Chapter 53: Time Is Up, Leaving the Secret Realm

The first to discover Yao Kaidong’s disappearance were the disciples of Immortal Sword Peak.

After Ling Wushuang, Cang Xing, and Su Lin had told them what happened on the second layer, everyone planned to discuss what to do next.

Lin Shimeng needed to gather the Tianyuan Sect’s other two team leaders. When she looked for Yao Kaidong, she found he was gone.

“Where is Yao Kaidong?”

Lin Shimeng asked the disciples of Immortal Sword Peak.

“Senior Sister Lin, you can speak to me instead.”

Liu Xueyue, the Holy Maiden of Immortal Sword Peak, responded. She knew Yao Kaidong had left, but she didn’t ask and didn’t want to get involved.

“Could it be that he went to chase Qin Xiao?”

Lin Shimeng realized what might have happened and challenged Liu Xueyue.

“Senior Sister Lin, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Senior Brother said he had some insights and went to a quiet place to stabilize his cultivation.”

Liu Xueyue would not admit it, so she made up an excuse.

“Junior Sister Lin, what’s wrong?”

Ling Wushuang came over. Seeing Lin Shimeng’s anger, he asked what was wrong.

Although they belonged to different factions, they were still of the same generation. To get along better, they all addressed each other as senior brother and junior sister.

“It’s nothing. Let’s discuss what to do with the remaining time.”

Lin Shimeng did not say it openly. She had no evidence, and she did not want outsiders to know about the fighting within her sect.

Meanwhile, on the Tianyuan Sect’s Immortal Sword Peak, Yao Tiansheng stared in disbelief at the shattered Soul Tablet before him.

“This can’t be. My son is at the peak of the Golden Core stage and has a Low Grade Dharma Treasure for protection. How could he perish? This can’t be.”

Yao Tiansheng could not believe his beloved son was dead. He shouted in fury.

“Great Elder, terrible news! Senior Brother Li’s Soul Tablet in the Disciple Hall has shattered.”

An Inner Disciple in charge of watching the disciples’ Soul Tablets had hurried over with the news.

“Who did it? Whoever killed my son, Immortal Sword Peak will search to the ends of the earth to find you!”

Yao Tiansheng now accepted the news of his son’s death. After all, even Li Cheng’s Soul Tablet had shattered, indicating they had encountered a powerful enemy.

“Find out the cultivation of everyone who entered the secret realm. Now!”

Yao Tiansheng was furious, but he still had to investigate first. He also needed to find the Supreme Elder. If the other side was too powerful, the Supreme Elder would have to intervene. The source of this chapter is novelping.com.

“Yes, Elder.”

The disciple answered quickly and withdrew.

Yao Tiansheng did not stay. He went to find the Supreme Elder.

The Immortal Dao Merchant Association, Pure Yang Sect, and Mysterious Yin Sect were shaken too. Nearly a hundred disciples’ Soul Tablets had shattered.

The Mysterious Yin Sect had suffered so heavily because it had taken many smaller factions under its wing and appropriated many of their entry quotas. This had brought it equally heavy losses this time.

On the first layer, the disciples had agreed on a plan. They would pool their Spirit Stones and build a large Spiritual Qi Array. Then everyone could cultivate instead of wasting the remaining time.

Ling Wushuang had proposed it, but he knew some would object to sharing the cost equally. Their cultivation levels differed. He set the contributions for the four Foundation Establishment stages at one hundred, three hundred, five hundred, and one thousand Spirit Stones, respectively.

For the four Golden Core stages, the contributions were ten thousand, thirty thousand, fifty thousand, and one hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

Only four of them were at Nascent Soul. Lin Shimeng, at the early stage, would pay one million Spirit Stones. Cang Xing and Su Lin would each pay three million. Ling Wushuang would cover everything else.

Even Nascent Soul cultivators did not carry that many Spirit Stones. They would collect what everyone had first and divide the cost proportionally. Anyone who put in more than their share would be compensated after leaving. Those who paid too little would make up the difference then.

They barely reached an agreement. Some had plenty of Spirit Stones but did not want to hand them over; others had high cultivation but not enough stones on them.

Everyone agreed only because Ling Wushuang stood guarantor. The Immortal Dao Merchant Association had no shortage of Spirit Stones and would not pocket their small contributions. Had anyone else proposed it, the plan might never have worked.

Building the array was simple. With so many people there, some were bound to be skilled in formations. This one was not complicated, and they soon finished it.

Inside the array, some cultivated while others exchanged ideas. It was rare for so many people to gather together. By pooling their knowledge, many learned a great deal.

Days passed, and neither Qin Xiao and Yun Man nor Yao Kaidong and Li Cheng returned. Lin Shimeng could not stop worrying. The death of any of the four would be a loss to the sect.

The only explanation she could think of was that Qin Xiao had hidden himself and Yao Kaidong and Li Cheng could not find him. That was why none of them had returned.

Ling Wushuang spent the time treating his injuries rather than cultivating. He had proposed the Spiritual Qi Array to build the Immortal Dao Merchant Association’s reputation, rather than to gain some great benefit himself. Winning people over with good conduct brought different results from forcing them to submit.

Lin Shimeng and the other two shared his thinking. As representatives of Qingzhou’s leading powers, they had to show the generosity expected of great sects.

Cang Xing’s arm was slowly growing back. What medicine had he used to restore it? The arm had taken shape, but its Meridians were still blocked. It would take a long time to recover completely.

Su Lin looked troubled. How would he explain this to his sect when he got out? Of the hundred disciples, he alone had survived.

“Time is about up. Disciple, stop cultivating.” Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping.com.

Qin Xiao calculated that a month was almost over and told Yun Man to stop cultivating.

“Master, I didn’t reach mid Nascent Soul.”

Yun Man looked ashamed.

“You’ve done well. Nascent Soul has to be different from the earlier stages. If you could still advance that quickly, how would anyone else stand a chance?”

Qin Xiao patted Yun Man’s head to comfort her.

Qin Xiao did not know how much she had improved, but he had gained plenty. He could not absorb the Spiritual Qi around him anyway, so being in the secret realm made no difference. He had fully stabilized his third-layer Body Refinement and made further progress.

“Disciple, I’ve improved again. It’s time to temper my body. There’s still a little time left. Help me train.”

He felt as though his body was full of Spirit Liquid that he had not fully absorbed. He needed a good tempering session.

“You’ve improved again, Master? How much strength should I use?”

At the mention of Body Refinement, Yun Man’s frown vanished. She excitedly raised her fists.

“Uh, start with your full strength, but no Spiritual Qi. Let me see how that feels, then we’ll adjust.”

Qin Xiao did not know how much force he could take now. But at second-layer Body Refinement, he had endured her beating for so long. At the third layer, he should be able to try her full strength.

“Understood.”

Yun Man stepped quickly up to him and delivered a full-strength punch before he could blink.

“Bang!”

There was a hard impact. Qin Xiao took a few steps back, but stayed on his feet.

“That stings a little.”

He rubbed his stomach. He could tell she had not held back.

“Master, how much exactly did you improve?”

Yun Man noticed the difference too. Her fist was still a little numb, as if she had struck dark iron.

“That’s pretty good. Add twenty percent Spiritual Qi, and it should be about right. I can still take it.”

Qin Xiao estimated his limit and told her to hit harder. Adding twenty percent Spiritual Qi would bring her blows to the greatest force he thought he could withstand. Body Refinement meant pushing his limits. That was why he had been beaten until he could not move before coming to the secret realm.

Yun Man gave him a thorough beating. He did not know how long it went on. When the secret realm began to shake, the time was up, and she finally stopped. Qin Xiao had been beaten until he could not move again.

Then everyone was teleported out.