Chapter 510 - 506: Leaving the Secret Realm
The outside world had already fallen into chaos.
It’s worth noting that the prodigies entering the Secret Realm all carried life-saving items provided by their families to some extent.
Some were connected to the projections of the family patriarchs, while others had left life tokens at home.
When so many prodigies died successively in the first and second trials, the families were already shaken.
Although the Holy Sword Secret Realm contained the Divine Emperor’s inheritance, and many prodigies had died there in past years,
it had never been like this year, where almost everyone was wiped out.
There were even rumors later that the Divine Maiden most favored by the Celestial Sword Divine King had encountered trouble in the Secret Realm.
It was said that the Celestial Sword Divine King had given Goddess Qingyu countless life-saving items, and even she had met with misfortune. How could any of the remaining prodigies possibly escape unharmed?
The patriarchs appeared flustered, fearing the Divine King’s wrath on one hand, while secretly speculating on the other.
When there is such widespread death in the Secret Realm, there is only one possibility...
It must mean the Divine Emperor’s inheritance has officially begun, which is why so many prodigies have fallen.
The thoughts of the patriarchs became complicated—they were worried about their prodigies, yet hoped that their prodigy would be the fortunate one.
Additionally, the entrance to the Holy Sword Secret Realm and the Divine Sword within the Sword Tomb had shown recent disturbances over the past two days.
This phenomenon indicated that the inheritance inside the Secret Realm was nearing its end.
Even Li Ya, who had always presided at the Divine King Hall, had rushed angrily to the vicinity of the Sword Tomb, waiting for the prodigies to emerge.
The family patriarchs exchanged strange glances as they looked at each other.
Previously, there were rumors that Goddess Qingyu had run into trouble in the Secret Realm, which they didn’t believe.
But now, seeing Li Ya herself appear here, it was impossible not to believe.
As the vortex in mid-air began to gradually expand and shatter, figures were expelled from it one by one, looking desolate.
Even Li Ya’s expression grew somewhat tense at this moment.
She had prepared more than one substitute puppet for Li Qingyu, even leaving her own projection in Li Qingyu’s sea of consciousness.
But one day, all the precautions she had left on Li Qingyu broke down, as she felt an existence stronger than herself forcibly erase her projection in Li Qingyu’s sea of consciousness.
Li Ya was a Divine King, and in the Holy Sword Secret Realm, only the Holy Sword Divine Emperor could be stronger than her, right?
Li Ya always speculated whether Li Qingyu had acquired the inheritance of the Holy Sword Divine Emperor, which is why her projection in Li Qingyu’s mind was broken.
Thus, the moment the first figure fell from the vortex, Li Ya captured them to her side without asking anything further and directly used soul exploration to read that person’s memory.
As fate would have it, the first person to emerge were Liu Yu and others, who had mistakenly passed the second trial but couldn’t enter the third.
They weren’t affected by Celestial Sword Mountain, and from the pavilion at the base of the mountain, they witnessed the general process of the final inheritance.
Li Qingyu’s anomaly was quite evident, but after Li Qingyu self-destructed, they were blown away by the aftermath of the explosion and couldn’t see who was ultimately bathed in the golden light.
However, since the Holy Sword Divine Emperor was from the Li Family, the one to receive the inheritance should be Goddess Qingxue, right?
After viewing these memories, Li Ya’s face turned grim.
No matter how strong her cultivation, she was still a woman, a mother.
Li Qingyu had always been the child she cherished most, and she had even considered passing the title of Divine King to Li Qingyu in the future. But she hadn’t expected that the child she had so much hope for would perish in the Secret Realm.
She had clearly made so many preparations, and yet none had worked...
No, strictly speaking, it wasn’t that they hadn’t worked, but that the child was too reckless.
Recalling the scenes she had seen in Liu Yu’s memory, Li Ya’s expression grew even more complex. She didn’t know whether to feel sad or proud of her.
While everyone was waiting for Li Ya to say something, survivors from the Secret Realm were spat out from the vortex one after another.
Initially disoriented, they quickly came to their senses and, in a panic, began explaining to Li Ya.
"Your Majesty the Divine King, Goddess Qingyu was corrupted by the Demon Sword. She... she self-destructed, it’s not our fault."
Upon hearing this, the faces of the family patriarchs changed drastically, clearly aware of some situations within the Secret Realm.
While everyone’s expressions were still tense, Xia Feng and two others emerged from the vortex as well. With the last three leaving, the precarious vortex completely shattered.
The Holy Sword Secret Realm was completely sealed off, extinguishing any remaining hope the patriarchs had, leading to an uproar.
"Qingxue... Goddess, since you were the last inheritor to emerge, what happened inside, and are there any other survivors?"
Some patriarchs were unwilling to believe that their prodigies died in this Secret Realm, surrounding Li Qingxue as they sought to understand what transpired inside.
These individuals showed little respect for Li Qingxue, hesitating even when addressing her as Goddess.
Xia Feng frowned slightly, thinking if it were Li Qingyu standing here now, these individuals would never dare crowd around and chatter like this.
With a solemn expression, he shielded Li Qingxue, saying, "There were some anomalies in the Holy Sword Secret Realm. The sword of the former Divine Emperor was tainted by the lingering aura of the Demon Emperor, corrupting the entire realm’s trial."
"Many inheritors were led to fall, even Goddess Qingyu..."
Despite their anticipations, hearing Xia Feng articulate it so plainly still stirred discomfort in everyone.
The most incredulous were Li Qingyu’s father’s family, the Zhang Family, who nearly went insane after hearing of Li Qingyu’s death.
"This can’t be true!"
"Boy, what gives you the right to spout nonsense here, do you know what fate befalls a Cursed Goddess?"
Before Xia Feng could respond, Li Ya spoke up first.
Her authoritative face also showed a hint of sadness as she interrupted the incessantly shouting crowd, "Enough, be quiet!"
The area fell instantly silent, with no one daring to speak further at this moment.
Suppressing the sorrow in her eyes, Li Ya turned to her less cared-for child, "Qingxue, did you receive the Divine Emperor’s inheritance?"
Li Qingxue’s expression was complex, and after pressing her lips together for a long moment, she nodded.
That was something she and Xia Feng had agreed on earlier; since Li Qingxue had learned the Holy Sword Technique, they decided not to disclose that Xia Feng got the inheritance but rather that Li Qingxue received their family’s inheritance.