Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 115

Han Li was deep asleep, his mind already on the next day, when a sudden, violent tremor jolted him awake. Though still groggy, the intense shaking quickly banished his sleepiness.

‘Thud! Thud!’

Along with the vibrations, he heard the sounds of explosions, making it clear that someone was attacking the barrier he had set up. Surprised and angered, he strode out of his room and rushed out of the cave.

What he saw horrified him: a dense barrage of light arrows and light pillar attacks, along with puppet demonic beasts filling the sky.

“Listen well, owner of this place! Hand over the person who went inside, and we will leave you alone! You wouldn’t want to make an enemy of the Thousand Bamboo Sect for someone else, would you?”

Despite the fierce attacks, the barrier of the Reversed Five Elements Formation [a defensive formation] held firm, so the man tried to negotiate. It was clearly Huang Long’s voice. Hearing this, Han Li looked up at the sky.

A huge bamboo raft floated in the area where the puppets were concentrated. Reinforcements from the Thousand Bamboo Sect had arrived.

On the raft were people in various attire, and the one speaking was Huang Long.

Besides the man and woman he had seen earlier, there were four thin men standing there, all of whom looked identical.

Startled by Huang Long’s words, he suspiciously examined the Reversed Five Elements Formation, and then he noticed someone lying on the ground. Confirming who it was, all his questions were answered, but he felt a pang of bitterness. Senior Brother Lin had hidden inside the formation he had set up, causing this troublesome situation.

‘What should I do?’

However, since the Reversed Five Elements Formation was blocking all the attacks, his panic subsided considerably. Han Li broke through the formation and slowly approached Senior Brother Lin.

He put some effort into turning the body over to check the face, and then he was speechless for a moment, his expression troubled. Senior Brother Lin’s face was black, and he was bleeding and dead.

Han Li sighed, paused for a moment, and then reached out to search the other’s clothes. He wanted to find the puppet control device. After seeing the battle between him and Huang Long, he had become interested in their techniques. However, as he lifted the hem of the robe, a green light flew out and rushed straight towards Han Li.

He was so surprised that he quickly pulled his body back and snatched the light like lightning before it touched his face. Then, he heard a groan.

“Junior Brother, save me! I had no choice but to do that to avenge my grudges. If you save me, I will surely be of great help to you!”

“You were trying to take over my body just now?”

Han Li’s face darkened as if he had no interest in anything else.

“That… that was true, but I was momentarily out of my mind. I will surely compensate for this mistake, so please, Junior Brother, show mercy and forgive this Senior Brother just this once!”

Senior Brother Lin apologized repeatedly in a distressed voice.

Han Li didn’t answer him and instead observed the other’s nascent soul [a soul in its early stage of development] in his hand.

“If you hadn’t been caught and had entered my body, would you have spared me? With your high cultivation, a junior brother who had just succeeded in Qi Condensation [the first stage of cultivation] would have been nothing more than a mouthful for you.”

Han Li raised his head again and asked coldly, his face clearly showing displeasure.

“If you save me, Junior Brother, I will tell you about peerless cultivation methods and secrets!”

“Peerless cultivation methods? Are you talking about the Great Derivation Art of the Thousand Bamboo Sect?”

At Han Li’s calm words, the other squirmed.

“The Great Derivation Art is a secret technique created by the founder of our sect to strengthen and divide consciousness. It is a cultivation method that all members of the Thousand Bamboo Sect must learn, and through it, they can freely control a large number of puppets.”

“Why were you trying to steal such a basic cultivation method, and what do you mean by half of the Great Derivation Art being hidden?”

Under Han Li’s sharp gaze, Senior Brother Lin answered without delay.

“It’s not something to hide, so I’ll be honest. Although the Great Derivation Art is a basic cultivation method of our sect, we can’t let just anyone learn the fundamental techniques of the Thousand Bamboo Sect. So, what is used as a basic cultivation method is just a simplified version of the original technique. It’s easy to learn, but its power is far inferior to the original technique. Only the high-ranking officials of our sect can learn the true Great Derivation Art.

Those outside now have mastered up to the second level of the true Great Derivation Art, allowing them to control 100 puppets, and those who have reached the third level can control 300 puppets. However, only the sect leader and their successor are qualified to learn the Great Derivation Art beyond the third level.”

As he revealed the detailed inside story, he became filled with anger at the end. Han Li, who had been staring blankly at Senior Brother Lin in his nascent soul form, spoke again.

“What was the secret you mentioned earlier?”

“That is…? First, save me… Ugh! Wait a minute, I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you!”

As Senior Brother Lin hesitated again and tried to play tricks, Han Li immediately tried to crush him to death.

“If you answer all my questions, I will consider your conditions.”

Startled by Han Li’s sharp movements, Senior Brother Lin hurriedly spoke.

“That secret is also related to the Great Derivation Art! It’s a rumor that only circulates among the high-ranking officials of the Thousand Bamboo Sect, so I don’t know if it’s true or false. However, my father told me that the rumor is likely true. It’s said that those who have mastered the upper levels of the Great Derivation Art have a higher chance of reaching the Core Formation stage [a higher stage of cultivation]. It means that the difficulty of breaking through the boundaries is reduced compared to ordinary cultivators. As proof, there have been many Core Formation cultivators among the sect leader and their successors.”

“It increases the probability of reaching the Core Formation stage?”

Han Li, who had been cold, finally showed a slight interest.

“That’s right! If you help me find a suitable body, I will share the incantations up to the fourth level with you. Then, we can join forces to steal the rest from Jin Nantian. How great would it be if we could reach the Core Formation stage together!”

The voice, which had been desperate at first, gradually began to incite Han Li. However, Han Li snorted and fell into thought. It was natural that Senior Brother Lin was restless.

“It’s not like it definitely increases the probability of reaching the Core Formation stage.”

Han Li muttered, looking at the sky.

“Junior Brother, it’s about the Core Formation stage, so even if the probability is small, shouldn’t you try it!”

Senior Brother Lin, flustered, recalled what his father had told him. In fact, his father had also said that he couldn’t be sure, but there was a slight possibility.

“When did you succeed in Qi Condensation, and how much of the Great Derivation Art have you mastered? And besides strengthening consciousness, what are the effects on increasing magical power?”

“My cultivation speed is not bad. It seems to increase magical power a little… As for Qi Condensation, it was around when I was twenty, so it was 100 years ago. I started learning the Great Derivation Art after I started Qi Condensation.”

Senior Brother Lin, who had been flustered by Han Li’s questions, vaguely skipped the first two questions and answered the rest honestly. Hearing his answers, Han Li showed a satisfied expression. Then, he put strength into his right hand, which was holding the nascent soul, and crushed it without hesitation. A terrible scream echoed as the light dissipated.

“I really hate techniques that steal bodies.”

Senior Brother Lin had intended to seek help from the Yellow Maple Valley after passing by Han Li’s residence, but he had accidentally stumbled into his formation. He had suffered from all sorts of illusions and hallucinations, and his body had been poisoned, so he had no choice but to use a technique to escape his dying body with his nascent soul. And because he needed a body to survive, he had rushed at Han Li as soon as he saw him.

Now that he was truly dead, there was no reason to worry about Senior Brother Lin. Anyway, there was a huge group he had to deal with, wasn’t there? Although the Thousand Bamboo Sect’s attacks were formidable, he felt much relieved to see that his formation was holding firm.

Although this place was on the outskirts of the Taiyue Mountain Range, it was still within the territory of the Yellow Maple Valley. It was certain that they would be worried about the loud noises and vibrations.

In fact, Han Li also wanted to throw the corpse out and send them away. However, if they confirmed the obvious signs of the nascent soul escaping from the corpse, they wouldn’t leave him alone.

So, it was best to stay quiet inside the formation for now. Anyway, they didn’t seem to have the ability to break through the Reversed Five Elements Formation.

He wanted to praise himself for having the foresight to set up the formation as soon as he arrived. If it weren’t for this formation, he didn’t know what would have happened to him.

Although the formation was holding up well, he couldn’t sleep in this situation, so he sat on a chair made of limestone and entered a meditative state. The attacks using puppets continued endlessly, making Han Li feel more and more frustrated as time passed.

After half an hour of continuous attacks, a change finally occurred in the formation. A faint blue light emanated from the outer surface of the formation, which had been still, and when the light arrows and other attacks from the puppets hit it, wave-like ripples appeared.

Seeing this, the people of the Thousand Bamboo Sect became excited and attacked even more fiercely. The change meant that it was possible to break this formation.

Just as the people of the Thousand Bamboo Sect were preparing to resume their attack and Han Li’s expression slightly changed, someone’s voice fell like thunder from afar.

“Where did these small fries come from, daring to cause a ruckus in the Taiyue Mountain Range! How arrogant to attack the residence of a disciple of our sect! This old man will deal with you!”

It was as if thunder and lightning had struck right next to their ears, so even Han Li, who was protected by the formation, had his ears ringing, let alone the people of the Thousand Bamboo Sect.

“It’s a Core Formation cultivator. Retreat!”

Huang Long was fierce and had a good physique, but he was actually the most intelligent among them. He immediately ordered a retreat, but he had clearly overlooked the flight speed and immense magical power of a Core Formation cultivator.

As they hurriedly gathered their puppets, a white light gathered not far from them and instantly arrived in front of them. Only then did they abandon their puppets and start to flee.

However, the light formed a silver glow that was several tens of feet long. The light didn’t give Huang Long and the others a chance to escape and immediately split into seven streams, chasing after the people of the Thousand Bamboo Sect.

“Senior, please spare us! We are…!”

Even as Huang Long hurriedly begged for forgiveness, the silver light showed no sign of stopping. The silver light easily caught up with them, and after a few thunderous sounds, the people of the Thousand Bamboo Sect were reduced to ashes and scattered.

Huang Long was no exception. At that moment, the silver light gathered into one and a plump man appeared.

His eyes were like thin threads buried in his flesh, and the fat on his chin was so thick that it was impossible to tell how much there was.

Han Li was looking at the fattest man he had ever seen.

However, he was a Core Formation cultivator, and the magic he had just used was an attack of the lightning attribute of the different spiritual root [a type of elemental affinity].

In any case, he had resolved the people who were attacking Han Li’s residence, and he was a senior of the Yellow Maple Valley, so Han Li did not hesitate to withdraw the formation and hurriedly flew on his magic tool to greet him. He stopped in front of the plump man and bowed respectfully.

“Disciple Han Li greets Senior Uncle. Thank you for your help. May I know Senior Uncle’s name?”

The man had been staring at Han Li from the moment he flew up until he stopped in front of him, and only after receiving the respectful greeting did he show a smile. His first impression wasn’t too bad.

“I am Lei Manxue, so you can call me Senior Uncle Lei from now on. Why were those people from the Thousand Bamboo Sect attacking your residence? Could it be that you brought it upon yourself?”

From his first words, he immediately asked about the facts. Senior Uncle Lei didn’t seem like someone easy to deal with. Han Li, as always, calmly explained the situation.

“That Thousand Bamboo Sect guy was the problem. I knew there would be trouble someday when I accepted him into the Yellow Maple Valley. Still, after so much time has passed, to be hunted down like this, the sect leader Jin must be very narrow-minded!”

Senior Uncle Lei didn’t seem too upset, but he still sighed.

“Lead me to where Senior Brother Lin’s corpse is.”

“Yes! Senior Uncle, please come this way.”