Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 395

“Even if you broke through my Immortal’s magic, how long do you intend to hide?” The sinister yellow-robed sorcerer said, suppressing his anger. Right now, he didn’t care about the woman or the other Core Formation cultivators.

“It’s not that I’m hiding, but rather that your cultivation is insufficient to find me. It seems you haven’t been in the Nascent Soul stage for long,” a leisurely male voice echoed from the empty air. A blue light flashed, and a young man with an ordinary face appeared; it was naturally Han Li.

Seeing the five cultivators in danger, he had released the Azure Bamboo Sword Qi from afar to attack the feather magic treasure.

With the magic treasure attacked, the vortexes naturally had to disappear.

The cultivators, surprised by Han Li’s appearance, were greatly delighted when they sensed that he possessed Nascent Soul cultivation. A glimmer of hope for survival had appeared.

The female cultivator was the first to offer her respects from afar.

“Wan Bei, Seopyeong, thanks you for your life-saving grace!”

‘Seopyeong!’

Han Li glanced at her involuntarily, and something came to mind. However, now was not the time for such talk, so he waved his hand to acknowledge her greeting.

It seemed that neither the woman nor the old man recognized him. After all, they had only met once, and it would be quite something to recognize him after 200 years.

Having finished his thoughts, he spoke calmly to the yellow-robed sorcerer.

“Are you still not leaving? Are you waiting for a send-off?”

The bald sorcerer, as if enraged, burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! You’re just in the early Nascent Soul stage, yet you dare to be so arrogant. It seems I, Dam Mo, will have to show you what’s what!”

After speaking, the bald sorcerer formed a hand seal and extended his hand downwards, and two yellow bullet-like objects shot down to the ground.

Han Li paused slightly but didn’t bother to stop him, watching his actions as if he were an interested spectator.

As the sorcerer chanted, a yellow mist billowed up like clouds, enveloping him.

“Go!” A sinister voice came from within the yellow mist, and Han Li became wary of his surroundings, but nothing happened.

‘……?’

At that moment, a sound of the ground collapsing, ‘Kuururung,’ came from below. Han Li, sensing it with his divine sense, was slightly surprised and immediately flicked his sleeve, sending two massive blue light streaks, several tens of feet long, downwards.

Soon, Han Li frowned. The sword qi attack had failed.

*Puwak! Puwak!* Following that, two yellow earth dragons, each over ten feet long, rose from the ground, enveloping and protecting the bald sorcerer and the yellow mist.

“What is this?”

The two yellow earth dragons seemed to be made of stone all over, yet they moved like living creatures. However, all their energy was concentrated in the yellow bullets shining between their brows.

“Experience the power of the Soul-Binding Beasts! Go!” The sorcerer, laughing maniacally from within the yellow mist, sent out a hand seal, and the earth dragons flew towards Han Li with great momentum.

Han Li didn’t hesitate and exhaled as if sighing.

A wisp of Azure Glacial Flame shot out from his mouth, splitting into two in mid-air, aiming for the heads of the incoming earth dragons.

*Chwareureuk!* In the blink of an eye, the earth dragons stiffened as if they had donned blue ice armor, stopping several tens of feet away from Han Li.

*Peong! Peong!* Immediately, the sword qi, flashing with blue light, turned the earth dragons into dust, but Han Li reached out and retrieved only the two yellow bullets.

“Show me what else you have. I’m quite interested in sorcerers’ spirit techniques anyway,” Han Li said calmly, having casually tossed the yellow bullets into his storage pouch. Seeing the earth dragons crumble in an instant, the yellow mist became silent.

“…Which sect’s elder are you, and what is your name? I’ve never heard of anyone with your appearance among the Nascent Soul cultivators. Could it be that you haven’t been in the Nascent Soul stage for even 100 years?” After a long while, the sorcerer’s voice was heard, lacking the menacing aura from before.

“There’s no need to remember a nobody like me. Since you’re not attacking, shall I leave then?” Han Li’s face turned cold, and his hand brushed against his spirit beast pouch.

Golden light surged from the spirit beast pouch. This time, he intended to attack the enemy with the golden Devouring Beetles he had carefully nurtured.

“Devouring Beetles!! To possess so many Devouring Beetles!” Contrary to Han Li’s expectations, before he could even launch an attack with the Devouring Beetles, the yellow-robed sorcerer immediately recognized the spirit insects and became terrified.

Without a second thought, he immediately turned and fled, transforming into a yellow streak of light. His speed was so fast that Han Li decided to give up the chase after some thought.

However, it bothered him that the bald sorcerer, who didn’t seem to have high cultivation, had recognized the Devouring Beetles at once.

Han Li, thinking it was strange, called back the golden Devouring Beetles and put them back into the spirit beast pouch before calmly returning to the Core Formation cultivators.

“We are at a loss for words to express our gratitude for saving us! May we know your esteemed name? I am Loe Manhak from the Yellow Wind Valley!” The obese old man hurriedly stepped forward and bowed deeply. The woman, who had already revealed herself as Seopyeong, and the other cultivators did the same.

“I am Seok Jeun from the Great Sword Gate, Dang Myeonghwa from the Eomwol Sect, and Jeon Hwan from the Cheongwol Fortress!” The three introduced themselves almost in unison, bowing with extreme politeness.

‘Senior!’

Han Li stroked his chin, his expression becoming strange.

The obese old man was the ‘Loe Sabak’ with whom he had once exchanged pill recipes and spirit herbs. For such an old man to call him senior…

It was a natural occurrence in the cultivation world, but it still felt strange. The beautiful woman named Seopyeong was also someone he had met before; she was the ‘Seop Sajae’ who had appeared protecting the Moyong brothers, who possessed thunder-attribute spirit roots.

Although he didn’t have any particular friendship with her, he knew that she was a woman who had captivated the hearts of many male cultivators with her stunning beauty and talent. In the time since, she had also become a Core Formation cultivator.

As Han Li stared at him and Seopyeong with a strange expression without saying a word, Loe Manhak was also puzzled.

The ‘senior’ in front of him was not only too young but also had a very ordinary face that somehow looked familiar. The thought that he had seen him somewhere before made Loe Manhak feel uneasy.

Seopyeong also looked at Han Li with her beautiful eyes, as if she had realized something.

At this, Han Li smiled and opened his mouth.

“It seems Loe Sabak doesn’t remember me. However, I received great help in my cultivation from the pill recipe you gave me back then.”

“Sabak? Pill recipe! Y-you are…”

Loe Manhak, upon hearing Han Li call him Sabak, was speechless, and his tongue twisted at the mention of the pill recipe.

The others were equally wide-eyed. It was baffling that a Nascent Soul cultivator would suddenly call Loe Manhak ‘Sabak.’

Only Seopyeong looked closely at Han Li, and her expression changed.

“You were this Sasook’s disciple, Han Li… Han Sajae?”

“I didn’t expect Seop Susa to recognize me.”

When he was in the Qi Refining stage, his cultivation was so low that no one paid him any attention, but after surviving the Blood Gold Trial and becoming a disciple of the Ewha Garden, he had received a lot of attention.

‘Seop Sajae’ was one of those who had watched him closely.

Moreover, he had a record of single-handedly killing many demonic cultivators when the Six Demonic Sects invaded Wol Country, so although they had not met since, he had left a deep impression.

Han Li’s appearance was the same as back then, so with just a few clues, she was able to immediately recall ‘Han Sajae.’

In the cultivation world, there were many eccentric individuals, and it was not uncommon for those with outstanding talent to surpass their seniors in growth. However, it was the first time in Loe Manhak’s life that someone who had been a Foundation Establishment cultivator suddenly appeared as a Nascent Soul cultivator.

“Loe Sabak, this is not a place to stay for long, let’s move,” Han Li said calmly, assessing the situation.

“I cannot bear the title of Sabak. Now that Han Senior has reached the Nascent Soul stage, it is only natural to treat you as a senior,” Loe Manhak said, organizing his complicated emotions and giving a wry smile. His tone and attitude were extremely polite, clearly showing his determination not to commit any disrespect. Regardless of their previous relationship, he could not allow a Nascent Soul senior to call him Sabak.

The other cultivators also eventually realized the relationship between Han Li and Loe Manhak and were too surprised to speak. Han Li, having expected this reaction, quietly nodded.

“Since Loe Susa says so, I will do as you say. Then let’s depart now. Since your escape techniques might be slow, I’ll take you with me.” Han Li brushed his storage pouch and threw a small object into the air. A square object emitted a white light and grew in size; it was the Wind-Riding Chariot he had recently obtained.

The winged square chariot grew rapidly to over ten feet in size after receiving a hand seal.

“Everyone, get in!” Loe Manhak and the others boarded the Wind-Riding Chariot without hesitation, and Han Li injected spiritual power.

The chariot shook lightly and then transformed into a white streak of light, piercing through the sky, its speed far surpassing that of ordinary magic treasures.

The cultivators, who had been worried that the sorcerer might chase after them, were greatly delighted.

“It seems that the Fengwon Country has already fallen into the hands of the sorcerers. What were you doing here? If this wasn’t a border region, it would have been difficult to escape even if I had intervened.”

The five cultivators looked at each other, and Loe Manhak, being the oldest, spoke first.

“We had no choice. We were carrying out an important mission under the command of the Alliance when we learned that the Fengwon Country had been invaded by the Moran people just a few days ago. We were trying to escape when we encountered the low-level sorcerers and killed them, which caught the attention of a nearby Nascent Soul cultivator. If we had scattered, it would have been a matter of time before we were killed, so we gathered together and held out. Fortunately, we met Senior Han and survived a brush with death.”

Loe Manhak looked at ‘Han Sajil’ with a grateful expression. To be honest, he still doubted whether he was dreaming.

Han Li, not wanting to know the details, asked something else.

“Loe Susa, how is the Ewha Garden Master?”

“Lee Sajae was killed in a duel with a Moran sorcerer 100 years ago, and because of that, his wife also failed to reach the Golden Core stage and passed away not long after,” Loe Manhak replied honestly, as there was no reason to lie.

“Then, none of your fellow disciples have reached the Golden Core stage?”

“No. There were a few talented disciples under Lee Sajae, but in the end, they didn’t have the fate to succeed.”

Han Li’s face darkened slightly, and he closed his mouth. Names like ‘Woo Gon,’ ‘Song Mong,’ and ‘Jong Wirang’ flashed through his mind.

Without asking further, he knew that if they hadn’t reached the Core Formation stage, most of them would have passed away long ago.

“Senior Han, do you have any intention of returning to the Yellow Wind Valley?” Seopyeong suddenly asked.

“To the Yellow Wind Valley? Not at all. I’m currently an elder of the Falling Cloud Sect of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, and the treatment is quite good, so there’s no reason to do that,” Han Li replied nonchalantly, raising an eyebrow. At those words, Seopyeong showed a disappointed look, and Loe Manhak’s face also darkened.

The other three cultivators were not acquainted with Han Li, so they found it difficult to speak rashly.

“By any chance, Senior, do you know So Chwiin?” After hesitating for a moment, Seopyeong spoke again.

“So Chwiin! Of course, I know her. Do you know her too?” Han Li replied, recalling the image of the clever young girl.
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