### Chapter 1698: Even If I Have to Die, I Want to Die Knowing Why
The Divine City announcement, shining golden in the virtual world, was so dazzling. Lin Moyu's achievement shocked everyone in the Divine City Star Domain.
A special secret realm had been cleared!
Since the opening of the secret realms, many ordinary secret realms had been cleared. But this was the first time a special secret realm had been cleared.
Lin Moyu had set a precedent, enough to be recorded in history.
In the starry sky outside the secret realm, everyone was in a state of shock, all having the same question in their hearts.
"How did Lin Moyu do it?"
The entire starry sky became incredibly silent, and the atmosphere turned somewhat eerie.
Until Xiao Sheng's wild laughter broke the silence, "Brother Lin, you're amazing! I, Xiao Sheng, am convinced!"
Qing Jian Daoist also laughed loudly, "I, Qing Jian, have never been convinced by anyone, but I have to say, Brother Lin, I am convinced!" The two of them kept repeating the word "convinced," speaking with genuine admiration.
Many people couldn't help but feel the same way. Regardless of Lin Moyu's strength, clearing the secret realm was a solid achievement.
It was truly impressive.
Many people were looking for Lin Moyu, but they couldn't find him.
"Where did Lin Moyu go?"
"I didn't see him. Did he not leave the secret realm?"
"That's not right. The secret realm has been cleared and completely closed. Did he leave before us?"
"That's possible. If he comes out now, he'll definitely be surrounded by people and won't be able to leave."
The secret realm had indeed closed, and everyone had been forcibly sent out, except for Lin Moyu.
Lin Moyu was still in the secret realm, and no exit had appeared around him.
He also received the notification of the secret realm's closure, but he received a few more messages than others.
[Congratulations on completing the first stage of the Maple Forest Secret Realm. Reward: 100 Divine City merit points.]
[Congratulations on completing the second stage of the Maple Forest Secret Realm. Reward: 1000 Divine City merit points.]
[Congratulations on clearing the Maple Forest Secret Realm. Reward: 1000 Divine City merit points.]
[Congratulations on becoming the first person to clear a special secret realm. Reward: 1000 Divine City merit points.]
[Your Divine City merit points have met the requirements for promotion. You can now undertake the promotion task.]
[For specific information, please check the Human Emperor Network.]
Lin Moyu's Divine City merit points skyrocketed, instantly gaining over 3000 points. Combined with the blood-red maple leaves he collected in the secret realm, his total Divine City merit points were nearly 5000.
His total merit points exceeded 10000, meeting the requirements for promotion.
Now, he was just one promotion task away from becoming an intermediate member.
Receiving these rewards, Lin Moyu couldn't help but feel a rare sense of excitement.
"This harvest is indeed substantial."
What others needed hundreds or even thousands of years to achieve, Lin Moyu accomplished in just a few years.
Three ordinary secret realms, one special secret realm, plus some additional rewards, directly pushed his Divine City merit points to 10000.
What was extremely difficult for others to obtain, Lin Moyu found relatively easy.
The space around him distorted, but no exit appeared. Instead, another person appeared in the secret realm.
Seeing the newcomer, Lin Moyu cupped his hands in salute, "Junior greets Holy Venerable Hao."
Holy Venerable Hao nodded slightly, "Did you obtain the ancient rune?"
Lin Moyu nodded, "It entered my soul world on its own."
He looked at Holy Venerable Hao, wondering if he would ask for the ancient rune.
If he did, how should Lin Moyu respond?
Handing over the ancient rune? That was impossible.
Although the ancient rune was in his soul world, he couldn't control it.
It's easy to invite a god but hard to send one away. Even if he wanted to give it away, he couldn't.
What if Holy Venerable Hao wanted to see the ancient rune?
He couldn't let him into his soul world to see it.
Their relationship wasn't that close, and the trust level wasn't there.
Holy Venerable Hao examined the secret realm, "You must think we value the ancient rune highly."
"The ancient rune is indeed important, but not to the point of being indispensable."
"In fact, the secret realm itself is more important than the ancient rune."
"You obtained the ancient rune, so keep it well. It may be of great use in the future."
"Moreover, even if I asked you to hand it over now, you couldn't."
His words made Lin Moyu breathe a sigh of relief, and he immediately cupped his hands, "Thank you, Holy Venerable."
Holy Venerable Hao continued to examine the secret realm, seemingly more interested in it than the ancient rune, "Tell me the whole process, in detail, without any omissions."
Lin Moyu would write a report of his experience in the secret realm and submit it to the secret realm strategy group after leaving.
Holy Venerable Hao would naturally see it then.
But he came to ask personally, indicating he knew there were things not included in the report.
Before Lin Moyu could speak, Holy Venerable Hao raised his hand and pulled a faint red light from the void, turning it into a hair-thin red line that fell into his hand.
A faint smell of blood spread, making Lin Moyu feel a chill.
The ancient swordsman's blood still remained, hidden so deeply that he hadn't noticed.
Holy Venerable Hao looked at Lin Moyu with interest, "It seems your experience was quite interesting."
Lin Moyu immediately recounted his experience in the secret realm.
He spoke in detail, omitting only the part where he entered the time-space passage. He included everything else, including how he used True Sight to see the future and narrowly escaped death twice.
Holy Venerable Hao listened thoughtfully.
He was clearly aware of the ancient powerhouses.
The ancient swordsman's blood wasn't limited to just two drops; there were likely more in other secret realms.
But those drops of blood might not have the same experiences.
Lin Moyu had thought about it afterward. The reason for the intense reaction was likely the origin spell.
The ancient swordsman had mentioned the "power of origin," which should refer to the origin spell.
Moreover, in the future scene seen through True Sight, the sword that came through the void didn't kill his soul but collected his blood.
This indicated that the ancient swordsman wanted to obtain the so-called power of origin through his soul and blood.
Lin Moyu could figure this out, and so could Holy Venerable Hao.
After a moment of contemplation, Holy Venerable Hao finally spoke, "You handled it well."
His tone and expression were serious.
It seemed there was something he wanted to say but didn't.
Lin Moyu said, "I was lucky to escape this time. I can't be sure if I'll have the same luck if I encounter such a situation again."
The implication was clear: if I encounter this again, I might die, but at least let me know why.
Lin Moyu was certain that Holy Venerable Hao knew some important information.
Seeing his hesitation, Lin Moyu decided to push him to speak.
Sure enough, after hearing Lin Moyu's words, Holy Venerable Hao made a decision.
"Come with me!"
He waved his hand, and an incomprehensible rule force enveloped them. The scene changed, and they left the Maple Forest Secret Realm together.