Seeing that Han Li had genuinely agreed to help, Kuihuan was naturally overjoyed. After quickly settling on a time and place with Han Li, he left with a beaming smile.
After a night passed, early the next morning, Han Li activated the restrictions on his cave abode and left the medicinal garden, heading straight for the agreed-upon location. He rode atop a flying sword artifact, moving at a leisurely pace.
It was somewhat amusing—he hadn’t used artifacts like this in years since forming his Golden Core. This upper-tier artifact was the most inconspicuous one he could dig out from his storage pouch. As for lower-grade artifacts, he simply couldn’t find any anymore.
After flying for half an hour, Han Li descended onto a relatively tall hill—the meeting spot he had arranged with Kuihuan and the others.
No one else had arrived yet, but Han Li showed no impatience, as he had come earlier than the agreed time.
Without hesitation, he found a clean boulder on the hilltop, sat cross-legged, and began meditating, drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
An hour later, as the fiery red morning sun faintly appeared on the horizon, several black dots emerged from another direction, slowly moving toward the hill. Observing their sluggish flight speed, Han Li rubbed his nose and inwardly sighed in amusement.
After what felt like an eternity, the group finally reached the hill at a pace Han Li found painfully slow.
“Junior Brother Han, you arrived even earlier than us. How thoughtful!” Kuihuan called out cheerfully from mid-air, standing atop a disc-shaped artifact. This was the low-grade flying artifact uniformly issued by the Falling Cloud Sect to its disciples—no wonder their speed was so abysmal.
As he spoke, Kuihuan led the others to land.
“It’s nothing. I just got here myself. Are these senior brothers the entire group for this trip?” Han Li stood up from the boulder, his gaze sweeping over the other three.
“Heh, five people are just right for setting up the Five Elements Misdirection Formation to catch the Snow Cloud Fox. Any more, and the spirit stones would be split too thinly. These three are Senior Brother Ma, Senior Brother Xi, and Senior Brother Wang.” Kuihuan grinned, pointing at each in turn.
The three weren’t particularly old—the eldest was the refined-looking Senior Brother Wang, around thirty-five or thirty-six, dressed in flowing white robes with an air of elegance. Among them, his cultivation was the highest, roughly at the eleventh level of Qi Refining.
The other two were younger, one short and stout, the other with a pale golden complexion, both in their late twenties and at the tenth level of Qi Refining.
“Junior Brother Han, we’ve all heard about your generosity. Thanks to your help, we finally have a chance against that fox,” Senior Brother Wang said warmly, exuding a gentle charisma.
The other two also regarded Han Li with goodwill, clearly holding him in high esteem for lending spirit stones.
“You flatter me. I just wanted to earn a bit more,” Han Li replied modestly.
“To Foundation Establishment cultivators, these spirit stones may be trivial, but for Qi Refining disciples like us, lending to strangers is no small matter. Just for that, Junior Brother Han, you’re someone worth befriending. I’d be honored to call you a friend,” Senior Brother Wang said earnestly.
Han Li nodded inwardly, studying the man more closely. Senior Brother Wang’s demeanor, cultivation, and character were all exceptional—clearly the leader of this group.
Just as Han Li was about to respond, Kuihuan glanced at the sky and interjected, “Senior Brother Wang, Junior Brother Han, we can chat on the way. At our speed, any further delay will leave us little time to hunt the fox once we reach Green Mist Marsh. We can’t afford to be away from the sect for too long.”
“Kuihuan is right. We shouldn’t waste time. Let’s set off now. We’ll talk more another time,” Senior Brother Wang agreed.
With that, the group summoned their artifacts and took to the skies.
“Wait—Junior Brother Han, you’re using your own artifact? That’s at least a mid-grade one! Are you from a cultivation family?” Kuihuan blurted out in surprise upon seeing Han Li’s flying sword.
Even a mid-grade artifact represented a significant sum for outer sect disciples like them.
Senior Brother Wang’s expression flickered with curiosity, while the other two also looked taken aback.
“I’m alone, with no family. I just picked up some rudimentary talisman-making skills earlier, which helped me earn a few spirit stones as a rogue cultivator. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to lend Senior Brother Kuihuan so much,” Han Li explained smoothly, having anticipated this reaction.
The group’s faces lit up with understanding, followed by envy.
“Talisman-making? Junior Brother Han, you’re full of surprises! If you’re profiting from it, your skills must be decent. What tier of talismans can you craft?” the stout Senior Brother Ma asked curiously.
“Mostly lower-tier primary talismans. I can manage two mid-tier ones, though the success rate isn’t high,” Han Li replied vaguely.
“You can craft mid-tier talismans?!” Even Senior Brother Wang was impressed.
“Just Thunderfire Talismans and Diamond Talismans, with about one success in five or six attempts. After material costs, the profit is negligible,” Han Li said impassively.
“You’re too modest. Even among the Fire Cloud Peak disciples who specialize in talismans, few can craft mid-tier ones. With this skill, you’ll never lack spirit stones. Unlike us, always scrambling for ways to earn them,” Senior Brother Wang sighed, his words striking a chord with the others.
Han Li shook his head. “You overestimate me. Lower-tier talismans aren’t in high demand, and I can’t camp out at the market stalls all day. My earnings aren’t as much as you think. On the other hand, your Snow Cloud Fox business seems quite profitable?”
The group exchanged glances, then smiled wryly. Senior Brother Wang explained, “We won’t be doing this much longer. After this hunt, we’ll likely stop going to Green Mist Marsh.”
“Why’s that?” Han Li asked, surprised.
“First, we’ve caught most of the foxes there. Second, demand has dropped. Ordinary Snow Cloud Foxes aren’t true spirit beasts, so only a few junior sisters are interested. Those with higher cultivation prefer taming actual spirit beasts,” Kuihuan added.
“I see. You’ll need to find another venture,” Han Li said sympathetically.
Senior Brother Wang shook his head and fell silent.
The five soon flew beyond the Falling Cloud Sect’s restricted zone, then turned toward the central region of Cloud Dream Mountain.
“Junior Brother Han, Green Mist Marsh lies at a peculiar spot—right at the border between our sect and the Ancient Sword Sect. But it’s remote and plagued by miasma, so few disciples go there. That’s why we’ve monopolized the fox trade. Here’s a vial of antidote pills. Once we enter, take one periodically, or you’ll suffer nausea and diarrhea,” Senior Brother Wang warned, tossing Han Li a small green vial.
“Thank you for your concern.” Han Li stashed the vial without hesitation, though given his cultivation, miasma was hardly a threat.
After several hours of flight, they crossed a towering peak and were greeted by a vast, lush basin dotted with trees and shrubs, veiled in faint pink mist.
“We’re here. Let’s descend—and stay alert!” Senior Brother Wang cautioned before plunging into the mist below.
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