Seeing this, the others visibly relaxed, their expressions softening considerably.
Xu Ziqing also stepped forward and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, “I am Xu Ziqing from Xiaozhu Peak. Greetings to all senior brothers and sisters.” Although their cultivation levels were all at the Core Formation Stage, it was clear they had entered the sect earlier than he had, so he addressed them this way.
Upon hearing this, the four realized that Xu Ziqing was a fellow disciple of their sect and did not dare to be presumptuous. They quickly responded with courtesy: “Junior Brother Xu, greetings.”
After this exchange of pleasantries, Geng Zheng, the highest-ranked among them, spoke up to explain their background to Yun Lie and Xu Ziqing to earn their trust.
It turned out that although they were all inner disciples, they had not yet been taken by a master. Such disciples indeed had far better resources than outer disciples, but they were still far behind those with a master. As a result, they had to frequently venture out for experience to obtain sufficient cultivation materials, which explained their seasoned demeanor.
Over the years, the four gradually became partners they could trust with their lives and often traveled together.
This time, the female disciple Shen Yinglan had stumbled upon news of the Heavenly Secret Realm. Given their capabilities, they couldn’t follow their sect to the location, so they had to rely on various connections to find the entrance to the realm and became some of the last to enter. They were also among the weaker cultivators.
However, perhaps because heaven saw their hard work and steadfast will, they ended up in this dense forest right after entering the large tomb entrance. Unlike Xu Ziqing and his group, who first entered a tomb path and had to search multiple times to reach this area, they had not faced such obstacles.
Yet, due to their insufficient strength, they had been delayed in this dense forest for a full day and night. During the day, they managed better, but numerous ferocious beasts prowled at night, forcing them to be constantly on edge and use many concealment talismans to survive.
Today, they were cornered with no place to hide. They had been targeted by a sixth-order beast and had endured for a long time, expecting to be doomed. Shen Yinglan’s distress call was merely a last-ditch effort for survival, and they were overjoyed to encounter cultivators, especially fellow disciples. They were both respectful and fearful of Yun Lie, knowing his aloof nature, and only calmed down after being rescued.
Xu Ziqing, after listening to their account, found no obvious flaws in their story. The four were clear-headed, and their mutual trust and cooperation were great, so he believed they were real people.
He then looked at his senior brother.
However, regardless of the situation, he knew they couldn’t be too trusting and needed to remain cautious.
Yun Lie, being even more discerning, coldly stated, “There is a formation here. If you have nothing to hide, you may step forward one by one, and I will use my sword intent to examine you. If not, leave and say no more.”
The four were shaken and exchanged looks. After a moment, Mu Yuanjun asked, “If Da Shixiong examines us, could we then travel together?”
Yun Lie nodded slightly. “You may accompany us out of the forest.”
The four took a deep breath, their lips moving as if communicating telepathically.
After a while, Geng Zheng spoke up, “In that case, I will go first. Please, Da Shixiong, examine me!”
Their straightforwardness made Xu Ziqing trust them a bit more.
The sword intent of the senior brother is a form of mental power. If even this level of examination reveals no issues… then it is likely there are no issues at all. Furthermore, if the sword intent were to be obscured, the power of the formation would be beyond their capability to handle. In that case, there would be no need to worry about what happens next.
When Geng Zheng stepped forward and stood in front of Yun Lie, Yun Lie pointed with his finger. Instantly, a surge of sword intent burst forth from his fingertip, piercing through Geng Zheng’s shoulder and entering his inner world.
Geng Zheng had a strong will, but in this situation, he was essentially at Yun Lie’s mercy, putting his life in another’s hands. It was a gamble with his life—if successful, he would live a while longer; if not, he would have died at the beast’s mouth.
Yun Lie was truly considered a legendary figure among the lower-ranked disciples of the sect. Over the years, very few had comprehended sword intent at the Core Formation Stage, let alone killed Golden Core cultivators with such cultivation, which was astonishing. After reaching the Golden Core stage, Yun Lie became the leading core disciple, and such a figure naturally impressed them. Many people had sought to learn about this new senior brother’s past, with some even recording jade slips for sale, giving many lower-ranked disciples a chance to understand Yun Lie.
They also knew that, although this senior brother was distant and aloof, he had never had any blemishes on his path to immortality. He was known for his integrity and never spoke falsehoods. In their dangerous situation, being able to temporarily align with such a senior brother was the best outcome they could hope for.
Because of this, Geng Zheng restrained his urge to dodge and endured the sharp force that immediately swept through his body, circulating through his limbs, bones, and internal organs. The sensation was extremely uncomfortable, as if everything was laid bare and the cold feeling of being seen through from the inside out made him break out in a cold sweat.
It felt as though a sword’s edge was pressed against his forehead, causing a chilling sensation throughout his body.
After inspecting Geng Zheng, Yun Lie did not speak but turned his gaze to the remaining three.
Geng Zheng felt somewhat reassured, knowing he had passed half of the examination, and stepped aside to let the next person come forward.
This time, it was the female disciple Shen Yinglan who stepped forward first, saying, “Senior Brother, please!”
Although Shen Yinglan’s appearance was not particularly outstanding, she had a rare and resolute demeanor, which was less delicate compared to many other female disciples Xu Ziqing had seen before. Instead, she had a certain valiance that made her admirable.
Even Xu Ziqing found her quite pleasing to the eye.
Putting aside other matters, just considering the temperament and demeanor of this woman, Xu Ziqing found her comparable only to Du Linglong and Mu Ronghua among the female cultivators he had seen.
Although the three women currently had different levels of cultivation, given time and favorable circumstances, Du Linglong and Shen Yinglan would surely surpass all male cultivators, reaching the pinnacle of their realm. As for Mu Ronghua, due to the internal strife in the Ruyi Xianzhuang which had forcibly suppressed her potential, it was somewhat regrettable. However, even if she could not achieve immortality, her mastery of immortal artifacts would still allow her to dominate her region.
Soon, when Yun Lie’s sword intent entered Shen Yinglan’s body, a look of pain instantly appeared on her face.
Yun Lie had never been one to pity others, and he showed no leniency towards her any more than he had towards Geng Zheng. Even though Geng Zheng had a higher cultivation level, he could hardly withstand such pain, and Shen Yinglan was no exception.
However, she only showed pain for a moment before quickly regaining her composure.
Xu Ziqing sighed inwardly.
This woman, despite her stubbornness, managed to maintain her composure without any further signs of distress beyond gritting her teeth and turning pale.
Yun Lie acted swiftly and soon withdrew the sword intent.
He then proceeded to inspect Bu Luo and Mu Yuanjun, examining them one by one.
At this point, Xu Ziqing asked, “Shixiong, how is it?”
Yun Lie replied, “There are no doubts.”
Xu Ziqing smiled, “In that case, we should continue on the road with them.”
Yun Lie nodded slightly.
The four disciples were surprised to see how casually Xu Ziqing and Yun Lie conversed, admiring the senior brother’s unexpectedly good nature.
They thought to themselves: Others say the senior brother is heartless, but he seems quite kind to this one disciple.
Despite their thoughts, the seasoned disciples didn’t show any overt reactions. Instead, they felt a bit more trust in the senior brother, finding him not as cold as rumors suggested.
The group continued forward. Bu Luo, who was quick with words, was pushed forward by the other three to explain the route to the senior brothers. Since they had come from different directions, this would help avoid taking unnecessary detours and wasting time.
He said, “Since we fell into this place, we’ve been moving along the right side.” He pointed to a direction ahead, “If nothing unexpected has happened, there should be traces left by us.”
They followed his direction and indeed saw the signs of the previous battle with the six-tiered demon beast—broken trees and scattered withered leaves and vines.
Geng Zheng felt a bit reassured and said, “Since we’ve found the traces, this direction seems correct.”
However, Xu Ziqing’s mind was alert, and he extended his spiritual sense, following the direction further.
He still felt that something was amiss and wanted to check carefully… If everything was fine, that would be great, but if his concerns were valid, he needed to be cautious.
The others saw this and did not stop him.
After all, although the forest seemed ordinary, it was entered under mysterious circumstances. Anyone with some experience would not consider Xu Ziqing’s actions unnecessary.
Xu Ziqing extended his spiritual sense further but suddenly frowned and uttered a soft “Hmm.”
Geng Zheng immediately asked, “Xu Shidi, what’s wrong?”
Xu Ziqing shook his head and said, “I looked once and felt something was off, but my spiritual sense isn’t very strong. It would be best to have Shixiong take another look.” He then turned to Yun Lie, “Shixiong…”
Yun Lie’s expression remained unchanged, but his gaze shifted to the area in question.
His actions were much quicker than Xu Ziqing’s. Once his spiritual sense was extended, its strength was almost overwhelming, making Shen Yinglan and the others break out in a light sweat. However, Yun Lie’s scanning was quick, and they were able to relax soon after.
Yun Lie then said, “There are no traces ahead.”
Geng Zheng and the others’ pupils constricted in surprise: “Impossible!”
Shen Yinglan said, “As we came this way, we were chased by demon beasts, so there should have been some damage to the vegetation. It shouldn’t be completely devoid of traces.”
Xu Ziqing’s expression grew serious: “Logically, it shouldn’t be the case. But based on my feelings, we should still go and check to be sure.”
Originally, they were reluctant to backtrack, but given the situation, they had no choice but to do so.
The four exchanged glances and looked at Yun Lie.
Yun Lie said nothing but immediately moved to the front.
Xu Ziqing quickly followed, and the others naturally followed as well.
Since Yun Lie had already conducted a thorough inspection earlier, Xu Ziqing had gained some trust in the four. He proceeded forward while explaining to them about the forest and its potential relation to the formation.
Sure enough, after walking several miles, the path was perfectly intact, as if no one had passed through at all.
This situation gradually convinced even the still somewhat skeptical Geng Zheng and the others.
Translator: Lynn
Translations are not 100% correct. Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.
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