"Damn it!"
The black-robed woman had never been teased like this before, and a hidden fury instantly rose in her heart. Just as she was about to charge into the Raven Secret Realm, a shout reached her ears.
"Elder Sister."
It was the young girl named Xiaolian who had left earlier. She swiftly rode the wind over, and it seemed there was another person with her.
It was a young man dressed in a cyan robe.
He looked utterly ordinary—neither dashingly handsome nor charmingly elegant. As he rode the wind over, his hands were clasped behind his back, appearing quite composed.
"Miss Chen Yue, it's been a while."
The man looked at the black-robed woman and offered a faint smile.
"When did you leave seclusion?"
Chen Yue recognized this man; he was an expert of the Nine Radiance Alliance, Wan Huaiyu.
"Some days ago. It's been nearly half a month since I emerged."
Wan Huaiyu stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the Raven Secret Realm beneath his feet as he spoke slowly. "And you?"
"The same."
As soon as Chen Yue finished speaking, Xiaolian beside her asked, "Young Lord Wan, you've also been out for half a month? Why haven't I seen you in the alliance?"
"I've been here all along."
Wan Huaiyu pointed towards the entrance of the Raven Secret Realm.
"You've been here the whole time?"
Wan Huaiyu smiled and nodded. "The whole time. I had some business yesterday, so I left."
Xiaolian asked excitedly, "Wow, Young Lord Wan, since you've been here all along, do you know if the rumors are true? Has an ancient relic really appeared inside?"
Although Xiaolian and her elder sister Chen Yue had spent a few days in the Raven Secret Realm recently and had discovered many strange things, they hadn't encountered the rumored ancient relic.
"Judging from some signs, it should be so..." Wan Huaiyu's every gesture exuded a kind of confidence and calmness. He smiled and said, "At least, in my view, it is indeed the case."
"Wow! It's actually true!"
Xiaolian knew Wan Huaiyu's identity. Precisely because she knew, hearing him say this made her so excited. She chattered, "Since Young Lord Wan says it is, then it must be! Elder Sister, this time I want to go with you too!"
"Together?" Wan Huaiyu extended an invitation.
"No." Chen Yue shook her head in refusal.
"Heh, in that case, farewell."
Wan Huaiyu didn't say much more. After bidding farewell to the two, he flashed into the Raven Secret Realm.
"Elder Sister, what are you thinking? Why didn't you go with Young Lord Wan? With him there, we could save a lot of trouble and be very safe."
"It's better for us to have less contact with people like him."
"Ah! But..." Xiaolian wanted to say more but was silenced by a glare from Chen Yue.
"Fine then." Xiaolian pouted, then added, "But, Elder Sister, you must take me with you this time. If there really is some ancient relic inside, I want to see it too. I've never seen an ancient relic before, not even once."
"It's very dangerous inside."
"What's there to fear? I have the protective Magical Treasure Master gave me. Besides, won't you be there to protect me? And anyway, last time we went, it wasn't dangerous at all. I don't care, I'm going. If you don't take me, I'll go by myself..." Seeing Xiaolian acting willful, Chen Yue felt a headache coming on. She knew that if Xiaolian said she would do something, she would do it. If she didn't take her in, this little girl really might go in alone.
Damn it!
Why did she have to run into Wan Huaiyu?
If he hadn't said there was an ancient relic inside, he wouldn't have stirred Xiaolian's curiosity.
"Elder Sister, please take me! Please! Please!" Xiaolian whined, shaking Chen Yue's arm.
"Alright, I'll take you. But once we're inside..."
"Aiya! I know, I'll listen to everything you say. I won't leave your side without your permission. Honestly, Elder Sister, I've heard you say this a thousand times!"
Looking at the excited and thrilled Xiaolian, Chen Yue shook her head helplessly. Fortunately, Xiaolian had the protective Magical Treasure her master gave her, so there was no need to worry too much. Moreover, Chen Yue was confident in her own strength to protect Xiaolian.
"Let's go then."
Black Raven Secret Realm.
It was pitch black. Beneath their feet was a swamp, above their heads were dark clouds, and everywhere was permeated by a kind of Green Mist.
The so-called Poison Breath came precisely from this Green Mist, or more accurately, from those green clouds above. That stuff was called Green Jaw Bone-Melting Clouds. The Green Mist they condensed and derived possessed intense toxicity. Being enveloped or contaminated by it would gradually cause one to lose vitality and slowly rot.
Even if one deployed Spiritual Power for protection, under the contamination of this Green Mist, the Spiritual Power would also be corroded. Even if one used an Immortal Art for protection, it was the same.
Usually, when encountering such a situation, if one's True Body was strong enough, naturally there was no need to worry. For example, a Great Nature Color Spirit True Body—such a True Body's resistance was much stronger than an ordinary True Body. The stronger the Color Spirit, the stronger the True Body.
If one's True Body wasn't strong enough, then one had to deploy Spiritual Power for protection.
Of course, the prerequisite was that one's Spiritual Power was sufficiently powerful—either high cultivation, or pure enough, or containing Color Spirit.
If one's own Spiritual Power simply couldn't withstand the erosion of the Green Mist, then one could only use an Immortal Art to envelop oneself—be it a spell, an array, and so on. Similarly, the prerequisite was that the Immortal Art one used could withstand it. If it couldn't, using it was useless. However, if one used an Immortal Art but one's own Spiritual Power wasn't deep enough, one simply couldn't last very long.
This was precisely the fundamental reason why many ordinary cultivators didn't dare to enter.
They might be able to withstand the erosion of the Green Mist by using an Immortal Art, but it was only resistance. They couldn't last long at all. Once their Spiritual Power was exhausted, death awaited them.
There was also a special circumstance that could provide resistance.
That was Magical Treasures.
Magical Treasures were things that were very convenient, very fast, and simultaneously very powerful.
The existence of Magical Treasures could instantly turn a weakling into a powerhouse.
Because Magical Treasures required no cultivation, no comprehension. As long as you could refine it, you could unleash the Magical Treasure's power.
However, that's what they say.
The prerequisite was that you could refine it.
This was a rather long process, requiring day after day, year after year of sacrificial refinement. Refining a powerful Magical Treasure might be even more difficult than comprehending a single Yellow-grade martial art.
Geniuses with high comprehension usually disdained refining Magical Treasures, considering it too low-level. With their high comprehension, comprehending Immortal Arts to enhance their strength was faster and more powerful, so naturally they wouldn't put Magical Treasures in their eyes.
Cultivators without high comprehension mostly chose to refine Magical Treasures to improve their own strength.
Without comprehension, one could only rely on time accumulation and Magical Treasures to enhance strength.
Alas, refining a Magical Treasure required a long process. Many cultivators would prioritize refining offensive Magical Treasures, such as the flying sword, hailed as the essential Magical Treasure for cultivators. That thing could fly, had decent power, and looked good when brought out. Almost every cultivator would refine one.
As for defensive Magical Treasures, some inexperienced youths might rarely refine them. However, those well-traveled old-timers all knew that when venturing outside, survival was of paramount importance.