I have the face of a great demon.

Just as Liu Xingchen was about to tell his master about the spirit ghost, he heard Old Hua speak up:

"I'm tired. I'll rest for a while and consolidate my cultivation before I check on your progress."

After saying that, he turned and left.

For some reason, Liu Xingchen felt that his master's attitude towards him had become somewhat distant after he came out of seclusion this time, so he swallowed the words he was about to say and decided not to talk about the spirit ghost for the time being.

Ten days later, Master Hua summoned his two disciples and checked their cultivation levels.

Liu Xingchen's cultivation has reached the peak of the fifth level of Qi Refining and he is about to break through.

Tie Zhu's cultivation level has also reached the fourth level of Qi Refining.

Old Master Hua was very pleased with this. He stroked his beard, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes.

"My disciples, you are all doing very well. Your cultivation has progressed rapidly, and I am very satisfied."

At this point, Old Master Hua paused, a smile appearing on his face.

"I also have good news to tell you. I have successfully established my foundation and my cultivation has greatly increased, so I can go to the secret realm of Wuhua Sect again. This time, I will take you two with me."

Let's go to the secret realm!

This is great news.

Not to mention Tie Zhu, who usually likes to run around and explore, even Liu Xingchen was very interested.

There must be many good things in the secret realm, it's worth exploring.

Upon hearing this, Tie Zhu's eyes lit up. He rubbed his hands together excitedly and asked, "Master, what good things are there in the secret realm? Are there any treasures? Are there any miraculous elixirs?"

Hua Laodao smiled and said mysteriously, "You'll know when you get there. There are countless opportunities in the secret realm, but dangers are also lurking everywhere. You'd better be prepared."

Liu Xingchen also felt a sense of excitement. He knew that the journey to the secret realm would be a rare opportunity for cultivation, as well as a test.

"Master, when do we set off?" Liu Xingchen asked.

"No rush, you can make your preparations first, and we'll set off in three days."

After Hua Laodao finished speaking, he told them to go and make preparations.

A few days later, Hua Laodao's giant gourd once again flew between the blue sky and white clouds, like a leisurely eagle soaring through the sky.

Liu Xingchen and Tie Zhu sat on the gourd, constantly looking down.

They flew north, over fields, across rivers, and through towns, encountering scenery quite different from what they had seen before.

The towns here are much larger and more densely populated than those they saw in the south.

Moreover, Liu Xingchen and his companion could clearly sense that the spiritual energy here was more concentrated than in the south.

Old Master Hua explained with a smile:

“Your feeling is correct. The southern region where we stayed before was called a barbaric land because spiritual veins were scarce and spiritual energy was insufficient, so there were very few cultivators there.”

"Most of the spiritual veins are concentrated in the Central Plains region, where the ten great immortal sects are located, occupying the immortal mountains with the most abundant spiritual energy. Within a radius of 50,000 li, there are countless sects of all sizes. This is the true holy land for cultivating immortality."

Hua Laodao's words carried a hint of longing.

Tie Zhu asked curiously, "Master, is the Wuhua Sect Secret Realm we're going to located in the Central Plains?"

“That’s right. Only in the Central Plains region can there be a sacred mountain and spiritual vein that can support a sect.” Old Daoist Hua nodded.

"If that's the case, Master, why don't you stay in the Central Plains and go to the South instead?" Liu Xingchen asked.

Old Daoist Hua sighed, "Alas, if one could stay in the Central Plains, who wouldn't want to?"

"The Central Plains has many sacred mountains and spiritual veins, but even more cultivators."

"With too many monks and too little porridge, the monks were constantly fighting amongst themselves."

"Fights often break out between the major sects. In order to seize a piece of land or a resource, a large number of cultivators are mobilized to fight each other, resulting in countless deaths and injuries."

"We rogue cultivators are weak and can only survive in the cracks, picking up scraps."

"The reason I went to the South was that I did not want to die in this pointless struggle."

"Although there are few immortal mountains in the south, if you look carefully, you can still find some places where you can barely cultivate. Although the conditions are a bit harsh, it is still much better than struggling to survive in the whirlpool of the Central Plains."

A slight smile appeared on Hua Laodao's face.

"Moreover, the competition there is not as fierce as in the Central Plains, so you can cultivate in peace."

Liu Xingchen sighed upon hearing Hua Laodao's words.

In the vast world of cultivation, the plight of independent cultivators without the protection of a sect is surprisingly difficult.

However, even with the protection of a sect, it may not necessarily be a good thing.

Once a war breaks out between sects, how can the disciples of those sects stand aside?

They are often used as pawns, sent to the battlefield to fight to the death. The risk of their demise is extremely high.

Scenes like the Azure Sky Sect being besieged by other sects might be commonplace in the cultivation world.

Just then, Hua Laodao said, "We've arrived."

Liu Xingchen looked down and saw a continuous mountain range at his feet, covered with lush and verdant forests.

But when he looked further ahead, he froze.

Ahead lay a barren mountain, devoid of any greenery, filled only with jagged rocks, like a head with a thick head that had been shaved into a Mediterranean style.

And this "Mediterranean" area is not small, estimated to be about fifty miles in circumference.

As they drew closer, the barren mountain appeared increasingly eerie.

The rocks were jagged and the scene was in complete disarray, as if it had survived a catastrophe.

Tie Zhu couldn't help but ask, "What's going on?"

“Right, shouldn’t the place where Wuhua Gate is located be a spiritual vein? How come it’s like this?” Liu Xingchen couldn’t help but interject.

This was completely different from the sacred mountain and spiritual veins they had imagined, making them wonder if they had come to the wrong mountain.

"This is the evil that the great demon has committed."

When Hua Laodao said this, Liu Xingchen felt that Hua Laodao seemed to glance at him intentionally or unintentionally.

Next, Master Hua began to recount what happened back then.

"Wu Huazi once said in his message that he hid in the formation of Wu Hua Sect to escape the pursuit of the great demon."

"The great demon had no way to deal with this formation, which is why Wu Huazi escaped a calamity."

"But that great demon is a vengeful person. When he saw that he couldn't kill Wuhuazi, he harbored evil intentions and wanted to sever the spiritual veins of the Wuhua Sect to cut off its lifeline."

"Can a spiritual vein be severed?" Liu Xingchen asked curiously.

Tie Zhu's idea was even bolder: "Could it be that the great demon has moved the spiritual vein away?"

Hua Wufeng laughed heartily: "Spiritual veins can't be moved. Don't even mention the Great Demon alone, even if all ten immortal sects mobilized, they still couldn't move a single spiritual vein."

"The great demon doesn't want to move the spiritual veins, but to destroy the spiritual veins of the Wuhua Sect."

"This treacherous and cunning fellow has set up an array around Wuhua Gate, using spiritual veins to activate the array, bombarding this mountain range day and night."

"Within the formation, kill everything, no matter what it is."

"The formation operated for five hundred years, blasting everything in Wuhua Sect to dust, with only the formation where Wuhuazi was located remaining."

"Wu Huazi was thus trapped in the formation and perished due to his severe injuries." Hua Laodao's words carried a hint of regret.

"Before he died, he left behind a legacy, turning this formation into a secret realm, which I later obtained."