In these temporary chaotic stalls, you can find just about anything. Some have fresh soil-covered immortal herbs, others have gemstones half-embedded in rocks, and some even sell intricately woven bracelets. There’s even a stall selling dirty storage bags, which seem to be relics of unknown origins.
Lou Shuangzui wandered around and finally stopped in front of a stall selling weapon maintenance tools. The stall owner appeared to be an elderly woman with gray hair, but in the cultivation world, appearances can be deceiving, so you can’t fully trust them.
The stall owner had a pair of light blue, icy eyes that seemed particularly clear and cold, making Lou Shuangzui take a few extra glances. The old woman, noticing the curious gaze, turned to look at him.
Her cold eyes paused for a moment when they saw the Chen Yue Sect emblem on Lou Shuangzui’s chest, but she didn’t say anything unnecessary.
The old woman silently watched as Lou Shuangzui picked out some items for sword maintenance and others for his whip. After a while, when he seemed to have chosen everything he needed, Lou Shuangzui looked up and asked, “Senior, how much for these?”
“One thousand spirit stones,” she said, but instead of taking the money, she stopped Lou Shuangzui from reaching for his storage bag and looked at his face. “Are you an inner disciple of Chen Yue Sect? Whose disciple are you?”
“My master is the Silver Splendor Sword Master, Lian Chaoxi.” Lou Shuangzui blinked, his suspicions confirmed, and his attitude became much more respectful.
The old woman’s eyes flickered slightly. She looked at Lou Shuangzui and then took out a box from her storage space, wrapped it neatly with the items Lou Shuangzui had chosen, and handed it to him.
“Take it. I won’t charge you. Consider it a meeting gift.”
Lou Shuangzui didn’t rush to see what was in the box. Instead, he carefully put everything into his storage bag and then bowed. “Disciple Lou Shuangzui greets Master Ye Qi.”
The old woman, or rather the former Peak Master of Sword Peak, Lian Chaoxi’s master, the Frost Sword Master Ye Qi, chuckled softly and looked at Lou Shuangzui with a gentle gaze. “Clever child!”
With that, she raised her hand to cast a spell, packing up her stall. “I’m not selling today. I don’t want all the Chen Yue kids coming here to bother me. I’m getting old and prefer some peace.”
Lou Shuangzui watched as the old woman, with light steps, quickly disappeared into the crowd. Only then did he turn to find the next stall he wanted to visit.
It was a herb stall, with a young, lazy-looking cultivator sitting cross-legged in front of it, watching two customers argue with interest.
The customers, a man and a woman, both wore the emblem of Shanhe Sect on their chests. The man had a pale face, not unattractive, but his grim expression added a touch of sleaziness. The woman wore many glittering ornaments, looking proud and arrogant.
The woman’s voice was sharp. “I bought it, so I bought it. No matter how much it costs, it’s none of your business. I want to buy all the millennium snow lotuses and not give you a single petal. What can you do about it?”
The man seemed extremely angry, but even at this critical moment, he couldn’t help but drag the conversation into a romantic dispute, his voice weak and insincere. “Stop it. I told you, there’s nothing between me and Junior Sister Xue, just brotherly and sisterly affection. Can’t you stop being so harsh?”
“Bah, I’m making a fuss? Do you have any shame?” The woman pointed at him and cursed. “Do you think you’re some hot commodity? You think I’m making a fuss? Let me tell you, Lin Chengming, ever since you started messing with other girls and ruining my reputation, everything I’ve done is to make you lose face! If you’re unhappy, then I’m happy! No need to involve others!”
“You want the millennium snow lotus? Let me tell you, dream on! You won’t find it in this market! Not outside the market either! Try if you dare! As for the one in the secret realm, if you have the guts, snatch it from me. I’ll be waiting!”
The man’s face turned extremely ugly. They argued a bit more before parting on bad terms.
The herb stall owner had just finished counting his money. He leaned back lazily and, seeing Lou Shuangzui turn around, flashed a bright smile. “Curious?”
Lou Shuangzui didn’t speak, just glanced at him, then bent down and precisely picked out the poisonous herbs from the stall, placing them in front of the owner. The owner burst into laughter.
“One price, five hundred spirit stones, for these spirit herbs plus some information.”
The first disciple of Sword Peak looked at him, a sly smile on his lips. “Gossip doesn’t count as useful information. I want something more interesting. Can we make a deal?”
“Hmm…” The owner widened his eyes at him, then his eyes darted around. “Add five hundred spirit stones, and I’ll give you a map of the secret realm. I’ve been in there five times over the years, walked through almost every place, not lying to you.”
“Five hundred is too much, three hundred.”
“Four hundred.”
“Three hundred fifty.”
“Alright,” the owner hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He pulled out a map from his pocket and handed it to Lou Shuangzui, then sneakily looked around and set up a soundproof barrier.
The conflict between the man and woman just now was nothing more than a financial dispute caused by a romantic entanglement. Now that the romance was almost gone, it wasn’t really a romantic issue anymore. It was more about the anger and disgust of being cheated out of benefits.
Speaking of worldly emotions, it seems most are like this. Mutual love is rare, while mutual hatred is more common. Longing makes one realize the sea isn’t deep.
The two disciples from Shanhe Sect, Xue Chengming and Xie Weining, were like this. Xie Weining was the daughter of the Fire Peak Master and Wood Peak Master of Shanhe Sect, a rare second-generation cultivator who followed the path of Heavenly Dao without any talent degradation. She also had a rare yang attribute single spiritual root.
The girl, young and impulsive, fell for the talented and decent-looking outer disciple Xue Chengming. Xue Chengming didn’t miss the chance to climb up, using the engagement with Xie Weining to get the Wood Peak Master to take him as an inner disciple, considering both his daughter’s and his talent’s reasons.
But he didn’t stay honest for long. In less than ten years, possibly not even during a long closed-door cultivation, Xue Chengming couldn’t resist mentally cheating. He flirted with countless female cultivators, unclear in his relationships.
Unfortunately, perhaps thinking his wishes had come true, he felt secure. But he didn’t expect Xie Weining to cut ties without hesitation, and Wood Peak really voted to send him to Water Peak for their little miss. In the end, Xue Chengming was severely injured during tribulation crossing, damaging his Golden Core. To fully recover, he still needed a precious millennium snow lotus.
The Shanhe Sect leader had some, but Xue Chengming didn’t have enough value or money to exchange for the medicine. Trying to find a bargain outside, he was constantly intercepted by Miss Xie.
“In the end, it’s self-inflicted. A heartless person should swallow a thousand needles,” the stall owner said, shaking his fan with a particularly gloating smile.
Lou Shuangzui thoughtfully pursed his lips and decisively handed over eight hundred fifty spirit stones.
—The competition in the Nuwa Secret Realm is scored by treasure hunting and killing monsters. This time, the secret realm’s most valuable scores are the three treasures: the millennium snow lotus from Baolian Mountain, the Wen Yue Flower from Sheji Canal, and the Luoxia Drunken Fruit from Hongxiu Forest. Shanhe Sect’s focus is on the snow lotus, which is useful information.
He wandered until the sun was at its peak, then returned to the inn with quite a haul.
In the inn’s first-floor hall, there were a few wine tables. The innkeeper always provided immortal tea and wine, along with some snacks, so occasionally disciples would gather for a small meeting.
When Lou Shuangzui returned, he saw the Hundred Flowers Sect’s Senior Sister Yu Zhiruo sitting on a bench, talking and laughing with Shangguan Shu from the Pill Peak. Shangguan Shu said something that made the usually cold Hundred Flowers Peak fairy laugh.
Shangguan Shu wasn’t very familiar with Lou Shuangzui, so when she saw him enter, she was a bit awkward for a moment but still smiled and greeted, “Junior Brother Lou.”
She paused for a moment, then continued, “The Sect Leader will be here tomorrow afternoon. He asked me to inform you to wait for him at the inn tomorrow. He wants to take you to meet the seniors from other sects.”
Upon hearing this, Lou Shuangzui nodded. Yu Zhiruo, realizing Lou Shuangzui’s special status, fluttered her eyelashes for a moment, then lowered her gaze nonchalantly, speaking sincerely.
“The Chen Yue Sect Leader is coming, which reminds me that the secret realm trial is about to begin. Senior Sister Shangguan, Junior Brother Lou, to be honest, I don’t wish to compete with you. I wonder if Chen Yue could let us Hundred Flowers have the millennium snow lotus this time and go for the other two.”
Yu Zhiruo was a smart person. She didn’t want to risk clashing with the future Chen Yue Sect Leader, not even a little. Moreover, having a good relationship with the heir could help her gain more resources for cultivation, killing two birds with one stone.
But why does everyone want this millennium snow lotus?
Lou Shuangzui was curious. He touched his chin and asked, “Funny, Shanhe also wants this millennium snow lotus. Logically, while snow lotus is precious, it’s not like the major sects don’t have any. Why fight for it in a trial secret realm?”
Yu Zhiruo’s sharp eyes showed a hint of cunning, and she replied with a smile in her voice, “Precisely because Shanhe Sect wants to fight for it, we have hope.”
“Oh?” Lou Shuangzui pondered.
The leading senior sister of Hundred Flowers Sect explained, “This time, although many from Hundred Flowers came, most are outer disciples, and besides me, there are no other disciples at the late Golden Core stage, let alone Nascent Soul. And everyone knows Shanhe Sect is in turmoil, chaotic beyond belief. Many don’t want to get involved in this mess, but for me, it’s an opportunity.”
“An opportunity to be the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.”
Chen Yue Sect came with few people this time, not intending to compete for rankings, so Shangguan Shu and Lou Shuangzui quickly reached an agreement with Yu Zhiruo.
After wandering all morning, Lou Shuangzui soon went upstairs to meditate and cultivate. The next afternoon, he hurriedly went with Wen Shunian to meet many sect leaders and elders, receiving many thoughtful glances and meaningful praises.
Time flew by, and soon it was the day the Nuwa Secret Realm opened.
At the entrance of the secret realm, cultivators crowded together, with people from various sects gathered. Lou Shuangzui stood in the middle of the crowd, receiving many scrutinizing looks. He also saw many familiar faces. The girls from Hundred Flowers Sect were huddled together, and Yu Zhiruo even smiled at Lou Shuangzui. Xue Chengming and Xie Weining were also there, and the atmosphere among Shanhe Sect disciples was strange, with their group clearly divided into two.
The sect leaders and elders sat high on the viewing platform with water mirrors to observe key areas inside the secret realm. Wen Shunian’s pink hair looked particularly soft in the sunlight.
The jade pendants were quickly distributed. These could score points and be shattered to teleport out of the secret realm in danger, while storage bags had to be left behind. Everyone also received a pill pouch, a means of fair competition.
Lou Shuangzui hung the jade pendant on his waist, listening to Murong Rao’s quiet instructions, “The result of our four-person vote is to go for the Luoxia Drunken Fruit. After entering, we’ll be randomly teleported and scattered, so we’ll meet at Sheji Canal. Unless eliminated early, delayed, or unable to come in time, don’t bother coming. Focus on scoring with other immortal herbs and monsters. We’ll finalize the strategy the day before the fruit matures.”
Author’s Note: