Since the battle with the ancient demons, the restrictions in the outer valley of the Fallen Demon Valley have gradually weakened. Over the years, the outer valley has become accessible to ordinary cultivators.
However, as more and more people ventured into the outer valley in search of treasures, the rare ores, spiritual herbs, and spiritual trees were quickly depleted. Only in the most hidden, undiscovered corners might one occasionally find something valuable—though this depended entirely on luck.
As a result, the number of treasure-seeking cultivators dwindled over time. Nowadays, the outer valley is no different from any other spiritual mountain or land, with only a few low-level cultivators occasionally trying their luck at dawn or dusk.
In contrast, the inner valley of the Fallen Demon Valley has grown increasingly notorious.
The restrictions in the inner valley have not weakened at all over the years, and the spatial rifts remain densely packed. Moreover, in the last two or three centuries, a strange milky-white mist has inexplicably begun to permeate the valley year-round.
Though this mist does not actively harm cultivators, anyone who enters it immediately feels dizzy and disoriented, with their spiritual sense severely restricted. Venturing even slightly deeper causes complete loss of direction.
This phenomenon once caused a sensation across the southern region.
Many cultivators speculated that it was an auspicious sign heralding the emergence of a rare treasure within the valley. However, no matter how valuable the treasure, none dared to risk their lives recklessly. Most high-level cultivators hesitated, unwilling to rashly enter the inner valley.
But soon, a few Nascent Soul rogue cultivators, driven by greed and confident in their ability to dispel the mist with certain treasures, banded together and ventured inside.
The result? They were trapped in the mist for years, their treasures rendered useless. Only by sheer luck did they manage to stumble their way out, battered and humiliated.
Later, other cultivators, relying on their own abilities, entered the inner valley—only to suffer even worse fates. Some perished in spatial rifts, while others were trapped for even longer.
One cultivator remained lost in the mist for fifty or sixty years. Had the inner valley not been rich in spiritual energy, allowing them to replenish their power, none would have survived.
As these stories spread, other Nascent Soul cultivators were horrified, and no one dared to speak lightly of entering the valley again.
Thus, the inner valley of the Fallen Demon Valley once more became a forbidden land in the southern cultivation world, with few daring to linger near its entrance.
Over time, the southern cultivators grew accustomed to the mist in the inner valley. Some newcomers even assumed the white fog was a natural feature of the Fallen Demon Valley, and no one questioned its origin.
Little did anyone know that in an extremely secluded part of the inner valley, there stood a small jade-crafted cave dwelling nestled against a mountain.
Beside the dwelling was an unassuming medicinal garden, only about a hundred zhang wide. Yet within it grew countless rare spiritual herbs that would drive any cultivator to madness—some centuries old, others millennia, their intoxicating fragrance filling the air.
The area around the small valley was protected by intricate restrictions, so complex that even a Nascent Soul cultivator who stumbled in would struggle to escape.
At the center of the garden stood a simple stone hut, empty save for a single meditation cushion.
On that cushion sat a motionless, slender figure, as still as a wooden statue.
After an unknown length of time, the figure stirred, stood up, and slowly walked out of the hut.
Under the faint sunlight, the person’s face became clearly visible—it was none other than **Han Li**, though his expression was eerily blank.
“Han Li” walked to a corner of the garden, reached into the soil, and pulled out a small green vial. He then moved to another part of the garden, stopping before an unusually vibrant vine. He poured a single drop of green liquid onto its roots.
Watching as the vine absorbed the liquid, he turned without hesitation, buried the vial back in its original spot, and ambled back to the stone hut as if preparing to meditate again.
But just then, “Han Li” suddenly paused. A white-glowing talisman flew out from his sleeve, landing in his hand.
Looking down, he saw green characters flickering across its surface—someone was sending a message.
“Han Li” immediately soared into the air, transforming into a streak of azure light that shot toward a hidden corner of the valley.
When the light dissipated, he landed before a small teleportation array about a zhang in size.
He stood there silently.
Moments later, the array activated on its own. Amidst the glow of spiritual energy, a faint azure figure materialized.
As the figure stepped out of the array, another “Han Li” appeared before him.
“These years have been hard on you. Without you delivering spiritual herbs daily, I wouldn’t have been able to reach the peak of early Deity Transformation so quickly,” the newly arrived Han Li said with a smile to the figure who looked exactly like him.
“I am you, and you are me. Why distinguish between us?” the first “Han Li” replied indifferently, his expression unchanging.
He was, in fact, a humanoid puppet controlled by Han Li’s second Nascent Soul.
The one who had just arrived was the real Han Li, emerging from seclusion within the Mustard Seed Space.
Three hundred years had passed since Han Li left the Fallen Cloud Sect.
Back then, after leaving with Nangong Wan, he had used an ancient teleportation array to take her and others to the Chaotic Star Sea. There, he claimed a remote island with a decent spiritual vein, settling Nangong Wan and the others before returning alone to the Fallen Demon Valley.
He opened the Mustard Seed Space and entered to cultivate the Magnetic Divine Light.
Before entering, he released the Heavenly Mechanism Mansion, storing his Gold Devouring Beetles and other spirit beasts inside. He also built a medicinal garden, transplanting the Profound Heaven Vine and Dragon Scale Fruit Tree from the Mother-Child Peaks.
Finally, he left the humanoid puppet behind, entrusting it with the mysterious vial to oversee everything.
Still uneasy about the possibility of intruders discovering his presence, he spent over a year setting up an enormous ancient formation that released the mind-numbing mist, shrouding most of the inner valley.
After completing these preparations, he issued a few commands to the second Nascent Soul and entered the Mustard Seed Space via the teleportation array.
Before beginning his cultivation, Han Li refined the Golden Flood Dragon King’s inner core according to the child’s instructions, transforming it into a metal-attribute spiritual root. Only then did he begin practicing the Magnetic Divine Light with peace of mind.
Neither Han Li nor the child had anticipated that this seemingly minor adjustment would resolve the fatal flaw in the Magnetic Divine Light’s cultivation method—a stroke of incredible luck for Han Li.
Otherwise, he might have wasted over a century before realizing the issue, and the consequences of restarting his cultivation would have been severe.
Even so, his cultivation with the Magnetic Mountain was far from smooth.
The initial stages progressed rapidly thanks to the mountain’s power, but later stages were plagued by bottlenecks and near-fatal qi deviations.
Had it not been for his vast supply of spiritual herbs and the vial’s ability to accelerate their growth, his cultivation might have regressed.
The most grueling challenge was the fusion of his own five-element spiritual power with the mountain’s magnetic force, which at one point left him unable to leave the mountain for decades—a hardship few could endure.
Only Han Li’s extraordinary willpower allowed him to persevere.
After over two centuries of relentless cultivation in the Mustard Seed Space, he finally mastered the technique, fully refining the Magnetic Mountain into a treasure he could absorb into his body.
From there, things became easier.
Seizing the right moment, Han Li consumed the “Demonic Essence Pill” and other rare medicines, aided by top-grade spirit stones and five types of extreme cold flames, to successfully break through to the Deity Transformation stage.
As a Deity Transformation cultivator, Han Li could now manipulate the world’s spiritual energy, summoning wind and rain—abilities akin to those of legendary immortals. It was a monumental leap.
Overjoyed, Han Li left the Fallen Demon Valley and traveled to the Chaotic Star Sea.
He found Nangong Wan and his disciples safe and sound, with the latter even establishing a considerable force that controlled dozens of nearby islands.
Han Li remained indifferent to this development.
Nangong Wan and the disciples, ecstatic at his breakthrough, celebrated heartily.
By then, Nangong Wan, bolstered by the elixirs Han Li had given her, had reached late-stage Nascent Soul and was striving to reach peak late-stage for her own breakthrough.
Shi Jian, with his remarkable talent, had also successfully formed a Nascent Soul during this time, much to Han Li’s satisfaction.
However, one tragic event occurred: Mu Peiling, nearing the end of her lifespan, had rushed to break through to the Nascent Soul stage. A momentary lapse in concentration allowed inner demons to invade, leading to a fatal qi deviation.
Upon hearing this, Han Li was momentarily stunned and saddened.
Though he had provided her with Nine-Curve Spirit Ginseng pills and other aids, her failure to form a Nascent Soul seemed fated.
As her nominal concubine, Han Li personally paid respects at her grave.
Afterward, he stayed on the island with Nangong Wan for over a decade before departing once more to return to the southern region and continue his cultivation.
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