Hearing this, Song Xianglan had no other choice and refrained from saying more.
Naturally, she only wanted to be with Song Yu’Er. Suddenly having an elder like Li Chang’an around felt a bit strange and uncomfortable. It was as if, when she went out to play with her friends as a child, the adults of the house would always follow behind.
A few days later.
They arrived at the entrance of the Ten Thousand Valleys Secret Realm. It was already late at night. Li Chang’an told them to rest for the night and enter the next day.
Soon, midnight arrived.
A flash of golden light appeared before Li Chang’an’s eyes.
[Divination Refreshed]
[Today’s Divination: Auspicious]
[You enter the Ten Thousand Valleys Secret Realm and successfully capture Liu Xuanfeng alive. During subsequent exploration of the Secret Realm, you unexpectedly discover the Demon Soul Jade.]
"Oh? An unexpected pleasant surprise." Li Chang’an’s eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at the words "Demon Soul Jade" in the Divination’s contents.
This was the final material he needed for refining the Beast Taming Wheel. He hadn’t been able to find it previously. Originally, he had planned to substitute it with another material.
"Since the Demon Soul Jade is in this Secret Realm, there’s no need for that hassle.
"Once this trip concludes, I’ll return to Senior Artifact Spirit and have him guide me in refining the Beast Taming Wheel," Li Chang’an thought.
He took inventory of all the materials on his person. He had thirty-four Sealing Demon Stones. The rest of the materials were either relatively easy to find or replaceable.
"I have thirty-four chances. It’s impossible to fail every single one!" Li Chang’an felt he would fail once or twice at most.
Just as he was thinking this, Song Xianglan approached him and said in a low voice, "Senior, Yu’Er and I are both in great condition. There’s no need to rest. How about we go in right now?"
"Alright," Li Chang’an immediately agreed.
A short while later.
The three of them entered the Secret Realm together.
Looking out, the earth was covered in long, narrow rift valleys. There were thousands upon thousands of them, countless in number, resembling innumerable cracked scars. Within every rift valley in sight, many Cultivators were treasure hunting. As a new Secret Realm, the Ten Thousand Valleys Secret Realm had Cultivators entering almost every moment.
"Liu Xuanfeng." Li Chang’an instantly detected Liu Xuanfeng’s aura.
The man was hiding in a valley, concealing all his aura and remaining perfectly still as he observed the entrance to the Secret Realm. His eyes were filled with joy; he had already spotted Li Chang’an and the other two.
"Grandmaster Xun’s speculation was right after all. Li Chang’an followed them here. There’s no need to use Song Yu’Er to lure him out.
"However, the entrance to the Secret Realm is too crowded and chaotic—not a good place to make a move. I’ll wait for them to venture deeper into the Secret Realm before finding an opportunity to take them down," Liu Xuanfeng pondered inwardly.
Right at this moment, a large hand reached out from behind and patted his shoulder.
"Who is it?" Startled, Liu Xuanfeng turned his head and immediately saw a familiar face.
"Li Chang’an! You... how could you..."
The person standing behind him was none other than Li Chang’an.
He couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard he thought. Li Chang’an was clearly still standing beside those two juniors. He hadn’t left their side the entire time, so when did he get behind him? Furthermore, why hadn’t he sensed him at all?
The more he thought about it, the more alarmed and bewildered he became. He immediately circulated his Magical Power, intending to put some distance between himself and Li Chang’an.
But in the very next instant, a terrifying Nascent Soul oppressive might descended from the sky, pressing heavily upon him and forcing him to his knees on the spot.
"Nascent... Nascent Soul..." Liu Xuanfeng was shaken to his core, staring at Li Chang’an in utter disbelief.
The reason he had ignored his father’s advice and moved against Li Chang’an ahead of time was precisely out of fear that Li Chang’an’s Cultivation would catch up to theirs. If Li Chang’an had also reached the Late Stage of Golden Core Cultivation, he would be difficult to deal with. Yet he never in his wildest dreams imagined that Li Chang’an was no longer at the Golden Core stage, but a Nascent Soul True Monarch!
"You actually hid an entire Major Realm!" Liu Xuanfeng cried out in horror.
If he had known earlier that Li Chang’an was a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he wouldn’t have dared to make a move even if he had a hundred times the courage. No one could have anticipated that Li Chang’an would quietly possess such immense strength.
"To become a Nascent Soul True Monarch just past the age of two hundred... your talent is even greater than Zi Xia True Monarch’s. You don’t have a Low Grade Spirit Root at all—you are clearly a peerless Celestial Pride with a Celestial Spirit Root," Liu Xuanfeng muttered, his expression utterly wretched as he finally understood many things from the past.
Back then, the reason his Tier Three Earth Dragon, as well as Wang Xiao, Pu Jie, and the others he had hired to deal with Li Chang’an, had died without a sound was purely because the gap in strength was too vast! In the Southern Domain at that time, apart from Li Chang’an, no one could have killed them so easily.
Feeling the tyrannical aura radiating from Li Chang’an, Liu Xuanfeng’s voice trembled slightly. "Elder... Elder Li, may I ask what you need from me?"
He still harbored a sliver of luck in his heart, hoping against hope that Li Chang’an was unaware of his schemes. But Li Chang’an’s cold words immediately shattered all his hopes.
"Liu Xuanfeng, I have been single-mindedly devoted to Cultivation and had no desire to cause extra trouble at a time like this. But you sent that Xun Yuanjia to deal with my juniors. How is such an act any different from courting death?"
Hearing this, Liu Xuanfeng shuddered all over. He instantly understood that the anomaly Xun Yuanjia had sensed back then wasn’t because of those old enemies at all—it was because of Li Chang’an! This entire affair had been under Li Chang’an’s control from the very beginning.
As things stood now, any words begging for mercy seemed completely meaningless. Liu Xuanfeng could only cling to a final sliver of hope as he pleaded, "Elder Li, this junior was young, ignorant, and impulsive! I beg you to spare my life. I am willing to serve you as a slave and servant!"
"You are almost two hundred years old. What nonsense is this about being young and ignorant?" Li Chang’an’s expression was indifferent as he circulated the Wood Seed Technique. He brought his palm down, striking the top of Liu Xuanfeng’s head.
In the blink of an eye, Liu Xuanfeng was refined into a Puppet.
The reason he hadn’t killed him outright was that Li Chang’an planned to use him to deal with Xun Yuanjia.