The next morning, the five of them set off toward the next location where Heavenly Fire Fruits grew.
According to Lu Li’s plan, they had to eliminate the cultivators from other places as quickly as possible before the news spread.
Otherwise, no matter how prepared they were, facing an encirclement of twenty or thirty people would get them eliminated.
Six days passed in the blink of an eye.
“Huh, this harvest is not bad.”
Lu Li’s eyes flickered, and the person who was still struggling became dazed and unfocused.
“How many of you are left?”
“Reporting to miss… This trip from Central Continent brought over three hundred people, about forty to fifty per sect.”
As the man spoke, Liu Qingyun, who had just finished killing enemies, also frowned.
“At most, this secret realm has at least seven or eight hundred people, or even a thousand.”
“Even if we kill them every time, we’d have to do it seventy or eighty times.”
Yuan He picked up a weapon from the ground and threw it into his storage bag.
“Benefactor Lu, should we revise the plan a bit?”
“Hmm…”
As Lu Li thought, the tail behind him gradually retracted, and he looked at Meng Fang, who was running over.
“How many Heavenly Fire Fruits have we collected now?”
“Three hundred thirty.”
Meng Fang scanned her storage ring.
“Should we next meet up with Senior Sister Lu’s junior sisters?”
“That’s enough materials for six Foundation Building Pills.”
Lu Li nodded, his long sword slicing through the youth’s waist token beneath him, causing him to vanish from the secret realm.
“Let’s head toward the Scorching Land next, and change our objective along the way.”
“Perfect. I want to look for the Imperial Sword Sect’s Sword Tower,” Liu Qingyun suggested. “There’s also Mind-Clearing Tea nearby that Junior Sister Lu wants.”
“The question is whether we can find Mind Calming Fruits,” Yuan He complained. “My sect grows a whole bunch, but I can’t just pick them myself. I either have to fight them or debate them. Sigh, I can only come to the secret realm to gather them.”
“That’s because Mind Calming Fruits are useful for Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators,” Ye Tingfeng joined the conversation. “We at the Qi Refining stage don’t really have heart demons or anything.”
“That’s true, but it’s always good to take these things early, to keep from losing oneself,” Yuan He said, taking out a map. “Too bad, this thing is always in dangerous places in the secret realm, guarded by demon beasts.”
“I’ve heard from sect elders that it’s probably a Foundation Establishment stage demon beast,” Meng Fang recalled for a moment. “Demon beasts are chaotic in thought. Eating many Mind Calming Fruits allows them to cultivate into human form sooner. There are often some fruits suitable for demon beasts growing nearby.”
“With that in mind, our route is already set.”
Lu Li sketched a few lines on his map.
“First look for the Sword Tower, then the demon beast, and finally meet up with my junior sisters.”
“I have no problem with that, but only those with a Sword Spiritual Root can go to the Sword Tower, so I’ll have to trouble everyone.”
Liu Qingyun bowed, taking out several talismans from his storage bag.
“These contain sword qi at the 13th Layer of Qi Refining. You can use them when encountering danger, as a reward for accompanying me.”
“Then I’ll take them.”
Yuan He was not polite and directly put them away. The two from the Beast Gate also declined for a moment, but ultimately went along.
For Lu Li, the Sword Tower was also a place he wanted to visit.
After using the Charm Technique many times, many memories would indeed appear in his mind.
Although these memories were harmless and mostly about defeating enemies, they were clearly meant for a woman—how to use the Charm Technique in a smile or frown, making others submit to her, hypnotizing them, making them devoted to her.
The more he used it, the more Lu Li felt he might not be able to return from this path. Not to mention that originally, for the Enthronement Ceremony, he had already transformed into a woman for a month. Now, entering the secret realm, he had to do it again out of necessity. Calculating this way, he would have to maintain a female form for a full nine days before he could recover. The longer time passed, the more his body and mind would become accustomed to this state.
For example, when resting at night, he would subconsciously stay together with Meng Fang.
When washing in a pool, he would subconsciously cover his chest and lower abdomen.
Moreover, he had indeed learned quite a bit of women’s knowledge in the sect, so to some extent, he even chatted happily with Meng Fang.
‘But this is not a long-term solution…’
Amid his swirling thoughts, Lu Li and his group searched all over the secret realm.
The Sword Tower was an experimental artifact left by a Nascent Soul Grandmaster from the Imperial Sword Sect. The finished product stood within the Imperial Sword Sect as a trial ground for disciples.
The Sword Tower in the secret realm only opened once a year, so the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi it contained was several times, even ten times, that of the sect.
“The downside is, this experimental artifact runs around on its own.”
After walking for the time it takes a few incense sticks to burn, Liu Qingyun closed his eyes again in thought, carefully sensing the direction.
“Southwest.”
“It’s fine. We’ve collected many herbs along the way; we can start alchemy.”
Yuan He’s eyes now glowed with a faint golden light, and with a casual pluck, he picked a spiritual herb.
“The harvest is not small.”
Lu Li also opened those pink eyes, searching for nearby heavenly treasures.
Although the Charm Technique had brought many effects to his words and actions, these Peach Blossom Eyes could actually “see” the abundance of spiritual qi.
Although it consumed True Yuan, it was much more convenient than relying on the naked eye.
“Big sects are great. We can only rely on spirit beasts,” Meng Fang sighed, holding the Gold-Seeking Beast in her hands. “We have average talent. We can learn the Beast Mimicry Art, but it never suits us well.”
“Speaking of which, Holy Maiden Lu’s Charm Technique has an effect similar to the Beast Mimicry Art,” Ye Tingfeng pondered for a moment.
“I’ve read in ancient texts in the Library Pavilion that it’s called something like the Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox.”
“I’ve also come across similar records, but those were from tens of thousands of years ago, and they were vague.”
Lu Li shook his head, but suddenly felt a force drawing him, his gaze unconsciously turning southwest.
Liu Qingyun did the same, stopping and narrowing his eyes.
“Miss Lu, you felt it too, right?” Liu Qingyun nodded. “The Sword Tower is not far from us.”
“But the Sword Tower should be a huge object, right?” Meng Fang looked carefully but saw nothing.
“That’s not it. A Nascent Soul Grandmaster forged an artifact—one flower, one world.”
Yuan He looked intently.
“Oh my, no wonder the Sword Tower moves—it’s become the shell of this strange thing!”
Lu Li stared and couldn’t help but laugh.
On the ground was a snail the size of a finger, carrying a slightly pointed shell on its back.
But through the Peach Blossom Eyes, he could see the spiritual qi surging under the shell.
“If that Nascent Soul elder saw this scene, he would probably be at a loss whether to laugh or cry.”
Liu Qingyun also saw the Sword Tower, a rare smile appearing on his face.
“I’ll go ahead. I’ll trouble everyone to stand guard!”