Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 1028

Above an unnamed great canyon, an ordinary-looking cloud floated serenely. Hidden within the cloud, several Rong people, their bodies covered in fur, were discussing something in low voices.

“Brother Hwon, it’s been over a day since the Explosive Clan left. Could something have happened that they haven’t returned yet?” A Rong person with a blue spot on their forehead asked worriedly.

“What could possibly have happened? The two escaped Heavenly Fortune cultivators were severely injured. Four members of the Explosive Clan are chasing them, so they should be dealt with easily. Perhaps the escapees are using some special secret technique, which is why it’s taking time to catch them,” another Rong person, clad in bright red armor, replied nonchalantly.

“They do seem to be masters of strange secret techniques. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to escape in the first place.”

“Anyway, who would have thought that the final incantation of the Golden Seal Script would be in a restriction that requires the Guanghan Token? We’ll have to wait idly until the others arrive. Maybe two Guanghan Tokens will be enough. If we need three or more, it will take longer, or we’ll have to return with an incomplete technique.”

“It’s clear that the final incantation is the most important part of the technique. No matter how profound a celestial technique is, how can one cultivate it without the most crucial incantation? It’s a pity that none of us know the Golden Seal Script. If we could study the rest of the content, we might find a way,” the blue-spotted Rong person sighed, sounding frustrated.

“But we can’t just leave the technique written in the Golden Seal Script behind. It will take at least four days for the closest group to arrive, and if we need more Guanghan Tokens, it could take months to gather them. Then, even after finishing our task, we won’t have time to overcome the cultivation bottleneck,” the red-armored Rong person also looked displeased.

“However, if the Golden Seal Script’s incantation is as useful as they say, it could strengthen our clan’s power. We can’t easily give up for personal gain.”

“That’s true, but how can we sleep at night if we miss this golden opportunity to ascend to the Star Realm?”

“What’s the point of saying that now? We can only hope that the other groups who heard the news will quickly bring the Guanghan Tokens. But the more I think about it, the stranger it seems. I always thought the Guanghan Token was just a key to enter the Guanghan Realm, but who knew it could be used to break some restrictions here? We should report this when we return to prepare for the next opening of the Guanghan Realm.”

The two Rong people spent their time talking while hidden in the cloud. Strangely, their voices couldn’t be heard outside the cloud. They were guarding the area within a cloud created by a mysterious restriction.

However, they were completely unaware that a faint shadow was passing over the white cloud.

The faint shadow was Han Li, who had finally arrived after flying for half a day. He activated his Spirit Eyes and discovered the alien people in the cloud. From a distance, he used the Great Illusory Shift [a technique to become invisible] to move slowly.

With his powerful spiritual sense, he could clearly hear the two Rong people’s low conversation through the restriction.

He was relieved that the Rong people hadn’t fully obtained the Golden Seal Script’s incantation yet, but his expression changed slightly when he heard that the Guanghan Token was needed to break the secret cave’s restriction.

However, as if he had an idea, Han Li’s face returned to its usual expressionless state, and he slowly descended. The alien people didn’t notice him even when he was very close.

He could have easily dealt with them, but he hesitated, wondering if the Rong people might have their life tokens. ‘It would be troublesome if the Rong people in the cave noticed.’

He planned to move quietly until he found the Golden Seal Script technique. Han Li quietly descended into the canyon, his dark blue eyes scanning the surroundings.

Suddenly, his expression changed as he looked at a certain part of the stone wall. The rock was yellowish with cracks, but it looked very ordinary. However, in his eyes, the cracks formed the shape of the Big Dipper [a constellation].

Han Li looked pleased and flew towards it.

*Thud!*

The surface of the rock glowed faintly, and he passed through without any resistance. Han Li felt his vision brighten as he appeared in a wide passage.

The square passage was brightly lit with crystal stones embedded in the walls, and a half-open, crescent-shaped blue wooden door was visible ahead.

The massive wooden door was tattered, as if someone had forced their way in. Han Li carefully examined the door, narrowing his eyes. Golden characters were engraved on the edges of the wooden door.

They were mostly worn away and barely visible, but they were from the Golden Seal Script. And two Rong people were standing on either side of the massive door. Both were covered in fur, one pure white and the other pitch black, making them very conspicuous.

Han Li frowned at the gap in the door between the black and white Rong people. Although his cultivation had improved since the early Void Refinement stage, and he trusted the Great Illusory Shift, it was still very dangerous to sneak past cultivators of the same level.

However, he didn’t hesitate for long and cautiously approached the massive door, holding his breath. He decided it was better to eliminate them and move quickly rather than hesitate here.

If the Rong people were not gathered in one place but scattered, it wouldn’t be too difficult to defeat them individually. The only thing that worried him was that the Rong people might destroy the Golden Seal Script and flee if cornered.

He had to be careful to prevent that from happening. If he failed to obtain even a few characters of the Golden Seal Script, he might not be able to learn the Spirit Refining Art. Of course, he could also use his full magical power and spiritual sense, along with the Heaven-Shaking Treasure and the Gold Devouring Beetles, to instantly kill the Rong people.

Han Li weighed the pros and cons and passed between the black and white Rong people. At that moment, the Rong person covered in pitch-black fur twitched his eyelids and looked around.

Startled, Han Li immediately stopped in his tracks and didn’t move any further.

“Why are you suddenly like that?” The white-furred Rong person asked with a puzzled look. However, the black-furred Rong person didn’t answer and released his spiritual sense, scanning the entire passage, including the spot where Han Li was standing.

“It’s nothing. I just had a strange feeling. Maybe I was mistaken. I don’t know why, but I’ve been feeling uneasy every time I cultivate lately.”

“I see. This old one has been experiencing similar symptoms since entering the Guanghan Realm. I’ve been too tense these past few days.”

“If that’s all, then it’s a relief.” The black-furred Rong person pondered for a moment and then released silver threads that filled the passage ahead. Han Li didn’t move an inch. Surprisingly, the silver threads passed through his body and embedded themselves in the ground, revealing a circular pattern.

They were silver needles that gleamed with a cold light.

“It seems I was worrying for nothing.” The black-furred Rong person was relieved to see the silver needles fly and embed themselves.

“Haha, let’s relax and continue our cultivation.” The white-furred Rong person smiled and closed his eyes, and the black-furred Rong person nodded and began to cultivate. Han Li subtly moved his body and completely passed between them. This time, he was able to pass through the massive blue door without any trouble.

Fortunately, the black-furred Rong person attacked with tangible silver needles, which had no effect on his illusory body. If he had attacked with magic, even a simple fireball would have quickly exposed him.

He turned a corner in the passage and disappeared without a sound.

The secret cave’s large and small passages were connected like a spider web, and most of them were naturally formed underground caves. Fortunately, he had the cave map given to him by Old Man Xu, so he didn’t need to wander around and arrived at the cave entrance.

‘That’s it!’

Inside the spacious cave, a white stone wall stood, with golden characters lined up one by one, emitting a mysterious light. Han Li’s heart pounded, but he soon noticed a Rong person sitting in front of the stone wall, wearing a deep hat. Judging by his expression, he seemed to be studying the characters on the stone wall.

Han Li also wanted the characters on the stone wall. However, to copy the incantation on the stone wall, he would inevitably be noticed by the Rong person. Han Li quietly stood at the cave entrance, pondered for a moment, and then made a decision.

He swiftly moved towards the Rong person. The Rong person was so engrossed in studying the characters on the stone wall that he didn’t even turn his head.

‘That’s it!’

With a joyful heart, Han Li launched his attack. He shot out a small mountain enveloped in gray energy and summoned the Three-Headed Six-Armed Golden Deity [a powerful magical avatar] behind him. The golden deity’s six arms moved vaguely, pointing at the Rong person nearby.

Sensing something amiss, the Rong person finally tried to use some secret technique, but six massive golden hands appeared and suppressed him. The Rong person couldn’t move a finger, as if the surrounding air had frozen solid, and even the magical power within his body was congealed.

The black mountain spun above his head, releasing gray energy, and countless silver runes flowed down from under the black mountain.

*Whoosh!*

The hat-wearing Rong person was terrified but took a deep breath and began to whistle. Unexpectedly, disregarding his own safety, he was warning his companions that there was an intruder.

However, the whistling sound was blocked by the gray energy scattered in all directions, and before the Rong person could come up with another plan, golden threads were released from the six massive golden hands.

As the golden threads tightly bound the hat-wearing Rong person, the silver runes released by the Yuan Magnetic Mountain transformed into silver formations and rushed in.

*Bang.*

The light formation dissipated, and the Rong person’s figure also disappeared. It was as if he had never existed in the first place.

Han Li had instantly sucked the Rong person into the Yuan Magnetic Mountain [a magical artifact], and the golden deity’s attack and the Yuan Magnetic Mountain’s release were also done silently.

The Rong person, tightly bound by the golden threads, had lost consciousness and was trapped inside, and his nascent soul was also in a deep sleep due to the silver runes clinging to his body. Since the opponent wasn’t dead, it would be difficult for the other Rong people to notice for a while.

Fortunately, the hat-wearing Rong person was alone and was so engrossed in studying the Golden Seal Script on the stone wall that this was possible. If two or three people had been guarding this place, it would have been difficult to deal with them so quietly.

The divine ability to suck people into the Yuan Magnetic Mountain was a spatial divine ability that had appeared in the newly refined Yuan Magnetic Mountain. It was written that if he succeeded in refining the Five Extremes Yuan Convergence Mountain, he could even suck in entire rivers and seas.

*Whoosh.*

Han Li retrieved the golden deity and the black mountain and released the Spirit Cleansing Lamp, which emitted a blue light. Even in the light of the spiritual energy, the golden characters on the stone wall didn’t move.

‘As expected.’

Han Li was relieved. If the Golden Seal Script could be obtained so easily, it wouldn’t have remained until now. A white jade slip flew out of the Spirit Cleansing Lamp and headed towards the stone wall. As he cast a spell, a silver light of spiritual energy spread from the jade slip, enveloping the surface of the stone wall.

The golden runes on the stone wall wriggled, and the silver light moved around them as if it were alive before returning to the jade slip.

After a while, Han Li, having withdrawn the silver light, held the jade slip and infused it with his spiritual sense. The golden runes were copied exactly. He attached a purple talisman to the jade slip and set off again with his illusory body.

He wandered through the secret cave and found stone walls with the Golden Seal Script in three caves. Only one of them was guarded, and the other two were empty.

Han Li ambushed and sucked another Rong person guarding a stone wall into the Yuan Magnetic Mountain and copied the Golden Seal Script from all three locations.

According to Old Man Xu’s map, he only needed to find and copy one more to gather all the incantations of the Spirit Refining Art. With his final goal in sight, he became even more cautious. It was highly likely that all the Rong people he hadn’t encountered yet were gathered at the final location.

Those guarding the final Golden Seal Script would be waiting for the restriction to be broken.