Azure Sky Elder: [Why don't you take those Phoenix Tail Grass and Fiery Spirit Crystals with you? Didn't you say you'd bring treasures for auction?]
Seeing the question pop up, Wei Chen smiled.
"That's because both Phoenix Tail Grass and Fiery Spirit Crystal require specific methods and tools to harvest. And I'm just a vagabond, not an herbologist, alchemist, or artificer. I wouldn't dare ruin such treasures. Let the worthy ones be the ones to claim them."
Jian Ganglie: [That's true. I don't know about the Phoenix Tail Grass, but Fiery Spirit Crystals must be harvested by someone who practices a fire cultivation method, and even then, only with an Earth Grade special cutting tool. Otherwise, the crystal formation will shatter. They're nothing like common minerals; the requirements are strict.]
Everyone in the Azure River Province knew who Jian Ganglie was. He was the sect leader of Sword Manor, proficient in artifact crafting and smithing, and his words carried weight.
Little Wealthy Demon: [As Sect Leader Jian said, are you stupid, or did you buy your elder position with bribes? How can you be so ignorant?]
Azure Sky Elder: [Who are you! If you dare, use your real name! Don't be a coward!]
Little Wealthy Demon: [I see, so you're too stupid to even know my esteemed title. The Azure Sky Sect is even more uneducated than I thought.]
Azure Sky Elder: [You!]
Watching the chat devolve into a war of words, Wei Chen could only smile wryly. It seemed internet trolls existed even here.
"Ahem!" Wei Chen faked a cough, trying to bring peace to the chat room.
"As Sect Leader Jian said, it's better to leave delicate matters such as harvesting rare treasure materials to professionals."
Jian Ganglie: [Sir is right.]
With that, Wei Chen continued, letting the camera capture a wide-angle view of the secret realm for the viewers to see.
"As you can see, this secret realm is filled with fire-element treasures and has a high concentration of fire spiritual qi. It's better for those with a fire or earth physique, or those practicing fire and earth cultivation methods, to come here. Fire feeds earth, after all. This place will be very beneficial for you!"
Wei Chen's words had many viewers nodding in agreement.
He then continued.
"But before we go deeper, let's talk about the types of secret realms. And no, I don't mean types like fire secret realms, wood secret realms, or demonic secret realms. I mean the types categorized by the intent of those who created the secret realm."
Outside, one of the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, a prominent sect in the Azure River Province, asked the elder beside him as they watched the screen together.
"Huh? Elder, are secret realms created by someone?"
"That's right. Many secret realms do have creators," the elder replied with a nod, but he offered no further explanation.
Little Wealthy Demon: [Wait… there's such a thing!? I never knew that!]
Azure Sky Elder: [Hmph! Aren't you also ignorant?]
Little Wealthy Demon: [Heh! You say that as if you actually know.]
Wei Chen continued, smiling faintly as he spoke, his tone carrying a hint of mystery.
"Brothers and sisters, this classification is something I came up with myself, so it's no surprise if you've never heard of it. After all, naturally-born secret realms are extremely rare… rarer than Phoenix Feathers and Qilin Horns. Most realms are deliberately created, each with a specific intention behind them."
After hearing that this classification was something the host had come up with, they all understood why they had never heard of it before.
Little Wealthy Demon: [What's this classification? I hope you're not just imagining things. That would be a waste of time.]
Seeing this, Wei Chen chuckled. "Of course, I wouldn't dare waste anyone's time. I guarantee that what I'm about to reveal is knowledge that's hard to come by. Even in the prominent sects, not everyone knows these secrets."
With this declaration, all the cultivators and ambitious people in the Azure River Province were shaken. A secret that even most of the people in the prominent sects didn't know!?
This was the real deal! If it were true, it would be a huge benefit to them!
At the Heavenly Sword Sect, the elder's face darkened. He frowned, as if he already knew something.
On the screen, Wei Chen walked toward a modest rock that could serve as a chair. He sat down, waved his hand, and the screen shifted into a simple infographic.
"Let's start with a simple truth."
The infographic displayed ten spherical spatial cracks symbolizing entrances to secret realms.
"Out of ten secret realms… seven are scams."
The image of the secret realm entrances was marked with a big red X crossing them out.
The people outside were confused and quickly looked at each other's faces. Some asked nearby cultivators who looked like seniors, but most of them didn't know. Only a few elders from the larger sects were aware of this fact.
At the chat box on the bottom right corner:
Azure Sky Elder: [You're lying.]
Little Wealthy Demon: [How do you know he's lying? You've never gone to a secret realm, not even once.]
Azure Sky Elder: [As the saying goes, the masses' eyes are snow-bright. I don't need to wander the wilds and eat bland food.]
Little Wealthy Demon: [I see, that explain why you're so stupid.]
Azure Sky Elder: [You!]
The chat started to grow rowdy again, though mainly the two of them were opening a verbal spar in the chat box.
Wei Chen continued.
"Why do I say it's a scam? Of course, this comes down to some of my own research during my adventures."
"Okay, let's talk about it."
Wei Chen began, and the infographic changed again, now showing a chibi white-haired cultivator with a cute design.
Little Wealthy Demon: [Oh? That's cute.]
"You are a powerful cultivator, maybe even at half a step into the Great Ascension Realm. But…"
The infographic shifted to show a storm cloud unleashing a lightning bolt at the chibi cultivator comically zapping him.
"You fail at the final step, braving through the heavenly tribulation. As a result, you're struck down. Somehow, you manage to survive, but you can no longer continue your cultivation. Your destiny for ascension has been severed by heaven itself. Yet, as a cultivator walking the path against heaven, you cannot accept such failure."
"The question is… what are you going to do?"
The infographic now showed the blackened chibi cultivator thinking deeply.
"Of course, you'll do everything in your power to regain your ascension destiny. And the easiest way of all…" Wei Chen paused for dramatic effect, the infographic changing again.
"Is to steal it from others!"
The infographic now showed the old chibi cultivator, with red glowing eyes, looking greedily at a young chibi cultivator.
"But… how do you know who is good enough for you to steal from? You couldn't just grab any cultivator at random. Not everyone has an ascension destiny strong enough to break through to the Great Ascension Realm. And even those with one might fail the heavenly tribulation, unable to ascend, just like yourself."
"So, what are you going to do?" Wei Chen paused, while the infographic showed the old chibi cultivator deep in thought.
"Of course, you'd set up trials to find the best candidate to steal from!"
As Wei Chen spoke, the infographic shifted again. The old chibi cultivator's face brightened, and a bright idea icon popped up above his head. Instead of a light bulb, it was a glowing spirit lantern.
"And what is the easiest way to draw people with strong foundations or destined talent to voluntarily come to you?" Wei Chen paused.
"That's right, creating a secret realm, filling it with spiritual herbs, artifacts, secret techniques, heaven-defying cultivation methods, and most importantly, trials to find the one most worthy to have their destiny stolen!"
As Wei Chen spoke, the infographic changed, showing various artifacts, spiritual herbs, and manuals symbolically flying into the entrance of a secret realm. This made it easy for everyone to understand.
Azure Sky Elder: [Hmph! Nonsense!]
Azure Sky Elder: [The reason powerful beings create secret realms is because they want someone to inherit their skills and techniques. They want to leave something for the later generations!]
Seeing that Azure Sky Elder was trying to argue, Wei Chen pulled his message onto the main screen for everyone to see.
"I won't argue that there are no such secret realms, those where the creator truly wishes to leave something behind, a heritage for the later generation. Those kinds of secret realms, even I feel respect for the creator."
"But!" He paused.
"They are the minority!" The infographic changed, highlighting three sacred realms that weren't scams before returning to the previous topic.
"That was just one example. There are also cases where powerful cultivators need a good body or physique for their uses so they can continue cultivating with the least possible obstacles.
They use secret realms to draw in talents for them to choose from. Those who pass the trials become the targets.
Some survive, while others lose their lives, their destinies, and even their bodies to the secret realm's creator," Wei Chen said.
"This is also the reason why most secret realms have cultivation restrictions in place. They want the weak but talented, those with the right destiny or physique, to enter their trials."
"Of course, the known secret realms under sect jurisdiction don't have this problem because they make sure it's safe. All of those are the type of secret realm meant to leave behind a heritage for those who enter and are worthy. This is why we have the illusion that all secret realms are treasure lands worth exploring or trying our luck!"
"I'll tell you the truth, the secret realms outside sect jurisdiction are mostly filled with death traps and hidden agendas from their creators!"
With this statement, all the cultivators watching the broadcast were left in disbelief. That was because the Flaming Lotus Secret Realm, the one they had all been hyping, was a newly discovered realm that clearly belonged in this category.