Cave Abyss Sect, Dragon Head Peak.

Purple Cloud Hall.

The atmosphere in the hall was unusually heavy.

"..."

"Elder Xu and the Elders from the other two Sects are still in Jiran Valley overseeing the situation, having dispatched Disciples to return to the Sect first to report on these matters."

"How could such a thing happen..."

The Elders exchanged glances.

One of the Elders sighed softly and said, "At this point, worrying is useless. If it’s an ownerless Secret Realm, there should still be a time for it to reopen."

Lu Ziye hesitated to speak.

"What about the Disciples from the other two Sects?"

"Besides Song Yan, our Sect’s Disciple Shao Sichao is also missing. Two Spirit Talisman Sect Disciples are missing, and Profound Origin Sect... it seems only Wang Xi was caught up in it."

"Hmm?"

Several Elders subtly turned their heads and exchanged a look.

"Wang Xi..."

Elder Zhang Guangyuan, the Elder of External Affairs, frowned, pondered for a moment, and said,

"The Sect Master and several Grand Elders are still in seclusion. I will make the decisions regarding these matters."

"Lu Ziye, when you returned to the Sect, did you ascertain if there were any abnormalities with the fate lamps of these two Outer Sect Disciples?"

"Reporting to Elder Zhang, I have already checked, and currently, the fate lamps of these two Disciples have not extinguished, but..."

"But what?"

"But... among them, Song Yan’s fate lamp is extremely dim..."

"..."

Zhang Guangyuan took a deep breath.

"I’m not at ease with Xu Ziqing being there alone. That boy only fears that the world isn’t chaotic enough."

"..."

"Lu Ziye, I order you to go to Jiran Valley with your Senior Sister Qin Ying to assist Elder Xu Ziqing in handling the relevant matters."

"Disciple accepts the order!"

"Old Li."

"Just say it!"

"Arrange for a Disciple to specifically guard the fate lamps of those two Outer Sect Disciples. Report immediately if there’s any change."

"Alright!"

Among the Elders, a thin, elderly man said, "Old Zhang, they’re just two Outer Sect Disciples. Is it really necessary to make such a big fuss..."

Zhang Guangyuan gave Yang Wenxuan a deep look, shook his head, and said.

"Elder Yang, the Sect Master has said that our Cave Abyss Sect cannot compare to major Immortal Sects like Profound Origin Sect or Spirit Talisman Sect. The safety of every Disciple must be carefully protected."

"If they die in a fierce fight or conflict while outside, that means their skills were inferior, and naturally, there’s no need to care."

"But this time, they were performing a mission for the Sect, which involves a new ownerless Secret Realm and also affects Disciples from the other two Sects. We must handle it cautiously."

Yang Wenxuan nodded: "Alright."

The Elders were not fools. For just these two Outer Sect Disciples, some polite words would suffice, and there was indeed nothing much to care about.

But with the Secret Realm and Disciples from the other two Sects involved, the stakes were truly complex, and Elder Zhang’s advice for cautious handling was not without reason.

"Junior Sister Huang, if it’s convenient, please keep an eye on the casualties of the Disciples from the other two Sects. Just let me know if you have any news."

"Alright."

...Jiran Valley, Liaoran Hall.

"Elder Xu, Elder Zou... why worry too much? It’s not like such ownerless Secret Realms haven’t appeared in Chu Kingdom before..."

"That’s not the reason."

Xu Ziqing and Zou Yong exchanged glances.

"It’s too much of a coincidence..."

The Spiritual Qi fluctuations around Jiran Valley had been present for about four or five months.

Yet, a connecting passage appeared precisely when the Disciples from the three Sects were jointly investigating.

And it just happened to be near Hidden Moon Lake Creek Valley.

It was almost as if there were Demonic Path Cultivators ambushing there.

However, the casualties among the Disciples from each Sect were clearly not many; only a few were drawn into the Secret Realm.

"It’s fine. Our Sect’s Inner Sect Disciple Wang Xi is also among them. He should be able to keep the other Disciples safe."

Shen Yu’s face showed no trace of worry, only a strange calm, as if he was suppressing something.

"Why was Wang Xi drawn into it?"

"Alas, the other Disciples said that day he activated his Spiritual Qi to protect the other Disciples but had no time to look after himself, and that’s why..."

The Wang Xi in Shen Yu’s words was truly a young genius who valued his fellow Disciples’ camaraderie.

"Though he acted righteously, he was truly too eager for success and reckless..."

Zou Yong comforted Shen Yu for a few words, but Xu Ziqing just looked at him calmly, always feeling that this person was very insincere.

Just then, Shen Huai suddenly walked into Liaoran Hall.

"Elder Shen, I have an urgent matter to report!"

"What urgent matter? Just say it directly."

Shen Yu glanced at this favored daughter of the Shen Family.

Shen Huai’s expression was solemn, her small face pale.

"A Disciple from the Sect reported that Senior Brother Wang Xi’s fate lamp... has extinguished."

"What?!"

Shen Yu slammed the table, looking at Shen Huai in disbelief.

Xu Ziqing didn’t care about Wang Xi’s death, but rather was very interested in Shen Yu’s reaction.

Hmm... this doesn’t look like acting anymore... Nameless Valley.

Traveling through the mountains, Song Yan’s figure was already somewhat unsteady. When he reached a steep part, he even needed to use a dry branch in his hand to support himself.

Half a day had passed since he escaped from the Secret Realm.

Song Yan had no mind to discern his current location. The urgent matter was to find a quiet, uninhabited place to recuperate from his injuries.

He found a mountain stream, and on the north side of the mountain wall, there was a natural cave, though not too deep.

Song Yan casually picked a Flying Sword from the pile of items belonging to the two people, activated his already depleted Spiritual Qi, and pushed the cave space several zhang deeper.

Now, he was truly at his wit’s end, completely exhausted.

He had no ability to set up any Formation, so he merely used the surrounding vegetation to slightly conceal it. Then, Song Yan summoned Xiao He.

"Xiao He, I am going into seclusion for a few days. During this time, I need you to help me guard this cave entrance and ensure no one disturbs me."

Song Yan estimated that Xiao He had the strength of Qi Refining Stage three or four, which should be enough to stop nearby villagers, children, or Early Stage Qi Refining Cultivators who might wander into the mountains.

"Alright!"

Xiao He patted her chest and nodded.

Snake Babe secretly vowed that she usually couldn’t help much, but this time she must let Yan Yan recuperate peacefully!

Song Yan walked into the depths of the cave and sat down to meditate and regulate his breathing.

Spiritual Qi entered his body, slowly repairing his injuries.

His thoughts, however, were incredibly chaotic.

"According to Wan Songran, that Secret Realm originally belonged to Profound Origin Sect, but they couldn’t control it stably, only barely able to manipulate the timing of its opening and closing with a certain spiritual item..."

"Originally, Profound Origin Sect’s main objectives were, firstly, to slander the Disciples of the two Sects, to facilitate their future claim to seize Spiritual Vein resources. Secondly, it was to cripple some talented new sprouts from the other two Sects..." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"But now, Wang Xi and Wan Songran are both dead, and I, as the main target of their malicious accusation, am still alive..."

"After all that trouble, they lost an Inner Sect Disciple. I imagine that those in Profound Origin Sect who know about this will surely try even harder to pin the blame and make exorbitant demands..."

Song Yan’s eyes flickered, as if he was struggling with something.

"If I were completely unharmed, that would truly make people suspicious..."

"I’m afraid even the Elders in the Sect would find it difficult to protect me completely..."

In reality, he wasn’t even sure if the Sect would care about the life or death of an Outer Sect Disciple like him.

In this Cultivation World, the strong are respected, and the weak are preyed upon.

Even if he returned to the Sect in the future, it would be within expectations for the Sect Elders to abandon him under pressure from Profound Origin Sect.

Without strength, everything is empty talk.

What good is it to live a long life by compromising and hiding?

If one can be as sharp as the ancient Sword Cultivators, even if one dies after a single sword strike, it can still be called magnificent.

A moment later, his eyes slowly closed, as if he had made a major decision.

All or nothing.

The scriptures of the Sword Planting Technique slowly appeared in his mind. "Perhaps now is the best time."

...

[This is for the small mass release. I’ll do another with more than 50 within 78 hours. So hope you’ll give me some time as I’m not at home right now.]