C89 It Was Very Difficult to Deal with the Bloodthirsty Devil Wolf.

"Senior Brother?"

The figure in the black robe spun around, revealing a face that defied their grim expectations. It was Xi Junrong himself, very much alive and identical in voice and manner to the man they knew.

Xi Junrong was taken aback. He found it hard to believe that Jiang Su had actually ventured into the Hidden Space—a place where death was almost certain for anyone from the Cultivation World, yet here stood someone bold enough to enter.

And not just anyone—this was Jiang Su, the prodigious talent from the First Devil Sect, blessed with a Thunder Spiritual Root.

He was at a loss for words.

Jiang Su recognized Xi Junrong immediately. No creature in the Hidden Space could mimic someone so perfectly, so vividly.

But something was off. Xi Junrong seemed devoid of any life force, as if he were a corpse.

Lee Shiyan and Murong Qi picked up on Jiang Su's reaction. Since Jiang Su hadn't acted defensively, they concluded that the man before them must indeed be Xi Junrong.

In an instant, they joined Xi Junrong and Jiang Su. Lee Shiyan embraced Xi Junrong, his voice shaking with emotion: "I feared you'd been devoured by a monster. Thank goodness you're safe. Stick close to our Eldest Senior Brother—he's incredibly strong. You'll witness his prowess soon enough."

Little did Lee Shiyan know, his words would soon prove prophetic.

Jiang Su noticed something aside from the Jade Slip at Xi Junrong's waist—a jade pendant.

"What's this?" he inquired.

Xi Junrong gently pushed Lee Shiyan aside and followed Jiang Su's gaze to his Hidden Jade Pendant.

"Senior Brother, this is my Hidden Jade Pendant. It keeps the monsters from detecting and attacking me," he explained.

Lee Shiyan expressed his astonishment, "You've never spoken so much before."

Jiang Su nodded, understanding now why he couldn't detect Xi Junrong's spirit breath. Clever indeed.

"If we didn't all head in the same direction, where did you wander off to? And when did that monster take your place by our side?"

Murong Qi couldn't resist giving Lee Shiyan a playful punch.

The trio was reunited, and with the formidable Eldest Senior Brother on their side, their immediate priority was to find a way out of the Hidden Space and shatter the immutable law of the Cultivation World.

Jiang Su was the linchpin of the team. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "This Hidden Space should have an exit. Let's head back to where we started and look for a way out."

Inside the Life Sword, Shangguan Yue nodded in agreement. He too sensed that this Hidden Space was unlike the others they had encountered.

Jiang Su's reasoning was straightforward.

The Myriad Origin Secret Realm, a domain that limits the level of cultivators to the Golden Core Stage or below, was home to only low-rank Demonic and Devil Beasts, posing little danger. Moreover, for tens of thousands of years, cultivators of the Cultivation World had explored every known Secret Realm, identifying those with Hidden Spaces. Entry into these spaces was always a matter of chance, and it was exceedingly rare for three people to enter the same Hidden Space simultaneously.

The anomaly suggested two possibilities: either the Myriad Origin Secret Realm had undergone a mutation, spawning a new Hidden Space, or the system was involved.

Jiang Su took matters of his life seriously.

He confronted the system directly, "System, is this your doing?"

"Don't always speak of me that way."

The familiar mechanical voice responded, curiously using Sister Zhou's voice. Where had the system sourced that from?

"Let's not talk about this. We're all on the same side," Jiang Su said, realizing the truth.

The system had never harmed him before; this was likely a hidden quest.

He was determined to find his way out of this Hidden Space.

Having witnessed Jiang Su's prowess, Lee Shiyan and Murong Qi followed his lead without question.

"But Eldest Senior Brother, isn't it a bit much for the four of us to ride on one sword?" Lee Shiyan, who often seemed clumsy and loud, was actually quite observant. He had noticed the spiritual energy emanating from Jiang Su during his Sword-riding Flight.

Jiang Su's spiritual energy was vast and potent. Although only at the Foundation Stage, his strength was formidable. He had not only come to their rescue but was also prepared to deplete his own spiritual reserves.

Lee Shiyan considered the expenditure of spiritual energy on sword flight to be wasteful, especially since they might still face formidable creatures in this bizarre place.

Jiang Su pulled a pen from his sleeve, crouched down, and sketched a formation on the ground—a Teleport Formation. The formation's blue glow was brilliant, but it faded as Jiang Su rose to his feet.

He furrowed his brow, noticing that the characters on the uppermost blue rune seemed obscured. The use of formations was being restricted in this place, a stark contrast to when he had used it successfully during his earlier battle with that vile creature.

Shangguan Yue remarked, "Times have truly changed. A millennium ago, there were hardly any restrictions on Talisman Cultivators like these. I was utterly unstoppable!" He couldn't resist boasting about his past prowess.

While Jiang Su pondered a solution, he turned to Shangguan Yue, "Master Shangguan, I'll be relying on your aid should danger arise."

Murong Qi, too, sensed that the Teleport Formation might prove ineffective within the Secret Realm. Approaching Jiang Su, he proposed in a respectful and gentle tone, "Why don't we proceed on foot? Eldest Senior Brother, with your formidable skills, we can surely handle any threats without slowing you down."

Lee Shiyan expressed his agreement with a round of applause.

Xi Junrong, who had remained quiet, interjected, "This is too slow. We could be courting danger lingering here."

Lee Shiyan glanced between Murong Qi and Xi Junrong, uncertain whose counsel to follow. Ultimately, he looked to Jiang Su for guidance.

Jiang Su was still strategizing their route when he sensed an anomaly in their surroundings and snapped into alertness. "Be careful," he warned.

Just then, a massive black shadow charged toward them, drawing everyone's gaze.

A Bloodthirsty Devil Wolf, nearly two meters in height and over four meters in length, loomed before them, its rage palpable as it bore down on the group with a menacing glare.

Lee Shiyan's legs buckled with fear at the sight of the beast. An Intermediate Rank Devil Beast, it possessed the prowess of a Golden Core Stage cultivator and could effortlessly overpower someone at the Foundation Stage.

"I'm not going to meet my end here today, am I? Eldest Senior Brother, help me out!"

Lee Shiyan took refuge behind the trio. As a cultivator at the Foundation Stage, he felt no shame in seeking protection from those at the Body Forging Stage.

He had visited the Secret Realm with his family before, but he was always shielded by individuals of superior cultivation levels. His family's concern for his safety meant that his escorts were top-tier Golden Core Stage cultivators, secured at a steep cost.

This was, in essence, his first taste of real combat.