Mingyue tried to connect everything that had happened with Lianhua.
"She suddenly has the gall to attack me like that.
Does she have some kind of agreement with my family?
If something happened to me, normally the blame should fall on her.
The sect would not pursue it since a dead prodigy has no value, but my family should go all out for revenge."
She frowned at that thought.
She also considered asking her Elder and master for help, but now that she was outside and calmer, she understood what they would actually do.
At most, they would take some of Lianhua's cultivation resources in compensation.
That no longer had much value to her. She could raise her cultivation by absorbing life force now.
There was no way they would kill Lianhua on her behalf.
[Why not ask the King for his opinion, Queen?]
"The King?
You mean Alex?"
Alex's face appeared in her mind.
She remembered how he stayed calm through all the situations they had faced together.
"Even if he is calm and collected, he is not from my world, Vesa.
I doubt he can analyze my situation."
[Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you about the King's ability.]
Information suddenly flooded into Mingyue's mind. Her eyes widened.
"So such an ability exists...
But that still does not explain how Alex could stay calm in that situation."
[That is just his personality, Queen, shaped by his upbringing.
So, do you want to ask the King?]
Mingyue shook her head.
"No need.
For now, I will go to the secret realm first.
I want to see how that bitch faces me.
With my current cultivation, she should not be my opponent.
Now, which direction should I go?"
A display appeared in front of her eyes. It showed her current position and a clear route toward the secret realm.
[You can use this, Queen.
The map should be quite accurate.
I made it based on your knowledge so far.
Also, I need to remind you that even though you can raise your cultivation with life force, I will only help you advance when you have enough understanding of the stage.
Otherwise, your foundation will be unstable.]
"I know. Do not worry about it, Vesa.
By the way, why did you need to consume my spiritual root and bloodline?
Was it because I became a Vampire?"
She asked with some worry. She wondered if it would affect her cultivation later.
[I could have kept them, but that would be a waste of resources, Queen.
As you progress toward becoming a Progenitor, you will grow stronger quickly and come into contact with stronger bloodlines and spirit roots.
It is better to use my strength to unlock more system features instead.]
Mingyue's mood brightened when she read that.
"Wait, you mean I will be able to absorb other bloodlines and spirit roots in the future?"
[Yes, Queen.
It is possible.
But remember, there is a price we need to pay for it.
I will tell you the details when you reach at least 25% progress in becoming a Progenitor.]
Time passed. Mingyue followed the map and soon stood before the entrance to the secret realm.
She hesitated. She wondered if she should go inside now or wait outside and ambush Lianhua when she came out.
After thinking it through, she chose to enter.
She stepped through the void. When the world settled again, she stood on a small floating island.
The ground was covered with monster corpses.
At the far end of the island, she saw a stairway stretching up toward another floating island.
"It seems this realm is an inheritance ground," she muttered.
She felt relieved that she had decided to enter.
If she had waited outside, Lianhua might have come out after a major breakthrough.
[Queen, this appears to be an inheritance ground left by a Golden Core cultivator, but I sense evil intent from the soul at the peak island.]
"You can sense that much, Vesa?"
[Yes.]
A new map unfolded in front of Mingyue's eyes. This one showed the full layout of the secret realm.
[Since this realm was created by a cultivator's qi using a formation array, I can easily crack it and read the flow of information inside.
That is how I know every trap, every treasure, and the purpose of this realm.
There are ten levels in total.
After each level, you receive rewards, including thousand-year herbs, top-grade artifacts, and cultivation techniques.
Your enemy, Lianhua, has reached the seventh level already.
Based on her qi level, I am sure she is resting right now.]
"Can you take control of the secret realm then?" Mingyue asked.
[It is possible, as long as we deal with the soul first, Queen.
I can adjust the array to teleport you directly to the soul's location, but doing that will alert the soul.]
"Isn't that dangerous?
If it notices me, it could attack and try to possess my body."
[That is the opportunity we are targeting, Queen.
With me inside you, nothing in this world can possess your body.
I will then extract useful information from its soul and use part of it to recover some of the system's strength.
So, do you want to do it, Queen?]
Mingyue remembered all the benefits she had received from the system so far. Her trust in Vesa's ability had grown.
She did not hesitate for long. Information from a Golden Core cultivator's soul was worth the risk.
Even in her family, the strongest cultivator only reached Late Nascent Soul.
Since she would obtain this information herself, she did not feel any obligation to share it with Alex.
Then she remembered the weapons from Alex's world.
"Vesa, how strong are the weapons in Alex's world compared to a cultivator like me?"
[That really depends on the weapon type, Queen.
Based on the information I have, the strongest ones can easily kill someone at the Heavenly Ascension stage.
However, the King's knowledge of his world is also limited, so I do not know their true upper limit.
It is best if you do not underestimate them.]
In Mingyue's world, cultivation was divided into ten main stages.
It started with the Foundation Stage, followed by Core Formation, Nascent Soul, Golden Core, Spiritual Transformation, Mystic Integration, Profound Enlightenment, Heavenly Ascension, Transcendent, and finally Immortal.
Cultivators at the Immortal stage lived forever. Their bodies stayed in peak condition.