Courtyard Check-in: Starting with a Small World of Cultivation

Inside the Vermilion Bird Palace, the crimson crystal walls reflected the two figures facing each other. The air seemed to freeze, with only the faint gurgling sound of the liquid flames flowing within the crystal.

Chen Yu gripped the Vermilion Bird Key tightly in his right hand, the warmth of the key connecting him to his palm with a feeling of blood ties. His left hand held the crimson bead—the primordial bead left behind after the Vermilion Bird's spirit dissipated, containing a fiery energy as deep as the sea. Ten feet opposite him, Long San crouched, like a cheetah poised to pounce, the black Boundary-Breaking Dagger in his hand gleaming with a chilling blue light, the strange runes engraved on its blade slowly writhing, as if alive.

"Kid, I'll give you one last chance." Long San's voice was hoarse like a broken gong. "Hand over the Vermilion Bird Key, and I'll let you leave alive. Otherwise..." He licked his chapped lips, "I'll use your blood to consecrate this new treasure of mine."

Chen Yu did not respond, but instead unleashed his full spiritual sense. Although the range of spiritual sense at the fourth level of Qi Refining was only fifty feet, it was enough to cover every corner in this sealed hall. He "saw" the trajectory of spiritual energy flowing within Long San's body—aquamarine spiritual energy surged through his meridians, but a strange black energy lingered at his heart, faintly echoing the eerie blue light of the Boundary-Breaking Dagger.

"What are you looking at?" Long San keenly sensed the spiritual probe and sneered, "See through my cultivation technique? Useless! I've cultivated the Profound Water True Scripture to the third level, where water and fire complement each other, creating an endless cycle. In this fire-attribute secret realm, I can actually use fire to generate water!"

Before he could finish speaking, Long San made the first move!

He didn't rush at him directly, but instead slashed the Boundary-Breaking Dagger in front of him—"Tear!" A piercing sound of tearing cloth rang out, and a black crack appeared in the space where the dagger had passed! The crack was only three feet long and half an inch wide, but it emitted a bone-chilling cold air, which contrasted sharply with the high temperature inside the hall.

"A spatial rift?!" Chen Yu's pupils shrank sharply.

"Not bad!" Long San laughed, forming a hand seal with his left hand and drawing out a stream of icy blue water from the crack. The water meandered and twisted in the air, transforming into a long ice crystal whip, its body covered with fine ice spikes, and its tip shaped like a ferocious snake's head.

"Ice Soul Whip! Go!"

The long whip, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, lashed straight at Chen Yu's face with a bone-chilling cold! Before the whip even arrived, the cold air had already reached him, and goosebumps instantly rose on Chen Yu's cheeks.

He couldn't take it head-on! Chen Yu lightly touched the ground with his toes, using his full lightness technique to retreat rapidly. At the same time, he pointed the Vermilion Bird Key forward with his right hand—he didn't yet know how to use the key, so he could only instinctively infuse it with spiritual power.

"Buzz—"

The Vermilion Bird Key emitted a crimson-gold light, and the Vermilion Bird carving on the key handle seemed to come alive, its wings fluttering slightly. A tiny flame, only as thick as a chopstick, shot out from the tip of the key, striking the head of the Ice Soul Whip with pinpoint accuracy!

"laugh--"

When ice and fire met, a large amount of white mist erupted. Half of the Ice Soul Whip's snake head melted, but the whip's momentum remained undiminished, still lashing towards Chen Yu!

Chen Yu had retreated to the edge of the wall, with nowhere left to go. He gritted his teeth and turned sideways, the Ice Soul Whip grazing his left shoulder—"Sizzle!" His clothes were torn open, and the ice spikes left several bloody marks on his skin. No blood flowed from the wounds; instead, a layer of frost instantly formed, and the chill spread from his arm to his heart!

"Cold Poison!" Chen Yu was startled and immediately activated the Tai Xuan True Scripture. His newly evolved Fire Spiritual Root was fully activated, and the fire-attribute spiritual power within his body surged like a river, rapidly refining the invading cold air. The frost on his shoulder wound melted and evaporated at a visible speed, revealing the frozen, purple skin underneath.

"Huh?" Long San was somewhat surprised. "You were able to dispel my cold poison so quickly... It seems you gained quite a bit from the trial."

He flicked his Ice Soul Whip, and the melted snake head reformed, while the whip itself became even more solid: "But it's useless! The Boundary-Breaking Dagger can tear through space and summon the power of ice from another dimension. No matter how strong your flames are, can they burn through space?"

As he spoke, Long San drew three more cracks in the air! Three streams of icy blue water surged out, transforming into three ice crystal flying knives that shot towards Chen Yu in a triangular formation!

Chen Yu's eyes narrowed. He could no longer afford to be on the defensive! He transferred the Vermilion Bird Key to his left hand and made a hand seal with his right—Fireball Technique!

But this fireball was completely different from the previous ones. Thanks to the evolution of the Fire Spirit Root, the fireball was no longer crimson, but a deep golden color. Although its size hadn't increased, its temperature was more than three times higher! The three golden fireballs collided and exploded in mid-air with the three ice crystal throwing knives!

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The deafening explosion of ice and fire colliding sent shockwaves surging through the hall, making the crystal walls vibrate. Ice shards and sparks flew everywhere, and white mist filled the air, obscuring the view.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Chen Yu moved like lightning and charged towards Long San! He pushed his lightness technique to its limit, leaving a shallow fiery footprint on the ground with each step he took—a sign of the overflowing spiritual energy of the fire.

"You're courting death!" Although Long San's vision was obstructed, his spiritual sense remained. Sensing Chen Yu's approach, he reversed his grip on the Boundary-Breaking Dagger and unleashed a horizontal slash!

Where the dagger slashed, space was torn apart once more, and a crescent-shaped spatial blade silently cut toward Chen Yu's waist! If this strike hit, his body would be severed!

In that critical moment, Chen Yu made an extremely daring move—instead of retreating, he accelerated forward, and just as the spatial blade was about to hit him, he leaned back and narrowly missed it! His back slid along the ground, his clothes smoking from the intense heat, but he ignored it all and thrust the Vermilion Bird Key straight at Long San's calf!

"Pfft!"

The Vermilion Bird Key pierced Long San's left calf, and crimson-gold flames instantly poured in!

"Ah—!" Long San let out a shrill scream. The flame within the Vermilion Bird Key was no ordinary fire, but rather the Li Fire, imbued with the power of the Vermilion Bird's origin! The moment this flame entered his body, it immediately and frantically burned his meridians. His water-attribute spiritual power was like snow meeting boiling oil before the Li Fire, retreating step by step!

Without hesitation, Long San reversed the Boundary-Breaking Dagger in his right hand and slashed fiercely above his left knee!

"Crack!" The sound of his leg bone breaking was clearly audible. He had actually severed his own leg to stop the flames from spreading upwards! A large amount of blood gushed from the severed leg, but it was immediately frozen by the chilling aura of the Boundary-Breaking Dagger, forming a layer of frost to seal the wound.

Having landed a successful blow, Chen Yu immediately flipped to his feet and created distance. He watched Long San's ruthless act of severing his own leg, and a chill ran down his spine—this was a true desperado!

"Good...very good!" Long San stood on one leg, his face ashen, but the killing intent in his eyes boiled like magma. "For so many years...no one has been able to hurt me to this extent...boy, you must die today!"

He raised the Boundary-Breaking Dagger to his lips, bit his tongue, and spat a mouthful of blood onto the dagger!

"Use blood to consecrate the dagger, break through boundaries and summon spirits!"

The Boundary-Breaking Dagger absorbed the essence blood, its eerie blue light intensifying, and the runes on its surface writhing and slithering like living snakes. The space behind Long San violently distorted, and a black rift ten times larger than before slowly tore open! A chilling roar emanated from the rift, as if some terrifying being was attempting to cross space!

"He's summoning otherworldly creatures!" Alarm bells rang in Chen Yu's mind. He couldn't let the rift open completely!

He held the Vermilion Bird Key in his left hand and the crimson bead in his right, frantically channeling all his spiritual power into the two treasures. The Vermilion Bird Key shone brightly, and the Vermilion Bird carving on the key handle seemed poised to take flight; the crimson bead transformed into a ball of liquid flame, spreading along his arm and enveloping his entire right arm.

On the crystal plain outside the palace, Wen Ruoxu and his two companions were anxiously trying to break through the pillar of light.

"The intensity of this beam of light is beyond imagination!" Huiming's forehead was covered in sweat. He had used three Buddhist hand seals to break the restrictions in succession, but the beam of light did not budge.

Ye Gucheng slashed repeatedly with his longsword, the sword energy crisscrossing, but it only stirred up ripples when it struck the pillar of light: "There must be something going on inside. That scoundrel Long San is treacherous and ruthless, young friend Chen may be in danger."

Wen Ruoxu turned the pages of the ancient book, and a blurry projection of the scene inside the palace appeared on the pages—only two beams of light could be seen colliding fiercely, and the details were unclear.

"They're fighting desperately!" Wen Ruoxu's expression was grave. "We must get in as soon as possible!"

He bit his fingertip and used his blood to draw a complex incantation on the ancient book: "With my lifeblood, I beseech the spirit of the book to appear!"

The ancient book trembled violently, and a phantom figure emerged from it—an old man in a Confucian robe, his face blurred, but his aura ancient and weathered.

"Senior Book Spirit, please help me break through this pillar of light!" Wen Ruoxu bowed deeply.

The old man's illusory figure glanced at the pillar of light, slowly raised his hand, and lightly tapped it with a finger.

There was no earth-shattering noise, but a tiny crack appeared on the surface of the beam of light.

"It works!" Ye Gucheng's eyes lit up, and he concentrated his sword energy at the tip of his sword, thrusting it with all his might at the crack!

Inside the hall, the crack behind Long San had expanded to the height of a person. A giant claw covered with blue scales emerged from the crack, its tip gleaming with a cold metallic light. Fine cracks appeared in the space wherever it passed.

"Ice Demon Claw!" Long San laughed wildly, "Kid, let's see how you withstand this!"

The giant claw reached for Chen Yu, but before it even arrived, the extreme cold had already frozen the ground three zhang around Chen Yu into an ice field!

The liquid flames on Chen Yu's right arm burned fiercely, and he felt his arm was about to melt—not burn away, but merge with the flames. At the critical moment, a flash of inspiration struck him; he aimed his right arm at the crack and unleashed a powerful blast!

"Fire Breaks!"

A torrent of crimson-gold flames erupted from his right arm! It wasn't a fireball, nor a pillar of fire, but a torrent of flames, an ocean of fire! Wherever the torrent passed, space was scorched and distorted, and the extreme cold of the Ice Demon Claw melted away like spring snow!

"BOOM—!!!"

A torrent of flames clashed head-on with the ice demon's claws!

The hall trembled violently, spiderweb-like cracks appeared in the crystal walls, and star map gems rained down from the dome. The energy shockwave from the clash of ice and fire sent both of them flying!

Chen Yu crashed into the crystal wall, a sweet taste rising in his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. The flames on his right arm went out, leaving his entire arm charred black, the skin cracking inch by inch, revealing the bright red flesh beneath—this was the backlash from overusing the power of the Blazing Fire.

Long San fared even worse. He was slammed into another wall by the shockwave, the spatial rift behind him vibrated violently, and the ice demon claw was mostly burned away by the torrent of flames. The remaining half of the claw retracted into the rift, and the rift began to collapse!

"No—!" Long San's eyes widened in horror. The collapse of the spatial rift would create spatial turbulence, and he, the summoner, would be the first to be affected!

He wanted to escape, but his broken leg made it difficult for him to move. The collapsing fissure began to devour everything around him like a black hole, and Long San's body was pulled by an invisible force, sliding little by little towards the fissure!

"Help me...help me!" he desperately reached out to Chen Yu.

Chen Yu endured the excruciating pain and forced himself to stand. He looked at Long San, his eyes filled with complex emotions. Save him? This man was treacherous and ruthless, having repeatedly tried to kill him. Don't save him? He could only watch helplessly as someone was torn apart by the spatial turbulence…

Just as he hesitated, the pillar of light at the main entrance of the hall shattered with a deafening roar!

"Young friend Chen!" Wen Ruoxu and the other two rushed in, and were all shocked by the scene inside the hall.

Huiming reacted the fastest, flicking his prayer beads, which transformed into a golden rope that wrapped around Long San's waist, intending to pull him away from the crevice.

But it's too late.

The crack completely collapsed, forming a black vortex three feet in diameter. A terrifying suction force emanated from it, and Long San screamed as he was sucked into the vortex! Huiming's prayer beads were also snapped!

"Boundary-Breaking Dagger!" At the last moment, Long San used all his strength to throw the dagger towards Chen Yu. "Take it...and tell the Heavenly Dao Alliance...I..."

Before he could finish speaking, he vanished into the vortex. The vortex then rapidly shrank and disappeared completely, leaving only a few blue ice shards floating in the air.

The Boundary-Breaking Dagger clattered to the ground at Chen Yu's feet.

The hall fell into a deathly silence.

After a long silence, Wen Ruoxu finally spoke: "Spatial turbulence... he can't survive."

Ye Gucheng walked to Chen Yu's side and checked his injuries: "How are you?"

"It's...it's alright." Chen Yu smiled bitterly, coughing up another mouthful of blood. "It's just my arm..."

Huiming came over, took out a small jade bottle from his bosom, and poured out three drops of golden liquid onto Chen Yu's right arm. The liquid seeped into the skin, the charred outer layer began to peel off, and new granulation tissue grew at a visible speed.

"This is 'Bodhi Nectar,' a sacred medicine for healing," Huiming explained. "Your arm injury is fundamental and will take at least a month to fully recover. You must not engage in any physical violence during this time."

"Thank you, Master."

Wen Ruoxu picked up the Boundary-Breaking Dagger and examined it closely, his expression growing increasingly solemn: "This dagger... its origins are extraordinary. The runes on it are the legacy of the ancient 'Void Dao.' The Heavenly Dao Alliance actually obtained such a treasure..."

He looked at the Vermilion Bird Key in Chen Yu's hand, a look of satisfaction in his eyes: "However, the most important thing is that you succeeded. The Vermilion Bird Key has recognized its master, and our mission is half complete."

"Half?" Chen Yu asked, puzzled.

"There are seven Seven Star Keys in total, and this is just one of them," Wen Ruoxu sighed. "The Heavenly Dao Alliance has at least two, or even three. The competition will be even fiercer from here on out."

At this moment, the entire secret realm began to tremble!

"Oh no! The secret realm is about to collapse!" Ye Gucheng's expression changed drastically. "The Vermilion Bird Key has been taken; the secret realm has lost its core support and is about to be destroyed!"

"Hurry up!"

The four rushed out of the Vermilion Bird Palace. Outside, the Crystal Forest was collapsing; crystal pillars were breaking and falling, countless cracks appeared in the ground, and magma was gushing out from the earth. The crimson light in the sky flickered uncertainly, like a candle flame about to be extinguished.

"The exit is over there!" Huiming pointed in the direction they came from, "but it's too late to go back the way we came!"

Chen Yu looked at the Vermilion Bird Key in his hand, a thought flashing through his mind. He recalled the last information the Vermilion Bird's spirit had transmitted to his mind, including a method for urgently leaving the secret realm…

"Follow me!" He gritted his teeth and charged forward, ignoring the excruciating pain in his right arm, raising the Vermilion Bird Key high in his left hand and infusing it with spiritual power.

The key emitted a crimson-gold light, projecting a simple map into the air ahead. A dot of light flickered on the map, indicating their current location, while an exit marker marked the edge of the map.

"There's an emergency teleportation array three hundred feet to the east!"

The four sped away. Behind them, the secret realm collapsed at an increasingly rapid pace; the earth sank, the sky fell, and flames and lava engulfed everything.

Finally, they saw a stone platform—made of black rock with intricate teleportation array patterns carved on it.

"Hurry up!"

The four leaped onto the stone platform. Chen Yu pressed the Vermilion Bird Key against the array's core, frantically pouring in spiritual power. The teleportation array lit up with white light and began to operate.

Just before the teleportation was initiated, Chen Yu glanced back at the fiery world that was about to be destroyed.

He recalled the illusions he had experienced while being tempered in the sea of ​​fire, the pain he felt while forging his body in the lava, and the insights he gained when the Vermilion Bird recognized him as its master…

Then, the white light engulfed everything.

It was 4 a.m. on the South China Sea.

The research vessel "Xiangyanghong 03" has sailed away from that strange sea area and is now anchored in a safe area twenty nautical miles away. Most of the ship's lights are off, with only the bridge and a few cabins still lit.

Li Dahai stood in the driver's seat, having not slept all night. In his hand was the wooden plank left by Chen Yu—Zhou Mingyuan had said it was an important item and was keeping it safe for him.

"Captain, the radar is active!" the first mate suddenly shouted.

Li Dahai looked at the radar screen—a strong energy signal appeared at the coordinates of the original vortex location! Immediately afterward, a white light shot up from the sea and disappeared after three seconds.

"What is that...?"

No one can answer that.

At the spot where the white light disappeared, four figures fell from the sky and plunged into the sea with a splash.

It was Chen Yu and his three companions.

The icy seawater sent a shiver down Chen Yu's spine. The seawater stung his wound on his right arm, but he gritted his teeth and endured the pain, paddling with his left hand. Fortunately, he had water-repellent beads, allowing him to breathe underwater and preventing him from drowning.

"Over here!" Wen Ruoxu's voice came. He used some kind of magic, and a bubble enveloped his body, supporting him on the surface of the water. Huiming and Ye Gucheng also used their own abilities to float up.

"Benefactor Chen, your arm shouldn't be in the water for too long." Huiming swam over and used his Buddhist light to protect Chen Yu's right arm.

A ship's horn sounded in the distance—it was "Xiangyanghong 03"! It had clearly detected the anomaly and was heading this way.

"Our ship," Chen Yu said weakly.

"We can't go up there." Wen Ruoxu shook his head. "The affairs of the cultivation world shouldn't be known too much by ordinary people. Young friend Chen, you should go back, but we're leaving."

"leave?"

"We have obtained the Vermilion Bird Key, and we must send it back to the Seven Star Alliance headquarters as soon as possible," Wen Ruoxu explained. "In addition, although Long San is dead, Rakshasa is still outside. The Heavenly Dao Alliance will not let this go easily, and we must make preparations in advance."

He looked at Chen Yu and said solemnly, "Young friend Chen, you have done a great service this time. But the road ahead will be even more difficult. The Heavenly Alliance will find out your identity sooner or later, so be careful."

"I see."

"Here, take this." Wen Ruoxu took out a white jade token from his robes and handed it to Chen Yu. "It's a contact token for the Seven Star Alliance. If you're in danger, crush the token, and members of the nearest branch alliance will come to your aid."

Chen Yu took it and carefully put it away.

"Also, I'll explain to Zhou Mingyuan," Wen Ruoxu continued. "The Star Observatory is a neutral organization and won't leak your information. But you should also be careful to conceal your identity as a cultivator in mortal society as much as possible."

"I know."

The research vessel drew closer, its searchlight beams sweeping across the sea.

"We should go." Ye Gucheng gave Chen Yu one last look. "Take care."

"Take care." Huiming clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

Wen Ruoxu nodded, and the three of them simultaneously cast spells, transforming into three beams of light that shot off in three different directions, disappearing into the night in the blink of an eye.

On the sea, only Chen Yu remained, adrift.

The searchlight beam finally shone on him. Exclamations came from the ship: "Someone's there! Someone's in the sea!"

Soon, the lifeboat was lowered. When the crew pulled Chen Yu aboard, everyone was stunned—he was covered in wounds, his right arm was charred, and his clothes were tattered, but his left hand was tightly clutching an ancient, crimson-gold key.

"Comrade Chen! You..." Li Dahai rushed over and, seeing Chen Yu's appearance, was speechless.

"Captain..." Chen Yu smiled weakly, "I... am back."

Then everything went black, and I lost consciousness.

Before he completely lost consciousness, he vaguely heard Zhou Mingyuan's voice: "Quick, take him to the infirmary! He needs emergency treatment!"

And there were system notifications in my mind:

[Host detected to have obtained the ancient artifact: Southern Vermilion Bird Key]

[Quest "Seven Stars Gather" Progress Update: 1/7]

[Rewards: Small World Upgrade Fragment x1, Fire-type Divine Skill "True Technique of Departing Fire" x1, Annual Sign-in Attempt +1]

[Warning: The Heavenly Dao Alliance's hostility has increased significantly. Host, please be vigilant.]

But Chen Yu couldn't hear any of that.

He is too tired.

Between the sea and the sky, the rising sun is slowly ascending from the eastern horizon, turning the vast expanse of blue waves golden.

A new day begins.

Unbeknownst to Chen Yu, in a secret chamber on a distant island, a man in black robes stared at the shattered soul tablet in his hand and roared in fury:

"Long San is dead... The Vermilion Bird Key has been stolen... Investigate! Find out who did it!"

From the shadows, a woman's voice responded softly:

"No need to investigate. I already know who it is."

"That kid named Chen Yu... he can't escape."

The wind from the South China Sea, carrying the stench of blood, blows northward.

The wind blows towards the city, towards Nanluoguxiang, towards that quiet courtyard.