Half a month later, Mu Fan had initially completed the refinement of the cold jade gourd. Relying on this treasure alone, he could already contend with an Early Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator.
"If I roughly estimate the relationship between my Qi and the quantity of cold sand, it takes about two or three points of Qi to drive a single grain of cold sand. From this, it is clear that the quality of my Qi is still not high enough."
"After all, the Black Fiend Art was casually imparted by Jiang Yi; it is not some profound, top-tier cultivation technique. Naturally, the quality of the Qi it cultivates cannot be considered top-tier."
"Given my situation, I cannot pursue top-tier cultivation techniques at every Realm. As long as it does not hinder my cultivation or breakthroughs, that is enough. Once I reach the Foundation Establishment Stage, or even the Core Formation Stage, I will naturally have opportunities to obtain better techniques."
"Moreover, I have the AFK System. The Qi rewarded at the Foundation Establishment Stage should be of a higher quality than that of the Qi Refining Stage."
After completing the refinement of the cold jade gourd, Mu Fan estimated that there was still some time remaining. He then took out the Spirit Condensing Art to study.
Mu Fan's Divine Sense far surpassed that of others in the same Realm, yet he lacked the proper method to utilize it effectively. Now, with the Spirit Condensing Art in hand, he studied it carefully before attempting to cultivate it.
The profundity of this secret technique lay in its ability to condense Divine Sense into tangible forms.
Within his Sea of Consciousness, his Divine Sense resembled a drifting mist. Following the instructions of the Spirit Condensing Art, Mu Fan gathered a portion of it and compressed it into a bead.
Without such a technique, compressing Divine Sense into a bead would be futile, it would revert to its original state the moment control was released. But with the technique, the condensed form remained stable, and the power of the Divine Sense became more refined.
Mu Fan immersed himself in the Spirit Condensing Art. After condensing twenty-five Divine Sense beads, he suddenly felt something shift and exited his cultivation state.
A flash passed before his eyes, and in the next instant, he appeared on an unfamiliar island.
The island was lush and vibrant, with a pleasant environment, though the Spiritual Qi was relatively thin. Precisely because of this, few would ever pass through such a place, much less establish an Immortal Cave here, making the Secret Realm difficult to discover by chance.
Mu Fan raised a finger, and the moisture in the air condensed into a water mirror before him.
Looking at his reflection, he saw a handsome face with a faint smile at the corners of his lips. His figure was slender, clad in black robes. His long black hair flowed to his waist, part of it draped naturally, while the rest was tied behind his head with a low-grade Artifact hairpin. Atop it hung a small gourd as decoration.
This was the best concealment method Mu Fan could devise.
He dared not underestimate Jiang Yi's character. To verify the gains of his named disciples, the likelihood of him forcing them to surrender their Storage Pouches for inspection was extremely high.
Even if Mu Fan shrank the cold jade gourd and hid it on his body, it would not escape Jiang Yi's Divine Sense. Only by placing it openly in plain sight would there be a chance it might be overlooked.
"Fortunately, there is the Treasure Sacrificing Art. After initial refinement, the treasure's spiritual light is restrained. It appears no different from an ordinary jade ornament. Unless Jiang Yi personally inspects it, he might not notice anything unusual."
Mu Fan dispersed the water mirror.
Time passed, yet Jiang Yi still had not appeared, it seemed that the exit timing from the Secret Realm was not synchronized.
Thus, Mu Fan wandered leisurely across the island, appreciating the scenery.
Half a day later, a streak of golden light suddenly shot out from a distant island.
Mu Fan stepped onto his wind-chasing boots and rose into the air to observe. The cultivator riding the golden light artifact had only traveled five or six kilometers m before slamming into a Formation barrier.
Mu Fan frowned.
"It's over. This person won't have an easy time explaining."
If one weren't hiding something, why flee immediately upon exiting the Secret Realm?
If they claimed to have gained nothing, would any Foundation Establishment cultivator believe them?
Mu Fan himself had considered fleeing, but he feared the Restrictions on his body, and even more, that Jiang Yi and the others might be lying in wait.
He suspected Jiang Yi and the others were still inside the Secret Realm, but he could not be certain.
What if they had already exited and were hiding nearby, observing to see who tried to escape with treasure?
As he pondered, several streaks of light shot toward the golden figure.
The same thought had clearly occurred to others, kill and seize the treasure!
Mu Fan remained uninvolved, floating silently as he watched.
A battle erupted. Spirit Artifacts flew through the air, colliding and clashing in chaotic bursts of light.
Mu Fan yawned.
It wasn't that they were weak, those chosen to enter were at least in the late Qi Refining Stage and possessed numerous methods.
But after enduring the Secret Realm, they had expended much of their strength. Now, they were at their weakest.
"Senior Brother Mu, if you're bored, shall we go join in? I'll accompany you, even if it costs me my life!"
Wang Yang stood atop a nearby tree canopy and spoke.
He had spotted Mu Fan earlier and flown over.
Mu Fan had long noticed him and remained quietly on guard.
Descending slightly, Mu Fan stood on a tree canopy as well, wearing a bitter smile.
"Forget it. I've suffered heavy losses in the Secret Realm. I have no desire to fight anymore."
As he spoke, he took out his damaged inner armor and let it fall to the ground.
Wang Yang sighed.
"Who hasn't? The losses are severe, and the gains are mediocre. Worst of all, I didn't even obtain a treasure. How am I supposed to explain this to Master?"
Mu Fan's expression grew even more bitter.
"What else can we do? Tell the truth. I believe Master will understand."
Wang Yang nodded.
"That's all we can do."
He then added, "I left a message for you earlier. Did you see it?"
Mu Fan replied, "After we return, come find me. When helping fellow brothers, I won't be too… unscrupulous with Artifact Refining."
"Hahaha!"
Before the man even arrived, his laughter rang out.
Zhou Long flew over and joined them.
"'Not too unscrupulous' still means a little unscrupulous. Junior Brother Wang should understand that clearly."
Mu Fan shot him a glare.
"Only the good die young. You really didn't die in there, huh? Judging by your expression, you must have gained quite a bit. Could it be that you…"
Zhou Long hurriedly cut him off.
"Senior Brother! You can't joke like that. How could I have gained anything major? At most, my losses were slightly less than yours."
At that moment.
A familiar surge of black Qi rose from the sea.
Jiang Yi appeared.
Clearly, he had heard their conversation and seemed dissatisfied that none of them had obtained the treasure.
But he was not enraged.
"Go find your other two fellow disciples. I'll go take a look."
With that, he departed in a surge of black Qi.
Two more powerful auras appeared, two additional Foundation Establishment cultivators rushed toward the battlefield.
See?
This is what happens when one tries to be clever.
That golden-light cultivator had made themselves the center of attention, and now faced interrogation from three Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Three?
Mu Fan frowned slightly and whispered, "I only see three Foundation Establishment cultivators…"
Wang Yang and Zhou Long exchanged strange smiles.
They had not realized that Foundation Establishment cultivators could also enter the Secret Realm. They assumed one had already been eliminated elsewhere.
Wang Yang glanced once more at the battlefield, then turned away.
"Let's go. We should find Senior Brother Liu and Senior Brother Zheng."
Mu Fan nodded.
Curiosity kills the cat. Whatever treasure that person had obtained, it could not be from the core area, otherwise, they wouldn't have been trapped so easily.
The three of them searched the nearby islands, discovering corpses and survivors alike.
It seemed that those who died within the Secret Realm had their bodies expelled here.
They divided the items found on the corpses.
Whenever they encountered other Qi Refining cultivators, they kept their distance, avoiding unnecessary conflict.
After some time.
They found Zheng Wei's corpse.
Zhou Long sighed deeply.
"Old Zheng… Sigh. I was closest to him. I'll bury him."
As he spoke, he mobilized his Qi to retrieve Zheng Wei's Storage Pouch.
Mu Fan and Wang Yang struck simultaneously, shattering his Qi.
What are you pretending for?
Mu Fan said calmly, "We are fellow disciples. How can we let Junior Brother Zhou do all the work alone?"
Wang Yang nodded with a smile.
"Exactly. Let's handle it together."
Zhou Long laughed awkwardly.
The three of them wordlessly divided Zheng Wei's belongings evenly.