Chapter 266: Main Peak and Sub-Peaks
After Hua Changxi cleaned the tens of thousands of First Rank Spirit Grass she had collected the previous night, she did not leave the Secret Realm immediately. Instead, she harvested all the Spirit Grass in the entire southeastern region, cleaned them, and only then departed the Secret Realm.
By then, it was nearing evening, and all the retired Demon Suppressing Army soldiers she had brought with her today had sworn their Heart Demon Oaths.
The retired Demon Suppressing Army soldiers sent by Wei Zhenjie numbered one thousand. In the end, only seven hundred and twenty passed the inspection at the Oath Tablet and became Apprentices of the Dan Yuan Secret Realm.
As soon as Hua Changxi exited the Secret Realm, Eunuch Zhao handed her the remaining Identity Tokens.
“Master, those who did not pass were already led away from Dan Yuan Peak by Eunuch Yu earlier. The Apprentices who passed have now joined the team excavating the mountain path.”
Hua Changxi put away the tokens and, riding a cloud, took Eunuch Zhao towards the foot of Dan Yuan Peak.
Hundreds of people, and all of them cultivators, although these cultivators were generally in the Qi Refining Realm, and some were even disabled, the speed of excavating the mountain path was still quite fast.
Seeing that the sky was about to darken, Hua Changxi said to Eunuch Zhao, “Tell them to knock off for the day.”
After Eunuch Zhao left, Hua Changxi began to patrol the foot of the mountain.
She only had a general understanding of the overall appearance of Dan Yuan Peak; she needed to investigate the specific details of Dan Yuan Peak to gain a more intuitive understanding.
Hua Changxi stood at the foot of the mountain, her gaze flickering as she looked at the Plaza a thousand meters above.
Dan Yuan Peak was so much lower than the Plaza!
Hua Changxi circled the foot of the mountain and discovered that both the north and south sides were blocked by an invisible force.
Since mastering the spatial Law Power of the word ‘Rift’, she had become increasingly sensitive to spatial fluctuations. She could sense spatial barriers to the north, south, and east of Dan Yuan Peak.
In the areas where she encountered spatial barriers, she also found traces of Array Formations.
If she guessed correctly, there should be other mountain peaks around Dan Yuan Peak, and these mountain peaks were concealed and isolated by Array Formations.
This discovery caused Hua Changxi’s mood to fluctuate slightly.
She could recruit Apprentices for the Dan Sheng Hall by establishing an Oath Tablet and making Dan Yuan Peak appear. Could other Secret Realm Masters also make other mountain peaks appear by imitating her?
Hua Changxi established the Oath Tablet and recruited Apprentices under immense external threat and pressure. Now, thinking that other Secret Realm Masters could obtain a mountain peak simply by imitating her, without having to do anything or bear any responsibility, she felt a bit stifled.
However, she also knew that this was the general trend of the Sacred Land’s revival, something that could not be changed by human effort.
After being indignant for a while, Hua Changxi let the matter go. She always adhered to one principle in her actions: control what she could control, and let go of what she could not.
Hua Changxi explored towards the south of Dan Yuan Peak and discovered that the terrain was sloping downwards as she moved south.
The Plaza was already so much higher than the foot of the mountain, and the terrain was still sloping downwards. She was somewhat confused about the overall terrain of the Dan Sheng Hall.
On the west side of the mountain’s foot, Hua Changxi also discovered a huge Deep Pit.
Judging by its appearance and the condition of the surrounding mountains, this was likely formed by water flowing down from higher ground.
This Deep Pit should have originally been a Pond.
After Hua Changxi finished exploring the foot of the mountain, she ascended Dan Yuan Peak and, from bottom to top, explored the entire mountain.
Apart from a few Spirit Spring eyes on the mountain waist and summit that were slowly condensing Spiritual Energy, most of Dan Yuan Peak was desolate.
Perhaps because too much time had passed, apart from some obvious signs of fighting, Hua Changxi did not find any valuable information.
During her exploration, Hua Changxi made markings on some flat areas, preparing to build Palace Buildings for the Personnel Department, Logistics Department, Lecturer’s Hall, Mission Hall, Merit Hall, and Law Enforcement Hall in these locations.
After exploring the entire mountain, the sky had completely darkened. Hua Changxi did not return to Number Thirteen Qihuang Hall but instead flashed into the fourth level of the Secret Realm and then used a Teleportation Array to travel to Lingguang Hall.
Although she was eager to quickly handle matters concerning Dan Yuan Peak and the Dan Yuan Secret Realm, she also knew it couldn’t be completed in a short time, and she couldn’t let it delay her Cultivation.
A night passed.
The sun was high in the sky. Hua Changxi finished her Cultivation and teleported back to the Dan Yuan Secret Realm.
On the summit of Dan Yuan Peak, Eunuch Zhao, along with dozens of Hua Clan Members, had been waiting by the Oath Tablet.
Hua Changxi had originally expected that after Dan Yuan Peak appeared, many people would come to register to join the Dan Yuan Secret Realm. She never imagined that apart from the Hua Clan Members, there would be no one else.
“Jiu Niang.”
Seeing his younger sister arrive, Hua Sanlang’s face lit up with joy, and he quickly walked up to her. “We came to register yesterday, but who knew you wouldn’t be here.”
Hua Changxi first looked at the Hua Clan Members in front of the Oath Tablet, then shifted her gaze to Hua Sanlang. “Third Brother, you are clear about the conditions and requirements for joining the Dan Yuan Secret Realm, right?”
Hua Sanlang nodded. “We are clear. Pharmacist Xu explained it to us in great detail.”
Seeing Hua Changxi’s business-like demeanor, even though Hua Sanlang was her elder brother, he felt a bit uneasy.
Jiu Niang held grudges. When recruiting Apprentices before, she was resisted by Prince Shou and others. The Hua Clan Members did not immediately stand up to support her, so she must be unhappy.
Hua Changxi took out dozens of Identity Tokens and handed them to Eunuch Zhao, saying, “Do as you did yesterday, and continue to do so in the future.”
Eunuch Zhao, who was unsure of what attitude to adopt towards the Hua Clan Members, felt his heart settle upon hearing this.
His Master’s words indicated that the Hua Clan Members did not need to be given special treatment.
Moreover, from now on, no matter who came, they would just need to follow the rules.
Hua Changxi did not linger on the summit. With Eunuch Zhao supervising the Hua Clan Members in swearing their Heart Demon Oaths, she went down the mountain to find Eunuch Yu.
Seeing Hua Changxi leave without saying anything, Hua Sanlang felt both disappointed and resentful.
He thought that as blood relatives, he should be the most trusted by his sister. He never expected that she would rather let an Eunuch supervise them than have him do it.
Hua Changxi was unaware of Hua Sanlang’s resentment, and even if she had known, she would not have paid it any mind.
Although she personally disliked being constrained, she also knew that an organization definitely needed rules and regulations. Otherwise, let alone development, even the most basic stability could not be guaranteed.
She did not want to entrust important responsibilities to her family because she was worried that they would use familial affection to override regulations and hinder management.
At the foot of the mountain, after finding Eunuch Yu, Hua Changxi picked up a Tree Branch and drew a rough map of Dan Yuan Peak on the ground, then began explaining things to Eunuch Yu by pointing at certain areas.
“I have made markings in these areas.”
“Now, in addition to excavating the mountain path, you must also arrange for a group of people to build the Palace Buildings.”
Number Thirteen Qihuang Hall was too close to other Qihuang Halls. Any incident would quickly spread everywhere. Hua Changxi did not want to be watched, so she wanted to set up the recruitment location directly at the foot of Dan Yuan Peak.
“First, build a courtyard at the foot of the mountain specifically for recruiting Apprentices.”
“After it’s built, then build the Logistics Department.”
“The Logistics Department, in addition to a place for storing supplies, must also build a mess hall.”
“After that, the Lecturer’s Hall, Mission Hall, Merit Hall, and Law Enforcement Hall will be built in sequence.”
The Personnel Department, Logistics Department, Lecturer’s Hall, Mission Hall, Merit Hall, and Law Enforcement Hall were located sequentially upwards on Dan Yuan Peak. The Personnel Department was at the foot of the mountain, while the Law Enforcement Hall was already above the mountain waist.
“Also, the location for Apprentices to excavate their Cave Dwellings can only be below the mountain waist. To excavate a Cave Dwelling above the mountain waist where the Spiritual Energy is more concentrated, one must first become an Alchemist and a Physician.”
Eunuch Yu took note and quickly said, “Master, rest assured. The Logistics Department is responsible for food, clothing, housing, and transportation. I will lead the people to build these Palace Buildings as quickly as possible.”
Hua Changxi was about to say something more when suddenly, in the southeast direction of Dan Yuan Peak, a mountain peak one-fifth shorter than Dan Yuan Peak appeared out of thin air.
“This is…”
Hua Changxi’s expression brightened, and she immediately flew to the summit of Dan Yuan Peak. Before she could figure out which Secret Realm Master had caused the newly appeared mountain peak, another mountain peak appeared.
“How can this be?!”
On the Plaza of the Altar of Alchemy, Meng Qingyao looked incredulous, while Gu Xing was lost in thought.
That’s right, the two mountain peaks that suddenly appeared were activated by Meng Qingyao and Gu Xing.
Meng Qingyao looked at Gu Xing anxiously. “Senior Gu, why are our mountain peaks so much shorter than Dan Yuan Peak?”
Gu Xing looked at her. “Because ours are sub-peaks, while Dan Yuan Peak is the main peak.”
Meng Qingyao found it hard to accept. “Why is it like this?”
Gu Xing glanced at her and did not reply.
Why else could it be? It must be that the grade of the Secret Realm Hua Changxi obtained was higher than theirs!
Gu Xing was now certain that the Dan Yuan Secret Realm in Hua Changxi’s possession was an Eighth Rank Secret Realm.
