Chapter 402: Waiting
Li Zhirui had not finished speaking when he was teleported out of the Secret Realm; by the time he regained his senses, he found himself near Stone Pagoda Immortal City.
"This actually saves me some trouble," said Li Zhirui with a light chuckle.
Before entering the Secret Realm, he had already arranged to meet with Li Zhiyue in a rented courtyard in the Immortal City.
For this, Li Zhirui had spent a substantial amount of Spirit Stones to ensure that the courtyard would not be rented by others.
"I wonder if Wang Daozhi will come over," murmured Li Zhirui.
He had some questions in his heart that he wanted to ask this outcast from a top Great Sect.
There was no choice—among the people Li Zhirui knew, only he had the highest origins, who else could he ask if not him?
Shaking his head, he temporarily suppressed these thoughts and began to consider how to handle the various rewards in his hands.
Now, there was less than a month left before the Secret Realm closed.
This period of time was neither short nor long, and Li Zhirui, fearing that he might miss Li Zhiyue, did not dare to go into seclusion to contemplate the Cultivation Techniques.
He could only read slowly and commit them to memory.
As for the other rewards, such as Spirit-Nurturing Grass and Five Elements Ganoderma, he had already cultivated quite a few in his space; when the time came, he just needed to hand over a nearly mature one to the clan.
Regarding the Red Date, Li Zhirui had no plan to keep it either; it would also be handed over to the clan to be merged with the clan's Red Date tree.
Of course, there was no need to say more about the Nascent Soul Pill—it was specifically reserved for Jiang Fengwu.
Li Zhirui had just examined the Spirit Beast Egg with True Dragon bloodlines, and it seemed to be a fifth-grade Flood Dragon with Azure Dragon bloodlines.
Faced with such rich harvests, Li Zhirui was very satisfied.
Time hurried by, and in the blink of an eye, half a month passed.
Li Zhiyue, whose injuries had not fully healed, also left the Secret Realm on that day.
Her face, which was once lovely, was now marred with glaring scars, but the dissatisfaction and regret in her eyes were even more attention-grabbing.
After a while, Li Zhiyue calmed her mind, discerned the direction, and flew toward the Immortal City with a cold expression on her face.
However, she hadn't expected that shortly after she flew out, an intense battle broke out nearby.
As if possessed, Li Zhiyue concealed her aura and cautiously flew towards the center of the battle.
"Chu Han, hand over the items you obtained from the Secret Realm! I might just spare your life!"
"Hehe!" chuckled Chu Han coldly, disdainfully responding, "Gu Li, what dream talk are you giving in broad daylight?"
"Since it's like that, then go to your death!"
Boom boom boom!
The two seemed to have a tacit understanding, striking at the same time, both with lethal moves.
In Li Zhiyue's eyes, the strength of the two was almost equal; there was no way to tell the victor in a short period of time.
At that moment, she also felt some regret; she shouldn't have come this close!
Now she was truly caught between a rock and a hard place and could only wait for them to determine a winner.
——
Knock knock—
Hearing the knocking, Li Zhirui slowly ended his cultivation practice, stood up, and opened the courtyard door.
"Wang, it looks like your journey was quite fruitful!" Li Zhirui said with a chuckle upon seeing the visitor.
"Do not mock me, fellow Daoist," Wang Daozhi shook his head with a bitter smile on his face.
Li Zhirui's eyes flickered with curiosity, but seeing that the other party was reluctant to speak up, he felt it inappropriate to press for answers.
Changing the subject, he asked, "Wang, I have some questions on my mind; could you possibly help me with some answers?"
"Fellow Daoist, speak freely. What I know, I will certainly share without reservation!"
Li Zhirui pondered for a moment before saying, "This Stone Pagoda trial, could there be more to it than meets the eye?"
"Hmm? Did you notice something yourself, or have you heard something?"
Seeing Wang Daozhi's reaction, Li Zhirui immediately had a clue—Wang must know some secrets unknown to others.
"The trial of the Stone Pagoda isn't that simple, is it?" Li Zhirui paused, then continued, "And during the trial, were there beings not of this world involved?"
Envy appeared on Wang Daozhi's face, "It looks like Fellow Daoist has encountered this situation. Such good fortune indeed."
Seeing him looking down without continuing, Li Zhirui did not urge him on.
After a good while, Wang Daozhi finally began to speak, "It's true, I once heard from my teacher that Immortals participate in this trial."
"Moreover, the so-called Illusionary Realms within the Secret Realm are actually all real!"
As expected! Li Zhirui thought to himself.
During the trial, he had noticed quite a few clues, such as the trial at the Beast Gladiatorial Arena, and then there was Liu Sihe.
"It is said that these Immortals sometimes take an interest in certain cultivators during the trial, occasionally bestowing benefits or, after Ascension, directly inviting them to join the Sect they belong to," Wang Daozhi said with unabashed envy.
A flicker of realization crossed Li Zhirui's eyes—no wonder his storage ring had a few more mysterious Spirit Talismans.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist, for unraveling my doubts!" Li Zhirui said with a look of gratitude.
Wang Daozhi shook his head; these matters might be precious to some, but in reality, they were just so.
"Seeing Fellow Daoist well, I too am at ease. I have matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Li Zhirui saw him off until his figure disappeared, then turned and walked back into the courtyard.
"I wonder if Zhiyue has come out yet." Li Zhirui's brows furrowed slightly. He planned to wait a few more days. If Li Zhiyue still hadn't returned, he would need to change his appearance.
Truth be told, Li Zhirui didn't quite trust Wang Daozhi.
After all, they hadn't known each other for very long, and their friendship was just so-so.
The most important thing was the event he'd encountered—it was too tempting!
If it had happened to someone else and he had known about it, Li Zhirui felt he would have been tempted too!
And when he had been questioning Wang Daozhi, he'd already anticipated this reaction and had prepared accordingly for events that might arise.
Li Zhirui's concerns were not unfounded; after Wang Daozhi left, he was caught in a quandary.
He felt that Li Zhirui was extremely fortunate and that befriending him would be beneficial for his own cultivation.
He also envied Li Zhirui's exceptional good fortune in gaining an Immortal's favor, perhaps even possessing treasures.
If all these things were to become his, his cultivation would likewise see significant improvement, an immediate and noticeable boost!
But he was also aware of Li Zhirui's strength; Wang Daozhi understood that he was no match for him.
In short, Wang Daozhi was greatly conflicted.
However, what he didn't realize was that Li Zhirui already had his guard up against him.
Knock, knock—
And Zhiyue didn't disappoint him. The day after Wang Daozhi left, she returned to the courtyard.
"You..." When Li Zhirui opened the courtyard door and saw Li Zhiyue with her face covered in scars, he was taken aback.
"Jiu, I'm fine, these are just superficial injuries!" Li Zhiyue said with a smile.
Seeing her like this, Li Zhirui had a good idea of what had happened, but instead of asking about her wounds, he said, "Let's leave this place first and discuss further in a safe location."
Without questioning him, Li Zhiyue followed him trustingly and left the courtyard.