Chapter 196: “Don’t Come Near Me!!”
Shui Miao Miao reached out and snatched the array disk, gazing at it with curiosity.
The array disk looked pretty shabby, and for some reason, there was a long, red strip-shaped design on it.
“Senior Brother Bai, what’s this?” she asked, tilting her head with an adorable look of confusion.
“Oh, that? Just a little personal hobby of mine,” Bai Feng casually explained. “If you happen to get injured, this strip will be a little shorter.”
Miao Miao nodded thoughtfully. “Sounds kind of interesting.”
“But because injuries can be complicated, this thing should only be used as a reference,” Bai Feng added with a shrug. “Alright, little sister Shui, go ahead and enter the Simulation Secret Realm. If you encounter any trouble, you can use the array disk to contact me.”
“Got it! I’m off!” Shui Miao Miao quickly tucked the disk close to her chest like a precious treasure.
Every time she remembered getting beaten up by the puppet in their last fight, her heart would flutter with fear.
Senior Brother Bai probably wouldn’t set up too many puppets inside, right?
She mulled over this with some nervous little whispers in her mind, then took a deep breath and stepped boldly into the dark, ominous tunnel.
The narrow passage had only a few torches sticking into the walls. Occasionally, a breeze would drift past, making the flames dance—and scaring Shui Miao Miao so much she instinctively unsheathed her sword and clenched the grip tightly.
“Isn’t this supposed to be a simulation secret realm? Why’s it so scary?”
She kept her guard up, voice lowered to a mumble of complaints.
But no enemies appeared in the tunnel, which was pretty short. A faint glow ahead reassured her, brightening her alarmed nerves.
She hurried out of the passage and suddenly froze, staring at the scene outside in awe—the sky was a stunning cascade of stars, with a soft blue glow falling from above, illuminating the entire ‘secret realm’, not the dark gloom of the tunnel.
“So pretty…”
Standing rooted in place, Shui Miao Miao looked at the distant scenery—vivid green trees and scattered shrubs, giving life to the secret realm. It looked lively and full of vitality.
And besides the trees, there were many towering ruins: some already collapsed, others severely damaged, with over half a wall toppled, exposing the interior structure.
Wait—”This can’t be! Don’t let the scenery distract you!” she quickly shook her head, clearing her mind, her vigilance renewed. “Senior Brother Bai wouldn’t put too many puppets here, right?”
But what should she do next? She took cautious steps forward, her mind spinning. “Remember, Bai Feng said this simulation secret realm was built based on the real one, filled with pills, spiritual artifacts, and such. If I follow the exploration procedures, I should check out these buildings.”
Without hesitation, Shui Miao Miao chose the nearest building. It was somewhat better than the others—slightly dilapidated but still standing, mostly intact.
Hearing her own racing heartbeat, she kept alert and tiptoed inside.
Judging by the shape and layout, it was probably a pill room. But the shelves near the door were already empty, leaving only a few open bottles.
“Nothing strange in this bottle, right?”
She peered quietly into the empty bottle and then patted her own head, amused and slightly frustrated. “What’s in my brain, seriously? How could any weird creatures be hiding inside bottles in real life?!”
“Keep moving inside,” she whispered, maneuvering around the shelves and diving deeper.
Exploring unknown secret realms carefully was surprisingly fun.
As the princess of Dong Zhou, she’d never actually explored dangerous secret realms herself—those she’d visited were all cleared out, used for junior disciples’ trials. She’d only read about secret realm explorations in books.
So when one appeared in front of her, even if it was just a simulation, the thrill of discovery still made her excited.
“Usually, the protagonist would find some mysterious treasure at this point, right?”
Reflecting on the few serious books she’d read, her eyes scanned every corner, not missing any clue or clue-like detail.
“Huh? What’s that…”
She suddenly saw a pile of miscellaneous objects in a corner, and among them, a sealed, pristine bottle.
“Hey, Bai Feng, you’re really not subtle! Putting pills out in the open like that,” she said with a bit of pride as she headed toward the corner. “Gotta tell him later—at least put the pills on a shelf or something!”
Just as she reached for the bottle, a flash of chilling light made her jump back and lurch forward, narrowly dodging an attack.
“What the—what’s going on? Where did this enemy come from?”
Her heart pounded as she hastily grabbed her sword.
She couldn’t understand how an enemy could suddenly jump out in the corner.
But this puppet didn’t give her any breathing room. When its sneak attack failed, it raised its sword to strike her again.
Shui Miao Miao quickly parried, blocking multiple strikes. But something felt off.
This puppet… was so weak!
Probably only around mid-Golden Core level, and its moves weren’t as sharp as the ones she’d fought before.
“Huff! I knew it! Senior Brother Bai wouldn’t hide such a weak puppet in a remote corner.”
She relaxed with relief, her confidence swelling. With a swift kick, she knocked the puppet’s weapon away and then kicked it flying.
“Done!”
She clapped her hands and picked up the bottle lying on the ground.
But as she opened the lid, a strong stench instantly wafted out.
“Ugh… what the heck is this stuff?”
She hurriedly resealed the bottle and then noticed some tiny characters written on the side.
“Failed pills—completely rotten due to old storage. Might be useful if you throw it at enemies, though.”
…As expected, no good stuff hidden among the clutter.
Her face fell as she sighed in disappointment, casually tossing the bottle back onto the pile, then continued forward.
A few minutes later, she looked at the shelf, eyeing the pills. Having just been chased by that puppet, she was more cautious now, glancing around carefully.
And then, she saw three black-clad puppets squatting on the shelf above—so now she knew exactly where those earlier puppets came from.
That was the moment the three black-clad puppets turned their heads to look at her.
Instinctively, Shui Miao Miao took a step back. But just as she did, the three puppets suddenly charged at her.
“Don’t come any closer!!”
Isn’t Senior Brother Bai usually a gentle, sunny guy? Why’s the secret realm so super spooky now?!
