“Such an important place as the Hidden Valley, how could you cause a disturbance here! Hmph!” As the voice fell, a loud crash was heard, and Jason let out a miserable scream, the sound growing fainter and fainter, finally drifting out of the valley. Brian Sutton’s heart stirred—could it be that Jason was thrown out of the Hidden Valley by some elder? Would Jason really be so obedient?

“There’s no need to worry now. Jason is eccentric in his actions and has strayed onto an evil path. Although the Hidden Valley is quite renowned, he hasn’t come here often. The elders of the Hidden Valley are martial artists who have been cultivating here for millions of years. Apart from the experts who cultivate above three hundred meters in the valley, there’s basically no one else in the entire Hidden Valley who can compare to them. Jason acted recklessly in the valley and will surely suffer for it.” In his ear came Jason Sutton’s slightly excited, mocking voice. Although he hadn’t come to the Hidden Valley often, he had spent quite some time here, and some of the valley’s secrets could not be hidden from him. Sure enough, an aged voice came from outside the valley. Judging by the voice, it was indeed one of the two elders who had appeared earlier: “Jason, as punishment for your actions, you will be confined in the Hidden Valley’s Wall-Gazing Cave for ten days…” The elder continued speaking as he walked out of the valley. As the sound of him breaking through the air reached their ears, the man had already disappeared outside the valley.

“Silence!” The Demon Slayer suddenly opened his eyes and glanced at Jason Sutton with slight displeasure. Jason Sutton shuddered all over and quickly lowered his head.

“Sorry, senior, I know my mistake,” Jason Sutton said repeatedly. The Demon Slayer nodded in satisfaction and closed his eyes again.

Brian Sutton glanced at The Demon Slayer in some surprise, feeling rather unconvinced in his heart.

“Brother Wuji, let’s go outside.” In his ear came a voice as faint as a mosquito’s buzz yet incomparably clear—it was Jason Sutton, afraid of disturbing The Demon Slayer, using the secret art of transmitting sound directly to communicate with Brian Sutton.

“Brother Zhao, this senior The Demon Slayer seems a bit unfeeling,” Brian Sutton replied with a frown, also using the secret sound transmission technique. This technique simply used profound inner strength to focus the voice into a line; it was nothing extraordinary. Brian Sutton had already mastered it before his ascension, so using it now was no problem.

Jason Sutton pulled Brian Sutton toward the cave entrance, transmitting his voice as they walked: “Each cave in the Hidden Valley is like a secluded chamber for closed-door cultivation. Although there are no doors, the Hidden Valley is a powerful sacred place—ordinary people wouldn’t dare cause trouble here… except for that Jason… Forget it, let’s not talk about him. Each cave is private territory. If not for the fact that my master and senior The Demon Slayer are close friends, we wouldn’t have been allowed in at all. The fact that senior The Demon Slayer hasn’t driven me out is already a great favor.”

“…Are all ancient martial artists like this?”

“Of course… not. As for places of closed-door cultivation, apart from the Hidden Valley, who would choose such a conspicuous place? Hmm, you’ll have to learn these things sooner or later. Some things are completely different from the space we originally came from. You need to be careful not to violate others’ taboos and end up being hunted down without even knowing why.”

“Thank you for the advice, Brother Zhao. By the way, how long do you plan to stay here?” Brian Sutton asked.

Jason Sutton’s expression suddenly changed at Brian Sutton’s words. His fingernails turned white from clenching, and he gritted his teeth: “Once a teacher, always a father. My master treated me extremely well, but today he was killed by that fiend, the Frost Pool Sky Demon Jason, through despicable means. I must kill him to avenge this blood feud. Although I, Jason Sutton, am lazy and dislike training, I always keep my word.” Jason Sutton placed his right hand tightly over his left chest. Brian Sutton knew that hidden at his chest was the upper volume of the Xuanming Manual left by his master. Clearly, Jason Sutton had pinned all his hopes on this famous manual he spoke of.

“The spiritual energy in the Hidden Valley is abundant. Cultivating here yields twice the results with half the effort. I’ve decided to devote myself to cultivating the Xuanming Manual here and will not leave the Hidden Valley until I succeed. Brother Wuji, if you wish, you can also stay. Someone in the Hidden Valley will arrange a new cave for us. Each cave has countless small spirit-gathering arrays, much better than cultivating on our own. However… once you decide to stay, you cannot leave for at least a thousand years.”

Brian Sutton was greatly surprised. “Why is that?”

“Well, it’s hard to say. That’s just the rule of the Hidden Valley. No one knows the original purpose for which it was set. However, every cultivation method here takes no less than a thousand years to master, so no one has ever broken this rule. It doesn’t really restrict anyone.”

Brian Sutton shook his head and said, “I’m afraid that’s not necessarily true. While cultivation does require the accumulation of time, it’s not the only condition. On the path of martial arts, luck, opportunity, and spiritual insight are all indispensable. Often, a single moment of enlightenment can clear up a hundred doubts. As the old saying goes, ‘attain the Dao in a day, ascend to the heavens in broad daylight.’ If one only pursues bitter cultivation, I’m afraid it may not necessarily lead to great achievement.”