Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 959

Three months later, inside the secret chamber.

Han Li, with the image of the Demon God’s True Form [a powerful manifestation of demonic energy] floating behind him, was forming hand seals. Suddenly, his expression changed, and he withdrew the golden light, ceasing his cultivation technique.

A jade pendant-like object flashed within his sleeve and flew out. It was the Myriad Mile Talisman [a communication device]. Han Li’s eyes sparkled as he checked the talisman.

“I need to make a trip,” he said.

He immediately got up and left the secret chamber.

A few hours later, he exited the spirit beast carriage and entered an alley he had never been to before.

His gaze was fixed on a seemingly ordinary shop. Strangely, the shop was firmly closed and not open for business.

*Whoosh!*

Han Li didn’t mind and cast a magic seal in front of the door. As the magic seal passed through the door, it soon opened. Behind the door, a woman of the Jeongjok tribe [a fictional race], Seomseom, with a white crystal embedded between her eyebrows, was waiting.

“Greetings, Senior. I didn’t expect you to come so quickly,” Seomseom said with a smile, bowing politely.

“Haha, no need to be so formal. I came straight away after receiving the message,” Han Li replied.

“Please come inside so we can talk. There is a cultivator I would like to introduce to you, Senior.”

At Seomseom’s words, Han Li nodded without saying anything. The woman closed the shop door again and took out a formation disc. As she formed hand seals and chanted a spell, a colorful aura spread from the formation disc.

The colorful aura swirled around the woman and Han Li, then transformed into a five-colored formation. The next moment, the surrounding scenery blurred, and Han Li found himself inside a personal spatial rift [a pocket dimension].

Han Li noticed someone there.

“Greetings, Senior Han,” the person said, cupping his fist in a respectful greeting from afar.

He was a Core Formation stage cultivator [a level of cultivation] with a sturdy build and several faint purple scars on his face. His eyes were sharp, giving him a valiant impression.

“How should I address you?” Han Li asked calmly as he walked out of the teleportation formation.

“I am Woljong.”

“Brother Wol is a renowned demonic beast hunter in the Magma Mountain Range. We need Brother Wol’s strength to enter the Magma Mountain Range smoothly, so we invited him here,” Seomseom explained to Han Li.

“A demonic beast hunter? You must frequent the Magma Mountain Range.”

“I have been to the Magma Mountain Range a total of 37 times, and I have gone deep into the mountain range 7 of those times,” Woljong replied respectfully, his facial scars twitching.

’37 times!’

Han Li’s expression changed upon hearing those words. Han Li had decided to go to the Magma Mountain Range with Seomseom, and he had read scriptures and researched information related to it.

The Magma Mountain Range was more dangerous than Seomseom had described. Most of those who entered were highly skilled and courageous, but even they did not recklessly venture deep inside.

Yet, the Core Formation stage cultivator in front of him was saying that he frequently went in and out of the Magma Mountain Range. Seomseom stepped forward and continued the explanation.

“This time, Senior and I will not be going deep into the mountain range, but it is still a bit far from the entrance. For safety, we paid a high price to hire Brother Wol as our guide! Just in case. Brother Wol has a special ability to sense the location of powerful demonic beasts in advance without being affected by demonic energy.”

“You flatter me, Fellow Seom! It has been a long time since I have been in the Magma Mountain Range, so I do not know how the interior has changed. It has been a hundred years since I last entered the mountain range,” Woljong said humbly, shaking his head.

“How much could it have changed in just a hundred years! With a famous person like Brother Wol guiding us, and since we will only be staying on the outskirts, it won’t be that dangerous, right?”

“That is because you do not know, Fellow Seom. The Magma Mountain Range is dangerous not only because of the demonic beasts but also because of the terrain that changes almost daily and the demonic energy that accumulates over time. A place that was empty the day before can turn into a giant mountain or a demonic beast lair the next day due to the influence of demonic energy.

You said that we only need to go to the outskirts of the mountain range, and I also happen to need the spirit liquid of the Ten Thousand Year Emerald Fungus [a rare and valuable substance], so I am accompanying you. Otherwise, no matter how high a reward you offered, I would not have risked it.”

Woljong said seriously at Seomseom’s words.

“Rest assured, we will never go deep into the mountain range. I am much more timid than Brother Wol,” Seomseom said.

“Understood. And as I mentioned beforehand, I will not interfere in any matter except for the demonic beasts that appear along the way. I will only be guiding the way,” Woljong said, relaxing his expression and reconfirming the terms of the deal.

“Of course. If we have any other requests for Brother Wol, we will offer a separate reward then. We will never force you,” the Jeongjok woman replied readily, but she left room for negotiation. At her words, Woljong nodded silently. Han Li, who had been listening quietly, observed Woljong and slowly opened his mouth.

“To be honest, I do not know much about the Magma Mountain Range and demonic beasts. I have only seen records in scriptures. So, I am glad that Fellow Seom hired a cultivator! May I ask about the things I have been curious about regarding the Magma Mountain Range?”

“Please ask anything, and I will answer to the best of my knowledge.”

“High-level demonic beasts are naturally intelligent, but what about mid and low-level demonic beasts? How do they compare to ordinary spirit beasts…?”

Han Li immediately bombarded him with questions, and Woljong began to explain in detail as soon as he heard them. The Jeongjok woman listened attentively from the side, occasionally interjecting with questions or answers.

They talked in a friendly atmosphere, and in half an hour, Han Li was able to find out all the information he wanted. Han Li smiled contentedly after hearing the answer to his last question.

“Fellow Seom, when are we planning to depart for this matter?”

“The Magma Mountain Range is not far from Yunseong, but it will still take about a month. If it is okay with you, Senior, how about we depart in three days?”

“Very well. Let’s meet outside the East Gate in three days,” Han Li agreed, stroking his chin. Woljong also nodded in agreement.

“If there is nothing else to discuss, I will return first to prepare,” Han Li said.

“Yes, I will see you out,” Seomseom replied politely and took out the formation disc again. Han Li then disappeared into the light formation, seen off by the Jeongjok woman and Woljong.

“Fellow Seom, is Senior Han really someone we can trust? I heard he is a high-level demonic cultivator, but I don’t feel any demonic energy from him. From my experience in the Magma Mountain Range, I am confident in my ability to sense demonic energy,” Woljong asked, letting out a sigh of relief as soon as Han Li left the spatial rift.

“Don’t worry about that. If Senior Han were not a high-level demonic cultivator, I would not have been able to persuade him to join us. If we didn’t need a high-level cultivator who has mastered demonic arts, why would we have waited until now when there are so many high-level clans in Yunseong?” Seomseom said confidently.

“Then, Senior Han must have mastered a special technique to hide his demonic energy. But what exactly is the purpose of this trip? It must be something that requires a high-level demonic cultivator to accompany us. Also, as I mentioned, entering the Magma Mountain Range now is a dangerous choice.

It is a period when the demonic energy of the mountain range erupts explosively once every three hundred years, and during this period, even powerful demonic beasts can appear on the outskirts. Couldn’t we wait another four or five years before entering?” Woljong asked, pondering and bringing up the matter he had been keeping in his mind.

“I apologize, but I have my own difficulties, so I cannot tell you the details. We must enter the Magma Mountain Range within two years. Otherwise, we may have to wait hundreds of years more.

That is why I hired Brother Wol, even offering you the spirit liquid of the Ten Thousand Year Emerald Fungus. Other guides said they could not help during the period when demonic energy erupts. The only one we can trust is a cultivator,” Seomseom explained with a wry smile.

“Since you have said so much, I will try going. But you must know that I am only 70 to 80 percent confident that I can safely guide you to the place you want. If we are unlucky and encounter a strong demonic beast or something unexpected happens, I will immediately leave the Magma Mountain Range. Even if I fail to guide you, you must still give me the remaining spirit liquid of the Ten Thousand Year Emerald Fungus as promised.”

“Of course. I will fulfill everything as promised,” Seomseom replied.

“But shouldn’t we tell Senior Han about the demonic energy eruption?” Woljong asked, narrowing his eyes and looking at the woman as he nodded.

“He will naturally find out once we enter the mountain range, so I don’t think there is much difference between knowing it beforehand or later,” the Jeongjok woman replied a bit shamelessly, blinking her pretty eyes.

“Well, it is not something that can be prepared for even if he knows beforehand. If Senior Han knew that it was the period when demonic energy erupts, he might not enter the Magma Mountain Range,” Woljong said, taking Seomseom’s words lightly. Seomseom did not say anything more. After that, Woljong also discussed the specific details with the Jeongjok woman before leaving the space through the teleportation formation.

Now, only Seomseom remained in the space.

“…”

As soon as Woljong disappeared, the smile on the Jeongjok woman’s face vanished, and a coldness enveloped her. A blue light flashed from her sleeve, and a small fist-sized beast appeared.

The small beast, covered in scales, had two horns on its head and a mouth full of sharp fangs.

Surprisingly, the beast had the same appearance as the Qilin True Spirit [a mythical creature]. However, it was so faint that it seemed like it would disappear with a gust of wind.

“Are you sure it will open for two years from now? If we miscalculate the date, we might risk everything and come back empty-handed,” Seomseom stared at the Qilin phantom.

“Do you still not trust me? Have I ever been wrong? I have told you about relics before, and that is how you were able to reach your current level of cultivation. You were able to reach your current level of cultivation in hundreds of years because of me, given the aptitude of the Jeongjok people,” the Qilin phantom said lazily, tilting its head.

“Of course, I trust you! You know that if anything happens to me, who has been in a symbiotic relationship with you since birth, your soul will also be finished. But you are just a fragment of the Qilin True Spirit’s soul, so there might be errors in your memory.”

“Yes, I am one of the hundred thousand fragments of the Qilin True Spirit that exploded on its own. At the time, I had no way to survive without ending my own life after encountering a powerful enemy! Why else would I have used the heaven-defying secret technique to divide my original spirit into 100,000 pieces? It was to gain a chance to cultivate again. So, I accurately replicated important information in each fragment, and the information about the True Spirit’s blood point is one of them. Don’t worry. The information is accurate.”

“Yes, it is true that I have reached my current level because you possessed me when I was in my mother’s womb. But do you think I don’t know that you originally intended to eliminate my original spirit and take over this body?” Seomseom chuckled.

“Still talking about that! I was also unlucky to end up in your body. If I had found another body, I would have been living freely by now,” the Qilin phantom said, its spiritual light flickering as if it was upset.

“When I was born, I was the only unborn fetus in the village. You chose me because you thought it would be easy to take over my body.”

“I had used up almost all my strength trying to escape, so I had no choice. Even if I am a True Spirit-level consciousness, I am only one-hundred-thousandth of the original. How could I take over the body of an adult Jeongjok person?” Seomseom said, sounding incredulous. The Qilin phantom snorted.

“Okay, let’s forget about what happened back then. The True Spirit’s blood point is an important issue for all of us. There must be no setbacks. Why don’t we wait a few hundred years until I overcome my cultivation bottleneck? Even if it takes time, it would be safer than entering the Magma Mountain Range with beings who have higher cultivation than me.”

“With the aptitude of you Jeongjok people, no matter how much I guide you and provide you with elixirs, it is impossible to raise your cultivation level that quickly. It is not good for you to waste time. If a wounded Saint-level demonic beast hadn’t settled in the True Spirit’s blood point, you could have gone alone…”