After Chen Qiu asked that question, he fell silent and just quietly looked at Fat Long, his heart hoping for a sixty-thirty split.
His thirty, Fat Long's seventy.
In this way, he would be able to repay the favor he owed Fat Long in the "small world", as he disliked the feeling of being in someone's debt.
"Let's do seventy-thirty,"
After pondering for a long while, Fat Long finally spoke, "You seventy, I thirty. Your combat power is already about to surpass mine, you have better luck than me, having randomly acquired an attack method entry during the Qi Refinement Realm."
"With my entry, I'm pretty much done for during the Qi Refinement period, unlikely to demonstrate anything outstanding."
"I guess I'll have to rely on you in the future."
"This time you take more, and later we'll travel together. That way, in this unfamiliar world, we can watch each other's backs. Chen Qiu, brother, what do you say?"
"That works."
Chen Qiu nodded, and didn't say much else.
...
The last bit of time quickly passed away as well, and Huang Shikai, who was next to them, died in despair in the jaws of the Wolf King. Chen Qiu had discovered something very interesting: the resentful spirits of the cultivators killed by the Wolf King could also be summoned by him.
That is to say, the creatures killed by the spirits he summoned were also considered to have been killed by him.
In a sense, it was like a perpetual motion machine.
With this, he could, at any time, summon three resentful spirits of cultivators at the sixth level of the Qi Refinement Realm and one at the fifth level, which also served as a small trump card, giving him a sense of security.
Day broke.
The white vortex exit in the small world slowly appeared once more, and the resentful spirit of the Wolf King dispersed into the world forever.
Stepping into the white vortex, Chen Qiu saw the scenery change in front of his eyes, and when everything calmed down, he was back in the bamboo forest three miles east of Fufeng City. Only now, there were many people surrounding him.
Over a hundred people encircled them, completely cutting off any escape.
Many had intense killing intent on their faces, and with their fiercely muscled appearances, they were clearly not to be trifled with.
...
"I forgot to say."
Fat Long tugged cautiously at Chen Qiu's sleeve, his mouth twitching slightly as he whispered, "The Heavenly Dao Secret Realm has one major flaw: you exit from the same place you entered. This often leads to many people liking to wait at the entrances of secret realms, ambushing and killing those who come out to minimize their own risk."
"It seems we forgot to hire an escort master."
"If you hired an escort master, they would successfully escort you to safety when you come out of the secret realm alive."
"..."
Chen Qiu looked expressionlessly at the husky men who were eyeing them menacingly and had them surrounded, inadvertently taking a step back, and said calmly, "What if we don't have an escort master?"
"Then you play up your background, your power, which can scare many away."
"And if we don't have that?"
"Then it's up to fate."
Just then—
"Kill!"
A gang within the crowd, armed with machetes and looking ferocious, took their lead from the husky man who had initially had an encounter with Chen Qiu. Only now, his expression appeared quite unsettled as he raised his machete and bellowed, "All the treasures from this secret realm must be on them! Whoever grabs it, keeps it!"
He hadn't expected this young man to come out of the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm alive, nor had he imagined that, of the hundred people who had entered the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm, there would be only two to come out alive.
```
Everyone knows that the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm designed for killing is perilous, but that's mostly hearsay, as no one has actually seen it.
Seeing it today, I realize that its degree of danger is rather terrifying indeed.
The brawny man leading them had a voice full of malevolence, roaring extremely loud, yet he did not take a single step forward to engage in combat. However, his thunderous roar instantly ignited the desires in the hearts of everyone around.
No one wanted to make the first move, to avoid running into a tough opponent.
Yet, they were afraid that others would make a move and worried that the treasures would be snatched away by someone else.
With the first person rushing in, the entire scene immediately became a chaotic mess. It was dawn by then, and in the bamboo forest, countless brawny men armed with sharp weapons charged towards the two young men, one skinny and one fat.
...
The screams, the sound of blades cutting through flesh, the blood splattering in mid-air.
In such circumstances, people quickly lose their sanity.
They can't even discern friends from foes, feeling that everyone around them is attacking themselves. A group composed only of Qi Refinement Realm cultivators at best, their methods of attack were still the most barbaric, like those of village farmers, making the scene look intimidating.
Yet, in reality, it wasn't as grand as an all-out brawl involving every villager from two villages.
At some point, the scene started to calm down.
Many were panting with injuries all over their bodies, and the two young men were nowhere to be seen. Everyone looked suspiciously at others, wondering who had snatched the treasures.
...
And at this time—
Chen Qiu was already walking on an official road with Fat Long.
Using the "Earth Tunneling Technique" and "Blinding Spell" they had obtained from the Secret Realm—which they had mastered to the Great Achievement Realm—they had easily tunneled through the ground and escaped during the chaos.
Until they reached this official road.
"Here."
Fat Long took out a piece of dry ration from his bosom and handed it to Chen Qiu, "Eat something to fill your stomach for now. There's a post station a few miles ahead where you can have something warm to eat. Continue along this official road for ten miles, and you'll find some cultivator markets."
"It's called a market, but it's actually more like a city, just that it's not counted among the 365 cities of Da Xia Country and doesn't pay taxes."
"The market is mostly cultivators, and those at the Foundation Establishment Stage are not so rare. The owner of this market is a Loose Cultivator at the mid-Golden Core stage, known as the 'Barefoot Immortal'."
"Walking on the official road is safe. According to Da Xia law, no one is allowed to attack any living being on the official road, whether they be commoners, cultivators, wanted criminals, or members of the Demon Beast Clan."
"Even if it's just a rabbit, as long as it's on the official road, you can't kill it."
"This law is implemented very thoroughly in Da Xia, no matter how powerful the noble or official, no one is exempted from punishment. Once violated, it's direct extermination of the Nine Tribes."
"Hmm."
Chen Qiu nodded, taking the dry ration from Fat Long without disdain, wiped the dust off it with the corner of his clothes, and then began to eat, "The importance of transportation to a country goes without saying. If there's no frequent interaction and trade between regions, and even the official roads aren't safe, that indeed has a significant impact."
"It's evident that Da Xia bestows the official roads with a considerable amount of importance."
"Just... is exterminating the Nine Tribes not a bit excessive?"
"It is a bit."
Fat Long silently nodded, "Rumor has it that 500 years ago, this law was enforced exactly as such. But not long after its implementation, a prince of Da Xia, furious with his father for favoring his younger brother, killed a rabbit on the official road in broad daylight."
"The act was witnessed by many."
"According to the law, the entire Da Xia Royal Family could have gone down to meet their ancestors."
"But a special exemption would diminish the status of the official roads and the law."
```