A way to recruit special talent!

With Yi Tian's team clearing the secret realm, every other team was forced to end its challenge. They had all failed!

Because there could only be one winner.

At that moment, Yi Tian and the other challengers emerged from the secret realm.

The other teams were stunned... it had ended far too quickly!

Ma Xiang, the Sega Guild's leader, was dumbfounded. He had not even made it halfway through the first stage before being teleported out.

The Sega Guild's progress had ranked near the bottom of all the teams. Ma Xiang could neither lead nor deal damage; he had simply expected his three newly recruited Epic teammates to carry him through.

He had been dreaming.

But then his eyes widened. He actually spotted Ye Xiu among the team that had cleared the realm!

"Guild leader, is... isn't that Ye Xiu?"

"Impossible! He's only got an Elite class. How could he clear the Medium Secret Realm? Someone must have carried him!"

"Actually, I think Captain Ye was pretty good at leading..."

Several Sega Guild members openly contradicted their guild leader, making Ma Xiang's face flush with anger.

"Yeah, now we don't even have anyone to lead us. Our fights are a complete mess."

"You dumbass guild leader! I'm quitting!"

Several people who had once been on Ye Xiu's team looked at him now with envy and regret.

"Captain Ye really is in a different league from us now!"

Elsewhere, the Earthshaker Team, a Special Squad from Hidden Dragon Base, was also rather stunned.

Their captain, Zhao Qi, stared at the first-place team in shock, unable to believe his eyes!

Because the Yagu Dynasty had intervened, they had gone all out, yet they had only just cleared the second stage...

And someone else had already finished the entire realm!?

Seriously? If you're even stronger than a Special Squad, what the hell makes us special?

The only consolation was that the secret realm had not fallen into the hands of other races. Overall, the outcome was still decent for Great Xia.

Zhao Qi was just a little frustrated. They had received special authorization to come help, only to end up as bystanders...

The Earthshaker Team sheepishly said goodbye to Wei Yuan and hurried back to Hidden Dragon Base.

At that moment, the angriest of all was the Yagu Dynasty's Crimson Emperor.

"Useless! Every last one of you is useless!!"

Yedela and the other Half-Dragons who had competed kept their heads lowered, not daring to utter a word.

"Maer was the most useless of them all! Killed by monsters in a secret realm? His soul should be thrown into the Silent Furnace!"

The Crimson Emperor was furious, almost losing his composure.

The Yagu Dynasty had contested countless secret realms, but never once had it suffered such a crushing defeat!

Not only had he failed to seize the Medium Secret Realm, he had also lost an entry pass to a small secret realm for nothing.

He had suffered a double loss.

The trip had been wasted, and he had thoroughly embarrassed himself in Great Xia. That was even harder for the Crimson Emperor to accept.

Nearby.

Wei Yuan watched the Crimson Emperor silently, his expression calm, as though enjoying a show.

That enraged the Crimson Emperor even further, and he roared, "Wei Yuan!"

A faint smile appeared on Wei Yuan's lips. Folding his arms, he said calmly, "The secret realm challenge is over. Safe travels, Crimson Emperor. I won't see you out."

"Fine!" The fury in the Crimson Emperor's draconic eyes almost became tangible.

"Don't forget, the Race Championship won't have level restrictions like a secret realm."

"I hope you'll still be able to smile then!"

As the Crimson Emperor prepared to leave, he still could not swallow his anger.

"For this Race Championship, I want you to wager a Medium Secret Realm!"

Wei Yuan did not respond to that. Instead, he asked casually:

"I wonder if your promise to let Great Xia freely challenge the Yagu Dynasty's secret realms still stands, Crimson Emperor?"

The Crimson Emperor said nothing. He spread his wings and left.

The remaining Half-Dragons hurried after him, returning to the Yagu Dynasty.

"Hahahaha! I never thought I'd see that old dragon humiliated like this!"

"Yi Tian's team did a fantastic job! Anyone who beats the other races has my wholehearted support!"

"..."

Among the spectators, many who had decided against entering the secret realm felt thoroughly satisfied after watching the contest.

Over the years, the Yagu Dynasty had seized many of Great Xia's secret realms. Now that Great Xia had finally won one back, everyone could hold their heads high.

With the challenge over, Wei Yuan took Yi Tian and the others away.

In particular, Yi Tian was taken aside by Wei Yuan to the Meeting Room for a detailed discussion.

"I truly didn't expect you to actually clear the secret realm!"

At that moment, Wei Yuan could not help admiring him. Yi Tian had truly worked a miracle.

"As your partner, of course I had to pull my weight."

Yi Tian wasted no words. He settled matters directly with Wei Yuan, preparing to hand ownership of the Medium Secret Realm's resource output over to East China.

After all, the Medium Secret Realm required extensive manpower to develop its resources, as well as ongoing management, protection, and so on. Running one as an individual would be far too difficult.

Besides, the Medium Secret Realm contained far more resources than Yi Tian could handle. Handing them over to the nation would allow them to be put to better use.

Appreciation showed in Wei Yuan's eyes.

Yi Tian had not even taken the opportunity to demand anything, which was enough to demonstrate his foresight.

For a moment, Wei Yuan, the man in overall charge of East China, began to seriously consider his relationship with Yi Tian as a "partner."

"All right. In that case, I won't say any more."

Wei Yuan said readily, "If you need anything in the future, just come to me."

"I'll also set aside a portion of the realm's resources specifically for your team to use."

Yi Tian immediately made a request. "Actually, I need something right now!"

"You mentioned you had a way to prevent spatial teleportation. What was it?"

Although Wei Yuan did not know what Yi Tian wanted it for, seeing his eagerness, he decided not to keep him guessing.

He took out a square item. All four sides consisted of illusory, transparent grids, making it look like a miniature prison.

"The Deathmatch Prison."

"Once used, it creates a space that no one can leave by any means unless the item's holder dies."

Yi Tian's face lit up at those words. "There's something that good?"

He accepted the Deathmatch Prison and discovered that it was actually a Legendary item!

With this.

The next time he encountered the Black-Robed Man, he would not have to worry about her escaping again.

Wei Yuan explained, "This was developed by someone in Great Xia with the Legendary class, Inventor. At present, Great Xia's government only has a few."

That demonstrated one of the advantages of cooperating with the nation.

Without Wei Yuan telling him about it, Yi Tian would have had a very hard time finding an item with such an unusual function on his own.

All in all, their cooperation had been pleasant.

While some rejoiced, others naturally raged. Elsewhere, in the Yagu Dynasty's Crimson Emperor's Palace.

The palace was a complete mess. Various precious treasures beside the throne had been knocked to the floor, and even the stone pillars in the hall had been smashed halfway through.

The Royal Dragonkin in the hall did not dare breathe too loudly.

The Crimson Emperor had flown into a rage the moment he returned. In more than twenty years, this was the first time he had suffered such an infuriating loss!

"Please calm your anger, Crimson Emperor." After the Crimson Emperor had raged for a long time, a Half-Dragon mage serving as an adviser spoke up to console him.

"The secret realm was merely a minor setback."

"Several of the princes have now returned from the Dragon Ancestor's Secret Realm."

"Their Highnesses' bloodlines are far beyond those of Half-Dragons. They can crush Great Xia with ease. When the tournament between our two races arrives, they will make Great Xia pay in blood!"

Those words softened the Crimson Emperor's furious expression somewhat.

The Yagu Dynasty's princes were the young dragons with the purest bloodlines. According to the Dragon Race's bloodline hierarchy, they were also the strongest.

In terms of level, they had already surpassed Tier 2.

The Crimson Emperor returned to his throne and gave a thunderous snort.

"For this tournament between our two races, I'll raise the stakes. I'll make Great Xia put up one—no, two Medium Secret Realms!"

The Half-Dragon adviser agreed flatteringly, "A wise decision, Crimson Emperor..."

"Make Great Xia repay twice what it gained today!"

Just as the Crimson Emperor's expression had begun to ease.

A soldier brought news into the hall.

"Crimson Emperor, Great Xia's border troops want to take over one of our small secret realms. They say you gave permission..."

"Argh! Damn it!!!"

The Crimson Emperor's expression, which had only just relaxed, twisted with even greater fury. He slammed a fist into the throne's armrest with a bang. Fortunately, the throne was sturdy enough.

One trip outside, and he had lost a small secret realm.

The word "sucker" might as well have been written across the Crimson Emperor's face.

"They want my secret realm? I'd like to see where Great Xia gets the nerve to take it!"

The Crimson Emperor snorted coldly and ordered the adviser beside him:

"Go stir up the Evil Demons Origin Energy along Great Xia's border! Let's see if they still have time to take my secret realm!"