The valley outside the Demon Sealing Ruins was no longer quiet.
When Fang Lin had first come here, the place had been controlled by the three Rivercloud sects. The valley had been guarded, sealed, and wrapped in false smiles. Recruited cultivators had entered with hope, and many had never walked out again.
Now, the valley had changed.
Temporary camps had appeared across the surrounding hills. Formation flags stood along the ridges. Sect banners moved in the wind. Rogue cultivators lingered farther away, whispering in small groups, hoping for opportunity but afraid of being crushed between larger powers.
The ancient stone gate of the Demon Sealing Ruins still stood at the center of the valley.
Black mist drifted faintly between the cracks.
The gate looked silent.
But Fang Lin could feel it.
Something beneath the silence was awake.
He stood among the outer crowd wearing the face of a young herb gatherer. A bamboo basket hung from his back, his robes were plain, and his aura had been suppressed to Early Qi Conjunction Realm. No one paid much attention to him. In a valley filled with Spirit Foundation cultivators, elders, sect disciples, and ambitious geniuses, an Early Qi Conjunction herb gatherer was barely more noticeable than dust on the road.
That was why he had chosen this face.
Fang Lin lowered his eyes.
Inside his storage treasure, the old token rested quietly.
The same token he had found before.
Back then, he had not understood what it truly was. Now, after hearing Bao San's explanation, he knew.
A key.
A Demon Sealing Ruins Key Token.
His fingers tightened slightly inside his sleeve.
If he activated it, the ruins might respond.
If the ruins responded, others might notice.
But if he did not activate it, he would never know how much authority the token still held, or whether the hidden realm had truly begun its second opening.
Fang Lin's expression remained ordinary, but beneath that calm face, his thoughts were sharp.
He had to move before the major powers fully surrounded the valley.
He had to enter before everyone understood what was happening.
He had to take the first step while they were still watching the gate from outside.
The crowd around him continued murmuring.
"Do you think it will really open?"
"Who knows? The major sect disciples have already arrived. They must have heard something."
"I heard only Spirit Foundation cultivators can enter once the hidden realm opens fully."
"Then why are you standing here? You are only Middle Qi Conjunction."
"To watch. Watching is free."
"Until someone fights and you get buried under sword Qi."
The man who had spoken fell silent.
Fang Lin ignored the chatter.
His divine sense remained withdrawn. He did not scan widely. Too many experts were present. A careless soul fluctuation could draw attention before he even acted.
He took one slow breath.
Then, inside his sleeve, he touched the token.
The moment his spiritual sense entered it, the grey seed inside his spiritual sea pulsed.
The token trembled.
Fang Lin's pupils narrowed faintly.
So it still responded.
The black mist around the ancient stone gate suddenly paused.
For a breath, the entire valley seemed to hold still.
Then the token in Fang Lin's hand became cold.
Very cold.
Ancient patterns lit up across its surface, but the light did not spread outward. It sank into Fang Lin's palm and rushed into the ground beneath his feet.
Fang Lin's heart tightened.
The ruins were not opening from the gate.
They were opening through him.
Before he could take another breath, black light rose from beneath his feet.
A silent ripple wrapped around his body.
Fang Lin's expression finally changed slightly.
Not fear.
Astonishment.
The token was pulling him in directly.
The herb-gatherer disguise blurred.
The bamboo basket on his back trembled.
Then Fang Lin vanished.
No sound.
No warning.
No flash bright enough to blind the crowd.
Only a ripple of black light, and the Early Qi Conjunction herb gatherer disappeared from where he had been standing.
For half a breath, no one reacted.
Then the valley exploded.
"Someone vanished!"
"Where did he go?"
"Did the ruins pull him in?"
"No, impossible! The gate has not opened!"
"He might be the one having the token!"
That final shout cut through the crowd like a blade.
The cultivators nearby turned toward the empty spot where Fang Lin had stood.
A few had seen him.
A young herb gatherer.
Early Qi Conjunction aura.
Plain robes.
Bamboo basket.
No sect emblem.
Unremarkable.
Too unremarkable.
And now he was gone.
A Spirit Foundation rogue cultivator's face twisted with shock. "That person had the key!"
Another shouted, "He opened the ruins!"
The ancient stone gate answered at that moment.
Black mist surged outward.
Formation lines lit across the valley floor, spreading from the gate like veins awakening after countless years. The air trembled, and a deep sound echoed from inside the hidden realm.
Not loud.
But old.
Heavy.
Alive.
The camps on the surrounding hills erupted into motion.
Sect disciples rushed out. Elders rose into the air. Message talismans burned. Patrols shouted orders. The quiet valley became a storm within moments.
From the east, a silver-blue sword light arrived first.
Jian Wuchen descended near the entrance, white-blue robes moving sharply in the wind. His eyes were fixed on the gate, and his usual pride had turned into open focus.
"So the key appeared," he said quietly.
Not far away, golden-red flames swept across the sky.
Chi Yao landed with a flame ribbon circling her wrist. Her red-gold robes glowed beneath the black mist, and excitement burned in her eyes. She looked at the gate as if it had insulted her by opening late.
"A hidden realm that slept until this generation," she said. "Interesting."
A heavy pressure followed.
Xuan Beihai of Black Tortoise Mountain arrived with several followers behind him. His black and deep green armor-robes gave off a steady dark-green aura. He did not speak at first. He only looked at the gate, then at the empty space where Fang Lin had vanished.
His brows tightened slightly.
"The one with the token entered first."
From another direction, a pale blue light drifted down like moon mist.
Yue Qingning of Moon Reflection Valley appeared with quiet steps. Her silver-white aura wrapped faintly around her robes, and her eyes reflected the gate without revealing her thoughts.
Behind a nearby broken stone pillar, a smoky black ripple appeared and faded.
Ning Shuang of Silent Night Pavilion had arrived.
Most cultivators did not notice her at all.
Those who did felt their skin turn cold.
Soon after, Gu Man of Ancient Beast Hall came with a loud laugh, bronze-green aura shaking the ground beneath his feet.
"So it really opened! Good! I was beginning to think this city only sold rumors and overpriced wine!"
Luo Qianji from Hundred Formation Tower arrived beside a floating formation disk, smiling as if the chaos had already become a calculation in his mind.
Su Lianxue from Pill Dawn Sect came more quietly, white-gold robes moving gently, her eyes already assessing injury risks, pill demand, and the value of being early.
Kong Mingyuan of Demon Suppression Temple arrived last among them, staff in hand, white-black-gold robes spotless. His gaze toward the black mist was severe.
"Demonic aura," he said. "The inheritance inside must be inspected carefully."
Ning Shuang's faint voice came from the shadow.
"You say that before entering every ruin?"
Kong Mingyuan's eyes turned cold.
The air tightened.
Before the tension could grow, green-white light descended from above.
Ye Qinglan arrived.
Her pale green aura spread gently, not suppressing everyone, but calming the chaos around her. Her eyes moved from the ancient gate to the major sect disciples gathered nearby.
"The hidden realm has awakened," she said. "This is Rivercloud City territory. No one attacks outside the gate without cause."
Her voice was calm.
But everyone understood the warning.
Rivercloud City belonged to Thousand Leaf Immortal Sect.
Even major sect disciples had to remember where they stood.
Yet while the major sect geniuses gathered, another group arrived from the distance.
Green Bamboo Sect.
Fang Lin was no longer outside to see them, but the valley saw them clearly.
Two groups came under the same sect banner, yet their auras did not blend.
The first group carried a quieter but sharper momentum.
At the front stood Feng Jiu'er.
She wore deep red and white robes, the colors dignified rather than flashy. Her long hair was tied neatly, and her aura had already reached Peak Spirit Foundation Realm. A faint crimson light rested around her, but within it was a colder, steadier power that had not existed before.
She was no longer only the proud young woman who had watched Fang Lin during the outer sect competition.
Among the younger generation of the Green Bamboo Sect, Feng Jiu'er carried the strength to stand beside major sect disciples.
Behind her were familiar faces.
Li Shan, now at Early Spirit Foundation Realm, still looked plain and quiet, but his eyes carried more confidence than before.
Luo Chen stood with a calm expression, his aura also at Early Spirit Foundation Realm.
Murong Yue wore a faint smile, but her gaze moved across the valley with sharp interest. She had also entered Early Spirit Foundation, and unlike many others, she seemed more excited than nervous.
Bai Qing stood beside Han Zhi, both of them now Early Spirit Foundation cultivators. Han Zhi's expression remained serious, while Bai Qing looked more alert than before.
Zhao Feng had also broken through. His aura was not the strongest among them, but his eyes carried a determination that had been tempered through pressure.
Su Wanqing stood slightly behind Feng Jiu'er, her Late Spirit Foundation aura calm and refined. Beside her were other inner sect disciples and Spirit Foundation cultivators from the Alliance side.
Altogether, Feng Jiu'er's group numbered around thirty to forty Spirit Foundation cultivators.
When they saw the awakened gate, their expressions changed.
Murong Yue's smile faded slightly. "So the rumors were true."
Li Shan looked toward the black mist and said softly, "This place feels dangerous."
Luo Chen nodded. "Very dangerous."
Zhao Feng clenched his fist. "And full of opportunity."
Bai Qing gave him a glance. "Those two usually arrive together."
Han Zhi looked toward the major sect disciples and frowned. "There are too many strong people here."
Feng Jiu'er said nothing for a moment.
Her gaze moved across the valley.
For some reason, her heart felt uneasy.
She did not know Fang Lin had just vanished into the ruins.
She did not know that the key had responded to him.
But when she looked at the black mist, a faint feeling moved inside her chest.
Concern.
Without a name.
Without proof.
She frowned slightly.
"Stay together," she said. "No one acts alone."
The disciples behind her immediately answered.
"Yes."
Not long after, the second Green Bamboo Sect group arrived.
The Faction side.
At the front stood a Peak Spirit Foundation cultivator from the Chen clan.
Chen Mingyuan.
He wore dark green robes with black edging, and his expression carried the cold confidence of someone backed by both clan and faction. His aura was sharp, heavy, and controlled.
Behind him followed around forty Spirit Foundation cultivators from the Faction side.
Among them was Chen Hao.
He had also changed.
His cultivation had risen, his expression had become colder, and the humiliation from past defeats had not disappeared. It had only been buried beneath ambition.
When his eyes swept over Feng Jiu'er's group, resentment flashed through them.
Then he looked toward the Demon Sealing Ruins.
His fingers tightened.
If an inheritance truly appeared inside, then this was a chance.
A chance to rise.
A chance to erase old shame.
A chance to crush those who had once looked down on him.
Chen Mingyuan glanced toward Feng Jiu'er and smiled faintly.
"Junior Sister Feng, I did not expect the Alliance side to move so quickly."
Feng Jiu'er looked at him calmly.
"The ruins have opened. Speed is natural."
Chen Mingyuan's smile did not change. "Then I hope your people can keep up inside."
Murong Yue's eyes narrowed slightly.
Bai Qing's expression turned cold.
Su Wanqing remained composed, but her gaze sharpened.
Feng Jiu'er replied evenly, "Worry about your own people."
The words were simple.
But the air between the two Green Bamboo Sect groups tightened.
The major sect disciples noticed them as well.
Chi Yao's gaze landed on Feng Jiu'er, and a faint interest appeared in her eyes.
"Peak Spirit Foundation from a subordinate sect?"
Jian Wuchen also looked over. "Her foundation is not weak."
Xuan Beihai's gaze paused briefly. "She can stand with major sect disciples."
Ye Qinglan looked at Feng Jiu'er for a moment longer.
Green Bamboo Sect belonged beneath Thousand Leaf Immortal Sect's influence. Seeing such a disciple appear from a subordinate sect was not a bad thing.
But her eyes soon moved back to the gate.
The entrance was changing.
The black mist had begun forming a spiraling passage. Formation lines stretched across the stone gate, and an invisible restriction spread outward.
A Spirit Foundation cultivator nearby stepped closer.
The mist did not reject him.
A Core Formation elder from one of the local sects tried to extend his divine sense into the gate.
The moment his divine sense touched the black mist, it was pushed back.
His face darkened.
"Core Formation cannot enter."
The words spread quickly.
Spirit Foundation cultivators grew excited.
Core Formation elders grew grim.
This meant the hidden realm belonged to the younger generation.
For some, that was opportunity.
For others, danger.
Inside the Demon Sealing Ruins, Fang Lin opened his eyes.
Darkness surrounded him.
The air was colder than before.
The moment he entered, the token dissolved into black light and sank into his palm. A faint mark appeared there for half a breath before vanishing beneath his skin.
The ruins had pulled him in directly.
Not through the outer gate.
Not through the first passage he had used before.
He stood in an unfamiliar corridor of black stone, with ancient formation lines glowing faintly along the walls.
The grey seed pulsed inside his spiritual sea.
The dark flame of the Nine Abyss Shadow Scripture burned quietly beside it.
Somewhere far away, deep within the hidden realm, the dark spire seemed to stir.
Fang Lin slowly lowered his gaze to his palm.
A quiet breath left him.
The ruins had opened.
The others would soon enter.
This time, he would not have three days.
He would have fifteen.
But this time, the enemies would not be local sect geniuses.
They would be the best of the major powers.
Fang Lin's expression became calm.
Then, faintly, the corner of his mouth curved.
Not joy.
Not arrogance.
A cold smile born from danger.
"Then let us see what else you are hiding."
He stepped into the darkness.
Behind him, the corridor sealed without a sound.
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