In the pseudo-secret realm, Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu exchanged glances before turning to stare incredulously at Qin Yang.
"Don't look at me like that," Qin Yang shrugged. "As long as we're within this area, I can bring you in and out anytime. Come and go as you please."
Jin Wanshan frowned. "From the very beginning, you knew that cage couldn't hold us?"
Qin Yang rolled his eyes. "Of course! Those were just ordinary steel pillars. We're transcending space now!"
He added hastily, "The Hundred Fragrance Lure has already taken effect. We can't waste this opportunity. I'm going back to hunt the beasts. What about you two?"
"We're coming too!" Jin Wanshan declared.
Lou Mengyu nodded in agreement.
With no immediate threat to their lives, the remaining task was simple: hunt.
The trio's figures blurred as they reappeared inside the cage.
Qin Yang drew his bow, each arrow finding its mark in a beast's head. His score steadily climbed.
Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu watched helplessly, their weapons useless against the distance.
"This isn't fair!" Jin Wanshan roared.
Lou Mengyu cast a pitiful glance at Qin Yang.
After confirming that Qin Yang was truly a descendant of the Qin Family, Lou Mengyu felt her lingering doubts dissolve. She found herself growing more accepting of his presence.
Qin Yang laughed heartily. "No need to rush. I've been hunting while scouting the area."
"Scouting for what?" Lou Mengyu asked.
"To find where the demonic beasts are sparse. That's where we'll exit." With that, Qin Yang had already pinpointed a suitable location.
He led the trio back into the pseudo-secret realm.
"You brat! Don't you get tired of coming and going?" Dragon Jade roared.
"What's wrong?" Qin Yang asked curiously.
"It's been a thousand years. Even true secret realms collapse by now, let alone array-created pseudo-realms! You won't have many more chances to enter!" Dragon Jade's voice carried a warning.
Qin Yang's heart skipped a beat. After exiting the pseudo-secret realm again, he grew more cautious.
The moment they left the refined iron cage, Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu immediately charged at the demonic beasts.
Qin Yang alternated between hunting and covering for his companions.
The Hundred Fragrance Lure proved remarkably effective, drawing an endless stream of demonic beasts.
As the beasts fell, their blood mingled with the air, seemingly amplifying the lure's effect. The stench grew unbearable, yet the demonic beasts kept coming in droves.
Two hours later, the Qin family's ruins flowed with rivers of blood.
The ground was littered with the corpses of demonic beasts. Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu stood exhausted from the slaughter, while even Qin Yang could barely lift his arms.
The last remaining beast within their sight received an arrow through its skull from Qin Yang's bow. The trio finally exhaled in unison.
"Check the rankings!" Jin Wanshan roared in delight. "We're in the top three!"
Qin Yang's eyes lit up as he hurried over. Lou Mengyu also approached.
The Heavenly Secrets Sect's magical artifact cast a glowing array screen, revealing the Northern Hunter Rankings:
1st Place: Qin Yang, 136 points.
2nd Place: Lou Mengyu, 77 points.
3rd Place: Jin Wanshan, 76 points.
Nangong Ling, who had originally been in first place, now ranked fourth with 73 points.
"Not bad," Qin Yang said with a grin. "A few more waves and we'll pull ahead of the others."
Jin Wanshan spoke up, "But the Hundred Fragrance Lure is hard to come by! I doubt the Wanshan Chamber of Commerce branch in Wanshan City has any."
No one had ever thought to use the Hundred Fragrance Lure for hunting demonic beasts. After all, it attracted all beasts in the area - one wrong move could mean certain death.
Not everyone could match Qin Yang's divine archery skills. Moreover, after he loosed an arrow to gravely wound a beast, Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu would naturally step up to finish off the creature and claim the kill.
"It doesn't matter," Qin Yang said confidently. "We'll maintain our normal hunting pace, and that alone will put us ahead of the others!"
However, before they could proceed, he had one more task to accomplish.
Qin Yang once again communicated with the Dragon Jade, bringing Jin Wanshan and Lou Mengyu into the pseudo-secret realm.
"This will be my last visit here until I can stabilize this space," Qin Yang said slowly, his gaze fixed on the true site of the Qin Family's ancestral home, his tone complex.
"What do you intend to do?" Jin Wanshan asked, his eyes sparkling with speculation. "Are you searching for treasure?"
Qin Yang chuckled and took Lou Mengyu's hand, leading her deeper into the palace complex.
Lou Mengyu's face flushed crimson, but she made no attempt to resist.
After some time, Qin Yang finally located the Qin Ancestral Hall.
He carefully dusted each ancestral tablet before kneeling on the prayer mat in solemn reverence.
"Unfilial descendant Qin Yang pays respects to all our ancestors," Qin Yang declared solemnly.
This was a ceremony of ancestral recognition, stripped of ritualistic formalities, leaving only Qin Yang's personal declaration.
As he spoke, Qin Yang felt an unexpected weight settle upon his shoulders.
The once-mighty family now stood reduced to a single member, and a profound sense of sorrow welled up in his heart.
Overwhelmed by conflicting emotions, Qin Yang enunciated each word with deliberate force: "I, Qin Yang, hereby swear to annihilate our enemies and restore the glory of our Qin Family!"
A gentle breeze swept through the ancestral hall, as if carrying the ancestral spirits' acknowledgment.
Qin Yang turned to Lou Mengyu. "Come here. Kneel."
Lou Mengyu froze momentarily before obeying, though confusion clouded his mind. You're acknowledging your ancestors. Why make me kneel?
Yet the two families had been bound by centuries of friendship, their bloodlines intertwined through marriage ties.
"The Qin Family's revival cannot succeed without you," Qin Yang said slowly. "You must join me in this endeavor."
Lou Mengyu bowed respectfully toward the ancestral tablets, his face a mask of bewilderment. "What does this have to do with me?"
"Of the three unfilial acts, having no heir is the greatest. You bear the burden of carrying on the Qin family's bloodline and spreading its branches. Whether our Qin family prospers or declines rests on how many children you can give me..."
"Go die!" Lou Mengyu's face flushed crimson, never expecting Qin Yang to utter such words...
Qin Yang roared with laughter. "You've already knelt. You're now part of the Qin family. Before our ancestors, would you dare let our lineage end?"
Lou Mengyu burned to kill Qin Yang, but the ancestral hall's sacred atmosphere restrained her.
Jin Wanshan watched from the side, his admiration bordering on worship. What a masterstroke...
"Rest assured, I'll make my name resound across the land before coming to your Lou family with a marriage proposal! I'll make your wedding a spectacle that all women across the Cang Qiong Continent will envy!" Qin Yang declared. "Every proper step will be followed..."
"Your steps can go to hell!" Lou Mengyu's face burned as she fled the hall.
Jin Wanshan sighed deeply, his heart aching with bitter envy. Even a goddess like her couldn't escape Qin Yang's grasp...
Northern Plains, Monster Beast Frontlines. Geniuses from across the land hunted monster beasts with desperate fervor, vying for rankings. Yet when they checked again, they found their positions had dropped three places.
The top three on the leaderboard seemed to have materialized out of nowhere, pushing everyone else down the list.
"Lou Mengyu and Jin Wanshan I know, but who's Qin Yang?"
"Are they cheating?"
The candidates erupted in frantic speculation. Those from the Qinling Mountains assessment area were particularly agitated. Everyone wanted to find these three and see how they'd managed to hunt so many monster beasts!
Qin River Forest. Nangong Ling's eyes burned crimson with fury. She hadn't expected Qin Yang's score to close the gap so quickly!
Wei Yu stared in disbelief. Not only Qin Yang - Lou Mengyu and Jin Wanshan's hunting speeds were equally astonishing.
"They're cheating!" Wei Yu snarled, refusing to accept it. "They must be cheating!"
"Let's go to the Qinling Mountains and find them!" Nangong Ling agreed, equally unconvinced.
Their underlings, equally indignant, followed them toward the Qinling Mountains.