The appearance of a large-scale Secret Realm always draws a great deal of attention, and even more so the longer it remains.
Many days had passed since the Secret Realm materialized on the border between the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty and the Celestial Wind Imperial Dynasty, yet it showed no signs of vanishing. It naturally drew in more and more factions, all hoping to enter and find their own opportunities.
Large-scale Secret Realms are already filled with opportunities, to say nothing of the possible existence of legacies from beyond the Martial Saint Realm. This was an irresistible lure for any faction.
A legacy of this level is exceedingly rare. It could become the foundation of a major sect, sustaining it for thousands of years—or even longer.
At that moment, the Black Dragon was still watching Yang Chan, waiting to see what he would choose.
It had hidden nothing in its words, speaking of what it could and simply skipping over what it couldn’t. As a result, it appeared quite sincere.
Yang Chan listened to the Black Dragon but remained noncommittal.
"With the appearance of this large-scale Secret Realm, a certain saying has been circulating widely."
"Divine Acupoints are ministers, Divine Seas are princes, and Divine Bodies are emperors."
"So, does that mean Emperor Purple Void of the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty was a master in the Divine Body Realm?"
Yang Chan pivoted the conversation to the topic of Realms. The thought had occurred to him the first time he’d heard that saying, and he’d been wanting to confirm it ever since.
But the Black Dragon had been in a deep sleep back then, so he’d had no way to verify the information.
"As I recall, Emperor Purple Void of the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty was indeed a master of the Divine Body Realm. With his Divine Body, he was unrivaled across the Taiyu Divine Continent. I don’t know his exact Realm, however, as I never crossed hands with him!"
"During its golden age, the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty had ministers at the Divine Acupoint Realm and Princes at the Divine Sea Realm. Its power was immense, allowing it to unify most of the Taiyu Divine Land. Its might was truly unstoppable!"
"The few remaining treacherous territories were occupied by other beings, but fundamentally, none of them could compare to the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty."
The Black Dragon answered Yang Chan’s questions in great detail, as a matter of course.
To it, this information was nothing special, hardly a secret.
Anyone could find it out by consulting the relevant historical records.
After all, such rumors don’t just appear out of thin air.
The fact that someone spread this saying meant they knew about the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty’s situation. Even after ten thousand years, it’s still possible to find some information about such a powerful Imperial Dynasty.
"Then is there also an Underground World, inhabited by creatures called Earth Demons?"
Yang Chan nodded, then changed the subject again, bringing up information he had gotten from Lü Zhenghai.
Apparently, creatures known as Earth Demons existed beneath the Holy Land Grotto Heavens.
"While you were asleep, the people who went to the Merak Sacred Land returned. They told us that beneath the Merak Sacred Land’s Grotto Heaven, there is a type of creature called the Earth Demon. The Merak Sacred Land has paid a heavy price to deal with them!"
"The Cyan Yuan Sect Members who went to the Merak Sacred Land suffered a great loss at the hands of those Earth Demons!"
Yang Chan added, providing more detail.
’This is something I’ve wanted to ask about ever since I found out, but I never had the chance to get confirmation.’
So, when the Black Dragon mentioned treacherous territories, Yang Chan immediately thought of it and asked directly.
"Earth Demons?"
The Black Dragon looked puzzled; it had clearly never heard the term before.
"I have heard of an Underground World, which had intelligent beings. In the past, they were enslaved by the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty to mine ore, cultivate Underground Spirit Plants, and so on. I just don’t know if they’re the same Earth Demons you’re talking about, Master."
"These Underground Creatures are different from the Human Race. Living underground year-round, they are perfectly suited for subterranean activity. They can mine, cultivate Spirit Plants that grow deep in the earth, and find hidden Treasure. However, these beings aren’t very powerful; it’s rare for one to even be born with the potential to reach the Divine Acupoint Realm."
"I’ve only heard of them by name and never witnessed them myself. The Dragon Race generally doesn’t pay much mind to such weak creatures!"
The Black Dragon continued, adding that this was all just speculation on its part.
A race that could barely produce experts at the Divine Acupoint Realm was naturally of no concern to the Black Dragon. There wouldn’t be much about them left in its inherited memories.
It was just like how dragons who failed to reach adulthood were disregarded by their own kind, even viewed as a disgrace. A more tyrannical dragon, upon encountering one of these stunted kin, might even kill them on the spot, claiming to be washing away the Dragon Race’s shame.
"Those are probably the ones."
"Ten thousand years ago, there were many masters at the Divine Acupoint Realm, but now, achieving that is difficult. The Underground Creatures might not have been subject to the same limitations, so perhaps they were able to develop!"
"But why are they only found in the Holy Land Grotto Heavens?"
’The current cultivation environment...’ Yang Chan mused. ’And then there are the Underground Creatures. The collapse of the path to the Divine Acupoint Realm affected many Martial Arts Experts, but for these enslaved subterranean beings, it might have actually been good news.’
’After all, while achieving the Divine Acupoint Realm became difficult, the Blood Exchange Martial Saint Realm was another matter entirely.’
’Still, what truly puzzled him was why these Underground Creatures were only found in the Grotto Heavens. In places like the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty or the Jin Meng Empire, there was no mention of them at all. It was very strange.’
"Underground Creatures might have specific environmental needs. Different races require different habitats, after all."
"Of course, there’s another possibility. These Underground Creatures were brought into the Grotto Heavens to be enslaved, or perhaps into other Secret Realms, to make them serve the Human Race."
"That would explain why they can only be found in those places. Of course, this is all just my own speculation. As for the truth of it, you’ll likely find out once you go to a Holy Land, Master."
The Black Dragon wasn’t very familiar with these matters, nor did it particularly care. From its perspective, the potential of these Underground Creatures was far too low to be worthy of its attention.
If it hadn’t become an Artifact Spirit bound to Yang Chan, it wouldn’t even deign to look upon the Human Race.
Only those of the Human Race who had broken the Human-God Boundary were worthy of its attention.
To say nothing of creatures enslaved by the Human Race—they weren’t even worth a first glance.
"Yes, I should be able to find out by going to the Merak Sacred Land. Just like the Cross-Realm Teleportation Array and the Great Shift Order—I might be able to obtain those there as well."
Yang Chan once again changed the subject, returning to the Cross-Realm Teleportation Array and the Great Shift Order they had discussed earlier.
But Yang Chan’s words made the Black Dragon freeze for a moment.
’I might have misspoken just now,’ it thought. ’I shouldn’t have said he could find out in the Holy Land. I should have said he might be able to find it in the large-scale Secret Realm.’
The Black Dragon instantly felt as if it had lifted a stone only to drop it on its own foot.
It was not a pleasant feeling.
"Actually, this newly appeared large-scale Secret Realm might also contain some of these Underground Creatures. After all, the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty enslaved a great many of them back in the day, so it’s possible some ended up in the Secret Realm."
"If they are in there, I’d wager the Secret Realm has quite a few good things to find. After all, we’re talking about treasures related to the Purple Void Imperial Dynasty!"