The Mysterious Jade

The palace-robed beauty wore a stern expression, her tone sharp and aggressive.

Yan Qingxuan showed no change in expression upon hearing this. She cast a faint glance at the woman and said, "Song Qiuyue, if a former loser like you hasn't died yet, how could I possibly go before you?"

"Something interesting?"

Wang Jianqiang's gaze swept between the palace-robed beauty and Yan Qingxuan, revealing a hint of curiosity.

It seemed there was history between these two.

And judging from their exchange, Yan Qingxuan appeared to be the one holding the upper hand.

At this thought, he realized he had never inspected Yan Qingxuan's information before and couldn't help but focus his mind to look.

The next moment, a screen of information about Yan Qingxuan appeared in his mind.

"Name: Yan Qingxuan

Gender: Female

Cultivation: Late-stage Core Formation

Age: 170 years

Root Bone: Heavenly Fire Spirit Root

Alignment Value: 10"

Another Heavenly Spirit Root!

And her cultivation was astonishingly powerful!

However, none of this was what shocked Wang Jianqiang the most.

What truly stunned him was that Yan Qingxuan's alignment value toward him was actually positive!

On the other side.

Song Qiuyue's expression darkened upon hearing Yan Qingxuan's words. Just as she was about to retort, Jia Wenchang suddenly cut in.

"Enough, you two. Today, we are here for the Frost Pond Secret Realm. Let’s not make fools of ourselves in front of the younger generation."

Song Qiuyue snorted coldly but ultimately held her tongue.

Yan Qingxuan merely smiled indifferently.

Secretly, she began introducing the top ten disciples of the Profound Clear Palace to Wang Jianqiang.

"Lin Xian'er, first among the outer disciples of the Profound Clear Palace."

"Xiao Wuya, second among the outer disciples of the Profound Clear Palace."

...

Wang Jianqiang’s gaze swept over the disciples of the Profound Clear Palace before finally settling on a white-robed woman.

Her jet-black hair cascaded down to her waist, her white robes fluttering gracefully.

Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, exuding an air of celestial elegance.

The only flaw was her haughty demeanor, as if she considered everyone beneath her.

"It seems the four major cultivation sects all have an imbalance—more women than men."

Snapping out of his thoughts, Wang Jianqiang recalled the rankings of the Joy Union Sect’s competition and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

"Now that everyone has arrived, let us open the secret realm."

At that moment, Elder Qingfeng of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect glanced at the leading elders and spoke.

"Agreed."

Yan Qingxuan, Jia Wenchang, and Song Qiuyue all nodded.

The four then each took out a jade token and tossed it into the air. They formed hand seals and channeled spiritual energy into the tokens.

Four beams of light erupted from the tokens, converging in midair.

At the point where the lights met, space distorted, and a dark spatial rift slowly tore open.

"The entrance to the Frost Pond Secret Realm has appeared."

"Disciples of the Profound Clear Palace, enter swiftly."

"Disciples of the Righteous Sun Sect, enter swiftly."

"Disciples of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, enter swiftly."

"Disciples of the Joy Union Sect, enter swiftly."

The four spoke almost simultaneously.

In the next moment, disciples from all four sects surged toward the entrance.

Wang Jianqiang and Wang Yuyao blended into the crowd of Joy Union Sect disciples as they flew into the rift.

Upon entering the spatial rift, Wang Jianqiang’s vision darkened.

Immediately, he felt an invisible force pulling at his body.

Before he could react, light returned to his eyes, and he found himself in an unfamiliar space.

He looked around.

Not a soul in sight.

As expected, the teleportation locations within the secret realm were randomized.

Snowflakes drifted endlessly from the sky.

The earth was blanketed in ice and snow, stretching as far as the eye could see in a vast expanse of white.

The trees and plants were all sculpted from ice crystals.

Strangely, these plants were not lifeless—he could clearly sense vitality within them.

Even more astonishing, some of the larger trees bore blossoms, and a few even had fruit!

Unable to resist, he stepped forward to inspect them.

After confirming that these plants were not spirit herbs, he picked a direction and began walking.

Whoosh—

Just as he had taken a few steps, a sharp whistling sound pierced the air.

With a flick of his finger, a small seal materialized before him.

A golden light erupted from the seal, enveloping him in a protective barrier.

Bang!

The next instant, a massive ice-feathered bird shot toward him, its beak—spanning nearly ten feet—colliding with the golden light.

The barrier remained unscathed.

The bird, however, let out a mournful cry before shattering into fragments upon impact.

"A mere Qi Refinement fifth-layer bird?"

Seeing this, Wang Jianqiang felt a twinge of embarrassment.

His lack of combat experience had led to an overreaction.

He had summoned the Perfect Radiant Seal for such a trivial threat—it was like using a cannon to kill a mosquito.

With a wave of his hand, he recalled the seal and examined the shattered ice on the ground.

Amid the fragments lay a dragon-eye-sized ice sphere, shimmering with a crystalline glow.

This object was known as a Frost Pearl, unique to the Frost Pond Secret Realm.

The realm earned its name from the frost pond at its heart.

The depths of the pond housed numerous rare spirit herbs and treasures.

However, the pond’s waters possessed a potent corrosive force.

Only by holding a Frost Pearl could one resist this erosion. Without it, even a Core Formation cultivator would instantly turn into an ice statue upon entering.

Frost Pearls were obtained by slaying creatures within the secret realm, and multiple pearls could be fused to create higher-grade ones.

The higher the pearl’s quality, the longer it could withstand the pond’s corrosive power.

To reap rewards from the frost pond, gathering as many pearls as possible was essential.

Wang Jianqiang pocketed the Frost Pearl and continued forward at a leisurely pace.

The secret realm would remain open for a full year—there was plenty of time.

...

The Frost Pond Secret Realm was unexpectedly vast.

After half a month of travel, Wang Jianqiang had yet to encounter another person.

He had, however, come across numerous creatures native to the realm.

He had collected dozens of Frost Pearls and significantly honed his combat skills.

Additionally, he had gathered a few medicinal herbs, though their value was only modest.

From what he knew, the deeper one ventured into the secret realm, the smaller the area became, increasing the likelihood of encountering others.

Here, danger didn’t just come from the realm itself—it could also come from disciples of the other three sects and even… fellow sect members.

Hummm—

At that moment, the earth trembled.

Several miles ahead, an overwhelming wave of scorching heat erupted like a volcanic explosion.

"So hot!"

"How could such intense heat suddenly appear in this world of ice and snow?"

Wang Jianqiang’s eyebrows rose, and he quickened his pace toward the source.

...

He was not the only one who noticed the anomaly.

"Hmm?"

"A fire-attribute phenomenon in the Frost Pond Secret Realm?"

"Interesting."

A burly man sensed the blazing energy and immediately dashed toward its origin.

...

"Fire-attribute energy!"

"Could it be a treasure manifesting? My luck seems to be holding."

A figure riding atop a flying sword chuckled before accelerating.

...

"A treasure’s emergence?"

"It seems dozens of miles away."

"For such intense heat to spread this far, the treasure must be extraordinary!"

A group of four gazed into the distance.

Their leader flicked his wrist, summoning a bronze leaf that expanded to several yards in size.

"Board quickly."

"This opportunity is ours for the taking."

...

Flying at full speed, Wang Jianqiang covered several miles in no time.

The next moment, he came to a halt, hovering mid-air.

Looking down, he saw that the ice and snow in this area had long since melted away.

All vegetation had been scorched into nothingness.

The earth had been seared into barren wasteland by an intense, scorching heat, with thick smoke rising in all directions.

At the center of this charred land, a fist-sized piece of jade hovered silently.

Its surface was smooth as a mirror, oval in shape, resembling a goose egg.

Through the jade’s translucent surface, a mass of azure flames could be seen flickering within.

A terrifying heat radiated outward, relentlessly spreading in all directions.