Upon hearing this, Han Li’s heart stirred slightly. He merely nodded without saying anything further, then flicked his sleeve and stowed the broken jade token away.
The golden storage bracelet naturally contained more than just these items. Aside from seven or eight artifacts of unknown purpose, there was also a stack of gold-and-silver talismans and a pile of faintly golden crystals.
However, since he was not in his own cave abode, it was inconvenient to take them out one by one for closer inspection.
Thus, Han Li remained where he was, waiting quietly.
After roughly the time it took to finish a meal, the nearby space suddenly rippled, and the Gold Devouring Beetle King shot out as a streak of golden light. With a single flicker, it vanished into one of Han Li’s sleeves.
Han Li’s eyes flickered slightly as he listened carefully to the low whispers transmitted by the beetle king, and his expression visibly relaxed.
At that moment, a faint *whoosh* sounded from the distant horizon as a black thread and a crimson streak tore through the sky. After a few flickers, they arrived before Han Li.
The light dissipated, revealing the figures of Mo Guang and Huo Xuzi.
“Fellow Daoists, you’ve returned so quickly. It seems you didn’t come back empty-handed,” Han Li remarked with a faint smile, glancing at the two.
“Heh, of course not. That brat might have had some tricks, but there was no way he could truly escape our grasp,” Huo Xuzi chuckled, tossing two objects toward Han Li.
Han Li’s eyes flashed as his sleeve flicked, releasing an invisible force that halted the two objects midair before him.
They turned out to be an extremely withered Spirit Infant husk and a faintly black storage ring.
“I drained all the essence and energy from this Spirit Infant. He won’t even qualify for reincarnation now. As for his belongings, they’re useless to us, so we’ll leave them to you,” Mo Guang said unhurriedly.
“Then I won’t stand on ceremony. You’ve both worked hard this time. This isn’t a place to linger—let’s leave now.” Han Li swept his gaze over the shriveled Spirit Infant husk and confirmed that, despite its twisted and distorted features, it indeed bore the exact likeness of Ming Zun. He nodded in acknowledgment.
As soon as he finished speaking, he reached out and pulled the black storage ring toward him, stowing it away with a flick of his sleeve. With his other hand, he flicked a finger, sending out a crimson flame that struck Ming Zun’s Spirit Infant husk, instantly reducing it to ashes.
Mo Guang and Huo Xuzi naturally had no objections.
Han Li then summoned an unremarkable azure flying carriage. The three of them boarded it in a flash.
Below, Crab Daoist formed a single-handed seal, and with a thunderous boom, transformed into an arc of lightning that vanished into Han Li’s sleeve.
The azure carriage, over a dozen zhang in length, trembled slightly before shooting into the sky as a streak of azure light.
Three full days later, high-ranking members of the merchant alliance and disciples of other powerful figures stationed outside the Howling Abyss finally mustered the courage to enter the area, all moving cautiously as if treading on thin ice.
Of course, aside from the earth-shattering changes to the landscape, they found no trace of any living cultivators.
Ming Zun, in his preparations to deal with the true immortal Ma Liang, had only arranged for the necessary personnel to set up the formation and the Grand Ascension cultivators—no extra hands had been left behind.
Uncertain whether their quarry still lived, these latecomers dared not linger in the Howling Abyss. After a cursory inspection, they scattered to report back to their respective factions.
Several months later, news spread among the various races that their powerful members’ life-linked treasures had shattered, confirming their deaths in the battle at the Howling Abyss.
This news spread like wildfire across the entire Wind Origin Continent and soon reached the ears of other continents.
As for whether the descended true immortal had perished alongside them, there was no concrete evidence.
Thus, the races of the Spirit Realm grew increasingly uneasy, fearing that this immortal might suddenly reappear and unleash slaughter upon them.
It wasn’t until a full year later that word emerged from the otherwise inconspicuous human race, claiming that the descended immortal had perished in the self-destruction of the Two Polar Annihilation Formation.
The report explicitly stated that Ming Zun, the former chief executive of the merchant alliance, had deliberately sacrificed some of the powerful cultivators to amplify the formation’s self-detonation, ensuring mutual destruction with the true immortal.
This half-truth, once circulated, naturally sent shockwaves through the Spirit Realm.
After hasty investigations, the major factions confirmed that a human Grand Ascension cultivator had indeed participated in the Howling Abyss battle—and that this cultivator seemed to be alive and well within his own race.
Once verified, this news caused another stir among many races. Numerous Grand Ascension cultivators from major factions immediately abandoned their cultivation and other matters, rushing toward the human territories.
While some genuinely sought to confirm the events of the Howling Abyss battle, most were after the treasures left behind by the true immortal.
With all other powerful figures dead and only Han Li returning safely, it was beyond doubt that the immortal’s relics had fallen into his hands.
The races of the Wind Origin Continent, having lost most of their true powerhouses, could only watch with burning envy, knowing they stood no chance against a top-tier existence like Han Li.
However, Grand Ascension cultivators from the other two continents swarmed into the Wind Origin Continent in droves.
Within just half a year, many unfamiliar Grand Ascension cultivators arrived at the human territories and easily located Boundless Sea, where Han Li resided.
Surprisingly, no matter their hidden intentions, these cultivators were all startled into retreat upon entering the vicinity of Boundless Sea, where the Gold Devouring Beetle King and Crab Daoist briefly revealed their might.
This stunned many who had been closely monitoring the situation.
In a short span, over twenty foreign Grand Ascension cultivators left Boundless Sea empty-handed.
This deterred others from acting rashly. Those who still dared to approach the human race afterward were none other than the truly formidable.
Yet even these exceptional figures, far surpassing ordinary Grand Ascension cultivators, were effortlessly dispatched by the combined efforts of Crab Daoist and the Gold Devouring Beetle King.
Throughout it all, Han Li never once made a personal appearance.
While this left many Grand Ascension cultivators awestruck, it also provoked the true top-tier powerhouses of the other continents.
One day, eight of the most renowned supreme experts from the Blood Sky Continent and the Thunderstorm Continent arrived together at Boundless Sea.
This time, Crab Daoist and the Gold Devouring Beetle King offered no resistance, allowing the eight to proceed directly to Yuanhe Island.
From the Qingyuan Palace at the island’s center, seventy-two tolls of a bell rang out consecutively, followed by a terrifying aura that surged into the heavens.
At the palace gates, figures emerged—Han Li, accompanied by Mo Guang, Huo Xuzi, Crab Daoist, and the Gold Devouring Beetle King.
Upon sensing the auras emanating from Han Li’s group, the eight supreme experts were greatly alarmed, their previously aggressive demeanor significantly subdued.
Though not exactly fearful, they now recognized that Han Li’s faction was far more formidable than they had imagined—certainly not opponents to be taken lightly.
With a faint smile, Han Li invited the eight into Qingyuan Palace.
The palace gates then closed, and a layer of azure light descended from above, enveloping the entire structure.
Han Li and the eight powerhouses remained inside for three days and nights.
During this time, intermittent booms echoed from the palace, accompanied by waves of chilling fluctuations that caused the azure barrier to flicker violently.
When the three days elapsed, the barrier vanished abruptly, and the eight emerged, most looking rather displeased, their auras noticeably diminished.
Han Li, who escorted them out with his entourage, wore the same composed smile as before.
“Fellow Daoists, I’ve already sold you one True Soul Pill. How you divide it is your affair. But I hope this matter ends here. From now on, should anyone dare to harass me or my kin, do not blame me for showing no mercy.”
“Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Han. We eight still hold some face in our respective continents. Once we give our word, we won’t go back on it. We’ll do our best to dissuade others from troubling you further,” said a vulture-faced elder with a bitter smile.
With that, the eight soared into the sky and departed as swiftly as they had arrived, soon vanishing beyond Yuanhe Island.
Han Li watched their retreating figures until they disappeared, then relaxed slightly. Turning to the Gold Devouring Beetle King—now in the form of a golden figurine—and Crab Daoist, he said, “From now on, show no mercy to anyone who trespasses into Boundless Sea. Capture them if possible; if not, kill them on the spot. To be thorough, Brother Mo Guang and Fellow Daoist Huo Xuzi, I’d like you to assist in patrolling for a time.”
The last remark was directed courteously toward the dark-skinned youth and Huo Xuzi.
“Ha! Don’t worry, leave it to us. We won’t let a single soul slip past Boundless Sea,” Mo Guang laughed heartily.
Huo Xuzi and the others also wore expressions of indifference.
At Han Li’s wave, the four performed techniques and vanished on the spot.
True to their word, no further intruders entered the human territories afterward. Even the lingering Grand Ascension cultivators in the vicinity dispersed after the eight supreme experts withdrew.
Before long, rumors spread from foreign cultivators that Han Li had single-handedly defeated eight supreme experts, sending shockwaves through countless Spirit Realm races.
Upon hearing that Han Li had sold a True Soul Pill to the eight at a steep price, the higher-ups of these races abandoned any lingering ambitions.
In the long aftermath, whispers began circulating among foreign cultivators that Han Li was the strongest on the Wind Origin Continent.
Some even revered him as the foremost Grand Ascension cultivator in the entire Spirit Realm—a claim not considered an exaggeration.
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