Qingmo hesitated slightly as she stared at Xu Yuan's outstretched hand, but still placed her own hand on it.

Perhaps due to the Cultivation Method she used, her hands were very cold, but her snow-white skin was crystal clear and delicate.

"Normally, there are teleportation platforms inside secret realms. The teleportation platform in this secret realm has been destroyed, and its location is uncertain. If you don't travel together, you will be teleported to different places."

After a slight hesitation, Xu Yuan still offered an explanation.

After saying that, he pulled Ran Qingmo and Tianyan into the dark purple light gate of the secret realm.

Inside the secret realm, the sky was a clear blue, without any trace of the bitter cold of the snow-covered mountains outside.

Birds sing and flowers bloom, the forest is lush and verdant, and a gentle breeze creates cascading waves on the lawn.

Xu Yuan slowly woke up, and immediately got up alertly to look around.

This vast expanse of grassy plains stretches to the horizon, where a towering mountain rises, its peaks shrouded in clouds.

Xu Yuan frowned and looked around, only to see a strange girl dressed in a light red palace dress, sitting quietly beside him with her legs drawn up.

Her face was unadorned, pure and lovely. Her golden eyes were deep and clear like a still lake. She had a flat chest, and beneath her palace dress, one could see a pair of snow-white, crystal-clear jade feet with ten white toes.

No, it's not a strange girl.

This is the Tianyan!

Xu Yuan's expression shifted, and he took a slight step back.

"Are you Tianyan?"

"Giggle~"

The strange young girl reacted this way upon seeing Xu Yuan wake up. Her laughter was as clear as silver bells, and her beautiful golden eyes curved into two crescent moons. She slowly got up, brushed off the weeds stuck to her palace dress, and moved closer to Xu Yuan:

"Guess? If you guess right, I'll tell you."

"Ah~ no, you've already guessed right, I am Tianyan."

Xu Yuan stared at the woman. "Where's Ran Qingmo?"

The young girl, Tianyan, raised a slender finger and gently touched her chin, tilting her head slightly:

"They were probably teleported somewhere else."

Xu Yuan frowned.

Tianyan chuckled, like an elf, his golden eyes gleaming with a bewitching light in the sunlight.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm serious. There's no need to kill you or Ran Qingmo right now."