Not long ago, after news of Ruan Qing'an's serious injury spread like wildfire, many people had been quietly observing the situation at the Wandao Sect. Only after discovering that this usually aloof and domineering female assassin had not made a public appearance for a long time did they realize that the matter was probably true.

Ruan Qing'an dared not act recklessly, and the sect disciples who had been repeatedly humiliated by her naturally turned their attention to Shen Changlin. The news that he was participating in the Nascent Soul Stage Hidden Dragon Competition was also widely circulated.

Under the bright sun, the reflection in the water mirror at the center of Sanyue City clearly showed the appearance of the Hidden Dragon Abyss Secret Realm. Most eyes were focused on the Wandao Sect—especially on Shen Changlin, who received special attention.

The elders of Changsheng Palace and several other sects gathered together, looking at Shen Changlin in the water mirror with unfriendly expressions.

"Wasn't Ruan Qing'an arrogant? Now he's gone."

"I live nearby, and I heard the injuries were quite serious this time."

"Didn't she make a scene for a whole month over this disciple? Now it seems that this disciple is just a good-for-nothing. His innate Dao body has been destroyed, and all his talents have vanished."

Upon hearing what the elder from the Longevity Palace said, the elder standing nearby couldn't help but ask, "Strange, isn't Shen Changlin in the Nascent Soul stage?"

The elder of the Longevity Palace shook his head, looking knowledgeable, and earnestly explained, "Back then, this innate Dao Body was destroyed with our own eyes. It was the result of blood sacrifices of hundreds of millions of people, and an elder even sacrificed himself to curse it, which prompted the Heavenly Dao to take action."

"His talent has been wasted, that's a foregone conclusion. But look at his current cultivation level, he's actually reached the Nascent Soul stage, it's a joke. The most important thing is that Shen Changlin has only been cultivating for a few years, a mere five or six years, and he wants to break through to the Nascent Soul stage. If you count the history of the cultivation world, no one has ever accomplished that!"

The elder of the Longevity Palace paused, then said, "What is Shen Changlin anyway? Don't you all know how much of his cultivation is inflated?"

Upon hearing this, the elder who had asked the question suddenly realized what was going on.

"I see, so it was probably forced into existence?"

"That's for sure. If you ask me, it's probably because Ruan Qing'an's condition is really bad, and she has made many enemies. She's in such a state that she's practically dead, which probably scared Shen Changlin."

The elder of the Longevity Palace sneered, "Shen Changlin is her only disciple, so all the karma has fallen on Shen Changlin's head. Now that Ruan Qingan is in trouble, he is naturally anxious to improve his cultivation. If it's not to intimidate us, or to gain the attention of the Myriad Paths Sect and have them stand up for him, it's nothing but the fearless struggle of a petty person."

Hearing this, the sect elders all laughed. They had all suffered at Ruan Qing'an's hands, and hearing her disciple's disheveled appearance made them feel even more pleased.

He felt no remorse for bullying the younger generation, after all—this junior, Ruan Qing'an, had already slapped a group of "seniors" in the face.

Just as the elders were speaking, the Nascent Soul stage competition of the Hidden Dragon Grand Tournament was about to begin. All the Nascent Soul stage disciples waited outside Hidden Dragon Abyss, ready to enter the secret realm.

The competition involved each disciple taking a Hidden Dragon Token and entering the secret realm, where they would be randomly scattered in different locations.

They can obtain points on the Hidden Dragon Token by slaying ferocious beasts, with the score determined by the beast's cultivation level. However, they can also obtain the Hidden Dragon Tokens of other Nascent Soul stage disciples by defeating them and integrating them into their own tokens to gain higher scores.

After the three-day secret realm ends, the remaining disciples who have not been eliminated will be ranked according to their scores, and disciples in later ranks can challenge the winners ranked higher.

Throughout the entire secret realm, the lives of all disciples are irrelevant; they can only be teleported away by handing over the Hidden Dragon Token.

Seeing the Nascent Soul stage disciples enter the secret realm, the Elder of the Longevity Palace who had spoken first, after confirming that all the disciples of his Longevity Palace had received their communication jade slips, then looked at Shen Changlin.

He sneered, "Heh... I can't touch Ruan Qing'an. If a mere disciple dies in the secret realm, then I have no one to blame but myself."

"Oh? Did you already have this in mind—"

"Of course, this elder had already made arrangements. He's just a disciple who advanced to the Nascent Soul stage through trickery, nothing special."

...

Accompanied by a warm, faint light, the suction force from the Hidden Dragon Abyss Secret Realm, mixed with irresistible spiritual energy, spread over Shen Changlin's body. He half-closed his eyes and relaxed his body.

The next moment, he was directly sucked into it, and the golden dragon token in his hand released a thin protective shield.

Soon, the pulling sensation of spatial displacement came, but it was firmly blocked by the protective shield formed by the Hidden Dragon Token. Although it was only a thin layer, it was surprisingly sturdy under the power of space.

Not long after, the pulling sensation finally disappeared.

Immediately afterward, a wave of heat hit him. Shen Changlin subconsciously shielded his eyes with his hand. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in front of an endless desert. The blazing sun was overhead, and the excessively high temperature was like a fire burning the surroundings, making even the air seem thin.

"Tsk, looks like my luck is a bit bad..."

Shen Changlin frowned subconsciously. He squatted down and touched the hot sand. Each grain of sand felt smooth and somewhat eerie.

The surroundings were eerily calm, yet not a single clue was apparent.

Shen Changlin narrowed his eyes, his dark pupils falling on the scorching sand under the blazing sun. In an instant—he touched the ground with his toes and leaped into the air. The moment he soared into the air, the entire sand surface collapsed into the ground!

Beneath the collapsed ground, molten lava surged and bubbled, bursting with sparks. Moreover, within the lava, a giant python, its body writhing in flames, swam about.

Under Shen Changlin's gaze, the giant fire python rose up from the magma, supporting half of its body. It was more than ten meters long, and magma slid off its body, splashing up large amounts of sparks.

Compared to the giant fire python, Shen Changlin was tiny.

"hiss--"

With a flick of its tongue, the fiery python's vertical pupils were filled with greed.

In mid-air, Shen Changlin remained expressionless, simply extending his hand and revealing a long sword in his palm—this was Ruan Qing'an's sword, which had remained in his possession ever since her accident.

With a resounding clang, the longsword cleaved through the azure sky!

Seemingly sensing a threat, the giant fire python, whose vertical pupils were originally filled with greed, now looked more solemn, but still flicked its tongue and opened its mouth at Shen Changlin, letting out a long roar!

In the midst of the standoff between the man and the snake—

In the void, disciples who had come from afar kept appearing, but then they hid in the hidden corners of the space. The number of them increased, and at a glance, they were all disciples from the sects of those elders.

The one leading them was none other than the eldest disciple of the Longevity Palace.

Seeing that the other side's momentum was growing stronger, he secretly made a hand gesture and whispered, "That giant python is not easy to deal with. Since Shen Changlin can't see the situation clearly, why insist on fighting it—"

"Then we'll just sit back and reap the benefits, and wait!"

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