...

The moment Zhang Deming entered, the Light Gate on the tree trunk rippled slightly.

The four Duality Ancestors, who had their eyes closed, opened them in unison. Zhou Tong frowned slightly and asked, "Didn’t the Tai Chi Disciples enter the Secret Realm this morning?"

Fang Qing, who seemed to be the one in charge of the arrays, shook his head and said, "Yes. When the Array Platform was being set up, we organized them all to enter directly through the Light Gate."

Upon hearing this, Yang Sinan said, "Did any of you notice which department the disciple who just went in was from?"

All four shook their heads. Dang Yu spoke up, "I’d guess it’s one of the ones who stayed behind in the Sect and just rushed over."

Fang Qing, the one in charge of the arrays, frowned and said, "Isn’t this just causing trouble? Why are they freeloading on the Array Platform?"

"Couldn’t they just go in through the main entrance? As if we in the Array Department aren’t busy enough right now?"

The men glanced at each other but didn’t respond. For a large-scale Secret Realm like this, the higher-ups had decided not to impose restrictions and allow free entry. It was true that the Array Cultivators of the Array Department had the most exhausting job.

What was even more infuriating was that the announcement had been officially issued under the Resources Department’s name!

This meant the Array Department did all the dirty, tiring work, while the Resources Department reaped the rewards and took all the credit. The Array Department had been reduced to mere laborers.

As the person in charge of the Array Department for this operation, it was no wonder he was in a bad mood. The other three knew this full well and didn’t want to step on his toes.

Since no one replied, the head of the Array Department could only close his eyes again in silence, though his fingers twitched a few times. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

At that moment, a massive Light Screen materialized around the Array Platform below, clearly visible to everyone in the vicinity.

’Late-arriving Inner Sect Disciples of the Tai Chi Stage are to enter directly through the main entrance. Do not queue for the Array Platform.

If anyone causes this Array Platform to collapse, I seem to recall that while Wanghui Peak has been crowded lately, there are still a few vacant spots for wall-gazing.’

After the Light Screen displayed the message, a brief murmur of discussion rose from the crowd, but it quieted down shortly after.

...

When the Array Platform activated, Zhang Deming felt a slight jolt, but the motion was smooth.

A moment of disorientation followed, and when Zhang Deming came to his senses, he was no longer in the same place.

There was no one else around, and even the giant, ancient tree had vanished. He was in a completely different environment now.

To be precise, he had entered a different space.

He now stood in a Flower Sea. The rich floral fragrance and the gentle breeze made the scene feel surreally beautiful.

He looked up. Even Haoyang was gone from the sky, replaced by a single, massive fireball. Within the fireball, the faint silhouette of a bird-like creature could be seen.

"So this is a Secret Realm? The legendary Grotto Heaven Blessed Land?"

After surveying his surroundings, Zhang Deming’s brow furrowed slightly.

There were flowers in every direction—a complete Flower Sea with no clear path.

Picking a random direction, Zhang Deming started walking forward.

He walked for a long time, but there was still nothing but the Flower Sea.

Zhang Deming paused in thought for a moment. A pair of Light Wings materialized at his heels. Tapping his toes lightly, he began to sprint across the top of the Flower Sea.

With his Tier Three Feather Fall Technique, even without using its full power, Zhang Deming was as light as a goose feather, dashing across the Flower Sea.

But after running for a long time, Zhang Deming’s brows knitted together completely. ’Something’s not right. At my speed, how could there be no change after running for so long? Just how vast is this Flower Sea?’

’And a Secret Realm like this is just a small, broken piece of a Grotto Heaven Blessed Land?’

Zhang Deming surveyed his surroundings again, Runes swirling in his eyes, but he found nothing out of the ordinary. Besides the Flower Sea, there wasn’t the slightest abnormality.

The faint floral scent was very pleasant. It seemed like a nice place.

Hm?

’The floral scent?’

Zhang Deming’s expression shifted. A Spiritual Shield materialized around his body, blocking out the fragrance.

A lush, verdant vine sprouted from Zhang Deming’s hand, and from it, a white, jade-like flower bloomed.

As the flower opened, an even more peculiar and potent fragrance emanated from it.

This was an evolution of Zhang Deming’s Growth Technique, a new ability fused from the Flower Demon Vine: using fragrance to deliver poison, and poison to control the field.

As the Flower Demon Vine’s fragrance mingled with the air, the surroundings began to ripple faintly.

Runes flashed in Zhang Deming’s eyes, and the corners of his mouth lifted into a slight smile.

Then, by Zhang Deming’s feet, countless jade-green vines, like emeralds, suddenly sprouted, covering a large area.

On the vines, one white flower after another bloomed.

However, they released no scent. Instead, the white flowers linked together, forming a peculiar zone.

A strange suction force emanated from this zone.

All the surrounding floral fragrance was sucked into the white jade flowers, creating a scentless vacuum around Zhang Deming.

In that instant, the surroundings began to fluctuate violently.

At that moment, Zhang Deming abruptly took a step in one direction, and his entire body vanished from the Flower Sea.

As he disappeared, the emerald vines around him instantly dissolved into motes of light and vanished as well.

Zhang Deming experienced another moment of disorientation. Before he could get a clear look at his new surroundings, he sensed an intense threat.

With a thought, a Tier Three Spiritual Shield appeared.

Almost at the exact moment the shield appeared, a pitch-black object stabbed into it.

The immense force sent Zhang Deming sliding backward rapidly, and ripples spread across the surface of the Spiritual Shield.

Zhang Deming watched the fluctuating Shield, his gaze turning sharp.

He had only slid back a short distance when he abruptly turned his head. Another pitch-black stick—or rather, a branch—was hurtling toward the back of his head.

He was completely surrounded by these black vines; he now found himself in a jungle of them.

The Light Wings at Zhang Deming’s heels vanished, and a pair of medium-sized Light Wings appeared on his back, making his body as light as a feather.

Just like that, the immense inertia from before was abruptly negated. With a light tap of his toes, he nimbly dodged the black object that continued its attack.

Only then did Zhang Deming have a moment to observe his attacker.

It was a mass of pitch-black vines that resembled gnarled branches, exceptionally ugly and the complete opposite of Zhang Deming’s own jade-green vines.

Zhang Deming’s gaze followed the vines, and he was inwardly alarmed.

Not far from where he had been standing was a massive barrier of light. Inside the barrier was the endless Flower Sea.

And outside the light barrier, countless black vines were coiled, forming an endless fence of vines.

He was now standing with his back to the light barrier and the Flower Sea, facing a wall of black vines.

These vines looked like a deliberately cultivated barrier of thorns.

Moreover, this vine barrier wasn’t just a thin layer clinging to the Light Curtain; it formed a very thick wall.

Right now, Zhang Deming was inside that very wall of vines.

His sudden appearance seemed to have triggered the vines’ automated defenses. As more and more vines began to move, it became increasingly difficult for Zhang Deming to dodge.

With the aid of his Feather Fall Technique, he could barely hold on.

But as time went on, the entire wall of vines seemed to come alive, its tendrils lashing out at Zhang Deming like the tentacles of some monstrous creature.

Light as a feather, Zhang Deming pushed his Feather Fall Technique to its limits, the Light Wings on his back vibrating gently.

Two emerald vines extended from his hands, continuously fending off the attacking vines.

Even so, as all the vines activated, Zhang Deming could no longer dodge every attack.

From time to time, a vine would strike his shield, causing even the Tier Three Spiritual Shield to fluctuate violently.

Looking at the vines coming from all directions, Zhang Deming frowned.

’This won’t work. If this keeps up, it’s only a matter of time before my defenses are broken. This is no different from waiting to die.’

He looked at the countless vines around him. ’Breaking through them directly is clearly impossible, given their density and thickness.’

Frowning, Zhang Deming looked up at the sky. ’Well then... I hope these vines don’t have too much reach.’

With a light tap of his toes, the Light Wings on his back began to vibrate rapidly. The Jade Vines in his hands lashed out, striking the surrounding vines to gain purchase as he shot upward at high speed.