Han Li’s body trembled violently as all the silver threads vanished into his skin in a flash, causing his flesh to undulate incessantly, as if eggs of varying sizes were squirming beneath his skin.
At the same time, Han Li felt a boiling heat surge through his flesh and blood, while his meridians itched unbearably, making him wish he could tear off layers of his own skin with his fingers.
This soul-deep agony was something only Han Li, with his extraordinarily powerful spiritual sense, could endure. Any other Soul Formation cultivator would either lose control of their spiritual energy and suffer qi deviation or be driven to scream and leap up in agony, unable to maintain composure for cultivation.
Han Li remained seated motionless on the ground, his expression indifferent as he allowed the strange phenomena on his body to persist.
After three or four hours, his body became increasingly translucent, revealing bones far thicker than those of an ordinary person.
These bones shimmered with a faint silver glow, as if forged from pure silver, and bore delicate golden patterns on their surface. Though barely discernible, these golden lines faintly formed intricate golden runes, as if naturally inscribed upon his bones.
If any high-level cultivators were to see these golden runes, they would immediately exclaim in shock—”Golden Script!”
A cultivation technique capable of manifesting such celestial script within the body was undoubtedly profound, likely originating from the True Immortal Realm. Even Mahayana cultivators would covet such a technique.
This was none other than the Hundred Meridians Treasure Refinement Art, which Han Li had resumed cultivating in earnest.
The technique indeed hailed from the True Immortal Realm. If Han Li could master it, his physical body would rival that of a True Spirit, if not surpass it.
However, the difficulty of cultivating this technique was self-evident.
Only after reaching the late Soul Formation stage did Han Li dare to resume its practice. Success was still a distant prospect—perhaps not even achievable before he advanced to the Mahayana stage.
Given Han Li’s actual age and his unimaginably long lifespan, he was in no rush to master this technique, opting instead to slowly comprehend it step by step.
Time passed steadily.
Several hours later, Han Li opened his eyes, and his bones erupted with a series of thunderous cracks as his body suddenly expanded, radiating golden light.
With a single hand seal, the rumbling within him ceased, and his enlarged form returned to normal.
He exhaled deeply, a wry smile crossing his face.
The true Hundred Meridians Treasure Refinement Art was excruciating to cultivate. Even with his formidable physique, he could only endure brief sessions.
Practicing it for too long in a single day risked damaging his meridians beyond repair.
After concluding the technique, he did not immediately dismantle the formation. Instead, he waved a hand through the air, dispersing his three-headed, six-armed golden dharma form.
Han Li then calmly placed his hands on his knees and closed his eyes, entering meditation once more.
Within moments, the golden light around him faded, replaced by a radiant seven-colored glow that gradually intensified, forming a luminous halo that enveloped his body.
His face shimmered with crystalline light, and the black demonic eye between his brows flickered faintly, as if awakening to life.
Having completed the Hundred Meridians Treasure Refinement Art, Han Li now began cultivating another mysterious celestial technique—the Divine Refinement Art.
With his late-stage cultivation and enhanced physique, he could finally practice this esoteric art with confidence.
If he could master the second layer of the Divine Refinement Art, multiplying his divine sense severalfold, he would retain a sliver of hope for advancing to the Mahayana stage—even if he failed to find the Spirit Cleansing Pool and the Pure Spirit Lotus in the Demon Realm.
Fully aware of the technique’s importance, Han Li had diligently practiced it daily since the demonic war at Tianyuan City. However, due to its complexity, his progress in the second layer had been minimal.
Mastering the second layer would undoubtedly require a long, arduous journey.
Han Li had anticipated this and thus harbored no impatience, silently cultivating in deep meditation.
—
Early the next morning, a streak of azure light shot from the island, circled once, and then streaked toward the horizon.
Two days later, Han Li left the ocean behind and entered a range of dark green mountains.
The mountains were exceedingly humid, with multicolored mists rising from the ground, obscuring everything below three to four hundred zhang in a hazy veil.
To avoid sudden attacks from reckless demonic beasts that might delay his journey, Han Li refrained from flying low or scanning the mountains with his divine sense. Instead, he soared at an altitude of several thousand zhang.
The skies above ten thousand zhang were often claimed by powerful demonic birds even Han Li preferred not to provoke. Unless necessary, he avoided such heights.
The mountain range was far vaster than Han Li had anticipated.
Originally expecting to cross it in three or four days, he found himself still deep within its expanse after over ten days, with no end in sight.
This unexpected delay put him on heightened alert.
Though he avoided low-altitude flight, he still encountered several waves of formidable demonic beasts.
Some were giant eagle-headed demonic birds, while others were swarms of blood-sucking mosquitoes enlarged a hundredfold. Though these creatures posed minor inconveniences, Han Li reduced them to ashes with his Devouring Spiritual Heavenly Flame.
After several more days of flight, the trees and peaks below grew sparse, signaling the approach of the mountain range’s edge.
Heartened, Han Li accelerated his flight, his azure light flashing across the sky.
Just as he was about to pass over a barren stone peak, he suddenly halted, his expression shifting as he turned his gaze to one side.
After a moment’s contemplation, he made a decision and flew toward the direction he had been observing.
Moments later, he spotted an enormous purple-red tree towering three thousand zhang high amidst several peaks. Above it, a group of male and female demons battled a swarm of crimson-winged bats.
Most of the demons were at the Nascent Soul stage, with three at the Soul Formation stage. They had formed a mystical array, wielding dozens of colorful demonic artifacts against the bats.
The thirty-odd bats, each half a zhang in size, bore black demonic patterns on their bodies. Their wingbeats summoned gusts of gray demonic wind, while their mouths spewed emerald-green flames.
Combining wind and fire, the flames intensified into a sea of green, trapping the demons above the tree.
Though the demons could not break free, the three Soul Formation demons wielded powerful artifacts and maintained their array, barely holding their ground.
Beneath them, an intense fragrance wafted from the tree’s crown, where several thumb-sized green fruits hung.
Han Li’s gaze lingered not on the bats or the demons but on the fruits.
“Purple Radiance Tree, Purple Spirit Fruit. But a tree of this size is truly rare,” he murmured, curiosity flickering in his eyes.
Though the Purple Spirit Fruit was a rare treasure, its effects were limited to cultivators below the Soul Formation stage, rendering it useless to Han Li.
Shifting his attention to the demons, he noted the Nascent Soul demons faltering, their faces pale from exhaustion. If they collapsed, the Soul Formation demons would soon follow.
As Han Li hesitated, one of the Soul Formation demons—a beautiful woman in a green dress—called out, “Fellow Daoist, we are of the Huan Ye Bai Clan! If you aid us, the Bai Clan will reward you handsomely!”
Han Li had concealed his true cultivation, revealing only late Soul Formation-level aura.
“The Bai Clan of Huan Ye City? The producers of Quanxiang?” Han Li asked slowly.
“You know of our clan, so you know my words are true. If you doubt me, I swear by my inner demon to repay your kindness!” the woman pleaded urgently.
Han Li pondered briefly before replying, “Since you are of the Bai Clan, I cannot refuse. I trust you will honor your promise.”
With that, he formed a hand seal, his body swelling to three or four zhang in height. Black scales covered his skin, and his hands transformed into dark claws with razor-sharp fingers.
Without hesitation, he roared and charged at the bats, his demonic aura overwhelming.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage