Chapter 51: Re-entering the Secret Realm

Across the Green Vine Continent, many cultivators observing the night sky turned their gazes toward the direction of the Big Dipper. A Divine Transformation realm expert from the Star-Gazing Pavilion deduced the celestial signs and murmured, "The Big Dipper has shown two anomalies recently - one above the Seven Extremes Sect, and another near some ruins also connected to the Seven Extremes Sect. It seems the sect has produced an extraordinary master of stellar cultivation who has become an official Star Official of the Big Dipper!" The expert's expression turned solemn. "The Seven Extremes Sect hides more power than I imagined! Who could this great cultivator be?" Elsewhere, another senior cultivator sighed, "The Seven Extremes Sect will surely claim a place in future divination circles. Should we invite this fellow practitioner to the next Divination Conference?" These discussions circulated among the continent's elite, unknown to lower and mid-level cultivators. [Ding, Fame Points +530] [Ding, Fame Points +470] [Ding, Fame Points +514] A series of astonishing system notifications rang in Su Yuan's ears. Twenty-seven consecutive notifications sounded, all with large values, granting him a total of 13,500 fame points at once! This staggering amount surpassed all his previous accumulated fame, bringing his total to 25,000! This unexpected development took Su Yuan by surprise. He looked curiously at the Big Dipper in the sky, speculating about the source of these points - though he hardly needed to guess. He knew that around 500 fame points typically came from Divine Transformation realm cultivators. This meant over twenty Divine Transformation experts had suddenly become aware of him and taken note of his existence. The only recent event that could cause such an effect was his interaction with the Big Dipper. "The cultivation world is truly dangerous," Su Yuan hissed. "Just casually using the Big Dipper once attracted attention from so many Divine Transformation experts. Good thing I didn't choose [Thunderous Fame] - that would've been worse!" Imagining dozens of Divine Transformation experts visiting the Seven Extremes Sect made his back go cold. While that option would have granted even more fame points, the resulting trouble wouldn't have been worth it. At least now it was just celestial phenomena, unlikely to provoke extreme reactions. Looking down at his ring, Su Yuan discovered to his shock that his spirit stones had decreased by 3.3 million! "Such ridiculous consumption! When Zhuge Jian returns, I must make him reimburse me - at least five million!" he muttered before lazily reclining in his chair and pulling out a book to read leisurely. Let those Divine Transformation experts wonder all they wanted - he'd stay safely at home and drive them crazy with curiosity! Everything gradually returned to normal. After some initial commotion at Three Extremes Peak (formerly Hidden Peak), disciples eventually resumed their routines when their peak master failed to appear, continuing as they had before having a peak master. A new round of disciple recruitment began, with disciples piloting flying boats to various Ascension Cities to collect candidates. Immortal Seed Valley would soon reopen. Several days later, Su Yuan idly summoned Song Cai. Song Cai hurried over and immediately presented an account book. "Senior Brother, here are the shop's accounts for the past six months! We've earned a total of 3,783,920 spirit stones. Please review them!" Song Cai said respectfully. "Three hundred seventy thousand? Are you sure? That's unbelievable!" Su Yuan exclaimed. Song Cai explained, "We leased a large commercial building and sold quality goods at low prices, which proved extremely popular among rogue cultivators and minor faction members. With steady supplies from the Zhou, Zhang, and our Song families, plus your esteemed reputation, such earnings are reasonable. And this is just from Yellow-grade items! If we expand into Mysterious-grade items, profits would skyrocket!" "However, sales have gradually declined and should stabilize around 200,000-300,000 spirit stones monthly." Su Yuan waved his hand. "Stick to Qi Refining level items from now on - don't venture into Foundation Establishment tier. Keep shops small like before, just open them in out-of-the-way locations in other marketplaces under the same name." Song Cai blinked before nodding eagerly. "How wise, Senior Brother!" "From now on, give me half the profits and keep the other half for distribution - to families, subordinates, channels, rent. You'll oversee everything. Are you willing?" Song Cai's face flushed with excitement. "Absolutely! I won't let you down, Senior Brother!" "By the way, where's Song Qian? Why hasn't he come?" Su Yuan asked. "Family matters called him back. Should we recruit another disciple to assist?" "No need. Are you still a servant disciple?" Su Yuan inquired. "Thanks to your favor, I'm now an outer sect disciple!" Song Cai replied. "Not bad - Qi Refining fourth layer already. But you must keep improving. I'll recommend you for inner sect disciple status. Work hard - while managing affairs is important, don't neglect cultivation!" Song Cai hesitated. "But... isn't that inappropriate? I heard core disciples only get two inner sect recommendation slots." Su Yuan chuckled. "A trivial matter." Relieved and overjoyed, Song Cai felt deeply moved by his master's trust, resolving to manage the shops even more diligently. "Do you have any cultivation questions?" Su Yuan asked. "Yes, Senior Brother." Their Q&A session proceeded smoothly, with Su Yuan casually resolving Song Cai's numerous doubts, making his Qi Refining path suddenly clear. Song Cai felt like he was learning from a true grandmaster - Su Yuan's effortless explanations left him utterly awestruck. This was the true value of a core disciple! After handling miscellaneous matters, Su Yuan took his spirit fish to Immortal Seed Valley. Standing before a silver portal, Su Yuan smiled at the secret realm's entrance. He stepped forward calmly, passing through the shimmering gate. When he reappeared, he found himself in that familiar silver world. A silver fox materialized, covering its mouth in delight. "Su Yuan! You've finally come!" Su Yuan laughed. "Little Li, sorry to keep you waiting. Look what I brought!" He produced a steaming plate of roasted chicken. "What's this? It smells amazing!" Little Li asked curiously. "Roast chicken - delicious! Let's enjoy it by Silver Spirit Falls!" With stars trailing behind him, Su Yuan crossed most of the realm in a few steps, arriving at the waterfall's edge. As the realm's spirit, Little Li caught up instantly, astonished. "How... how have you grown so strong in barely a year!" "Just minor progress. Come, eat!" Su Yuan replied modestly. Man and fox sat by the lake, admiring the falls while enjoying their meal. One bite made Little Li's eyes shine as it devoured the chicken eagerly, clearly loving the new flavor. Su Yuan tossed it a storage bag filled with enough delicacies to last a year. Overjoyed, Little Li bounced around the lake like an excited child despite its ancient age. Meanwhile, Su Yuan contemplated Silver Spirit Falls, sensing the eighteen supreme truths of heaven and earth contained within - the Seven Extremes Sect's true treasure. "Little Li, would you like some company?" Su Yuan suddenly asked. "Of course! It's so boring here with hardly anyone to talk to!" the fox replied. Understanding, Su Yuan produced an enlarged fish tank artifact containing fifty lively spirit fish. Little Cai leaped out, cloud vapor automatically forming beneath it as it curiously circled the silver fox. "This is Little Cai - it has Nine-Colored Celestial Fish bloodline and would make good company for you," Su Yuan explained. Little Li observed, "I can sense its second-tier aura, but it can't speak or communicate mentally yet? Its bloodline must be incredibly pure - it's still in its juvenile stage!" "Essentially," Su Yuan agreed, eyeing the Silver Radiance Water in the lake. "Can this spiritual water nurture fish?" "Probably?" Little Li answered uncertainly. "Let's test it. Little Cai, go play in there!" Little Cai nodded before diving into the Silver Radiance Water lake, letting out happy sounds as it swam joyfully. Strands of the water merged into its body, adding another faint color to its scales. Seeing no issues, Su Yuan released the other forty-nine fish. Like wild horses freed, the fish darted through the water ecstatically. Their scales soon mirrored Little Cai's four-color glow, creating a dazzling display in the silver lake. As they absorbed the third-tier spiritual water - incredibly nourishing for them - their auras grew noticeably stronger. Suddenly, Su Yuan noticed Little Thirty-Six cautiously approaching the waterfall's base, its gaze fixed upward with unmistakable longing. "What's this little one trying to do?" Su Yuan wondered aloud. To his astonishment, Little Thirty-Six suddenly leaped up the falls against the current! It managed three consecutive jumps totaling three meters before the torrential Silver Radiance Water slammed it back down. Undeterred, the fish immediately swam up for another attempt, this time reaching three and a half meters before falling again. Strangely, each failure seemed to strengthen rather than weaken Little Thirty-Six. Su Yuan looked up the falls in confusion, spotting a newly appeared silver portal at the top. What had seemed like just an exit now struck him with sudden familiarity - this scene felt eerily reminiscent of something... A fish leaping over the dragon gate!