Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 573

The blue light faded, and when he turned back, the hole in the light barrier was already disappearing, having closed up the moment he passed through. Seeing this, Han Li gave a wry smile. It seemed he would need to find another way back. Checking the magical power within his body, he found that even though he had controlled the power of the Three-Flame Fan, a third of it had been depleted.

Shaking his head, he strode towards the pavilion behind the stone wall.

The pavilion was two stories high and looked no different from the pavilions he had seen before. Looking around the entrance, it seemed that the personal belongings inside had all been taken away by the ancient cultivators when they retreated.

It was something he had expected, but he couldn’t help but sigh. He looked through several pavilions in a row, but found nothing, and the stone buildings that seemed to be warehouses were also completely empty.

He came out of the last warehouse and looked up at another palace. It didn’t look very big, but the entire building was bright red, making it seem as if it were surrounded by flames.

The Spirit Transformation Hall.

Even outside the building, the heat emanating from within was intense. He calmly walked with his hands behind his back, and as soon as he entered the palace, he began to faintly hear the sound of thunder.

Inside the main hall, a dozen or so red pillars rose up, each with a dragon-shaped carving at the top, spewing red mist from their mouths.

The red energy did not scatter but gathered into a huge cauldron in the center of the hall. The antique-looking cauldron was about six or seven yards high and seemed more massive than any furnace Han Li had seen before.

However, what surprised Han Li was that the cauldron was burning with such high-temperature flames that its original color was impossible to discern.

As he entered the main hall, his mouth became dry, and his skin tingled. If it weren’t for the blue protective barrier created by his magical power, he would have been in great trouble.

However, Han Li didn’t care and carefully examined the pillars emitting red energy and the huge cauldron. The sound of thunder was coming from the huge cauldron, and based on his past experiences, it seemed that something was definitely being refined inside.

‘It seems I won’t be going back empty-handed!’

Han Li avoided the red energy and approached the cauldron. When he was about six yards away, he could feel the powerful fire-attribute spiritual energy contained within the cauldron.

Whatever was being refined inside, it had already been there for tens of thousands of years, so it must have become something extraordinary. Han Li circled the cauldron, then stopped and began to scan the main hall.

The pillars that were channeling energy into the cauldron must be maintained by some kind of formation [a magical array], so he would need to find the eye of the formation to obtain the treasure.

After a while, he looked at one corner of the main hall with his dark blue eyes. He smiled and raised his hand, emitting a golden light about a yard long.

Boom!

A loud noise rang out, and the moment the golden light struck the floor in the corner of the main hall, the red energy from the dozen or so pillars stopped.

When the light disappeared, a large pit appeared, and inside it were the remains of broken formation artifacts and a small golden sword about a few inches long.

The flying sword’s strike had shattered the formation disk buried there, and the entire formation had stopped operating. Han Li smiled and gestured, and the sword trembled and returned to his sleeve, disappearing.

As the fire pillars stopped, the flames of the cauldron also began to gradually dissipate. However, Han Li still looked around with his dark blue eyes.

When the formation disappeared, he realized that everything dozens of yards below was filled with bright red light. Surprisingly, this pavilion seemed to have been built on top of a top-grade fire pond. That was why the pillars had been emitting red energy for so long.

Han Li was surprised for a moment, then tried to see what was inside the cauldron. However, the cauldron, which had been dissipating red energy, began to hum as if it were alive, and then it ignited red flames on its own, engulfing itself in flames again.

Han Li narrowed his eyes and examined it, and after a while, he showed a look of joy.

The cauldron had absorbed fire-attribute spiritual power for a long time and had transformed from an ordinary magical artifact into a fire-attribute treasure.

It was extremely rare in the cultivation world for a magical artifact to change its grade on its own by absorbing spiritual power of the same attribute for a long time.

The cauldron in front of him was clearly something that the cultivator in charge of the Spirit Transformation Hall had been refining but couldn’t take with them when they hurriedly left, so they had left it to be refined automatically by the formation.

They probably thought they might have a chance to return later.

Han Li rolled his eyes and, after deducing the situation, took out dark blue formation flags from his storage pouch. He quickly moved around the main hall, planting the flags.

Han Li returned to the cauldron and began to chant a spell, and a dark blue protective barrier spread out, surrounding him and the cauldron. The intense heat was somewhat lessened under the water-attribute barrier.

Han Li then released one of his spirit insects, a pair of white centipedes about half a foot long. They were Six-Winged Frost Centipedes that had evolved and grown a pair of wings.

The centipedes flew nimbly in the air and then gathered above the cauldron, waiting.

Han Li brought his hands together, and a purple flame surrounded one hand. He boldly grabbed the air with that hand. Then, a huge purple hand appeared in the air, trying to grab the lid of the cauldron.

However, a bright red flame shot out from the cauldron, instantly transforming into a bright red firebird and flying towards the giant hand.

The giant hand and the firebird clashed, flashing purple and red flames.

Han Li’s eyes gleamed as he muttered softly, and the Six-Winged Frost Centipedes flying above the cauldron opened their mouths and spewed out white cold air.

Han Li then extended his finger towards the giant hand made of Purple Aurora Flame. As the magic seal flew out, the giant hand became more powerful, and along with the cold air from the Six-Winged Frost Centipedes, it crushed the firebird in one go and flew towards the cauldron.

Clang!

The cauldron lid was blown off by the giant hand.

Han Li was about to look inside the cauldron, which was filled with red energy, when he heard a caw, and something soared up to the ceiling of the main hall.

It was so fast that, surprisingly, it passed by the Six-Winged Frost Centipedes without them even reacting.

Bang.

The bright red light collided with the dark blue protective barrier, momentarily faltering, but then rushed forward with the momentum to break through it. Han Li was startled, but he regained his composure and flicked his ten fingers, releasing a dozen or so blue sword energies.

Crack, crack, crack!

The red light was not blown away or cut by the sword energy, but for a moment, the light dimmed and flickered. However, it changed direction and tried to escape the protective barrier again.

At that moment, a purple light flashed beside the red light, and a giant hand appeared in the air, snatching it like lightning.

As the giant hand descended, the cauldron stopped emitting flames on its own and was turning into an ice block due to the cold air of the Six-Winged Frost Centipedes. However, Han Li’s gaze was not on the cauldron but on something held in the giant hand.

“Is this the Solar True Flame?”

“It’s not the Solar True Flame. This is the Lunar True Flame, which is mentioned alongside it. It’s one of the three great true spirit flames of the mortal realm.”

In response to Han Li’s mutter, a voice that had been dormant in his consciousness for a long time was heard.

“Yin Yue, have you awakened?”

“Yes, I just woke up when you entered this place, Master. But I’ve only just regained consciousness, so I don’t think I can offer any other help.”

“Your consciousness isn’t damaged, is it?”

Although she sounded fine, Han Li realized that her tone was somewhat strange.

“I’m fine. It’s just that some of my memories have returned after waking up this time, and it will take some time to adjust.”

“You’ve recovered your memories?”

“Yes, but it was so long ago that it feels like someone else’s memories. I haven’t recalled most of them yet.”

“It’s good that you’ve remembered even a little. Maybe the day will come when you remember everything that happened!”

Han Li, who had been silent, comforted her calmly.

“Maybe.”

“Did you say that was the Lunar True Flame? You’re not mistaken, are you?”

Han Li changed the subject towards her, who was feeling down. The bright red flame, wrapped in purple flames, had turned into a very small bird and was struggling to escape.

“It’s definitely the Lunar True Flame, one of the three great true spirit flames. According to my memories, it’s the lowest grade, so its spirit has been slightly damaged by the sword energy attack. Fortunately, it was the Lunar True Flame; if it had been the Solar True Flame, no matter how low the grade, it wouldn’t have been possible to contain it with the Purple Aurora Flame.”

“Is it that powerful? This is the first time I’ve heard of the three great true spirit flames…”

“These words suddenly came to my mind as soon as I saw it. My mind is still a mess.”

“So you have such memories, it must not be a mistake. It’s a flame with a cold nature, so you can fuse it with the Purple Aurora Flame to increase its power, right?”

“It’s probably possible. But it might be better to do the opposite than to have the Purple Aurora Flame swallow the Lunar True Flame. The Lunar True Flame seems to have already gained some spirit, so if you let it disappear like this, its power will weaken.”

“Yes, that’s right. I’ll do that as soon as I leave this place. Since it has a spirit, it will be more difficult to refine.”

Han Li nodded at Yin Yue’s advice.

“If you can obtain the Solar True Flame and fuse it with this, it would be perfect. The harmony of yin and yang, combined with the power of the Purple Aurora Flame, would unleash unimaginable power. Perhaps there would be nothing that couldn’t be burned in the mortal realm.”

“The Solar True Flame? It would be nice if I could get it, but Great Yan Divine Lord said it’s not something a mortal realm cultivator can obtain. There’s no need to have vain hopes.”

“But since you already have the Lunar True Flame, it might be possible. These two are opposites, after all.”

“Let’s talk about that later. Even with just the Lunar True Flame, I don’t know when I’ll be able to finish refining it.”

Han Li was tempted by Yin Yue’s suggestion, but he shook his head. Yin Yue smiled and urged him.

“You must seal the Lunar True Flame first. Otherwise, you won’t be able to contain it with ordinary magical artifacts.”

“I know that much.”

Han Li smiled and shot the purple flame in his hand into the air.

As the purple flame enveloped the Lunar True Flame, he flicked his ten fingers, releasing thin lightning bolts. The lightning bolts instantly enveloped the Lunar True Flame within the purple flame and soon transformed into a golden bead the size of a fist.

It was the same method he had used to bind the Azure Glacial Flame before, but because his cultivation had improved and his technique had become more refined, it proceeded much more smoothly.

Afterward, Han Li took out a bright red jade box, put the golden bead inside, and then turned his gaze to the cauldron.

“A flame with extreme yin energy should appear in a cold region, so why was it refined in this cauldron? Could it be that a material with cold energy received heat and achieved a balance of yin and yang?”

He wondered and flicked his sleeve, and a thick lightning bolt extended out, wrapping around the surface of the cauldron, which had turned into an ice block.

Crack, boom.

Light flashed, and the ice block cracked, revealing the cauldron. Han Li flashed his blue light and floated up to examine the giant cauldron.

There was a no-fly restriction here, but with his cultivation, it was not impossible to float low for a short time. The cauldron, with its red light gone, revealed its true appearance.

As he examined the cauldron, he reached out his hand towards the air.

Whoosh!

Something shiny came out of the cauldron, circled in the air, and then entered his hand. Surprisingly, it was a transparent, warm jade-like object that felt slightly elastic when pressed with five fingers.

“What is this?”

“There’s no need to worry about it. No matter what material was originally inside, tens of thousands of years have passed, so we don’t know what it has turned into. But if the birth of the Lunar True Flame is related to this object, it’s not ordinary.”

“That’s true. I’ll have to take a closer look when I have time.”

Afterward, a blue light flashed from his hand, and the unidentified object disappeared into his storage pouch. He looked at the cauldron again, but since there was definitely nothing else, Han Li formed a hand seal and sent out a series of red magic seals.

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