I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Vol 2 Chapter 137: The Sunset Sword Immortal’s Warning

"Fairy Xiao, are you sure you don’t have any other disguise artifacts?"

Zheng Fa was prepared to use a disguise.

But he never expected it to be this kind of disguise.

Standing in front of the mirror, he saw himself draped in an ethereal light-yellow ruqun. His facial features were now softer, his skin pale and smooth, his eyes large and his nose delicate.

Even the way he looked at Xiao Yuying carried a pitiful charm.

How should he put it? If this face belonged to anyone else, he would have found it quite appealing...

But on his own face? Absolutely not.

"Nope," Xiao Yuying said, the smile on her lips making Zheng Fa feel like she was enjoying the show a little too much. "This Feathered Garment of Illusions is my finest disguise treasure. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator wouldn’t be able to see through it."

"..."

Zheng Fa looked at himself in the mirror again and sighed softly. There was no other choice.

Jiushan Sect was nowhere near as wealthy as Xiao Yuying...

As the sect leader’s disciple, he knew the sect didn’t have illusion artifacts that could deceive Nascent Soul cultivators.

Spiritual materials in the Xuanyi Realm were becoming scarcer, and these days, just having a single life-bound magic artifact already counted as immense wealth.

To most cultivators, a life-bound artifact was practically more important than their own lives, something they would spend their entire fortune on.

Only someone like Xiao Yuying could casually pull out treasures like this.

Since the secret realm could be related to Tianhe Venerable—perhaps even tied to the New Method—there was no way Zheng Fa was going to waltz in openly.

Fine. If it had to be crossdressing, then so be it!

"Shall we go?"

Seeing that Zheng Fa had resigned himself to his fate, Xiao Yuying asked with a smile.

Zheng Fa nodded.

Xiao Yuying turned and headed for the courtyard gate.

"Fairy Xiao!" Zheng Fa quickly called out, "Do you happen to have a treasure that lets us leave directly from the courtyard without anyone noticing?"

Come on, walking through Jiushan Sect like this?

How was he supposed to show his face here ever again?

"..."

Xiao Yuying gave him a once-over and then, with a smile, flickered with a surge of light beneath her feet.

A long wooden railing materialized before Zheng Fa, and a waist-high enclosure formed around him.

Only then did he realize—he was now standing on an ancient war chariot. The vehicle was made of crimson wood, shimmering with mystical light, seemingly capable of blocking external sight and divine sense.

The beast pulling the chariot was a fierce-looking creature, black and white, baring its sharp teeth.

Zheng Fa’s mouth twitched.

A real national treasure...

But this one looked a bit too fierce, something felt off.

"This Iron-Eater is my spirit beast," Xiao Yuying introduced with a smile. "It loves devouring all kinds of refined metal. And, well, as you know, I’m never short on that."

She clearly had a great fondness for this spirit beast.

To be honest, Zheng Fa was a little envious—an upgraded national treasure, personally owned, soft and cuddly but also a fierce fighter.

Who wouldn’t want one?

Despite its bulky appearance, the Iron-Eater was an excellent chariot-puller, covering ten thousand miles in just half a day.

"Fairy Xiao? Why is this place... so desolate?"

Looking at the scene before him, Zheng Fa was stunned.

Before them stretched a vast, barren wasteland where not a single blade of grass grew.

Huge, cracked chunks of red earth extended as far as the eye could see.

Apart from the red ground and the blue sky, there wasn’t a third color in sight.

"I don’t know either," Xiao Yuying said softly, a hint of confusion in her expression. "This place was probably buried underground before emerging along with the spiritual cavern."

"The red soil you see now..."

She suddenly turned to Zheng Fa. "It’s probably blood."

"Blood?"

Zheng Fa felt a chill run down his spine.

"I’m not sure either, but I’ve read about it."

Xiao Yuying looked at the seemingly endless expanse of red and spoke in a quiet voice,

"In ancient times, when great cultivators perished, their resentment lingered, turning thousands of miles into cursed land."

"..."

"The resentment here hasn’t dissipated yet. Be careful."

True to her words, Xiao Yuying became much more cautious. They no longer flew in the sky but descended to the ground instead.

As the chariot moved forward, they occasionally encountered pitch-black lakes blocking their path.

Even the fierce Iron-Eater would whimper and refuse to proceed, forcing them to take detours.

The chariot’s protective glow flickered intermittently.

Zheng Fa knew—something invisible was trying to attack them. The chariot was automatically shielding them.

He looked up at the sky.

Sure enough, crimson mist swirled above, hiding an unseen danger.

This place was filled with eerie anomalies.

Without Xiao Yuying’s chariot, there was no way he—at least he—could have crossed this wasteland so easily.

"There’s someone ahead!"

Amidst the red mist in the distance, two figures gradually became visible.

Zheng Fa immediately grew more alert.

As he looked closer, he recognized them—Yan Wushuang and the Sunset Sword Immortal.

These two were standing there as if they had been waiting for someone.

No—waiting for Xiao Yuying.

With his current disguise, they wouldn’t recognize him.

"Master Han."

Even Xiao Yuying, seeing them, stopped the chariot and greeted the Sunset Sword Immortal with a respectful bow.

Clearly, she knew how formidable he was.

The Sunset Sword Immortal smiled warmly, not standing on formalities. "We were hoping to hitch a ride. Would you be so kind?"

Xiao Yuying hesitated slightly but eventually nodded.

Zheng Fa maintained a cold expression and simply nodded at the two.

Since he was hiding his identity, the less he spoke, the better.

Better to act the part of a cold and aloof celestial beauty.

Sure enough, Yan Wushuang glanced at him, saw the indifferent look, and decided not to bother with small talk. He merely cupped his hands in greeting.

The Sunset Sword Immortal, on the other hand, was looking at him very kindly...

"Master Han, what brings you to this place?"

Xiao Yuying couldn’t help but ask.

"You don’t know?" The Sunset Sword Immortal looked even more surprised than she did. "This place holds a lost treasure of our Tianhe Sect. The news has spread far and wide. Who knows how many cultivators are gathering here as we speak?"

Zheng Fa froze.

So, the secret realm had already been exposed?

"We are both members of the Tianhe Sect, so of course, we had to come take a look!"

After Han Lao said this, Yan Wushuang nodded repeatedly, clearly in agreement.

Xiao Yuying frowned slightly, looking at the two of them before turning back to Zheng Fa, as if asking for his opinion.

Zheng Fa shook his head—he had no particular thoughts on the matter.

He couldn’t deny that he was curious about the Tianhe Sect’s remnants.

But the risk was way too high.

The main reason he was getting involved at all was to repay Xiao Yuying for her help in the past.

Xiao Yuying pondered for a moment before suddenly asking, "So, Master Han, are you here to compete with me for the treasures of this secret realm?"

"No..."

To Zheng Fa's surprise, the Sunset Sword Immortal shook his head and, almost as if by accident, glanced at him before saying, "I'm here to stop you from throwing your life away."

"..."

Zheng Fa frowned slightly.

Why did it feel like these two weren’t here to snatch treasures but were instead revealing very important information?

First, they made it clear that the secret realm had already been exposed and that many cultivators were on their way.

Then, they claimed they were here to stop Xiao Yuying from dying.

If he thought back to what this old man had told them before—it was almost certain that something was seriously wrong with this secret realm.

And there was a real chance that it had something to do with the so-called New Method.

More importantly, the Sunset Sword Immortal seemed like a genuinely good person. He didn’t even seem to know Xiao Yuying that well, yet here he was, going out of his way to warn her.

But Zheng Fa doubted someone like Xiao Yuying would back down just because of a few words from a stranger.

"Master Han..." Xiao Yuying lowered her eyes. "You and I are neither friends nor family. We’ve only met once before..."

The Sunset Sword Immortal sighed and said, "This matter concerns a scandal within the Tianhe Sect... I don’t want to see you throw your life away over it."

"..."

Xiao Yuying’s expression showed a hint of confusion.

"A long time ago, the Tianhe Sect was embroiled in internal strife. Several highly skilled disciples were branded as traitors, leading to a series of brutal battles."

Xiao Yuying was taken aback. "And this place...?"

"This is one of the battlefields."

Xiao Yuying nodded, then asked, "But why do you say we’re in danger?"

"This involves an even deeper secret within the Tianhe Sect. All I can say is that this secret realm might contain things that my sect does not want outsiders to discover—no matter who they are."

"..."

The old man’s words were vague and cryptic.

The more Xiao Yuying listened, the deeper her frown became. She was clearly confused.

But Zheng Fa got it.

This place wasn’t Tianhe Venerable’s legacy.

Instead, it was connected to the last supporters of Tianhe Venerable.

And when Master Han talked about things the Tianhe Sect didn’t want others to know, it wasn’t about the New Method—it was this part of history.

Zheng Fa glanced at Yan Wushuang. His expression was dark, mixed with a hint of pain, as if he understood something.

Han Lao obviously knew the truth.

Xiao Yuying, on the other hand, was completely clueless.

Zheng Fa... still maintained his role as the cold and aloof celestial beauty.

His gaze remained distant, his expression indifferent.

Very professional.

To be honest, he found the Sunset Sword Immortal’s arrival a bit suspicious.

He was warning Xiao Yuying, but he was also being incredibly secretive about it.

If Zheng Fa hadn’t already heard bits and pieces of this hidden history, there was no way he would have understood what the old man was getting at.

Hmm?

Zheng Fa suddenly paused and looked directly at the Sunset Sword Immortal.

Sure enough, the old man curled his lips into a knowing smile—like they were very familiar with each other.

Wait.

He knows who I am?

He came here to warn me?

Meanwhile, Yan Wushuang seemed completely unaware. His expression was as cold as ever, his gaze toward Zheng Fa full of indifference.

Zheng Fa took another glance at the Sunset Sword Immortal.

The old man’s smile only grew warmer.

And finally, Zheng Fa understood—

This guy came to warn me!

...

Xiao Yuying frowned slightly, as if deep in thought.

She probably couldn’t understand why the Sunset Sword Immortal had gone out of his way to stop her.

But at the same time, she could sense the sincerity and kindness in his words.

That only made her even more hesitant.

Just then, several powerful auras suddenly approached from behind.

Zheng Fa turned his head and immediately recognized two of them—they were Nascent Soul cultivators from the Hundred Immortals Alliance, the same ones who had attended Martial Uncle Pang’s banquet.

As soon as these cultivators saw Xiao Yuying and the Sunset Sword Immortal standing together, their expressions changed drastically.

"Xiao Yuying! Tianhe Sect! You two are working together?"

Their tone was full of wariness.

Clearly, one was a well-known treasure hunter, and the other was a prestigious figure of the Tianhe Sect.

Seeing them team up at this location was putting serious pressure on the other cultivators.

Zheng Fa glanced at Xiao Yuying and the Sunset Sword Immortal.

Both of their expressions were... awkward.

Because at this point, whether they actually went in or not, no one would believe they weren’t involved anymore.

Their identities were too special.

Appearing together in this place made it impossible for anyone to believe they were giving up on the secret realm.

Even if they disappeared, people would just assume they had some secret method to sneak in.

You see?

This is exactly why I needed to crossdress.