The Secret Realm is Easy to Solve

“I can try.”

There were many people in this world who could find a secret realm—not just her.

But this was an emergency.

No time to hesitate.

“Is there any information about the secret realm?”

“We found a token left by the elder who was escorting the disciples.

The Governance Institute used it to locate the general area.

But pinpointing the exact position and method of entry requires extensive knowledge.”

The one who answered was her own Sect Master—Dao title Xuanchen, also Tang Qiaohuan’s father.

In terms of cultivation, he was likely second only to the Sword Immortal here.

But whether he still had room to grow was unknown.

“Then please take me there.”

On the way, Gong Ning expressed her gratitude to the Sect Master.

“Master, if not for that contract from back then, I likely wouldn’t be standing here today.”

Tang Xuanchen waved her off.

“Don’t thank me.

Thank your master.”

Gong Ning frowned in confusion.

“My master?

What does she have to do with this?”

“I once owed her a favor.

She said that if anything happened to you or the Sword Immortal, I was to lend aid.

If you truly wish to thank me, just discipline my wayward daughter.”

Who’s disciplining whom…

This made Gong Ning, for the first time in decades, think of her own master.

It had been fifty to sixty years since they last met.

She had been the previous Sword Immortal of Xuantian Sword Sect.

A century ago, she took only two disciples in her first and only recruitment—Jiang Yuyao and Gong Ning.

Jiang Yuyao was chosen simply for her extraordinary talent—clearly destined for ascension.

But Gong Ning’s reason was more complex.

Gong Ning still remembered her master’s piercing gaze, the way she saw through her soul.

“Your wisdom and insight are not of this world.

Come under my name.”

With those words, she took Gong Ning in—then left her to grow on her own for decades.

Until sixty years ago, when she vanished.

If the Sect Master hadn’t mentioned her, Gong Ning might have forgotten such a person ever existed.

San Shi Street—Yongdu’s busiest district.

It wasn’t developed, yet sat on the edge of the center.

Its most striking feature was its shabby, sprawling prosperity.

Ever since Tang Qiaohuan mentioned Yongdu, Jiang Yuyao had come to investigate.

She quickly discovered that a large number of unaffiliated cultivators had passed through.

No one had paid attention before—this was simply the Central Land’s gathering place for unaffiliated cultivators.

Openly repair the plank road, secretly march through Chencang.

Just like that.

They arrived at a bamboo grove.

Other cultivators were already there, casting detection spells.

Some were discussing in hushed tones.

“This is the place.

No matter what method—spiritual sense, formation, or artifact—we can’t detect the exit.”

Gong Ning stepped into the grove.

It seemed untended, wild and overgrown.

Though shaded, the bamboo thrived—clearly sustained by some special energy source.

Only one thing stood out: an old well.

Its walls were covered in moss.

The water was murky.

Many were investigating this sole anomaly.

Master Jichen asked, “Well?”

“It should be a mechanism.

Ordinary detection methods won’t solve it.”

“Then what kind of mechanism?”

“Patience.”

Gong Ning surveyed the area.

The surroundings seemed chaotic—no trace of the Eight Gates, no Bagua pattern.

The air was unnaturally cold, not aligning with Yin-Yang or the Five Elements.

There were countless mechanisms in the world.

Eliminating possibilities would take forever.

Normally, a group would work together slowly.

But time was short.

This was the demonic sect.

They were capable of anything.

The lives of those disciples couldn’t wait.

She wanted to observe more.

But San Shi Street was packed.

Carriages rumbled, vendors shouted, gamblers clashed cups in wine shops—too much noise.

Then, suddenly, Gong Ning had an epiphany.

She recalled reading in A Study of the Common Streets about hiding stillness within chaos.

The pulse of a city lay hidden in its noise, resonating with the hearts of its people.

She looked into the well and dropped a stone.

Listening to the echoes, she dropped a few more.

In an instant, she understood the mechanism.

“The Grass and Trees, Subtle Words says: The world has constant sounds, not heard by ears, only sensed by the still. They use natural resonance to trigger formations.”

She dropped another stone.

When the echo rang out—tong—a faint breeze passed through the grove.

The leaves rustled.

“If I’m correct, this mechanism is triggered by sound.

As for how to unlock it… I’m afraid my knowledge is limited.

I’ll need your help.”

“Not at all!”

Master Jichen quickly said, “If not for you seeing through it at a glance, we’d still be lost.”

“I haven’t fully confirmed it.

Master, don’t jump to conclusions.

I won’t waste words on humility.

Practice reveals truth.”

Practice reveals truth.

Everyone fell silent, waiting for Gong Ning to act.

“Yuyao, set up a sound-dampening barrier.

Make it large—cover the entire grove.”

Jiang Yuyao nodded, waving her hand.

The outside noise vanished.

Gong Ning pulled out five spirit stones of different sizes and dropped them into the well.

Spirit stones weren’t strictly necessary—but items of precise weight were hard to find on short notice.

The stones fell one by one, their echoes forming a rhythmic pattern.

Anyone with basic knowledge would recognize it.

Long Hanxi of Cold Moon Court murmured, “So it’s sound-based.

But one note is missing… the Zhi tone.”

She instantly grasped the secret.

Then, the grove echoed the same sound.

The wind grew stronger.

Gong Ning rummaged through her System space.

She pulled out several radiant fire-attribute spirit stones, catalyzed them all at once, and poured them into the well.

Instantly, the well water surged.

The grove roared like a storm.

But the bamboo stood firm, unyielding.

Gong Ning stepped back.

The water erupted into the sky—then slowly converged, forming a shimmering portal.

Everyone stared, stunned.

But sensing the shift in spiritual energy, they quickly understood.

Long Hanxi said, “The weight changes the echo’s tone.

With precise control, it forms Gong, Shang, Jue, Zhi, Yu—the five notes.

But Zhi is missing.

Here, we have Wood, Earth, Water.

Perhaps unseen Metal lies beneath.

Only Fire is lacking—matching the missing Zhi tone.”

“Exactly.

Adding fire stones restores the Five Elements’ flow.

The secret realm opens.

Simple enough.”

Simple, yes.

Anyone with basic knowledge could do it.

Though the noise made the sound pattern easy to miss, with time, even sensing the Five Elements could have solved it.

Xugu Zi stroked his beard. “All things seem simple once their essence is known.

But only those who see through it can seize the opportunity.

Congratulations.

This secret realm now belongs to Xuantian Sword Sect.”

This was one reason Jiang Yuyao had summoned her so urgently.

Since ancient times, a secret realm belonged to whoever entered first.

If found but not unlocked, it went to the one who cracked it.

No single person could claim a whole realm.

Unaffiliated cultivators could attach themselves to the Governance Institute—realm to the Institute, they get a share.

For named sects, it belonged to the sect.

The first to enter distributed rewards according to sect rules.

Xuantian Sword Sect, a major orthodox sect, was naturally fair.

Suddenly, Long Hanxi said, “No wonder the name Gong Ning sounds familiar.

Seventy years ago, the Seven-Layer Heart Inquiry Domain—I heard it was you who cracked it?”