Chapter 132: Entering the Space-Time Rift

"So that's how it is; I actually thought the Sect was being considerate of us old folks." Elder Wen said with a bland, stinging remark, smiling.

Gu Duo said nothing. The Sect Master frowned and said, "Since everyone has arrived, let us prepare to begin. The sooner we complete the mission, the sooner we can report back to the Sect."

The three Cultivators from the Jinxia Sect and the Hanhai Sect turned and headed back. A ripple appeared in the air, and the figures of the three vanished from sight one after another.

This blinding technique is truly exquisite; even though it is right before her eyes, Ruan Xing still cannot detect it when she probes with her Divine Sense.

Taking a deep breath, Ruan Xing followed Gu Duo and the others into that ripple. It felt like passing through an invisible membrane. Although the scenery before her remained exactly the same, a tear-like wound had appeared in the sky, and the exposed area was bizarre and grotesque, its true appearance impossible to discern.

A crowd of people had also suddenly appeared before them.

Ruan Xing looked closely; besides the three Cultivators from the beginning, there were nine others.

The Jinxia Sect Cultivator whispered a few words to his companion, who nodded and stood beside four of the others.

The two groups appeared intimate but were actually clearly divided; they wore familiar smiles on their faces, but their eyes were full of wariness.

Once Ruan Xing's group joined them, it became a three-way standoff.

The team sent by the Jinxia Sect had one Golden Core Consummation, one Golden Core Late Stage, and three Golden Core Mid-stage.

The Hanhai Sect's team consisted of two Golden Core Late Stage, two Golden Core Mid-stage, and one Golden Core Early Stage.

Looking at Ruan Xing's side, there were three Golden Core Late Stage, but two were old men, one was Golden Core Mid-stage, and one was her, a Golden Core Early Stage.

Judging solely by surface-level strength, the Xuanbing Sect had a slight advantage, but until the moment they actually fought, no one could say for sure which side was truly stronger.

The three Nascent Soul Stage leaders exchanged a few brief words, then the Jinxia Sect Cultivator cleared his throat and announced loudly, "Each Sect shall send five disciples into the space-time rift. Whichever side finds the Secret Realm core first wins and shall exclusively possess eighty percent of the Secret Realm's gains. Let this be a vow, witnessed by Heaven and Earth! Please, everyone, enter the space-time rift."

A Hanhai Sect disciple suddenly asked aloud, "Senior, is there a time limit? If no team finds the core by a certain time, and only a few individuals emerge from the space-time rift, how will it be calculated?"

The Jinxia Sect Cultivator smiled slightly, "Before the core is found, no one can know when the space-time rift will close, so there is no time limit. But if no one finds the core by the end, then the quota for the next entry into the space-time rift will be divided equally based on the proportion of disciples who emerge alive."

Once these words were spoken, the expressions of the disciples became eager.

No one knew where the core was or what it looked like. If the map within the space-time rift was vast, wouldn't finding the Secret Realm be like looking for a needle in a haystack? But if the target were changed to disciples of other Sects, it would be different. As long as all disciples of the other Sects were killed, even if the core wasn't found upon exiting, their own Sect could still exclusively possess this space-time rift, and they could slowly send disciples to search for the core later.

Because the Jinxia Sect and the Hanhai Sect were neighbors and had a history of seeing each other often, most of their hostile gazes were directed at Ruan Xing and her companions.

Moreover, in a Secret Realm that had never been explored, the resources seen by the first batch of people to enter would surely be extremely abundant. Although seventy percent had to be handed over to the Sect upon retrieval, it was enough to make people envious.

After the Jinxia Sect Cultivator finished speaking, although everyone had different expressions, no one moved.

Seeing no one take the first step, the Xuanbing Sect Master spoke, "Which of the two hosts intends to enter first?"

There was significance in entering early or late. If the entry points were not random, the team that entered first would have the advantage, able to quickly scout the terrain and prepare to ambush those who entered later.

Likewise, if they fell into a very dangerous situation upon entry, the team that entered first would be caught off guard, while the team that entered later would be prepared.

The Jinxia Sect Cultivator's undisguised encouragement for the disciples to win by force made everyone's vigilance rise. They were unwilling to enter first, yet did not want to let others enter first, falling into hesitation.

Seeing this, the Hanhai Sect female Cultivator sneered and said, "Since everyone is so modest, let my Hanhai Sect disciples enter first."

No one raised an objection, and the five Hanhai Sect disciples flew into mid-air, heading toward the space-time rift in the sky.

The closer they got to the space-time rift, the faster they flew. In just a few breaths, they all entered the rift and vanished. After they entered, the exposed gap made not a sound, and no images could be seen.

The Jinxia Sect disciples followed closely behind and rushed in as well.

They had to be quick, as they were worried the Hanhai Sect disciples would ambush them after entering. Since they couldn't see the situation inside anyway, entering directly so the people in front wouldn't have time to prepare was the best course of action.

"Let us go too," Qian Changyue said.

Gu Duo would not enter, the two Elders from Nanzhou were not familiar, and Qintai He, whom Ruan Xing was impersonating, was taciturn. As a Golden Core Late Stage Cultivator, Qian Changyue had no choice but to bite the bullet and take on the responsibility of leading the team.

Ruan Xing flew toward mid-air on her Sword and felt a weak tug; this must be the suction force brought by the space-time rift.

The closer she got, the stronger that suction became, but Ruan Xing did not use her Spiritual Power to resist it. Based on her predictions, she wouldn't be able to resist it anyway.

No wonder those people flew faster and faster; it was likely the speed boost brought by the rift's suction.

Even if someone regretted it right before the entrance to the rift, this suction would leave them no chance to turn back.

As soon as she entered the rift, Ruan Xing felt her body sink and began to plummet rapidly.

?

Ruan Xing was stunned. This feeling seemed somewhat familiar?

Isn't this the place pointed to by the key that she just experienced in the previous Simulation? Ruan Xing tried to control her Flying Sword to resume flight, but the familiar feeling told her that her Spiritual Power could only be controlled within her body and could not be projected outside her skin.

She probed her Divine Sense in all directions, but within a radius of two hundred meters, she did not see a single person.

It seems the landing points are random.

Ruan Xing couldn't help but complain, "This is truly absurd. The key's teleportation point was in the sky, and this rift's teleportation point is also in the sky. And here, one isn't allowed to use Spiritual Power—is this done on purpose to make people fall to their deaths?"

But she actually didn't know if she was just unlucky that her teleportation point was in the sky, or if everyone's teleportation point was in the sky.

She would know once she reached the ground and saw if anyone was there.

Having gained experience this time, when Ruan Xing saw the ruins getting closer on the ground, she used her Spiritual Power inside her body to protect her internal organs and her head. After all, she was a Golden Core Stage Cultivator now; she wouldn't fall to her death directly like last time.

Adjusting her posture to land on her buttocks first, Ruan Xing's face immediately twisted in pain, and she couldn't help but let out a muffled groan.

Although she didn't hit her head or organs, her spine, ribs, and leg bones must have broken in several places.

A surge of uncontrollable, metallic sweetness rose in her throat; she coughed a few times and spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood.

Although she could not use Magic Art and could not take out the Healing Pill from her Storage Bag, a Cultivator's body was naturally tougher than a mortal's. It was no problem to circulate Spiritual Power to temporarily heal and repair herself.

It was just that she couldn't stand up yet and could only move by crawling with her hands—this was too wretched.

After recuperating on the spot for over two hours, although the bones hadn't set yet, the pain had already eased significantly.

Thanks to Xian Ge'er Ah for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to the high school girl Zhou Yingting for the monthly ticket~ (End of chapter)