Chapter 10: The Hunt Begins

The ashen sky pressed down with a suffocating weight.

The forest, once silent, suddenly erupted into chaos.

Countless birds and beasts cried out in alarm.

This was the Nine Nethers Secret Realm — a place that opened only once every one hundred years.

Tens of thousands of people stepped into the Secret Realm at this very moment.

Yet none of them were transported to the same location. Instead, they were scattered to every corner of the realm.

Somewhere within the Nine Nethers Secret Realm.

A middle-aged man licked his lips, revealing a bloodthirsty grin. He pulled on a black robe that concealed his head and body entirely, then muttered to himself, "The hunt begins!!!"

At that same moment, hundreds of others throughout the Nine Nethers Secret Realm made the same gesture, spoke the same words, and donned the same black robes.

Their mission was not to seek treasures — it was to kill.

* * *

In another corner of the realm.

Leng Hanshuang shed her disguise and revealed her true appearance.

Her age fell just within the allowed limit, making her the youngest among the current generation of the Seven Swords of Shenxiao.

In terms of raw power, Leng Hanshuang was undoubtedly one of the most formidable cultivators in her age group. Even across the entirety of Li Continent, one could barely find a handful of geniuses who matched her in both strength and youth.

By all rights, a powerhouse like Leng Hanshuang entering the Nine Nethers Secret Realm at the boundary of the age limit should have been an invincible presence.

And yet, unease stirred in her heart.

While mingling among the independent cultivators, Leng Hanshuang had noticed a great many powerful figures. Though none came close to her level, they were numerous — and every one of them radiated a faint, unmistakable stench of blood. That had aroused her suspicion.

In truth, independent cultivators were supposed to be the least threatening group. Lacking talent and backing, they relied solely on themselves. Even if they stumbled upon a rare Fortuitous Encounter along the way, they rarely amounted to much.

At most, one or two slow-burning geniuses might emerge from their ranks every so often.

But to see so many powerful figures appear all at once — that was clearly abnormal.

Leng Hanshuang knew in her heart that this journey into the Nine Nethers Secret Realm was not going to be simple.

Still, she was not afraid.

That was the confidence that came with being one of the Seven Swords of Shenxiao.

* * *

After landing, Lin Feng found that things were exactly as Ye Qingxuan had said — not a single person in sight. He couldn't have been more pleased.

He reached into his Qiankun Pouch and pulled out a white set of clothes, swapping out the green robe he had been wearing. He then put on a mask, and in an instant, his entire appearance was transformed. Even his closest companions — his master Su Mubai and his Junior Sister Su Xiyao — would likely fail to recognize him.

"Finally, freedom!!!" Lin Feng couldn't help but exclaim.

Here, he had no need to worry about revealing his identity. No one could possibly guess that he was the Trash Senior Brother of the Shenxiao Sword Sect.

As for safety?

With a bone age limit of one hundred years, Lin Feng didn't take anyone here seriously.

First, find the Bianhua Flower. Everything else could come after.

Lin Feng moved swiftly through the forest.

Without the need to conceal his strength, his speed was so great it was nearly imperceptible to the naked eye. Even the dense undergrowth did nothing to slow him down.

The Bianhua Flower thrived in cold environments. To find it, he would first need to locate a water source — ideally a pool.

"Ahhh!!!"

A scream of agony caught Lin Feng's attention, and he came to a halt.

From the sound of it, whoever had cried out was in grave danger — if not already dead.

He couldn't tell yet whether it was a person or a beast that had caused it.

The voice didn't seem far off. Lin Feng decided to investigate.

He moved in the direction of the scream.

It didn't take long to reach his destination.

There, lying on the ground, was a corpse dressed in a green robe.

A disciple of the Shenxiao Sword Sect.

Lin Feng walked over and crouched down to examine the body.

The tendons in the corpse's hands and feet had been severed — the victim had been tortured before death. The fatal wound was at the neck, made by a sharp blade. By all appearances, the killer was human, not a beast.

Though he didn't recognize the person lying before him, watching a living soul vanish from the world still left a hollow ache in his chest. After all, they had belonged to the same sect.

Moreover, every Shenxiao Sword Sect disciple who entered the Nine Nethers Secret Realm shared the same mission: to find the Bianhua Flower. Whether or not they succeeded, Lin Feng felt he owed them gratitude.

What he couldn't understand was this: everyone had only just entered the Nine Nethers Secret Realm. There hadn't been nearly enough time to find any treasures or Fortuitous Encounters. There was no logical motive for robbery — so why had this person been killed?

Dying to a beast would have been one thing. But to die at the hands of another person — and to be tortured first — that spoke of something far more deliberate.

What kind of grudge could run that deep?

"Thank you," Lin Feng said softly.

Then he asked aloud, "Why did you kill him?"

The scene was utterly silent. No one answered. Lin Feng pressed on: "We all just arrived. No one has found anything yet. So why kill him?"

Still, no response.

Lin Feng rose to his feet, his gaze turning cold as he fixed his eyes on a shadowed patch of dense forest.

A figure slowly emerged from the darkness — cloaked entirely in a black robe, staring at Lin Feng with undisguised astonishment.

"How did you detect me?"

"I asked you why you killed him," Lin Feng replied, turning the question back.

"What a laughable question," the black-robed man sneered. "He was nothing but an ant. I kill when I please. What reason do I need?"

"Is that so? Then in my eyes, you're an ant too. Does that mean I can snuff you out just as easily?"

"Of course — if you can manage it!"

The moment those words left his mouth, the black-robed man lunged forward.

In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Lin Feng, a dagger slashing toward his throat.

Instinct told him that the masked figure before him was not someone to be trifled with — he had to strike first.

He no longer had any interest in torturing this one. Kill first, think later.

The dagger drew closer and closer to Lin Feng's neck, on the verge of drawing blood —

Then the black-robed man felt a sudden chill wash over his entire body. All strength drained from his limbs, and his hand went limp.

At some point — no one could say when — Lin Feng had already pressed his index finger to the man's forehead. The movement had been too fast for any human eye to follow.

"You… who… exactly… are… you?" the black-robed man asked, his voice trembling with shock.

He couldn't comprehend it. Aside from the great leader, how could there be someone in the Nine Nethers Secret Realm who left him utterly powerless?

"I am the one Heaven sent to punish demons like you," Lin Feng said. "Go to hell and repent. This world has no place for you."

The black-robed man's eyes went wide. The words he had been about to speak never came — he left this world for good.

He died without ever knowing what kind of existence he had encountered.

Lin Feng, who had single-handedly destroyed the Luocha Sect and driven away the Grand Elder of the Wuji Demon Sect, Demon Qian Daoxiong — what chance did a small-time thug like this ever have?

If Lin Feng truly cut loose, even he himself didn't know where his limits lay. He had never once gone all out, always keeping his true strength hidden.

There were times when Lin Feng genuinely wanted to fight with everything he had — but without wanting to expose his power or identity, he simply couldn't find a worthy opponent. That wish had never been fulfilled.

Having dispatched the enemy with ease, Lin Feng's figure vanished back into the dense forest as he continued his search for the Bianhua Flower.

* * *

The battles raging within the Nine Nethers Secret Realm were far from isolated.

There were clashes between cultivators, and clashes between cultivators and beasts.

As a general rule, rare treasures were always guarded by powerful exotic beasts. To claim any treasure, one first had to deal with its guardian.

As time passed, the death toll climbed steadily. In just a single day, it had already surpassed one thousand.

At that rate, the tens of thousands who had entered would not be enough to fill the graves.

Still, this was only temporary — similar situations had arisen in past openings as well.

People had only just entered the Nine Nethers Secret Realm and were still unfamiliar with its dangers, which was why so many were dying so quickly. After all, each person only had one chance in their lifetime to enter the Nine Nethers Secret Realm.

Once everyone grew more accustomed to the environment, the various factions would begin leaving signals to gather their members. The larger the group, the safer they would be — and the death toll would naturally begin to fall.

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Edited by Fat Goose