In the dense forest.
Bang!
Commander Gu casually sent a first-tier Yao Beast flying with a flick of his hand, then looked at the guard in front of him.
"Are you sure it's him?"
"From the wound, it's exactly the same as before. It must be him!"
"Good!"
Commander Gu nodded.
"You did well. To be able to cleanly and decisively kill a first-tier Yao Beast like that, his strength must have recovered quite a bit. It was right that you didn't act rashly. Next, I will deal with him personally!"
"Yes!"
...
"The so-called Extreme Realm."
Within the consciousness space.
The black shadow had returned to his former calm and confident demeanor, speaking eloquently to Gu Han.
"It is a special Realm hidden outside of ordinary Realms. How could a weak Cultivator like you, who has just stepped into Cultivation and is like an ant, possibly know? Moreover, even for those who do know about the Extreme Realm, achieving it is as difficult as ascending to the heavens! Back then, this Lord..."
"Get to the point!"
"..."
The black shadow choked, then said irritably, "In short, it's extremely difficult! And not every Realm has it! Furthermore, to achieve this Realm, besides requiring a long time and effort, luck is also a huge factor!"
Just now.
He and Gu Han had reached an agreement.
He would tell Gu Han the method to Cultivate the Extreme Realm in exchange for Gu Han sparing him.
Therefore, even though he felt aggrieved.
He still told the truth.
"Qi Condensation, Acupoint Opening, Spirit Penetration... These Realms, seemingly ending at the Ninth Stage, are actually not. The Tenth Stage... that is the true end! Which is what this Lord just called the Extreme Realm!"
"And transcending the Ninth Stage... is breaking the shackles of the Dao! The difficulty of which can be imagined! Back then..."
"What about the rest?"
Gu Han interrupted him unceremoniously.
"You..."
The black shadow was furious.
"Didn't you just say you were in the Ning Qi Realm! Why do you need to know so much! Young people should not be overly ambitious; being down-to-earth is the proper way!"
"Alright then!"
Gu Han stopped pressing.
"First, tell me how to achieve the Extreme Realm of the Ning Qi Realm!"
He naturally understood the other party's little schemes.
By intentionally not telling him everything, he wanted to make him unable to easily attack again, driven by curiosity and the desire to become stronger.
In fact.
Gu Han originally intended to keep his promise.
With the sword prison, the black shadow couldn't play any tricks, and besides, his origin was extraordinary, so keeping him alive was more useful than killing him.
"The Extreme Realm of the Ning Qi Realm is not difficult!"
Seeing that Gu Han no longer pressed, the black shadow secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"The usual Cultivation method is to draw Qi into the body. Once Spiritual Qi fills all the main Meridians, that is the Ninth Stage. After that, one can naturally open the Meridians and enter the next Realm!"
"And the Extreme Realm is to not open the Meridians, but to continue drawing Qi into the body!"
"Once the spiritual power within the Meridians is compressed to the extreme, turning from Spiritual Qi into spiritual liquid, then you have succeeded!"
"Just think about it."
His tone was full of temptation.
"When you fight someone in the same Realm, your spiritual power concentration is several times theirs. How can they fight you? Heh heh, let alone someone in the same Realm, even an ordinary Meridian Opening Realm Cultivator might not have as much spiritual power stored as you! Leaving aside Divine Abilities and secret techniques, just by competing in spiritual power, you can fight them to death!"
"Several times?"
Gu Han felt a little longing.
If he could truly achieve it, not only would it lay a solid foundation for his future Cultivation path, but his combat power would also be greatly enhanced!
"And then?"
He suppressed his emotions and asked again.
"That's it?"
"That's it!"
"It's that simple?"
"Heh heh, it's that simple! You don't need to be suspicious. What kind of status does this Lord have? How could I deceive an ant like you... Cough cough, anyway, just Cultivate with peace of mind. If anything goes wrong, feel free to come find this Lord!"
"Good!"
Gu Han nodded.
"I'll trust you this once!"
The black shadow's life and death were at his whim, so he wasn't afraid of the other party playing tricks.
Seeing that matters here were settled, he didn't linger. Leaving A Sha alone outside, he was still a bit uneasy.
"Heh heh!"
Seeing Gu Han leave.
The black shadow suddenly let out a cold laugh.
"As expected, he's naive!"
"The method is naturally correct, and it is indeed the easiest Extreme Realm to achieve. But without having one's Meridians strengthened and expanded with various Spirit Medicine from a young age, and without the careful protection of a master to ensure the Meridians can bear massive amounts of Spiritual Qi, who among ordinary people would dare to do this?"
"Kid, just wait to explode and die!"
"When you die, this Lord will be completely free!"
...
Inside the cave.
Gu Han slowly opened his eyes.
A Sha was too exhausted and had long fallen into a deep sleep, her beautiful eyelashes occasionally trembling, as if still worried about Gu Han's safety even in her dreams.
Without disturbing her.
Gu Han took out the Fat Shopkeeper's Storage Pouch.
Just as he was about to open it.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly.
He sensed something was wrong!
Someone!
Right nearby!
Previously, he naturally wouldn't have such clear perception, but after being nourished by the black shadow's Soul Power, his spiritual senses were greatly enhanced. Every movement around the cave could not escape his perception!
He could even clearly 'hear' the sound of the green grass on the ground swaying in the wind!
He glanced at the sleeping A Sha.
He quietly walked out of the cave.
...
Under a giant tree with gnarled roots, about ten feet thick.
The Gu Family guard carefully left a secret mark on the ground, then quietly went into hiding.
It was confirmed!
Gu Han was just ahead!
As long as Commander Gu arrived in time, he would have rendered a great service!
"Strange."
He still felt a bit puzzled in his heart.
"His cultivation was clearly abolished by the Great Clan Elder, and he even lost his Meridians, so how could he..."
Suddenly!
A sword tip lightly pressed against his back.
"Who!"
He spun around abruptly, only to be met by Gu Han's eyes, filled with chilling intent and killing aura!
"Gu... Gu Han!"
"Indeed, I knew you wouldn't give up!"
Gu Han pushed his long sword forward by an inch.
"How long have you been here?"
"Gu Han, I advise you to surrender. Commander Gu will be here soon... Ah!!!"
A flash of sword light.
An arm instantly fell to the ground!
"I asked you, how long have you been here!"
"Not... not long..."
"How many people came?"
"Ten... a dozen or so..."
"Good!"
Gu Han nodded.
"You go down and wait for them first!"
Pfft!
The sword blade flashed again, and his head was separated from his body!
He knew this guard; he was only at the Fifth Stage of Ning Qi Realm, so killing him was effortless.
Commander Gu!
He let out a soft breath, feeling a bit of lingering fear.
If his spiritual senses hadn't greatly increased at this moment, he would never have discovered the guard's tracks.
And Commander Gu was a master of the Eighth Stage of Meridian Opening Realm. If he had arrived, with his current cultivation, he would definitely not be his opponent. By then... all would be lost!
Time!
With time, comes cultivation!
Thinking of this.
He no longer delayed. After a quick tidy-up, he immediately returned to the cave.
Carrying the groggy A Sha on his back, he continuously used his movement technique, rushing towards the depths of the Barren Forest!
The creatures that roamed there...
Were mostly second-tier Yao Beasts!
At the same time.
It was also a place where many Loose Cultivators lingered!
...
Not long after Gu Han left.
Commander Gu also tracked him to this place by following the marks left by the guard!
"He just died!"
"It was indeed him!"
He examined the guard's corpse, then casually left a secret mark, carefully searching for any clues Gu Han might have left, and pursued him forward!
...
As they went deeper.
The jungle became denser, even blocking out most of the light from above, making the already dim forest appear even more eerie and terrifying.
Along the way.
Gu Han naturally encountered many people.
Some were alone, some in groups of three to five, mostly Cultivators above the Meridian Opening Realm, who were Loose Cultivators from around Tianwu City.
Gu Han's spiritual senses were keen.
He could naturally feel the dangerous gazes in everyone's eyes.
However.
No one acted rashly.
To kill and seize treasure... one must first ascertain the opponent's strength.
Someone like Gu Han, who dared to wander in the Barren Forest with a little girl on his back, must be extremely difficult to deal with.
He didn't know how much time had passed.
The traces of people around him gradually disappeared.
And the dark green vegetation on the ground also changed its monotonous color, now interspersed with streaks of fiery red.
The further he went.
The deeper the fiery red became!
At the same time, a faint, refreshing fragrance continuously wafted from ahead.
"Young Master!"
A Sha woke up groggily.
"It's so warm... and smells so good..."
Gu Han had naturally noticed it earlier.
Although he used to frequent the Barren Forest, this kind of unusual phenomenon was something he had never seen before.
However, under such circumstances, even a fool would understand.
Ahead...
There was Spirit Medicine!
And from the looks of it, this Spirit Medicine was definitely extremely precious!
At this moment, he was eager to improve his cultivation. Besides the dozen or so yuan crystals he had obtained from the Fat Shopkeeper and the guard, he had nothing else. Encountering such a treasure, he naturally wouldn't let it go easily!
Slowing his pace.
He cautiously approached the front.
This place was not hidden. He didn't believe those Loose Cultivators were blind and couldn't notice the unusual situation here.
The only reason...
There was great danger here, so dangerous that no one dared to come!
As if to verify his guess, after advancing a bit further, the hairs on his body suddenly stood on end, and a warning sign appeared in his spiritual senses!
Danger!
Run!
Otherwise, his life would be in peril!
"Young Master."
Sensing Gu Han's unusual state, A Sha also grew nervous.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
Gu Han's gaze swept around, confirming there were no Yao Beasts, then gently put her down.
"You rest for a bit. I'll... go ahead and take a look!"
He naturally understood.
To survive, he had to fight with all his might!
Now that Commander Gu was hot on his heels, he simply had no time to pick ordinary Spirit Medicine. Moreover, with so many people gathered here, those Spirit Medicine were probably already plundered, so where would he get any?
"Young Master..."
Seeing the solemn expression on Gu Han's face, A Sha's heart tightened.
Ahead.
Gu Han slowly advanced a bit further. The fragrant scent grew thicker and thicker, and the warning sign in his spiritual senses became stronger and stronger!
Suddenly!
Gu Han instantly stopped in his tracks!
A hundred feet away.
On a small tree, two feet tall, entirely dark and strangely shaped, with no leaves at all, a round, fiery red fruit the size of a baby's fist swayed gently in the wind, radiating its warmth and fragrance all around!
Just by taking a breath.
Gu Han felt a surge of heat enter his body, and even his own spiritual power became more active.
Treasure!
It was definitely a rare treasure!
However.
He did not act rashly, even his breathing became lighter.
Because on the branches of that small tree, a thumb-thick, foot-long, entirely fiery red small snake was coiled!
And the warning sign in his spiritual senses.
Came from it!
Although this small snake looked unremarkable, the aura of power emanating from it subtly surpassed that of the third-tier Yao Beasts he had seen before!
Fourth-tier!
This small snake was definitely a fourth-tier Yao Beast!
Or even... higher!
Gu Han instantly made his judgment!
No wonder.
Not only did no one dare to come here, but even the Yao Beasts were nowhere to be seen. Everything was due to the deterrence of this small snake!
And at this very moment.
As if sensing his gaze.
On the branch, the small snake suddenly opened its eyes, a pair of cold vertical pupils locking onto him!