The valley suddenly fell silent, leaving only the sound of Fang Hao’s heavy panting and the occasional twitching of the Demon Beast’s corpse. That fight just now had really required every ounce of his strength; he had almost lost his life here.
The young girl in red, the Ninth Princess of the Mu Family, stood there looking at Fang Hao with a complicated expression. If this man hadn’t suddenly jumped out just now, she would have likely perished here today. However, his origins were unknown, and while his cultivation only seed to be at the early Golden Core stage, his thods were extrely tricky. In that final mont, he seed to have summoned sothing? A flash of golden light had appeared, and the frenzied Demon Beast was beaten to death. She hadn’t even seen clearly what it was.
Fang Hao caught his breath, stood up straight, and wiped the sweat and blood foam from his face. He looked at the Demon Beast’s corpse on the ground, then at the young girl, wondering how to start the conversation. This girl was from the Mu Family with a noble status and likely a significant temper; he had to handle this carefully.
"Cough, cough," he cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound as peaceful as possible. "This... Fellow Daoist, are you alright?"
The Ninth Princess raised her chin slightly, carrying a hint of the arrogance unique to royalty, but her tone was relatively polite: "I am fine. Thank you for your help just now. Who are you? Why are you in this place?" Her beautiful eyes sized Fang Hao up with a scrutinizing look.
Fang Hao muttered to himself; as expected, she was going to interrogate him about his background. He had already prepared his story and said without changing his expression, "I am Fang Hao, a re Loose Cultivator. I was lucky enough to obtain a spot to co in and try my luck. Passing through here, I saw you in danger, so I stepped in. It was a small effort, not worth ntioning." He didn’t say a word about killing the three Mu Family disciples and also hid his status as a Sect Guest Elder to avoid trouble.
"A Loose Cultivator?" A hint of surprise flashed in the Ninth Princess’s eyes. Could a Loose Cultivator have such strength and courage? And even enter the Tianyan Secret Realm? She was a bit skeptical but didn’t press further, nodding: "Regardless, thank you for today. This princess... my na is Mu Fenghua." She hesitated for a mont before giving her na, considering it a way of acknowledging the favor.
Mu Fenghua? Fang Hao noted the na in his heart. As expected, she was royalty, a princess.
"So it is Fellow Daoist Mu." Fang Hao cupped his hands, his attitude neither humble nor arrogant. He pointed at the Demon Beast’s corpse on the ground. "This beast was killed by our joint efforts; the spoils should be divided equally. Why don’t you pick first, Fellow Daoist Mu?"
He phrased this beautifully, appearing generous while also testing the princess’s character. If she relied on her status to take everything, he would imdiately take his share and leave, not staying for a single second longer.
Mu Fenghua glanced at the Demon Beast’s corpse and said calmly, "If you hadn’t intervened, I would have died. You take seventy percent of these Materials. I only need that tail hamr and so essence blood." She wasn’t greedy and even took the initiative to yield so profit.
Fang Hao was sowhat surprised; this princess was quite reasonable? Not at all overbearing like the previous three. He nodded: "Then I shall do as you say, Fellow Daoist Mu." He wasn’t modest either, stepping forward to skillfully dismantle the Materials. This Fourth-Rank Demonic Beast was a treasure from head to toe; its scales, claws, core, and essence blood were all good things.
Mu Fenghua stood to the side watching. Seeing Fang Hao’s skilled technique and swift movents, her eyes grew a bit more curious. This Loose Cultivator seed to have a wealth of experience.
Fang Hao quickly sorted the Materials, putting away the most precious core, most of the essence blood, and the best few scales. He then handed the massive bone hamr tail and a small bottle of essence blood to Mu Fenghua: "Fellow Daoist Mu, your share."
Mu Fenghua took them, looked them over, nodded, and put them into her storage bracelet. She hesitated for a mont and asked, "Fellow Daoist Ning, where are you headed?"
Fang Hao’s heart stirred, but he remained calm on the surface: "I heard there are so opportunities in Ten Thousand Swords Valley and plan to go try my luck. What about you, Fellow Daoist Mu?"
"Ten Thousand Swords Valley?" Mu Fenghua’s eyes brightened slightly. "What a coincidence, I am also heading there to find sothing. Since we are going the sa way, why not... travel together? We can look out for each other." She had just witnessed Fang Hao’s strength and adaptability and felt he would be a good temporary teammate. This Secret Realm was full of dangers, and traveling alone was indeed unsafe.
Fang Hao was stunned for a mont. Travel together? With a princess of the Mu Family? This... the risk was a bit high! What if she discovered he had killed her family mbers? Wouldn’t that be like walking into a trap? But on second thought, Mu Fenghua didn’t seem like an unreasonable person, and her strength wasn’t weak. Traveling with her would indeed increase his safety margin and save a lot of trouble. Most importantly, he wasn’t familiar with Ten Thousand Swords Valley; having soone who knew the inside story to lead the way would save a lot of effort.
"This... very well." Fang Hao weighed the pros and cons and finally nodded. "Then I shall trouble you, Fellow Daoist Mu." It should be fine if he was careful; if things went south, he could find an Opportunity to slip away.
Seeing Fang Hao agree, a faint smile appeared on Mu Fenghua’s face: "Then it’s settled. No ti to lose, let us set off now. This place has just seen a major battle; it’s not suitable to stay for long."
"Alright." Fang Hao finished packing, and the two of them rose together, turning into two streaks of light and flying toward Ten Thousand Swords Valley.
Along the way, the two maintained a certain distance, chatting idly. It was mostly Mu Fenghua asking and Fang Hao answering cautiously. Only then did Fang Hao learn that Mu Fenghua was the Mingling Empire Emperor’s most beloved young daughter. She had extrely high talent and had co in this ti to find a treasure called the ’star soul of the sword’ to refine her natal Flying Sword. And Ten Thousand Swords Valley was said to be the most likely place to find it.
Fang Hao also briefly shared so of his ’experiences’—of course, a redacted and beautified version, portraying himself as a Loose Cultivator with decent luck and so strength.
They flew for half a day without incident. Although Mu Fenghua had a bit of a princess’s temperant, she wasn’t arrogant; instead, she quite admired Fang Hao’s combat experience and insights. Fang Hao also discovered that this Ninth Princess was actually quite simple-minded with no hidden agendas; she had just been protected too well and was a bit naive about the world.
As it grew late, a pitch-black valley entrance emitting sharp Sword Qi appeared ahead. Countless broken, rusted, and snapped swords were thrust into the mountain walls on both sides of the canyon, and the air was filled with a sense of desolation and solemnity.
"Ten Thousand Swords Valley is ahead." Mu Fenghua stopped her light, her expression becoming serious. "Sword Qi crisscrosses within the valley, making it extrely dangerous. Moreover, it’s said that there are residual sword spirits that will attack intruders. We must be careful."
Fang Hao nodded; he also felt that heart-palpitating Sword Intent. This place truly lived up to its reputation.
The two descended and cautiously stepped into Ten Thousand Swords Valley. Just as they entered the mouth of the valley, they felt an invisible pressure descend, making the circulation of spiritual power in their bodies a bit sluggish. Beneath their feet were thick tal scraps that made a ’rustling’ sound as they stepped on them.
"Follow closely," Mu Fenghua said in a low voice. A jade pendant emitting soft starlight appeared in her hand, seemingly able to resist so of the Sword Qi’s erosion.
Fang Hao also secretly circulated the Chaos Derivation Art, his Chaos Qi flowing to quietly dissolve the encroaching Sword Qi.
The two trudged deeper into the valley, their figures gradually disappearing into the pervasive Sword Qi and darkness.
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