He raised his hand, and with a crackle, a massive blue hand appeared and closed its grip.
With great alarm, black Qi surged around the Nascent Soul in an attempt to flee.
But since it had been greatly wounded in the fight before, it wasn’t able to use instantaneous movement from the very start.
And with Han Li’s rich experience in dispersing Nascent Souls, he was also quite proficient in trapping them.
He simply sneered in contempt when he saw the soul’s attempt to escape.
Golden lightning began to spark from the large azure hand and five bolts of thunder erupted from it, creating a large golden net to trap it.
Then, the Nascent Soul’s body blurred, only to run headfirst in the net of lightning.
A large explosion sounded out. The golden lightning had dispersed a majority of the black Qi protecting the Nascent Soul’s body.
As for the soul itself, its body began to tremble as if it were on the verge of collapse.
The large azure hand then swiftly grabbed a hold of the soul and brought it back to Han Li.
He glanced at the terrified being and smiled.
“It’s him?” When Gui Ling saw the Nascent Soul, a trace of surprise appeared on her face.
Although it had no body, its face clearly belonged to one of the two old Yin Sifting Sect Elders. He had lost his body at some point and his Nascent Soul had remained hidden behind the huge boulder ever since.
With a terror-struck face, the soul pleaded, “We have no grudge between us, Fellow Daoist Han. I had no hand in pursuing you!”
Han Li chuckled with a calm expression, “Why are you so scared? When did I say I was going to attack you? I only want to ask you what happened outside the hall. And you should’ve also seen two women leaving the hall along with two other demons.”
The Nascent Soul felt relief at his calm attitude and he quickly answered, “Not long after you entered the hall, the Ye Clan cultivators had suddenly arrived with the Ye Clan Grand Elder amongst them. When they saw us, they immediately attacked, and we had no choice but to fight under Fellow Daoist Xu’s command. We were able to defend ourselves well enough, but then, the Devil Suppressing Pagoda suddenly began to quake and a majority of the mountain on that side sank as if it was entering the heart of the mountain. Furthermore...” The Nascent Soul paused for a moment, but when Han Li’s cold gaze pierced it, its heart trembled and it hastily continued, “F-furthermore... a light suddenly flew out from the pagoda, followed by loud Buddhist chants that we could all clearly hear. Someone had yelled that it was a sign that a Divine Spirit Treasure had arrived and soon after, they all gave up on the battle and flew in its direction. The Immortal Form Sect Elders and the two demons had emerged just as this occurred and traveled in the same direction. As for me, I had remained behind to inform the Grand Elder of this matter.
“A Divine Spirit Treasure truly appeared?” Han Li exclaimed.
“I don’t know if it truly is a Divine Spirit Treasure, but changes in the sky to the likes of this couldn’t be produced from an ordinary treasure. But since Fellow Daoist Xu and the Ye Clan Grand Elder chased after it without another thought, it should be true.”
“And how did you die?”
The Nascent Soul gritted its teeth, “That wretch Scatterwind had snuck up on me and used a crimson saber to strike down my body. The saber had completely absorbed my blood essence with the attack. If I hadn’t resolved myself to abandon my body early, I fear my Nascent Soul wouldn’t have been able to escape.”
Han Li raised his brow and doubtfully asked, “What blade could be so powerful?”
The Nascent Soul paused for a moment before replying, “I’m not sure. It was the first time I had seen such a treasure. However, its appearance strongly resembled that of the Devil Dragon Blade of legend, although its color was quite amiss. But if it was a true Devil Dragon Blade, how could I have the opportunity to flee?”
The Devil Dragon Blade! Han Li’s expression changed at the mention of it.
Chapter 1033: Devil Blade
Devil blades forged from Devil Essence Diamonds possessed a fearsome reputation.
It was said that such blades possessed the vicious ability to kill by absorbing flesh and soul, and in turn, refine them into power. The devil blade’s might would then increase with the body count. Many believed that after a certain amount of time and honed with a continuous stream of kills, it would eventually rival a Divine Spirit Treasure and be possible for the wielder to kill a Deity Transformation-stage cultivator.
Of course, Divine Spirit Treasures and said blades in particular have long been extinct in the mortal world, so there was no such thing as a true comparison. But when the Yin Sifting Sect Elder suddenly mentioned this treasure, Han Li’s expression turned unsightly.
Gui Ling blinked and mused, “The blade can’t have been a Devil Dragon Blade, since his Nascent soul was given the opportunity to escape. It should be a rare Devil Dao treasure of another kind since the saber only bore a strong resemblance to the weapon.”
“That should be the case,” Han Li nodded.
Soon after, he looked in the direction of the Devil Suppressing Pagoda and saw that one of the peaks in the distance was gone.
When he thought of the Heavenvoid Cauldron in his hand, his heart stirred and he muttered, “Kunwu Mountain was known to be the center of human cultivation; it shouldn’t be rare for a Divine Spirit Treasure to be there.”
With Gui Ling’s help and the human-like puppet, he now had a chance at acquiring the treasure. And with the eight high-grade spirit stones he acquired from Old Devil Qian’s storage pouch, he could use his puppet quite freely.
Silvermoon’s voice suddenly spoke in his mind with hesitation, “Master, how about we take a look? For some reason, ever since I left the hall, something has been beckoning me towards there. It seems quite familiar — perhaps there is something that is related to my lost memories.”
“There is something calling for you?” Han Li asked, startled.
“That’s right, I can faintly sense it. If we miss this opportunity, my memories may never be whole,” Silvermoon spoke with an earnest tone.
Han Li silently mused for a long while. Then, he chuckled, “In that case, let’s take a look. I am also quite interested in this Divine Spirit Treasure.”
When Silvermoon heard him, she happily replied, “Many thanks, Master!”
Han Li then turned to the side and slowly said, “Fellow Daoist Gui, since a Divine Spirit Treasure has emerged, it seems hiding away isn’t an option anymore.”
Gui Ling gave a slight bow and answered, “You are my master. I will do what you bid.”
With the appearance of such a rare treasure, no cultivator could turn a blind eye. Gui Ling had already anticipated this and wasn’t surprised by his change of mind.
Then, the Nascent Soul trapped by the large azure hand shouted, “Could you agree to not harm me? I swear that everything I told you is true.”
“I never mentioned sparing you, and you clearly understood that not speaking would only mean having your soul refined. You can only blame yourself for falling into my hands.” With that said, Han Li opened his mouth and released a bolt of golden lightning.
With a miserable scream, the large hand and the Nascent Soul disappeared in a flare of gold, only for a faint green banner to fall to the ground.
Han Li’s eyes lit up and he swept it up with a wave of his sleeve. He quickly glanced over it and found it to be another Ghost Sifting Banner.
After using a soul scouring technique on Old Devil Qian, he came to understand that the banners were no trivial items. If all eighteen were combined, they would have unimaginable power.
Since he was already the nemesis of the Yin Sifting Sect, he planned on taking all of them into his possession.
Even if they were of little value to him, he couldn't allow them to restore their number.
In the past when one had been destroyed or lost, if the sect wasn’t able to
recover it, they refined a new one.
However, this was only done a few times in the entire history of their sect. No matter how wealthy they may be, these banners weren't easily created. After refinement, it would take quite some time before they were powerful enough to be used.
Han Li looked in the direction of the pagoda and muttered, “Let’s hurry! We don’t know if there are cultivators already fighting over the treasure.”
He then flew down the steps with Gui Ling closely behind.
There were restrictions to either side of the stairway, preventing them from cutting through.
Along the way, he spotted no further signs of combat and soon, they returned to the main white jade plaza, then making their way up to the Devil Suppressing Pagoda.
Farther down the path, there was an area reduced to a mess littered with rubble and holes.
Han Li turned a blind eye to this and continued on his way. Gui Ling let out a gasp and looked at one of the piles of rubble.
Surprised, he followed her gaze and found something strange.
Below an unremarkable pile of debris, there was a small white object. It was clearly the bones belonging to an arm.
He swept his sleeve and blew away the rubble in an azure wind, revealing a skeleton underneath.
Shock appeared on Han Li’s face. The hair and clothes draped on the skeleton belonged to Old Man Fu. The Dark Violet Pearl was tightly held in his other hand, but it was mostly shattered.
Han Li remained silent and began to look around.
After a long while, he sighed, “To think you put all that effort into refining the Nascent Cultivating Pill only for you to die here! The path of cultivation is truly perilous!”
Although he didn’t consider them to be friends, his sudden death left a rather peculiar feeling in his heart.
“Does Fellow Daoist Han recognize this person?” Gui Ling asked, “His death is quite odd. The flesh had been stripped clean and there are no signs that his Nascent Soul had manifested. And there is only the mark of a single cut from his back. It appears like...”
Han Li let out a long sigh, “This person died from the blade that the Yin Sifting Sect Elder described, right?”
Gui Ling solemnly said, “Indeed, although there are other devilish techniques capable of stripping away flesh, they don’t leave a mark like this. Additionally, the Yin Sifting Sect Elder’s Nascent Soul was able to flee but this person’s simply perished. Could it truly be a Devil Dragon Blade? How could we explain this difference in strength?”
After some thought, Han Li shook his head and said, “I very much doubt that. The Devil Dragon Blade might have the power to increase its strength from consuming the souls and flesh of cultivators, but the process should take quite a bit of time. How could its power grow so rapidly?”
“Yes, that does make sense,” Gui Ling chimed with a sense of understanding.
“More importantly, this ‘Master Scatterwind’ has no fear of consequences. He dared to attack elders of both the Yin Sifting Sect and the Nine Serenities Sect. Furthermore, he hadn’t destroyed their bodies after killing them. Doesn’t he have any fear of the two sects joining together to take revenge?” Han Li took another glance at the skeleton and puzzlement appeared on his face. Given that his storage pouch had disappeared, the Nascent Cultivating Pill should’ve fallen into the hands of that character.
As Gui Ling had just emerged from imprisonment, she had little understanding of the current cultivation world and thus little to add.
Han Li pondered for a moment more and couldn't come up with an answer. Then, he raised his hand and released a fireball, burning the skeleton to ash.
“Let’s be careful. That blade will be stronger after consuming a Nascent Soul cultivator. We'd best not suffer in the same way.” With those indifferent words, he led the way ahead but wore a much gloomier expression.
Gui Ling’s heart trembled upon hearing this, and she grimaced with her unsightly face before following after him with a wry smile.
As they headed up, the two hadn’t encountered anything else of note and eventually arrived at the end of the stairway, or what remained of it.
They found themselves at a cliff that had been cut half in size and the mountain behind it had vanished without a trace.
Han Li peered into the distance and then looked down at the unfathomable depth. He then stroked his chin with a pensive expression.
Although Gui Ling had already been expecting this from what the Yin Sifting Sect Elder had said, she was astonished to see this with her own eyes, “It appears that others have already descended and that the Devil Suppressing Pagoda had truly sunk into the mountain. Who knows what’s going on below.”
“Fellow Daoist Gui, do you know what monsters are being detained in the pagoda?”
After some hesitation, Gui Ling earnestly replied, “I’m not too sure. In the past, I was one of the demon beasts used to guard the mountain. Those cultivators hadn’t mentioned the matter to me. But before I was moved outside the mountain, I sensed a huge devilish Qi that appeared here. Soon after, it disappeared. It should’ve been sealed in the pagoda. It is a pity that my cultivation at the time had been rather shallow. From how powerful the aura was, I could’ve determined the true cultivation of the master of the Qi.”
Chapter 1034: A Blood Saber
Han Li took a deep look down the cliff and said, “It’s no matter. Regardless of how powerful that being may be, it should’ve been immensely weakened after being suppressed for so many years. Furthermore, there should’ve been many late-Nascent Soul cultivators to deal with it.”
Soon after, he beckoned to Gui Ling and the two slowly floated down.
The darkness was unfathomably deep. After floating down for a quarter hour, they still hadn’t reached the bottom.
Han Li felt both sullen and bewildered.
At this depth, his surroundings had already become shadowed and dark, and his vision was limited.
He raised his head and could only faintly see a white dot shining far away.
Under the present restrictions limiting one’s spiritual sense, a common cultivator would only be able to sense movement within a hundred meters.
But Han Li had the Brightsight Spirit Eyes, allowing him to clearly see a kilometer around him.
As they continued to drop, Gui Ling suddenly shouted, “Fellow Daoist Han, below us!”
Stirred by her words, he looked down.
Specks of light glowed not far below them and they could see the faint outline of a huge building.
His expression stirred and he moved to get a closer look when saw something flash from the corner of his eye. A crimson light was silently sweeping towards him from the darkness.
He was suddenly barraged by a bloody scent assailing his nose which filled him with absolute disgust.
‘Master Scatterwind!’ Han Li’s heart trembled.
The crimson light was as fast as lightning, arriving before him in the blink of an eye. If it weren’t for his continued vigilance, he feared that he would’ve been too slow to act.
He quickly raised his hand and summoned a sparkling small silver disk: the Tailstar Essence Shield.
It violently surged in size and a sheen of white light emerged from it to cover Han Li.
Before an eye could even blink, crimson light cascaded around him, leaving him completely surrounded.
Hiss. A three-meter-long saber suddenly emerged from the light and struck the silver barrier.
The saber appeared peculiar as it was as narrow as two fingers and as thin as paper, not to mention the demonic crimson glow on its surface.
The barrier swayed from the strike before shattering into tiny fragments. The saber moved on to directly strike at the Tailstar Essence Shield.
The shield brilliantly flashed and its surface turned sleek as a mirror. Crimson and silver intertwined, finding them at a deadlock for the time being.
Just as the tension in his heart eased, the blood saber suddenly warped and
twisted around the shield with an unbelievable flexibility.
Seeing that the saber had snaked around to strike him, he shot backward and flicked his fingers, releasing azure swordstreaks to repel it.
Clangs of metal sounded out as the saber incisively slid through all of them in a single blow and continued towards Han Li without the slightest obstruction.
Han Li’s face paled and he opened his mouth to spit out an object wrapped in azure light.
A crisp clang rang as the crimson saber was blocked by not the object, but the light that surrounded it. It was the Heavenvoid Cauldron.
“Yi!” A surprised yelp came from the distance.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Han Li summoned his Thunderstorm Wings and blinked over thirty meters away. He then raised his hand and had the Tailstar Essence Shield and the Heavenvoid Cauldron shoot back towards him.
Then, the crimson light surrounding him surged and rushed at him in every direction, filling the air with a disgusting bloody scent.
Han Li coldly snorted and held his hands in an incantation gesture. Thunder sounded out and a barrier of golden lightning emerged from his body, dispersing the crimson that attempted to approach him and held them at bay.
Divine Devilbane Lightning! When the hidden figure saw this, he was surprised and knew that they had encountered a fearsome opponent.
Han Li looked at the figure in the distance and coldly said, “Master Scatterwind? Is that you?”
The person didn’t reply. Instead, the saber let out a hum and absorbed all of the crimson light nearby. Then in a blur, the figure disappeared into the darkness along with the weapon.
“Fellow Daoist, are you alright?”
The ambush had taken place in only a moment, and Gui Ling was caught off guard. She anxiously asked about his well being, fearing that he would rebuke her afterwards.
“Yes. As I expected, it does resemble a Devil Dragon Blade. A common treasure would’ve been split in two by the initial attack, but my shield managed to block it well enough,” Han Li calmly stated. Then with a wave of his arm, the Tailstar Shield returned to his hand.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 558