Fang Hao sped through the forest, with several of Bao Zhijian’s lackeys in hot pursuit behind him.

"Fang Hao. Stop."

"Senior Brother Bao has given orders, there is a heavy reward for capturing you."

"Let’s see where you can run to."

Fang Hao sneered and unleashed Shrinking the Ground to an Inch with all his might. With a single step, he was several yards away, his figure flickering like a ghost.

The highest cultivation among the pursuers was only at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, and their speed was far inferior to his. He soon left them behind by a considerable distance.

However, Fang Hao dared not be careless. Since Bao Zhijian had sent people to capture him, there were certainly more than just this group.

He deliberately circled around a few times and used a Formation to mask his aura, finally shaking off the pursuers completely.

"Damn it, that bastard Bao Zhijian..." Fang Hao panted, leaning against an ancient tree to rest. "He won’t even let me have peace in the Secret Realm!"

After catching his breath for a moment, Fang Hao observed his surroundings. The terrain here was treacherous with craggy rocks, and the Spiritual Qi was exceptionally violent.

"What is this place?" Fang Hao frowned. He activated Clear Spring Spirit Eyes and discovered that the space here was extremely unstable, with faint spatial rifts!

Suddenly, the sounds of fighting came from ahead! Fang Hao approached cautiously, only to see two Azure Cloud Sect Disciples struggling in a bitter battle against a Third-tier Peak Wind-Splitting Eagle!

The eagle was enormous, its wingspan stretching five or six yards, and with every flap, a gale howled! The two Disciples were clearly outmatched and in grave danger!

"Senior Brother Wang! Senior Brother Li!" Recognizing them as acquaintances, Fang Hao hurriedly stepped in to help.

"Dividing Light Sword Shadow!" Nine sword shadows pierced straight at the Wind-Splitting Eagle!

The Wind-Splitting Eagle screeched in rage and flapped its wings, whipping up a gale! Most of the sword shadows were scattered!

"Junior Brother Ning!" Senior Brother Wang exclaimed in surprise, "Be careful! This beast is incredibly powerful!"

Fang Hao joined the fray, and the three of them combined their efforts to resist. But the Wind-Splitting Eagle was simply too strong, equivalent to the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, and the three of them could barely defend themselves.

"This won’t do!" Senior Brother Li said anxiously, "We must find a way to escape!"

Fang Hao observed the terrain and discovered a narrow rock crevice not far away.

"Retreat that way! I’ll cover the rear!" Fang Hao shouted.

The two hurriedly retreated. Fang Hao unleashed his Five Elements Spirit Shield with all his might to tank the Wind-Splitting Eagle’s attack!

"Pfft!" Fang Hao spat out blood and stumbled back. The attack of a Third-tier Peak Demon Beast was truly terrifying!

But using the force of that blow, Fang Hao retreated into the crevice. The Wind-Splitting Eagle was too large to enter and could only screech in rage outside.

"That was close..." The three of them were still shaken.

After catching their breath for a moment, Senior Brother Wang said gratefully, "Thank you for your help, Junior Brother Ning! If it weren’t for you, we would have lost our lives here today."

Fang Hao waved his hand, "It’s what fellow sect members should do. How did you two Senior Brothers end up in such a dangerous place?"

Senior Brother Li sighed, "We heard there were Wind Spirit Fruits here, so we wanted to try our luck, but we didn’t expect to run into this scourge!"

"Wind Spirit Fruit?" Fang Hao’s heart stirred. This was exactly what he needed!

Senior Brother Wang smiled bitterly, "We didn’t find the fruit and almost lost our lives. This place is too dangerous, so we’re preparing to head back."

Fang Hao pondered and said, "You two Senior Brothers should head back first; I’ll explore a bit more."

The two advised, "Junior Brother Ning, let’s leave together! It’s too dangerous here!"

Fang Hao shook his head, "I have my own judgment. Take care, both of you."

After seeing them off, Fang Hao decided to continue exploring. The Wind Spirit Fruit was too important to him; he could not miss it.

He moved forward cautiously. The further he went, the more unstable the space became. Spatial rifts appeared from time to time, creating perilous situations.

Once, he was nearly swallowed by a rift and only narrowly escaped thanks to Shrinking the Ground to an Inch.

"This hellish place..." Fang Hao’s heart pounded. But the greater the risk, the greater the potential Opportunity.

Finally, on a cliff, Fang Hao found his target—several small trees hung with green fruits, emitting a dense aura of Wind Spiritual Qi!

"Wind Spirit Fruit!" Fang Hao was overjoyed. But his heart immediately sank—a giant cyan-scaled python was coiled beside the fruit trees! It was a Third-tier Peak!

"Why is it another Third-tier Peak!" Fang Hao was speechless. Are all the Demon Beasts in this Secret Realm this strong?

Observing carefully, Fang Hao discovered that the giant python seemed to be guarding something. Besides the Wind Spirit Fruits, there was a cave on the cliff wall emitting a strange fluctuation.

"Could there be an even better treasure?" Fang Hao was tempted. But he definitely couldn’t handle a Third-tier Peak Demon Beast by himself.

Just as Fang Hao was distressed, he suddenly sensed someone approaching! He hurriedly concealed his aura.

He saw Bao Zhijian walking over with several lackeys! Apparently, they were also here for the Wind Spirit Fruits!

"Senior Brother, it’s right here!" A lackey pointed at the fruit trees.

Bao Zhijian’s eyes lit up: "Good! With the Wind Spirit Fruits, my wind-attribute Spells will be greatly improved!"

Fang Hao sneered in his heart: "In your dreams!"

Bao Zhijian struck directly at the giant python! With his Late Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation, his strength was formidable, and he fought the giant python to a standstill.

The few lackeys also joined the fray. Although the giant python was strong, it could not withstand the siege and gradually fell into a disadvantage.

Fang Hao observed from the shadows, calculating in his mind. The Opportunity for the fisherman to profit while the snipe and clam fight had arrived!

After a long and fierce battle, the giant python finally collapsed, heavily injured. Bao Zhijian had also expended a lot of energy, his face pale.

"Quickly, harvest the fruits!" Bao Zhijian ordered.

A lackey hurriedly stepped forward to harvest the fruits. Just at this moment, Fang Hao suddenly struck!

"Dividing Light Sword Shadow!" Nine sword shadows shot straight at the lackey harvesting the fruit!

The lackey was caught off guard and knocked away by the sword shadows! The Wind Spirit Fruits flew out of his hands!

Fang Hao unleashed Shrinking the Ground to an Inch, appearing instantly beside the fruit trees, and snatched the Wind Spirit Fruits!

"Fang Hao!" Bao Zhijian roared in fury, "You are courting death!"

Fang Hao sneered: "Senior Brother Bao, I’ll be taking these fruits!" Having said that, he turned and fled!

Bao Zhijian was so angry that smoke was practically coming out of his seven orifices: "Chase him! Kill him for me!"

Fang Hao fled with all his might, and Bao Zhijian pursued relentlessly. The two ran and chased, venturing deep into the dangerous area.

Fang Hao deliberately ran toward areas with many spatial rifts. Bao Zhijian was afraid of damaging the surroundings, so his speed was greatly reduced.

"Fang Hao! You can’t escape!" Bao Zhijian roared, "When I catch you, I will definitely tear you into ten thousand pieces!"

Fang Hao ignored him and continued fleeing. Suddenly, he sensed strong spatial fluctuations ahead!

"The Opportunity has come!" Fang Hao hardened his heart and charged straight towards it!

Bao Zhijian also sensed the danger and stopped abruptly: "Are you crazy! That’s a spatial turbulence zone ahead!"

But Fang Hao did not stop and charged directly into the turbulence zone! His figure vanished instantly!

Bao Zhijian stamped his feet in anger, but dared not pursue. Spatial turbulence was extremely dangerous; even a Golden Core Cultivator would not dare to enter lightly.

"Damn it! You win this time!" Bao Zhijian gritted his teeth, "I don’t believe you can make it out alive!"

With that, he left in a huff.

Inside the turbulence zone, Fang Hao moved forward with difficulty. The space here was being torn apart, and danger lurked everywhere. He fully activated Divine Spirit Steps, barely managing to protect himself.

He did not know how much time had passed, but Fang Hao finally charged out of the turbulence zone and arrived at a strange valley.

The valley was filled with rich Spiritual Qi, birds singing and flowers fragrant, a stark contrast to the dangerous environment outside.

"This is..." Fang Hao was surprised. He hadn’t expected such a paradise to exist within the Secret Realm.

He explored cautiously and discovered that many rare Spiritual Plants grew in the valley, and there were even a few rare "Void Spirit Flowers"—top-grade Materials for refining spatial Magic Treasures!

"I’m rich!" Fang Hao was overjoyed. These Spiritual Plants were worth a fortune!

He harvested them carefully and had a bountiful harvest. What surprised him most was that in a cave, he discovered a seated skeleton!

Beside the skeleton lay a few items: a Storage bag, a Jade Slip, and a broken sword.

Fang Hao bowed respectfully: "Senior, please do not blame me; this Junior entered this place by mistake. If I have offended you, please forgive me."

After investigating and confirming there was no danger, Fang Hao carefully picked up the items.

The Storage bag contained some Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills, but unfortunately, due to the passage of time, most of them had lost their effectiveness. The Jade Slip contained the Senior’s cultivation insights, which were quite valuable.

What excited Fang Hao the most was the broken sword. Although incomplete, its Sword Qi was sharp and fierce; it was definitely no ordinary item!

"Thank you for the gift, Senior." Fang Hao bowed again and put the items away.

He recuperated in the valley for a few days, fully recovering from his injuries, and his cultivation even improved slightly.

"It’s time to leave." Fang Hao decided. Time in the Secret Realm was precious, and he could not stay long.

After leaving the valley, Fang Hao continued his exploration. With the Wind Spirit Fruits and his other gains, this trip to the Secret Realm was already worth it.

On this day, Fang Hao suddenly received a message from Liang Ling: "Come to Fengming Valley quickly, a clue to the Secret Realm’s core has been discovered."

Fang Hao was energized. The Secret Realm’s core was said to hold a great Opportunity.

He immediately rushed towards Fengming Valley. A new adventure had begun.