As a former senior employee of Wan Wan Tong, Liang Zhonghuai was far more informed about the state of cultivators in the mortal realm than most people.
A beast garden like this was rare, even among the largest sects in the cultivation world!
It wasn't that the major sects couldn't achieve something like this; it was simply more cost-effective for them to fence off a large plot of land and set up wards for raising beasts destined for slaughter. Building such a sophisticated beast garden wasn't seen as necessary.
In fact, given that the cultivation environment in the mortal realm was far inferior to the cultivation world, it was even more surprising to find such an extravagant beast garden here.
How had he never heard of a sect in the mortal realm with such vast wealth?
Liang Zhonghuai couldn't help but chuckle to himself. It seemed even Wan Wan Tong sometimes had blind spots in their information network. The so-called Lingzun (spiritual elites) weren't as all-knowing as they liked to claim.
He was so sure that Wan Wan Tong didn't know about Lingxian Sect because he knew that Wan Wan Tong had always kept a close eye on the mortal realm. If a sect suddenly showed extraordinary potential, or if a particularly talented cultivator emerged, Wan Wan Tong would intervene—either by suppressing the sect or forcibly recruiting the individual.
This was no secret within the company.
So, how had Wan Wan Tong overlooked such a well-funded sect like Lingxian Sect?
He concluded that Lingxian Sect must have had extraordinary methods to hide its wealth and power for so many years without being noticed by Wan Wan Tong.
Unbeknownst to Liang Zhonghuai, Lingxian Sect was not an ancient, well-established sect. In fact, it had only been around for just over three years.
The reason it had flown under Wan Wan Tong's radar wasn't because it had concealed its strength for years, but rather because the sect's power, while growing, still wasn't significant enough to catch Wan Wan Tong's attention.
From the perspective of Wan Wan Tong's operatives stationed in the mortal realm, Lingxian Sect appeared to be a small, unremarkable sect that had barely managed to eliminate a Nascent Soul cultivator with the combined efforts of its entire sect and assistance from the Yuan Ying ancestor of the Pusi Kingdom's royal family.
Furthermore, this sect didn't seem to do anything noteworthy, other than occasionally flaunting its presence before mortals. Even when the allied sects formed an army to eliminate threats, Lingxian Sect barely participated, sending just one person to show face afterward.
Reports like this, filled with dismissive details, were considered low-tier information within Wan Wan Tong and were discarded without ever reaching the higher-ups.
But what Liang Zhonghuai didn't know was that much of this information had been heavily filtered and processed before reaching Wan Wan Tong. The employees stationed in the mortal realm considered their assignment to be less desirable, and since the mortal realm had been relatively quiet for centuries, they were more interested in completing their tenure and returning to the cultivation world. After all, if a truly exceptional talent or sect appeared in the mortal realm, those sects would usually reveal themselves without much effort. A cultivator who could break through to the Nascent Soul stage and had the potential to reach the Spirit Transformation stage was the real target of interest.
In the cultivation world, there was a saying: "A genius without results is merely a prime candidate for possession."
Wan Wan Tong's stationed employees would never have guessed that the Yuan Ying ancestor of the Pusi Kingdom's royal family had deliberately helped cover up Lingxian Sect's true capabilities. After deciding to ally with the sect, Li Zhanying had sent word to the royal family, instructing them to downplay the details of Lingxian Sect's defeat of the Nascent Soul cultivator Wei Hai, ensuring the sect wouldn't attract undue attention.
Li Zhanying understood that a small but growing sect like Lingxian Sect was not yet ready to stand out too much.
Even in the famous Battle of the Ji Stone Mine in Huanyu Kingdom, the cultivators who had been present and witnessed Lin Xiao's actions in the mine all kept silent about his role. They merely spoke of a collective effort by all involved.
If Liang Zhonghuai were to uncover these layers of hidden truths, he would likely marvel at how fortunate Lingxian Sect had been to benefit from the right timing, location, and alliances throughout its development.
Besides Liang Zhonghuai, there were a few others in the group—refugee cultivators from Shangyang Sect, Lingxian Sect's former neighbor. They, too, were awestruck by the existence of the Beast Garden.
At least Liang Zhonghuai had heard of such things in the cultivation world. These cultivators from Shangyang Sect had never even imagined such a thing!
Their sect only raised chickens, ducks, and fish, hoping they would absorb enough spiritual energy to become edible. They had never seen anything like this!
All of them shared the same thought: abandoning everything and joining Lingxian Sect had definitely been the right decision!
Originally, Xiaoluan had been quite reluctant to show off the Beast Garden to these "newcomers." Not even Liu Yunan's persuasion could sway it.
But then, Liu Yunan made an enticing offer: if Xiaoluan impressed these newcomers and piqued their interest in the Beast Garden, they might volunteer to help take care of it in the future.
Xiaoluan's eyes lit up at the thought. Finally, it would have people to order around! Its current helper, Da Peach, was slow, lazy, and frustrating to deal with. Every task required constant supervision and prodding. New helpers would surely be more enthusiastic and diligent.
Motivated by this, Xiaoluan grudgingly agreed and began showcasing the various areas of the Beast Garden, highlighting each type of beast in great detail.
As Xiaoluan observed the newcomers' fascinated expressions, it clicked its beak in satisfaction. Success.
After the Beast Garden tour, Liu Yunan led the group to the Secret Realm Garden, where the new disciples, though amazed by the beauty, were no longer as easily shocked.
The Secret Realm Garden now housed not just the two secret realms it had three years ago. Over the past three years, whenever Lin Xiao ventured into the cultivation world, in addition to bringing back treasures and beasts, he made a habit of exploring any available secret realms. If he found an unclaimed one, he would immediately take control of it.
As a result, he had added two more secret realms to the garden, both with Golden Core stage entry limits.
Because their difficulty was higher, Lin Xiao hadn't entered them himself, being cautious for his safety.
Despite the impressive array of secret realms, Liu Yunan didn't bother explaining much to the new disciples during this visit.
It wasn't that he was deliberately withholding information; rather, after talking so much during the tour, he was simply tired. Besides, the secret realms weren't currently accessible to the new disciples, so there was no rush to explain. When the time came, they would learn all they needed to know.