My Misfortune Crushed Instances

The Field Clan and the Cangyun Association have always collaborated. In the land of chaos, they can be considered the foundation of Dragon Country.

In past Secret Realm battlefields, the Extraordinary from this faction have always cooperated unconditionally with Dragon Country. The latter needs to enhance its strength in the Secret Realm battlefield, while the former needs to lean on a large tree for support.

This is an advantage the other two major countries do not have, especially the Polar Alliance. They even have persistent discord with the Holy Judgment High Court due to differing beliefs.

Now, Li Rui encountered three people from the Field Clan in this cave filled with Evil Qi. Naturally, he was very surprised but also relaxed his grip.

Kawina finally recognized who was holding her, almost exclaiming in surprise.

"Li! You said you would come to find me, but you haven’t come for such a long time."

I was just being polite.

Li Rui chuckled dryly twice. He did mention this after the arena ended, but it seemed to be misunderstood. At the time, he agreed to look for her if the opportunity arose, which was equivalent to saying they should have a meal together someday.

"Well, you guys should first tell me what’s going on here, and why you’re hiding in this place."

He looked around, illuminated by the dim light, and saw a circle of ghostly figures surrounding them. They seemed to be with the people from the Field Clan and stopped fighting upon seeing the battle halt.

The two middle-aged men initially wanted to explain, but Kawina stopped them; she insisted on speaking herself.

After a bout of storytelling, Li Rui learned the whole story.

In the Field Clan, a total of seven people were selected for the Secret Realm battlefield. Because their faction didn’t have many members, not many were chosen.

In this place was Kawina, who had just advanced to level 31. The remaining two were high-level assassins of the family, with significant strength. Li Rui had heard about them from Kong Ji before, and calculatingly, the high-level assassins should have been classified as dangerous.

The three entered the Secret Realm battlefield close to Wolf Fang Cliff, so they quickly met up. As for the other four, their whereabouts were unknown. If they were also born within the influence range of the Western Kingdom, they were likely already dead and had left this Secret Realm.

The Field Clan would be directly deemed hostile by the other two major countries. Even if they sought refuge, the others would only consider it a ruse and would eliminate them to be safe.

In short, after the three reunited, they began to gather intelligence and search for the traces of Dragon Country’s Extraordinary.

They were different from the randomly chosen ordinary chaos land brigands. They were clear that the Secret Realm battlefield was a game between the three major countries. To gain the spoils from this rich Secret Realm, they first needed to latch onto a major power.

However, unfortunately, they quickly discovered that Cold Wind State was the foundation of the Western Kingdom. The kingdom soon subdued many local Demon Race members there.

Kawina and her group dared not expose their traces and could only hide.

Fortunately, in the early stages, the personnel of the Western Kingdom were also scattered and had not yet organized efficiently as a major country, so they managed to survive for several days. The two high-level assassins even managed to take down several Extraordinary from the Western Kingdom.

But the problem was that their birthplace was on the upper part of Wolf Fang Cliff, the edge of the plateau. Heading west into the plateau would surely lead to a dead end, so they could only attempt to find a way eastward.

When they located the upper exit of the Ghostly Path, intending to descend and leave from the base, they were exposed.

The Western Kingdom dispatched an elite team to hunt them down. The two high-level assassins couldn’t withstand this intensity, and with Kawina being at a lower level, she could only serve as a mascot, leaving them in a sorry state as they fled.

At first, they could use the complex terrain of the mountain path to maneuver around, but the people of the Western Kingdom were no fools. The situation became increasingly perilous.

Kawina urged the other two to leave her and escape, but as core members of the family, they were exceptionally loyal and refused adamantly.

In the end, they saw a path overgrown with rocky spurs by the roadside and, gritting their teeth, decided to find a place to hide, hoping the complex terrain would delay their pursuers.

It proved effective. After much effort, the three reached the entrance of the Ghost Cave to wait, realizing that the Extraordinary from the Western Kingdom had not noticed this path. So they decided to hide there.

"If we go out, we’ll encounter their people, so we have no choice but to hide here," Kawina said helplessly.

Li Rui asked, "Then what about this cave? What’s with these Undead inside?"

He had noticed earlier that the spirits here were unusual. They appeared to be a kind of Demon Race, humanoid, with fangs from their mouths, feathers on their heads draping like hair, all physically stout and clad in armor.

Of course, this armor wasn’t physical, nor necessarily indicative of their state before death, but a kind of obsession.

For instance, a patrol general in Ghost City wears armor because he spent most of his life in the military, thus appearing as a Ghost General in death.

The spirits here showed some of that spirit, yet, compared to the uncanny Dongze Witch Race, these spirits seemed to possess a righteous fierceness.

Having heard his question, Kawina began to tell another story.

First, on this Cold Wind plateau, there was a powerful tribe, or empire, known as the Wind Slave Royal Court. They called themselves servants of the gale, residing on the plateau generation after generation and gradually uniting into a powerful force under the command of the Great Chief.

They worshipped Wolf Fang Cliff and the harsh winds on the plateau, considering such fierce destructive power as a sign from the heavens.

"So they were good at using wind spells?" Li Rui asked.

"No, they believed having a strong body was impressive because the stronger one’s physique, the longer they could withstand the fierce winds," Kawina replied.

"... Let’s talk about the Undead instead."

Kawina continued her narrative.

When they fled to the Ghost Cave, they discovered a very strong gloomy atmosphere inside, a situation aptly described as being caught between a wolf and a tiger. Entering the cave was a dilemma, but staying outside was no safer.

Eventually, the two high-level assassins discussed and figured the Ghostly Path below would certainly have scouts from the Western Kingdom. Venturing out would inevitably mean death sooner or later, so exploring the cave might be the better option—the danger inside might not be as strong, and they could possibly find another route.

The group ventured into the cave to explore, finding no spoils, only a group of Undead.

The good news was, while these Undead were very strong, they weren’t particularly aggressive. Though there was a language barrier, they gestured and tried to communicate without any conflict arising.

After two or three days of back and forth, no substantial progress was made, yet surprisingly, a peaceful coexistence was achieved.

"And then, a few days later, you arrived," Kawina said nonchalantly. "Surely you have a way to understand what they’re saying?"