At the hour of the rabbit (NT: 5 – 7 am) tomorrow, I will be waiting for you at the entrance of the secret realm.

 

For Huo Junxiao, such scenes had been familiar for over five thousand years, so much so that he had nearly forgotten the astonishment he felt when he first saw them. He and Yu Xian had subconsciously regarded this secret realm as a common, everyday occurrence, so at first, they didn’t notice Bai Ke's amazement.

It wasn’t until he saw that Bai Ke took three steps and froze every time he was touched, that he remembered how incredible these sights must be to an ordinary person. So he patted Bai Ke and explained, “Everything has a spirit, and this is especially true in the secret realm.”

Bai Ke was not an easily frightened rabbit; aside from being uncomfortable with the occasional touch from these strange things, he remained relatively calm. After hearing Junxiao’s explanation, he replied with a wooden face, “I’ve never seen a spirit like this before.”

However...

He turned his gaze to Lin Jie on the back of Peanut, who was usually the one most likely to shout and exclaim with excitement, but hadn’t made any such remarks like “Wow” or “Oh my God” throughout the journey. This was quite unusual.

Noticing Bai Ke’s gaze, Lin Jie, who had been playfully teasing a green vine, released the vine and lay back down on Peanut’s back. He leaned his head close to Bai Ke and said, “Are you scared? Do you feel like your worldview has been completely overturned?”

Bai Ke twitched his mouth slightly, “There wasn’t much old worldview left anyway.”

“In fact, this is my first time in a secret realm as well,” Lin Jie said, unable to keep still. He gesticulated with his hands and occasionally played with the branches by the side or the shiny black fur on Peanut’s back. “I’ve only seen such places in books or heard about them in exaggerated stories. Originally, secret realms were not like this. They were just a piece of land with abundant spiritual energy that someone with a certain level of cultivation found, and then they would enclose it with a restriction, making it their own dwelling. Back then, there were many such places filled with spiritual energy in the world, not like now, where people fight over every inch of land. Cultivators would often extend their territory to include the surrounding mountains and forests for easier cultivation and more space. They would stay inside for a hundred or eighty years, then go out to travel, and when they gained some insight, they would return and stay for several decades. Over time, as cultivators absorbed the spiritual energy of the secret realm to improve their own cultivation, the flora and fauna in the realm also absorbed the cultivator’s energy, gradually developing their own spirits…”

Bai Ke nodded and summarized, “So it’s a story of heaven and humanity merging to become spiritual together.”

Lin Jie agreed wholeheartedly, “Exactly, everyone benefits!”

The already spiritual Junxiao and Yu Xian: “……”

The semi-spiritual vine that had been trying to steal a touch of Bai Ke’s head froze for a moment, then silently retracted.

“If that’s the case, since there have been cultivators throughout the ages, doesn’t that mean there must be many such secret realms?” Bai Ke felt as if the world he lived in had unknowingly been turned into a sieve.

"Of course not!" Lin Jie shook his head. "If there were secret realms like this everywhere, ordinary people would hardly be able to get by. To make the flora and fauna in a secret realm become spiritual, you need incredibly high cultivation. It's not something just anyone can achieve. Most places that are enclosed by cultivators remain unchanged throughout their lives, and after they die, when the restrictions are broken, others will come to take their place. Those cannot truly be called secret realms. Real secret realms are like the one Second Master has, where every plant and stream has its own spirit. And a true secret realm..."

He tilted his head, rolling his eyes as if he were an expert calculating seriously. After a moment of exaggerated contemplation, he said earnestly to Bai Ke, "I estimate there are no more than thirty throughout history."

Bai Ke: "..." He still felt like the world had been turned into a sieve.

Huo Junxiao and Yu Xian, who initially found Lin Jie's explanation reasonably plausible and let him go on about his expertise, now twitched at the number he mentioned.

Yu Xian looked at Lin Jie with a grim expression, wanting to interrupt him, but he swallowed his words as Lin Jie continued speaking passionately. Anyway, if Lin Jie got it wrong, it wouldn't be a big deal.

"However, most secret realms, like this one, are unknown to people. So my estimate is just that—an estimate. Well-known secret realms are rare. The so-called Three Gates, Six Sects, and Twelve Realms refer to secret realms, such as the Cloud Dragon Realm of Master Yun Zheng, the Maha Realm of Master Xuan Ming, and the Carefree Realm of Master Yu Xian... Oh, and also the Clear Bright Realm of the former Yusheng Sect leader—"

While Lin Jie was listing these, the mentioned Master Yun Zheng and Master Yu Xian silently observed the surroundings as if they had suddenly developed an interest in the things they had seen for thousands of years.

Seeing that Lin Jie seemed ready to list all the known secret realms, Bai Ke interrupted, "Where did you find this information? I’ll look it up later."

"From the books I copied," Lin Jie said, then stopped abruptly and looked pitifully at Junxiao. "By the way, Second Master, where did my books go after you swiped them with your sleeve?"

"I glanced through them; they were all miscellaneous and misleading books, half-truths and half-fictions. It's better not to read them." Junxiao said, glancing at Yu Xian, who was looking up at the sky with his hands behind his back. "This shows that the Hengtian Sect is indeed not focused on teaching its disciples, as the books you copied were mere distractions with no benefit to improving your cultivation."

This seemed to hit a nerve with Lin Jie, who lowered his head and swayed with Peanut's steps. "Actually, that’s not entirely true. As far as I know, some senior brothers copied books that were different from mine. They didn’t even enter the same library I did. Those who were sent to that library mostly had poorer aptitude."

"Aptitude and root bones do have an impact, but they are not everything," Junxiao said lightly.

"Second Master, have you ever seen someone with average aptitude and root bones who eventually became a great cultivator?"

"I have seen such cases, and their aptitude and root bones were even worse than average—worse than yours."

Lin Jie: "..."  Worse than mine... Damn, Master, are you indirectly emphasizing that my aptitude is really poor?!

However, after hearing Junxiao’s words, Lin Jie felt a bit more confident. He couldn’t help but imagine himself becoming a great cultivator one day, and with a face full of longing, he said, “So, will I be able to have my own secret realm like Second Master one day?”

Yu Xian cut him off decisively: “Wake up.”

Lin Jie: “...Ancestor, could you be a bit more tactful? ”

“By the way—” Yu Xian seemed to remember something, and was about to talk to Junxiao. However, he had just spoken three words when Lin Jie called him “Ancestor,” and Yu Xian’s legs nearly gave out from the shock.

“Ancestor?!” Yu Xian glared at Lin Jie.

“Aren’t you Master’s grandmaster? I thought for a long time and felt that this was a more respectful way to address you.”

Respectful my foot!

Yu Xian was about to retort when he saw Junxiao nodding and saying, “Let him call you that. He likes to flaunt his seniority, so let him have his fun.”

“Hey! Ancestor!” Lin Jie immediately shouted with even more enthusiasm.

Yu Xian felt like his back had bent, his vision blurred, and his bones creaked as if he had aged a thousand years in an instant.

And just as he was struggling to catch his breath, Bai Ke, who had been quite serious all along, added another layer to the insult: “Ancestor, watch the road.”

Unexpectedly, this made both Junxiao and Yu Xian speak up simultaneously: “You mustn’t call him that!”

Yu Xian slapped his thigh and lamented, “What a sin, the generational hierarchy is completely messed up...”

Bai Ke twitched his lips and continued walking, feeling somewhat sadly that in just a single day, he had somehow gotten used to mixing with this bunch of neurotics. For a moment, he even found it rather enjoyable!

The secret realm was much larger than Bai Ke had imagined. It took a long time for them to reach the place where Junxiao usually resided. Junxiao didn’t actually live in a stone cave in the mountains, but rather in a quiet place with a simple and elegant house. Compared to the dazzling sights along the way, this place was simple enough to be seen in one glance.

“Do you have to walk this far every time you come back?” Bai Ke couldn’t help but ask.

“Of course not.” Huo Junxiao shook his head and raised an eyebrow at Lin Jie, saying, “I’m just showing you the way so you don’t get lost if you ever come here to practice in the future. I don’t raise pampered disciples. If you get lost, you have to find your own way out.”

Lin Jie: “…” Damn it, who’s paying attention to the direction while looking at everything?

Bai Ke: "..." Naturally bad with directions, can't remember them even if I try.

While Bai Ke was worrying about this, he saw Junxiao somehow produce a very small bell and look down at him, saying, "Carry this bell with you. If you ever get lost or encounter danger and I’m not around, hold it between your thumb and middle finger and shake it three times. Peanut will come find you. Also, ordinary people can't hear this bell."

Ordinary people?

Bai Ke instinctively shook it and heard a clear "ding" right by his ear.

"..."

Weren't ordinary people supposed to not hear it?

He didn't even have time to ask before a large, dark shadow loomed over him, and Peanut's warm, furry face was nuzzling him affectionately.

Junxiao silently observed his actions. When he saw Bai Ke’s surprised expression after shaking the bell, a trace of sadness flickered across his face. He had guessed what Bai Ke was about to ask, so he paused and explained, "You’re its owner, so naturally, you can hear it."

Bai Ke nodded, accepting his explanation.

Seeing that he didn’t ask any further questions, Junxiao lifted Bai Ke's wrist. His fingers clasped the tiny bell and slid it onto a strand of dark brown wooden beads. When Bai Ke pulled back his hand, he noticed the bell was now part of the bracelet. It made a very faint jingling sound with his movements.

Even though he knew others couldn’t hear it, Bai Ke still felt like he was a cat or a dog wearing this bell.

He was about to ask if there was another way to carry the bell when a buzzing sound suddenly filled the air. The sound wasn't loud, but it was quite attention-grabbing.

"What's that?" Bai Ke, naturally sensitive to sounds, felt a sense of urgency and nervousness from the buzzing.

He looked into the direction of the sound, and discovered a thin thread attached to the corner of the simple house's eaves. The thread, which faintly glowed, was connected to a hexagonal object with six holes, gently vibrating and emitting the buzzing sound. The other end of the thread extended far away, seemingly into the clear sky until it was out of sight.

"This is Jingxun” Junxiao said, flicking his finger at the buzzing object, silencing it instantly.

(NT:  jìng xūn镜埙litt. Mirror ocarina. Written differently jǐng xùn 警讯 can also mean warning signal)"

Junxiao picked up Bai Zixu from Peanut’s back and, with a flick of his sleeve, swept Lin Jie down as well. He then pointed to a cloud bamboo forest shrouded in a thin layer of mist behind the house, saying, "You can return to Hengtian Sect from here. I've set a spell in the courtyard. When Jingxun rings, it means someone is entering."

Bai Ke looked at the still unconscious Bai Zixu and spoke, "My dad—"

"He'll stay here for now. We'll discuss it when he wakes up. Tomorrow at the hour of the rabbit, I'll meet you at the entrance to the secret realm."

With that, Junxiao waved his hand, and Bai Ke and Lin Jie felt a gust of wind at their backs. They were pushed into the mist and, when they opened their eyes again, they were back in Lin Jie's room at Hengtian Sect. Just as they regained their balance, they heard footsteps in the courtyard, followed by a knock on the door. A young man's voice called out, "Junior Brother Lin, I've been sent to deliver spiritual pills to the new junior brother."

 

Translator : DarNan