"What did you say!?" The sect leader exclaimed, quickly hurrying outside to see for himself.
Outside, a massive rectangular screen, over 100 meters wide and 50 meters tall, had appeared above the manor square where disciples usually gathered for training or held activities like competitions.
Right now, all of the disciples and elders were staring at the enormous screen above. Some were startled, others confused. A few even flew up on their swords and struck at the screen.
But even after their powerful attacks, the screen remained completely unchanged, as if it were made from indestructible material. Yet anyone with even a bit of cultivation knowledge knew this should have been a spirit manifestation, something that could normally be dispersed with just a little spiritual qi exertion.
On the screen appeared a young man in his early twenties. His long hair was tied into a man bun, and his handsome face carried a trace of a smug, confident smile.
It was the very same mysterious expert Liu Shanhong had met.
"He's… he's…" Liu Shanhong pointed at the screen in disbelief.
At that moment, the same scene played out in every square of every town, city, and sect, even in the village squares where common folk gathered.
It was Wei Chen who appeared on the screens that manifested all across the Azure River province.
— On the screen —
Wei Chen stood before a desolate landscape where clear traces of fire spirits lingered everywhere. The place was no different from a wasteland, the ground cracked from scorching heat and years of drought.
He turned toward the screen, as if looking directly at the viewers behind it.
"Hello, what's up, brothers and sisters? I am Wei Chen." He gave a two-finger salute at the screen.
"The Vagabond." The screen shifted to show Wei Chen gazing over a mountain horizon where clouds rolled like waves and spirit beasts soared through the skies.
"The Traveler." The scene changed to Wei Chen marveling at the bustling city gates where crowds came and went.
"And most importantly, the adventurer and seeker of truth!" This time, the screen showed Wei Chen running for his life from a horde of spirit beasts chasing him down.
The display flickered back to the same desolate land where Wei Chen had started.
"Welcome to my channel. Since today is my first broadcast, I'll introduce you to something new." Wei Chen pointed toward the right side of the screen, where a glowing section appeared.
"This is the Spiritual Chat Box. Anyone holding a Spirit Net Jade can infuse their spiritual qi and chat here, sending your opinions, reactions, or anything you like. You can even make requests. If it's reasonable, I'll do it for you!" Wei Chen said with a confident smile, pointing once again at the screen.
At that moment, the first lines of text appeared inside the chat box.
Azure Sky Elder: [Huh!? So this is how it works. I get it.]
Little Wealthy Demon: [Ohhh! This is interesting!]
After Wei Chen let the people with Spirit Net Jade play around with the chat room for a bit, he continued.
"Today's topic is something that all of you cultivator friends in the Flaming Lotus Prefecture are very interested in." He paused, then pointed at the screen with a confident smile.
"That's right! It's the opening of the Flaming Lotus Secret Realm that you've all been waiting for! And today, I'll use my special treasure to enter and scout the way for you! Any treasure I come across, I won't keep it for myself. I'll bring them back for auction! This is all for you, my brothers and sisters, so you'll have a greater chance of survival in this secret realm!"
With this declaration, all the cultivators watching the broadcast were thrown into an uproar.
Wei Chen's statement excited all the young masters and disciples from prominent sects, but the rogue cultivators and those from small sects felt they had drawn the short end of the stick, since they didn't have the spirit stones to compete with those big shots.
"Hmph! If he's so great, why doesn't he just leave it there for us to take after he clears the danger for us!" one cultivator sneered as he watched the screen from inside a tavern near the town square.
"Are you an idiot? He said that so people would have a greater chance of survival! Leaving it there would only be a bait for some small fries like you to get killed." A beautiful voice hurled back a scornful retort.
"What did you say!? You…!" The cultivator was about to lash out and teach the speaker a lesson, but the moment he saw who it was, all his courage evaporated.
The one who insulted him was a young girl of about seventeen or eighteen. Her face carried a mischievous charm, and her youthful beauty radiated the vibrant aura of spring, drawing gazes with its refreshing energy.
Standing behind her was a masked woman exuding a cold, murderous aura. Even under the tavern roof, she wore a wide straw hat, and a massive sword rested on her back, its blade emanating a faint trace of demonic energy.
Gulp.
The sight of the bodyguard made the cultivator's throat tighten. He could clearly feel she was stronger than him by more than a great realm.
"Get lost! I want this seat!" the girl ordered.
The cultivator didn't dare hesitate. He scrambled up and fled as if pardoned from a death sentence, abandoning the seat near the balcony of the tavern, which had the clearest view of the screen.
The girl sat down and ordered several dishes, while her bodyguard remained standing behind her.
"Sister Lan, please sit and watch with me," the girl said.
"Yes, young miss." The bodyguard nodded politely and took a seat opposite her young lady.
With a mischievous smile, the girl pulled a Spirit Net Jade from her inner pocket and examined it with delight, enjoying the novelty this new artifact brought.
— On the screen —
"With this out of the way, let's explore the unknown! Come! Let's go together!" Wei Chen said, waving his hand to signal the camera to follow him.
Wei Chen walked toward the spatial crack and extended his hand to touch the seal of the secret realm.
One needed to know that this seal was designed by the realm's creator so it wouldn't be opened prematurely. These creators were often extremely powerful beings—the weakest among them being at the Void Refining Realm, the first cultivation realm where one could manipulate space and create a personal domain.
This cultivation realm was also the highest level attainable in the lower realm where they resided. The only ways to open the seal prematurely were either by using some kind of powerful artifact or by possessing a special physique capable of breaking it with ease.
But after a brief moment, when every viewer thought Wei Chen was about to make a fool of himself, or worse, suffer a backlash and get injured by the seal, the situation changed.
The seal on the secret realm's entrance, as if faced with its natural predator, quickly disintegrated.
The entrance to the secret realm immediately opened for all to see, stunning viewers across the province.
After the entrance was completely revealed, Wei Chen turned toward the camera with a smile.
"Now, it's open! Let's go!" Wei Chen said before stepping into the secret realm.
Inside, the scene revealed a vast world in stark contrast to the desolate land outside. The secret realm was a strange world filled with red crystals and unusual plants, such as those that grew near lava, yet remained vibrant and full of life.
One of the alchemists watching immediately stood up the moment he saw this. "That… That's Phoenix Tail Grass!"
An artificer also pointed at the screen, his voice trembling with excitement. "Look! That's Fiery Spirit Crystal!"
Both the Phoenix Tail Grass and Fiery Spirit Crystal were rare materials used for refining pills and forging artifacts.
The sight brought awe to viewers across the province, especially the cultivators from various sects who aimed to explore this secret realm once it opened naturally in the next two weeks.
On the screen, Wei Chen leapt from cliff to cliff using only his legs instead of an artifact to fly.
"Right now, I'm using my flying technique to jump across cliffs," Wei Chen explained. "This is because, in this place, artifacts cannot be used. The only things that matter here are your body and your combat techniques." He then stopped on a large hill overlooking the secret realm.
He brought out a flying sword and infused it with qi, carefully activating the technique to control it. But the sword immediately dropped to the ground, despite the method being correct.
"As you can see, brothers and sisters, it doesn't work. So before coming here, you'd better learn proper flying techniques or self-defense methods. This secret realm forces you to rely heavily on your body."
"I don't know if artifacts that are powerful enough, or techniques extraordinary enough, could bypass the restrictions placed by this realm. Unfortunately, my flying sword is only Earth Grade, so I can't test it for you to see," said Wei Chen.
It should be noted that there are five main grades of artifacts. The higher the grade, the more powerful it is, but it also requires greater strength to control. From lowest to highest, the ranks are: Mortal Grade, Spirit Grade, Earth Grade, Heaven Grade, and Sovereign Grade.
But everyone knew that if an Earth-grade artifact didn't work here, then it was highly likely their artifacts wouldn't work either. After all, Heaven Grade artifacts were said to exist only in the hands of prominent sect leaders and a few Heaven-Chosen core disciples of the great sects.
As for Sovereign Grade, it was nothing but a relic of the past—considered a sect's ultimate trump card, only brought out in times of absolute necessity. The method of forging such artifacts had long been lost to history.
"Fortunately, we know this beforehand," one of the disciples from a prominent sect assigned to explore the realm said to his companion. His fellow disciple nodded in agreement as they continued watching the stream.
Meanwhile, in the chat box, those using Spirit Net Jades began to ask questions.