C85 The Hidden Space Was Filled with Danger.

In the Secret Realm Trial, Essence Flowers were scarce, while cultivators were plentiful. Some who didn't want to exert the effort to search for Essence Flowers opted to steal them from others. The rules permitted such behavior, as long as no lives were endangered. The elders would not only count the Essence Flowers in the participants' possession but also watch their every move and word.

As Elder Lin Tian activated the formation, the individual at its center was randomly transported to a location within the Secret Realm. Su Wuyou remarked, "The rules sure have relaxed over the years. When I first joined the First Devil Sect, I could even kill in the Secret Realm. I held back from saying so earlier because I didn't want to scare the kids." Her eyes sparkled with an intensity far greater than usual.

Elder Chiu Yue, Jiang Su, Lin Tian, Bai Yih, and Yang Tian all understood Su Wuyou well. They could tell what she was getting at with her comment. "Times have changed," they reflected. "The era of conflict between the Immortal Domain and the Devil Domain is behind us."

Elder Chiu Yue's face took on a nostalgic expression as he spoke of the great battle, an expression that Jiang Su found inscrutable. He sensed Chiu Yue's melancholy, realizing for the first time that his master could harbor such emotions.

Shangguan Yue chimed in abruptly, "I was thinking along the same lines as Su Wuyou!" Her interjection broke the somber mood. Jiang Su, who had been eager to hear the tales from Su Wuyou and Elder Chiu Yue, was taken aback.

Lin Tian gestured to the air, and a vast Water Mirror materialized before them, displaying hundreds of faces simultaneously. To the casual observer, it might appear as if the mirror were shattered into countless fragments.

Jiang Su's gaze swept over the Water Mirror, which reminded him of the display screens of modern cameras. It took him mere seconds to spot Xi Junrong, Lee Shiyan, and Murong Qi in the reflection, the trio together at that moment.

In the heart of the forest, trees of immense girth and towering height stretched their trunks skyward, their canopy so dense it seemed to swallow the sky, obscuring any glimpse of sunlight.

Beneath a centennial tree, three figures stood, their positions forming a triangle. Upon spotting Xi Junrong and Murong Qi, Lee Shiyan's face broke into a delighted grin.

Without hesitation, he slung his left arm around Xi Junrong's shoulder and drew Murong Qi in with his right, exclaiming, "What fate we share! In such an expansive Secret Realm, to find each other is truly remarkable!"

His smile was charming, yet it carried an edge that grated on the nerves.

"Get your hands off, and be quiet."

"Get your hands off, and be quiet."

In a surprising chorus, Xi Junrong and Murong Qi spoke in unison, delivering the same rebuke to Lee Shiyan.

"We could form an alliance, you know!"

Lee Shiyan, retracting his hands, pitched the idea once more.

Murong Qi's brow creased slightly. "The owl is laughing," he muttered.

What did he mean by that?

Jiang Su, observing from beyond the Water Mirror, furrowed his brow at the comment. He swiftly turned to Elder Chiu Yue, whose gaze bore a weighty concern.

Silence enveloped the Secret Realm Forest. Despite the breeze that whispered through their location, no sound accompanied it.

After his initial antics, Lee Shiyan too sensed the anomaly. His gaze drifted to a nearby lake, its waters a pale green, eerily still as if frozen in time.

A profound stillness reigned, suggesting that no other life stirred in the forest except for their trio.

Yet, there was laughter.

Was it the owl Murong Qi referred to?

Exchanging glances, they each acknowledged the forest's peculiar nature.

Outside the Water Mirror, Su Wuyou, Bai Yih, and the others had been monitoring various locales. They too sensed the anomaly and turned their attention to the trio's predicament.

"This is dire! The First Devil Sect's elders have chosen a Hidden Secret Realm! These young men have stumbled into misfortune!"

Hearing this, Jiang Su's expression grew troubled.

Throughout the Cultivation World, numerous Secret Realms existed, but only a rare few contained Hidden Spaces. Such realms were known as Hidden Secret Realms, and those who ventured into their depths seldom returned.

The Thousand Feet Illusion that had ensnared Shangguan Yue for millennia was a type of Hidden Secret Realm.

"Senior Brother Chiu Yue, how can this be?" Su Wuyou asked, her face unusually grave.

Tension gripped everyone.

If these three youths had indeed ventured into the Hidden Space, their fate would be akin to that of the deceased.

Lee Shiyan and his companions failed to grasp the gravity of their situation. They merely considered the Hidden Secret Realm a challenging one, not one that posed a real threat to life.

They roamed a small area of the forest together, staying close.

"This place is desolate, not a single Essence Grass in sight!" Lee Shiyan complained.

Murong Qi, with a frosty look in his eyes, stated evenly, "Something's off. I suspect we've left the Secret Realm and entered somewhere else."

Lee Shiyan, who had been leaning against a large tree, sprang to his feet at these words.

"Don't freak me out," Lee Shiyan said. "Have we stumbled into the Hidden Space? Our luck can't be that bad, can it? Had I known, I would never have come to the First Devil Sect. I just want to go home."

Murong Qi turned his gaze to Xi Junrong and noticed his unsettling calm.

"Brother Xi, do you know how to get out of here?"

Xi Junrong averted his gaze and walked over to where Lee Shiyan stood. Lee Shiyan stepped aside to let him pass.

Xi Junrong sat down, closed his eyes, and began to meditate. He murmured, "We wait for rescue."

Hope faded from Murong Qi's eyes. He had thought Xi Junrong to be dependable.

But who would rescue them from the Hidden Space? The very notion seemed impossible.

Self-rescue was their only option.

Lee Shiyan found himself on the ground once more, this time not by choice, but because his legs had given out.

In the Cultivation World, it was an accepted truth: to enter the Hidden Space was to embrace death.

Outside the Water Mirror, Su Wuyou turned to Senior Brother Chiu Yue and asked, "What do we do now? The odds for those three young men don't look good." She let out a heavy sigh.

Meanwhile, Lin Tian had paced around his seat countless times.

His complexion was ashen as he spoke, "This Secret Realm has its restrictions; only individuals at or below the Golden Core Stage can gain entry. And even then, reaching the Hidden Space is not guaranteed. It's possible that not one of these youngsters will make it back."

Jiang Su, seated in his chair, kept his gaze fixed on the three young men reflected in the Water Mirror. After a moment, he rose to his feet and declared, "I'll go."