As Qi rushed into my Nascent soul, I felt my senses expand even beyond what they already were, making it difficult for me to keep my concentration.

However, I did not give up and kept going, pulling in the Pure Qi of the surroundings and rapidly converting it into Primal Qi through my spirit roots before feeding it to my Nascent soul.

Already, I could sense my Nascent soul becoming stronger and approaching the stage where it would create a completely artificial soul. With this, I am just a step away from the Soul Transformation realm.

‘Looks like all you need is another push to reach the Soul Transformation realm.’

‘I know. However, I need to prepare an isolated place to begin the breakthrough process. I can’t risk the tribulation destroying my Airship. Not to mention the fact that I can’t break through into the Soul Transformation realm just yet.’

‘…If there is a Tribulation at all.’

‘Don’t jinx it.’

‘Fine, fine. Putting that aside, what are your thoughts about all of this?’

‘You mean our journey? Or the war?’

‘While I am against our journey into that particular secret realm, I am confident about your chances of success. No, what I am worried about is the war, rather, how things have changed so much that my knowledge of my timeline is no longer of much use’

‘We always knew that such a situation would arise eventually thanks to how different I am to you. Although I never imagined the change would be so drastic. And yet, it is still something that we can manage as we are now.’

‘…You will have to push your plans forward by quite a bit.’

‘I know.’

I grimaced at his words as I recalled the many contingency plans I made that became obsolete with this sudden declaration of war from the Baihu empire.

Thankfully, I still had some time thanks to the Baihu empire not striking at the borders just yet for some reason, leaving me enough wiggle room to hastily prepare the defenses of my village.

‘Are you sure that the Netherworld Yin Spring and that other item are still in the same place at this point in time?’

‘They should be. Although, you should still prepare to come back empty-handed. When I fell into that accursed secret realm it was more than a century from now. I don’t know how those things came to be in that realm in the first place so there is a possibility that those things would not be available there right now.’

‘We have no choice but to take this risk. Jin Tianrui’s cultivation is not progressing fast enough. If something bad really happens and I am not there to defend him, I have very little confidence in his capability of protecting himself and his family even with the various artifacts I gave him.’

‘David, you worry too much. However, I can’t fault you for your feelings. Rest assured, even if the Netherworld Yin Spring is not there, that secret realm is still filled to the brim with rare materials and resources that would greatly benefit us, and by extension, Jin Tianrui.’

‘…I guess you are right. I just hope that that thing is still there. I will need it if I want to enhance Jin Tianrui’s spirit roots completely alongside the Netherworld Yin Spring.’

‘That depends. If the Netherworld Yin Spring is there, then the Primordial Yin Wood will also be there. If the Spring is not there, then the wood will not be there either. The wood needs the spring to grow and the spring needs the extreme Yin Qi of the wood to manifest. One cannot exist without the other.’

Once again I grimaced at those words.

Out of all the Natural Treasures, there are a few things that have a symbiotic existence where one cannot exist without the other. The Netherworld Yin Spring and the Primordial Yin Wood are one such example.

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To this day, nobody has been able to accurately find out what comes first between these two things. The only thing that everyone can agree on is that they are always found together and one of them cannot be harvested without destroying the other.

The problem, however, is that both of them should be inside a Secret realm located at the edge of the Baihu empire’s capital.

Since a secret realm is a separate space left behind by a cultivator that is at least in the Soul Transformation realm, they are highly coveted and are usually swarmed with cultivators of all backgrounds, vying for the hidden resources within.

Of course, given the nature of cultivators, it was inevitable that they would eventually discover the way that a secret realm forms. However, the process was instantly labeled as a demonic technique and no one in the Orthodox dares to try something like that.

When a cultivator in or above the Soul Transformation realm dies during a tribulation, their body is destroyed and their soul scattered. However, the domain that the cultivator condenses during their ascension to the Soul Transformation is left behind as a separate space connected to the world with the final intent and thoughts of the cultivator governing the rules of the space left behind.

These thoughts and intent direct the way that this isolated space functions by using the essence of the Heavens themselves which is captured by the space during its formation.

This is the reason why the secret realms are all unique with various restrictions, abilities, environments, and resources within them.

It is also possible to trigger this process artificially by killing a cultivator that is at least in the Soul Transformation realm during their tribulation. However, doing something like that would directly label the killer as a demonic cultivator, which is a bit confusing since the killer in this case would not be using their victim in any way to gain demonic Qi which is the very definition of the Demonic Path.

The problem for me right now is that the secret realm that I am aiming for is a well-known place that the Baihu empire’s noble families and royal family use to train their forces while also gathering the resources within.

This was due to the restrictions in place within the secret realm.

While the space inside the realm is not inherently hostile, it denies entry to any cultivator above the Nascent Soul realm while also placing powerful suppression on cultivators above the Foundation Establishment realm.

This combined with the dangerous Demonic Beasts within the realm meant that despite being a well-known secret realm that was discovered more than a decade ago, only a tiny fraction of it has been explored and exploited to this date. Even a century from now, during Xiang’s time, only ten percent of the realm was explored completely with a small settlement just beginning to form around the trade of resources obtained from within.

‘Are you sure that those Natural Treasures are located at the heart of the realm?’

‘Yes. I am. Don’t worry, you will be fine.’

With a sigh, I shook my head at those words. Something that my companion did not fail to notice.

“What are you sighing about? And how long are you going to keep ignoring me like this?”

I laughed at her words and sat down in front of her, sipping the tea that she prepared.

“Sorry, Lingxi. I was just thinking about our upcoming task.”

The Princess pouted a little before glaring at me.

“These days, it feels like all you think about is work and the big picture. Haven’t I told you before to pace yourself and enjoy life a little bit? To not lose yourself completely?”

“Sorry. I just can’t help but worry.”

Her gaze slightly softened.

“I know. And I like that about you. But my words are still valid. You need to stop worrying so much and concentrate on the present rather than always looking at the future and your next task.”

“Hmm, fine. I’ll listen to you. Speaking of, are you sure about this?”

Yin Lingxi nodded her head seriously.

“I am.”

“I must warn you, the secret realm that we are about to enter is a very dangerous place where our cultivation will be suppressed. You will be somewhat fine since you are still in the Core Formation realm but I will be heavily suppressed. I might not be able to protect you if something really bad happens.”

“Da Wei, are you implying that this Empress is not capable of looking after herself? Let me tell you, I am quite adept in combat, enough for Aunt Xingchen to acknowledge my prowess.”

Once again, I laughed at her words as she smiled.

“I see. In that case, this humble cultivator would like to request Your Highness’s protection during this expedition.”

“HAHA! Of course, you will receive it, for a tribute.”

“And what would Your Highness like as a tribute?”

“I want you as my Royal Advisor.’

“No.”

“Grrr, one day, I will make you submit, Da Wei. Mark my words.”

With a chuckle, I leaned back into my seat at stared at our surroundings abord the airship.

When we departed for our expedition right after Yin Lingxi’s coronation, much to the protest of her court, I had my doubts about taking her with me into the realm. Surprisingly, it was Yao Xingchen who convinced me to take her with me, citing the danger that Yin Lingxi would be in if she were left in the capital before the Yanfeng family had been taken care of and supposedly trusting my ability to protect the princess from any harm.

I still don’t know where that woman got such confidence in me, but I still think I made the right decision in taking her with me on this trip.

Putting aside all the logical reasons, there is no way I am going to abandon my friend when she is in such a precarious situation.

With the thoughts of what the future held for us, we slowly crossed over the border and into the Baihu empire.