Rank 1

There was nothing on the memorial, only a single image.

A bolt of Heavenly Punishment struck down, and three figures were reduced to fly ash.

Five minutes ago, District 33 of the Immortal Seeking Domain, Ghost Wood Secret Realm.

A massive tree had pulled its roots from the ground and was carrying three people forward.

An old man and a pair of Black and White Impermanence.

Black Impermanence wore a look of confusion: "Team Leader, that pig is not weak. Why not seek out other powerhouses instead of repeatedly targeting these sinister types? You even crossed districts to find them."

The old man glanced at him: "You must be new, right? Let me teach you a lesson: in the Enforcement Hall, watch more and speak less!"

He paused for a moment, feeling an obligation to instruct his subordinate so he wouldn't be tricked to his death without even knowing it.

"Powerhouses cherish their lives; they won't risk their necks fighting other experts just because you or I egg them on. But these sinister Path Seekers are different. Even if it hurts them without benefiting anyone, they'll still do it.

Besides, they have all sorts of tricks up their sleeves. Who knows when they might land a massive blow on that pig!"

Black Impermanence was still confused: "Then why look for ones in District 33?"

"Because once the secret realm ends, District 33 will merge with District 66," the White Impermanence beside him replied expressionlessly.

Black Impermanence opened his mouth. He had only just become an Enforcer and didn't understand the inner workings. After thinking for a moment, he whispered: "Should we not report this to the Enforcement Hall?"

The old man gave a mocking laugh: "You can try, but see if you can actually report anything regarding Law Enforcement Inspector matters."

The identity of a Law Enforcement Inspector is special; only those who know of it simultaneously can discuss it. If you try to tell anyone else, the words simply won't come out!

This is the rule of Journey Survival!

"But it's not that we aren't reporting it. We've used several groups to target that pig for no reason; the Enforcement Hall will naturally notice. It won't be hard for them to deduce..."

He had only just reached this point when he suddenly looked up at the sky in terror.

In the cloudless sky, a bolt of pitch-black thunder crashed down.

Black Impermanence was stunned, while the other two were filled with simultaneous dread.

"Heavenly Punishment! How did that pig break through the barrier?!!" the old man gasped.

"Run!" The three of them fled in three different directions at once.

But the thunder seemed to have eyes; it curved in mid-air and skewered all three of them like a kebab.

It dissipated in an instant, leaving only three skeletons on the ground that crumbled into white ash at the first gust of wind.

Zhu Jiusi gasped as he watched the video of the Heavenly Punishment.

How overbearing!

On the first day of Journey Survival, he had seen Heavenly Punishment while traveling against the current. But back then, it was only a warning and hadn't struck him directly, so the sensation hadn't been real.

Today, even watching it through a video, it was hair-raising.

The video on the scroll finished playing, everything returned to calm, and the memorial reverted to its original state.

However, the progress for Law Enforcement Inspector behind his identity had increased by 1%. This could actually be leveled up!

Zhu Jiusi sighed with emotion, replied to a few messages in the chat area, then put away the scroll, shook his body, and set off.

There was no requirement to rush during the dungeon period. But—he was running out of food!

Zhu Jiusi hadn't obtained any food in the dungeon, so he had to forage for it once he returned to the mountain path.

It had just rained, and the roots beneath the soil emitted bursts of fragrance along with the damp earth.

But not all roots were edible. He had eaten some that tasted great but left him with diarrhea for the entire journey.

Collecting food, regulating his body, and inhaling spiritual energy.

Zhu Jiusi spent two days in a row just like this.

A few more Path Seekers had returned to the secret realm.

One must never underestimate the people of the world; there are always those with the ability to do what others cannot.

Until sunset on the sixth day of the secret realm, Zhu Jiusi took out his resources.

He had gained quite a bit of extra wealth during this time.

As of now, he had over four hundred of each basic material.

He had truly mastered the Spirit Refining Primer and condensed three wisps of spiritual power, finally putting him on the right track.

Zhu Jiusi planned to push his Mountain Master progress while most Path Seekers were still in the secret realm, as Journey Survival was safe and no one could merge their paths over to him.

He opened his mouth and inhaled, reducing each basic material by 120.

Very good, the required materials increased by 10 each time, so he could still afford it.

His whole body felt feverish, and the sensation of bloating struck again. Zhu Jiusi stomped his four hooves, twisting his sturdy body as he ran. Just as the sun dipped below the horizon, he managed to dissipate all the heat.

Life +1, 33

Mountain Master, Tier 1 (3%)

Zhu Jiusi liked this method of advancement from the Mountain Master; although the consumption was immense and left him exhausted to the point of collapse every time, the progress was marked by solid, tangible data.

Unlike cultivation realms, which were too ambiguous and difficult to gauge.

For the next two days, Zhu Jiusi lived an extremely disciplined life.

In the morning, he would scavenge for food and inhale spiritual energy. In the afternoon, he would absorb basic resources to push the Mountain Master forward.

For now, his basic resources were still sufficient.

The lair had already been renovated and was ready for its normal upgrade.

However, upgrading the lair required special materials.

The first upgrade for the pigsty required 1,300 of each basic material, plus a House-Guarding Stone and Tiger Bone Glue.

These two materials had to be collected slowly; once past the novice phase, special materials wouldn't just be found in Secret Realm Instances. He would encounter them from monsters in the wild as well.

This was also the reason Zhu Jiusi chose to invite disaster.

Since the special materials weren't fully gathered yet, the basic materials could temporarily be used to strengthen the Mountain Master.

Over two consecutive days, Zhu Jiusi's Mountain Master had reached 6% of Tier 1. His Life stat reached 36, and his materials were finally running low.

The number of people exiting the Secret Realm was increasing, reaching seventeen in total.

But they had reached the limit.

On the night of the thirteenth of August, the chat area suddenly exploded with activity. All Path Seekers returned simultaneously.

White Beard's Fist: "Damn it! I had just accepted a mission from the Changxin Marquis Mansion to find their young master. The mansion was providing food, and I was just tucking in when I got tossed back here. Now I'm going to be hungry again!"

This fellow hadn't managed to find a single scrap of food on his Journey Survival path.

Sparrow: "Heh, I'm different. I got captured, half my feathers were plucked, and I was just about to be thrown into the pot when I came back."

Beaver Does Not Drink: "!!! I had just finished digging a dam and was about to open the floodgates to drown a zombie nest downstream when I got pulled back! Just give me one more night! If I had just one more night, I could have gathered enough points!"

A crowd of people complained, cheered, wailed, and celebrated their survival...

All the Path Seekers saw their own Scroll pop out, with the moon on it laughing hysterically.

"Young Path Seekers! Congratulations on surviving and escaping from the novice instance. Wasn't it thrilling? Wasn't it exciting?"

Everyone: "..."

The moon consoled them: "Don't worry, there won't be many instances like this in the future—Journey Survival isn't a charity, so how could there be such simple, gentle instances again?"

Having said that, it put its hands on its hips and laughed—this thing had grown a pair of hands at some point, with long, thin arms, looking just like an emoji.

"Come, come, come, the instance is over, so it's time for everyone's favorite part: the summary. Did you do poorly and are afraid to look at the leaderboard? That won't do!"

As it spoke, the entire Scroll transformed into a massive leaderboard.

First Place: Master of Cloud Stack Cave. Rewards: Life Stone ×7, Spirit Refining Primer, Treatise on Cloud-Resting Consciousness Refinement.

The rewards on the leaderboard were based on the status at the time of exiting the Secret Realm, not what had been obtained while inside.

Second Place: Sword Seven Doesn't Learn Sword. Rewards: Soul Jade ×5, Falling Wood Sword.

Third Place: Monkey Has Iron Rod. Rewards: Soul Jade ×5, Brook-Facing Stone ×1, Mustard Seed Stone ×1.

Fourth Place: White Beard's Fist...

Fifth Place...

Before the list had even finished displaying, the chat area had already exploded.

They had no objections to the Master of Cloud Stack Cave taking first place, but two cultivation manuals?

Over two thousand points?!

Were they even in the same Secret Realm Instance?

He must be cheating, right?!