Wait a minute, where is my master?

The order to enter the Secret Realm was restored.

The damage and craters caused by the battle on-site were quickly repaired by workers.

During the process, a cultivator, who was diligently working, made a special trip to retrieve his Golden Core Realm wooden puppet. It belonged to him, and he thought that if he repaired it, it might still be usable.

Two hours passed.

A Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, known as Little Liangzi, stretched his body greatly after screening five disciples from a small sect named Iron Sword Gate.

He glanced at the queue behind him, silently estimating how much longer it would be until he could get off work.

...

Within Qing State, Moro Mountain.

In a hidden cave within the mountainside, the Second Elder of the Demon Sect, a man in green with the air of a scholar and a look of sorrow in his eyes, stood silently on a high platform.

Below him, three Hall Masters of the Twelve Halls stood respectfully, heads bowed, silently waiting for their superior to issue commands.

Beside them, Yan Meishan was lying unceremoniously in a rocking chair, holding a Spirit Fruit and nibbling on it little by little, occasionally sticking out her pink tongue to lick the juice at the corner of her mouth.

"Third Elder, have all five of your avatars entered?"

The man in green suddenly spoke, his eyes filled with an age-old sorrow that made Yan Meishan extremely uncomfortable.

"What's the rush? Haven't I told you everything? Those avatars were late coming back because they went out of the city to attract the Insect Queen, so they ended up at the back of the line."

The Third Elder spoke with a bad tone. Actually, her avatars had already entered, but she wanted to deliberately keep this Second Elder hanging.

For now, whenever Yan Meishan thought of the Insect Queen, she recalled the real sensation of that thing slowly crawling into the mouth of her avatar. Although it wasn't her real body it entered, the thought still involuntarily disgusted her.

"But why did the connection between me and the Insect Queen suddenly break just now?"

The man's already sorrowful gaze intensified as he stared fixedly at Yan Meishan.

"Ah? Oh, really?"

The Third Elder heard this and didn't show any embarrassment. She closed her eyes pretentiously, and after two breaths, she reopened them and said, "Oh, my avatar has indeed entered the Qingmu Secret Realm. The distance was too far, so I didn't notice it at first."

After hearing Yan Meishan's words, the Second Elder of the Demon Sect did not react, just silently watching her.

It was only after the Third Elder unconsciously sat up straight from the rocking chair under his gaze that the man in green finally turned away.

He spoke in a deep voice to his subordinates, "Spread out all the preparations you've made over the years, and it's also time to mobilize the fiends you've gathered.

Remember, your only goal is to throw Qing State into chaos and make sure that Qingmu Academy doesn't have the resources to manage the affairs of the Secret Realm.

Oh, and make sure not to expose our Demon Sect's plans or get caught by the cultivators of the Righteous Path, or else the Gu Worms within you will burst, and you will die."

After speaking these words in a light and breezy way, the three Hall Masters below bowed their heads to accept the command.

Among them, the large-headed, short cultivator hesitated but eventually couldn't help but speak up.

"Second Elder, the Qingmu Secret Realm opened without warning, and the little Taoist priest who ruined our sect's plans in the Great Xia Dynasty is also nearby. Shouldn't we prepare a bit more? What if this... ah, Second Elder, spare my life!"

This ugly cultivator with a large head and short stature was still very wary of the little Taoist priest, especially now that the Qingmu Secret Realm had opened ahead of schedule, his unease intensified.

However, before he could finish speaking, he felt a bone-piercing pain emanating from his Dantian.

He knew it was the Gu Worm that the man in green had placed within him stirring, so he quickly prostrated himself and begged for mercy.

"I know you all fear that little Taoist priest, but remember, he might possibly kill you, whereas I can make you die right now,"

The Demon Sect's Second Elder said with a heavy sorrow in his eyes.

"Moreover, if we can successfully welcome back the Demon Lord, you won't need to fear any little or old Taoist priests. Then, our sect will be the master of the Nine Provinces Realm, and you will be the first contributors of our sect. Do you understand!"

The man in green spoke on and on until a crazed expression suddenly appeared on his face; however, he quickly restrained himself.

"Yes, we will surely obey the Second Elder's orders and fully accomplish the great plan of our sect, striving to welcome back the Demon Lord at the earliest!"

Seeing their superior in this state, the three Hall Masters quickly knelt on one knee and banged their heads in a kowtow.

The Cultivator with the big head even knocked a deep pit into the green stone slab on the ground.

Yan Meishan, sitting upright on a recliner next to them, gulped and silently swallowed the Spirit Fruit in her mouth.

To be honest, she felt that even if their Demon Sect welcomed back the Demon Lord, they might still have no way to deal with that strange little Taoist.

But she truly didn't dare to say this in front of the man in green.

"Alright, everyone proceed with the plan."

The Second Elder, seeing everyone looking so respectable, seemed contented and waved his hand, signaling that they could leave.

The three Hall Masters obeyed the command and fled from the secret cave as if escaping.

In the belly of the mountain, only Yan Meishan and the man in green were left.

...

In Qing State, before Qingmu Academy, at the Gentleman Building.

The Old Dean, coughing, sat on a bamboo stool with Qingyun standing beside him, his hands clasped behind his back.

"Teacher, with the little Taoist's strength being unclear, is it really wise to let him enter the Qingmu Secret Realm just like that?"

Qingyun asked, voicing the doubt in his heart.

"Cough cough...cough, although his strength is unclear, he is indeed a person of goodness. Let him enter the Secret Realm. It will be just right for him to retrieve the Wood Spirit Liquid for me and hasten my recovery.

Besides, although I don't think the little Taoist would do such a thing, if we were to forbid him from entering the Secret Realm and he insisted on barging in, who among us could stop him?"

The Old Dean coughed twice, patiently explaining to his disciple.

He continued, "Moreover, I have my own selfish reasons for this. Our patrolling disciples and the recent intelligence reports show that there is clearly activity from the Demon Sect followers within the Qing State, seeming to be plotting something.

So, since Jin Xu, the little Taoist, can open the Secret Realm ahead of schedule, we might as well take this opportunity to advance the matter of the Qingmu Secret Realm and catch the Demon Sect off guard.

After all, if the enemy is hidden and we are in the open, it will be us who are passive should we end up well-prepared by the time they have made their moves.

Just think about the Great Xia Empire a few months ago. If it weren't for that little Taoist, what dire consequences would have been brewed."

After saying such a long stream of words, the Old Dean started coughing violently again.

Qingyun stepped forward and patted his teacher's back, saying, "Don't worry, Teacher, I have already arranged everything we discussed before. If the Demon Sect followers dare to show themselves at this time, they will surely be struck down. However, there is something I still don't understand and wish to ask you to clarify."

"What is it? Speak."

"Teacher, you mentioned that the injury within you was caused by a remnant of a Golden Thunderbolt. Since you have resolved the misunderstanding with the little Taoist and now have good communication, why don't you just ask him to extract that power of the thunderbolt from your body?

Instead, why take the longer route and have him help you obtain Wood Spirit Liquid from the Secret Realm?"

Qingyun's expression was sincere as he continued patting the Old Dean's back while speaking.

"..."

Having heard his disciple's question, the Old Dean of Qingmu Academy pondered for a moment, then replied.

"Cough cough cough, Little Yun, I heard that there was trouble with an Evil Cultivator during the Secret Realm inspection today. Maybe we should talk about that instead."