Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 368

Han Li helped the scholar and the giant to their feet and looked around.

“I heard there’s a portrait of me here. If it’s here, bring it to me. I’m curious who left it behind.”

The scholar immediately replied,

“It’s right here. Please wait a moment, and I’ll bring it.”

He hurried to one of the walls and pressed a brick in the corner. With a ‘clunk,’ the brick rotated, revealing silk scrolls inside.

Han Li strode over and examined the painting on the scroll. It depicted a young man, about seventeen or eighteen years old, smiling as he looked somewhere. It was Han Li with a youthful face at first glance.

The middle-aged scholar respectfully stepped back and quietly explained,

“I heard that this scroll was left to our family by an ancestor of the Lyu family, but I don’t know who painted it.”

Whether he heard it or not, Han Li’s gaze moved to the next painting. It was his father’s face, looking much older than he remembered.

Some portraits depicted an old man with white hair, and it took Han Li a while to realize it was his older brother. The scholar and the giant discreetly did not disturb him as he flipped through the scrolls, lost in reminiscence.

Occasionally, he would mutter something, but no sound reached their ears. Suddenly, a blinding light burst from Han Li’s body.

“Hah!”

“……!”

The two were startled and instinctively squeezed their eyes shut. When they opened them, Han Li had already disappeared, but his voice lingered in their ears.

“Although I have cultivated and grown stronger, I have also made enemies of powerful individuals. To avoid unnecessary trouble, you must keep our meeting a secret for the rest of your lives, and you must never reveal the Seogeum Spirit Sword [a powerful magical sword] to outsiders.

I will now focus solely on cultivation and will not interfere in the affairs of the Han family again, so you all should manage on your own!”

Han Li’s voice faded away like dissipating smoke.

Han Li was already flying dozens of miles away from Oryeogu.

Although the current Han family was connected to him, his true family was limited to his parents and siblings.

Even though the scholar and the giant had treated him with constant respect, he felt no familial affection. This, combined with the completely changed appearance of Cheongwoojin and the mountain village, made the distance even greater.

Still, by visiting his hometown once, he was able to shake off even the faint lingering attachments in his heart, so it was not a wasted journey. Han Li silently set his direction and increased his speed.

A few days later, Han Li passed through Namju and briefly visited Gawonseong, where old memories remained. As a result, he realized that Gawonseong had also not escaped the passage of time, and everything had changed.

Not only had Sonigu and Sapyeongbang completely disappeared, but the Osaekmun [Five Colors Sect], which had once dominated the Namju area, had also vanished long ago. A force called Cheonilhoe, which did not even exist 100 years ago, had taken their place and was wielding power.

If his memory was correct, the spiritual mountain, Yeongsuchan, a capital sect, was behind Osaekmun. Just before the demonic invasion, Yeongsuchan had refused to become part of the Eoryeongjong [Spirit Control Sect] and had rebelled.

With Wolguk already in the hands of the demonic Guiryeongmun [Ghost Spirit Sect], the fall of Osaekmun was a natural consequence. He had no way of knowing what had happened to Mun Ok-ju and Lee Young-ah, and it was too long ago to find out any news.

Well, Sonigu had sworn to serve him as his master, but he had given him more benefits than he had ever used him, so there was no reason to be concerned.

Han Li immediately flew from Gawonseong back towards Wonmuguk. He was planning to return to Nakwoonjong [Cloudfall Sect] after passing through Wonmuguk.

However, before he could even leave Gawonseong, his face hardened, and he stopped in mid-air. Han Li’s eyes narrowed as he turned his head to stare at something.

At the same time, a group hurrying along a path two hundred miles away also stopped in mid-air. Among them, two women in white hesitated to move forward, looking at each other.

“Senior Uncles, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

An old man, noticing the strangeness of the women in white, asked cautiously. Ryu Ok, with willow-like eyebrows and long eyes, replied sharply,

“Yes! I was trying to sense the location, but the Jimokryeongyeong [Spirit Tracking Mirror] suddenly stopped moving. Could it be that the opponent noticed we were following them?”

“That’s impossible. No matter how powerful a Nascent Soul cultivator is, they shouldn’t be able to find us from this distance. Or… could it be that the flight technique you used triggered the restriction on the Jimokryeongyeong, making the opponent realize something was wrong?”

“No, our technique was personally taught by our Ancestor, so how could that be? Unless the opponent’s cultivation has reached the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm, there should be absolutely no problem. Even a normal Nascent Soul cultivator who can see through a hundred miles would be shocked, and we are hundreds of miles away from the opponent.”

Ryu Ok shook her head, trying to dispel her ominous thoughts.

“But Senior Uncle Ryu… the opponent…”

While the woman in green among the four Foundation Establishment cultivators was speaking with a worried face, Ham Woon-ji, who had been silent while forming hand seals, shouted with a surprised expression.

“Oh no, the spirit is moving. It’s flying towards us!”

“Towards us? Did they really realize we were chasing them?”

Ryu Ok’s beautiful face twisted in panic, and she hurriedly formed hand seals to check the location. A moment later, a chill settled on her face.

“The person who subdued the spirit is flying towards us at an incredible speed. There’s no doubt they are a Nascent Soul cultivator.”

Ham Woon-ji, who had been lost in thought, calmly offered a solution to everyone.

“We are no match for them, so we must run. If we face them head-on, we will all die. In my memory, the Guiryeongmun’s Namju branch is nearby, so let’s go there first. Although they are a sect we have a conflict with, it’s better to be trapped in the Guiryeongmun’s barrier than to fight an unknown Nascent Soul cultivator. No matter how powerful a Nascent Soul cultivator is, they won’t openly attack the Guiryeongmun branch.”

The giant in green, upon hearing that a Nascent Soul cultivator was chasing them, turned pale and trembled before quickly agreeing with the suggestion.

“Senior Uncle Ham is right! Let’s run quickly! We’ll be late if we delay.”

“Hmph! Why are you so impatient! We will naturally hurry even if you don’t rush us. If the six of us use the Spirit Union Technique to combine our magical power, we can double our escape speed. Quickly cast the spell!”

Ryu Ok coldly glared at the giant and said this, and he could no longer speak.

Then, with Ham Woon-ji and Ryu Ok at the center, the six cultivators cast their spells and took out various magical treasures and artifacts. Then, everyone’s spiritual energy was connected, and they began to race through the sky.

On the other side, Han Li was cutting through the sky with all his might, his face grim.

He didn’t know exactly how powerful his consciousness had become. He only knew that if he concentrated highly and borrowed the power of the Great Evolution Technique, which had reached the fourth level, he could easily spread his senses over a hundred miles and grasp the general movements of two or three hundred miles.

While flying in a certain direction, he suddenly detected a very subtle flow of spiritual energy. This strange spiritual power was lingering around his body and wouldn’t dissipate, which surprised Han Li.

It was such a subtle and strange energy that if his consciousness had been even slightly weaker, a normal Nascent Soul cultivator wouldn’t have noticed it. He didn’t know what was happening, but it was clear that something troublesome had occurred.

According to his guess, either the annihilation of the Bu family in Wonmuguk or the killing of the Guiryeongmun cultivators in the Taeaksan Mountains had caused the problem.

Han Li immediately spread his consciousness and searched the area within a radius of two hundred miles for any unusual signs. Fortunately, he discovered that several cultivators were strangely chasing him.

They were too far away to identify them, but he decided to deal with them immediately and changed direction.

After all, even if there were two or three Core Formation cultivators among the group, killing them would be as easy as putting out a candle!

Now, a thick yellow streak was desperately fleeing, and a dozen or so blue streaks were chasing behind it.

In a very short time, Han Li had covered over a hundred miles, and the Lyu woman, sensing this, was becoming terrified. At this rate, they would be caught before they could even enter the Guiryeongmun branch’s territory.

In her haste, she was about to consult with her fellow disciple Ham Woon-ji, who was flying next to her, when Ham Woon-ji revealed a look of joy and murmured softly,

“There are Guiryeongmun cultivators waiting for us ahead.”

“Guiryeongmun cultivators?”

Ryu Ok’s mind snapped back at Ham Woon-ji’s voice, and the four Eoryeongjong cultivators, including the old man, couldn’t hide their joy. Even if the Guiryeongmun cultivators couldn’t stop the Nascent Soul old monster, they could buy them some time!

A moment later, a dozen or so black dots appeared before their eyes.

Ryu Ok was relieved by this, but she also glanced at Ham Woon-ji, wary that she had sensed the Guiryeongmun cultivators before her.

After all, there was only one Jimokryeongyeong, so it would belong to either her or Ham Woon-ji. Although they were outwardly close fellow disciples, they were ultimately rivals competing for the opportunity to merge with the Jimokryeongyeong.

At this time, the six Eoryeongjong cultivators arrived in front of the Guiryeongmun cultivators, stopped their yellow energy, and revealed their true forms. The opponents, who already knew they were Eoryeongjong cultivators, were on guard.

“Hmm? Aren’t you Senior Sister Ham and Senior Sister Ryu of the Eoryeongjong? What brings you all the way to Wolguk?”

Among the Guiryeongmun cultivators in black robes, three Core Formation cultivators stepped forward. It was a group of two men and one woman.

After carefully examining the three Guiryeongmun cultivators, she saw a calm-faced man in black, a man in a flamboyant silk robe with a frivolous look, and an elegant woman in her thirties.

“Isn’t that Senior Brother Soon from the Soul-Locking True Lord’s lineage? What a coincidence!”

Ryu Ok immediately smiled, recognizing that all three cultivators were disciples of the Soul-Locking True Lord. However, the black-robed cultivators merely cast cold glances.

The elegant woman among them openly expressed her dissatisfaction.

“What coincidence? What is the reason for the Eoryeongjong disciples, who should be in Wonmuguk, to secretly infiltrate Wolguk? Isn’t this an act of disrespect towards our Guiryeongmun?”

“Senior Sister Im, please don’t misunderstand. Senior Sister Ham and I came to Wolguk this time to carry out our master’s orders. It’s true that we didn’t inform your sect in advance due to the urgency, but we were planning to stay for only a few days before leaving.”

The black-robed cultivator stared at Ryu Ok and asked coldly,

“It’s not my concern why you came to Wolguk, but I need to know the reason why you visited the Taeaksan Mountains a few days ago?”

This time, Ham Woon-ji frowned and retorted,

“The Taeaksan Mountains? Are you referring to the mountain range where the Hwangpung Valley [Yellow Wind Valley], one of the seven great sects of Wolguk, used to be?”

“So you admit that you went there?”

Not only Soon, but also the man in the silk robe and the woman’s faces darkened, showing hostility. Ham Woon-ji and Ryu Ok exchanged glances at this.

Neither of them were fools, so they realized from their tone that something bad had happened.

# 370