Chapter 1812: A Grasp, A Fist, A Palm Strike

After muttering to himself, Han Li’s face was filled with regret.

It was no surprise that the Long family pair had certain secret techniques implanted in their divine sense.

Most large families would do the same for their core disciples to prevent them from divulging important secrets if they ever fell into outsiders’ hands. However, the matter concerning the woman was not particularly confidential, so Han Li easily obtained the information he sought. Not long ago, a woman matching Hai Daoshao’s description had indeed arrived here with three others, had a detailed discussion with the Long family head, and was then escorted to rest.

Among the other three, one of them was undoubtedly Qilingzi. However, their current whereabouts were unknown to the Long family pair.

Han Li frowned slightly, glanced at the unconscious pair on the ground, and suddenly stomped his foot.

A surge of yellow light rippled out, silently creating a pit about ten feet deep.

With a flick of his sleeve, a stream of azure mist swept out, effortlessly lifting the pair and depositing them into the pit.

Then, Han Li formed a hand seal and pointed lightly at the pit. A flash of yellow light emerged from within, and in an instant, the pit vanished, leaving the ground perfectly flat as if nothing had ever disturbed it.

Han Li then raised his head to look beyond the forest.

The scenery here was completely different from his residence. Outside the forest, a dense white mist obscured the view, within which the faint outline of a city wall could be glimpsed.

A blue glint flashed in Han Li’s eyes as his figure blurred, enveloped in a layer of gray mist.

The mist was clearly an intricate restriction, but as it came into contact with the gray light, parts of it dissolved into it.

Han Li’s figure became indistinct and hard to discern.

After advancing about a hundred feet, he emerged from the mist’s edge. Not far away stood a pale golden castle surrounded by walls over thirty feet high.

On the walls stood white-robed cultivators, some carrying swords, others holding blades. Beyond the walls, numerous pavilions and towers stretched into the distance. At the center stood a golden pagoda several hundred feet tall, towering imposingly.

Han Li was unafraid of being spotted by the Long family cultivators. His gaze sharpened as he studied the golden pagoda.

According to the information extracted from the Long family pair, the Long family’s late-stage Body Integration ancestor and several Void Refinement elders resided within that pagoda. However, after obtaining the Sky-Supporting War Diagram at the auction, the ancestor had immediately summoned several of the family’s formation and artifact refinement masters to study the diagram within the pagoda, never leaving.

As for the other Body Integration-stage elder, he had apparently just left on urgent business. This significantly reduced the risk of Han Li being exposed.

Unless the Long family ancestor suddenly decided to sweep the entire castle with his divine sense for no reason, Han Li was confident he wouldn’t be easily discovered.

With this in mind, Han Li acted without hesitation. A surge of black light rolled over his body as he flew out of the mist and drifted toward a section of the city wall.

A white-robed cultivator stood rigidly atop the wall when he suddenly felt a faint breeze pass by. He glanced around and swept the area with his divine sense but found nothing amiss.

A flicker of confusion crossed his face, but he soon shook his head and resumed his original stance.

Unbeknownst to him, an outsider had just slipped past him in that instant, landing lightly on the other side of the wall and stepping onto an immaculately clean white street.

Strangely, Han Li then closed his eyes and stood motionless, as if sensing something. After an indeterminate amount of time, he opened his eyes with a dark expression and muttered under his breath.

“The connection has been severed! It seems someone else has intervened to block it. In that case, I’ll have to search room by room. Fortunately, this place isn’t too large, and there aren’t many Void Refinement-stage cultivators here. It shouldn’t take long to find them.”

With that, his figure blurred into an intangible gust of wind, darting toward a nearby cluster of buildings and vanishing into one of the pavilions.

Almost simultaneously, in a distant tower far from Han Li’s location, the old woman and her companions were gathered with a menacing-looking purple-robed elder.

The elder had just hung a shimmering crescent-shaped jade pendant around the neck of a young Taoist priest. He then turned to the old woman and said indifferently, “This Moonheart Jade has the unique ability to block divine sense detection. Unless someone is right next to him, they won’t be able to locate this young priest. Now, your family can rest easy here.”

“Thank you, elder brother, for your kindness!” The old woman bowed deeply to the purple-robed elder, her voice filled with gratitude.

The black-browed elder beside her also smiled ingratiatingly, while the frail young man remained calm.

“You two have quite the audacity to provoke a Body Integration cultivator. If not for Ming’er awakening his true dragon bloodline, I would never have taken you in—not even for my own sister. And until Father emerges from his study of the war diagram, you must not harm this young priest. Though I see no issue, offending a Body Integration old monster is no small matter. I must consult Father first. If you dare act without permission, don’t blame me for being ruthless.” The purple-robed elder’s tone was stern.

“Of course. It’s been years since I last saw Father. I’d like to meet him again. Besides, my husband and I likely won’t survive the next Heavenly Tribulation. When the time comes, we can only entrust Ming’er to you. Fortunately, once his chronic illness is cured, his aptitude won’t be inferior to any other Long family disciple. He won’t disgrace the family name.” The old woman forced a smile, though her expression was somber.

“Hmph, don’t worry about Ming’er. I’ll handle his affairs. As for seeing Father, that’s likely impossible. You know the rules—any Long family woman who disobeys the clan’s arrangements and insists on marrying an outsider is no longer considered part of the family. Moreover, Father practices the infamous Heartless Dao. There’s no chance he’ll see you. Once this matter is resolved, Ming’er stays. You two will leave on your own.” The purple-robed elder shook his head without hesitation.

The old woman’s face fell at his words.

Her expression darkened as she prepared to plead further, but the purple-robed elder waved her off and left the room.

Now, only the old woman’s family of three and the young Taoist priest, Qilingzi, remained.

“It seems we have no choice but to follow his instructions for now. Husband, take the young priest to the basement chamber,” the old woman said after a long silence, her voice laced with resentment.

“Don’t fret, my dear. Didn’t we anticipate this outcome? It’s already a stroke of luck that your brother didn’t turn us away, given the risk of angering a Body Integration old monster,” the black-browed elder consoled with a bitter smile.

“I know what to do. No need for your words! Just take the boy away,” the old woman snapped, her face dark as she waved her arm dismissively.

The black-browed elder sighed and approached Qilingzi.

“Boy, you get to keep that inheritance artifact for a few more days. Soon, it’ll belong to our Ming’er. No one will be able to stop it,” the elder muttered, flipping his hand to reveal a green bronze bell.

Qilingzi, bound by a sealing technique, remained oblivious, standing motionless like a wooden puppet.

Just as the elder was about to shake the bell, a calm male voice echoed through the room.

“No one can stop it? What if I decide to intervene?”

“Damn it, he’s here!”

The black-browed elder’s face paled as he hurled the bell into the air. It transformed into a giant bell, descending to trap Qilingzi.

The old woman reacted even faster, her expression twisting in alarm as she flung her sleeves. Two streaks of black light shot out—one enveloped the frail youth in a dark glow and whisked him back to her side, while the other coiled into a horned black serpent, spewing black lotus flowers to shield them both.

The old woman then took a deep breath and let out a piercing shriek.

But her efforts were met with a scornful chuckle.

Above the giant bell, space rippled as a furry golden fist emerged from the void and struck the bell with deceptive lightness.

A deafening *boom* resounded as the bell’s surface erupted in green runes before shattering like clay, dissipating into nothingness.

The golden fist then turned and struck the black-browed elder with an open palm.

The blow seemed weightless, yet the elder screamed as his body was sent flying like a sack.

At the same time, another golden hand materialized before the old woman and lashed out like lightning.

With a *rip*, the black lotus and her protective aura were torn apart. The hand seized her by the throat, lifting her off the ground.

Her eyes rolled back as her shriek was abruptly cut off.