After a brief moment, the spiritual light on the jade slip dimmed, returning it to its ordinary appearance.
Han Li flicked his wrist and tossed the jade slip along with a translucent jade pendant to the feathered-robed girl.
The girl caught both items, scanned them briefly with her divine sense, and then beamed with joy, repeatedly thanking Han Li.
“Calculating the time, it seems both you and I have arrived a few days earlier than agreed. Why don’t we take this opportunity to find a place to exchange some cultivation insights? Although I’ve been fortunate enough to advance to the late-stage of the Body Unity realm, my time in the mid-stage was rather short, so there are many things I’d like to consult Fellow Daoist Ye about,” Han Li said with a smile.
“Brother Han is too modest. However, exchanging insights with you is something I’ve long desired. Moreover, there are some details about our upcoming journey to the Demon Realm that I’d like to discuss with you further. I’ve prepared a stone cave at the far end of the valley. Shall we go there to share our insights?” The feathered-robed girl, visibly intrigued by Han Li’s words, replied.
Han Li had no objections and readily agreed.
Thus, the two of them summoned their escape lights and transformed into two streaks of rainbow light, shooting toward the other end of the valley.
High in the sky, about a dozen miles from the valley, a milky-white cloud drifted lazily in the air.
Deep within the cloud, two figures—one tall and one short—were concealed. The slender figure was enveloped in a pink mist, holding a blood-red magical artifact in one hand while murmuring incantations.
The artifact pulsed with an eerie glow, occasionally releasing thumb-sized runes that floated out, giving off an unsettling aura.
Suddenly, the artifact flared brilliantly, its spiritual light swirling rapidly before shattering with a low hum.
The person holding the artifact frowned, flicking a sleeve to sweep away the fragments, which vanished without a trace.
“How strange. My divination technique failed completely on this person—I couldn’t glean any information at all,” the slender figure sighed and muttered.
“Master, could it be that he possesses the spiritual medicine you seek, thus blocking your divination? Or perhaps you didn’t exert your full power just now?” the tall figure, clad in black armor, asked in surprise.
“The spiritual medicine I seek, though extraordinary, shouldn’t have the ability to conceal itself. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come all this way to search for it. If he truly had the medicine, even without divination, I should have sensed something at this proximity. As for my divination just now, though I could only use a fraction of my power due to my previous exertion, I shouldn’t have gotten absolutely nothing,” the slender figure mused before shaking their head.
“Then how did this person manage it? With your divination prowess, only a Mahayana existence should be able to completely block it,” the black-armored man said, dumbfounded.
“Indeed, it’s puzzling. But there are other possibilities for someone to block my divination to this extent. If they possess similar divination abilities or one of the legendary immortal physiques, they could achieve the same effect,” the slender figure said thoughtfully.
“Similar divination abilities? That seems unlikely. Your divination skills are among the top in the entire Spirit Realm. As for those legendary immortal physiques, each possesses world-defying power. How could a mere human have such a thing? If he truly had one, his race would have hidden him away as a treasure, not let him roam freely,” the armored man gasped, shaking his head vigorously.
“I also find it improbable. In a realm like the Spirit Realm, the chance of an immortal physique appearing is less than one in a hundred. If that’s the case, then this person must possess a fragment of an Xuantian treasure or a replica forged from such fragments. Only the law power within these remnants could counteract my divination. However, such remnants are exceedingly rare—I’ve only heard of them, never seen one. But this seems the most plausible explanation,” the slender figure said calmly.
Despite her wisdom and formidable abilities, she never imagined that Han Li had a complete Xuantian treasure sealed within him. Even those with divination skills surpassing hers would find their attempts fruitless. Thus, she could only assume he had fragments or replicas.
“Master, you already retrieved the fragment of the Xuantian Ruyi Blade. If he has another Xuantian remnant, this fellow must be incredibly wealthy, rivaling even some of our race’s Sacred Ancestors,” the black-armored man said, his eyes burning with greed as he glanced toward the valley.
“Don’t forget the purpose of this trip. Until we confirm the whereabouts of the spiritual medicine, don’t act against him,” the slender figure said coolly, casting a glance at the armored man.
“Master, rest assured—I wouldn’t dare act recklessly,” the armored man said with a shudder, bowing his head.
“This human has already reached the late-stage of the Body Unity realm. Even if you attacked, you wouldn’t stand a chance. Moreover, when we last met, he was only at the mid-stage. Now he’s advanced to the late-stage. It seems he has more secrets than just Xuantian remnants,” the slender figure said, her eyes flashing with intrigue as she gazed toward the valley.
The armored man knew his master had taken a genuine interest in this human. Even if he didn’t possess the spiritual medicine, she likely wouldn’t let him go easily. He sighed inwardly but maintained a respectful demeanor. “Master, what should we do next? Continue observing?”
“These two are the peak combatants of their race. Instead of staying at their stronghold, they’ve gathered here, surely for some grand scheme. It seems others will join them. Until everyone arrives, we’ll wait. My previous divination confirmed the spiritual medicine is linked to that human woman with the Heavenly Phoenix bloodline. We mustn’t alert them prematurely,” the slender figure said decisively.
“Your words are wise, Master. Once everyone gathers, we’ll have a better chance of locating the medicine. If we sense it on someone else, we can eliminate that human boy from suspicion,” the armored man nodded eagerly.
“Indeed, if it goes smoothly. But judging by their actions, it’ll be some time before the others arrive. You may enter my secret treasure to meditate for now,” the slender figure said, raising a hand to summon a rolling pink mist. Within it, a towering pink-flowered tree shimmered faintly.
The armored man bowed and vanished into the tree with a flicker.
The slender figure merged into the tree in a flash of light, and the illusion gradually faded away.
Five days later, in the sky tens of thousands of miles from the valley, a dazzling seven-colored radiance flickered, and a massive azure ship, a hundred zhang long, materialized and sped toward the valley.
The ship had three decks, its emerald-green hull inscribed with layers of intricate formations and dense arrays of runes—clearly a rare flying treasure.
On the top deck’s platform stood four figures conversing in low voices: a blurry figure wreathed in white light, a beautiful woman in a yellow dress, a gaunt man in coarse robes, and an elderly scholar in his sixties.
“Very well, we’ll proceed as agreed. Until we see the spiritual object, we must cooperate fully with the human cultivators. This journey to the Demon Realm is perilous—our Spirit Race alone cannot succeed,” the white-lit figure said coldly.
“Yes. If our race gains another Mahayana existence, we’ll never again suffer oppression from the other races,” the other three replied in unison, the yellow-robed woman exhaling deeply.
“Fairy Qianqiu, since you’ve had more dealings with humans, you’ll handle negotiations with them. The three of us will support you fully,” the gaunt man said leisurely.
“Then I thank you three. The old monster of the Long Family and the others won’t dare scheme before securing those two spiritual objects. At the outset, we needn’t worry too much,” the yellow-robed woman chuckled.
“That’s for the best. But even if they dare scheme, they’ll only bring misfortune upon themselves,” the elderly scholar said darkly.
“Heh, with our hidden strength, we’ve nothing to fear from the humans. But let’s avoid unnecessary conflicts—our mission takes precedence. Ahead is the rendezvous point. Fairy Qianqiu, summon that thing now. Ensure it’s controlled perfectly—no flaws for the humans to detect,” the white-lit figure said, eyes glinting.
“Rest assured, its intelligence is incomplete. With the secret treasure the Ancestor bestowed, it’s fully under control. It’s a pity it can’t be stored in a storage bracelet, or it wouldn’t occupy one of our slots for the Demon Realm,” the yellow-robed woman said regretfully.
“With that thing under our command, it’s worth half our strength. A single slot is trivial. Prepare yourselves—we’ll descend shortly,” the white-lit figure said dismissively. Clearly the leader, the others obeyed and retreated into the ship.
Simultaneously, thousands of miles in another direction from the valley, three streaks of rainbow light flashed into existence, racing toward the valley.
At the forefront of the golden light was a middle-aged man with a pale golden complexion—none other than the Long Family Ancestor.
The other two streaks contained a scar-faced man in black robes and an expressionless man with disheveled hair.
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