Gods of the Nation: You worship the God of Longevity, I worship the King of Hell!

Chapter 165 The Demon Kingdom in the Palm of Your Hand, the City in Your Ear! The duo makes their reappearance!
"Okay, okay, good, good, good, good!"

Lu Chen gave the old man a thumbs up and casually complimented him.

He tapped the "Secret Realm" section on the screen, and a series of tasks popped up instantly, densely filling his entire field of vision:

——A-level Secret Realm: The former site of Xiaoqingxu Palace.

—S-Rank Secret Realm: City in the Ear.

—S-Rank Secret Realm: Chaotic Sea.

—SS-level Secret Realm: Thunder Swamp Ruins.

……

A quick glance revealed that almost all of the missions were S-rank or higher.

Lu Chen narrowed his eyes: "Sir, the secret realm mission... is it just about exploring the secret realm and seizing treasures?"

“Most of them are. Otherwise, where do you think all those rare and precious materials on the market come from? Most of them are dug out from secret realms,” Yu Feng said leisurely. “Of course, some secret realms are ancient ruins, which contain a lot of opportunities. As for the rest, you can think of them as—higher-level demon dungeons.”

Lu Chen nodded, his gaze falling on the strangely named secret realm: "'City in the Ear'... What does this name mean?"

He casually clicked to view the details.

[S-Rank Secret Realm: City in the Ear]

[Secret Realm Background: Xie Min, a native of Huaidong, possesses a secret realm within his ear, containing the fifth-grade rare herb "Ear Soul Grass," which opens annually on the fifteenth of August.]

[Mission Instructions: Enter the secret realm to collect and hand over spiritual herbs. Each herb will be rewarded with one million cash and three hundred military merits.]

"A secret realm has grown inside my ear?"

Lu Chen was stunned for a moment, then found it incredibly novel.

“Kid, you’re not very knowledgeable.” Yu Feng laughed: “Secret realms can appear anywhere, they don’t care where they are. They can be found in the wilderness, or inside the human body—for example, this ‘City in the Ear’ is located inside the ear. And then there are those that grow in the palm of your hand.”

"In the palm of your hand?"

“That’s right. A hundred years ago, there was an SSS-level secret realm called ‘The Demon Kingdom in the Palm of Your Hand,’ which appeared in the palm of a young man’s hand. The weakest beings in it were all transformed great demons, and demon kings were everywhere.”

"That's so exaggerated? What happened next?" Lu Chen's curiosity was piqued.

"They were wiped out later. That guy called himself the Holy Ancestor of Ten Thousand Demons and caused chaos everywhere. No major family could do anything about him. In the end, the imperial court sent a turbulent demon army, led by two Great Saints, to wipe him out along with the secret realm."

"Hiss... Two Great Sages!" Lu Chen gasped. "Then this kind of secret realm... is it considered a supernatural power, or a magic weapon?"

"Barely... let's take a bit of both. Anyway, those who can create their own inner realm are considered destined for greatness. As long as the inner realm doesn't wither or break, they are practically immortal. So, the fate of such people depends entirely on their personal choices."

He pointed to the screen: "Take Xie Min, for example. She's very smart. She opens the secret realm once a year and cooperates with the imperial court honestly. Now she's the city lord of Fuzhou City in Huaidong, holding a high position and great power. On the other hand, that fool from the Demon Kingdom in the Palm of Your Hand, relying on the secret realm, acted arrogantly and recklessly, and in the end, the realm was destroyed and he died."

Yu Feng then offered a lecture: "So, sometimes, choice is more important than talent!"

Lu Chen: "..."

He has such a strong fatherly vibe!
Yu Feng paused, then added, "Besides, there are many other strange secret realms. There are things like the Five Internal Organs Temple, the Painting China, the World in the Book... There's nothing you can't imagine that a secret realm can't emerge from. Even the latrine has produced a secret realm."

Lu Chen: "..."

Why does this world sound more and more insane?
"So what's the specific difference between dungeons and secret realms?"

"Most instances exist directly in reality, such as a certain demon mountain or a certain mass grave. Secret realms are different; they are their own world, independent little worlds."

"So, does that mean the previous 'Academy of Rebirth' was also considered a secret realm?"

"It's just a resemblance. The secret realm won't harm people on its own initiative. Moreover, its core is the 'Boundary Hub,' and as long as the Boundary Hub exists, the secret realm will not disappear. Of course, the Boundary Hub also has a lifespan and can be destroyed—that's what I meant by 'can wither and break'."

He softened his tone slightly: "However, it is precisely because of the existence of the Realm Hub that the secret realm can be contested. But this is very difficult; just gaining the recognition of the Realm Hub is as difficult as ascending to heaven."

Yu Feng waved his hand, seemingly too lazy to explain further: "There are also some secret realms that are completely worthless. I suspect they were created by some bored gods to prank people. For example, that 'Toilet Secret Realm,' you'll be exhausted from going in. It's only useful for curing constipation; isn't it just pure ridiculous for normal people?"

Several dark lines appeared on Lu Chen's forehead.

"Alright... I've certainly broadened my horizons."

"Alright, you can choose for yourself now. I have official business to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."

"Thank you, sir. We see you off!"

After seeing Yu Feng off, Lu Chen pulled up a chair and sat down, then began searching intently on the screen.

"A secret realm... that sounds interesting."

However, the task list is so extensive that it can be overwhelming.

Lu Chen simply opened the filter function, and several conditions popped up one by one:

--grade

—Geographical location

——Casualty Index

Difficulty

—Publication time

—Number of challenges: "No level limit for now; choose the closest location; casualty index... must be the lowest! Stability is key!"

But then I thought about it again. In all my missions, I had always tried to play it safe, and each time I ended up in a dangerous situation.

"Fine, a lower price is never a bad thing."

There are no limits on the difficulty level for the time being.

Choose "latest" for the release time – older tasks are more likely to have hidden problems.

There is no limit to the number of challenges.

Setup complete, interface refreshed, a row of tasks popped up:
[Rank A Secret Realm: Earth God Temple]

[Published: 30 minutes ago]

[Secret Realm Background: An independent space attached to an ancient shrine on the outskirts of the city. The entrance is a dilapidated statue of the Earth God inside the shrine. Touching the base of the statue will pull you into a "shrine space" with a radius of fifty feet. Within this space stands only the ancient shrine, where you will meet the Earth God and accept his commission.]

[Task Requirements: Complete the Earth God's requests, win his favor, and you'll have a chance to obtain rare and precious materials.]

[Mission Reward: 50,000 RMB cash, 500 military merits]

Casualties: 0

[Number of challenges: 0]

"This... feels pretty much the same as a dungeon quest?" Lu Chen muttered.

He continued scrolling down:

[Level A Mission: Asking for Directions at the Hidden Cave]

[Publication Period: Valid indefinitely]

[Mission Background: This is an independent space located on the banks of the Asking-the-Way Beach in Jiangdu City. The entrance is a patterned pebble on the riverbed. Inside is a crescent-shaped shallow beach, knee-deep, with "Asking-the-Way Stones" scattered on the bottom. Touching these stones will randomly reveal a luminous path. You must carry a Soul-Stabilizing Artifact or possess relevant supernatural abilities.]

[Task Requirements: Collect "Guiding Lotus", "Silver Clam Pearl", and "Golden Clam Pearl" along the Floating Light Path]

[Mission Rewards: Base cash 10,000, military merit 500. Guiding Lotus: 10,000/flower; Silver Clam Pearl: 20,000/pearl; Golden Clam Pearl: 500,000/pearl]

Casualties: 3

[Number of challenges: 409]

……

[S-Rank Mission: Rongcheng's Mysterious Treasure Realm]

[Published: Two weeks ago]

[Mission Background: A strange treasure has recently appeared in Caomiao Village, Rongcheng. It has been confirmed to be an unexplored cave, but it is surrounded by multiple layers of secret realm defenses, making it impossible to enter so far. Information is limited.]

[Mission Requirements: Break through the secret realm's defenses and successfully open the secret realm]

[Mission Rewards: 100 million cash, 20,000 military merits. Successfully initiated clans will enjoy priority mining rights for one year.]

Casualties: 0

[Number of challenges: 926]

The moment Lu Chen saw the task, his pupils suddenly contracted.

"Two weeks...926 challenges? All failed?! And the military merits and rewards are so high?!"

Experience tells Lu Chen.

—There's a ghost!
This mission is definitely rigged!!!
"Hey, Lu Chen, what are you doing here?"

Just then, a familiar voice came from behind.

Lu Chen turned his head and saw Sun Yourong standing not far away.

"Sister Sun?"

Sun Yourong approached with two bodyguards: "You've come to accept the temple mission so quickly?"

"Well, things are almost done, so I came to check on things." Lu Chen asked in surprise, "Why did you come out from the inner room?"

“Those are the private rooms reserved for the four major families. I’ve been here for a while,” Sun Yourong explained, pointing towards the inner room.

Well, it's not surprising that the top-tier students have private rooms in the mission hall, and the four major families also have private rooms here.

"Have you chosen your mission yet?" Sun Yourong asked.

"Not yet, what about you?"

"I've made my choice. I plan to go to Rongcheng in the next couple of days."

"Rongcheng?" Lu Chen looked down at the screen, pointed, and said, "Could it be... that you chose this mission?"

Sun Yourong leaned closer for a look and nodded: "Yes, that's it. This secret realm has become very famous recently. Almost all the families in Jiang Province have gone there, and even many people from the two neighboring provinces have come, but none of them have succeeded yet. So I also want to go and see it."

Suddenly remembering something, she asked, "What about you? You wouldn't... be going too, would you?"

(End of this chapter)