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

by Translator: Johnchen

  "There's nothing wrong with the bead. I've examined it many times, and it's completely identical to the legendary Wood Spirit Bead in any way. There's nothing amiss about the bead itself, either. Otherwise, I wouldn't have heeded his advice and offered it to Han Li." The elderly man shook his head with a serious expression.

  "But there's no way that Old Devil Concord would do something like this without harboring any ulterior motives. Senior Martial Brother Zhong, you should've discussed this matter with me first. If something goes wrong here, our entire sect would be doomed!" The yellow-robed man was getting very flustered.

  "Hmph, how else were we going to recruit the assistance of the number one cultivator in the Heavenly South Region? As for discussing the matter with you in advance, would that have done us any good? What other course of action could we take to save our sect? If there was another way, we wouldn't have had to visit the Drifting Cloud Sect and put on such a pathetic display," Elder Zhong harrumphed coldly.

  The elderly man's remained furrowed upon hearing this, but he was at a loss for a response.

  After an extended period of silence, the yellow-robed man could only offer words of consolation to himself. "In any case, we've already given him the bead, so it's too late to do anything now. As long as there's nothing wrong with the bead itself, we'll be fine even if something were to happen."

  "You're certainly correct about that, Junior Martial Brother Yan. The Spirit Gathering Bead was a vast renowned treasure even back in ancient times. After so many years, even if something were to happen, we could easily pin the blame on someone else. Besides, even the number one cultivator of the Heavenly South Region identified the bead to be authentic, so any future mishaps won't have anything to do with us," Elder Zhong chuckled coldly.

  The yellow-robed man contemplated the situation for a while before heaving a resigned sigh as he said, "We can only hope that that's the case. However, in order to be safe, I suggest that we close our sect for 100 years right after our relocation."

  "That's a good idea, Junior Martial Brother Yan; we'll do as you say." Elder Zhong nodded in agreement.

  After that, the two Ghost Spirit Sect elders weren't interested in discussing anything else, and they immediately accelerated in pursuit of Yan Yan'er.

  Meanwhile, within a restricted area in the Harmonious Bond Sect, there was a humanoid figure sitting on a massive rock deep within the Heavenly Yang Pond. The entire area was enshrouded in thick grey mist, and the humanoid figure murmured to himself, "It's about time that the treasure was delivered to that Han brat. With this Wood Spirit Bead, your rate of cultivation will be drastically enhanced, but when you reach the Deity Transformation Stage bottleneck, hehe..."

  A burst of eerie chuckling suddenly escaped from the humanoid figure's mouth.

  Chapter 1200: Wood Birth Bead

  Han Li sat within the guest pavilion and fiddled around with the Wood Spirit Bead for a while. Just as he was about to stow it away along with the other two treasures, the voice of a small child suddenly rang out. "Fellow Daoist Han, are you really planning to keep this bead?"

  Han Li faltered slightly before his brows furrowed, and he asked, "Why do you ask? Is there something wrong with this Spirit Gathering Bead?"

  "Hehe, there's nothing wrong with the bead itself, but don't you know that Spirit Gathering Beads are inherently flawed treasures? If you use this bead to cultivate, your cultivation base and magic power will indeed progress at a phenomenal rate, but once you reach a bottleneck, you'll know what the inherent flaw in this treasure is. High-grade cultivators who use this bead to cultivate will find it many times harder to break through bottlenecks than other cultivators. This is because while the bead does increase your rate of spiritual Qi absorption, it also blunts your sensitivity toward the other types of spiritual Qi. For cultivators below the Nascent Soul Stage, the negative effects stemming from that won't be very apparent. However, for a cultivator like you, who will need to sense all types of the world's origin Qi in order to make a breakthrough, this bead is more trouble than its worth. As such, the Spirit Gathering Bead is indeed a treasure that's very tempting to use, but in the Spirit Realm, it's only given to low-grade cultivators with mediocre aptitudes. No high-grade cultivator would ever use something like this," the small child explained in detail.

  "Is that so? So what you're saying is that this treasure is completely useless to me."

  "That's not necessarily the case. If you can find a few rare wood-attribute materials, you'll be able to convert this bead into another type of treasure known as the Wood Birth Bead. That bead won't be able to accelerate your cultivation, but after you completely refine it, you'll able to attain the immortal body ability. Even though you'll only be able to use that ability once, it'll save your life in a perilous situation," the small child replied.

  "Immortal body?" Han Li was very surprised to hear this.

  He had been yearning for such an ability for a long time. However, he had only seen this ability present in extremely powerful demon beasts, elder devils, and devilish corpses that had undergone devilfication. He had never heard of any human cultivator who had managed to attain this ability.

  "That's right. Each Wood Birth Bead will allow you to unleash immortal body ability once. Following the ability's activation, even if you get decapitated or your entire body gets cut in half, you'll be able to make a full recovery," the small child replied with a chuckle.

  "Really, now? But if I can only use it once, doesn't that make it a disposable treasure?" Han Li was quite tempted, but also a little skeptical.

  "Being able to unleash the immortal body ability once will be enough to save your life under some circumstances; why do you still look so dissatisfied? In any case, the other wood-attribute ingredients required to craft the Wood Birth Bead will be very difficult to find in the human world, and it's yet to be seen whether you'll even be able to refine the treasure," the small child harrumphed with a hint of displeasure on his face.

  "What other materials do I need? I have a pretty big collection of wood-attribute materials," Han Li replied with an unfazed smile.

  "I'll give you a copy of the list of required materials, but if you want me to tell you the refinement method, you'll have to give me some things in return," the small child said in a straight forward manner.

  "Sure. Feel free to tell me what you need, Fellow Daoist Endless Sky." The fact that the small child was making demands came as quite a relief to Han Li. If the Endless Sky Beast were willing to tell him the refinement method free of charge, he would've been feeling quite uneasy instead.

  After all, even though the two of them had built up a certain level of camaraderie following the lightning tribulation, it was still quite a stretch for them to refer to one another as friends. Thus, Han Li remained rather cautious of the Endless Sky Beast.

  He wasn't naive enough to think that they were best friends after just a few mutually-beneficial deals and exchanges. The Endless Sky Beast was mostly helping him because he was the owner of the Heavenvoid Cauldron, and the demon beast was unable to escape from the cauldron, so he had no choice but to appease Han Li to a certain extent.

  "Even though I've successfully reached the metamorphosis stage, I still require some medicines to fortify my cultivation base. I'm sure you'll be able to easily secure those medicines for me, Brother Han," the small child proposed.

  "No problem. Give me a list of what you need along with the refinement method," Han Li replied without any hesitation.

  "Alright, when you get back to the cave abode, I'll give you the list of required materials, the refinement method, and a list of the medicines I'm looking for." The small child was very pleased with Han Li's straightforward reply.

  Han Li smiled upon hearing this before placing the Wood Spirit Bead back into its wooden box, then flipping his hand over to stow all three treasures away into his storage pouch.

  All of a sudden, a cold light flashed through Han Li's eyes as he asked, "Fellow Daoist Endless Sk
y, do you think the Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators were aware of the Wood Spirit Bead's inherent flaw?"

  "That's hard to say. From the sounds of it, this bead was abandoned long ago by ancient cultivators, and information about its inherent flaw doesn't appear to have been passed down. If a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Ghost Spirit Sect specializing in wood-attribute cultivation arts had used bead before, then they would definitely have been able to identify its flaws. Otherwise, there's no way to detect anything wrong just from the bead itself. Are you suspecting that those three are trying to prevent you from reaching the Deity Transformation Stage?" the small child asked.

  Han Li stroked his chin, and deduced, "That was my initial thought process, but then, I realized that there's no motive for the Ghost Spirit Sect to do such a thing. After all, even if I can't reach the Deity Transformation Stage, I'm already a late-Nascent Soul cultivator, and I'll still be the number one cultivator in the Heavenly South Region. Aren't they afraid that I'll identify the flaw in the bead and destroy the entire Ghost Spirit Sect in a fit of rage? There must be more to this story than meets the eye. Let me think about this; the mastermind behind all this who's trying to use the Ghost Spirit Sect against me is most likely a cultivator from the Heavenly South Region, but why would it benefit them to prevent me from reaching the Deity Transformation Stage? Even if I don't reach that level, there's still no one in the Heavenly South Region who's a match for me. The only downside to this is that I won't be able to lengthen my lifespan, and I'll pass away after reaching around 1,000 years of age. As such, the period of time during which our Drifting Cloud Sect will be able to exert dominance over the other sects of the Heavenly South Region will be significantly curtailed. However, to normal sects, it doesn't really matter which sect reigns supreme in the Heavenly South Region. There are only a handful of sects who can contend for this position, and it's most likely one of the Flowing Mind Sect, the Harmonious Bond Sect, or the High Zenith Sect. Alternatively, it could be all three of those sects joining forces to plot against me."

  The small child was quite stunned by Han Li's analytical prowess, and only after a long while did a wry smile appeared on his face as he said, "Now that you put it that way, things have been made a lot clearer. So you think that the other three late-Nascent Soul great cultivators are behind all this?"

  Han Li rose to his feet, and paced a few steps within the hall. He then looked up at the ceiling, and a cold smile appeared on his face as he said, "Perhaps. In any case, this is all just speculation; who knows what could really be going on behind the scenes? I'm not sure if I'm right, either."

  "It's easy if you want to find out the truth; just capture one of those three, then use a soul search technique on them," the small child suggested with a low chuckle.

  A sharp light flashed through his eyes, but he shook his head after a moment of contemplation as he said, "It would be indeed simple to capture one of them, but that's beside the point. Even if I've hit the nail on the head here, it would be inappropriate for me to attack any of those three sects without any concrete evidence. Otherwise, I'll be viewed as a public enemy. All other cultivators fear and revere me as the number one cultivator in the Heavenly South Region, but if I were to abuse that title, then more people would become resentful and fearful toward me. Maybe someone will take advantage of this opportunity to turn the entire Heavenly South Region against me. No matter how powerful I am, I won't be able to stand against the entire cultivation world of the Heavenly South Region, and there have been previous instances of something like this happening before."

  "You're way too much of a coward, Han brat. If someone tried to plot against me like this in the Spirit Realm, hehe..., whatever, it's up to you in the end. As long as you can keep yourself from getting killed, I won't try to influence your decisions," the small child said in a lazy voice.

  "Don't worry, now that I know there are people plotting against me, I'll be sure to be careful. As for this incident, I'll pretend to be oblivious to it for now. If whoever's behind this doesn't try any more little trick, then I'll let them be, but if they try something else, I'm sure I'll be able to catch them next time. As soon as I find some concrete evidence, hmph! They'll learn what it means to wish they were dead." Han Li's expression remained quite calm, but the menacing threat in his voice was quite apparent.

  The small child merely chuckled without saying anything this time.

  Han Li remained within the hall for a while longer before finally exiting the guest pavilion. He then turned his gaze toward another nearby pavilion, and his brows furrowed slightly.

  He could understand Han Yunzhi coming to find him, but what business did Dong Xuan'er have with him? He was not on good terms with the latter of these two women. Dong Xuan'er was extremely beautiful, but she had left him with quite a negative impression.

  However, there was also something else that Han Li was confused about. He had once heard from a Harmonious Bond Sect disciple that after Dong Xuan'er had reached the Core Formation Stage, she had deployed people to search for him for a period of time. Why was that?

  Han Li looked at the pavilion with a hesitant look, but still decided to make his way toward it in the end.

  After entering the pavilion, he was greeted by the sight of two beautiful female cultivators, one of whom was standing while the other was seated in a chair, and both of them were completely silent.

  The one in the chair was a yellow-robed woman with a set of gentle features, making her appear very warm and approachable. The one who was standing was an extremely seductive white-robed woman who gave off an air of frailty. However, that sense of fragile vulnerability evoked within the onlooker the urge to protect her, thereby further contributing to her allure.

  Han Li's arrival immediately drew the attention of the two female cultivators.

  "I'm quite surprised that you two came to visit me, Fellow Daoists. We're all old acquaintances and seeing you two evokes many past memories in me."

  Han Li approached the two women with a faint smile on his face.

  A hint of elation appeared in the yellow-robed woman's eyes at the sight of Han Li. She hurriedly rose to her feet, but was seemingly at a loss for what to do as she said, "Brother Han! No... Senior Han, I hope my visit isn't causing any trouble for you."

  Chapter 1201: The Two Women

  As for the white-robed Dong Xuan'er, her vibrant red lips moved a few times, but she didn't say anything in the end. However, the expression on her face was slightly complex, seemingly a mixture of excitement and joy, as well as hints of distance and resentment.

  "I'm overjoyed to see you here, Fellow Daoist Han, it's certainly not too much trouble for me at all. You don't need to refer to me as senior this or senior that, either; just call me Big Brother Han. You seem to have reached the mid-Core Formation Stage already; looks like it won't be long before you progress to the late-Core Formation Stage," Han Li greeted with a smile.

  The yellow-robed woman blushed slightly before nodding her head with elation upon hearing this.

  "We've come here to thank Big Brother Han for sparing my life on two separate occasions. If another cultivator had been in your shoes, I would've most likely died twice already," Han Yunzhi said in a grateful voice.

  Han Li faltered initially upon hearing before bursting into laughter. "Looks like you've recovered all of your memories surrounding the Trial by Blood and Fire, and you're aware that I was responsible for what happened next."

  Han Li was unconsciously regarding this woman as something like his little sister, and Han Yunzhi also harbored similar feelings toward Han Li. As such, they were only a few sentences into their conversation, but she had already forgotten Han Li's current lofty status and was speaking to him in an intimate manner as if he really were her elder brother.

  As their conversation progressed, the two of them began to talk about the Great South Meeting and the Trial by Blood and Fire, and both of them were filled with nostalgia. Back when they had attended this meeting, neithe
r of them could've imagined that they would be standing where they stood today, 200 to 300 years down the track.

  At the time, they had to look up to even Foundation Establishment cultivators.

  All of a sudden, a thought seemed to have occurred to Han Yunzhi, and she abruptly turned to Dong Xuan'er with a smile as she said, "By the way, I met this Big Sister Dong during the ceremony. I heard that she was once a member of the same sect as Big Brother Han, and she has something she wants to speak to you about."

  "Fairy Dong and I did indeed once both cultivate in Yellow Maple Valley. However, it appears that your cultivation base hasn't progressed in the slightest since I last saw you, Fellow Daoist Dong." Only after hearing Han Yunzhi's words did Han Li turn to Dong Xuan'er with an indifferent expression.

  Dong Xuan'er's face suddenly became quite flush, and she gritted her teeth with fury as she retorted, "It's all because of you that I became like this!"

  Han Li was completely bemused.

  Han Yunzhi also blinked with befuddlement in her eyes.

  Han Li soon came to his senses, and was naturally unhappy to hear this. As such, his expression darkened as he asked, "What do you mean by that, Fairy Dong? How could your stalling cultivation base have anything to do with me?"

  "If it weren't for the fact that you became an inner demon of mine, how could I have tried and failed to make breakthroughs on so many occasions? It's all because of you that I'm still stuck at the mid-Core Formation Stage even after all these years!" Dong Xuan'er's rage seemed to have also made her forget Han Li's current identity, and she began to vent all of her fury and frustration.

  "Inner demon?" Han Li murmured to himself with a hint of bewilderment on his face.

  "Back when I was at the Yan Clan fortress, I was abducted by Tian Buque, and forcibly taken back to the Harmonious Bond Sect. Only then did I discover my true lineage. It turns out that I'm a directly lineal descendant of the Harmonious Bond Sect's Old Devil Cloudpart. It was only through an accident that I ended up becoming a disciple of the Yellow Maple Sect. Before I was even born, Old Devil Cloudpart used a secret technique known as the Graceful Dream Art on me, which is a cultivation art related to cultivation and bewitching charming techniques. The cultivation art would significantly enhance my rate of cultivation, yet the easiest, but also the most difficult obstacle for cultivators using this cultivation art would be the trial of the inner demons. If it turned out to be easy, then the obstacle would be virtually non-existent and I'd progress as easily as eating food or drinking water. However, if it proved to be difficult, then I could be impeded by my inner demons for the rest of my life, in which case my cultivation base would never progress. In fact, there have even been precedents in other cultivators using this cultivation art, where their inner demons have been too strong and their cultivation base had even been forced to regress as a result," Dong Xuan'er spat through gritted teeth.