Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 991

Han Li activated his Brightsight Spirit Eyes and examined the object, which resembled a white spirit beast egg. The egg’s surface was white with mottled red patterns, and it emitted a bright red light.

“What kind of egg is this?” Han Li asked.

“You have a good eye,” Old Devil Xu replied. “You chose this one first among all the treasures. This is the only spirit insect egg I obtained after killing a rare Lava Flame Butterfly deep within a lava pit. That Flame Butterfly possessed fire-attribute divine abilities comparable to mine, and it took me a year of hardship and setting traps to finally kill it. If you nurture it carefully after it hatches, it will become an exceptional spirit beast. I already have a natal spirit beast [a spirit beast bonded to one’s soul], so it’s difficult for me to put effort into another.”

“A Flame Butterfly with divine abilities comparable to a Void Refinement cultivator [a high-level cultivation stage], that’s quite astonishing. It’s a pity that I also have another spirit beast,” Han Li said, withdrawing his gaze from the red insect egg and clicking his tongue as if in regret. Old Devil Xu flinched at this, then immediately put on a smile.

“Ah, my thoughts were short-sighted. How could a cultivator like Fellow Daoist Han not have a spirit beast that has been with him for a long time? Then, please take a look at the other treasures.”

Han Li nodded and pulled over the next jade box, opening it….

After a while, he had examined almost all the jade boxes the old man had presented. Most of them contained rare materials, powerful magical artifacts, and elixirs that aided in the cultivation of Void Refinement cultivators. Any of these items, if put up for auction at the Four Clans Auction, would have fetched a high price. However, Han Li merely smiled and showed no particular reaction. When he finished examining the last jade box and put it back down, Old Devil Xu’s expression darkened.

“Are there no items that catch your eye?”

“It’s true that they are all precious items. Especially the Flame Butterfly; it would be an invaluable treasure for a cultivator who practices fire-attribute techniques. However, for me…” Han Li trailed off, looking troubled.

However, even if Han Li didn’t say it, how could Old Devil Xu not understand his meaning?

“Fellow Daoist, what kind of treasure would you exchange for? If it’s alright with you, please tell me directly. If I don’t have it, I can try to acquire it for you.”

At those words, Han Li fell into contemplation. He needed many things. Not to mention the rare materials he had promised to obtain for Qing Yuanzi, there was a whole pile of them!

The problem was that if he were to exchange for the materials with the Qilin Source [a powerful energy source], he would have to receive several of them to make it worthwhile. He knew the value of the Qilin Source, so he would naturally take it for granted, but Old Devil Xu would likely misunderstand that he was being greedy. If that were the case, he would only damage his reputation and form a bad relationship with the other party.

“Fellow Daoist Xu, the items I need are extremely rare, so it probably won’t be easy to obtain them. There’s no need to mention it. Sigh, the matter of the Heavenly Origin Energy…” He sighed and made a troubled face. Seeing this, Old Devil Xu gritted his teeth as he looked at the young man’s face. He carefully took out a dark navy jade box from his chest.

“How about you take a look at this first? It’s an even more precious item than the ones I presented earlier. It’s something that even the elders of my clan needed, so I had been saving it to offer to them, but I’m bringing it out for Yun Shang. I’m confident that Fellow Daoist Han won’t refuse this.”

Old Devil Xu’s actions were as expected. No one would present their most precious item from the start when making a deal. Han Li nodded, pulled the jade box over, and was startled by the strange chill emanating from it. The jade box was incredibly cold, no matter what it was made of. As he slowly opened the lid of the jade box, a fist-sized, bright red metal was glittering with golden light inside.

“……!” Han Li’s eyes flickered. He recognized the identity of the object, which looked like glass and metal, at a glance, but he couldn’t believe it. He suddenly summoned a white dagger and stabbed the bright red metal. Strangely, no sound of impact was heard. The moment the tip of the dagger touched the bright red metal, it melted like candle wax, leaving behind a trail of blue smoke and disappearing.

“You’ve found all the Flame Gold Essence!” Han Li’s expression changed, unable to hide his surprise.

“You recognize it. Flame Gold Essence is the best material for refining fire-attribute magical treasures. Even a small amount added to an ordinary treasure can enhance its fire-attribute divine abilities. No matter how precious your consumable treasures are, I believe this will be sufficient compensation.”

“Are you really determined? I was in need of Flame Gold Essence, so I won’t let you suffer too much of a loss. How about this, I’ll give you an additional five million spirit stones.”

“Very well. I’ll follow Fellow Daoist Han’s words.” Old Devil Xu felt a pang in his heart as he presented the Flame Gold Essence, but his expression softened at Han Li’s words. No matter how precious the Flame Gold Essence was, it couldn’t take precedence over the future of his beloved junior.

“Then, what should we do now…” Old Devil Xu subtly urged Han Li as he watched him take the jade box.

“After receiving these spirit stones, please wait at the top of the mountain with peace of mind! I will immediately activate the treasure to cause a celestial phenomenon, and then we just need to wait for the Heavenly Origin Energy to gather.” Han Li chuckled and took out a spirit stone pouch from his storage pouch.

“Understood. I will go up first and wait for good news.” Old Devil Xu was satisfied that Han Li was acting immediately without delay, and he flew straight to the top of the mountain, leaving the cave. Han Li couldn’t hide his excitement and chuckled as they moved away.

“To think I’d find the Flame Gold Essence so quickly! If I add the Gold Essence Insect and Blood Marrow I obtained before, I’ll have all the main materials to materialize the Great Celestial Fiend Dharma Idol [a powerful magical avatar]. As soon as I gather the other auxiliary materials, I’ll be able to condense the body of the Dharma Idol!” His eyes gleaming, he closed the stone door and rushed to the main hall to summon the Soul Devourer. The rest was simple. He extracted a single Qilin Source particle from the spirit beast’s body and burned it. Then, the same phenomenon as before occurred. The particle turned golden and flew through the cave ceiling, causing an astonishing celestial phenomenon above the mountain peak, drawing in the surrounding Heavenly Origin Energy. At this, Old Devil Xu excitedly summoned the Fire Jiao [a fire dragon] with the crimson gourd at his waist.

Before long, the celestial phenomenon dispersed, and the Heavenly Origin Energy was completely absorbed by the Fire Jiao. It moved much more swiftly than last time, not drawing much attention from other cultivators. The old man, having collected the Fire Jiao into the gourd, returned with the young man in a very cheerful mood. Han Li, who had been watching the outside through the bronze mirror in the main hall, withdrew his technique and smiled. He left a few instructions for Wawa with his consciousness and then left the cave again.

This time, he visited the large material shops in Yun City, spending spirit stones without restraint, and returned with over thirty different kinds of materials. It was fortunate that Yun City was a massive city where various races of the Heavenly Cloud gathered; it would have been difficult to gather the materials so easily in a smaller city.

Fifteen days after he entered the secret chamber and began his seclusion, a major event that only a very few in Yun City knew about occurred. The security at the city gates, which was already tight, became much stricter, and patrols within the city became more frequent. If a stranger was seen entering the city, unknown figures would rush in and interrogate them harshly. Those with questionable identities were quietly eliminated.

* * *

Somewhere in Yun City, inside a secret main hall. More than a dozen cultivators sat facing each other on long wooden chairs. Among them were three elders of the Myriad Ancient Clan, including Heavenly Axiom, as well as people Han Li recognized, such as the Winged Clan’s Cai Liuying and the Stone Insect Clan’s Dan Tianren. The other unfamiliar faces were all existences on par with Heavenly Axiom. These many cultivators of the Star Domain all had serious expressions. And at the head of the hall, a man and a woman sat side by side: a white-robed youth in his late twenties and an old woman with white hair. The old woman was one thing, but if Han Li had seen the white-robed youth, he would have been greatly surprised. He was the young man from the Bi Clan who had appeared at the Four Clans Auction. He was exuding a gloomy aura from his entire body.

“We still haven’t caught the Horned Tooth Clan spy. They must have already escaped or gone into hiding. Fellow Daoist Bai, the Feather Clan has been in charge of this matter, so please explain what’s going on,” the young man from the Bi Clan coldly asked, staring at someone. The white-haired youth in a silk robe stood up with a troubled expression and replied.

“Senior Bi, we have dispatched a large number of people skilled in Soul Confusion techniques to interrogate every suspicious person who has entered Yun City. Thanks to that, we have also found hundreds of spies sent by other powerful clans. However, we have not been able to find the Horned Tooth Clan member who infiltrated the Offering Hall. We suspect that they have already left Yun City. Otherwise, how could they still be hiding from our eyes?”

“That’s not certain. The Horned Tooth Clan spy may also be proficient in Soul Confusion techniques and have deceived the people Fellow Daoist Bai sent,” a shadow surrounded by a gray aura retorted from the side.

“If nothing else, our clan is the best among the thirteen clans when it comes to Soul Confusion techniques. If Fellow Daoist Cangying is so confident, why didn’t you send the Yin Demon Clan cultivators?”

“I was just saying it out of concern. How can the Yin Demon Clan compare to the Feather Clan in Soul Confusion techniques?” The white-haired youth showed a displeased expression, but Cangying just laughed it off.

“Enough, stop with the useless talk. There’s no way the Horned Tooth Clan spy has left Yun City! The moment the item disappeared, I issued a direct lockdown order, and not even an ant could have escaped for several days. Also, according to the soldier who was attacked, the opponent was only a Void Refinement cultivator. They could never have deceived Fellow Daoist Bai’s subordinates. They must have been someone who had been lying dormant for a very long time.” At the words of the young man from the Bi Clan, the white-haired youth and the gray shadow respectfully agreed, and the others did not dare to say anything else.

“If it’s as Senior Bi says, what should we do? If we conduct a large-scale search of the entire Yun City, it will only increase the chaos,” Heavenly Axiom cleared his throat and spoke.

“That’s what I’m worried about. But we can’t let the person who stole the blueprint of the Yun City Grand Restriction Formation, which was completed not long ago, escape like this! If the blueprint falls into the hands of the Horned Tooth Clan army, most of the restrictions protecting the city will be breached.”

“Senior’s words are correct. We can’t let the Horned Tooth Clan spy get away. But we can’t keep mobilizing large numbers of soldiers every day to patrol and maintain strict security,” an old man with a black beard spoke.

“Does Fellow Daoist Ying have any other good ideas?” the young man from the Bi Clan asked in response to the old man’s words.

“Rather than me, how about we listen to the opinion of Fellow Daoist Cai here? With Fellow Daoist Cai’s wisdom, this kind of problem can be easily solved,” the black-bearded old man waved his hand and unexpectedly mentioned Cai Liuying, who was sitting next to him.

“You’re joking, Senior. With Senior Bi and Lord San Shan here, how could I show off my shallow wit? I only intend to do my best to follow your orders,” the Winged Clan’s Cai Liuying glanced at the black-bearded old man and smiled lightly.

“Now is not the time to belittle yourself, Fellow Daoist Cai. I also want to hear the opinion of you, an elder of the Winged Clan,” the old man from the Bi Clan instructed Cai Liuying.

“Then, I will speak with some embarrassment.” Lady Mi frowned slightly but calmly stood up from her seat and bowed to the young man from the Bi Clan and the old woman.

“I would also like to hear Fellow Daoist Cai’s opinion.”

“That’s right. Fellow Daoist Cai’s wisdom is well-known!” As Cai Liuying stood up, most of the people in the main hall smiled brightly and showered her with praise. Her cultivation was at the bottom of the Saint Clan existences, but her reputation was high. Even the old woman, who had been looking down, was now carefully observing Cai Liuying, and the young man from the Bi Clan also seemed to have some expectations.