Having suspected that Ye Fan obtained the Nine Steps to the Heavens from the secret realm that appeared in his previous simulations, you had ordered Sun Zhong to keep an eye on the waters off Magic City before diving into your talisman studies.
After a moment's thought, you realized that if you headed to the Magic City secret realm openly, you'd definitely attract the attention of all factions—not to mention giving the mastermind's forces the perfect chance to trap you like easy prey.
You decided to go in secret, and you had no intention of taking Sun Zhong with you. After all, the disappearance of a Saint Realm powerhouse like him would be far too conspicuous.
You summoned Sun Zhong, who was standing guard outside your door. This time, you didn't reveal your cultivation base; you simply told him to send for Su Meng, one of the Sun Family's death warriors.
「Young Master Sun, how do you even know about Su Meng?!」 Sun Zhong asked in stunned surprise. In his eyes, you were just a spoiled playboy—someone who should never have heard the name of a hidden death warrior.
But seeing you had no intention of explaining, he had no choice but to obey.
Soon, Su Meng—a young man around your age—stepped into the room, looking nervous and uncertain.
「Su Meng, I'm going to be away for a few days. While I'm gone, you're going to impersonate me.」 You laid out your plan directly.
As a death warrior sworn to the Sun Family, Su Meng would never dare refuse an order from a member of the main clan. But to your surprise, it was Sun Zhong, your protector, who spoke up against it.
「Young Master Sun, I'll agree to anything else—but not this.」 Sun Zhong's voice was firm and unyielding.
His family orders were clear: he wasn't to interfere with your actions, but his sole priority was to keep you safe.
You hadn't expected the biggest obstacle to be the stubbornly principled Sun Zhong.
Fortunately, you knew exactly how to handle men like him.
You immediately invoked a family secret, claiming you needed to meet a 「mysterious guest」—hinting that this guest was on the same level as the Sun Family Elder himself. Combined with a dose of authoritative pressure as a scion of the main clan, you finally managed to talk him around, albeit reluctantly.
This time, you were going alone—cutting off all sources of information. Even if Sun Zhong was captured and subjected to a soul search, he wouldn't be able to reveal your location.
Eager to reach the secret realm, you swapped clothes and identities with Su Meng, then slipped out of the Century Hotel without a trace.
You darted toward Magic City Harbor at top speed, your figure blurring into a streak of light. Along the way, the cautious side of you kicked in: you activated Illusory Shadow, transforming into a sallow-faced youth, and adopted the fake identity of Han Li.
Before long, you reached the harbor—and there it was, hovering above the waves: a fractured secret realm.
Clearly, this was your target.
By now, a large crowd had already gathered near the harbor. Among them were Magic City students, cultivators from various factions, and even officers from the Security Administration...
You stayed hidden in the shadows, pulled Ye Fan's severed arm from your storage pouch, and used the Soul-Nailing Technique to track his whereabouts.
This was exactly why you'd cut off Ye Fan's arm in the real world—for this very moment.
Crack!
A flash of bloodlight flickered and vanished instantly, and the severed arm clattered to the ground.
The Soul-Nailing Technique had failed.
Which meant Ye Fan was no longer in Magic City—or even in this world.
「As I thought. Ye Fan's already entered the secret realm.」 You nodded, your expression exactly as you'd expected.
On the surface of the sea, the appearance of the secret realm had stirred the Eerie Aliens slumbering beneath the waves. They began emerging to block the way, and among them were even cultivators at the Divine Ability Realm and Mountains and Rivers Realm.
Those who'd rushed to the secret realm hoping to plunder its treasures were either stopped dead in their tracks or dragged down into the depths by tentacles that shot out of the water without warning.
「The Eerie Aliens are a race far more terrifying than all human empires combined.」
「They're practically unkillable, endless—spawning out of nowhere, wielding all kinds of bizarre, uncanny abilities. They're humanity's mortal enemies.」
「Even the Qianyuan Empire, one of the strongest human empires in the world, can't guarantee that it's completely rid of these abominations within its borders.」
Seeing this, Sun Qian's expression turned grave.
In the simulator, the waters off Magic City were swarming with countless Eerie Aliens.
Dark clouds loomed overhead, thunder rolling in the distance. There were lantern-headed ghost fish, horned faceless sea monsters, and writhing tentacles that churned the waves into froth...
It was a scene straight out of a demon apocalypse.
This was the first time he'd laid eyes on such terrifying creatures.
Legend had it that the Eerie Aliens craved the flesh and blood of human cultivators above all else.
Having always lived in a bubble of absolute safety, he'd never had to face anything like this before.
Wait a minute. During his second Villain Simulation, after he'd used the Life-Substitute Blood Escape Talisman, hadn't he been killed by a colossal octopus-like Eerie Alien lurking in the ocean depths?
Not exactly a fond memory.
Crack!
Suddenly, a movement from Liu Yue, who was lying on the silk carpet nearby, caught his eye.
The drunk Liu Yue rolled over, kicking off her silk blanket, revealing a pair of smooth, snow-white legs that shimmered enticingly under the lamplight.
The scene was eerily reminiscent of a girlfriend trying to tempt her boyfriend away from his video games.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Sun Qian's footsteps echoed softly as he walked over to her.
Sensing his gaze and approach, the seemingly intoxicated Liu Yue curled her lips into a faint, triumphant smile.
Got you now, you little brat.
There's no way you can resist this.
Thud!
The discarded silk blanket was suddenly pulled back over her, a pillow tucked neatly under her neck, and a light tap landed on her forehead.
「No sleeping etiquette at all, kicking off your blanket like that. You'll catch a cold.」
Sun Qian muttered a half-hearted complaint, ignoring her frozen expression as he turned and climbed back into bed, returning to his 「simulator game」 without a second glance.
Back in the simulator, the Eerie Aliens, fighting on their home turf, easily repelled anyone trying to approach the secret realm. Some of the lower-realm cultivators were even dragged underwater and devoured on the spot, staining the waves crimson.
Only a handful of lucky souls managed to fight their way through and enter the secret realm.
Faced with this horrific casualty rate, even the greed-driven cultivators began to hesitate, grinding to a halt, too afraid to press on...
「Damn it! There are too many of these Eerie Aliens—we'll never kill them all!」
「For it to attract this many Eerie Aliens, that secret realm must be extraordinary!」
「The opportunity is right there, but we can't reach it! This is infuriating!」
Amid the chorus of frustrated shouts, you tucked Ye Fan's severed arm back into your storage pouch, stepped out of your hiding spot, and darted toward the sea in a blur of motion—triggering a wave of startled gasps...
...