Yao Yue dared not linger any longer, fearing that her unusual behavior might attract the attention of the six powerful figures, so she could only feign composure and return to the high platform of the Pill Pavilion.
When Wen Jiao saw her return, she subconsciously looked towards the long street.
The little girl has disappeared.
"Is everything settled?" Wen Jiao asked softly. "Did you know that child just now?"
Yao Yue sat back down, her face still pale.
"We knew each other, but she's already left and won't cause trouble in the capital."
At least for now, they won't cause trouble in the capital.
As for whether the Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm would be devoured, Yao Yue had no idea.
Seeing that she was unwilling to elaborate, Wen Jiao did not press further.
Yao Yue couldn't help but look up at the array gate in mid-air, and for the first time, she truly felt worried for Chu Yunfei.
The deepest part of the Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm.
The dark altar was surrounded by countless thick chains.
In the center of the altar, a nearly transparent ghost sat cross-legged.
The ghost's face was blurred, with only its pair of scarlet eyes remaining exceptionally clear.
Dozens of water mirrors floated in mid-air in front of him.
The wasteland, swamps, glaciers, ancient forests, and the ruins of the central palace are all clearly reflected in the water mirror.
In the largest of the water mirrors, Chu Yunfei was standing outside the dilapidated main hall.
Soul Shadow observed the figure in black with great interest.
He hasn't made any further moves since the first wave of zombie horde attempts failed.
The more techniques Chu Yunfei displayed, the more satisfied he became with this physical body.
Despite Divine Sea Realm Sixth Layer, he could easily kill a cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm Fifth Layer and even directly shatter a full-force attack left by a cultivator at the Divine Sea Realm Ninth Level.
His physical body, spiritual power, and swordsmanship are all far superior to those of others in the same realm.
Now, they can see through the double-layered array patterns surrounding the main hall at a glance.
This has gone beyond the realm of ordinary geniuses.
"That old fellow Ling Zhantian has been hiding quite a bit."
Soul Shadow stared at Chu Yunfei in the water mirror, his hoarse voice filled with intense greed.
"This child's ability to achieve such results at such a young age must indicate extraordinary talent. If I were to acquire this body and obtain all his memories, returning to his peak would be just around the corner."
He did not rush to activate the secret realm formation to suppress Chu Yunfei.
What he needed to do was continue to observe Chu Yunfei's limits and confirm what level of soul possession this body could withstand.
If the physical body's potential is strong enough, the time required for him to recover to his former level after being reborn will be greatly shortened.
With the prodigies of various sects gathered at the palace ruins, it's a perfect opportunity for him to continue testing and weakening Chu Yunfei.
Once everything is confirmed, this child will inevitably be exhausted of spiritual energy and weakened in spirit. Then, he can descend through the core of the secret realm without any risk.
The ghostly figure raised a withered finger and gently tapped the water mirror.
Ripples appeared on the mirror surface.
Deep within the main hall, a previously silent stone coffin suddenly appeared.
"Let the younger generation break into the main hall first."
A slow, sinister smile spread across Soul Shadow's lips.
"Once they fight each other for spiritual herbs and artifacts, and both are severely injured, I will release this corpse puppet, whose physical body is comparable to that of the Dao Mysterious Realm cultivator. If Chu Yunfei wants to survive, he will inevitably have to reveal more of his strength."
"Once he's revealed all his cards, I'll seize the opportunity to possess him."
He looked at Chu Yunfei, who was resting with his eyes closed in the water mirror, and his scarlet eyes narrowed slightly.
"I'll let you live a little longer."
At that very moment.
The entire altar trembled violently.
An inexplicable sense of unease rose from the depths of his soul.
The feeling came on very quickly.
It was as if some powerful being had just entered the Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm, posing a threat to him.
The ghostly figure suddenly raised its head.
For the first time, surprise and doubt appeared in his scarlet eyes.
"Has someone trespassed into the secret realm?"
He quickly dismissed this assessment.
The entrance to the Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm has been closed.
The entrance array is in Ling Changkong's hands, and without a royal Dao Mysterious Realm expert to reopen it, outsiders have no chance of entering.
But the palpitation I felt just now was definitely not an illusion.
Soul Shadow formed hand seals and poured soul power into the core of the secret realm.
Buzz!
Above the altar, thousands of water mirrors lit up simultaneously.
The entire Heavenly Mystic Secret Realm —its mountains, rivers, palaces, wastelands, and tens of thousands of cultivators—all fell into his perception.
The Cangyun Sect were meditating outside the palace ruins.
Disciples of the Heavenly Evil Devil Sect are scattered throughout the secret realm, secretly setting up some kind of blood-red altar.
The Divine Martial Sect, the Heavenly Edict Sect, and the Heavenly Sword Sect are all located near the main hall.
The other Rogue Cultivator also showed no abnormalities.
The Soul Shadow searched repeatedly, but still found nothing.
The aura that made his heart pound vanished completely after it appeared, leaving not even a trace.
On the contrary, he took a second look at the altar set up by the Heavenly Evil Devil Sect.
Strands of crimson array patterns are extending underground, seemingly trying to connect the ley lines of the entire secret realm.
A hint of disdain flashed in Soul Shadow's eyes.
"A few tiny insects at the Divine Sea Realm dare to set up an array on my territory."
He did not intervene.
Whatever schemes the Heavenly Evil Devil Sect may have, they pose no threat to him.
The core of the secret realm is in his hands.
As long as he is in the secret realm, he is invincible.
After I possess Chu Yunfei's body, I will refine all these people together.
The soul shadow withdrew its senses, but the doubt in its scarlet eyes did not completely dissipate.
"Strange, could it be that I've been asleep for too long, and my soul is already experiencing illusions?"
He frowned, but after a moment he turned his attention back to the palace ruins.
"Never mind, let's deal with the immediate issue first."
Compared to that unconfirmed sense of danger, seizing Chu Yunfei's physical body is the most urgent task.
However, what he failed to discover was...
At the foot of a desolate mountain hundreds of miles away from the altar, a petite figure appeared.
A Li squatted on the ground and reached out her delicate white hand to grab a clod of soil brimming with Spiritual Qi.
She brought it to her lips and took a small bite.
The soil, along with its Spiritual Qi, vanished without causing any changes within her body.
A Li chewed twice, and her little face quickly scrunched up.
"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey."
She spat the dirt onto the ground and wiped her mouth in disgust.
"It's not tasty, it's not sweet at all."
She originally thought that this secret realm, which was much larger than before, would have soil as sweet as the core of the secret realm.
Aside from having a slightly stronger Spiritual Qi, the taste was not much different from ordinary soil.
A Li stood up, brushed the dust off the hem of her skirt, and her little nose twitched slightly in the air.
The rare and precious materials and the aura of the cultivators in the secret realm transformed into countless fragrances of varying intensity in her perception.
The strongest aroma wafted from one direction not far away.
A Li suddenly turned her head, her dark eyes growing brighter and brighter.
There are so many high-grade spirit stones over there.
"It smells nice."
She lowered her head and began to count carefully on her fingers.
One finger.
Two fingers.
After counting to ten, she looked at her other hand and felt something was off, so she had to count again.
After counting for a long time, A Li finally came to a conclusion.
"After eating, A Li should be able to break through to the Body Tempering Realm Eighty-Ninth Layer!"
She happily jumped up and down twice, the blue headband on her head swaying gently.
"Hehe, we're one step closer to flying."
A Li took off running with her short legs toward the direction from which the fragrance was coming.
The mountains, rocks, formations, and spatial barriers along the way seemed to disappear before her.
She hadn't run far when a mountain several hundred feet high blocked her path.
A Li stopped and looked up at it for a while.
Going around that route would mean walking a much longer distance.
She didn't want to take a detour.
So A Li opened her small mouth and gently inhaled at the mountain peak.
Boom!
The mountain shook violently.
Starting from the foot of the mountain, rocks, soil, vegetation, and the array patterns hidden in the mountain's belly all crumbled together, turning into a torrent of earth and rocks that blotted out the sky. It quickly shrank and disappeared into A Li's mouth.
The mountain peak, hundreds of feet high, vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving only an eerily flat clearing.
A Li chewed twice, then frowned in disgust.
"It's hard and doesn't taste good."
Almost simultaneously, the altar at the deepest part of the secret realm trembled violently.
A thick chain driven into the void suddenly snapped.
The array patterns in the southeast corner of the altar went out in large areas, and the dozens of water mirrors suspended in mid-air shattered as well.
The soul shadow suddenly turned around, extending its senses to the point where the restriction had broken.
The next instant, he froze in the center of the altar.
The mountain used to suppress the earth's veins and maintain the secret realm's restrictions has disappeared.
There were no rubble left from the collapse.
There was no power fluctuation indicating that the formation had been forcibly destroyed.
There was no trace of cultivators or demonic beasts present.
There was only an empty space left.
It was so flat it was as if the mountain had never existed.
"What?!"
The soul's crimson eyes widened, and its soul body fluctuated violently from shock.
"Where is the mountain where I set up the restriction nodes?"
Unconvinced, he investigated again.
The result remained unchanged.
The mountain is gone.
Along with the forbidden nodes inside the mountain, they vanished completely.
The shadowy figure stared intently at the open space, remaining silent for several breaths.
"I'm such a big mountain..."
"Could it possibly grow legs and run away?"
The spirit fire on the altar flickered wildly.
The Soul Shadow could no longer contain its rage, and its roar caused the remaining water mirrors to shatter one after another.
"Hateful!"
"Who did this?!"