Chapter 80

"Is he actually still alive?"

Zheng Bin of the Xuanwu Palace stared blankly at Nie Tian, suddenly stunned.

An Ying and Jiang Lingzhu also had expressions as if they had seen a ghost, seemingly unable to believe the fact before their eyes.

After Yu Tong of the Houtian realm used the Blood Sect's forbidden technique, the Earth Net, to trap Nie Tian, she clearly began to refine Nie Tian's blood.

When they left, Nie Tian was on the brink of death, with only a faint heartbeat remaining, and even his breathing had stopped.

How could such a Nie Tian still be alive?

This left them incredulous.

Soon after, Pan Tao was the first to rush to Nie Tian's side. He circled Nie Tian a few times, examining him thoroughly. After confirming that Nie Tian was indeed unharmed, he punched Nie Tian hard and couldn't help but exclaim, "How did you survive, kid?"

He asked the question everyone wanted to know.

At this moment, the group who had been pursuing the Ghost Sect and Blood Sect also arrived at Nie Tian's side, all staring at him with wide eyes, waiting for his explanation.

Nie Tian chuckled and said, "It was a problem with that demoness herself."

"How so?" Pan Tao pressed.

"That demoness's Blood Refining Technique seemed to suffer a backlash halfway through," Nie Tian said calmly. "If she could have continued, all of my blood would have been drained and refined. Unfortunately, using the Earth Net with her Houtian realm cultivation seemed too much for her."

"I felt that when she was refining my blood, she suddenly ran out of power."

"Unable to continue the spell, the blood that had been extracted from me gradually returned to my body. Those crimson blood lines gradually exploded, turning into blood mist that slowly dissipated."

As Nie Tian spoke, Jiang Miao's eyes had a peculiar look.

Because this explanation was clearly different from what he had said earlier.

He said the crimson blood lines had exploded, but Jiang Miao had clearly seen those blood lines, filled with dense blood energy, all disappear into Nie Tian's body, as if refined by him.

Fortunately, the grateful Jiang Miao did not expose him.

After his explanation, the others all had thoughtful expressions. Some believed him, while others... secretly doubted the truth of his words.

For example, An Ying, Jiang Lingzhu, Pan Tao, and Zheng Bin.

Those who truly understood the Blood Sect's Blood Refining Technique knew that even if Yu Tong suffered a backlash, once the Blood Refining Technique started, it would never stop.

Even if Yu Tong died, the Blood Refining Technique she had cast would have been enough to kill Nie Tian from excessive blood loss.

Even if the blood extracted from Nie Tian's body could not return to him on its own.

In short, he should not have been unharmed, and even if he managed to survive, he should not have looked like this.

Seeing that everyone was silent, looking at him with puzzled expressions, Nie Tian quickly changed the subject, "What about you? Did you catch up to them and kill them in the Qinghuan Realm?"

"No," Pan Tao said with a bitter smile. "Mo Xi and that demoness, along with two disciples of the Ghost Sect and Blood Sect, successfully escaped. We chased them for a while, but only managed to kill three of the stragglers. We couldn't kill them all."

"Strangely, Mo Xi and the others suddenly disappeared for some reason."

"Ah, if we could have killed Mo Xi and that demoness, we could have given the elders a satisfactory report after leaving the Qinghuan Realm."

He said with regret.

With Yu Tong severely injured and only Mo Xi left, they had not managed to kill all their opponents, which left him feeling very uneasy.

The others also felt useless and did not try to defend themselves.

"Time is almost up. Let's all head to the Secret Realm Gate. The trial in the Qinghuan Realm is about to end. Everyone, just endure a few more days of hunger. Once we leave the Qinghuan Realm, we can have a big meal," An Ying suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

At this moment, Zheng Bin of the Xuanwu Palace looked at Nie Tian and suddenly said, "At the time... we thought you were definitely going to die, so we left you. We didn't know you could actually survive. Otherwise, we would have stayed to help you."

An Ying, Jiang Lingzhu, and Nie Xian all looked at him with apologetic expressions.

Nie Tian, however, was not bothered. He knew that Zheng Bin's decision was rational, and if it weren't for his special circumstances, he would never have survived.

No one knew about his abnormal condition, and it was reasonable for them to abandon a person who was certain to die in order to turn the tide by killing Yu Tong.

"It's fine. I don't blame you. You didn't do anything wrong," Nie Tian said with a smile.

"Being alive is good enough." Pan Tao patted his shoulder in a friendly manner and suddenly said, "Kid... you haven't become a disciple of the Lingyun Sect yet?"

"My cultivation realm is insufficient, so I haven't been accepted by the Lingyun Sect yet," Nie Tian said honestly.

Pan Tao nodded and chuckled, his eyes filled with deep meaning.

Jiang Lingzhu, who had been watching him, was moved by his conversation with Nie Tian. She suddenly shouted, "Don't even think about it! Pan Tao, I'm telling you, Nie Tian will eventually be a member of the Lingyun Sect. You might as well give up now!"

Pan Tao rubbed his nose, "The Lingyun Sect has strict rules and only accepts disciples from subordinate families who have broken through to the ninth level of Qi Condensation. Our Lingbao Pavilion is not so rigid. Nie Tian is my brother, and we have gone through many dire situations together. Once we leave the Qinghuan Realm, I will definitely recommend him to join the Lingbao Pavilion."

"No way!" Jiang Lingzhu said firmly.

"Hey, we'll see," Pan Tao laughed heartily.

There were only a few days left until the Secret Realm Gate opened. With Yu Tong severely injured, only three Blood Sect and Ghost Sect disciples were left who could fight.

Given the current situation, the Ghost Sect and Blood Sect no longer posed a threat to them.

Pan Tao, knowing they would definitely leave the Qinghuan Realm, naturally relaxed and began to consider what to do after they left.

"Let's see how it goes!" Jiang Lingzhu said defiantly.

In the following days, Nie Tian and the trial participants from the three sects gathered at the Secret Realm Gate, waiting quietly for it to open.

With time running out and no spirit beasts around, everyone had to endure hunger.

Five days later.

Exhausted and emaciated, the group, who were on the brink of starvation, finally felt a strong spiritual energy fluctuation from the stone wall where the Secret Realm Gate was located.

"The gate is opening!" Everyone's spirits were lifted.

Soon, the smooth stone wall slowly transformed, as if turning into a bright mirror.

"Everyone, go out in order!"

Under An Ying's urging, the famished group, one by one, entered the Secret Realm Gate.

Beside the lake in the swamp.

An Shiyi of the Lingbao Pavilion, Li Fan of the Lingyun Sect, Sang Bing of the Gray Valley, and Auntie Weng of the Xuanwu Palace were chatting while looking at the whirlpool in the lake.

"If there are no surprises, the Black Ice Python should have been killed by Yuan Feng," Sang Bing said to An Shiyi, tilting his head slightly. "An girl, when the time comes, your Lingbao Pavilion shouldn't be stingy. The Enlightenment Pill must be delivered according to the rules."

"How do you know the Black Ice Python was killed by Yuan Feng?" An Shiyi smiled coyly.

Sang Bing grinned, "Neither your sister An Ying, nor Zheng Bin, nor Jiang Lingzhu, have truly experienced great storms. But Yuan Feng has been thoroughly tempered by us. We took him with us when we fought the Ghost Sect. He has been baptized by blood. The trial in the Qinghuan Realm is just a small matter for him."

"Oh, I'll see if Yuan Feng can bring back the head of the Black Ice Python," Li Fan said indifferently.

"Then you'll see," Sang Bing said confidently.

"They're coming out." Auntie Weng of the Xuanwu Palace called out.

As she spoke, Zheng Bin led the Xuanwu Palace trial participants, one by one, out of the whirlpool in the lake.

Following them were Jiang Lingzhu and Nie Xian, and finally An Ying, Pan Tao, Nie Tian, and Zheng Rui.

"Those who come out last often have the greatest harvest," Sang Bing of the Gray Valley laughed heartily, looking pleased, as if he expected Yuan Feng to emerge from the whirlpool at any moment, holding the head of the Black Ice Python.

Unfortunately, after a while, he stopped laughing when he realized that everyone had emerged from the lake, but Yuan Feng was nowhere to be seen.

He frowned and said, "Could it be that Yuan Feng and the others didn't make it to the stone wall before the Secret Realm Gate opened?"

"Yuan Feng won't be coming back," Jiang Lingzhu said to Li Fan. "Not just Yuan Feng, but all the Gray Valley trial participants won't be coming back."

"What?!" Sang Bing's face changed dramatically.

...