Master Wang Chui's mind was filled with vast knowledge of arcane devices. Though the secret realm was not his specialty, he surely understood some of it.
From his inherited knowledge, there were two sources of secret realms.
One was a small, artificial secret realm created by a great being in conjunction with legendary treasures.
The other was a naturally occurring secret realm.
However, regardless of the type, the expansion of a secret realm was difficult and slow. How could it be expanding visibly like it was now?
He stroked his stubble. "But then, after all, it's that mentor. Nothing they do is strange."
The other apprentices also relaxed.
They had thought an enemy was attacking.
At this moment, they were all pressed against the window, eyes wide, mouths agape, their expressions identical, conveying the same sentiment.
The mentor is awesome!
...
"Our secret realm expanded?"
An Jianyou, returning from the branch base, looked at the scenery outside, her small mouth slightly ajar.
However, she was merely shocked by the sight of the expanding secret realm.
As for why the secret realm could expand, how difficult it was, she didn't understand. Even if she did, it was like this.
Nothing strange.
Was it surprising that someone as capable as the mentor could expand a secret realm? It was normal!
An Jianyou considered it standard operating procedure.
She continued to gaze at the breathtaking scenery outside.
...
"Ding!"
"Notification: The Kindling Secret Realm has integrated a Secret Realm Stone. The current secret realm power has increased, the secret realm's scope is expanding, and the secret realm's level is Lv2: 33%."
It was already a Level 2 secret realm before.
It seemed one Secret Realm Stone was not enough for an upgrade, but the secret realm was already expanding, and the number of secret realm entrances had increased from three to four.
It just hadn't reached the upgrade threshold yet.
He continued to integrate more Secret Realm Stones.
Rumble—
Rumble—
Rumble rumble—
Four Secret Realm Stones were thrown in all at once. The secret realm's level rose to Lv3, and the number of entrance passages expanded to seven.
And the secret realm was still slowly expanding.
It would probably take half a day to a full day to finish expanding.
Fang You ascended to the highest point of the base, standing on the pointed spire protruding from the base's roof, gazing into the distance.
In the distance, golden clouds churned. The winds and clouds shifted, but they lacked the terror of last night. Instead, they were magnificent and beautiful, possessing a different kind of awe.
Not only was the scope expanding, but the secret realm also appeared increasingly real during its upgrade.
By comparison, although the previous secret realm was beautiful, it possessed a static beauty that felt a bit artificial after prolonged viewing.
But now, the entire secret realm was more vibrant.
The wind flowed, and the sunlight was not constant. It would gradually mimic the outside world, forming a cycle of day and night.
The secret realm was now... closer to a complete world.
And,
Fang You looked down, towards the base's ground.
The base was suspended in the air, but before this, the secret realm had nothing else except this cloud-based base. Below was the sea, or rather, a lake.
Naturally, there were no fish or aquatic plants in the lake.
There were none now, and life could not possibly emerge in such a short time, even in the real world.
But on the ever-expanding lake below, land was slowly appearing.
It rose from the lakebed and continuously expanded outwards, growing with the secret realm.
Time flowed, and three hours passed in the blink of an eye.
At this moment,
The secret realm was still expanding, its total area roughly doubling. The base itself remained unchanged, but the land below had completely expanded into an island.
Calling it an island wasn't entirely accurate.
One side of the land bordered the edge of the secret realm, expanding with it, occupying about one-third of the secret realm's area.
One-third land, two-thirds ocean!
It was a slight pity that the land was still bare, with nothing on it.
At the top of the base, Fang You slowly closed his eyes.
In his mind, he visualized the outline of the secret realm.
The expanding land, the flowing breeze, every inch of the secret realm, he could see and control.
Just as he could control the base before.
"My control over the secret realm has deepened."
"Within the secret realm, I feel an invincible sense of power."
This feeling was intoxicating.
Fang You restrained himself. Invincibility was impossible. He had to have a clear understanding of his own strength.
However,
He leaped, soaring down from the top of the base like a great bird.
The wind whistled past his ears, flapping his clothes.
He spread his arms, facing the wind, and his entire being seemed to merge with the wind.
Fang You could fly.
To be precise, he could walk on air. He dared to leap from the clouds like this. But now, he didn't use the Illusory Void Step. With a mere thought, the surrounding wind, like sprites, circled around him, coalescing to form a vortex that lifted him up.
He, soared with the wind.
With another wave of his hand.
Whoosh—
The calm sea churned. The seawater was lifted by an unseen force, rising into a hundred-zhang high wave.
A magnificent sight!
Immediately, the wave transformed into a waterspout, howling as it moved, and in an instant, it became a sea dragon, leaping and diving.
This was not because Fang You knew water magic, but pure power! An unseen power!
With a thought, he could conjure a hundred-zhang high wave.
With a thought, he could change the wind and clouds.
"This is the power of the secret realm."
"Here, I can wield the power of the entire secret realm. This power is vast and inexhaustible, truly invincible!"
Invincible, though it was a fleeting illusion brought on by the sudden grasp of immense power, the secret realm's power was indeed formidable, beyond imagination!
It was as if he was holding a miniature world.
How could a person's strength compare to a world? Utterly insignificant!
"Being within the secret realm, my power, however great, has limited impact. However..."
Fang You closed his eyes, sensing the changes in the secret realm.
He was now the master of the secret realm. He was still somewhat unskillful and clumsy in wielding this power, but with a little exploration, he found the knack.
He took a step forward.
Hum—
Space subtly warped, and in the next instant, he was in the outside world, in reality!
An endless ocean unfolded before his eyes.
Fang You glanced at the marker on the mission map. Yes, he had arrived somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.
With the power of the secret realm, he no longer needed to use the main entrance to travel, and he could reach almost any place on Earth.
Because the secret realm was located on Earth!
As for its specific location?
Fang You sensed it but couldn't pinpoint it. He could only say it was within Earth's spatial layer, not in a specific location.
The secret realm's spatial orientation was slightly different from conventional understanding.
His focus was not here.
Fang You closed his eyes, letting the sea breeze caress him as he stood like an exiled immortal.
After a while, he raised his hand, using the connection to the secret realm, summoning that vast, nearly inexhaustible power. It surged from within the secret realm and descended upon Earth.
Instantly,
The sky over the vast sea darkened, clouds gathered, and the boundless clouds began to swirl.
The wind and clouds shifted, like the end of the world!
This was absolute great power. Fang You's breathing quickened, and cold sweat trickled down his forehead, his veins bulging.
After a moment, the swirling clouds dispersed, and the sea returned to its calm state.
Sunlight streamed down.
Fang You wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"The power of the secret realm can indeed extend beyond the secret realm!"
"Although the consumption is enormous, using too much of the secret realm's power could cause irreparable damage to the entire secret realm, even leading to its shrinkage."
"Drawing upon this power outside the secret realm also places a great burden on myself."
Various limitations.
But undoubtedly, this was great news!
It was an absolute trump card! If faced with an existential threat, the side effects like secret realm shrinkage would be irrelevant.
He pondered, "Currently, this power is not strong enough outside, but it can grow with the secret realm's advancement."
"Another aspect is consumption. Within the secret realm, the cycle is self-contained with extremely low consumption. But outside, even a slight use affects the secret realm's foundation. Perhaps... I can seek methods to replace the depletion."
"Like life force?"
"Planting enough trees within the secret realm to replace the depletion?"
He mused.
One step, two steps, three steps. With three strides, he returned to the secret realm.
...
Beep beep beep beep—
Area 51, the piercing alarm sounded once again.
It was hard to say how many times it had sounded in the past two days! The staff at Area 51 were tense yet numb.
Watching their leader rush through the door, the person in charge spoke, "Leader, there have been abnormal changes in the airspace above the Pacific Ocean. According to meteorological satellite observations, the clouds suddenly churned up. These are the images captured by the satellite."
On the surface of Earth, a giant white vortex formed!
It was similar to the anomaly yesterday! But it disappeared in an instant.
Again?
The leader of Area 51's expression turned as black as an iron pot.
From yesterday to today, they had all been bewildered and confused. It was simply outrageous!
"Has Sunset Country and Wave Country received any intelligence?"
"Their high-level officials are still dealing with the aftermath of the disaster and seem unreachable at the moment."
The leader's expression grew even more gloomy.
He was certain that the Night Watch Department of Sunset Country and the Super Combat Department of Wave Country must know something, as the Red Moon disaster had occurred within their capital cities.
And it was stopped again.
It was impossible for them to not know any inside information.
But now, these two countries didn't seem inclined to follow the pace of their White Eagle Federation.
...
Sunset Country,
Fog City,
"White Eagle Federation?"
A high-ranking official scoffed.
Once, their Sunset Country was the most powerful. Later, they were robbed of their glory by the White Eagle Federation.
But times had changed.
Now was the era of mystery, the era of awakened ones!
Especially after witnessing the power of the Tree Realm, this high-ranking official was even more convinced.
The gears of time had turned to a new era, ushering in a great change unseen for a millennium. Whoever could seize the opportunity would rise.
Their Sunset Country might once again become a world superpower!
As long as they found that organization, and did so faster than other countries!
"Area 51? Let them investigate slowly."
"Our opponent is Wave Country. We cannot let Wave Country get ahead."
...
East Huang,
Huang Hongtian and Director Tang were in conversation.
"This is a great change unseen for a millennium. After the Red Moon incident, the world will inevitably undergo significant changes."
"Regarding mystery, awakenings, and dealing with disasters, although East Huang is ahead of the world, we cannot afford to be careless."
"I believe our cooperation with Kindling needs to be even deeper and closer."