Chapter 168: Chapter 168

The five stepped through the gate of the secret realm, leaving behind the twilight’s radiance and distant clamor. What greeted them was the night of the Forest of Corpses. Not a single star shone in the sky, and the withered branches of the trees blotted out the heavens, forming a cage that enveloped the earth.

Yan Qing wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt like the fallen leaves on the ground had multiplied, the trees had grown barer, and even the light from the two white-skin spirit lanterns flanking the manor gate had dimmed slightly. But once they stepped across the threshold, the brazier flames inside blazed so fiercely it was as if they were burning a hole in the darkness—the entire manor illuminated as though set ablaze.

They passed through the empty front hall into a courtyard that hadn’t been touched by human presence for nearly a century. The ground was spotless, and the flora within the garden was still alive. Time seemed to have frozen at the moment Si Wuxie had arranged it, not the slightest thing out of place.

「If I didn’t have a child, I’d want to be like Si Wuxie,」Medicine Master Wen suddenly sighed.「Choosing a secret realm to leave behind a legacy—just thinking about countless heroes striving for my inheritance in the coming centuries—it would feel like my time in this world wasn’t in vain.」

「You’d at least have to be a Foundation Messenger to have that kind of privilege,」Beiyou said with a laugh.「A Third-Stage Messenger couldn’t possibly seal off a secret realm for a hundred years.」

「How do other Demon-Path Messengers handle their legacies when they’re dying?」Bunny Heroine asked curiously.

「Generally speaking, Demon-Path Messengers don’t get the chance to deal with their legacies. Most die directly in battle,」Boreuo said.「Only a few manage to escape the Demon Path and live under a new name elsewhere, starting a family and passing their legacy to a disciple or descendant. It’s only people like Si Wuxie, with no kin and who lived to die of old age, who would consider establishing a legacy.」

「Speaking of which, I remember Zhong Ji mentioning you had a son? He even competed with me in bidding for sword manuals,」Bunny Heroine turned to look at the Blood Minister.「So your legacy will go to your son, huh?」

Veins bulged on the Blood Minister’s forehead as he shot Bunny Heroine a cold glance.「None of your damn business.」

Suddenly, there was a sonic boom. The Blood Minister had returned to his original spot, and Beiyou’s raised right arm—intended to block—had its sleeve torn open, revealing three fierce claw marks. As if unfazed, Beiyou casually swallowed a Healing Pill, the gashes healing swiftly. He shrugged.「You just can’t take a joke, huh, Blood Minister.」

「You think that’s funny?」the Blood Minister said coldly.

「Your reaction is what’s funny. You act like you care so much, but have you even visited your kid all these years? You probably don’t even dare to.」Beiyou’s tone turned flat.「After all, if you could ‘accidentally’ choke your own younger brother to death, crushing your kid wouldn’t be any harder.」

「The reason we’ve been able to coexist all these years isn’t because we get along—it’s because we simply can’t kill each other. People like us, with corruption rooted deep in our bones, can only look after ourselves in this life.」

Bunny Heroine glanced at Beiyou, then at the Blood Minister, and pulled out a stick of candied hawthorn from her inventory to munch on. With a look of 『“Y’all go ahead, don’t mind me”』, she resembled a child who’d wandered into an adult quarrel—full of curiosity and confusion.

「We’ve arrived,」Boreuo interrupted the drama.

In the courtyard ahead, five demons drifted about. The number was fewer than in the front hall, but that was no cause for relief—fewer numbers meant stronger foes.

Among the five, four wore white robes, and one elite wore red. All their faces were veiled. Their names were 「Maid Who Died in Vain」 and 「Noblewoman Who Died in Vain」. Considering the courtyard was likely where the womenfolk once stayed, it was obvious they were casually slain here by Fu Xiang.

「Just like in the Skull Tower, the red-robed demon also bears a golden scar. If you attack with Buddhist Tokens, all five will go berserk—their attack and movement speeds will spike drastically,」Boreuo explained.「If that were all, we’d still have ways to deal with them. But… you see that circle array, right?」

「Of course we do. We’re not blind.」

Amid the demon-infested courtyard was a massive round formation utterly out of place, its faint blue glow enveloping nearly half the space. Even the demons were tinged blue—none could escape it. Updates are released by N0veI.Fiɾe.net

For nearly a hundred years, no one had entered this place. Not only were there undying demons, but the legacy of a Foundation Messenger remained.

「This array nullifies attacks,」Boreuo laid out the intel bluntly.「Step into it, and any attack you attempt will be distorted. Your thoughts, senses, muscles, orientation—if you try to strike anything, you’ll almost certainly miss.」

「Even we, the Messengers challenging this secret realm, can’t avoid its effects?」asked Medicine Master Wen.

「Forget being a Messenger—you could be a lump of dog crap and still miss,」the Blood Minister spat nastily.

「But it’s not all bad news. The good part is, the array affects the demons too—just not as much. They can probably land two out of five hits,」Boreuo said.

Boreuo gave a bitter smile.「Beiyou and I can’t land a single hit. Only the Blood Minister can hit one out of four.」

Medicine Master Wen’s pupils trembled. After fighting shoulder-to-shoulder last night, she knew full well how powerful Boreuo and Beiyou were—top-tier Third-Stage fighters even in the military garrison. Though you couldn’t directly compare Righteous and Demon Paths, since killing people and killing demons were two different disciplines, with fully equipped Tokens, their combat prowess should be on par with Helan Que.

Yet even they were reduced to the level of ants before the might of a Foundation Messenger—not even qualified to land a punch!

「To wield all under heaven, to manipulate the karma of all beings,」Medicine Master Wen sighed.「Even if they’ve been dead for years, a Foundation Grandmaster remains a mountain Third-Stage Messengers can’t climb.」

The Three Guardians nodded faintly. They might aspire to reach Foundation level, but this was their first time experiencing its power firsthand. It wasn’t that Foundation Messengers didn’t roam the outside world—like Ying Le of the Qi Kingdom who sat on the throne every day—but who would dare say, “Hey, could you give us a demo of your Foundation-level techniques”?

Anyone who experienced those powers firsthand usually ended up reincarnated in the underworld. Even someone like Medicine Master Wen, a royal descendant, was no exception. They all knew Foundation was powerful—but what kind of power exactly, they had no way of imagining.

Now, they had finally glimpsed the tip of the Foundation iceberg.

But no matter how much one heard, nothing beat experiencing it personally. Medicine Master Wen suggested trying out the array herself. The Three Guardians didn’t object, but made it clear they wouldn’t join her.

「You’ll soon understand how we feel,」Boreuo said with a bitter smile.

As expected, after attacking the nearest white-robed demon four or five times, Medicine Master Wen promptly withdrew from the array. Once she stepped out, the demons didn’t pursue—they seemed restricted to that zone, saving the group the trouble of resetting aggro while escaping.

Clutching her Soul-Severing Spear, Medicine Master Wen rested for quite a while. Even with her face veiled, her eyes betrayed her lingering shock. Only after a long pause did she offer a definitive assessment:「Out of control.」

「Once I started attacking inside the array, everything went haywire. My brain told me to raise my arm, but the muscles went limp. My eyes lied to me about direction. Even stabbing with my eyes closed, I found my body had shifted without me realizing.」

「I lost all control of myself—I became a puppet.」She gripped her spear tighter, eyes filled with both fear and longing.「Foundation… can actually reach this level!」

The Three Guardians understood her astonishment and momentary loss of composure. They had gone through the same today: shock, fear, despair, yearning, helplessness—all surging in turn, before hardening into one unshakable resolve: they had to claim Si Wuxie’s legacy, even if it meant working with her!

Having witnessed such a divine Foundation technique, who could still resign themselves to being Third-Stage for life? Even the strongest among them was but a mortal before Foundation!

「Scared, brat?」the Blood Minister noticed Bunny Heroine had been silent since arriving and couldn’t resist mocking her.「Don’t even have the guts to go in? Figures—you’re still just a nursing little brat.」

Bunny Heroine glanced at him.「None of your damn business.」

Ignoring the fuming Blood Minister, Yan Qing scratched his head as he stared at the glowing array on the screen, at a loss for words.

▶「Formation of Confounding Primal Chaos」

▶「Source: Primal Chaos One-Essence Sword Technique」

▶「Duration: Permanent, until re-deployed」

▶「Effect: Reduces accuracy of all targets within by 15%–50%. The weaker the target, the greater the reduction.」◀