Ye Fan must attempt to leave the second layer of the secret realm.

After probing around this nearly ethereal secret realm and confirming there was indeed no one here, he felt it was time to leave.

"Master, where is this place, and why is it so fun here?" Six small crystals, in the form of soul bodies, shuttled around Ye Fan, seemingly more fond of this place. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Ye Fan didn’t know why the small crystals had such great affinity for this place, but vaguely, he seemed to realize something. Here, there appeared to be a power that could help them break through their cultivation.

But Ye Fan couldn’t sense where this power lay.

"Can you feel anything here?" Ye Fan asked using the Copper Mountain Mirror.

The small crystals were searching in their soul body state but ultimately found no valuable clues.

Xuannü questioned, "What are you still searching for? Why haven’t you left yet?"

Ye Fan didn’t reply to Xuannü; he didn’t need to heed her. What he wanted to find now was the mysterious power hidden in this alternative secret realm. This power was unlikely to be intruders; it might be something Pan Gu and Fu Xi concealed. Once found, Ye Fan believed he could help the small crystals make their final breakthrough, enabling them to transform into human form.

When the small crystals attain human form, the elemental power Ye Fan gains could be exponentially increased.

Yet, he couldn’t seem to pinpoint the source of this mysterious power, even though he always felt there should be some mysterious ritual within the secret realm, resembling a kind of altar.

...

...

After searching for nearly two hours within the second layer of the secret realm, Ye Fan still hadn’t discovered any clues.

He was anxious, feeling if he continued searching like this, he’d likely return empty-handed; the only way was to continue using his cultivation and try to open some kind of pathway within the second layer of the secret realm.

He thought, "Since Pan Gu and Fu Xi hid this power here, they must believe it would affect the balance of the human world. This power was probably quite beneficial in replenishing elemental energy. I just need to use elemental energy to attract this power, let it resonate with me!"

As Ye Fan emitted this energy, sure enough, from a distant location, a power attempted to contact him. This power felt familiar to Ye Fan, much like an extension of his internal elemental energy.

"My predictions were correct; there indeed is an elemental power summoning the small crystals..." Once Ye Fan determined the direction, he proceeded toward where the power emanated.

Xuannü was dragged by Ye Fan; she had no choice but to follow him.

Upon their arrival, they discovered a dense forest, and seemingly there was a small pond in the distance. Once Ye Fan arrived, he felt a certain power being activated ahead.

"What is that?" Ye Fan wondered, and as he approached, he suddenly saw through his vision that there appeared to be six young girls in the pond.

These six girls were cloaked in a pale gold light, seemingly bathing in the pond. The droplets around the pond were golden, and within the pond, there were some organisms, also in pale gold. Moreover, this force was simply not that of living creatures, meaning the young girls and pond organisms were composed of some kind of energy.

"No wonder I couldn’t detect any living beings here before; obviously, there aren’t any, but who exactly are these girls?" Ye Fan wondered as he edged closer to the pond, noting the young girls weren’t aware of his presence.

In Ye Fan’s view, this was due to his internal elemental energy having strong affinity with the young girls, causing them to be oblivious to anyone approaching.

"What are you creatures?" Xuannü suddenly shouted.

Her shout startled the six young girls around the pond. They turned to look at Ye Fan and Xuannü, their appearance strikingly familiar to Ye Fan—identical to the six small crystals.

"What’s happening?" Ye Fan felt something amiss upon seeing the girls.

The small crystals noticed too, but since they couldn’t look in a mirror themselves, the other crystals didn’t know their own appearance. Only Zi Ying understood her appearance, but the crystals recognized each other’s resemblance.

"Master, it’s strange; why do they look so much like me?" Zi Ying first voiced her query.

The other small crystals glanced at each other, seeing a resemblance between others and their companions.

The six young girls seemed unable to communicate with humans. Their fright stemmed from Xuannü’s voice, which included a destructive wave that triggered their defensive instincts.

However, the young girls seemingly didn’t know how to fight back; they were not aggressive like the small crystals.

"Can you hear me?" Ye Fan used his Copper Mountain Mirror, attempting to let the opposing young girls hear his words, but they seemed utterly unaware of his message, making communication impossible.

Little Black Crystal asked, "Master, can I go eat them?"

To Little Black Crystal, encountering satisfactory undead meant she could devour them to gain her cultivation.

Looking at the golden girls, Ye Fan vaguely sensed something, but it wasn’t clear. Ye Fan said, "You can go forward, but don’t devour them. You can try merging with them, absorbing the energy they possess!"

"Hmm?" The small crystals were completely unaware of Ye Fan’s meaning.

Ye Fan said, "Zi Ying, as the elder sister among you, this task is yours. Go ahead!"

"Okay." Zi Ying wasn’t apprehensive; since Ye Fan asked her, she mustered courage, stepping closer to the similarly looking golden girl, who seemed to perceive the soul similarity.

Xuannü asked, "What’s going on?"

Although Xuannü noticed some details, she couldn’t see Zi Ying in her soul body form, so she only saw the girl stand without knowing what transpired.