Chapter 28

A secret realm could either be the remains of a great being’s estate or a small world that has either degraded or just formed, accidentally discovered by cultivators due to the intersection of time and space with the Zhong Zhou.

This time, the secret realm was a degraded and collapsed small world.

When Lin Du stepped through the portal, her vision went black. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a barren desert with withered trees.

There was no one else around.

Lin Du had an excellent memory, but she still pulled out the ancestral map to check.

Perfect, this collapsed small world’s heaven had tossed her into the vast, endless desert. The term “endless” was used because this desert covered nearly a third of the small world’s area. Quicksand and sandstorms were common, and most importantly, no one had really explored what lay within this desert.

Due to its extreme desolation, legends said that some had entered the desert and failed to exit even after seven days. Therefore, the map marked a dubious circle and a question mark, with a note that said the person who completed the map would find a surprise.

She sneered, feeling murderous.

“Translate this for me. What the hell is this ‘surprise’ supposed to be?”

At that moment, the system chimed in.

[Host, this time Du Shao and her fiancé are also in the secret realm. With just the final ten percent remaining, completing the task should thoroughly cure your ailments.]

Lin Du lowered her gaze, a sarcastic smile curling her lips. In an instant, a fan appeared in her hand.

With a swish, the fan, as heavy as iron, suddenly opened, revealing a glint of snow-like light.

“They say that the Sahara Desert was once a sea. System, tell me, can I just turn this place into an Ice Age?”

She lifted her eyes. “I also want to see just how extensive my Floating Life can be.”

The system felt something was off.

It was the host who was acting strange. Could it be that this host had gone mad from studying like someone preparing for a graduate exam in the cultivation world?

It wasn’t impossible.

Lin Du sensed the system’s thoughts.

Although the system had been almost non-existent for a long time, she could still sense its presence, even when it was silent.

Rather than being implanted by the system, it was more accurate to say that their minds were connected.

“No one is immune to madness; it’s just a matter of holding on.”

She uttered these words calmly, and then her spiritual power surged. It poured out from her dantian, traveled through her meridians, reached her palms, and was then infused into the Floating Life fan.

With a sweep, the fan drew a dazzling arc in the air, and then vanished into the dust.

The air was filled with the fine sound of freezing.

The treacherous quicksand and dust-laden winds were quickly frozen, covered with a layer of fine, white frost.

The young man in the blue outfit and white fox fur, having put away his folding fan, calmly watched as the frost spread rapidly ahead of him, then moved forward.

This was her Floating World, meaning she could indeed appear in every part of it.

Under the Heavenly Eye, this scene was laid bare.

The room was filled with the sound of inhaled breaths.

They had seen ice elemental roots before. Lin Du’s master was rumored to be capable of freezing the entire Zhong Zhou with a single sword strike. However, a thirteen-year-old child, who could casually freeze at least three yards with a mere wave of her hand, demonstrated a terrifying level of talent.

Ordinary sword cultivators in the Qin Heart realm, if they could extend their sword energy three feet, were considered gifted.

The disciples outside had noticed the disdain towards Lin Du, and if someone saw it firsthand, they would surely understand what it meant to be the number one in talent.

The Nature never misjudges a child’s talent, as it is inherently bestowed by heaven.

Someone sighed lightly, “It really makes one envious. I’ve studied the sword for three hundred years, and I don’t think my sword energy could reach this far.”

Envy was not only for people but also for the heavens.

Ju Yuan spoke up to mitigate the situation, “It’s probably due to the spiritual treasure. After all, our Supreme Sect is poor, so we can only give each child one spiritual treasure for protection.”

The leaders of several small sects exchanged glances. Was this supposed to be a proper explanation?

It was better not to explain.

Everyone knew that while the Supreme Sect consumed resources rapidly, they also gathered them just as vigorously, otherwise, how could they support such talented individuals?

They didn’t dare to compete. First, spiritual treasures were selective, and grabbing them might not be useful. Second, daring to snatch something from the Supreme Sect was tantamount to courting death.

The younger generation would bring the older generation, and they might even uproot their entire base.

Lin Du found the Floating Life fan quite interesting. Wherever she moved, the frost extended further.

So when she passed by the two people whose feet were frozen, she felt a twinge of guilt.

But upon seeing their faces clearly, her sense of guilt vanished.

The ones frozen weren’t just ordinary people; they were scum.

Scum didn’t deserve concern.

Lin Du asked the system, “How did this guy with low talent manage to get here? I remember that small sects only have one or two spots at most.”

【How else could he have come?】

Lin Du understood; he must have latched onto the sect leader’s daughter.

She was about to turn and leave when someone called out to her.

“Lin Du, are you Lin Du?”

Lin Du paused, her gaze falling on the woman standing not far from the scumbag. “I’m not.”

…

The woman introduced herself, “I’m Ni Si. My father is the sect leader of the Hong Zhen Sect.”

“Oh, my father is a wandering ghost.”

Lin Du continued walking, her steps silent. The surroundings were eerily quiet, with only the sound of the ice continuing to form and extend.

The sound was pleasant to Lin Du, but for the two people, it was like a death knell.

“Lin Du, I know you are the number one talent in the Zhong Zhou. You must not be affected by this strange frost. You must have a way to save us, right? I can’t move now.”

Ni Si quickly tried to stop her.

Lin Du turned around, “Can’t move? This ice is thinner than the candy coating on my candied hawthorn. Can’t you move?”

Her question was purely inquisitive, as if she were asking an unsolvable problem.

Ni Si was silent. She couldn’t say it was because she was too weak. Her feet were frozen so solidly that even with spiritual power, she couldn’t free herself. Before she could even take out a flying artifact, she was frozen again.

Moreover, this ice wasn’t just coming from her feet. Strangely, as long as she was in this area, the ice seemed to keep growing, until it sealed off everything.

It was so cold that her meridians were sluggish, and she was frozen stiff.

How could there be ice and snow in a desert?

“Please, fellow cultivator, save me. I, Ni Si, will be most grateful.”

Ni Si was one of the cultivators who had been slightly taken aback by Lin Du’s appearance today. Although she had looked down on Lin Du’s frailty, she had to admit that this number one talent was indeed impressive.

Lin Du didn’t answer her but asked a question instead, “I have a question. Everyone is randomly teleported when entering the realm. Although this secret realm’s Nature rules have collapsed, it shouldn’t separate two people. How did you end up together?”

In less than half a cup of tea’s time after entering, they managed to come together. Either the Nature was truly messing things up, or they had some means.

Ni Si was taken aback, not expecting Lin Du’s focus to be so off.

“It was the seed of a paired lotus. I took it together with him. The nature couldn’t separate us.”

Lin Du exhaled and looked at Li Dong.

Her eyebrows were well-formed, with a sharp edge, dense like ink. Her eyelids were without any excess, the double eyelids were deep and extended downward, while her eyes themselves were slightly upward, giving her gaze a touch of restrained melancholy.

Lin Du, still facing away from them, turned her head to look at the somewhat stiff young man, and with a light laugh, repeated, “So it was the paired lotus. I thought it was a heart knot.”