For instance, earlier when facing that First Grade Grandmaster, Chen Mo already had the Immortal Materials and could have left them behind and fled.

But he didn't do that; instead, he fought with his life on the line against the opponent, showing no fear despite the two levels of disparity, all because she was Yu Hongyin's cousin... How bad could a man like that be?

"His child, I reckon, should be quite excellent?"

An Mengni lightly bit her lip, a blush spreading across her cheeks.

...

...

Chen Mo walked out of the cave, and it was already pitch black outside.

The moon was bright, and stars were sparse, its gentle light poured down like mercury, covering the dense forest in a silver glow. As the night wind blew, the branches and leaves swayed, rustling like surging waves.

"Strange…"

Chen Mo slightly frowned, feeling something was off with his body. There was an inexplicable sense of emptiness, as if he had fought a great battle with the Daoist Venerable, leaving him completely drained.

Recalling the absurd dream he had earlier, an ominous feeling grew stronger.

After stepping into the Heavenly Human Realm, his Divine Soul merged with the Great Dao, his mind settled, and his form dissolved. It was rare to dream anymore.

Especially after cultivating "Observing the World True Understanding," he became particularly sensitive to such matters, feeling it might be some kind of omen. Yet when he tried to pursue it, there was no clue to be found.

"The child had dragon scales on their forehead, perhaps due to my absorption of Dragon Blood..."

"But who the mother is, why can't I remember?"

Chen Mo pondered for a moment, shaking his head. "Never mind, overthinking is useless. The most important thing now is to find the Immortal Materials."

This time, countless strong practitioners entered the Secret Realm, and Wanqi Kai was just one among them. Each had their own methods of seeking treasures, and he couldn't always have the upper hand.

Luckily, he had obtained the Evergreen Branch, only lacking the last Earth Attribute Immortal Material.

He immediately sat cross-legged, a silver light emanating from his brow, beginning his calculation.

A moment later, he opened his eyes again, with a puzzled expression.

"Hmm?"

"Why is it suddenly unclear?"

When he first entered the Secret Realm, he could clearly sense the Five Elements' fluctuations to locate the Immortal Material, but now Yin and Yang were chaotic, making it impossible to discern the Earth Attribute's aura.

Chen Mo tried many times afterward, but to no avail.

He then took out the Eight Treasures Compass, watching as its needle swung erratically, like a headless fly, suggesting some power was interfering with the magnetic field. Even the Communication Jade Token was ineffective.

"This is not a good sign."

"To encounter such a situation on the first day inside, it's bound to get more dangerous later. I wonder how Zhi'er is doing..."

Chen Mo felt a hint of concern in his heart.

He unfolded the map to calculate his current location.

He had anticipated such a situation before entering the Secret Realm.

So, he made an arrangement with Ling Ningzhi that if they were separated for more than twenty-four hours, they would meet on the plains to the southwest, where there was a temporary base built by predecessors, a place to rest temporarily.

"I should be at the edge of the core area now, several thousand miles from the meeting point. I have to cross a vast unknown area in between. With my current state, it's inadvisable to set off hastily; I should wait until I've fully recovered."

Just as Chen Mo was about to meditate and regulate his breath, An Mengni's voice came from the cave: "Mr. Chen, are you still outside? Could you come in for a moment..."

He got up and entered the cave, seeing An Mengni already dressed, sitting and hugging her knees on the grass mat, timidly saying, "I'm a bit scared, can you stay with me?"

"Alright."

Chen Mo nodded and was about to sit on the ground when he saw An Mengni scoot over, her face blushing as she said, "The ground is dirty, sit here instead."

Chen Mo hesitated for a moment, then walked over and sat beside her.

They were very close, with a faint scent reaching his nose.

Neither spoke, the air was silent, and only the crackling of the campfire broke the quiet.

"By the way, where did Town Patrol Commander Zhu go?" Chen Mo broke the silence first and asked.

An Mengni said, "I was worried that guy might follow us, so I asked Zhu Shuang to erase any traces we left along the way and set traps around the area to prevent anyone from taking advantage of us..."

Chen Mo, hearing this, didn't think much of it and turned to ask, "By the way, as the daughter of the State Mansion, you surely don't lack cultivation resources. Why risk coming to such a place?" 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

An Mengni was silent for a moment, then said, "I told Hong Yin it was to break through to the Grandmaster, but that was a lie. I'm not particularly interested in cultivation itself; I entered the Secret Realm simply to survive."

"Hmm?"

Chen Mo was a little taken aback, "What do you mean by that?"

An Mengni reached out to undo her clothing, revealing a red bellyband, and rolled up its hem a few inches.

On her smooth and flat belly, there was a faint green line like a blood vessel, winding upward, looking very conspicuous.

"This is…"

"Broken Meridian Syndrome, also known as Green Evil."

An Mengni said, "I was born weak and frail, and in childhood, I was possessed by evil spirits, allowing Evil Qi to enter my body. I was so afraid that I didn't tell anyone. By the time it was discovered, it was already too late."

"My father invited a Medical Dao Grandmaster to treat me, who said the Evil Qi had already infiltrated my bone marrow. The only cure was to find the Earth Fire Essence, or else, once it invades the Heart Meridian, not even immortals can save me."

"But this thing vanished hundreds of years ago, and having searched fruitlessly, I thought of trying my luck in the Secret Realm."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mo curiously asked, "Then why didn't you tell Saintess Yu?"

"What good would it do to tell? It would only add to her sorrow and worry uselessly," An Mengni sighed as she closed her dress, "Hong Yin may seem carefree, but she's actually very sensitive and delicate. Plus, as the Saintess of the Netherworld Sect, she's under a lot of pressure too. I didn't want to put my burden on her and hinder her cultivation."

Seeing Chen Mo remain silent, she forced a smile, "Alright, let's stop talking about unhappy things. I'm quite curious about Mr. Chen too... I've heard you have slaughtered countless members of the Demon Clan, saving tens of thousands from disaster, even including the Grandmaster Realm Great Demon?"

"Just some small fry, nothing worth mentioning. When faced with a true Demon Clan powerhouse, all I can do is run for my life," Chen Mo waved his hand dismissively.

Chasing Chu Heng in the past, he encountered the clone of the Demon Lord and nearly met his end.

The overpowering sense of oppression was still a chilling memory.

Fortunately, the Empress had already slain its original form, otherwise, being targeted by such a being meant no end of trouble.

"Mr. Chen is still too humble," An Mengni blinked and asked, "Judging by this, you must hate the Demon Clan a lot, don't you?"

"Rather than hate, it's more a matter of circumstance. There's no inherent good or bad in a race. If we're to speak of it, human hearts are likely more treacherous than the Demon Clan," Chen Mo replied calmly.

An Mengni was momentarily stunned, and said blankly, "But the Demon Clan has killed so many, committing countless atrocities, they're an avowed enemy of the Human Race, they should be rooted out, isn't that common sense?"

Chen Mo chuckled and countered, "Let me ask you, the Gu God Sect uses the flesh and blood of tens of thousands of city's people as feed to breed Gu Poison Worms; Blood Demon Fu Li, in pursuit of increased cultivation, slaughtered countless living beings over decades, turning the Southern Border into a wasteland... compared with the Demon Clan, who causes more harm?"

"This..."

An Mengni found herself at a loss for words.

"Humans can kill demons, demons can naturally kill humans," Chen Mo continued, "At the end of the day, it's all about survival. There's no absolute righteousness or demeaning nature. It's just different standpoints."

"As long as they pose a threat to me and those I care about, no matter if they're human or demon, immortal or divine, they deserve to die. It has nothing to do with their race or what kind of blood they have."

At this point, the image of that foolish cat flashed through his mind.

He hadn't been back in a while, he wondered if the cat was behaving or if its identity had been exposed?

An Mengni heard these views for the first time. After some contemplation, she cautiously asked, "Then if a peace-loving member of the Demon Clan, hoping for harmony between the two races, appeared before you... what would you do?"

Thinking of that foolish cat's clingy antics, Chen Mo couldn't help but smile, "Then we might just become friends?"

"Friends?"

An Mengni gazed at him blankly, lost in thought for a long time.