Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 297

Feng Xi finally wore a satisfied expression. “I knew you would make a wise choice. I’ve prepared a quiet, secret chamber in advance, so please follow me.” He rose first and walked toward a side door. Han Li silently followed behind him. Guided by the demon beast cultivator, they passed through various passages until a red stone wall, seemingly ablaze, blocked their path. Upon closer inspection, it was surprisingly a place carved out of a massive coral reef. Feng Xi extended his hand and emitted a white light, creating an entrance in the wall. “Enter the secret chamber and absorb the wine. You should see some progress in about half a year. When the time comes, I will release the restriction and let you out, Fellow Daoist.” Han Li, with a blank expression, glanced inside and stepped forward. What else could he say, having come this far? As soon as he entered, the entrance vanished. Only the demon beast cultivator Feng Xi remained outside. He lingered for a moment, his face flushed with excitement as he examined the barrier, then disappeared in a flash of white light.

* * *

Trapped within the coral wall, Han Li surveyed the secret chamber. It wasn’t a small space, but apart from a jade bed, there was nothing else. The strangest thing was the small pits carved into the walls, like pockmarks on a person’s face. He climbed onto the bed, sat in a lotus position, and closed his eyes. He first spread his consciousness to explore the surroundings, but it was blocked by the walls and bounced back. A chill ran through his eyes. After some thought, Han Li rose again and approached the wall of the secret chamber. Narrowing his eyes, he stared at the coral wall and unleashed a dazzling blue sword from his fingertip. Han Li flicked his finger, and the blue sword pierced about half an inch into the wall. But before he could show any sign of joy, a red light flashed and rose on the wall, pushing the sword back out. His expression darkened. But it was too early to give up. Han Li quietly chanted an incantation, and a faint golden lightning emerged from the sword. It then rotated with a blue light and fiercely pierced into the wall. Bang. The explosion of the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning echoed, and the red energy surrounding the wall wavered. However, the expectation in Han Li’s eyes soon turned to disappointment. The small sword, with the power of lightning, had only managed to penetrate about half an inch before being repelled by the wall. It was clear that the demon beast cultivator had placed multiple layers of restrictions on the coral wall. It was impossible to break through the wall with the power of a magic treasure alone. He retrieved the sword into his body and unconsciously looked down at the spirit beast pouch at his waist. No matter how mysterious the restrictions were, he was certain that the swarm of Devouring Gold Beetles would devour it madly. However, he couldn’t recklessly use the spirit beasts. Even if it was the Devouring Gold Beetles, it would take time to damage the barrier. There was no way Feng Xi wouldn’t notice the anomaly in the barrier during that time. Considering the opponent’s eerie speed, escape was impossible. After racking his brain, no good solution came to mind, so Han Li returned to the bed and sat down. A faint warmth in his stomach indicated that the effects of the Azure Flame Wine were beginning to manifest. He had no idea what the effects would be, so how could he be careless? Han Li decided to focus on the energy in his stomach without thinking about anything else. He closed his eyes and began to concentrate solely on his inner self. A stream of blue flames flowed from the golden core of his thoughts, enveloping the turquoise liquid he had just drunk. The process of refining the Azure Flame Wine with the core fire was very slow, and even after a month, only a quarter of the process was complete. The half-year estimate that Feng Xi had mentioned was not an exaggeration. Still, the speed was too slow. If he didn’t reach the late-Core Formation stage in half a year, Feng Xi would kill him without hesitation. Feeling anxious, the blue flames emanating from his golden core grew thicker. He poured his spiritual power without reservation to increase the refining speed. As the consumption of his magic power increased, he had no choice but to consume precious ten-thousand-year spiritual liquid at regular intervals. Using such a lavish method to fuel the core fire, he was able to refine two-thirds of the Azure Flame Wine in just two months. Only then did he feel at ease. Then, an unexpected event occurred. He had swallowed the Cyan Glacial Pearl with the intention of dying together, and he still had it in his stomach for a moment of emergency. But today, just as he was about to consume the ten-thousand-year spiritual liquid after exhausting his magic power, a change occurred in the Evil-Slaying Divine Lightning that surrounded the Cyan Glacial Pearl. Sensing the anomaly, Han Li was shocked and terrified. His magic power was almost depleted, and he had no way to react. As the pearl began to pulsate and fluctuate inside his body, he used the remaining Azure Flame Wine to envelop the Cyan Glacial Pearl. His heart pounded with tension, and the color drained from his face. Just imagining the Cyan Glacial Pearl exploding inside his body made his legs tremble. Whether Han Li’s method was effective or not, the pearl wrapped in the Azure Flame Wine soon regained stability. “Huu…” He touched his forehead and found it covered in cold sweat, feeling like he had been half-dead and come back to life. Han Li quickly consumed a drop of ten-thousand-year spiritual liquid and waited for his magic power to recover before spitting out the pearl. He examined every corner of his body once more and suddenly realized something. Without him knowing, he had already passed the mid-Core Formation bottleneck and reached the late stage! His face, which had been blank, now showed a hint of joy. In fact, he had been diligently refining the Azure Flame Wine, but he hadn’t felt any significant effects. Yet, he had achieved such a breakthrough before even finishing the refinement; it was truly an incredible event. Han Li wanted to test his cultivation, so he simultaneously released 24 Azure Bamboo Cloud Swords and demonstrated skilled control. It was an incredible achievement. Even in the midst of his uncontrollable joy, he couldn’t waste the remaining Azure Flame Wine, so he immediately sat back in a lotus position and refined the rest of the liquid, solidifying his late-Core Formation cultivation.

* * *

Soon, the promised half-year had passed. A few days after the half-year mark, an exit reappeared in the coral wall, and Feng Xi’s calm voice was heard. “Fellow Daoist Li, please come out. How was your progress?” Han Li, still sitting quietly on the jade bed, opened his eyes and walked out. As soon as Han Li appeared, the demon beast cultivator scanned him and burst into laughter. “Haha! Congratulations on reaching the late stage. Fortunately, you didn’t waste the Azure Flame Wine.” His face was full of genuine joy, as if he was truly happy about Han Li’s great progress in cultivation. This sight did not sit well with Han Li. Feng Xi smiled brightly and spoke with a much more amiable tone. “I’ll introduce you to two of my close demon beast friends, so let’s go together. The three of you must combine your strength to accomplish this task.” “You have two more seniors?” “That’s right. The other two are eighth-level demon beast cultivators, what humans call the late-Nascent Soul stage. But they are naturally extraordinary, so their cultivation is not much different from mine. They are sea creatures, so it’s best to be reserved when you meet them.” Shortly after, Feng Xi led him to the main hall they had seen before, where his so-called friends were already waiting. Han Li’s face hardened as he saw their faces. One had the head of a flood dragon, his entire body covered in blood-red scales, and he was swinging a steel-like tail. The other had a blue turtle shell and a large build. The former was the poison-attribute flood dragon who had fought against the human cultivators near the Sea Mist Island, so the one next to him was most likely the turtle demon beast who had just undergone his tribulation at the time. The two demon beasts turned their heads at the sound of Feng Xi entering. The Poison Dragon looked at Han Li’s face, and a chill flashed in his green eyes. “Human, have you seen me before?” The chilling voice was a bit ambiguous, but there was no problem understanding it. Han Li hesitated at the question. At the time, he had been wearing a wind cloak and had not revealed his appearance, so there was no need to bring up bad memories and risk trouble. Han Li cleared his throat to regain his composure and replied. “This is my first time meeting you. I am just a bit surprised to see a flood dragon for the first time due to my lack of experience. Please forgive me if you felt offended.” He had to try his best to appease them for now. Crack. The Poison Dragon crushed a large pearl he had been holding in his hand with his grip. “Hmph! Humans are all deceitful and cunning. I don’t know where you saw me, but it’s best not to tell such ridiculous lies in the future.” A vicious aura flashed in the dragon’s eyes. Although he flinched inwardly, Han Li simply smiled wryly and kept his mouth shut. As the atmosphere became tense, Feng Xi stepped in. “That’s enough. Let’s consider this Fellow Daoist Li’s introduction to my two brothers. I definitely need all three of your strengths.” He called Han Li to sit at the table, but kept him slightly apart from the other two demon beasts. The Poison Dragon picked up a large wine cup in front of him, gulped it down, and said casually. “Brother Feng, how many years have we known each other? Why are you being so secretive? And why do you need the help of a human cultivator? What use is a mere Core Formation cultivator?” “That’s right. You said you definitely need both of us, so are you planning something dangerous?” Although they were large, they seemed relatively timid. Feng Xi smiled and waved his hand. “Fellow Daoist Gui, don’t worry. I didn’t invite you two for revenge or anything dangerous. I just need your help in refining a magic treasure.” “A magic treasure?” The turtle demon beast and the Poison Dragon looked at each other, puzzled. The Poison Dragon immediately shook his head, trying to dissuade him. “Did I hear wrong? Why would Brother Feng refine a magic treasure? Demon beast cultivators don’t have magic treasures as strong and powerful as their own bodies.” “As Brother Mu said, no magic treasure is better than a demon beast cultivator’s body. It’s better to train your body than to waste time and effort on other things. For example, Brother Mu was born with the body of a flood dragon and is naturally proficient in water-attribute techniques. With just a little training, he can unleash a hundred times more power than other races. I was also born with the body of a black turtle, and although I’m not as good as you two, I can achieve a body as strong as a diamond, impervious to swords and blades, with training. So why are you talking about refining magic treasures that humans use?” Feng Xi smiled as he listened to their words. “How could someone who has lived as long as I have not know that what you two say is correct? But what I’m trying to refine is not a powerful weapon, but a pair of wings with spirituality. I want the Wind-Thunder Wings, not the Wind-Fire Wings. With these two pairs of wings, there will be no place in the world that I cannot fly to, no matter how vast it is!” The other two demon beasts were greatly surprised by Feng Xi’s excited words. “Wind-Thunder Wings…” The turtle demon beast blinked and pondered. Feng Xi explained the situation. “A few years ago, while training and traveling in the deep sea, I discovered the ruins of an ancient cultivator on a desolate island. Inside, there were the remains of a giant bird that lived in the ancient times. Even though it was just bones, it contained an enormous amount of lightning energy. After investigating, I found out that it was the bones of a Thunder Roc demon beast, a thunder-attribute roc that had evolved to the end of the Nascent Soul stage! Everyone knows that the Thunder Roc’s earth-shattering speed is among the top ten of high-level avian demon beasts. It is literally as fast as lightning, and our Wind Clan cannot keep up. So, I decided to use those bones and the wings of other avian demon beasts as materials to create wings by imitating human magic treasure refining techniques.” He quickly added. “Of course, if I refine it completely with only thunder attributes, it will be difficult to control, so I will add wind-attribute spiritual power to make it suitable for me.” “Is that even possible?” The Poison Dragon asked skeptically, and the turtle demon beast next to him also looked doubtful. “Don’t worry! I’ve been researching for several years specifically for the creation of these wings, and I’ve even obtained books on human cultivator’s magic treasure refining techniques by transforming my appearance. It’s a magic treasure refining method that combines human refining techniques with the Wind-Fire Wings refining method passed down in the Wind Clan. I can’t say for sure that it will be a success, but I think there’s a 70 to 80 percent chance of success. Of course, if you two brothers lend me your strength, whether the magic treasure refining succeeds or not, I will…” Feng Xi, who had been speaking confidently, suddenly stopped talking and only moved his lips. It seemed he was using telepathy to convey something he didn’t want Han Li to hear. Han Li didn’t know what they were saying, so he had no idea if they were discussing something disadvantageous to him. And he was in no position to question them.

# 299