The Elder Yan, mortally wounded, quickly regained consciousness after taking the great revival pill.
This elder of the Demon Path carried with him spiritual medicines that were no ordinary items, with powerful effects.
A single great revival pill had awakened her from a severely injured state.
Upon awakening, she first frowned and glanced at Li Muyang beside her, but said little else.
Elder Yan then took a white jade bottle from her Qiankun Ring and tossed it to Li Muyang, then closed her eyes to regulate her breath and heal her injuries.
Clearly, this white jade bottle was a reward for Li Muyang.
Li Muyang took the white jade bottle and found it filled with pale green spiritual liquid, emitting a fragrant aroma that refreshed the heart.
Is this… Jade Marrow Spirit Liquid?
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Li Muyang’s eyes widened in surprise.
Jade Marrow Spirit Liquid was indeed valuable; although it was just one bottle, that one was top-notch.
Elder Yan was really generous.
Li Muyang, holding the Jade Marrow Spirit Liquid, walked to one side, but he did not immediately consume the spiritual liquid; instead, he began to walk around in this secret realm.
This place, where the Jade Fairy was buried, was identical to the one in “The Game with the Fairies.”
But in the game, a Human Puppet Master’s skull guided Li Muyang, while in reality, there was no such skull.
After making a round in the secret realm, Li Muyang discovered he could not leave.
Elder Yan evidently couldn’t leave either; both were temporarily trapped in this secret realm.
The only good news was that the Startling Swan Immortal Sword planted in front of the Jade Fairy’s grave no longer attacked demon cultivators; the lives of Li Muyang and the elder were temporarily out of danger.
But considering Elder Yan’s warning, Li Muyang still cautiously maintained a distance from the Jade Fairy’s grave.
Carrying the Jade Marrow Spirit Liquid, he walked into a bamboo forest, found a secluded spot, and began to consume the spiritual liquid, preparing to refine the spiritual energy within his body.
He was famished, and consuming the spiritual liquid not only aided his cultivation but also sated his hunger, killing two birds with one stone.
However, as Li Muyang sat down and took a sip of the Jade Marrow Spirit Liquid, feeling the spiritual liquid transforming into abundant spiritual energy entering his body, his eyes suddenly widened.
“… Can’t cultivate?!”
Or rather, he couldn’t mobilize the spiritual power in his body!
At this moment, Li Muyang felt an invisible force blocking his control over the spiritual power within his body.
He couldn’t mobilize the spiritual power in his Qi Sea or Dantian, nor could he cultivate.
Although the spiritual power in his body hadn’t disappeared, he had become a complete mortal, no longer possessing the mighty power of a cultivator.
“Can this secret realm block cultivation levels?”
In this moment, Li Muyang truly understood why Jiang Xiaoyu didn’t engage in battle when retrieving the sword in the game; it turns out this secret realm where the Jade Fairy was buried could block cultivation levels.
He had been too busy following the storyline in the game to notice this before.
Now that he had personally entered the secret realm, he discovered its true nature.
Li Muyang immediately closed his eyes.
“System!”
The familiar landscape of mountains and seas unfolded in his vision.
The game system interface was still there; the game list in the upper left corner showed entries for “Deadly Grass” and “Legend of the Immortal Sword,” both still accessible.
Seeing that the system’s functions weren’t blocked, Li Muyang breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as the system wasn’t sealed, that was good news.
He entered “Legend of the Immortal Sword” and loaded the latest save.
Then, entering the battle phase, he saw a demonically half-demon general as tall as a mountain roaring in the city, with dark Sword Qi fiercely swirling around, as half-demons jumped out from the alleys to attack Li Muyang…
The system was not affected, and the game content could still be explored.
Feeling reassured, Li Muyang then exited the game and returned to reality.
He didn’t rush back to play the game but returned to the grassland outside the bamboo forest.
At this time, Elder Yan had finished regulating her breath and opened her eyes.
She stood in front of the Jade Fairy’s grave, about thirty feet away.
Elder Yan did not continue forward because the Startling Swan Immortal Sword planted before the Jade Fairy’s grave was silently trembling as if one more step forward from her, and the sword would strike her down on the spot.
Upon seeing Li Muyang return, Elder Yan gave a cold glance and said.
“You may move freely, no need to attend to me.”
“I plan to attempt to subdue this sword and make it open the exit of the secret realm, which might provoke the sword and attract its Sword Qi… You’d better stay far away.”
Elder Yan, even after waking up, remained aloof.
Li Muyang obediently nodded, “Okay, Elder Yan.”
He turned and left without a moment’s hesitation.
This Elder Yan was clearly wary of him.
When Li Muyang had his powers stripped and was demoted to a mortal, Elder Yan who entered the secret realm at the same time was probably in a similar situation.
Although outside, she was a highly respected Elder of the Demon Sect, a powerhouse of the Demon Path.
But in this secret realm, she was just a woman who had been injured and had lost her cultivation.
Although she still maintained the authority of a Demon Sect Elder, she clearly resisted Li Muyang’s approach.
In her current weak and injured state, Li Muyang could crush her easily.
Heh…
Li Muyang chuckled and turned to walk deeper into the bamboo grove.
Since Elder Yan had also been stripped of her cultivation, he was no longer anxious.
While he wouldn’t harbor any evil intentions, with Elder Yan without her cultivation, Li Muyang didn’t need to be too restrained.
He could play the game at ease.
He ran deeper into the bamboo grove, found a quiet and comfortable spot, sat down, and entered the game interface.
“The Game with the Fairies,” initiate!
But this time, Li Muyang didn’t load the final level’s save file.
Instead, he loaded the save file from when he entered the secret realm.
He was carrying the head of the Human Puppet Master, and under the guidance of the Human Puppet Master’s head, he entered the secret realm and saw the tomb of the Jade Fairy and her husband.
And in front of the tomb was the Startling Swan Immortal Sword.
Li Muyang opened the character interface, and indeed his cultivation was sealed.
Below the character profile, there was a continuous BUFF.
[Land of Rest] (Reduction of cultivation by 100%)
Li Muyang spoke up, “Human Puppet Master, does this secret realm reduce cultivation?”
[Human Puppet Master: ???]
[Human Puppet Master: Why are you suddenly asking this? Go grab the sword quick]
At this point, the storyline had ended, and Li Muyang should have immediately gone forward to grab the sword.
But Li Muyang stood still, instead asking curiously, “Can’t I be curious? What power within this secret realm seals cultivation, and how can it be unsealed?”
[Human Puppet Master: Leaving the secret realm will unseal it, now go grab the sword, get the Startling Swan Immortal Sword, and you can leave the secret realm]
The Human Puppet Master urged Li Muyang to continue with the storyline.
However, Li Muyang shook his head and asked again, “What if I go there and get killed by the Startling Swan Immortal Sword? How can you guarantee that the sword will obediently let me take it?”
When Elder Yan approached within thirty feet of the Jade Fairy’s tomb, the sword became restless.
Why did Jiang Xiaoyu directly go to take the sword without being attacked?
Faced with Li Muyang’s doubts, the Human Puppet Master was somewhat speechless.
[Human Puppet Master:… With me accompanying you, how could the Startling Swan Immortal Sword possibly harm you? I’ve been a good friend of the Jade Fairy for many years, the sword has spirit and will show some regard for me]
The Human Puppet Master was confident.
But Li Muyang asked again, “What if I came alone, without you accompanying me, how then could I safely take the sword?”
Li Muyang kept asking questions one after another, refusing to go forward to take the sword.
The head of the Human Puppet Master was at a loss for words.
[Human Puppet Master:… Do you still want the Immortal Sword or not? The sword is right in front of you, why all this unnecessary talk!]