"You must be Ye Guan's accomplice!" Xuan Yang roared, glaring fiercely at the Left Elder. It was a conclusion that he reached upon noticing something amiss. There was no enmity between them, so why was the old bastard standing in their way like a mad dog? The only explanation was that they were Ye Guan's accomplices. Xuan Yang's face darkened at the realization.

The enraged Left Elder transformed into a ray of sword light and charged at Xuan Yang.

Meanwhile, Xuan Yang surreptitiously crushed a transmission talisman. He needed reinforcements. Just the two of them weren't strong enough to handle the group of people before them.

And just like that, the fierce battle resumed...

***

Ye Guan and the group continued their journey inside the secret realm. Soon, they found themselves before an ocean.

The ocean seemed endless, and the group frowned upon seeing it.

"It seems that we need to take a boat," said Zhou Fan with a smile while pointing at the shore.

Everyone followed her finger and saw that she was pointing at a wooden boat on the shore.

The boat wasn't large, but it could accommodate about twenty people.

"Why is there a boat here?"

Zhou Fan smiled slightly and remarked, "Someone must have been here, and they used that boat to cross the ocean."

Someone else was here before them?

Everyone present was surprised and shocked.

The black-robed middle-aged man asked, "I thought we're the first group of people to enter this place?"

"No, we're not the first ones here," Zhou Fan shook her head, explaining, "The array outside was set in place by a Tier Four civilization, but the principles behind its construction are drastically different compared to the arrays in here. I assume that a powerful Tier Four civilization must have been here, and they created an array to conceal this place until their return."

Ye Guan glanced at Zhou Fan, feeling quite surprised. What an observant young woman.

Everyone present felt a bit disappointed. It turned out that someone had already been here, which meant that they could only pick up leftovers.

Zhou Fan smiled. "Don't be disappointed, everyone. There might be surprises ahead."

With that, she waved her jade fan, and the boat below was moved into the ocean. Moments later, everyone hopped onto the boat and soon sailed away.

Standing at the bow of the boat, Ye Guan enjoyed the cool sea breeze.

Just then, a fragrant breeze blew past his nose. Zhou Fan had walked up to him.

Ye Guan smiled slightly. "Lady Fan."

Zhou Fan smiled back, "Young Master Ye, you don't seem particularly interested in the things. Why is that?"

"It's not that I'm not interested at all. I was interested in that golden tree earlier. I could afford to bid for it, but it wasn't worth it."

He had the tiny pagoda and the Qingxuan Sword, so he wasn't really that interested in other divine items. In his eyes, Ancestral Veins were more important than external objects.

Zhou Fan smiled faintly and said nothing.

Just then, the boat turned before a hill, and everyone was by an endless mountain range that seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see.

Countless waterfalls cascaded down the distant cliffs, and their waters merged with the ocean down below.

It was a magnificent sight.

Unfortunately, the sky was dark and gloomy, while the water was murky.

Just then, a flock of bizarre three-legged birds flew overhead, and they were screeching mournfully as they circled above the boat.

Everyone became wary at the sight.

Meanwhile, Zhou Fan was in awe at the distant scenery. "A majestic silver river... what a rare sight."

Ye Guan nodded slightly. "If I had no responsibilities whatsoever, I'd explore the vast expanse and burn its beautiful sceneries in the retina of my eyes."

Zhou Fan turned to Ye Guan and smiled. "Young Master Ye, you like traveling as well?"

"I do." Ye Guan nodded.

Zhou Fan suggested, "Why don't we travel together in the future?"

Ye Guan was taken aback.

Zhou Fan's expression remained unchanging as she said, "Cultivators live much longer than ordinary people. And I believe it's quite dull to spend all our life cultivating the Dao."

Ye Guan smiled at the remark and asked, "Does that mean you're a fan of exploration as well, Lady Fan?"

"I've been doing just that over the years," Zhou Fan nodded and said, "I once found a mysterious sea region. The corpse of a woman was at the bottom of that sea, and she'd open her eyes once every ten thousand years. Whenever she did that, the sea would dry up, the satellites overhead would reverse in trajectory, and the starry skies would be devastated, causing the fall of many stars. Shockingly, the flow of time would reverse, too.

"Of course, that's not only the bizarre place that I found. There was this star field that had an endless stone staircase with a stone next to it. Two large characters were written on the stone tablet, and they read 'Dao Stairs.' It is said that only Path Creation Realm experts can reach its summit. Once at the summit, they'll have a bird's eye view of the vast expanse as if they were an almighty god."

"Did you reach the summit?" Ye Guan asked, sounding curious."

Zhou Fan smiled. "I tried it, but I couldn't make it past the ten thousandth step."

Ye Guan was puzzled. "Why not?"

Zhou Fan revealed a helpless look. "I was too weak. Climbing higher would have put my life at risk."

"Are you sure only Path Creation Realm experts can reach the summit?" Ye Guan asked seriously.

Zhou Fan nodded. "More or less."

"Who put those stairs there?"

"I have no idea." Zhou Fan shook her head with a smile. "It's still a mystery."

Ye Guan fell silent.

"I also find this unique place with an endless river called the Time River. It's said that an unparalleled being had used their supreme power to capture the flow of time and condensed it into a river..." Zhou Fan suddenly became excited as she exclaimed, "That river is the most beautiful river I have ever seen. Unfortunately, you can't stay there for too long."

Ye Guan was puzzled. "Why not?"

Zhou Fan smiled wryly and replied, "The river contains the essence of time, and it erodes your lifespan. You can enjoy the scenery there for as long as you want, but you can only do it once."

Ye Guan was silent.

"The vast expanse is truly vast, and its wonders are infinite. I wonder if I can see all its marvelous sceneries within my lifetime."

"Are you from the imperial house of your civilization?"

"That's right," said Zhou Fan with a nod.

"Judging from your talent and strength, you must be a contender for the throne. Am I right?"

"Nope, you're wrong."

Ye Guan was surprised. "Really?"

Zhou Fan nodded and explained, "There are over ten thousand princes and princesses in the Great Zhou. The heir is chosen in a direct and simple way. The heir is selected every one hundred years, and the most capable descendant with the most political support within those years becomes the heir."

Ye Guan was a bit confused. "Every one hundred years?"

"Yes." Zhou Fan nodded. "Once someone becomes the heir, they can't slack off and must keep on becoming even stronger to maintain their position. Those who don't succeed shouldn't lose hope. If they become stronger and gather more allies, they might succeed in the next selection."

"What a harsh system," Ye Guan remarked.

"Indeed, it's very harsh, but there's a reason it still exists. Throughout history, the heirs of the Great Zhou are rarely incompetent."

Ye Guan suddenly asked, "Has anyone in the Great Zhou ever rebelled? For example, has anyone ever committed patricide?"

Little Pagoda was dumbfounded.

Zhou Fan turned to Ye Guan and blinked. "Why do you ask that? Does that often happen in your hometown?"

Ye Guan laughed awkwardly and replied, "No, I was just curious."

"There's a new emperor every five hundred years in Great Zhou, and they must be a Path Creation Realm expert. Actually, it is better to be the crown prince in Great Zhou."

Ye Guan was puzzled. "Why?"

Zhou Fan explained, "The emperors of the Great Zhou are actually figureheads. Once they reached the Path Creation Realm, they'd have long abandoned all attachment to the mundane world. The empire's resources are at their disposal, but the one who actually manages them is the crown prince, and the crown prince uses those resources as well. Once you become the crown prince, you'll have unlimited access to Ancestral Veins. You can enter the Great Zhou Armory and the inheritance grounds three times every one hundred years. It really is amazing. As for the emperor, he'd only appear during a crisis. It is impossible to see him without a crisis going on."

"I see..." Ye Guan muttered and stared at Zhou Fan, "Have you ever thought about becoming the heir?"

Zhou Fan nodded without any hesitation. "Of course, I'll become extremely powerful and wealthy by becoming the heir."

Ye Guan smiled but said nothing.

"Young Master Ye, why don't you join me? If I become the heir, we can share the profit," Zhou Fan teased.

The Right Elder, who had been keeping his eyes closed, suddenly looked up and stared at Ye Guan.

Ye Guan hurriedly shook his head, saying, "No, no, no. I'm just going to drag you down with my meager strength."

"

Hahaha,

" Zhou Fan chuckled and retorted, "Strength isn't everything. Your personality is even more valuable. You're honest and easy to get along with; you're worth relying on—I mean, befriending,

hahaha.

"

Ye Guan was speechless.

"Look!" someone exclaimed.

Everyone turned and saw a massive pitch-black vortex on the sea surface about several thousand meters away.

Dark clouds were gathering above the vortex, and the clouds spat thick bolts of lightning that went straight down into the vortex.

"There are unknown creatures down there," someone remarked solemnly.

Ye Guan looked at the pitch-black vortex and cast his divine sense. However, it vanished without a trace upon getting close enough to the vortex.

The group made the boat stop.

Afterward, the black-robed middle-aged man looked at an elderly man in white beside him. "Old Bai, go and take a look."

The elderly man in white glanced at the black-robed middle-aged man and replied, "Why don't you go?"

"I don't want to die," the black-robed middle-aged man said calmly.

The elderly man in white frowned, "Did you reach the half-step Path Creation Realm using pills?"

The black-robed middle-aged man was about to respond when Zhou Fan pointed out. "There's a mysterious beast cultivating over there."

A mysterious beast?

Everyone turned, and their expressions grew solemn.

Outside, they were top-tier supreme elites, but they had to be cautious in this place.

In addition to the unknown, they had to be wary of each other as well.

Just then, a shadowy figure emerged from the sea surface.

The shadowy figure was surrounded by terrifying lightning energy, and a terrifying wave of lightning aura locked onto everyone present.

In response, they all bent their knees slightly and got ready to act at a moment's notice.

The shadowy figure was taken aback upon seeing so many people. It retracted its lightning aura and said, "Greetings, Fellow Daoists!"

The shadowy figure decisively gave up, knowing that it was too weak to defeat so many experts.