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

by Translator: Johnchen

  Han Li frowned and deliberated for a long while before nonchalantly asking, “Can artifact spirits change their main bodies? If that is possible, then why are you willing to become my artifact spirit? Don’t tell me that this is just because you’re grateful that I’ve taken you out of Heavenvoid Hall.”

  The young woman sighed and slowly said, “Other artifact spirits possess no awareness and are naturally incapable of changing their housed treasure. However, I am different. So long as we are both willing, I am completely capable of doing this. Naturally, if I am to change my housed treasure, I will certainly feel immense pain but that cannot be helped. As for my intentions, I naturally don’t wish to be an artifact spirit for eternity. Don’t think my views to be contradictory. I am only willing to become your artifact spirit now so that I may acquire true freedom in the future.”

  Han Li’s heart stirred and his expression grew lax, “Could you speak of that in more detail?”

  “I am not too sure of the specifics, but my scattered memories tell me that if I cultivate a secret technique, and my housed treasure’s master reaches the legendary Deity Transformation stage, then I will acquire my freedom in the instant they ascend to the next realm. But before that happens, I will still be under your control. If you were to die for any reason before then, I will have to find another cultivator. From the way I see it, with your precious small bottle, you are the most likely cultivator to fulfill my wishes. That is why I was willing to take the initiative to offer to become your artifact spirit.”

  Han Li’s expression wavered upon hearing this. After letting out a long sigh, he said, “Regardless of whether or not you’re telling the truth, I truly have no method of controlling you other than this. And since you’ve taken the initiative to become my artifact spirit, I cannot reject you. However, I will have to place a temporary restriction on your body for the time being. After all, suddenly shifting an artifact spirit isn’t something that can be done all at once. I must first prepare myself. Oh right, how far away can you be from your housed treasure while in that body?”

  Silvermoon appeared happy that Han Li had agreed to her request. She obediently replied, “Currently, I must be within fifty kilometers of you. But soon, this demon fox’s cultivation will increase and so should the range.”

  Han Li closely pursued this matter with a cautious expression, “What will happen if you exceed this range?”

  “If the range is exceeded, my soul will be beckoned by the housed treasure and I will be called back. However, Fellow Daoist need not worry about inconveniencing me. I know a secret technique that allows my body to be safely sealed within a spirit beast pouch. So long as you cultivate the technique and give the order, I can leave and enter the spirit beast pouch at will. As for when you confront an enemy, I can appear as your artifact spirit or even as the fox in accordance to the situation.”

  Han Li appeared satisfied by Silvermoon’s answer and nodded his head, “Good, since that’s the case, I’ll first...”

  Silvermoon’s expression changed as she suddenly interrupted him, “Not good, my spiritual power is exhausted. I cannot continue to maintain this body.”

  In a pulse of silver light, her body shrank before Han Li’s eyes, turning back into a small white fox. It was currently wrapped around Han Li’s rather large clothes.

  When Han Li saw this, he couldn’t help but bitterly laugh. He then formed an incantation gesture without any hesitation and shot several streaks of azure light into the white fox’s body, placing it underneath his restrictions.

  Han Li then lifted the white fox by its nape and said, “Once we head out, I will hand you over to the Drifting Cloud disciples for the time being. Then after we part, slip away on your own. It should be extremely easy for you to slip away from a couple of Qi Condensation cultivators. I’ll be waiting for you along the way.”

  Chapter 617: Return

  “Alright, I’ll do as you said. But how will Brother Han handle this Cadaver Demon?” The white fox spoke to Han Li through a voice transmission.

  Han Li took a look at the green haired Cadaver Demon and casually said, “First, I’ll see whether or not the Gold Devouring Beetles can destroy it. If that isn’t possible, then there is nothing that can be done. We’ll just leave it alone. Besides, regardless of the outcome I’ll be taking the jade box that has its main soul. It won’t be able to cause any major problems later on.”

  He then slapped his waist and launched the Spirit Beast Pouch into the air, releasing countless black-tainted Gold Devouring Beetles to surround the Cadaver Demon.

  Sounds of the beetle’s gnawing spread throughout the room, but soon, Han Li saw a portion of the Gold Devouring Beetles suddenly fall onto their backs and die. Their tri-colored shell turned dark-green in an instant.

  “What fearsome poison!” Han Li muttered with a faint scowl. After a moment of hesitation, he had the flying beetles return to his spirit beast pouch.

  The white fox pondered for a long moment and said, “The Cadaver Demon’s rotting poison might not be among the ten deadliest poisons in the land, but it isn’t something that your incomplete Gold Devouring Beetles are capable of enduring.”

  Han Li snorted and frowned as he coldly glanced at the Cadaver Demon.

  The monster’s body was extremely durable, far beyond that of the Venomous Flood Dragon. He reckoned that if he were to destroy the Cadaver Demon, it would cause a majority of his black-tainted Gold Devouring Beetles to perish. There was no way Han Li would suffer such a loss over a fruitless matter.

  “Let’s go.” Han Li spoke without the slightest hesitation.

  The white fox nodded her head and said, “That does seem to be the only choice. Perhaps there will be a later use for the Cadaver Demon!”

  With that said, a strange light glowed from the white fox and a yellow wolf head emerged from its body. As soon as the yellow wolf appeared, it opened its mouth wide and enveloped them both in yellow light. Afterwards, Han Li and the white fox disappeared from the room.

  Senior Martial Brother Wang and the other three Qi Condensation cultivators were anxiously standing outside of the cliff. With none of them capable of using earth movement techniques, they could only wait for Han Li to return.

  Kui Huan grew impatient and asked, “Senior Martial Brother, do you think Junior Martial Brother Han succeeded?”

  When the other two heard him they attentively looked at Senior Martial Brother Wang. He wryly smiled and said, “It’s hard to say. With Junior Martial Brother Han’s tenth layer cultivation, it shouldn’t have been easy for him to chase after the demon fox. However, Junior Martial Brother Han does possess an impressive magic tool. Perhaps he’ll be able to give us a pleasant surprise, but either result shouldn’t come as a shock.”

  When the other three heard this, they couldn’t help but look at each other in dismay.

  The short, stout youth sighed and shook his injured hand. When he thought to say something further, a yellow light suddenly flashed from the cliff to reveal Han Li with a small fox in his grasp.

  “Junior Martial Brother Han!”

  “You truly managed to capture the fox!”

  All four of the cultivators began to speak with expressions of excitement.

  Han Li chuckled and said, “It wasn’t much. The fox was quite cunning and circled several times within the mountain. Had it not exhausted its spiritual power, I fear I wouldn’t have been able to capture it so quickly.” He then tossed the white fox towards Kui Huan.

  Kui Huan was stunned for a moment before excitedly catching it.

  The short, stout youth hurriedly warned, “Junior Martial Brother Kui, be careful! Don’t let it run away!”

  Kui Huan lifted the white fox and replied, “Don’t worry! I’ll be very careful.” Afterwards, he slapped his storage pouch and took out a dark-green bag before quickly slipping the small fox inside.

  Kui Huan quickly tied the pouch closed and proudly said, “Hehe! How will you escape from this pouch, little fox?” />
  Han Li took a look at the small pouch, but after seeing that it was only a low grade spirit tool, he paid it no further heed.

  Senior Martial Brother Wang didn’t pay any further attention to the small fox in the pouch. He instead faced Han Li and cordially said, “We were only able to capture the demon fox in great thanks to Junior Martial Brother Han. Since we aren’t an unscrupulous sort, we’ll give Junior Brother Han a third of whatever the fox will fetch us. As for the rest, we’ll split it evenly among us four. How does that sound?”

  Han Li smiled in response. From Senior Martial Brother Wang’s skilled display, it seemed he truly wished to form a relationship with Han Li. As a result, Han Li nodded his head and agreed without any reservations, “Since Brother Wang has made up his mind, I have no complaints.”

  Although the other three felt somewhat reluctant to receive fewer spirit stones, they all knew that if it weren’t for Han Li’s assistance they would’ve ended up wasting their efforts. As such, no one raised any objections.

  In the following moments, Han Li shared a few pleasantries with the others before excusing himself on the pretenses of having a pressing matter at hand.

  With Han Li heading back to the sect the other four decided to strike while the iron was hot and head straight to the market city at the center of the Dreamcloud Mountains. Since that was where the disciples of the three sects mingled the most, they reckoned they would fetch the highest price for the Snowcloud Fox there.

  The four then departed from the marsh in high spirits.

  Han Li didn’t travel far before casually finding a small mountain nearby. He dropped down and sat cross legged on a flat rock before closing his eyes. He had the jade scepter on hand, allowing the white fox to find him when the time came.

  About an hour later, Han Li’s expression stirred and he opened his eyes. At nearly the same time, a yellow light emerged from the earth revealing the white fox.

  Han Li looked at the white fox and indifferently said, “Well aren’t you fast?”

  The white fox raised its head and chuckled, “It isn’t that I’m fast. It’s just that they underestimated me by using a low grade spirit tool to contain me. I fear they still haven’t discovered that I’ve disappeared.”

  Han Li expressionlessly said, “But now those Drifting Cloud Sect disciples will have made a wasted effort. When the time comes, I should give them a bit of compensation!”

  The white fox shook its head and said, “If that’s the case, they will have profited from this disaster.”

  “Alright, let’s cut the rubbish. Shrink yourself and hide in my sleeve for the time being. We’re going to return.” Han Li then shook his sleeve.

  When the white fox heard him, she wordlessly shrunk herself in a glimmer of silver light and flew into Han Li’s sleeve as a white blur.

  Because of the restrictions that Han Li had placed on the white fox’s body, he had no fear of any sinister designs the white fox may hold, allowing him to confidently fly back.

  Instead of returning to his cave residence, he first dropped down into the market city at the main mountain of the Drifting Cloud Sect. They should have the materials he needed to shift the housing of the artifact spirit.

  He needed to hurry up and make preparations for his return. Each passing day that Silvermoon remained as a loose artifact spirit was a day that he felt uneasy.

  Han Li was able to purchase the ingredients without problem. He easily found a store dealing with materials and purchased them all in one go. Although these materials were uncommon, they weren’t particularly rare or precious. As a result, no one has asked him what he was using them for.

  With both the materials and white fox on hand, Han Li flew back to the medicine garden with satisfaction. But just as he arrived at the medicine garden, there were two people standing outside the restrictions.

  One of them was Kui Huan who was sighing with an appearance of nervousness. The other person was a sullen-faced Senior Martial Brother Wang.

  When Han Li saw them, he inwardly sighed. He obviously knew why they were here. However, Han Li landed near them with an expression of ignorance.

  When they saw that Han Li had returned, they glanced at each other and wore embarrassed expressions.

  Han Li stepped forward and calmly asked, “Fellow Daoists, why have you returned so quickly? Have you already sold the Snowcloud Fox?”

  After a moment of hesitation, Senior Martial Brother Wang wryly smiled and said, “We... I’m afraid we’ve let Brother Han down.”

  Han Li stroked his chin and asked, “Oh, what happened? Was there an incident with the Snowcloud Fox?”

  Kui Huan opened his eyes wide and bewilderedly asked, “Junior Martial Brother Han, how did you know?!”

  Chapter 618: Sword Trial Assembly

  Han Li faintly smiled when he heard Kui Huan and calmly said, “The only thing that we have together is a business interest in the demon fox. What else would bring you here?”

  When Kui Huan heard this, he opened his mouth but was left at a loss for words. At his side, Senior Martial Brother Wang sighed and said, “Junior Martial Brother Han is clearly an intelligent person. It is true that something has gone wrong with the Snowcloud Fox. We wished to sell the demon fox as soon as possible and headed straight to a market city when we departed. But not long after we left, I grew somewhat ill at ease and had Junior Martial Brother Kui open the bag to let me examine the fox. As a result...”

  With that said, Senior Martial Brother Wang paused, revealing a strange expression.

  Vexed, Kui Huan hurriedly finished for him, “As a result, we discovered that the demon fox had somehow managed to escape without a trace. It was truly inconceivable.”

  “It disappeared without a trace?” Han Li frowned as if he was wondering about the truth behind those words.

  When Senior Martial Brother Wang saw Han Li’s expression, he inwardly cursed without end.

  Although Han Li’s cultivation wasn't high, he was skilled in talisman refinement and possessed a powerful magic tool. With that in mind, Senior Martial Brother Wang had planned on properly forming a relationship with him. However, he didn't anticipate such an embarrassing affair to occur before he could formally establish a friendship.

  It would be fine if he were wealthy. He’d be able to easily solve this by just using his own spirit stones and leave a good impression with Han Li. But as it so happened, he along with his fellow group members were lacking spirit stones making it extremely difficult to win Han Li over.

  With that thought, Senior Martial Brother Wang forcefully mustered himself out of his dejection saying, “I know that this matter is hard to believe, but it really did happen. Regardless of how it’s said, Junior Martial Brother did personally hand over the demon fox to us, but now I must take responsibility for its disappearance. I’ve already sent my Junior Martial Brothers to sell off the Huangjing to repay the spirit stones we borrowed from you, and we’ll have that for you soon. As for Junior Martial Brother’s rightful share of spirit stones, we will make up for it as soon as we can.”

  Just as soon as Kui Huan heard this, his expression changed and he nervously said, “Senior Martial Brother, that is no small sum of spirit stones. Even if we were to pool together all we have, it would take at least three years to gather together that many spirit stones. It will slow down our cultivation if we cannot purchase any medicine pills during that time.”

  Senior Martial Brother Wang shook his head and was about to say something when Han Li interrupted him with a smile, “There is no need for Senior Martial Brother to be like this! I believe you. The Snowcloud Fox was rather proficient in movement techniques so it’s no surprise that it was able to escape from the leather bag magic tool. I had originally thought to give a word of warning to Brother Kui, but at the time I found it to be somewhat inappropriate and stayed quiet. As for my share of the spirit stones, let’s just drop it. It’ll be fine if you just return the spirit stones that you borrowed. With that I won’t c
onsider myself to have suffered a loss.”

  When Kui Huan heard that he didn't have to give any spirit stones, he was greatly delighted and slapped his hands together saying, “I knew that Junior Martial Brother Han was a magnanimous person. Although it was our fault, we truly don’t possess the spirit stones to compensate you. And with Junior Martial Brother’s wealth, he shouldn’t mind such a small amount too greatly. I, Kui Huan, will always look upon you as a friend.”

  When Senior Martial Brother Wang heard Han Li, he revealed some hesitation. A moment later, he helplessly smiled and said, “On behalf of my Junior Martial Brothers, I accept Junior Martial Brother Han’s generosity despite our shameful display. If you ever require any assistance in the future, please don’t hesitate to find us. So long as it is possible, I will not refuse you.”

  Senior Martial Brother Wang felt that while Han Li’s words were polite, he feared that Han Li harbored different thoughts entirely. As a result, he strived his hardest to choose his words carefully to leave behind the best impression possible. Having said that, he then particularly paid attention to Han Li’s expression.

  However, Senior Martial Brother Wang inwardly frowned since he wasn’t able to make out any of Han Li’s emotions.

  The three had a chat outside the garden, but soon the other two Qi Condensation cultivators in their party arrived with the spirit stones they had acquired from reselling the Huangjing.

  Han Li received the pouch of spirit stones and casually swept his spiritual sense through it before calmly putting it away.

  After seeing Han Li receive the spirit stones, Senior Martial Brother Wang suddenly recalled something and asked, “Ah, that’s right. Junior Martial Brother’s magic tool is rather impressive. Will you be taking part in the Sword Trial Assembly later this year?”