The exit of the secret realm was littered with corpses.
Blood pooled into hollows of various sizes, emitting a foul odor.
The battle here had long since concluded.
The surviving cultivators departed with their spoils, leaving the bodies of the defeated behind.
*Pat, pat, pat.*
Footsteps, neither light nor heavy, echoed through the dense mountain forest as a tall figure gradually emerged.
He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply with relish, and whispered, "What a marvelous scent."
Jin Biao's hands began to move incessantly, releasing strange powers from his body that then drifted towards the scattered corpses.
Colorless spiritual bodies, invisible to the naked eye, began to float out from the bodies.
Then, as if compelled by some force, they drifted towards Jin Biao.
Hiss!
The colorless spiritual bodies were not entirely devoid of consciousness.
At least they sensed the threat Jin Biao posed.
Thus, the closer they got to Jin Biao, the more they struggled.
The formless spiritual bodies contorted into various shapes in the air.
However, their struggles appeared as laughable as a mantis trying to stop a chariot to Jin Biao.
"Become my nourishment, all of you, hahahahaha."
Jin Biao laughed wildly once more, his pupils flashing with a cold gleam, his voice sharp and peculiar, unlike a human's.
If the disciples of Xuan Qing Sect were to see Jin Biao in his current state, they would surely treat him as a demonic entity and slay him.
Jin Biao trembled, clasped his hands together, and pushed them towards his chest.
An irresistible suction force erupted from within him, and the colorless spiritual bodies, still struggling in the air, were instantly drawn to his front.
Then, through his nasal passages, they entered Jin Biao's body.
"Gulp~"
After more than ten breaths, the spiritual bodies were consumed by Jin Biao.
He opened his mouth, let out a burp, and a look of satisfaction appeared on his face.
Having a body indeed felt good.
"The second meal is about to begin."
He narrowed his eyes, identified the direction with the most spiritual bodies, and pushed off with his feet, darting away like an arrow released from a bowstring.
...
"Elder Zui Yue, why hasn't the Sect Master arrived yet? It shouldn't be this way."
Elder Qu, worried about Qu Xiaoxiao who was trapped in the secret realm, was unable to maintain his composure. After meditating for a while, he finally couldn't help but ask Elder Zui Yue.
Elder Zui Yue hesitated for a moment before replying, "Perhaps something has delayed him. Elder Qu, please remain calm."
In Elder Zui Yue's opinion, within the entire Xuan Qing Sect, from top to bottom, only Elder Qian Ji was truly unreasonable.
Furthermore, Elder Qian Ji had only recently engaged in many offensive actions due to his inability to break through his cultivation, but his nature was not inherently bad.
She believed that since the sect had agreed, they would not renege, and there must be a reason for this.
Elder Qu also knew the intricacies of the situation, but his deep affection for his daughter made it difficult for him to calm down and think.
Even as he hesitated whether to inquire about the situation of the other elders, a whistling sound, like thunder, tore through the sky in the distance.
Elder Qu leaped from the ground, his eyes flashing with excitement.
"Elder Zui Yue, Elder Qu."
Before the person arrived, their voice preceded them.
Elder Qu's hair suddenly shot upwards, and two figures appeared before him.
Why had only two people arrived?
Elder Qu frowned in dissatisfaction.
"Sect Master Zhenren! You..." Elder Qu's words stopped abruptly as he saw another middle-aged cultivator beside the Qing Lian Sect Master.
After a moment, he stammered, disbelief evident, "Ancestor Wu Qian!"
"Ancestor Wu Qian!"
Zui Yue lowered her head in deference, her shock beyond words.
The young Sect Master had actually invited Ancestor Wu Qian, who had long been in seclusion. No wonder their arrival was later than they had anticipated.
Ancestor Wu Qian appeared to be around forty years old, with a fair, beardless face and a lean physique. Judging by his appearance, no one would guess his true identity.
Ancestor Wu Qian glanced indifferently at the two, his gaze finally resting on Elder Zui Yue.
"Zui Yue, your strength has improved again. Excellent."
"Thank you for your praise, Ancestor," Zui Yue replied respectfully, feeling a little more at ease.
With Ancestor Wu Qian personally intervening, the secret realm of the Western Water Domain would surely be reopened.
"Zui Yue, explain the situation in detail."
Sensing that Ancestor Wu Qian had no intention of speaking further, Sect Master Qing Lian immediately asked in a deep voice.
"Yes, yesterday I came to this place and happened to encounter..."
After Elder Zui Yue finished speaking, Sect Master Qing Lian looked at Ancestor Wu Qian, "Master, is there a method to open this secret realm?"
Indeed, Ancestor Wu Qian was the master of Sect Master Qing Lian and the previous Sect Master of Xuan Qing Sect.
After Sect Master Qing Lian succeeded him, he announced his seclusion to fully attempt to reach the Mahayana stage, and had not appeared in public since.
There were even many rumors outside that Ancestor Wu Qian of Xuan Qing Sect had failed in his attempt to reach Mahayana and had already perished.
However, the people of Xuan Qing Sect knew that Ancestor Wu Qian had not only not perished but had further advanced his strength, now being a cultivator in the late Mahayana stage, only one step away from ascending to the Upper Realm.
At such a critical juncture, the sect would generally not, nor dare to, disturb him with matters, and only Sect Master Qing Lian dared to act in this manner.
"No rush, let your master take a look."
When Ancestor Wu Qian entered seclusion, the secret realm of the Western Water Domain had not yet opened, so he was not familiar with the secret realms here. To break through, he first needed to find the hidden entrance.
Ancestor Wu Qian reached out and grasped the void, five golden copper coins appearing in his hand.
"Go."
Ancestor Wu Qian infused spiritual energy into the copper coins, then tossed them forward.
The copper coins spun rapidly in the air for dozens of rotations before suddenly flying off in a certain direction.
Elder Qu and Elder Zui Yue stared intently at the five copper coins fluttering in the air, their chests heaving.
*Buzz buzz buzz!*
The five copper coins stopped in mid-air at one spot and began to vibrate rapidly.
Invisible ripples spread out from them, circle after circle.
The four instantly sensed that another force in this void was resisting.
"There."
Ancestor Wu Qian reached out and fiercely grabbed the spot where the copper coins had stopped.
*Pop—*
A sound like ripping cloth echoed, and a rift appeared out of nowhere.
The five copper coins, arranged in a pentagonal formation, appeared within the rift, forcefully propping it open.
"Found it!"
Elder Qu clapped his hands excitedly and looked eagerly at Ancestor Wu Qian.
He was ready to serve as the vanguard and scout ahead as soon as Ancestor Wu Qian gave the order.
However, Ancestor Wu Qian's expression was not as he had imagined; instead, it was filled with solemnity.
"This is..."
Beside him, Elder Zui Yue whispered in shock.
Elder Qu finally sensed that something was amiss and quickly looked towards the rift, his face instantly turning ashen.
Within the rift was not the entrance he had imagined, but a colossal skull, upon which countless dark runes were carved.
The empty eye sockets of the skull were aimed at them, and Elder Qu could even feel a faint sense of being watched, sending a shiver down his spine.
And as he faced this skull, he felt all the fine hairs on his body tremble.
What kind of existence was this!