Chapter 186: Assistance

Chen Fei looked at the shattered remains of the Split-Mouthed Frog and couldn’t help but shake his head.

“What a pity! The beast’s essence blood is the truly valuable part! Looks like I’ll have to hold back a little from now on,” he muttered with a sigh. After all, it was a Dao-level beast. The essence blood might be useless to him, but the inner core was still intact!

After storing the beast core, Chen Fei checked the condition of his own body. As expected, the “Fire” rune had rapidly recovered under the influence of the Void Heaven Cauldron.

Still, he sighed again. The beast core from the Split-Mouthed Frog could probably only be exchanged for a few merit points at best. Compared to what he had expended, this was clearly a loss!

“Too much of a loss! I’d better toy with them a bit next time,” Chen Fei murmured, shaking his head. Then he reactivated his spiritual vision and began searching for the next treasure spot.

This time entering the Xianle Secret Realm, Chen Fei had a clear purpose. Apart from the Heavenly Rescue Herb that Miao Yue needed, the other two—Heavenly River Star Sand Water and Illusory Heart Flame—were located deep within the Accumulation Altar and inside the Starfire Mountain, respectively. He had a rough idea of both locations.

Since it was only the first day of entering the secret realm, Chen Fei wasn’t in a rush to search those areas just yet. Right now, it was more important to focus on improving his cultivation.

While Chen Fei was searching for herbs and beasts in the Xianle Secret Realm, far to the southwest, Wang Fang stopped to catch his breath, panting heavily.

Staring at the blood-red land before him, he could no longer suppress the smile forming on his face. He looked somewhat crazed at this moment.

Usually, Wang Fang was a quiet and withdrawn person, not familiar with many others. But now, standing there laughing maniacally, he drew immediate attention.

“Hey! You there! What did you find? Hand it over, and Senior Brother Gao will protect you in the secret realm!” a registered disciple stepped out from the forest behind Wang Fang, shouting sternly.

Wang Fang dropped his usual timid demeanor and turned around with a smirk. “And what if I don’t?”

“Oh? The last guy who said that is still recovering from his injuries. Looks like you’re ready to quit the treasure hunt early?” The disciple laughed arrogantly, unfazed.

The others behind him joined in the laughter.

“Well then, since you’ve kindly come to deliver your lives to me, I’ll gladly accept,” Wang Fang muttered.

“Crazy fool! If you won’t show respect to Senior Brother Gao, don’t blame us for being rude!” With that, the group rushed toward Wang Fang.

As they neared, a wicked grin spread across Wang Fang’s face.

“You people…” Wang Fang took a single step forward.

Suddenly, crimson blood spikes shot up from the ground beneath him, spreading outward in all directions.

“What the hell is this?!”

“Ahhh!”

Clearly unfamiliar with the rules of the Xianle Secret Realm, they never considered that they might actually die here. Even their protective multicolored glows didn’t appear before their bodies were pierced through.

Wang Fang slowly pulled out a red bead from his robe.

The moment it appeared, it began drawing a dark red aura from the dying disciples. In just a single breath, their struggling forms turned into dried husks.

“Perfect… simply a work of art!” Wang Fang beamed with satisfaction as he gazed at the shriveled corpses.

Then he strolled slowly toward the forest.

“You think you can hide?” he chuckled lightly. Lifting his hand and flicking his finger, a burst of sword qi shot out from the woods ahead.

It came straight for Wang Fang’s face.

But he didn’t dodge. It was as if the sword qi didn’t exist at all.

As it neared him, a flash of red light burst from his body, completely shattering the sword qi.

“I told you—you can’t hide from me!” Wang Fang sneered. He raised his hand, and a blood-red palm print formed and flew toward the forest.

“You’re a demonic cultivator! Damn you!” A furious shout came from the forest as Senior Brother Gao realized the situation, but he couldn’t dodge the blood palm. His chest was crushed in an instant.

“Demonic?” Wang Fang scoffed at the accusation, eyes flashing with disdain. “What’s righteous? What’s evil? My father was a so-called righteous cultivator, but he still died due to scheming cowards. I’ve never provoked anyone, yet you all never leave me alone.”

“You’re just bandits and whores wearing a mask of decency!” His eyes gleamed red as he flashed before Gao’s crumpled body and grabbed his neck.

“Let me tell you—being weak in this world is the original sin. Too bad you’ve realized it too late.”

Gao wanted to speak, but Wang Fang inhaled sharply.

Gao’s face shriveled instantly.

“Still too little,” Wang Fang muttered in disappointment, letting go. Then he turned toward the crimson land.

The red bead in his hand trembled faintly.

“Don’t worry. I’ll let you out soon,” Wang Fang whispered with a chuckle.

His figure appeared at the edge of the crimson field and, with a few blinks, darted toward its center.

At the same time, blood-colored spikes erupted from beneath the ground. Every registered disciple or beast hiding within the crimson zone was skewered instantly!

What once seemed like an eerie red land now looked like a deadly hunting ground—utterly terrifying.

Chen Fei was unaware of the carnage unfolding elsewhere in the Xianle Secret Realm. He was too busy reaping plentiful rewards along the way.

“So this is the Accumulation Altar?” Chen Fei murmured, staring in awe at floating stones on the water’s surface.

A marsh stretched out before him, with large stones—hard as rock yet floating—scattered across the water. A truly unique sight.

Chen Fei had come to understand that in this secret realm, the quieter a place looked, the more dangerous it likely was.

Otherwise, the Heavenly River Star Sand Water wouldn’t still be preserved here!

“Fellow junior, you have quite the discerning eye!” a voice called out behind him.

Chen Fei turned to see a chubby registered disciple approaching with a smile.

“I’m Dong Feng. Pleasure to meet you!” Dong Feng cupped his fists politely.

Though the Xianle Secret Realm differed from others, it was still a secret realm. And in places like this, the greatest threat wasn’t the beasts or terrain—it was other people!

Chen Fei was curious to see what this man was up to.

“Greetings, Senior Brother Dong. I’m Chen Yang,” he replied smoothly, making up a name on the spot.

Dong Feng clearly didn’t care about the name. He glanced at the marsh and said, “There are plenty of treasures here, but it’s also extremely dangerous. What do you say we team up?”

Chen Fei hesitated.

Seeing that, Dong Feng didn’t waste time. “To be honest, I have support from a formal disciple. With this Thousand-Layered Pagoda, crossing the Accumulation Marsh will be a breeze!”

As he spoke, he pulled out a pagoda-shaped artifact and showed it to Chen Fei.

Chen Fei raised his brows in surprise. The Thousand-Layered Pagoda was a top-tier defensive spiritual artifact—and extremely expensive.