Chapter 1319: Jade Gate Pavilion

After returning to his room, Han Li took out the jade slip and gently pressed it against his forehead, immersing his divine sense into it.

Moments later, his expression shifted.

“The Sky Abyss City is actually this vast—its size is no less than the three major human cities like Tianyuan City, if not greater.” Han Li withdrew his divine sense, his face flickering between uncertainty and contemplation.

After stroking the jade slip in his hand for a while, he stored it away and calmly left the room.

Regardless, his first priority was to visit the Jade Pavilion to secure his cave abode. However, based on Zhao Wugui’s words, it seemed there might be some complications involved.

This piqued his interest.

After locating the Jade Pavilion on the map he had just memorized, he immediately transformed into a streak of azure light and departed from the Flying Spirit Hall.

Passing by over a dozen towering pagodas in succession, Han Li silently observed the various cultivators he encountered along the way.

He noticed that cultivators clad in different-colored battle armor seemed to appear frequently only near those massive pagodas. Once he moved away from them, the cultivators he encountered dressed no differently from ordinary cultivators elsewhere in the Spirit Realm. It was unclear whether these individuals had removed their armor or were simply outsiders who didn’t belong to Sky Abyss City.

One thing was certain, however: anyone entering or exiting the giant pagodas had to be wearing battle armor. Moreover, Han Li noticed that the armored warriors moving in and out of the lower levels of the pagodas were body refiners clad in yellow and white armor. Those in yellow armor were only at the mid-tier level, while those in white were all high-tier body refiners.

Their numbers far exceeded those of the black and cyan-armored cultivators entering and exiting the upper levels of the pagodas.

Seeing this, Han Li gained some understanding.

It appeared that the combat strength of Sky Abyss City lay in these countless armored warriors stationed within the giant pagodas, with their power clearly distinguished by the colors of their armor—yellow, white, black, cyan, and gold.

This was an exceptionally straightforward system!

After briefly scanning the pagodas and armored warriors, Han Li ignored them and headed straight for his destination.

After flying for nearly half an hour, he spotted an unusually tall city wall in the distance. His light suddenly descended, landing him before a modest, unremarkable three-story pavilion.

Though the pavilion appeared small and inconspicuous, quite a few cultivators were coming and going.

In the brief moment Han Li paused to observe, seven or eight cultivators transformed into streaks of light and vanished through the entrance.

The plaque above the pavilion’s door bore the words “Jade Pavilion” in bold, ancient script.

Han Li narrowed his eyes, studying the plaque for a moment before stepping inside.

The first floor was a spacious hall spanning several dozen zhang, where dozens of cultivators stood gazing at a massive cyan-glowing screen at the far end.

The screen displayed a map nearly two zhang tall and over ten zhang long, dotted with shimmering silver points that flickered with numbers. Before the screen stood a long-faced middle-aged man in a green robe, smiling faintly.

With a sweep of his divine sense, Han Li confirmed that these cultivators were all at the Nascent Soul stage, while the green-robed man was unmistakably at the Deity Transformation stage.

Suddenly, a thin elderly man stepped forward, bowed respectfully to the green-robed man, and handed over a black-tinged iron token and a storage bracelet.

The middle-aged man glanced at the token and inspected the bracelet before nodding. With a flick of his wrist, the bracelet vanished, and he returned the token to the old man.

The old man immediately perked up, gripping the token and stepping before the screen. He waved it toward a specific point on the map, releasing a thin black thread that merged with a silver point marked with the number “2.” The number instantly changed to “3.”

The old man then retreated.

Over the next quarter-hour, over a dozen others stepped forward, some presenting items and others offering spirit stones to the green-robed man. Most received nods of approval, allowing them to mark the map similarly, but two were rejected, leaving them dejected.

Han Li realized the map depicted several spiritual veins under Sky Abyss City’s jurisdiction. The deeper the cyan glow in an area, the more and larger the numbers appeared. One area, glowing nearly emerald green, bore the astonishing number “12.”

Seeing this, Han Li stroked his chin, finally grasping the meaning behind Zhao Wugui’s earlier words.

It seemed securing a suitable cave abode would require competing with others.

“Senior, are you also searching for a suitable spiritual land to establish your cave abode?” A crisp voice suddenly spoke beside Han Li.

Han Li remained expressionless but slowly turned his head.

A slender, beautiful woman stood respectfully nearby. Her cultivation was extremely low—only at the Foundation Establishment stage—but given her attire as a servant, this was unsurprising.

“Indeed, I am seeking a suitable location. However, the spiritual mountains here do not satisfy me,” Han Li replied calmly.

“Senior is a Deity Transformation cultivator, correct? The first floor is only for Black Iron Guards. Senior should proceed to the second floor,” the woman said with a sweet smile.

“How do you know I’m at the Deity Transformation stage? With your cultivation, you shouldn’t be able to discern my level,” Han Li said, his eyes flashing coldly.

“Senior need not be alarmed. Though my cultivation is low, I carry a specialized spiritual pressure gauge. Unless seniors deliberately conceal their auras, I can detect a hint of their power,” the pale-skinned woman explained, raising her wrist to reveal a palm-sized inscribed disk shimmering with silver runes—clearly Silver Kui Script.

Han Li studied the disk, feeling a headache coming on.

Some ancestor of the human race must have obtained a Golden Pavilion Jade Book on formations and artifacts, deciphering it to such an extent that its applications now permeated every aspect of Sky Abyss City.

This meant many of his assumptions from the outside world would need to be reevaluated here. He would have to slowly deepen his understanding to avoid being blindsided by unknown dangers.

Of course, Han Li showed no outward reaction. He merely nodded at the woman and followed her up the stairs to the pavilion’s second floor.

The second floor was smaller but far more elegant. A similarly large screen map stood at the center, flanked by chairs where four or five individuals sat quietly, studying the map intently.

Beside the screen, a square-faced man in a purple robe lounged lazily.

A sweep of his divine sense made Han Li’s expression shift slightly—this man was an early-stage Void Refinement cultivator. The others studying the map were all Deity Transformation cultivators like himself, each attended by a Jade Pavilion maid dressed similarly to the pale-skinned woman, all at the Foundation Establishment stage and strikingly beautiful.

Han Li took a deep breath, cupped his hands toward the purple-robed man from a distance, and sat in one of the chairs under the guidance of his attendant.

The woman, like the others, stood silently behind him.

After glancing at the other cultivators, Han Li turned his attention to the nearly emerald-green map before him.

Like the one downstairs, it depicted several mountain ranges under Sky Abyss City’s jurisdiction, but the silver numbers here were noticeably smaller, mostly “1” or “2,” with the highest being a single “4.”

Han Li fell into thought but soon beckoned his attendant and said coolly, “I’m unfamiliar with the spiritual lands here. Explain the map to me.”

“Of course, Senior. This map covers three mountain ranges under Sky Abyss City’s control. The central ‘Emerald Dragon Mountain’ has the richest spiritual energy and hosts the most Deity Transformation seniors’ cave abodes, along with several rare spiritual herbs. Recently, two Deity Transformation seniors failed to survive their heavenly tribulations and perished, while another reached the end of their lifespan and passed naturally. Thus, their spiritual lands were reclaimed, making competition for them the fiercest. The ‘Heavenly Melody Mountain’ is slightly inferior but still has many suitable lands for seniors like you—though they can’t compare to Emerald Dragon Mountain’s spiritual energy. Lastly, ‘Jade Sound Mountain’ was originally reserved for Nascent Soul cultivators but has recently been opened to Deity Transformation seniors. However, its spiritual energy may be slightly insufficient for you. That said, the cave abodes there are the most sparsely distributed, granting seniors vast territories—some spanning tens of thousands of li.” The pale-skinned woman explained dutifully in a hushed tone.

“I see,” Han Li murmured, his gaze flickering across the screen.

The attendant tactfully stepped back but couldn’t resist stealing a few more glances at Han Li.

The man appeared to be in his twenties, yet he was a Deity Transformation cultivator. Though she had seen many such seniors in the Jade Pavilion, she couldn’t help feeling curious about this youthful-looking figure.

Suddenly, a rotund man dressed like a wealthy merchant strode forward, presenting a brocade box and a faintly glowing green jade pendant to the purple-robed man.

“Senior, I recently acquired a four-thousand-year-old Silver Immortal Fungus. Please assess whether it qualifies me to select a spiritual land,” the man said respectfully.

“A four-thousand-year-old Silver Immortal Fungus is indeed rare. Let me see,” the purple-robed man said indifferently, accepting both items and opening the box.

As soon as the lid lifted, a soft silver glow emanated from within, accompanied by an invigorating herbal fragrance.

Even Han Li, who had seen countless spiritual herbs, had to admit this was an exceptionally rare specimen.

“Hmm, it’s slightly short of four thousand years by a few centuries, but it’s close enough. This time, I’ll allow it,” the purple-robed man said after scrutinizing the herb, feigning reluctance.