Top-tier Unruly Master-Chapter 1685 - 1722: No Hope

At this moment, everyone was shocked to see Leng Jian emerge alive from the Xuantian Secret Realm.

You must know that quite some time has passed since the normal return time from the Xuantian Secret Realm, and no one expected anyone to come out alive at this point. This is indeed unbelievable. However, for the elders or sect leaders of the Thirty-six Caves, although it’s unexpected, it’s a good thing for them. After all, having one more disciple return is nothing but beneficial for the entire Thirty-six Caves.

After all, the disciples who entered the Xuantian Secret Realm from the Thirty-six Caves were the most talented, representing the future of the Thirty-six Caves. Even if they don’t become sect leaders or elders in the future, they will surely become important figures for the entire Thirty-six Caves.

While everyone was shocked, they were still very happy to see a disciple emerge from the Xuantian Secret Realm.

Among these people, the one who felt the most relieved was Long Ren, the Lake Master of the Thirty-six Caves. Long Ren was quite distressed seeing so many outstanding disciples of the Thirty-six Caves failing to return from the Xuantian Secret Realm. So, at this point, after his persistent hoping, seeing another disciple emerge from the Xuantian Secret Realm was certainly a source of joy for him.

But even though Long Ren was happy, it was just a momentary happiness. Before, nine disciples entered, but now only four have returned. How could he feel good about that? Those were the most outstanding disciples of the Thirty-six Caves, and it’s a significant loss for the future of the Thirty-six Caves.

At this moment, Ding Fan was stunned to see Leng Jian come out. He didn’t expect that at this time, there would still be a disciple coming out of the Xuantian Secret Realm. This was an incredible event, and Ding Fan didn’t expect the one who emerged to be Leng Jian.

Ding Fan had some understanding of the disciples who entered the Xuantian Secret Realm. Based on his understanding, Leng Jian was not the strongest among them. Ding Fan had a deeper impression of a disciple named Lu Ferng, whose strength Ding Fan quite recognized.

As for Leng Jian, Ding Fan really didn’t expect him to survive the Xuantian Secret Realm. It was indeed beyond Ding Fan’s expectations, especially since he wasn’t the first to come out; he emerged after a period had passed, which made Ding Fan even more astonished.

Thus, Ding Fan believed that if it wasn’t due to amazing luck, Leng Jian must have gained some special opportunity in the Xuantian Secret Realm that increased his strength, which allowed him to survive. As for the matter of luck, Ding Fan believed Leng Jian might have some luck, but getting out of the Xuantian Secret Realm definitely relied on more than just luck.

After all, Ding Fan was well aware of the dangers within the Xuantian Secret Realm. Even with great luck, survival wasn’t easy. Ding Fan knew the Secret Realm was definitely larger than it appeared, but believed its dangers were equally formidable.

Those dangers were such that even Ding Fan himself barely survived until the last day to emerge from the Xuantian Secret Realm, and Ding Fan definitely wouldn’t believe that Leng Jian had such good fortune to not encounter any danger inside, which was completely impossible.

Ding Fan would never believe it, especially since Leng Jian didn’t emerge at the first possible chance at the end of the month. Moreover, judging from his injuries, it was clear he had been through a fierce battle before coming out. So Ding Fan could only conclude that Leng Jian, like himself and others, obtained some opportunities in the Xuantian Secret Realm and his strength must have improved.

However, how much his strength improved, Ding Fan couldn’t say; he would just have to wait until Leng Jian’s injuries healed.

At this moment, Guo Linn and Ah Du were also very surprised to see Leng Jian. They didn’t expect him to be able to emerge from the Xuantian Secret Realm after such a long time, which was somewhat incredible. They could also see that Leng Jian likely endured hardships in the Xuantian Secret Realm, otherwise he wouldn’t have so many injuries. However, they found it hard to believe he survived.

It indeed seemed too unbelievable. Both Guo Linn and Ah Du knew that their escape from the Xuantian Secret Realm was entirely due to their good fortune in meeting their elder brother Ding Fan. Without Ding Fan’s protection, escaping the Xuantian Secret Realm would have been impossible for them.

Guo Linn and Ah Du were well aware of the perilous nature of the Xuantian Secret Realm, something ordinary cultivators could not handle. Hence, as they watched Leng Jian being carried away, a sense of awe filled their hearts. They understood that without their elder brother’s protection, they wouldn’t have made it out of the Xuantian Secret Realm.

Moreover, for Guo Linn and Ah Du, the situation wasn’t so simple. They knew that if only they had emerged from the Xuantian Secret Realm, it would bode well for their future development and status within the Thirty-six Caves. They might even receive focused nurturing, as the outstanding disciples of the Thirty-six Caves were now only the two of them.

However, now Leng Jian has also emerged alive, which obviously makes him a strong competitor for Guo Linn and Ah Du. Of course, this doesn’t pose too much of a threat to them, as they already had enough competitors before, and now there’s only one left, which could be considered a good thing.

Therefore, they didn’t have too many complaints, but they were clear in their hearts that they must be cautious of Leng Jian in the future. They were aware that both of them and Ding Fan had gained significant opportunities within the Xuantian Secret Realm, and they knew Leng Jian would have certainly found opportunities there as well, perhaps even greater than theirs.

Perhaps for the sect master or elders of the Thirty-Six Caves, or even Long Ren, this might be a good thing. After all, as their sect disciples grow stronger, the sect’s overall level will naturally improve. But for Guo Linn and Ah Du, it wasn’t necessarily a nice development.

After all, both Guo Linn and Ah Du are disciples at the same level as Leng Jian, and their development in the sect or the Thirty-Six Caves will face basically the same treatment in the future. If Leng Jian really has received a great opportunity, it may not be good news for Guo Linn and Ah Du.

Ah Du, however, was not overly worried in his heart. He always held great confidence in himself as a cultivator, and he had never considered Lu Ferng significant. Moreover, this time he had acquired a martial arts heritage in the Sword Washing Pool of the Xuantian Secret Realm, which made him even more confident, and he wouldn’t regard anyone as a threat, especially disciples of the same age and level as himself.

On the other hand, Guo Linn was much more worried. He knew clearly that although he was one of the most outstanding disciples in the Thirty-Six Caves, he was not the most outstanding one. The loss of numerous excellent disciples in the Xuantian Secret Realm was, in a way, an opportunity for him.

Guo Linn understood that if it were only him, Ah Du, and the elder brother who came out of the Xuantian Secret Realm alive, the elder brother wouldn’t count since he wasn’t from the Thirty-Six Caves and thus not really a competitor. His only competitor would be Ah Du alone.

Furthermore, Guo Linn knew that even if Ah Du was a bit stronger than himself, and in the future would attain higher positions than him, it wouldn’t matter much. For him, it wouldn’t be a bad thing, since with the experiences they shared in the Xuantian Secret Realm, even if he didn’t consider himself a friend, Ah Du would at least consider him an ally in hardship. So in the future, even if Ah Du didn’t assist him, at least he wouldn’t make things difficult for him.

Thus, Guo Linn was optimistic about the future and believed that even if he didn’t become a Lake Master of the Thirty-Six Caves, he could at least become a sect master, which would be a tremendous blessing for him. But now, the appearance of Leng Jian changed things.

He knew that it wasn’t just about having another competitor for himself; it also meant one more for Brother Ah Du. In this situation, it was evident that he and Brother Ah Du were on the same side, making Leng Jian their mutual competitor, and that was certainly not promising for him.

But Guo Linn knew these were all matters of the future, beyond his current decision-making. He was just particularly concerned about the situation at the moment.

...

At this moment, Ding Fan looked towards Long Ren. Long Ren and several elders were still operating the teleportation array, but Ding Fan could see that even for Long Ren and those elders, controlling the teleportation array wasn’t easy, consuming a great deal of True Qi within their bodies.

Moreover, both Long Ren and the elders beside him had beads of sweat on their foreheads, with frowns on their faces, showing that they had reached their limits after persevering for so long. However, the appearance of Leng Jian gave those who were about to abandon the formation renewed hope.

And most importantly, with Leng Jian being teleported back, they knew that persuading the Lake Master to abandon the formation at this time would certainly be in vain. After all, their persistence had yielded results, and it was clear that the Lake Master’s mood was very unhappy, not willing to accept the reality.

However, the elders all knew that the teleportation array had been sustained for nearly an hour now, and no other disciples would be coming out. Leng Jian’s appearance was merely an accident. Regardless of the disciples who entered the Xuantian Secret Realm, even those elders knew that the teleportation array had been open long enough for them to have emerged if they could. The fact that they hadn’t likely meant they wouldn’t be coming out.

The elders understood this rationale, and the disciples even more so. Yet, they couldn’t bring themselves to speak to Lake Master Long Ren about it, as they empathized with the Lake Master’s feelings, knowing that he naturally wouldn’t want to give up hope, even if there wasn’t any left.

So, the elders could only grit their teeth and persevere...