Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 77

Amidst the strange gazes, Sect Leader Zhong began introducing this ‘Uncle Master’ to the gathered disciples.

He was one of the elders who had reached the Core Formation stage, whom Han Li had never seen before. This elder would be accompanying them on this forbidden expedition.

Along with him, five stewards of the sect, including Uncle Master Wang, would also be joining. After Sect Leader Zhong finished the introduction, the elder simply said, ‘Depart,’ and ended his meeting with the younger disciples like Han Li, leaving the main hall first.

The disciples were at a loss, but soon, urged by the stewards, they hurriedly followed him.

As the disciples exited the main hall, every single one of them was shocked. A huge silver monster was floating in the air outside the main hall.

Only the elder remained calm, looking down coldly at the disciples from atop the monster’s head. Han Li also rubbed his eyes, his heart pounding. Upon closer inspection, it was surprisingly a huge silver python, but its size was enormous, and it even had black horns on its head.

‘Is this the power of a Core Formation cultivator? To subdue and command such a demon beast. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it!’

“Everyone, get on and hold on tight! The Silver-Scaled Horned Python is much faster than your flying artifacts; we’ll arrive in two days,” the elder instructed, stroking the silver python’s horns, as if he hadn’t noticed the crowd scrambling on the ground. In a daze, the group climbed onto the python, and after flying for two days and nights, they arrived at an unknown desolate mountain.

* * *

Upon arrival, they learned that this was the meeting place for the cultivation sects, and all seven major sects would gather here to enter the forbidden area together.

No single sect had the power to open the forbidden area. The agreed date was the next morning, and since the forbidden area was within Jianzhou, the Huangfeng Valley was hosting, arriving a day early to welcome the other sects.

Now, until the next day when they would form a line to greet the other sects, it was practically free time.

As the stewards said this, the disciples, including Han Li, scattered to prepare for the upcoming battle.

About twenty people sat cross-legged, regulating their spiritual power, while some took out their magical artifacts and constantly maintained them. Some even looked blankly lost, with worried expressions. Only a few disciples seemed to be on a leisurely outing.

At that moment, Han Li heard someone approaching from behind.

“You must be Disciple Han? I wanted to greet you and discuss the matters of the forbidden area tomorrow! It concerns your safety, so how could I not make time?”

The voice, old but full of cunning, made Han Li’s brow furrow even deeper.

Judging by the cunning tone and boasting, he could guess the owner’s face without turning around.

However, there was a saying that even if you offend a gentleman, you shouldn’t incur the displeasure of a petty person. Although he really didn’t want to deal with them, he reluctantly turned around to face the two old and young disciples standing behind him.

* * *

Upon seeing their faces, Han Li secretly sighed. They were the other two who possessed the same 11-star cultivation method as him.

One had a haggard face with a sinister glint in his eyes, and the other had a face that seemed oblivious to the world.

It was unexpected that such a strange combination would seek him out. Still, after thinking about it, Han Li could roughly guess their intentions.

“What is it, Senior Brothers?” Han Li’s tone was polite but clearly aloof. He exuded an aura that he didn’t want to get close, hoping they would leave on their own.

Unfortunately, the other party’s face was thicker than he imagined. Even though they knew he was avoiding them, they spoke to him again in a friendly manner.

“Haha, Disciple Han, I came to see if you had any good strategies for tomorrow’s forbidden expedition. After all, our three cultivation levels are the lowest, so if we get separated, wouldn’t we be the first targets of others? Let’s discuss what we should do together.”

Han Li blinked, listening to his words without saying anything. He felt like he already knew the conclusion, even though they had just started the introduction.

This cunning old man seemed to be planning to gather the disciples with weak cultivation levels to move and fight together, increasing their chances of survival.

If people moved together, the search area would naturally decrease, and the probability of finding spiritual herbs would be low. Moreover, once a spiritual herb was found, the question of who would take it was also a problem. It was clear that most of them would likely belong to the strong.

Han Li had no interest in such an alliance. If they were in danger or found a spiritual herb, there would be no benefit, and they would likely become shields or sacrifices for others.

The old man was clearly not making this proposal out of goodwill but with the intention of taking advantage of the chaos to gain benefits. When Han Li remained silent after he finished speaking, the old man became a little impatient and continued, seemingly excited.

“I have a good idea. It’s a plan that will allow everyone to safely complete the expedition. Don’t you want to hear it?”

As he made a mysterious expression, his already numerous wrinkles deepened, and Han Li felt like laughing.

Beside him, the young one seemed to admire the old man, not saying anything but sticking close to him as if he were his subordinate.

Since he had no intention of joining this group, Han Li immediately expressed his refusal.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not used to acting with others. I have no intention of doing so this time either, so if you’re trying to form an alliance, it would be better to go to other senior brothers.”

When Han Li clearly expressed his refusal, the old man huffed and left. In the direction they disappeared, there was another disciple sitting on a rock, cultivating.

Han Li smiled contentedly and turned back. He had been observing the fellow disciples he had been paying attention to earlier, and he noticed that Senior Sister Jin and another ordinary-looking woman were standing together. And around them were some rather handsome young men.

His lips twitched, and for some reason, he disliked them. Han Li found a quiet place where no one was around, closed his eyes, and focused his mind.

After a day passed, the next morning, all the disciples gathered again at the top of the desolate mountain, waiting in order for the other sects.

This wait continued for several hours, and when no one had appeared yet, Han Li cursed inwardly. He even wondered if the other sects were deliberately doing this to exhaust the Huangfeng Valley disciples.

Suddenly, he felt the people around him stir. Something seemed to be happening. He couldn’t help but raise his head.

Everyone was craning their necks, looking at something in the sky, so Han Li followed their gaze.

In the bright azure sky, star-like lights flickered, gradually growing larger. After a while, a series of black dots appeared. Below the black dots, there was a shimmering silver light, indicating that a group was flying in on something. The Huangfeng Valley disciples became noisy at this spectacle.

“Quiet down! What are you doing! That’s the Qingxu Sect’s flying artifact, the Snow Rainbow Silk, so don’t make a fuss,” a middle-aged steward with thick arms and legs scolded with a stern face. Everyone quieted down at his words, but the murmuring continued.

The black dots were now clear, and their individual forms could be distinguished. They were all cultivators wearing gray robes, most of them holding horsetails [a type of whisk used by Taoist priests] and wearing their hair up in a bun, looking like true Taoists. The rest wore gray robes but looked like ordinary people, indicating that they were lay disciples who had not yet officially left the secular world.

The starlight that everyone had seen was actually a white rainbow, and the faint silver light was so dazzling that it was impossible to guess what material it was made of.

As the white rainbow landed, the Qingxu Sect group stood in front of the Huangfeng Valley group. The middle-aged Taoist at the front waved his hand, and the shining rainbow disappeared, leaving a silk-like object in his hand.

“I didn’t expect that Fellow Daoist would lead the group this time as well. This poor Daoist, Bu Yunzi, greets you,” the Taoist said, stepping forward to the elder with a smile, indicating that they knew each other.

“Hmph! If you Taoists are coming, how could I not come?”

“Hehe. We are the last to reach the Core Formation stage in our respective sects, so who else would come for such errands if not you and I?”

Even though the elder spoke casually with his hands behind his back, the Taoist didn’t seem offended at all, shaking his horsetail and laughing.

“Taoist, you tricked me last time and trapped me, didn’t you? Let’s see if you can do it again!”

“Fellow Daoist, what are you talking about? If we made a bet, it’s only natural to accept the outcome. Who would trap whom?” The Taoist just laughed loudly. At those words, a chill flashed in the elder’s eyes, as if he was about to get angry, but he suppressed his emotions.

“My Iron Essence was used to forge your Azure Jun Sword, so its power must have become much stronger! I spent ten years refining that much, but it only benefited you.”

The elder’s voice revealed his bitterness. He seemed to really regret that Iron Essence.

“Haha. I didn’t expect the famous Elder Yi to be so upset over a little Iron Essence! Very well. This time, this poor Daoist has brought something truly valuable, something that is definitely worth more than Iron Essence. If you win the bet, you can make up for your previous loss.”

The Taoist stroked his beard and chuckled.

“What bet! Absolutely not. Do you think I’m stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice?”

“You won’t? It seems Fellow Daoist has very high standards. Even the inner core of the Bloodline Horned Serpent doesn’t catch your eye!” The Taoist made a disbelieving expression as the elder shook his head and refused outright. Han Li could tell that he wasn’t surprised at all.

“The inner core of the Bloodline Horned Serpent!”

The elder, who had originally intended not to deal with the Taoist, immediately changed his expression at the mention of the Bloodline Horned Serpent, and his voice trembled.

“That’s right. I heard that Fellow Daoist risked going to the Panlong River in the Yuanwu Kingdom for this item? You searched for over 30 years but eventually returned empty-handed. This poor Daoist paid a huge price to specially obtain it for you.”

He spoke neither too fast nor too slow, clearly confident that the other party would take the bait.

“Impossible! The Bloodline Horned Serpent is not so easy to catch. How did you preserve the inner core? Don’t try to deceive me with lies.”

Although he was shaken by the other’s words, the elder expressed his doubt.

“This poor Daoist is a monk, how could I lie? Fellow Daoist, see for yourself.” He immediately flipped his palm, and a bloody sphere appeared in the air in front of the elder. The elder looked at it, his eyes filled with longing, as if he couldn’t wait to snatch it.

“If Fellow Daoist’s Silver-Scaled Horned Python consumes this inner core and focuses on cultivation, it will surely advance from the mid-stage to the late-stage of the Foundation Establishment stage within 20 years, and it is not impossible to reach the Core Formation stage after about 100 years of arduous cultivation.”

The Taoist’s words were full of temptation. The elder snorted coldly and turned his head, seemingly ignoring the Taoist’s words, but his wavering eyes betrayed his fluctuating emotions.

“This is such a great item to bet on, and this poor Daoist did hesitate for half a day, but surely Fellow Daoist doesn’t have such little faith in your disciples’ abilities?”

“How dare you, the Qingxu Sect, criticize the abilities of our Huangfeng Valley disciples!” The elder revealed his displeasure, clearly provoked by the Taoist’s intention.

Then, he assessed the abilities of the low-level disciples that the Qingxu Sect had brought. It seemed that the Huangfeng Valley disciples were about the same level as them.