Inside Feixian Academy, sunlight danced across the shimmering lake, and vast weeping willows along the shore drifted like a veil of green smoke.
Although the grounds were packed with throngs of famous disciples, Qin Ming and Xiao Wu were beginning to suspect they might not find anyone to team up with at all.
Xiao Wu squeezed through the crowd toward a radiant young woman surrounded by admirers. "Goddess Jiang, I've finally found you!"
The radiant girl hailed from Bodhi Academy, which had deep ties to the esoteric sect. Her name was Jiang Ruoli, and she was widely renowned. As the leader of this circle, she looked surprised. "Excuse me, and you are...?"
Xiao Wu immediately beamed with a brilliant smile. "Me? Wu Yaozu, one of the fiercest fighters on the Newborn path this year! My brother and I want to join your team."
In an instant, Jiang Ruoli understood. This was no acquaintance—he was offering his services in hopes of entering the secret realm alongside them. She offered an apologetic smile. "I'm terribly sorry, Brother Wu, but our team is already full. Why don't you try elsewhere?"
"Fair enough. Bodhi Number Two." Wu Yaozu did not dawdle in the slightest. He turned on his heel and marched toward the next group.
"What did he mean by that?" Jiang Ruoli and those around her were left utterly baffled.
Next, they watched Xiao Wu squeeze his way into the Tianpeng Daoist Sanctuary group, his face full of smiles once more. "Senior Brother Gan Jincheng! I've long admired your illustrious name. I've been looking for you for ages..."
Before long, he was turned down again, grumbling under his breath, "See you, Tianpeng Number One!"
"Fairy Lin Qianyi, pure and untainted by worldly dust, truly the foremost among our generation! I've waited for you so long..." Xiao Wu approached the genius disciple of Yuhua Daoist Sanctuary.
Clad in silver armor, Lin Qianyi regarded him with suspicion. Unfamiliar with who he was, she politely declined once she understood his intent.
"Alright, Yuhua Number Two, farewell." Xiao Wu spun around and walked away.
Jiang Ruoli and the others slowly caught on. The fellow was boundless enthusiasm when greeting people, showering them with titles like Goddess, Senior Brother, or Fairy. But the moment he was rejected, he discarded their names entirely. A senior brother became Number One, while a fairy or goddess became Number Two, each prefixed by their academy or sanctuary.
"Talk about... cold and pragmatic!"
"Huh, Bodhi Number Two is watching me. Could she have changed her mind?" Xiao Wu muttered to Qin Ming, noticing Jiang Ruoli glancing their way.
Jiang Ruoli's face stiffened. Her hearing was exceptionally sharp; she had indeed guessed right. She had gone from Goddess Jiang straight to Bodhi Number Two.
"Keep your voice down," Qin Ming cautioned.
To be fair, there were over a dozen renowned academies and sanctuaries present, boasting countless genius disciples. Having been turned down, Xiao Wu had no desire to memorize every single one of their names.
"Senior Brother Wang Lijie, handsome as polished jade..."
"Fine, Dragon-Elephant Number One!"
Gradually, more people noticed the two youths repeatedly hitting walls, unwanted by any team, and realized they were giving everyone code names.
"Those two friends of yours are running into closed doors everywhere," remarked Zhao Muyao, dressed in snow-white robes, letting out a soft laugh as she glanced at Ling Yu.
No sooner had she spoken than the culprit walked over. Xiao Wu had no idea that this woman from Chunyang Academy had already turned down Ling Yu's recommendation on their behalf.
"Fairy Zhao, with your peerless grace..." Xiao Wu wore an earnest expression, heaping praise on her before stating his desire to join their team.
"My apologies, but we have no need for more members," Zhao Muyao said, shaking her head lightly.
"Farewell, Chunyang Number Two!" Without the slightest lingering hesitation, Xiao Wu turned away before she could even finish speaking, leaving her with only his retreating back.
Zhao Muyao froze, her expression hardening in disbelief.
Right after that, Xiao Yaqin, an illustrious disciple from Bijie Daoist Sanctuary, was promptly christened Bijie Number Two.
"Xin Youdao, what is your friend's problem?" Xiao Yaqin demanded.
"Ah, I spaced out. Didn't hear a word."
Qin Ming felt that Xiao Wu had truly mastered the art of self-reliance. In this state, he didn't need anyone looking out for him; he ventured in every direction without feeling the least bit self-conscious.
Even so, finding a team to take them in remained nearly impossible.
Shortly after, an unusual Newborn caught everyone's attention the moment he walked over. He was simply too distinctive—hands like palm-leaf fans, a face as broad as a basin, and legs thick as pillars.
Qin Ming recognized him immediately. It was Xiang Yiwu, whom he had met at the Luofu Immortal Mountain ruins—the Tathagata renegade.
With a physique like that, Xiang Yiwu could not conceal his identity even if he tried. He was as broad as two ordinary men put together, his thick, coarse black hair stiff as steel needles.
It didn't take long for several teams to vie for him. Once they knew who he was, they recognized a peerless talent among his peers. Xiao Wu felt indignant. Why was the gap between people so massive? The two of them had been ignored, groveling to join only to be rejected at every turn, while this hulking brute was suddenly the center of attention!
"He's one of us!" Qin Ming whispered secretly.
"Never mind, then."
However, the Tathagata renegade was not destined to stay.
A senior figure walked over and led him away, explaining that he did not belong to the Kunling academies and had to be sent over to the esoteric sect and outer realm contingents to enter via another entrance alongside them.
Others shared a similar fate. Lu Zhen of Yinyang Daoist Temple, who had matched Tang Xumi in combat at Mount Luofu and helped Li Qingxu nearly seize a near-immortal item, was also present, but he too was quickly escorted away.
Qin Ming was astonished. Were the formidable figures of the Newborn path finally beginning to surface one after another?
Soon, he had to confront a harsh reality: he and Xiao Wu had still failed to join a single team. Neither the renowned talents of the previous cohort nor the new disciples of this year were willing to bring them along.
The truth was that these teams had quietly finalized their rosters long before arriving.
Even Liu Hanya, the famous beauty from Shanhe Academy, turned them away.
"Senior Sister, we're on the same side!" Xiao Wu pleaded.
"I'm really sorry, but my team is genuinely full," Liu Hanya replied with difficulty.
With that, Shanhe Number Two was born.
Once Liu Hanya realized what the title implied, she shot both of them a sharp glare.
From what Qin Ming and Xiao Wu gathered, this secret realm was well worth exploring and harbored quite a few extraordinary treasures.
A well-informed disciple revealed the inside details: "Word has it that this trip isn't into one of the old secret realms, but into a newly conquered plot of land—part of the realm atop the plateau ruled by the auspicious beast!"
Presently, the older generation had already begun the initial clearing of that plateau.
Qin Ming and Xiao Wu could only sigh. Being a Newborn was a miserable existence; even getting hired or teaming up required prior connections. Arriving on-site as complete unknowns left them with no chance at all of joining at the last minute.
In the end, the two put their heads together and decided they would simply have to form their own team.
"Senior, I walk dual paths and am on the immortal path as well! I can establish my own team!" Xiao Wu approached an overseer.
He transformed the rainbow light within him into conscious spiritual light. The middle-aged man noticed nothing amiss, largely because there was no way a youth in front of him would be displaying techniques unique to the Newborn path.
Thus, under the watchful eyes of teams led by the various academies' Numbers One and Two, a two-man squad was formed. It was the smallest group present, practically bare-bones.
Xiao Wu, displaying youthful bravado, announced, "Listen up, everyone! If you run into fiends and monsters, encounter danger, or face fierce competition and need our help, I'm afraid you won't be able to afford our price!"
Aside from Xin Youdao and Ling Yu, everyone burst into laughter.
"Wang Lijie of Dragon-Elephant Dao Arena looks forward to seeing both junior brothers dazzle the secret realm!"
"Lin Qianyi of Yuhua Daoist Sanctuary wishes both junior brothers glorious triumph in all directions. We'll be watching!"
Several disciples couldn't help teasing them, feeling the two youths were wildly overestimating themselves. How dared a team of only two boast so grandly?
Jiang Ruoli, Gan Jincheng, Su Junlin, and the rest were all chuckling and murmuring in low voices.
"Your friends are thoroughly unreliable," Zhao Muyao remarked to Ling Yu in her snow-white robes.
Ling Yu badly wanted to refute her. They were extraordinarily reliable; had he not been strictly warned, he would have jumped at the chance to team up with them directly.
Xiao Yaqin glanced at Xin Youdao, shaking her head. "I have a feeling those two acquaintances of yours are going to make fools of themselves inside the secret realm."
"I don't think they're exaggerating at all," Xin Youdao sighed, deeply regretting that he couldn't join them.
Xiao Wu muttered in dissatisfaction, "Even Liu Hanya from our own Shanhe Academy is laughing at us. That's going too far."
Qin Ming was lost in thought, not paying the mockery any mind.
He found himself thinking of old acquaintances. Would he run into Li Qingyue inside the secret realm? Had his old friend Ning Siqi, who had joined the esoteric sect, arrived as well?
The faces of Li Qingxu, Wang Caiwei, and Cui Chonghe flashed across his mind in turn.
*Tang Xumi, Hu Tingwen, you two still owe me a manual for the Divine Ape force!*
Soon, Qin Ming's expression grew solemn. If everyone was entering the very same secret realm, the competitive pressure would be immense. He wondered how the arrangements would be handled.
After all, he had encountered seven exceptional youths aboard the Vermilion Bird airship—figures like Su Shiyun and Zhao Yaoting were all near-immortal seeds or divine seeds, each more formidable than the last.
Wu Yaozu nudged his arm. "Brother, did you hear me? These people are laughing at us!"
"I was daydreaming." Qin Ming smiled. "What does it matter? We'll see how things turn out later. Now that we have our team, it's time to head back."
"You're destined to grow old alone at this rate—what were you daydreaming about? Don't tell me someone you know is entering this secret realm too?"
"If you don't have anything sensible to say, shut your mouth."
Over the next few days, Qin Ming focused not only on the Dragon Snake Scripture, but also began studying the Immortal Butterfly Scripture, continually contemplating and absorbing its essence.
Evidently, while Yu Gensheng and Zhao Ziyuan had claimed they wouldn't pamper him for fear of spoiling his growth, they hadn't truly held back—otherwise, they wouldn't have handed him a second peerless art outright.
Moreover, by arranging for him to enter the secret realm, they were actively helping him secure fortuitous opportunities.
Five days later, Qin Ming and Xiao Wu set off, returning to neighboring Feixian Academy to rendezvous with the large crowd of teams led by all the Numbers One and Two.
Everyone boarded a colossal airship bound for the secret realm atop the plateau. At once, a chill ran down Qin Ming's spine.
He had crashed while riding a bird, landing straight inside the giant centipede's Divine City; he had also survived an airship crash, emerging unscathed by sheer fortune. The experience had truly left him traumatized.
A few hundred li was hardly a great distance. Aboard the airship, they reached their destination and touched down on the plateau. Qin Ming let out a breath of relief—thankfully, they hadn't crashed this time!
"This is the secret realm?" Many were stunned, finding the sight before them bizarre.
Ahead lay a peculiar patch of land. It bore no towering trees or thick vines, appearing instead as though coated in a layer of moss, entirely at odds with the surrounding terrain.
"Watch closely," said the elder leading them. He abruptly stepped forward.
Though it looked like a tiny plot of ground, it possessed an extraordinary, wondrous power.
Many crouched down to peer closely, and they could actually see the elder's tiny figure, shrunk to the size of a tiny ant.
"This is the secret realm?"
"Do you know how it formed?" The elder walked back out, returning to his original size.
He explained that this was a star fragment endowed with extraordinary properties and alien power. Standing upon it was equivalent to setting foot upon an entire star.
Soon, everyone lined up and stepped forward from the exact same spot. Before long, they were all standing upon the star, gazing at the landscape of this celestial body, filled with profound awe.
Chapter 202