Since the Huo family announced their allegiance to the Liu family and the demon race, many family forces within their territory, unwilling to associate with them, fled to the nearest Yin Yang Sect and the Hall of Thunder Emperor.
This caused a significant reduction in the forces within the Huo family's territory, leaving behind only a small number of people.
Furthermore, as the Liu family began to indiscriminately slaughter cultivators and civilians, people within the Huo family's territory grew worried. Because the Huo family was allied with the Liu family, they feared that the Huo family might turn their blades on them one day.
During this period, an increasing number of people within the Huo family's territory rushed to the Hall of Thunder Emperor, seeking to join and gain protection.
As a result, the number of cultivators within the Huo family's territory dwindled further.
While calling it 'nine out of ten households empty' might be an exaggeration, it was rare to see the figure of a cultivator.
Just two days ago, the Huo family suddenly announced that they would not take action against the rogue cultivators attempting to enter the secret realm or the Thunder Emperor Alliance. They also declared that the Huo family, the Liu family, and the Kaitian Sword Sect would send their young disciples to challenge the secret realm.
Their reasoning was that while wars could be fought, the growth of young cultivators should not be interrupted. Therefore, for the sake of the thousand-year plan of the Lei Feng Realm, no one attempting to enter the secret realm would be obstructed or attacked by the Huo family.
Upon hearing this news, the rogue cultivators who had previously been hesitant about the Huo family became enthusiastic. They all flew towards the entrance of the Ghost Immortal Secret Realm. Those who arrived earlier found no one from the Huo family there, which put their minds at ease.
Perhaps because the war had broken out and many people urgently needed to improve themselves, secret realms that were previously avoided now welcomed many individuals.
However, most of these individuals were rogue cultivators. The forces under the Thunder Emperor Alliance did not send anyone. The occasional groups of three to five people who came were acting on their own initiative, not officially dispatched by the Hall of Thunder Emperor, Yin Yang Sect, or other forces.
The Thunder Emperor Alliance did not issue a warning regarding the challenge of the secret realm. They merely advised the disciples of the forces under their banner to avoid going there as much as possible, lest the Huo family harbor any malicious intentions.
Since the authorities did not explicitly forbid it, people's curiosity was piqued, and they set off for the secret realm entrance with a few friends.
On this day, the day the secret realm was to open, a team of four men and one woman arrived early in the morning.
It was Wan Lei, Fang Xiaoyu, and the lucky trio, all in disguise.
Such a team was not uncommon. Looking around, there were at least a dozen similar small groups.
Many people came to participate in this secret realm, totaling over ten thousand. Although the number was not as high as those who entered the first three secret realms, it far exceeded the number of people who entered the Huo Immortal Secret Realm and the Earth Immortal Secret Realm.
"The world this time should not be very large, but it won't be too small either. I estimate it will be finished in a few days," Wan Lei, with his lewd appearance, analyzed.
"Because there aren't many people?" Fang Xiaoyu, with an even uglier and more ordinary appearance, asked.
Wan Lei, having learned from his previous experience of his identity being exposed in the Liu family's forbidden ground, had practiced for a long time before coming out this time. He finally managed to cultivate a lewd demeanor that resembled that of the Celestial Calculator.
In fact, when the Celestial Calculator first met Wan Lei, he was indeed quite lewd. However, after the little Taoist nun reunited with him, that demeanor was completely swept away. The Taoist robe he wore made him appear exceptionally ethereal and refined, exuding an aura of immortal grace.
After all, he had been the young master of a prominent family before. Although he later became destitute and wandered for a hundred years, it was merely a matter of not caring about his appearance. His inherent grasp of demeanor was still quite precise.
When Wan Lei proposed that the Celestial Calculator restore his former lewd demeanor, the Celestial Calculator strongly refused. However, he couldn't withstand the fists of Palace Master Wan. Under the disgusted gaze of the little Taoist nun, he decided to slightly revert to his former appearance.
"How do I act lewd?"
"You just need to restrain yourself a bit."
The entrance to the Ghost Immortal Secret Realm was located outside a deep abyss.
This was a plateau with rolling mountains and continuous stretches of peaks.
In the middle of these mountains, it was as if someone had split them apart, creating a bottomless crack that was over ten meters wide. It was pitch black, and looking down, it seemed as if a fierce ghost would appear at any moment to swallow people whole, instilling fear in their hearts.
After a brief conversation, Wan Lei and his companions fell silent, quietly observing the people before them.
These people wore all sorts of clothing, but none bore the sect attire of the forces under the Thunder Emperor Alliance. It was likely that everyone had learned to disguise themselves, appearing as rogue cultivators to guard against enemies.
Thousands of people were talking and discussing amongst themselves. Suddenly, a team flew in from the south.
This was a group of young people, numbering around a hundred. They were all dressed in uniform red robes, the young disciples of the Huo family.
After Huo Ling'er, the young prodigy of the Huo family, was killed by Wan Lei, other prodigies had sprung up like bamboo shoots after rain, leading to intense competition. However, given their talent, it was a stretch to call these individuals prodigies. They were far from being comparable to Wan Lei, and even fell short of Huo Ling'er.
The appearance of the Huo family members caused a momentary stir, and people watched them with wary eyes.
Soon, two more teams flew in from the west: the Liu family and the Kaitian Sword Sect.
Most conspicuously, behind the Liu family's team, followed fifteen tall demons.
These demons exuded the aura of vengeful spirits, with only one possessing the cultivation of a demon general.
As soon as they appeared, they provoked strong hostility and fear from the crowd. The rogue cultivators immediately surged towards the north, becoming vigilant.
"These are demons, right? They're so tall and strong. This is my first time seeing them."
"What's so strong about them? Aren't they just one head and two legs? Don't they vomit when they drink too much? Don't they defecate when they eat too much? They all have cultivation realms. If it really comes down to a fight, who's afraid of whom?"
"You can't say that. The demon race has hundreds of thousands of troops. I heard they are all at the Nascent Soul stage, and many are at the Tribulation Crossing stage. They can crush our Lei Feng Realm."
"What's there to be afraid of? Didn't the Hall of Thunder Emperor win against them before? Aren't both sides fighting back and forth now? With Palace Master Wan here, who are we afraid of?"
"What are the demons doing here? Are they also here to challenge the secret realm?"
"This secret realm belongs to the people of our Lei Feng Realm. What does it have to do with the demons? Are they even worthy of entering?"
"Hmph, once the demons conquer the Lei Feng Realm, everything will belong to them."
People said all sorts of things, and Wan Lei listened carefully.
It could be seen that although people harbored a psychological fear of demons, they were not so afraid as to flee immediately upon seeing them. They could even retort.
This was the result of the victory achieved by the Hall of Thunder Emperor in their previous battle, which showed people that demons were not invincible.
The Liu family and the demons remained silent, all waiting quietly, their gazes scanning the crowd with a predatory intensity.
Suddenly, black mist rose from the abyss, accompanied by rumbling sounds.
A giant demonic head emerged from the abyss.