"Help! The secret realm... the secret realm is collapsing!"
"Run!"
The continuous anomalies filled the cultivators with immense fear. More and more of them wished they could escape the secret realm, but before they could take a few steps, they were snatched away by thick black vines that sprouted from the realm itself.
The shadow of death suddenly enveloped everyone's hearts.
But none of this stopped.
"What is that?" a cultivator suddenly pointed upwards.
Bai Shengyi and Qin Si also immediately sensed something amiss. The two looked up.
They saw that the clear sky, devoid of clouds, suddenly gave birth to countless black clouds. Amidst these black clouds, a majestic, black and gold palace stood silently. With a single glance, one could feel the immense divine power emanating from the palace.
"A divine palace!"
"It's a divine palace where a deity resides!"
At this moment, within the divine palace, a shadow, having finished absorbing the latest blood and flesh, let out a satisfied burp.
"It's much better here. There's food and drink, and my injuries have recovered significantly." Qiong Yuan lazily sat in the very center of the divine palace, looking at his body gradually solidifying with great satisfaction. "Yun Youyue finally did something good."
"Don't forget what you promised me," a gruff voice echoed from within the divine palace. Upon careful listening, one would realize it was the same voice that had just spoken harshly to Bai Shengyi and the others from outside.
Qiong Yuan said, "Little secret realm, calm down. You've been dormant for tens of millions of years, can't you wait a little longer?"
He caressed the tables and chairs, the grass and trees within the divine palace, his expression enraptured.
"Who would have thought, who would have thought, that after tens of millions of years, it would be I, Qiong Yuan, who sits here firmly. Ji Ming and Lou Chong must be absolutely seething."
Before the deity fell, Ji Ming was the foremost among the deities and the steward of the Huanyu Secret Realm, while Lou Chong was a divine general. Both of these two were top-tier figures among the deities.
"You are not allowed to slander Master!" The Huanyu Secret Realm said indignantly, "My Master is the best in the world! Once I take human form, I can begin to revive Master."
"Hahaha, alright, I won't mention Ji Ming." Qiong Yuan plucked a flower. He looked at his solidified body and chuckled, "Little secret realm, since you want to revive Ji Ming, do you know who holds Ji Ming's Heavenly Mandate Sword?"
Qiong Yuan's voice was low and hoarse, like a wolf grandmother luring a child.
"Ji Ming Heavenly Monarch's sword is indeed in Bai Shengyi's hands. How can a mere mortal who has achieved immortality be worthy of Ji Ming Heavenly Monarch's sword?"
The Huanyu Secret Realm was filled with rage, "She is indeed not worthy! Since I was going to kill her anyway, I can just take the sword back!"
However, the Huanyu Secret Realm quickly came to its senses.
"Wait, didn't you say we would cooperate? I would give you some of the resentment and spiritual energy to help you recover quickly, and you would help me kill those two first?" Why did it become that it had to do it itself?
Facing the enraged Huanyu Secret Realm, Qiong Yuan was not afraid at all.
He had already discovered that this secret realm, before taking human form, could do nothing to him. After all, he was a deity.
"I provided you with the Gate of Reincarnation, isn't that enough?" Qiong Yuan said, "This is your secret realm after all. As long as you wish, with the support of my Gate of Reincarnation, killing them will be quick."
Qiong Yuan narrowed his eyes and looked at the cultivators flying towards the divine palace below, chuckling, "Little secret realm, look, isn't the opportunity here?"
"Divine palace!"
"Ruins of the Gods!"
"There must be a secret to becoming a god in here. No one is allowed to stop me, I want to be the first to enter!"
"Get lost! I, this Pavilion Master, want to be the first to enter!"
Before even reaching the divine palace, many cultivators had already begun fighting.
"Stop fighting! This is a scheme of the secret realm!" Yue Bufan tried to persuade those he knew.
The Pavilion Master of Qishan Pavilion glared at Yue Bufan with bloodshot eyes, "Nonsense! I think you, Yue Bufan and your group, want to monopolize the treasures inside the divine palace!"
"Exactly, exactly!" the others chimed in.
Yue Bufan was so angry he almost fell over!
"Madness, they've all gone mad!" Seeing that these people were determined to court death, Yue Bufan no longer bothered to persuade them.
He saw Bai Shengyi and Qin Si arriving and, along with Qian Ying, walked towards them. "Why don't these people ever think that with the abnormal occurrences in the Huanyu Secret Realm, this divine palace appearing so suddenly might be a conspiracy!"
Bai Shengyi said in a deep voice, "They won't think that way."
"Unless they encounter a fatal danger, they will only think of it as their own opportunity. Moreover, the mystery of becoming a god is too great," Qin Si added, following Bai Shengyi's words.
Bai Shengyi looked at Yue Bufan and Qian Ying, "Grandfather, Senior Sister, where are the Demon King and Master Ku Le?"
As she spoke, several thick black vines suddenly appeared and lunged towards her. However, before they could get close, Qin Si's long sword "swish swish" cut off their branches.
Frost spread along the vines towards the roots, but the vines directly snapped and fell to the ground.
"The Huanyu Secret Realm is quite vigilant," Qin Si said in a deep voice.
Now that they had fallen out with the secret realm, there was no need to vaguely refer to it as "it."
Yue Bufan had sustained a minor injury. Bai Shengyi was treating his wound. Yue Bufan said, "Long Zining and the others couldn't control the stone gate in the west. Lin Qingyu originally wanted to have a fight with Long Zining, but now he's helping over there. Ku Le is also there."
"Ayi, we also know that the secret realm is devouring Shen Qi. What are your plans, you and Qin Si? We will cooperate with you wholeheartedly," Qian Ying said.
Yue Bufan added, "Yes. Whatever you want to do, just do it with confidence!"
Bai Shengyi, however, frowned.
Yue Bufan's heart skipped a beat, "What's wrong?"
She sighed helplessly, "To be honest, Grandfather, Senior Sister, Ah Si and I are not confident that Shen Qi can overcome this crisis. You might not know, but this time, besides this secret realm that has gained consciousness, the enemy we will face is a deity who has lived from ancient times, and also the Yingwu Continent of the Chongyuan Middle World."
Upon hearing this, Yue Bufan and Qian Ying also became serious.
Just as they were silently wondering what to say, a clear and cold voice was heard.
"Don't worry, just do your best."
It was Daojun Qinglan.
Daojun Qinglan's complexion was very pale, like white snow.
"Master, you're injured?"
As Bai Shengyi was about to step forward, Qin Si had already moved ahead to support Daojun Qinglan. Daojun Qinglan waved his hand, refusing.
"I'm fine."
He looked indifferently at Bai Shengyi and Qin Si, "Don't worry about that deity, leave him to me. As for the people from Yingwu Continent, besides Yun Youyue, there is another group hiding in the center of the secret realm."
"Is it Tang Qiao and them?" Bai Shengyi immediately guessed.
Daojun Qinglan nodded, "Yes. She and Yun Youyue should not be on good terms. By the way, Yun Youyue failed to kill her and fled. She should also be looking for Tang Qiao."
"Uncle, how do you know?" Qin Si asked curiously.
Daojun Qinglan moved his finger, wiping away the bloodstain on his fingertip, and said lightly, "I just calculated it."
Seeing that they still wanted to ask more, Daojun Qinglan interrupted them, "Alright, don't ask any more questions. Listen to me, Shengyi and Ah Si should find a way to destroy the remaining two stone gates to deal with the secret realm. Bufan, you and Qian Ying take people to the center of the secret realm to deal with Tang Qiao."
"Master, what about you?" Qian Ying pressed.
"Me? I will naturally go to the divine palace."
After speaking, Daojun Qinglan transformed into a wisp of blue smoke, drifting towards the divine palace.