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

by Translator: Johnchen

  As Ancestor Linghu spoke, he willed the large black hand to swell several times in size and grab a nearby table.

  Black Yin flame silently swept past the wooden table and instantly consumed it, leaving not even ash behind.

  Han Li felt his breath turn cold at the sight.

  This hand appeared like a profound Devil Dao ability to attack with manifested spiritual sense, but since the black hand originated from the jade talisman, there was no fear of any backlash from any harm the spiritual sense may experience. As for the strange Yin fire, that should be an different divine ability.

  “This jade talisman is certain to possess other divine abilities. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time yet and I don’t have many more opportunities to discover its secrets. On the contrary, Fellow Daoist Han still has much time to unlock its secrets. However, a majority of its power has already been consumed. You had best use it cautiously.” Ancestor Linghu then pointed to the black hand and had it turn back into a ball of black light before flying back to the table in the form of a jade talisman.

  Han Li’s wore a smile, but he was very much interested in the jade talisman. Even if the talisman wasn’t as powerful as Ancestor Linghu had described, he would be able to learn much of the ancient cultivator talisman techniques from the jade talisman itself. It would prove to be of great assistance to him.

  Once Ancestor Linghu finished presenting the items, he swept his sleeve across the table and the three items disappeared, leaving three white translucent white jade discs in their place.

  Han Li turned his eyes towards Ancestor Linghu and calmly said, “These formation disks are magic tools that I have personally refined. They are incapable of being replicated. After you die, I will not decline a request that Yellow Maple Valley makes of me.”

  Ancestor Linghu smiled and said, “Good. With these words, I will be able to continue onto other matters.”

  Now that the matter was finished, Han Li took his leave as he had no further business there. Ancestor Linghu didn’t offer much resistance and simply spoke a few polite words as he watched Han Li walk away.

  Once Ancestor Linghu was alone, his smile faded and he stared at the table, deep in thought.

  Han Li didn’t immediately return to his residence once he left the teahouse. Instead, he glanced at the sky and found a remote area before taking out the jade slip that the Heavenpeak Sect elder had given him. After carefully reading it with his spiritual sense, he wore a hesitant expression.

  Chapter 726: Heaven-Earth Rings

  Han Li fiddled with the jade slip in his hand as he pondered. Then with a flash of azure light, the jade slip vanished and Han Li began to walk in large strides towards the location it described.

  After passing through a majority of Soaring Heavens City, Han Li arrived at a remote corner of the city where an ordinary mixed-goods store was located. This store had a black wooden sign on its entrance, reading the “Jade Union Pavilion” in large flamboyant calligraphy.

  Han Li examined it before slowly walking into the building. The interior wasn’t large — he only walked into a hall that was about twenty meters in length. A majority of the items being sold were common materials and talismans. To the side, there was an exquisite side door that led to the back.

  There was a middle-aged man in grey robes behind the sales counter near the entrance. He appeared to be looking through a small ledger. Han Li swept his spiritual sense past him and saw that his cultivation was very low, only in the realm of Qi Condensation. Furthermore, the shopkeeper’s appearance was rather ordinary.

  The middle-aged shopkeeper immediately smiled and stood up upon seeing Han Li enter and he quickly welcomed him.

  “Senior, what is it you wish to look at? My store is filled with all sort of goods. It will definitely be to your satisfaction.”

  Han Li smiled and he flipped his hand, revealing the green jade slip in his grasp. After he placed it in the shopkeeper’s hands, the shopkeeper had a vast change of expression and he quickly placed it away. He asked with a respectful tone, “May I ask for Senior’s name?”

  Han Li casually answered, “Han Li!”

  “So it turned out to be Senior Han. Martial Ancestor has already mentioned Senior Han would be coming, but I hadn’t expected it to be this soon. Please follow me.” The middle-aged man invited Han Li to the back once he finished speaking. Han Li nodded his head and silently entered.

  To his surprise, it led to a warehouse with all sorts of cabinets and trunks placed all over. The walls were particularly filled to the brim.

  The middle-aged man stepped forward and walked in front of wood cabinet. He gently pushed one of the corners, causing two of the adjacent cabinets to separate and reveal a stairway.

  The middle-aged shopkeeper led the way and explained, “Out of fear that occasional guests would sense any restriction, we had a mechanism placed from the mortal realm.”

  Han Li didn’t feel particularly surprised by this.

  The middle-aged man then stepped on a tile and caused a wall to open with a muffle creak, revealing an eerie passageway down.

  The shopkeeper stood to the side and smiled, “This Junior doesn’t have the qualifications to enter. Senior must go on his own.”

  Han Li frowned and swept his spiritual sense downwards and felt faint spiritual Qi fluctuations in the passageway. When he examined further, he found a layer of restrictions there, but Han Li was able to judge it with his spell formation knowledge to be a simple spirit obstruction barrier. Although Han Li could forcefully break through it, the people within it would be sure to notice it.

  Han Li revealed slight hesitation. Although he was sure that the Heavenpeak Sect elder wouldn’t try anything foolish within Soaring Heavens City, he didn’t wish to enter a sealed area with someone whom he didn’t know was friend or foe.

  As Han Li hesitated, the people from within formation seemed to guess what Han Li thinking. A moment later, the barrier was removed, allowing Han Li’s spiritual sense to see within. Han Li’s heart stirred at the deliberate show of trust, and he was amazed by what he discovered.

  “It’s him! That’s a surprise.” Han Li muttered to himself and walked down the passage without any further hesitation.

  When the middle-aged man saw that Han Li descended, he sealed the passage and return the cabinets to normal before going back to tend to the shop.

  The passage was very long, and descended about a hundred meters deep to preserve its secretive nature. Eventually, Han Li saw the light from within the darkness and knew that he had arrived at an exit. He quickened his pace and found himself in a stone room.

  The room was rather large, but it was completely empty apart from a few praying mats. Facing its entrance were two men that were sitting cross-legged on such a mat. They both looked at Han Li with a smile. Han Li remained silent, choosing first the find an empty prayer mat to sit on.

  Han Li smiled to one of the two and returned the smile, “I absolutely didn’t think that Fellow Daoist would find me. It is truly a surprise to find you here.”

  This person wore a tall crown and blue robes. Marquis Nanlong wryly smiled and said, “Truly, even I found it difficult to believe that I had escaped calamity. When we separated, I believed I had escaped, but they had tracked me down using a secret technique. They had caught up to me at the edge of the Moulan Plains. However, the Heavens favor the persistent, and I later found a group of high grade spell warriors that were looking for us.

  In the resulting confusion, I was able to fortunately return as my pursuers were vastly slowed down by the spell warriors.” After that was said, a hidden intensity appeared on his face.

  His face was far more pale that Han Li had remembered and his eyes were listless. He must’ve suffered much damage to his vitality. Of course, the person by his side was the old white-robed Heavenpeak Sect Elder he had met earlier.

  “Fellow Daoist Nanlong has earned my appreciation from being able to escape under those circumstances. But shouldn’t Bro
ther Nanlong be resting in his cave residence rather than urgently finding me? There was no hesitation either to send a disciple to bother my concubine. I am at somewhat of a loss.” Han Li’s smile faded away and there was faint annoyance in his tone.

  “Hehe! Fellow Daoist misunderstands. I only did it because I had no choice. Fellow Daoist should know there are now people pursuing us. This secret plan was to escape their notice.

  This is Fellow Daoist Jadepearl of the Heavenpeak Sect, a friend I would trust my life with. He was originally to come with us on the last treasure hunt, but it was a pity that he was occupied with sect matters at the time.”

  Marquis Nanlong’s attitude towards Han Li had entirely changed from when he first saw him; it was no much more respectful. It seemed that he was deeply moved when he saw Han Li killing another Nascent Soul cultivator.

  At that moment, the white-robed old man chuckled and saluted Han Li. He spoke with a regretful tone, “If my methods have offended you, I hope Fellow Daoist Han won’t take it to heart. It was the only way.”

  Han Li waved his hand and said, “It’s fine. Since there was a reason, I’ll let it go. However, did Fellow Daoist Nanlong seek me out because or something from the jade box?”

  Marquis Nanlong solemnly said, “Fellow Daoist guessed right. According to my sources, the Ghost Spirit Sect paid a heavy price to bribe our previous party members. They are determined to acquire Master Cang Kun’s map and method to enter Devilfall Valley. Fellow Daoist Han just happened to acquire one of the items needed to enter Devilfall Valley. When combined with my map, we will be able to avoid a majority of dangers in the valley, allowing use to acquire the treasure.”

  Something soon came to Han Li’s mind, “An item essencial to entering Devilfall Valley? Do you mean the black ring?”

  Marquis Nanlong grew excited and a bit of color returned to his complexion, “The Heaven-Earth Ring is true within Han Li’s possession. This is great.”

  “The Heaven-Earth Ring?” Han Li frowned and felt the name to be somewhat familiar. He suddenly grew alarmed and looked towards Marquis Nanlong. He bewilderedly asked, “The Heaven-Earth Rings that Wise Huang refined from meteor iron? I heard that ordinary, the ring doesn’t possess great ability but when it came across Greatnorth Essence Light, it is able to control the essence light to kill others and become formless. It is considered a magic treasure of little interest.”

  “Fellow Daoist is truly knowledgeable. It is precisely that item. The Heaven-Earth Rings are divided into Yin and Yang. The Yin rings are able to protect oneself from essence light while the Yang Rings are able to control the essence light to attack. Fellow Daoist Han should be in possession of the Yin ring.

  Originally, Master Cang Kun drew assistance from the ring and managed to pass through the valley’s essence light area unscated. To my knowledge, although there are other methods to pass through the Greatnorth Essence Light, but it would require an extensive formation placed down by many cultivators or treasures that are lost or incapable of being acquired.”

  “Fellow Daoist means...” Han Li glanced at the two and began to ponder about the dangers and what there was to be gained.

  Chapter 727: Ancient Flame Toad

  Marquis Nanlong blinked and calmly said, “It’s very simple. Fellow Daoist Master Jadepearl, Fellow Daoist Han, and I will act as one and seize the treasure inside Devilfall Valley. Once we find the treasures, our strength will greatly increase, and there will be no need to fear from anyone.”

  Han Li didn’t immediately respond. Rather, he narrowed his eyes at he stared the two. Having heard that the black ring were one of the Heaven-Earth Rings from legend, he immediately recalled the other ring that he had acquired from Nangong Wan’s Senior Martial Sister.

  If his guess was correct, that should be the Yang ring of the Heaven-Earth Rings. He truly didn’t think that the two rings would be related to each other in this way. Han Li felt that the world was truly mysterious for such a coincidence to occur and couldn’t help but laugh in his mind.

  He sighed and wore a hesitant expression, “From what you’ve said, Fellow Daoist Nanlong seems to already have a means to enter Devilfall Valley. With the assistance of the Heaven-Earth Ring, what are the chances of leaving alive and with treasure. Devilfall Valley is known to be the most dangerous place in the Heavenly South. It is no laughing matter, and I have no wish to meeting my death there and becoming feed for any passing animal.”

  When they heard Han Li’s words, the two glanced at one another. A short moment later, Marquis Nanlong spoke with a deep voice, “Since Fellow Daoist Han asked, I don’t conceal this from you. According to what Master Cang Kun left behind, Devilfall Valley is still an extremely dangerous place. If one is not careful, they will be absorbed into a shifting spatial tear or find themselves in a remnant of an ancient restriction.

  “To tell the truth, there will be no problem entering. We have a an almost certain chance of safely entering, but if it’s hard to say when we’re searching for treasure. The more dangerous the area, the higher likelihood of getting treasure. Even Master Cang Kun is unsure what we will find within these areas. Because Master Cang Kun suffered extensive damage to his cultivation at the time, he didn’t treat deep into the center of Devilfall Valley. He simply found a few treasures around the outer area. However, this also illustrates there are truly treasures within the valley that had been left behind from times of desolate antiquity. By braving these dangers, we will be certain to return with vast rewards.” At the end of his words, his voice seemed to carry a tone of temptation.

  Master Jadepearl then said, “Of course, if Fellow Daoist is truly unwilling to brave the danger, you can simply give the ring to us. However, we’ll only be able to give you a few spirit stones. But I must say that the medicine pills of ancient cultivators are many and their effects are beyond imagination. If you acquire them, it will only be a matter of time before you breakthrough mid and late Nascent Soul stage. Perhaps you may even be able to find some lost secrets that have to do with Deity Transformation stage cultivators. After all, we have no idea what truly happens after they enter Deity Transformation stage as to whether they truly ascend to the spirit realm of whether they undergo some other transformation. Could it be that Fellow Daoist doesn’t wish to find the truth?”

  Han Li’s eyes glinted and he muttered to himself for a moment before saying, “If I am not mistaken, you two wish for me to enter Devilfall Valley for some reason. After all, you have plenty of Nascent Soul allies, and have no need for me.”

  Once that was said, their faces immediately froze before revealing a trace of embarrassment.

  Marquis Nangong pursed his lips in a wry smile and chuckled. With a helpless tone, he said, “To tell the truth, I would’ve mentioned this even if Fellow Daoist Han hadn’t raised the point. Not only are there spatial tears and remnant restrictions, there are also a few ancient beasts that had remained since ancient times. Among them is the Ancient Flame Toad that have gone long extinct. Although this flame toad still hasn’t become intelligent, it has lived for countless years, and has grown incredibly powerful with scales of otherworldly demonfire. According to what was left behind by Master Cang Kun, its demon flames are several times more intense than our own Nascent Flames. With the blue ice flames that you used to instantly freeze a Nascent Soul cultivator, you should be able to restrain the flame toad. “

  Han Li blinted with surprise before revealing an odd expression, “Are you saying that the flame toad is blocking your route into the valley?”

  Master Jadepearl calmly answered,“Not at all. Rather, the beast has something to do with an ancient cultivator’s remain. While there are no restrictions or spatial tears nearby the body, the Ancient Flame Toad happened to place its nest nearby.

  Master Cang Kun planned on acquiring the remains, but he quickly retreated after battling with the Flame Toad. However, he still suffered from its flame venom afterwards and nearly died as a result.”

  Han Li chuckled and
said, “I understand now. You two fellow Daoists wish for me to deal with the Ancient Flame Toad and allow you to seize the treasure.”

  Marquis Nanlong excitedly added, “Dealing with the flame toad will be far more preferable than dealing with the ancient restrictions and the spatial teras. So long as we use an appropriate strategy, we should have no problems dealing with it given your ice flames. Not to mention that we don’t even need Fellow Daoist to exterminate the beast, only to capture its attention while we acquire the treasure. Once we have the ancient cultivator’s storage pouch, we can simply disengage.”

  After a moment of thought, Han Li indifferently said, “According to what you’ve said, it’ll be safer to deal with the Ancient Flame Toad once we’ve enter rather than risk other areas of Devilfall Valley.”

  Marquis Nanlong nodded his head, “If luck would have it, the treasures in the ancient cultivator’s storage pouch will be worth the danger.”

  Han Li smirked and formed a mysterious smile, “Even if that’s the case, you should be able to draw from the power of the Heavenpeak Sect and act together. That should be much better than just us three acting alone. I don’t believe the Heavenpeak Sect can’t find other cultivators that have ice attribute techniques.”

  Marquis Nanlong sighed and said, “It seems Fellow Daoist Han still doesn’t know the fearsomeness of the Greatnorth Essence Light. Even with the Heaven-Earth Ring, we’ll only be able to use its power to shelter three at most. It doesn’t have the strength for a fourth. As for the Heavenpeak Sect, I’m sure Fellow Daoist should know how difficult it will be for me to trust others after what had happened with the Ghost Spirit Sect.” At that moment Marquis Nanlong’s listless eyes suddenly revealed a cold glint.