Three days later, Han Li appeared on another nameless desolate island.
Standing atop a massive boulder by the shore, he gazed solemnly at the small puppet floating before him, within which the spirit of the Great Divinity Sovereign resided.
“Senior, are you truly resolved to pass away now? Given your condition, I still have methods to sustain your spirit for another month or two,” Han Li said slowly.
“What difference would a few more days make for me? Do not trouble yourself over this. If I can naturally return to the cycle of reincarnation, it would be a good thing for me,” the puppet replied calmly, shaking its head.
“If that is the case, I shall say no more. I hope the path of reincarnation truly exists, and that in your next life, you may once again tread the path of immortality,” Han Li said in a low voice.
“The road of reincarnation is not so easily walked. Even if it exists, there is no guarantee my next life will be in a human body. By the way, Han boy! After I helped you devise the method to replicate the Seven Flames Fan, you once promised me a favor. You haven’t forgotten, have you?” The Great Divinity Sovereign suddenly brought up the matter.
“Of course I remember. But since you never mentioned it, I thought you might have forgotten,” Han Li replied with a bitter smile.
“Now that things have come to this, it would be a waste not to use that favor. My request is simple: if possible, I hope you will reclaim the Thousand Bamboo Sect in the Far West and appoint a disciple to lead it, ensuring my lineage continues. The current leaders of the sect are not my descendants, and the thought of it unsettles me greatly,” the Great Divinity Sovereign grumbled.
“No problem. When the time comes, I will select a disciple of exceptional talent, impart all the puppet techniques I learned from you, and have them inherit the position of sect leader,” Han Li agreed without hesitation.
“Haha, with your word, I am satisfied. I have inscribed all my techniques, secrets, and life’s knowledge into a set of jade slips called the ‘Great Divinity Treasure Scripture.’ I left them in the Cave of Heavenly Fortune. Learn as much as you can from them, then pass them on to the disciple who inherits the Thousand Bamboo Sect. Only then will my legacy truly be preserved,” the Great Divinity Sovereign laughed heartily.
With that, the puppet opened its mouth, and a fist-sized ball of green light shot into the sky. A series of low, obscure incantations echoed through the air as the green light rapidly expanded. In the blink of an eye, a dazzling green wheel, several zhang in diameter, appeared high above.
The incantations abruptly ceased, and silence fell. Moments later, the wheel contracted and exploded with a thunderous boom, scattering emerald sparks across the sky in a breathtaking display.
Watching this, Han Li’s expression darkened slightly. The Great Divinity Sovereign, a founding patriarch of his sect, had vanished into nothingness.
He gazed at the sky in silence for a long while before sighing deeply and lowering his head. His eyes shifted to the now-lifeless puppet floating before him.
With a flick of his sleeve, a blue mist swept over the puppet, causing it to vanish. He then tapped the bamboo tube on his back, and several jade slips flew out, landing in his palm.
Han Li scanned the slips with his spiritual sense and confirmed they contained the Great Divinity Sovereign’s life’s work—countless secret techniques, cultivation methods, and rare knowledge of the immortal world. After a brief perusal, he stored them away and fell into deep thought.
With the puppet matter resolved, his next step was to refine the Three Flames Fan. If successful, he would gain the strength to contend with the ancient demon.
However, crafting the fan was somewhat troublesome. All materials required refinement using the three true flames of heaven, earth, and man.
During his visit to the Hundred Crafts Pavilion, Han Li had been particularly interested in their underground fire veins, intending to borrow their earthfire for refining some materials. Now that he was in the Great Jin, that plan was no longer feasible.
To refine the earthfire materials, he would need to find another pure earthfire pool. The Great Jin had many renowned fire veins, some even located in desolate, spirit-poor regions unclaimed by any sect. Finding one wouldn’t be difficult.
The “manfire” referred to a cultivator’s own true flame—Core Formation cultivators’ core fire and Nascent Soul cultivators’ infant fire fell into this category. This posed no issue.
The only challenge lay in the heavenly fire materials. According to the jade slips, heavenly fire was actually the fire of heavenly thunder, requiring collection during thunderstorms.
This would require the right opportunity. The Sky Thunder Beads Han Li had used before were also crafted using heavenly thunderfire, but those required the lightning’s power, whereas the fan materials needed the fire derived from it.
With the right conditions, he estimated it would take only a few months to refine all the materials. Replicating the Three Flames Fan was merely a matter of time.
He also had an appointment with the elderly Fu from the Nine Serenities Sect in the Southern Border. The timing seemed about right.
Though Han Li didn’t take such mutually suspicious agreements too seriously, the Southern Border’s Silver Serpent Mountain—a renowned fire vein where many cultivators went to refine treasures—would be an ideal place to refine his materials. He could kill two birds with one stone.
He was somewhat curious about why the old man had been so insistent on meeting him.
In truth, he had already accomplished half of his goals in the Great Jin. The remaining tasks were obtaining the Soul-Sealing Curse’s counter-curse from the Yin Luo Sect, reclaiming his two flying swords from the ancient demon, and searching for more Golden Essence to forge another set of swords.
After much deliberation, Han Li made his decision. But before proceeding, there were two more matters to attend to.
He transformed into a green streak of light and flew toward a small mountain range on the island. At the foot of one peak, he released his Heavenly Mechanism Mansion, set up some concealment barriers, and entered a secluded chamber.
First, he spent five or six days refining the Spirit Transformation Talisman obtained from the Heavenly Talisman Sect, absorbing it into his body. Then, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, he removed a spirit beast pouch from his waist and tossed it into the air.
The pouch opened, releasing a white mist that coalesced into a yellow-scaled beast several chi in size—the Earth Armor Dragon he had captured years ago.
The creature resembled a pangolin, covered in multicolored restriction talismans, with golden needles piercing its limbs. It lay motionless on the ground, its beady eyes darting around before fixing on Han Li with a pitiful expression.
Years of confinement in the spirit beast pouch had evidently tamed much of its wild nature.
“Enough pretending. As a seventh-grade demon beast, your intelligence is high enough to understand human speech. I have no time to waste, so I’ll be direct. If you submit to me, open your consciousness and allow me to place a soul restriction on you. If not, I’ll kill you on the spot. Your scales and demon core are still valuable,” Han Li said coldly.
The Earth Armor Dragon trembled, fear flashing in its eyes before being replaced by a venomous glare.
“Being my spirit beast is far better than serving other cultivators. Your kind lives much longer than humans. I don’t intend for you to be a legacy beast—just serve me during my lifetime. Once I ascend or perish, you’ll be free,” Han Li stated bluntly.
The beast seemed taken aback, its expression shifting to one of hesitation.
Seeing this, Han Li smirked and retrieved a small green vial from his storage pouch. Purple flames enveloped his hand as he popped the lid open, releasing a chilling light that plunged the room into icy cold.
The Earth Armor Dragon shivered despite its scales, its eyes widening in shock.
Han Li flicked his wrist, and a drop of silver liquid rose from the vial, solidifying into a gleaming pearl at the mouth.
At the sight of the pearl, the beast froze, its nostrils flaring excitedly as it let out a series of incomprehensible growls, clearly agitated.
“You recognize this, then. Good. Submit to me, and I’ll give you two drops of this Frost Marrow, increasing your chances of surviving the tribulation. The choice is yours,” Han Li said icily.
The beast stared at the pearl, its face contorting with indecision.
When it still showed no clear response after a while, Han Li snorted and withdrew the vial. With a wave of his hand, the purple flames condensed into a sword hovering above his palm.
He flicked his fingers, and the sword floated toward the beast.
Panicking, the Earth Armor Dragon let out a series of fearful whimpers as the sword neared its head, finally yielding with a submissive cry.
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