If tribulation for a Deity Transformation-stage cultivator truly struck him, he would surely perish with his trifling cultivation at the fourth stage of the vajra arts and lack of magic treasures.
When Han Li thought of this, his expression turned sullen.
The best way to settle this matter was to quickly find the Ice Phoenix and mutually remove the restriction from one another.
When they encountered mishaps from inside the spatial node, the Ice Phoenix was able to act first in escaping from the spatial node as a result of her innate spatial abilities. She should’ve already made it somewhere in the spirit realm. Knowing the power of the restriction he placed on her, she should’ve found herself in a similar situation as himself.
In a place as large as the spirit realm, he wouldn’t be able to find her in a short amount of time even if he had his magic power. Within three human realms and seven demon lands, there are actually many characters that possess abilities at the level of Deity Transformation.
Now that he didn’t have any power to defend himself, it was only wishful thinking to journey off to find her, so he would have to come up with other ways to restore his magic power and save himself.
As a current, he couldn't absorb even a thread of his spiritual power and there wasn’t a single secret technique he could use. Cultivating magic power once more would be an impossible task. Seeking out the aid of other high-grade cultivators would also be out of the question. As he possessed many secrets, it would only be courting death.
As Han Li sat in his chair, his expression wavered.
His gaze shifted and he muttered with a gloomy expression, “It seems my only choice is to tread the original path.”
In the coming month in An Yuan City, Han Li thought long and hard about how to restore his original abilities. He managed to think of a feasible method in half a month, but it wasn’t good by any means and it would take some time. And with his unfamiliarity with the spirit realm, he hesitated to use this method.
But now that he was coming to terms about understanding the spirit realm, it appeared he had no choice but to use this method upon some further deliberation.
He would have to cultivate the only technique he could cultivate, the Vajra Arts, to grand completion,
According to what records said about the technique, when one cultivated the technique to the seventh layer, one’s flesh body was overbearing enough to compare with a Nascent Soul cultivator. In that case, he would be able to use the sheer power of his body to dispel the Ice
Phoenix’s restriction.
When that point comes, it should be a simple matter to cultivate magic power and condense a Nascent Soul.
Although it is said that condensing a Nascent Soul regularly takes a hundred years, with his magic power restored, he could return to the storage pouches he buried in the desert. With the aid of the many spirit medicines it contains, the process will be sped up several times.
In one word, the first step to returning his abilities would be to dispel the restriction placed on his body and then condense his Nascent Soul.
He reckoned that if a minor tribulation were to strike him, it should be in three hundred years. But that was only a guess. If he wished to preserve his life, he would have to cultivate the Vajra Arts as quickly as he could.
The Soaring Sky Beast had previously told him just how difficult it was to cultivate the Vajra Arts.
Even in the spirit realm where the spiritual Qi was incredibly dense, there were very few mortals that could cultivate the Vajra Arts to completion.
Even if a normal person possessed exceptional talents, they still wouldn’t dare to be confident.
But Han Li was by no means a normal person. Not only did he cultivate from being a mortal to a Deity Transformation cultivator, causing his unwavering determination to far exceed those of a common cultivator in the spirit realm, but he also consumed the Heavenly Corpse Pearl, the Dragon Scale Fruit, and many other spiritual medicines. His body was already far stronger than normal. Particularly because of the Dragon Scale Fruit and the Bone Tempering Arts, his body was already on part with that of an ordinary demon beast.
When he arrived in the spirit realm, the massive amount of magic power from dissipating his two Nascent Soul not only saved his life, but they also increased his body’s capacity by another level.
With all of these things together, it was no wonder Han Li felt confident.
As of current, the only thing for him to consider was the inhuman pain he would suffer while cultivating this technique and the amount of time for him to take.
Because there were so many low and mid-grade demon beasts roaming around areas far from the city, it would be unwise to cultivate alone. Furthermore, cultivating the last several layers of the Vajra Arts would need battle experience for him to increase his odds of making a breakthrough.
In that case, there was no harm in remaining with the Heavenly East Enterprise for a time. If he truly felt they were an inconvenience, he would simply leave.
As for the blood curse contract that was placed on his body, the blood curse would be cleanly refined by his body from its sheer vital essence.
Having come to a decision, Han Li was done for the time being. He took his books and left the restaurant. Then, he found a secluded area and crushed his books with his arms.
Under the huge force, they turned into a cloud of paper shreds that floated to the ground.
Next, he went around the city to find a blacksmith store. He examined the shop and handed the tendon over to a blacksmith. Afterwards, he pointed to a few other materials in the shop, uttered a few soft instructions, and gave the blacksmith two low-grade spirit stones.
When the ironworker heard Han Li, he was stunned, but he soon took the two spirit stones and nodded with a smile.
Han Li left with a smile and flagged down a carriage being pulled by a horse-deer creature of sorts.
He didn’t care about the animal’s origins or whatnot. He simply tossed the driver a silver piece and muttered the words ‘The Cloud Ease Inn’. Then, he entered the carriage and took a brief moment of rest.
Beast carriages were being driven by docile animals throughout the city. After all, in a city of this scope, it would be odd to not have any carriages to speak of, as if it would take hours to walk from one district of a city to another.
The carriage he was riding was rather beautiful. It was clear the carriage was used to transport those of wealthier families rather than commoners.
Han Li’s action angered the carriage driver at first, but when he saw the silver piece, he hesitantly drove off to the eastern part of the city.
Han Li slept for a short while before he heard the carriage driver say, “Sir, we’ve arrived at the inn!”
Han Li slowly opened his eyes and wordlessly walked out of the carriage.
He saw a large expanse of pavilions and courtyards with a particularly large building right in front of him. It hung a huge sign that wrote the words “Cloud Ease Inn” in golden letters.
To the sides of the building, there was a row of huge stables constructed from wood, housing all sorts of strange beasts and their carriages. Strange animal cries would occasionally sound from them.
Han Li swept his sights past them and quickly arrived in front of the large building gate. He called out to a group of waiting young servants waved towards one of them.
The servant quickly reacted and immediately ran over.
“Esteemed guest, did you call me out to board here?”
“The Heavenly East Enterprise should’ve checked in here. Do you know where they are?” Han Li calmly asked, tossing him a piece of silver.
When the servant took the silver, he grinned and said, “Hehe, so you’re looking for those of the esteemed Heavenly East Enterprise. I will guide you.”
Soon, he brought Han Li through the back of the building and passed through several courtyards.
The servant led the way and enthusiastically explained, “There are many es
teemed guests from the Heavenly East Enterprise, so they’ve filled up all of the west courtyards where we have the inn’s finest rooms...”
Han Li listened to the servant’s words with complete indifference.
But before they reached the courtyard, a youth walked past them and saw Han Li. He yelped and approached them with a wide smile, “Brother Han, you’ve returned! Very good. Brother Zhang has told us to bring you over to the mistress as soon as we saw you. Please follow me.” He then casually grabbed Han Li’s arm.
Han Li raised his brow and casually shook his shoulder, strangely shaking off the man’s grasp.
The youth was stunned when he saw this.
Han Li smiled and calmly asked, “So it was Brother Luo. Is this mistress you were talking about, Mistress Fang?”
The youth was a cavalryman of the Heavenly East Enterprise known as “Young Seventh”.
The odd look on the youth’s face disappeared and he answered with a smile, “Of course I was talking about Mistress Fang. She heard about you and is quite curious about you. She wants to see you.”
Han Li said with a casual tone, “As a member of the organization, I will follow her orders. I will have to trouble you to show me the way.”
“Of course, of course.” From how his grip was shaken off, he realized Han Li possessed abilities far beyond his. As he didn’t dare to do something else that was disrespectful, he obliged with a smile.
Han Li eventually sent away the servant and followed the youth surnamed Luo to the east courtyard.
On the way, they saw many guards and cavalrymen and greeted them.
After making several turns and passing through a dozen large courtyards, they finally arrived at a small isolated courtyard.
It was rather elegant and peaceful nearby. There were two large unfamiliar guards standing guard at the gate without weapons.
When Han Li walked over to the two, the two large men swept an icy gaze past him.
Chapter 1278: The Gold Jade School
Han Li looked at the two with narrow eyes.
The two clearly weren’t ordinary body refiners as demonstrated from the chilling pressure of their gaze. He did sense the two appeared to be stronger than Zhang Kui.
“Elder Brothers, I am Brother Han, who recently joined the enterprise. The mistress mentioned she wished to see me.”
The shorter of the two glanced at Han Li and said, “Ah, you are the person who cultivated the Vajra Arts to the third stage. You do appear young, but is that from taking a medicine pill to maintain your appearance?”
The words contained were actually rather rude.
“If you two feel that way, then consider it to be true.” Han Li’s heart jumped, but he maintained a smile on his face.
The larger of the two then snorted and harshly said, “I don’t believe you truly cultivated the Vajra Arts to the third layer. I’ll be testing you, don’t take offense.” With a cold glint shining from his eye, he grabbed Han Li’s wrist.
Han Li raised his brow but didn’t avoid the large man’s hand. When the man touched his wrist, he sensed the man’s fingers turn exceptionally cold and release a huge force squeezing his wrist.
Han Li wore neither a scowl or a smile, but his eyes turned sullen.
Under the man’s force, Han Li’s wrist glowed with a layer of faint golden light, but it soon disappeared. Soon, Han Li remained still and allowed the man to do as he wished.
A short moment later, the large man exerted a large portion of his strength but Han Li still remained nonchalant. Eventually, the man’s face revealed surprise, and he hesitated for a moment. But rather than letting go, he took a deep breath and shined black light from his fingers, exerting even more strength on Han Li’s wrist.
The smile Han Li wore on his face finally vanished and he snorted, giving a casual shake of his twist.
The large man suddenly felt a vibration run through his fingers as his body became numb. Then with a frightened cry, he felt a huge force travel through him as he flew into the air.
As Han Li wore an emotionless expression, the large man was flung into a stone wall nearby. Just as the man was about to have a messy impact, the other guard suddenly pounced ten meters to quickly catch him.
But just as the shorter guard caught his companion in midair, his expression vastly changed and he reached out to grab him with his other hand.
A large thump sounded, followed by two softer thuds.
Although the shorter guard was able to catch him, he staggered back eight steps and his complexion was pale.
Han Li narrowed his eyes and glanced at the shorter guard.
Even against the huge force Han Li released, the shorter guard was still able to catch his companion. The shorter guard’s body refinement technique must be the greater of the two.
The youth surnamed Luo was left stunned.
The two men at the gate were Mistress Fang’s personal bodyguards. Although they normally didn’t mingle with the cavalrymen, they possessed brilliant body refinement techniques to the point where Captain Zhang Kui held them in secret admiration. When the confident cavalrymen thought to test their skill against them, they all suffered a miserable defeat.
As for Han Li who recently joined them, he was able to turn them pale with a flick of his wrist. They weren’t able to resist in the slightest.
Was the third layer of the Vajra Arts alone able to produce this much strength?
Youth Luo’s expression wavered at the slightest.
He couldn't have known that most of Han Li’s strength actually stemmed from the many Dragon Scale Fruits he consumed over hundreds of years and Bone Tempering Art. Otherwise, even as powerful as the third layer of the Vajra Arts may be, he would only be able to produce enough strength to rival the two men. Besides, in truth, Han Li cultivated the Vajra Arts to the fourth layer.
The shorter guard circulated his inner body techniques several times before eventually swallowing his frustration. With a calmed expression, he said, “Brother Han possesses exceptional abilities. We concede defeat. Please head in.” He couldn't help but look at Han Li with a trace of respect.
As for the taller guard that Han Li tossed, his expression turned unsightly.
Han Li smiled and gave them a short salute before casually strolling in.
Youth Luo naturally didn’t have the qualifications to follow him and could only wait outside.
When Han Li saw that the main gate to the courtyard building was shut and thought to knock on it, he heard a woman’s sweet voice sound from within.
“Young Sir Han, please come in. I’ve been waiting on you for quite a while.”
Han Li blinked twice and calmly walked in, not feeling particularly surprised.
When he went in, his expression stirred.
He was surprised to see several people in the room.
In the master’s seat across from the door sat an azure-robed woman in her thirties. Her skin was fair and her beauty was still present. Behind her stood a blue-robed man that was in his mid-twenties. He bore a strong resemblance to the woman.
Sitting across from the woman was an embroidered-robed man with a young face and grey hair. He wore an indifferent expression.
Sitting at his side was a handsome young man and a beautiful young woman.
They seemed to know what happened outside the courtyard gate and looked in Han Li’s direction when he entered.
The azure-robed woman had a trace of delight on her face and the blue-robed youth appeared curious. As for the embroidered-robed man, he was wearing a frown and the young pair simply looked surprised.
The azure-robed woman stood up and curtsied him, “Young Sir Han, I hope you don’t take offense. My bodyguards tested you on my orders. I simply wished to know if the third layer of the Vajra Arts was as fearsome as the rumors said. The technique is widely spread, but it is one of the most difficult body refining techniques to cultivate. Very few people break through to the second layer, let alone the third like you.”
Han Li casually asked with a smile, “I am already a member of your enterprise. I can’t take offense over a trifling test. Are you pleased his by my performance?”
Although he planned on concealing himself in the Heavenly East Enterprise as an insignificant character, he didn’t mind revealing a portion of his true strength.
As of current, Mistress Fang was looking at him in a favorable light.
When she heard Han Li’s reply she sweetly smiled and said, “The third layer of the Vajra Arts far exceeded my expectations. You’ve opened my eyes. Ah yes, I should give Young Sir Han an introduction. This is my son, Pan Qing. He is cultivating Immortal techniques under the Golden Jade Sect. These three are Immortal masters, fellow sect members of my son.”
“So they were Immortal masters!” Han Li saluted them.
Although his spiritual sense couldn't leave his body, it was still quite sharp and sense their cultivation at this distance. They were all at Foundation Establishment-stage and above. However, the youth and the other young pair appeared to have achieved Foundation Establishment recently as their spiritual Qi was still quite weak. As for the embroidered-robed man, his magic power was quite dense so he should be at false core stage, the peak of Foundation Establishment.
With the abilities Han Li showed previously, they didn't dare to treat him light and returned the greeting.
The embroidered-robed man even smiled and said, “Although I haven’t cultivated body refinement techniques before, my master fought against a high-grade body refiner in the past. It is rumored that person was able to slay several grade six and seven demon beasts by himself. I originally believed them to be fanciful tales, but from what Brother Han displayed, I am convinced they are true. But from the force Han Li displayed, it shouldn’t only be a result of the Vajra Arts but his nature or divine power as well.”
This person was quite experienced to see some oddities from Han Li’s immense strength.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 709