"Understood. No wonder they can freely enter and exit the Secret Realm."
Li Mo walked toward the alley, and after sensing the effects of the Metal Poison, he performed Tea Poison,
intentionally allowing the toxin to temporarily spread into his brain.
As soon as he ventured to try, visions began to manifest.
The Black Market vanished in an instant.
Bright sunlight shone down. Li Mo’s eyes, accustomed to the Black Market shrouded by the Array, struggled to adjust to the brightness.
"As expected, the Metal Poison is connected to the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm."
He shielded his eyes with his hand and began scanning his surroundings.
Unexpectedly, he found himself on a mountain over a thousand meters high, surrounded by jagged rocks and steep cliffs devoid of vegetation. The mountain shook continuously, making it impossible to stand steadily.
In the distance, scattered human figures could be seen amidst the mountains, clearly Loose Cultivators from the Black Market, scavenging various spiritual materials from the cliffs.
A breath ago, Li Mo was amidst the bustling Heart Beast Black Market; the next, he was suddenly transported to an unfamiliar realm, finding himself somewhat disoriented.
Massive memories regarding the Secret Realm flooded his mind.
The Creation Book grew notably active, displaying an anomaly he had only seen the first time he activated it.
Li Mo quickly focused and absorbed the information from the Creation Book. Everything provided clear evidence: he was now inside the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm, and the key to entering the Secret Realm turned out to be the hallucinogenic Metal Poison infecting his brain.
Li Mo then noticed that the mountain itself was actually the corpse of a Stone Turtle Deceit Beast, spanning nearly a kilometer in size, its post-mortem convulsions causing the earth-shaking tremors.
The Stone Turtle’s body was pitted and scarred; all its valuable organs had long been harvested. The Loose Cultivators’ actions were merely scavenging leftover minerals that had grown on its back armor.
A dense fog covered the surroundings, vaguely revealing several other looming corpses.
The sky bore no sun, moon, or stars, yet remained perpetually bright.
The characteristics of the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm mirrored those of the Secret Realm from seven thousand years ago, but why was entry and exit so peculiar? Shouldn’t the portal be tied to certain burial ruins instead?
Li Mo felt that this place was akin to a Chaotic Burial Mound for piling up Deceit Beast corpses.
The Metal Poison within the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm was exceptionally concentrated, yet he managed to suppress the toxins with Tea Poison and his leakless body.
"If the Metal Poison is a representation of the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm, then what about Multiple Limb Syndrome?"
As Li Mo pondered, he failed to notice a figure in the distance stealthily approaching him.
Yin Xue squinted his eyes. After spitting out a crimson mist to pinpoint Li Mo’s location, his body twisted like boneless flesh as it traversed through cracks in the rocks.
His expression was greedy, as though Li Mo had already become his prey.
As Yin Xue’s body temperature plummeted, his movements grew increasingly subtle, his mouth and nose exuding greenish-yellow toxic smoke.
The Spell he mastered, the Snake Belly Green Blood Heart Sutra, not only imbued his nails and teeth with potent toxins but also granted him the ability to perceive others’ vitality.
Yin Xue had already noticed Li Mo’s peculiarities back in the Black Market.
He discerned that Li Mo’s heartbeat remained within the normal range, indicating his age to be approximately fifteen.
At the same time, his vitality was unusually robust, far surpassing cultivators of the same realm.
Thus, Yin Xue was certain.
Li Mo undoubtedly possessed a rare physique and complete Magic inheritance. The resources and Spirit Stones in his Storage Bag would be enough to fill Yin Xue’s coffers.
Otherwise, why would he sell surplus Magic Artifacts?
"A fat lamb, truly a fat lamb..."
"If I can devour this fat lamb, I might even attempt to break through to the Weak Crown Period. Haha, fortune comes unstoppable!"
As Yin Xue entertained the thought, a trace of darkness flashed in his eyes.
In order to distract Song Liang, he had promised the Viper Gang a portion of the spoils. Now, he had to imagine ways of keeping the fat lamb’s resources completely for himself.
Unconsciously, Yin Xue had already assumed he could easily handle Li Mo’s cultivation.
As he approached Li Mo, his nostrils seemingly caught a sweet scent from flesh and blood, and his sunken eyes filled with madness.
Li Mo stood utterly still, continuously comparing the sights within the Secret Realm.
A foul wind blew past.
Yin Xue could no longer restrain himself, opening his gaping mouth and spewing toxic smoke from it, causing the nearby rocks to sizzle ominously.
"By the way, how long has the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm been open?"
Li Mo seemed to murmur to himself, or perhaps he was asking Yin Xue.
Yin Xue’s lips curled into a sneer, seeing it as nothing more than the dying struggle of a yellow-haired youth attempting to stall for time to leave the Secret Realm. Such a feat was far too difficult.
"You little brat, prepare to become the dried bones in my stomach."
The serpent’s head abruptly swelled and lunged at Li Mo’s figure, its cracked skin resembling scale armor.
Yin Xue was confident his attack was unavoidable, but unexpectedly, he bit into thin air.
Li Mo effortlessly sidestepped the attack as a thunderous roar sounded from behind.
A shadow loomed over Yin Xue’s figure.
Yin Xue found himself overwhelmed with unease, even though he thought Li Mo was merely employing Illusion Techniques. Yet instinctively, he turned his head to look.
In a single glance, his soul nearly fled from terror.
Before him stood the Ghost Tiger, crouched and gazing at its prey with fascination. Its form was over five meters tall, exuding an oppressive aura, surrounded by thick black smoke, with its joints adorned by sharp bone spines.
Yin Xue’s face turned deathly pale.
He fled in panic, his self-assured composure crumbling into an ocean of unspeakable fear. At this moment, terror filled his heart.
"How could such a terrifying entity exist in the Black Market, hidden so well..."
The Ghost Tiger displayed unrelenting agility, seamlessly shifting between reality and illusion as it pursued Yin Xue amidst the eerie wind, finally catching up and striking with a paw.
Yin Xue’s right arm fractured instantly, forcing him to scream in agony.
Li Mo glanced toward the ridge, noticing several Loose Cultivators from the Black Market silently approaching, attempting to scavenge from the chaos.
"No, no, no, don’t kill me, I’m with the Viper Gang..."
The Ghost Tiger cared little for human words. It pinned Yin Xue down with a forelimb and bit off his head in one brutal motion.
Li Mo cast a fleeting glance at the corpse; while its organs were sellable for Spirit Stones, cultivators of the Third Layer of Puberty weren’t worth much.
He performed Tea Poison, suppressing the Metal Poison coursing through him.
The Iron Cauldron Secret Realm dissipated like flowing sand, enveloping darkness returning. The distinct, damp chill of the Heart Beast Black Market assaulted him anew.
Li Mo strode calmly out from the alley.
On the streets, the standoff persisted. Song Liang, constrained by the Black Market’s rules, reined in his fury.
"Yin Rentu is back? That young lad sure died quickly. Why didn’t he simply avoid the Secret Realm in the first place? Hahaha..."
The Viper Gang cultivators laughed loudly, attracting the crowd’s attention toward the alley entrance.
The figure that emerged, however, was not Yin Xue.
Li Mo held the serpent’s head in his hand, casually tossing it into a corner.
The despair on Yin Xue’s face in death was still intact, as though he had gazed upon something unspeakably horrifying. His severed neck bore discernible bite marks.
The gathered cultivators shivered in unison, staring at Li Mo, whose head wrapped in cloth seemed to harbor a terrifying beast-like presence.
Song Liang began to speak, but seeing Li Mo depart the street directly, he swallowed his words.
Li Mo cared little for the Viper Gang. After all, it was composed of Loose Cultivators from the Third Layer of Puberty, far from being united. Yin Xue’s death would likely even benefit some of them.
With limited resources, one less cultivator to share would mean more for the remaining members.
The principle of survival of the fittest reigned supreme in this place.
Li Mo’s decisive brutality earned him a measure of deterrence. None could fathom the horror concealed beneath the cloth wrapping his head.