Fortuitous Secret Realm 

In addition to the young woman, the rest of the group consisted of men and women, somewhat older, mostly in their 20s, and they seemed to be attendants. 

One middle-aged man carrying a two-handed greatsword was particularly high-level, though Lufan couldn't see his exact level, he could sense the man was definitely above level 20 based on his aura. 

This composition clearly wasn't just ordinary material hunters. It seemed this was a young lady of status and power who had just underwent a class change, and her family had sent some powerful experts to protect her as she came to the Stone Plain to level up and prepare for a major examination. 

Lufan considered putting Little Night back into the pet space, not because he was being low-key, but because he wasn't sure of the identities, levels, and abilities of this group, and it wouldn't be wise to prematurely reveal he had a dragon. 

Lufan had originally planned to wait for this group to leave, then go dig up the treasure. It's better to avoid contact with others in the wilderness if possible. 

However, the group didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon, resting and discussing something at the site. 

Lufan gradually lost patience, and decided to just directly head down the mountain to dig up the treasure and leave. 

Down at the base of the mountain, Qiu Qiu held her staff, her pretty face full of disappointment and anxiety. 

"Uncle Gu, this is such a good opportunity, are we really going to miss it?" she said to the middle-aged man with the greatsword, who was the highest level and most powerful member of the group. 

Facing his young mistress's questioning, Gu Xiang sighed and stroked his rough beard. "Miss, we really have no choice." 

"The minimum requirement for this Fortuitous Secret Realm is 8 people, and we only have 7, so we don't have a chance to enter," Qiu Qiu frowned, then had an idea. "What if we go back to Jianghai City and call some more experts..." 

A woman in leather armor with an average appearance shook her head, dashing Qiu Qiu's hopes. "That won't work." 

"It's too far from Jianghai City, even for me it would take more than a day to go and come back." 

"The Fortuitous Secret Realm randomly appears in the wilderness somewhere, and if no one enters it, it will disappear and reappear elsewhere. This one has already been here for a while, and will probably disappear in half a day." 

"Meaning even if we go get more people from Jianghai, we won't make it in time." 

Qiu Qiu was left speechless. 

After a long silence, she sighed deeply. Secret Realms were like dungeons, but unlike regular dungeons which have been cleared countless times, Secret Realms had much higher drop rates for rare and powerful items. 

Encountering a Secret Realm was like finding money on the street. But now they couldn't enter it because their group was one person short, which was truly frustrating. 

Seeing Qiu Qiu's disappointment, Gu Xiang tried to console her. "Miss, you don't need to worry so much. With your abilities, you'll easily rank first in Jianghai City, and even top 20 in the entire Southern Province won't be a problem. And with your hidden class, you can easily get into one of the Top 10 Academies, which will provide you access to other Secret Realms in the future." 

"I know all that, Uncle Gu..." Qiu Qiu shook her head, then let out a wry smile. "You're right, we can't force fate. Since we can't enter this Fortuitous Secret Realm, then so be it..." 

Just as Gu Xiang was about to comfort her further, his warrior's battle instincts suddenly flared, making him grip the hilt of his greatsword as he shouted, "Who's there?!" 

Everyone tensed up, grabbing their weapons and protectively surrounding Qiu Qiu. 

Lufan didn't expect such a strong reaction, but he didn't mind, calmly continuing to approach as he called out, "No need to be nervous, I'm just passing by." 

Passing by?! 

Gu Xiang and the others were dumbfounded, watching this strange young man walk right up to within 20 meters of them, then stop briefly before continuing on, not even glancing at them, as if he was truly just passing through.