Автор: sergey

Much to everyones surprise, the final spirit fruit fell into the hands of Ye Ying.

The treasures she offered were more extravagant than everyone else could produce, so they could only reluctantly allow her to take the spirit fruit.

This small section of the Myriad Year Green Spirit Tree was Han Lis compensation of choice.

This piece of wood was as light as air and immune to the effects of water and fire. It was one of the most ideal materials for carving formation spells onto, and as it aged, it would develop a certain degree of immunity toward the power of the five elements.

As such, this type of wood was most often used to refine large treasures like spirit arks, beast carriages, and things of that nature.

After fiddling around with the section of wood for a while, Han Li stowed it away before glancing at his surroundings.

The flying carriage had been supplied, once again, by Long Dong, and even though it wasnt as comfortable nor as stealthy as the spirit ark that had been destroyed earlier, it was able to fly at a greater speed than the ark.

Speaking of which, the spirit arks concealment ability wouldve been next to useless in the face of powerful ancient beasts. As such, this faster flying carriage was a superior option anyway.

If they were to encounter some minor hindrances, they could simply accelerate and shake them off.

At this moment, the flying carriage was whizzing through the air as an azure blur, hurtling along at an incredible speed.

Aside from Long Dong, who was piloting the carriage, everyone else was sitting in silence.

Han Li withdrew his gaze before suddenly turning his attention to Ye Ying, upon which his eyes narrowed slightly.

The person in the group whom he was most wary of and found to be the most mysterious was this woman, who appeared to possess the same cultivation base as he did.

This woman appeared to be quite young and spoke in a very simple and straightforward manner, but having completely mastered the Great Development Technique, Han Lis instinctive senses had already been honed to an incredibly sensitive degree, and those senses told him that this woman was the most dangerous one among the four, even more so than Long Dong from the so-called True Spirit Family.

Just as Han Li was contemplating these matters, Ye Ying suddenly opened her eyes and met Han Lis gaze.

Han Lis heart jolted upon seeing this, and before he had a chance to react, Ye Ying pursed her lips with a faint chuckle.

Han Li gave a rather awkward smile before immediately turning away. In doing so, he missed the hint of amusement that flashed through Ye Yings eyes in response.

During the following half a month, their journey was remarkably smooth, and they didnt encounter any trouble at all.

Everyone was quite relieved by this peaceful spell, praying that the rest of their journey would be just as smooth and placid.

Several days later, the scenery around them transformed as a vast expanse of desert appeared before them, sending gusts of scorching wind sweeping toward their carriage.

A hint of a surprise appeared on the white-browed young mans face as he mused, Could it be that weve already reached the Southern Skyline?

Indeed, this place is the Great Southern Desert, and its the simplest path through which one can reach the territory of the Wood Tribe, Long Dong replied in a grave voice.

Ive heard many things about this place. The legends say that its impossible to go around this desert, is that really true? There are often Wood Tribe and Shadow Tribe beings traveling through this desert, isnt it still a little too dangerous for us to go directly through it? Xiao Hong asked with a frown on her face.

Fairy Xiao, the environment here certainly isnt the best, but its much safer than the other two alternative routes we can take. As for going around the desert, that would be next to impossible. On one side of the desert is the renowned Zenith Beast Mountain Ranges, which is teeming with countless high-grade ancient beasts. Even most of the Spatial Tempering cultivators who venture into those mountain ranges never return. On the other side is the even more treacherous Wyrm Abyss Canyon. There are over 100 vicious wyrms at or above the Spatial Tempering Stage lurking in there, including even several tens of Body Integration Stage Wyrm Monarchs. A few Deity Transformation cultivators like us would simply be offering ourselves up as food if we were to take either of those paths. As for skirting around even further to avoid those areas, that would lengthen our journey to an enormous degree, and it would most likely take us around a year or so to get to our destination. The war is imminent, so theres no way that Deep Heaven City would allow us to delay the completion of our mission for so long, Long Dong explained with a wry smile.

I see. However, Ive heard that this desert seems to be a trial ground for the two tribes, Ye Ying suddenly interjected.

My seniors also cautioned me about this before my departure. The white-browed young man had also adopted a rather cautious stance.

In that case, I dont think we should continue traveling on this flying carriage, wed stick out like a sore thumb. Lets all conceal ourselves before continuing onward. Even if everything goes as smoothly as possible, itd still take us around a month to pass through this desert, Long Dong suggested after a brief period of contemplation.

Xiao Hong contemplated the notion before exchanging a glance with the white-browed young man, following which she nodded, and agreed, Well do as you say.

I have no objections, either, traveling on the flying carriage really will make us stand out far too much for comfort, Han Li said with a smile.

Ye Ying was the only one who expressed a neutral stance, willing to comply with the most popular course of action.

Thus, after a brief discussion, everyone emerged from the flying carriage before unleashing concealment techniques to obscure themselves. Long Dong stowed the flying carriage away, and everyone ventured carefully into the desert.

Not long after entering the desert, Han Li immediately sensed that this desert was unlikely any that hed ever seen, in that the temperatures here were simply far too high.

Even while flying at low altitudes in the air, he could still feel the bursts of scorching heat emanating from the ground. He felt as if he were flying over a massive volcanic crater rather than a desert.

Han Li looked up at the seven scintillating suns in the sky above, then down at the ground below. He swiped a hand through the air, sending an ice spike hurtling downward.

Prior to even making contact with the ground, the ice spike had already completely melted and evaporated into nothingness.

Han Li heaved a faint sigh upon seeing this.

All of a sudden, white light flashed beside him, and Ye Ying appeared with a dainty smile on her face. Fellow Daoist Han, Im not sure if youre aware of this, but the Great Southern Desert once consisted of a vast expanse of volcanic craters.

Is that so? I didnt know that, Han Li replied in an indifferent voice.

It was said that a heavenly phoenix, which possessed dual wind and earth-attribute powers, once battled a True Spirit level Fire Crocodile that inhabited the volcanoes down below. Their battle raged for over a month, and during that process, the phoenix used its abilities to conjure up countless sandstorms, burying all of the volcanoes down below and forming this desert, Ye Ying continued.

I see. No wonder this desert is so peculiar. True Spirit level beings really are capable of unfathomable feats, Han Li murmured, seemingly in response to Ye Ying, but also seemingly to himself.

Indeed. Human cultivators like us may be able to combat some of these True Spirit level beings once we reach the Grand Ascension Stage, but were still no match for the truly powerful beings at the True Spirit level, such as true dragons and heavenly phoenixes. I wonder what it would be like for a human to attain True Spirit level power, Ye Ying chuckled before flying onward, leaving Han Li behind.

A hint of surprise appeared on Han Lis face as he looked on at her departing figure, but he quickly recomposed himself and focused on forging ahead in his journey.

Over 10 days later, Han Li and the others were still flying along at low altitudes. Even though they were all Deity Transformation cultivators, flying for so long under such scorching heat was making them rather exhausted.

Lets find a place to rest after a further half a day of travel, Long Dong suddenly proposed.

We do indeed need to find a place to rest and recover our magic power, Xiao Hong replied with a nod, and the weariness in her voice was quite apparent.

Huh? Whats that? A low cry of surprise suddenly sounded.

The one who had spoken was none other than the white-browed young man.

Han Li reflexively cast his gaze toward the direction that the young mans attention was focused. However, he discovered that there was nothing there.

Han Li raised his eyebrows as he swept his immense spiritual sense toward that area, upon which a peculiar look appeared on his face.

At this point, everyone else had also scanned through the area with their spiritual sense, and all of them also adopted peculiar expressions.

Looks like theres a small town there, which is inhabited by humans. Im not seeing things, am I? Han Li mused in a skeptical manner.

After releasing their spiritual sense, everyone discovered that there was a relatively large oasis situated up ahead several tens of kilometers away. Within that oasis was a small town, and it appeared that there were many humans and cultivators living there.

This place is so secluded and its so close to foreign races, how could there truly be humans living here? Something seems a little fishy here, Xiao Hong mused.

An indecisive look appeared on Long Dongs face, and he raised his eyebrows, but refrained from immediately offering a response.

Let me send over an avatar to investigate, the white-browed young man offered.

He then laid a hand on the back of his head, and a silhouette flashed as a small falcon that was around a foot in size emerged. The falcon was entirely black in color, and it circled through the air before flying toward the small town in the distance.

The white-browed young man then closed his eyes to forge a connection with the small falcon with his spiritual sense in case any mishaps arose.

Xiao Hong and Long Dong exchanged a glance with one another, but they seemed to also be of the opinion that this was the best course of action, as evidenced by the fact that both of them refrained from stopping the white-browed young man in what he was doing.

Han Li continued to appraise the small town in the distance with befuddlement in his heart.

Ye Ying was also doing the same with an intrigued look on her face.

The small falcon flew extremely quickly, and it was back within five minutes.

When the falcon disappeared into the back of the white-browed young mans head again, the latter opened his eyes. Theres no mistaking it, there really are humans inhabiting that small town, and there are many high-grade cultivators among them. There are seven or eight Deity Transformation cultivators, but I didnt see any Spatial Tempering cultivators.

Everyone was even more perplexed upon hearing this.

In any case, it would be best to continue in our journey and avoid any unnecessary trouble, Han Li said in an indifferent voice.

I dont think thats a good idea. The existence of this small town is really peculiar, perhaps something happened recently in the desert. I think it would be best for us to inquire about the situation before continuing onward in case we inadvertently plunge headfirst into peril, Long Dong said with a shake of his head.

These were none other than the lightning beads that Han Li had refined, and he had tossed out four of them at once. Having been refined using the lightning symbol techniques, each and every one of these beads were imbued with power akin to the full-force attack of a Spatial Tempering cultivator. Additionally, the nature of the power itself possessed the lightning attribute, which was why the beads were so devastatingly powerful.

It appeared that he had made the right decision in using them.

If it werent for the fact that those treasures had delayed the lizard and the giant, he wouldnt have been able to get away even with his Thunderstorm Wings.

After the spirit fruits were stolen, the massive lizard and the Thousand-Eyed Giant were absolutely furious, but they were temporarily trapped by the power of the lightning beads.

Long Dong and the others were also given a fright by the immense power of Han Lis lightning beads, but all of them then immediately unleashed movement techniques to flee the scene in elation.

During the process, they also unleashed concealment techniques to hide themselves from view.

Thus, everything had disappeared from the nearby area aside from the two Spatial Tempering Stage beings, which were still trapped within the explosions from the lightning beads.

Han Li was flying as quickly as he could using his Thunderstorm Wings, disappearing into the distance after just a few flashes.

In order to ensure safety, Han Li even threw up a mouthful of blood essence to unleash his Bloodshadow Evasion Technique, thereby further enhancing his speed.

After expending an extensive amount of effort to break free from the explosions, the lizard and the giant let loose a string of thunderous enraged roar upon discovering that all five cultivators had disappeared, along with the bunch of Zoysia Dragon Fruits.

Several hours later, a dull thunderclap rang out atop a mountain peak tens of thousands of kilometers away. Immediately thereafter, Han Li emerged amid an arc of azure and white lightning.

He then took a glance behind him, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

The task that he had undertaken had been quite dangerous and hed been forced to expend quite a bit of energy, but he had thankfully managed to secure the spirit fruits.

As a safety precaution, Han Li released his spiritual sense to carefully scan through the surrounding area. After ascertaining that nothing was amiss there, he descended onto the mountains summit.

He flipped a hand over to produce a jade vial, and he poured out two crimson pills, which he quickly consumed.

Even though he had only used his Bloodshadow Evasion Technique for a short time, the primordial world was quite a perilous place, and it was best to constantly maintain prime condition when possible.

After swallowing the pills, a stream of cool and refreshing energy immediately began to circulate through his meridians.

Han Lis expression eased as he summoned a jade box, which was as translucent as ice.

He carefully removed the lid of the box to reveal a bunch of exuberant fist-sized purple fruits.

He appraised the spirit fruits with an unblinking gaze before gently picking up a spirit fruit between two fingers and carefully assessing it.

After a while, Han Li exhaled and nodded to himself. These were indeed Zoysia Dragon Fruits.

This type of spirit fruit was one of the few Spatial Tempering Stage pill ingredients that produced seeds, thereby allowing it to be nurtured and reproduced. It was a type of spirit medicine that hed had his eyes on for a long time, which was why he had been willing to take such a massive risk for it.

Now that the spirit fruits had been secured, a smile finally appeared on Han Lis face.

If he could find another ingredient known as the Soaring Cloud Glue, then refine those two ingredients along with some other secondary medicines, hed be able to produce Soaring Dragon Pills, which were extremely alluring even to Spatial Tempering cultivators.

A flash of excitement appeared in Han Lis eyes as these thoughts ran through his mind.

However, his brows suddenly furrowed at this moment, and he turned toward a certain direction as his expression turned neutral once again.

Moments later, a white streak of light approached Han Li from that direction.

After a few flashes, the white streak of light appeared above Han Lis head. The light then receded to reveal a young man, it was none other than Long Dong.

At this moment, his suit of yellow scale armor had already disappeared. As his gaze fell on the spirit fruits in Han Lis hands, an elated look immediately appeared on his face.

Haha, your abilities really are quite astonishing, to think that youd truly be able to snatch the fruits away from those two fearsome beings! Let me see if theyre really Zoysia Dragon Fruits.

As soon as Long Dong landed on the mountain summit, he began to approach Han Li.

Theres no hurry, Brother Long, lets all take a good look when the other fellow Daoists also arrive. A faint smile appeared on Han Lis face as spiritual light flashed within his hands, upon which the jade box disappeared.

A hint of barely detectable killing intent flashed through Long Dongs eyes upon hearing this, but a thought then occurred to him, and his expression smoothed out. Youre right, Fellow Daoist Han. I was too hasty there.

Thus, a smile appeared on his face as he made his way over to a large rock that was over 100 feet away from Han Li, and he sat down upon it with his legs crossed.

Meanwhile, Han Li remained standing on the spot with his hands clasped behind his back, silently awaiting the arrival of the others.

A short while later, Xiao Hong and the white-browed young man arrived on the scene, and both of them were also overjoyed that Han Li had actually been able to secure the spirit fruits.

However, there was still one more comrade left to come, so they could only repress their excitement and emulate Long Dong, sitting down in silent meditation.

Fifteen minutes later, just as everyone was beginning to speculate internally about whether something had happened to Ye Ying, a ball of golden light shot forth from the distance before landing on the mountain.

Sorry for making all of you wait, fellow Daoists. As I was passing through a forest, I just so happened to find a Myriad Year Green Spirit Wood, and it took me some time to dig it up from the ground, Ye Ying explained with a smile.

Myriad Year Green Spirit Wood? Thats a superb material for refining wood-attribute treasures, you sure are quite lucky, Fellow Daoist Ye. Xiao Hong was rather surprised to hear this.

Hehe, surely you jest, Big Sister Xiao, a Green Spirit Wood cant even begin to compare to Zoysia Dragon Fruits. Brother Han, you managed to secure the fruits, right? Ye Ying chuckled before turning her attention to Han Li.

I have, indeed. Everyone can gather around and have a look. Han Li nodded before sweeping a hand over his storage bracelet. The jade box appeared once again, and he carefully removed the lid to reveal its contents.

A faint pleasant aroma wafted through the air, and everyone immediately turned their eyes toward the bunch of spirit fruits with expressions of rapt focus on their faces, trying to ascertain its authenticity with their spiritual sense.

It should be real. A flash of elation appeared on Xiao Hongs face as she made her assessment first. Moments later, everyone else also withdrew their spiritual sense with satisfied nods.Seeing as weve verified that the fruits are real, lets go ahead and split them. There are six fruits in total here, so therell be one leftover after we each take one, Han Li said in a calm voice.

Everyones brows furrowed upon hearing this.

Six spirit fruits will indeed be rather difficult to split among us, but lets set that aside for now and distribute one fruit each to everyone first. The white-browed young man was growing a little impatient.

Youre right, Brother Li. Fellow Daoist Han, please distribute the first five spirit fruits for now, Xiao Hong chimed in with a daint smile.

Long Dong and Ye Ying naturally had no objections to this arrangement, either.

A faint smile appeared on Han Lis face upon seeing this.

He carried the jade box with one hand and made his way over to Xiao Hong first. He plucked one Zoysia Dragon Fruits with two fingers and offered it to her.

Xiao Hong was ecstatic and immediately produced a wooden box to accept the fruit.

However, Han Li refrained from releasing the fruit, and was appraising her with a meaningful smile.

Xiao Hong faltered slightly upon seeing this before quickly coming to a realization. She immediately swept a sleeve through the air, and a small golden sword with two talismans plastered onto its appeared in her hand.

She tore off the talismans and tossed the sword directly toward Han Li. This was none other than one of his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords. Han Li opened his mouth, and the small sword disappeared down his throat as a streak of golden light.

At the same time, he released the spirit fruit, and it fell into Xiao Hongs wooden box.

As Xiao Hong began to appraise the spirit fruit with elation twinkling in her eyes, Han Li had already made his way over to the white-browed young man with another spirit fruit caught between his two fingers.

After witnessing the exchange that had just taken place, the young man naturally knew what to do already. He also produced another small golden sword and removed the restriction on it before tossing it to Han Li.

As such, after a short while, Han Li only had a pair of spirit fruits left.

After pocketing one of the fruits, he placed the jade box onto the ground before backing away as a disinterested bystander.

Just one of these spirit fruits was enough for him, and a second one wouldnt really benefit him much at all. However, this was naturally unbeknownst to the other four cultivators, and all of them appraised him with much friendlier expression for his willingness to back down in such a situation.Theres only one spirit fruit left now, how about we hold an impromptu auction for it? Whoever can offer the most spirit stones gets to take the spirit fruit, and the spirit stones spent will be split among everyone else, Long Dong suggested.

Hmph, isnt that too lopsided of an arrangement, Fellow Daoist Long? Everyone knows that your Long Family is a family with immense wealth. Even the four of us combined most likely wont be carrying as many spirit stones as you are, the white-browed young man rejected with a cold harrumph.

Oh, then do you have a better idea? Rather becoming enraged by the young mans blunt refusal, a smile appeared on Long Dongs face as if he were open to suggestions. A fruit as valuable as this naturally has to be exchanged for using other items. Regardless of whether its using pills, ingredients or materials, the one who gets to take the fruit has to offer something that is roughly equal in value to the spirit fruit, and can be split among everyone else. What do you all think of this arrangement? Xiao Hong suggested with a seductive smile.

The white-browed young man immediately nodded in agreement.

Ye Ying cocked her head to the side and contemplated this notion for a while before also giving a nod of approval.

Han Li naturally had no objections, either.

Seeing as Fairy Xiaos suggestion has garnered the most support, well do as you say. Even though Long Dong was reluctant to agree to such an arrangement, the other four had all expressed their approval, so he could only comply with a forced smile on his face.

Two hours later, a flying azure carriage that was over 100 feet in length appeared high in the air above the mountain. It then shot forth toward a certain direction as a streak of azure light.

Within the span of a few breaths, the carriage had covered a distance of several thousand feet, and after just a few more flashes, it had completely disappeared.

Han Li was sitting near the rear of the carriage, fiddling with a small section of cylindrical green wood.

This section of wood was only around a foot in length, but its surface was glimmering with faint spiritual light. Upon closer inspection, one would notice that there were indistinct silver threads flashing within the section of wood.

This Green Spirit Wood could prove to be quite useful!

A hint of violent ferocity flashed through the giants eyes as it immediately tightened its grip around the black club resting on its shoulder. At the same time, brilliant light erupted from the eyeballs all over its body, and all of them began to blink in unison.

The presence of so many blinking eyes on a single body created quite a harrowing sight to behold.

However, Han Li was ecstatic to see this, and he waited with bated breath for the situation to unfold further.

If these two Spatial Tempering Stage beings really did engage in battle with one another, then their objective would be much easier to achieve.

The lizard opened its mouth to blast forth a crimson shadow, following which a ball of silver light exploded within the soil beneath one of its huge paws.

The crimson shadow shit forth and punctured the silver object that had just emerged from the soil, and the latter fell heavily to the ground.

Han Lis heart stirred upon seeing this, and he focused his gaze to discover that the silver object was none other than a silver wyrm puppet.

The puppets core had been punctured by the giant lizards fearsome tongue, reducing it to a pile of scrap metal.

It appeared that the puppets cover was still blown right in the instant that it was about to spring into action, and it had been destroyed by the giant lizard as a result.

The Thousand-Eyed Giant wasnt very intelligent, but it also realized that something was amiss upon seeing this. Immediately thereafter, all of its eyeballs turned toward a certain direction, following which countless threads shot forth from within.

Another resounding boom erupted as the other silver wyrm puppet, which was hiding beneath the giants body, was punctured by seven or eight black threads at once.

The black threads then separated in different directions to shred the puppets body as if it were made from soft butter.

Han Li drew a sharp breath upon seeing this.

It appeared that the task he was undertaking was far more dangerous than he had anticipated. However, the Zoysia Dragon Fruit was vital for him to refine Spatial Tempering Stage pills in the future, so he had to take the risk no matter dangerous the situation was.

After all, as long as he could secure the seeds of these fruits, hed be able to nurture an indefinite number of them.

With that in mind, Han Lis heart settled once again.

The giant let loose a few menacing harrumphs in a show of intimidation before resting its club on its shoulder again.

The giant lizard took a completely expressionless glance at the giant before lying back down onto the ground.

The two colossal creatures returned to their former impasse.

Meanwhile, Han Li stared intently at the two of them, not daring to allow his concentration to slip, even in the slightest.

Seeing as the puppets had failed, they would have to resort to their backup plan, which consisted of Long Dong and the others luring the lizard and the giant away, thereby creating an opportunity for Han Li.

Sure enough, after just the span of a few breaths, the pleasant sound of a lute being stroked rang out above the giant lizards head. Yellow halos of light then surfaced in the air above, surging directly toward the top of the giant lizards head. At the same time, white light flashed as two short golden halberds appeared. The halberds swayed before crashing down violently like a pair of powerful golden wyrms.

Almost at the exact same moment, two humanoid figures appeared in the air above at an altitude of several hundred feet. They were none other than Ye Ying and Long Dong.

Ye Ying as gently stroking her spirit treasure replica lute while Long Dong was manipulating two treasures at once with a serious expression on his face.

Despite the lizards massive size, its movements were extremely agile. As soon as the attacks came crashing down toward it from the air above, it let loose a low roar before immediately rising to its paws. Red light flashed from the crimson horns on its head, following with a vast expanse of red light emanated forth, keeping both the yellow halos and twin halberds at bay.

Immediately thereafter, green light flashed from the massive lizards limbs. Countless strands of its bristly fur transformed into green streaks of light that hurtled into the air. At the same time, its huge tail swished through the air and it abruptly disappeared, leaving behind only a trail of afterimages in its wake.

In the next instant, the massive lizards tail, which was over 200 feet long, appeared beside Ye Ying and Long Dong in a flash before sweeping violently toward them. Even though the tail hadnt yet made contact with them, the fierce winds it had swept up were still threatening to blow them away.

As expected of a mutated ancient beast, as soon as the lizard was attacked, it retaliated in an extremely ferocious manner.

Ye Ying and Long Dong were aware that this giant lizard definitely wouldnt be easy to face in battle, but they were still given a massive fright by its fearsome combat prowess.

Thankfully, neither of them had any intention of engaging the lizard in a direct confrontation.

Ye Ying immediately raised a hand to hurl forth a golden talisman, which transformed into a ball of golden light that enveloped her body. Immediately thereafter, she disappeared on the spot before appearing over 300 feet away.

Meanwhile, Long Dong let loose a long dragons roar as a yellow suit of armor surfaced over his body. The entire suit of armor was constructed from metallic scales, encapsulating his head and limbs in a watertight sheath, and there was even a pair of massive bronze wings on his back.

As he flapped those wings, a series of afterimages immediately appeared in the air around him. From a distance, it appeared that countless humanoid figures had emerged out of thin air up above, creating quite an astonishing sight to behold.

Using their peculiar movement techniques, both of them were able to successfully evade the sweeping tail of the giant lizard.

However, neither of them dared to pause for even a single instant in mid-air as the giant lizard had set off behind them in hot pursuit, stirring up gusts of gale-force winds in its wake.

Even though most of the lizards attention had been diverted by these two, it was still keeping an eye on its most significant enemy, the Thousand-Eyed Giant. It was afraid that the giant would take this opportunity to take the spirit fruits for itself, but the sight that greeted the lizard was a very reassuring one.

It turned out that as soon as these two cultivators had appeared to attack the lizard, two other cultivators had also appeared in the air behind the giant.

One of them rubbed their hands together before raising them to conjure up a storm of black fireballs, while the other grabbed the air to manifest a massive inky-black claw. The claw appeared directly above the giants head before crashing down with ferocious force.

A burst of rumbling erupted as the giant was caught completely off guard, having been struck on the head by the fireballs as well as the massive black claw in quick succession.

Both Xiao Hong and the white-browed young man faltered slightly upon seeing this before erupting into elation.

However, the sight that they were greeted by next immediately made their smiles congeal on their faces.

Amid the sea of black flames, a roar of intense fury suddenly rang out. Immediately thereafter, all of the silvery-white eyeballs on its body stirred, creating an immense suction force that instantly engulfed the black flames raging around it.

As for the huge black claw that the white-browed young man had manifested, it didnt seem to have hurt the giant at all, either. The Thousand-Eyed Giant casually swatted the air above its head, and the massive claw was immediately vanquished without a trace.

Its display of power was certainly not a welcome sight for the pair of cultivators.

However, their attacks had clearly already enraged this massive monster, so there was no turning back.

A vicious look appeared on the giants face as it let loose another thunderous roar. After its eyeballs had engulfed all of the black flames, they immediately turned toward the two people in the air above.

Amid a flash of brown light, countless strands of black threads shot forth, encompassing both of them within a dense net.

Both Xiao Hong and the white-browed young man had witnessed the might of these threads of black light earlier, and their expressions changed in unison as they hurriedly took evasive measures.

One of them summoned an object and hurled it down below, upon which it instantly transformed into an azure spike of light. They then immediately ducked into the spike before manipulating it to hurtle toward a certain direction.

Meanwhile, the other transformed into a massive black falcon that was around 10 feet in size before immediately spreading its wings to teleport away.

It was quite clear that these two demonic cultivators had no intention of engaging the giant in direct combat, either.

Thus, all four of Han Lis companions had sprung into action, diverting the attention of the lizard and the giant. They were barely evading the ferocious attacks of the two Spatial Tempering Stage beings while launching their own retaliative attacks whenever the opportunity arose, thereby even further infuriating their assailants.

However, even though the lizard and the giant were relentlessly attacking the four cultivators as if they were pesky flies, neither of them moved strayed far away from their original spot, ensuring that they didnt distance themselves from the spirit fruits.

Otherwise, even if the four cultivators possessed extraordinary movement techniques, there was no way that theyd have lasted so long in the face of the relentless assault unleashed by these two fearsome Spatial Tempering Stage creatures. As things currently were, as soon as any of the four cultivators encountered any danger, they could immediately teleport far away, thereby earning themselves an opportunity to catch their breath.

As such, they were able to continue to pester the lizard and the giant.

The result was that the two creatures were naturally cast into a thunderous rage.

However, neither of them were able to stray away from the spirit fruits, thereby creating an impasse where neither side could do anything to the other.

As the four cultivators continued to annoy the two creatures, more of their attention gradually became diverted away from the spirit fruits.

Meanwhile, Han Li was silently drifting downward. With his current insubstantial body, even the two Spatial Tempering Stage beings completely failed to notice him. This was also the biggest source of confidence Han Li had in undertaking this mission.

Even so, Han Li was still proceeding with extreme caution, to the extent that he didnt even dare to breathe too loudly.

He gradually drew closer to the spirit fruits, from a distance of over 1,000 feet away to around 700 to 800 feet, then to 300 to 400 feet, then to just over 100 feet. As he approached the spirit fruits, he naturally tensed up further and further.

It would undoubtedly be the case that he wouldnt be able to continue to conceal himself in the instant that he plucked the spirit fruits. As such, the lizard and the giant would immediately discover him. He had to do everything he could to ensure self-preservation in such a scenario.

Soon, Han Li had reached a spot where the spirit fruits were right before him. Not only could he smell the faint aroma wafting from these fruits, he could even see their tiny wyrm cores with brilliant clarity.

However, he didnt immediately rush in to grab the fruits. Instead, he swept his hand over his storage bracelet to summon a few items.

He then pursed his lips and suddenly rubbed his hands together before raising them toward either side of his body, sending several shimmering silver balls hurtling toward the two massive creatures.

Immediately thereafter, his hand shot forth like lightning, and the bunch of supple spirit fruits disappeared in the blink of an eye.

In the same instant, his Thunderstorm Wings appeared on his back, and he immediately flapped them, upon which he disappeared into thin air amid a loud thunderclap.

Two earth-shattering roars immediately erupted as a crimson pillar of light and several black threads shot forth at an incredible speed, instantly puncturing Han Lis body. freewenvel.com

However, the Han Li that had been struck was only an afterimage, and it immediately disappeared on the spot.

Meanwhile, his true body had only barely managed to flee from the scene in time.

A string of thunderous explosions erupted as several balls of silver lightning appeared on either side, each of which was around an acre in size. Countless arcs of electricity that were as thick as large bowls flashed violently within those silver balls, sweeping up violent winds and emitting incessant strings of thunderclaps that drowned out everything else.

It was as if doomsday had arrived!

Rest assure, Fellow Daoist Long, we all value our lives, so we wont do anything reckless, the white-browed young man chuckled.

Do any of you have a plan? Long Dong asked. frewebnol.com

I can conceal myself and launch sneak attacks against both the lizard and the giant down below. That way, theyll think that theyve been attacked by the other, the white-browed young man immediately proposed.

Thats quite a simple plan, but we dont know how powerful the spiritual sense of those two beings are. If your concealment technique is seen through, youll be in immense danger. I dont think thats a very safe course of action, Xiao Hong said with a shake of her head.

In terms of concealment techniques, I have two Limpidity Talismans that can allow one to escape detection from mid-Spatial Tempering cultivators and below. Id be willing to contribute them to this cause, Ye Ying offered with a faint smile.

Limpidity Talismans? Thats a type of beveled silver spirit talisman, they should definitely be effective against these two creatures, but just to be safe, I dont think it would be wise for us to attack them in person.

I have two silver wyrm puppets, each of which possesses Nascent Soul Stage power. We can plaster the talismans onto them and get them to attack in our stead. That would make things a lot safer for us, Long Dong proposed with an ecstatic expression.

That would be great! Even if the puppets fail to pit them against one another, we can split up into groups of two to lure the creatures away, then leave one of us whos proficient in both movement and concealment techniques to take advantage of that opportunity and secure the spirit fruits. Once the spirit fruits have been obtained, all of use will unleash secret techniques to get away from here. These two may possess Spatial Tempering Stage power, but if were intent on escaping, they wont be able to stop us. Its just that the one whos assigned the duty of securing the fruits must possess an extremely fast movement technique. Otherwise, the speed at which that mutated lizard can blast out its tongue will pose quite a major threat, Xiao Hong mused.

Indeed, Fairy Xiao. The one to secure the fruits will be incurring a massive risk, the white-browed young man said with furrowed brows.

That will indeed be a dangerous undertaking. Which of us would be willing to volunteer for such a task? Furthermore, we have to gather together once again after the fruits have been secured, so that fellow Daoist will have to do something to convince us that theyll rejoin the rest of the group, Ye Ying said in a slow and methodical voice.

Peculiar expressions appeared on everyones faces upon hearing this.

It was just as she had said, regardless of which one of them secured the Zoysia Dragon Fruits in the end, they would most likely be attacked by both of the Spatial Tempering Stage beings down below at once, thereby plunging them into great danger. On top of that, how could everyone else ensure that that individual wouldnt simply take the fruits and run away on their own?

With these considerations in mind, no one knew how to proceed.

If all of you think Im up to the task, Im willing to volunteer to be the one to secure the fruits, Han Li offered with a smile.

Fellow Daoist Han, youre only at the mid-Deity Transformation Stage, isnt that too dangerous a task for you? Long Dong asked.

Indeed, Brother Han, your cultivation base is slightly lacking. The white-browed young man also shook his head as he appraised Han Li.

My cultivation base is indeed slightly below par, but I possess a top-grade teleportation treasure thats very close to a spirit treasure. Additionally, the cultivation arts Im using are quite special, so I have confidence in my ability to ensure self-preservation, Han Li replied with a nonchalant smile.

Long Dong adopted a serious expression as he continued, Seeing as Brother Han is so confident, we can certainly assign this task to you. However, how are you going to convince us that you wont run away on your own after securing the spirit fruits?

Im afraid I dont have any good ideas in that respect. Of course, if any of you think youd be more suited for the task, feel free to step forward and replace me, it doesnt really matter to me either way, Han Li said with a hint of a smile on his face.

Everyone else faltered upon hearing this.

Even though all of them wanted to secure the spirit fruits, no one wanted to be the one to incur the wrath of those two Spatial Tempering Stage beings. If any mishaps were to occur, they could end up with severe wounds or even dead.

If Brother Han is willing to let me place a restriction on your body, then I have no objections, Ye Ying proposed in a straightforward manner.

My thoughts exactly! Xiao Hong chimed in.

Long Dong and the white-browed young man glanced at one another, but neither of them said anything. Of course you can place restrictions on my body, but thats only if Im also able to place the same restrictions on your bodies, Han Li retorted with a cold smile.

Hmph, in that case, if you were to encounter some kind of mishap, wouldnt we have to die with you? the white-browed young man harrumphed coldly.

Hehe, thats the whole point, Han Li replied in a brusque manner. In reality, even if the other four were to agree to his condition, he most likely wouldnt be willing to accept such an arrangement.

He was still quite traumatized by the aftermath of the restriction that the Ice Phoenix had placed on him, so he certainly wasnt going to let history repeat itself.

Long Dong and the others glanced at one another with wry smiles upon hearing Han Lis words.

How about this? We can trust you if you can leave behind your bonded treasure, then allow us to plant a tracking mark on you. That way, we wont have to worry about you running away with the spirit fruits, Ye Ying proposed as an alternative.

Han Li finally nodded after a period of contemplation. I can accept that, but all of us have to be implanted with tracking marks so I can monitor everyones locations as well. Hehe, perhaps I wont even need to take this risk if Brother Longs puppets can prove to be effective.

Long Dong and the others all looked at one another before finally agreeing to Han Lis proposal. Planting tracking marks on everyone appeared to be the only feasible method here.

Of course, as a mid-Deity Transformation cultivator, Han Li appeared to be the weakest in the group, so no one was actually afraid that hed be able to take the treasures, all of this was merely being done as a precautionary measure.

After ascertaining some of the finer details, everyone finally settled on a specific course of action.

Han Li opened his mouth to expel four streaks of golden light, each of which was several inches in length. The streaks of light revolved around him before transforming into four shimmering golden swords that fell into the hands of his four companions.

Long Dong and the others immediately unleashed secret techniques or plastered talismans onto these swords to restrict them, then stowed them away into their respective storage treasures.

After that, four balls of light of different colors emerged from their fingertips before disappearing into Han Lis body in a flash.

Han Li had used his spiritual sense in advance to carefully assess these balls of light, only allowing them to enter his body after ascertaining that they were indeed formed by pure spiritual power and werent harboring any restrictions.

Han Li also returned the favor thereafter, sending four balls of azure light disappearing into everyone elses bodies.

As such, everyone was feeling a lot more reassured.

After going over the plan one final time, all of them dispersed and flew away in different directions.

The azure streak of light that Han Li had transformed into flew for over 500 kilometers before his body was revealed again.

He hovered in mid-air as he briefly surveyed his surroundings. He then closed his eyes and slowly released his spiritual sense.

After ascertaining that there wasnt anything amiss in the nearby area, he opened his eyes again before making a hand seal.

A thunderclap immediately rang out behind him as a pair of azure and white wings surfaced on his back. He then flipped his hand over to produce a purple talisman, it was none other than his High Zenith Invisibility Talisman.

He was trying to secure a treasure right under the noses of two Spatial Tempering Stage beings, so he didnt dare to get complacent at all, which was why he decided to use this talisman right away.

He plastered the talisman onto his own body, following which he disappeared on the spot amid a flash of purple light and silver runes.

Having done all that, he rose into the air and set off to return to his former location.

Even though he wasnt able to fly as quickly as he could before activating the talisman, he was still certainly not flying slowly, and it didnt take him long to return to his original spot.

The giant lizard and the Thousand-Eyed Giant were still caught in a tense confrontation down below.

Everyone else had also disappeared as far as the naked eye was concerned.

Han Li exhaled as he used his spiritual sense to detect the locations indicated by the tracking marks hed left on his four companions.

Everyone else returned as a result and hovered in mid-air in the nearby area.

There were two in the air above the giant lizard while the other two were situated behind the Thousand-Eyed Giant.

They were also all using some special concealment techniques, and there wouldve been no way for Han Li to ascertain their locations with his spiritual sense if it werent for the tracking marks that had been planted. As for the two silver wyrm puppets that Long Dong had been referring to earlier, Han Li was completely unable to sense them.

He didnt know whether this was due to the effect of the Limpidity Talismans or if they hadnt actually been released yet.

Countless thoughts were whizzing through Han Lis mind, but his gaze remained fixed directly down below.

Everything in the surrounding area was abnormally quiet, akin to the calm before the storm. This peculiar and rather strained atmosphere persisted for a long while, yet nothing changed at all.

Han Li remained completely expressionless, but he was starting to get a little impatient. It seemed that the time they had agreed on was about to arrive soon as well.

Right at this moment, the giant lizard seemed to have felt a sense of discomfort with one of its giant paws, causing it to raise it reflexively before immediately bringing it down again.

However, right in the instant when it brought its paw down, silver light suddenly flashed from the soil beneath the paw, following which a silver thread shot forth, hurtling directly toward the Thousand-Eyed Giant.

This created the illusion that the lizard was using its paw to launch a sneak attack.

The giant faltered upon seeing this before letting loose a thunderous roar of rage. Gale-force winds were swept up around its body as it swept a palm through the air, violently vanquishing the oncoming silver thread.

However, almost at the exact same moment, a blurry and indistinct object flashed through the air beneath the giants hand. Immediately thereafter, a pillar of silver light that was as thick as a bowl shot forth out of thin air, traveling at an incredible speed and reaching the lizards massive head in an instant.

The lizards green eyes flashed as a crimson pillar of light erupted from its twin horns.

Following a resounding boom, the two pillars of light clashed, and both disappeared into nothingness.

The lizard then immediately threw back its head and let loose an earth-shattering roar. It tensed its four limbs and its massive body immediately rose up as it opened its cavernous mouth to reveal rows of intimidating fangs.

Zoysia Dragon Fruit! Ye Ying blurted out the words that had just surfaced in Han Lis mind.

Long Dong and the others also put on expressions of surprise and elation, having clearly also identified these fruits.

These fruits are the main ingredient for refining the spirit medicine, the Rising Dragon Pill, which can only be consumed by cultivators at or above the Spatial Tempering Stage. The fruits only ripen once every 30,000 years, and even consumption on their own can save one 60 years of arduous cultivation. Looks like this one has only ripened recently, it would be massively fortunate if we could secure this bunch of fruits, Xiao Hong murmured to herself with glowing eyes.

Her expression was also mirrored on Ye Ying and Long Dongs faces. All of them were clearly extremely tempted to step in.

Main ingredients for Spatial Tempering Stage pills were extremely rare, and even most ordinary Spatial Tempering cultivators wouldnt be able to encounter them. Such prized ingredients couldnt be found in normal auctions, either, they were mostly traded between high-grade cultivators for items of equal value. Otherwise, the True Toad Spirit Blood required for refining a late-Deity Transformation Stage pill wouldnt have been so desperately sought-after by those attending the auction.

The pill could take one from the Deity Transformation Stage to the Spatial Tempering Stage, which appeared to be just a single step, but the difference between the two was like heaven and earth.

If a cultivator among them were to secure the Zoysia Dragon Fruits here and take them to a Spatial Tempering cultivator, they would undoubtedly be ecstatic and be willing to exchange a large bunch of Deity Transformation Stage pills in exchange for the fruit.

Even though prized materials and ingredients are extremely abundant in the primordial world, spirit medicines that were effective for Deity Transformation cultivators and above were still considered to be quite rare, and a certain degree of luck was required to find them.

Furthermore, if a spirit medicine were to appear or ripen, it would attract many powerful beings in a short time, so these fruits wouldnt be around for long.

Han Li and his group hadnt even ventured into the primordial world in search of materials and ingredients, yet theyve encountered a Lightning Turtle and these Zoysia Dragon Fruits within the short span of a few months, they were certainly immensely fortunate. There would often be high-grade cultivators who stayed in the primordial world for decades at a time, only to remain completely empty-handed.

Have a look at the situation down below first! the white-browed young man harrumphed coldly.

That giant is a Thousand-Eyed Giant, its eyes are all silver-white, which suggests that its yet to reach full maturity, but its still a vastly fearsome being. That lizard may not look like much, but for a Thousand-Eyed Giant to be so wary of it clearly indicates that its also quite powerful in its own right. Both of these beings most likely possess at least early-Spatial Tempering Stage power, Han Li analyzed in a slow voice.

During his days at Deep Heaven City, hed purchased some tomes related to the primordial world in preparation for his upcoming trip. As such, he was immediately able to identify what this giant was and made a calm assessment based on this observation.

After hearing Han Lis words, everyone else was alerted to the fact that securing these fruits would be an extremely daunting task. However, they simply couldnt bring themselves to leave such a rare and precious ingredient behind. Everyone glanced at one another, but no one was willing to take the plunge, and their expressions all darkened in unison.

Right at this moment, a buzzing sound rang out from the distance, drawing everyones attention toward that direction.

There in the distant sky, seven or eight massive silkworm-like beings were flying rapidly toward them. They were all around 20 feet in length, and their bodies were radiating lights of all different colors.

They did not appear to be here for a picnic.

Han Lis brows furrowed, but after sweeping his spiritual sense toward them, his expression eased again.

These giant creatures appeared to be quite fearsome, but their auras were rather weak, and theyd pose no threat to Han Li and the others. As such, no one regarded these creatures as a threat, and they were preparing to swat them away once they drew closer.

However, the sequence of events that unfolded next gave them a massive fright.

When these creatures were still over 1,000 feet away from them, they just so happened to be flying right above the massive lizard. The lizard abruptly opened its cavernous, blasting forth something from within.

One of the giant silkworms abruptly disappeared on the spot, sending the entire swarm into a state of panic and disarray. The remaining silkworms circled around erratically in the air, letting loose sharp screeches of shock and rage.

However, their actions proved to be completely ineffective as another giant silkworm disappeared without any premonition.

Long Dong and the others were all quite startled to see this.

Han Li narrowed his eyes as a wisp of blue light flashed through his pupils.

In the instant that the next giant silkworm disappeared, he was finally able to glean what was happening with assistance from his Brightsight Spirit Eyes.

Those giant silkworms werent actually vanishing into thin air. Instead, their abdomens were being punctured by a close-to-transparent tongue that shot forth from the lizards mouth at an incredible speed, then dragged into the lizards massive mouth as food thereafter. It was just that the speed at which its tongue was able to fly through the air was quite absurd, thereby giving everyone the illusion that those giant silkworms were disappearing on the spot.

In the blink of an eye, all of the remaining silkworms were also swallowed by the giant lizard, following which the latter lay down on the ground in a completely stationary manner.

A hint of astonishment appeared in Han Lis eyes as he cast his gaze toward the lizard.

Long Dong had unleashed a certain secret technique, thereby allowing him to also catch sight of the massive lizards tongue, and he took a deep breath with a grim expression as he said, This might be a mutated ancient beast. Otherwise, it wouldnt possess such devastating offensive power. Looks like our spirit ark was also destroyed by this things tongue.

But were standing right here, why hasnt it attacked us as opposed to those giant insects? Ye Ying cocked her head to the side with a hint of befuddlement on her face.

Who knows? Perhaps were too small for the lizard to even bother to consider eating us. Alternatively, perhaps those giant insects just so happen to be its favorite food, Xiao Hong speculated with a faint smile.

Ye Ying nodded in response, seemingly under the impression that Xiao Hongs speculation was quite plausible.

Lets not waste any more time with idle chatter. None of us want to give up on these Zoysia Dragon Fruits, right? Seeing as such a brilliant opportunity has been presented to us, I wouldnt even be willing to relinquish it even if I was here on my own. A hint of greed flashed through the eyes of the white-browed young man as he spoke.

There are two Spatial Tempering Stage beings down below, you sure are brave, Brother Li, Ye Ying giggled.

Hmph, if there was only one Spatial Tempering Stage being around, then I may immediately leave on the spot. However, with two here, we have some chances, the white-browed young man said in a cold voice.

Oh? Are you saying… Ye Ying immediately caught on to what he was planning.

Thats right. This mutated ancient beast is quite troublesome to deal with, but that Thousand-Eyed Giant is nothing to be scoffed at, either, even if it hasnt reached full maturity. In a battle between the two of them, both would most likely end up with severe injuries, perhaps even one or both of them would die in the process. If we strike then, well have decent chances, Long Dong chuckled as he rubbed his hands together.

How long will we have to wait before a battle breaks out? What if they dont do anything for months on end? Xiao Hong shook her head.

That is indeed something we need to consider. After all, weve been assigned with an important mission and we cant stay here for too long, Long Dong agreed with a slight nod.

No matter how urgent the situation is, we have at least this much time to waste. These are Zoysia Dragon Fruits! Theyre definitely worth the delay. The white-browed young man seemed to be determined to get his hands on those fruits.

Even if those two Spatial Tempering Stage beings do battle one another and end up with severe injuries, if they struggle for their lives, their attacks will not be easy to handle. One or more of us may perish during that process. If you ask me, we should continue onward and not take any reckless detours.

Long Dong was also very drawn to these Zoysai Dragon Fruits, but they couldnt compare to the other major event that he was hiding in his heart, so he naturally didnt want to take any risks, which was why he was advocating for caution above all else.

I also think that it would not be a wise decision for us to try and secure these fruits. Dont forget that giants are pack-dwelling creatures. These spirit fruits have already ripened, yet this giant and this lizard are still caught in an impasse, perhaps the giant is awaiting its brethren to arrive on the scene and provide it with assistance. The lizard hasnt taken the initiative to attack, so it must also be plotting something as well. If we keep waiting like this, we could get caught up in a massive battle that would endanger our lives, Xiao Hong mused with furrowed brows.

I dont care what you say, I have to secure those spirit fruits. For some reason, Ye Ying suddenly decided to stand firmly by the white-browed young mans side. Not only did Long Dong and Xiao Hong falter upon seeing this, even the white-browed young man himself was quite surprised by this development.

However, a predicament now arose. There were two people for and two people against, making Han Lis vote the decisive one.

As such, all four of them cast their eyes toward Han Li. Han Li heaved an internal sigh and paid the four of them no heed as he mused, It is indeed taking some risks for such precious spirit fruits, but its just as Fairy Xiao has said, we cant spend too much time here. Even if the giant and the lizard refrain from making a move, other powerful beings could b attracted to this place by these spirit fruits. We have to strike within three days. freewbne.com

The other four people all glanced at one another upon hearing this.

Surely its not possible to create a suitable opportunity for us to strike within three days. Xiao Hong shook her head.

The white-browed young man and Ye Ying remained silent, but they were clearly also quite skeptical.

If we leave things as they are right now, then it would indeed be quite unlikely that an opportunity would present itself within three days. However, if we employ some tactics, we might be able to create some chances for ourselves. For example, we can lure them away or enrage them, Han Li proposed with a faint smile.

So what youre saying is… Long Dong was beginning to understand what Han Li was plotting.

Thats right! If we can do that, then its possible to create an opportunity for ourselves in a short time! The white-browed young man was ecstatic.

Luring them away wont be easy, but enraging them and urging them to battle one another shouldnt be too difficult, Ye Ying chuckled.

If theres not much risk involved, then Im willing to offer my assistance. Xiao Hong seemed to have changed her mind after hearing Han Lis proposal.

Long Dong contemplated the situation for a long while before finally giving a reluctant nod. Seeing as all of you have made your decisions, it wouldnt be right for me to detach myself from this endeavor. However, the course of action we take has to be a feasible one!

Unbeknownst to Han Li and the others, not long after they had departed from the lightning torrent area, the black clouds around the Lightning Turtle dissipated to reveal its true form.

Suffice to say the creature was as huge as a massive mountain. Its gargantuan shell was deep grey in color, yet was glistening with a metallic gleam and seemed to be extremely smooth.

What was even more curious was that the turtles four limbs were exposed, but its head and tail were nowhere to be seen. It appeared that they had been completely withdrawn into its shell.

At this point, the lightning torrent was already raging in full force, and the entire sky had been enshrouded under blue light. Bolts of blue lightning of different sizes were falling like rain from the scintillating sky up above. The smallest ones were only around a foot in length each while the largest were as long as over 100 feet. All of them came crashing down in a frenzy, and explosive thunderclaps were the only sounds that could be heard.

The Lightning Turtles massive body was naturally able to withstand the countless bolts of lightning raining down from above. As soon as an arc of lightning came into contact with the turtles body, the former would disappear like sand into an ocean.

What was even more incredible was that the turtle was emanating bursts of white light, which drew the surrounding arcs of lightning toward it like a magnet. As such, a large proportion of the lightning within the lightning torrent was forcibly absorbed by this turtle into its body.

The turtle swam slowly through the air, seemingly thoroughly enjoying itself within the lightning torrent.

All of a sudden, the giant turtles four limbs faltered before abruptly being withdrawn into its shell.

Almost at the exact same moment, spatial fluctuations erupted nearby as a burst of colorful light shot forth out of thin air. The light then receded to reveal a massive skeletal bird that was radiating colorful light from its body.

This skeletal bird was only just over 100 feet in size, but the aura it was emitting was not inferior in the slightest compared to that of the mighty Lightning Turtle. What was even more astonishing was that there were two humanoid figures standing atop its head.

One of them was around 20 feet tall with black light flashing all over its body while the other was more ordinary in size, but it was entirely enshrouded in a green cloud, making it impossible for anyone to glean its true features.

Not bad, not bad, I didnt think wed encounter such fantastic prey as soon as we got teleported here. I just so happen to be refining a Ten-Headed Giant Devil and am missing some materials. This Lightning Turtle will suffice, one of the humanoid figures murmured.

Brother Tian Miao, you cant just claim this turtle for yourself. Youll only require some of its skeleton to refine your devil anyway, I can assist you in killing this turtle, but I want its two lightning beads, the other humanoid figure chuckled.

Hmph, thats a lopsided deal if Ive ever heard one! The most valuable parts of a Lightning Turtles body are its two lightning beads, dont you think its rather unfair for you to claim them like this? The humanoid figure within the green cloud seemed to be quite displeased with this arrangement.

Hehe, lightning beads are indeed extraordinary items, but theyre not very useful to you at all, yet I have a special purpose for them. How about I offer to exchange the arm bone of a Qilin True Spirit for these two lightning beads? the tall and broad humanoid figure proposed.

A special purpose? Oh, I almost forgot that Brother Xuan Wus Transport Spirit is a Lightning Turtle. Youre trying to extend its lifespan by feeding it lightning beads, right? Tian Miao asked.

Thats right, Fellow Daoist. Extending the lifespan of the Transport Spirit will be immensely beneficial to the human race. It can count as half of a true spirit, and if a large-scale war really was to break out, it would be able to provide great assistance to us. You wont turn me down, will you, Brother Tian Miao? Xuan Wu asked.

Seeing as you do indeed have a worthwhile purpose for these lightning beads, I naturally wont decline this arrangement. However, we have to make haste so we dont delay the issue weve actually come here to address. Were not here on an expedition to source materials, dont forget that weve been assigned an important mission. We have to get rid of all of those settlements established by beings of foreign races near Deep Heaven City, Tian Miao reluctantly agreed after a period of contemplation.

Haha, dont worry, well have more than enough time. Our combined powers in conjunction with this puppet you refined from the remains of that primordial rainbow phoenix will be able to take care of this Lightning Turtle in no time, Xuan Wu laughed heartily before rising up into the air with his fists clenched and charging straight into the lightning torrent.

Moments later, an earth-shattering boom erupted from within the lightning torrent, followed by a beastly roar that was just as devastating.

Meanwhile, Tian Miao shook his head with a faint sigh as he stood atop his rainbow phoenix puppet, seemingly feeling rather exasperated by his companions short temper. However, he still immediately made a hand seal, upon which the skeletal phoenix beneath his feet swelled drastically to over 1,000 feet in size in the blink of an eye. The skeletal phoenix then also plunged into the lightning torrent at Tian Miaos behest.

A hint of horror and rage immediately crept into the voice of the Lightning Turtle as it let loose another ear-splitting roar.

Meanwhile, Han Li and the others continued onward in their journey, completely oblivious to the events that were unfolding within the lightning torrent.

As it turned out, Long Dong had been correct in stating that they would most likely be encountering more hazards throughout their journey. During the next month or so, the spirit ark continued to travel at a high speed while enshrouded in its illusionary cloud, but they were still afflicted by numerous dangerous situations.

For example, on one occasion, the ark was suddenly swept into a strange gust of crimson winds. In reality, these winds were swarms of countless crimson insects, each of which was only around the size of a grain of rice.

If it werent for the fact that all five of them combined their powers once again to quickly evacuate the ark from that area, it wouldve most likely been completely devoured by those insects in the blink of an eye.

Not long after that, spatial fluctuations suddenly erupted up ahead as a two-headed bird that was over 1,000 feet in length emerged out of thin air.

This birds body was entirely golden in color and radiating astonishing spiritual Qi. It was clearly a fearsome being that was not inferior in power to that Lightning Turtle. Everyones hearts leaped into their throats as they waited to see whether the bird had discovered their spirit ark.

As it turned out, it did notice their ark, but it displayed a complete lack of interest in such an insignificant object. As such, it merely flapped its massive wings and flew away.

Han Li and the others heaved a collective sigh of relief before glancing at one another with wry smiles on their faces.

After witnessing the horrors of the primordial world, no one dared to actually cultivate in a deep meditative state anymore, even after retiring to their silent cultivation chambers. Everyone remained on high alert, and their wariness was certainly warranted. During the coming days, they encountered several more crises, all of which were barely averted through everyones collective efforts.

However, their luck was always going to run out one day.

On that day, the white-browed young man was on lookout duty while everyone else was recuperating in their silent cultivation chambers. All of a sudden, a long cautionary cry erupted from outside, and Han Lis expression immediately changed slightly as he rose to his feet. However, before he had a chance to do anything else, the entire ark suddenly tremored violently, and he was almost thrown off balance.

Han Lis heart jolted with shock, following which violent tremors ran through the ark in quick succession White light then began to swirl erratically around the walls around him, and those walls were gradually beginning to crack.

Han Lis expression darkened as he swept a sleeve up toward the roof of his silent cultivation chamber, upon which a streak of golden light shot forth, puncturing a massive hole into the roof.

Han Lis body swayed before he flew through the hole as a streak of azure light. After a few flashes, he had reached an altitude of over 200 feet above the ark. Only then did he begin to carefully inspect his surroundings.

At this moment, several other streaks of light also quickly hurtled forth from within the ark. Long Dong and the others had also abandoned the ark in the face of this latest crisis.

In the instant after everyone had left the ark, a resounding boom erupted and the entire spirit ark exploded amid the erratic white light, instantly sweeping up gusts of gale-force winds that surged toward the five of them.

All of them were Deity Transformation cultivators, so they naturally werent fearful of these winds. All of them managed to stabilize themselves before staring at the site of the explosion down below.

Aside from the white-browed young man who was on lookout duty, no one knew what had caused this explosion.

However, even as everyone swept their spiritual sense through the surrounding area, they were unable to discover anything.

As such, all of them were rather bewildered.

Brother Li, whos attacking us? Xiao Hong hurriedly asked.

Have a look for yourselves! The white-browed young man cast his gaze downward with a grim expression.

Everyone faltered slightly upon hearing this before sweeping their spiritual sense down toward the ground.

After ascertaining the situation down below, Han Lis brows furrowed while the two women let loose cries of surprise.

There was a gargantuan set of mountain ranges down below that seemed to stretch into infinity and beyond. All of them just so happened to be situated above the col between two massive mountains, and in this rather obscure place, there was a vast area that had been cleared out amid a forest with huge trees of all types of colors.

At the center of this area was a giant purple herb that was around 300 to 400 feet tall. Each and every one of the herbs leaves reached directly upward as if they were massive swords, and there were countless extremely sharp-looking thorns growing all around it.

There was a pair of colossal creatures facing off against one another on either side of this giant herb.

One of them was a giant lizard with a body that was around 500 to 600 feet long. its entire body was green and riddled with coin-sized black spots while a pair of crimson horns sat on top of its head.

Its opponent was a primordial giant that was around 300 feet tall. It possessed a set of sinister facial features and a head of yellow hair. It had an inky-black wooden club hoisted up on its shoulder, and everyone drew a collective sharp breath at the sight of this giant.

There were countless silvery-white eyeballs of different sizes all over the giants body and limbs, all of which were emanating an eerie light.

Both the giant and the lizard were scrutinizing their opponent while appraising the giant herb between them.

Han Lis heart stirred upon making this observation as he also swept his spiritual sense toward the herb, following which his expression changed drastically.

Within the sword-like leaves of the herb, there rested a bunch of purple grape-like fruits, each of which was around the size of a human fist.

The fruits were round and supple, and seemed to be practically overflowing with translucent juices, emitting an alluring aroma. After sweeping his spiritual sense toward these fruits, Han Li discovered that each and every one of them contained an extremely life-like dragon-shaped core. All of those dragon-shaped cores were glittering and translucent, creating quite a spectacular sight to behold.

These miniature dragons didnt possess any signs of life, but they were emanating extremely pure spiritual Qi. Even just by sweeping his spiritual sense through these fruits, Han Li was struck by an immense sense of comfort and relaxation.

Even though Han Lis eyes were closed, he naturally wouldnt truly go into a deep meditative state. Instead, he was considering some of the cultivation arts that he had yet to fully grasp in his mind over and over again. At the same time, he was releasing a portion of his spiritual sense to constantly monitor the surrounding area in case more ancient beasts suddenly attacked the ark.

During the following seven to eight days, the spirit ark continued onward under the cover of the giant cloud. Even though a few other types of flying beasts were encountered along the way, all of them simply flew by without attacking. These beasts clearly didnt possess the ability to see through the spirit arks disguise like those four-winged birds did.

Thus, Han Li reached the ninth day of his shift. At noon that day, he had just fitted a new batch of spirit stones onto the ark and was about to return to his former spot to take a seat again when his footsteps suddenly faltered. He suddenly turned his head and cast his gaze up ahead with a surprised look on his face.

How could this be? How could something like this appear here? Han Lis expression darkened significantly as he let loose a long cry.

Even though it wasnt very loud, it was enough to alert the other four members of the party.

Moments later, a few streaks of light shot forth from various locations on the ark before flying over to Han Li.

What happened? Why have you summoned us, Brother Han? Have we encountered some danger?

Whats this? Could it be…

Xiao Hong and Long Dong spoke out in quick succession, except Xiao Hongs words were filled with confusion, yet Long Dong seemed to have immediately detected something as a surprised look appeared on his face.

The white-browed young man and Ye Ying also cast their spiritual sense outward at the same time.

Whats that? Could it be a True Spirit level being? the young man exclaimed.

Ye Ying didnt say anything, but the shock in her eyes was quite apparent.

In contrast, Han Li had already calmed down at this point. His spiritual sense was lingering in the air several hundred kilometers above them, where a gargantuan black shadow was hovering, obscuring virtually the entire sky in the process.

Black clouds were tumbling incessantly near the black shadow and lightning flashed amid rumbling thunderclaps. Countless gusts of grey winds were being swept up like massive pillars that connected heaven and earth. In the clouds apart, small sections of a grey-scaled body were visible from time to time, but no one could tell what this creature was due to its sheer enormity.

However, from a distance, one could tell that the black shadow was circular in shape. It seemed to be extremely similar to a legendary True Spirit level being.

As such, it was no wonder that all of the people on the ark were so unsettled by it.

Just as everyone was reeling from shock, a strange cry not unlike the moo of a cow erupted from the distance. The rumbling thunderclaps then intensified as if there were countless bolts of lightning exploding nearby. Even from such a long distance away, the thunderclaps were still quite clearly audible to everyone.

Upon hearing this cry, Ye Yings expression eased as she heaved a sigh of relief, and explained, Thats not a True Spirit, its an ancient beast, a Lightning Turtle. This thing is one of the largest types of ancient beasts in the primordial world, but it sustains itself by absorbing the lightning in its surroundings with its body and wont attack other living beings unless its been provoked. However, if you get on its bad side, its an extremely fearsome being. At the very least, one would have to be at the Body Integration Stage to stand a chance against it in direct combat.

Lightning Turtle? Is that the legendary ancient beast thats said to be born amid heavenly lightning? I heard that as long as theres a sufficient supply of lightning, these things will continue to expand indefinitely with no upper limit to the size they can reach. Theyre an extraordinary species and Ive heard that the Transport Spirit Turtle of the Xuan Wu Region, which is capable of carrying and transporting an entire city, could be a Lightning Turtle. Even though the one above us is quite massive already, its still incomparable to that legendary Transport Spirit. Xiao Hong clucked her tongue in wonder.

Im not sure if the Transport Spirit is truly a Lightning Turtle or not, but if that really is the case, then this Lightning Turtle is most likely less than a ten-thousandth of the size of the Transport Spirit. Even so, it can still kill us if we were to provoke it, so its best to avoid this thing, Long Dong said with a smile.

Thats indeed true. Were actually quite lucky to be able to witness such a creature. Lightning Turtles usually burrow deep under the ground and very rarely emerge above the ground, so its certainly not something you see every day. They usually only emerge from the ground to… Wait, this is bad! If this turtle has appeared here, then it must be the case that a fearsome lightning torrent is about to appear here. Brother Long, pilot your ark away from this area as quickly as possible! A thought suddenly occurred to Xiao Hong, and her features immediately turned deathly pale.

Lightning torrent? Everyones expressions changed drastically upon hearing this.

Long Dongs expression darkened significantly as his body swayed and he abruptly disappeared on the spot. In the next instant, he appeared on the bow of the ark over 100 feet away before flipping over a hand to produce a badge-like treasure.

He rubbed his hands together with the badge in between them, and the white clouds around the ark suddenly disappeared. The entire ark then faltered before abruptly hurtling toward a certain direction, moving almost twice as fast as its original speed as it shot forth through the air as a streak of white light.

However, the spirit ark had only traveled for a few dozens of kilometers when a layer of shimmering blue light suddenly appeared in the air above the gargantuan black shadow. The blue light then coursed through the air in all directions at an astonishing speed, as if it had been spurred on by some kind of external stimulus.

In the short span of a few breaths, a blue line had appeared in the sky amid a loud rumbling boom. The blue line was imbued with boundless electrical power as it arced through the air directly toward their party of five.

Long Dong drew a sharp breath upon seeing the insane speed at which the blue line was moving, and he hurriedly yelled, Id heard that whenever a Lightning Turtle appears, a lightning torrent must follow soon after, looks like thats indeed true. Everyone, come and lend me your assistance.

Even without his sudden outburst, everyone was already feeling extremely tense at the sight of the rapidly approaching blue line.

As such, all four of them immediately made hand seals as piercing spiritual light of different colors emanated from their bodies. Five bursts of spiritual power were injected into the spirit ark in a frenzy!

After joining forces to act as a collective power source, the ark underfoot began to emit a low buzzing sound before shuddering violently, following which the surrounding scenery completely blurred.

Traveling at such an extreme speed, the spirit ark had transformed into a barely traceable blur, and it quickly sped from one side of the sky to the other.

However, even at such a phenomenal speed, the blue line behind the ark was still able to keep up and give chase in hot pursuit.

Everyone was quite astonished to see this, and only then did they realize that the tales of how fearsome lightning torrents were really werent exaggerations.

Thankfully, the five of them were able to join forces to spur on the spirit ark to its maximal speed. If a normal Deity Transformation cultivator whose forte didnt lie in speed were to take their place, there would be no way that theyd be able to escape.

Of course, Han Li and the others werent ordinary Deity Transformation cultivators. All of them possessed some secret techniques to be used in dire situations, which would grant them speed that was not inferior to the speed of this spirit ark by much. However, using such secret techniques would naturally bring about debilitating after-effects, and no one wished to incur such a risk in this perilous primordial world.

As such, everyone worked together on this occasion, spurring on the spirit ark for tens of thousands of kilometers, all the way until the blue light behind them was nowhere to be seen and the thunderclaps couldnt be heard anymore, either.

Only then did everyone heave a collective sigh of relief before withdrawing the spiritual power.

The spirit ark immediately slowed down as a result.

Long Dongs expression eased as he turned to Xiao Hong with a smile, and said, That was close! Thank heavens Fairy Xiao reacted as quickly as she did. Otherwise, a slight further delay wouldve seen us being swept up into that lightning torrent. Even though we may not die in there, it would definitely be very difficult to emerge unscathed.

I was merely lucky. Even though Lightning Turtles are quite renowned, not many people actually know about their habits and behavior patterns. There just so happens to be a senior from my race who once slew a Lightning Turtle on his own, so he knows a bit about them. Lightning Turtles usually burrow deep within the ground and wont emerge for no good reason. Theyll only reveal themselves when a lightning torrent is imminent so they can devour its power of lightning. Its said that mature Lightning Turtles will grow a pair of beads within their bodies, one of which is lightningphilic while the other is lightningphobic. These beads are quite extraordinary and even someone without a lightning spiritual root can easily manipulate the power of lightning using them. The Lightning Turtle that my senior slew hadnt reached full maturity yet, so he wasnt able to obtain those beads. However, the shells of these turtles contain astonishing lightning power and is an exceptional material for refining lightning-attribute treasures. If an extremely powerful being had encountered this Lightning Turtle in our stead, they would be ecstatic rather than horrified, Xiao Hong said with a wry smile.

The senior youre referring to has to be an elder of your race for him to be able to hunt and kill such a fearsome beast on his own. That would be nothing more than a delusional dream for Deity Transformation cultivators like us. Were already extremely lucky to have survived that ordeal. The white-browed young man still wore an expression of lingering fear as he spoke.

Indeed. Lightning Turtles bodies are filled with treasures to be harvested, but it would be suicide to attempt to hunt one down without a Body Integration Stage cultivation base at minimum. Lets continue onward. Hopefully, the rest of our journey will be a bit smoother, Long Dong said in a slightly grave voice.

They had encountered a beast that was more than powerful enough to kill them after less than 20 days in the primordial world, and their hearts were feeling quite heavy as a result.

After that ordeal, everyone was in rather low spirits, so no one was interested in continuing the conservation. As such, after a few more obligatory exchanges, everyone returned to their respective silent cultivation chambers aside from Han Li, who remained standing on the spot.

He didnt contribute so much as a single word to that conversation, but after everyone disappeared, he cast his gaze toward the direction of the lightning torrent with a contemplative look on his face.

After a short while, he heaved a wistful sigh before returning to the highest point of the jade ark, where he took a seat again.

This is indeed an important matter that will require an extensive discussion between the members of the panel of elders. This purple shadow knows quite a bit, you can interrogate it in further depth, Master Jin Yue, the middle-aged scholar nodded before tossing the jade bowl in his hand through the air.

Thank you, Holy Sovereign! Its just a pity that the people who were deployed to the territories of the different races have most likely all fallen already. The elderly monk caught the jade bowl with a wistful look on his face.

Theirs was a necessary sacrifice in order to prevent the enemy from catching wind of what we were doing. The Shadow Tribe will most likely attack them along the way, and we can only hope that theyll be lucky enough to escape alive. However, was what you said earlier true, Master Jin Yue? Is it really the case that the cultivators who ascended in the past century could possess that Profound Heavenly Spiritslash Sword? the Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign asked.

Of course not, I was only lying just then because I didnt want to waste any more time. Once a profound heavenly artifact takes shape in one world, it can be taken to another world prior to its attainment of sentient will. However, if this treasure is taken away from its world of origin prior to attaining sentient will, it will lose the chance to do so in the future. Profound heavenly artifacts with no sentient will arent very useful, and theres no way that theyd appear on the Chaotic Myriad Spirit Roll, the elderly monk replied with a faint smile.

I see. However, Ive heard that this desert seems to be a trial ground for the two tribes, Ye Ying suddenly interjected. I see. As expected, you really are the leading expert in profound heavenly treasures, Master Jin Yue. The middle-aged scholar gave a faint smile, and it was impossible to tell whether the actually believed the old monk or not.

Han Li as naturally unaware of the fact that so many changes would be taking place to the mission that he was on. At present, he and the other four people were skirting around the white clouds, engaging in a ruthless killing spree of the strange birds and ancient beasts there.

Each and every one of these strange birds was around 10 feet in size and possessed four wings. Their bodies were like enlarged versions of bat bodies, yet they possessed the heads of mountain goats. Their pairs of horns were curved backward, and when they opened their mouths, the sharp fangs within presented quite an intimidating sight to behold.

There were several hundred birds of this nature in the surrounding area, and as they flapped their wings, gusts of grey winds would be swept up. They could also blast arcs of lightning that were as thick as large bowls from their mouths, and their individual powers were not inferior to that of the average Core Formation cultivator. Furthermore, these birds all had pairs of black metal talons, so they were dangerous even in close-quarters combat.

If a single normal Deity Transformation cultivator were to encounter such a large flock of these strange birds, they would perhaps avoid them to spare some trouble.

However, in Han Lis party of five, there was were direct lineal descendants of true spirit families, metamorphosis stage demonic cultivators from the seven major demon sub-species, as well as an absolute freak in Han Li. As such, they were able to easily protect their Spiritcloud Ark while engaging in a completely one-sided slaughter of these ferocious birds.

The young man with the red mole was making hand seals, manipulating two streaks of white light that were over 100 feet in length to completely enshroud an area of over 1,000 feet ahead of him. The true form of these streaks of white light had to be some type of wickedly sharp weapon as they were able to cleave through winds, lightning, and birds with no exceptions.

Meanwhile, the young woman in the black dress was situated within a ball of furious black flames. She didnt appear to be unleashing any abilities and was only hovering peacefully in mid-air, but all of the winds and lightning that struck her disappeared without being able to put so much as a single scratch on her. Any of the birds who dared to attack her were also immediately reduced to ashes as soon as they came into contact with even a tiny wisp of those black flames.

Even though these birds were extremely ferocious in nature, none of them dared to approach Han Lis party after having a dozen or so of their brethren destroyed in quick succession.

In contrast, the young man with the white eyebrows was fighting in a unique style of his own. He wasnt relying on any treasures, choosing, instead, to plunge headfirst into the flock of strange birds. A pair of black glistening wings had appeared on his back and his arms had also become extremely thick and bulky, clearly having transformed into a semi-demonic form already.

As his body flashed through the air, one could only see a half-bird half-humanoid shadow crashing through the throngs of birds. All of the birds that were unfortunate enough to stand in his path were split into several pieces, sending a rain of blood falling from the sky.

As for Han Li, his performance was the most mundane of the lot. He merely released all of his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword, transforming them into 72 streaks of golden light that revolved around his body, each of which was several feet in length. Not only did they manage to ward off all of the oncoming attacks, they also slew any birds that dared to approach him.

However, the one who was seemingly the most relaxed and carefree among their party was the white-robed young woman by the name of Ye Ying.

She was holding a green jade lute in her lap, and her slim fingers were gliding over its strings, sending halos of yellow light radiating through the air around her. Any oncoming birds that were struck by these halos would be completely encased in layers of peculiar greyish-white substance. They would then be completley immobilized as a result and plummet from the sky before shattering into countless pieces on the ground below.

This lute possessed the extremely rare ability to turn enemies into stone.

Even though none of the five unleashed their most powerful abilities or treasures, they were still able to make short work of this flock of strange birds within five minutes.

They then withdrew their abilities and disappeared into the giant cloud formed by the spirit ark before landing on the bow of the ark.

I wonder what these birds are supposed to be, Im quite surprised that they were able to see through my arks disguise, Long Dong sighed.

Ive never seen this type of strange bird, either, but the primordial world is an extremely vast place, so its no surprise that there are many species of ancient beasts that were unfamiliar with. Im more surprised by the fact that it took so long for something to see through the arks disguise, Xiao Hong said in a calm manner.

This also indicates that weve traveled really deep into the primordial world already, so we can expect more of these scenarios during the rest of our journey. There was a large number of those strange birds, but they were still quite easy to deal with. If we encounter some more powerful ancient beasts, then we might have to abandon this ark when necessary, the white-browed young man said with furrowed brows.

Of course. If we really do encounter legendary beings like Hundred-Eyed Giants that we cant contend with, then well naturally have to prioritize our own survival. Brother Han, youre on duty next. Thanks in advance for your hard work, Long Dong said to Han Li with a smile.

Han Li nodded with a calm expression and didnt say anything.

Meanwhile, the white-robed young woman turned to the woman in the black dress with a smile, and asked, Big Sister Xiao, the ability you just unleashed is the vast renowned Black Scorching Flames of the Black Phoenix race, right? The legends certainly ring true in this case, those flames are indeed extremely formidable!

Xiao Hong faltered slightly upon hearing this before her brows furrowed with a hint a peculiar expression as she replied, Those were indeed Black Scorching Flames, but theyre hardly worthy of a mention. However, your lute reminds me of a legendary treasure. Its said that tens of thousands of years ago, a Body Integration Stage senior of the Heavenly Spirit Region refined a Divine Spirit Treasure known as the Lute of Wisdom. Its since staked a place for itself on the Chaotic Myriad Spirit Roll and is capable of turning enemies into stone, melting metals, and sealing objects in ice. Is the treasure youre using somehow related to this spirit treasure, Fellow Daoist Ye?

Hehe, I didnt think that Big Sister Xiao would be so familiar with the treasures from our human race. Even though the treasure Im using isnt that Lute of Wisdom, its a replica ancient treasure that is only capable of turning enemies into stone. Of course, even that ability is far less potent than whats capable of being unleashed by the true spirit treasure, Ye Ying replied with a dainty smile.

I see. Even so, this treasure is comparable with the average spirit treasure. After all, the ability to turn enemies into stone is extremely rare and difficult to defend against, Xiao Hong continued.

Listening to the barbed conversation between the two young women, a hint of a smile appeared on Long Dongs face. A thought suddenly seemed to have occurred to him as he turned to Han Li, and said, Fellow Daoist Han, your flying swords appear to be quite interesting. There are 72 of them, and they look like theyre part of a complete set. That reminds me of a senior from many years ago who was also an ascended cultivator. Even though he was only at the late-Spatial Tempering Stage at the time, he managed to set up a formation with 72 swords to match a Body Integration cultivator in battle, thereby forging quite a reputation for himself. However, the swords wielded by that senior were all azure in color as opposed to gold. Do your flying swords also possess a similar sword formation ability, Fellow Daoist Han?

Long Dong seemed to be quite interested in the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords Han Li had just unleashed.

Han Lis heart stirred slightly upon hearing this question, but his expression remained unchanged as he replied, Oh? I wasnt aware of that. May I ask that seniors name and what kind of sword formation he was using? I only refined so many flying swords so I can have more weapons to combat my enemies with, I have no idea about matters such as sword formations…

Oh, Ive heard about the person that Fellow Daoist Long is referring to. Hes a senior by the name of Qing Yuanzi, and he was indeed quite a legendary figure back in the day. I dont know what kind of sword formation he was using, but I heard that hed invented the formation himself. Unfortunately, its said that this senior was never heard from again after entering the primordial world many years ago. Otherwise, with his brilliant aptitude, that senior couldve very likely reached the Body Integration Stage, the white-robed woman interjected with a smile.

Long Dong showed no signs of anger at being interrupted, and he merely gave a faint smile.

However, Han Li was silent for a long while after hearing this. It appeared that this Qing Yuanzi was the one who had invented the Azure Essence Sword Art. He was rather surprised to learn about this legendary figure from these two. It was just a pity that he had already chosen the path of simultaneous cultivation. Otherwise, he could attempt to obtain this Qing Yuanzis inheritance and continue to cultivate his Azure Essence Sword Art.

With that in mind, Han Li extended a polite salute toward the others before rising into the air as a streak of azure light, flying to the highest point of the jade ark, where he took a seat with his legs crossed.

Han Li was clearly unwilling to continue engaging in further conversation, and the other four members of the party also bade farewell to one another soon thereafter. Some returned to their silent cultivation chambers while others traveled to other parts of the jade ark for different purposes.

The old monk muttered, Thats right. Originally, it shouldve been tens of thousands more years before another attack. There is even a possibility of another hundred race war erupting as a result of this.

The Daoist priest spoke with confusion. Why is Brother Jin Yue speaking in circles? This information is obvious. How is this related to what we were talking about? Arent the various races fearful of being drawn into this war?

The old man slowly said, Fear being drawn in? Hehe, now that this matter has appeared, what race cant? In accordance to the appearance of past profound heavenly treasures, it will provoke a storm of blood before it can be formed. The race that will acquire this treasure in the end can consecrate it to attract a True Spirit-grade existence to protect their clan and turn it into the strongest tribe in the spirit realm. These True Spirit-grade existences are superior to Immortals from the True Immortal Realm. Of course, before a powerful True Spirit appears, the tribe in question will have to protect it. Otherwise, it will only be seized away by others. If the race that acquires this treasure is weak, they may even offer the treasures to a stronger tribe in a request for protection or abandon it in a wild area to prevent the extermination of their own clan.

The Daoist priest didnt understand the monk, but he didnt interrupt him.

The monk paused, and then continued, It is reasonable to say that with our strength, it is difficult to predict which tribe will receive the Profound Heavenly Treasure. However, the demons have a Body Integration cultivator that has some prophetic abilities. Because they are aware they have no chance of surviving their next tribulation, they activated their potential and used their lifes magic power to divine the whereabouts of the next treasure. As a result, it was shown the Profound Heavenly Execution Sword will appear in the northwest portion of what is known to humans as the Feng Yuan Continent. Although the Feng Yuan Continent is the smallest of the three, it has far more races than the other continents. The so-called north-west corner consists of humans, demons, spirit tribe, wood tribe, nightfiend tribe, shadow tribe, and six other races. In other words, the newly appeared Profound Heavenly Treasure can appear in human lands. As of current, only humans and demons are aware of this situation, but it wont be hidden for long. After all, there are certain to be spies from the other races in our ranks. There are no walls where air doesnt pass through. If the other foreign races were to discover this, you should realize what will happen.

When the monk finished, he wore a wry smile.

What? It was like that? In that case, if we arent careful, it is possible that we will be exterminated. The Daoist Priests face turned pale.

The monk sighed, According to ancient legends, when a great number of powerful beings are exterminated in an area, a mysterious blood offering technique can be employed, forcibly calling down a profound heavenly treasure. Those powerful tribes dont care about exterminating humans or demons. They are only using us as a blood offering. In the last hundred race war, the fourth ranked Heavenform Shield caused turmoil for myriads of years. They swept in most of the tribes on the continents and exterminated the weaker ones in a massacre. So regardless of which tribe acquires the treasure, we will have to launch a war to evade our fate as a blood offering and have other tribes take that place.

So it was like that… so you had the newly ascended cultivators leave the city to a foreign land… The Daoist Priest suddenly realized something.

The monk solemnly said, Profound Heavenly Treasures are heaven-defying treasures able to reverse the realms laws. But they might not all come from the spirit realm, and could be brought up from a lower realm. Although the possibility of this is extremely slim, there have been suspicious ascended cultivators in the last hundred years. Theyve all been released from Deep Heaven City on the most dangerous missions to the foreign tribes. Regardless of whether they succeed in their mission, they will eventually discover in a short time that they will not be able to return to Deep Heaven City. Of course, there are also a few suspicious cultivators from natives that were also moved out from Deep Heaven City or were forcefully exiled to the wilderness for whatever reason. Apart from these people, there are also a few with astonishing potential and aptitude that were also sent to the wilderness. This way, if they truly carry the Profound Heavenly Execution Sword, we are effectively moving them away from the source of calamity. If we happen to be defeated in the war, these people will be able to continue the lineage of humans and demons and have them flourish once more. rewebnol.cm

There is no need to go through so much trouble. If we investigate whether or not these people truly possessed a Profound Heavenly treasure, we can… The Daoist priest trailed.

The monk explained, We can search through the entirety of their spiritual sense with mind-controlling techniques, but what advantage is there if we find out that the Profound Heavenly Execution Sword is on our hands? It is only a source of trouble. Are you able to guarantee that no one from the panel of elders is actually a foreign being taking their form? If this is leaked, not only will our human clan become a target in a short time, even the demon clan may break their alliance with us for self-preservation. Humans will truly be exterminated in that case.

We arent some powerful race. We cant hold the treasure until a True Spirit-grade existence comes knocking on our door. Even if we present the treasure to a stronger tribe for protection, I reckon the shadow race and the others wont let this chance pass them by. Instead of feigning ignorance, itd be best we deal with the coming war. If we dont have the certainty of which race possesses the Profound Heavenly Treasure, it will most likely be the tree tribe and the shadow tribe that attacks us. With the humans and demons manning Deep Heaven City, we will most be able to block them. The spirit tribe and the nightfiend tribe will join in the war with fierce vigor after finding out this information. At worst, great injuries will befall the various tribes and well fulfill the blood offering requirement to call upon the Profound Heavenly Treasure. Regardless of who the treasure originally belongs to, so long as the treasure is summoned, we will have survived this calamity. But to prevent those powerful tribes from finding us, we must first achieve victory. I reckon that this battle will be different from the hundred year long city sieges. I reckon that this war will have an outcome in several years that is far more wretched.

Hehe, the other tribes controlling them most likely think the same. Otherwise, the other tribes wouldve looked carefully for the Profound Heavenly Execution Sword. They are all preparing for the war, The old monk finally finished.

After the Daoist priest heard this, he remained in place for a long while. Then he unhappily asked, When did you find this information? Last time, I wasnt told about this. Could it be that the panel of elders have hidden this from me?

Its quite simple. We only did this after we found out there was something wrong with your identity. I dont know if I should continue to address you as Lei Luo or as elder purple shadow.

What purple shadow? What does Grandmaster Jin Yue mean? The Daoist Priest asked with a frown.

Hehe, its about time. Lets start. The old monk ignored the Daoist priest and swept his gaze to an exquisite incense burner in the corner of the room. The stick of incense was burned halfway.

Its about time? Dont tell me, the incense… A purple light flashed from the Daoist Priest Eyes and his face vastly changed. At nearly the same time, a purple shadow shot out from the Daoist Priests body and pounced at the old monk.

The monk remained still in his seat and he swept his sleeve.

A bang sounded and golden light flashed. Series of Buddhist texts floated in the air.

The purple shadow struck the wall as if receiving a strike of immense force. Soon after, his body violently trembled and turned into a ball, incapable of any further action.

At that moment, the wall flashed with azure light and an azure jade bowl suddenly appeared. It flipped out and spat out an azure mist, instantly taking in the purple shadow into it.

Not bad, the Four Spirit Incense is worthy of its reputation in restraining the Shadow Tribe. It even restrains a purple shadow. White light flashed from the wall to reveal a middle-aged scholar. He wore white robes and had a relaxed expression.

Brother Tian Yuan! Many thanks for your spirit incense. It wouldve been difficult to deal with this evil creature otherwise. The monk looked at the scholar and stood up, saluting him.

Grandmaster Jin Yue praises me too greatly. It just happened to cultivate a new ability that allowed me to take notice that Lei Luo was possessed. It is a pity that a genius of Lei Luos talents had met his end. The scholar glanced at the Daoist priests body and sighed.

The life from the possessed body soon faded and its flesh became shriveled.

The monk softly chanted with a trace of anguish on his face. Soon after, he flicked his finger and a golden flame shot from his finger.

Suddenly, the body turned to nothing in the golden flames.

According to common convention, although the purple shadow is of equivalent strength to a Body Integration cultivator, with Lei Luos abilities, it shouldnt have been easy for him to be possessed. It seemed my old friend was plotted against when he last journeyed into the wilderness a hundred years ago. The purple shadow was extremely devious and kept his cover for many years when he returned to the city. Were it not for the Holy Sovereigns keen senses, I fear that we would still be tricked. The evil creature thought to gather together all the ascended cultivators and send them to their doom under the guise of protection.

The middle-aged man that appeared was the renowned master of Heavenly Origin City, Holy Sovereign Tian Yuan.

The Sovereign gracefully smiled and said, However, over the past years, my old friends favor the native cultivators a bit too much. It is no wonder ascended cultivators have become resentful.

The monks face turned sullen. Ive always remained in secluded cultivation these past years and neglected these matters. Now that a great enemy has appeared, I cant deal with these small affairs. It is known how much information leaked after Fellow Daoist Lei Luos body was possessed. Deep Heaven Citys defenses and restrictions must be changed.

A ball of faint white light floated out from the forest. It contained a longboat that stretched over sixty meters wide.

The boat was divided into two stories and seemed to be crafted entirely from fine jade. The boat was engraved with simple cloud designs. Gold and silver talisman characters also floated from its surface, producing an unordinary aura.

The jade boat shuddered. Suddenly, the silver and golden talisman characters exploded, turning into a white cloud that wrapped around the boat. The entire boat appeared like an unremarkable white cloud.

The huge cloud soon circled in the air and silently rushed off.

Although the cloud appeared to be gently flying through the air, it traveled at extreme speed, tearing through three hundred meters in an instant. Its speed was comparable to an ordinary Deity Transformation cultivator.

As Xiao Hong stood on top of the boat, she looked around and praised, Not bad. Although a spirit boat suitable for travel cant be considered rare, one this fast is a top-grade good. As expected for the Long Clan, an owner of a human auction house.

Long Dong politely said, Hehe, Fairy Xiao praises me too greatly. Your clan is one of the seven great demon clans. You mustve seen every kind of treasure. My Spirit Cloud Boats speed cant be more than acceptable in your eyes. However, the boat does have quite a space. There are at least a dozen rooms. Apart from one person needing to keep watch on the outside, everyone else can rest in a room. If it goes smoothly, well arrive in half a year. With some cultivation, itll pass by quickly.

Xiao Hong nodded, That is good. Well take ten days turns keeping watch while the others can do as they wish on the boat. Everyone should select their rooms first.

The others raised no objections and found a satisfactory room on the boat.

Since it was their place to rest and meditate, they placed down other restrictions in the room to protect them from prying eyes.

Then after a short discussion, the watch rotation was decided.

As it so happened, Han Li was the last position in the rotation. That gave him forty days before he had to keep watch.

With all of that arranged, Han Li didnt chat more with the others and headed into his room instead.

The others had done the same, apart from Long Dong, who held the first watch.

With Long Dong alone on board, his lips twitched and he made his way to the front of the boat. He flipped his hand and produced a green mat.

He then sat down on it cross-legged.

The blood marked youth quietly muttered, Half a year… I look forward to the day that arrives. Then, he slowly closed his eyes and wore an odd smile on his face.

In a room ten meters wide, Xiao Hong and the white-browed youth took a seat across from each other.

What? Youre saying that young girl Xie Ying possesses Heavenly Phoenix Blood and is a disciple of the True Spirit Noble Clan? The youth said with an astonished face.

Xiao Hong solemnly said, Why is Fellow Daoist Li so surprised. Your Dark Falcon Clan is also a rare species of bird. You mustve felt something. As for our Black Phoenix Clan, although we are a side branch of the phoenix clan, the purity of our heavenly phoenix blood is far greater than what that girl possesses. But there is no doubt about the presence of phoenix blood in her body.

The white-browed sighed and wore an odd expression, So it was like that! When I first saw that girl, I felt ill at ease, like there was a slight sensation of fear, so I was somewhat at a loss when we entered the forest. So why did Fairy Xiao tell me this?

Its just that if the girl has other true spirit blood on her, it wouldve been fine. But she has the Heavenly Phoenix Blood of the myriad bird king. Brother Li should understand what this means. Xiao Hong sweetly smiled, but her eyes were ice cold.

The white-browed youth grew silent for a moment before letting out a cold laugh. Of course I understand. But dont forget how important the elders told us to treat this mission. If we let personal matters get in the way of the clans mission, then our lives are forfeit, regardless if we managed to acquire Heavenly Phoenix Blood.

Xiao Hong chuckled, When did I say I wanted to attack her before the mission was over. Well have to first make sure that the mission is completed. Then well strike.

Strike after the mission is over? Oh, if it doesnt affect the mission, thatll be possible. But will the other two help her? Even if we take back the True Phoenix Blood, how will we divide it? The blood cant be evenly divided. The white-browed youth blinked and he shook his head.

Xiao Hong gritted her teeth and said, The Heavenly Phoenix Blood is useful to us both, but its effects are more pronounced on those from the Black Phoenix Clan. How about this? If Brother Li helped me acquire the spirit blood, I am willing to reward him with three black flame pills. As for the other two, I have a plan to deal with them. Furthermore, the Black Leaves Forest wasnt a safe area to begin with. They might not safely return.

Three Black Flame Pills? You arent joking? The white-browed youth said with delight.

Xiao Hong wryly smiled and said, I have some status in the Black Phoenix Clan. Although the pills are considered priceless, after many years, Ive managed to accumulate enough ingredients for three. I planned on using them to enter Spatial Tempering stage.

After a moment of thought, the youth frowned and said, So it was like that. Ill lend you a hand after the mission is over. However, the blood wont be easy to take. Especially true blood from the true spirit noble clans. It will be difficult to acquire after they fused it into their human bodies.

Dont worry, the Black Phoenix Clan have a particular method of extracting true blood. It had been well researched. I have an eighty percent chance at the very least.

When the white-browed youth heard this, he nodded, Since you are so confident, then fine.

…

In the other room, the young white-robed woman Xie Ying clasped her hands with an incantation gesture. She was sitting cross-legged on the bed. There was a meter-wide azure halo slowly floating behind her head.

Upon closer inspection, the halo was perfectly round with foot-tall white flames flickered from its edges. There was also a hollow silhouette meditating at its center.

From its appearance through its radiance, it appeared similar to the woman, but was several times smaller. Its eyes were shut and its hand was held in an incantation gesture.

At an unknown time, the young womans mouth began to stir and an indistinct smile appeared on her face. At nearly the same time, the image in the halo wore a similar expression.

…

As Han Li paced in the secluded room, he wore an expressionless face and his eyes flickered as if he were lost in thought.

In the corner of the room, there were two small objects on the jade table.

There was a kitten sized leopard with its four legs lazily stretched out on the table next to the items.

Sitting on the small leopards head was a monkey only several inches tall. Black light lit up from its fur and it looked at Han Li with intelligent eyes.

Han Li suddenly stopped pacing and he flipped his hand to produce a white jade slip and a small bottle.

The bottle was simply decorated and had three ancient characters engraved on it. Under closer inspection, the words read Earth Cleansing Pill.

Han Li stroked the bottle with a finger and then sighed. In a flash of light, the bottle disappeared. All that remained was a jade slip.

The jade slip was something that was given to him by several mysterious cultivators before he left Deep Heaven City.

Han Li fiddled with the jade slip for a while before placing it against his forehead.

The jade slip continued a huge map, but it seemed to be mostly incomplete. The maps lacking areas were shining with faint golden light.

Although he looked through it continuously, Han Li couldnt help but continue as if he was trying to find something inside it.

…

Countless kilometers away from Deep Heaven City, there was a hidden underground room where a monk and a Daoist sat across from each other next to a stone table.

The Daoist appeared over forty years old. He had big eyes, thick eyebrows, and faintly golden skin.

The monk appeared old and had a white beard that was a half-foot long. Wrinkles littered his face and his eyes were thin lines as if he couldnt open them.

It is about time for them to meet together and head on their way. The old man said weakly.

Yes, but there is something that eludes me. Why did Brother Jin Yue suddenly changed from his original plan after he left seclusion? Why did you send those Juniors to a foreign land?

Those people were supposed to be the most outstanding of the newly ascended cultivators. You should clearly understand that the mission to receive intelligence from the foreign land may seem simple, but it is truly dangerous. The demon clans would send equivalent people, but in truth, they seem to have other plans. The Daoist priest spoke with a puzzled face.

The various races have become restless. You should know this. The old monk said.

When the Daoist Priest heard the old monk, his heart trembled and he wore a solemn expression. Of course. But there is a newly appeared profound heavenly treasure that is listed on the chaotic myriad spirit roll. Furthermore, it is a profound heavenly treasure that ranks in the top three. The Profound Heavenly Execution Sword!