The forest felt eerie, thick smoke gradually enveloping the area. Despite it being early morning, it was as if dusk was fast approaching.
A youth in black stood silently, his aloof aura drawing curious glances from the smaller sects that had just arrived.
"May I ask, fellow Daoist, which sect do you belong to? I am Elder Ting Yin from the Zhu Yuan Sect!"
The old man appeared to be at the Golden Core stage, leading disciples of the Foundation Establishment stage to the minor secret realm for trials. Jin Bao'er bowed in return. Her exquisite and peerless beauty captured everyone's attention. Her gaze was steady, and her voice was neither male nor female! What a graceful young man!
"This junior merely came here by chance, sheer luck!"
Instantly, some of the young women from the smaller sects blushed, their eyes frequently darting towards her before shyly averting their gaze.
Facing the youth's seemingly polite yet distant attitude, the elder said nothing, but his admiration was evident! A cultivator at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage at only ten-odd years old demonstrated immense talent, coupled with such extraordinary bearing. He must be a disciple from a major sect undergoing trials!
The group waited in the forest for the minor secret realm to open. Jin Bao'er stood alone to the side, her brow furrowed. Why hadn't Li Qingjiu arrived yet? The secret realm was about to open!
Just as she was contemplating whether to ditch Li Qingjiu and enter alone, a shy and delicate-looking girl suddenly ran over, her eyes filled with excitement and nervousness.
"Um... Fellow Daoist... My name is Mu Yao Yu. May I know your honorable name?"
After speaking, the girl nervously lowered her head, her face flushing red all the way to her ears, her body trembling slightly.
Jin Bao'er: "..."
Was she being fancied?
She then looked at the pure and shy girl before her with complicated emotions. She herself had once been so simple and open-hearted, but alas...
Facing the prolonged silence, Mu Yao Yu became even more anxious, her face shifting from embarrassment to disappointment. What's more, several female cultivators not far away observed everything and sneered at Mu Yao Yu's shamelessness.
Just as Mu Yao Yu could no longer bear the awkwardness, her face flushed and paled, and she was about to apologize and leave, Jin Bao'er spoke!
When the youth's calm and indifferent voice echoed, nearly a third of the female cultivators present looked over.
"My surname is Jin..."
As she finished speaking, she saw someone making a flamboyant entrance, flying in on a demonic beast not far away! The pure white flying bird beast looked exceptionally elegant. A dashing young man in white leaped down, his posture undeniably handsome, instantly attracting the attention of many female cultivators.
The young man's lips maintained a thirty-five-degree smile, his delicate and handsome face even more captivating. Perhaps pleased with his entrance, he waved his hand, and the flying bird beast departed.
"Brother Jin!"
His heroic moment lasted less than three seconds! The man's voice, filled with overwhelming surprise and admiration, shattered the mysterious and enigmatic aura he had cultivated.
As a teammate, Jin Bao'er felt speechless. She never knew Li Qingjiu had such a flamboyant hobby.
Following that, Li Qingjiu noticed Mu Yao Yu beside Jin Bao'er. A sense of inexplicable crisis surged in his heart, making him immediately wary.
"Who are you?"
Mu Yao Yu was stunned. She looked at Jin Bao'er's handsome and delicate face, then at Li Qingjiu's clear and vigilant eyes, and suddenly felt she understood everything! The joy from moments ago vanished, and her face instantly turned pale.
"Apologies... for the interruption!"
She then turned and ran, with the demeanor of someone fleeing in disarray.
Jin Bao'er: I feel like I've been misunderstood, but I can't quite say why.
Li Qingjiu: Hmph! You want to steal someone from me? Don't you know who I am?!
Just then, spiritual energy surged in the distance, quickly forming a vortex. Jin Bao'er's eyes lit up; the minor secret realm had opened!
Everyone was filled with anticipation and jumped in one after another. Jin Bao'er was not in a hurry. She remembered that time inside and outside was not the same, so entering sooner or later made no difference to her!
After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, when everyone had entered, Jin Bao'er was about to follow. However, the elder from the Zhu Yuan Sect stopped her.
"Fellow Daoist, wait! I know this request is difficult, but I still hope you can lend a hand when my disciples are in peril. If you agree, I shall present this Mu Ming Sword to you!"
Perhaps sensing Jin Bao'er's exceptional talent and having a half-step Golden Core cultivator protecting her, the elder could only shamelessly request. After all, he couldn't enter himself, and those he brought were the hopes of the Zhu Yuan Sect's new generation!
Jin Bao'er looked up at the Mu Ming Sword and, after a moment of thought, accepted it. Not to mention that she indeed lacked a suitable weapon, but regarding this secret realm... she was almost certain there would be no problems inside, as everyone who entered in her past life had survived.
Why wouldn't she take a sure bet? However, she still said,
"I will only help them once. After all, fortune depends on oneself. The path of cultivation is arduous and uneven; no one can protect them forever."
The elder was overjoyed and repeatedly expressed his gratitude. Li Qingjiu, standing nearby, watched with disdain. As they entered the secret realm, he said to Jin Bao'er,
"If you like magic artifacts, I have many at home. Pick whatever you want. Why do you want this fifth-grade magic artifact?"
In the cultivation world, there were three ranks of weapons: magic artifacts, spirit artifacts, and immortal artifacts. Each was further divided into ten grades. A fifth-grade magic artifact like this was not considered particularly good, but for a small sect, it was quite decent.
Jin Bao'er ignored him. She couldn't possibly say she didn't have the money to afford good magic or spirit artifacts! She was also troubled by constantly using ice blades condensed from spiritual energy as a weapon, but she truly had no money... Those one hundred mid-grade spirit stones had other uses!
So! Despite her outwardly calm demeanor and excellent talent, she was actually a penniless pauper...
The next second, they both entered the minor secret realm. The sensation of their bodies suddenly losing altitude brought a feeling of weightlessness. Even Jin Bao'er couldn't help but tense up and quickly used a flying talisman to stabilize herself. However, Li Qingjiu was not so lucky and fell directly from above!
He landed squarely on a nameless disciple who was about to excavate a demonic beast's core, killing him instantly.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch... It hurts so much! Damn it, what kind of secret realm is this?! Why is it throwing things from high up..."
Li Qingjiu, completely oblivious to the unfortunate individual he had just crushed, rubbed his backside and wailed continuously.
Seeing that he was unharmed, Jin Bao'er shifted her gaze to the unfortunate soul lying dead on the ground, then to the dying demonic beast.
Her look of surprise was immediate. A demonic beast at the Golden Core stage? It was almost impossible for a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage to kill a Golden Core stage demonic beast...
"Wuuu..."
A plaintive cry reached her ears. Jin Bao'er looked at the demonic beast. Even fierce as it was, realizing its imminent death, it could only lower its noble head and push the small, unopened beast cub towards her.
Its eyes conveyed a clear plea.
Meanwhile, Li Qingjiu finally noticed that he had killed someone and began to panic, hopping around! However, it wasn't for the life lost, but for his recently cleaned body...