The Emergence of the Secret Realm

Bai Lan moved through the desert like a solitary traveler.

On the first floor, only those with absolute confidence in their abilities would dare to wander alone through the endless yellow sands. Most trial participants preferred to avoid such risks.

From a distance, Bai Lan had already noticed that many trial participants traveled in groups.

She guessed that these groups were formed in Yellow Sand City. There, treasure maps could be purchased at high prices. Once someone obtained a map, they would usually recruit others to help search for the treasure.

The Yellow Sand Realm was extremely vast.

Traveling from one end of the desert to the other—without getting lost—could take nearly a month.

Xue Yue had once explored the outer edges of the realm, only to encounter an invisible barrier, like a wall made of air.

There was simply no way forward.

Continuing any farther would be meaningless.

After another three hours of travel, the blazing sun began to dim, gradually turning into a hazy golden glow.

Dusk was approaching.

This period of twilight would likely last about six hours before night fully arrived.

“Hm?”

Bai Lan suddenly stopped.

“Is a secret realm appearing?”

In the southwest, a massive pillar of light suddenly shot into the sky.

Bai Lan immediately understood what it meant.

To encourage competition among trial participants, the Illusory Heaven Realm would randomly generate a large secret realm once each day at unpredictable times.

It was somewhat like a randomly spawning dungeon in a game.

Any nearby trial participants would be able to see the pillar of light announcing its appearance.

“My luck isn’t bad,” Bai Lan murmured.

Without hesitation, she began heading toward the pillar of light.

Since this was a randomly appearing secret realm, it probably wouldn’t attract too many people.

Furthermore, the pillar of light would only remain visible for about half an hour before fading.

Bai Lan estimated the location was roughly ten minutes away.

She had more than enough time to reach it.

However, she did not rush.

Xue Yue’s relatives had once taught her an important lesson.

“In critical situations, never waste spiritual power recklessly just to travel faster.”

“The spiritual power consumed like that cannot be recovered quickly.”

“Even if you use spirit stones to replenish it, it still takes time to convert the energy.”

“In the outside world, a Qi Refinement cultivator might recover their spiritual power within a minute.”

“But inside the Illusory Heaven Realm, it could take nine minutes or more.”

“So unless absolutely necessary, never squander your strength.”

“If you can avoid using spiritual power, then don’t.”

These lessons had proven extremely valuable during survival in the Yellow Sand Realm.

Soon, Bai Lan arrived at the location.

The secret realm had appeared within a sandy basin.

A large cluster of ancient ruins had risen from beneath the sand, forming the center of the newly emerged secret realm.

Bai Lan did not descend immediately.

Instead, she carefully observed the area.

Several cloaked figures were already standing nearby, watching the ruins from a distance.

Naturally, they were also watching each other.

“What incredible luck.”

“To encounter a random secret realm.”

“Tsk, tsk. It seems this young master is about to strike it rich.”

About a hundred meters southwest of Bai Lan, several cultivators stood together.

Their cultivation levels ranged from the seventh to the ninth level of Qi Refinement.

Bai Lan roughly counted the number of people present.

There were nearly thirty.

Most people were patiently observing the ruins.

However, a few impatient participants—likely encountering a secret realm for the first time—could not contain their excitement.

They immediately rushed down toward the ruins.

“Wait! It’s dangerous! Don’t go down yet!”

At that moment, a girl wearing a purple dress shouted a warning from afar.

Unfortunately, no one listened.

The reckless group charged straight into the ruins.

Watching them, Bai Lan shook her head slightly.

Hidden beneath her white hood, a faint look of regret crossed her face.

Secret realms were never safe.

If treasures were so easy to obtain, they wouldn’t be valuable.

“Hmph. Idiots.”

Someone nearby sneered.

Sure enough, the moment those people entered the ruins, danger erupted.

From within the ruins, a massive golden scorpion crawled out.

At the same time, numerous monsters made of condensed sand began emerging from the ground.

The reckless cultivators had charged directly into the monsters’ encirclement.

“What?!”

“What do we do?!”

“Why are there monsters everywhere?!”

The young cultivators panicked.

They quickly drew their weapons and began using various techniques to attack the monsters.

Although they managed to kill several sand monsters and scorpions, the intense combat quickly drained their spiritual power.

“Damn it!”

“There are too many!”

“Hey! You people watching from outside!”

“Aren’t you going to help?!”

“Are you waiting for us to die before coming down?!”

Trapped inside the ruins, they shouted desperately for help.

However, Bai Lan and the others remained unmoved.

No one was foolish enough to rush into danger.

Facing so many monsters with such a small group would only lead to death.

Scenes like this had already occurred countless times before.

Soon, the trapped cultivators were overwhelmed by the monsters.

One by one, their life force was depleted.

In an instant, all six of them were eliminated and teleported out of the Illusory Heaven Realm.

Now only twenty-eight people remained.

At this point, most of the monsters hidden within the ruins had already revealed themselves.

These monsters would not leave the ruins.

They only moved within its boundaries.

Furthermore, they would not appear unless someone entered the area.

The six eliminated cultivators had effectively served as test subjects.

The purple-clad female cultivator who had warned them earlier still remained outside.

Everyone understood the strategy.

Do not rush in blindly.

Instead, lure out the monsters first and observe their numbers and positions.

Once the situation was clear, entering the ruins would become far safer.

“Tsk. Another group of clueless newcomers.”

The purple-clad girl curled her lips in disdain.

Then she glanced around, her gaze eventually landing on Bai Lan.

There were not many female cultivators present.

Only four in total.

Before entering the ruins, most people would try to form small teams.

Among female cultivators, partnering with other women naturally felt safer.

Originally, Bai Lan had no intention of cooperating with anyone.

However, just as she prepared to descend alone, the purple-clad girl walked toward her.

“Senior Sister, would you like to team up and explore this secret realm together?”

The girl spoke directly.

Soon after, two other female cultivators also approached Bai Lan.

“Senior Sisters, may we join your group as well?”

The two girls asked.

Bai Lan had planned to act alone.

But now three people had gathered around her.

After thinking for a moment, she nodded.

“Alright.”

“The four of us can go down together.”

“Any treasures we obtain will be divided equally.”

“No problem.”

The purple-clad girl agreed immediately.

“But with only four people, the team might be a bit small.”

“How about we recruit two more and make it six?”

The other two girls exchanged glances before nodding in agreement.

Since everyone agreed, Bai Lan did not object.

Among the four of them, Bai Lan had the highest cultivation.

One of the others was at the eighth level of Qi Refinement, while the remaining two were at the seventh level.

“Senior Sisters!”

Just as they were about to search for two more members, two young cultivators hurried over.

“You still need two more people, right?”

“Please let us join!”

The two youths looked like teenagers.

Their cultivation levels were at the eighth and seventh levels of Qi Refinement.

With the team now complete, Bai Lan looked over the group briefly before nodding.

“Since we have enough people…”

“Let’s go.”

Bai Lan stepped forward and prepared to descend into the ruins.