A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248

by Translator: Johnchen

  Suspicions began to surge within their minds!

  Chapter 525: A Fearsome and Resounding Reputation

  “Brother Qiu, do we attack? It seems like he’s really alone.”The fierce-looking man’s voice held a trace of nervousness.

  The gaunt old man stared at him with a doubtful expression, but didn’t reply.

  When the three saw the youth take out a black alms bowl and start to extract the Vivid Glass Beast’s soul, their expressions greatly changed with a trace of fear appearing within their eyes.

  The cultivator surnamed Min saw the old man’s hesitation and couldn’t help but frown. He probingly said, “This person is quite odd. How about we leave him be? There is no need to provoke any mysterious characters.”

  As the three had managed to survive in the Scattered Star Seas for such a long time, they were naturally very cautious people. The scene before them was, without a doubt, indescribably strange. It even caused Cultivator Min to recoil!

  The old man’s gaze wandered for a long while before he bitterly smiled, and listlessly said, “Leave him be? This is no longer a matter of choosing to attack him, but rather, how we will leave here alive.”

  These words caused the fierce-looking man and Cultivator Min to freeze. They were fully aware of the old man’s temperament and knew that he wouldn’t say something like this without reason. As such, they soon revealed astonishment.

  The old man licked his lips and spoke with an agonized whisper, “You two might not have noticed, but doesn’t this person resemble the recent rumors of that devil?”

  “Devil? Then could he be...?”

  “So it was him!”

  The two immediately let out a cry of alarm. Their faces were aghast!

  The old man solemnly muttered as if he were speaking to himself, “Absolutely. He appears young, can release several flying swords, and moreover, his sword light is azure. Just like the rumors!”

  The fierce-looking man’s complexion turned white. He said with a trembling voice, “Wasn’t that person also well-known to use a swarm of flying insects? He hasn’t revealed them since we’ve arrived. That can’t be a coincidence!” It appeared he had been shaken stiff by the old man’s words.

  Cultivator Min turned slightly green and sent out a voice transmission in a whisper, “Brother Qiu’s words are correct. This devil ordinarily reveals himself to be at early Core Formation and is fond of extracting the souls of demon beasts. The reason why he hasn’t release his flying insects should be that he didn’t feel the need to!”

  “You’re saying that this guy is the rumored ‘Insect Devil’? Then why are we still here? If we face him, we’re certain to perish.” The fierce-looking man appeared to be panic-stricken.

  The old man managed to regain his calm and said, “Don’t lose your head! Even if it truly is the Insect Devil, his attention was occupied with the Vivid Glass Beast when we arrived. As a result, we had remained undiscovered. Now that he has killed the demon beast, we will expose ourselves if we act rashly.”

  The other two glanced at each other and saw the sense in the old man’s words. As such, they didn’t dare to act impulsively.

  As the large man stared at the youth extracting the demon beast’s soul, something suddenly came to mind. He whispered with a doubtful expression, “I heard that four years ago, the Insect Devil contended for a grade seven demon beast against a group of nine Core Formation cultivators. He managed to kill eight of the Core Formation cultivators by himself, but a single late Core Formation cultivator was fortunately able to escape. Could those rumors be true?”

  Cultivator Min dryly swallowed a few times before whispering, “They should be! The man who survived was an expert from the Jade Cloud Sect, and the ones who died were his fellow Sect Members. That fight caused the Jade Cloud Sect, once renowned as one of the five great powers of Wondrous Depths Island, to lose an entire third of their forces. The Jade Cloud Sect’s Chief Elder, Daoist Master Swift Crane, was enraged by this and personally scoured the seas several times by himself in search of the insect demon. However, he returned unsuccessful each time. Many people believed even if he found the Insect Devil, nothing would come of it. After all, from the abilities he displayed, it is quite possible that he is actually a newly ascended Nascent Soul Expert. It is said that the other factions of Wondrous Depths Island have already taken note of the Insect Devil and wish to recruit him.”

  After a moment of silence, the old man shook his head and said, “Nascent Soul Stage? Not necessarily. I’ve heard that there is nothing exceptional about the insect demon’s cultivation; all of his fearsomeness comes completely from his strange insects. It was said that on the day of that battle, he hadn’t used any magic treasures and merely released countless flying insects, devouring the many Core Formation cultivators alive without even lifting a finger. That was how he received the name of Insect Devil.”

  Cultivator Min persisted, “However, Brother Qiu also saw that he didn’t use his insects and was able to kill Vivid Glass Beast in a single strike. Even late Core Formation cultivators would find it difficult to replicate this feat. Surely he must be a disguised Nascent Soul eccentric.”

  The old man still disapproved and thought to further speak when the fierce-looking man at the side interrupted him with a helpless tone, “Fellow Daoists, it makes no difference for us whether or not he is a Nascent Soul cultivator. It is almost certain that he would be able to kill us with great ease. Even we are fearful of his evil reputation; it is said that all cultivators who encountered the Insect Devil were all devoured by his insects. The number of cultivators that have fallen by his hand is no less than a hundred. In the last two years, this devil has already become a topic of fear.”

  Cultivator Min appeared even more unsightly after hearing this. His gaze fell onto the blue-clothed youth and he let out a long breath before saying, “The Insect Devil is truly vicious and bloodthirsty. It should be true without a doubt. There were no small number of cultivators that had been killed for their treasures, and all claim it to be the work of this devil! And to think we came knocking on his door!” His voice was filled with regret.

  When the old man heard this, his face also became unsightly, but he spoke no more. He was also greatly fearful toward the evil reputation of the Insect Devil.

  In the following moments, the three ceased to use voice transmissions and silently watched the youth’s every movement. They wished for him to quickly finish dealing with the demon beast so they could get away as soon as possible.

  At that moment, the blue-clothed youth finished drawing out the soul of the Vivid Glass beast into the black alms bowl. He then rummaged through the demon beast’s corpse for a white demon core.

  At that moment, the youth suddenly raised his head and glanced around.

  When the three saw this, they all held their breaths and kept their bodies perfectly still.

  However, the situation developed contrary to their wishes.

  The youth’s gaze suddenly turned to the direction that the three were hiding in. With a slight sneer on his face, he coldly said, “You three Fellow Daoists have been watching me for quite some time. Have you had enough to look at? How about you come out and show yourselves?”

  Having heard this, the three suddenly felt a chill run down their spines!

  “Run!” It was unknown which of the three shouted this, but they immediately flew off as streaks of light and split off in three different directions in a panic-stricken manner.

  The blue-clothed youth frowned and muttered, “I haven’t even finished speaking yet. Why did they flee with such fear? Did they fear that I would eat them?” A trace of confusion appeared on his face.

  But soon after, the youth waved his arms with a sullen expression, and sent three spirit beast pouches into the air, filling the sky with a torrent of tri-colored beetles.

  This youth was obviously Han Li, who had just returned from the far seas.

  The old man stealthily peeked his head around only to find a
scene that left him aghast, causing him to unconsciously speed up.

  At that moment, a series of soft sounds leisurely left Han Li’s mouth.

  When the tri-colored beetles heard him, they gathered towards the sky and instantly condensed into three huge lances spanning about three meters each. Then with a sharp and loud whistle, the three lanches blurred with brilliant light and separately shot out with miraculous speed.

  In an instant, the lances tore through the sky, disappearing into the horizon and chasing down the three cultivators that had fled.

  Han Li stood in place without any intention of chasing after them. Instead, he started to leisurely skin the translucent Vivid Glass Beast with a streak of azure light.

  The hide of the Vivid Glass Beast was a top-grade material for refining armor. He naturally wasn’t about to give it up. Then after turning the rest of the remains to ashes, Han Li retrieved the Rainbow Skirt Grass and his spell formation setup tools from the coral island.

  Just as he finished this, three flashes of light appeared on the horizon and flew in Han Li’s direction. After they grew closer to him, he was able to clearly see that they were the three cultivators that previously fled.

  These three cultivators all had tri-colored collars around their necks. Their pale faces wore expressions of crestfallen resignation.

  Han Li grasped his chin as he saw this, but he secretly smiled in his heart.

  After the three meekly fell before Han Li, he smiled and asked them with an exceptionally friendly tone, “May I ask you three Fellow Daoists, why you so flusteredly ran away from me? Could it be that you three recognize me?”

  Alternative Title

  Chapter 526: Interrogation

  Upon hearing Han Li, the three couldn’t help but look at each other in amazement. What was the insect devil’s purpose in asking them why they were afraid of him? Could it be that he wished to amuse himself before he killed them?

  The fierce-looking man steeled his heart and said with open hostility, “If Fellow Daoist wishes to take our lives, then do so! What use is there in talking?”

  “That is strange. Was there something wrong with my question?” Han Li’s expression suddenly grew sullen and cold.

  Seeing that there was possibly a chance of survival, the cultivator surnamed Min persistently pleaded, “Us brothers didn’t know that Senior was hunting demon beasts here. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have dared to disturb Senior Insect Devil. We rushed to this location unintentionally without even a sliver of hostile intent. I hope Senior will spare us.” It appeared a trace of blood had returned to his face.

  Han Li frowned and a trace of confusion flickered from his face, “Insect Devil? That’s what you call me?”

  When the gaunt old man heard this, he couldn’t help but wear a bewildered expression, muttering, “You’re not Senior Insect Devil?”

  “It seems you three Fellow Daoists have misunderstood something.” Han Li chuckled and after some hesitation, he waved his arm and three azure lights flew towards their collars. With a low-pitched hum, the collars scattered, returning them back into a swarm of countless beetles. The beetles then returned back to the spirit beast pouches at Han Li’s waist.

  The three rejoiced at being spared from death. Although they were confused, they felt somewhat convinced they had mistakenly identified him. There would be no way the Insect Devil would do something so unfathomable, given his notorious reputation. But after seeing Han Li’s astonishing display of ability, they didn’t dare to take any rash actions and respectfully addressed him.

  The old man wore a smile and promptly said, “Hehe! It seems we were mistaken. There would be no way that the Insect Devil would’ve let us off so easily. May I know your esteemed name, Fellow Daoist?” Although the old man understood that the youth before him might not be the Insect Devil, his abilities were quite similar, and he could still take their lives with ease. He naturally didn’t dare to slight him.

  When Han Li heard this, he thought to say something, but he soon turned his head to the skies.

  Han Li leisurely spoke as he stared at the sky, “Oh! It seems you three had companions, and they’ve just arrived.”

  The old man paused for a moment before turning his head in a certain direction. But since he didn’t catch sight of anything, a trace of confusion appeared on his face.

  Doubtful, the old man honestly replied, “Us brothers did bring along a few of our disciples. I reckon this is about the time that they should arrive!” Just as he finished saying this, a string of lights suddenly appeared off in the horizon. They were the Foundation Establishment cultivators that they had left behind.

  They had chased after the three Core Formation cultivators at a comparatively sluggish pace on their magic tools.

  When the old man saw this, his expression changed. This had illustrated that the youth possessed spiritual sense far beyond his own. His fear of Han Li unconsciously grew.

  Han Li glanced at the three Core Formation Cultivators with narrowed eyes and cryptically said, “I’m not one for crowds. How about you make arrangements for your disciples, and I'll wait for you three on the other end of the island. I still have a few questions I wish to ask you. I hope you won’t leave without saying goodbye.” He then smiled at them and flew to the far end of the island below them.

  The three let out sighs of relief. Although they didn’t know whether or not the youth was truly the Insect Devil, it appeared that he currently didn’t have any plans of killing them. Their lives were safe for the time being.

  As a result, the old man solemnly uttered a few words. Cultivator Min nodded his head and took to the skies. After the group of disciples arrived, he coldly gave a few words and had the cultivators slowly descend to the side of the island.

  At that moment, Cultivator Min then worriedly returned to the old man’s side.

  After Cultivator Min arrived, the fierce-looking man hesitantly asked in a voice transmission, “Brother Qiu, must we go?”

  With a change of expression, the old man solemnly warned, “Fellow Daoist Xuan, don’t think of anything ridiculous. Did you not just witness what he was capable of? Do you truly believe we will be able to escape him? Just give an honest answer to anything he asks, but do not provoke him by any means. Treat him exactly as you would a Nascent Soul cultivator. With his abilities, he should feel disdainful towards killing us.”

  Brother Min nodded his head and said, “Brother Qiu makes sense. I also can’t make out this person to be the evil, bloodthirsty sort. It would be better to not take any rash actions.”

  Although the fierce-looking man wasn’t entirely in favor of this, he reconsidered after hearing them.

  Soon after, the three obediently flew over to the far side of the island.

  Han Li was sitting down cross-legged on flat coral, calmly waiting for them.

  Han Li casually beckoned to the three with a calm expression and said, “Fellow Daoists, how about we sit down and have a chat! Tell me about the recent happenings near Wondrous Depths Island. I’ve just returned from the far seas, and I’ve encountered several groups of cultivators in the recent days. From what I remember, cultivators should rarely tread in these seas. Why aren’t cultivators hunting demon beasts in the depths? Naturally, I’d also like a detailed explanation on the matter of this ‘Insect Devil’.”

  The three became increasingly uneasy upon seeing Han Li’s calm appearance. They respectfully agreed and carefully sat down nearby.

  The old man bitterly smiled and slowly said, “It’s been two years since we’ve been to Wondrous Depths Island. At that time, the Wondrous Depths had already become a restricted area. One can no longer hunt demon beasts in the depths. In fact, whenever it is discussed, everyone turns pale.”

  With an unchanged expression, Han Li softly said, “Oh? Please explain, Fellow Daoist!”

  The old man felt relaxed upon seeing that Han Li was intent on listening. Then after some thought, he gave an honest collection of what had happened, “This m
atter is actually quite a long story. Two years ago, the demon beasts violently emerged...”

  Han Li quietly listened until the old man had finished. He then unconsciously frowned and muttered to himself, “According to what you’ve said, the insurrection of demon beasts in the depths killed no small number of high grade cultivators. Even Nascent Soul cultivators are unable to withstand the depths. It is no wonder that the other regions of the seas have so many cultivators!”

  Although Han Li didn’t show it on his face, the old man’s recollection had truly shocked him. The demon beasts of the depths went berserk! Even Nascent Soul cultivators are unable to return after entering. Everything that he heard seemed to point to disaster. Could it be that a great war was about to erupt in the Outer Star Seas?

  Han Li paused for a moment before asking with an interested tone, “So how about telling me about that Insect Devil business? After you three saw me, you believed me to be this Insect Devil. Could it be that person is quite similar to me?”

  When the three heard this, they couldn’t help but exchange glances at each other.

  The old man dryly coughed and answered, “How do I say this? At first glance, Fellow Daoist looks very similar to the rumored Insect Devil. He uses azure flying swords, has a young appearance, and also appears to only have an early Core Formation cultivation. Additionally, he can also control over a thousand flying insects...”

  But as he continued speaking, his voice unconsciously grew soft. Because no matter how he saw it, this youth completely matched the details of the rumored Insect Devil. Even Cultivator Min’s confidence was wavering.

  Although a trace of surprise appeared from Han Li’s eyes, he calmly said, “Huh? That does sound quite like me. Fellow Daoist should be a bit more specific! What has the Insect Devil been doing? It seems his reputation is quite large.”