Chapter 432: Chapter 430: The Secret Realm Shatters, Lu Ye Inquires about the Void Nine-headed Insect, and Beneath the Mountain Rift... There Is Another

An hour later...

It seemed that in the midst of the Realm Sea, the energy had been depleted and the Secret Realm declared its collapse several hours early.

All the cultivators within the Secret Realm were expelled from its space by an irresistible Law Power.

This time, the direction from which the Secret Realm spit people out was unlike the previous Black Valley Secret Realm, with no fixed location.

In an instant, the silhouettes of numerous cultivators reappeared where the Yunyao Secret Realm had been opened.

When Lu Ye was teleported out, he immediately noticed that something seemed amiss about this place...

Sang Xiyao’s expression was somewhat serious, and in addition, there was an injured Mortal Realm Grandmaster who looked rather pale.

"What happened here? Could someone have attacked this place?"

This thought flashed through Lu Ye’s mind, and he was a bit taken aback.

Who would dare to attack the envoy team of Lingyao Celestial Palace?

Being bold was one thing... but this was on another level of audacity.

Meanwhile, as more figures were being teleported out, Sang Xiyao also spotted Lu Ye, and she, too, appeared slightly surprised.

Why hadn’t any Celestial Curtain Prefecture members been seen being teleported out, yet he had?

Where were the two Ninth Layer Grandmasters from Celestial Curtain Prefecture?

Soon enough, Sang Xiyao noticed something else amiss.

Every time with the Yunyao Secret Realm, Sang Xiyao had observed figures from the Eighth and Ninth Layer Grandmasters, and was familiar with them.

But as the teleportation movements gradually ceased, representing that all the cultivators within had been ejected...

The number of Ninth Layer Grandmasters Sang Xiyao sensed didn’t even come close to matching the original amount!

Upon entering, including the two from Celestial Curtain Prefecture, there were six Ninth Layer figures in total.

At this moment...

Only two unscathed ones came out, while the other four Ninth Layer Grandmasters... had vanished without a trace?!

Recalling the appearance of the sinister Void Nine-headed Insect before, an uneasy premonition surged in Sang Xiyao’s heart.

Could it be... they fell into the mouth of that vile creature?!

Whether it was the people from Celestial Curtain Prefecture or the two brothers from Desolate Stone Mountain, they had all stayed in the Mortal Realm Grandmaster Ninth Layer for years; Sang Xiyao knew roughly their capabilities.

Sang Xiyao frowned and inquired, "Can anyone tell me where the Desolate Stone Mountain brothers and the Celestial Curtain Prefecture people went?"

The reason for this question was because there were indeed many uncertainties within the Secret Realm.

The vast realm might contain some places with unknown teleportation arrays; asking those who participated in the Secret Realm would evidently be more reliable than making guesses.

Upon hearing this, the newly teleported cultivators exchanged confused glances, finally directing their gazes unanimously towards Lu Ye.

Sang Xiyao: "?"

Looking at Lu Ye, Sang Xiyao asked, "Fellow Daoist Beixuan, do you happen to know?"

Nodding slightly, Lu Ye replied, "I might indeed know."

"Huang Han and Huang Shi tried to rob my Thunder Profound Fruit, so I killed them."

Sang Xiyao: "?!!"

One couldn’t blame Sang Xiyao for being so shocked. From Sang Xiyao’s impression, the last time she escorted Lu Ye to the Celestial Palace was only a few months ago.

Back then, Lu Ye had only just reached the top of the East Cang List, manifesting a realm of Grandmaster Fourth Layer.

Even if he had received feedback from the stone stele, reaching the Fifth or even Sixth Layer would have already been extraordinary.

But what was the combined strength of the Huang brothers? Ninth Layer Grandmasters!

Moreover, the brothers had been together for years, working seamlessly and mastering a combined combat technique equivalent to the Array of the Two Principles.

Faced with such a vast gap, Sang Xiyao simply couldn’t fathom how Chen Beixuan had the capability to kill them?!

Yet the expressions of the cultivators present appeared natural; none seemed surprised.

Additionally, many were now looking at Chen Beixuan with a slight awe, which was completely different from when they first entered the Secret Realm.

So... it was true?!

Zhu Gang stood amongst the crowd, initially intending to pin the blame for the deaths of the Celestial Curtain Prefecture’s duo on Lu Ye right in front of the Celestial Palace envoys.

But casting a glance at Lu Ye’s side, as the Law Enforcement Hall Master of the Celestial Profound Sect, Zhu Gang ultimately lacked the courage to speak.

After all, pinning this blame on Lu Ye in the presence of the celestial envoys might be gratifying.

But it wouldn’t provide any substantive help.

The Celestial Palace primarily discourages cultivators of Xuanzhou from killing each other; they wouldn’t mete out any punishment.

Should he end up enraging that God of Slaughter in the process... Zhu Gang wasn’t sure if he’d have a chance to return to the Celestial Profound Sect.

Following this, Sang Xiyao inquired the cultivators present if they had encountered anything unusual, like a particularly repulsive nine-headed insect.

Unexpectedly, those present shook their heads, although Lu Ye felt a stir within.

"Nine-headed insect?"

He hadn’t seen any nine-headed insect.

However, earlier with Xiao Qingyin in that herb garden in the valley...

At the last moment, it seemed something came from the white mist beyond the valley...

The white mist’s pressure on Spiritual Sense was intense, and Lu Ye could only vaguely sense that the approaching thing seemed to be some creature resembling an insect.

Since no one else claimed to have seen it, Sang Xiyao didn’t insist on keeping them any longer.

Moments later, those who had exited the Secret Realm, each with their own gains, dispersed.

Toward the end, only Xiao Qingyin and Lu Ye remained.

Naturally, Xiao Qingyin stayed because Lu Ye hadn’t left yet and she was waiting for him.

And Lu Ye wanted to ask about that insect matter.

If his guess was correct, then there was more than one of those bugs.

In that crack beneath the mountain range...

There was another one!

"Did you really slay the Huang brothers?"

Sang Xiyao glanced around, noting that only those from Lingyao Celestial Palace and Lu Ye remained, and asked.

"I’ve always dealt kindly with others, but they insisted on snatching my Thunder Profound Fruit," Lu Ye stated calmly.

Sang Xiyao: "..."

"By the way, what is the deal with the nine-headed insect you mentioned, Xiyao Fairy?" Lu Ye pointed to the injured celestial envoy and asked, "Was this fellow Daoist hurt by it?"

Upon mention of this, Sang Xiyao’s expression turned serious again.

"The full name of the nine-headed insect is Void Nine-headed Insect, a species with extremely powerful capabilities."

"Additionally, it enjoys devouring the Human Race, using humans and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures as nutrients, gradually growing from a single head to a Void Nine-headed Insect capable of devouring an entire domain of the void."

"If you happen to encounter one, run if you can," Sang Xiyao advised.

Thinking for a moment, Lu Ye asked, "Xiyao Fairy, would the Void Nine-headed Insect merge? For example, could two initial-heads act separately and then combine into a two-headed creature at some point?"