Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 389

Ku-kwang!

The Thunderfire Awl instantly exploded, its light extinguished, and the crystal wall regained its original stability. The old woman’s face paled, revealing her anger.

It was only natural that she felt bitter; the precious treasure she had obtained after so much hardship was destroyed like this. The others were just as surprised. However, only Lian Yu’e glanced at Han Li with a thoughtful expression.

The old woman, her face flushed, regained her composure after a short while.

“I’ve shown a ridiculous sight. The Tai Miao Divine Restriction, one of the Ten Great Ancient Restrictions, is indeed formidable. If any other cultivators wish to try, please do!”

The old woman turned her head and gave a wry smile. Nan Longhou, whose delighted expression had completely disappeared, sighed.

“It was almost a success, what a pity. As Madam Tai said, are there no others among you who would like to try?”

However, the other cultivators, having already seen Madam Tai lose one of her precious treasures, had long lost the desire to try.

There was no reason to ruin a precious treasure by attempting a challenge that was bound to fail.

Wang Tiangu, for his part, stood on one side of the main hall without saying a word. It was true that he had done some research on ancient formations, but he had never broken a restriction known as one of the Ten Great Ancients [a set of particularly powerful and ancient magical barriers].

Then, Han Li, who had been silent all along, opened his mouth very calmly.

“I was wondering if I could give it a try, would that be alright?”

His nonchalant manner made even Wang Tiangu and Old Man Yun look at him with surprise. Nan Longhou was also surprised but welcomed him with great satisfaction.

“Of course! Cultivator Han, please feel free to try!”

Han Li stepped forward and headed towards a different part of the wall, not the one the old woman had attacked.

Han Li stood in front of the crystal wall and, without taking any action, spread his fingers. He controlled the spiritual power in his body and created a blue sword energy several inches long at his fingertips.

The wall touched by the blue sword energy showed no damage, as if a feather had brushed past it. However, Han Li was not at all disappointed and spread all five fingers, placing his palm against the crystal wall.

Everyone was puzzled by Han Li’s strange behavior, but no one interfered.

Unknown to them, a faint blue light flickered deep in Han Li’s eyes as he deliberately turned his back to them. He was diligently searching for something deep within the crystal wall.

Half a quarter of an hour passed like this, but no one urged him or said anything. Then, Han Li let out a long breath, and the blue light in his eyes disappeared.

Han Li brushed his storage pouch and took out a bunch of things.

Everyone’s eyes widened as they saw more than a dozen formation flags [small flags used in magical formations].

‘What is he trying to do?’

“I didn’t know that Cultivator Han was also well-versed in formations. Perhaps he spent the time just now figuring out how to break the Tai Miao Divine Restriction?”

Amidst the confusion, the white-robed cultivator asked as if he understood.

“I haven’t figured out how to break it, but I have some experience researching similar ancient formations. I’m just going to give it a try.”

Han Li answered nonchalantly and opened his mouth, blowing blue spiritual energy into the formation flags. According to his will, the formation flags floated up, pointing towards the crystal wall.

Han Li made a hand seal, and the dozen or so flags began to move. After a while, the flags formed a strange array, which seemed to contain complex and profound meanings.

He chanted an incantation and shot more than a dozen hand seals from his hand towards the flags. At the same time, the flags trembled and shone in various colors, emitting rays of light at each other, connecting in strange shapes.

Wang Tiangu, Nan Longhou, and others who were well-versed in formations frowned at the sight. It was a technique that was familiar yet completely unseen, making their minds complicated.

However, Han Li seemed determined not to let them study his formation array, as he let out a low murmur.

Then, white light burst out of the formation like crazy, and those who had been staring at it intently involuntarily closed their eyes tightly.

However, being experienced old monsters, they injected spiritual power into their eyes and immediately opened them again.

As a result, the formation flags were neatly embedded in the blue crystal wall, looking as natural as if they had been there from the beginning.

Nan Longhou and the white-robed old man were greatly delighted and raised their expectations of Han Li. Wang Tiangu’s expression changed slightly before quickly returning to normal.

Wang Xian, who was standing behind him, seemed greatly surprised, showing his complicated feelings, and Lian Yu’e was staring at the crystal wall without blinking, her face slightly contorted.

At this moment, Han Li moved closer to the crystal wall, placed both hands on the wall, and emitted light. As if the formation flags were responding, they emitted a colorful light, and the entire crystal wall instantly shimmered with a strange light.

Under the gaze of the others, Han Li took his palms off the wall, swayed, and headed towards another wall.

After staring at it for a while, he took out another bunch of formation flags and repeated the same process. After a burst of white light, the scene of flags embedded in the wall unfolded again.

Having experienced it once, everyone was now injecting spiritual power into their eyes and observing intently. Everyone clicked their tongues in admiration as Han Li easily took over the crystal walls one by one.

By the time he had finished installing the flags on each of the east, west, south, and north walls, half an hour had already passed, but no one was impatient or raised any objections.

It would be even stranger if such a powerful ancient restriction were broken in an instant. Of course, Han Li’s smooth and uninterrupted movements also instilled confidence in everyone.

Having completed all the preparations, Han Li walked straight to the center of the main hall. He flipped his palm, and a cyan formation disc appeared.

Han Li threw hand seals into the disc, and the flags installed on all sides and the disc began to shine simultaneously.

“Break!”

The moment his voice rang out, the entire main hall was filled with light as if enveloped in a thick fog, and a piercing resonance grew louder and louder.

Kuru-rung!

The light scattered, and for a moment, the main hall became pitch black.

When the darkness cleared, the other cultivators discovered that the strange crystal walls on all sides had completely disappeared, and only ordinary stone walls remained. A wide, fan-shaped stone door had also appeared on one side of the stone wall.

“I never knew that Cultivator Han was so skilled in formations! He really broke this enormous restriction! Very well, after we find the treasures, Cultivator Yun and I will choose our treasures first, and then you can choose one as well.”

Nan Longhou was overjoyed and quite excited. The white-robed old man also smiled broadly as he looked at the stone door, his eyes burning with anticipation.

“Brother Nan Long, let’s go in and see what treasures are inside! I hope there aren’t any other restrictions inside?”

Cultivator Long was also in a good mood, but he was a little worried.

“There’s no way, don’t worry. According to Merchant Chang Kun’s will, there are only two restrictions left in this place.”

Nan Longhou said confidently and strode towards the stone door, waving his sleeve.

The stone door opened easily, and the sight that was revealed made the other cultivators throw away their worries and hurriedly followed Nan Longhou inside.

“What is this…”

The old woman murmured in surprise at the scene inside the stone door, and the others were just as puzzled.

Behind the stone door, a space several times larger than the original main hall was hidden, and in the middle of it, a charming pavilion was built.

The two-story pavilion, made of carved white jade, was about ten feet high and very elaborate and beautiful. And above the gate of the pavilion, the large characters ‘Jade Pavilion’ were written.

A pavilion built inside a cave was truly bizarre.

In front of the Jade Pavilion, there was a jet-black ceremonial table, and on top of the old table, a silver-white scroll several feet long was placed, shimmering with silver light.

There were no other objects or doors leading to other places in the wide main hall.

‘Are the treasures hidden inside the pavilion?’

Everyone naturally had this thought.

Nan Longhou and the white-robed old man exchanged glances, and then the white-robed old man cautiously approached the ceremonial table first. The other cultivators watched him but did not stop him.

Old Man Yun hesitated and did not immediately grab the scroll with his hand, but instead, he blew out a white mist from his mouth. Then, the scroll, enveloped in the mist, floated into the air and slowly unfolded. It was a painting of a scholar with a sword on his back, looking up at the sky.

“Could that be Merchant Chang Kun?”

A stoic cultivator asked after looking at the painting.

“Perhaps it is. He is enshrined here, after all. However, it doesn’t look like a very valuable item.”

Wang Tiangu looked at the pavilion with shining eyes.

“This old man will try it out!”

After thinking for a while, Old Man Yun made hand seals with both hands and shot red hand seals at the painting. The scroll emitted a silver light but quickly returned to its original state.

“It’s a bit strange, but… it might just be an ordinary painting.”

Old Man Yun pondered as he looked at the scroll, which showed no particular reaction to his hand seals.

“Then, how about we keep it for now and decide who gets it after we find the other treasures?”

As always, Nan Longhou made a suggestion.

“Very well. I agree with Cultivator Nan Long’s words.”

The old woman chuckled as she looked at the scroll and agreed. Since everyone was looking forward to the other treasures, no one was obsessed with the scroll.

In conclusion, Old Man Yun carefully put the scroll into his storage pouch.

“Then let’s go! We need to check out the pavilion!”

Nan Longhou looked at the pavilion with eager eyes.

The group circled around the ceremonial table and approached the tightly closed gate of the pavilion, and this time, Nan Longhou hurriedly threw the door open.

Squeak.

Even before the group could enter, their eyes were drawn to the sparkling light.

Inside the first floor of the pavilion, there were three long, slender ebony tables, and the objects piled on top of them were emitting a colorful glow.

This time, not only Nan Longhou and the white-robed old man but also the other cultivators were overjoyed. However, since they were all experienced, they did not do anything rash that would make the other cultivators wary.

The entire group suppressed the intense desires in their hearts and calmly entered the pavilion, carefully examining the treasures.

The three ebony tables were placed side by side in the middle of the first floor, so the treasures were visible at a glance.

On the first table, there were about a dozen or so ancient treasures and magic treasures emitting a brilliant light. On the second table, there were piles of rare materials and fist-sized lumps, including crystals and various jewels.

The amount of items on the third table was the smallest. There were a few small medicine bottles, and it seemed that they contained elixirs [magical potions].

In Han Li’s gaze, which was scanning the treasures, there was no sign of joy or sorrow.

The other cultivators, while suppressing their impulses and pretending to be calm, were assessing the value of the treasures and racking their brains more passionately than ever.

They had to decide in advance so that they could choose the best items when they were distributed.

After a while, Nan Longhou stepped forward and, representing everyone, examined each treasure. The others also cooperated with him, discussing the uses and origins of the treasures, but no one knew what they were thinking inside.

In the meantime, Han Li tilted his head this way and that, looking around at things that were not treasures, and apart from a cushion and a lush potted plant by the window, there was really nothing else.

# 391