Battlefield Secret Realm

The fortress ruins were livelier than Qin Yuan had imagined.

More than twenty people had gathered in the hall, most dressed in the robes of various sects, clustered in groups of three or five in the corners.

Some were wiping down their weapons, some were bandaging their wounds, while others huddled around a crude map and discussed things in low voices.

When Qin Yuan and Zi Ling entered, several gazes swept over them.

"Two more." A scar-faced middle-aged cultivator gave them a glance, then lost interest. "Judging by their clothes, they're probably more geniuses from some sect here to gain experience."

"Ever since this secret realm emerged, more and more young people have been coming." The one-eyed old man beside him shook his head. "They don't know the meaning of death."

Clearly, these were veterans who had clawed their way through the Ancient Battlefield for many years. They had little regard for "young geniuses" like Qin Yuan.

The wound on Zi Ling's shoulder had already been roughly bandaged. She said softly to Qin Yuan, "Thank you... If it hadn't been for you just now, I probably..."

"I merely lent a hand." Qin Yuan's tone was indifferent. "What were those things?"

"Otherworldly demons." Zi Ling's expression grew grave. "Demonic Beasts left behind on the Ancient Battlefield. They neither die nor perish, and know only slaughter. But they usually operate deep within the battlefield and rarely appear around the edges. This time..."

She paused, a trace of confusion flashing through her eyes. "It seems they were startled by something."

As they spoke, footsteps sounded from outside again.

Chu Wuyue, Yun Qingyao, and Han Bing walked in. All of them were wounded, though not seriously. Ye Guying entered last, his left arm torn open, his face dark and gloomy.

When they saw Qin Yuan, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"Junior Brother Qin!" Chu Wuyue's white pupils lit up. "You made it here too!"

When Zi Ling saw the people from the Xuan Yuan Sect, her expression changed slightly—she recognized them as the disciples from that "bottom-ranked sect" she had encountered in the City of Gloom. Yet now, though they looked disheveled, all of them were still alive.

While four of her own fellow disciples from the Zi Xiao Sect...

"Senior Sister Zi Ling!" A shout suddenly came from outside.

Two young men in purple robes, drenched in blood, staggered into the fortress. Upon seeing Zi Ling, they nearly broke into tears. "Senior Sister! Junior Brother Wang and Junior Sister Li... they're dead!"

Zi Ling swayed, her face turning deathly pale in an instant.

Qin Yuan glanced at her but said nothing.

Everyone gathered in the fortress hall and exchanged information.

"The sudden riot of the otherworldly demons was caused by a spatial distortion in the battlefield's core region," the one-eyed old man said heavily. "A tear opened there, revealing a secret realm. The otherworldly demons are extremely sensitive to the aura of secret realms, and they've all been drawn toward it."

"A secret realm?" Chu Wuyue raised his brows. "What's inside?"

"Who knows?" the scar-faced middle-aged man sneered. "But any secret realm capable of causing a spatial distortion can't be ordinary. People from every sect are rushing over now, all hoping to get a slice of the pie."

Qin Yuan's heart stirred.

A secret realm... perhaps this was his chance to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm.

"We came at the wrong time," Yun Qingyao said softly. "We were only here to train, yet we happened to run into the emergence of a secret realm."

"So we ran into it." Fighting spirit rose in Chu Wuyue's white pupils. "With an opportunity right before us, how can we let it slip away?"

Han Bing and Ye Guying said nothing, but desire also flickered in their eyes.

Zi Ling bit her lip and looked at her two surviving junior brothers, her gaze conflicted—she wanted to enter the secret realm, but feared losing more people.

In the end, she drew a deep breath. "We're going. Junior Brother Wang and Junior Sister Li cannot die in vain."

Everyone decided to set out the next day.

The next day, there truly were far fewer otherworldly demons on the battlefield.

Qin Yuan's group of seven—the five from the Xuan Yuan Sect and the two from the Zi Xiao Sect—headed toward the core region.

Along the way, they occasionally encountered scattered otherworldly demons, all of which Qin Yuan disposed of with casual ease. His movements were simple and clean; often, before an otherworldly demon could even approach him, it was smashed apart with a punch or detonated by a tap of his finger.

At first, Zi Ling and her two junior brothers were shocked beyond measure. Later, they became numb to it.

"Fellow Daoist Qin... what cultivation realm are you actually at?" Zi Ling could not help asking.

"Peak Golden Core Realm." Qin Yuan answered calmly.

Zi Ling's mouth twitched—both were at the peak Golden Core Realm, yet she had to risk her life to deal with two or three otherworldly demons, while Qin Yuan cut through them like melons and vegetables.

Chu Wuyue, however, was no longer surprised. Instead, he laughed. "Fairy Zi Ling, you'll get used to it. Our Junior Brother Qin cannot be judged by common sense."

Yun Qingyao also gave a slight nod.

But Qin Yuan himself knew that this level of strength was still not enough in the Hundred Sects Battle.

The Hundred Sects Battle gathered the finest geniuses of all Qingzhou. The True Disciples of those sects ranked in the top thirty were almost all in the Nascent Soul Realm. No matter how strong a Golden Core cultivator was, before a Nascent Soul cultivator, the difference was as vast as heaven and earth.

Unless... he also broke through to the Nascent Soul Realm.

Three days later, the group arrived at the core region.

This was an enormous basin, where the wind and sand were far weaker than at the outskirts. At the center of the basin, a spatial rift a hundred zhang tall hung in midair. Multicolored light flowed within it, and faint phantoms of mountains and rivers could be seen.

More than a hundred people had already gathered beneath the rift.

They wore the robes of different sects and were divided into more than a dozen small groups, each keeping a safe distance from the others. The air was thick with tension. From time to time, gazes crossed, filled with scrutiny and vigilance.

When Qin Yuan and the others appeared, several gazes swept toward them.

"More people have arrived."

"Judging by their clothes... Xuan Yuan Sect? That bottom-ranked sect?"

"Heh, they dare come here to join the fun too?"

The discussion was quiet, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.

Chu Wuyue's white pupils turned cold. Mist surged around Yun Qingyao, while Han Bing and Ye Guying's expressions darkened.

Zi Ling led her two junior brothers toward the group from the Zi Xiao Sect—seven or eight purple-robed cultivators were already there, and upon seeing her, they hurried forward to greet her.

Qin Yuan remained calm, as though he had not heard any of the remarks.

Just then, a mocking voice rang out:

"Oh, aren't these the esteemed members of the Xuan Yuan Sect?"

Qin Yuan turned and saw the young monk from Dustless Temple—Kong Ming—standing with disciples from two other sects. When those people heard the words "Xuan Yuan Sect," contempt appeared on their faces.

Kong Ming pressed his palms together and smiled. "How is Sect Master Lu?"

The question sounded like a greeting, but it was actually a barb—Sect Master Lu had personally led the group, yet had only sent five Golden Core disciples. Among the hundred sects, they were indeed at the very bottom.

Chu Wuyue was about to speak, but Qin Yuan had already replied calmly, "Thank you for your concern, Master. The Sect Master is well."

A trace of surprise flashed through Kong Ming's eyes before his expression returned to serenity. "That is good. The secret realm is dangerous. All of you... take care."

After saying that, he ignored them no further, turning to continue speaking with those beside him.

"Those are people from the Vajra Sect and the Spirit Sword Sect," Yun Qingyao said softly. "Both are ranked among the top twenty of the hundred sects. Their strength is formidable."

Qin Yuan nodded and paid them no further attention.

Time passed little by little.

More and more people gathered, their number already exceeding two hundred. The major sects stood clearly separated, guarding against one another.

Finally, as dusk fell, the spatial rift abruptly expanded!