Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 493

As noon approached, the old man gazed at the scorching sun and sighed, thinking of the children in the carriage. Usually, a village, regardless of its size, needed at least one cultivator. Otherwise, when disaster struck or they encountered demonic beasts, ordinary people would have no way to defend themselves. However, the Azure Heron Tribe, where the old man resided, had neither the time to nurture a cultivator nor the resources to hire one with spirit stones. They had often sought help from low-level cultivators, but the exorbitant cost in spirit stones only worsened the tribe’s already dire situation. Fortunately, the Spirit Opening Day, which occurred once every twenty years, was finally approaching. It was an opportunity they couldn’t afford to miss, no matter how difficult. He was on his way to the nearest Tianlan Holy Temple with the disciples in the tribe who had been confirmed to possess spiritual roots. The Tianlan Holy Temple was originally built to enshrine the Tianlan Tree [a sacred tree revered by the Dolol people], but over time, it had become a sacred place for the Dolol people and a training ground for low-level Dolol cultivators. In each temple, several high-level cultivators resided, teaching them basic cultivation methods. Those with poor aptitude were sent back to their tribes, while those with exceptional talent were taken as disciples and nurtured. It was strictly forbidden for high-level cultivators to privately teach cultivation techniques to ordinary people who had not undergone the Spirit Opening Ceremony. Although there were only six or seven temples, they were evenly distributed, serving over a thousand surrounding tribes. Large tribes were naturally closer to the temples, while the Azure Heron Tribe was about three months away. That was why the old man had no choice but to hurry his group out of the tribe. During the last Spirit Opening Day, they had failed to prepare enough offerings and missed the opportunity. He was determined to seize the opportunity this time. However, traveling across the vast prairie with so many offerings was extremely dangerous. He had heard that a nearby tribe had their nearly thousand-year-old spirit herb, which they were taking as an offering, stolen along the way, and no one had survived. Rumor had it that a high-level cultivator from a large tribe had done it to obtain the treasure. The temple had supposedly investigated, but the outcome was unknown. Thus, the old man could only sigh. Of the seven or eight carriages following him, four were entirely filled with offerings, pulled by the strongest steeds in the tribe. They were made of sturdy red sandalwood to avoid attracting attention, but they were made to look old and worn on the outside. However, something was bound to happen soon. Just recently, they had only encountered wolves, but they had been forced to abandon the last two carriages due to the wolf attack. Although the two carriages didn’t contain anything of great value, they did carry food. If he remembered correctly, they would arrive near a small valley in two days, where they could hunt wild cattle or sheep for food. The old man stroked the bow hanging on his horse as he thought this. “Huh? What’s that?” A clear voice of a young girl came from beside the old man. Her name was Youngsan, and she was one of the children in the tribe who had been confirmed to have spiritual roots. The old man was startled and looked up, seeing a blue light flickering through the dense bushes. A chill ran down his spine. As the leader of a tribe, how could he not recognize the light of spiritual energy emitted by a cultivator? The old man immediately raised a hand to stop the group and, looking at the bushes, prepared for battle. However, after a moment, the old man noticed something strange. The blue light continued to flicker in the forest, but no cultivator appeared, nor did any magic extend from it. The old man focused his eyes and examined the area more closely. “Tomeng! Go and see if there really is a cultivator there.” “Understood, Chief!” The strongest man in the group, with a brave face, answered. He quietly approached the bushes, about twenty yards away. However, he hesitated and stopped about six yards away. “Is there a cultivator present? We are from the Azure Heron Tribe.” The young man asked politely, but only the blue light flickered in the bushes, and no voice was heard. The young man involuntarily turned his head to look at the old man. However, the old man silently nodded at him, and he had no choice but to move forward. The young man gritted his teeth and stepped forward, pushing aside a small tree with both hands. “Ah!” The moment he pushed the tree aside and looked inside, the young man screamed and stumbled backward, falling on his rear. “What happened?” The people of the Azure Heron Tribe, who had been watching the area, immediately drew their swords and sabers, preparing for danger at the young man’s cry. “Everyone, do not act rashly! Tomeng, what is it?” “Chief, there is a cultivator inside, but his appearance…” “What about his appearance?” Before the young man could finish speaking, the blue aura in the bushes disappeared, and someone walked out. The old man and all the people of the tribe were surprised and stared at him. The young man, dressed in a white cultivator’s robe, had his face covered with a bamboo hat. Other than that, what stood out were the several bulging pouches hanging from his waist and a foot-long wooden box on his back. “I am Youngro, the chief of the Azure Heron Tribe. Greetings, esteemed cultivator. May I ask for your name?” Youngro immediately dismounted and bowed deeply to the young man in the white robe. The other tribe members did the same. “Azure Heron Tribe? I’ve never heard of it. I am Han Li. I was cultivating a technique here. Are you just passing by?” The young man coldly asked, scanning the old man’s group. “We were ignorant and disturbed your cultivation. May I ask which tribe you belong to?” “I left my master’s sect not long ago, so I don’t have a place to stay at the moment.” “Ah! I see. Judging by the fact that you are alone here, esteemed cultivator, you must be heading to the Holy Temple. It’s the Spirit Opening Day, which happens once every twenty years, so even a cultivator wouldn’t want to miss the opportunity.” Youngro’s tone became even more respectful after hearing that the other party was unexpectedly free. “Yes, I am heading to the Holy Temple. It seems you are also taking offerings to the temple, but I don’t see any cultivator accompanying you.” “The Azure Heron Tribe is a small tribe, so we don’t have a resident cultivator. That’s why…” “It’s fine since you didn’t intentionally disturb me. Then, you may leave now.” The young man in the white robe waved his hand, gesturing for them to leave. At that, the old man’s resolve became firm. “Since you are heading to the Holy Temple anyway, esteemed cultivator, would you consider being hired by our Azure Heron Tribe for a while? We will give you twenty spirit stones if you accompany us to the temple.” “Hire me?” “Yes, since you are going to the temple anyway, why not travel with us? We were worried about whether we could reach the temple safely without any help.” “Traveling with you would be too slow, and twenty spirit stones…” The young man in the white robe did not immediately refuse but seemed hesitant. “If you would allow it, esteemed cultivator, I will offer you twenty-five spirit stones. Our Azure Heron Tribe is quite small, so this is the best offer we can make.” The old man smiled wryly. “Twenty-five spirit stones is not a small amount. But why are you offering a price without asking anything? What if I am just a low-level cultivator at the second or third stage of Qi Refining [a low level of cultivation]?” The young man chuckled lightly at the amount. “Haha! I have participated in wars and seen the spiritual energy emitted by great cultivators. You are definitely not a cultivator at the second or third stage of Qi Refining.” “Well, if that’s the case, let’s travel together. I’ll take half of the spirit stones now and the other half later.” “Of course. I’ll give you the spirit stones right away.” The old man was overjoyed and took out a pouch from his chest, handing over a dozen spirit stones to him in front of everyone. As soon as the young man in the white robe received the spirit stones, a light flashed from his hand, and the spirit stones disappeared. The young men of the Azure Heron Tribe, who were watching, exclaimed in amazement. “Is that something you’ve never seen before?” “I apologize for showing you such a ridiculous sight. They are still young and have never seen a cultivator before.” “I see.” Han Li nodded and hesitated for a moment, looking at the carriages. Then, the old man seemed to realize something and ordered the tribe members. “You, quickly empty the best carriage and prepare it for the esteemed cultivator to rest in. Move quickly.” The young men, who had been dumbfounded by the chief’s words, came to their senses and began to move. The young man waited without refusing and looked at the old man. “You’ve worked hard. I’ll go in and rest, so only call me when there’s something to do. I don’t need worldly meals, so don’t bother me at other times.” “Yes, of course.” Youngro bowed and replied with a smile. The young man, nodding, was walking towards the prepared carriage when he suddenly turned to Tomeng and said coldly. “Did you see my face just now? I don’t want this to spread, so be careful.” Tomeng’s face immediately turned pale, and he shook his head towards the carriage where the young man had disappeared, muttering that he would never reveal it. “Alright. Now that we have an esteemed cultivator with us, let’s continue with peace of mind! Youngsan, you stay next to the carriage where the esteemed cultivator is and serve him well, no matter what he asks.” The old man reorganized the group loudly and spoke to the girl beside him. The girl, excited by his words, immediately agreed and stepped back. As the group started moving again, the young men began to whisper to each other. They had occasionally seen passing cultivators from afar, but this was the first time they had met one so closely. And the young man was sitting cross-legged in the completely covered carriage, not moving at all. They were none other than the Great Yan Divine Lord and Han Li. “That Dolol child who saw you circulating your energy was completely terrified! He’ll probably have nightmares for days. Hahaha…” The Great Yan Divine Lord laughed loudly at the young man’s misfortune. “Is the Five Ghost Locking God Great Technique that you taught me really effective?” “Don’t worry. It’s a secret technique created to control the Great Yan Knot and prevent you from going into Qi Deviation [a dangerous state of cultivation], so it will also be effective against the killing intent. But remember, since the five ghost energies have entered your body with the killing intent, not only is the killing intent sealed, but your cultivation is also sealed. So, you are at most at the mid-stage of the Foundation Establishment realm [a mid-level of cultivation] right now!” “I know that well, even without you emphasizing it. But I really didn’t expect the killing intent to flare up so quickly. The ominous aura is also beyond imagination.” “Hmph! It’s not that my prediction was wrong, but that you fought another cultivator before removing the killing intent. Moreover, your vital energy was greatly damaged, and you were almost killed, so it’s natural for the killing intent to flare up early. If you hadn’t been helping me refine my puppet, I would have lost interest.” It had been half a year since Han Li had left the Fallen Cloud Sect. Han Li had left Tiannan and headed straight for the Tianlan Prairie, where he had entered a Dolol tribe, hiding his identity and cultivation, and exchanged knowledge with Dolol cultivators. But when he had crossed about half of the prairie, things finally went wrong. In the wilderness far from the Dolol tribe, he was about to release the Gold Devouring Beetles as usual to prepare to cultivate the most powerful group separately when a Dolol Nascent Soul mid-stage elder [a high level of cultivation] passed by while chasing a demonic beast. Moreover, he was a cultivator who controlled a Gold Devouring Beetle.