Xian Xian's expression changed slightly upon hearing this before a warm smile appeared on her face as she said, "Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Yue; we'll only be traveling through the outskirts, and there's no way that we'll venture deep into the mountain ranges. My cultivation base is far inferior to yours, so I certainly wouldn't dare to go any deeper into the mountain ranges than necessary."
Yue Zong's expression eased slightly upon hearing this, and after a brief pause, he continued, "That would be best. Also, as we discussed earlier, I'll only be responsible for acting as your guide and helping to battle any devilish beasts that we may encounter along the way. Aside from that, I won't be assisting you and Senior Han in any other areas; you have no issues with that, right, Fairy Xian?"
"None at all. If we really do encounter some situations where further assistance is required from you, I'm willing to offer additional rewards, and I definitely won't force you to do anything against your will." Xian Xian nodded in response, but she didn't completely agree to this. Yue Zong contemplated her response for a short while before conceding with a slight nod.
Meanwhile, Han Li remained silent this entire time as he carefully appraised Yue Zong, and only at the conclusion of his conversation with Xian Xian did he finally interject, "In all honesty, my understanding of the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges and devilish beasts is very lackluster. I've only learned about some of these aspects by asking others and reading some relevant tomes. As such, I'm very glad that Fairy Xian was able to invite someone as familiar with the mountain ranges as Fellow Daoist Yue. However, I have a few questions surrounding the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges, and I was hoping you'd be able to answer them, Fellow Daoist Yue."
"Please state any question that you may have, and I'll be sure to tell you everything that I know, Senior Han," Yue Zong immediately replied.
"Setting aside the high-grade devilish beasts in the mountain ranges, have the mid-grade and low-grade devilish beasts also attained intelligence? If so, how does their intelligence compare with that of normal spirit beasts? Also..." Han Li immediately rattled off a list of questions.
Yue Zong displayed his vast wealth of knowledge of the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges, providing detailed responses to all of Han Li's questions, and Xian Xian also interjected from time to time with questions of her own.
The atmosphere between the three of them was quite harmonious, and they talked for close to an hour before Han Li was finally satisfied. After receiving an answer to his final question, a smile appeared on Han Li's face as he said, "With all of this knowledge, I'm sure our trip will be quite a smooth one. When do you plan on setting off, Fellow Daoist Xian?"
Xian Xian considered the question momentarily before replying, "The Golden Devil Mountain Ranges are about a month's travel away from our Cloud City, so we won't be able to delay for too much longer. I think we should set off in three days; what do you think, Senior?"Han Li stroked his chin as he replied, "Alright, we'll do as you say. Three days from now, let's meet up five kilometers outside of the eastern gates."Yue Zong nodded in response, stating no objections to this proposal. Han Li had no intention of staying any longer, and he bade everyone farewell as he said, "If that's everything that needs to be discussed, then I have to go back and make some preparations now." "We've discussed everything that needs to be said, so you're certainly free to leave, Senior Han," Xian Xian replied in a respectful manner before flipping a hand over to summon her formation plate again.
Thus, Han Li stepped onto the teleportation formation and disappeared amid a flash of spiritual light.
Immediately following Han Li's departure, Yue Zong heaved a reflexive sigh of relief before his brows furrowed as he asked, "Fellow Daoist Xian, is this Senior Han really trustworthy? You say that he's a high-grade devilish cultivator, but I don't sense any devilish aura emanating from his body. I've explored the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges on many occasions, and I'm quite confident in my ability to sense devilish Qi, so could it be possible that he's lying?"
"Rest assured, Brother Yue, I can guarantee that Senior Han is indeed a high-grade devilish cultivator. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that he was a devilish cultivator, I may not have been able to tempt him into coming with us. But then again, if it weren't for the fact that a high-grade devilish cultivator was required for our plans, I wouldn't have had to wait for so long," Xian Xian confirmed with a faint sigh.
Yue Zong was silent for a moment before suddenly asking, "In that case, this Senior Han must be using some kind of mysterious cultivation art that can mask his devilish Qi. Otherwise, there's no way that my sensory ability would completely fail to detect any devilish aura from him. Aside from that, I don't know what your objective for this trip is, but seeing as it requires the accompaniment of a high-grade devilish cultivator, I can only presume that it's not something simple. On top of that, it really is a bad idea to be entering the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges this year. This should be the time during which an influx of devilish Qi will be pouring into the mountain ranges once every 300 years, and during this 10-year period, there's a high chance that the powerful devilish beasts in the mountain ranges will appear in the outskirts. Why don't you wait for a further four or five years instead?"
"My apologies, but I have my secrets, and I cannot reveal them to you. In any case, I have to enter the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges within these two years. Otherwise, I'll have to wait for several more centuries for another opportunity. I simply can't afford to wait that long, so I have no choice but to take this risk. However, it's exactly because of this that I was willing to offer a vial of Myriad Year Zoysia Spirit Liquid in exchange for your services. Truth be told, I went to several other people before you in the hope of employing their services, but none of them were willing to enter the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges during this period of devilish Qi influx, so I had no choice but to come to you," Xian Xian admitted with a wry smile after a brief hesitation.
"In that case, I'll have to take the risk with you then, Fairy Xian. However, let me make this clear first; during this period of devilish Qi influx, I'm only 70% to 80% confident that I'll be able to guide you safely to your destination. If mishaps arise or we encounter some powerful devilish beasts or some other incident occurs that will pose a threat to our lives, then I'll be fleeing the scene right away. On top of that, you'll have to give me the other half vial of Zoysia Spirit Liquid that you promised me as well," Yue Zong reminded in a serious voice.
"Of course. These terms were all confirmed in advance, so I naturally won't go back on my word," Xian Xian replied with a smile.
Yue Zong nodded before narrowing his eyes as he asked, "From the looks of it, you don't seem to have told Senior Han about the devilish Qi influx that's currently taking place in the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges; won't that be problematic?"
"I'm taking Senior Han with us because I need to borrow his Devil Dao abilities, and that has nothing to do with the influx of devilish Qi. Even you can't guide us safely in and out of the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges, then the outcome will remain the same regardless of whether I inform Senior Han or not. He'll know about this sooner or later anyway," Xian Xian replied with a sly look on her eyes.
"That's true. However, if you were to tell him in advance, then you most likely wouldn't have been able to convince Senior Han to come with us," Yue Zong chuckled with a knowing expression.
Xian Xian merely smiled upon hearing this and offered no response.
After that, she and Yue Zong discussed some other details before Yue Zong was also sent away by the teleportation formation. Thus, Xian Xian was the only one left in the spatial rift.
The smile on her face gradually faded, and her brows furrowed slightly as she suddenly waved a sleeve through the air. A ball of azure light immediately flew out from within, then transformed into a fist-sized azure beast in a flash.
The small beast had scales all over its body and sharp claws attached to its four limbs. There was a pair of horns on its head it had a mouthful of sharp
fangs, giving it an identical appearance to a true spirit Kirin.
However, the small beast's body was extremely indistinct and insubstantial, looking as if it could be dispersed by nothing more than a gentle breeze.
Chapter 1614: Kirin Projection
"Are you sure that place will be opening within these two years? Make sure you haven't miscalculated the date. If you're off even by just a few years, I'll be taking this risk for nothing, and I'll be missing out on a brilliant opportunity," Xian Xian asked in a serious voice as she appraised the Kirin projection before her.
"Do you still not believe me even now? When have I provided you with false guidance? If it weren't for the rewards that you reaped from the other set of ruins I told you about, you wouldn't even be at where you are today. With the limited cultivation aptitude of you Crystal beings, you can already be considered to be a supreme prodigy by reaching this point after just a few centuries of cultivation," the Kirin projection replied as it raised its head in a lazy manner.
"From the day that I was born, you were born with me, and if I were to die, you would suffer the same fate, so of course I believe you. It's just you're merely a wisp of the soul of the true spirit Kirin from back then, so it wouldn't be impossible that your memory's been jumbled or rearranged; I'm simply feeling a little uneasy," Xian Xian said as she appraised the miniature Kirin.
"I am indeed only a hundred-thousandths of that true spirit Kirin's spiritual sense after it had self-detonated, but back then, it had been forced to the brink of death by its sworn enemies, and it wouldn't have been able to escape had it not detonated its own soul. Even though it unleashed an ability that defied the natural order to split its soul into 100,000 fragments, it has implanted a few extremely important pieces of information into every single fragment of its soul so it can have a chance of returning to its former power. I can assure you that the information regarding that true spirit cave is most definitely one of those pieces of information, so there's no way that I'll miscalculate," the miniature Kirin chuckled.
"Indeed, it's all thanks to you that I was able to reach my current cultivation base. However, you only adhered to my infant self to try and take over my body and reincarnate yourself. I don't know why you failed to do so in the end, but you certainly didn't harbor good intentions toward me in the beginning," Xian Xian countered with a faint smile.
Spiritual light flashed erratically around the miniature Kirin upon hearing this, and its mood seemed to have soured significantly. "Why are you still mentioning that? I failed in the end, didn't I? It's a stroke of terrible luck that I decided to adhere to your body. Otherwise, if I had chosen someone else at the time, perhaps I'd have been freed long ago!"
"Hmph, do you really think I don't know what happened back then? At the time in the village that I was born, I was the only baby that was yet to be born. You must've thought that an unborn baby with cognitive functions that were yet to be fully developed would've been an easy vessel for you to take over," Xian Xian chuckled.
"At the time, I had used up almost all of my power just to escape, so of course I was going to choose the easiest target to try and possess. Otherwise, even just a hundred-thousandths of a true spirit being's spiritual sense is more than powerful enough to take over the body of a mature Crystal being," the miniature Kirin grumbled in a resigned manner.
"Alright, let's not bicker about this any longer. Even though you weren't able to successfully reincarnate yourself, the fact of the matter is that you did manage to survive. Entering the true spirit cave will be extremely beneficial for both of us, so we have to ensure that nothing goes wrong. It's unfortunate that I've reached a bottleneck in my cultivation and may not be able to make any progress even in the next few centuries. Otherwise, I would've waited until I was powerful enough before setting off in search of that true spirit cave. That would undoubtedly take a long time, but it would certainly be safer than entering the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges with these two beings who are both far more powerful than I am," Xian Xian mused in a contemplative manner.
"You Crystal beings really do possess very ordinary cultivation aptitude. Even with my guidance and after taking so many precious pills, it would still be impossible for you to progress at the miraculous rate you enjoyed in the past. As such, it wouldn't do you any good to delay for so much longer. Then again, if it weren't for the fact that the true spirit cave just so happened to have been occupied by that wounded holy-grade devilish beast, it would've definitely been better for you to go there alone," the Kirin projection paused momentarily before continuing, "But rest assured, you've already prepared measures to counteract those beings, haven't you? It would be best if they didn't try to plot against you, but if they did, then you could unleash those measures, and even ordinary beings who are far more powerful than you would be susceptible."
"Ordinary beings? Are you implying that one of them isn't an ordinary being? Does that mean there's a chance that those measures won't work on them?" The Crystal woman was extremely intelligent, and was immediately able to read between the lines.
"You've come into those two beings twice already, and even though I've been hiding in your body on those occasions, I was still able to sense some things. That Yue Zong's aura fluctuates in power, and upon closer inspection, I can sense some baleful Qi lurking within his body. If I'm not mistaken, he must be using some kind of cultivation art that specializes in concealment and unleashing lethal attacks with the aim of killing his target with a single strike. Of course, he must've cultivated some other abilities and secret techniques as well. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to venture into the Golden Devil Mountain Ranges so many times and still remain unscathed. However, in contrast, that Han Li is a lot more unsettling. Not only does his cultivation base far outstrip that of Yue Zong, his cultivation arts and abilities are all very profound. Even I'm struck by a sense of peril in his presence, but the measures I've prepared for you are all the most effective ones that you can use at your current cultivation base. In particular, the life-saving measures are extremely profound and unpredictable, so even if you can't kill the two of them on the spot, you'll still be able to escape with ease," the Kirin projection replied in a confident manner.
"In that case, I'm feeling quite reassured. However, there's something else that I'm more worried about," Xian Xian sighed as a peculiar look flashed through her eyes."Oh? What is it?" the miniature Kirin asked.
"When that Kirin self-detonated its soul all those years ago, it was split into 100,000 fragments, so surely you're not the only one that managed to escape and is aware of the location of the true spirit cave. Hundreds of years have passed since then, so perhaps someone's already accessed the cave and taken all of the benefits for themselves, thereby rendering our efforts completely futile," Xian Xian speculated.
"The Krin's soul was indeed split up into many fragments, but very few of them actually managed to escape. Among those, a large proportion would've failed to possess a host or encountered some other kind of mishap, so it really is rather difficult to say whether other soul fragments like me still exist. As such, I think it's quite unlikely that someone would've already accessed the cave," the Kirin projection replied in a solemn voice.
"I hope that's the case. If we can secure the benefits in the true spirit cave, then I'll be able to progress at a rapid rate in my cultivation," Xian Xian murmured to herself.
"Hehe, that would indeed be the case. Otherwise, I wouldn't have retained this piece of information so clearly," the Kirin projection chuckled.
Xian Xian merely smiled upon hearing this, but didn't offer any reply.
After revolving around her for a while, the miniature Kirin suddenly said, "That Han Li possesses quite a powerful spiritual sense, so when you're with him, try not to contact me if you can avoid it. Otherwise, there's a chance that he may discover that something's amiss. Ideally, the next time that I appear would be when we're already situated in the true spirit cave."
After that, the Kirin projection flew
toward the Xian Xian's body and abruptly disappeared.
Xian Xian heaved a faint sigh before also making her way into the teleportation formation. She waved the formation plate in her hand, and disappeared amid a flash of spiritual light.
...
Three days later, on the summit of a small mountain near Cloud City, an azure-robed young man stood with his hands clasped his back, inspecting the scenery below him.
He was completely motionless, and he wore a placid expression on his face.
This man was naturally none other than Han Li, who had arrived at the designated location as agreed upon.
He had already been here for some time, yet the sun was only just beginning to rise up over the horizon. It appeared that he was a little early.
However, it was quite rare for him to have some leisurely downtime, so his mood was quite good as he breathed in some fresh air and inspected the surrounding scenery.
Less than an hour later, Han Li stirred slightly before turning toward a certain direction, and a few moments later, a streak of crimson light came hurtling toward him before also landing on the mountain summit after just a few flashes.
The crimson light faded to reveal a humanoid figure, and it was none other than Yue Zong."Greetings, Senior Han. Sorry to keep you waiting." Yue Zong cupped his fist in a respectful salute. "It's alright, I intentionally came here a little earlier." Han Li shook his head in an indifferent manner.
Yue Zong gave him a polite smile upon hearing this before finding a clean patch of ground nearby and sitting down in a cross-legged manner.
Meanwhile, Han Li continued to cast his gaze into the distance.
Not long after that, Xian Xian also arrived.
Han Li raised his eyebrows slightly as she descended from above as a ball of white light, and Yue Zong also rose to his feet.
"Seeing as everyone's here, let's set off right away," Han Li suggested in a straightforward manner following her arrival.
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