107: Chapter 107 First Entry into the Secret Realm

This was the strength of Ten Great Sects; any random leading Disciple was a Heavenly Spiritual Root Genius at Qi Refining Perfection. Their grievances were intricate and complex, and before the Xuanbing Secret Realm had even opened, they were already fighting tooth and nail. Once they entered the Xuanbing Secret Realm, the competition would likely be even more brutal.

As for himself, being the only Loose Cultivator at Qi Refining Peak present, he appeared particularly out of place among this group of Geniuses.

Not only did the Disciples of the Luoshui Sect look down on him, but even the other Loose Cultivators and Family Disciples avoided him like the plague, occasionally casting mocking and disdainful glances his way while whispering amongst themselves.

"Look at that guy from the Luoshui Sect; he's only at Qi Refining Peak, yet he dares to come to the Xuanbing Secret Realm. I'm afraid he'll just be cannon fodder once he goes in."

"Exactly. Any random Disciple from Ten Great Sects could crush him like an ant. I don't know why the Luoshui Sect would bring such a dead weight along."

"Just wait and see. It won't be long before he dies in the Xuanbing Secret Realm, without even being able to pick up a scrap of treasure."

These words drifted into Li Qing's ears without missing a single detail, but he didn't care in the slightest. He simply adjusted his own Qi, circulated the Five Elements Art, and consolidated his cultivation.

Not long after, the elders overseeing each Sect—including that powerhouse at the Core Formation Master level from the Luoshui Sect—appeared one after another, releasing their formidable auras and instantly suppressing the restlessness of the crowd.

The Disciples of Ten Great Sects, who had been on the verge of conflict, instantly fell silent. No one dared to speak loudly or act recklessly anymore, and they all stood obediently in their respective formations, waiting for the Xuanbing Secret Realm to open.

Three days later.

In the center of the square, at the entrance to the Xuanbing Secret Realm, the ice began to melt slowly. The cold in the air grew heavier, and the Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth began to surge wildly. A blue gate of light gradually appeared; the Xuanbing Secret Realm was about to open completely.

The eyes of the leading Geniuses from each Sect instantly became sharp. Luo Bing, Ling Jianhan, Disciple Hui Ming, Huo Lie, and the others were all prepared, their Spiritual Qi circulating throughout their bodies, ready to rush into the Xuanbing Secret Realm to fight for Opportunity at any moment.

With a deafening roar, the gate of light at the entrance of the Xuanbing Secret Realm stabilized completely, emitting a brilliant blue radiance. A dense concentration of Spiritual Qi, mixed with cold air, surged out from within.

At the command of the elders from each Sect, the Disciples of Ten Great Sects moved instantly, rushing toward the entrance of the Xuanbing Secret Realm like a tide.

"Hum—"

The moment the gate of light stabilized completely, a tremendous force suddenly erupted from within. Whether they were Geniuses from the various Sects or Loose Cultivators like Li Qing, everyone was swept forward by this force.

Li Qing only felt a flash of blue before his eyes, with the whistling sound of Spiritual Qi in his ears. The next second, his feet landed on solid ground.

Having just steadied himself, he didn't even have time to look around before a bone-chilling cold air pierced his nostrils, mixed with a faint scent of blood in the air, causing him to tense his nerves instantly.

"Not good!"

Li Qing's heart skipped a beat. Almost instinctively, he circulated the Spiritual Qi within his body, quickly formed seals with his hands, and a layer of earthy-yellow Earth Spirit Shield "popped" around him.

The moment the Earth Spirit Shield formed, a black shadow roared with a "howl," bringing with it a fishy stench as it lunged out from a nearby ice crevice, its sharp claws aiming straight for his face!

This was a First-Order Perfection Ice-Toothed Wolf. Its white fur was covered in frost, and its claws gleamed with a cold light. Clearly, it had mistaken the newly arrived Li Qing for prey delivered to its doorstep.

If he had been even half a beat slower, that claw would have sent Li Qing straight to his grave.

Li Qing's eyes sharpened. Instead of retreating, he advanced. He stomped his left foot hard against the ground, his body flashed to the side, and at the same time, he clenched his right fist, exerting the physical strength of Body Refining Early Stage, and smashed it fiercely onto the neck of the Ice-Toothed Wolf.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the Ice-Toothed Wolf felt the pain, and its movements paused for a moment.

But after all, it was a First-Order Perfection Yao Beast with thick skin and flesh. It just shook its head, turned, and lunged again, its mouth wide open, sharp fangs gleaming with cold light.

Li Qing had been prepared. With the Earth Spirit Shield protecting him, he unleashed the Golden Blade Slash instantly, which crashed head-on into the Ice-Toothed Wolf's head.

The Ice-Toothed Wolf's eyes revealed disdain. A human at Qi Refining Peak, delusional enough to think he could break the body of a First-Order Perfection Yao Beast?

It didn't dodge Li Qing's attack technique in the slightest.

"Crack!"

The Ice-Toothed Wolf's skull was struck directly by the Golden Blade Slash. Its massive body tilted backward, and its eyes still held a look of confusion.

This human clearly had the aura of Qi Refining Peak, so how could his technique be so powerful?

It fell heavily onto the ice, twitched twice, and then lost all signs of life.

Having dealt with this ambushing Yao Beast, Li Qing didn't dare to be careless and first scanned his surroundings vigilantly.

The Xuanbing Secret Realm was filled with half-man-tall ice shards, and the ground was covered in slippery ice. In the distance, he could vaguely see a few plants blooming with blue flowers, though he didn't know what they were.

But he didn't have the heart to worry about other things for now; he had to deal with the prey in front of him first.

He circulated the Blood Corpse Sutra to extract the essence blood of the Ice-Toothed Wolf.

The dark red essence blood emitted a cold chill. Li Qing carefully collected over half a bottle with a jade vial. This was good stuff; whether for refining medicine or feeding the Iron Corpse, it was far more effective than ordinary blood.

After collecting the essence blood, Li Qing tossed the corpse of the Ice-Toothed Wolf into the beast enclosure to improve the Red-tailed Fox's diet.

Having finished all this, Li Qing finally breathed a sigh of relief and began to carefully examine the surrounding environment.

The place where he stood was an ice field, and in the distance was an Ice Valley emitting a faint glow. Looking over, he could vaguely see a few flowers growing in the ice crevices; their petals were light blue, and their stamens had a touch of ice crystal, looking full of Spiritual Qi.

"Could it be the mysterious ice flower?" Li Qing's eyes lit up.

He hadn't expected his Luck to be so good; he had been teleported near the mysterious ice flower as soon as he entered the Xuanbing Secret Realm.

Just as he wanted to walk toward the Ice Valley, a faint sound of footsteps suddenly reached his ears.

Li Qing immediately concealed his aura, hid behind a massive ice shard, and peeked out.

He saw three Disciples wearing the attire of the Houtu Sect walking this way while cursing. One of them even kicked an ice rock on the side:

"So unlucky. We ran into a First-Order Perfection Yao Beast just after coming in. We almost lost our lives, and we didn't even get a single hair."

"Stop complaining. The fact that the three of us were teleported together is already a stroke of great Luck."

Another pointed toward the distant Ice Valley:

"Exactly. If you were alone, you would have been eaten by a Yao Beast long ago. Hurry up and go to the Ice Valley to take a look. According to the Sect's records of the Xuanbing Secret Realm, there should be a few mysterious ice flowers there. If we're late, they'll be snatched up by others!"

"Let's go!"

The three of them hurried away, heading straight for the Ice Valley.

Li Qing didn't make a sound. He waited until they were far away before stepping out from behind the ice shard.

He hadn't expected the first people he encountered to be from the Houtu Sect; this was quite the coincidence.

He didn't intend to go head-to-head with these three.

He planned to follow behind them first. When they found the mysterious ice flowers and started a dispute, he would then reap the rewards of the conflict.

With his plan decided, Li Qing activated the Spirit Concealment Art, reducing his aura to the lowest possible level. Like a shadow, he followed behind the three, carefully moving forward.