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

by Translator: Johnchen

  Everyone else's expressions stirred slightly, and they all began to listen with intent focus.

  Thus, time slowly passed by, and the meeting between the elders of Deep Heaven City lasted for over half a day before it was adjourned.

  Two days later, a certain teleportation formation within Deep Heaven City suddenly lit up, and two humanoid figures vanished from the center of the formation.

  At the same time, a loud buzzing sound suddenly rang out from a certain formation within a large city that was far away from Deep Heaven City.

  Bright white light suddenly erupted from a carefully guarded teleportation formation, and the chatting guards were all startled by this before immediately turning their attention to the teleportation formation.

  This teleportation formation was deemed to be extremely important by the mid and high-grade cultivators in the city, and it was regularly maintained and tightly guarded. However, due to the astronomical teleportation fee required to use it, very few people actually make use of it at all. The teleportation formation would only be used a handful of times per year at most, and its users were naturally all powerful cultivators.

  Thus, as two humanoid figures began to appear at the center of the formation, the Core Formation guards immediately stood up straight and put on respectful expressions.

  A young man emerged from the teleportation formation first, and he looked around before asking one of the armored guards, "Is this Maple Forest City?"

  "This is indeed Maple Forest City, Senior. We welcome you to our city!" the armored guard replied in a respectful manner.

  The guards had already assessed these two with their spiritual sense, but were completely unable to ascertain their cultivation bases, so they naturally didn't dare to display any rudeness to the two of them.

  "Good." The young man smiled before striding out of the hall with another woman with skin as fair as jade, who had just emerged from the formation as well.

  These two were naturally none other than Han Li and Fairy Xu, who had just teleported here from Deep Heaven City.

  Even though the Xu Family wasn't actually in Maple Forest City, this was the closest city to the one the Xu Family was in that was still accessible via teleportation.

  After passing through several lines of guards, the two of them finally emerged from the hall, and they found themselves on a massive bluestone plaza.

  The plaza was very plain and simple, and was constructed from massive azure tiles with no other eye-catching embellishments. However, there were some pavilions surrounding the plaza.

  Aside from the several groups of armored guards patrolling the area, there were no other cultivators around.

  Han Li spread his spiritual sense into the distance, and his expression changed ever so slightly.

  The plaza was situated halfway up a mountain that was over 10,000 feet tall, and there were many buildings, as well as rows of orderly streets, surrounding the foot of the mountain.

  Han Li turned toward the summit of the mountain to find that there was a small palace up there. Not only was the exterior of the palace quite lavish and grandiose, there were several auras within it that were of the Spatial Tempering Stage.

  It seemed that those were the high-grade cultivators who were responsible for overseeing the city.

  Han Li withdrew his spiritual sense before waving a sleeve through the air in an expressionless manner. A burst of azure light swept forth from his body, enveloping himself along with Fairy Xu, and the two of them instantly departed as a streak of azure light.

  Within a certain room in the palace at the mountain summit, there were three Spatial Tempering cultivators sitting around a table that was filled with delicious dishes, and they seemed to be enjoying a very pleasant conversation.

  All of a sudden, they abruptly fell silent before exchanging a few astonished glances with one another.

  "What was that? That burst of spiritual sense was so powerful; could it be that a Body Integration Stage Senior suddenly came to our city?" an elderly man in a brocade robe murmured.

  "Judging from how powerful that spiritual sense was, it seems that it really is a Body Integration cultivator. I wonder if it's one of the sovereigns or one of the elders of Deep Heaven City," a middle-aged man in a suit of white armor said in a bewildered manner.

  The third cultivator was a young man wearing a shimmering golden headband, and he said, "From what I've heard, the sovereigns are all busy preparing for a major event in Deep Heaven City, so there's no way that they would have the spare time to come here; it should be one of the Deep Heaven City elders."

  "Oh, if it's an elder of Deep Heaven City, then he must be merely passing through the city. He seems to be in quite a hurry, so there's no need for us to go and greet him." The brocade-robed elderly man heaved a sigh of relief as his expression eased slightly.

  "That may be the case, but our Maple Forest City is quite a secluded place in the Tian Yan Region; what's an elder of Deep Heaven City doing here?" The white-armored middle-aged man was still a little concerned.

  "Hehe, who knows? Those Body Integration Stage beings have always been mysterious and unpredictable anyway. As long as he's not here for us, why should we care what he's up to? I'm glad he's not sticking around in our city," the young man said as a slightly twisted look appeared on his face.

  The elderly man was clearly quite careful and cautious, and after a brief pause for contemplation, he said in a solemn manner, "That's true. However, we should still tell all of our subordinates to be more careful during this time so they don't cause any trouble for us."

  "Indeed. Our city isn't under the jurisdiction of Deep Heaven City, but that was still a Body Integration Stage being, so it can't hurt to be more careful," the white-armored man replied with a nod.

  The conversation between the three of them seemed to suggest that they were trying to hide something deplorable they had done.

  Unbeknownst to Han Li, his arrival had struck the three city lords with a strong sense of unease.

  Under Xu Qianyu's guidance, they flew out of Maple Forest City before continuing southbound.

  According to her, this was the nearest city to the Xu Family that was inhabited by cultivators, but it was still around a month's travel away from where the Xu Family was situated.

  Thus, not long after this, Han Li released a flying carriage, and the two of them got on the carriage to continue in their journey.

  This place was clearly quite secluded, and after flying a few hundred thousand kilometers away from Maple Forest City, there were barely any humans that could be seen on the ground below.

  Even the occasional small towns they passed by were inhabited by both mortals and cultivators.

  However, around half a month later, they had entered a hilly region, and there were no traces of any living beings other than some beasts that roamed the valleys.

  What was rather surprising to Han Li was that although this hilly area wasn't completely devoid of spiritual Qi, the spiritual Qi here was clearly far more sparse than it was in other places.

  As for spirit veins, that was something that they hadn't encountered a single one of even after flying for so many days.

  "Why did your Xu Family decide to settle in a place like this?" Han Li couldn't help but ask.

  "Please allow me to not answer that question for now, Senior. You'll find out the reason for yourself soon," Xu Qianyu said as a mysterious smile appeared on her face.

  "Oh? That sounds very intriguing." Han Li truly was growing a little curious, but his expression remained unchanged.

  After flying for another half a month or so, the yellow and green hills down below suddenly began to take on a red tinge. Regardless of whether it was the mountains, the soil, or the plains, all of them had become slightly red.

  In the beginning, Han Li hadn't paid much heed to this. However, after flying for a few more days, the entire ground down below had completely turned into a reddish-yellow color, and he couldn't ignore this phenomenon any
longer.

  After carefully sweeping his spiritual sense over the ground a few times, a contemplative look appeared on his face.

  "Looks like you've finally figured it out, Senior," Xu Qianyu chuckled.

  "I see. So there's a large copper essence mine here; no wonder your family decided to settle here despite the lack of spiritual Qi in the area," Han Li said with a smile.

  "Indeed. The seniors of our family had engaged in some heated arguments about whether the family should settle here when they first arrived in this place over 10,000 years ago. In the end, they decided to settle here, and our family has become quite wealthy as a result, but the cultivation of the members of our family has indeed been hampered. It's hard to say whether the benefits or the downsides outweigh the other," Xu Qianyu sighed in a slightly resigned manner.

  Han Li nodded upon hearing this, but didn't say anything in response. Xu Qianyu also fell silent and left Han Li to his thoughts.

  Several days later, a hint of lush greenery finally appeared in the sky in the distance, and the spiritual Qi surging toward them struck Han Li with a sense of reinvigoration. He knew that they were finally about to reach the Xu Family.

  Sure enough, not long after that, a small lush mountain range appeared before his eyes. There was only an ordinary spirit vein in this mountain range, but the spiritual Qi here was still vastly more abundant than it was in the surrounding area.

  There were all types of buildings on the dozen or so mountains in the mountain range, and there were some profound fluctuations between the mountains, clearly indicating that some powerful formations and restrictions had been set up.

  Chapter 1775: Mirage Illusionary Realm

  "We've arrived, Senior. Let me notify the members of my family so my father can greet you," Xu Qianyu said as the flying carriage circled around in the air near the mountain range.

  Han Li swept his spiritual sense over the mountain range, and his expression changed slightly as he nodded in response. "So this is the Xu Family. As expected, you've really found a good place. Alright, then, I'll wait here for you."

  Due to the fact that he had made no attempt to conceal his flying carriage, the Xu Family cultivators on guard duty had already noticed their presence, and a burst of restriction fluctuations erupted as a dozen or so streaks of light flew out of the mountain range down below, and they certainly didn't seem to be approaching with friendly intentions.

  After securing permission from Han Li, Xu Qianyu flew toward the cultivators of her family as a streak of white light, and she reached them after just a few flashes.

  All of those cultivators clearly recognized the daughter of their family leader, and the lights around them all faded to reveal a series of cultivators, all of whom had elated looks on their faces.

  Xu Qianyu merely said something to them with a smile on her face, then descended with them toward the mountain range down below.

  Meanwhile, Han Li patiently waited on his flying carriage, and a short while later, delightful music began to play within the mountain range.

  Two groups of young women in white and red palatial dresses flew out of one of the mountains, and even though they were all only at the Core Formation and Foundation Establishment Stages, all of them were very beautiful and wore respectful expressions.

  Behind these women were three people, one of which was none other than Xu Qianyu. The one at the center of the trio was a scholarly white-robed man, while the final person to complete the trio was a massive burly man with an unruly beard and a pair of large menacing intimidating eyes.

  The two groups of women stopped several hundred feet away from the flying carriage, while the trio continued onward and only stopped after reaching Han Li.

  "Junior Xu Jiao pays his respects to Senior Han. Please forgive me for not coming out to greet you sooner."

  The white-robed man appeared to be around 30 years of age and had a set of ordinary facial features. However, he was at the late-Deity Transformation Stage, so he wasn't weak by any means. In the presence of Han Li, he hurriedly extended a deep bow with a respectful look on his face.

  "Junior Xu Lu also pays his respects to Senior Han." The burly man was at the mid-Deity Transformation Stage, and he also extended a respectful bow.

  "Are you the leader of the Xu Family, Fellow Daoist Xu Jiao?" Han Li asked in an indifferent manner as he appraised the white-robed man.

  "Indeed. I've been the Xu Family Leader for around 1,000 years now," the white-robed man replied in a truthful manner.

  Han Li nodded, and asked, "I'm sure Fellow Daoist Qianyu has informed you of the purpose of my visit, right?"

  "She did, indeed. We are truly grateful that you've graced us with a visit for the sake of our matriarch. However, this is not a suitable place to talk; please follow me and we'll discuss these matters inside," the white-robed man said in a respectful manner.

  Han Li nodded in response. "Alright, lead the way."

  Thus, Han Li withdrew his flying carriage, and drifted down from the sky.

  The white-robed man and burly man accompanied Han Li on either side, while Xu Qianyu followed along a half step behind them.

  After arriving in the air above the mountain range, Xu Jiao flipped a hand over to summon a green badge before gently sweeping it through the air.

  A burst of violent spatial fluctuations suddenly erupted over the entire mountain range, and the dozen or so mountains twisted and warped like mirages before vanishing into nothingness.

  The mountains were still the same mountains, but they were now in completely different locations to where they were situated before.

  The dozen or so mountains had all shifted several kilometers in location, so presumably, if someone had tried to directly attack the Xu Family using a powerful ability, then they would completely miss all of the mountains and buildings.

  Han Li's eyes narrowed slightly, and he suddenly remarked, "This is a mirage illusionary realm! I didn't think that you'd have access to such a legendary ancient restriction."

  "Hehe, I'm sure it's nothing much in your eyes, Senior. Around 10,000 years ago, our Xu Family enlisted the service of an extremely talented formation master, and it took him his entire life to restore most of this ancient illusionary formation. It's a pity that his cultivation base was rather lackluster. Otherwise, if he had lived for some time longer, then perhaps he would've been able to completely restore the formation," Xu Jiao chuckled in response, seemingly also quite proud of this formation.

  "Indeed, with this formation, the Xu Family will be very safe and secure," Han Li said with a faint smile before falling silent.

  Xu Jiao was slightly disappointed to see this.

  It was quite rare for a Body Integration cultivator to assess their formation, so he naturally hoped that Han Li would offer some more in-depth analysis.

  "Senior, do you think this formation would be able to withstand a Body Integration cultivator's attack?" the burly man asked in a careful manner.

  "A Body Integration cultivator's attack? Hehe..." A hint of a smile appeared on Han Li's face as he glanced at the burly man, but he didn't offer a direct response.

  "Are you saying that this formation will be ineffective against a Body Integration cultivator, Senior?" the white-robed man asked in a hesitant manner.

  After a brief pause, Han Li replied in a calm manner, "I don't know whether it would be effective or not, but there are indeed a few fallacies in the formation, presumably because it hasn't been completely restored. If a cultivator with lackluster prowess in the art of formations were to encounter this restriction, then they would certainly have some trouble trying to circumvent it. However, in the face of a Body Integration cultivator who's adept in the art of formations, this incomplete mirage illusionary realm really won't do much for you." He then casually pointed out the points on the mountain range where the restriction had been set up.

  "You can identify the fallacies in this formation, Senior?" The white-robed man was quite surprised to hear this.r />
  Xu Qianyu and the burly man exchanged a glance, and they could see their own astonishment mirrored in one another's eyes.

  "I once read a tome with information regarding this formation, so I'm naturally able to identify the fallacies in this incomplete formation," Han Li said in a nonchalant manner.

  This was indeed true. Even though this type of ancient formation had already been lost in the human race for countless years, he discovered a bunch of ancient formation tomes in a market while passing through the territory of a foreign race on his way back to Deep Heaven City.

  These tomes had all been written in ancient human text, and that particular foreign race had very little interest in formations, so the tomes were being sold like trash among a bunch of miscellaneous items.

  Han Li couldn't help but wonder which powerful human being had taken these ancient tomes out of the human race, only for them to end up on the territory of that foreign race.

  Han Li naturally wasn't going to pass up this opportunity, and he purchased all of those ancient formation tomes for next to nothing.

  During his journey over the territories of the other foreign races, Han Li had encountered many similar situations, so he didn't pay much heed to it.

  However, he was now able to compare this incomplete formation with the complete version on the tome, which naturally allowed him to instantly identify its fallacies.

  Xu Jiao was naturally unaware of this chapter of Han Li's past, but he was quite stunned to hear that Han Li had the complete method for setting up this mirage illusionary formation.

  He didn't know how this Senior Han had gotten his hands on such an ancient formation tome that had been lost for so many years, but if that really were true, then wouldn't the formation guarding the Xu Family be as good as nonexistent in his eyes?