The ancient trees stood scattered, massive and gnarled, their cracked old bark resembling overlapping dragon scales, a magnificent sight.
This was a dense forest filled with countless trees, where fallen leaves drifted like flying rain and blossoms fluttered in profusion amid purple mist and wisps of rosy light.
"You lot, hurry up and dig out those spirit herbs!" A sinister-looking young man with loose golden hair was ordering around a group of independent cultivators from the outside world, who dared not voice their anger.
Clearly, Golden Sparrow Palace had taken control of this area, treating the independent cultivators who had entered as "small fry" or sacrificial pawns to scout the way.
"Tsk, tsk. Just what you'd expect from Golden Sparrow Palace. They don't treat other people's lives as lives at all!"
"I'm afraid all the people who died along the way these past few days were independent cultivators abducted by Golden Sparrow Palace."
On a cliff, the Heaven Mending Sect disciples and their companions whispered among themselves, closely watching a group not far away.
Although they sympathized with the independent cultivators' plight, they had no intention of helping. Such things were all too common among the great sects.
There was no such thing as a free lunch.
The reason the secret realm had been opened to those outside the immortal lineages was to have them draw the savage beasts and fierce birds within, reducing the danger to each sect's disciples.
At the same time, certain great sects would deliberately send some of these people into areas their own disciples were exploring to serve as free labor.
The Heaven Mending Sect disciples were better in this regard. Under Lin Fan's leadership, they had done nothing of the sort, and the sect itself seemed to harbor certain reservations and had made no