Aside from that, her father had asked her to meet that Zhou Ming earlier but she resolutely rejected him.
She was reluctant to even see him.
But if the person my father wanted me to meet is Young Master Zhou, I would reconsider my choice…
“You really hide a lot of things about yourself…” Xu Qiuling let out a faint sigh.
She had spoken something similar when they were in the Grave of Flowers. But the feelings she had when she spoke it now was completely different from the previous time.
So this Young Master Zhou is actually Zhou Ming, the person who can make my father and Uncle Yan lower themselves to befriend him. I’ve underestimated him…
No matter how bad his reputation might be, Xu Qiuling was more inclined to believe her own eyes. The Zhou Ming she saw was a lively, elegant man who gave no heed to what others thought of him at all…
But when she thought of the unpleasant words she told him about Zhou Ming and the reminder she gave him, she did not know whether he would take it as an offense or not.
A hint of anger filled her heart. Inwardly, she blamed Ning Fan for not telling her his full name, causing her to make a fool out of herself in front of him.
However, she could understand why Ning Fan chose to hide his name from Xu Qiuling.
He did not want me to fear him because of his identity.
Xu Qiuling was perplexed and her expression hardened. For a moment, she seemed to not know how to face Ning Fan after knowing that sudden shocking fact.
As for Ning Fan, he cupped his fist out of courtesy in return to the two Spirit Severing Realm experts but his eyes turned solemn.
Xu Rushan seems to be showing excessive respect to me… There must be a reason for it. All in all, he should not harbor any malice towards me.
In regards to Yan Zhongze, it’s normal for him to put up his guard when facing me. The single punch I used to neutralize his five palms combo attack is nearly strong enough to offset his seven palms combo attack. The impact of that punch alone had even caused him to suffer injuries. As such, it isn’t considered something abnormal.
The absence of Old Ancestor Zhuo Tong from the Purple Charm Gate gave Ning Fan a confirmation about his earlier guess.
Yan Zhongze is here but Zhuo Tong isn’t. The latter is probably escorting the six sons to return to their respective sects to avoid any misfortune.
“Hehe. I can tell Fellow Daoist Zhou’s intentions in meeting us. Let’s have a long discussion about it in the internal hall. What do you think?”
“Fine.”
The extensive bronze hall was full of strange marks engraved on the wall. In the middle of the hall, there were a seat for the host and some seats for the guests beside it.
They did not exchange much greetings. Instead, just as they had occupied their seats, Xu Rushan took out an ancient-looking map and spread it on a table made of bronze.
“Please have a look, Fellow Daoist Zhou. This map shows the periphery of the Secret Realm. It is approximately 70 million li*. I have witnessed Fellow Daoist’s strength and I know the reason why Fellow Daoist came today. This old man has prepared some lavish gifts for you. Apart from that, if Fellow Daoist has some other things that you need, this old man will grant it to you, as long as it will be helpful to you in your mission. However, I want to have a word of assurance from Fellow Daoist. After looking at the map, how confident are you in hunting down 150 Wild Beasts within 5 months?!”
What?! Did I hear correctly?! Father is pleading Young Master Zhou to enter the Secret Realm of the Broken World and hunt 150 Wild Beasts?!
Xu Qiuling slightly gaped in astonishment and her eyes were filled with disbelief.
Does he know what that Secret Realm of the Broken World is? It’s an extremely dangerous place where even the lives of Peak Nascent Soul Realm experts would be at risk. Besides, being able to kill one of the beasts would make you an exceptional being among the Peak Nascent Soul Realm. Now, Father wants him to kill 150 of them? What a terrifying number… Furthermore, he needs to complete that mission within only 5 months? How could it be possible?!
She had heard before of Zhou Ming’s conspicuous notoriety. Also, she had heard how uncommonly strong he was, making him the strongest cultivator below the Spirit Severing Realm. Even so, she still thought that her father was too reckless by asking Zhou Ming to risk his life by entering into the Secret Realm.
As her gaze landed on the ancient map, her scalp had gone numb just by seeing the mountains and rivers which were thickly dotted in red.
Each of the red dots represented one Wild Beast. All the information on the map was gathered by one of the Peak Nascent Soul Realm experts from the Pleasure Devil Sect who had entered the Secret Realm several times. Even though it might not be completely accurate, it would be unlikely for it to be wrong.
This map only revealed the outer part of the Secret Realm. In spite of that, there were at least three massive groups of Wild Beasts, constituting of hundreds of them residing in that area.
Note :
Measurements :
a. li(里) = 500 m
b. zhang(丈) = 3.13 m
c. chi(尺) = 30.7 cm