Chapter 1517: Qing Yuanzi

Upon hearing the aged voice, Han Li and Yan Li were startled and exchanged glances.

“Let’s go. This person’s cultivation is unfathomable, no less than the Six-Legged Demon King and others. No—through the spiritual sense on my insects, I can tell he might be even more terrifying than them.” Though uneasy inside, Han Li remained outwardly calm as he turned to Yan Li and spoke.

Seeing Han Li so composed, Yan Li felt her tension ease and nodded silently.

The two then moved forward, drifting slowly toward the cave entrance.

The passage inside was not particularly large, nor was it remarkable—just a simple square entrance built from ordinary bluestone.

After flying along the passage for over a hundred feet, their vision suddenly brightened, revealing an ancient hall paved with fine white sand.

The hall was spacious, spanning about a hundred feet, yet it was sparsely furnished. Aside from a few tables and chairs, there were only several peculiar potted plants placed in the four corners.

These plants were no more than a foot tall, yet their verdant aura could be sensed from afar. With just a few of them, the hall felt as though it were nestled deep within a dense forest.

In the center of the hall, seated on a chair, was a gray-robed elder.

With a three-foot-long beard and an unremarkable face, his sharp eyes swept over the two of them.

“You are humans!” the elder exclaimed in surprise.

This was the owner of the aged voice.

Han Li quickly scanned the elder with his gaze, then bowed slightly and replied, “Senior knows of the human race? May I ask how we should address you?”

“Heh! More than just knowing. I, too, am human. My former name is not worth mentioning—now, I simply go by ‘Jiang.'” The elder chuckled, his gaze carrying a hint of warmth.

“What? Senior is a human ancestor?” Han Li and Yan Li were both astonished, with Yan Li even letting out a soft gasp.

“What, is it so strange for me to be human?” the elder asked with a smirk.

“Of course not. This junior simply didn’t expect to encounter a fellow human in such a distant region,” Han Li quickly explained, his expression returning to normal.

Given the elder’s unfathomable cultivation, Han Li dared not offend him lightly.

“Though I hail from the human race, this body is not my original one. By chance, I seized it from a rare ‘Changyuan Clan’ member. This race is innately skilled in various divine arts and possesses several incredible cultivation talents—each one enough to leave even the most gifted human cultivators in awe.” The elder stretched out his hands, examining them as he spoke leisurely.

Han Li had never heard of the “Changyuan Clan,” but the elder before him looked and spoke no differently from an ordinary human, showing no signs of abnormality.

A trace of confusion flickered in Han Li’s eyes.

“No need to be surprised. My current appearance remains that of my human form. It took considerable effort to refine this Changyuan body to match my original one,” the elder explained, his eyes glinting.

“Senior’s abilities are truly astonishing. We juniors are simply ignorant,” Han Li replied respectfully, though inwardly unsettled by the elder’s casual mention of such an extraordinary feat.

“Speaking of which, I left the human race shortly after mastering the Dao and never returned. I’m quite curious about its current state. Would you two be willing to enlighten me?” the elder asked amiably.

“Senior need only ask, and we will share all we know,” Han Li replied without hesitation, glancing at Yan Li.

“Excellent! I wonder how many of my old friends from back then still remain.” The elder smiled, clapping his hands in delight.

After a brief pause, his gaze swept over the two again, a glint of golden light flashing in his eyes before he revealed a hint of surprise.

“Though your cultivation isn’t high, the techniques you practice are quite intriguing. One of you is half-ghost, half-human—I haven’t seen someone cultivate such a ghostly path in ten thousand years. The other has a rather mixed spiritual energy, with a trace of demonic essence and an unusually strong physique. Either you’ve cultivated multiple techniques or pursued a dual path of spiritual and physical refinement.” The elder’s casual remarks struck Han Li and Yan Li like thunder.

Yan Li paled, while Han Li’s expression shifted dramatically. Their secrets had been laid bare with just a glance.

Suppressing his shock, Han Li forced a smile and was about to speak when the elder’s expression shifted. Golden light flared brilliantly in his eyes before he let out a soft exclamation.

Without a word, he made a beckoning motion toward Han Li.

Before Han Li could react, the seventy-two Emerald Swarm Swords within his body trembled simultaneously, drawn out by an immense force. They flew out of his body and began circling him.

Alarmed, Han Li activated his defenses—gray light and golden lightning erupted around him as he shielded himself. “Senior Jiang, what is the meaning of this? Have I offended you in some way?” he demanded angrily.

As he spoke, a dozen green thunder beads silently rolled into his palm from his sleeve, while his other hand gripped a spirit beast ring filled with Gold Devouring Beetles.

Though he possessed many treasures, only these two could offer any real aid against such an unfathomable opponent.

“The style and refinement method are unmistakably the Emerald Swarm Swords—exactly seventy-two of them! The color is off, likely due to later additions. To think they were forged primarily from Golden Lightning Bamboo… What an extraordinary feat. Even I couldn’t gather so much of it…” The elder ignored Han Li, muttering to himself as he stared at the golden swords with a strange expression.

Hearing the elder name the swords, Han Li was stunned. Observing the elder’s odd demeanor, a nearly unbelievable suspicion arose in his mind, leaving him momentarily speechless.

After a while, the elder sighed and ceased his muttering, closing his eyes as he withdrew his gaze from the swords.

Instantly, Han Li felt control of his swords return. Without hesitation, he formed a hand seal, and the swords flashed before vanishing back into his body.

He then regarded the elder with a similarly peculiar expression, remaining silent.

Yan Li, sensing the strange tension between them, wisely held her tongue despite her confusion.

After a long pause, the elder reopened his eyes, smiling at Han Li. “Heh, it seems the Qingyuan Sword Art I left behind in the human realm fell into your hands. You must be an ascended cultivator from there. That art was never perfected, yet you managed to refine seventy-two Emerald Swarm Swords using Golden Lightning Bamboo as the core material. To make them your bonded treasures—quite the accomplishment.”

The elder clicked his tongue in admiration, scrutinizing Han Li as though he were a rare treasure.

“I did indeed obtain the Qingyuan Sword Art by chance and am an ascended cultivator. Does that mean Senior Jiang is actually the Venerable Qingyuan?” Han Li asked solemnly, bowing once more.

Having cultivated the Qingyuan Sword Art as his primary technique in the human realm, facing its possible creator filled him with indescribable emotions.

“Venerable Qingyuan? In a way, yes—and in a way, no. Strictly speaking, I am only half of him.” The elder waved off Han Li’s formalities with a faint smile.

“Half?” Han Li was taken aback.

“During his travels across other continents, Qingyuan was ambushed by several powerful enemies. Though he escaped with his life, his body was destroyed, and his soul was nearly shattered. In desperation, he seized the body of a Changyuan clansman and forcibly merged with its soul to repair his own. Now, half my memories are Qingyuan’s, and the other half belong to that clansman. This fusion allowed my cultivation to advance rapidly to my current realm. But if you call me Qingyuan, you wouldn’t be entirely wrong.”

Han Li blinked, at a loss for words.

“True, during the fusion, I lost many of Qingyuan’s memories. But everything about the Qingyuan Sword Art remains intact. Using Golden Lightning Bamboo as the core material was ideal for a wood-attribute sword. Pity you later mixed in other materials in haste, muddling its wood essence. Otherwise, after all these years of nurturing, your swords would have reached the ‘Sword Heart Awakening’ stage, making you unrivaled among peers. Back then, Qingyuan relied solely on his Emerald Swarm Swords—with no other treasures, he could defeat Void Refinement cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and intimidate Body Integration experts at the Void Refinement stage.”

Hearing this, Han Li rubbed his chin with a wry smile.

Perhaps the elder’s words held truth, but given the life-or-death struggles he faced in the human realm, haste was unavoidable. Besides, he could already defeat Void Refinement cultivators with ease. If he advanced to that stage himself, he’d stand a chance against Body Integration experts.

Naturally, he couldn’t voice these thoughts and could only offer an awkward expression.

“Regardless, since you’ve inherited the Qingyuan Sword Art and I retain half of Qingyuan’s memories, we share a faint connection. Now, answer me truthfully—are you two with the outsiders who recently entered the Netherworld River?” The elder’s expression darkened, his voice turning cold.