"Master, the battlefield has been cleaned up. We've collected all the wealth those guys left behind."
Hu Miao approached Ye Yunfei, holding many spatial rings, and spoke excitedly.
The Golden-Horned Dragon Silkworm, Qin Xiaoyu, and Lu Shi also rushed over, each carrying a large pile of spatial rings and various magic artifacts collected from the battlefield.
Everyone they had just fought were disciples of major factions. Before entering the Yangming Secret Realm, their respective forces had bestowed upon them many powerful magic artifacts, and they had also obtained quite a few treasures within the Yangming Secret Realm. Now, all of it had fallen into Ye Yunfei's hands.
"We can take our time distributing it later when we have the chance. Right now, we still have things to do."
Ye Yunfei stored all the spoils and spoke.
"Brother Ye, you can distribute these items however you see fit. I have no objections," Lu Shi said.
"Don't worry, I definitely won't leave out your share," Ye Yunfei said with a smile.
"Young Master, we've discovered traces of some more members of the Guardian Faction."
At that moment, Ye Yunfei suddenly received a message from one of the Guanzhong Six Heroes males.
The two men of the Guanzhong Six Heroes had hurried back to report to Ye Yunfei. They had witnessed everyone who entered the city being slaughtered from outside its walls, leaving them utterly dumbstruck and shaken for a while before they snapped back to reality and hastily sent a mental transmission to Ye Yunfei.
"The Yangming Secret Realm's open period could end at any moment. We must hurry," Ye Yunfei said upon receiving the message, his figure flashing as he stepped out of the city.
"Lead the way, quickly," Ye Yunfei ordered the two men.
Not long after, Ye Yunfei found even more members of the Guardian Faction, and of course, he showed no mercy, killing them all and leaving none alive.
It wasn't just members of the Guardian Faction. Whenever he encountered people from other major factions like the Tianhai Sect, the Heixuan Sect, or Sifang Tower, Ye Yunfei eliminated them all without hesitation as well.
This was because these factions had previously joined forces to hunt down Lu Shi, and they had all pledged allegiance to the Guardian Faction. Sooner or later, they would become opponents.
As time went on, Ye Yunfei, the Guanzhong Six Heroes, and Lu Shi ranged across the Yangming Secret Realm, hunting down disciples of the Guardian Faction and other major factions. Whenever they were found, they were immediately wiped out, leaving none alive.
As time passed, the number of disciples killed from those factions increased.
"Young Master, we can no longer find any members of the Guardian Faction. Moreover, I've just counted: the number of Guardian Faction members we've killed has reached nearly three hundred. It's possible that all members of the Guardian Faction within the Yangming Secret Realm have been eradicated," the eldest of the Guanzhong Six Heroes said to Ye Yunfei at a certain location within the secret realm.
By now, the Guanzhong Six Heroes, despite using their tracking arts, could no longer find traces of any Guardian Faction members. Ye Yunfei himself had been continuously using the Chaos Heaven Secret Art to deduce, but he could no longer sense the aura of any Guardian Faction member.
"No, there definitely are a few fish that slipped through the net. Let's do this: we'll head to the entrance-exit of the Yangming Secret Realm immediately and wait there. We'll intercept and kill any Guardian Faction members we see."
Ye Yunfei pondered for a moment before speaking.
Boom…
Just at that moment, a terrifying tremor instantly swept through the entire Yangming Secret Realm.
"The Yangming Secret Realm's open period is about to end. We need to get out quickly. Otherwise, once the secret realm's gates close, we'll be trapped here for three hundred years."
Feeling this tremor, everyone within the Yangming Secret Realm understood what was happening. Immediately, they reminded each other and began to move, heading towards the entrance-exit location.
Because the Yangming Secret Realm opened once every three hundred years, with many young cultivators from the Sixth Void entering each time to explore and seek treasures, generations of entrants had long understood the various conditions of the realm.
Not long after, Ye Yunfei brought Lu Shi and Qin Xiaoyu to the vicinity of the entrance-exit of the Yangming Secret Realm.
"Let's hide here," Ye Yunfei said, setting up a small formation space nearby and then bringing Lu Shi and Qin Xiaoyu inside.
As his strength and Soul Power energy continuously improved, Ye Yunfei's skill in setting up formations gradually increased as well. Now, the speed and power of the formations he set up had improved.
Boom…
Intense shaking began to spread throughout the Yangming Secret Realm again. Everyone used movement techniques to swiftly head towards the entrance-exit location. As young people, none wanted to be trapped here for three hundred years.
"Hahaha… I, Liu Feifan, may come from humble origins, but after this exploration and treasure-seeking journey, I will definitely grow into a top powerhouse in the Sixth Void in the future!"
A green-robed youth strode forward, radiating pride and satisfaction, emerging from the depths of the Yangming Secret Realm all the way to the entrance-exit location. It was clear he had gained substantial benefits within the secret realm.
"Who would have thought… the Yangming Secret Realm's open period has finally ended. How I wish I could continue exploring and treasure-hunting within this secret realm. Alas, time's up."
A youth with hair half white and half black strode towards the entrance-exit location with hands clasped behind his back, his posture graceful.
"That's the Yinyang Holy Son from the Yinyang Divine Sect!"
Seeing his distinctively black-and-white hair, everyone immediately recognized his identity.
The Yinyang Divine Sect was a major force within the Sixth Void, reputedly one of the oldest lineages in the Sixth Void. It had developed over a long span of time, with unfathomably profound heritage. Even the Guardian Faction, thus far, had never dared to provoke the Yinyang Divine Sect.
The Yinyang Holy Son was nurtured as a future core high-ranking member; his status was naturally exceptionally high.
"It's said this Yinyang Holy Son reached the Perfected Virtual God realm long ago, suppressing his realm from breaking through all this time precisely to wait for this opportunity to enter the Yangming Secret Realm to explore and seek treasures. Judging by his expression, he must have gained substantially from entering the secret realm this time," someone whispered.
"So, does that mean after this Yangming Secret Realm exploration ends, he'll break through and become a True God?" someone nearby couldn't help but ask.
"Of course! With the Yinyang Holy Son's talent, breaking through to become a True God is a very simple matter for him," someone replied immediately.
"It seems there truly are quite a few monstrously talented young geniuses in the Sixth Void," Ye Yunfei remarked to Hun Lao, observing the arrivals of Liu Feifan, the Yinyang Holy Son, and other young powerhouses.
"Indeed. The young powerhouses you encountered before likely weren't the most formidable ones in this space-time continuum. These two here probably are," Hun Lao responded, sensing the Yinyang Holy Son's aura.
"Strange. Where are the members of our Guardian Faction? Why haven't I seen a single one come out?"
While everyone was focused on the Yinyang Holy Son, a tall, slender youth with prominent cheekbones strode forward. His gaze swept around searching, then a look of confusion appeared on his face as he spoke to himself.
"Look! It's Ma Meng from the Guardian Faction! They say he was one of the leaders for the Guardian Faction's forces entering the Yangming Secret Realm this time. However, later on, he discovered an ancient palace complex within the realm and obtained a great opportunity inside. He then remained there, entering secluded cultivation to master an ancient art and secret technique, refusing to come out until he succeeded. He couldn't possibly have been cultivating in that palace complex until now, could he?"
Seeing this youth, the crowd immediately recognized him.
"This Ma Meng's strength likely ranks within the top three among the Guardian Faction's younger generation. The Guardian Faction highly values him, piling vast resources onto him. He is destined to become one of the top powerhouses in our void in the future. Well, there's no helping it—he's a core disciple of the Guardian Faction, receiving focused cultivation since childhood. Not many in the entire Sixth Void have an upbringing comparable to his. Have you heard a little rumor that this Ma Meng is actually the illegitimate son of some powerful Elder with real authority within the Guardian Faction, which is why he received such focused training since childhood?" someone suddenly said in a low voice.
"If you don't want to die, don't say any more. You dare gossip about the Guardian Faction? Just how many heads do you think you have?" someone immediately beside him glared and warned.
People looked at Ma Meng with eyes full of envy, but at this moment, Ma Meng's expression was extremely ugly because he discovered that besides himself, not a single other member of the Guardian Faction had emerged.
At this time, the space of the entire Yangming Secret Realm kept trembling. Everyone knew this was a sign that the realm's open period was about to end.
Soon, the entrance-exit gates of the Yangming Secret Realm would close, not to reopen for another three hundred years. Logically, by this point, everyone exploring and treasure-hunting within should be hurrying to this entrance-exit location to get out.
People from all other factions were continuously emerging from the depths of the secret realm. Most had excited expressions on their faces.
When Yangming King designed and left this secret realm back then, his purpose was precisely to allow generations of later young people to explore and seek treasure here. Thus, he left many treasures and opportunities within. Every time, the young people who entered could gain something.
"What on earth is going on? Why hasn't a single one of our Guardian Faction members come out?"
Finally, Ma Meng couldn't hold back any longer and roared out, because he sensed something was very wrong. His intuition told him the Guardian Faction members might have encountered trouble—a collective mishap.
"Where are our Tianhai Sect members? Why haven't they come out yet?"
At this moment, a white-robed man soared through the air, arriving near the entrance-exit, landing on the ground to look around. But soon, he realized not a single person he was looking for had appeared, so he couldn't help but voice his question.
"That's Ning Anze, the Big Senior Brother of the Tianhai Sect. It's said he's the number one strongest among the Tianhai Sect's younger generation of disciples in this era, revered as Big Senior Brother by all disciples within the sect. It seems during the exploration of the Yangming Secret Realm, he also separated from the Tianhai Sect group to explore alone. He actually doesn't know yet what happened to the Tianhai Sect's disciples."
Some people in the distance saw this Ning Anze and couldn't help but whisper among themselves.
"You, come over and tell me, what exactly happened to our Guardian Faction members? Why hasn't a single one emerged yet?"
The Guardian Faction's Ma Meng searched and waited for his faction members while simultaneously using his Soul Power to probe everyone around him. He heard a few people whispering as if something had happened to the Guardian Faction. He extended his hand, which rapidly enlarged, directly grabbing one of those people and throwing him forcefully onto the ground before himself, then thundered his question.
"Senior Brother Ma, spare me! This has nothing to do with me!"
This person was suppressed by the terrifying energy aura released by Ma Meng, his entire body going limp, even his Soul Body trembling unsteadily. He hastily begged for mercy.
"Less nonsense! Answer my question. What exactly happened to our Guardian Faction members?" Ma Meng growled.
"I'll speak! I'll speak now! Senior Brother Ma, please don't kill me!"
Facing Ma Meng's terrifying oppressive might, this man trembled all over, kneeling on the ground and continuously kowtowing.
"This Ma Meng is simply too overbearing! What do matters of their Guardian Faction have to do with us, the Tan Family? He's actually bullying a disciple of our Tan Family publicly like this!"
Not far away, a group of youths who had just been with this man all wore angry expressions. However, no one dared step forward to challenge Ma Meng. They could only watch helplessly as their clan member was humiliated.