Lesser Treasure Realm

As usual, Chen Yang gathered spirit energy and breathed in meditation. He glanced at the Four-leaf little grass beside him and estimated that in about another ten days, it would nurture the next drop of spiritual liquid.

Boom—

All of a sudden, the ground gave a violent shudder, jolting Chen Yang awake from his meditative trance.

"An earthquake?"

Chen Yang released his consciousness and swept his surroundings.

Boom—

Boom—

The earth continued to tremble, but the vibrations were strange. Unlike an ordinary earthquake, they came in intermittent waves, each separated by a pause.

Chen Yang's mind was clear, and he immediately realized that something might be about to happen.

After more than ten successive tremors, the ground returned to calm.

"The flow of spiritual energy has changed."

Having spent years gathering spirit energy and breathing in meditation, Chen Yang was exceptionally sensitive to the fluctuations of heaven-and-earth spiritual energy.

He discovered that after the tremors ceased, the spiritual energy that had once drifted about this place in disorder was now flowing westward.

Just as Chen Yang was pondering this, sounds of fighting came from the west.

They were somewhat distant, beyond the reach of his consciousness, but from the commotion, he could tell that three sides were locked in a chaotic melee.

"One side is a Demon Beast. Judging by the sound, it's a wolf demon."

"There's also a one-eyed mountain ghost, which is common in this area, and the other side..."

Chen Yang listened closely for a while, then suddenly jolted in shock.

"Humans! There are two of them!"

There was no mistake. He had clearly heard someone shouting things like "Watch out!" and "Die, beast!"

Chen Yang was instantly thrilled. After lying here for twenty years, he finally had a chance to see living people today!

The fight continued for over twenty minutes. From the sounds, Chen Yang determined that the wolf demon and the one-eyed mountain ghost had both died in succession.

Before long, the footsteps of the two human cultivators approached, heading toward the eastern mountains.

Chen Yang stopped gathering spirit energy and breathing in meditation, lying silently on the ground.

Though he was excited to encounter humans, he remained rational. He had no idea whether meeting human cultivators would be a blessing or a curse for him, so he still needed to observe them.

Not long after, the two human cultivators arrived in this area. The lush vegetation here quickly caught their attention.

Chen Yang looked over and saw that neither of them was young.

One was a tall, broad man in a gray long robe with wide sleeves. His face was stern, and he looked to be around forty.

The other was an elderly man with graying temples, dressed in a yellowish-brown robe. His frame was somewhat stooped.

"Elder Yu, look at the vegetation here. Isn't it growing a little too well?" the tall cultivator said.

The elderly man called Elder Yu nodded. "Indeed, something is amiss. Patriarch, please wait here while this old man goes forward to investigate."

Elder Yu held a round dharma disk in his palm as he cautiously probed ahead.

Upon reaching the central area, his gaze instantly locked onto the Four-leaf little grass.

"This is...!"

Chen Yang saw the old man's eyes grow heated. Once Elder Yu stepped forward and confirmed the little grass's origins, his face immediately lit up with wild delight.

"Patriarch! Come quickly! It's a Four-leaf Spirit-Nesting Grass!"

"What!?"

The Patriarch cried out in astonishment and hurried over.

When he saw the Four-leaf little grass clearly, he too could not suppress the smile on his face.

"It truly is a spirit plant! Good, good, good! Now the younger generation of my Yang Family will have hope in cultivation!" The Yang Family Patriarch praised it repeatedly.

He lifted a foot, wanting to move closer for a better look at the spirit plant, yet he feared that his recklessness might affect it, so he hastily stopped.

"Elder Yu, I'll leave it to you."

"Rest assured, Patriarch."

As he spoke, Elder Yu withdrew a black vinewood box from his sleeve.

He gathered spiritual power at his fingertips and pointed at the ground, tracing a circle three inches away from the Four-leaf Spirit-Nesting Grass.

"Rise."

Then, with a soft utterance, he dug up the spirit plant along with the roots buried beneath the soil and placed it inside the black vinewood box.

"This will do. This item can preserve a spirit plant for a short while without letting it lose its spirituality," Elder Yu said.

Seeing this, the Yang Family Patriarch replied, "Thanks to Elder Yu's thorough preparations and this box you brought in advance. Had I come alone, I fear that even if I encountered such a fortuitous opportunity, I would have been unable to take it away."

"Patriarch, there is no need for modesty. This old man has merely lived several decades longer and gained a little experience."

Elder Yu waved his hand. "Rather, Patriarch, your courage is extraordinary. Were it me, I would never dare risk entering this Lesser Treasure Realm. I could only watch this fortuitous opportunity slip by in vain."

The Yang Family Patriarch smiled, then let out a sigh.

"I am merely a gambler wrestling fate from heaven. Our Lineage has finally produced several seedlings of decent aptitude. For the future of the Yang Family, whether it is dangerous or not, I must take this gamble."

As he spoke, the Yang Family Patriarch's expression gradually hardened with resolve.

A look of regret appeared in Elder Yu's eyes when he heard this.

In truth, with the Patriarch's talent, if he devoted himself to cultivation, his realm could advance another step.

Yet over these years, for the Lineage's development, he had constantly traveled abroad in search of fortuitous opportunities, facing mortal danger many times. Fortunately, he had always managed to pull through in the end.

Then Elder Yu thought of how the Secret Realm's entrance had appeared less than thirty li from the Yang Family. He could not help sighing inwardly that his Patriarch was a man blessed with great fortune.

"Enough. Since we have gained something, we should know when to stop. Let us leave quickly."

"Yes, Patriarch."

Though the Yang Family Patriarch called himself a gambler, he was by no means a man of insatiable greed.

He knew full well that he and Elder Yu had merely taken advantage of their favorable location to luckily seize the initiative in entering the Secret Realm.

Otherwise, with the paltry cultivation of two Qi Gathering Mid-stage cultivators, forget entering the Secret Realm first—even getting a chance to drink the soup at the end would be impossible.

Just as the two turned to leave, Elder Yu's brows suddenly lifted slightly.

He turned back with a frown. At a single glance, a strange look immediately arose in his eyes.

Neither the Yang Family Patriarch nor Elder Yu had noticed Chen Yang's existence from beginning to end, and Chen Yang silently observed them.

From their words, he learned that the place where he had been born was actually a small Secret Realm.

This answered the question that had long lingered in his heart.

No wonder he had not seen a living person in twenty years. The Secret Realm had not yet been opened—now that made sense.

Moreover, through their conversation, Chen Yang gained a rough understanding of their backgrounds.

This tall man was the patriarch of the Yang Family, while the elderly man surnamed Yu was likely an elder or something of that sort within the household.

Neither of their cultivations was particularly high. Chen Yang could sense that they were only slightly stronger than the Demon Beasts, ghosts, and monsters in the forest.

From the looks of it, this Yang Family had only recently set foot upon the road of cultivation and was still in its infancy.

Chen Yang considered his own situation.

He himself was essentially a spirit stone, but at present, he possessed only the abilities to gather spirit energy and breathe in meditation. He could not move, nor did he have any means of attack.

Since this Secret Realm had already opened, more cultivators would certainly arrive afterward.

Though he did not know what grade he was, it surely could not be very high. To cultivators, he was merely an aid to cultivation.

If some great cultivator discovered and took him away, he certainly would not be valued. Being tossed aside to guard a storeroom would be one thing, but he feared being treated as material for refining, becoming a stepping stone for other magical treasures and spirit artifacts.

After weighing the matter, Chen Yang decided to release a faint fluctuation of spiritual power and draw the pair's attention.

It was not only because their realms were low, but also because he had formed a judgment from the Yang Family Patriarch's manner of speech.

This man was steady by nature, yet unbound by empty formalities. More importantly, he possessed courage and ambition.