Автор: sergey

If that man becomes a Great Spirit General, then wont he also have the ability to get rid of our slave marks? the three-headed giant python exclaimed with elation.

A hint of anticipation also flashed through the cow-headed beasts eyes, but that quickly disappeared as a wry smile appeared on its face. Theoretically, yes, but why would he help us?

Our senior in the Black Infernal Mist is most likely either dead or has abandoned us. In any case, we havent been able to get in contact with him for over 100 years. If we dont give this a try, then our lives will truly be under threat, the golden ape said in a grave voice.

So what do you two suggest? the cow-headed beast asked.

If that man really can successfully progress, then why dont we offer him that treasure so he can lift the restrictions on us? the giant ape suggested.

That item is extremely important for our future progression, are we just going to hand it over to someone else? What if he takes the treasure, but doesnt lift our restrictions? That would be a disaster, the cow-headed beast said in a hesitant voice.

Whats the point of having such a treasure if were going to lose our lives? This man may not be a being of the same race as us, but hes been quite fair during the exchanges that weve had with him, so he most likely wont revoke any promises. I will admit that theres some risk involved, but well regret it in the future if we dont try to take this opportunity. This man is an outsider, so who knows how much longer hell stay here for? The giant python was growing rather agitated, and it slammed its massive tail into the ground, smashing a crater into the soil that was several feet deep.

The golden ape nodded in agreement upon hearing this.

Seeing as both of you support this course of action, then Im also willing to take this risk. However, lets wait and see if this man succeeds in his breakthrough for now. If he fails, then we wont be able to do anything anyway, the cow-headed beast sighed.

The other two beasts naturally nodded in agreement, and their discussion ceased as all three of them looked on toward the phenomena taking place in the distance with concern in their eyes.

At this moment, the white cloud ring above the five-colored giant mountain was slowly expanding outward, seemingly at a slow rate, but that was only because it was so massive already. In reality, it was proliferating at a startling rate, and it was soon big enough to fit around the entire giant mountain.

As the cloud ring expanded, the winds within it also became more fierce and impossible to withstand.

The five-colored light down below was sucked upward by the gale-force winds at an astonishing rate, and the films of light over the giant mountain gradually thinned out.

After such a long time, the specks of five-colored light converging toward the giant mountain had also begun to lessen.

The spiritual light manifested from the worlds origin Qi finally gathered in one place before being swept up into the cloud ring by the fierce winds.

The entire underside of the giant cloud ring gave off the appearance of a huge five-colored bowl.

When the final layer of layer disappeared from around the mountain, the winds suddenly ceased, and the entire cloud ring fell silent with only five-colored light shimmering incessantly within it. It was as if the calm before the storm had arrived.

All of a sudden, a loud dragon roar erupted from deep within the mountain, and golden light flashed at its summit before the giant golden projection with three heads and six arms appeared.

The projection was over 10,000 feet, and it was if it were an actual being. The projection slowly raised its three heads to reveal two balls of piercing golden light on each of its blurry and indistinct faces. Those balls of light opened up to form pairs of completely emotionless eyes that looked up at the cloud ring in unison.

All of a sudden, the three heads swayed together, and three long cries rang out once again in a relentless manner, like rumbling lightning that echoed throughout the entire heavens.

The normal beasts in the distance only grew more petrified as a result, but exhibited no other symptoms. However, the demon beasts that already possessed demonic power were suddenly struck an intense ringing in their ears, and it was if their spiritual sense had been plunged into a turbulent ocean, making it impossible for them to formulate any coherent thoughts.

The long cry unleashed by the giant projection dragged on for as long as 10 minutes before abruptly coming to a halt. After that, each of the six arms made a hand seal, and following a few muffled thumps, spiritual light flashed in the surrounding area, and four more projections appeared, each of which was only half the size of the original one.

These consisted of a massive azure bird, a five-colored peacock, a five-clawed golden wyrm, and a huge rainbow phoenix.

As soon as these true spirit projections appeared, each of them let loose their customary cries and began to fly in the air around the original golden projection.

Light suddenly flashed from two of the projections three blurry faces, and they instantly became clearer as both of them took on Han Lis set of ordinary facial features.

Golden light was flashing in the eyes on those two faces, and both of them wore grim expressions. For some reason, the final head remained quite blurry and indistinct, making it impossible for one to glean its facial features.

One of the faces let loose a loud roar, and the four true spirit projections faltered before flying toward the massive golden projections.

Spiritual light flashed, and all four projections disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The original golden projection shuddered before swinging its six arms through the air, and its body began to expand drastically amid swirling golden light once again.

Within moments, it had grown significantly taller than even the massive mountain beneath it, and it was almost able to reach up and extend its hands directly into the light within the cloud ring.

Right at this moment, bursts of Buddhist chants rang out from one of the heads that had taken on Han Lis facial features, following which all six arms pointed up into the sky in unison.

The cloud ring that had become completely motionless suddenly sprang to life again. Spiritual light flashed, and the giant cloud ring descended soundlessly, encircling the entire massive projection within, descending all the way down to the projections waist before finally stopping.

It then began to rotate around the projections body.

A peculiar scene then ensued!

The five-colored light within the cloud ring surged into the projection in a frenzy, and as a result, the body of the projection took on a vibrant rainbow hue as opposed to its original golden color.

During this process, the projections body was trembling uncontrollably as agonized expressions appeared on both sets of its faces.

It was as if the more five-colored light was being injected into its body, the more pain it had to suffer.

Furthermore, the rate of influx of this five-colored light was quite astonishing.

After just a few moments, all of the light within the cloud ring had disappeared without a trace. The projection then let loose a loud cry, and the white cloud ring around it also disintegrated into hundreds of balls of white light that hovered in the nearby area.

At this moment, the three heads opened their mouths in unison to blast forth bursts of golden light that swept these balls of light into their stomach.

After doing all that, the pain on the faces of the projections eased significantly, but its body suddenly began to shrank.

In the blink of an eye, the mountainous projection had transformed into a normal-sized human being with layers of five-colored light over its body.

The humanoid figure sat down in the air above the mountain with its legs crossed while making a hand seal, and he hovered there in a completely motionless manner.

The astonishing spiritual pressure and phenomena had all disappeared, and it was as if everything had gone back to normal.

Only then did the beasts and demon beasts in the distance slowly return to their senses.

The normal beasts struggled to their feet before letting loose a few panicked cries and fleeing back to their nests and lairs as quickly as they could, not even daring to sneak a glance back at the massive mountain.

All of the demon beasts also fled into the distance as if theyd just survived an extremely perilous ordeal.

The trio of mid-grade demon beasts were faring slightly better than the other beasts and demon beasts, yet they were also only able to barely remain standing. At this moment, the golden ape asked in an anxious voice, What happened? Did he succeed?

The cow-headed beast seemed to be the most knowledgeable among the trio, and it said in a slow voice, I dont know. The breakthrough process most likely still hasnt concluded yet. The phenomenon that we witnessed earlier was just him absorbing the nearby worlds origin Qi. Everything appears to have settled down now, but dont be fooled, this is the key moment for his breakthrough.

The three-headed giant python and the golden ape were both slightly surprised to hear this as they cast their eyes toward the giant mountain again.

Lets go. Itll take him quite a while to break through his bottleneck. At least a few days will pass and we might even have to wait months for the final result, so if we stay here for too long, we might irk him and accomplish the opposite of what we intended, the cow-headed beast continued.

The other two demon beasts hearts stirred upon hearing this, and they immediately nodded in agreement.

Thus, the three demon beasts flew away into the opposite direction as gusts of demonic winds.

After a while, they disappeared without a trace into the distance.

Meanwhile, the humanoid figure sitting in mid-air atop the giant mountain had his eyes closed the entire time, as if hed seen nothing and knew nothing.

One day, two days, five days, ten days…

Two months passed by, yet the humanoid figure hovering above the mountain remained completely stationary.

The only difference was that the five-colored light barrier around him was growing more and more dazzling.

The mid-grade demon beasts had snuck back to check on Han Li on a few occasions during this time, and all of them found this to be quite intriguing.

At the same time, they were all quite perplexed by what was happening.

During this period, there were the occasional beasts that had forgotten about the phenomena that had taken place here not long ago and ventured within 50 kilometers of the giant mountain.

All of them then disappeared amid a burst of white mist.

A gargantuan restriction had been set up around the entire massive mountain, and the closer one drew to the center of the restriction, the more powerful it seemed to become.

After another half a month, the humanoid figure within the light barrier suddenly shuddered, and the five-colored light around his body swirled before he finally opened his eyes.

A long cry then erupted from his mouth.

The cry didnt contain any power or abilities, it was merely an expression of elation.

Moments later, the cry cut off, and the humanoid figure rose to his feet before swinging both arms through the air, and the five-colored light barrier around him disintegrated into specks of spiritual light.

Immediately thereafter, he made a hand seal, and a pair of wings appeared on his back before he disappeared following a loud thunderclap.

Having made his decision, Han Li naturally no longer hesitated. He flipped a palm over, and the jade slip that the elderly man had given him appeared in his hand.

On this occasion, he was going to study the refinement method for the flying swords before he worked on the sword art.

He had already briefly read through the refinement method last time, but this was an important matter, so Han Li naturally had to read it again in detail.

A short while later, Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense from the jade slip and narrowed his eyes slightly in contemplation.

According to the jade slip, if he wanted to rid his flying swords of impurities, there were three methods he could employ.

The simplest of those methods required no extra materials, he simply had to use his Nascent Soul flames to slowly refine all of the non-wood-attribute materials in the flying swords.

That was the simplest method and also one that incurred the least amount of risk.

However, all of the materials in his flying swords had already fused as one, and it would take an extremely long time to refine them in such a way. In fact, even three or four centuries may not be enough. During this process, hed have to constantly be using his Nascent Soul flames, so hed be significantly hampering his own cultivation.

As such, Han Li decided against this method almost immediately.

The second method was to use a cultivation art known as the Nineflame Metal Metal Melting Art. If he could collect several types of special fire-attribute pills, then go into seclusion for around 70 to 80 years, hed be able to use this cultivation art along with the power within those pills to forcibly rid the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords of their impurities.

However, this was an extremely risky method, and it would also harm some of the wood-attribute materials in the flying swords. Furthermore, the fire-attribute pills required were quite rare and not that easy to collect.

At the time, the elderly man was preparing to use this method to refine Han Lis flying swords for him in exchange for Golden Lightning Bamboo, but Han Li had not been a fan of this essentially self-mutilating method.

As such, there was only one final method left, and it was also seemingly the most implausible and time-consuming one.

The elderly man had enclosed a message stating that this method was only something that he theorized would work, but had never actually tried it himself. However, if one were to follow the instructions closely, they should have a good chance of success. Furthermore, if success were to be achieved, the rewards reaped would also be quite staggering.

This method involved a process that was known as planting swords.

The process consisted of finding some sprit seedings, then planting them in a place with abundant spiritual Qi. After that, the flying swords had to be sealed within these seedlings, and as the seedlings grew, all of the materials in the sword would gradually be converted into wood-attribute materials due to the wood-attribute spiritual Qi of the spirit trees themselves. As such, thered be no need to rid the flying swords of anything.

Once the spirit trees reached full maturity, the flying swords wouldve been nurtured by wood-attribute spiritual Qi for a long time. As a result, not only would this process not harm the swords, it would make them pure to an incredible degree.

Even though that wouldnt significantly enhance the power of the swords, it would make it a lot easier for Han Li to attain oneness with his swords.

Of course, the elderly man didnt employ such a brilliant method due to a fatal flaw, it simply took too long!

It would take a far longer time than the previous two methods to achieve this method as spirit trees had to grow bit by bit. Even the most ordinary of spirit trees required at least 1,000 years of nurturing care to reach full maturity.

During this time, not only could these flying swords not be used at all, it also had to be ensured that none of the spirit trees died. Otherwise, all of the prior efforts would go to waste. Even if one were to replant the flying sword into another spirit tree, the damage would already be irreversible.

As for how long was required for this process, there were no specific guidelines. However, one thing was for certain, the longer a sword was planted and the more precious the spirit tree was, the greater the degree of purity of the flying sword following the procedure.

Han Li was ecstatic to see this method, and he immediately decided to use it.

This method would perhaps be next to impossible for other people, but it was perfect for him, seeing as he could accelerate the growth of plants.

With his small vial to assist him, Myriad Year Spirit Trees could be nurtured with no issues at all.

However, he was rather skeptical about whether this method was actually feasible.

However, he didnt have to expend a lot of time to complete the process, so he decided to give it a try first.

If it didnt work, then he could switch to one of the other two methods.

Having made his decision, Han Li rustled a sleeve, and a green jade box appeared.

The lid of the box flew off to reveal a seemingly ordinary section of bamboo that had a few roots hanging off one end.

This was none other than the small section of Golden Lightning Bamboo that Han Li had intentionally kept after refining his flying swords.

Even though this wasnt explicitly stated in instructions within the jade slip, it could only be better to plant the swords into a spirit tree that was the same as their main constituent material. Furthermore, he had learned from the elderly man that the leaves of the Golden Lightning Bamboo could be used to refine the Golden Devil Vanquishing Lightning, so it certainly couldnt hurt to harvest some of those leaves as well.

Thus, Han Li summoned his second Nascent Soul again before handing the wooden box and a flying sword over to it.

He was going to experiment with just a single sword first. If the process did indeed prove to be viable, hed then mass produce Golden Lightning Bamboo and plant the rest of his swords into them.

After the second Nascent Soul departed, Han Li closed his eyes to meditate for a while before opening his eyes again and producing a small white vial.

He raised his neck and dripped a drop of True Toad Liquid into his mouth to finally begin his true cultivation.

Treasures and cultivation arts were certainly fantastic, but without sufficient magic power to support them, they would hardly be very useful.

Han Li had been well aware of this all along.

He made a hand seal, and golden light shimmered all over his body as the true devil projection appeared again.

Each of its six golden arms made a profound hand seal, and the projection also sat down in a cross-legged manner as if it were also going to cultivate.

At the same time that golden light flashed from Han Lis body, a halo of golden light also appeared around the projection.

This massive halo of light enshrouded the entire projection, and countless golden runes were surging forth relentlessly from the projections hands, then disappearing into its body.

Meanwhile, Han Li sat expressionlessly with a layer of golden scales over his body, and spiritual light swirling over the surface of his skin, giving off quite a mysterious image…

Days turned into months, and months turned into years, but the doors of the secret chamber remained firmly shut throughout this entire time.

During this period, the second Nascent Soul would control a giant ape puppets body to occasionally appear in the medicine garden before quickly disappearing.

The mid-grade demon beasts of the Hidden Black Mountains also visited on several occasions, bringing with them large amounts of precious materials exchange for Woodbud Flowers.

All of them wore grim expressions each time, thinking that the supply of Woodbud Flowers surely had to be rapidly depleting, but the second Nascent Soul only had to nurture some Woodbud Flowers from time to time in order to continue facilitating these exchanges. In the process, the Weeping Soul Beast transformed into Han Lis appearance to placate these demon beasts, thereby managing to convince them that Han Li was seeing them in person.

The demon beasts were naturally quite relieved that Han Li was able to continue supplying Woodbud Flowers.

Time passed by in a flash, and over 100 years flew by in the blink of an eye.

No major events took place on the island during this time, and it seemed that this period of peace would continue for the foreseeable future.

However, one day, an extremely astonishing phenomenon suddenly appeared in the air above Han Lis cave abode.

Loud thunderclaps erupted overhead, following which white spiritual clouds appeared out of thin air, then converged toward the summit of the mountain.

Countless specks of light of different colors also began to rise into the air from all of the mountains within a radius of thousands of kilometers. After rising to a certain altitude, these specks of light swelled before bursting like bubbles, creating swaths of five-colored light that then surged toward Han Lis cave abode.

Within 10 minutes, layer up layer of dense five-colored light had enshrouded the entire mountain that Han Li was situated in, yet another phenomenon appeared in the air above.

The white spiritual clouds up above converged to form a massive cloud ring, at the center of which gusts of fierce azure winds were taking shape. The five-colored light down below was swept up into the cloud ring, then torn apart before fusing together again.

As the winds grew fiercer, the more and more five-colored spiritual light was swept up into the sky, and in the even the azure winds were converted into all types of different colors. However, the five-colored light surging from all directions didnt cease in the slightest, and the films of light around the giant mountain down below became even denser than before.

Such astonishing scenes naturally attracted all of the attention of the beasts and demon beasts within the Hidden Black Mountain Ranges.

The immense spiritual pressure from the phenomena alone was enough to force normal beasts to the ground as they trembled uncontrollably with fear, and even the normally ferocious beasts were completely petrified and powerless.

Some low-grade and mid-grade demon beasts that had attained intelligence hurriedly flew toward Han Lis cave abode, yet all of them seemed to have encountered an invisible barrier thousands of kilometers away from the phenomena, thereby preventing them from advancing any further.

All of them were forced to look on at the gargantuan cloud ring and five-colored mountain from afar with panic in their eyes.

The cow-headed beast, the three-headed giant python, and all of the other demon beasts that had made deals with Han Li also appeared in the nearby area.

All of them immediately identified where the phenomena were taking place, and all of them glanced at one another with astonishment in their eyes.

Is that man making a breakthrough? Could it be that hes becoming a Great Spirit General? the three-headed giant python exclaimed.

Thats most likely the case. A less significant breakthrough wouldnt conjure up such an astonishing set of phenomena, the cow-headed beast replied in a slow voice.

Moments later, Han Li entered his secret chamber before sitting down with his legs crossed.

His pupils then contracted slightly as he inspected his surroundings and caught sight of three greyish-white stone blocks in one corner of the secret chamber.

Those were none other than the chunks of the stone block hed obtained from the underwater cave abode belonging to that blue wyrm. Back then, hed used his Gold Devouring Beetles to split the stone block into three, but he was too busy with cultivation to pay any heed to this treasure.

The material was extraordinarily heavy, and Han Li had originally intended to refine it into some kind of treasures, but all of the Gold Devouring Beetles that had consumed some of this material then began to mutate, and that made Han Li rather hesitant.

The fact that this thing was able to make fully matured Gold Devouring Beetles mutate again was a sign of just how precious it was. However, spirit insect mutation wasnt necessarily always a good thing. Even though most mutations resulted in positive enhancements, there were also quite a few instances where the contrary proved to be true.

At the very least, aside from the fact that his Gold Devouring Beetles had attained more resolute bodies and grown heavier, Han Li was yet to identify any other changes.

Generally speaking, it was very difficult for spirit insects that had mutated once to mutate for a second time, which was why he hadnt fed this entire stone block to his Gold Devouring Beetles, and why it had been so difficult for him to decide just how he was going to use this material.

However, he was very intrigued by the Gold Devouring Beetle Monarch that the elderly man had mentioned, so he certainly wasnt going to recklessly induce mutations in his Gold Devouring Beetles again. Otherwise, if he were to obtain the method to nurture the beetle monarch someday, only to find that it didnt apply to his beetles anymore due to their mutations, that would be quite a devastating blow.

Furthermore, during his journey, Han Li had thought of a better way to use this incredibly heavy stone.

Thus, blue light flashed within his eyes, and he raised an arm to reveal an inky-black hand within his robes.

His five fingers tremored slightly, and black light flashed over his palm, following which a miniature mountain that was only several inches in size appeared.

The mountain instantly expanded to around 10 feet in size amid a flash of grey light before hovering in front of Han Li.

Golden light flashed from Han Lis body as the projection with three heads and six arms surfaced behind him, and he let loose a low cry as he the six arms of the projection made a grabbing motion in unison toward the stone blocks in the corner.

Several years ago, prior to fusing the true spirit bloods of the Kun Peng and the Five-Colored Peacock into his body, Han Li wouldnt have been able to move these stone blocks by grabbing at them from afar.

However, not only had his cultivation base progressed to the late-Deity Transformation Stage since then, his body had also become a lot more powerful due to the effect of the two true spirit bloods.

Thus, he was able to move the stone blocks in such a manner now, and one of them wobbled before slowly flying toward him, causing the entire secret chamber to tremor in the process.

Brilliant grey light erupted from the Divine Essencefused Mountain hovering before Han Li, and countless grey threads of light shot forth, encapsulating the oncoming stone block in a watertight cocoon.

At the same time, the six arms of the Provenance True Devil Projection behind him also moved in unison, and the stone block shot forth directly toward the black mountain.

At this moment, Han Li began to chant something while pointing a finger toward the mountain.

The Divine Essencefused Light immediately swelled further in size while a large hole opened up on the mountain face that was aimed toward the stone block.

Brilliant grey light erupted from that hole, and this was only a secret technique that Han Li had mastered after progressing to a certain cultivation base, as well as completely refining this mountain to the extent that it was almost an extension of his own body.

Prior to cultivating the Hundred Meridian Refinement Mantra or even before hed left the massive island, hed have most likely been unable to accomplish this.

The stone block was drawn into the hole that appeared on the mountain by the grey threads, and the impact of the collision made the Divine Essencefused Mountain tremor before flying back for several tens of feet, then thudding heavily onto the ground.

Following another astonishing dull thump, even the restriction light barrier around the secret chamber tremored violently, and the base of the mountain had sunk around a foot into the ground.

The Divine Essencefused Mountain was quite heavy in itself, and their combined weight had finally become too much for the floor to handle.

Thankfully, the entire secret chamber had been fortified by Han Li with restrictions in advance, so it wasnt going to actually completely collapse.

At this moment, Han Li was looking at the hole on the side of the Divine Essencefused Mountain with a peculiar look on his face. He made a hand seal before opening his mouth, and a ball of silver flames shot forth from within.

As soon as the fireball emerged out of his mouth, it transformed into a Fire Raven, then also plunged headfirst into the hole on the Divine Essencefused Mountain at his behest.

Han Li then immediately flicked his wrist to hurl his storage bracelet through the air, and it shimmered with spiritual light before summoning a series of vials, jars, and wooden boxes that appeared on the ground before Han Li.

Han Li swept his spiritual sense toward these containers, and all of their lids flew off to reveal all types of tool refinement materials, most of which extremely rare materials that were very difficult to find.

Most of them were secured using a large number of spirit stones and spirit medicines in Deep Heaven City, while the rest had been obtained in the human world and from the Tian Peng Race.

Han Li inspected these materials and immediately found the ones he needed.

He swept a sleeve through the air, and a swath of azure light surged forth, sweeping up a dozen or so types of materials in its wake before sending all of them into the hole on the small mountain.

A delightful cry then erupted within the hole, following which silver light flashed from within along with a burst of scorching heat, causing the nearby air to warp and blur.

Han Li adopted a serious expression as he raised a hand, and a burst of grey light appeared at the center of his palm.

The Divine Essencefused Mountain seemed to have resonated with him as it also lit up with grey light, and the hole on the side of the mountain slowly sealed over while the scorching heat also disappeared.

Han Li was using the Divine Essencefused Mountain as a hearth, while deploying the Spirit Engulfing Fire Raven to completely melt that greyish-white stone into the mountain.

Han Li was looking forward to what properties the stone block could contribute to the Divine Essencefused Mountain. If it could become indestructible and as immensely heavy as the stone block, then its destructive power would be significantly enhanced.

Of course, even with his Spirit Engulfing Heavenly Flames, it wouldnt be a simple matter to melt these stone blocks. Otherwise, Han Li wouldve thrown in all three at once rather than only one.

However, even with just this one stone block, it would take around three or four decades to melt it into the mountain. If hed done all three at once, then itd at least require a century.

If Han Li had to use his own Nascent Soul flames to refine the stone blocks, then he naturally wouldnt engage in such a time-consuming activity. However, he could afford to do this now seeing as he could use the Spirit Engulfing Heavenly Flames instead.

He would just have to leave the Divine Essencefused Mountain here for over 100 years.

With that in mind, Han Li chanted something and cast an incantation seal onto the small mountain while the six golden hands on the projection behind his back all made a grabbing motion in unison.

The small mountain instantly swayed before shrinking down to around a foot in size, then slowly flying over to a corner of the secret chamber and slowly descending.

Before the stone block was fused into the mountain, Han Li wouldnt be able to withdraw it back into his own body, so he could only set it aside like this.

After that, Han Li paused for a brief moment of contemplation before grabbing the air toward the storage bracelet, and a white jade box immediately flew out from within before landing on his palm.

He swept his other hand over the lid of the box, and the lid immediately flew off to reveal a thumb-sized crimson fruit core.

At the same time, an extremely rich medicinal aroma wafted toward him.

This was none other than the Azure Shifting Fruit core that Han Li had obtained during his time in the Tian Peng Race.

With this item, hed be able to nurture Azure Shifting Fruits through the use of his small vial, then refine the legendary Heavenshifting Pill. Hed consume the Heavenshifting Pill with his Black Flame Pills, and if the formers enhancement effect were to activate, then the chances of him breaking through his bottleneck would be significantly increased.

Han Li held the fruit core between two fingers and carefully inspected it through narrowed eyes, then instantly cast his spiritual sense out of the secret chamber.

Moments later, the azure barrier of light around him tremored, and a ball of black light flew in, it was none other than his second Nascent Soul.

Han Li placed the lid onto the jade box containing the fruit core before tossing toward the second Nascent Soul without even uttering a single word.

The second Nascent Soul waved a little hand through the air to catch the box in an extremely rehearsed manner, then disappeared into the light barrier behind it again.

Having done all that, Han Li heaved a sigh of relief before slowly closing his eyes.

What he had to do next was to work on the new sword art he obtained to see if this Spring Dawn Sword Formation truly was as lethal as the sword art proclaimed it to be. After that, hed be able to decide whether to give up on his Aureate Sword Formation and refine his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords again.

The Spring Dawn Sword Formation just so happened to be something that could be used by late-Deity Transformation cultivators, and it was indeed far more complex and profound than the Aureate Sword Formation.

Time passed by slowly, and three months later, Han Li opened his eyes to awaken from his meditative state.

However, there was a peculiar look in his eyes and a hesitant expression on his face.

So thats what Spring Dawn means. I was wondering why such a strange name had been given to it, turns out its a sword formation that primarily draws on the power of an illusionary technique. Thats quite surprising. In that case, wont the effectiveness of this formation depend on the power of the enemys spiritual sense and whether the cultivation arts theyre using are potent against illusionary techniques? How am I supposed to make that judgment call? Han Lis brows furrowed with indecision.

He pondered this issue for a long while, weighing up the benefits and the drawbacks, before finally making a decision.

Back when Qing Yuanzi created this Spring Dawn Sword Formation, he wouldve had to give up on the Aureate Sword Formation as well, so it had to have some properties that placed it well above the Aureate Sword Formation.

At present, the Aureate Sword Formation definitely had no issues against cultivators of the same cultivation base, but it was quite difficult for it to do much against Body Integration Stage beings.

Most importantly, the Azure Coil Sword Formation after the Spring Dawn Sword Formation could also only be set up using the refined flying swords.

As such, Han Li finally decided to give up on the Aureate Sword Formation in the end.

As for refining a brand new set of flying swords, that was something that Han Li didnt even consider.

After all, with things like flying swords, it wasnt a case of the more the better. He only needed enough to set up his sword formations, and too many flying swords would make it too difficult to nurture all of them at once.

Han Li didnt want to ruin his bonded treasure due to his greed.

The young man faltered slightly upon seeing the projection and scales that Han Li had conjured but, but he didnt slow down in the slightest as he slashed his twin sabers through the air toward Han Li. A pair of black saber formations instantly hurtled forth in a cross formation. As soon as these saber projections appeared, all of the nearby black mist surged toward them in a frenzy.

The two saber projections instantly swelled to around twice their original size before reaching Han Li in the blink of an eye.

Han Lis eyelids twitched as his hands blurred slightly, and a pair of golden longswords suddenly appeared in his grasp. With a flick of his wrists, he slashed his longswords toward the saber projections in a merciless manner. A loud thunderclap erupted as golden arcs of lightning coiled around the long swords. As soon as the black saber projections clashed with the golden lightning, the former was instantly vanquished, much to the shock of the young man. In contrast, a cold smile appeared on Han Lis face.

The saber projections unleashed by his opponent clearly contained a lot of devilish Qi. Otherwise, even his Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords wouldnt have been able to take care of them so easily. Seeing as this was the case, this young man was essentially committing suicide through his decision to challenge Han Li.

With that in mind, Han Li flapped the five-colored translucent wing on his back, sending forth a burst of five-colored light before the young man had recovered from his astonishment.

The light was extremely bright and piercing, as if a five-colored sun had surfaced from within Han Lis body. Argh!

The young man reflexively closed his eyes in the face of such scintillating light, and at the same time, he knew that he was in a perilous situation, so he stomped both feet violently into the ground and shot back like an arrow, retreating even faster than hed come.

At this moment, a thunderclap erupted from within the five-colored light, following which an arc os azure and white lightning flashed behind the young man, and Han Li abruptly appeared out of thin air. He then slashed his two longswords toward his opponent with devastating force.

The young mans eyes were still closed and his spiritual sense was slightly delayed in its reaction, but such a blatant attack certainly couldnt escape his notice. As such, he immediately tossed his twin sabers behind him, and they shot forth as two streaks of black light.

He then made a hand seal, and the muscles on his body instantly disappeared, revealing a translucent white-jade-like skeleton. The skeleton tremored before releasing a white barrier of light that completely shielded its body within. Han Lis longsword came crashing down amid a couple of thunderclaps, only to be kept at bay by the streaks of black light formed by the twin sabers. Han Li didnt find this to be strange or unexpected in the slightest.

Instead, hed be surprised if a pair of weapons manifested from a Spatial Tempering Stage demon beasts body didnt possess this much power. He had never intended or hoped to kill this demon beast with this pair of flying swords alone.

In the instant that hed lashed out with his swords, the Provenance True Devil Projection swung its six arms through the air, and countless fist projections immediately blossomed like golden lotus flowers before crashing toward the white light barrier like a torrential downpour. Each and every one of the seemingly ordinary fist projections were imbued with Han Lis immense inhuman strength, and this overwhelming storm of attacks was something that had been unleashed through brute force alone.

In the instant the white barrier of light was struck the fist projections, the seemingly resolute barrier immediately began to tremor violently before quickly being shattered by the devastating fist projections.

All of this had taken place in only the blink of an eye, and only then did the demon beast twist around before opening its eyes.

Having had all of its flesh and blood disappear, his eyeballs were also nowhere to be seen, and had instead been replaced by two balls of green flames in his eye sockets.

The demon beast was mortified that his protective barrier of light had been destroyed so easily, and he immediately opened his mouth to blast forth several inky-black streaks of light toward Han Li. At the same time, his head exploded of its own accord, following which a green bead shot forth from within and hurtled toward the distance.

The remnants of his skeletal body quickly disassembled itself before forming a white bone shield that followed closely behind the green bead to protect it during his escape.

The demon beast had clearly identified that he was no match for Han Li, and immediately tried to flee the scene.

He had cultivated for many years within this Black Infernal Mist, and he was confident that if he could open up some distance between himself and Han Li, there was no way that the latter would be able to chase him down.

However, Han Li was already intent on killing him at this point. He didnt want to let this demon beast get away, only to return and potentially cause trouble for him int he future.

Thus, he let loose a cold harrumph as the grey light before him flashed. The streaks of oncoming black light merely fizzled out almost as soon as they came into contact with this grey light.

All of the golden fist projections in the air also abruptly disappeared while golden light flashed from his Provenance True Devil Projection. Six thick bolts of lightning then surfaced from the hands attached to the projections six arms, and the six arcs of lightning transformed into six golden lightning spears in unison. The arms then blurred as the six golden spears were hurled through the air.

The golden spear streaked through the before crashing viciously into the white bone shield. To the credit of the shield, it was able to withstand the first three spears, but after being struck by the fourth spear, it finally exploded. The final two spears pierced through as a result, striking the green bead at the same time. Golden arcs of lightning flashed, and the green bead flashed erratically before exploding.

The projection of a Luminous Beast shot forth from within in a horrified manner. However, the golden arcs of lightning had already formed an inescapable net around the soul of this demon beast, and as the net converged, a bloodcurdling howl erupted from within before the projection of the Luminous Beast was completely destroyed.

Han Li had slain this Spatial Tempering Stage demon beast with ease.

Part of this was due to the fact that the demon beast had been too complacent after seeing Han Lis Deity Transformation Stage cultivation base, but this was also contributed to by the fact that Han Li had become far more powerful than when hed departed from this massive island.

Even though he hadnt dedicated much time to cultivation, hes obtained the 12 Awakening Transformations from the Tian Peng Race, as well as the Lightningwield Technique from the earth abyss that significantly enhanced the power of his Divine Devilbane Lightning. After that, hed consumed the true spirit bloods of the Kun Peng and the Five-Colored Peacock, thereby significantly boosting his magic power as well.

Even prior to reaching the late-Deity Transformation Stage, Han Li had been capable of killing Spatial Tempering Stage beings, so he certainly wasnt going to have any trouble with this demon beast.

On top of that, the demon beast didnt even seem to be carrying any treasures, so it stood even less of a chance against Han Li.

Han Li inspected the skeletal remains of the demon beast with a cold expression before flicking a finger to blast forth a crimson fireball. The remains of the demon beast immediately caught on fire and were burned to ashes in the blink of an eye.

After that, Han Li immediately departed from the scene had disappeared into the black mist.

On this occasion, he had managed to easily kill his opponent, but it was still quite frustrating that hed had to engage in this battle for no good reason. reeebnvel.com

Of course, unbeknownst to him, he had just killed the behind that all of the mid-grade demon beasts in the Hidden Black Mountain Ranges saw as their backer and eventual savior.

He was the one who was going to eradicate their slave marks and grant them freedom, but those hopes had been completely dashed.

Of course, none of that had anything to do with Han Li. He continued to forge ahead in the black mist while contemplating the new sword art.

Close to a month later, black mist suddenly surged at the border of the sea of mist near a barren mountain, and a humanoid figure emerged from within.

He then rose up into the air and reached the summit of the mountain in just a few flashes. He was none other than Han Li, who had just emerged from the sea of Black Infernal Mist. Hed finally made it out of the mist, and he couldnt help but let loose a thunderous roar if excitement and elation, causing the air around him to ring and vibrate, and even the clouds high up in the sky were stirred up as a result.

Only then did Han Li assess his surroundings and quickly ascertained his position before flying toward a certain direction as a streak of azure light.

After a few flashes, hed transformed into a black dot on the horizon, and he completely disappeared following a few flashes more.

Azure light flashed before a tall mountain enshrouded in white mist located deep within the Hidden Black Mountain Ranges, and Han Li appeared at the foot of the mountain. He looked up to the mountain to find that nothing seemed to have changed since his departure, and he made a hand seal as he heaved a long sigh. The white mist before him immediately surged before opening up a path for him. Han Li flew into his cave abode in an unhurried manner before immediately paying his medicine garden a visit. After verifying that everything was in order there, he was completely reassured, and he returned to his living quarters, falling asleep almost as soon as his lay down on his bed.

He slept for two days and two nights! He had rested for a night at the elderly mans cave abode, but on that occasion, hed naturally been unable to rest to his hearts content.

When he finally woke up from his slumber, his exhausted body and mind had both been completely rejuvenated.

He got up in high spirits and entered his secret chamber to consolidate the rewards hed reaped from his trip and continue to consume his True Toad Spirit Liquid. He then had to go into seclusion to reach the pinnacle of the Deity Transformation Stage as soon as possible before attempting a breakthrough to the Spatial Tempering Stage.

He also had to refine the wisp of spiritual sense contained within the Tian Peng Relic as quickly as possible so he could obtain the true dragon and heavenly phoenix mantras enclosed within the 12 Awakening Transformations. After that, hed be able to fuse those true spirit bloods into his body.

As for the new sword art and the reinforcement of his flying swords, that was also an urgent matter that had to be taken care of as soon as possible.

With that in mind, Han Li made his way toward his secret chamber while laying a hand on the back of his own head.

A ball of black light immediately shot forth from the back of his own head before transforming into a miniature black humanoid figure that was several inches tall.

It was none other than his second Nascent Soul.

He then rustled both sleeves to summoning his Weeping Soul Beast and Leopard Kirin Beast.

Han Li waved a hand toward the three of them with a smile on his face, then tossed the mysterious small vial toward the second Nascent Soul before departing on his own.

The second Nascent Soul caught the small vial, also with a smile on its face, and only after Han Li had disappeared around the corner did it deliver a few instructions to the two beasts, then slowly fly away toward another direction.

Han Li took a step forward, and even though it didnt appear as if he were moving all that quickly, he still covered a distance of 70 to 80 feet in a flash.

After a while, hed traveled several tens of kilometers, and he was already moving slower than he normally would as a safety precaution.

Otherwise, if he were charging through the mist as quickly as he could, he wouldve covered several hundred kilometers already.

He had once skirted around most of the outskirts of this sea of Black Infernal Mist, and even when flying as quickly as he could back them, it had taken him around a month or two to go the entire way around one side.

He didnt know where he was currently situated within the sea of mist, but it would most likely take him quite a few days to emerge from this area on foot.

As such, Han Li wasnt in a hurry to forge ahead. Instead, he merely progressed at an even pace while considering his trip into the earth abyss and the infernal river.

During this adventure, hed had quite a few perilous experiences and had almost been reduced to a puppet by the demon monarchs, but hed also secured bountiful rewards.

He had learned the true method to use his Divine Devilbane Lightning from Mu Qing and also secured a vial of Five-Colored Peacock True Blood from her. From Di Xue, hed obtained the refinement methods for spirit servant puppets, thereby allowing him to master the refinement methods for the Nine Palaces Heavenly Talisman and the Armor Origin Talisman. On to of that, the elderly man with the Jiang surname had passed the new Azure Essence Sword Art onto him, along with the method to refine the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords again. If he focused enough attention on those two things in the future, hed presumably be able to make his sword formation a lot more powerful.

However, none of those things were as valuable as the Divine Infernal River Elixir that had been promised to him.

From what he knew of already, this elixir could alter ones constitution, thereby allowing one to absorb more of the worlds origin Qi than theyd normally be able to. This was an incredible item, and he naturally didnt want to give up on it.

With this divine elixir, hed be saving himself countless years of cultivation. For a cultivator with ordinary aptitude like Han Li, that was definitely something of the utmost importance.

The items on the list given to him by the elderly man were all extremely difficult to find, but there was still hope for him if he had a time period of 1,000 years to find two-thirds of the items on the list.

With that much time allotted to him, Han Li was relatively confident that hed be able to achieve such a feat.

However, what he had to do now was to return to his cave abode on the island as quickly as possible, then go into seclusion so he could consolidate the rewards that hed reaped from this trip. Once he reached the pinnacle of the late-Deity Transformation Stage, hed be able to take the Black Flame Pills and attempt to progress to the early-Spatial Tempering Stage.

During this journey, hed encountered so many beings at the Body Integration Stage and witnessed them in battle on many occasions. From that experience, he felt as if hed attained some enlightenment, and was more confident in his ability to break through his next bottleneck.

Even though the demon monarchs had refrained from giving him much guidance in cultivation, they were all immensely powerful beings, and just seeing them in action had been an invaluable experience for Han Li.

After all, how many Deity Transformation cultivators could witness battles between Body Integration Stage beings in person?

All of these thoughts were rapidly racing through Han Lis mind, and it only took him mere moments to establish his future cultivation plan.

He then swept a hand over his storage bracelet, and a jade slip immediately appeared over his palm.

This was none other than the jade slip that the elderly man had given him, and within it was recorded the new Azure Essence Sword Art.

Han Li instantly split his spiritual sense into two with a small portion of it controlling his body in its advancement and inspecting his surroundings, which most of his spiritual sense seeped into this jade slip.

Initially, his expression remained quite calm, but as he furthered his understanding this sword art, his expression gradually became more solemn, and his brows were tightly furrowed by the end.

After a while, he heaved a long sigh and flipped his hand over, upon which the jade slip disappeared amid a flash of azure light.

A contemplative look then appeared in Han Lis eyes.

He had roughly read through the contents of the sword art and committed it to memory. It was quite clear that this so-called new sword art hadnt really brought many changes to the original 13 layers of the cultivation method, and the insignificant changes that had been made didnt impact him in ay way.

The main difference was the five additional layers of the sword art after that.

These layers of the sword art corresponded to the three tiers of the Deity Transformation Stage, as well as the early and mid tiers of the Spatial Tempering Stage. If he were to cultivate the sword art in its entirety, itd support him to the late-Spatial Tempering Stage.

If Han Li hadnt cultivated the Provenance True Devil Arts, he would perhaps truly be quite interested in this cultivation art.

As things were at present, he could only pick a few useful secret techniques and abilities from the last five layers of the sword art to cultivate. After all, he was walking the path of simultaneous cultivation, so it certainly wouldnt be wise for him to spend so much time on this cultivation art.

Of course, he was only able to achieve these things as hed mastered the first 13 layers of the sword art in advance, and he was also a late-Deity Transformation cultivator himself.

Otherwise, even if other high-grade cultivators were to obtain this sword art, they wouldnt be able to make use of it at all.

The things enclosed in the final five layers of the sword art that Han Li was most interested in was a pair of new sword formations, one of which was named Spring Dawn, while the other was called Azure Coil.

These two sword formations used in conjunction with the final five layers of the sword art would be immensely powerful, and allow him to challenge beings of a higher cultivation base than himself. Even without cultivating the final five layers of the sword art, those two sword formations could still be unleashed, but the requirements on the flying swords used in that case were extremely stringent, they had to be extremely pure wood-attribute flying swords that had been nurtured to an extremely high level.

Han Lis current 72 Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords couldnt satisfy this condition, so he had to refine them again.

Among these two sword formations, Spring Dawn was something that he could unleash with his current cultivation base, but Azure Coil would only be something that he could cultivate and study after reaching the late-Spatial Tempering Stage.

As such, Han Li directed his attention to the refinement method for the flying swords enclosed with the sword art.

However, a bewildered look appeared on his face only after a brief inspection of the refinement method.

The method wasnt very difficult, but the process during which the swords were refined had to be an extremely lengthy one, and during this time, his flying swords would be extremely brittle and frail, making them unusable in battle. Only after completely refining the swords and achieving a state of oneness with them would be able to display their true power.

According to information in the refinement method, hed have to rid his flying swords of the Auric Essence hed refined into them as well, and in that case, he wouldnt be able to unleash his Aureate Sword Formation.

That was making Han Li rather hesitant.

Not being able to use the flying swords for an extended period of time wasnt too much of a concern. After all, he wasnt relying on them as a crutch anyway. However, losing the Aureate Sword Formation really was something that made him feel quite indecisive.

The new sword art stated that Spring Dawn and Azure Coil were both far superior in power to the Aureate Sword Formation, so it only made sense to sacrifice it for those two other sword formations.

However, Han Li had never witnessed those two sword formations in action, yet the Aureate Sword Formation had helped him defeat powerful enemies on more than one occasion, so he was inevitably going to be rather hesitant.

He wasnt planning to cultivate the last five layers of the Azure Essence Sword Art, so it was a mystery just how much power hed be able to unleash with those two sword formations with just his refined flying swords alone.

If it turned out to be the case that those two sword formations were inferior in power compared to the Aureate Sword Formation, then hed have incurred a massive loss while expending a lot of time and effort.

Just as Han Li was trying to make a decision about his sword formation, his expression suddenly changed as he stood still on the spot.

He peered into the black mist off to one side, and a dark expression appeared on his face as he said in a cold voice, What are you doing lurking in the shadows over there? Were you planning to attack me?

He then raised a hand, and a thick bolt of golden light shot forth amid a loud thunderclap, forming a head-sized ball of golden lightning that hovered in mid-air.

The surface of the ball was crackling incessantly with arcs of lightning and shimmering with golden runes, creating quite an intimidating sight to behold.

Youre not a Tian Peng being? A surprised voice sounded from the direction that Han Li had turned his attention toward.

Who are you and how do you know that? Han Li asked as his eyes narrowed.

Hehe, if youre truly a Tian Peng being, theres no way youd be able to remain completely unaffected here even as a Great Spirit General, let alone a mere Spirit General, the voice replied in a cold manner.

Oh? Sounds like you know a lot about Tian Peng beings and this place. Why have you still not shown yourself? Come out and speak to me face to face!As soon as Han Lis voice trailed off, the golden ball of lightning before him abruptly disappeared.

In the next instant golden light flashed within the black mist, and the ball of lightning appeared out of thin air before exploding on the spot.

Golden light flashed, and a black shadow immediately rushed out of the mist, appearing just over 100 feet away from Han Li after a few flashes.

Han Li carefully inspected the being that had just appeared, upon which his expression faltered slightly.

He was looking at a young man with a green face and a pair of white curved horns growing on his head.

He swept his spiritual sense toward the young man to find that he was a Spatial Tempering Stage being, and the aura he was emanating was rather familiar to Han Li somehow.

He quickly traced back through his memories before abruptly exclaiming, Youre Luminous Beast! Wait, you have a lot of Yin Qi within your body, so you mustve used a ghost Dao cultivation art!

The young mans expression changed drastically upon hearing this, but a sinister light then appeared in his eyes.

I originally intended to let you go, but seeing as youve identified my origins, you wont be getting away from here alive!

The young man then abruptly opened his mouth to blast forth a gust of grey Yin winds that swept directly toward Han Li.

He was clearly trying to kill Han Li in order to silence him forever!

Han Li was initially regretting the fact that hed blurted out the young mans origins, but seeing as the young man wanted to engage him in battle, a smile appeared on his face instead.

He merely stood still on the spot, but the grey light around his body swelled drastically before revolving around Han Li, sweeping aside all of the oncoming gusts of Yin winds.

A flash of astonishment appeared in the young mans eyes upon seeing this, but he immediately slapped a hand onto his own head, upon which his twin horns detached themselves from his body, then transformed into a pair of shimmering white scimitars that landed in his grasp.

With the new weapons, the young man seemed to have been injected with a surge of confidence, and he stomped a foot into the ground, charging toward Han Li at an incredible speed, leaving a trail of afterimages in his wake.

The young man was seemed to be intent on challenging Han Li in melee combat, and a peculiar look flashed through Han Lis eyes upon seeing this. Instead of taking any evasive measures, brilliant golden light suddenly erupted from his body as he stood still on the spot. A layer of golden scales appeared over his skin, and at the same time, a golden projection with three heads and six arms surfaced behind him.

We cant keep going like this! Thats our Mayfly Races holy nest, theres no end to the creatures coming out of it! How could a Golden Mayfly Tier being possibly possess such an item? We have to get out of her right away! Liu Zu roared.

During that split second alone, hundreds of insects were punctured and killed by the black light erupting from his body.

Where can we run? These things arent much slower than we are, if things continue like this, our magic power will be exhausted eventually, the crimson-robed figure said with a grim expression as he stood atop the Purpleblood Puppet.

Lets head straight to the passageway that led into this place. After we get there, well be able to return to the infernal river and evade the insect sea manifested by the holy nest, Liu Zu replied without any hesitation.

Have you gone mad, Fellow Daoist Liu Zu? Even if we fly as quickly as were capable of, itd still take two to three months to get there, are we just going to keep fighting these things during that time? On top of that, what about the devilish tomb and the devilish artifacts? the white-haired beauty screeched in a sharp voice.

Hmph, what good will those devilish artifacts do us if we die here? Ill give you and Fellow Daoist Di Xue some treasures out of my personal collection to make up for this. The holy insects being manifested by the holy nest at the moment are only those of the lowest caliber, once more powerful holy insects are manifested, we wont be able to get away from here even if wanted to, Liu Zu bellowed with fury.

If it werent for the fact that the three of them had to work together just for a chance to get away, he wouldve most likely fled the scene with the Divine Infernal River Elixir already.

After all, no one was more aware that he was of just how destructive the holy nests of the Mayfly Race were.

Of course, Liu Zu was naturally unaware of the fact that this was only a replica rather than an actual holy nest. Even so, its devastating power was not something that the three demon monarchs could oppose. Hence, as soon as he witnessed this item, he was immediately struck by the urge to flee.

The white-haired beauty was still quite reluctant to give up on the devilish tomb, but she knew that Liu Zu was right.

The crimson-robed figure also remained silent, clearly in agreement with Liu Zus proposal as well.

Thus, all three of them unleashed powerful abilities in unison.

Scintillating black light suddenly erupted from Liu Zus body, following which countless massive black bone spikes appeared all over his body, all of which were around 10 feet in length and extremely sharp.

He then opened his mouth to blast forth bursts of visible black halos.

As soon as these halos appeared, they instantly swelled countless times in size before surging into the swarm of insects.

An astonishing scene ensued!

All of the insects that came into contact with these black halos instantly lost their sense of balance as they plummeted straight out of the sky, instantly opening up a vast area before Liu Zu.

Meanwhile, the mountainous Purpleblood Puppet opened its massive mouth and blasted forth a pillar of purple light that was over 10 times thicker than those erupting from its eyes.

All of the insects in the path of this pillar of light were instantly reduced to ashes.

As the Purpleblood Puppet swiveled its head, the pillar of light fanned out, instantly destroying a vast number of insects.

The area cleared out by this attack was even larger than that created by Liu Zus attack.

The final one to spring into action was the white-haired beauty.

Seeing as the other two demon monarchs werent holding back any longer, the white-haired woman also cast aside her qualms as she quickly made a hand seal.

Her war hammer then immediately exploded within a swath of green flames, and the eight white skulls emerged before swelling to the size of wagon wheels, then opening their mouths to unleash sharp unsettling screeches.

However, these skulls were no longer blasting green ghostly flames out of their mouths. Instead, they produced gusts of white glacial winds that flew all of the insects in their path.

Countless insects were reduced to white ice sculptures of different sizes before raining down from above.

With three Body Integration cultivators attacking at once, even the relentless barrage of insects was unable to keep up, and a massive empty area was created.

The praying mantis creatures in the distance harrumphed coldly upon seeing this before pointing up at the silver object with one of its giant scythe-like arms.

The semi-spherical object immediately began to rotate even more quickly, and the number of insects flooding out from within increased significantly.

However, right at this moment, the three demon monarchs combined their magic powers to conjure up a massive ball of light around them, which allowed them to crash through the countless insects around them, thereby opening up a path that took them to the edge of the insect sea in just a few flashes.

The ball of light then separated into three streaks of light again, all of which hurriedly fled into the distance.

The praying mantis creature was clearly not expecting these demon monarchs to flee, and a furious expression appeared on its face before it let loose a sharp screen, sending the swarm of insects flying toward the demon monarchs in hot pursuit.

All of these insects flew at a phenomenal speed, seemingly able to match the pace being set by the demon monarchs.

Meanwhile, the praying mantis creatures body blurred, and he disappeared on the spot. frewebnovel.com

In the next instant, he appeared above the semi-spherical object, then disappeared into it.

A loud buzzing sound erupted from the holy nest, and the stream of insect projections pouring forth from it was cut off before it also flew through the air as a streak of silver light, surrounded by countless insects.

Thus, the insect sea and the demon monarchs vanished into the distance in the blink of an eye.

Elsewhere, Mu Qing was hovering in the air above the body of water that Han Li had been situated at several days ago, looking down with a dark expression on her face.

…

This place seems to be… Within another vast expanse of black mist, a humanoid figure was inspecting his surroundings within a swath of grey light.

This man wore a set of azure robes and appeared to be in his twenties with his brows slightly furrowed. He was none other than Han Li, whod just left the infernal river.

As soon as he recovered from his rush of dizziness, hed immediately found himself situated within this vast expanse of black mist.

Thankfully, he had cultivated his Divine Essencefused Light for so long that using it was second nature to him now, and it was automatically released to protect him.

Han Li looked up into the air to find that the spatial rift that had just ejected him was already sealing over, and in the instant that he cast his gaze toward it, it finally disappeared without a trace, as if it had never even existed in the first place.

Even though it was only for an instant, Han Li had caught sight of wisps of black Qi escaping from the spatial rift right before it disappeared, then blended into the black mist around him.

Could it be that all of the mist here seeped out of that spatial rift? Han Li murmured to himself before inspecting his surroundings again, trying to ascertain his current location.

However, he was only able to release his spiritual sense for around 1,000 before it immediately recoiled, thereby limiting his sensory range.

Han Li raised an eyebrow and stroked his chin as a thought suddenly occurred to him.

He brought his hands together before separating them, and azure light flashed between his palms, following which a spirit herb that was several inches in length appeared within his grasp.

He raised a hand to hurl the spirit herb into the black mist, and it immediately wilted before being reduced to dust in the instant before it drifted onto the ground below.

Black Infernal Mist! Han Li drew a sharp breath, and he could finally confirm his current location.

He had been teleported back to the massive island in the Flying Spirit Race territory, and this vast expanse of black mist was the sea of Black Infernal Mist that hed refrained from entering when he was last on this island.

He had conducted some tests on this black mist to find that the Yin Qi within it was extremely severe, and that it was able to absorb the spiritual Qi within plant life and other living beings.

At the time, he was in a hurry to break through his bottleneck, and he was also quite wary of this mists strange properties, so he never ventured into it.

Now, he had no choice as he had been teleported here right after leaving the infernal river. Thinking back to the black Qi that had seeped out of the spatial rift, it seemed that the formation of this sea of mist most likely had something to do with the infernal river.

However, the Yin Qi in the infernal river was definitely not as fearsome as that present in this black mist, so there had to be some other constituents that made up this mist.

Han Lis eyes flashed as he made his judgment in the blink of an eye.

In any case, this was most definitely not the place for a picnic, and it was best to get away from here as quickly as possible.

With that in mind, azure light flashed from Han Lis body, and he immediately rose up into the air.

However, after rising to altitudes of only several tens of feet, the mist around him suddenly converged toward his body, snuffing out the azure light around and forcing him to plummet toward the ground.

Theres a flight restriction here! Han Lis heart stirred upon making this observation.

He finally understood why the Tian Peng beings were so wary of this sea of mist, to the extent that no one was stationed on this island.

To the Tian Peng beings who revered the Kun Peng as a divine deity, a flight restriction was naturally extremely dangerous. After all, most of the abilities of Flying Spirit Race beings hinged on their wings. If they were unable to fly, then they would immediately be severely debilitated.

That was, of course, only one of the reasons. It was most likely the case that the Tian Peng beings avoided this place like the plague also due to the aura of the infernal river that seeped out of the spatial rift here.

After all, the infernal river was most likely the internal space of the body of a Rahu Beast, so the Tian Peng beings, who possessed the Kun Peng bloodline, would most definitely find this place to be absolutely abhorrent.

However, these were all merely assumptions being made by Han Li. As for whether these reasons were valid or if there were other factors behind all this, that was something that perhaps on the elders of the Tian Peng Race knew.

Even though he was technically a holy disciple of the Tian Peng Race, he hadnt come into contact with such matters, so he naturally didnt know the true reasons behind everything.

The flight restriction in this place was quite bothersome to Han Li, but that certainly wasnt going to trap him.

With his powerful body, even if he had to travel on foot, he would most likely be able to leave this place quite quickly.

The only things that he had to be wary of were strange creatures potentially attacking him or other unforeseen restrictions.

However, Han Li naturally wasnt going to keep waiting here. After making up his mind, his unleashed his spiritual sense to its maximal extent, then sped toward a certain direction.

Two days passed by in the blink of an eye.

At the summit of a nameless massive mountain, there was a huge spell formation that was around 1,000 feet in radius.

There were eight tall platforms around the formation, atop each of which stood a giant flag with golden and silver runes shimmering on those flags.

Han Li stood at the center of the formation, while the elderly man, Yuan Yao, and Yan Li stood outside it.

High up in the misty sky, there was a barely visible white rift that was over 1,000 feet in length.

Fellow Daoist Han, I can borrow the power of this spatial rift in the infernal river and use the formation to teleport you away, but I cant guarantee your destination. However, its most likely the case that youll still end up in an area somewhere near or within the Flying Spirit Race, the elderly man said.

Thank you for your words of cautions, Senior, Han Li replied in a respectful voice.

Alright, its about time we began. Ill activate the formation and send you away from the infernal river. By the way, take this with you, when youve collected enough items, you can follow the instructions on that thing to return to the infernal river again. That thing is a disposable treasure, and I only have one, so look after it well. The elderly man raised a hand, and two items were sent flying toward Han Li.

Han Li hurriedly caught the items before focusing his gaze on them, following which he immediately exclaimed, A Star Defying Plate?

The two items in his hands were a round plate that was shimmering with white light and a blue jade slip.

Oh? Im surprised you know of this thing. However, this is only a replica of a Star Defying Plate, but the materials required to refine this thing are extremely hard to find. I originally refined a few of these, but Ive used up all of them aside from this one. Inside that jade slip contains the method for you to access the infernal river using that plate, you can take a good look at it later. Aside from that, you can have your Gold Devouring Beetles back as well, the elderly man said as he swept a sleeve through the air.

An azure flash of light emerged from within his sleeve, quickly revealing itself to be a miniature wooden tower.

The treasure rotated in mid-air, and two specks of golden light flew out from within.

Those were none other than the Gold Devouring Beetles that the elderly man had taken.

Han Li was ecstatic to see this, and he immediately extended a hand to draw the beetles back to him.

Youre incredibly fortunate to have been able to nurture mature Gold Devouring Beetles, Fellow Daoist Han, but let me tell you this, mature Gold Devouring Beetles may be quite fearsome, but they can only display their true power in large numbers. If only a few are unleashed at once, itd be quite easy for a high-grade cultivator to trap them using a wood-attribute treasure. As opposed to focusing on these beetles, it would be more beneficial to work harder on your own cultivation. Of course, if you can nurture hundreds, even thousands of these mature Gold Devouring Beetles, then most of the Spirit Realm is your oyster as the majority of wood-attribute treasures wont be able to trap so many matured Gold Devouring Beetles. At the same time, its important to remember that controlling such a large number of Gold Devouring Beetles would be so taxing our ones spiritual sense, that even Grand Ascension cultivators like me wont be able to handle it. Hehe, of course, if you can nurture a legendary Gold Devouring Beetle Monarch, then even True Immortals would most likely refrain from engaging you in battle, let alone a Grand Ascension cultivator like me, the elderly man chuckled.

Gold Devouring Beetle Monarch? This was the first time that Han Li had heard of something like this.

Oh? You dont know what that is? Ah, that makes sense. Only the Mayfly Race and other races that are closely affiliated with insects know of Gold Devouring Beetle Monarchs, so I suppose its no surprise that youre oblivious to them. If you ever get the chance to do so, you can go and conduct some research on your own about this matter. This beetle monarch is a legend that has been around for countless years, but Ive never actually heard of anyone successfully refining, so its not something to be overly fixated on, the elderly man explained before making a hand seal.

A loud rumbling noise erupted from the sky above, and dense dark clouds began to surface as howling winds were swept up.

The elderly man then began to chant something in the wind, and even though his voice wasnt very loud, it was still quite clearly audible.

An astonishing scene then ensued.

The elderly man didnt appear to have done anything else, but the massive flags on the eight platforms suddenly tremored in unison. The flags flapped in the wind as the entire formation began to emit a faint buzzing sound.

Spiritual threads of all types of different colors surfaced around the formation before sweeping toward the massive flags as streaks of light.

As the eight flags flashed within the spiritual light, bursts of astonishing spiritual pressure emanated from the formation as one rune after another emerged.

Han Li was situated at the very center of the formation, so he could quite clearly sense just how fearsome the power imbued within these runes were.

If any single one of those runes were to explode, he definitely wouldnt be able to withstand the explosion even with his current immensely powerful body.

Han Lis expression changed slightly as he took a deep breath.

Yuan Yao looked on from outside the formation, and a hint of concern also appeared in her eyes. гeewebnovl.com

The eight giant flags rotated at once before blasting forth eight pillars of light that were as thick as large bowls, all of which disappeared high up into the sky in a flash.

The white rift overhead immediately shimmered with brilliant light, and instantly became several times more visible than before.

The elderly man swept a sleeve upward upon seeing this, and a dull thump erupted in the air above the formation, following which an azure sword projection that was several tens of feet in length appeared amid a flash of piercing azure light.

Sever! the elderly man yelled before pointing two of his fingers at the huge sword projection up above.

The azure sword projection immediately adopted a vertical position before flying up toward the white rift in the sky.

A loud ringing sound suddenly erupted in the surrounding sky as the air abruptly tightened, as if all of the worlds origin Qi nearby had been sucked away by this sword.

In the instant before the giant azure sword struck the white rift, it expanded countless times further, taking up the entire sky as if it were a divine weapon.

The azure sword then proceeded to slice open that white rift amid a loud tearing sound that was audible throughout the entire heavens.

A thin long black rift emerged within the white rift, and the elderly man waved a hand through the air to dispel the gargantuan sword.

At the same time, eight gigantic runes, each of which was around the size of a cabin, surfaced near the black rift, shimmering with bright golden light.

Han Li felt the air around him tighten, immediately following which the runes from the formation beneath his feet hovered toward him in unison.

His heart jolted with shock upon seeing this, and just as chills were running down his spine, the runes transformed into lights of different colors before revolving rapidly around him.

His surroundings suddenly blurred, and he was struck by a rush of dizziness.

Following a strange high-pitched screech, a pillar of five-colored light erupted from the center of the formation, then disappeared into the black rift in a flash.

At the same time, the light emanating from the entire formation faded, and it ceased to function.

At this moment, Han Li was already nowhere to be seen.

Master, has Brother Han really been teleported away? Yuan Yao was unable to hide her concern any longer as she turned to the elderly man.

Rest assured, Yaoer, the teleportation formation worked extremely well, so he should be back in the Spirit Realm by now. Within 1,000 years, hell return to the infernal river again, and you two will be reunited, the elderly man chuckled.

He could also sense that Yuan Yaos feeling for Han Li seemed to have gone beyond simple friendship, so there was a suggestive tone to his words. Yuan Yao blushed slightly upon hearing this, but she made no effort to defend herself as she looked up into the sky again.

The black rift up above was gradually sealing over, reverting back to a white rift that was slowly blurring again.

Yan Li wrapped an arm around Yuan Yaos shoulder, and smiled as she said, Lets go back, Junior Martial Sister. Its just as Senior Jiang says, youll see him again if fate dictates it to be so. Your cultivation base and powers may not be able to match against Fellow Daoist Hans at the moment, but with Senior Jiang as your master, Im sure youll have at least matched him by the time he returns.

Hehe, youre not wrong there. That Han brat is indeed quite an extraordinary cultivator for someone of his cultivation base, but under my tutelage, youre almost guaranteed to progress to the Spatial Tempering Stage, and theres a 40% to 50% that Ill even get you to the Body Integration Stage, the elderly man said in a confident manner.

Ill be sure to cultivate to the very best of my abilities, Master! Yuan Yao immediately rid her mind of all unnecessary thoughts and emotions as she extended a grateful bow toward the elderly man.

Just as Han Li was teleported out of the infernal river, Liu Zu, the white-haired beauty, the crimson-robed figure, and the Purpleblood Puppet were situated on a set of plains located countless kilometers away from the greyish-white mountain ranges, struggling to survive amid a sea of insects.

There were countless winged centipede-like creatures with hooked tails swarming toward and attacking them from all sides.

These strange insects were each around three to four feet in size, and they were extremely ferocious with no fear for their own safety whatsoever.

At this point, Liu Zu had already transformed into a massive black insect himself, and countless streaks of black light were erupting from his body to puncture the insects around him.

The Purpleblood Puppet had already expanded to over 1,000 times its original size at the crimson-robed figures behest, and it was relentlessly blasting pillars of crimson light out of its six eyes.

The white-haired beauty had also donned her suit of black armor again, and a sea of green flames was erupting from her war hammer to keep all of the surrounding insects at bay.

The demon monarchs clearly held the upper hand, and but all three of them were extremely frustrated as no matter how many of these strange insects they killed, there was always more to replace them, and it seemed as if there were no end to their numbers.

Close to 10 kilometers away, there was a praying-mantis-like creature with a human facing appraising the battle from afar with a frosty look on its face.

In the air above this creature, there was semi-spherical object around 1,000 feet in diameter, and it was flashing erratically with silver light as countless winged centipede creatures surging toward the demon monarchs in the distance in a frenzy.

How are you so sure that I have leftover Golden Lightning Bamboo, Senior? Han Li asked with a peculiar look on his face.

I cant be absolutely sure, of course, but seeing as you were able to refine 72 flying swords with the materials, theres a good chance that youll have some spare Golden Lightning Bamboo, which is why I mentioned it, the elderly man replied.

Im afraid Ill have to let you down, Senior, I dont have any spare Golden Lightning Bamboo. I came across the Golden Lightning Bamboo I used to refine my swords by chance, and there was only just enough of it to refine these 72 flying swords, Han Li sighed.

You dont have any left? The elderly man furrowed his brows, seemingly slightly taken aback by this.

Thats right. I really do want the new sword art, as well as to refine my flying swords again, but Im afraid I simply dont have the resources to facilitate this exchange, Han Li replied with a wry smile.

He was telling the truth here. Even though he had that mysterious small vial and a spiritual root of the Golden Lightning Bamboo, the Divine Devilbane Lightning contained within the 72 flying swords had always been sufficient for him, and there were countless other things that he had to use that small vial for. As such, he didnt nurture any additional Golden Lightning Bamboo.

He was quite tempted by the exchange that the elderly man was proposing, but he could only decline.

The elderly man stared at Han Li for a long while before determining that he didnt seem to be lying, and only then did he continue, If you dont have any Golden Lightning Bamboo left, then I wont be able to give you the sword art. Actually, when you were harvesting the Golden Lightning Bamboo, you mustve obtained a lot of its leaves as well, right?

A thought suddenly occurred to the man, and he enquired about the leaves of the Golden Lightning Bamboo instead.

Han Li faltered slightly upon hearing this before replying, I did indeed procure a lot of these leaves. Those leaves were quite peculiar, seemingly not wooden nor metallic in nature. I never managed to find a use for them, but they didnt seem like ordinary items, so I kept all the leaves in a safe place.

Great! If you dont have Golden Lightning Bamboo, then I can give you the sword art and the refinement method for your flying swords in exchange for those leaves. However, I wont be helping you refine your swords, what do you think? the elderly man asked as a hint of elation appeared in his eyes.

That would be fantastic! Han Li replied without any hesitation.

He knew that these leaves had to be quite useful for something or the elderly man wouldnt be asking him for them, but it was naturally a great exchange for him to be able to offer something that he didnt know the purpose of for something that was extremely useful to him.

Thus, Han Li immediately swept a hand over his storage bracelet, and azure light flashed as two faint green wooden boxes appeared in his hands.

He then tossed both of wooden boxes toward the elderly man, and a faint light flashed through the mans eyes as the two boxes drew to a halt, hovering in mid-air before him.

The lids of the boxes were then lifted amid flashes of white light, and stacks of shimmering golden bamboo leaves were revealed.

Theres no mistaking it, these are indeed Golden Lightning Bamboo leaves. The elderly man was able to instantly ascertain the authenticity of these leaves, and a pleased expression appeared on his face.

He swept a sleeve through the air, and boxes disappeared after the lids were placed back onto them.

He then flicked a finger to send a streak of white light hurtling directly toward Han Li.

Han Li caught the streak of white light in his grasp to find that it was a white jade slip.

Ive put the new sword art and the refinement method of the flying swords into that jade slip, you can have a look at it to make sure that Im now swindling you, the elderly man said with a smile.

I wouldnt dare to think that! Han Li stowed the jade slip away without so much as a second glance at it.

The elderly man nodded upon seeing this.

Senior Jiang, would you be able to enlighten me and tell me what those leaves can be used for? Han Li couldnt help but ask.

Hehe, you must still have some of these bamboo leaves left in your possession, right, Fellow Daoist Han? Rest assured, these leaves will be enough for me, so I wont make you hand over the rest. The purpose of these leaves is something thats known to very few people in the human race, but its common knowledge in the Chang Yuan Race, so theres no harm in telling you. These leaves can be used for two purposes, the first is to refine them into a type of divine lightning known as Golden Devil Vanquishing Lightning. In terms of potency against devilish beings, this type of lightning is superior even to Divine Devilbane Lightning. Its a powerful weapon for Grand Ascension cultivators like me against Extrarealm Heavenly Devils. They can also be fed to some spirit insects, and theres a very good chance that a mutation could occur. Of course, a considerable amount of these leaves must be fed to the spirit insects for that to happen, the elderly man revealed.

Extrarealm Heavenly Devils? What are those? Han Li was perplexed.

The elderly man was clearly in a very good mood, and he was a lot more talkative as he explained, How do I say this? Its kind of like the lightning tribulations that befall us cultivators, except lightning tribulations take place at regular intervals, whereas Extrarealm Heavenly Devils are things that all Grand Ascension cultivators could be susceptible to at any moment. Theyre completely invisible and formless, kind of like inner demons, but countless times more dangerous. Under normal circumstances, Grand Ascension cultivators are most susceptible to such devils when our magic power is in a severely depleted state or when our state of mind is unstable. If were unable to resist their attack, then our souls could be corrupted, thereby reducing us to one of them. I want these Golden Lightning Bamboo leaves so I can refine some Golden Devil Vanquishing Lightning, which will help me ward off such heavenly devils after my tribulation transcendence.

A contemplative look appeared on Han Lis face upon hearing this. He was quite intrigued by the notion that these leaves could be fed to spirit insects to effect mutations.

By the way, are you planning to permanently settle in this place, Fellow Daoist Han? On this occasion, the elderly man spoke in a normal manner rather than transmitting his voice to Han Li.

Theres too much Yin Qi here, which will hamper my cultivation in the long run, and I have some matters to take care of in the outside world as well, so I wont be able to stay here for too long, Han Li replied truthfully after a brief hesitation.

Yuan Yaos face paled slightly upon hearing this, but she quickly composed herself thereafter, so no one noticed her shift in demeanor aside from Yan Li.

A slightly peculiar look appeared on Yan Lis face upon seeing this, but she also quickly reverted back to a calm facade.

Oh? Does that mean youve found a way to leave this space? A hint of a smile appeared on the elderly mans face.

Not yet, Senior. Han Li rubbed his nose in a slightly awkward manner.

Haha, then you dont have to keep looking, I have a reliable way out of this place. Otherwise, how could I possibly reside in this holy land of the Mayfly Race without a way out? I can send you on your way in a few days, the elderly man chuckled.

Thank you, Senior! Han Li was overjoyed to hear this.

Just as an elated look appeared on Han Lis face, the elderly man transmitted his voice to him again. Dont thank me just yet. I dont do anything free of charge, and this is no exception. I want to make another deal with you.

Another deal? Han Li faltered upon hearing this.

Are you interested in the Divine Infernal River Elixir? the elderly man asked.

You possess this divine elixir, Senior? Han Li was truly astonished this time.

Ive lived for so long in this infernal river, itd be an absolute joke if I hadnt secured some Divine Infernal River Elixir by this point, the elderly man chuckled coldly.

Does the Mayfly Race know of this? Arent there two Infernal Lightning Beasts guarding the divine elixir? Han Li asked in bewilderment.

Do you really think two Infernal Lightning Beasts can stop me? I have countless ways to secure the divine elixir without being detected by them. On top of that, I only extract a small amount of elixir every time. Even if those Infernal Lightning Beasts come to realize what Im doing, what are they going to do? Come and challenge me in battle to recover the elixir? the elderly man scoffed in a proud manner.

Of course Im interested in the divine elixir, but I really dont have anything that I can exchange for it, Han Li replied after a long silence.

I never said I wanted something for you now, the elderly man said in a meaningful voice.

Then… Han Lis expression changed slightly.

Its quite simple, I cant leave this space as Im trying to delay the arrival of my next heavenly tribulation, but I require some extremely important things. As long as you can gather those things for me, then bring them to me within the next 1,000 years, Ill exchange a vial of Divine Infernal River Elixir for them, what do you think, Fellow Daoist Han? the elderly man asked.

Ill have to hear what youd like me to collect first, Senior. Rather than immediately accepting this arrangement, Han Li took a more conservative and cautious approach.

The fact that Han Li was exercising such caution seemed to be an encouraging sign for the elderly man, and a pleased look appeared on his face as he swept his sleeve through the air to send another jade slip flying toward Han Li.

Han Li caught the jade slip before immediately inspecting its contents, and it didnt take long before a peculiar look appeared on his face.

After a while, Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense from the jade slip before raising his head with a forced smile on his face.

There arent many items listed in this jade slip, but Ive never even heard of most of them. Even the ones that I do know of are extremely rare, and I could easily go 1,000 years without encountering a single one of them. Surely youre asking too much of me, Senior.

Do you think Divine Infernal River Elixir is some kind of normal spirit elixir, Fellow Daoist Han? Its something that even Body Integration cultivators are willing to risk their lives for! Besides, I didnt say you had to find everything on that list, as long as you can gather two-thirds of them, then return to this place, Ill exchange the divine elixir for those things, the elderly man replied in a calm manner.

Two thirds? In that case, its not entirely impossible, Han Li murmured after a brief pause for contemplation.

Then do we have a deal, Fellow Daoist Han? If so, I can send you out of this infernal river as my deposit.

I guess I have no choice but to agree. Han Li rubbed his nose with a wry smile on his face.

The elderly man smiled, and said, Ill send you away from here in two days! freewbne.com

This is an extremely important matter, so I certainly wouldnt make jokes about it, Han Li replied with a serious look on his face.

If we can find a perfect solution, then that would naturally be for the best. Tell us what it is, Brother Han, Yan Li urged with an elated expression.

The two of you dont actually have to struggle with this matter on your own, you can simply inform Senior Jiang of this predicament. Dont forget that Senior Jiang is a Grand Ascension cultivator, things that seem extremely difficult or impossible for us may be quite simple for him. Even if he cant reverse the process and allow the two of you to recover your human bodies right away, Im sure he had some method to prevent you two from further transitioning toward ghostly beings. Why dont you raise the issue with Senior Jiang before making a decision? Han Li suggested with a smile.

Both Yuan Yao and Yan Li were enlightened upon hearing this.

Thats a brilliant idea, Brother Han! We were too caught up with trying to convince the other person that our solution was the best one, and it made us lose sight of the bigger picture, Yan Li said with an excited look on her face.

Yuan Yao also nodded in agreement with this idea after a brief pause for contemplation.

In all honesty, I have some other concerns that Id like to raise, Han Li suddenly continued after a brief hesitation.

Please do tell, Brother Han, Yan Li prompted.

Yuan Yao also turned to appraise Han Li with an unblinking gaze.

Han Li chuckled, but didnt immediately respond. Instead, he flipped a hand over to reveal a black object in his palm, which instantly expanded to around 10 feet in size.

It was none other than his Divine Essencefused Mountain.

He swept a sleeve through the air, and the small mountain flew out onto the roof as a streak of black light, then transforming into a grey light barrier that enshrouded the entire cabin.

The two women were a little surprised by what he was doing, but neither of them asked any questions.

Only then did Han Li raise his aforementioned concerns.

My Divine Essencefused Light is nothing in the face of a Grand Ascension cultivator, but itll alert me as soon as any spiritual sense attempts to infiltrate it. What Im about to say next may be a little disrespectful to Senior Jiang, but I believe it needs to be discussed. Fellow Daoist Yan, youre adamant that Fellow Daoist Yuan should become Senior Jiangs disciple, but have you considered the notion that perhaps this senior doesnt want to use Fellow Daoist Yuans powers to help him transcend his next heavenly tribulation, but for some other purpose instead? Or perhaps helping him transcend his next tribulation could be an extremely harmful or dangerous process to Fellow Daoist Yuan, in that case, what will you do?

The two women exchanged a glance upon hearing this, but they werent very surprised to hear these issues being raised. Yan Li forced a smile onto her face, and said, Surely thats going too far, Brother Han. Senior Jiang is a Grand Ascension cultivator, he wouldnt lie to insignificant juniors like us.

Han Li raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, and only after staring at the two women for a while did he nod with a faint smile.

It appears I was overthinking things, then. Seeing as the two of you have already considered this issue, I wont speak any further about it, but allow me to issue one final reminder to Fellow Daoist Yuan, Senior Jiang is extending an invitation for you to become his disciple, leaving you with the power to make the final decision, rather than forcing you under his wing. This indicates that the objective he wants to achieve cant be accomplished by force. In that case, you do have a certain level of leverage against him, which means that youre not completely doomed to follow his bidding. It would be very dangerous to try and abuse that leverage, but do be aware that it exists.

Thank you for the reminder, Brother Han, Yuan Yao replied with a wry smile.

Han Li smiled before waving an arm through the air, and the Divine Essencefused Mountain instantly disappeared along with the grey light barrier.

After that, Han Li discussed a few more things with the two women and also speculated about why he was residing in a place like this.

However, Yuan Yao then insisted on going to see the elderly man right away to determine whether hed actually be able to help them recover their human bodies.

Han Li and Yan Li naturally wouldnt oppose her, so the three of them emerged from the stone cabin together.

Yuan Yao then called out for the white ghostly figure that had brought them to this courtyard, and it immediately appeared as if it had never even left in the first place.

After hearing their request to see the elderly man, the ghostly being nodded before leading the way.

A short while later, Han Li and the others returned to the cavernous hall, where they were greeted by the sight of the elderly man once again.

The man was still sitting on the same chair as before, and a faint smile appeared on his face at the sight of Han Lis trio as he asked, Have you already decided to accept my offer, Fellow Daoist Yuan?

Yuan Yao extended a respectful bow toward the elderly man, and considered her response for a short while before carefully replying, I am forever grateful for your immensely kind offer, and I would love to cultivate by your side. However, there is an issue that I need to address or I wont be able to accept your offer right away.

Oh? An issue, you say? Hehe, why dont you tell me about it? The elderly mans eyes immediately lit up, and he seemed to be quite confident in his ability to take care of any issues that Yuan Yao could raise.

Thus, Yuan Yao immediately revealed to the man her wishes to return to her human form.

Haha, you made it sound like some kind of impossible predicament, but this is merely a trifling matter. I can refine several types of pills for you, then expend some magic power to expel the Yin power within your body, and itd only be a matter of a few years before you can recover your human body. On top of that, it wont hamper your cultivation of the Chang Yuan Race ability at all, the elderly man chortled with glee, as if this were merely a simple task to him.

In that case, I would certainly be willing to accept you as my Master, Senior Jiang! Yaoer pays her respects to her master! Yuan Yao was also overjoyed by this outcome, and she immediately extended another respectful bow.

Good, good! Rest assured, my disciple, I can wait a few years with no issues. Whenever you completely recover your human body is when you can begin cultivating that Chang Yuan Race ability. The elderly man swept a sleeve through the air, sending forth a burst of gently invisible power to help Yuan Yao back into an upright posture.

Tears suddenly welled up in Yuan Yaos eyes as she continued, Master, youve already agreed to help me recover my human body, so I really shouldnt be asking for anything else, but Senior Martial Sister Yan Li has been like a true sister to me for many years. Would you be able to accept her as your disciple as well, and also help her recover her human body?

A conflicted look appeared on the elderly mans face, and only after a long while did he heave a faint sigh. Ive already made an exception by accepting you as my disciple, so I wont be able to take Fellow Daoist Yan under my wing no matter what. However, I can help her recover her human body if thats what you want.

Yuan Yao still wanted to insist on the matter, but Yan Li cut her off with a surreptitious shake of her head toward Yuan Yao.

Im already extremely grateful that Senior Jiang is willing to expend the time and effort to help me recover my human body, I couldnt possibly hope to become Senior Jiangs disciple with my mediocre aptitude, so please dont ask for anything more, Junior Martial Sister.

Yan Li had spoken in an extremely earnest manner, and a slightly dejected look appeared on Yuan Yaos face, but she fell silent in the end.

She was also quite aware that a man of Senior Jiangs status wouldnt easily change his mind after making a decision. Agreeing to half of her condition was already a show of great generosity, so it wouldnt be realistic to ask for anything more.

Han Li had accompanied the two women into the hall, but he merely stood off to the side and refrained from saying anything. However, he was inspecting the elderly man with intense focus this entire time, trying to catch any signs of deceit in his words, but the elderly man appeared to be quite genuine throughout this entire process, and that came as quite a relief to Han Li.

It appeared that this Senior Jiang truly was looking for a disciple.

All of a sudden, the elderly man transmitted his voice to Han Li. Fellow Daoist Han, I have something that Id like to speak to you about alone, would you be willing to hear it?

Han Li was slightly taken aback, but he quickly transmitted his voice in reply. Id be more than glad to hear it, Senior Jiang.

Yuan Yao and Yan Li could see Han Li and the elderly mans lips moving, but no sounds came out, so they were aware that the two were clearly conversing through voice transmissions. The two women glanced at one another before wisely waiting in silence.

In all honesty, if I hadnt discovered that this female companion of yours possesses the Heavenly Yin Physique, Id originally intended to take you as my disciple and inherit everything I have. However, Ive taken Yaoer as my disciple now, and I also have to prepare for my next heavenly tribulation, so I simply dont have the spare capacity to take you under my wing as well. Thats quite regrettable to me as Im very interested in your simultaneous cultivation, the elderly man said in a forlorn voice.

Han Li was completely taken aback to hear this, and only after a while did he reply in a respectful voice, That is indeed quite unfortunate for me, but such is life.

However, seeing as you obtained the sword art left behind by Qing Yuanzi in the human world and used Golden Lightning Bamboo to refine your 72 Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords, youre technically half a disciple of mine. If youre still interested in the new Azure Essence Sword Art and refining your Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords again, I can bestow those methods upon you. However, youre not a true disciple of mine, after all, so youll have to offer me something in exchange, the elderly man continued.

The new Azure Essence Sword Art? Han Lis heart stirred upon hearing this.

Thats right. The sword art that Qing Yuanzi left behind in the human world was only half-complete, and he only finished the second half after entering the Spirit Realm. With both halves, the sword art can support your cultivation all the way up to the early-Body Integration Stage. Only after taking over the body of this Chang Yuan being did I switch to a Chang Yuan Race cultivation art, but if you can master this sword art, then refine your flying swords again to rid them of their impurities, the sword formation you set up will allow you to fight on even terms with late-Body Integration Stage beings, the elderly man said with a smile.

But Im only a mere Deity Transformation cultivator, what could I possibly offer that would catch your interest, Senior? Han Li was very tempted by this offer, but he still retained a hint of clarity and calmness in his mind.

You may not have anything else, but surely you have some spare Golden Lightning Bamboo leftover, right? the elderly man asked with narrowed eyes.

Golden Lightning Bamboo? Han Li was quite surprised to hear this.

Thats right. If you can give me enough of this material to refine three flying swords, Ill pass this new sword art onto you. If you have more than that, I can even help you refine your 72 flying swords, the elderly man chuckled.

Yuan Yao and Yan Li were quite relieved to hear this, and both of them hurriedly expressed their gratitude.

The elderly man suddenly smiled and clapped his hands together, following which white light flashed, and a semi-transparent white figure emerged out of thin air on one side of the hall.

Take our guests to the guest room for some rest. If our three fellow Daoists have any requirements, do your best to satisfy them, the elderly man instructed.

Yes, Master! The white figure extended a respectful bow in response.

Han Li swept his spiritual sense toward this white figure, and his heart jolted as he discovered that this being was a late-Spatial Tempering Stage ghost monarch.

Han Li had many questions left unanswered, but he could only leave with this white figure.

After Han Lis trio left the hall, the elderly man withdrew his gaze as a contemplative look appeared on his face.

Meanwhile, Han Li and the others followed his ghostly servant through a series of passageways, past a few smaller halls, then arrived in a courtyard.

The courtyard consisted of a dozen or so stone cabins, and they werent particularly spectacular or intricately crafted, but they were all quite clean and tidy.

The white figure pointed toward the courtyard, and said in a cold voice, The three of you can stay and rest here. If you dont have any urgent matters that need to be addressed, I suggest you dont go anywhere else. If you do have something that needs to be taken care of, call for me and Ill get here as soon as possible.

After that, the white figure vanished on the spot, leaving Han Lis trio behind to glance at one another.

Lets go in and have rest first. Weve been traveling non-stop these past few days, so Im sure the two of you are quite tired as well. We can consider the other matters on hand after weve all recovered some of our energy. In any case, weve got three days to decide, so theres certainly no hurry, Han Li said in a slow voice as he turned to the two women with a smile.

Yan Li forced a smile in response, whereas Yuan Yaos brows remained tightly furrowed. freebovel.com

Thus, Han Li strode into the courtyard first.

He made his way toward one of the stone cabins, and there were no restrictions on the door, so he opened it and walked into the room. The interior of the cabin wasnt very large, only around 70 to 80 feet in area, but it was completely furnished with extremely simple bluestone furniture.

There was even a grass-woven futon sitting in a corner of the room.

Han Li swept a sleeve through the air, and a dozen or so formation flags flew forth before disappearing into the corners of the cabin.

An azure barrier of light slowly appeared.

This was only a simple restriction to ward off surveillance. Even though it had no actual defensive properties, at least the elderly man wouldnt be able to see what he was doing.

Han Li took off his shoes in an unhurried manner before immediately falling asleep on the bed.

Ever since hed entered the infernal river, hed had to be wary of the ghostly beings that ran rampant in the area as well as the demon monarchs plotting against him, so he hadnt had any good rest to speak of.

Even though he couldnt completely bring himself to trust this elderly man, it wouldnt matter no matter how cautious he was seeing as he was dealing with a Grand Ascension cultivator, so he simply decided to let down his guard for the most part and take this opportunity to rest and recover.

Snores rang out in the stone cabin, and Han Li fell into a deep slumber.

He dreamed of the scenes during his childhood when hed lived together with his parents and siblings, and he even dreamed of some of his childhood friends.

These people were all extremely familiar to him, but he somehow couldnt glean any of their facial features.

In the air, a pair of gentle and loving eyes appeared in his dream, and those eyes belonged to none other than Nangong Wan, his wife in the human world.

Nangong Wan didnt say anything after appearing in his dream. She merely appraised Han Li with a warm and passionate gaze, and Han Li also looked back at her, seemingly entranced by her beauty…

After a long while, Han Lis eyelids fluttered as he woke up, but the image of Nangong Wans beautiful eyes still remained in his mind.

He didnt immediately get up. Instead, he lay on his bed, basking in the warmth that that dream had brought to his heart.

After a while, the intoxicated look in Han Lis eyes gradually faded, and he reverted back to his usual calm expression.

Perhaps it was a coincidence, but right at this moment, Yan Lis delightful voice sounded outside his door.

Are you up yet, Brother Han? If so, please come to discuss the matters at hand with my junior martial sister and myself.

Yan Li was speaking in quite a polite manner.

Please wait for a moment, Ill be coming soon, Han Li replied as he sat up on his bed.

Well be waiting in the stone cabin in the middle for your visit, then, Brother Han! Yan Li chuckled before departing.

Han Li calmly put on his shoes, then raised a hand to conjure up a burst of azure light that revolved around his entire body.

The creases on his robes were instantly smoothed out as a result, and Han Li was also feeling more alert as he strode out of his stone cabin.

Yuan Yao and Yan Li had lived in the same cabin the night before, so they had most likely had a preliminary discussion already.

With that in mind, Han Li made his way into the stone chamber at the very center of the courtyard.

This cabin was around twice as large as the one he was residing in, and there was a stone table, as well as a few stone chairs, inside the room. Yan Li and Yuan Yao were sitting at the table, discussing something in a slightly heated manner.

There was a black flag standing on each of the four corners of the hall, enshrouding the entire cabin in a layer of grey light.

It appeared that theyd set up a restriction in the cabin as well.

Im glad youre here, Brother Han, Junior Martial Sister Yuan and I have been racking our brains, trying to come up with the best solution here. Yan Li immediately rose to her feet with a seductive smile as Han Li entered the cabin.

Yuan Yao also stood up to greet him.

Oh, so it looks like the two of you have indeed already discussed this matter. If you trust me, then feel free to tell me your opinions. My cultivation base may be rather lackluster, but Im not bad at coming with strategies and ideas here and there, Han Li chuckled.

Thus, he also made his way over to the table, and all three of them took a seat.

Its actually quite simple, its naturally a brilliant opportunity for me that Senior Jiang is willing to take me as his disciple, but Im more interested in returning to the human race to find whatever secret technique or cultivation art that would allow me to recover my human body. No matter how powerful that Chang Yuan Race ability is, it wont be able to resolve my current predicament. However, Senior Martial Sister Yan thinks that this is an opportunity thats not to be missed, and she wants me to stay here under Senior Jiangs tutelage, Yuan Yao sighed in a resigned manner.

Why are you in such a hurry to recover your human body, Junior Martial Sister Yuan? You can cultivate under Senior Jiang for a while, and when you master the ability that he mentioned, you can then return to the human race to find a way to recover your human body. If you miss this opportunity here, it may never come around again, Yan Li urged.

If that were possible, then I would certainly jump at this opportunity! However, you and I both know that ever since we began cultivating the Yin Yan Reincarnation Arts, our constitutions have been gradually shifting toward becoming true ghostly beings. Even though weve tried to repress this process with all our might, it most likely wont be long before we truly become ghostly beings. I cant afford to stay here and cultivate some other ability because we simply dont have time to waste! Yuan Yao sighed in a dejected manner.

Of course Im aware of this. Thats why I propose that you stay here and cultivate under Senior Jiang while I return to the human race to find a way to recover our human bodies. That way, you can have the best of both worlds, Yan Li sighed in response.

Theres no need to try and placate me, Senior Martial Sister! Im sure you can read between the lines, his next heavenly tribulation seems to be coming up soon, and I barely have enough time to master that Chang Yuan Race ability with the current deadline. If I agree to become Senior Jiangs disciple, how will I be able to divert my attention to cultivate other things that will help me recover my human body? Yuan Yao shook her head in a stubborn manner.

As long as the two of us can be together, so what if we become true ghostly beings? Youve witnessed the perils of the Spirit Realm just as I have, Junior Martial Sister, if the two of us recover our human bodies, we may just end up dying again one day. In comparison, its much better for you to cultivate under and receive the protection of Senior Jiang. After you master the required ability, we can then go find a way to recover our human bodies. After all, even if we transform into ghostly beings, were still definitely different from true ghostly beings that were never human to begin with. There should be another way to reverse all of this. On top of that, forgive me for being blunt, but Senior Jiang clearly holds you in extremely high regard, if you turn him down, do you think itll be a simple matter for us to leave this place? Yan Li continued.

And what if theres no way to reverse the process? Yuan Yao countered with a shake of her head.

Brother Han, what do you think? Please talk some sense into her! Yan Li could only turn to Han Li for help.

Alright, so I can understand where the two of you are coming from. Fellow Daoist Yuan is concerned that she wont be able to revert back to her human body in the future, so she doesnt want to cultivate under Senior Jiang, but Fellow Daoist Yan wants her to stay as this is a brilliant opportunity, is that correct? Han Li analyzed in a calm manner.

Thats right! Weve been arguing all night last night, but neither of us has been able to convince the other! Yan Li replied with a wry smile.

I can understand your unwillingness to become a ghostly being, Fellow Daoist Yuan, and I can also understand that you want whats best for her, Fellow Daoist Yan. Neither of you are in the wrong here, Han Li said with a smile.

Brother Han, my junior martial sister and I need someone to help us make a decision, not a mediator. Yan Li furrowed her brows with a hint of displeasure in her eyes.

Hehe, mediating was never my intention, Fellow Daoist Yan. What I want to say is, its not impossible for both of these predicaments to be resolved at once, Han Li said with a smile.

What? Is that true? A skeptical look appeared on Yan Lis face upon hearing this.

Yuan Yao was also clearly quite taken aback.