Looks Make Sense

The beauty of the Dark Emperor had reached a level nearly on par with that of the Little Corpse Spirit, for her appearance was already approaching perfection—truly the pinnacle.

No matter how much the Little Corpse Spirit transformed, it remained within this tier—at best, with more variety and richer styles.

"Fellow Daoist Gu, how would you like to be tested?" the Dark Emperor asked calmly.

Her breathtakingly beautiful face, paired with the dark golden robe, gave her an indescribable air of grace and nobility.

At this moment, Gu Qingfeng very much wanted to say, I’d like to be tested by performing a refreshing dance. Unfortunately, the flirtatious words lingered on the tip of his tongue, but his current strength held him back from voicing them.

"No need for a test. I know a thing or two about physiognomy, and just by looking at your face, I can tell you’re definitely a good person. Moreover, after carefully considering your words, I found them truly face-tually reasonable. So, I’d like to join the Dark Realm."

Dark Emperor: "..."

The others: "..."

At this point, Gu Qingfeng no longer cared whether the Dark Emperor was human or demon. It truly didn’t matter—if she was human, great; if she was a demon, well... even better!

If not for his current lack of strength, Gu Qingfeng would have already pulled off a domineering CEO-style wall slam, then flashed a wicked, arrogant smile and told her in a deep, sultry voice:

"Woman, from this moment on, you belong to me."

Why else strive to grow stronger?

For the sake of doing as one pleases!

For the sake of I see, I conquer!

After a brief silence, the Dark Emperor donned her mask once more and said calmly, "Since Fellow Daoist Gu has no objections, welcome to the Dark Realm.

However, before we proceed, Fellow Daoist Gu—now that you’ve seen my true face, why not reveal yours as well?"

The moment these words were spoken, the others were stunned, their eyes fixed on Gu Qingfeng’s handsome face.

I knew it—no one in this world could be that handsome. So it was a disguise.

Some were inwardly shocked. Everyone present was a Divine Realm expert, their discernment naturally extraordinary. Yet, aside from the Dark Emperor, no one had noticed. This newcomer’s methods are incredibly refined.

Gu Qingfeng was also slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected his disguise to be seen through. The Dark Emperor’s strength was undoubtedly far beyond the peak of the Divine Realm—she might even have reached the level above it.

But he didn’t mind. Revealing his true face was no issue—it was just as handsome anyway.

So, Gu Qingfeng removed the Phantom Spirit Ghost Mask, revealing his true appearance.

"Eh?! You—!" Jue Mingzi suddenly exclaimed, drawing everyone’s attention.

"You’re Gu Qingfeng! What in the world is going on here?!"

"Gu Qingfeng?!" someone asked Jue Mingzi, inquiring who Gu Qingfeng was.

Jue Mingzi explained, "Gu Qingfeng is Fellow Daoist Gu’s disciple. Back then, it was through Gu Qingfeng that I contacted Fellow Daoist Gu."

Everyone turned their gazes to Gu Qingfeng.

Without hiding anything, Gu Qingfeng said plainly, "Fellow Daoist Jue Mingzi, the ‘disciple’ you met before was actually my clone. When wandering the martial world, who doesn’t have an alias?"

"Then may I ask your real name?"

"Gu Qingfeng."

Jue Mingzi suddenly understood. I knew it—no one would actually name themselves ‘Gu Shenghui’ or ‘Gu Panshenghui,’ such narcissistic names. So it was a fake one.

The others didn’t press further. After all, everyone had their secrets. For the Dark Realm, as long as one wasn’t a demon spy, nothing else really mattered.

After some small talk, the Dark Emperor gave a brief introduction to the Dark Realm—its members, history, and core mission.

It felt eerily similar to a new employee orientation, with the manager explaining the company culture.

Gu Qingfeng nearly dozed off—mostly because the Dark Emperor was speaking while wearing her mask. If she had taken it off, he might have stayed awake.

After what felt like an eternity, Gu Qingfeng finally gained a rough understanding of the so-called Dark Realm.

In truth, the Dark Realm was an independent pocket dimension akin to a blessed paradise. It could move and had been discovered by the Dark Emperor’s ancestors thousands of years ago, becoming a stronghold for human Divine Realm experts ever since.

Throughout history, the Dark Realm had been located multiple times by the Shepherd Dogs, suffering heavy losses and nearly losing its legacy. This led to the Dark Realm frequently changing locations and implementing increasingly strict vetting procedures.

Earlier, entering the Dark Realm from Zhang Ji’s Coffin Shop had been achieved through a spell called Moonlit Water Grotto—passing through the moon’s reflection in the well water.

The entry point wasn’t fixed. Today it might be Zhang Ji’s Coffin Shop; tomorrow, Li Ji’s Coffin Shop—or even a well in some other place. According to the Dark Realm’s members, entering required not only the correct location but also a specific time and a passphrase.

The passphrase was fixed, but the timing corresponding to each location constantly changed. For security, only the Dark Emperor knew these changes—only she could decide when and where to open the passage.

Every mission departure or return was coordinated by the Dark Emperor. Otherwise, entering the Dark Realm was impossible.

In short, the Dark Realm’s vetting and security measures were extreme—all to prevent even a single spy from slipping in.

The Dark Realm’s daily tasks boiled down to three:

1. Recruit newly ascended Divine Realm experts.

2. Seek out humans with the potential to reach the Divine Realm, take them as disciples, and bring them to the Dark Realm for training.

3. Oppose the Shepherd Dogs.

The Dark Realm wasn’t always on the defensive. Sometimes, they took the initiative to weaken the Shepherd Dogs’ forces.

Gu Qingfeng also got what he wanted—information about the Shepherd Dogs.

Their headquarters were in the Ten Thousand Demons Nation.

When he heard this, Gu Qingfeng nearly shed tears of excitement.

Originally, his plan had been to head straight for the Ten Thousand Demons Nation, but various incidents had delayed him. After the Young Master Yin incident, he had already dismissed the Ten Thousand Demons Nation as too weak, setting his sights on the Shepherd Dogs instead—hence his decision to join the Dark Realm.

Who would’ve thought that the Ten Thousand Demons Nation was actually the Shepherd Dogs’ lair?!

Damn it!

It was all because the Ten Thousand Demons Nation usually acted half-dead, blocked by the Great Yan Dynasty at the Two Realms Mountain, making him mistakenly believe they were weak.

Turns out, the Ten Thousand Demons Nation had been farming humans like livestock.

Through the Dark Emperor’s explanation, Gu Qingfeng also learned the full layout of the Qing Realm’s landmass.

He had always assumed the Great Yan Dynasty was the world’s center, but that wasn’t the case.

The true center was the Ten Thousand Demons Nation!

The Ten Thousand Demons Nation occupied the world’s heart, the most advantageous position, and from there, it had split the Qing Realm’s continent into four regions—east, south, west, and north—each housing a superpower alongside countless smaller nations.

It was as if the livestock pens had been divided into four sections.

And the Great Yan Dynasty was the eastern superpower.

The Shepherd Dogs had done this to divide humanity, preventing the Qing Realm’s humans from uniting, while also making it easier to manage and plunder the population.

It had to be said—the Ten Thousand Demons Nation had gone to great "efforts" to please the Upper Realm’s Sacred Clan.

This also helped Gu Qingfeng understand why the Dark Realm had over a hundred Divine Realm experts. They weren’t all from the Great Yan Dynasty—they hailed from nations across all four regions.