Chapter 1412: The Heaven Roc Race

Five years is neither long nor short.

During this time, Han Li not only applied all the golden marrow spat out by the five pairs of crystal insects onto his body but also refined the Golden Mother Coral Sand with other medicinal ingredients into a liquid, which he then absorbed into his flesh and blood.

The result of this process was that all five pairs of golden marrow crystal insects vanished without a trace, and the three gourds of Golden Mother Coral Sand were completely exhausted.

One day, when Han Li opened his eyes from meditation, he raised his seemingly ordinary hands and glanced at them, revealing a peculiar expression.

“Even though I’ve refined all the golden marrow and a considerable amount of Golden Mother Coral Sand into my body, and my physical strength has greatly improved, why is this mid-stage bottleneck still just out of reach? Could it truly be a matter of fate?”

With a sigh, Han Li closed his eyes again in frustration. Suddenly, a flash of blue light appeared on the chamber wall, and his second Nascent Soul flew in as a dark streak, babbling excitedly while waving its tiny hands.

Han Li was momentarily startled before chuckling lightly.

“I nearly forgot. The Skywing Tribe is about to arrive on the island. It’s a perfect opportunity to see these foreign beings for myself.” Muttering to himself, he stood up and walked out of the chamber.

Though he hadn’t left the chamber in years, he had ordered his second Nascent Soul to monitor the four demonic creatures using puppet techniques. Eventually, during one of their private gatherings, he overheard news that envoys from the Skywing Tribe were coming to the island.

Now, it seemed these foreign beings had finally arrived, and the demons had already sent someone to greet them.

Come to think of it, he had impulsively destroyed the soul of the Venerable Baoguang with his Devouring Spirit Heavenly Flame after capturing him, only to regret not using soul-searching techniques afterward. After all, an eighth-grade demonic beast should have known quite a bit about the surrounding regions.

Though he had already performed a soul search on the golden fish demon, that creature had never ventured far from the nearby waters and knew little beyond the fact that this sea was called the Crimson Demon Sea, while the island Han Li resided on was known as the Black Nether Island—actually just a peninsula.

A small part of the island was the Black Hidden Mountain Range where he lived, while the rest was shrouded in the Black Nether Mist. Fortunately, the peninsula was still connected to the Wind Yuan Continent, meaning he hadn’t been teleported to one of the other two unfamiliar continents. This realization eased Han Li’s mind considerably.

As long as he remained on the Wind Yuan Continent, he could always find a way back to the human race.

The nearby waters of the peninsula and the vast land connecting to it seemed to be under the rule of a winged foreign race called the Feiling Tribe. The Skywing Tribe was merely one branch of the Feiling Tribe—and one of the weaker ones at that. Many of the demonic beasts in the nearby waters had been driven into the sea by the Feiling Tribe, otherwise, even this little information would have been unknown to the fish demon.

Beyond that, the fish demon couldn’t provide any other accurate details.

However, in the fish demon’s vague impressions, apart from the pair of wings on their backs and their ability to transform into giant rocs during battle using their innate abilities, the Skywing Tribe bore an uncanny resemblance to humans.

Naturally, this piqued Han Li’s interest in the Skywing envoys who came to collect tribute, and he wanted to see them for himself.

Before long, Han Li transformed into a streak of azure light, appearing high in the sky hundreds of miles away, with a half-foot-long golden beetle perched on his shoulder.

As his escape light continued forward, Han Li stroked the Gold Devouring Beetle, which had only recently awakened from its long slumber.

Outwardly, the beetle appeared unchanged, but each one had become astonishingly heavy—more than twice as heavy as when they had first devoured those peculiar stones. Fortunately, tests showed that these mutated Gold Devouring Beetles had regained their original agility and had each become immensely strong.

A single beetle could now easily lift nearly a thousand pounds, leaving Han Li dumbfounded when he first witnessed it.

Aside from these two changes, Han Li hadn’t discovered any other peculiarities in the thousand-plus evolved beetles. He wasn’t sure if these were the only transformations or if there were others yet to be revealed.

Slightly disappointed, he also found himself uncertain about the purpose of the three special stones.

A day later, the azure streak arrived near a cluster of low, flat hills.

His eyes flickered, and the azure light gradually blurred before vanishing entirely mid-flight.

Han Li had activated a concealment technique, masking both himself and his escape light while slowing his speed severalfold.

After passing a small lake, he spotted an emerald-green hill covered in bamboo several meters tall. At its base, thousands of ox-headed, lion-bodied white beasts roamed about.

Han Li surveyed the beasts before turning his gaze toward the mountainside.

There, a patch of white mist lingered unbroken.

A flash of blue light in his eyes—his Clear Spirit Sight—instantly pierced through the mountain fog, revealing a faint green stone gate within the mist.

This was the cave dwelling of the ox-headed beast.

Han Li smiled faintly and ascended higher into the sky, stopping only when he reached an altitude of several thousand feet.

He then formed hand seals, sending out several incantations of varying colors that vanished in a flash.

Wisps of mist materialized in the surrounding air, quickly coalescing into an ordinary-looking gray cloud that completely concealed his form.

With that done, Han Li gave a slight shrug, and the massive Gold Devouring Beetle shrank to the size of a bean amid a burst of golden light before darting out of the cloud and streaking toward the hill below.

Han Li watched as the beetle vanished into the hill, then calmly remained suspended in the mist.

Fifteen minutes later, two gusts of demonic wind and three large silver birds flew in from the horizon.

Han Li’s pupils contracted as he fixed his gaze on the three unusual birds.

Each bird was over thirty feet long, resembling giant eagles with dazzling silver feathers that seemed forged from pure silver. Their deep purple eyes gleamed with sharp intelligence as they scanned their surroundings.

Though the birds had clearly suppressed their speed, the moment they spotted the picturesque hill, they simultaneously spread their wings, white lightning arcs crackling across their bodies as they transformed into three streaks of lightning.

A series of low thunderclaps echoed!

In the next instant, the three birds, wreathed in lightning, appeared before the patch of white mist.

Folding their wings, they transformed in a flash of silver light into two men and a woman—three winged beings with silver feathers on their backs.

“So these are the Skywing people?” Han Li examined them closely, a flicker of surprise crossing his face.

The male Skywing beings were strikingly handsome, while the female was exceptionally beautiful. Apart from their wings, they were nearly indistinguishable from young human men and women.

Judging by their auras, all three were at the Nascent Soul stage.

The oldest-looking male, appearing to be in his thirties, was at the mid-Nascent Soul stage, while the younger pair were only at the early stage.

All three wore simple white robes, with the men sporting silver headbands and the woman letting her long hair flow freely.

Assessing their strength, Han Li relaxed slightly. Silently reciting an incantation, he withdrew all traces of his presence and descended like a gentle breeze.

Unaware of what was happening above them, the three Skywing beings hovered before the hill, waiting quietly.

Soon after, the two gusts of demonic wind arrived.

The demonic aura dissipated, revealing a giant boar and a three-headed python.

“Esteemed Envoys, please come in! Fellow Daoist Cui and Fellow Daoist Jin are inside, tallying the tribute and preparing a feast. We humbly request your presence!” the python said obsequiously the moment it appeared.

“No need for such formalities. We’ll collect the tribute and depart immediately,” the man in his thirties replied indifferently, his companions equally expressionless.

Given their cultivation levels, it was no surprise they held these demonic creatures in such low regard.

Had the tribute not been of some importance, they wouldn’t have bothered speaking at all.

Just then, the white mist at the mountainside parted, and the hidden green gate slowly swung open.

The ox-headed beast and the golden-furred ape hurried out, offering profuse apologies as they ushered the three Skywing envoys inside, followed by the other demons.

None noticed the faint gust of wind that slipped through the gate just as it closed.

The four demons soon led the Skywing envoys into an elegant hall. Though none of the demons had taken human form, the hall was furnished with tables and chairs.

Without ceremony, the three Skywing envoys took the seats of honor while the four demons stood respectfully to the side.

“Enough pleasantries. Just tell us—is the tribute ready?” the youngest-looking male Skywing envoy demanded as soon as he sat down.

“Esteemed Envoys, most of the tribute has been prepared, but some items are no longer found on this island. We truly couldn’t procure them,” the ox-headed beast replied nervously.

“Not fully prepared? You know the consequences of failing to deliver the tribute, don’t you? Without it, what use do you have remaining on this island?” the older male envoy said coldly.

“Please, Envoy, calm your anger! Though some items are missing, we’ve prepared an extra fifty Wood Bell Flowers. We beg for your leniency!” the ox-headed beast hastily interjected.

“What? Fifty extra Wood Bell Flowers?” The three Skywing envoys exchanged glances, their expressions brightening.

“You’re not trying to pass off immature flowers as the real thing, are you?” the envoy in his thirties suddenly barked, suspicion flashing in his eyes.