Gathering from All Sides, Purple Spirit Grass

"Hmm... I can't see through the leader's cultivation. Could he be a Spirit Transformation expert? No wonder he's so aloof!"

Mo Lingyuan raised an eyebrow and sighed inwardly.

"That's Gu Aoxin, the Proud Sword Sect's grand elder. I can't believe he came to escort the disciples himself!"

"The Proud Sword Sect sent twelve hundred Foundation Establishment Realm disciples, and they even have Qin Linyu, the greatest prodigy under twenty in Heaven-Opening. Looks like they're determined to claim the secret realm's greatest treasures!"

"Hiss! With Qin Linyu and twelve hundred disciples here, it looks like we won't get our hands on any treasures this time!"

"Don't lose heart. The secret realm is huge. There's bound to be something left for us to pick up!"

The cultivators watched the Proud Sword Sect's party with mixed expressions. Some marveled, while others sank into despair...

"Qin Linyu? A worthy opponent!"

Amid the crowd, Xiang Nitian chuckled to himself.

"The greatest prodigy? Hmph! He'd better not run into me, or I'll kill him!"

Feng Quchu, however, refused to accept the claim.

"Linyu, once you enter the secret realm, seize as many treasures as you can. If anyone fights you for them, kill them!"

Gu Aoxin paid no mind to the sparrows chattering below. He turned to Qin Linyu beside him and gave the stern instruction.

"Yes, Grand Elder!"

Qin Linyu answered solemnly.

Boom!

Just then, a thunderous sound rang out above the Qigu Secret Realm, and a blue opening of light appeared.

The crowd fell silent at once. They looked toward the sound and stared, transfixed, at the opening.

It spun and widened without pause, only coming to a stop fifteen minutes later.

By then, it was large enough for three thousand people to pass through at once.

"It's appeared! The entrance to the Qigu Secret Realm has appeared!"

"Go, go, go!"

The crowd erupted. Cultivators raced toward the entrance, each trying to get ahead, without even checking whether it was real.

The Qigu Secret Realm had never appeared before, and no one knew when its entrance might close. Better to rush in first.

"Elder Mo, should we go in?"

Zhang Xingfeng could hardly wait and put the question to him.

"No rush. Let the cultivators ahead of us test it first."

Mo Lingyuan answered calmly.

With the Qigu Secret Realm appearing for the first time, he intended to be cautious.

"All right!"

Zhang Xingfeng nodded and waited quietly for the result.

Zhang Xingfeng's group was not alone in waiting patiently. The Southern Region's ten great powers and several major powers from Search Province held back as well.

"You can go in now."

Half a quarter-hour later, Mo Lingyuan saw that the entrance was gradually shrinking and that nothing had happened to the cultivators who had gone through. He said to Zhang Xingfeng and the other two, "Remember to be careful."

"Of course, Elder Mo!"

Zhang Xingfeng and the other two stepped onto their respective weapons and shot into the entrance as streaks of light.

Another half quarter-hour passed, and the entrance to the Qigu Secret Realm closed completely.

Fully a hundred thousand cultivators had entered!

Inside the Qigu Secret Realm.

Spiritual energy suffused the realm, and heavy mist hung over it. Everything about it proclaimed its mystery and extraordinary nature to the cultivators!

"This... The spiritual energy is so abundant! There must be plenty of treasures here. Hahaha! I'll grab mine first!"

"Die! That treasure is mine!"

"Ah! You have no honor! You ambushed me!"

"Hmph! That's what you get for trying to steal my treasure. Ah, who are you..."

"It's mine! All of it's mine!"

"Put that down! I saw it first!"

"You're asking for death!"

"I'll send you to the grave!"

In an instant, fighting broke out across the secret realm. Streaks of light pierced the thick mist, dazzling to behold!

Inside the secret realm.

At its western edge.

"Senior Brother Linyu, the mist is thick throughout the secret realm. Which way should we go?"

"The mist is thickest in the center. There may be rare treasures hidden there. We're heading that way!"

"All right!"

Qin Linyu led the Proud Sword Sect disciples toward the center of the secret realm.

Inside the secret realm.

Somewhere within it.

"Huh? Where did Shijie go?"

"I don't know. He was right here a moment ago."

"Forget about him for now. These purple grasses are giving off a strange glow. They must be fine ingredients for pill refining. Let's pull them all up and take them back!"

"Good!"

The Pill Forging Sect disciples were drawn to the purple spirit grass before them and stepped forward to pull it up.

"Ah!"

But the moment they touched the grass, it released purple smoke that plunged them into unbearable agony.

"Oh no! This grass is poisonous! Get away!"

One of them cried out, but it was already too late.

Thud!

In the blink of an eye, every Pill Forging Sect disciple collapsed, dead where they fell.

The purple smoke vanished just as quickly.

Ten breaths later.

"Junior Brother, Junior Sister, come here! There are eight hundred bodies!"

Zhang Xingfeng put away Ink Edge and called to Dongfang Muxue and Chen Guyu.

"Huh? There really are. From the look of them, they only died recently."

Chen Guyu slipped on his gauntlets and raised an eyebrow.

"They're disciples of the Pill Forging Sect."

Dongfang Muxue's pupils narrowed. She was from Heaven-Opening and had naturally heard of the Pill Forging Sect. She knew its disciples' attire well.

"There are no wounds on them, and their Storage Bags are still here. Could this purple grass have killed them?"

"It's hard to believe. The Pill Forging Sect excels at pill refining and knows medicinal herbs from all over the world, yet its disciples died because of this grass."

"This purple grass must be extraordinary, but highly poisonous!"

Dongfang Muxue studied the disciples' bodies with a frown.

"Then should we leave?"

Zhang Xingfeng asked after hearing her assessment.

"No." Dongfang Muxue shook her head decisively. "Now that we know this purple grass is extraordinary, we should see if we can take it back to the Sect."

"How do we test it?"

Zhang Xingfeng and Chen Guyu looked at Dongfang Muxue in puzzlement.

Dongfang Muxue did not answer. She simply took out Ice Soul.

Boom!

She channeled Source Power into Ice Soul.

In an instant, cold surged from Ice Soul, freezing the surrounding purple grass into a field of icy blossoms.

A moment later, the ice melted away. The purple grass returned to its original form, but its faint glow was gone.

"The glow's gone. Maybe it isn't poisonous anymore?"

Zhang Xingfeng looked at the grass, uncertain.

He raised an eyebrow. "Should I try it?"

"Senior Brother, let me. My Thunder Shimmer Gauntlets are Spirit Weapons. Even if it's still poisonous, they can protect me."

Chen Guyu patted the gauntlets on his hands, confident.

"All right. Try pulling up one plant first." Zhang Xingfeng nodded. "Be careful."

"Don't worry, Senior Brother!" Chen Guyu smiled. "Watch this!"

He channeled Source Power, and lightning flickered across his palm. In an instant, he pulled up a purple grass plant, roots and all.

Chen Guyu placed the grass in his Storage Bag and grinned. "Looks like it isn't poisonous. In that case, I won't hold back!"

With that, he channeled Source Power again. Lightning streamed outward and formed a giant hand that enclosed all the purple grass. He clenched it, and nearly a hundred thousand plants were uprooted at once!

"That's my junior brother for you. Your command of lightning is nothing short of masterful!"

Zhang Xingfeng could not stop praising him.

"Not at all, Senior Brother. You flatter me."

Chen Guyu put the purple grass into his Storage Bag and smiled modestly.

"Hmm..."

Suddenly, Dongfang Muxue murmured and looked into the mist ten miles away. Her eyes turned cold, and killing intent flared.

"Junior Sister, what's wrong?"

Zhang Xingfeng asked in surprise.

"Nothing." Dongfang Muxue looked away and shook her head. "There are no treasures left here. Let's leave quickly, before someone mistakes us for the killers of the Pill Forging Sect disciples."

"All right!"

Zhang Xingfeng and the other two disappeared.