The girl surnamed Huang looked to be seventeen or eighteen years old. She was of average appearance, but her eyes were very bright. She was carrying a scholar's sword. As for the young prince, he was quite handsome. He was wearing a horizontal sword and had a bow and arrows on his back.
"My name is Li Chongyi, and my father is Li Xiaogong, the Prince of Hejian." The young prince, Li Chongyi, greeted him with a smile and a cupped-hand salute.
Although he was introducing himself, it was clear that he was mainly targeting the girls. Young men, you know, like to show off in front of the opposite sex, like a male peacock—Qin Mu understood this perfectly. But introducing himself and including "my father" in his name—that sounded a bit like showing off.
Everyone present had some status, so no one paid him any attention, including the little girl Xiangli Yanran, who was focused on eating the pine nuts in her hand. For a moment, there was an awkward silence.
If he didn't mention his father, people might have started a conversation. But if he does mention his father, people might think he's trying to curry favor.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Li Chongyi's expression changed.
"Let's go! The secret realm is open!" Qin Yue eased his embarrassment and changed the subject.
As Qin Yue spoke, everyone looked towards the middle of the valley, where a hole several meters wide had opened up among the rocks.
The beastmen also approached, looking at the cave entrance with curiosity and a hint of awe. After all, it had just been flat ground at the beginning, and the Qin family hadn't dug anything; the cave had just suddenly appeared.
The key point is that the cave was pitch black except for a few steps; it was so dark it was unsettling, like a bottomless pit.
"Please! This is the secret realm you wish to enter!" Qin Yao gestured to the orcs.
"Hehe, this is the secret realm of the Zhengwang family, how could we possibly be here so early?" Hu Meiniang said with a charming smile.
"It's alright, we're all guests from afar! Please come in!"
"No! No! Although we beastmen are uncultured, we know we shouldn't overstep our bounds. Please go first."
"Hmph! Everyone says orcs are brave, but I think they're nothing special!" Luo Cheng sneered.
"Let's go in!" One werewolf couldn't resist the provocation and stepped forward, wanting to enter the secret realm.
"Abu!" Hu Meiniang's smile vanished as she called out.
At Hu Meiniang's shout, the werewolf stopped abruptly and lowered his head under her cold gaze. It was clear he was terrified of her.
“General Luo, there’s no need to goad us. Although the beastmen are impulsive, they are not without brains,” Hu Meiniang said, turning her head. Clearly, she was determined not to go first.
Luo Cheng wasn't very talkative with people he didn't know well, so he didn't continue arguing with her. He crossed his arms and looked aloofly into the distance.
"You can come in!" Qin Yao nodded to Qin Yue and the others. He had let the beastmen go in first just to trick them and take advantage of their ignorance of the limit on the number of people allowed.
Qin Yue led the way toward the secret realm, followed by the young man from the Sun family who was carrying a long sword, and then the three monks, nuns, and Taoist priests from Cihang Jingzhai.
After the five of them had gone for ten breaths, Qin Yue took the lead and walked away, followed by Qin Mu and the others.
Hu Meiniang, who had been watching intently, sneered inwardly and then muttered a few words in a low voice.
Without feeling dizzy, after descending six steps, Qin Mu felt as if he had passed through a somewhat viscous curtain of water. Then, his vision brightened, and he found himself in a passageway.
There were no torches inside, and the light was dim, but it didn't affect visibility. As for the source of the light, it was unknown.
"Be careful!" Qin Yue warned, then took out a bronze sword that was a bit longer than an ordinary sword.
Qin Mu had long noticed that the main members of the Qin family primarily used bronze weapons, mainly swords, with relatively long and wide blades.
The little girl saw the large sword that looked like a beautiful woman, but it was sharp but without a blade. She dragged it along with Qin Yue. Qin Mu and the girl surnamed Huang walked in the middle, while Li Chongyi brought up the rear. This had been discussed beforehand because Qin Mu and the girl surnamed Huang were the weakest in close combat.
Even so, the two of them drew their swords and cautiously advanced. According to the Qin family, the initial passage required them to fight their way through.
The battle began quickly. After just turning a corner, a dark figure appeared ahead, crouching there. Upon seeing the group, it roared and pounced.
"I'll go!" Xiangli Yanran said, dragging her greatsword as she charged forward.
With a "thud," the greatsword struck the dark figure, sending him tumbling backward.
However, the dark figure rolled over, sprang to its feet, and pounced again. This guy was just like a wild beast, landing on all fours and leaping high and far.
With another "plop," the little girl swept the shadow away like she was swatting a fly.
This time, the shadowy figure didn't get up; it just twitched a few times on the ground and then fell silent.
The five men then stepped forward. Qin Mu looked down and saw that the dark figure looked just like a werewolf, with a face covered in patterns, except that its head was now shattered, making it somewhat disgusting.
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Qin Mu forced himself to examine the dead werewolf again. He discovered that this creature was different from the werewolves outside. First, it had markings that covered almost its entire body; second, it had sharp claws on its hands, which were not seen on the werewolves outside.
Of the five, three girls appeared very calm. Qin Mu knew he had an indescribable feeling inside him, a mix of discomfort and excitement, but it was much better than the last time he encountered an assassination attempt. As for Li Chongyi, he glanced at him and his complexion didn't seem too good either, so he probably hadn't experienced much killing either.
"Let's go!" Qin Yue didn't offer any words of comfort, but simply urged them to keep going. After all, there would be many more such things to come, and if they couldn't adapt quickly, they might have to leave.
However, those who can get in are probably not that fragile; after seeing them a few more times, they'll get used to it.
Ahead was a circular opening, and I felt that viscous water curtain again. Then, an identical passage appeared once more.
The same corner, but instead of love, there were only animal roars and shadows, though this time there were two.
These werewolves, called Corpse Wolves, have no sense of pain. Their weak points are their heads or severed limbs. It is precisely because of these characteristics that they are called Corpse Wolves. They are also the main adversaries in the secret realm, as the Qin family had mentioned beforehand.
The Corpse Wolves aren't difficult to deal with; they no longer use their Blood Wolf Smoke, and their attacks are purely instinctive, making them more like animals. The key issue is their numbers, which have multiplied exponentially.
Every ten levels bring a change. In the first ten levels, there are only corpse wolves, a maximum of 256. But the later levels are different, with traps and battle formations. That's why the Qin family hired outside help. After all, it's not easy for the younger generation to master multiple skills.
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