Chapter 36 begins by revealing that Soreen has also participated in this year's Empire Ranking Ceremony.
However, before taking readers directly into the Secret Realm, the author first provides an important piece of background information, making it much easier to understand the events that follow.
After entering the Secret Realm:
The Origin Star Continent, the Eighth Continent, lies within this mysterious realm.
It is several times larger than the Neraction Continent.
The highest cultivation level that can be reached here is the Peak of the True Foundation Realm.
The continent is densely populated with an overwhelming number of Spiritual Beasts, while its Demonic Energy is far richer and denser than that of ordinary lands.
Ironically, despite its abundant Demonic Energy, cultivation resources are incredibly scarce.
The cultivators living here have remained trapped on this continent for an unimaginably long time.
As a result, newly arrived disciples from the outside world are often treated as nothing more than resources—used as servants, hunters, or even as cultivation materials.
The author also introduces the Heaven-Sealing Barrier, a mysterious and absolute barrier that separates the Neraction Continent from the Origin Star Continent.
No ordinary cultivator is capable of crossing it, and no known force possesses the power to shatter it.
Because of this unbreakable barrier, the two continents have remained completely isolated from one another for countless years.
After the Heaven-Sealing Barrier Opened
Nearly two thousand years later, the Heaven-Sealing Barrier that separated the Origin Star Continent from the Neraction Continent suddenly opened once again.
The moment the barrier was breached, several powerful cultivators from the Origin Star Continent crossed into the Neraction Continent. However, upon their arrival, they quickly discovered that the Secret Realm Ceremony Competition was already underway.
Without wasting a single moment, they headed straight for the palace of the Emperor of the Ninth Continent.
The story then shifts into the Secret Realm itself.
One after another, all the disciples were randomly teleported to different locations within the Outer Layer of the Secret Realm.
The Outer Layer was unimaginably vast, and its atmosphere was completely different from the outside world. Rich Spiritual Qi filled every corner of the land, while endless forests of towering Green Spirit Bamboo stretched far beyond the horizon, giving the entire region an ancient and mysterious aura.
These were no ordinary bamboo trees.
After absorbing Spiritual Qi for countless years, they had evolved into extraordinary treasures with incredible durability. In times of need, they could even be used as powerful defensive shields. Although the Secret Realm contained countless valuable treasures, the Green Spirit Bamboo was considered one of its most precious resources.
Without hesitation, the disciples began harvesting the enormous bamboo as quickly as they could.
The story then shifts to the protagonist, Kim.
By coincidence, Kim was also teleported into the Outer Layer of the Secret Realm.
The moment he arrived, his eyes fell upon the endless sea of towering bamboo swaying beneath the sky.
"This place... is unbelievably vast," he thought to himself. "The Spiritual Qi here is several times denser than in the outside world... and just look at these bamboo trees—they're absolutely gigantic."
Just then, his gaze landed on an ordinary-looking Spiritual Beast standing nearby.
At first glance, it appeared completely harmless. Creatures like this were commonly found within bamboo forests, so Kim didn't sense anything unusual about it.
Suddenly—
A sharp mechanical voice echoed inside his mind.
「Warning! Warning! An extremely dangerous beast has been detected before you!」
Kim froze for a brief moment.
A look of confusion flashed across his face.
He couldn't understand why the system was issuing such a serious warning.
After all, the creature standing before him appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary First-Level Foundation Realm Spiritual Beast.
The Spiritual Beast standing before Kim was, in fact, a tiny squirrel-like creature.
And from this very moment, the true journey inside the Secret Realm finally begins.
Just then, the system presented Kim with three choices:
First Option: Tame the small squirrel-like beast and make it your companion.
Second Option: Kill the beast immediately.
Third Option: Quietly leave the area without letting it notice your presence.
Kim was still trying to decide which option to choose when, without any warning, the beast suddenly lunged at him with lightning-fast speed.
Kim immediately thought to himself,
"Now I don't have any choice left. It has already attacked me... I'll have to face it head-on."
A moment later, another thought crossed his mind.
"Perfect... I'll use this opportunity to test the power of my Renu God Realm Art. Let's see just how powerful this technique really is."
However, the instant he attempted to activate it, the Renu God Realm Art refused to attack the beast on its own.
A voice echoed deep within his mind.
"I cannot attack this beast. Your current cultivation is far too weak to confront it."
The words struck Kim like a bolt of lightning.
"What... What is going on?"
For a brief moment, his mind went completely blank.
It was the kind of situation that made him think, "What the hell?"
But in the very next second, he forced himself to calm down.
Since his strongest technique refused to respond, he decided to rely on his other combat skills instead.
As the beast charged at him once again, Kim swiftly dodged its lightning-fast attack, narrowly avoiding its very first strike.
After regaining his footing, Kim immediately launched a full-powered counterattack.
However, his strike failed to leave even the slightest mark on the squirrel-like beast.
In the very next moment, the creature rose onto its hind legs and unleashed a sharp, terrifying roar.
The sound carried an overwhelming force that struck directly at Kim's soul. It felt as though his Inner Soul had suffered a slight injury, causing his concentration to shatter for a brief moment.
The Spiritual Beast seized that opening without hesitation.
Moving with lightning-like speed, it lunged straight at Kim and slashed across his chest with its razor-sharp claws.
Its claws tore through his flesh, leaving behind a deep wound as blood began to pour from the injury.
Enduring the intense pain, Kim quickly retreated while thinking to himself,
"Just how am I supposed to defeat this beast?"
But he had no time to dwell on the question.
Steadying himself once again, Kim prepared to launch another assault against the squirrel-like creature.
It was at this moment that the beast's true name was finally revealed—
Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast.
Without wasting a single second, Kim activated the power of his Inner Courtyard and used Teleportation.
In the blink of an eye, he appeared right in front of the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast and unleashed a full-powered slash with his sword.
Yet, the attack proved far less effective than he had expected.
Kim had believed that a single strike would be enough to finish the beast, but reality was far different.
Even so, the blow was not entirely meaningless.
It managed to injure the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast, leaving it with a minor wound for the very first time.
The Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast once again rose onto its hind legs and unleashed the same Mind Hallucination Technique.
Its horrifying cry struck Kim's mind and soul once more. For a brief moment, his body became completely rigid, while his concentration was thrown into total chaos.
The beast wasted no time.
Taking full advantage of the opening, it charged at Kim with lightning-fast speed and attacked again.
Its razor-sharp claws sank into the exact same spot where Kim had already been wounded. His chest was torn open once more, and blood gushed out from the deep injury.
Even so, Kim reacted immediately.
Using his System Points, he purchased a Healing Item and began restoring his injuries. But before he could fully recover—
The Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast launched yet another deadly assault.
This time, it unleashed all twenty of its razor-sharp claws, sending them spinning toward Kim like deadly rotating blades.
The claws ripped across his face before piercing deep into his chest and abdomen, carving through his body as though someone had struck a giant tree with a sword twenty consecutive times.
Despite the unbearable pain, Kim gritted his teeth and once again spent his System Points on another Healing Item, barely managing to restore his body.
As soon as his wounds closed, he took a heavy breath and muttered inwardly,
"What kind of terrifying monster is this? The moment I entered this place, I ended up facing a beast like this. It won't even give me a single moment to recover or catch my breath. Why do I keep losing against it over and over again? I can't understand any of this... At this rate, today might really be my last day."
But in the very next moment, a fierce determination returned to his eyes.
"No... I can't die here. I still have my revenge to take. I have to return to the cultivation world and settle the score with every one of my enemies."
Clenching his teeth, he cursed inwardly,
"But I can't even cultivate through my own efforts. What kind of ridiculous System did I end up with? It doesn't even allow me to cultivate by myself... Seriously, what a useless System!"
Kim gritted his teeth and muttered inwardly,
"No wonder my cultivation has been stuck at the Peak of the Body Refining Realm all this time. I haven't achieved a single breakthrough yet. What am I even supposed to do?"
He couldn't help but blame his System for everything.
But before he could think any further, the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast launched another attack.
Without wasting a second, Kim immediately retreated.
Dodging one relentless assault after another, he fled deeper into the Secret Realm, doing everything he could to stay alive.
As he continued running, a strange thought suddenly crossed his mind.
"In every novel, the protagonist is always favored by fate. They're the one who becomes the strongest, the one who eventually stands above the entire world. So why isn't my story like that? Forget becoming the strongest... I can't even defeat a single beast."
A bitter smile appeared on his face.
"Am I really the protagonist of this novel... or am I just some insignificant side character?"
His gaze shifted toward the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast, which was still relentlessly pursuing him.
"Just what kind of monstrous beast is this? It's as if it has already decided that it won't stop until I'm dead."
Then, in the very next instant, Kim's eyes widened in shock.
"Wait... There was only one of them before... so why are there two now?"
His mind immediately flashed back to his previous sword strike.
The moment he had used his Inner Courtyard to teleport in front of the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast and attacked it with all his strength, everything had changed.
Now, instead of facing a single opponent, two Emerald Fang Squirrel Beasts stood before him.
Both looked completely identical, making it nearly impossible for Kim to distinguish the real beast from the fake one.
Only then did Kim finally realize what had happened.
When he had unleashed his full-powered sword strike earlier, the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast had been sliced cleanly into two.
But instead of dying...
Both halves had come back to life.
Now, instead of facing a single beast, two Emerald Fang Squirrel Beasts stood before him.
The sight completely numbed his mind.
"What... What is this? What kind of ridiculous beast is this? Instead of dying when it's cut apart, it actually multiplies!"
Only one thought echoed endlessly in his head.
"This is seriously a complete... 'What the hell?!' moment!"
Without daring to look back, Kim continued running for his life.
As he fled, an idea suddenly flashed through his mind.
"Maybe I can lure these two beasts toward another cultivator. Once they start chasing someone else, I'll use my Inner Courtyard to teleport away. That should finally shake them off."
With that plan in mind, Kim sprinted forward as fast as he could.
Before long, he spotted several disciples in the distance.
For a moment, he believed his plan was finally going to work.
But the instant he got closer...
He came to an abrupt stop.
Behind those disciples, eighteen Emerald Fang Squirrel Beasts were chasing them like a pack of crazed monsters.
For a brief moment, the entire scene seemed to freeze.
Kim stood there, utterly speechless.
"What... Even they're being chased by so many Emerald Fang Squirrel Beasts?"
The situation had become so absurd that it was another complete "What the hell?!" moment.
For the first time in his life, Kim was left utterly stunned by the bizarre regeneration ability of the Emerald Fang Squirrel Beast.
chapter end. but
I sincerely hope that all of you are doing well and staying healthy.
With great joy, I am bringing Chapter 36 to an end. Thank you all so much for your continuous love, support, and encouragement. Your comments and feedback motivate me to keep improving with every chapter.
If you think this chapter could be even better or have any suggestions for future improvements, please let me know in the comments. I truly appreciate every opinion you share.
Please continue supporting me by leaving a comment on every chapter, sharing this novel with your friends, and recommending it to others who enjoy cultivation stories.
Once again, thank you for reading this chapter and for all your incredible support. It truly means a lot to me.
Take care of yourselves, stay healthy, and I'll see you in the next chapter!
Chapter 36 — End
Chapter 37 — Coming Soon.