As the days went by, the time finally came for the secret realm to close. The portal once again shone brightly, as the gateway signaled that the secrets within were coming to an end. The people inside came out in droves, but the look on their faces was anything but pleasant. Everyone who came out looked solemn, and some even showed clear signs of fear.
The ones who showed fear knew that their sects were going to punish them for not bringing anything back, having wasted three days waiting for them just to get nothing in return. These people contemplated escaping, but they eventually gave up as they knew that even if they managed to avoid immediate punishment, escaping meant facing a penalty far worse than death, so there was no point.
As the last person finally came out, the area around the portal was once again crowded by the vast amount of people who had entered the secret realm. The portal then dimmed and completely closed, leaving the land just the way it was before the secret realm had appeared. Though, unlike before, when everyone was happy and anticipated going into the secret realm to achieve great things and return to the sect as a hero, things were now very different. Everyone was now very upset as they knew they were going to be known as eternal sinners of their sects for not achieving anything from such a grand opportunity presented to them.
The group of elders, seeing these strange, distraught looks on the faces of everyone who came out, finally asked in a questioning voice, "Why are you all so upset? You just achieved one of the most honorable events in your generation. This secret realm is by far the most precious in the past hundred years. Why are you all so upset despite this opportunity?"
One of the more confident ones from the group that came out, still having a trace of fear in his voice, finally spoke about the truth of the situation: "Reporting to the elders, when we went into the secret realm, we found absolutely nothing but a barren wasteland. No treasures, no monsters, nor were there any herbs. Everything was gone by the time we arrived. Even those who caught a glimpse of treasure had it disappear right from their hands, and the environment also turned into a wasteland. We don’t know what happened, but we all returned with nothing. We know we are wrong, Elder, but please be lenient. We truly all managed to collect nothing."
The elders of various sects, hearing this, were fuming with rage as they were unsure if what this man said was true, or if they had all colluded to betray their sects and pocket all the treasure. After some thought, the elders ruled out the second possibility, as so many people could not join forces, much less escape from the grasp of so many powerhouses present. But to be sure, they decided they would check the storage devices of the people present.
After a long period of checking through all the storage devices of everyone who had come out of the secret realm, they truly found no earth-shattering treasures. The group that came out was telling the truth, as nobody would give up the benefits and come out with nothing voluntarily.
The elders then, with a bewildered look, asked in a demanding tone, "Tell me everything that happened; don’t leave anything out. If I find that you leave anything out of the situation, all of you will not be leaving alive."
Shuddering, everyone in the group that came out of the secret realm trembled, as they knew if they couldn't give a satisfactory answer, they would suffer a life worse than death.
As these people were explaining everything they knew, Jiang Yun had arrived long ago, waiting to watch the show. The result satisfied him as everyone present was panicking at not being able to collect any treasure. Even the sect elders were worried about what to say if they couldn't get an explanation from these people. If they came back with nothing, then even these elders would be implicated by their own sects.
These people who invaded the Eastern Region, treating it as their backyard, had no sympathy from Jiang Yun, as they had been causing trouble ever since they came. Letting them suffer the consequences was due to them, as perhaps this experience would make them more careful in the future and more low-key.
As the group of people was finishing their explanations, saying everything they knew, the elders of the sects were discussing with each other what could have possibly happened. A few theorized the secret realm rules had changed and no longer allowed people in there, or that they were taking away all the resources. Others theorized that the resources in the secret realm were running out and the secret realm was trying to preserve resources for next time.
A very small minority even theorized the impossible: a mighty being broke into the secret realm and stole everything. But this theory was quickly shut down, as even multiple half-immortals could never achieve such a thing. Even a real immortal descending to the mortal realm would have difficulty entering the sect, much less stealing everything. So, this idea was quickly scrapped.
The final conclusion that everyone agreed with was that the rules of the secret realm had changed and wouldn't allow visitors this time to claim resources.
Dejected, the sect elders could only go back to report the situation at their respective sects. They all feared what might happen next, as this secret realm was important to the sect’s development. Maybe in the next few hundred to few thousand years, every sect will face decline, and the amount of Mahayana realms will drop, as some would die and some would ascend, but few will breakthrough.
With many thoughts in mind, trying to find a good explanation for their respective sects, all these sects left the Eastern Region, leaving the once-lively Eastern Region back to its weak and quieter state before all these sects came.
Jiang Yun, finishing watching the show, was quite satisfied by the result, as everyone present got in trouble after leaving the secret realm. This would show them how to act when being arrogant in someone else’s territory. As he was basking in the joy of his actions, Jiang Yun went back to the Invincible Cloud sect.
Soon after returning to the sect, the elders each explained to their own sects their own reasons that they thought up of as to why they returned empty-handed. Some even exaggerated the situation. Some blamed the people who went into the secret realm, shifting the blame to leave safely. While a very small amount even proposed their bizarre theories like a powerhouse breaking into the sect and taking everything.
Everyone had their own explanation as to what caused the mess. This caused a massive uproar throughout all the regions, as the most important event of the century turned out to be a hoax. Many suffered the wrath of the sects, being imprisoned and tortured. Others were directly given the death penalty. As for those who shifted the blame, they saw the people they blamed played with to death and were quite happy that they shifted the blame. While the ones who said a powerhouse broke into the secret realm to steal treasures caused their sects to send people to investigate the Eastern Region.
Jiang Yun, back at the Invincible Cloud sect, was unaware of the events that were happening throughout the regions. Instead, Jiang Yun was having a lively talk with the elders of his sect, recounting his adventure and bragging about how he showed these sects the consequences of being arrogant.
The group of women were all surprised with what Jiang Yun did and were happy to see Jiang Yun having so much fun, as they had never seen him so happy. It was as if a large, unimaginable burden that was on his back for a long time was suddenly lifted, giving him newfound freedom. This was the exact situation Jiang Yun was facing, as he was a rogue cultivator his whole life, struggling his way to get stronger and achieve more power to avoid being killed. Now that he is invincible, he finally tasted a bit of what his current power could achieve. The weight of an unknown amount of oppression was suddenly released, and he felt a sense of retaliation against the powerful sects as he no longer needed to worry about being killed. From now on, he would be the one to bully others, not the other way around.
As Jiang Yun finished his story, he finally handed out the treasures he had stolen from the secret realm. These past few days, these women had all been in seclusion, as they saw just how weak they were. Every enemy that came to the sect were far beyond their reach. Only Jiang Yun could deal with the situation and fight back. The rest of the women, though, could only uncomfortably hide and watch as Jiang Yun resolved the situation every time. This made them feel powerless and very unhappy at not being able to contribute in any way. So, they had been cultivating these past few days before stepping out for some fresh air.
Upon stepping out, they were greeted by Jiang Yun and gathered to discuss the situation they were in now. The women were quite surprised to see what Jiang Yun had given them. Each woman suddenly received enough resources to cultivate to the Mahayana realm or possibly even further, considering how rich the spiritual energy was at the Invincible Cloud sect. This was because Jiang Yun had blessed the land with world rules to concentrate the surrounding spiritual energy into the sect. The amount of energy could rival or even exceed the major sects in the Central Region.
If the sects from the various regions that invaded the sect before took a moment to not be arrogant, they would have noticed the difference, as the amount of spiritual energy concentrated here was immense. Too bad they didn’t survive long enough to notice and could only die at Jiang Yun’s hands.
Seeing the joy at the possibility of reaching the Mahayana realm in a short period of time with all these resources, all the women who were tired from cultivating went straight back into seclusion to try to breakthrough and get stronger. Even Jiang Yun’s mother went into seclusion, as she had been taught by Jiang Yun how to cultivate since she came back. This was because, though she was young, she still had the lifespan of a mortal and would die far sooner than everyone else. To be with her son longer, she was dedicated to cultivating to stay with him longer.
Jiang Yun was thus once again left alone to laze around. This left Jiang Yun very bored, so he decided to go out for a walk to enjoy some scenery. Though he had been in the Eastern Region for a while now, Jiang Yun never slowed down to truly look around and see the area. He had always been busy doing something or was too lazy to care about something so minor.
Now, though, he had regained some emotion after his little fun at getting some revenge on the sects from the other regions. This changed his mindset slightly, as he now felt like enjoying the more mortal inconveniences of life, like walking around to ease his boredom.
Stepping out of the Invincible Cloud sect, Jiang Yun decided to walk for once rather than flying. The view from walking is far different from flying, and there are certain things one can’t see when in the air. Not to mention, Jiang Yun hasn’t relied on walking for a long time and wanted to experience it again.
Walking around, Jiang Yun saw things he had long forgotten: flowers growing in the field that smelled very pleasant, the trees filled as far as the eye could see, animals going about their lives, rivers glistening from the sun shining down so brightly, and even the horizon that showed the mountains towering over everything.
Jiang Yun remembered just how small he is compared to the world. Though he could easily crush this world into dust in terms of size rather than power, he was very small in comparison.
Walking around for a long time, Jiang Yun finally took his time looking at the sunset, amazed at the array of colors that appeared. As he was finishing enjoying the view and ready to go back, he saw a group of strangers that seemed not from the Eastern Region. As they were discussing where they should go first to investigate who caused the incident at the secret realm, this surprised Jiang Yun, as he thought his plan was flawless and no one would find it.
The group of strangers then said they should split up to ask about the details if they could better understand the situation and deal with whoever caused the secret realm to become empty. This told Jiang Yun they don’t know who yet, but might be able to eventually trace it back to him. Jiang Yun didn’t want to take this chance and have to deal with this annoyance down the line.
So, Jiang Yun appeared before this group of people to ask who they were affiliated with.
The group of people, being found out, were immediately alarmed as someone had come to ask their identity. So they had one choice: to silence this person, as he might hinder their search for the culprit as they were still undercover to not let the fish escape. The group immediately rushed forward, determined to kill this stranger. Jiang Yun, though, released his pressure and pushed them down to the hard ground.
Jiang Yun then asked the question again, "I’ll ask again: who are you affiliated with?"
The group, unwilling to speak, could only grit their teeth, trying to withstand the pressure. Seeing them remain silent, Jiang Yun then pressed down harder, killing several of the weaker members of the group. This made the rest who were still alive feel fear. Finally, unable to contain their fear, one of them finally spoke, "We are from the Leaping Carp sect, who are here to investigate who caused the empty secret realm incident. Please let us go; this has nothing to do with you. We just wanted to carry out our mission silently."
Jiang Yun, hearing what he wanted to know, finally felt satisfied. Without hearing another word, he crushed the rest of the survivors to death. Now with a target in mind, Jiang Yun then disappeared, heading to destroy the Leaping Carp sect to prevent future trouble from coming to bother him.