Qi Zhiheng put away the key with a smile on his face. Since the sect leader wanted to give it to him, there was no need for him to refuse.
Qi Dong took three keys and handed over the rest.
Following closely behind, good news from others arrived one after another. Most members of the Qi family had obtained keys, but Yang Yitian had held back in the talisman-related matters; as long as Qi Zhiheng stole the limelight, the rest of the Qi family didn't need to make a big splash. Yang Yitian conservatively secured tenth place. The others also managed to obtain a few spots scattered throughout the rest of the family.
Qi Zhiheng suddenly realized that having so many keys was not very useful, as his family could earn enough keys to meet their needs.
Qi Zhiheng divided the keys in his hand into smaller parts and returned the rest to Elder Wu.
This qualification could actually be given to someone you know or sold for a small benefit, but it's difficult to decide who to sell it to or who you know. You might offend someone if you're not careful. So Qi Zhiheng simply returned the key to Elder Wu.
Before entering the secret realm, Qi Zhiheng held his sons and taught them cultivation.
Yang Yitian squatted down to the side and looked at her husband and son: "Dabao and the others want to go in too? They want to comprehend the Dao under the Enlightenment Tree. Can they even understand it?"
"Understanding it won't do any good. They haven't even started cultivating yet. It'll be another year or two." Qi Zhiheng patted his son's head. "Just let them go in and play."
Elder Wu, who was listening from the side, couldn't help but clutch his chest. This was an opportunity that so many cultivators would want, but Qi Zhiheng had so casually dismissed it as just letting his son go and have some fun. If others found out, they would be furious with Qi Zhiheng!
Qi Zhiheng taught a few children some cultivation techniques. If they could gain some enlightenment under the Enlightenment Tree, that would be a good thing.
On the day of entry, Qi Zhiheng brought his family and several children into the secret realm within the sect. Some people within the Lu Shen Sect were still dissatisfied with this, believing that it was a waste for Qi Zhiheng to give the entry slots to a few children! If the slots were given to Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivators, it might be possible to create Nascent Soul cultivators and Out-of-Body cultivators for the sect.
Of course, they didn't dare say this to Qi Zhiheng's face, they could only complain about it behind his back, which might attract the attention of the higher-ups and force Qi Zhiheng to hand over the key.
Elder Wu remained unmoved by these people's comments and turned a blind eye to Qi Zhiheng's behavior. What a joke! These keys were all earned by the Qi family themselves, and they even secured so many opportunities for the Slaughtering God Sect to enter the secret realm. How could it be his place to offer opinions?
When everyone gathered, Qi Zhiheng also saw a familiar face, Ye Yunchuan.
The last time I saw Ye Yunchuan was during a competition. We were both in our positions and didn't have a chance to talk.
At that moment, Ye Yunchuan stood in his position and watched helplessly as Qi Zhiheng went on stage to receive the first-place prize.
He was naturally shocked. He recognized Qi Zhiheng, and not long ago, he had thought Qi was just an insignificant Golden Core cultivator. When his somewhat talented bloodline descendant abandoned him for Qi Zhiheng, he felt his bloodline was worthless, actually abandoning him, a Nascent Soul alchemist, for a Golden Core cultivator. Now, he had been thoroughly humiliated. Moreover, when Qi Zhiheng saw him, his gaze didn't even linger on him for a moment.
Ye Yunchuan thought to himself that Qi Zhiheng must be on the verge of soaring to great heights.
To be honest, he was filled with resentment. How dare a mere Golden Core cultivator act like this in front of him? His pride would not allow it, and he even wanted to regain his dignity, taking back the humiliation he had suffered earlier.
The only way to solve everything is to seize this opportunity and become a Nascent Soul cultivator in one fell swoop!
Thinking of this, Ye Yunchuan suppressed his resentment.
Qi Zhiheng didn't intend to kick him while he was down. He simply patted Ye Hanyuan on the shoulder and encouraged him, "I believe your future achievements will be no less than his. In terms of talent, he is not as good as you."
Ye Hanyuan nodded: "Disciple understands."
Qi Zhiheng looked around at the people. The two fifth-level alchemists who were in the Nascent Soul stage were not there. Well, fifth-level alchemists were already in the Nascent Soul stage. They must have already entered the Enlightenment Tree. They would only go to the competition to compete for a spot for their own sect.
Of course, the absence of these two level-five alchemists made Qi Zhiheng feel a little more relaxed, as he didn't want to see them.
Once everyone had arrived, representatives from several sects presented tokens: five separate keys. After the five keys were combined, a sudden gust of wind arose and rose into the air, creating a rift. A final circular beam of light shone down, and the leader of the Tianyuan Sect gestured for his disciples to assemble.
Under the guidance of their leader, the disciples of Tianyuan Sect stood under the circular light.
Qi Zhiheng stood beside Elder Wu: "Aren't our people going over there?"
Elder Wu glanced at the Tianyuan Sect disciples standing at the entrance and replied with a smile, "No rush. The Tianyuan Sect is the top sect after all. Let their people go first. Our Lushen Sect is second. Once they've finished entering, it will be our turn."
"So this has to be based on rankings? When will our Lu Shen Sect be able to get a number one spot to show off?" Qi Zhiheng observed the Tianyuan Sect disciples disappearing one by one into the light screen.
Elder Wu chuckled dryly. Their Slaughtering God Sect had been second for almost ten thousand years; how could they possibly claim first place so easily? "Master Qi is truly righteous. The glory of this sect will depend on Master Qi to fight for it."
Qi Zhiheng raised an eyebrow: "May I ask Elder Wu, how was this ranking determined?"
Elder Wu said, "The time is not right yet. There is still some time before the sect competition. When Master Qi returns, we will discuss how to bring glory to the sect."
At this moment, Elder Wu stepped forward. There were only a few disciples left from the Tianyuan Sect. Their Lushen Sect was ranked second, so they should go up next.
Qi Zhiheng didn't ask any more questions and led his family into the light.
In the blink of an eye, everyone entered the secret realm.
After Qi Zhiheng regained his footing, he put the child in his arms down on the ground: "You lot, don't run around. There might be danger here, you know?"
"Understood," the children said in unison.
The danger within this secret realm isn't actually that great, but it's still somewhat perilous for a few children to be there.
Qi Zhiheng had placed a lot of protective gear on these children, and even some of them had spirit artifacts that could teleport short distances. These were all spirit artifacts that could activate on their own, and could save their lives in case of trouble.
This time, the teleportation did not separate the groups; most of them were teleported to this location, which is not far away.
"We've been teleported to a place, is there any danger?" Qi Zhiheng tugged at Elder Wu's sleeve.
Elder Wu chuckled and said, "It's alright. The spiritual energy here is almost entirely absorbed by the Enlightenment Tree, so nothing of value can grow here. We're not fools, there's no need for us to fight each other. Of course, if your equipment is too good and attracts attention, then things might get complicated."
Qi Zhiheng looked around at the surrounding environment. Although the trees were lush and green, they did not have much spiritual energy. They were just ordinary trees or low-level spiritual trees and plants.
"Let's go, follow me." Elder Wu took out a map and led the way.
The disciples of the Slaughtering God Sect followed. The disciples of the Heavenly Origin Sect were no longer there; they must have already left.
Qi Zhiheng couldn't help but be curious, and followed behind Elder Wu, asking, "Elder Wu, where is the Enlightenment Tree?"
Elder Wu replied while looking at the map, "It shouldn't be far. According to what our predecessors have said, once you cross these lakes, you should be able to see it." He pointed to a lake marker on the map and said to Qi Zhiheng.
Qi Zhiheng glanced at it, then looked ahead again, but didn't find any sign of the Enlightenment Tree.
Elder Wu smiled and said, "There's no need to draw this out; I'll just remember it."
They hadn't walked far when they sensed the presence of the Shenmu Sect disciples behind them, indicating that they had already entered the secret realm.
So the disciples of the Slaughtering God Sect quickened their pace. Half a day later, they arrived at the lake that Elder Wu had mentioned earlier.
It was already dark, and a strange, eerie light shimmered on the lake's surface.
Elder Wu released a flying spirit boat, allowing everyone to board and pilot it towards the center of the vast lake.
Qi Zhiheng yawned. He sat down to meditate and instructed the younger ones to behave themselves.
At midnight, Elder Wu woke everyone up.
Qi Zhiheng asked in confusion, "Have we arrived at the Enlightenment Tree?" He looked out the window and saw that they were still above the lake.
Elder Wu led everyone to the deck and said to the lake, "That's it."
"Is this lake the Enlightenment Tree?" Qi Zhiheng had never seen the Enlightenment Tree before, but it was mentioned in the information, and no one had ever said that the Enlightenment Tree was a lake.
Elder Wu said, "The Enlightenment Trees are all different, and they show themselves in different forms. This lake is one of those forms."
"Then shall we jump in?" Qi Zhiheng looked at the lake. The surface of the lake was as smooth as a mirror, reflecting the shadow of their boat. He stuck his head out and could even see his own face through the lake.
Strangely, he saw no one else besides his own face. He blinked, then pulled Yang Yitian close, and the two looked down together.
"Huh? Where did you go?" Yang Yitian also noticed the strangeness of the problem.
Qi Zhiheng looked down and, sure enough, he was still the only one there.
Elder Wu said to everyone, "The Enlightenment Tree is below; you may go in now."
So someone jumped into the lake without splashing a single drop of water.
Qi Zhiheng tugged at Elder Wu: "Is this a lake? Won't it be dangerous for the children to go in?"
Elder Wu shrugged: "I don't know either."
"Has anyone encountered any danger inside before?" Qi Zhiheng asked again.
Elder Wu shook his head and said, "No, at most it's just that you didn't get the chance to comprehend the Dao."
Hearing this, Qi Zhiheng felt somewhat relieved. After confirming several times that the danger was not great, he threw the child into the lake as well, and then jumped in himself.
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