Рубрика: Путешествие к бессмертию

Many villagers along the way felt that Han Lis face was somewhat unfamiliar and curiously glanced at him. However, none of them bothered to approach or question him.

As a result, Han Li was able to arrive in front of a rather worn black stone building unobstructed. After a moment of hesitation, he pushed the door in front of him, but it didnt budge in the slightest.

Han Li was surprised by the doors resistance and suspected that there was something wrong with the door. But after taking another deep breath, he used the entirety of his strength. Although he hadnt cultivated any exterior martial arts, his body had passed through the essence cleansing of both Foundation Establishment and Core Formation and was able to muster great force.

With a heavy groan, the door slowly began to give way, inch by inch, and Han Li was elated at the sight.

At that moment, he discovered that for some reason, the door was twice as thick as an ordinary door. It was no wonder the door was nearly stuck.

Han Li quickly entered the room and was faced with a moist stench of decay. He grimaced and quickly held his breath until the outside air rushed into the room and cleared out most of the unpleasant scent. He then took a short breath of fresh air before he began to look through the room, using the faint light from the doorway.

The room was rather simple. Apart from the rows of stone tablets that took up a majority of the room, there were also a few stone tables. The stone tablets were about three meters tall and six meters wide, much to Han Lis surprise. As for the stone tables, they had records and a few scrolls as well as what seemed to be lifeless magic tools.

Han Li quickly recovered from his surprise, and after some thought, he burst into laughter.

How could one find wood or bamboo to make paper with in this realm? As for jade slips, they were incapable of being used without magic power. As such, the stone tablets would be the only way to record something so these stone tablets should be the records they had left behind.

As for the magic tools on the table, they seemed to be just like his own flying swords and must be removed from this place before they could be put away. As for storage pouches, Han Li hadnt spotted any of them in the room. It seems they had been dealt with in a different manner and werent left on display.

After glancing at the general situation in the room, Han Li casually walked over to a stone tablet and saw that it was covered in a thick layer of dust, obscuring whatever was carved into it. Han Li casually tore off a piece of his jacket with a frown and started to wipe it clean.

Soon, Han Li was able to see what was carved onto the tablet.

These werent characters that were widely used in the cultivation world but rather were a type of rarely seen script. Fortunately for Han Li, he was vastly experienced and could easily recognize them.

But as soon as Han Li glanced at the tablet, his interest immediately disappeared. This was merely the diary of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Han Li immediately set it to the side and began to look through the other stone tablets in the room.

There were about twenty in total. It was only when Han Li reached the sixth stone tablet that his interest finally began to stir. He had found what he was looking for, the cultivation experiences of the Nascent Soul cultivator! Han Li was entranced and motionlessly stood in front of the stone tablet for an unknown amount of time before letting out a long breath and revealing a complicated expression.

Han Li muttered, So it turns out that condensing a Nascent Soul is such a fearsome affair. Even with the assistance of the Ninecurl Spirit Ginseng, my odds of condensing a Nascent Soul still arent very high. It seems that being dropped into the Umbra Realm was somewhat beneficial after all.

Although the tablet didnt describe any specific method of cultivation, the nameless Nascent Soul cultivator had recorded his experiences from the Foundation Establishment stage to when he had condensed a Nascent Soul with impeccable detail. Han Li felt delighted surprise upon reading through them. With the pointers given through the Nascent Soul cultivators experiences, Han Li would make far less mistakes due to misconceptions when condensing a Nascent Soul.

After reading through the stone tablet several times to make sure that he hadnt overlooked anything, Han Li put it to the side and began to look through the remaining tablets.

He had originally intended to depart, but after some thought, he figured that since he was already there he may as well read through them all and learn what he could. As such, Han Li looked through each of the tablets in a lax manner.

As expected, the remaining tablets didnt contain anything truly useful. Although a few of them contained cultivation arts, they were all beneath his notice as he had the Profound Yin Arts in his possession.

After the time it took to finish a meal, Han Li arrived at the final tablet. fгeewebnovl.com

He absent-mindedly swept the dust off of the tablet and examined it before revealing an astonished expression.

This tablet was completely different from the rest. It was filled with finely carved, rice-sized characters that were far smaller than anything on the previous tablets. Furthermore, when Han Li swept his gaze over them, he discovered that there were two different types of characters written on the tablet. One was a common ancient language, but the other was in demon beast script.

Han Lis curiosity was greatly piqued, and he began to carefully look through it while becoming increasingly more excited.

The stone tablet was a manual specifically intended to teach the demon language. Furthermore, it was extremely detailed and gave word by word explanations. The cultivator who carved this had an immense familiarity with the demon beast language.

Although Han Li couldnt immediately grasp the teachings, if he recorded the text and slowly read through it day by day, he was certain to be able to learn it. As such, he would be able to clearly understand the demon techniques that were recorded in the old hide book and the copper demon plate.

As for whether or not humans could learn the techniques of demons, Han Li didnt bother thinking much about it. Even if the demon techniques were of no use to him, there were only benefits to be gained from learning the demon language. Who knew whether or not it would be useful in the future?

After all, this was an incredibly rare opportunity.

After spending a rather long period of time, Han Li managed to utilize his eidetic memory and commit every character on the tablet to memory without fail. He then took a deep breath and left the room without even bothering to take another look at the magic tools on the tables.

After leaving the stone building, Han Li began to wander around the village and examined a few of the more peculiar buildings. He would examine them closely and talk to a few of the nearby villagers about them. Fortunately for him, these villagers were rather simple-minded. Although he as a complete stranger, they amiably answered any questions he had.

With this, Han Li quickly began to understand a few basic things about the Umbra Realm.

For example, since there were no iron mines or such, they could only refine weapons from the bones of particular umbra beasts. Of course, weapons couldnt directly be made from the bones themselves and were immersed in a liquid known as dark water, hardening the weapons as a result. Additionally, they gained the added effect of Yin flames, causing them to become particularly powerful against umbra beasts. But because the supplementary effect of the Yin flames quickly expired, these weapons had to be re-immersed in dark water every so often in order to maintain their deadliness. This greatly aroused Han Lis curiosity.

Furthermore, every few months, there would be a storm of Yin winds that lasted several days. During this time, a majority of the umbra realm would be covered in bone-chilling black Yin winds. Humans are incapable of moving outside during this period, as they would be turned into black ice sculptures by the Yin winds. Only with the protection of the villages spell techniques could the villagers remain unharmed.

In contrast, umbra beasts were most active during the storm and would frequently appear, sometimes attacking the villages in groups, much to the worry of humans.

Han Li had acquired quite a lot of information in this manner before suddenly being inspired to ask about the slender-eyed white-faced man that seemed to bode him ill. They told him that he was an outsider surnamed Feng who had been sucked in several years ago that possessed astonishing martial arts. He had killed powerful umbra beasts many times since arriving and was rather renowned in the village. As a result, he had become an elder despite his young age and was responsible for teaching the youths in the village martial arts, gaining great prestige amongst the village youth as well.

While Han Li didnt feel particularly fearful after hearing this, he inwardly frowned and felt that the man would prove quite troublesome.

After strolling around the village for a while longer and seeing what there was to see, he leisurely made his way back to his building.

But just as he arrived, Han Li suddenly heard a mans voice coming from within the room.

What? Everything I just said was sincere. So long as Lady Mei marries me, not only will you have no lack of food, but you need not risk your life to carry out missions. I have remained alone for many years, not because I am a fickle person, but because Lady Mei is the first that truly touches my heart. At some unknown time, the middle-aged man surnamed Feng had arrived within the room.

Han Li walked around on the platform and curiously examined a stone disc with a trace of astonishment.

The disc was over three meters wide and was placed flat onto the platform. There were many strange decorative patterns carved into it along with many profound talisman characters. Although there was no one currently operating it, it continuously emitted a purple mist that spiralled into the sky and covered the village.

As a proficient scholar of the Dao of formation spells, Han Li began to study the stone disc with narrowed eyes.

Not longer after, his expression fluttered before revealing a trace of enlightenment. He then furrowed his brow as he sunk deep into thought.

While Han Li was completely entranced, he suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice from behind him, Could it be that Fellow Daoist has obtained some profound insights?

Han Lis heart was shaken and he inwardly cursed in surprise upon realizing that someone had unknowingly appeared behind him. It wouldve been quite dangerous if they had meant him any harm. However, it wasnt entirely Han Lis fault for his carelessness as he was accustomed to having his spiritual sense surround his body. He was still slowly adapting to the loss of his magic power and spiritual sense.

Han Li grew inwardly vigilant and wordlessly turned around.

A white haired old man with long hair stood before Han Li. His face was full of wrinkles, but his eyes exuded a strong spirit, and he was currently looking at Han Li with a wide smile.

Han Li hesitantly asked, Are you a cultivator? He could no longer tell due to the loss of his spiritual sense.

The old man smiled and replied, I am Bao Huanzi, an old cultivator from the Five Dragon Seas. You must be one of the two newly arrived cultivators.

The Five Dragon Seas? Han Lis mind stirred with interest upon hearing the name.

Han Lis expression relaxed and he said, So it turned out to be Fellow Daoist Bao. My surname is Han and I am a vagrant cultivator of the Scattered Star Seas.

The Scattered Star Seas? There was previously a fellow Daoist that originated from the Scattered Star Seas, but unfortunately, he perished during a mission after encountering a fearsome umbra beast. Regardless, there are truly too few Fellow Daoists proficient in the Dao of talismans. From how deeply engrossed you were while looking at the stone talisman, you must hold quite some skill in the area! The old man sighed and quickly changed the subject.

Stone talisman? Are you talking about the disc? Han Li wore a baffled expression. This was the first time he had heard of such a thing.

The long-haired old man narrowed his eyes as he proudly said, Hehe! Its no surprise that you wouldnt know of such things, as I reckon that stone and jade talismans have all but vanished in the other lands. Only a few sects in our Five Dragon Seas are still able to refine these ancient talismans.

When Han Li heard this, his baffled expression disappeared and replaced with a frown. He glanced at the old man and said, Ive truly never heard of stone or jade talismans ever being created in this world. Ive spent quite some time studying the Dao of talismans, and the talisman characters on the stone disk leave me filled with amazement. Your explanation has dispelled some of my confusion, but is it mistaken on my part that Ive perceived spell formation characteristics in these talismans?

The old man revealed a trace of shock before rubbing his hands together and wearing a wide smile, I truly didnt expect that Fellow Daoist was proficient in the both talismans and formation spells. Youve earned my respect! Fellow Daoist Han isnt mistaken, this purple cloud stone talisman is quite a bit different from true stone talismans. In order to utilize umbra energy, it was altered with a few spell formation characteristics, effectively turning it into both a talisman and a spell formation. But as a result of this modification, its power has also greatly decreased.

Han Li nodded his head with a pensive expression and took another glance at the stone disk. A trace of confusion flickered form Han Lis eyes, From what youve said, you are able to use umbra energy to perform magic techniques by using umbra beast gems and spell formations. However, I dont see any beast gems embedded in the disc. Could there be something else that is peculiar about the stone talisman.

It seems there is still much that Fellow Daoist doesnt know. Surely youve seen the Insidious Mauler from today. Although a majority of people in the village cultivate martial arts and have gained fleshly might beyond that of ordinary people, it isnt possible for a lone person to challenge great umbra beasts with martial arts alone. Even if they were able to defeat one with superior numbers, there would be many casualties and would be an unsustainable tactic. As such, weve use umbra energy to disable the enemy with a few magic techniques during the villages time of need. However, this also consumes the villages stockpile of gems so it must first be considered whether or not the village would be able to persist without them.

The old man smiled and paused for a moment before continuing, Regardless, these beast gems are incredibly difficult to acquire. Generally, the larger the demon beast, the more likely theres a beast gem inside their skull, but that isnt a guarantee. There were several times where we invested great amounts of effort and resources to slay a huge demon beast, but no beast gems were found on its corpse. As for the villagers that slayed a few of the Firescale Beasts on their way back, they were actually able to find a beast gem among them but this tends to be an exception.

In summary, the demand for beast gems is astonishingly high due to the constant assaults by the umbra beasts. However, weve only managed to maintain a stockpile of about ten umbra beast gems over the years so we only use them with reluctance. As a result, the beast gems are kept among the village elders, and are only to be used when required. After the battle is concluded, they are immediately returned. As for the stone talismans, they are instilled with several days worth of power and the talisman is left to persist for several days. The beast gems arent allowed to be embedded in them, wasting the slots that were specifically refined for them. The old man appeared somewhat dissatisfied with the village elders methods and rubbed a square groove at the side of the stone disc with a wry expression.

Han Li silently smiled in response. He reckoned the the old man had told him that last part in order to involve him in a power struggle within the village. However, Han Li didnt have the slightest interest in becoming tangled up in the matter.

It appeared that the old man in front of him had started behaving like a mortal after he was severed from the path of cultivation, and had involved himself in a contest for political power. Han Li sighed and felt that this was quite lamentable.

A trace of disappointment appeared in the old mans eyes when he saw Han Li remain silent. But soon, his expression recovered and he began to idly chat.

The old man casually mentioned, It is unknown just how many years this forsaken land has existed. Although very few cultivators are sucked in, I reckon that over time several hundred cultivators have met their end here in the Umbra Realm. Ive heard that Core Formation cultivators and even Nascent Soul cultivators have lived out their days in this land.

Han Lis expression stirred, There have been Nascent Soul cultivators here?

The old man sighed, Thats right. Although I dont know how many years ago it was when that expert had been sucked into this land, but he had once been an elder of this village. I guess that he was the same as you two, and was sucked into the ghost mist when there was an eruption of Spirit Extinguishing Qi. Normally, the strange fog would be incapable of capturing such a figure.

That should be the case. However, the Spirit Extinguishing Qi is quite fearsome. Id guess that only the Deity Transformation stage cultivators from legend would be able to resist it.

Deity transformation stage! Hehe, Fellow Daoists scope of thought is truly wide. With regards to the Nascent Soul cultivator, although he already died trapped in this place, he left behind a few records, some of which detail his cultivation experiences. While these items might be incredibly precious on the outside, but here? Heh… The old man shook his head with a sense of regret.

Han Li animatedly said, His cultivation experiences! I am very interested. Would Fellow Daoist happen to know where they are?

Records of a Nascent Soul cultivators experiences are extremely valuable. It was only natural for Han Li to want to take a look.

The old man rubbed the wrinkles on his face and casually said, Hehe! I was excited like you when I first heard of this. However, after staying in this place for so long, Ive completely lose interest in them. Without any magic power, the records are nothing more than drawings. If youre still interested in taking a look, all of the cultivators remaining possessions are being kept in storage. The old man then pointed to a shabby stone building in a corner of the village.

Barely restraining his excitement, Han Li calmly said a few words of thanks to the old man.

Han Li chatted a bit more with the old man, but he was able to see Han Lis impatience and took the initiative to take his leave.

Han Li watched the old mans departing figure and pursed his lips. After a quick moment of deliberation, he shook his head and descended from the stone platform. He then quickly walked towards the storage room with the cultivators remaining belongings .

Han Li frowned and let out a long breath before asking, Your esteemed self called this place the Umbra Realm. Does this place have any relation with the Netherworld from legend? Is there any way to restore the magic power that was restricted? Most importantly, I wish to return to the outside. I have no intention of staying here. Would your esteemed self happen to know of a way out?

The plump old man shook his head and sighed, A majority of the humans in this world were born here, and most of humans that are brought here by the ghost mist end up devoured by umbra beasts. Only a small minority were lucky enough to reach a village. As for my own close friends and family, they are all on the outside. If it were so easy to return, why would us survivors from the outside world remain here and continue living day after day on the verge of crisis?

As for whether or not this place has anything to do with the Netherworld, who could possibly know? However, there is a senior that has stayed here far longer that I have, and he holds the belief that this area is a crevice between the human world and the Netherworld. As a result, there is a dense concentration of umbra Qi, but there are no excessively powerful umbra beasts that take form.

Additionally, there is a farfetched rumor being spread around by a few cultivators that believe this world has nothing to do with the Netherworld. These cultivators believe that this world is actually the stomach of a legendary devil beast, the Rahu. Legend says that the Rahu is capable of both devouring stars and tearing through space and that it is fond of concealing itself on the seafloor, only emerging to feed itself every so often. That is supposed to explain how the strange mist emerges from the sea and can link the two worlds together.

Han Lis expression greatly changed when he heard this, The Rahu? How could that be possible, it makes far less sense than the Netherworld. I dont believe that this entire world is contained inside a devil beast.

The old man leisurely said, Thats right. When I first heard of this, I was shocked as well. Although it is hard to swallow, there is still a possibility its true. If the tears in space appeared periodically, then one might expect that they all appear at the same place. However, this isnt the case. Whenever new arrivals are sucked into the Umbra Realm, they all come from different areas in the seas that others havent heard of. For example, I came from a small island in the South Bay Province of the Great Court of Jin. As for the other cultivators, theyve arrived from places such as the Five Dragon Seas, the Heavenly Sand Continent, and the Scattered Star Seas as well. Nobody recognizes where anybody else has come from, but here we are all the same.

The Great Court of Jin? Youre a cultivator of the State of Jin? A trace of astonishment flickered within Han Lis eyes. When he was in the Heavenly South Region, he had heard much of the esteemed State of Jin.

The old mans eyes brightened, Could it be that you also came from the Great Court of Jin?

Han Li shook his head and said, No, but I have heard quite a bit about it. I know it to be an immensely large country, and I had always wanted to visit it but never had the opportunity.

The old man revealed a trace of disappointment and said, So its like that! That is somewhat regretful. This old man truly wishes for an opportunity to return!

The old man then radiantly smiled and chuckled, Fellow Daoist wouldve known what a true world of cultivation was had he visited our Great Jin. To the best of my knowledge, there is no other cultivator world that compares in scope or activity of ours. It wouldnt be a lie to say that the Great State of Jin is a sacred site for cultivators.

Han Li rubbed his nose but despite the bitter smile on his face, his heart stirred in response to the old mans words.

The old man smiled and chuckled, This old man has strayed off topic. As for your previous question about whether or not theres a method of restoring ones magic power, I can only tell you should abandon your hopes while you remain in the Umbra Realm. In addition to umbra Qi, theres also Spirit Extinguishing Qi in the air as well. It is periodically released from the depths by eruptions, spreading it throughout the sky. So long as cultivators are within its range, their magic power and abilities are completely sealed. It is quite fortunate that you were brought over here during an eruption of Spirit Extinguishing Qi.

Han Li suddenly felt gloomy upon hearing all of this. Were it not for the eruption of Spirit Extinguishing Qi, he wouldnt have even been brought here by some trifling ghost mist.

After a moment of silence, Han Li resentfully said, Since we were able to enter, then there must be a way of leaving. I refuse to believe that there isnt.

The old man twirled his beard and unhurriedly said, Well, technically there is a way out, but it requires assistance.

A trace of joy appeared in Han Lis mind and he hastily asked, What is it?

As Mei Ning heard this her expression fluctuated with roused spirits.

Its… The old man revealed a hesitant expression.

Han Lis expression stirred and an odd emotion flickered within his eyes, What? Could it be inconvenient for you to say?

The old man grimaced as he looked at the two. His eyes then narrowed and he said with a deep tone, Please dont misunderstand. There is no point in concealing it. Although I do want two more cultivators to join the village, Im not making it deliberately difficult for you. I am merely afraid you two Fellow Daoists will impatiently rush out and throw your lives away.

After Han Li heard this, he immediately chuckled, but his smile soon disappeared as he solemnly said, Be at ease. Although I appear young, Ive cultivated for many years and am disinclined to make any rash actions. If it truly is impossible, I wont pointlessly risk my life. However, I would still like to hear of the method.

After some consideration, the plump old man replied, Since that is the case, this old man wont conceal it any longer. He then walked to the halls entrance and raised his head to the sky with a pensive expression.

……

Mei Ning bit her red lips and asked, Brother Han, what do we do? Could it be that you truly wish to climb Stormwind Mountain? Her current complexion was extremely pale. After she heard the method to return, she began to despair, believing that it was impossible to achieve.

Han Li gazed at the sky and indifferently said, I havent given it much thought yet, but I do know that I will be giving it a try eventually.

When Mei Ning heard this, her expression stirred. Just as she thought to say something, someone suddenly approached them. It was a sixteen year old, dark-skinned youth with a curious expression.

The youth stared at them and elegantly said, So you are the two new arrivals. Ive received orders from the elders to bring you two to your residences. Since you have just arrived, three days of food will be given to you free of charge. However, later you will have to undertake assignments or else you will be ejected from the village.

Han Li nonchalantly said, Thats fine. Lead the way!

The youth nodded his head and set off without another word. Shortly after, the youth brought the two of them to a neat stone building in a corner of the village.

When Mei Ning arrived in the room and saw that there was only one wide bed, her face suddenly grew scarlet.

The woman hesitantly asked the youth, There is only one bed here?

The youth blinked and curiously asked, If a man and a woman are together, then wouldnt they want to sleep in one bed?

Having heard that, Mei Nings blush grew more intense. She thought to give an explanation, but she was unable to muster any words for the time being.

At that moment, Han Li had finished examining the buildings exterior and indifferently said, We will be sleeping separately. Please bring us another bed.

The youth curled his lips. Although he was somewhat unwilling, he agreed and walked out.

After the youth walked out, Han Li promptly said, Go ahead and take a rest first. Im going to take a look around the village! When Mei Ning heard him, she wore a blank expression and silently nodded.

Without any further hesitation, Han Li walked out of the building and glanced around before heading towards the center platform. He was greatly interested in the methods to control umbra energy.

There was no one standing guard nearby the stone platform, so Han Li was able to easily approach it. With its great height, the lack of stairs made it appear even more towering than he had expected. freebovel.com

Han Li walked several times around the stone platform and easily climbed onto it.

Knowing that things were far from good, the huge beast loudly roared and released an icy Yin wind from its mouth.

Not only were the incoming arrows all blown away by the Yin winds, but they were even covered in a layer of glossy black ice. They had all fallen to the ground without even touching the beast.

As for the heavier pikes, although they managed to fall onto the huge beasts body, the Yin wind had greatly reduced their power, and they were barely able to cause a few superficial wounds. All they had managed to achieve was to further enrage the huge beast.

In its fury, the beasts eyes began to flicker with crimson light. With a bang, its neck fur began to harden and grow erect, making for a sinister appearance.

When Han Li saw this, his mind grew blank. The huge beast lowered its head and the erect hair instantly transformed into countless black streaks that shot at the stone wall.

The walls garrison seemed to already know that this would happen. Although their faces appeared nervous, they shouted a rallying cry as they raised their shields to meet the attack.

Sharp cracks sounded out as the black streaks struck the shields.

Although the black streaks managed to deeply pierce into the shields, a majority of them managed to successfully block the attack. As for the few garrison members that were struck, they were immediately thrown off the wall by the force of the strike. It was unknown whether or not they had survived.

The remaining garrison were too busy to look after the injured. Instead, another order to attack was shouted, and a rain of pikes and arrows immediately followed. But just like the previous time, the huge beast managed to knock most of the projectiles away with the Yin winds. However, it seemed the beast was only able to harden the hair on its neck, so although it continued to loudly shout in response to the attacks, it was only able to crawl forward as it struggled. It no longer had any methods to attack back. As for the tentacles formed from the purple mist, they continued to hold its legs firmly in place without a single moment of weakness.

As the attacks continued for another six waves, the huge beast seemed to have eventually exhausted its Yin wind and couldnt continue its resistance.

From that moment, the arrows and pikes struck with increasingly greater frequency, piercing into the huge beasts body.

As this continued, the beast sustained minor injuries and its furious roars grew more spirited as it continuously pounded the huge black log into the ground, filling it with holes.

As Han Li witnessed the beasts immense strength and durability, he unconsciously became somewhat fearful of it.

As if it were planned in advance, a squad of particularly burly and vigorous men quickly rushed onto the stone walls. Apart from the several twelve meter long pikes they held in their arms, they carried nothing else.

These people each began to lift the pikes in a practiced motion as soon as they arrived on the walls and fiercely launched them in the huge beasts direction.

These powerful shots tore through the air, leaving Han Li surprised by the wind they produced.

Each of these men had to possess powerful inner strength to be able to toss the pikes with such ease, while having each pike sail through the skies with immense speed and power.

In the following instant, bowl-sized splatters of blood began to appear all over the beasts body. All of the strikes were to great effect, nailing the beast to the ground. The beasts original ferocity had completely disappeared without a trace.

Huge cheers erupted from the walls with everyone wearing a face of relief. The purple coils of smoke then disappeared without a trace.

A group of people then excitedly rushed towards the wooden gate with blades in their hands, intending on finishing off the beast. As for the others, they had already started to tend to the wounded.

But before the wooden gate fully opened, the crestfallen beast suddenly roared with a final burst of strength and waved its arm, thrusting the huge thirty-meter-long log into the sky. It carried an astonishing pressure as it directly flew in the direction of the village.

Seeing that the huge beast was on the verge of dying, a few of the villagers had happily rushed out. However, they cried out in shock as they saw the log flying in their direction. But in the following instant, a silhouette had blurred before them and directly shot towards the huge log in the air. With a roar, the person fiercely struck at the center of the log with both his arms.

With a loud crack, the black log flew off in another direction, falling in an area without people.

This person then lightly landed on the ground in a relaxed and confident manner. He was the middle-aged man from earlier with a harsh expression and pale face.

The villagers that had been saved greatly sighed in relief and immediately spoke to their savior, repeatedly thanking him. However, the pale man merely waved at them with an indifferent expression before returning back to his original position.

A trace of astonishment then flickered within Han Lis eyes. After the pale man had rescued these people, he had carelessly shot a cold glance in his direction. Although Han Li didnt know what he meant by it, it clearly wasnt positive by any means.

Han Li frowned and just as he pondered what the man had meant by it, the wooden gate opened and several tens of robust men charged out of the village to finish off the huge beast.

However, it didnt end after the beast was dead. With their long blades, they cleaved open the beasts skull and fumbled around within the blood and gore until they took out green, thumb-sized gem. The group cheered after they found it, and those that were watching cheered along with them.

Han Li blinked, suddenly feeling that the green gem seemed somewhat familiar. After lowering his head for a moment of thought, he suddenly recalled what it was.

During his trip to Heavenvoid Hall, he had encountered many similar green gems in the wreckage of the puppets. Could they be the same material?

After watching for just a moment more, Han Li wordlessly leapt off the stone building.

The plump old man and the other elders had already returned to the hall, and Han Li still had a bellyful of questions he wanted to ask them.

When Mei Ning saw Han Li returning to the hall, she followed him in with a lowered head. After witnessing the previous battle, she realized the dangers of this place and became worried.

When Han Li entered the hall, the elders had already returned to their seats.

When the plump old man saw Han Li enter, he smiled and thought to say something when a tall, robust man quickly entered with the green gem in his hand.

The robust man placed the gem on the table in front of the elders and respectfully said, Great Elders, this is the Insidious Maulers umbra beast gem. Please take a look at it.

The old man glanced at the gem and happily said, Weve put you all through quite a bit of trouble. Before this, we sent you all out to take advantage of the eruption of Spirit Extinguishing Qi and you succeeded in bringing back fish. In a moment, we will bestow you all with great rewards.

Many thanks, Elders! The robust man wore an expression of delighted surprise and withdrew from the hall with an expression of satisfaction.

Han Li stood to the side and watched all this with a detached expression.

The strange beast that you two witnessed was an umbra beast known as the Insidious Mauler. It mustve been quite a shock to you two! Although the Umbra Realm spans only about a hundred kilometers, there are demon beasts, humans, and all sorts of umbra beasts within.

With slight astonishment, Han Li asked, There are demon beasts here?

The old man bitterly smiled and paused for a moment before answering, Of course. Whenever theres a tear in space, both cultivators and demon beasts are brought here all the same.

The demon beasts here arent able to use their demon arts, but theyve all developed their bodies with great effort and have incredible power. They arent an existence that humans or umbra beasts can provoke. Fortunately, they only guard a few specific areas and feast on umbra beasts. They dont pose much of a threat to us humans since they are unlikely to emerge, umbra beasts, however, are different. They are born from the umbra Qi of this place and are innately fond of devouring human flesh. Every so often, powerful umbra beasts will come knocking at human villages. Although a majority of villages are capable of repelling them, smaller villages are occasionally defeated and completely wiped out. Conversely, the umbra beasts are endless and another Insidious Mauler will condense and reemerge into the Umbra Realm soon enough.

After a moment of silence, Han Li slowly asked, From what youve said, it seems that this isnt the only human village. There are others?

Of course. Although there arent many, theres about eight other villages scattered throughout the Umbra Realm. Food is scarce here so apart from a few pieces of fertile land, the rest is barren from the heavy umbra Qi. A majority of the umbra beasts possess poisonous flesh, and apart from some special varieties, we are incapable of consuming them. Although demon beasts are able to consume them, humans would perish upon eating them. As such, only useful people are allowed to live in villages. Anybody who is useless will be driven away and have their lives run their natural course! The old mans last words were spoken with an icy tone.

Although Han Li and Mei Ning were new arrivals, the guards merely glanced at them without asking any questions. Instead, they surrounded the returnees and excitedly asked them a few questions. As a result, the large men gave them a glance at the fish and prawn in their bags before the guards cried out in surprise.

Han Li furrowed his brows at the sight. It seemed that food was a scarce resource here.

Soon after, Han Li swept his eyes across the entire village.

The entire village was within the protection of the tall stone walls, and all of its buildings were crudely carved cubes made from the same pitch-black stone as the walls. There was also a small stone platform built at the center of the village that was several times taller than the other buildings. Additionally, the top of the platform seem to emit a faint purple fog that permeated through the entire village. It seemed to completely absorb any of the blue lightning that happened to strike the village. The purple fog was undoubtedly some kind of spell formation, but Han Li was unable to perceive the slightest spiritual Qi inside the stone walls. Instead, he only felt a cold Yin energy lingering in the air.

Although his spiritual sense was still trapped within his body, he could still keenly sense spiritual Qi. Han Li was bewildered as to why this was the case. freeebnovl.cm

The lean mans group had entered the village and already arrived at a large hall near the platform. There were a group of people outside the hall that were gesturing and whispering with the lean mans group when one of them looked in Han Lis direction with a deep gaze.

Han Li felt his heart tremble. That person possessed the deepest inner strength of anyone he had encountered in this land.

Were it in the outside world, Han Li couldve easily killed him with a twirl of his finger and ignored him. But as Han Li was now, he would have to strive his hardest to deal with him. At that moment, the lean man had approached the group of people and said something to them before turning around and pointing at Han Li and Mei Ning. The group then turned their gazes to Han Li.

Han Li remained silent and revealed no fear, but to his side, Mei Ning revealed nervousness from not knowing what they had in mind for them.

The lean man beckoned to the two and said, You two, come over. The village elders have some questions for you.

Han Li nodded his head and calmly walked over with Mei Ning in tow.

The group of people that had been standing outside had already turned around and entered the hall, and Han Li soon followed.

A plump old man that sat at the center of the hall gazed at them with a kind expression and said, Please, sit. Since we are all human, we will naturally do our best to aid one another. However, there is much that is different in this world from the outside. How about you two first introduce yourselves before I start introducing you to this land?

The others sat down at his side, and the one who had glared at Han Li outside the hall were among them as well. He had narrow eyes, a hostile expression and pale skin. At that moment, his spirited eyes had swept across Han Li and the beautiful Mei Ning behind him. Although he was silent, a peculiar expression flickered through his eyes.

Han Li casually smiled and calmly replied, There isnt much to say about us. We encountered the ghost mist at sea and were drawn here by it. As for my previous identity, what use is it here? There is no point in talking about it.

The old man smiled upon hearing Han Lis vague answer.

He examined the two with narrowed eyes before saying, You two must be cultivators, so there is no point in concealing this. With that said, the old mans gaze dropped down to the bulging storage pouch at Han Lis waist.

Han Lis expression remained unchanged but he was inwardly shocked. As for Mei Ning, her expression grew pale with worry.

You two dont need to be scared. Although there arent many cultivators among us, we are far more happy to have you join this village than we would be with ordinary people. However, you two will be incapable of using magic or spiritual power in the Umbra Realm. The only powers youll be able to use are a few crude martial arts and umbra energy.

Umbra energy? Han Li asked with a bewildered expression.

The old man twirled his beard and slowly said, Thats right. It is somewhat similar to magic power, but it cannot be used to cast magic techniques. However, cultivators are able to use the inner cores of umbra beasts to deploy a few small scale spell formations. We have much use for them in our village. And even if you arent proficient in spell formations, cultivators bodies are far stronger than those of ordinary men. They will certainly be great helpers.

After a moment of thought, Han Li asked, Your esteemed self seems to understand much about us cultivators. Are there other cultivators in the village?

The plump old man smirked and said, Of course there are, but they only number about six. This old man happens to be one of them. When I was sucked into the ghost mist, I was only a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

A trace of astonishment flickered through Han Lis eyes, but when he thought to ask more questions, the entire hall violently rumbled. In the distance, there seemed to be a huge monster charging at the village.

The expressions of the people inside the hall had greatly changed, and they no longer paid any attention to Han Li. They all immediately walked out and Han Li soon followed after them with a hesitant expression. The village elders were commanding several hundred robust youths to all rush up the thick walls with pikes in most of their hands, while a few of them carried crude bows.

Although their expressions were all tense, they acted with perfect discipline as if they had already experienced this many times.

Han Lis gaze turned in the direction of a very loud rumble coming from outside the stone wall. Although he could feel the tremors grow even more astonishing, nothing else had yet to happen.

Han Li rubbed his chin and expectantly glanced around for moment. He then walked over to a tall building nearby and took advantage of the chaos to jump off a wall and easily climbed onto the stone buildings roof. From the top of the building, Han Li was able to see what was happening.

In the distance, he saw that the stone and sand were violently scraping through the air on a bewildering black wind while a black frost spread across the ground in its wake. It appeared amazingly cold.

This seemed to be the Yin wind that the lean man had spoken of previously. It truly wasnt something that ordinary mortals could handle.

However, as the Yin wind reached about three hundred meters from the village, it began to disappear, accompanied by heavy tremors as a large object dropped onto the ground. Although it was still a good distance away, an astonishing aura could be felt from it. Soon, a forty meter tall black figure emerged from the winds.

When Han Li saw the black figures true appearance, he felt his blood turn cold.

At first glance, the black figure appeared to be a gigantic grey ape, except that the beast had four eyes and a pair of wings emerging between its ribs. It carried a log of jet-black wood in one arm as it madly charged towards the village, while its four eyes were radiating with crimson light and emitted a powerful, bloodthirsty aura.

After the beasts true form was revealed, many people started to loudly shout, Its an Insidious Mauler! Quickly, send over the great shields!

In an instant, a large number of women, children, and elderly began to deliver shields of all kinds to the walls. But soon after, they began to flusteredly run away from the walls as the huge beast came within three hundred meters of the village. The tremors caused by the beasts footsteps had left Han Li bewildered. It appeared as if the stone walls would be taken down by the tremors long before the beast even reached them.

But in the next moment, huge tentacles were formed from several strands of dense violet fog and rigidly fastened onto the huge beasts feet. As a result, the huge beast lost its footing and fell in front of the stone wall, causing everyone in the garrison to lose their balance for a moment from the resulting tremors.

Han Li unconsciously turned his gaze to the tall platform with astonishment, and shockingly discovered that there were now four people sitting cross-legged on the platform. Their bodies were covered in a faint layer of purple Qi as if they were utilizing a technique.

This is umbra energy? Han Lis heart stirred.

In the following instant, an order was shouted, Attack!

A large number of pikes and arrows were shot at the huge beast like rain, completely enveloping it.

As Han Li watched this, his heart thumped with excitement.

The lean man turned his head toward Han Li and the woman and indifferently said, Im not sure whether I should say your luck is good or bad. You actually ran into an eruption of Spirit Extinguishing Qi! This causes far more tears in space to appear, and even experts are incapable of escaping them. But as a result, the umbra beasts that normally lay inside the mountain hollow had left. Otherwise, you wouldve immediately be torn apart upon falling inside.

When Han Li heard this, his heart sank, but his expression remained unchanged. I hope youll forgive me for being so bold, but could your esteemed self tell us exactly where we are? From your tone, it seems this place is quite dangerous.

The lean man examined the twos clothing and saw that they didnt seem to be ordinary people and wryly smiled, Dangerous? Hehe! Thats about right. Regardless of whatever identities or statuses you may have held on the outside, here in the Umbra Realm, youre just people that need to struggle to survive. If you cant move or make yourself useful, you will end up as umbra beast food.

Han Li frowned and wanted to ask more questions but the lean mean impatiently waved his hand, Were pressed for time. The explanations will have to wait until after we return to the village. In just a moment, the umbra beasts will return to their nests and well have to quickly block this secret entrance so that we can use it again in the future. After he said this, he turned to the people behind him and started harshly giving them commands.

The men and women began to grab nearby stones and started to hurriedly stack them tightly against the hole.

The lean man gazed at the Yin clouds in the sky and his face darkened. Lets go. If everything goes smoothly, Ah Hu and the others will meet us on the way. But if we dawdle, the Yin winds will appear and we wont be able to return. After saying this, he turned around and left as the rest of people closely followed after him without a word. None of them ever called out to Han Li or the woman.

When Han Li saw this, an odd expression flickered through his eyes as he began to ponder over the current situation.

The beautiful woman beside Han Li watched as the group grew distant. Seeing that Han Li appeared pensive, she couldnt help but worriedly ask, Should we follow them?

Without any magic power, she had turned into a frail and bewildered mortal. Since Han Li appeared calm this entire time, she had instinctively begun to rely on him.

Han Li raised his head and calmly said, Theres no reason not to, so lets go take a look at their so-called village. Perhaps well think of something once were there and are able to recover our magic power. He then headed in the direction the others had gone with large strides.

The woman let out a breath of relief and followed after him.

Ah, yes. I still dont know your name. My surname is Han, I am a vagrant cultivator.

I am Mei Ning. I was together with my brother when we were sucked into the ghost mist, but now he isnt here. A trace of worry appeared on her face when she mentioned her brother.

Han Li calmly said, Thats to be expected. The black lightning appears to have the power of random teleportation. Your brother mustve teleported elsewhere. Otherwise, why would only the two of us teleport there despite the many cultivators around the island? If you search for him, youll find him eventually.

When the woman heard this, she felt relieved and her curiosity towards Han Li was piqued. His appearance was rather unfamiliar and she was certain that she had never seen him before. She tentatively guessed that he was a cultivator that had approached the island from a different direction.

She thought to ask more questions of Han Li, but she hesitated after realizing that they didnt have a particularly close relationship, and ended up keeping silent.

As the two hurried after the group of green-robed people, she pondered about the pros and cons of inquiring about him further. Although they didnt have any magic power, cultivators possessed bodies of purified essence that were far more capable than those of ordinary mortals.

Seeing that the two were able to follow after them without difficulty, a strange expression appeared in the lean mans eyes, but instead of saying anything, he lowered his head and sped up.

The others behind him quickened their pace in response.

Han Li was somewhat surprised to see that these people were far more vigorous than ordinary mortals. Although their bodies didnt seem to hold a superior level of inner strength, they clearly cultivated some shallow martial arts. It seemed that martial arts would prove quite useful here.

Nevertheless, Han Li still had misgivings from the ghost mist that had previously occurred.

From the records he had looked through, although the ghost fog was frightful, it had never been as disastrous as what had just occurred. There wasnt even an opportunity for anyone to escape. Before he had even touched the ghost mist, the entirety of his magic power had already been sealed. It had been truly terrifying.

If each appearance of the ghost mist was that disastrous, then even Nascent Soul cultivators wouldnt be able to escape it. But in the previous appearances of the ghost mist, there were many cultivators who were able to escape from it, even low grade cultivators had.

However, Han Li felt somewhat suspicious about what the lean man had referred to as the so-called Spirit Extinguishing Qi. From its name, it was certain to have something to do with why his spiritual sense and magic power were currently restricted.

They were truly unlucky to have encountered such a particularly dreadful ghost mist that had managed to captured everyone present. He reckoned that those that survived the teleportation would be found scattered across the other corners of this land.

Just as Han Li thought this, the lean man suddenly stopped and turned his head in a different direction while the rest of his party had followed suit. Far off into the desert, a yellow dragon could be seen rushing towards them through surging clouds of sand.

Its Ah Hu and the others! One of the youths shouted in delight as the others became excited. The lean man nodded his head and revealed a trace of relief, but his smile soon froze when he heard a series of sharp roars from the yellow dragon.

The lean man furiously yelled with a distorted expression, Everyone, quickly go and help them! They are being pursued by umbra beasts. He took out the long white blade at his waist and led the charge forward.

The rest of the party came to a sudden realization and each of them brandished their blades as they followed suit.

Han Li stood in place, and merely stared at the yellow dragon in the distance with an odd expression.

The lean mans party had just reached the yellow dragon when it abruptly stopped and roared before bursting into clouds of yellow mist.

The party loudly yelled as they entered the dense smoke, and shouts of all pitches and tones were intertwined. After the time it took to finish a cup of tea, their voices eventually quieted down.

After a short moment, a series of cheers came from within the yellow mist, and the men and woman all emerged with their bodies splattered with beast blood. It was difficult to tell if any of them had sustained any injuries, but each of them wore a smile of pleasant surprise.

When they returned, they were joined by the burly men that Han Li had seen within the mountain. They were still carrying the huge bags on their back.

When they spotted Han Li and Mei Ning, they appeared somewhat confused, but after the lean man whispered something to them, their expression brightened and paid them no further mind.

The group quickly marched on with the new arrivals. Two hours later, they had reached an expanse of pitch-black stone that interrupted the desolate sandscape.

Just like the desert from before, Han Li was unable to see the end of this expanse of black stone. However, the black stones were all strangely shaped and their deep shade of black left Han Li with an eerie feeling of discomfort.

But when the others saw this place, they let out long breaths of relief and wore relaxed expressions.

At that moment, the Yin clouds in the sky had begun to restlessly move about and the blue flashes of lightning had become more frequent. Occasionally, they would directly strike an area nearby, causing a pit to appear among the stones.

Han Li and Mei Ning were startled by the sudden turn of events, but the others seemed accustomed to it. They simply walked into the stony areas with quick strides.

The lean man then shouted, Everyone, quicken your pace! The village is about to close their doors. Lets avoid being trapped outside! Afterwards, the group of people dashed forward and ran with all their might.

Han Li and Mei Ning glanced at each other. Although they didnt know what was going on, they didnt dare to fall behind.

Following their lead, the made several turns throughout the expanse of stone before suddenly arriving at an open area.

The spacious area had lofty stone walls that were as black as could be. Not only were these stone walls all carved out of massive boulders that were at least three meters wide and ten meters tall, but they extended out for several kilometers. Additionally, about every ten meters along the walls, a sharp spike of hardwood struck out from the wall, making for a sinister appearance.

Currently, the group of people were heading in the direction of an imposing wooden gate with over ten men with white pikes standing guard on either side.

When these guards saw the lean mans party approach, they loudly yelled at them with excitement.

With a huge rumble, the gate slowly opened, allowing them inside.

A moment after Han Li realized he was regaining control of his body, the torches had grown closer to them, allowing him to see with greater clarity.

The nearby surroundings had been brightened enough to reveal large piles of fish and prawn everywhere. Han Li and the woman happened to be on one of the comparatively larger piles.

The areas further away from them were still pitch-black and couldnt be seen, but the cave appeared exceptionally spacious as no walls could be seen.

When the men carrying torches were about a hundred meters away from Han Li, they stopped and quickly placed their bags onto the ground. With the exception of one person that vigilantly stood guard, the rest of them began to wildly stuff the fish and prawn into their bags.

Han Li was surprised to see this while woman on top of him couldnt help but gasp in surprise, but the men hadnt heard her because of how soft her voice was. Han Li unconsciously turned his gaze to the woman and discovered in the faint glow of red light that the woman had a beautiful face.

The woman immediately noticed Han Lis gaze, and seemed to blush. She turned away, and her face was once again hidden in the darkness. However, her bashful eyes still glinted in the darkness.

Han Li couldnt help but find her actions humorous.

This woman was somewhat odd. When they had yet to see each others appearance, she was outspoken, direct, and even a bit unruly. Now that he could see her, the initial harshness has disappeared and she immediately grew timid and bashful.

In that instant, they heard a cry of alarm in the distance.

The man on guard suddenly turned around and harshly whispered, Not good! Scatter! The Firescale Beast is about to arrive!

Suddenly, the men that were gathering the fish immediately tossed the bags onto their backs and madly scrabbled in another direction. All that was left behind were the flickering torches illuminating the darkness.

At that moment, several hisses could be heard from within the darkness as if something had discovered the men. Several quick thumps then sounded out.

Several fire-red, meter-long silhouettes leapt from the darkness and quickly disappeared with a blur.

For a instant, Han Li was able to clearly see the appearances of the Firescale Beasts. The beasts had a sinister appearance with red scales and a mouthful of razor sharp fangs.

In the blink of an eye, silence once again covered the cave.

Han Li let out a long breath of relief as it seemed that the strange beasts hadnt discovered the two of them, providing a silver lining for an otherwise dismal situation.

Not long after the beasts disappeared, Han Li could weakly form a fist with both hands. Soon he finally recovered control over his body and could move well enough to hold onto the woman and slowly stand up.

While being held in his arms, the woman whispered with a blush, Re… Release me. I will recover soon enough.

Han Li glanced at the woman and indifferently said, If you dont mind squirming around with the fish on the ground, Ill let you go.

When the woman heard this, she lowered her head and glanced at the squirming fish on the ground with a trace of hesitation. In the end, she chose to remain silent.

At that moment, Han Li jumped off the pile of fish with the woman in his grasp and walked in the direction of the abandoned torches. Although he didnt know what or where this forsaken place was, it would prove rather troublesome if they didnt have any light.

Han Li crouched down and picked up a torch, and wore a pensive expression after glancing around.

A short moment later, the blushing woman whispered, Please release me. I can move now.

When Han Li heard this, he silently relaxed his arm and the woman gracefully landed on her feet. After quickly patting down her clothes, she also pick up a torch and examined their surroundings.

After a moment, Han Li suddenly headed off in the direction that the group of men had arrived from.

When the woman saw this, she was alarmed and hastily asked, Where are you going?

Han Li replied without turning his head, Im not going to wait here for the beasts to return. It would be better to find somewhere safe for now.

When the woman heard this, she wore an expression of fright and quickly followed after Han Li.

Han Li remained silent when he heard this and continued on his way.

After only walking a few steps, Han Li stopped and used the torch to illuminate the ground, revealing the mens footprints.

The woman was caught off guard and nearly ran into Han Li. She was left slightly bewildered and whispered, Whats wrong?

Han Li didnt answer her. Instead, he crouched down and brought a handful of sand to his nose. He revealed an odd expression after taking a sniff.

Theres a dense smell of blood. This isnt a good sign! Han Li expressionlessly said this before continuing to follow the mens footsteps.

The woman was startled by what he said and quickly followed after Han Li.

After the time it took to finish a meal, they eventually spotted a glitter of blue light in the distance.

Han Li narrowed his eyes at the sight and quickened his steps.

He soon discovered that the sparkling blue light marked an exit from this black expanse. Although it was only about three meters wide, it was more than enough for a person to pass through.

When the two saw this, they quickly walked through it with roused spirits.

In the instant they arrived at the opening, a white light flashed before Han Li and eight flawless swords quickly appeared against his neck. A hoarse voice coldly said, Who are you? Where are Ah Hu and the others? Are you new arrivals?

Han Lis heart stirred upon seeing that he was surrounded by over twenty young men and woman. Each of whom held a strange sparkling white blade, and wore the same strange green robes as the men from before. They were all gazing at Han Li with differing expressions.

As for the beautiful woman following him, she had been surrounded as well and didnt dare to move.

Han Li rubbed his nose and wryly smiled, I imagine that we are what you consider to be new arrivals! Do outsiders often appear here?

When the middle-aged man heard Han Li, his expression relaxed but his voice still remained cold, I wouldve guessed it if you hadnt said anything as your strange clothes are something only outsiders would wear. However, its quite fortunate for you to encounter us. After all, a majority of outsiders meet their ends in the stomach of the umbra beasts without ever realizing what was happening.

He then waved his hand and the youths withdrew their swords.

Han Li rubbed his neck and glanced at the weapons with a trace of astonishment.

When those blades were touching his neck, he felt an astonishing burning sensation as if they were all made of scorching hot iron. It was a truly weird experience.

Han Li then swept his gaze around and discovered that they were in front of a small stone mountain. It appeared that they had just left the heart of the stone mountain. When he gazed into the distance, there was an endless yellow desert.

He then raised his head to the sky and felt an even greater shock.

He saw pitch-black clouds covering the sky. They appeared endless and continuously arced with deep blue lightning, causing the sky to shine with a faint blue light. It was all stranger than anything Han Li had imagined.

Before Han Li finished observing his surroundings, the lean middle-aged man frowned and asked, Did you encounter anyone when you arrived? They would be my companions!

Han Li immediately answered without hesitation, I saw a group of men, however, they were chased down by a few beasts. They ran off in another direction.

The lean man grew nervous and he unconsciously tightened his grasp on the blade, Beasts? What kind?

I heard those men call them Firescale Beasts.

The lean man relaxed and calmly said, Firescale Beasts? Thats good. Ah Hu and the others should have no problem dealing with them. But just to be sure, Fan Li, bring a group of people inside and help them. Then take them through the nearest alternative exit.

A towering dark man wordlessly brought a group of people into the cave.

Shock was clear in Han Lis eyes as he fell towards the rocks a hundred meters below him. He abruptly twisted his body and bent his waist at a strange angle before kicking his feet out behind him. This caused him to shoot towards a large tree nearby before steadily coming to stand on one of its branches.

Han Lis head was lined with cold sweat after his near fall. Fortunately, the Shifting Smoke Steps didnt require any spiritual power to use. Otherwise, he wouldve just met his end by falling to his death. If a Core Formation cultivator were to actually die by falling, theyd become a laughingstock! Of course, many of the nearby Foundation Establishment cultivators werent as fortunate as Han Li and were certain to have suffered.

When Han Li finally regained his bearings, he heard a series of clangs from the distance. He quickly turned his head in that direction with a changed expression. Sure enough, the clangs came from the two sets of Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords that he hadnt taken into his body. Not far to their side were the eight sided mirrors, the ancient flower basket, and the small silver bell. At the moment, they were all completely devoid of life as if their spiritual nature had disappeared.

Han Lis heart trembled and he hastily tried to release a thread of spiritual sense to inspect the treasures, however his heart immediately grew cold. No matter how hard he tried, his immensely powerful spiritual sense now remained motionless within his body.

Han Lis blood ran cold as both his magic power and spiritual sense were now incapable of being used. He was now no different than an ordinary mortal. Let alone his magic abilities, his storage pouch and his spirit beast pouches were now useless as well.

He turned around and paled upon seeing that the overflowing black mist had already filled the nearby skies.

With his current speed as a mortal, there would be no chance of him outrunning the ghost mist. After reflecting on the current situation with a gloomy expression, he gritted his teeth and his body blurred. He then appeared beside the lifeless treasures and frantically gathered them all into his arms.

Because he currently had no way of using his storage pouch, he could only hold the items close to his chest. Fortunately, they werent too large, otherwise Han Li wouldve been incapable of carrying all of them.

At the same time that Han Li was gathering up the treasures, the endless black fog suddenly descended onto the small island.

Han Li felt an immense attractive force coming in the direction of the mist, and before he even realized what was happening, he was already being sucked in.

Han Li was overwhelmed by shock and shifted his body several times, hoping to use his Shifting Smoke Steps to escape, but it proved completely ineffective. A moment later, he had been absorbed into the pitch-black mist and found himself among several flashes of black lightning that instantly wrapped around his body.

With several muffled booms, Han Li flickered with black light and disappeared without a trace into the fog.

Han Li heard a torrent of countless, strange sounds pour into his mind as the entire world around him blurred and was replaced with absolute darkness.

He felt his body suddenly come to a stop and then fell onto some kind of ground with a muffled thump. The ground was soft and thick, leaving him without the slightest injury, relieving Han Li of his most pressing worry.

He took the opportunity to glance around and found only an expanse of darkness, but he did manage to smell a strong, fishy scent.

Han Li wordlessly ran his hands over his body to find it sticky and wet with several things poking into him. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that he was lying on a pile of live, squirming fish and prawn.

Han Li frowned and slowly tried to stand up when his head suddenly broke out in pain. At that same time, he felt his limbs turn soft and he became overwhelmed with a sense of vertigo.

Han Li inwardly cursed. Without any magic power protecting his body, he was being subjected to the full aftermath of teleportation. It was likely that he wouldnt be able to stand up for quite a while. frewebnovel.com

Since this was the case, Han Li emotionlessly lied down on the pile of fish and prawn, saving his strength until he could move his limbs once more.

But right then, yet another ball of black lightning appeared appeared about ten meters above him.

That faint flash of light allowed Han Li to see strange pointed rocks about thirty meters above him, and he was able to make out that this place seemed to be an underground cave. As for the strange lightning, there seemed to be something within it.

Han Lis heart stirred as he gazed at it. After wildly flashing several more times, it disappeared and dropped a pitch-black object straight onto Han Li.

Han Li was startled and wanted to move out of the way, but his body was powerless. He could only watch on as the object fell onto him.

As a result, a soft womans body fell onto Han Li with a muffled grunt. It seemed she had also been teleported there.

The woman was clearly rattled, and not only did she not realize that Han Li was beneath her, she also crawled on him, grabbing onto Han Lis hair.

Han Li smirked and let out a faint breath of pain.

Huh? The woman now realized that there was another person beneath her, an unfamiliar man. She cried out in alarm and hastily tried to stand, but her body swayed several times before she weakly fell back down.

As a result, she ended up falling onto Han Li once again with her upper body resting on Han Lis stomach. From her look of fright, she seemed to be somewhat young.

Who are you? The woman asked with a trembling voice. Her heavy, thumping heart, could be clearly heard in the silent darkness.

The womans voice was quite pleasant, but since he didnt know the woman and couldnt clearly make out her appearance, Han Li jokingly replied, Just some guy!

Hmph. A trace of resentment appeared within her eyes as she fiercely glared at Han Li. But because her limbs were in pain, she could only raise her neck and turn her head towards Han Li just a bit, as this action didnt seem to take much effort.

However, her pleasant fragrance did reach Han Lis nose, arousing a strange feeling in him. With the addition of her soft, ample body pressing against him, a certain area was unconsciously aroused.

What are you doing! The woman immediately felt the change in Han Lis body, and she fiercely glared at him with a shameful expression. However, Han Li saw this action to be quite adorable.

Han Li bitterly laughed and said, It isnt something that I can control. I have lost my magic power and spiritual sense. While I would like to control my body with my cultivation and calm down my little lord, Ive returned to become an ordinary man. I am helpless to do anything about the reaction.

The woman snorted. Although she didnt say anything, she seemed to have heard him. Fortunately, she couldnt move just like Han Li and could do nothing about it, despite her angry humiliation.

The darkness became silent once more, broken only by the breaths of the two.

Han Li felt this experience to be completely unprecedented. There were countless fish and prawn flailing about underneath him, and an unfamiliar, fragrant woman laying on top of him. This situation couldnt be described as anything but absurd!

The woman suddenly broke the silence and asked, Were you among the fellow cultivators that entered the island?

Seems likely, right? When Han Li heard her, he immediately recalled the dozens of cultivators that had rushed to the small island. It seemed like this woman was one of them.

Doubt flickered within her eyes and she snorted before suspiciously asking, What is that supposed to mean?

Han Li smiled and thought to brush off her question with a vague response when disorderly footsteps suddenly sounded as several torches soon appeared in the distance and floated nearby. There appeared to be shadows that were faintly visible beneath the flickering torchlight.

Han Lis heart trembled! There seemed to be people here and they didnt appear to be the other cultivators that had been devoured by the ghost mist.

An instant later, the torches had drawn close to them.

Han Lis eyes narrowed and he was able to clearly see the black silhouettes behind the flames. They were five exceptionally large men that were each at least a whole head taller than Han Li, and appeared to be about forty years of age.

They wore green robes and held a sword-like weapon in their hands with huge leather bags on their backs and were hastily travelling forward in large strides.

When Han Li saw them, his heart was shaken by fear. As he was guessing the identity of these men, a strand of black hair swept past his face. The woman had turned her head to gaze at them as well, and seemed to be ill at ease from her trembling..

Han Li furrowed his brow and began to move his fingers as a trace of strength had returned. It appeared that he was recovering his strength rather quickly.

Inside the silver light barrier, Han Li raised his head and took a drop of spirit milk before glancing down at the small bottle with a pensive expression.

It was the morning of the next day and he had now taken his fifth drop of spirit milk, but the golden light outside the light barrier still didnt show the slightest sign of weakening. The flames, however, had begun to shrink. It seemed Wen Tianren wouldnt be able to sustain them for much longer, and Han Li would be able to escape fairly soon.

With that in mind, Han Lis hand flashed with white light and he calmly placed the bottle back into his storage pouch. He then glanced at the Yin clouds in the sky and unconsciously frowned.

He had clearly seen the beam of green light shooting into the skies from the direction of the valley that seemed to have been caused by Yuan Yaos spell ritual. Although he didnt know what had specifically happened, based on the black clouds lowering down, it appeared that the Soulrise Technique had yet to finish.

As quickly as these thoughts appeared in Han Lis mind, he buried them. He couldnt afford to be concerned with anything else until after he escaped the prison of golden light.

After taking a deep breath, he felt his magic treasures begin to surge with excitement. At that same moment, the silver wings could faintly be seen once more from his back.

Floating above the golden flames, Wen Tianren no longer appeared as proud as when he had initially trapped Han Li. Instead, his face had begun to pale and a layer of faint black Qi had started to form. The golden horn on his forehead also appeared to be an inch shorter than the day before.

Wen Tianren gloomily scowled, but his heart brimmed with furious alarm as a faint trace of dread began to take hold.

When he had taunted Han Li that he would only be able to withstand the flames for an hour at most, he had been exaggerating. Knowing precisely how powerful the Divine Golden flames were, he had honestly believed that it wouldve been difficult for Han Li to persevere for even half an hour. As such, he had been willing to expend a bit of his Origin Qi to eliminate Han Li and prevent him from becoming an even greater problem in the future.

But an hour later, Han Li still showed no signs of wavering, somewhat surprising Wen Tianren.

When it had reached two hours, Wen Tianren was alarmed to find that Han Li had yet to turn to ash.

After four hours, Wen Tianren had started to feel trepidation after seeing how Han Li still endured.

He faintly felt that he had made a mistake, as Han Li hadnt shown any fear at the prospect of contesting his magic power with Wen Tianrens own. It was clear that Han Li either possessed some kind of item that allowed him to quickly replenish his magic power or had some other mysterious ability. According to what he knew, the only item that could allow this kind of replenishment of magic power was the extremely rare Myriad Year Spirit Milk. Could it be that Han Li truly possessed some?

Wen Tianren quickly found his guesses to be true.

However, he had reached the point where he could no longer afford to stop. With a majority of his apex devil incarnations already eliminated and his unrestrained use of the Golden Mirrors of Eight Gates, he had greatly exhausted his cultivation. If he were to let Han Li go, it wasnt likely for him to win.

However, Wen Tianren was aware that given how rare the Myriad Spirit Milk was, ordinary cultivators couldnt possibly possess all that much. As a result, he had resolved himself to continue to exhaust his true essence and continue his attempt to roast Han Li in the Divine Golden Flames.

The current damage to his true essence would take at least thirty years of secluded cultivation to repair.

With each passing moment, Wen Tianrens complexion grew slightly paler, while the silver light barrier appeared as dense as ever. Wen Tianren wouldnt be able to persist for much longer.

He didnt know how much spirit milk Han Li had left and he was still stuck in a deadlock. As he desperately searched for a method to breakthrough his plight, something eventually came to mind.

Wen Tianren pursed his dry lips and coldly commanded, Violet Spirit! Go over to where he came from and capture his Dao companion. That person should be at a crucial moment in the ritual and should be incapable of resisting you. His originally refined appearance was now completely gone, revealing a trace of sinister malice.

When Fairy Violet Spirit heard this, her expression changed. This battle was truly beyond the scope of reason. She had originally believed that Han Li wouldnt be able to persist for long, but he had remained unscathed throughout the entire night. Instead, Wen Tianren was now in a difficult situation, much to her surprise.

After hearing his command, she was startled for a moment before realizing his intentions.

This young master of the Starfall Coalition intended to use the woman conducting the ritual to force Han Li into submitting! Since Han Li had agreed to act as her protector, their friendship should run deep. However, being forced to use this shameful method only further illustrated that the disciple of Archsaint Six Paths had truly reached his absolute limit.

Fairy Violet Spirit quickly recovered her ice-cold expression and silently remained in place.

A cold glint ran through Wen Tianrens eyes and he sinisterly said, What? Could it be that you believe that because of how damage my cultivation is that I cannot take your life? Or is it that youve always wanted to defect from the coalition ever since you were forced to join? Dont forget that the Starfall Coalition rules over half of the Scattered Star Seas, and you are only an early Core Formation cultivator, so where could you possibly run? Obediently follow my orders, and I will turn a blind eye to your disloyal inaction.

Fairy Violet Spirits expression changed several times before her eyes wandered onto the golden flames, indecision lingering in her heart. During her moment of indecisiveness, streaks of light began to fly over from the distance. As they grew nearer, Fairy Violet Spirit and Wen Tianren recognized them to be the female cultivators and their carriage.

When Wen Tianren saw this, he was greatly elated while Fairy Violet Spirit could only bitterly laugh in her mind.

These Foundation Establishment women hadnt been of any use at the start, but now they would be of pivotal importance.

Before Fairy Violet Spirit could wryly smile, she spotted their panicked expressions as they approached Wen Tianren the moment they arrived.

They looked at the current scene in astonishment and then quickly saluted Wen Tianren. They appeared extremely restless, but still remained silent.

Wen Tianren appearance was harsh and a hostile expression appeared on his face. He coldly chuckled and thought to say something when his face contorted in bewilderment upon looking into the distance.

When the others saw this, they were baffled and curiously turned their heads to look.

What in the world is that!? One of them shouted out upon seeing it.

They all saw wisps of black quickly emerge from the ocean at a frightening speed, leaving them all at a loss for words.

The ghost mist? After a moment, one of the woman shouted out in terror and immediately flew deeper into the island. At that moment, the others had clearly seen the black wisps. A pitch-black fog had emerged from the sea and was rushing towards them as if it were alive.

Suddenly, the rest of the Foundation Establishment cultivators present had been shocked senseless and fled in complete panic.

Wen Tianren and Fairy Violet Spirit were both aghast at the sudden developments.

Fairy Violet Spirit then stomped down and streaked away while enveloped in red light.

Wen Tianren nervously stared at the golden flames, unsure of what to do. After a cold glint appeared in his eyes, he gritted his teeth and spat a mouthful of blood essence into the flames, instantly causing them to intensify.

Afterwards, he flew into the distance in a flash of golden light while his many maids closely followed after him.

An inconceivable event then occurred before them as the cultivators closest to the ghost mist fell onto the island like downed birds.

This occurred with all cultivators that had drawn too close to the ghost mist. They suddenly lost their bearings in mid-flight and dropped down with deathly pale complexions.

Even their magic tools had been completely deprived of their spiritual nature.

As for Fairy Violet Spirit and Wen Tianming, they were only able to fly for a short amount of time and barely reach the other edge of the island before their lights had disappeared and they fell into the ocean.

At the time, the golden flames that had remained in the distance wavered for a moment before fizzling out. The eight small mirrors had also returned to their original forms, revealing the silver barrier of light within.

But just as the light barrier was revealed, it dispersed into specks of starlight, revealing an astonished Han Li from within.

Han Li had already seen what had happened with the others, but before he could come overcome his shock and come up with a countermeasure, he felt the magic power in his body become restricted and he began to helplessly fall from the sky.

Were it a common late Core Formation cultivator, they wouldnt be able to withstand the golden flames for even a quarter of an hour!

However, Han Li was anything but common!

At that moment, he stared at the golden flames surrounding him with a frown and slapped his storage pouch, taking out a small bottle.

Han Li glanced at the small bottle and let out a sigh. It was the Myriad Year Spirit Milk he had just acquired, and it already appeared that he wouldnt be able to last much longer without it.

It was quite the cruel joke. Had he not acquired the spirit milk from Yuan Yao, he wouldve found himself in a dead end. But at the same time, were it not for this spirit milk, he wouldnt have encountered Wen Tianren, a disciple of Archsaint Six Paths, and be in this situation!

Han Li felt extremely conflicted about how this situation had developed.

According to current situation, he was currently losing, but with the half bottle of Myriad Year Spirit Milk, he felt completely secure. Regardless of the golden light that trapped him or the golden flames that scorched around him, Wen Tianren was incapable of persevering without paying a heavy cost. If Wen Tianren wanted to compete in a battle of endurance, then victory assured for Han Li. Wen Tianrens own actions were about to doom him!

With that thought in mind, a sneer momentarily appeared on Han Lis face before he sat down inside the light barrier, preparing his counter attack once Wen Tianren had exhausted himself.

Consequentially, a baffling scene transpired. The air that had recently been filled with rolls of thunder and flashes of dazzling light had suddenly turned serene and peaceful. Wen Tianren and Han Li were both sitting down, forming their own incantation gestures in silence. However, the ten meter tall golden flames continued to burn.

When Fairy Violet spirit saw this, her luminous eyes shifted and she inwardly sighed.

From what she saw, Han Li was bound to be defeated as he was trapped within the golden flames. Although Han Li currently had a silver light barrier around him, she believed it would only provide temporary protection at most.

She stood there while wearing a complicated expression, but she had no intention of stepping forward. It appeared she didnt intend to take any action until the battle between the two of them was concluded.

At that moment, the Mei siblings, Old Man Zhao and the other low grade cultivators were grouped together about fifty kilometers away from the island. Although they were too far away to see Han Lis battle with Wen Tianren, they were able to see the brilliant flashes of light in the distance and hear the deafening explosions. This alone had left them greatly alarmed.

They had mistakenly believed that this was caused by a battle between the Core Formation cultivator on the island and the white silhouette. As such, they hadnt dared to leave, but now that all signs of fighting had disappeared, they were all left in dismay. They didnt know who was victorious or if something unexpected had occurred. Since they still didnt dare to rashly depart, they could only force themselves to stay put.

On the other side of the island, the beautiful female cultivators that had been escorting the carriage were also whispering to each other with apprehension.

Although they were all the personal maids of Wen Tianren, they were no different than true concubines and were treated favorably by him. On that note, if something were to happen to Wen Tianren, their fates were already sealed once they returned.

However, because Wen Tianren had given them orders to remain at the carriage when he approached the island, these concubines didnt dare to rashly take action.

…

Time slowly passed while the confrontation continued.

Day eventually turned to night and night turned to early morning. Nearly an entire day passed in complete silence as if yesterdays battle had never even occurred.

At that moment, both groups of cultivators on either side of the island were impatient and filled with doubt as other cultivators were beginning to appear nearby.

After an entire day of having the heavenly omen above the island, word spread that a peculiar treasure had appeared on this small island. Naturally, cultivators began to appear nearby. A vast majority of these cultivators were at Foundation Establishment stage but there were also a few overly confident Qi Condensation cultivators mixed in.

These people began to arrive at the island from every direction. When they grew near, they discovered Old Man Zhaos group along with the female cultivators around the carriage.

Those who met Old Man Zhao and the Mei siblings were better off. As Old Man Zhao and the Mei siblings were quite well connected, many cultivators came to them to find out what had happened.

After these cultivators heard that Core Formation cultivators had already entered the island, they apprehensively muttered to themselves and gathered near the old mans party, holding no foolish thoughts of rushing the island.

As for the cultivators on the other side of the island that chose to speak to the beautiful female cultivators next to the carriage, the female cultivator in charge had taken out a banner of the Starfall Coalition without any reservations and immediately threatened them. Each of these cultivators immediately turned tail with pale faces. Since the Starfall Coalition cultivators were participating in whatever was happening on the island, nothing good would come about from staying around.

After more time had past, two Core Formation cultivators eventually arrived. They were travelling together, and one of them was the deputy island lord of Bright Emperor Island. These two arrived on the side with Wen Tianrens maids, and naturally questioned them with baffled expressions.

Because the two were Core Formation cultivators, the female cultivators didnt dare to slight them. The female cultivator in charge casually mentioned Wen Tianrens name to them as she answered.

The two Core Formation cultivators were shocked upon hearing his name. While Bright Emperor Island was considered neutral, they didnt dare to provoke the overbearing power of either the top figure of the Devil Dao or the Starfall Coalition. After casually mumbing some sort of excuse, the two immediately flew back from where they came.

What a joke! Although they didnt even know whether or not a treasure existed on this island, since a disciple of Archsaint Six Paths had arrived, they naturally had no thoughts of involving themselves. Since the young master had yet to return after approaching the island, if something had truly happened to him and they became involved, then theyd be just be heading to their deaths.

Although a small portion of cultivators were scared away by the Starfall Coalitions reputation, about forty cultivators had gathered around the island from other directions. When they werent able to detect any Core Formation cultivators nearby, they rushed in.

These cultivators harbored sinister designs of their own and werent about to leave the island of their own accord. They planned to take advantage of the current chaos for their own benefit.

As the black cloud above the island continued to swirl, it had already spread out to cover the entirety of the small island, blocking all the light from shining onto the island.

A dark green beam of light suddenly shot up from the island towards the Yin clouds. At that moment, the clouds furiously roiled for a moment then began to slowly descend and remained about four hundred meters above the island before becoming serene. freewebnvel.cm

The emergence of these pitch-black clouds had given the impression that a tempest was about to approach.

The heavenly omens transformations shook the hearts of the cultivators nearby. However, a few of the more quick witted ones felt delight as they believed the green beam of light to be the sign for the emergence of a treasure.

These cultivators were suddenly overwhelmed with greed and glanced at each other for a moment before flying towards the island in groups of ten. They believed that with so many Foundation Establishment cultivators joining hands, even a Core Formation cultivator wouldnt be able to make light of them.

As for the portion of cultivators that hadnt joined, they were extremely calm and examined the others actions with detached gazes. Since there were others willing to scout the path ahead, they were happy to sit back and watch before taking action.

At that same time, Wen Tianrens maids were no longer capable of just waiting and approached the island with the carriage in tow.

Unbeknownst to all these people was that deep within the oceans near the small island, a strange black light started to shine after an appearance of a slim black crevice. Soon after, countless threads of pitch-black Qi emerged from the crevice forming into a mist.

This pitch-black mist was only about ten meters wide at the start but it quickly began to expand. In only a short moment, it had already spread to an area of five hundred meters and continued to grow. Not only could ghostly wails be faintly heard from within the fog, but there were unceasing flashes of bizarre black lightning. Even more strange was how the nearby sea creatures were drawn into the black mist like moths to the flame.

An instant later, all life in the nearby seas had already been swept clean, but nevertheless, the black mist continued to expand as if it were unsated.

One kilometer, two kilometers…

It eventually began to emerge from the oceans surface, allowing it to be clearly seen by those present. When everyone saw this, they became numb with fear.

From the looks of it, the mist would soon spread across the small island.

Everyone on the island, including Han Li, were at a loss as they watched its progress.