Inside and Outside the Secret Place

"You said you witnessed two top-tier archery techniques: one that excels at shooting at night using the moon as a guide, and the other that excels at using the sun's fire to explode and kill during the day?"

Zhang Xuezhou was pierced through the chest and his forehead was broken; he was almost killed by the arrow-wielding spirit. Little did he know that Huo Qubing was watching the archery demonstration.

Holding the arrow-shaped grass spirit bent into an arch, he compared himself to Huo Qubing and felt that he had suffered greatly.

This feeling is probably similar to Li Shaojun and Zhang Xuezhou exploring dangerous places together. Although Zhang Xuezhou didn't gain much benefit, Li Shaojun was constantly plagued by bad luck.

Now it's Zhang Xuezhou's turn to be the unlucky one.

Zhang Xuezhou could only mutter to himself, "Don't argue with kids."

"How did you know to pluck those two leaves from this arrow grass?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"Because I noticed that the arrows used in the archery demonstration didn't have any leaves on them!"

Huo Qubing's answer was so simple that it was impossible to refute.

"This thing's dead. You can take it and play with it if you like!"

Having answered his question, Huo Qubing then asked for the corpse of the arrow grass spirit. Zhang Xuezhou didn't hesitate and casually tossed it to Huo Qubing, much to Huo Qubing's delight.

"Master Dongfang, you are truly a kind person. Thank you so much!"

Huo Qubing expressed his gratitude in a very formal manner. He touched the corpse of the arrow grass spirit and then carefully used the arrowhead part of the spirit to cut his finger.

After his finger bled, he smeared the blood on the arrow grass.

The characters smeared with blood were complex and resembled inscriptions. With each smear, the blood squeezed from Huo Qubing's fingers would be absorbed by the arrow grass spirit.

"I'm just re-engraving the inscriptions on the arrows used in the archery demonstration. It would be great if they could still be used," Huo Qubing said.

"Try it a few more times, just don't bleed to death!"

Zhang Xuezhou himself was already a staff user, so even if the finished Heaven-Shaking Arrow made by the Arrow Grass Spirit was right in front of him, he wouldn't use it, and he didn't have any good skills in drawing a bow and shooting arrows.

Zhang Xuezhou was more concerned about the location where the arrow grass spirits grew than about the dead ones.

That was the place where the deceased master of the Sacred Land sat, and also the place where the arrow grass spirit grew.

There should have been a 'Bo' on the skeletal finger. Over the years, as the body decomposed, it fell to the ground and, along with the accumulation of dust over the years, formed a small mound of ash.

The yu is a tool used in archery, worn on the right thumb to hook the bowstring; it is also called the jue.

The arrow-shaped grass spirit stood upright in the pot as it fell. Without its master's control, the arrow-shaped grass spirit slowly came back to life and even shot Zhang Xuezhou.

Huo Qubing applied the arrow grass essence to the ground, while Zhang Xuezhou bent down and felt around on the ground.

"It really is this thing!"

After sweeping away the topsoil, Zhang Xuezhou dug a jade bowl covered in mud from the ground.

The "Dust-Avoiding Technique" is activated, and all the dust on the altar is removed.

The front of this yu (a type of ancient Chinese wine vessel) features a dragon carving, while the back depicts a phoenix carving. The dragon's nose at the hook point is raised high, while the phoenix's crown at the finger point looks back. It is a rare and exquisitely crafted piece, clearly a cherished possession of the owner of this secret place.

But the ingenious uses of this yu (a type of ancient Chinese bow) go far beyond simply hooking the bowstring and drawing the bow. Zhang Xuezhou stared at the various difficult-to-decipher inscriptions on it and was quite certain that this was a token from a secret place.

Anyone who possesses this talisman will have unimpeded access to any area of the secret realm and will not be affected by the hallucinations caused by the array.

"One good news, one bad news!"

Looking at Huo Qubing, who was still applying the bloodletting ointment, Zhang Xuezhou held up two fingers.

"I want to hear good things," Huo Qubing said.

"The good news is that we've found the token for this secret place. Holding the token allows us to move freely within the secret place without being affected by the illusions caused by the array," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"And the bad news?"

"The bad news is that the groups constructing the formations inside and outside the secret realm are different. We are currently unaffected by the formations inside the secret realm, but we are sealed off by the four-gate encirclement formation outside, trapping us at the bottom and firmly locking us inside this secret realm. Unless the outer formations change, we cannot get out!"

Zhang Xuezhou pointed to the way he came.

The white light shining out from the secret place disappeared, which meant that the way out was cut off.

It was no different from when he was waiting in Shanglin Garden. Previously, Zhang Xuezhou had to wait to enter the secret realm, but now he had to wait for the secret realm to open and leave.

He gave a brief explanation, and Huo Qubing paused for a moment before speaking.

"If we can get in but not get out, won't we starve to death inside?" Huo Qubing said.

"Normally, you could indeed starve to death," Zhang Xuezhou said, "But you're very lucky today. I just happened to refine some Grain Avoidance Pill. These pills don't discriminate based on cultivation level; even if you haven't embarked on cultivation, you can take them. Here, I'll give you one in case of an emergency!"

Zhang Xuezhou reached into his Lesser Heaven and Earth Bag and took out the Grain Avoidance Pill, which had been refined with an unknown duration of Grain Avoidance a type of fasting pill).

"There's something you need to remember," Zhang Xuezhou instructed, "If you ever see any white light shining outwards, you must follow that light and pull me along!"

Zhang Xuezhou was unable to find the four-gate encirclement formation of Zhongnan Mountain, nor could he pinpoint the formation's core.

Of course, even if he were to freeze in place, it would be useless. Once he stepped into this secret place, the outer blockade would inevitably become ineffective because he had gone too far.

Zhang Xuezhou had previously determined that breaking this kind of formation that blocked both the inside and outside would require two cultivators from the Physiognomy School to move in and out freely.

He couldn't hold on alone, so he could only take advantage of any loopholes in the formation.

Now that people have entered, the secret place has been unsealed, and the search is free, the only remaining issue is getting out.

Zhang Xuezhou was genuinely worried that when he returned to the real world, a white light would appear, but when he returned, there would be no unusual activity, thus leaving him trapped in this secret place.

This was something he had worried about on Fangzhang Island. Once you step into such a dangerous place, a capable helper is extremely important.

Zhang Xuezhou glanced at five-year-old Huo Qubing, and Huo Qubing also glanced at Zhang Xuezhou's tall and strong physique.

"You mean I need to drag your body along for miles and then run out before the white light disappears?"

After listening to Zhang Xuezhou's explanation and entrustment, Huo Qubing couldn't help but widen his eyes and repeatedly confirm.

"That's right," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"But I'm just a five-year-old child!"

Huo Qubing shook his fist.

Despite the bleeding and finger-cutting incidents that Huo Qubing endured, his fists moved with ferocious power.

Zhang Xuezhou was immediately relieved. Although Huo Qubing was a bit young, his body, which was mixed with the blood of the First Emperor, was a freak, and his fist and foot strength was quite good.

If a wooden plank that could be easily dragged could be made, Zhang Xuezhou felt that Huo Qubing could easily drag him along.

"So what if I'm five?" Zhang Xuezhou sneered. "I could run errands when I was five. You can't even do something as simple as dragging me for a few miles. And you're supposed to be the leader of all these kids? How can you be a leader if you're so afraid of difficulties?"

"Was that soy sauce you beat up really that powerful?" Huo Qubing retorted, Qi Ingestion.

"You have to be really good at making soy sauce. I'm not bragging, but back in the day I could buy soy sauce with just one hand, and all the neighbors praised me for it!"

Huo Qubing's thinking was highly leap-like, much like Luo Burang's.

Zhang Xuezhou was very comfortable with this kind of unconventional conversation; he even boasted and exaggerated, leaving Huo Qubing completely bewildered.

"In short, use as much strength as you can to drag me along. If you're not strong enough, practice more to build up your strength. If you don't succeed the first time, you can try again. I guarantee you won't starve," Zhang Xuezhou instructed. "Don't run around alone. There's a four-gate protective formation outside this secret place. If you accidentally step into one when you go out, and I don't come to your rescue, you might be suppressed inside until you die of old age without anyone finding out!"

You just like to scare me!

"If I told you your mother stole something from the palace and then threatened to tell your godfather that, that would be a real scare tactic!"

"That kind of thing is called a threat!"

Although Huo Qubing was young, he wasn't so easily fooled and keenly noticed some things, so he couldn't help but criticize Zhang Xuezhou.

This forced Zhang Xuezhou to resort to his trump card, but he was quickly ridiculed by Huo Qubing.

However, Huo Qubing, having been stimulated by the painting of a demon and being in a dangerous situation, was less mischievous than before. After thinking it over, he seriously agreed to the matter.