At this moment, inside the Secret Realm, the Adventurers were busy looting Senpou Temple.
They discovered three ancient texts:
Senpou Temple Fist Manual
Everlasting Journey Sutra: Insect's Blessing
Everlasting Journey Sutra: Dragon's Homecoming
The Fist Manual was a skill book that allowed Adventurers to unlock additional techniques within the Secret Realm.
The other two texts, however, were directly tied to the overarching plot—and immediately drew far more interest.
Online and offline, research groups quickly formed to analyze them.
---
Meanwhile, Lily had already left Senpou Temple.
Instead of returning to Ashina Castle, she used the Ghost Buddha to teleport to the Dilapidated Temple, where Undying Hanbei lived in seclusion.
Hanbei looked up at her with his usual numb expression.
"You've returned, Ninja Lord. Have you come to test your blade on me again?"
"Don't hold back. This body cannot die. I've long grown used to pain."
Facing him, Lily sighed.
"Fate truly plays cruel tricks."
Hanbei's Parasitic Worm was different from the others.
Not only was his immortality stronger, but his consciousness remained completely intact. The parasite had never eroded his mind.
An almost perfect immortal body.
The kind emperors dreamed of.
The kind heroes went mad pursuing.
And yet—
He had obtained it effortlessly.
And despised it.
All he wanted was release.
---
Lily unsheathed the Mortal Blade and placed it before him.
"This is the Mortal Blade. It can slay the undying."
"I came to fulfill my promise. If you've made up your mind… this sword can grant you death."
For the first time, emotion flickered in Hanbei's eyes.
Not fear.
Joy.
He raised his chipped katana.
"Then come."
"Are you sure you won't reconsider?"
"I have long awaited a true life-or-death duel. I will fight with everything I have. Please, Ninja Lord—do not show mercy."
He struck first.
Faster and fiercer than ever before.
His swordsmanship, refined through countless immortal battles, rivaled that of an Ashina captain.
But it was not enough.
Lily deflected effortlessly.
One strike shattered his blade.
The next pierced his heart.
---
"Your swordsmanship… has improved again…"
As the Mortal Blade pierced him, Hanbei felt the undying curse draining away from his body.
An unfamiliar sensation flooded him.
Death.
And freedom.
"Finally… I can walk the Yellow Springs… and follow Lord Tamura once more… Thank you."
Lily sheathed the blade.
Hanbei's body lost all vitality.
His corpse weathered into dust.
Undying Hanbei was no more.
---
Loot Results
The adventure concluded.
Lily felt anticipation rising.
Would she receive another Named Soul?
Master Sage's Soul? Hanbei's?
[This adventure has ended!]
[Evaluation: Grade A-]
[You have obtained: Mortal Blade – Weeping Tears]
No Essence Soul dropped.
A bit disappointing—but understandable. First clears had higher drop rates, not guaranteed ones.
Still, the Mortal Blade's value was undeniable.
She checked its stats—
And froze.
---
[Mortal Blade: Weeping Tears]
Tier 3 Treasure – Green Grade (Low)
Fixed Damage: +28
Cultivation Amplification: +50%
Durability: 50/50
Skills:
Dragon Slayer
Soul Severing
Weeping Tears Ritual
The hall erupted.
"Tier 3?!"
"That's Miracle City's first Tier 3 equipment!"
"Not normal gear—this is a Treasure!"
---
Until now, most equipment had been Tier 1. A few Tier 2 skill stones had appeared.
But Tier 3 loot?
Never.
Its rarity was extraordinary.
And its stats—
Terrifying.
Though its fixed damage was only +28, the 50% cultivation amplification meant the weapon scaled directly with the user's strength.
The stronger the wielder—
The more monstrous the blade.
---
Skill Breakdown
Dragon Slayer
+60% damage against Dragon-type enemies.
Soul Severing
Permanently destroys Dark, Undead, and Demon-type souls, preventing resurrection.
Weeping Tears Ritual
Consumes 1 mental energy point.
Lasts 30 minutes.
Each soul severed increases overall weapon power by 1%.
Stacks up to 100%.
---
In theory—
The blade could double its own power.
Combined with cultivation scaling, it could rival even most Tier 4 weapons.
White Crane Hermit, once a Tier 4 Adventurer, spoke gravely:
"With this sword, Undead- and Demon-type dungeons will fall effortlessly."
He wasn't exaggerating.
---
A New Target
Lily thought immediately of Hero's Cemetery, Tianyun City's strongest core dungeon.
It was a Direct Entry–type Secret Realm, filled entirely with Undead enemies.
Open for six months.
No one had cleared the final boss.
But now—
With Weeping Tears—
She had a real chance.
Recently, certain high-ranking members of the Yellow Springs Adventurer Guild—and even Tianyun City's leadership—had begun questioning her decisions.
Fine.
She would answer them with results.
Clearing Hero's Cemetery publicly would shake Tianyun City to its core.
Miracle City's influence would spread.
Even a city-level dungeon like Tianyun would one day seek cooperation.
Decision made.
But first—
She decided to relax inside Miracle City.
---
Raging Tide Popularity
In the Secret Realm lobby, most Adventurers were playing Raging Tide.
Competitive Mode.
Story Mode.
Level Mode.
It had massive popularity—far surpassing The Ten Kingdoms Chronicle for now.
Lily stopped before a crystal showing Chapter 2's final boss.
She froze.
A four-meter-tall bald giant chased a player across the screen.
"Is that… the Tyrant?!"
This was no ordinary T103.
"This is the T-078 Cursed Tyrant," someone explained.
"An upgraded version. Bigger. Stronger. Bulletproof. It can catch rockets bare-handed."
"If someone fuses the Cursed Tyrant Essence Soul, that would be terrifying."
The Adventurer inside died again.
The difficulty was real.
---
Ashina's Deeper Truth
Meanwhile, research into the two sutras bore fruit.
Nearly a hundred Adventurers gathered in person.
Thousands more debated online.
The Time Traveler announced excitedly:
"Insect's Blessing reveals that all immortality in Ashina—Dragon Heritage, Young Water, Parasitic Worms—originates from the same source."
Nancy Lilia elaborated:
"They all stem from an ancient deity that descended from the west."
Windwalker continued:
"This being fell upon Ashina, gravely wounded. Immortality leaked from its wounds, polluting the rivers and forming Young Water and Parasitic Worms."
"It created the Dragon Heir to spread Dragon Heritage power."
"The Dragonrot plague absorbs life force—likely to heal the deity's wounds."
The mystery deepened.
Blackstone Hammer King asked,
"What kind of being could injure something like that?"
Windwalker replied,
"And where did it come from?"
The Time Traveler said,
"The first question may never be answered."
"But as for the second—look at the world map on the Ten Kingdoms Chronicle login screen."
"To the west of Ashina lies either the Kingdom of Milant… or the Eastern Continent across the sea."
"Lord marked one region as Central State—the Central Plains."
"I believe it's the latter."
"Central State may be the core region of the entire Ten Kingdoms Chronicle."
The Adventurers agreed.
---
Dragon's Homecoming
The Dragon's Homecoming text described a method:
Return the ancient deity to its homeland.
Sever immortality at its root.
Though this likely wouldn't occur within the Ashina Arc, it hinted that future arcs would interconnect.
Different lands.
Different eras.
Different styles.
But one unified world.
If one day—
All chapters were cleared—
And the entire Foreign Lands world opened freely to Adventurers—
Then it would no longer feel like a Secret Realm.
It would feel like a true alternate world.
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