Chapter 50

The second secret realm is the Ancient Battlefield.

This round was even less friendly than the previous one. Sand and dust filled the air, and upon opening their eyes, they were surrounded by remains and discarded broken swords, resembling an ancient battlefield. Every worn-out weapon was covered in the aura of death.

All disciples of the Five Sects had a map of the secret realm, which marked where demonic beasts frequently appeared. Perhaps considering Ye Qiao’s frequent cunning tricks, the elders decided that for the second round, using external props was strictly prohibited.

“Is this targeted? Those people from the Sect of Questioning Sword are really shameless.” Upon hearing this news, Mu Chongxi was the first to explode.

The organizers of the event were the elders from the Sect of Questioning Sword.

Ye Qiao just shrugged, showing no objection.

She didn’t expect to rely on external props to cause trouble in every round. If she played like that, she’d probably be surrounded and beaten by fans of the other sects as soon as she left the secret realm.

In the first round, the group of elders was still intrigued and wanted to enjoy the excitement, so they didn’t stop the action. However, if this continued, the balance of the competition would be disrupted.

Moreover, the ancient battlefield was much more dangerous than the previous one. As Xue Yu saw his direct disciples enter the secret realm one by one, he interjected, “You and Ming Xuan better separate.”

Since both were talisman cultivators, it would greatly increase their chances of survival in the secret realm if they each had a senior brother with them.

If they happened to stick together, the outcome would be far from ideal compared to if they were separated.

After speaking, the group entered the secret realm one after another. The familiar spinning sensation made their heads spin a little. After Ye Qiao got her bearings, she looked around and slumped her head.

She called out, “Ah, Second Senior Brother.”

“It’s you.”

Ming Xuan and Ye Qiao looked at each other, “How unlucky.”

The two talisman cultivators ended up together, and it seemed that the other senior brothers were placed elsewhere.

“It’s all Xue Yu’s fault for jinxing us,” Ming Xuan grumbled, clearly annoyed that they had ended up together.

Elder Zhao was also puzzled, “Why is Ye Qiao still complaining about Ming Xuan?”

Isn’t it good to have a talisman cultivator to team up with?

Qin Fanfan corrected him, “I think they both find each other quite annoying.”

The annoyance was obvious.

Elder Zhao nodded, “Ye Qiao’s luck has actually been pretty good. She wasn’t left alone in the last secret realm, and this time she landed with Ming Xuan.”

At least being with a talisman cultivator provided some security.

Qin Fanfan clearly thought the same.

…

In the secret realm, Ye Qiao sat down for a while to recover. Ming Xuan checked the jade slip for the rankings and said, “So far, the Wen Jian Sect has hunted two demon beasts.”

“They’re pretty quick.”

They had just arrived, and Wen Jian Sect had already found demon beasts.

The two siblings quickly regained their composure and decided to head south. The ancient battlefield had a dry climate, with visible cracks in the ground and signs of past battles.

“There are demon beasts ahead,” Ming Xuan said. “It looks like a late Foundation Establishment stage.”

Ye Qiao was at the early Foundation Establishment stage, but it wasn’t a big problem with Ming Xuan’s help. She swiftly drew her sword and, even though she was mentally prepared, furrowed her brow when she saw the creature ahead.

“A man-eating spider.”

With eight furry legs and eyes glowing with a cruel red light, it looked like it would pounce on them and devour them whole in the next second.

Ye Qiao sidestepped to avoid the spider’s legs and, at the same time, jumped back to close the distance. She turned her wrist and thrust towards the spider’s eyes. Although her first attempt didn’t succeed due to her lower cultivation level, it provided Ming Xuan with a good chance to launch a surprise attack.

Two talismans hit the spider’s sides, and as the talismans took effect, Ye Qiao seized the moment of the spider’s stunned state. She quickly channeled sword Qi into her sword and stabbed it hard into the spider’s abdomen.

With their coordinated efforts, the score on the Liang Ming Sect jade slip changed from zero to one.

“Ah,” Ming Xuan smirked upon seeing the ‘1’. “The senior brother might go crazy.”

He must be aiming for a hundred.

If no one breaks the record, it’s fine, but if someone does, Zhou Xingyun would definitely be counting the demon beasts with a sword in hand.

“It’s only the beginning, and we’re already facing a late Foundation Establishment stage beast,” Ye Qiao said, reflecting on the level of the demon beast they just encountered. “The difficulty is much higher than the last round.”

They weren’t faced with demon beasts immediately in the previous round.

Ming Xuan replied, “After all, this is the ancient battlefield, and the remaining demon beasts are quite strong. This is just the start.”

The two continued following the map’s indicated path. After a moment of calm, they either had good luck or bad luck, as they soon ran into two disciples from the Cheng Feng Sect.

Ye Qiao recognized one as Duan Hengdao.

She wasn’t familiar with the other direct disciple.

Ming Xuan took a closer look and said, “That’s another weapon cultivator from Cheng Feng Sect, named Shen Ziwei.”

Two weapon cultivators, though not very threatening, were still Core Formation stage cultivators. Ming Xuan felt the situation was not very favorable for them.

It was clear that the Cheng Feng Sect members were also on guard and reached for their storage bags, ready to pull out their magical tools and fight.

The battle seemed imminent.

Hearing the name, Ye Qiao couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“Shen Ziwei!” She grinned and waved at the two opposite them. “I’m Ye Yuhe from the Daming Lake!”

The audience outside the secret realm was bewildered: “??? What’s going on?”

“What are they doing?”

“Can they be more serious?”

“What’s Ye Yuhe? Just start fighting already!”

Didn’t the direct disciples usually fight when they met in the secret realm?

Ye Qiao’s joke seemed to oddly diffuse the tense atmosphere.

Shen Ziwei was also taken aback by her enthusiastic demeanor, while Duan Hengdao couldn’t help but turn to his second senior brother and ask, “Do you know Ye Qiao?”

Shen Ziwei shook his head.

Who knows her?!

What is Ye Yuhe anyway?

Ye Qiao laughed for a while, then, seeing the stalemate, she raised her hand to break the deadlock. “Let’s not rush.”

“How about we discuss a cooperation?”

With that, Ye Qiao took a step closer to them.

Duan Hengdao instinctively took a step back in fear. “Don’t come any closer. If you do, I’ll let my second senior brother deal with you.”

The last time someone tried to negotiate cooperation with Ye Qiao, both of them ended up on the elimination seat holding hands.

Duan Hengdao had carefully reviewed the recap of the previous secret realm and realized he was too naïve.

Wasn’t the competition about hunting demon beasts? Why were there conspiracies and schemes now?

He scoffed at the idea of cooperation and thought it was ridiculous.

“Everyone, we’ve gathered here with great difficulty, so let’s not keep fighting all the time,” Ye Qiao said with a smile. “How about we join forces and deal with the Yue Qing Sect first?”

In the face of the indifference of the two disciples of the Chengfeng Sect, Ye Qiao attempted to play the emotional card: “Senior Brother Duan, have you forgotten the days when the three of us relied on each other in the belly of the beast?”

Duan Hengdao was speechless, “…”

Can we talk properly! We clearly fell into the belly of a demon beast, don’t make it seem like we have some scandalous relationship.

Ye Qiao clapped her hands and continued, “In the ancient battlefield, those cunning symbol cultivators are the most annoying. The Yueqing Sect has a total of four symbol cultivators. If we don’t join forces, then the first place will definitely belong to the Yueqing Sect. Are you willing to watch the first place being snatched away?”

The Chengfeng Sect dreamt of obtaining the first place, and upon hearing Ye Qiao’s words, they hesitated for a moment.

However, after some thought, Duan Hengdao remained cautious, “Why should we trust you?”

Ye Qiao noticed that these people viewed her as if she were some dangerous criminal. She spread her hands, “We are just one symbol cultivator, we don’t pose a significant threat to your first place, right?”

“In that case, why not cooperate first to deal with the formidable enemy, Yueqing Sect.”

This was the truth; aside from the Bishui Sect, the Changming Sect was the least threatening sect. Although they missed out in the previous round, the danger level skyrocketed in the second round, where even Mingxuan, a symbol cultivator, couldn’t pose a significant threat.

Cooperation was also present in the secret realm; whether the other party was willing to cooperate depended on whether the stakes you offered could entice them. Ye Qiao’s words clearly swayed the two members of the Chengfeng Sect.

“Well, shall we cooperate happily?” After a moment of hesitation, Duan Hengdao took the initiative to speak.

Ye Qiao replied, “Cooperate happily.”

With the cooperation settled, the next step was to discuss strategies. Ye Qiao picked up the map in her hand and unfolded it for the two members of the Chengfeng Sect to see.

“These are the lairs of the demon beasts. If the Yueqing Sect aims for the first place, they will definitely head to these locations.”

“And if we move fast enough, we can ambush them before they arrive.”

Pointing to the intersection on the map, Ye Qiao said, “This is a route that all their disciples must pass through. The Yueqing Sect is familiar with formations, so they will definitely be the first to arrive.”

“At that time, we can wait for them here in advance.”

As she spoke enthusiastically, Duan Hengdao’s mouth twitched, “…” You’re too cunning.

“This Ye Qiao!” An elder from the Yueqing Sect watching from the sidelines couldn’t bear it anymore. Hearing the two groups’ plan, he slammed the table in anger, “Stop thinking about these crooked ways every day instead of focusing on the competition!!”

This shameless act!

It’s no wonder he reacted so strongly; this kind of tactic had never been seen before.

Who in their right mind would come up with such deceitful schemes every day in a reputable sect?

“I think it’s quite good.” Duan Yu listened to Ye Qiao’s plan and almost burst out laughing, pretending, “Those brats, the geniuses, must be used to it. Whenever they encounter cunning evil cultivators during their adventures, it’s not enough to play with them.”

He spoke earnestly, “Isn’t this a good thing? Let Ye Qiao help them improve their vigilance.”

And what’s with the crooked ways? This is clearly a strategy!

The following was a series of explanations by Ye Qiao, attempting to teach the two disciples how to set ambush traps.

“Wait a minute—”

“We are legitimate disciples, not old scheming traps every day.” Duan Hengdao couldn’t hold back.

Does she even know what disciples are? Refining tools, forging artifacts, adding enchantments, that’s what disciples do.

After thousands of years in the cultivation world, which legitimate disciple would think about setting traps and plotting against others?!

“But you can also become old schemers.” Ye Qiao sighed at his rigidity.

So, it’s no wonder the Chengfeng Sect is struggling.

She began brainwashing him intensely; setting a few traps was definitely not a big deal.

Duan Hengdao still hesitated, “I think…”

“For the first place,” she emphasized.

Duan Hengdao shamefully wavered and finally nodded, “Okay.”

He compromised too quickly.

“What about the rope you used to tie me up before?” Ye Qiao gestured for him to bring it out, “We can use it to restrain people later.”

Bringing up the past, Duan Hengdao’s mouth twitched as he took out the Immortal Binding Rope, “This rope is similar to the Demon Binding Rope I gave you before. As long as there is a living person, it will automatically bind them.”

Ye Qiao’s smile became even more eager, “That’s great for our plans.”

Isn’t this a great tool? One of the essential items for setting traps.

The two sects temporarily began their cooperation, with Ye Qiao providing ideas while the two disciples set traps and hidden weapons.

For a moment, the atmosphere reached an unprecedented harmony.

Onlookers outside the scene whispered to each other.

“This Ye Qiao, was she in pyramid schemes before?”

“Hilarious. First targeting the Yueqing Sect, her strategies are quite clear.”

“Ah, Duan Hengdao, you’ve really fallen!! What good person would follow Ye Qiao to do such things.”

They couldn’t imagine that the legitimate disciples, the future hope of the Chengfeng Sect, would actually be incited by Ye Qiao, a troublemaker, to set traps.

The Yueqing Sect team progressed smoothly; they were well-versed in the Five Elements Formation, avoiding the treacherous formations and advancing smoothly in the secret realm, leaving the Wenjian Sect far behind.

If nothing unexpected happened, they would continue this smooth journey until the end of the secret realm.

Until the next part of the journey, Song Hansheng led his junior brothers to the left and, the next moment, fell into a pit.

Most importantly, there was a net hidden inside the pit. Song Hansheng reacted swiftly and used a talisman to escape from the net just before being bound.

He moved to the right.

He fell into another pit.

Another net descended straight down, but this time, Song Hansheng swiftly used a formation to escape from the net.

This time, Song Hansheng finally learned his lesson; he deftly picked up a stone and threw it ahead to test the path.

After confirming that there were no major pitfalls, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued leading his junior brothers forward.

However, just as Song Hansheng’s foot touched the ground, the Immortal Binding Rope hidden under the branches suddenly tightened without warning, firmly binding their feet, and in an instant, both of them were hanging upside down from a tree.

Song Hansheng was dumbfounded for a moment. In a state of oxygen deprivation in his brain, he finally realized that something was wrong.

“Oh.”

Behind him, Ye Qiao’s cheerful yet teasing voice rang out.

She bent down, surveying the two hanging upside down, unable to contain her joy, “All hanging up?”

Her tone was like a leader visiting and comforting the people in the countryside, spoken in a way that made Ye Qiao sound mischievously cheap.

Song Hansheng’s pupils dilated, and upon seeing the two Chengfeng Sect disciples behind her, he almost spat out blood in disbelief, “It’s you guys again!!”

He finally understood where the giant net that descended from the sky came from!

It’s no wonder he didn’t realize it was a trap earlier.

The previous disciples were all about collective face-saving; who would think about how to ambush and attack others in the secret realm for no reason?

Duan Hengdao lowered his head, not daring to meet Song Hansheng’s incredulous gaze.

Because, he used to be a respectable person.

Until he met Ye Qiao.