Leaving the Secret Realm!

Inside the treasure vault, the air felt as though it had frozen into ice, only to be suddenly ignited by a flame of shame and fury.

Leng Weiyue was the first to strike, her voice cold and bone-piercing, yet carrying a trace of suppressed trembling. Demonic energy roiled faintly around her, betraying her inner turmoil: "If a single word of today's events leaks out... no matter where you flee to in the Nine Heavens or Ten Earths, I, Leng Weiyue, in the name of the Saintess of the Heavenly Demon Sect, will grind your bones to dust!"

Her words still carried a threat, but compared to her previous decisive lethality, there was now an inexplicable lack of conviction and a layer of indescribable, indignant shame.

Ye Lingshuang followed closely behind, her pretty face frosted over. The Autumn Water Sword in her hand remained pointed at Li Qingshan, the tip trembling almost imperceptibly.

She took a deep breath, struggling to maintain her usual icy composure, but the flush at her earlobes betrayed her: "This matter... was caused by the demonic energy, a mere accident! You... you had best forget it immediately! If I hear even a whisper of this in the outside world, do not blame me for being heartless with my sword!"

Her voice was calmer than Leng Weiyue's, but beneath that calm lay a volcano on the verge of eruption.

Li Qingshan felt his scalp tingle. He hurriedly cupped his hands, lowering his posture significantly, his tone sincere and filled with utter innocence: "Fairies, please be discerning! This was purely an accident; I was not in control of myself and had not the slightest intention of profanity! Everything that happened today, once I step out of this door, I shall bury deep in my gut and never mention it to a third person for the rest of my life! If I break this oath, may I be struck by heavenly lightning and have my path to the Dao utterly destroyed!"

He stole a glance at their expressions, thinking to himself: I've gained massive benefits and even broken through in cultivation; playing the coward and acting like a grandson is the only correct choice right now.

Ye Lingshuang stared at him with beautiful eyes, seemingly trying to find a flaw in his face, and asked coldly: "Who exactly are you? State your name!"

She kept feeling that this person looked familiar, but her mind was in such chaos that she could not think clearly.

Li Qingshan's thoughts raced; he absolutely could not give his real name.

He immediately bowed and replied: "Reporting to Fairy Ye, this humble one is... a rogue cultivator named Zhou Yun." He still chose the alias Zhou Yun.

"Zhou Yun..."

Ye Lingshuang repeated the name silently, half-doubting, but she had no heart to investigate further at this moment. She snorted coldly, retracted her long sword, and turned away, no longer looking at him, though the slight rise and fall of her shoulders revealed her inner unrest.

Leng Weiyue also gave Li Qingshan a deep look, as if trying to etch his appearance into her memory, before turning her head away to straighten her slightly disheveled collar. The atmosphere was so awkward it could almost drip water.

Just then, the world-shaking roars and demonic howls outside gradually subsided, and the infiltrating demonic energy dissipated almost entirely.

The three exchanged a glance, each seeing vigilance and lingering fear in the others' eyes.

Ye Lingshuang walked toward the exit of the treasure vault first, saying coldly: "The demonic energy seems to have weakened. Let us go out and see, but be extremely careful."

Leng Weiyue said nothing, but followed her.

Li Qingshan naturally dared not fall behind, following cautiously at the very end.

The three concealed their auras and stepped out of the ruins in silence. The sight before them made them gasp.

The Mysterious Sky Secret Realm, already a ruin, was now even more devastated; the earth was torn asunder, mountains had collapsed, and the air was filled with the residual fluctuations of demonic energy colliding with spiritual energy.

But what was most shocking was the firmament above!

A gargantuan, indescribable phantom of a terrifying Demonic Beast was slowly dissipating, yet its lingering pressure was enough to shatter one's heart and soul.

Clearly, it had just been through a cataclysmic battle.

In the high sky in the distance, several figures radiating auras as deep as the abyss and capable of stirring the power of heaven and earth flickered in and out of view—they were the Nascent Soul ancestors of the various sects!

The spiritual light around them was slightly dim, clearly having expended a great deal of energy to repel or even severely wound the beast.

"Nascent Soul old monsters?!"

Li Qingshan's gaze sharpened. Feeling the presence of those incomparably powerful figures in the void, his heart was filled with shock.

These were the peak combatants of the major sects, the pillars that held up the sky.

Even something as powerful as that ancient Demonic Beast was no match for the Nascent Soul old monsters and had been driven back.

"The Nascent Soul ancestors have personally taken action..." Ye Lingshuang murmured, her eyes filled with awe.

"That beast... seems to have been severely wounded and fled." Leng Weiyue's tone was grave. As a demonic cultivator, her perception of the beast's terror was even more profound.

"Severely wounded and fled?"

Li Qingshan grew inwardly vigilant.

He had to remember, it was he who had taken the Purple Gold Gourd and released that beast.

Was there any connection between that beast and the Purple Gold Gourd?

He must be careful from now on.

Just then, violent spatial fluctuations erupted near the entrance of the secret realm, and a massive light gate was forcibly stabilized and propped open.

Several powerful divine senses swept across the secret realm like searchlights.

"The entrance to the secret realm has been forcibly opened! The elders of the sects have come in to provide support and investigate!" Li Qingshan whispered, his heart tightening instantly.

Sure enough, several streaks of light soon flew in. Leading them were several Golden Core cultivators, among whom one scorching and furious divine sense was particularly eye-catching—it was Zhang Yuzhen of the Spring Autumn Sect!

Li Qingshan immediately pushed the Lesser Heaven-Veiling Secret Art to its limit, perfectly concealing his aura, cultivation fluctuations, and even the special traces left behind by the "accident," blending into the crowd of surviving rogue cultivators with his head bowed and heart filled with trepidation.

Zhang Yuzhen's divine sense combed through the survivors like a comb, lingering particularly long on the male cultivators, clearly searching for the murderer of Zhang Hongxiu and anyone suspicious.

Her gaze was sharp as a blade, carrying undisguised killing intent.

When her divine sense swept over Li Qingshan, it paused for a fraction of a second.

Li Qingshan's heart jumped into his throat, but the Lesser Heaven-Veiling Secret Art was extraordinary, and with his cultivation now at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, the concealment effect was even stronger.

Zhang Yuzhen found nothing unusual; she merely felt that this Foundation Establishment Early Stage rogue cultivator's aura was unusually calm, but she didn't think much of it and quickly moved her divine sense away.

At the same time, Ye Lingshuang and Leng Weiyue also felt Zhang Yuzhen's probe.

Subconsciously and with extreme subtlety, the two women shifted their positions, just enough to slightly block the direction where Li Qingshan stood. Though they might not have realized this subtle movement themselves, it undoubtedly interfered with Zhang Yuzhen's perception to a certain extent.

A narrow escape!

Li Qingshan broke out in a cold sweat, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.

Under the organization of the various sect elders, the surviving cultivators began to evacuate the Mysterious Sky Secret Realm in an orderly fashion.

Li Qingshan blended into the crowd, head bowed, following the flow of people until he finally stepped through the light gate and returned to the Ancient Battlefield Ruins.

Breathing in the familiar air of the outside world, Li Qingshan felt as though a lifetime had passed.

This trip to the secret realm had been treacherous and unpredictable.

Not only had his cultivation unexpectedly broken through to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage and secured the Spirit Liquid Immortal Spring, but he had also experienced that unspeakable "accident"...

Now that he was out of danger, a practical question lay before him: should he return to the Spring Autumn Sect?

Returning meant having the protection of the sect, a relatively stable cultivation environment and resources, and perhaps even the chance to access more profound techniques.

However, the risks were equally immense; Zhang Yuzhen was like a sword hanging over his head. Although he had managed to deceive her this time, as time went on, it was hard to guarantee he wouldn't slip up.

Furthermore, how was he to face Ye Lingshuang?

Even though both parties had agreed to forget it, and Ye Lingshuang did not know that he was Li Qingshan, seeing her again would inevitably be awkward.

Not returning meant the world was vast and open; relying on the Wish-Fulfilling Gourd and his current cultivation, he could likely live quite well as a carefree rogue cultivator.

But the path of a rogue cultivator was arduous, resources were difficult to obtain, and one was easily targeted for murder and treasure-snatching...

Li Qingshan gazed toward the direction of the Spring Autumn Sect, his eyes flickering as he fell into deep contemplation.