Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 202

The formations around both the fake and real residences wouldn’t hold up long against a Core Formation cultivator’s attack.

The exposed fake residence would surely be ransacked, but the connected real residence had a fifty-fifty chance of remaining undiscovered.

The underground passage from the fake residence to the real one had a barrier that was difficult to detect, cleverly hidden using mechanisms that intruders themselves might trigger.

If the opponent only searched the peak where the fake residence was located, it wouldn’t be easily discovered. However, if they searched the entire mountain, it was only a matter of time before the real residence was revealed.

In any case, the spiritual energy emitted by the insect demonic beasts in the real residence would be hard to hide from a Core Formation cultivator’s senses. The fate of the insect demonic beasts, which he had been unable to fully tame, was now in the hands of fate.

Of course, if they weren’t discovered, they could survive for about five or six years without food. There was a precedent of them being fine even after being trapped in the low-grade spirit stone mine for several years!

Han Li, thinking about the demonic beasts he had left on Summoning Island, took Gu Hun into one of the secret rooms.

* * *

Before consuming the spiritual herbs, Han Li spent several days in the secret room, focusing on restoring his vital energy. Only when his body was in its optimal state did he take out the bottle containing the Heavenly Essence Liquid.

He placed a few drops into his mouth and waited for the effects to take hold.

Soon, Han Li’s meridians began to surge, and the spiritual energy within his body began to circulate throughout his entire being.

He calmed his surprised heart and took out an unknown spiritual medicine, placing it in his mouth. Then, he focused all his attention on cultivating the Azure Essence Sword Technique.

If he mastered the Azure Essence Sword Technique up to the seventh level, it would be the most suitable time for Han Li to attempt Core Formation.

Of course, before he began his cultivation, he had instructed Gu Hun, who was on the other side of the wall, to consume the Heavenly Essence Liquid and supplementary spiritual medicines as well.

The Demonic Art, Blood Lotus Divine Light, that Gu Hun cultivated allowed for rapid growth, but originally, it was impossible to achieve Core Formation. However, the situation would change if he consumed the Blood Condensation Five Elements Pill.

Gu Hun wouldn’t condense a core within his body through cultivation; instead, he would form a core through the medicinal properties of the Blood Condensation Five Elements Pill.

It was much simpler compared to the effort Han Li was putting into his Core Formation.

Having already given the order, Han Li no longer paid attention to Gu Hun. He knew that his chances of success were extremely low since he had only performed the Three Revolutions Origin Technique once, but he intended to take this opportunity to try.

Even if he didn’t succeed in Core Formation, he thought it would be good to gain experience for the next time. Han Li cut off all external senses and completely immersed himself in his own mind.

Now, the passage of time had no meaning for him. And so, day after day passed.

* * *

Four years later, Sea Ape Island was busier than ever, with numerous small boats coming and going at the docks.

This was the time when sea apes came to the surface to find mates, making it the perfect time to capture demonic beasts that were usually impossible to catch.

The low-level cultivators smiled as they earned spirit stones by catching demonic beasts, and the owners of the shops that traded in sea resources were also beaming with joy.

Then, something happened on a certain yellow mountain on Sea Ape Island that made all the cultivators’ mouths drop open.

Suddenly, clouds gathered in the clear blue sky, and a gale began to blow.

In an instant, dark clouds covered the yellow mountain, and lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, looking like silver snakes twisting and falling.

At the same time, the surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth swirled around the yellow mountain, and the spiritual energy within dozens of miles of the mountain was sucked in and disappeared.

The low-level cultivators, as if by agreement, hurriedly rushed towards the yellow mountain. They knew that this phenomenon only occurred when a senior cultivator succeeded in forming their core.

It was the moment when another Core Formation cultivator was born in the Chaotic Star Sea. So, it was only natural that they were curious about what was happening.

Moreover, what a great thing it would be if they caught the eye of a Core Formation senior and were taken into their sect! However, before they could reach the yellow mountain, the swirling flow of spiritual energy dispersed with a clear sound.

Amidst the chaotic flow of spiritual energy, a dazzling array of colors appeared, creating a beautiful sight.

Then, the dark clouds dissipated, and the lightning stopped, and soon the sky returned to its original state as if nothing had happened.

At this moment, a chilling voice echoed in the ears of those who were trying to climb the yellow mountain.

“Anyone who dares to approach this mountain will be killed.”

The low-level cultivators’ faces changed drastically at the cold voice, and they all stopped in their tracks, looking at each other.

The senior who had just succeeded in Core Formation was unwilling to be disturbed by others. Although it was a pity, no cultivator dared to defy the senior’s wishes and continue forward. They all turned around and moved away from the yellow mountain.

Thus, the news spread that a cultivator had succeeded in Core Formation on Sea Ape Island. It was surprising that a cultivator would choose a place like Sea Ape Island to form their core.

At the same time, numerous low-level cultivators set up new residences near the yellow mountain.

Although no one climbed the yellow mountain due to the Core Formation cultivator’s warning, they hoped that they might meet them someday if they stayed nearby.

However, contrary to their wishes, the cave on the yellow mountain was already empty, and the cultivator who had succeeded in Core Formation was flying thousands of miles away in the sky.

Beside the Core Formation cultivator was Han Li, who still had a calm expression.

He had failed to form his core, and although he had a plain face as he looked at Gu Hun sitting next to him, he couldn’t help but feel envious inside.

In fact, he had ended his seclusion a year ago.

He had been sitting cross-legged for three years, consuming spiritual herbs like meals, but he couldn’t see any signs of forming his core.

So, he had simply admitted defeat and decided to focus all his efforts on helping Gu Hun form his core.

As a result, Gu Hun did not disappoint Han Li and succeeded in forming a core within his body a few days ago. Han Li was even surprised at how smoothly he had reached the Core Formation stage.

Putting aside his joy, Han Li chased away the low-level cultivators who were trying to scout the yellow mountain and immediately left Sea Ape Island with Gu Hun.

He was now going back to Summoning Island to check if his hidden residence on the island had been discovered.

It had already been four years, and he didn’t think that a busy Core Formation cultivator would still be guarding that island.

If his hidden cave was still intact, he planned to take his insect demonic beasts and leave the southwestern sea area altogether.

The Chaotic Star Sea was so vast that there was no way he wouldn’t be able to find a place for Gu Hun to cultivate.

Even though Gu Hun’s spiritual root attribute didn’t match the Green Radiance Sword, he could still use the Chaos Origin Blast to some extent.

Even if he couldn’t unleash his full power using the Chaos Origin Blast, he had at least met the basic requirements to fight a real Core Formation cultivator.

Moreover, Han Li had given Gu Hun the talisman with the golden sword and the talisman with the golden skull that he had obtained earlier.

Gu Hun had already succeeded in Core Formation and could activate the talismans instantly without being burdened by the consumption of spiritual energy, so it was to strengthen his power.

Thinking this, Han Li poured spiritual energy into the Wind God Boat and flew towards the direction of the Monster Cry Sea.

* * *

Over a month passed, and Han Li and Gu Hun appeared in the sky near Summoning Island.

Han Li scanned the area around Summoning Island with his senses, and when he didn’t detect the presence of any other cultivators, he finally took Gu Hun to the mountain peak where his residence was located.

He was surprised to see the two peaks, one high and one low. Not only was his residence intact, but the formations protecting the two peaks were also still in place.

Since he hadn’t expected this, Han Li became even more vigilant. He stopped the Wind God Boat and, instead of heading straight to his residence, began to survey the surroundings with a dark expression.

However, no matter how much he looked around Summoning Mountain, there was nothing strange. Han Li lowered his head and remained silent for a moment before finally stepping into the formation.

The formation was exactly as it had been four years ago. Han Li looked around the outside of the cave and then went straight inside.

Naturally, he had no interest in the fake residence on the lower peak, so he went straight through the underground passage to the real residence.

* * *

Arriving at the residence on the large peak, he moved to the secret room. When he entered the secret room and removed the limestone on one side, dozens of large and small stone chambers where he had raised the insect demonic beasts appeared.

At the time, he had placed a weak restriction on them, worried that the insects might escape. But deep down, he doubted that even if they were demonic beasts, they were just larvae, so they wouldn’t be able to break the restriction.

But now, in front of Han Li’s eyes, not only were all the restrictions broken, but the doors of each stone chamber were also riddled with holes like a honeycomb.

Surprised, Han Li had Gu Hun open each stone door. As expected, they were all empty, and no insect demonic beasts remained.

He had already prepared himself mentally, but he couldn’t help but feel regretful. He scanned the secret room and then turned his head to look at the stone doors.

He silently approached the stone doors, lowered his posture, and observed the damaged doors. Strangely, the doors were densely covered with large and small holes, and their shape didn’t seem to be caused by a magical artifact.

Han Li narrowed his brows, stood up, closed his eyes, and slowly used his senses to explore the secret room.

As he had seen with his eyes, everything was empty.

But after a while, Han Li suddenly opened his eyes. A light flashed in his eyes, and he immediately left the insect demonic beast secret room and moved to another secret room.

In a place that should have been empty, like the other secret rooms, Han Li found something. It was a shell of an insect, about the size of a bean, that shone like it was made of silver and was beautiful.

Han Li touched the shell with another finger, and it was soft, glossy, and very hard. No matter how he thought about it, the owner of this shell was definitely not an insect he had raised.

Han Li’s face hardened, and he narrowed his eyes. He stood in the center of the secret room and began to thoroughly search his real residence, not missing even the smallest gap.

Then, something strange was detected in the herb garden. There was a round, silver object under a thick tree, and it was definitely not something that had been there before.

Han Li called Gu Hun and cautiously headed towards the herb garden.

* * *

The silver sphere wasn’t very large, about the size of a child’s head, but the light it emitted was so strong that it was blinding.

Han Li stood at the entrance of the herb garden, staring at it. He was sure he had seen it somewhere, but he couldn’t remember what that silver sphere was.

It was clear that the silver sphere and the silver shell he had just found were related.

“Shell?”

Something flashed in Han Li’s mind. He hurriedly searched for the green book left by the Spirit Insect Sect cultivator about insects in the low-grade spirit stone mine.

When he infused it with his senses, he could see the relevant information in the 12th rank of insect demonic beasts.

“Metal Devouring Insects, ferocious demonic beasts that live in groups, ranked 12th among insect demonic beasts. They like to eat other insect demonic beasts and crave gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

They are impervious to fire and water and are extremely ferocious. They form spheres and live in dense groups under trees where spiritual energy flows. They can be contained by trees that have spiritual energy flowing through them and are incompatible with arachnid insects…”

Han Li read the explanation about the Metal Devouring Insects several times and wanted to jump for joy.

He looked at the silver sphere again in detail.

Although all the insects he had raised with care had disappeared, if he could obtain an insect demonic beast that was ranked higher than the giant mantis, it was worth it.

However, according to the book, Metal Devouring Insects could eat almost anything except jade and wood, so they were difficult to capture.

Fortunately, he had two Blood Jade Spiders, so although they were lower in rank, they should be able to deal with them to some extent.