Blood Beast Secret Realm

Chu Yuan had no idea what a Ninth Realm Warrior was capable of. The strongest Warrior he had ever seen in action was only in the Fifth Realm;

But he knew the Ninth Realm meant strength beyond measure... Could even someone that powerful be set up, surrounded, and killed?

"Who was it?"

"The former director of the Martial Suppression Bureau..."

The journey was uneventful, and they arrived at the prefectural capital without a hitch;

Aside from being larger and having taller buildings, it didn't seem all that different from Chenyang City.

The minibus drove straight to the Yunan Prefecture Martial Suppression Bureau headquarters. Chu Yuan saw plenty of other vehicles there;

Jiang Fei had shed his relaxed demeanor from the trip. He stood up, his voice grave:

"Once you get off, no talking or fooling around! Stay with me, and don't wander off."

Seeing him like this, the others couldn't help feeling nervous too;

When the vehicle finally stopped, everyone filed out. Jiang Fei took the lead and headed deeper inside.

Chu Yuan looked around and saw that the prefectural capital's Martial Suppression Bureau was indeed imposing. Somewhere out of sight, an immense, threatening force lay poised to strike. Could it be... an array?

The buildings weren't particularly tall, but the grounds were enormous... At least four or five times the size of First High School!

Chu Yuan couldn't help wondering if the prefectural capital's Martial Suppression Bureau had that many Warriors.

He wasn't the only one looking around. Plenty of students who had gotten off other vehicles were also gazing about;

Aside from the locals, most people from other cities had never seen such a huge Martial Suppression Bureau...

When they crossed some kind of threshold, a subtle wave of energy washed over them, passing gently across the group;

Chu Yuan sensed something probing them. It seemed somewhat like his Spiritual Sense, but not quite... It was probably mental power.

But after sweeping over them, the force did nothing else... Perhaps it hadn't found anything?

"We're here," Jiang Fei said abruptly;

Chu Yuan turned his gaze back. Before them was an open area about the size of a soccer field, where many people were already waiting;

When the newcomers arrived, the others merely gave them a couple of curious glances;

Silver-white energy patterns flickered across the ground, giving the impression that they must have cost a fortune.

Two imposing Warriors hovered in midair, their sharp eyes sweeping over the people below.

"The Source Tracing Array shows no abnormalities."

"As expected. This trial came up so suddenly that even we only just heard about it. Those little bugs... How could they have had time to make arrangements?"

"True enough. Then let's prepare to activate the teleportation array."

"...Why do I feel like someone's watching me?"

"Aren't there several hundred people down there watching you?"

"..."

Chu Yuan quietly withdrew his Spiritual Sense. The next moment, one of the Warriors spoke in a low voice: "Everyone! Stand in the center of the teleportation array. Don't channel your energy, and don't resist!"

Jiang Fei turned around and called to them: "Stay close."

He looked completely accustomed to this, as though he were familiar with teleportation arrays;

Chu Yuan had questions he wanted to ask, but this didn't seem like the right time, so he simply followed along in silence.

The Martial Suppression Bureau Warriors leading the groups from different places seemed to understand one another without a word. There was no sign of disorder.

Once everyone was in place, the silver-white patterns on the ground lit up and began to spin!

Chu Yuan felt the light and shadows before his eyes shift in a dizzying blur!

The next moment, he found himself in a vast wilderness...

"Teacher... bleurgh!"

"..." Jiang Fei stared at the girl beside him with a complicated expression;

He knew it was her first time using a teleportation array and that she wasn't used to it, but... why had she called out to him first?

She wasn't the only one throwing up. Plenty of others were doing the same.

The air smelled rather sour...

Chu Yuan, on the other hand, felt fine. It was his first time using a teleportation array too, but the slight discomfort vanished after his Spiritual Power made a circuit through his body...

"Teacher, where are we?"

It had made sense that Jiang Fei hadn't told them earlier, but now that they'd arrived, surely he could tell them?

Jiang Fei used his energy to block his sense of smell, then explained: "Secret Realm No. 7... You might know it better by its other name: the Blood Beast Secret Realm."

"Teacher, is that where most of the ingredients for Blood Qi Pills come from?"

"Exactly. At least thirty percent of the raw materials for the huge quantities of Blood Qi Pills Great Qin uses every year come from Secret Realm No. 7." Jiang Fei smiled again. "So, what did I tell you earlier?

Don't get hung up on your ranking...

If you can bring back some materials from inside, this trip will already have been worth it."

In fact, nearly all the students taking part in this trial were the most gifted students at their respective schools;

They either came from wealthy families or were already on the Blue Cloud Project's support list, so they weren't short of basic cultivation pills like Blood Qi Pills.

But if they could bring something back from the Secret Realm... even if they couldn't use it themselves, they could trade it for other cultivation resources!

Secret Realm No. 7 was important to Great Qin. Blood Qi Pills, Crimson Blood Pills, Blood Tempering Pills... Many pills in this series were made using ingredients from Secret Realm No. 7;

The higher-ups had decided that if this Secret Realm trial didn't happen, that was that. But since they'd decided to hold it, they wanted to make it grand and impressive!

So they might as well open up access to Secret Realm No. 7;

As for how much the students could walk away with... the higher-ups didn't really care.

These students were already among the most outstanding in Great Qin. They would get cultivation resources eventually, so it made little difference whether they got them sooner or later.

Besides, how much could the students really take?

Every year, when Secret Realm No. 7 was "harvested," entire military legions went in...

Jiang Fei pointed toward one spot: "Go line up over there."

Chu Yuan looked and saw nothing that resembled an entrance to a Secret Realm, just a few tents;

Tables had been set up in front of the tents, where Warriors in military uniforms were handing something out...

The girl who had spoken earlier asked, "Teacher, aren't you coming with us?"

Jiang Fei shook his head: "I can't go in."

He looked up at the clouds in the sky: "Everyone... Be careful.

Make sure you all come back alive!"

Chu Yuan took a new terminal from a soldier;

"The trial details, precautions, and a general overview of Secret Realm No. 7 have all been saved to the terminal."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome... Do you need to choose a weapon?" The military Warrior glanced at the long sword hanging at Chu Yuan's waist.

"No."

"Good. Jump down."

A dozen or so steps ahead, a dark pit opened before him;

He took a deep breath and stepped forward. In an instant, darkness swallowed him whole...