A dazzling golden light emanated from his hands. Those below only saw his hands rapidly forming hand seals. A fierce wind blew, but he stood motionless in the wind, his every move exuding an indescribable arrogance and coldness.
A few breaths later, the sounds of dragons roaring and phoenixes singing could be heard continuously, and upon closer listening, unidentified hissing sounds could also be heard interspersed among them.
An immense pressure emanated from Han Tao, whose cultivation at the Mahayana stage was like an insurmountable mountain, causing people to instinctively bow their heads.
Yan Yun was stunned by the vast and awe-inspiring sight, while Shen Ange secretly encouraged himself, hoping to one day reach the Great Ascension stage.
Li Chixue stared intently at the trembling palace, lost in thought.
Only Fu Mingxu was worried about whether the demonic seed within Hantao Dragon Soul would be affected.
After a while, the roar that seemed to come from underground finally stopped as the earth-shaking tremors ceased.
The palace returned to calm, as if nothing had ever happened. Only the faint smell of blood emanating from the open palace gates proved that it was not all a strange dream.
As the golden light faded, Han Tao landed back beside Fu Mingxu, his tall figure almost completely enveloping him.
Fu Mingxu observed his expression and, seeing that there was nothing unusual about his face, still asked in a low voice, "Has the demonic seed in your body been affected?"
His voice was very low, as if he was afraid of being overheard, so he subconsciously moved closer to the other person.
The two stood very close. Han Tao's anger, which stemmed from the scene he had witnessed in the spirit realm, dissipated with Han Tao's simple question, leaving only a sweet spring feeling.
He looked down at Fu Mingxu and smiled slightly: "Don't worry, I had a wonderful encounter, I'm fine."
"Oh, I see," Fu Mingxu said with a look of sudden realization, his mind relaxing as he sighed softly, "That's good."
Although their interactions were limited to simple gestures and words, the subtle intimacy between them was impossible to ignore. Yan Yun glanced at his senior brother, who remained frozen in place, and asked, "Fellow Daoist Fu, who is this...?"
Li Chixue's gaze swept over Han Tao's hand, which was resting on his waist. Fu Mingxu's grip on the sword hilt tightened. He was somewhat embarrassed; this was the first time he had to introduce his relationship with Han Tao to outsiders. He pursed his lips, carefully considering how to speak.
Han Tao quickly resolved his concerns.
“My name is Yun Hancheng Hantao.” He looked up, his possessiveness in his golden eyes undisguised. “Fu Mingxu is my partner.”
Yan Yun glanced at his senior brother secretly, then cupped his hands in greeting to Han Tao: "So it's City Lord Han."
He had heard that the city lord of Yunhan City had fought with Immortal Lord Siyang in the Tianxuan Sect market for his partner, but he had never seen the rumored mortal who was so beautiful that he was outraged by gods and men, and his name had never appeared in the rumors.
He glanced carefully at Fu Mingxu's delicate features, and there was nothing he didn't understand.
Han Tao nodded slightly to him, his gaze inadvertently falling on Li Chixue, a flash of light passing through his eyes.
Fu Mingxu was oblivious, feeling a little embarrassed by the three people staring at him. He distanced himself from them but did not refute Han Tao's words.
"Lord Han," Li Chixue said after a moment of silence, sheathing her sword and a faint frost on her face. "Lord Han must already know about the problem with this secret realm. Could you explain it to us?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Mingxu subconsciously looked at the palace that had just calmed down and frowned, saying, "This palace seems to amplify people's desires, and the formation on the ground is also quite strange."
Looking around, the palace was silent, with only the open palace door forming a dark gaping hole, like a giant maw ready to devour someone.
A gentle breeze blew, and as he tilted his head, his dark hair and blue ribbons intertwined and fluttered, dazzling the eye.
Han Tao lowered his eyes, casually tucking a strand of dark hair that had fallen on his shoulder behind his back, before looking up directly into Li Chixue's eyes: "This is the former Dragon and Phoenix Secret Realm. This palace was built to suppress Yama. The path you came up from before was affected by Yama's demonic energy, forming a sacrificial path."
It was also by a twist of fate that, if Fu Mingxu hadn't had the quick thinking to evaporate the blood with dragon flame, the magic array inside the palace would probably have already been activated.
If it weren't for the fact that it was in a secluded, secret realm, the impact of Yama's rebirth would have been unimaginable.
As for why the Dragon and Phoenix Realm, hidden in the void, emerged, it is probably related to the person behind the annihilation of the Phoenix Clan. As for the magic array on the ground of the palace, he only glanced at it and knew that it was very similar to the magic array techniques commonly used by the Demon Clan.
This secret realm appears above the Medicine Sect, and inside there is a magic array carved by the demon race. The reason behind it is something that makes people think deeply.
“I have reinforced the seal. After the cultivators here leave, I will send this realm back into the void.” Han Tao’s gaze swept over the now quiet palace, his expression unreadable. “I will send you out first.”
If it weren't for the spirit of the secret realm pestering him to deal with some demonic seeds first, he would have found Fu Mingxu long ago.
Fu Mingxu knew that things were definitely not as simple as he said. The reason for the appearance of the Dragon and Phoenix Realm was thought-provoking. However, since Yama was being suppressed here, it was obviously not a good place for cultivators to train and search for treasures.
The three had no objections. Although Li Chixue felt a little upset, he always knew right from wrong. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Fu Mingxu and noticed that the other man's attention was always intentionally or unintentionally focused on the city lord Han, completely unlike the previous distant and unfamiliar relationship he had maintained with him.
Li Chixue concealed the disappointment in his eyes; his pride and dignity forbade him from coveting the person beside another.
"Alright, then thank you very much, Lord Han." When he spoke again, his face was completely at ease.
Han Tao glanced at his straight back and looked at him with newfound respect.
After explaining briefly, Han Tao prepared to see them off. Fu Mingxu felt a little reluctant to part with the spiritual herbs they had missed, but he didn't say anything more.
However, the Mirror Spirit kept bothering him in his mind, urging him to search for treasures, but he forcibly severed the mental connection with it.
He looked up at Han Tao's neck and thought to himself that no treasure rich in chaotic energy could compare to this ready-made dragon.
Han Tao formed a hand seal, and a golden light struck the blazing sun in the sky above the secret realm. In no time, an opening large enough for two people to pass through appeared.
“Let’s go.” He lowered his hand, looked down and put his arm around Fu Mingxu’s waist, whispering in his ear, “The demonic seed in my Dragon Soul has changed a bit, go back and take a look for me.”
Has the demonic seed changed?
This is a big deal! As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Mingxu had no time to care about the hand that was tightening around his waist. He quickly nodded and said, "Okay, let's go out quickly."
Han Tao didn't look up. He directly unleashed a golden light, which swept up Shen Ange and the other two like a gust of wind. Then, another golden light turned into specks of light and scattered throughout the secret manual. The surviving cultivators were all enveloped by the golden light and sent out of the secret realm.
Fu Mingxu had no complaints about falling behind. Seeing that he couldn't help, he even had the mind to think about the demonic seed within him.
He was determined to refine the Demon Source Pill as quickly as possible during this trip.
After everyone had left, Han Tao looked down at him and said, "Let's go."
Fu Mingxu nodded slightly, but couldn't help glancing behind him.
Surrounded by mountains and shrouded in mist, the palace was quiet, yet why did he always feel that the spying gaze was ever-present?
Fortunately, they are about to leave the secret realm, so let those secrets that he could not know return to the void.
After all, compared to other things, the demonic seed within Han Tao's body was more important to him.
Their bodies were lifted into the air in an instant, and the surrounding scenery rushed past their eyes. The opened exit was right in front of them, and they only needed two breaths to return to the familiar world.
Just as their hair was tangled in the wind, the secret realm suddenly shook violently, as if the entire realm was about to collapse in an instant.
"Watch out!" As if the secret realm was squeezing itself, Fu Mingxu watched helplessly as the exit in front of him disappeared in an instant.
As he spoke, Han Tao's flying motion suddenly stopped. He turned around abruptly and slammed his back heavily against the boundary barrier of the secret realm.
Just a hair's breadth away, Fu Mingxu's body trembled, and endless fear surged into his heart.
If they were to be suppressed by the power of a single realm as they entered the exit, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Han Tao sensed something and almost instantly formed a hand seal, golden light flashing, but he could no longer open an opening.
“The spirit of the secret realm doesn’t want us to leave.” His golden eyes were filled with endless coldness, and realizing this, he stopped wasting his energy.
Not only that, he also couldn't find the location of the spirit of the secret realm for the time being, presumably the other party had already hidden away.
It is quite simple for a spirit to deliberately hide in the secret realm it possesses.
The earth-shaking tremors continued, and the commotion within the secret realm was unsettling. Fu Mingxu couldn't help but clutch the front of his black shirt; for some reason, the demon bone chain ring, which had been dormant for a long time, started acting up again.
Han Tao was so focused on investigating the anomaly that he didn't notice the cold sweat beading on his forehead.
Soon, he landed again, placing Fu Mingxu in an open area. Noticing the beads of sweat on Fu Mingxu's nose, he assumed he was afraid and said gently, "Don't be afraid, wait for me."
After saying that, he stood up and leaped into the air above the swaying palace.
Fu Mingxu stared at the palace, which seemed about to collapse at any moment, his heart pounding.
Sure enough, just as Han Tao landed above the palace, a sudden change occurred.
The eaves, adorned with statues of two dragons and two phoenixes, seemed to come alive, and the thick black aura, like chains from hell, lunged towards Han Tao with soaring momentum.
Fu Mingxu stood up abruptly, his heart pounding violently as if gripped tightly by a hand.
The ground shook more and more violently, and he could barely stand. The dense spiritual energy constantly surrounded him, causing the demon bone chain around his ankle to act up again.
When he finally managed to stand up, he was stunned by the sudden change in the surrounding scenery.
Golden light emanated from Han Tao's hand above the palace, subtly suppressing the four streams of black demonic energy.
But at some point, demonic energy began to rise from all directions in the secret realm, and the dense spiritual energy, instead of repelling it, became nourishment for the demonic energy and was devoured by it.
Looking out, the once beautiful and fertile mountains were now shrouded in demonic energy, which instantly formed a sea of demonic energy that surged toward them.
In less than half an incense stick's time, the place where the palace was located became the only place to survive.
Seeing the demonic energy surging towards him like a tidal wave, Fu Mingxu didn't have time to think too much and quickly ran towards the palace.
Just as he reached the palace gate, Han Tao had already forced back the demonic energy above the palace and leaped down.
Before Fu Mingxu could ask any questions, he caught a glimpse of figures moving around inside the supposedly dark palace.
Weren't all the cultivators sent away by Han Tao?
The thought had just crossed his mind when he suddenly remembered something.
The first group of Medicine Sect disciples to enter the palace disappeared from the very beginning.
An ominous feeling washed over him, and Fu Mingxu's heart skipped a beat almost instinctively. Suddenly, he heard several shrill screams coming from inside the palace.
At the same time, a bloody light rose from the ground, instantly breaking through the palace's restraints.
The surrounding demonic energy was soaring to the sky, as if it would surge and devour them in the next instant.
The palace, which had been forced back from the demonic energy and returned to peace, emitted a mournful cry under the reflection of the blood-red light.
This bizarre scene sent chills down Fu Mingxu's spine. When he realized that his feet had suddenly lost their footing and instinctively reached out to pull Han Tao back, the ground beneath their feet began to collapse at an alarming rate with a loud "boom."
The demonic energy surged forth the instant the collapse occurred, like demons who had been starving for many years smelling a delicious feast, spreading rapidly and covering the area.
The two had almost no choice but to continue falling at the same speed.
The prolonged loss of footing caused Fu Mingxu to instinctively press himself against Han Tao's chest. The howling wind incessantly filled his ears, giving him a headache, and the boundless darkness began to encroach.
Before the gale turned into a sharp blade, the warm, familiar dragon breath enveloped him, and a drop of sweet blood landed right on Fu Mingxu's nose.
He looked up in surprise and saw a wound on Han Tao's face that had appeared at some point. The bloody cut was angled across his cheek, adding a touch of ferocity to his naturally cold and indifferent face.
Noticing his probing gaze, Han Tao lowered his eyes, his coldness instantly melting away, leaving only a gentle warmth beneath his stern expression. His voice carried a faint reassuring tone: "With me here, you don't need to be afraid."
Fu Mingxu took in the changes in him before and after, and the light above their heads gradually disappeared as they fell deeper.
As darkness instantly enveloped the two of them, Fu Mingxu's heart pounded like thunder.
Soon, a cluster of dragon flames appeared on Han Tao's shoulder, dispelling the darkness around them.
Fu Mingxu secretly wiped the dragon blood from the tip of his nose without saying a word, only feeling his heart pounding wildly.
It was as if he were not in a dangerous and unknown dark underground, but in the bright and pleasant spring sunshine.