Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 601

“Fellow cultivator Chilmyo!”

Im Eun-byung exclaimed happily, looking at the scholar dressed in a light-colored robe.

“Oh, it’s Fellow cultivator Im. What brings you here?”

The scholar in the light-colored robe, with his hooked nose and strong features, was none other than True Person Chilmyo, an elder of the Heavenly Demon Sect.

The Heavenly Demon Sect and the Heavenly Orchid Holy Palace had intertwined interests, and he was acquainted with the Heavenly Orchid Holy Maiden. That was why he had previously lent her the Myo-eum Treasure Mirror, which was particularly effective at seeing through illusions.

The white-haired old man beside him was Hyuncheongja of the Taiyi Sect. The old Taoist also greeted the woman but showed surprise upon seeing Han Li and the other cultivators.

“Fellow Immortal Im, who are these people? And where did Fellow cultivator Seo go, leaving only a spirit beast?”

The smile vanished from the old Taoist’s face.

At Hyuncheongja’s words, Im Eun-byung hesitated, glancing at the Spirit Bird Peacock.

At that moment, a light flashed above the Spirit Bird Peacock’s head, and the face of the young man from the Seo clan appeared as a phantom, wearing a bitter smile.

“Are you looking for me? My physical body is gone, so I am entrusting my Nascent Soul [a core of energy formed in a cultivator’s body] to a spirit beast.”

“How can this be! Who dared to destroy the body of Fellow cultivator Seo, who was in the late stage of the Nascent Soul? Could it be that a clone of the Goma Saint Ancestor has already escaped?”

Hyuncheongja was greatly shocked, and his face turned pale.

“So you already knew what kind of demon was trapped in the True Demon Pagoda.”

“Fellow cultivator Seo, please don’t misunderstand! I didn’t know anything about it either, but later I heard news from my sect and learned about the situation here. The matter of the Goma Saint Ancestor is very important, so could we share related information?”

The young man from the Seo clan was dissatisfied with Hyuncheongja’s vague words, but what could he do when he was only left with his Nascent Soul?

“It is true that the Goma Saint Ancestor has been released. My body was not destroyed by it, but by a surprise attack from the Myriad Year Bear of the Myriad Demon Valley.”

“Myriad Demon Valley? That can’t be. I have been guarding the gap in the sealing barrier, but I don’t remember letting such a person in. Could there be another passage into Mount Kunwu?”

“The Myriad Year Bear had entered Mount Kunwu before us and was using an unknown secret technique to take on the appearance of a human cultivator. I didn’t sense anything at all and was caught completely off guard!”

The young man from the Seo clan recalled the moment when his body was devoured by a blood-colored blade.

“If it was really the Myriad Year Bear, then it’s understandable that Fellow cultivator Seo was defeated! I heard that there is a treasure called the Bewitching Transformation Pearl in the Myriad Demon Valley. If you swallow it, you can freely change your appearance and completely conceal your demonic energy or aura. Even my Myo-eum Treasure Mirror cannot break through the divine power of the Bewitching Transformation Pearl.”

“I remember hearing a similar story. But I heard that if you swallow the Bewitching Transformation Pearl, your magical power is limited. It seems that Fellow cultivator Seo had already revealed his true form when he was attacked.”

At True Person Chilmyo’s words, Hyuncheongja also seemed to understand and spoke of what he knew.

“What you two said is roughly correct. I only realized that the attacker was a demon after I was attacked.”

“Still, it’s fortunate that you survived with your Nascent Soul after being attacked by the Myriad Year Bear! Moreover, a cultivator has never taken over another’s body, so if you return and find a suitable body, you should be able to recover your original cultivation within a hundred years.”

The middle-aged scholar smiled, looking at the Spirit Bird Peacock.

“As Fellow cultivator Chilmyo has noticed, I am only temporarily residing in the body of a spirit beast, so I cannot stay in this state for long. I need to find a suitable body as soon as possible.”

After hearing the general story, the middle-aged scholar didn’t say anything more and turned his gaze to Kyu-ryung.

“The cultivator over there has an unfamiliar face. How should I address her?”

True Person Chilmyo asked casually, but he was examining her closely. After all, the cultivation of a tenth-level demon beast was considerable.

However, there was no expression on the ugly woman’s face. Instead, Han Li smiled and answered.

“This is Fellow cultivator Kyu-ryung. Like me, she accidentally triggered a restriction and was teleported here.”

“A restriction was triggered and you were teleported inside Mount Kunwu? Such a thing can happen? Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve seen your face before either.”

Hyuncheongja looked at Kyu-ryung, who was standing quietly, and then turned his head towards Han Li.

“I, Han, am just a simple mountain cultivator, so it’s natural that you haven’t seen me before. But seeing that you are traveling with True Person Chilmyo of the Heavenly Demon Sect, your identity must not be ordinary either? If it’s not too much to ask, could you tell me how you entered the eighth floor? As far as I know, the teleportation array is no longer working.”

“Come to think of it, I haven’t introduced myself yet. I am Hyuncheongja of the Taiyi Sect. The way we entered this place was not through the teleportation array, but by using the Taiyi Sect’s unique Boundary Breaking Talisman [a magical charm used to break through barriers]. Of course, we broke through the space barrier afterward with force.”

“You can break through the space barrier with a Boundary Breaking Talisman?”

Han Li raised his eyebrows at the mention of the Boundary Breaking Talisman, showing a suspicious expression.

“A talisman alone is not enough. You need our sect’s specialized secret technique and the Heavenly Asura Sword. I also never dreamed that we would be trapped by another space barrier as soon as we entered the eighth floor.”

Hyuncheongja looked back at the space where the Black Wind Flag had trapped them and clicked his tongue.

“The Taiyi Sect’s Boundary Breaking Talisman and Heavenly Asura Sword are famous. You were able to enter so easily where we were helplessly trapped. Truly befitting of the number one righteous and demonic power of the Great Jin.”

Im Eun-byung sighed enviously.

“Fellow Immortal Im, you are too kind. Do you think I don’t know that the treasures of the Heavenly Orchid Holy Palace are not to be trifled with? It’s just that our sect’s divine sword happened to have the divine power to break through space.”

Hyuncheongja stroked his beard and answered humbly. Im Eun-byung also knew that the other party was just being polite, so he gave a bitter smile.

In terms of the number of high-level cultivators, the Heavenly Orchid Holy Palace was not inferior to the two sects, but it could not compare to the treasures of the two sects that had been passed down since ancient times.

“By the way, I heard that Old Man Geon is inside?”

The middle-aged scholar suddenly looked around, and the young man from the Seo clan and Im Eun-byung looked at Han Li.

In fact, even when Madam Mok of the Hwaseon Sect said that Han Li had killed Old Man Geon, no one believed it, but after seeing his strength, they began to have doubts.

At the gazes of the two, Hyuncheongja and True Person Chilmyo also naturally looked at Han Li. Han Li sighed inwardly but answered nonchalantly.

“His whereabouts have been unknown since I saw him in the Kunwu Palace. He might be looking for treasures elsewhere. Come to think of it, I was also curious as to why the Yin Fiend Sect cultivators are not visible.”

“Are you talking about Fellow cultivator Gal and the other elders? They were ambushed by the Ye Clan cultivators while coming here with me and have already lost their lives.”

This time, the young man from the Seo clan revealed indifferently what had happened to them.

“I see.”

“Mount Kunwu is truly a dangerous place. So many cultivators of the same level have lost their lives…”

Hyuncheongja seemed to have noticed something, and after staring at Han Li for a moment, he sighed.

“It’s rather fortunate that the Yin Fiend Sect cultivators are not here. It’s better that irrelevant people don’t interfere and mess things up. Let’s talk about the Goma Saint Ancestor first.”

The middle-aged scholar asked, looking towards the palace.

“Fellow cultivator Chilmyo is right! To be honest, we came all the way here because of the Ye Clan and the Goma. This matter concerns the safety of the entire cultivation world, so please cooperate.”

Hyuncheongja also stepped forward to help. Even after hearing those words, the young man from the Seo clan and Im Eun-byung did not immediately open their mouths, and their expressions were strange.

It seemed that because of the restriction, they were reluctant to speak freely without hearing Han Li’s thoughts. Kyu-ryung was also still silent.

As a result, Hyuncheongja and True Person Chilmyo looked at Han Li, who had a calm expression, again. It felt as if everyone was watching his every move.

“Since you two want to know about the Goma, I will tell you.”

“If Fellow cultivator Han is willing to speak…”

KWA-KWA-KWA-KWANG!

Hyuncheongja was about to answer with a benevolent face when an earth-shattering tremor came from the palace, and a dozen milky white pillars of light shot up. At this, Hyuncheongja’s expression changed, and he immediately closed his mouth.

The entire eighth floor shook madly, the ground cracked, and white light flashed in the void. It was as if space itself was being distorted and transformed.

“This is bad, it seems the Goma Saint Ancestor is already trying to open the ninth floor seal! It shouldn’t be possible, how!”

True Person Chilmyo was surprised and showed a flustered expression.

‘Ninth floor seal?’

Han Li thought it was strange at those words and hurriedly activated the Yuan Magnetic Shield, creating a silver protective barrier.

However, before he could take any measures, the dozen or so pillars of light that had risen from the palace suddenly turned as black as ink and flew in all directions, twisting and turning.

And after a while, the white and black lights that arose from the cracks everywhere mixed and shone strangely.

“Space rifts!”

Even Han Li could not maintain his composure this time. He quickly flipped his hand and summoned a bright red talisman, and as he attached it to his body, a phantom of a reddish-yellow flood dragon settled on his body and disappeared in an instant. Suddenly, he had transformed into a half-human, half-dragon body.

And hearing Im Eun-byung’s scream, everyone was instantly sucked into the pitch-black rifts.

The moment they thought they saw a flash of black light, they were already swallowed by the darkness, and there was no way to avoid it.

Han Li, who had experience being swallowed by space rifts, knew the horror of space rifts well. However, he calmed his flustered mind, strengthened his body with the Dragon Force Talisman, and poured as much magical power as possible into the Yuan Magnetic Shield.

It was his best preparation.

However, the darkness did not last long, and soon his vision brightened, and an unfamiliar space appeared. His head was a little dizzy, but Han Li quickly regained his composure and looked around, and his heart turned cold.

‘The ninth floor!’

This was an independent space with a huge open area in the center. However, the yellowish energy surging everywhere made it difficult to grasp the exact scale.

Below the void where he appeared was a huge altar about a hundred feet high, which was a square shape that narrowed as it went up, and it was possible to go up using the stairs on all four sides.

It was an altar made of white jade, magnificent and delicately crafted. And around it, huge stone pillars stood tall, forming a massive formation, and each stone pillar emitted an enormous light.

But the most surprising thing was the huge two-headed wolf sitting on top of the altar. The black wolf heads were spewing out black energy and were engaged in a fierce battle with the enemies around it.

They were the cultivators and demons that had disappeared from the eighth floor.

Long Meng Yaobi, who was inhabiting Hua Cheon-gi’s body, moved his arms as if dancing, using his giant hands to push away the black energy. The Myriad Year Bear, the Silver Yaksha, and all the other demons were visible, but only the Ye Clan’s Great Elder and the Big-Headed Monster were not.

It was unknown whether they were already dead or had not yet reached the ninth floor.

Among them, what caught Han Li’s attention was the human cultivator standing next to the giant wolf, who was surprisingly the woman from the Hwaseon Sect.

With a dazed face covered in black energy, she was activating her treasures and fighting against Madam Mok, who had an angry face, as if she was possessed by something. Except for her, the others were each using their divine powers to desperately attack the giant wolf.

Yellow wind surged above the giant wolf’s head, and a black flood dragon appeared within it, spewing black wind from its mouth to block the phantoms of eight spirit beasts that had appeared from a giant silver lotus.

From the silver lotus that had been floating motionless in the void, a dazzling light burst forth, and Buddhist scriptures flowed down the petals.

The Buddhist scriptures each turned into palm-sized talismans and collided with the black wind spewed out by the black flood dragon. Each time, explosions were heard in succession, scattering the ominous black wind.

It was a massive battle between the Black Wind Flag and the Eight Dragon Ruler!

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