Chapter 97: 32 : The Secret Realm of Kunlun, The Trap of Song He

Qi Sha True Person’s sword was drawn for the sake of his wife and daughter.

Until Ling Yunpo returned to Qingluo Peak, the words of Guan Shanyue seemed still to echo in his ears.

Then, for what reason should my sword be drawn?

“I think you actually don’t need to be too troubled,” the Kunlun Mirror suddenly said. “Unless you choose the path of heartlessness, whether it is forgetting love or questioning love, you must first fall for someone.”

“Without ever having loved, how can there be questioning love? And how can there be forgetting love?”

“Ah Jing,” Ling Yunpo spoke earnestly, “I’m not considering which path to take.”

His tone suddenly grew somber:

“I’m just very curious, on the path leading to the throne of the sky, who is truly worth drawing my sword for?”

Kunlun Mirror: ………

Me worrying about who you’ll fall in love with is indeed foolish of me. Fine then, I’ll leave on my own.

It was about to dive into the Sea of Consciousness, to speak no further, when it heard Ling Yunpo say again:

“Load game, I want to go rest in Kunlun.”

The Kunlun Mirror mechanically recited:

[Location one: Kunlun Taiqing Sect, Golden Ridge.]

[Character identity: Qiu Changtian.]

[Overlaying the Mirror Flower Water Moon template, time-space travel in progress.]

After returning to the Golden Ridge Cave Abode, Qiu Changtian continued with his breathing exercises and qi refinement to enhance his cultivation level.

As previously mentioned, among the three orthodox sects, the lifestyle of the Kunlun Sect most closely aligns with the immortal’s ideal of “peaceful simplicity.”

There is none of the netherworldly atmosphere of constant sword-fighting like in the Shushan Shangqing Faction, nor the worldly atmosphere of various personal interactions at the Penglai Yuqing View.

There’s plenty of abundant time at one’s disposal, do whatever one pleases.

Compared to those direct disciples who spend all day cooped up in their cave abodes, Qiu Changtian is fairly fond of socializing since he has to frequently lead teams on missions outdoors to brush up on Synchronization Value with the help of a bunch of lovely junior brothers and sisters.

As such, not only did his reputation grow amongst the outer sect disciples, but even the inner sect disciples held him in reverence and sought his friendship, known as “Chief Qiu, the epitome of generosity and righteousness.”

One day, while Qiu Changtian was playing the zither and flute duet with Xu Yinglian, suddenly two streaks of sword light descended.

Qiu Changtian looked closely; both were inner sect disciples of this generation—he had made their acquaintance on previous visits, so they were familiar.

One of them was Lingbao elder’s direct disciple, Jiang Yuhuan, and the other was an inner sect disciple of Yuqi elder, Hu Bugui.

The two descended to the ground and bowed in greeting to Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian.

After the greetings and pleasantries, Jiang Yuhuan cut straight to the point and said:

“I wonder if Senior Brother Qiu and Senior Sister Xu are available to explore a newly discovered Cave Heaven and Blessed Land with us?”

Qiu Changtian expressed his surprise and then inquired:

“May I know about this Cave Heaven…”

Seeing that he did not outright reject them, Hu Bugui breathed a sigh of relief, and with a smile, he said:

“It is an ancient ruin located in the southern district of the layered city, hidden by an illusion technique formation at its entrance, which brother Jiang and I stumbled upon by chance.”

“Upon entering, one finds an immense space beyond. In the distance are pavilions, towers, corridors, and water pavilions, with misty celestial music surrounding, and auspicious clouds enveloping the area—it does not seem like an ordinary dwelling.”

“Nearby, however, is a vast sea of clouds, with only a rope bridge leading forward. At the entrance of the rope bridge, there is a Divine General guarding, clothed in golden armor and a silver robe, carrying a long blade, very difficult to contend with.”

“Brother Jiang and I estimate that we are no match for it, hence we have no choice but to seek the help of Senior Brother Qiu and Senior Sister Xu. Afterward, we can explore the Cave Heaven together and share the treasures equally, how does that sound?”

Upon hearing this, Xu Yinglian pondered and then said:

“Based on your description, I fear it’s not a common ancient ruin, but an Immortal Palace Secret Realm.”

“Senior Sister Xu mustn’t jump to conclusions so lightly,” Jiang Yuhuan hastily said. “If we use the existence of an Immortal Palace Secret Realm as a reason to seek help from our elders, and it turns out to be just an ordinary ruin in the end, wouldn’t that be making a big deal out of a minor issue?”

“That’s right,” Hu Bugui also chimed in. “Let’s first try to defeat that Golden Armored Divine General. Afterward, we can explore further to confirm.”

Xu Yinglian gave a faint cold smile, knowing that these two were insincere and actually just wanted to get their share of the loot from the secret realm first, reap the benefits, and then report it to the sect for handling.

However, every man for himself, heaven dooms those who do not look out for oneself, so it’s normal to have such thoughts.

Therefore, Xu Yinglian turned to look at Qiu Changtian, signaling him to make a decision.

But Qiu Changtian hesitated, knowing that a secret realm and an ancient relic were two different things. The latter might only be the dwelling of an ancient cultivator, full of traps that could be solved, such as formations, talisman scripts, and mechanisms.

The former, however, were specially designed spaces, often accompanied by extremely complex and powerful restrictions, with no possibility of being broken.

If it were a trial-type secret realm like the Pavilion Secret Realm, it would be manageable, but he feared encountering the unfriendly kind, where the restrictions could easily kill. Once deeply trapped, one would no longer be in control of their own life or death.

At this time, not to mention Jiang Yuhuan and Hu Bugui, who were full of anticipation, even his junior sister was watching.

If he were to show hesitation and cowardice, it would not only damage the reputation of Chief Qiu, but also cause his character to collapse and his synchronization value to plummet, which was the bigger problem.

As a result, he could only agree for now and then adapt to the situation later.

Since Jiang Hu were both able to explore and then extricate themselves, it was unlikely to be a secret realm with difficult entry and exit.

If they really encountered an insoluble trouble, they would just retreat in time—Besides, there was always the Kunlun Mirror.

“To be honest,” Qiu Changtian said gently, “I actually don’t lack treasures.”

The two showed disappointed expressions, but then they heard Senior Brother Qiu’s tone change and he said,

“However, unexplored secret realms are often fraught with danger, and I would feel uneasy letting you two junior brothers go alone. I might as well accompany you.”

Jiang Hu were overjoyed upon hearing this, and hurriedly assured that they were willing to make concessions in the distribution of spoils and would not let Chief Qiu be disadvantaged, feeling secretly relieved.

The reason they asked for Qiu Changtian’s help was precisely because of the chief senior brother’s reputable and righteous image, making it unlikely that he would take advantage of them.

If it were other senior brothers or sisters, they might demand an exorbitant share, such as priority in selecting treasures or a seventy-thirty split of the spoils, which would be disgustingly greedy.

Now it seemed that Chief Qiu really lived up to his name, generous as the sky!

After a brief rest, the four of them rose on their swords and flew towards the southern foothills of the western section of the Kunlun Mountain Range.

After an indeterminate length of time, the four of them finally descended in a valley, with Jiang Yuhuan taking the lead and guiding everyone into a crevice in the rock face opposite them.

After a few steps, their figures gradually faded away, eventually disappearing completely.

A moment later, another sword light arrived from a distance, landing before the crevice.

It was Song He.

He looked at the entrance to the secret realm before him, his expression changing several times before turning grim.

The clue to this secret realm was not first discovered by Jiang Hu but had been accidentally obtained by Song He during a fortuitous encounter.

He had spent nearly half a month to thoroughly investigate the entrance of the secret realm and decided to use it as a trap to kill Qiu Changtian.

The reason was simple: within the secret realm, all divination from the outside world could be shielded.

If Qiu Changtian were to die inside, the cause and effect would be obscured by the secret realm’s restrictions, unable to be traced or calculated from the outside.

Therefore, he cleverly allowed Jiang Hu to “accidentally” discover the clue, knowing their greed and boldness—if they couldn’t handle the Guardian General, they were likely to seek aid from the respected Chief Qiu, rather than reporting to the sect.

In this way, he was confident in luring Qiu Changtian into the trap.

As for what lay beyond the Guardian General, Song He had no clue, but he knew the secret realm had an extremely long history and its rank was high, making it impossible for disciples at the Foundation Establishment rank to break through.

To exchange a secret realm that he could not benefit from for the life of Qiu Changtian and the position of chief was a deal too good to pass up.

After all, the magic artifact to open the entrance of the secret realm was obtained by Song He through his fortuitous adventure…

Song He took a small incense burner from his sleeve, placed it on the ground recess in front of the crevice, then took out an incense stick, lit it, and chanted:

“Rich earth carries all, mountains and rivers close naturally. Seal!”

As his voice fell, the mountains in front began to tremble.

The rocks on the left and right sides slowly closed in towards the center, completely sealing the crevice in the middle.

In doing so, those inside could no longer come out.

It had become a deadly trap.