Sure enough, Yan Motian and Lin Mingyu , who were beside them, heard what Xiahuà and the other two said. The two demons' eyes flickered. In the end, they actually turned their gazes to Yin Congfeng in the distance, apparently seeking his opinion. And Yin Congfeng , of course, had also heard what Sword King Xiahuà and the other two had said. He stood there with a straight face, as if listening to something. A moment later, he gave a distant fist-in-palm salute to Elder Peng and the others. "Forgive me, I have matters to attend to. I won't see you off." After speaking, he no longer looked at the Malevolent Spirit Sect's side, but directly soared into the air, taking the lead and flying in one direction of the secret realm.
Seeing this, Yan Motian and Lin Mingyu understood that Yin Congfeng had received a voice transmission from the old ancestor. They immediately smiled broadly. "Elder Peng, please!"
Seeing Yin Congfeng clasp his fist and say these words, Elder Peng felt a sense of relief. He also returned the salute, no longer looking at the somewhat disappointed gazes of Sword King Xiahuà and the others. Instead, with a flick of his long sleeve, a ferocious, ghost-faced monster appeared on the peak. He shouted loudly, "We're leaving!" and with a step, he flew onto the monster's head. The cultivators of the Malevolent Spirit Sect , hearing the order, looked at each other, then all soared into the air.
With loud laughter, Yan Motian and Lin Mingyu also flew toward the monster. But when Elder Peng's monster saw these two demonic cultivators flying over, it actually showed a look of fear. The two demons paid no heed and flew directly onto it. After flying up, Lin Mingyu looked down again and even tapped the monster's body with the tip of his foot.
"For Elder Peng to have this beast as a companion, it must be like adding wings to a tiger."
Under the tap of Lin Mingyu's foot, the huge body of the monster actually trembled. It couldn't help but let out a low roar, the fear in its eyes growing even stronger.
"It's just a second-tier Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino. Although it's hard to find outside the secret realm, I imagine it's quite common within your secret realm. Let's go then. We'll have to trouble you two in a bit." Seeing his spirit beast in pain, Elder Peng couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. After speaking lightly, he didn't mention the matter again. Instead, he looked around. Seeing the disciples of the Malevolent Spirit Sect arriving one by one with whistling sounds, it wasn't long before the peak was empty.
Elder Peng also lightly tapped the monster's head with the tip of his foot, but his movement was extremely light, not like Lin Mingyu's stomping. The Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino let out a long hiss and had already shot away from the top of the peak.
The other peaks at this time also, with a series of whistling sounds, all chased after Yin Congfeng's direction.
In a moment, only the empty peak and the endless sky were left here. But no one noticed that as everyone was leaving, the spherical mountain conjured up a giant human face that watched the two departing groups. It was Pingtu. He stared in the direction where Li Yan had disappeared for a while, then that giant face slowly turned back into a vast forest.
Let's talk about Elder Peng's journey. It was truly lightning-fast. Along the way, only the few elders standing on the monster's head occasionally spoke in low voices with the two demons. None of the Foundation Establishment and Qi Condensation cultivators behind them spoke. Many of them were still immersed in the recent changes and shock. To this day, the blood-curdling screams and the ghost-like appearance of Hang Zhi and the others made their hearts tremble with fear. For a time, they had no inclination to go to Baili Yuan and the others to ask for the reason. The mood for conversation among them was lost.
The joy of winning first and second place and returning had long since been diluted a lot. Looking at the mostly empty back of the monster, they couldn't help but think of their dead fellow disciples, which filled the air here with a faint sense of sorrow.
When Li Yan and Gong Chenying flew onto the monster's back, they stood together with Li Wuyi and the others. Looking at the rapidly receding scenery on both sides, they knew that they would soon reach the entrance of the secret realm. After a few simple voice transmissions, they agreed to meet at Li Yan's bamboo courtyard after leaving the secret realm to talk, and then they all quietly looked ahead.
Li Changting , on the other hand, looked at Li Yan with great interest, then at Zhao Min , who was looking down, her phoenix eyes blinking continuously.
Seeing Li Changting like this, Li Wuyi hastily moved a few steps away, then sat down cross-legged and directly closed his eyes.
Gong Chenying looked at the fleeting scenery outside with a complicated expression, seemingly lost in thought. But if one looked closely, one could see that the corner of her eye would occasionally glance at Zhao Min , who was bowing her head, revealing her snow-white jade neck. Several times, she seemed about to open her jade lips to send a voice transmission, but in the end, she pressed her lips tightly together, the wandering look in her eyes growing even stronger.
But what she didn't notice was that behind her, Yun Chunqu was leaning relaxedly against Wei Chituo , his injuries seeming to have healed a lot. He was staring infatuatedly at that slender, beautiful figure. Fortunately, Wei Chituo knew his thoughts. His big eyes darted around, looking at Gong Chenying in front, then down at Yun Chunqu.
Ever since Zhao Min stood with Li Yan and the others, she had only nodded at first. After listening to their simple voice transmissions, she had lowered her head, looking at the tips of her toes, her long ponytail bent into a bow, as if lost in thought.
When Li Yan saw Zhao Min nod slightly at her, he couldn't help but scratch his head. He then stole a glance at Gong Chenying. Seeing that Gong Chenying was as cold as ever, with no ripples of emotion, he didn't know why, but he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.
At this time, at the front where the Golden Core elders were, beads of sweat appeared on Lin Mingyu's forehead as he dealt with Li Yuyin's questions from time to time.
"Young Master Lin, what's wrong? The world outside the secret realm is much vaster. With your skills, you could soar to the heavens and dominate the four seas. Besides, there are tens of thousands of beautiful women outside. Occasionally, I could accompany you for a few drinks," Li Yuyin's delicate and soft voice made the hearts of the cultivators beside her race.
"Oh, yes, yes, but my master is very strict. My cultivation is not yet enough. I'm not allowed to go out, not allowed," Lin Mingyu said, his handsome face a little pale, his voice hurried.
In just this short while, this bewitching woman had already invited him out several times, but it always gave him a feeling of heart-pounding fear.
"Young Master Lin, did you know that I have an old acquaintance in that Hang Zhi from the Supreme Mystery Teachings ? I hear she has an even more rigid and prettier junior sister. I can invite the two of them out together in the future..."
"Oh, yes, yes, but after I finish the task assigned by Martial Uncle Tonggui today, he has other urgent matters that require me to..." Lin Mingyu's folding fan was already open, fanning himself incessantly.
Yan Motian had long since felt a shiver run down his spine from listening. He took several steps across, standing far to one side, and started talking loudly with Peak Master Yi, wishing his voice could drown out the sound of those two.
Elder Peng and the others had strange smiles on their faces and had also quietly put some distance between themselves and Lin Mingyu and Li Yuyin.
Not long after, Li Yan and the others felt the speed of the monster beneath them decrease sharply. Many people looked ahead. With the Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino's speed greatly reduced, the blurry scenery outside became very clear. They saw that their group was currently flying over a large grassland. In the distance, the dense forest at the edge of the grassland was faintly visible.
Li Yan also saw the scene ahead clearly. For no reason, a trace of excitement rose in his heart, as if a wanderer who had been away for a long time had seen the long-lost gate of his home. Although they had only been here for a little over a month, nearly a hundred people had gone in, and only a little over forty had returned. It couldn't help but make people feel more emotional and more homesick.
The Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino's speed was astonishingly fast. The forest that had been faint just now was now a lush green in front of them in the blink of an eye. They had instantly arrived at the edge of the grassland. The Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino circled once, and its huge body slowly landed in the half-man-deep thick grass.
While the Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino was still descending, a figure had already flown off quickly. At the same time, a burst of loud laughter came. "Since we've arrived at this place, as the host, it should be up to me to preside over the opening of the passage. Peak Master Li, we can talk about other things later." Everyone looked toward the sound and saw an extremely dashing figure had already soared from the Silver-Fanged Dragon Rhino's back, shooting straight toward a point in the void at the edge of the grassland. It was Lin Mingyu .
At this moment, as Lin Mingyu entered the sky, it was as if a fish had entered the sea, a dragon flying in the heavens, indescribably free and unrestrained.
And below, the Peak Master Li of Never-Parting Peak had a smile on her lips, her spring-like eyes looking dreamily at Lin Mingyu in the sky. This made Lin Mingyu , who had just felt the breath of free air, couldn't help but shiver. He hurriedly flew toward the location of the passage.
The moment Lin Mingyu turned around, the smile on Li Yuyin's lips turned into a cold sneer, the dreamy look in her eyes vanishing completely. She snorted coldly in her heart. 'Hmph, this demonic beast is quite smart. It refuses to leave the secret realm no matter what...'
Seeing that Lin Mingyu had already flown out, Elder Peng and the others also had smiles on their faces. They made a "please" gesture to Yan Motian . Yan Motian rubbed his nose, shook his head slightly, and then also flew out directly.
...
Li Yan once again felt dizzy, a kaleidoscope of lights, black and white alternating. He felt his feet stop, and he was standing on solid ground.
On the back mountain of Little Bamboo Peak , on the Heaven Stele Plaza, dozens of figures flickered into existence one by one, slowly solidifying into reality.
Li Yan took a deep breath. The air here was slightly mixed, and the spirit qi was much thinner than in the secret realm. It was now past noon. Li Yan looked at the endless stretch of dark green bamboo forest before him, feeling a sense of closeness in his heart. His body also instantly relaxed completely. Although the spirit qi here couldn't compare to the secret realm, looking at this sky, this land, this familiar endless bamboo forest, an extremely familiar feeling washed over him, making one feel the urge to shout out loud.
"Alright, all of you from the various peaks may return. Those who are injured, tend to your wounds; those who need to recover, recover. This time, you have all rendered great service to the sect. Whether it was the secret realm trial or the Wheel of Life and Death , this has been the most fruitful training in the last hundred years. I will report everything to the sect, and the sect's award ceremony will be held in a few days. You will be notified then. Hmm, Baili Yuan, Gan Shi, and Gong Chenying, the three of you stay behind. Come with us to Lord Lao Peak . There are some matters that still need to be explained in detail."
Lost in his thoughts, Li Yan heard Elder Peng's voice slowly coming over. He and Elder Yi and the others finally stepped out of that black and white vortex. When they spoke of the harvest from the trial, there was an unconcealable excitement on their faces.
"Oh, was the harvest great this time? What did you get?" Before anyone could speak, a child's voice sounded. With a twist, the vortex of the black and white passage stopped spinning. In the blink of an eye, it turned into a twenty-something-yard-high, wordless, seven-colored stone stele. A child's face was slowly appearing on it, but on the face was a slyness that he thought others couldn't see.
"Senior Heaven Stele, the resources for opening the trial this time have already been given to you. As for the harvest in the secret realm, I have no authority to speak of it. However, you can ask Great Cen Ancestor," Elder Peng said, frowning upon hearing this.
"I just want to hear about it. It's not like I'm asking for it. Can't I?" The moment the child heard the words "Great Cen Ancestor," a look of fear appeared on his small face.
"It's not that you can't, it's that we don't have the authority," Elder Peng said, looking at the Heaven Stele.
"Alright, alright, if you can't, you can't. As if anyone wants to know. Then you all hurry up and leave. I still have to sleep. Hurry up," the child's face said with some impatience.
This ability to change expressions in an instant made Li Yan stare in a daze. But the others seemed to be used to it, and no one showed any sign of indignation. Besides the few Golden Core elders, many people had already begun to find people from their own peaks and gather together to prepare to leave.
After sweeping a glance at the Heaven Stele, Elder Peng and the others took the lead and walked away. The three, Baili Yuan and his companions, followed closely behind the eight of them. Li Yan and the others immediately bowed in salute. But when the group passed by Li Yan's group, Gong Chenying, who was walking at the back, hesitated for a moment. Her footsteps paused. Then, she took a diagonal step and came to Zhao Min's side. Under Zhao Min's puzzled gaze, she leaned close to Zhao Min's ear and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "He... he, when he was treating me... he saw the navel ring." Then, under Zhao Min's astonished gaze, she saw the blushing Gong Chenying lift her head, quickly glance sideways at Li Yan, and then walk away.