51: Chapter 51 The Secret Realm Closes, and He's Thrown Out

Jiang Changge looked at Ancestor Zhou Huaixu again. "I am returning to Kunlun first. As for the matters here, be careful yourself."

Ancestor Zhou Huaixu hurriedly bowed. "Please rest assured, Senior. This Junior understands."

Jiang Changge nodded slightly and waved his hand, enveloping himself and Lin Yanzhou in a shroud of spiritual light.

In the next moment, the figures of the two disappeared from the spirit boat.

Outside the Purple Bamboo Forest, the riot of the earth veins grew increasingly intense.

Inside the Secret Realm, however, it was a completely different scene.

The Cultivators who were searching for Opportunities all stopped what they were doing.

Everyone felt that the Secret Realm was undergoing some kind of indescribable change.

"What's going on? Why is the Secret Realm shaking?"

"Look at the sky! That's a runic formation!"

...

On the other side, Lu Jinghan and the others naturally felt the vibration as well.

"What's happening?" Qin Muchuan's expression changed, and he quickly steadied himself.

Su Fuguang's face was also slightly pale as he scanned the surroundings warily. "An earthquake? Why is there an earthquake?"

Lu Jinghan's expression darkened as memories of his past life flashed rapidly through his mind.

He had never encountered this situation in his previous life.

In this life, too many things had already deviated from their original trajectory.

Deep within the bamboo sea, in front of that simple bamboo hut, Immortal Zizhu sat cross-legged on a stone stool.

The purple bamboo leaf in his hand swayed gently, its spiritual light flickering as if it too sensed some uneasy rhythm.

Suddenly, the entire Secret Realm began to shake violently.

The vibration came without warning, yet it was as fierce as the heavens collapsing and the earth rending.

In the bamboo sea, countless purple bamboos swayed violently, and the entire world trembled.

Immortal Zizhu's cloudy eyes snapped open, and the bamboo leaf in his hand abruptly stopped, no longer swaying in the slightest.

"This is?"

His voice was hoarse and low, carrying a hint of shock that was hard to conceal.

The shaking of the Secret Realm continued, growing more and more intense.

Immortal Zizhu slowly stood up; his hunched figure swayed slightly in the vibration, but he never fell.

He raised his head, his gaze directed toward that unknown distance.

"It has come to this time again."

He spoke in a low voice, his tone carrying a bit of emotion and a bit of helplessness.

"Hundreds of thousands of years... I didn't expect time to pass so quickly."

He did not know that an Immortal was buried beneath the Southern Desolation, nor did he know the true source of this Earth Vein Riot.

He had simply experienced such vibrations once every few hundred thousand years and had long since grown used to it.

"Forget it."

Immortal Zizhu gave a soft sigh, a flash of determination appearing in his cloudy eyes.

He raised his withered hand, and that purple bamboo leaf floated up from his palm, hovering in mid-air and emitting a soft purple light.

Upon the bamboo leaf, those dense ancient characters lit up simultaneously.

Immortal Zizhu waved his hand, and an invisible force spread out in all directions with him as the center.

Wherever that power passed, the violent vibrations seemed to be suppressed by a few degrees.

In the Secret Realm, all the Cultivators were enveloped by this power.

In the next moment, their figures disappeared from the Secret Realm at the same time.

In the sky outside the Purple Bamboo Forest, blood-red cracks were still expanding, and crimson mist filled the horizon.

The spirit boats of the major powers had already retreated tens of thousands of miles, stopping at relatively safe positions to watch the movements of the Secret Realm from afar.

Suddenly, at the exit of the Secret Realm, that purple light gate suddenly brightened.

The light was more brilliant than ever before, illuminating the sky for a hundred miles around as bright as day.

Immediately after, hundreds of figures flew out from the light gate, falling onto the plains in a dense crowd like dumplings being dropped into a pot.

These were precisely those Cultivators from the Purple Bamboo Forest Secret Realm.

They had been "thrown" out by the Secret Realm.

"What's going on? Why did we come out?"

"Isn't it not yet time for the Purple Bamboo Forest to close?"

"Look at the sky! What's happening there!"

Finally, someone noticed the anomaly in the sky.

That blood-colored crack spanning ten thousand miles, with crimson mist churning like a tide, had dyed the entire horizon a dark red.

Everyone was stunned.

Lu Jinghan and the other three also landed on the plain.

Qin Muchuan looked up and saw that blood-colored crack in the sky; his pupils constricted violently, and he sucked in a breath of cold air.

"What on earth is that!"

Zhou Tianchen's expression was also solemn as he stared fixedly at the crack, remaining silent.

Lu Jinghan raised his head and looked at the crack spanning ten thousand miles in the sky, his heart sinking slightly.

The Earth Vein Riot of the Southern Desolation had actually occurred early?

He had experienced an Earth Vein Riot in his previous life and knew how terrifying it was.

That was not a natural disaster that human strength could contend with; even a powerhouse Undergoing Tribulation would only be able to hide when faced with an Earth Vein Riot of this magnitude.

"This is no place to stay, we must leave quickly!"

Lu Jinghan spoke in a heavy voice, turning around to lead the three away.

Just then, in the sky tens of thousands of miles away, a huge spirit boat was breaking through the clouds and mist, sailing toward them.

Atop the spirit boat, a banner fluttered in the wind—Zhouwu.

It was the spirit boat of the Zhouwu Dynasty.

The spirit boat was extremely fast and soon arrived above the plain.

At the bow of the boat, Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe stood with his hands behind his back.

Lu Jinghan also saw the spirit boat and scanned the bow, but he did not see the figure of his Revered Master.

However, now was not the time to think about that; he led the three of them into the air, heading toward the spirit boat.

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe also saw them and waved his hand; a spiritual light shot out from the spirit boat, transforming into a bridge of light that extended before the four of them.

Lu Jinghan did not hesitate and stepped onto the bridge of light.

Zhou Tianchen, Qin Muchuan, and Su Fuguang followed close behind.

The moment the four stepped onto the spirit boat, Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe came forward to meet them.

His gaze swept over the four; seeing that although they looked a bit disheveled, none were injured, he breathed a small sigh of relief.

"Are you all alright?" he asked.

Zhou Tianchen shook his head. "We are fine."

"The Purple Bamboo Forest closed early," Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe said in a heavy voice.

"None of us expected this to happen, but since you have come out safely, that is good."

He paused, his gaze turning toward those Cultivators who were still fleeing in panic on the plain in the distance.

"There's no telling how long this Earth Vein Riot will last. This place is indeed not suitable to stay. We will return to the Dynasty first and wait until the riot subsides before discussing subsequent matters."

After picking up all the Disciples of the Zhouwu Imperial Clan,

Dynasty Lord Zhou Shanhe turned and instructed the guards beside him: "Pass down the order, the spirit boat is to return to the Dynasty at full speed!"

"Yes!"

The spirit boat turned around, breaking through the crimson mist and sailing in the direction of the Zhouwu Dynasty.

On the plain, the spirit boats of other powers also started up one after another.

On the spirit boat of the Nanli Dynasty, Second Prince Yang Yan landed on the deck in a sorry state with several Disciples, his face ashen.

He had originally intended to show off his skills in the Purple Bamboo Forest on this trip, but he hadn't expected to be "thrown" out early by the Secret Realm.

What annoyed him even more was that he hadn't even been able to ascend to the fifth floor of the Nine Heavens Tower and had almost lost his life inside.

"Your Majesty, the Seventh Prince has returned," Grand General Yang Zhirong came forward to report.

Imperial Lord Yang Potian nodded, his gaze sweeping over Second Prince Yang Yan and the others; seeing they were disheveled but otherwise fine, he withdrew his gaze.

"Pass down the order, the spirit boat is to return to the Dynasty at full speed."

"Yes!"

The spirit boats of the Xuanyuan Dynasty, Medicine King Valley, and other powers also started up, sailing toward their respective directions.

In the sky, the blood-red crack was still expanding, and the crimson mist churned like a tide, dyeing the entire horizon dark red.

Outside the Purple Bamboo Forest, that huge purple light gate had begun to dissipate, its purple spiritual light gradually dimming in the blood-red sky until it finally disappeared completely.

The Secret Realm had closed.

Inside the bamboo hut, Immortal Zizhu sat back down on the stone stool, his cloudy gaze looking through the hut toward that bamboo sea that was now devoid of people.

The purple bamboo leaf in his hand swayed gently, its spiritual light flickering as if it were telling a story.

"Hundreds of thousands of years..." he murmured to himself, his tone carrying a hint of weariness.

"I wonder what the scene will be like when it opens next time."

He closed his eyes, and his remnant soul slowly settled into silence within the bamboo hut.

The entire Secret Realm grew quiet along with him, with only the rustling of the wind through the bamboo leaves echoing in the empty bamboo sea.