After the main character who took the blame retired, the female lead quit.

The word "death" struck Xiao Yu like a blow to the head, completely clearing his mind and erasing any lingering drunkenness.

"What on earth is going on?! How could the Phoenix Hill Secret Realm be involved in something like this? This doesn't make sense!"

Xiao Yu subconsciously retorted, "The secret realm burned, everyone turned into nourishment, and the demon race too... In the story he knew, all of this was absolutely... absolutely never happened."

Even though it's been a long time and his memory is a bit hazy, Xiao Yu clearly remembers that the Phoenix Hill Secret Realm wasn't that scary. On the contrary, it was a welfare secret realm for the protagonist in the early to mid-stages, with almost no danger.

Demons, flames... why are they all popping up all at once these days?

"How would I know? I first noticed that the leader who instigated the rogue cultivators to counterattack the secret realm was a Nascent Soul cultivator who had been demoted. Upon closer investigation, I discovered his background: he was a demon."

Then, the more I calculated, the more something seemed off. Upon closer examination, I realized that this secret realm had revealed a lot of information, and by following the clues, I discovered the secret realm itself…

A demon race at the Nascent Soul stage.

Xiao Yu's expression tightened, and he stared into those soft, crystal-blue eyes, pressing for an answer:

"What's the situation outside? And you... First, use the jade pendant I gave you to seek refuge at the Qingyun Fu Sect's inn. If they see this, they'll let you in. By the way, Long Wanyan... has the Qingyun Fu Sect's sect leader taken any action?"

Demon race... How did these things suddenly appear? Shouldn't they be introduced in the middle or later stages of the game?

Could it be the butterfly effect...?

Xiao Yu had a general idea of ​​what was going on and realized that things were not good. He had been too complacent and careless lately, relying on his knowledge of the plot and thinking that everything was under control. He didn't think that even if there was a slight deviation, it would be a big problem.

Never thought...

Just as Xiao Yu was reflecting on himself and asking himself questions, Bu Suantian's incomprehensible words came from the other end:

"I arrived at the Qingyun Fuzong inn a long time ago, but... the Qingyun Fuzong sect leader you mentioned isn't in the room!"

Xiao Yu raised his head, his thoughts suddenly caught in a daze.

Chapter 18, The Missing Long Wanyan

Plop it.

The gourd in her hand rolled to the ground, its yellow tassels fluttering. The Three Flower Goddess, who was sitting upright, was tempted to try it, but considering that the Diviner was using her ears and eyes to talk to Xiao Yu, she stopped her instinctive impulse.

The glistening wine spilled all over the ground, and the moonlight that had filled the cave was now mixed with a faint aroma of wine.

Drops of wine were flowing steadily from the apricot-yellow gourd. As if smelling the rich aroma of the wine, a certain unconscious figure's delicate white fingers trembled involuntarily.

As the gourd fell to the ground, Xiao Yu snapped out of his daze. He bent down and picked up the sword-nurturing gourd that Long Wanyan had given him.

Regarding this gourd, although it is a legendary gourd for nurturing swords, Xiao Yu's daily use of it was not as miraculous as the legends suggested.

Legend has it that, in addition to their basic function of nurturing one's natal flying sword, various sword-nurturing gourds also possess unique and wondrous methods imbued with the spiritual essence of the Great Dao.

However, the apricot-yellow, unripe gourd in Xiao Yu's hand had no special properties; it was simply that the space inside the gourd was much larger than it appeared from the outside.

It's convenient for holding wine, but when it comes to fighting enemies or finding treasure... it's utterly useless.

Xiao Yu didn't mean to dislike the sword-nurturing gourd in his hand; he just remembered it when he saw it and decided to give it to its owner.

Long Wanyan, with her peak Nascent Soul Realm cultivation, seems to be only a hair's breadth away from breaking through to the Divine Transformation Realm thanks to his "help".

The sect leader of Qingyun Floating Sect, the youngest sect leader in history, and the former top-ranked member of the rankings. She wields a spear with unparalleled skill, has a gentle personality, and is meticulous and serious in her work. She can be a little stubborn on certain issues, but she is generally sensible, considerate of others, and likes to give people valuable gifts. She is a wealthy woman.

She has a great figure, with a perky butt that's almost suffocating.

This is Xiao Yu's impression of Long Wanyan after several days of contact. In addition, she seems to have a significant connection with the legendary ancient dragon. She is powerful in combat and needs his secreted... Yin essence to alleviate some of the side effects.

In short, in Xiao Yu's view, a responsible person like Long Wanyan is far removed from the term "dereliction of duty."

But now, the divination clearly tells him that Long Wanyan is nowhere to be found and is still at the time when the wandering cultivators outside the secret realm are attacking.

"Suantian, are you sure Long Wanyan isn't at the Qingyun Fuzong Inn? Could she have gone out?"

"I'm quite certain. I asked the Qingyun Fuzong disciples who stayed at the inn, and they said that Sect Master Long has been staying in his room these past few days, preparing to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm, so he hasn't gone out."

But when I went into the room, there was no one there, not even a trace of her. Those rogue cultivators, under the command of that demon race, have already surrounded the secret realm. With such a commotion, she absolutely couldn't have been unaware; if she heard the noise, she would have come rushing over.”

Xiao Yu had doubts, but the aggressive words from the other end of the line alerted him that it was all true.

Could it be that Long Wanyan was delayed outside because of something? No, what could it be?

He had already obtained the Dragon Blood Mystic Fruit she needed, so what else could it be? Even when the secret realm was surrounded by rogue cultivators, there was no reaction...

While Xiao Yu was puzzled, a certain statement made by Bu Suantian caught his attention:

"A room? You're in Long Wanyan's room right now?"

"That's right. Don't ask me with that puzzled look. I'm the one who should be asking you this. What exactly did you do before?"

Why did they automatically send me to Sect Leader Long's room on the third floor without me even saying a word when I arrived at the inn with the jade pendant? I heard that disciples are strictly forbidden from going up to the third floor. What exactly were you and Long Wanyan doing... Ah... no, nothing, we were just whispering. You may leave now.”

Speaking of this, Bu Suantian's tone became visibly agitated, with a hint of jealousy mixed with indignation. However, perhaps because he was too agitated, his voice was a bit loud, attracting some attention.

Fortunately, judging from the voice that came from Bu Suantian behind them, they managed to get through it smoothly.

"Anyway, Xiao Yu, you should get out of the secret realm as soon as possible. The situation is urgent. Before those guys break through the protective barrier, let's run away and find a deserted place, like some desolate mountain wilderness, and hide there for twenty or thirty years. Anyway, as long as you stay by my side, there's nothing to be afraid of, even if it means death."

Bu Suantian urged Xiao Yu to come out quickly, but this time her voice was much softer, as if she was deliberately suppressing it to prevent others from hearing it.

"go out……"

Xiao Yu pondered the suggestion given by Bu Suantian. It has to be said that he is indeed a timid little dumpling. However, the idea of ​​the two of them, a man and a woman, spending twenty or thirty years alone in a desolate mountain wilderness is a bit suffocating.

Regardless of how this stray dog ​​escaped, the world is vast, but life is paramount. Only by living can there be a future, and one should not tremble in fear in order to survive.

If it were up to his usual personality, he would have run away immediately. He actually knew of one opening between the Phoenix Hill Secret Realm and the outside world. It was a weak point in the connection of the secret realm. As long as he attacked that point fiercely, he could create an opening to the outside world.

As for leaving the secret realm using normal methods?

Xiao Yu crushed the small jade slip that had been given to him along with the successful registration.

Tiny, glowing fragments drifted down without any reaction, failing to trigger any teleportation array to the outside world.

Judging from the divination and the heavens' warning, it was indeed as expected.

As Xiao Yu moved, the Three Flowers Goddess's soft, crystalline blue eyes visibly narrowed:

"Ah?! How could that be?"

"This is not unexpected. What are you surprised about? Since you said that Liu Tongxiu has a problem, it is natural that there is no reaction to the jade slip he sent."

"What...what should I do? Waaaaah...I'm going to die! Xiao Yu, you can't die! What will I do if you die? Waaaah!"

Bu Suantian started screaming as if she were about to die.

Oh...right, Xiao Yu is dead, so she can't live either.

Xiao Yu covered his ears and said helplessly:

"Don't cry yet, I'm not dead yet. Actually, I have a way to get out of this secret realm. This secret realm is ancient and its connection with the outside world is loose. There is a 'weak point'. As long as we break this thing, the secret realm will crack open, and getting out will be a piece of cake."

"Really? Then why aren't you coming out..."

“But not now.” Before Bu Suantian could finish speaking, Xiao Yu interrupted her:

"According to what you've said, even if we go out, the outside world isn't necessarily very safe. Long Wanyan isn't here, and the opponent is a Nascent Soul Realm demon cultivator who has surpassed our cultivation level. Whether we can escape the encirclement of the rogue cultivators is another matter."

At the critical moment, Xiao Yu saw things clearly and his mind was very clear.

However, to his surprise, Bu Suantian hesitated for a few moments, then confidently gave his reply:

"This... don't worry, I am still a Nascent Soul cultivator. Although I may not be able to beat it in a fight, it is easy to take you with me and escape by intimidating it."

Xiao Yu was taken aback. He had almost forgotten that Bu Suantian was a Nascent Soul cultivator.

That's good. Now he doesn't have to worry about Bu Suantian's safety.

To be honest, compared to Xiao Yu, who was in the secret realm, facing Bu Suantian, who was outside and had no idea what was going on with him, was in much more danger.

But the problem is, that's not his main concern right now...

Chapter Nineteen, The Missing Li Yunshang

It is an undeniable fact that Bu Suantian has little combat power, but putting that aside, she is still a Nascent Soul cultivator.

The Nascent Soul Realm is different from other realms. Although it seems to be only one realm apart from the Golden Core Realm, this difference is like heaven and earth.

It is said that the Nascent Soul stage is the threshold to becoming an immortal. You, a young genius in the Core Formation stage, can cross realms to defeat a Golden Core stage cultivator, but there is no such thing as a Golden Core stage cultivator crossing realms to defeat a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

Aside from a few extreme cases, even though they are all in the same realm, the differences between them are vast, like a chasm.

To some extent, this also demonstrates the value of Xiao Yu's narrow escape from the onslaught of that figure, where he not only survived but also managed to inflict damage on the opponent.

No one is completely useless. Even the most useless person has a skill like cat's cradle. As a Nascent Soul cultivator, Bu Suantian's combat power is lacking.

But in other aspects, especially in terms of escape routes, everything must have been arranged perfectly. Otherwise, given her personality, even if death were right in front of her, she might have stayed in the mountains like a turtle and refused to come out.

Without some backup plan, Bu Suantian wouldn't leave the mountains easily. Therefore, Xiao Yu had no doubt that she could take him away from the Phoenix Hill Secret Realm unharmed.

Even so, faced with the request to divine a way to escape, Xiao Yu unexpectedly shook his head again, refusing once more:

"No, I still can't leave now. Although sometimes running away is indeed not the best option, it can only solve the problem temporarily, not permanently."

Just like the deadly calamity that's been troubling you, according to your thinking, all you had to do was find a secluded place to hide, right? So why did you still risk so much to come down from the mountain and find me?

He stared at the Three Flower Goddess's extremely unique crystal blue soft eyes, and a rare firmness appeared in his brown eyes.

Without Bu Suantian's answer, Xiao Yu knew the answer, and Bu Suantian knew it too; as a fortune teller, she should know better than anyone else.

It's a blessing, not a curse, but it's a curse that cannot be avoided.

If everything in the world could be avoided simply by hiding, how many cowards would there be in this world?

Just like the case of Xiao Yu taking the lead role, after faking his death and escaping, was the matter resolved?

No, a bunch of other things still came up, the plot got all messed up, but I think I'm responsible for about 80% of the blame.

But as things have unfolded since then, Xiao Yu cannot escape responsibility.

Li Yunshang, who is still in a coma, is one of the victims.

Simply running away won't solve the problem. Xiao Yu realized this deeply after being approached and talked to by a woman from the Thieves' Guild who called herself "Brain" at the inn.

That night, Xiao Yu was not only tormented by the divination of the Heavenly Goddess Sanhua, but also reflected on himself.

From Li Yunshang to Long Wanyan, what exactly happened? It's getting more and more chaotic. Everything is developing towards the predetermined ending, just like the plan in the novel. Although some parts of the plot have broken down, the general direction has not changed. Everything is slowly correcting itself in the predetermined direction.

“Avoidance will not solve the problem; it will only accelerate the spread of the situation and cause it to develop in an uncontrollable direction.”