Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 394

The Mo Lan tribe held shamans in almost religious regard, and it seemed commoners considered it a great honor to die for them.

Han Li sighed at this and waved his hand. Immediately, a faint blue protective barrier enveloped the inside of the carriage, and the noise of the Mo Lan people vanished instantly.

“Silvermoon, report what you’ve gained!”

Han Li flicked his sleeve, summoning the white fox. Silvermoon spun in the air before landing in front of him.

“I’m not entirely sure either. Master, as you know, there were quite a few treasures on the first floor, but I couldn’t take them without being noticed. However, there were originally six jade boxes on the second floor, and I managed to take half of them! I deliberately left half behind so as not to draw suspicion from other cultivators. Otherwise, it could have brought trouble.”

The white fox giggled, taking out three jade boxes from her mouth and placing them in front of Han Li. Han Li looked at the jade boxes, then reached into his waist and took out another one.

“Merchant Chang Kun left behind a total of six jade boxes, and four of them ended up in my hands. It was a good decision to come here.”

“But Master, you were very bold. You secretly sent me in while Nascent Soul cultivators were watching. Weren’t you worried about getting caught?”

Silvermoon sighed, as if her heart was still pounding.

“Haha! What is there to worry about? If we get caught, I’ll just use the Blood Shadow Escape [a powerful escape technique] and run away. Besides, the chances of success were quite high. I was just worried that you might get caught while taking the treasures and hiding, but today I see that your stealth techniques are beyond my expectations.”

Han Li chuckled, but his gaze towards Silvermoon was meaningful.

“Although our Silvermoon clan’s stealth techniques are extraordinary, the jade boxes themselves have the effect of concealing spiritual energy, which is why we weren’t discovered. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been able to escape the old monsters’ eyes.”

Silvermoon smiled knowingly.

Han Li smiled gently and didn’t press her further. Soon after, a blue light flashed from the palm of his hand holding the jade box, and as he clenched his five fingers, he completely absorbed the white light that had been shining from the jade box.

Crack.

The lid of the jade box opened automatically, revealing a pale navy jade slip inside. Han Li stared intently at the jade slip, then exhaled softly before finally picking it up and injecting his consciousness into it.

The little fox’s black eyes sparkled as she looked up at Han Li, appearing very intrigued. However, as time passed, Han Li’s expression remained unchanged.

Silvermoon blinked, looking puzzled.

After a full quarter of an hour, Han Li withdrew his consciousness, his brow furrowed in thought. He carefully put away the jade slip and picked up the second jade box without saying anything.

Silvermoon was very curious but didn’t ask.

The second jade box was opened in the same way, and this time, a pitch-black ring with no luster was inside.

“Is it a treasure?”

“It doesn’t seem like it. I don’t feel much spiritual energy.”

Han Li wasn’t sure either, seeing Silvermoon’s curiosity. He picked up the small ring with two fingers and observed it closely.

“The material is a bit unusual, but it’s just an ordinary magic tool. I’ll have to find out what it’s used for.”

“Just a magic tool?”

A look of disappointment flashed in Silvermoon’s eyes.

“Don’t worry. It’s something Merchant Chang Kun possessed, so it must have another use.”

“Master, let’s look at the rest quickly. Who knows what treasures might be inside!”

The white fox stretched her neck, full of anticipation.

Han Li opened the remaining jade boxes one after another, and inside each was a green bottle and a fist-sized purplish-red object.

He casually took out the green bottle and smelled it, and an unusual odor stung his nose. Han Li’s expression changed drastically, and he quickly sealed the bottle again, looking at it with a strange gaze before putting it away in his storage pouch.

Then, he picked up the purplish-red object and touched it, and it was incredibly soft.

“Oh!”

The round object suddenly emitted a beam of light, and Han Li was surprised and focused his consciousness.

After a while, he flicked his hand, and the ball of light turned into a purplish-red mist, swirling before returning to its original shape and falling down as he made a hand seal. It was a very thin purplish-red net, made of mesh with a very fine weave.

“This is the Violet Cloud Net! It’s a rather famous ancient treasure from the ancient era.”

The white fox recognized the purplish-red net.

“You know about it? If it was famous… could it be a Heaven-Reaching Treasure [extremely powerful and rare treasures] too?”

For the first time in a while, Han Li showed a hint of joy, but he calmed himself and asked.

“It’s not. Although the Violet Cloud Net is top-grade among ancient treasures, it’s far inferior compared to a Heaven-Reaching Treasure! But in terms of defense, it’s infinitely useful. Depending on how it’s refined, it can cover an area from a hundred to even a thousand feet, making it a very rare wide-area defensive treasure. The highest-grade Violet Cloud Net can even protect all life within a hundred miles, but I don’t know if that’s true! Of course, when attacking, it can also unleash the Jade Yang True Fire to annihilate powerful enemies.”

Silvermoon explained as if it were a family heirloom.

“Silvermoon, you seem to know a lot about the Violet Cloud Net. Have you seen it before?”

Han Li asked, touching the soft net. At his words, Silvermoon fell silent, then gave a wry smile after a long while.

“Now that you mention it, Master, I think I had a Violet Cloud Net before I was refined into a spirit. That’s probably why I know so much about it.”

Silvermoon’s eyes wavered as she spoke. She seemed to remember something, but she shook her head with a gloomy expression.

“I’ve never heard of Merchant Chang Kun using the Violet Cloud Net, even though it’s so powerful. It must be a treasure he took from the Chuma Bone Cave. Unfortunately, there’s no information about the Chuma Bone Cave in the four jade boxes, so it’s probably in Nan Longhou’s hands.”

Although he said this, Han Li didn’t seem genuinely disappointed.

If he had obtained the secret of the Chuma Bone Cave, he would have had a chance to obtain great treasures in the future, but he would have also attracted a lot of attention. Moreover, if the news leaked, he would likely be attacked by numerous old monsters and even powerful forces.

It was difficult to gauge the benefits and drawbacks.

“Master, is there anything in that jade slip?”

Silvermoon finally couldn’t help but ask.

“The jade slip contains information about Merchant Chang Kun’s cultivation techniques. The Moon Gazing Art he mainly practiced is not something I can cultivate, but the other secret techniques and insights into cultivation will be helpful.”

At those words, Silvermoon quietly sighed.

Han Li put away the jade boxes again, gave Silvermoon some instructions, and then sat cross-legged, closing his eyes.

Silvermoon fearlessly nestled beside Han Li, curled up, and stared at some unseen point with her black eyes. They spent two days and nights like this within the Mo Lan tribe’s procession.

As soon as Han Li left the Mo Lan grasslands, he took Silvermoon and, like a ghost, slipped out of the procession and flew towards Tiannan.

Using his powerful spiritual sense to survey the situation within a hundred miles and avoiding any troublesome situations, he was able to reach Fengyuan Country of the Nine Nations Alliance.

Fengyuan Country was one of the three countries closest to the Mo Lan grasslands and was always stationed by cultivators of the Nine Nations Alliance. It seemed that the Nine Nations Alliance had temporarily retreated after being unprepared for the Mo Lan shamans’ attacks.

The true battle between the two sides had not yet begun.

Without further thought, Han Li chose a remote path and flew for three or four days. As he passed an unnamed mountain, he suddenly turned his head.

He had just sensed intense spiritual energy fluctuations not far away. Judging by the fierce aura and spiritual energy fluctuations, it was clear that cultivators were fighting.

As he examined the situation more closely, he found that one of the fluctuations was from a Nascent Soul cultivator [a high level of cultivation], and the other four or five were from Core Formation cultivators [a mid level of cultivation].

However, among the auras of the Core Formation cultivators, there was one that was familiar. Han Li had known these people before, but even after quickly racking his brain, he couldn’t recall who they were.

After hesitating for a moment, Han Li couldn’t resist his curiosity and quietly flew towards them. With his stealth techniques, it was a distance he could cover in an instant.

In front of him, various colors of spiritual power were exploding, accompanied by continuous booming sounds. The battle seemed to be very intense.

Five male and female cultivators in various attire were fighting together against one shaman.

Looking closely, the five Core Formation cultivators were doing their best to wield their natal magic tools, but they were unable to overcome the bald shaman in the middle wearing a yellow robe, and they were being pushed back by the aura he was emitting.

The shaman with a fierce face was in the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Although he hadn’t taken out any magic treasures, he was easily gaining the upper hand with his mysterious techniques and profound cultivation.

Moreover, it was clear that he wasn’t using lethal moves against the beautiful woman among the Core Formation cultivators, as he seemed to want to capture her alive. Otherwise, the five cultivators wouldn’t have been able to hold out until now.

Han Li recognized the beautiful woman as someone he had seen before, but his view was blocked by a fat old man, so he couldn’t see her face clearly.

Around the old man, silvery-white lightning flashed, and the magic treasure he wielded was also a giant sword that emitted lightning. His strength was the greatest among the five Core Formation cultivators.

‘That person? The world is truly strange!’

Han Li muttered, revealing a complex and subtle emotion as he recognized the fat old man’s techniques.

“You wench, are you still not giving up? If this venerable one didn’t need a woman to become the best furnace for my cultivation technique, you would have been dead long ago. If you don’t follow me now, you will regret it!”

The yellow-robed shaman, displeased with how long it was taking, spoke fiercely to the beautiful woman.

As he opened his mouth, a yellow feather fan appeared, emitting a spiritual light.

At that sight, the fat old man and the other Core Formation cultivators were all terrified. They knew that their opponent had been holding back until now. If the Nascent Soul shaman went all out, it was only a matter of time before they died.

So, the five of them hardened their faces and once again pushed their spiritual power to the maximum, increasing the power of their attacks. At the same time, the power of the five magic treasures increased instantly, scattering a good portion of the shaman’s yellow mist.

The shaman twitched his eyebrows, then spat out yellow essence towards the fan in the air and began to chant something.

The feather fan trembled as he chanted, then lightly flapped towards the cultivators.

At the same time, a tremendous gale blew, suddenly creating dozens of vortexes that engulfed the five Core Formation cultivators.

The magic treasures staggered in the air within the giant vortexes, and the cultivators trapped within the gale’s restrictions were unable to escape.

“Haha! If I show mercy, you should know your place. How can you be so unruly?”

The bald shaman laughed with a wicked look on his face.

As he clenched one hand in the air, a giant yellow hand appeared from within the vortex, trying to grab the beautiful woman. He planned to capture the woman first and then kill the rest.

The woman’s magic treasure was a flaming sword, but even as she saw the giant hand approaching, she couldn’t summon the magic treasure that had lost control in the gale. Her beautiful face turned pale in an instant.

The other cultivators also wanted to save the woman, but they could barely stand, so saving her was impossible. Only the obese old man, perhaps due to his deep cultivation, barely managed to unleash a few feet of lightning from his hand to attack the giant hand.

However, such an attack was futile.

Just as the woman was about to be captured, the giant hand disappeared in an instant, and at the same time, the vortexes that had trapped the other cultivators also slowed down rapidly and suddenly disappeared.

It was as if the gale and the giant hand had all been illusions.

Everyone was confused about what was happening and quickly looked at the bald shaman, but he was glaring at the empty air, furious.

# 396