Unfortunately, by the time they reached the vicinity of the forbidden zone, Mu Jinyu had already cleaned up the battlefield, leaving only a land of flesh and blood.
"Something happened here!"
"No one is visible, where are they hiding?"
The Wu Family and Boundless Sect members swept their gazes across the battlefield and finally focused on the forbidden zone.
Although they weren't adept at forbidden formations, having reached the False Merging Path Realm, they still had the discernment to see that a complex array of restrictions barred entry here.
"That fool must have tried to hog it all for himself and got outsmarted by Mu Jinyu!"
From this forbidden array, the two quickly deduced that Jiang Song had used his advantage from the Divine Formation Sect to locate Mu Jinyu early. However, he attempted to monopolize it without informing them and perished here as a result.
Even though they felt a sense of schadenfreude at Jiang Song's demise, it also heightened their vigilance.
Jiang Song, being from the Divine Formation Sect, should have had a significant advantage near this forbidden zone, yet he still fell to Mu Jinyu. Could they really take down Mu Jinyu together?
"Let's see how this fool died at that kid's hands."
Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran of the Boundless Sect exchanged glances, then took out their Remaining Shadow Life Tokens to review Jiang Song's last moments.
When they entered the Secret Realm, the various sect leaders had decided that each of them should carry several Remaining Shadow Life Tokens. This way, if anyone died at the hands of Mu Jinyu while alone, the others would be better prepared and alert.
They wouldn't be left ignorant and vulnerable to Mu Jinyu's repeated killing methods.
After watching Jiang Song's last moments recorded on the token, their expressions grew graver.
Wu Linyuan whispered, "What is that black light technique? It seems like it erased Jiang Song's soul consciousness, causing him to explode!"
"Unclear, but we need to be more aware of this technique," Shi Haoran said, shaking his head.
After some discussion, they decided not to break through the restrictions to enter the forbidden zone and find Mu Jinyu themselves. Instead, they planned to wait outside and ambush him when he emerged.
Their reasons were twofold: firstly, their lack of expertise in breaking restrictions made it unlikely for them to enter the forbidden zone quickly.
Secondly, they feared that Mu Jinyu might have control over part of the forbidden formation. If that was the case, wouldn't they be walking into a trap?!
Thirdly, by waiting outside, they could afford time for external forces to find the key and enter the Secret Realm to join them. Many hands make light work.
...
Outside the Secret Realm.
Jiang Song's final moments recorded on the Remaining Shadow Life Token had been watched by the various sect leaders many times, leaving everyone silent and grave.
"I still don't understand how this youngster didn't die in the Nine Nether Lock Slaying Soul Extinguishing Formation Diagram, and instead managed to control it to feign death and attack Jiang Song?!"
After a long pause, someone broke the silence, their voice filled with confusion, looking towards the Divine Formation Sect's sect leader.
The Divine Formation Sect leader's face grew darker upon hearing these words. After all, losing someone with a False Merging Path Realm foundation was a significant blow to any sect.
He sighed softly and said, "That guy probably acquired a rare soul defense treasure of unknown quality grade, allowing him to withstand the Soul Extinguishing Formation. I underestimated him."
"So what do we do now? It appears that Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran may also struggle to handle this brat!"
Someone spoke with a slightly anxious tone.
Wu Xiongfei sneered and said, "I've been saying all along, just give me the key and I'll go into the Secret Realm myself to destroy it completely, leaving that brat with no burial place. Why didn't you listen? Now you all regret the greed, don't you?"
The others, though silently disagreeing with Wu Xiongfei's words, still held some disdain in their hearts.
What do you mean by greed?
Nine Hedao Fruits and a Bi Fang Cauldron about to advance to a Heaven-reaching spiritual treasure, how could that be considered mere greed?
However, they also understood Wu Xiongfei's grief over losing his daughter, so they refrained from arguing with him.
The Divine Formation Sect leader sighed and said, "Alright then, if those two inside also meet unexpected ends by that brat's doing, we'll use such means to send him on his way!"
Although secretly, the Divine Formation Sect leader longed for a few Hedao Fruits to compensate for the loss of a candidate for sect leadership and a False Merging Path Realm foundation; the reality was, keys were increasingly hard to find. After thoroughly searching the entire Chu Kingdom, only one or two keys might be found, and that would take a long time.
So, if even Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran, with their Incomplete Level Heaven-reaching spiritual treasures, were defeated by Mu Jinyu, sending in another one or two from the False Merging Path Realm would basically just serve as fodder for Mu Jinyu.
It would be better to forego the Hedao Fruits and use the last key to send a true Unity Realm Stage expert in, to bury Mu Jinyu and company in the shattered Secret Realm!
This loss, they could endure.
Upon hearing the Divine Formation Sect leader's words, everyone remained silent, neither agreeing nor opposing.
They all understood that the number of demon beasts in the Secret Realm was dwindling. If Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran defeated Mu Jinyu inside and brought out the Hedao Fruits and Bi Fang Cauldron, they wouldn't need to consider any further; instead, they could focus on dividing the Hedao Fruit.
But if Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran also fell to Mu Jinyu, then they would have no choice but to consider employing drastic measures.
After all, Mu Jinyu's natural talent and track record of sweeping across the strongest of the younger generation from various sects filled everyone with deep-seated fear.
If Mu Jinyu escaped the Secret Realm successfully this time, once he reached the Unity Realm Stage, it would spell the end for all the sects and clans that sent their forces to hunt him today.
...
Within the Secret Realm.
Inside the forbidden zone.
Mu Jinyu stood in a blind spot outside the forbidden zone, watching Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran quickly appear near where Jiang Song had died.
Waiting for more than ten minutes and seeing no one else arrive, Mu Jinyu realized that there were likely only three False Merging Path Realm individuals who entered this Secret Realm.
"Two False Merging Path Realm..."
Mu Jinyu muttered softly, then looked at the spoils in his hand—the damaged Heaven-reaching spiritual treasure, Purple Gold Gourd. His eyes flashed, knowing those two likely also had damaged Heaven-reaching spiritual treasures.
"Not easy to handle, better to wait until I've reached the Peak Ninth Layer of the Fanxu Realm, then come out to deal with you all."
Seeing that Wu Linyuan and Shi Haoran only dared to guard outside the forbidden zone, showing no intention of breaking the restriction to enter, Mu Jinyu couldn't help feeling relieved that he had killed Jiang Song earlier.
Otherwise, if those three had joined forces with Jiang Song breaking the restriction from the Divine Formation Sect, he might truly not have been able to withstand their combined attack.