Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 517

The fireball that had circled above the sandstorm entered it and landed in the hand of the yellow-robed giant.

“This is… !”

The giant received the sound transmission talisman with one hand and immediately poured his consciousness into it. Soon, his expression darkened, and he flicked his hand, causing the talisman to turn to ash and disappear.

“Let’s go. It’s too late to use the Southern Divine Sand now. The Yellow Dust Three Fiends and the Demonic Wind Seven have been breached by the zombie soldiers controlled by Madam Jade Flower. A large number of high-level zombies are flying towards this place, so it’s dangerous if we don’t leave now.”

The Mad Sand Merchant explained coldly, and this time, the Heavenly Wind True Lord was also surprised and immediately agreed. The two of them then cast their spells without hesitation.

The black sands surged and suddenly soared high, then clumped together and disappeared far into the sky. Even during this time, the giant and the ugly-faced old man did not show themselves.

Han Li, sitting on the shoulder of the giant ape, watched them flee into the distance. There was no time, so if they continued to attack, he was prepared to use the Heaven Refining Cauldron.

Since very few people outside of the Chaotic Star Sea cultivators knew that the Heaven Refining Cauldron was a Heaven Piercing Treasure [a very powerful and rare treasure], the possibility of someone easily recognizing it was low.

“I didn’t expect a cultivator to be able to deal with the Soul Devouring Corpse. Thank you for saving my life, I am grateful for your kindness.”

After confirming that the yellow-robed giant and the old man had withdrawn the sand barrier and moved away, the Profound Fiend King was relieved, but he did not immediately withdraw the corpse fire from his entire body and instead clasped his hands together to greet Han Li.

Han Li turned his head towards the Ten Thousand Year Corpse King. However, the Corpse King’s condition did not look good. It seemed that calling out the corpse fire while seriously injured to block the Soul Devouring Corpse had greatly damaged his vitality.

Han Li calmly stared at the old demon. The Profound Fiend King had seen Han Li’s strength, so his heart grew cold.

The giant ape that Han Li was riding on kept its eyes half-closed even after the sand had disappeared, not moving from its spot. It was as if it was enjoying the aftertaste of a delicious meal.

When the Profound Fiend King showed his wariness towards Han Li, the spirit beast, which was connected to Han Li’s consciousness, sensed it.

Jie Hun stared at the Ten Thousand Year Corpse King and began to smack his lips with a human-like expression. Like a hungry person in front of a feast!

The ancient era’s emperor, who received that gaze, felt his hair stand on end.

From the moment he saw the Soul Devouring Corpse being easily neutralized, he had guessed that the spirit beast was also his nemesis, and his heart was filled with unease.

“Although it was because they attacked first that I intervened, it is true that I saved your life, cultivator. You said you would repay my kindness, and I would like to know what you mean by that.”

In the tense atmosphere, Han Li was the first to relax his expression and speak. He was not a saint, and with the possibility of his homicidal intent flaring up at any moment, being left alone with the Corpse King had indeed caused some killing intent to arise.

Upon closer inspection, the corpse energy he felt from the Vajra Ape was similar, and after hearing the yellow-robed giant call him the Profound Fiend King, he had a grasp of the situation.

This person was the emperor ‘Profound Fiend’ that Jin Yuan had mentioned. It was a strange thing to encounter the person he had only heard about so quickly.

However, after using the Great Connection [a technique to sense the state of a seal] to calculate the remaining time for the seal to break, there was not much time left.

Considering the possibility that the opponent had hidden some secret techniques to preserve his life and that his own Wind Thunder Wings and Ice Flame techniques had already been exposed, it seemed impossible to deal with the Ten Thousand Year Corpse King in a short time, even with Jie Hun.

Therefore, Han Li suppressed his killing intent, but he had no intention of saving the other party from danger without any compensation.

“Haha! Although I don’t have much else, I have collected a fair amount of spirit stones and materials. If you don’t mind, why don’t we return to my residence together? I will prepare as much as the cultivator is satisfied with.”

“I don’t think it’s necessary to go that far, and that bead looks quite good.”

“Are you talking about this?”

At Han Li’s words, the Profound Fiend King’s expression darkened slightly. He forced a smile as he looked at the giant ape that was eyeing him, and then opened his mouth.

A golden bead was ejected from his mouth, and Han Li nodded.

“This is called the Heavenly Corpse Bead, and it is similar to a natal magic treasure [a treasure formed from one’s own life force] that a Corpse King like myself can create by cultivating the Heavenly Corpse Art. If I’m not mistaken, the Twin Devils of Fangqian Mountain were also after this. However, this bead is not very useful to me, so if the cultivator needs it, please take it!”

The Profound Fiend King, whose eyes were wavering, suddenly smiled and threw the bead towards Han Li.

It was unexpected, but Han Li reached out his hand towards the flying bead. Then, a giant blue hand appeared in the air and snatched the golden bead.

Han Li carefully observed the bead wrapped in blue light. It was not a substitute, but the real bead. In fact, he had said it with the intention of getting something else if the other party refused, but since he had given it up so easily, he was suspicious.

Too many thoughts flooded his mind, and Han Li was momentarily speechless.

“Please don’t think too strangely. To be honest, that Heavenly Corpse Bead was just an extra one I obtained when I learned the Heavenly Corpse Great Art. The Heavenly Corpse Bead that is essential for my cultivation is naturally safely stored in my secret chamber.”

Seeing his expression, the Profound Fiend King explained with a troubled look.

“I see! Then I won’t refuse it. …Someone is coming to find the cultivator, so I’ll be on my way.”

Han Li nodded and was about to ask something more, but suddenly he raised his head, looked at something, and then said goodbye.

Before the old demon could say anything, a blue light flashed on Han Li’s body, and he turned into a streak of light and split the sky. The old demon watched Han Li’s disappearing figure with skepticism.

However, a moment later, a ghostly wail was heard from the direction of the tomb, and a green cloud gathered. The Profound Fiend King showed a happy expression at the sight of it. Now, he had no reason to fear the Mad Sand Merchant or anyone else.

Han Li did not waste a single moment and fled like lightning. He had to get far away from the Profound Fiend King and the yellow-robed giant before the seal broke.

Before his magic power was sealed again, he changed directions here and there and flew ten thousand miles in one breath, leaving the mountain range.

Only then did Han Li breathe a sigh of relief, and he set his direction again and flew away on his magic tool.

* * *

Two days later, Han Li landed on a small, deserted mountain. He took out a few magic tools and dug a simple cave, and immediately took out formation magic tools to hide the entrance of the cave.

Han Li entered the secret chamber inside the cave and sat down in a cross-legged position.

“Are you going to cultivate the Nether King Art here?”

The Great Evolution Divine Lord, unable to hold back, asked with dissatisfaction.

“Why do you ask?”

“If you try to learn the Nether King Art at your cultivation speed in a place like this without any spiritual veins [places with high concentrations of spiritual energy], this old man will already be gone from this world!”

“There’s no need to be angry. I looked around on the way here, and it seems that the first level of the Nether King Art doesn’t require much spiritual energy to cultivate. I think I can master it in about a year.

However, the second level requires a large amount of spiritual energy, so it seems that I must cultivate in a place where spiritual veins flow… Otherwise, it will take an enormous amount of time. To prevent the homicidal intent from flaring up, I need to master at least the second level of the Nether King Art.”

Han Li smiled lightly.

“But no matter how many places with spiritual veins there are in the Great Jin, there are no places without owners. No matter how quickly I want to recover my magic power, I will only be able to find a few insignificant spiritual veins. The best option would be to infiltrate a large sect and cultivate in secret.”

“Judging by your tone, you already have a plan!”

The Great Evolution Divine Lord’s mood improved at Han Li’s explanation.

“Yes, there is one sect that I am targeting. It’s even a place where I don’t need to forge a new identity.”

“Oh? There is such a place.”

“Do you remember the documents we took from the Feng family’s secret cave? There were some classified matters written in them, and the Feng family’s head had prepared a way out for his disciples. Another identity as a wealthy merchant family in the Southern Region.

They were secretly operating about a dozen stores under the guise of a fake merchant, and even though the Feng family was annihilated, that merchant family is still intact. If we are under their protection, it won’t be difficult to enter a sect in the Southern Region.

I think I can eliminate the homicidal intent and recover most of my vitality in about two or three years. Then I can travel around with peace of mind and find the materials you need.”

“That’s a good idea. But why are you doing this here? Are you trying to master the first level first?”

“I think I should. I need to experience how difficult it is to master or if there are any problems with the cultivation. Also, I plan to refine the Vajra Ape to make it recognize me as its master without being disturbed by others, and I plan to refine the Ice Needle with the demon core I obtained at the exchange meeting. The most important thing is to deal with these two things.”

Han Li sighed and turned his palm over, and a white bead and a golden bead appeared. The Heavenly Corpse Bead he had just obtained and the Ice Setting Bead he had taken from the Gu Xian Palace disciple.

“The Ice Setting Bead is a rare ice-attribute treasure, and since it has not yet recognized its master, if I nurture it for a certain period of time, I can further increase the power of the Ice Extreme Transformation. And in the case of the Heavenly Corpse Bead, if cultivators in the mid-Nascent Soul stage [a high level of cultivation] are willing to risk their lives for it, there must be a good reason. Do you know how to use it, senior?”

“This is related to the cultivation methods that evil cultivators practice, so this old man doesn’t know much about it, but the Corpse Bead is quite famous. It is like a panacea for cultivators who practice techniques to temper their bodies, and if you consume it, it will gradually change your constitution and dramatically increase your cultivation speed.

It might even allow you to create a body as tough as a Corpse King or a demon beast. Moreover, this bead is called the Heavenly Corpse Bead among Corpse Beads, so it will be even more effective.”

The Great Evolution Divine Lord recalled and explained.

“You mean to consume it? Is it a method of refining it inside the body like a magic treasure?”

“Of course, you can’t just swallow it. Corpse Beads contain powerful corpse poison, so you must first remove the poison with a spiritual medicine. The materials needed to make that spiritual medicine are quite rare, but if I remember correctly, you have all of them.

The Nether King Art is also mostly a technique for tempering the body, so that bead might be of great help in your cultivation. I will write down the method of making the spiritual medicine on a jade slip right away, so take a look at it.”

This time, the Great Evolution Divine Lord took the initiative to help Han Li. The sooner he eliminated the homicidal intent, the sooner he could freely travel around to gather the materials he needed.

“Then I will accept your help, senior.”

Soon, a jade slip popped out of the bamboo tube, and Han Li grabbed it and immediately poured his consciousness into it. But soon, the Great Evolution Divine Lord asked as if something was strange.

“But, haven’t you forgotten something since you ran away from the Peony Grassland?”

“If I’ve forgotten something… what are you talking about?”

Han Li immediately withdrew his consciousness from the jade slip.

“Could it be that you’ve forgotten about the thing you trapped in that small cauldron, the Heaven Piercing Treasure?”

“Are you talking about the incarnation of the Heavenly Azure Spirit Beast, senior?”

“Yes, that’s it. I was just asking in case you forgot.”

“How could I forget? I want to deal with it somehow, but I need to recover my magic power to take the cauldron out of my body. Besides, it wasn’t my intention that the cauldron opened on its own and trapped the incarnation of the demon beast. However… I did try to communicate with the demon beast using my consciousness.”

“How was it when you talked to it?”

“It hadn’t formed a proper consciousness yet since it hadn’t been long since it descended. It was impossible to communicate.”

“Well, that’s not strange. But since it’s a clone of an upper realm spirit beast, it won’t take long for it to form a consciousness. It’s not too late to try again then.”

“Then I’ll have to wait for now. More than that, it’s a pity that the Heavenly Azure Saintess’s cauldron is also trapped in the Heaven Refining Cauldron. The power of the sand that was ejected from the cauldron was amazing. Judging by its shape, it seems to be a treasure made by imitating the Heaven Refining Cauldron.”

“That cauldron doesn’t look like a treasure for killing enemies at first glance. The Seven Flame Fans are the best treasure for attacking, so if you collect the materials and refine them as this old man told you, they will unleash tremendous power, so there’s no need to feel sorry for that thing.”

The Great Evolution Divine Lord sneered at Han Li’s regretful expression.

# 519