Chapter Fourteen: Old Peng Is Truly Remarkable

For the next few days, Song Yue went nowhere. He stayed at home, diligently cultivating his Body-Guarding Gang Qi. After his marrow cleansing, the strength of his flesh had doubled, and his muscles, blood, and organs were all greatly enhanced. Training his Gang Qi again now yielded twice the result with half the effort.

If Song Yue were to find himself in a situation like the one at the Xingwu Hall now, it would be nearly impossible for anyone to plot against him.

As the days passed, news began to spread that the Kunlun Secret Realm was about to open again.

In this world of cultivation, the topic instantly reached a fever pitch across the nation. Whether people understood it or not, everyone was talking about it.

The top ten trending topics on all major social media platforms were almost entirely occupied by discussions related to the Kunlun Secret Realm.

Countless online personalities desperately tried to ride the wave of this trend.

A variety of topics emerged.

The Battle of Kunlun from sixty years ago was brought up once more. It hadn't happened that long ago, and many who experienced it firsthand were still alive.

Some of those survivors even went live online, recounting stories that were no longer sensitive but had been buried for sixty years.

Instantly, their viewership soared, attracting a flood of curious onlookers.

People who had lived in obscurity for decades suddenly became overnight celebrities.

Some of them sighed, saying that if things had been as open as they are now, perhaps that terrible conflict might never have occurred.

"Back then, it seemed like we won in the end, but in reality, Huaxia suffered tremendous losses in that battle. Many powerful cultivators shed their blood in the Secret Realm and fell there."

"The Huaxia cultivation world was severely weakened after that war, or else later negotiations would never have been accepted."

"And we would never have made so many concessions."

One survivor said during a live broadcast, "Especially those foreigners. After the battle, they held all the advantages in the negotiations and became the biggest winners."

During his training breaks, Song Yue would also open video streams to watch for a while. From these now-influential firsthand witnesses, he learned many details about the past that he had never known.

It was said that Earth was the common homeworld of all human races.

The various human races now scattered throughout the universe had all originated from this planet.

They each traced their roots back to civilizations that arose during Earth's many cycles of rebirth.

Confucius had told him that in the unimaginably ancient past, the star system where this planet resided was called the Milky Way. Now, it was the age of the Milky Way-Andromeda System.

The only reason so many "aliens"—who had left Earth countless aeons ago—would return to their mother planet was because of the innumerable Secret Realms that existed here!

Earth itself was a small planet. Now, it was even more depleted of resources, and spiritual energy was extremely scarce. Cultivation was incredibly difficult.

The foundation supporting universal cultivation was those Secret Realms.

Within the largest of these realms, countless rare resources coveted by cultivators were produced!

According to Confucius's deductions, these Secret Realms were likely the abodes or sacred sites left behind by the immortals of old. The immortals themselves were nowhere to be found, but these Secret Realms remained, benefiting countless generations to come.

But the Secret Realms were not safe places.

In the smaller ones, there might be terrifying and powerful creatures. In the vast, expansive Secret Realms, there could even exist "Realm Dwellers!"

These Realm Dwellers were the descendants of those who, over dynasties, had entered the realms and chosen never to leave.

After countless generations, they had developed their own civilizations and social structures within their respective realms.

The Realm Dwellers were primitive yet powerful, living in isolation, following a closed path of cultivation, and generally harboring deep resentment toward outsiders.

They believed that outsiders only broke in to plunder their resources.

This was a matter of perspective—everyone wanted cultivation resources, and for them, conflict and battle were inevitable.

So every time the Secret Realm opened, the struggle was not only among outsiders but also with the indigenous inhabitants of the realms. Irreconcilable conflicts always existed.

Ultimately, entering the Secret Realms was an endeavor filled with both opportunity and peril.

Long ago, technological civilization on Earth was not advanced. They couldn't even venture beyond the solar system.

It was those who had left Earth and become aliens who, after years of observation in accordance with their own races, began to impart knowledge and nurture Earth's civilization.

Earth gradually transformed from a planet with many nations into one divided into two main camps: East and West.

The Eastern camp was led by Huaxia, while the Western camp had no single leader. Their power was rotated, and they often fought bitterly over the rotating chairmanship, arguing endlessly.

In the eyes of the foreigners, apart from the Secret Realms, there was nothing else on their mother planet worth coveting.

Supporting their respective camps was merely a matter of convenience.

Huaxia's people generally disliked the foreigners. Even now, after countless Earthlings had traveled to the stars to develop new civilizations, there remained a deep-seated aversion to those arrogant aliens.

Many believed that if it hadn't been for the Western camp provoking conflict sixty years ago—launching a surprise attack on the Eastern camp, especially the Huaxia cultivators, to gain entry to the Kunlun Secret Realm—the Battle of Kunlun might never have happened at all.

After all, under the influence and control of the aliens, Earth had been relatively unified internally before the battle.

That brutal war among cultivators directly caused a long-standing division between East and West. The aliens ended up laughing last, becoming the greatest victors.

Countless years of painstaking effort by both Eastern and Western predecessors were destroyed in an instant.

Though agreements were later reached, the aftereffects of that fierce battle still linger today.

International cooperation and exchanges between the two camps were far less than before the Battle of Kunlun.

Song Yue had never cared much about these matters. In his world, only growing stronger mattered.

But since he was about to enter the Kunlun Secret Realm, over the past few days he had, willingly or not, absorbed a great deal of related information.

Judging from Confucius's actions, it was clear how much importance he placed on this journey to Kunlun.

Among his concerns, Song Yue's safety accounted for more than eighty percent.

Otherwise, Confucius would never have, after more than a decade of laying down his brush, made three Thunder Talismans for him.

Having learned much miscellaneous knowledge from his teacher, Song Yue knew well how much energy and care went into making those talismans.

Especially the offensive Thunder Talismans—every stroke was sealed with powerful destructive force!

These were not things an ordinary person could craft after a few years of study. They required the infusion of part of one's own cultivation.

Which meant the three Thunder Talismans Song Yue now carried might well represent three of his teacher’s own attacks!

That his teacher was a grandmaster of martial arts had already surprised Song Yue, but he hadn’t expected him to be able to create such offensive talismans. In the past, Song Yue had thought that drawing talismans was just the kind of thing common Daoists did.

Now, it seemed his teacher harbored many secrets.

Perhaps he should wait for an opportunity to ply him with wine and see what he could find out.

These were Song Yue's idle thoughts during his training breaks.

…

Xingwu Hall.

Zhang Zixing and his alien companions were gathered together, discussing how to maximize their gains once inside the Kunlun Secret Realm.

Lin Huan, tall and voluptuous, sat beside the sweet-faced young girl, Mo. Across from them was Oupin, the blond youth who had previously schemed against Song Yue.

There were two others: Josith, with brown hair and blue eyes, and Shen Zhuo, a handsome man with an Eastern face but strange violet eyes.

Lin Huan was straightforward and rarely hid her thoughts.

Mo appeared innocent and naïve, as if untouched by the world.

Oupin was arrogant, looking down on Earthlings. Apart from Zhang Zixing, he seemed to hold no Earthling in any regard.

Josith and Shen Zhuo were more introverted, speaking little and rarely engaging in discussions unrelated to themselves.

Zhang Zixing said, "This time, there are more than thirteen hundred people entering the Kunlun Secret Realm. The Eastern camp holds over six hundred spots; I'm one of them."

"The Western camp has about three hundred, and the remaining four hundred-plus are you all."

"Our first priority is to determine who is friend and who is foe."

Oupin replied coolly, "Inside the Secret Realm, aside from our team, we have no friends."

Zhang Zixing explained, "I'm not saying we need to befriend them, but it's wise to keep a certain level of friendliness and avoid unnecessary conflict. Such people could be considered our friends."

Oupin thought for a moment and nodded, "Fine. We aren't strong enough yet to disregard everyone else."

Lin Huan sat with her arms crossed, regarding them all. "To me, the main point of entering the Secret Realm is to seek one's own opportunities. Don't be too quick to start fights. Of the more than a thousand people going in, none are easy to deal with."

Zhang Zixing smiled, "From what I know, the six dozen or so students from the Huaxia cultivation academies are nothing special—hardly worth mentioning."

Lin Huan looked at him, "You’re a high-level grandmaster among young martial artists, so of course you can look down on others. But don’t forget, high-level cultivators are also formidable."

Zhang Zixing replied with a polite smile, "Sister Huan, you’re right, but perhaps you’re not aware of the reality. There’s a rule in the Earth cultivation world: high-level cultivators are forbidden from acting at will. The students in those academies who have reached a high level all strictly follow this rule, so their combat experience isn’t very deep."

Josith blinked his blue eyes and added, "There’s such a strange rule? Not acting against ordinary people is one thing, but not even fighting amongst themselves? That’s too rigid!"

Zhang Zixing laughed, "That’s why they’re not worth worrying about."

Oupin said coolly, "So once we're inside the Secret Realm, freed from the rules of the outside world, we can do as we please?"

Zhang Zixing nodded with a smile. "Exactly!"

A hint of a smile appeared on Oupin's face. "Good. I like that."

Lin Huan frowned slightly but said nothing.

Though they had formed a team, their values were not entirely aligned.

They were only together now because of a shared goal.

All of them came from top families on their respective planets, just like the other privileged "foreigners" who had secured spots. Each hoped to seize the greatest possible benefit from this journey to the Kunlun Secret Realm.

"One more thing," Zhang Zixing added with a playful smile, "Song Yue has also obtained a place this time. He’ll enter the realm as a 'guardian' for some of the cultivation academy students."

Beneath Zhang Zixing’s smile lay a chilling hostility. He had been wondering how best to cripple Song Yue, and now the opportunity had come to him. When he heard the news, he was briefly stunned, then immediately sent a message to his younger brother, Zhang Zichen: I'll avenge you soon!

A few days later.

Song Yue felt he had reached an unprecedented new height.

Just as his teacher had said, the difference between martial grandmasters could be immense. Even at the same level, the gap in combat power could be enormous!

Over the past few days, he had collected a lot of information on Zhang Zixing. He couldn't find much from the past two years, as Zhang Zixing had been off-planet during that time.

But from earlier videos, Song Yue studied him closely. Although he disliked the man, he had to admit that Zhang Zixing had been a true prodigy in his youth.

From the public videos, it was clear that at Song Yue's current age, Zhang Zixing had already stepped into the grandmaster realm.

Moreover, his moves were ruthless.

In the World Martial Arts Championships, he had once crippled a Western camp opponent with a single punch.

At the time, he’d attracted a large following, especially among those who resented the Western camp.

Even now, people on various forums reminisced about the era when Zhang Zixing swept the championships.

They compared him to the current gold medalist, Meng Xudong, and most felt Meng was too soft, always holding back.

"Zhang Zixing is a true martial artist. Meng Xudong is just a socialite in the world of fame."

This was the most-liked comment on a major social platform.

After reading it, Song Yue sneered inwardly, thinking of Zhang Zixing's actions: A true martial artist? You barely know the real him!

But he had to admit, Zhang Zixing managed his image perfectly.

Unless you’d had a bad encounter with him, as Song Yue had, outsiders would never truly know him.

He’d also discovered something unexpected—Xingwu Hall belonged to the Zhang family!

Though the Hall’s name included "Xing," Song Yue hadn’t previously connected it to Zhang Zixing.

Clearly, the Zhang family wielded significant influence in Hangzhou and throughout Huaxia.

No wonder Zhang Zixing, beneath his calm facade, was so overbearing—willing to cripple someone over a minor slight. He had deep backing.

If they met in the Secret Realm and it came to a fight, Song Yue realized he’d have to use strategy—lure him somewhere secluded and finish him off, making sure to keep himself entirely clear of suspicion.

He never expected his conflict with Zhang Zixing to be resolved.

From the moment Zhang Zixing tried to ruin him with underhanded tactics, the enmity between them became irreconcilable.

He was sure Zhang Zixing would never let him go, either.

Let’s see whose fate is stronger, then.

Beneath Song Yue’s handsome exterior always burned an unyielding fire.

He enjoyed using his mind, but he loved direct combat even more!

…

At last, the day of departure arrived.

Confucius said nothing more, but his wife, unable to let go, grasped Song Yue’s hands and repeated her advice over and over, all boiling down to one thing: nothing is more important than coming back alive!

He bid farewell to Confucius, his wife, and the housekeeper Aunt Wang, promising to leave safe and return safe and sound.

Arriving at the Cultivation Academy, Song Yue met their team leader—the vice dean, Peng Song.

Thinking of the liter of marrow-cleansing elixir, he enthusiastically greeted him.

"Old Peng, got a new perm? Looks fluffy—nice job!"

In front of all the students and teachers, Peng Song wished he could strangle him.

-------------

I’m back! More chapters coming in the next days. Please vote with your recommendations and monthly tickets!