Although he failed to capture the opponent’s Spirit Infant this time, the old man’s physical body had been destroyed. Without several decades, he wouldn’t be able to recover his vitality. Moreover, upon returning, he would have to find a new body to possess, but a suitable one wouldn’t be easy to find—whether he could locate one in time was uncertain. If he were forced to settle for a random body, a drastic drop in cultivation level would be inevitable.
On the other hand, he had unexpectedly obtained two ancient treasures and the storage bag left behind by the old man, making this trip quite fruitful. Even if he found no treasures in the cave of the late Frost Li the Transcendent, this risky journey to the Mulan Grassland wouldn’t have been in vain.
With this thought, he glanced at the spot where the old man’s body had vanished, only to see a pale silver storage bag floating there.
Han Li’s expression remained unchanged as he reached out with a void-grasping motion, pulling the storage bag into his hand. Without hesitation, he immersed his spiritual sense into it for a quick scan. To his great disappointment, aside from a dozen mid-grade Spirit Stones, it contained only some ordinary refining materials and a few bottles of pills.
Upon opening the bottles, Han Li found nothing but common elixirs—nothing particularly rare. It seemed the Mulan Grassland was indeed severely lacking in cultivation resources. Even a Core Formation cultivator of such stature carried nothing of real value.
What disappointed him most was the absence of any jade slips in the storage bag. With a sigh, he mused that he had hoped to acquire some spiritual technique formulas to understand how to instantly unleash high-powered spells. Now, it seemed unlikely he would uncover such secrets anytime soon.
Casually stowing the storage bag, Han Li raised his head, his gaze burning with excitement as he fixed it on the distant giant peak. Although the original owner, the old man surnamed Mu, had fled with his Spirit Infant, the black mountain remained unchanged in size, its surface shimmering with spiritual light.
Narrowing his eyes slightly, Han Li beckoned lightly toward the treasure. The now masterless ancient treasure flickered with light, rapidly shrinking before shooting straight toward him. By the time it landed in his palm, it had transformed back into a miniature mountain the size of a hand.
Curious, Han Li weighed the small mountain in his hand—it wasn’t particularly heavy—then turned it over for a closer inspection. On the bottom of the black peak, he found three faint golden characters engraved.
“Thousandfold Peak!” Han Li muttered to himself, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
After storing the mountain, Han Li glanced at the Wind-Riding Chariot and collected it as well.
He stared in the direction where the old man’s Spirit Infant had vanished, pondered for a moment, then abruptly changed direction and shot off into the distance. Soon, his figure disappeared from the nearby sky without a trace.
In an area dotted with rolling hills, where only tall wild grass swayed and no human figures could be seen, an eerie silence prevailed. But before long, a flash of cyan light appeared on the horizon, and a cyan streak shot toward the hills from afar.
Moments later, the streak arrived above the hills, circled once, then dissipated, revealing Han Li hovering in midair.
After a brief glance downward, he frowned and suddenly flicked his sleeve, sending several streaks of cyan light shooting toward a particular hill like shooting stars.
The cyan streaks exploded about twenty to thirty zhang above the hill’s surface, revealing a faint white barrier that shimmered into existence. Inside the barrier, four figures looked up at him with faint smiles—the Marquis of Nanlong, the white-robed elder, the old woman, and the dark-faced man.
“Haha! Fellow Daoist Han, it’s truly fortunate that you arrived safely!” The Marquis of Nanlong stroked his long beard and laughed heartily before waving a hand to dispel the barrier.
“Oh? Have the other fellow Daoists not arrived yet?” Han Li replied with a smile, descending leisurely to land before the four.
“The others may not have escaped as easily. When we split up, Fellow Daoist Wang and Fellow Daoist You were pursued by the Mulan priests. Shaking off their pursuers won’t be simple,” the dark-faced man said coolly, shaking his head.
“However, you surprise me even more, Fellow Daoist Han. If I’m not mistaken, the Mulan’s Wind-Riding Chariot was chasing you. Tsk tsk! To escape from such a fast treasure so easily—it seems I truly didn’t make a mistake in choosing you,” the Marquis remarked with apparent delight.
But Han Li pursed his lips slightly, detecting a hint of suspicion in the Marquis’s words.
“It’s nothing. I may not excel in other areas, but I have some confidence in my escape techniques,” Han Li replied calmly, though vaguely.
Seeing that Han Li wasn’t keen on elaborating, the Marquis tactfully changed the subject, discussing the impact of the Mulan’s war declaration on the Nine Nations Alliance and the rest of the Heavenly South.
Apart from the white-robed elder, the old woman and the dark-faced man also chimed in with interest.
“I recall the last war with the Mulan priests lasted over a decade. Who knows how long this one will drag on. But during this time, both the Righteous and Devilish factions, as well as the Heavenly Dao Alliance—which Fellow Daoist Han belongs to—will surely send reinforcements. Given the Falling Cloud Sect’s status in the alliance, they’ll likely require an elder at the Core Formation stage to assist. Who knows, Fellow Daoist Han might find himself back in the Mulan Grassland soon!” the Marquis said with a half-smile.
“Actually, besides the three major factions, many rogue cultivators will volunteer to fight the Mulan priests. Some of them are quite skilled. The Mulan won’t gain much advantage,” the old woman added in a low voice.
“Still, I find it odd. The Mulan must know that once the Heavenly South factions unite, their current strength stands no chance. Otherwise, the last war would have settled things decisively. Yet they still initiated this conflict—it seems unwise. Last time, they suddenly received reinforcements, boosting their confidence. Could they have gained another major tribe this time?” the dark-faced man speculated, frowning.
“That’s not impossible, but…”
As they conversed, time slipped by unnoticed.
Suddenly, the Marquis paused mid-sentence and looked into the distance. The others instinctively followed his gaze, their expressions turning slightly tense. After all, this was the Mulan Grassland—while they had gathered here, so too might passing Mulan priests.
In the distant sky, flashes of light appeared—a streak of black and two blood-red masses—speeding toward them. After a moment of scrutiny, the Marquis relaxed.
“No worries, it’s Fellow Daoist Wang and his two juniors,” he said with a smile. The others visibly eased at this news.
Sure enough, moments later, the lights drew closer, revealing Wang Tiangu and Wang Chan.
This time, the Marquis didn’t hesitate to dispel the barrier in the sky, allowing Wang Tiangu and his companions to land on the hill.
“Oh? Fellow Daoist Han arrived even earlier than us? That’s quite unexpected!” Wang Tiangu remarked upon seeing Han Li among the group, his expression one of genuine surprise. Clearly, this Ghost Spirit Sect cultivator had also witnessed the Wind-Riding Chariot pursuing Han Li—and likely took some schadenfreude in it.
“Just luck. I’m more impressed that Fellow Daoist Wang escaped unscathed while escorting two juniors,” Han Li replied evenly, his gaze sweeping over Wang Chan and the other disciple beside Wang Tiangu, his tone carrying a hint of deeper meaning.
“Haha! The priests chasing us weren’t particularly fast. With my juniors, we easily shook them off using our sect’s escape technique. It’s nothing compared to facing the Wind-Riding Chariot,” Wang Tiangu replied dismissively.
Han Li inwardly sneered at this but held his tongue when his expression suddenly shifted.
“Ah, Fellow Daoist You has arrived as well. It seems our luck holds—everyone made it safely. Earlier, I was worried that if we lost one or two helpers, we might not be able to break the restrictions,” the Marquis said cheerfully, looking up again.
The others couldn’t help but smile in relief. If they had been short even one person, their treasure hunt might have been doomed.
“Wait—Fellow Daoist You seems to be pursued! And in quite a sorry state,” the white-robed elder, who had remained silent until now, suddenly said gravely.
Alarmed, Han Li and the others turned to look. Indeed, on the distant horizon, a white streak was fleeing desperately, pursued closely by a green and a red glow. In moments, they reached the hill where the Marquis and the others stood.
The Marquis’s expression darkened instantly.
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