Although the forest contained numerous Spirit Trees, most barely met the threshold for First-Tier Spirit Trees, falling far short of the Second-Tier trees required to nurture Jade Marrow Mushrooms.
Wei Zhong did discover a few decaying Second-Tier Spirit Trees, but none bore any Lingzhi, let alone Jade Marrow Mushrooms.
Of course, it was possible that the mushrooms had been harvested during the Secret Realm's previous opening, leaving no trace after a year.
After a fruitless search, Wei Zhong gave up.
Still, the forest was remarkably large for the Secret Realm. Having explored the realm for so long, Wei Zhong was astonished to encounter such a vast expanse of dense woodland nestled amidst these mountains.
Following the waterfall upstream, Wei Zhong traversed countless trees until a glimmer of light pierced through the canopy.
"This..."
Emerging from the embrace of the Spirit Trees, Wei Zhong beheld a serene jade-green lake.
The waterfall's source was this very lake, explaining the luxuriant growth of the surrounding forest.
Reaching the shore, Wei Zhong cupped his hands and scooped up a handful of the cool, clear lake water.
The dense spiritual energy nearly overflowed from Wei Zhong's palm.
The thick mist blanketing the forest was likely due to the lake's presence, he reasoned, watching the water vapor rise from its surface and swirl among the surrounding trees.
"Second-Tier Spirit Trees are rare in the forest," he pondered. "Could there be one hidden within this lake?"
Suddenly, a burst of intense spiritual light flashed across the lake's surface in his peripheral vision, only to vanish beneath the rippling water.
"What was that...?" Wei Zhong murmured. He had never witnessed such potent spiritual light since entering the Secret Realm—it must be an extraordinary treasure.
Yet staring at the lake before him, hesitation gripped him once more. This lake wasn't mentioned in any of the intelligence reports. What if a powerful demon beast lurked within? He doubted he could defeat it.
After a brief internal struggle, Wei Zhong resolved himself. "I'll dive in to investigate, but I won't venture too deep on the first attempt. If trouble arises, I'll retreat immediately."
With his current strength, ordinary First-Tier Demonic Beasts posed no threat. Even if he encountered a formidable foe in the lake, escaping wouldn't be difficult.
His mind made up, Wei Zhong hesitated no longer and plunged into the lake.
The lake water was surprisingly warm and crystal clear. Through the surface, Wei Zhong could faintly see the trees lining the shore.
But deeper down, the water grew dim, beyond the reach of sunlight.
Wei Zhong began searching for the faint spiritual light.
Small fish darted through the water, but none were true spirit fish—only ordinary fish carrying traces of spiritual energy.
Focusing intently, Wei Zhong scanned his surroundings until he spotted the spiritual light drifting with the current.
He kicked off the bottom and swam toward it.
Wei Zhong hadn't mastered Water Repelling or Water Evasion techniques, which would have allowed him to move even faster. Still, as a cultivator, he was far stronger and more agile than an ordinary person.
Weaving through the school of fish, Wei Zhong snatched the spiritual light—a white, glowing stone—from the water.
"A mid-grade spirit stone?"
Wei Zhong's heart leaped with joy. In the Cultivation World, a single mid-grade spirit stone was worth at least a hundred low-grade ones. Even then, they were scarce, often requiring a premium of twenty extra low-grade stones to acquire.
This was the first time Wei Zhong had ever obtained such a spirit stone in the real world.
Whether at the Yan Clan or the Bright Moon Market of the Azurewood Sect, low-grade spirit stones served as the standard currency.
Wei Zhong never expected to find such a bounty in this Secret Realm.
Scanning his surroundings, he spotted several more patches of spiritual light. He swiftly activated his spiritual energy and scoured the area, collecting them one by one.
Unfortunately, not all the spiritual light came from mid-grade spirit stones; the dimmer ones turned out to be merely low-grade.
Still, Wei Zhong was delighted. In total, he obtained three mid-grade spirit stones and eleven low-grade ones—more than enough to recoup the entrance fee for this Secret Realm expedition.
With so many spirit stones, could there be a spirit stone vein hidden here? Wei Zhong couldn't help but wonder.
Suddenly, a violent tremor shook the lakebed, sending ripples across the surface and scattering the startled fish in all directions.
Streams of spiritual light erupted from below, finally revealing the source of the spirit stones.
Peering into the murky depths, where sunlight struggled to penetrate, Wei Zhong's eyes saw only shadows. But with the Spirit-Seeking Art enhancing his vision, he could see spiritual light surging in every direction.
One particularly dense concentration of spiritual light had even coalesced into a colossal entity.
"Demon beast!" Wei Zhong's expression changed instantly. He casually picked up the two mid-grade spirit stones that had drifted toward him in the lake and turned to swim back to the surface.
Fighting such a creature underwater would be foolish; Wei Zhong needed to escape quickly.
Suddenly, a surge of spiritual energy erupted around him like a shockwave, throwing him off balance.
The demon beast was closing in from behind.
Wei Zhong swiftly activated his Golden Body Technique, his body shimmering with golden light, and glanced back at the creature in the water.
A golden carp over six meters long surged upward from the depths. Its pale golden whiskers, half as long as Wei Zhong himself, rippled in the current.
This fish doesn't seem hostile.
In an instant, the golden carp leaped past Wei Zhong, completely ignoring the strange being in the water.
Even though this demon beast isn't hostile, the water is too turbulent. It's best to get out.
Wei Zhong swam toward the shore in the direction the golden carp had taken.
As he surfaced, he saw the fish frolicking in the water, its golden scales gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight as it splashed.
The lake wasn't large, and the fish swam swiftly, soon circling the entire surface. Only then did it notice Wei Zhong on the shore.
The golden carp circled Wei Zhong twice, curiosity in its eyes, before gently nudging him with its whiskers.
Wei Zhong irritably flicked away the fish's whiskers.
Is this fish just plain naive? he wondered.
It was a First-Tier spirit fish, seemingly at the peak of its tier. It likely only needed a catalyst to ascend to the Second-Tier.
A Second-Tier Demonic Core?
A predatory smile crept across Wei Zhong's face.
Oblivious to the danger, the spirit fish continued to circle him, scrutinizing this peculiar creature it had never encountered before.
"Truly a dimwit," Wei Zhong muttered.
He immediately decided to take it as his spirit pet. Whether he harvested its Demonic Core after it advanced or used it as an ally, either option seemed promising.
Pricking his fingertip, Wei Zhong let a drop of blood fall and began tracing spiritual runes in the air.
Beast Taming Art: Proficient (69%)
His mastery of this technique wasn't particularly high. With only Nine-Colored, his spirit beast parrot, he hadn't focused much on refining it.
The glowing runes swiftly materialized, hovering in mid-air. Wei Zhong flicked his index finger.
"Go!"
The runes plunged into the fish's body and vanished.
The Beast Taming Art encountered minimal resistance, completing with surprising ease.
Wei Zhong felt a faint connection forming between himself and the spirit fish.
"Still as dense as ever," he chuckled, patting the fish's head. Now he had two dimwitted spirit beasts in his care.
"I'll call you Big Gold!"