"Wow, that's amazing," Lin Shiqi's eyes lit up upon hearing Dream Butterfly's words, thinking that with Qin Yan having this sword, they wouldn't have to fear encountering powerful enemies in the future.

"By the way, Zhenjun, do you have any other reasons for coming to find us this time?" Qin Yan, noticing that Zhenjun didn't seem to have any intention of leaving, asked.

Zhenjun replied, "Yes, I came to check on your situation and also to take you back to the mortal realm."

Surprised, Lin Shiqi exclaimed, "Back to the mortal realm? So, Zhenjun, you also know the way back to the mortal realm?"

"Of course, how else would you have seen me in the mortal realm?" Zhenjun smiled.

"Ah," Lin Shiqi realized that her parents and grandfather were still in the heavenly realm, so she said, "Zhenjun, since we've obtained this sword, and you know the way back to the mortal realm, why not just tell us how to return? We can go back on our own and even take others with us."

Looking at Lin Shiqi, Zhenjun said, "Little girl, don't think going back to the mortal realm is so simple. There are many dangers on the way back, and you may encounter big troubles. It's uncertain whether you all can safely return to the mortal realm, let alone thinking about taking others with you."

"What? Does that mean my parents and grandfather will have to stay in that dark place forever?" Lin Shiqi's face dimmed, as she had thought that obtaining this sword would allow her to save her family, but things were not as simple as she had hoped.

Understanding Lin Shiqi's feelings, Dream Butterfly comforted her, saying, "Don't worry, Shiqi, your parents are safe for now. Let's go back first this time, and we can figure out a way for your parents later."

"Okay, we'll have to do that then."

Qin Yan said, "Zhenjun, please take us back to the mortal realm."

Zhenjun nodded and said, "Follow me. I will escort you safely back to the mortal realm." He lifted his trident spear and led the way, with the others following closely behind.

After walking for a while, Zhenjun, who was leading the way, had a pensive look on his face. He glanced at Qin Yan beside him and said, "Um... your name is Qin Yan, right? I have something to ask you."

Qin Yan replied, "Yes, what is it?"

"Did you retrieve that sword from the ancient tomb? Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"I want to ask you, did you see anything strange after obtaining the sword, like exotic beasts or similar creatures?" Zhenjun's expression was unusually serious, showing great concern about the answer to this question.

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Qin Yan was surprised, "Huh, why are you asking me this question?"

Zhenjun asked, "Has anyone else asked you the same question before?"

"Yes, a person named Ajun asked me the same question before."

"Ajun? Could it be him..." Zhenjun furrowed his brows. "How did you answer him?"

"I told him that I saw a white fox in the tomb."

"A white fox?!" Zhenjun suddenly stopped walking, and the others also halted. Zhenjun stared at Qin Yan, looking very tense, and asked, "Was it a white fox with many tails?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"This is bad, I didn't expect this demon beast to still be alive in the world?!" Zhenjun stood there dumbfounded, motionless and silent for a while.

Qin Yan had never seen Zhenjun so flustered before and quickly asked, "What's going on? Why are you and that Ajun so nervous about this fox?"

"This is a long story, it involves something that happened many, many years ago..."

Seeing Zhenjun's serious expression, everyone understood that what he was about to say was important, so they all remained silent, focusing intently on Zhenjun's words.

Gathering his thoughts, Zhenjun slowly began, "This goes back several hundred years ago... At that time, the number of humans in the heavenly realm was much greater than it is now. These humans built cities all over the heavenly realm, settled and lived under the command of our supreme leader, the Emperor. Under the Emperor's leadership, people lived peacefully in the heavenly realm until the arrival of a disaster..."

"What disaster?" Lin Shiqi asked.

Zhenjun continued, "Because humans were the most intelligent beings in the heavenly realm and maintained order in the realm, some evil demon beasts were dissatisfied with human rule and wanted to overthrow humans to rule the heavenly realm themselves. They gathered and launched attacks on human settlements, killing humans indiscriminately, causing prolonged chaos. This chaos engulfed most of the beings in the heavenly realm, resulting in the deaths of many, including humans. If not for that disaster, humans in the heavenly realm wouldn't be as scarce as they are now."

Lin Shiqi realized, "So this kind of thing happened before, no wonder when we went to that city before, there was no one there. But what does all this have to do with that fox?"

"It's a big deal!" Zhenjun's face showed hatred. "That is no ordinary fox; it is a nine-tailed fox with extremely powerful magic. This fox not only possesses strong magic but is also more cunning and intelligent than humans. It secretly instigated these demon beasts to kill humans and disrupt the heavenly realm, causing countless deaths. Many beings died either at its hands or because of it."

"This fox is so powerful, what did you do to deal with it?"

Zhenjun continued, "To deal with this fox, we set a trap, using a mountain city as bait to lure the fox and other demon beasts into the city. After a bloody battle and paying a huge price, we finally defeated this fox and other demon beasts. Once the nine-tailed fox was defeated, the other demon beasts in the heavenly realm dared not cause trouble again, and peace was restored to the heavenly realm."

Qin Yan asked, "The city you mentioned, is it the ancient tomb we visited a few days ago?"

Zhenjun nodded, "That's right."

Qin Yan further inquired, "But if you already took care of this fox, how could it still appear in the ancient tomb?"

"No, we didn't kill them at that time; we only trapped them. With the power of the Emperor's Sword, we sealed them. Without retrieving the Emperor's Sword, these sealed demon beasts cannot escape. We thought that after so many years, these demon beasts should have all died. I didn't expect this fox to still be alive."

Lin Shiqi realized, "I understand. So after we obtained that sword, the fox followed us out. But the ancient tomb has collapsed now, maybe it's been crushed to death in there."

Zhenjun sighed and said, "If that's the case, it would be best. However, that demon beast has powerful magic; it's not so easy to kill. It's possible that it has escaped from the tomb by now. If it gathers other demon beasts again and launches a comeback, the heavenly realm will face another catastrophe, and the few remaining humans in the heavenly realm may not survive."