He utilized the two essences absorbed by the space to indirectly bolster his cultivation. Within the grotto, he took his time to slightly enhance the weapons he found most comfortable to use, waiting until his cultivation had stabilized at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment before finally departing the Five Elements Grotto.
More than a year and a half had passed since the secret realm opened. Nie Shiyun did not know if cultivators searching for this place had gathered near the grotto, so he remained on high alert as he stepped outside.
Upon reaching the entrance, he found the corpses of two disciples, though it was impossible to tell which sect they belonged to. These were figures that existed in the original work even before the protagonist’s party arrived. Judging by the marks surrounding them, the two had engaged in a fierce battle to fight for entry into the grotto, only to end up in a mutual defeat.
Unfortunately, Nie Shiyun had already beaten everyone to the punch. Even if these cultivators had been lucky enough to survive, they would not have been able to open the grotto’s door without all five elemental roots. Now, it seemed they had simply thrown their lives away for nothing.
Adhering to the mindset that one should never let an opportunity pass by, Nie Shiyun scavenged the storage bracelets from the two bodies. They were likely rogue cultivators, as they carried no sect tokens, and their wealth and magical treasures were meager—they were quite destitute. In total, Nie Shiyun made off with eight thousand spirit stones. He couldn't help but lament that his perception of money had likely been numbed by the doting of his relatives back at the pavilion.
After leaving the grotto, he deliberately avoided the path the protagonists took in the original story, choosing instead to take a long, circuitous route.
The way was sparsely populated, but the illusionary realm was thick with mist. One could not see a person's face until they were close, a condition that made every cultivator within it hyper-sensitive. Initially, Nie Shiyun’s heart would race at the sound of footsteps, treating every noise like a formidable enemy. However, after actually exchanging blows with two or three cultivators, he realized the danger was not as extreme as he had imagined, and his mind gradually eased.
Gold and fire roots were both exceptionally fierce in terms of offensive power. As for his defensive shortcomings, Nie Shiyun compensated for them with a set of equipment literally piled high with spirit stones. Combined with his middle-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation—which was above average for this secret realm—Nie Shiyun felt as though he were a standard premium-tier player.
As a realm that only permitted Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment cultivators, the Misty Secret Realm did not contain many truly great treasures. Nie Shiyun estimated that eighty percent of what could be called "rarities" had already been pocketed by the protagonist in the original plot. Anything he stumbled upon mid-way was of ordinary quality.
He had considered trying to get the jump on the remnant soul of the Exotic Fire, but its location was not fixed. Over the next few months, Nie Shiyun’s luck plummeted back to a low point after his initial success; he couldn't even find a trace of the fire's shadow.
However, his mindset remained quite good. Aside from the Spirit Cleansing Pill, there was nothing in this secret realm he felt he absolutely must have. Having already achieved his primary goal, Nie Shiyun scouted through the mist, advancing at a leisurely pace. Occasionally, he found some high-quality spiritual herbs. Since he knew nothing about alchemy, and seeing the spiritual energy of the herbs slowly fade within his storage ring was no solution, he eventually just fed them all to his space.
The spiritual energy within the space was dense, greatly increasing the efficiency of both artifact refining and cultivation. Moreover, the security of being completely isolated from the outside world provided Nie Shiyun with a great sense of protection.
On this day, he had just finished re-refining his most reliable weapon, the Azure Gold Sword. Following the "Introduction to Arrays" book he had read to pass the time back when he couldn't cultivate at Yunqing Pavilion, he imitated the most basic recovery array and carved the grooves into the blade. He then tried grinding Recovery Grass into a liquid and sealing it within. To his surprise, it actually imbued the unremarkable tool with a mana-recovery effect that usually only high-grade magical treasures possessed. Although the effect of the Recovery Grass liquid would vanish quickly with use and time, it was a decent method as long as it was replenished regularly.
Many artifact refiners studied arrays to apply them to their crafts, sometimes yielding miraculous results.
Having tasted the initial sweetness of success, Nie Shiyun thought to himself that the rumors were indeed true; it seemed that arrays would have to be added to his list of subjects to study in the future.
Artifact refining, arrays, and dual-root cultivation would surely drag down the progress of an ordinary cultivator. However, as the owner of the Chaos Space, the one thing he did not lack was time. He only needed to settle his mind and study slowly.
Returning to the physical world from the space, Nie Shiyun leaped down from the spiritual tree where he had been hiding, landing lightly. Hearing footsteps behind him, his heart tightened. He hoped that because the mist was so thick, his sudden appearance from the jade pendant had gone unnoticed. He immediately entered a state of high alert, ready to summon his weapon from his storage bag at any moment.
"Nie Shiyun! It's you! What a coincidence."
The startled voice rang out just as the figure of the newcomer became clear. It was as clear and melodious as ever, but to Nie Shiyun’s ears, it sounded like a death knell.
*How could it be such a bad coincidence!*
The newcomer was none other than Duan Mingyu, the person Nie Shiyun thought he wouldn't have any dealings with for a long time. He had clearly gone out of his way to avoid the general route of Duan Mingyu’s party, staying in remote corners, yet he had still run straight into them.
"...What a coincidence," Nie Shiyun gave an awkward smile.
In the original work, Duan Mingyu’s attitude toward Nie Shiyun was polite but distant, as if he found the pestering man to be a headache. But Nie Shiyun felt that since he had transmigrated, Duan Mingyu’s attitude toward him was very gentle—much warmer than in the original story.
"Who is he?" a deep male voice asked coldly.
Nie Shiyun, seemingly regarded as a potential rival, sighed in his heart. This must be the second "gong," Rong Lü.
"He's someone I met a few years ago. Nie Shiyun is the son of the Vice Pavilion Master of Yunqing Pavilion. The treasure I'm using right now was refined by Yunqing Pavilion."
"Yunqing Pavilion? Never heard of it." Rong Lü sized Nie Shiyun up, his tone indifferent.
"Brother Rong Lü, you spend all your time focused on the Way of the Sword; otherwise, you wouldn't be so uninformed." Duan Mingyu sighed helplessly at Rong Lü's words. "Daoist Nie, this is Rong Lü. He is a sword cultivator from Lingfeng Mountain... and a neighbor I knew back when I was still in the mortal realm! I didn't expect to meet him again in this secret realm."
"Oh, what a twist of fate," Nie Shiyun remarked dryly.
"Isn't it? I didn't expect Brother Rong Lü to become a cultivator after me, yet his cultivation has already surpassed mine. He truly is the genius sword cultivator everyone says he is." Duan Mingyu leaned a bit closer to Rong Lü, his cheeks flushing slightly as he couldn't help but boast about his "dear brother."
"Ahem."
Nie Shiyun looked past their faces and finally saw Zhai Bairong, who had been standing silently in the back for a while with a displeased expression.
Duan Mingyu didn't notice Zhai Bairong’s expression at all. However, perhaps a "universal shou" possessed an innate skill for managing the moods of his harem, for he immediately continued: "Senior Brother is also an outstanding disciple, one in ten thousand from the Yingyue Sect. I, on the other hand, am so ordinary, dragging everyone down at every turn..."
As he spoke, a look of dejection appeared on Duan Mingyu’s face.
"That's not true."
"Mingyu, do not belittle yourself."
Zhai Bairong and Rong Lü spoke almost simultaneously. The two shot each other a dark look, a silent battle of wills.
Nie Shiyun looked at the self-pitying Duan Mingyu and the "battlefield" behind him, deciding to stand there as a dispassionate spectator with zero presence. He knew readers loved watching these scenes of romantic carnage; if it weren't for the fact that he might be caught in the crossfire at any moment, he might have sat down to enjoy the show.
In the original work, this was the most awkward period for the harem's relationships. As the first "gong" and someone who grew up with Duan Mingyu in the Yingyue Sect, Zhai Bairong was special. But the sudden appearance of Rong Lü—who had known Duan Mingyu even longer, was his equal in strength, and possessed a single Earth root—left him feeling greatly frustrated.
Rong Lü’s attitude toward Zhai Bairong was also terrible. Or rather, Rong Lü’s attitude toward everything and everyone except Duan Mingyu and the Way of the Sword was terrible. It was precisely because of this taciturn, socially-impaired, introverted personality that Duan Mingyu was most proactive with him, constantly fussing over his well-being.
While they performed their little interlude of insecurity and comfort, Nie Shiyun took the opportunity to size up Rong Lü. He had sword-like brows and starry eyes, with a resolute expression. His attire lacked the ethereal grace of Zhai Bairong’s; instead, he looked like an ordinary person from the mortal realm, wearing no accessories and carrying only a single sword.
Needless to say, he was handsome. There was no such thing as a "gong" of Duan Mingyu who wasn't handsome.
"Daoist Nie, I apologize for leaving you aside."
Nie Shiyun had been daydreaming when he heard Duan Mingyu address him again. He snapped back to reality; it seemed the little play had concluded.
"It's nothing."
"Meeting is fate. This secret realm is full of dangers; having an extra person means having someone to look out for. Why don't you travel with us, Daoist Nie?"
*No,* Nie Shiyun rejected the idea flatly in his mind.
"Mingyu, I alone am enough to protect you," Rong Lü hurriedly declared his loyalty.
While rejecting him, he specifically emphasized "I alone." Nie Shiyun watched as Zhai Bairong’s face behind Duan Mingyu grew even more unsightly. Although he believed that following Duan Mingyu was asking for trouble, at this moment, he couldn't help but feel a bit of sympathy for the man.
"I noticed that Daoist Nie’s cultivation seems to have broken through. I wonder if your refining skills have also improved? Actually, it's like this: a corner of my defensive treasure seems to have been damaged earlier. I wonder if Daoist Nie’s current refining level is enough to repair it..."
*Even if I can fix it, I might not necessarily agree to fix it for you.* Nie Shiyun was irritated by Duan Mingyu’s presumptuous tone. However, Rong Lü—that obsessive who put Duan Mingyu above all else—immediately struck a threatening pose that said, "If you can't fix it and disappoint Mingyu, I'll never let you hear the end of it." Nie Shiyun was speechless, but he gave a verbal agreement.
He agreed to travel with them for a short time, stating that he would leave on his own once the treasure was repaired.
Rong Lü was very satisfied with his self-awareness. Zhai Bairong seemed to want to say something, but he opened his mouth, glanced at Rong Lü, and ultimately said nothing.
