Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 922

Han Li extended his finger, a blue light flashing. Immediately, a large amount of pure spiritual power seeped out, floating in the air and transforming into a semi-transparent object the size of a hand. Han Li formed a hand seal, and the magic seal seeped into the handkerchief, which then fell onto Han Li’s head, completely concealing its presence. Han Li, surprised, gazed down at his body, activating his Spirit Eyes [a technique to see spiritual energy] to examine himself.

After a moment, a smile appeared on his face.

‘Indeed!’

The two Aura people had infiltrated the great hall by using the power of this treasure. Unless one used the Spirit Eyes to their extreme, it was impossible to see through the handkerchief’s concealment effect.

This time, Han Li tried to release his consciousness to pass through the handkerchief. However, as soon as his consciousness touched the black handkerchief, it was blocked as if it had entered a dense fog. This was also why he hadn’t recognized the Aura royals’ cultivation levels.

He activated a magic seal, put away the black handkerchief, and nodded with satisfaction.

The black handkerchief was a rare auxiliary treasure with a concealment effect nearly matching that of the Taiyi Azure Talisman [a powerful concealment talisman]. Although the Taiyi Azure Talisman was incredibly effective, it slowed movement when used for concealment and also affected the use of divine abilities.

However, the black handkerchief was very convenient to use, and its power varied depending on the user’s magic power. The Aura people’s cultivation was low, which was why their movements were exposed to him.

Now that he had finished his tasks, he could close his eyes and quietly recuperate. A golden halo appeared above his head, and within it, a golden dharma form [a manifestation of spiritual power] sat cross-legged. Han Li remained motionless.

Several days passed after the battle.

During that time, Madam Hwa left a pile of precious elixirs and high-grade spirit stones at his residence, and Han Li did not move from his dwelling.

* * *

Several months later, Han Li, who had been silently circulating his cultivation technique, suddenly opened his eyes and opened his mouth, spitting out a silver fireball. The fireball transformed into a silver firebird in a flash of light.

Han Li looked at the Silver Spirit Firebird with a puzzled expression. On the surface, there was nothing different, but when he scanned it with his consciousness, he could see faint golden threads within the silver flames.

This was a change caused by the Silver Spirit Heavenly Fire refining the Immortal Spiritual Light. Han Li pondered for a moment before forming a hand seal. The silver firebird circled above his head, then opened its mouth and spat out golden-silver threads.

The golden-silver threads flashed and flew towards the golden restriction spread across the wall. The white energy of the golden restriction trembled, and the golden-silver threads passed through the wall without any resistance. After a moment, the light flashed again, and the threads re-entered the wall.

This time, the golden-silver threads flew towards the wooden chair in the room. The wooden chair, which had been emitting a faint fragrance, instantly turned black and disappeared into blue smoke. It had been filled with extreme poison.

Han Li sighed and formed a hand seal, summoning the silver firebird back into his body. He was about to resume circulating his cultivation technique when he heard someone’s voice from outside.

‘I am Qing Suo. I have come to pay my respects to Senior Han.’

‘Qing Suo?’

Han Li was puzzled for a moment but released his consciousness to observe the situation outside. In the garden, a woman dressed in a blue palace dress was standing. She was beautiful, dignified, and exuded an air of nobility.

Han Li realized that she was unexpectedly a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator [a high level of cultivation]. After pondering for a moment, he opened his mouth.

‘Who is this cultivator? You don’t seem to be a Hwayang person from Hwa Cloud Island. Why have you come here?’

‘I am the master of Bai Zhoua of the Hwayang Clan. I heard that the Hwayang Clan was in crisis, so I rushed here to help, but I heard that you have already resolved it. From what my disciple said, your divine abilities are extraordinary, and you seem to be a senior from the Upper Three Realms [a higher plane of existence], so I came to pay my respects. If it is not too much trouble, I would like to seek guidance from you, Senior.’

‘You are that child’s master? I see. I was planning to leave seclusion in a few days to check the surrounding situation, so I will meet with you.’

Squeak.

Before Qing Suo could answer, the tightly closed door, which was emitting a white light, opened on its own. The woman entered with a calm expression.

Upon entering the room, she saw Han Li sitting on a bed on one side. Her eyes flashed with surprise when she saw him, as Han Li looked quite young.

However, after scanning him with her consciousness, she bowed respectfully to Han Li.

‘Senior, you are indeed a being from the Upper Three Realms. It seems I did well to come here.’

‘Your magic power is not weak either. Please, sit and let’s talk!’

Han Li’s eyes flickered with a navy blue light before he quickly withdrew his gaze. Qing Suo took a seat on a wooden chair next to the bed.

‘Cultivator Qing, you must be practicing a wind-attribute cultivation technique.’

Qing Suo’s expression changed at Han Li’s words.

‘How did you know? Have I met you before, Senior?’

‘That’s not it. I just asked because your movement technique is light, and the aura of your treasures seems to carry a lot of wind-attribute spiritual energy.’

Han Li answered casually. However, the woman was shocked.

It was not difficult to discern the level of another’s cultivation at a glance, but to distinguish the spiritual energy attributes of a secretly hidden treasure was something that an ordinary cultivator could never do.

The woman spoke more respectfully and carefully.

‘You truly have keen insight. As you said, Senior, I mainly cultivate a wind-attribute technique. I heard from Zhoua that you are not from the Hwa Cloud Sea Region. Are you from another sea region or the Thunder Continent?’

Han Li chuckled at her words.

‘I am not from any nearby sea region, nor am I from the Thunder Continent.’

‘Does that mean you are from another continent?’

‘You are a clever cultivator.’

At his indirect acknowledgment, the woman became lost in thought. After a long while, she straightened her expression and sighed deeply.

‘If you are a senior from another continent, I can only imagine how great your divine abilities must be. That must be why you were able to deal with the Aura royals so easily. Seniors from other continents who come to the Thunder Continent usually pass through our Hwa Cloud Sea Region. You are a cultivator from another continent who has appeared in the nearby sea region after ten thousand years.’

‘Haha, ten thousand years! I should consider it an honor. However, my appearance here was all due to unavoidable circumstances, not something I intended.’

Han Li’s lips twitched as he gave a wry smile.

‘I don’t know how you came to be here, Senior, but I believe your cultivation techniques and divine abilities are not ordinary. I have been facing some difficulties in my recent cultivation, so may I seek your guidance?’

‘There’s nothing to guide. I am also interested in how profound the cultivation techniques of the Thunder Continent are. We can learn from each other.’

Han Li nodded without hesitation. Qing Suo was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly. She knew that Han Li was just being polite. When there was a difference in cultivation, the one with the lower cultivation would always benefit more from the exchange.

She talked about the difficulties she had encountered during her cultivation and the questions she had, seeking guidance. Although there was a significant difference between the cultivation techniques of Qing Suo and Han Li, the problems and insights that cultivators faced during their cultivation were similar.

Han Li answered her questions without holding back. Although he didn’t say much, the advice from a Nascent Soul cultivator cleared up the blockages in her mind. Qing Suo listened intently to his words. Of course, in the process, she also had to share some of her own cultivation techniques. Thus, Han Li also gained some insights from learning about a new cultivation technique.

Their conversation lasted for at least half a day. Han Li answered the woman’s last question, and Qing Suo closed her eyes to organize her insights. As soon as she opened her eyes, she stood up and bowed deeply to Han Li, expressing her gratitude.

‘I am truly grateful. Thanks to you, Senior, I have saved decades of cultivation time.’

‘It’s nothing. This is also your good fortune! I also have some questions for you, so let’s call it a trade.’

Han Li looked at Qing Suo with a calm expression.

‘Please ask anything. I will answer to the best of my knowledge.’

‘It’s nothing special. I just want to ask if there is a long-distance teleportation array here. A teleportation array that can take me to another continent.’

‘A teleportation array! Are you planning to return to your original continent?’

‘That’s right. My body has recovered to some extent, so there is no reason for me to stay here any longer. I believe that places where cultivators usually reside have long-distance teleportation arrays.’

‘That is true, but I am afraid I will have to disappoint you, Senior.’

‘Does that mean there is no teleportation array here?’

Han Li’s expression darkened, and his voice lowered as Qing Suo gave a wry smile.

‘Thousands of years ago, our Hwa Cloud Sea Region had a teleportation array that led to the Thunder Continent. However, it was attacked by a giant demonic beast from another sea region. The high-level cultivators who were guarding the teleportation array were killed, and the teleportation array was destroyed. That is why this surrounding sea region is completely isolated. Perhaps that is why the Aura people revealed themselves and attacked the Wa Clan branch.’

‘Is there no way to repair the teleportation array?’

‘Of course, it can be repaired if we have the materials.’

‘Cultivator Qing’s words mean that there is no way to obtain the materials?’

Han Li raised his eyebrows. He had a vast amount of materials, so it wasn’t as if there was no hope at all.

‘The other materials are fine, but the core material for the teleportation array, the Void Cloud Crystal, is too rare. It is a mineral that is only produced in a few mines on the Thunder Continent, so there is no way to find it here.’

‘Void Cloud Crystal?’

Han Li frowned at the name of the material, which he was hearing for the first time.

This was because teleportation arrays were profound formations, and each continent had its own unique style. Therefore, the materials used would also be different.

Just as Han Li’s face was darkening, Qing Suo’s words awakened him.

‘So, you’re saying that the Void Cloud Crystal was swallowed by that sea demon beast? And that the demon beast is living in the nearby sea region?’

‘Yes, that’s right. At the time, the sea demon beast used the high tide to rush towards the teleportation array and swallowed it in one gulp. The Void Cloud Crystal is inside it. And for some reason, the demon beast has been appearing in the southern deep sea since a hundred years ago.’

‘Out of the dozen or so Upper Realm cultivators who discovered the sea demon beast at the time, only two survived, and the rest were all killed. Since then, cultivators in the nearby sea region have tried to kill the demon beast several times to reactivate the teleportation array, but it is too powerful and cunning to catch.

Moreover, the demon beast does not appear when there are many cultivators, but it appears like a ghost when the number of cultivators is small or when someone falls behind from the group! Because of that, many cultivators have been harmed.’

‘What kind of divine abilities does it possess that make it so difficult to deal with?’

Han Li asked about the demon beast in detail with a puzzled expression. Generally, no matter how high the cultivation of a sea demon beast was, it could not withstand being hunted by several cultivators working together.

‘It has not been accurately identified what kind of demon beast it is. It seems to be a mutated sea demon beast. From afar, it looks like a giant whale, but it can freely increase and decrease in size, and it is naturally skilled in water escape techniques, allowing it to travel thousands of miles in the sea in an instant.

No matter how much the cultivators gather and corner the demon beast, it uses water escape techniques to break through the encirclement and escape, making it impossible to trap. Moreover, the demon beast is extremely violent, and no one dares to face it alone except for the Silver Hermit, who is considered the number one expert in our sea region.’

As the woman expressed her frustration, Han Li’s expression also darkened.

‘So much time has passed, why do you think the Void Cloud Crystal is still intact inside that sea demon beast? It could have been refined long ago.’

‘You don’t have to worry about that. The Void Cloud Crystal has space attributes, so it can never be destroyed unless it is attacked with a power that has the same space attributes. Although the sea demon beast’s attributes are relatively complex, it does not possess space divine abilities. We have been tracking it for a long time, so we are certain of this.’