Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 832

Five years later, Han Li had coated his entire body with the golden fluid secreted by the Gold Marrow Crystal Insects. He also mixed the Gold Silk Coral with other medicinal ingredients, creating a concoction that he absorbed through his tongue and flesh, allowing it to permeate his body.

In this way, five pairs of Gold Marrow Crystal Insects were used up, and the Gold Silk Coral, which had filled three black gourds, was also depleted. However, Han Li had not yet achieved the desired result.

“Clearly, thanks to the Gold Marrow Crystal Insects and the Gold Silk Coral, my body has become much stronger, but I still haven’t overcome this hurdle. Is it simply not the right time yet?” he wondered.

As he sighed, about to close his eyes in frustration, a blue light flickered from the wall of the secret chamber. His second Nascent Soul [a duplicate soul created through advanced cultivation techniques] flowed in, bringing news.

“I almost forgot. The Sky Roc Clan will be arriving on the island soon. Perhaps I should go and see what these other races are like?”

At the words of his second Nascent Soul, he rose from his seat and left the secret chamber.

In the intervening time, he had used his second Nascent Soul to monitor the four demonic beasts. Through their conversations, he had learned that envoys from the Sky Roc Clan would soon be arriving on the island.

Come to think of it, he slightly regretted killing the Treasure Light Venerable so quickly last time. As an eighth-grade Transformation stage demonic beast [a high level of demonic beast cultivation], he would have known a lot about the surrounding sea area, but he had not been able to use Soul Extraction [a technique to extract memories from a soul] on him.

The golden fish demonic beast, on whom he had used Soul Extraction, had never left the surrounding sea area and didn’t know much. He had only confirmed that the surrounding sea area was called the Crimson Demon Sea and that the island where Han Li was staying was called Black Underworld Island.

Eight or nine tenths of the island was surrounded by a fog called Black Underworld Mist, but fortunately, the land connected to the end of the peninsula was still part of the Wind Origin Continent.

Han Li was relieved that he had not been transported to two unfamiliar continents. As long as he was on the Wind Origin Continent, he could find a way to return to where the human race lived.

The nearby sea area and the vast land of the peninsula were territories ruled by a winged race called the Winged Spirit Clan. Among them, the Sky Roc Clan was a type of Winged Spirit Clan and belonged to the weakest of the dozens of factions.

If the Winged Spirit Clan had not driven out many of the nearby demonic beasts, forcing them to move their residences towards the sea, the fish demonic beast would not have known even this much.

In the faint memories of the fish demonic beast, the Sky Roc Clan was no different from the human race, except that they had wings and could transform into giant roc birds during battle. Therefore, Han Li became interested in the Sky Roc Clan envoys who were coming to collect tribute and decided to observe them.

Not long after, Han Li, transformed into a streak of blue light, was flying hundreds of miles in the sky. And on his shoulder sat a golden beetle about half a foot in size.

He reached out and stroked the Gold Devouring Beetle that had recently awakened from its slumber. It looked no different from before, but its weight had become incredibly heavy. It was even heavier than when it had devoured the bizarre stones.

Also, the power of the mutated Gold Devouring Beetles had become very strong, and they could now devour objects weighing nearly a thousand pounds. However, he had not yet found any other unique characteristics.

This made it even more difficult for Han Li to determine the use of the three special stones.

The next day, a streak of blue light descended near a low mountain. He used his divine ability to conceal the Dull Light [a technique to hide one’s presence] and then reduced his speed, so the blue Dull Light gradually became blurred and eventually disappeared.

After passing a small lake, he arrived at a forest full of bamboo where thousands of Ho Beasts, with the heads of bulls and the bodies of tigers, were frolicking. However, his gaze was directed towards the mountainside, not the herd of beasts.

The place was filled with white fog, but when he used the Divine Eye of Clarity [a technique to see through illusions], he saw a round green stone gate within the fog. It was the dwelling of the bull-headed beasts.

Han Li smiled and descended directly below, stopping the Dull Light at a height of several thousand feet. Then, he formed hand seals with both hands, sending out various colored magic seals. As a result, the surrounding fog gathered and transformed into clouds, concealing him.

*Whoosh!*

Han Li lightly shook his shoulder, and the Gold Devouring Beetle shrank to the size of a bean, flapping its wings and leaving the clouds to enter the mountain.

A moment later, a light flashed at the end of the sky, and two gusts of demonic wind and three silver giant birds flew in. Han Li widened his eyes and observed the giant birds.

The avian demonic beasts, which were about three yards long and resembled giant hawks, had feathers that shone as if they were cast in silver, and their purple eyes gleamed sharply.

The giant birds adjusted their speed and flew, discovering the bamboo mountain. They spread their wings and transformed into white lightning, shooting out.

*Kwang!*

Soft thunder rumbled in succession, and the three giant birds, enveloped in lightning, arrived in front of the white fog. The giant birds folded their wings, their silver bodies gleaming, and transformed into two men and one woman.

‘Are they the Sky Roc Clan?’

Han Li looked at them with interest, examining them closely. They all possessed the cultivation of the Transformation stage. The oldest-looking man was in the mid-Transformation stage, while the young man and woman were in the early-Transformation stage.

All three were wearing simple white robes. The two men had silver headbands, and the woman had long hair that fell to her shoulders.

After confirming the strength of the three Sky Roc Clan members, Han Li silently chanted a spell to completely conceal his aura. Then, he slowly descended.

The three Sky Roc Clan members were completely unaware of what was happening above their heads. They hovered in front of the small mountain, waiting for the demonic beasts.

Time passed, and the two demonic winds also arrived there. When they withdrew their demonic energy, a giant boar and a three-headed giant serpent appeared.

“Venerable Sirs, please enter. Steward Chu and Steward Jin are inside, preparing the tribute and banquet, waiting for the three of you to arrive,” the giant serpent said with a smile.

“Do not do anything unnecessary. We will only collect the tribute and leave immediately,” the older man replied calmly. They would not have come here themselves if the tributes from the island were not important.

*Krrr.*

At that moment, the white fog parted, and the hidden green gate slowly opened. As the gate opened, the bull-headed beast and a golden-haired monkey came out and led the Sky Roc Clan members inside. The other two demonic beasts followed, of course.

However, the moment the gate closed, a faint gust of wind entered the gate.

The four demonic beasts quickly led the three Sky Roc Clan members to the main hall. Although the demonic beasts had not yet reached the Transformation stage and could not take on human form, there were stone tables and chairs placed there.

The Sky Roc Clan members sat down at the head of the table without hesitation, and the demonic beasts stood respectfully beside them.

“Has the tribute been prepared this time?” the thirty-year-old Sky Roc Clan man asked urgently as soon as he sat down.

“Most of it has been prepared, but some of it has already become extinct and could not be found,” the bull-headed beast said quickly, flinching.

“Hmph, you already know what will happen if the tribute is insufficient, right? If you cannot even prepare the tribute, there is no reason to keep you alive on this island,” the young man said, his face hardening.

“Venerable Sirs, please calm your anger! Although we could not gather all the tribute, this time we have collected 50 Spirit Wood Flowers. Please be lenient and forgive us for that,” the small beast said, startled, shaking its head and offering two jade boxes containing the Spirit Wood Flowers. The young Sky Roc Clan man opened them with suspicion. Then, a golden light shone, and a fragrant floral scent wafted out.

The three Sky Roc Clan members widened their eyes and smiled.

“They are all Spirit Wood Flowers that are over a thousand years old. The quality is also good!” the young Sky Roc Clan woman said excitedly, picking up a Spirit Wood Flower to examine it.

“That’s right. You have prepared so many high-quality flowers. Let’s hear how much of the other tributes there are,” the thirty-year-old Sky Roc Clan man asked in a much more lenient voice. At this, the demonic beasts were relieved and took out the other tributes from their possessions.

“Hmm, the Gold Marrow Crystal Insects and Gold Silk Coral are a bit lacking, and the amount of Azure Light Wood is only half…”

The young Sky Roc Clan man compared the quantities and muttered the details of the insufficient tributes.

“That’s enough. The quantity of Spirit Wood Flowers is large enough to roughly make up for the other insufficient tributes. This time, we will consider the tribute to be complete and give you pills to suppress the Old Scar. Next time, make sure to fill the quantity of Spirit Wood Flowers,” the thirty-year-old Sky Roc Clan man nodded and flicked his sleeve, throwing four blue jade bottles to the demonic beasts. The demonic beasts received the small bottles and expressed their gratitude repeatedly.

The three Sky Roc Clan members collected the tribute and left the bull-headed beast’s dwelling without delay.

The demonic beasts respectfully saw off the Sky Roc Clan members, and only after they had transformed into giant birds and flown far away did they relax and return to their dwelling to talk. However, they did not know that a golden beetle had been attached to the corner of the main hall since some time ago.

At the same time, Han Li, concealing his aura, was quietly following the giant birds. Having collected the tribute, they would surely return to the Sky Roc Clan’s territory.

He was following them to find a safe route to the Heaven Origin Continent. If he wandered around aimlessly in this vast sea area, he did not know what dangers he might encounter. Moreover, if the Winged Spirit Clan was not much different from the human race, it would be a good idea to sneak into the Sky Roc Clan and obtain the necessary information or materials.

Other races were likely to possess rare treasures like the Gold Marrow Crystal Insects, which were difficult for the human race to obtain.

‘In any case, the Winged Spirit Clan and the human race are completely different races, so treasures that are valuable to the human race might be ordinary items to the Winged Spirit Clan.’

Thinking this, Han Li happily chased after the three Sky Roc Clan members. With his divine abilities, he would not lose them as long as the giant birds did not stray more than a hundred miles away.

In this way, the Sky Roc Clan cultivators and Han Li flew along the coast of the peninsula for at least two months. Han Li finally discovered a black line on the horizon.

The coastline of the Heaven Origin Continent, connected to the peninsula, was beginning to appear. The coastline was made up of complex terrain with a series of large and small hills. The Sky Roc Clan members flying ahead entered the land first.

Han Li increased his speed slightly, narrowing the distance to the giant birds by half.

At that moment, an anomaly occurred. A giant two-headed bird and another seven or eight winged members of another race appeared in front of the Sky Roc Clan members.

They immediately surrounded the Sky Roc Clan members with an unfriendly attitude.

‘What’s going on…’

Han Li hesitated but did not reduce his speed, quietly stopping the Dull Light about two hundred feet away from them.

The giant two-headed bird looked ferocious, and its body was about ten yards long, with very colorful feathers. The other members of the race also had hideous appearances and wings, but they were much larger than the Sky Roc Clan members and were as red as burning flames.

The Sky Roc Clan members returned to their human forms and stood shoulder to shoulder.

“Tian Ming, what is the meaning of this! This is the territory under the jurisdiction of our Sky Roc Clan. Why are the Crimson Melt Clan appearing and blocking our path? Are you not afraid of being punished according to the Ten Commandments!” the thirty-year-old Sky Roc Clan man shouted at the giant among the group surrounding them. The giant, wearing a red robe, was bald.

“Haha, appearing here means that we are not afraid of the Ten Commandments, doesn’t it? Feng Suo, if you obediently hand over what you have and surrender to our Crimson Melt Clan, we will spare your lives,” the bald giant called Tian Ming laughed.

“What are you talking about?” Feng Suo’s expression changed for a moment before returning to normal.