Three days later, Han Li and the woman appeared above a relatively desolate small island.
“This place is definitely saturated with Yin energy. It must have been difficult to find a place like this to minimize the damage to Senior Sister’s nascent soul. You’re truly amazing.”
“While reviewing the records of the nearby sea area, I happened to discover that there was a small island previously called the tomb of demon beasts. When humans couldn’t settle in the Chaotic Star Sea, low-level demon beasts would gather here when their lifespans were ending, waiting for their last breath.
Although this fact has been forgotten as the power of human cultivators has grown, the Yin energy here has accumulated immensely over the long years. However, it’s located in a small and secluded place, so few know about it.”
After speaking, Yuan Yao immediately began to descend, and Han Li calmly followed behind. She landed on one side of the small island and led Han Li into a mountain valley, where the surroundings were entirely made of fist-sized black stones.
Yuan Yao extended her white hand and chanted an incantation, emitting a red light. The scenery shifted, revealing a complex formation spanning over ten zhang [approximately 33 meters]. It was a formation that was complex and incomprehensible just by looking at it.
However, what caught Han Li’s eye was the jade coffin in the center. The entire coffin was made of flawless, white, and sparkling Cold Jade, an invaluable material.
Without needing to ask, he knew that the body for Lian Luo was inside.
As far as Han Li knew, the physical body used for the Soul Reversal Technique had extremely strict requirements. Not only the spiritual root attribute but also the time of birth, the time of death, and whether the person died with resentment, leaving behind residual energy, all had to be considered.
While he was examining the jade coffin, Yuan Yao, with an extremely cautious expression, took out a black wooden box from her bosom, placed it on top of the jade coffin, and immediately stepped back.
Yuan Yao looked up at the sky and then asked Han Li for a favor.
“In two hours, it will be the time when the Yin energy is at its peak. If we start the Soul Reversal Technique then, it will take about two or three days. I’ll be relying on you during that time, Brother Han.”
Han Li nodded and looked around the valley.
“It seems that there isn’t enough of a protective barrier here besides the Illusion Formation. Isn’t it dangerous?”
“I know, but I don’t have any suitable formation tools on hand right now, and I’m short on time, so I have no choice but to take the risk.”
“If that’s the case, I’ll take care of it. It won’t be very powerful, but I’ll set up a few sets of formation tools for defense.”
Since he was doing a good deed, he intended to help without holding back. Naturally, Yuan Yao looked pleased.
“To think you’re also proficient in formations, I feel even more at ease. Then, please do so, Brother Han.”
Han Li just smiled faintly and immediately floated into the air to survey the terrain. After a while, when he had a plan in mind, he slowly returned to his original position.
“There isn’t much time, so I’ll set up the formations right away.”
As soon as he finished speaking, his hands spread out, and a dozen giant puppet monkeys appeared. He distributed the formation tools he had taken out from his storage pouch, and formations began to be set up in various places.
Yuan Yao, who had been watching the puppets with curious eyes for a while, also turned her attention away and began her own work.
The Soul Reversal Technique was by no means a simple technique, so she had to be cautious. She re-examined the huge formation she had already prepared, making sure there wasn’t a single flaw.
Han Li used a dozen puppets to set up five formations in just one hour. They wouldn’t be able to stop Core Formation cultivators, but Foundation Establishment cultivators wouldn’t be able to easily invade.
Yuan Yao’s work in the center of the valley was also nearing its end. She placed spirit stones in various parts of the formation and shot incantations into the eyes of the formation, making it seem as if it would activate at any moment.
Whoosh.
A black light flashed, and an eerie aura covered the area. As the black auras gathered towards the jade coffin in the center of the formation, Yuan Yao, with a satisfied expression, shot an incantation to stop the operation of the formation.
She walked towards Han Li with a smile.
“Everything is normal.”
“Miss Yuan, I’ll ask one last time, are you really going to give up your Core Formation and your growth as a cultivator? There’s no chance you’ll reach the Core Formation stage again.”
“It’s something I have to do even if it means death. After all, I’m only alive now thanks to Senior Sister.”
Yuan Yao calmly continued, brushing back the hair that had fallen over her face as she moved around busily.
“Brother Han, you don’t know the relationship between me and Senior Sister, so you’re saying that. We’ve grown up together since we were young, and we’ve been through thick and thin for decades. We’re closer than real sisters.
When we killed the young master of the Qingyang Sect, Senior Sister took the final blow for me, which is why she’s in this situation now. If that hadn’t happened, I would be the one in the Soul Nourishing Wood right now. As long as Senior Sister Lian Luo’s nascent soul isn’t scattered, I don’t care about my dantian [energy center] being destroyed.”
Han Li’s expression changed slightly, but he didn’t try to persuade her any further. Yuan Yao, who had returned to the formation and sat in front of the jade coffin, waited for the right time.
The two were silent for a while, but the woman, who had been watching the sky to gauge the time, stood up first.
“The time has come, so I will begin the technique. Regardless of the success or failure of this Soul Reversal Technique, I am truly grateful to Brother Han for helping me. Please accept Yuan Yao’s gratitude first.”
She bowed deeply to Han Li and then, without hesitation, extended her hands to activate the formation. Han Li, letting out a long sigh at the sight, silently walked out of the mountain valley.
He stopped not far from the valley and looked at the situation inside.
Kieeeek!
Already, a huge vortex of Yin energy was swirling around the formation, covering the sky with dark clouds, and a faint ghostly wail was being transmitted. Just by looking at it, one could feel how heaven-defying the Soul Reversal Technique was.
With a blank expression, Han Li sat cross-legged there and slowly spread his consciousness to monitor the movements of the sea around the island.
* * *
Half a day later, Han Li, who had been sitting still, narrowed his brows and let out an absurd laugh.
He seemed to understand why Yuan Yao had asked him to be her protector. He knew the Soul Reversal Technique was a noisy technique, but this was beyond his imagination.
The mountain valley was filled with sand and rocks due to the Yin energy storm, and it was impossible to see what was happening inside. The ghostly wail was only getting louder with time.
The piercing black light that was pouring out from the center was so strong that it made his heart feel cold. But what really surprised Han Li was the dark cloud that had formed over the island, spanning over ten li [approximately 5 kilometers]!
The dark cloud, filled with immense Yin energy, was constantly causing thunder and lightning, as if the heavens were pointing at this place, scolding Yuan Yao’s technique and causing a constant uproar.
With such an extraordinary anomaly, all the cultivators active in the nearby sea area would be surprised.
In any case, such phenomena usually occurred when a great treasure appeared or when someone was using a technique that defied the will of heaven, so everyone would be curious about what was happening.
Just as Han Li was lost in thought, he suddenly raised his head and began to gaze into the distance.
* * *
From the southwest direction of the island, seven or eight streaks of light appeared and stopped just over ten li away.
Except for the white-haired Foundation Establishment elder who was leading the group, the rest were young Qi Refining men and women. They were all wearing the same navy blue clothes, indicating that they were disciples of the same sect.
The elder looked ahead with an uneasy expression. Then, a female disciple in her early twenties spoke up.
“Junior Uncle So, let’s go and check it out. We don’t even know what kind of treasure has appeared!”
“Hye-ryeong, your problem is that you’re too hasty. Judging by the anomaly, even if a treasure has appeared, it’s likely to be a cursed weapon with demonic energy. Moreover, if we were to intrude while some old devil is practicing a demonic secret technique, we’d only be going to our deaths.”
The woman still seemed to have something to say, but she lowered her head and didn’t speak further. Then, another disciple looked at the dark cloud-covered island and cautiously asked.
“Then, are we just going to wait here?”
“Don’t worry, others will surely appear with such a commotion. We’ll observe what they do and then move when we see an opportunity. The reason our Sun Sect has survived until now is because we’ve always been cautious. Even in the face of great benefits, we must think before we act to preserve our lives, wouldn’t you agree?”
The elder lectured his young disciples, not taking his eyes off the island. As expected, not long after the elder finished speaking, two streaks of light, one yellow and one green, flew in from the other side of the island and stopped about a hundred zhang away from the elder’s group.
The light disappeared, and a man and a woman appeared. A sweet female voice was heard.
“If it isn’t Fellow Daoist So of the Sun Sect. Do you know what’s happening on that island?”
The wooden-faced man was dressed in black, and the woman was looking at the elder with a beautiful face.
The elder also recognized the man and woman and greeted them with a beaming smile.
“So it’s Fellow Daoists Mei. I also discovered the anomaly from afar and arrived here not long ago. Since you two have a wide range of knowledge, can you tell what kind of omen this is?”
“You’re too modest. How could my brother and I know what you don’t? However, judging by the strong Yin energy, even if a treasure has appeared, it doesn’t seem to be a good omen.”
While the woman was chattering, the man next to her simply nodded and didn’t open his mouth. The elder, not minding this, cleared his throat and was about to say something when a sound like a flute was heard in the distance, and another green streak of light was approaching. The beautiful face of Miss Mei subtly changed at the sound, but she immediately regained her composure.
Elder So also glanced at her for a moment, and the woman’s brother next to her had a grim expression. A moment later, surprisingly, a young man flew in on a jade flute. He had a handsome appearance and was quite dashing in his white fluttering clothes.
The white-clothed young man stopped, and the sound of the flute ceased. He looked at Miss Mei and called out quite affectionately.
“I knew Miss Mei would be here.”
“Fellow Daoist Bu, you’ve come too.”
The woman was barely smiling, but her face showed that she was not welcoming him at all. The middle-aged man next to the woman opened his mouth for the first time.
“It’s clear that my sister has said she won’t be your partner, so why do you bother her every time? Are you perhaps relying on your Core Formation master?”
“I sincerely like Miss Mei. Before she chooses another partner, I will show her my heart and definitely move her.”
The white-clothed man was looking at the woman with a dazed look, clearly infatuated. At his direct words, the woman’s face turned red, and she didn’t look at the white-clothed man again. Only her brother was glaring at the man with a wooden face.
Elder So, after observing them, suddenly changed the topic.
“Hmm, this is not the time for this. As time passes, more people will gather. If it’s really a treasure, we should move quickly. If a Core Formation senior appears, there will be no way for us.”
At those words, the three cultivators, who had been distracted, focused their attention. The white-clothed man looked at the island, and his expression changed.
“The strange phenomenon on the island is changing.”
# 312