Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign stood at the edge of the beast-drawn carriage and looked on as Han Li vanished into the distance as a streak of azure light. He then issued a command, and the procession began to advance onward again.
"What do you think, Fellow Daoist Huang, Buddhist Master Tian Chan?" Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign asked after taking a seat.
"He's very young!"
"He's very exceptional!"
After taking a glance at one another, the elderly man and the monk both spoke in unison with serious looks on their faces.
"Hehe, Fellow Daoist Huang's Great Keen Eye Technique can glean one's true bone age, so for you to call him very young is quite straightforward. However, I'll have to get you to enlighten me on what's so exceptional about him, Buddhist Master Tian Chan. Your Qi Inspection Technique ranks among the top three in our human race, so I'm sure you won't disappoint me," Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign said with a faint smile.
"This man was able to conceal his aura to an extremely discreet extent, but my Qi Inspection Technique doesn't determine one's powers based on spiritual sense. From what I could see, he is indeed an early-Body Integration cultivator, but his magic power is far more abundant than other cultivators of the same caliber. If I had to give a specific parameter, I would say that he possesses close to twice the amount of magic power a normal early-Body Integration cultivator possesses. Hence, even though he's only at the early-Body Integration Stage, his magic power is comparable to that of a mid-Body Integration cultivator like myself," Tian Chan replied in a careful manner after contemplating the situation for a moment.
"It appears this fellow Daoist must be using some kind of special cultivation art that's enhancing his spiritual power. However, generally speaking, that would mean that his abilities in other areas would be slightly weaker," Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign said with a nod.
Tian Chan shook his head in a solemn manner, and said, "I'm afraid that you're mistaken there, Holy Sovereign. Aside from his immensely abundant magic power and the main cultivation art that he's using, I can also tell he possesses at least three or four more types of extremely powerful abilities, each of which is most likely not inferior to my Jade Spirit Secret Technique."
"Is that true?" Huang Dang exclaimed before Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign had a chance to react.
"Why are you so surprised, Fellow Daoist Huang? Surely this revelation isn't enough to draw such a response from you. Could it be that you've also made some other discoveries?" Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign asked as he turned to Huang Dang in a calm manner.
"As I'm sure you're aware, my Great Keen Eye Technique can glean some information about one's physical body on top of their bone age," Huang Dang said with a wry smile.
"Are you saying Fellow Daoist Han's physical body is also special in some way?" Tian Chan couldn't help but ask.
"It's not particularly special; it's merely very powerful," Huang Dang replied as a peculiar look appeared on his face.
"Very powerful? Are you saying his physical body is more powerful than that of our holy sovereign?" Tian Chan chuckled upon hearing this.
Huang Dang's eyelids twitched a little, and he said something that had Tian Chan completely astonished. "Even if his physical body is inferior, it won't be inferior by much."
"Is that so?" Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign was also rather taken aback to hear this.
"That's impossible! Surely you jest, Fellow Daoist Huang. Our holy sovereign not only specializes in a Buddhist cultivation art, but he also used to be a top-grade body refinement warrior. On top of that, he's been making a conscious effort to refine his own body for so many years; his physical body is most likely no less powerful than that of the demon monarchs. It's not too far-fetched that Fellow Daoist Han has some achievements in the realm of body refinement, but how can he possibly compare in this field to our holy sovereign?" Tian Chan was shaking his head vehemently, refusing to believe this assessment.
Huang Dang hesitated momentarily before replying in a confident manner, "Even if my Great Keen Eye Technique has made some errors, what I can be sure of is that this man definitely possesses the most powerful body I've ever seen from a human, second only to our holy sovereign."
"But that's..."
Heavenly Yuan Holy Sovereign waved a hand to cut off Buddhist Master Tian Chan before musing in a contemplative manner, "It would be unwise to doubt Fellow Daoist Huang's Great Keen Eye Technique, Buddhist Master Tian Chan. After all, it's never failed us before. Hehe, so he possesses far superior magic power to other beings of the same caliber, several types of powerful abilities, and a physical body that's not inferior in power to the average demon monarch. On top of that, he's so young as well. If he can survive the imminent devilish tribulation, he'll most likely become someone who's comparable to myself in the future."
Huang Dang and Tian Chan exchanged a glance upon hearing this, and contemplative looks also appeared in their eyes.
Meanwhile, Han Li was already thousands of kilometers away, flying toward a particularly lush mountain range.
This mountain range consisted of nine mountains that resembled massive straight swords and was naturally none other than Nine Immortal Mountain, the venue for the imminent Myriad Treasure Convention.
At present, the area within 500 kilometers from the edge of the mountain range was a restricted zone. Prior to the commencement of the convention, only some important figures with special statuses were permitted to enter the mountain range. Unqualified individuals who broke this rule would be evicted at best, or killed on sight at worst.
As such, all of the humans and demons who had traveled here from afar to attend the convention had all settled nearby Nine Immortal Mountain, outside of the restricted zone.
Fairy Yue Hua was only a Core Formation cultivator, so she naturally wasn't an exception to this rule, either.
Prior to separating from Young Master Hai and the others, Han Li had planted tracking marks in their bodies so he wouldn't have to worry about being unable to find them.
Thus, just as Han Li was about to enter the mountain range up ahead, he suddenly changed directions, and after flying for a while longer, he descended toward a mountain in a certain hilly region.
The azure light faded, and Han Li appeared in a lush forest. He glanced at the greenery around him, and a smile appeared on his face as he gently swept a sleeve toward a certain direction.
A burst of azure light swept forth, and a certain section of the forest suddenly blurred and warped before shattering into specks of spiritual light amid a dull thump.
The greenery there abruptly vanished, and a tall and bleak rock face appeared in its place. There was a white stone gate that was several tens of feet tall on the rock face, and Han Li raised a hand to send a streak of red light flying through the air, which then disappeared into the stone gate in a flash.
He then stood on the spot and waited in a patient manner.
Moments later, spiritual light flashed from the stone gate, and it slowly rose up, following which a group of people emerged from within.
Fairy Yue Hua, Bai Huaji, Young Master Hai, and Qi Lingzi were all among them. They were led by an elderly woman who was holding a cane with a carved dragon head at the top. She had a head of white hair and wrinkles all over her face, but she was a Deity Transformation cultivator, which came as a slight surprise to Han Li.
The elderly woman carefully appraised Han Li before immediately stepping forward and extending a respectful salute. "Junior Tian Qingye and her disciple pays their respects to Senior Han!"
Fairy Yue Hua and the others hurriedly followed suit.
Qi Lingzi and Young Master Hai also extended respectful bows, but the peculiar expressions on their faces clearly suggested that they still hadn't yet come to terms with everything.
"No need for formalities. Let's talk further after we go in," Han Li said in a calm manner.
"Yes, Senior Han. I've already prepared some spirit tea for you; I hope it's to your liking," the elderl
y woman said in a careful manner.
Han Li nodded and strode in through the gate without saying anything further.
Everyone else naturally followed along behind him in a respectful manner.
Moments later, Han Li and the elderly woman had both taken a seat in a tidy stone hall, while Fairy Yue Hua and the others remained standing. Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi were clearly still in disbelief that Brother Han had suddenly become Senior Han, and they were constantly stealing glances in his direction.
Han Li merely ignored them and asked the elderly woman a few questions. Through their conversation, he was able to quickly learn about the origins of the elderly woman and Fairy Yue Hua.
It turned out that the elderly woman hailed from the Broad Golden Sect, which was a medium-sized sect in the Xuan Wu Region. She was one of the sect's two elders, and Fairy Yue Hua was a prized disciple of hers, whom she held in high regard due to her stellar aptitude.
Bai Guo'er was Fairy Yue Hua's granddaughter, and her only living descendant, which was why she and her father, Bai Huaji, were able to accompany the elderly woman to this Myriad Treasure Convention.
Bai Huaji was trying to sell the Blood Ginseng that had been passed down in his family for generations in order to buy some medicines to combat Bai Guo'er's frost poison, but he fell into the trap sprung by the Three Scourges of the Southern Mountain.
If they hadn't bumped into Han Li's trio, he and his daughter would've almost definitely lost their lives there.
As such, Fairy Yue Hua and Bai Huaji hurriedly stepped forward to thank Han Li for his kindness at the elderly woman's behest.
Han Li naturally waved a hand to brush off their grateful salutes.
"I very rarely leave my sect to go anywhere, but I've heard that a new Body Integration Stage senior has recently appeared in the Tian Yuan Region, and he shares the same surname as you. Could it be that you two are one and the same, Senior Han?" the elderly woman asked in a careful manner.
Body Integration cultivators were vastly renowned figures, and even now, the elderly woman still didn't dare to completely believe Han Li's identity.
"Hehe, I didn't think word would spread so quickly even to the Xuan Wu Region," Han Li replied in an ambiguous manner.
"So you really are the same Senior Han! That makes sense; the holy sovereign would only extend an invitation toward a fellow Body Integration Stage senior." The elderly woman was ecstatic to hear this indirect confirmation.
Generally speaking, there was no way that an ordinary Deity Transformation cultivator like her would be able to interact with a Body Integration cultivator. If she could forge some kind of tie with Han Li now, both she and her sect would benefit immensely.
As such, the elderly woman became even more respectful toward Han Li.
Han Li looked around before suddenly saying something that came as quite a surprise to everyone, "Where's the little girl, Guo'er? I want to take a look at her."
The elderly woman and the others exchanged a few glances upon hearing this, and Fairy Yue Hua asked in a careful manner, "Senior Han, Guo'er was suddenly afflicted by her frost poison as soon as she returned, so she's taking a rest in another room. Would you be able to wait for some time? Once she recovers, I'll bring her out to see you right away."
"I see. There's no need for that; you can take me to her right now. The main reason I decided to come here is for her," Han Li said with a smile as he rose to his feet.
Chapter 1791: Ice Essence Body
Fairy Yue Hua was quite befuddled to hear this, and she was also feeling quite uneasy as she didn't know why this Senior Han was so interested in her granddaughter.
However, in Bai Guo'er's current tormented state, there really wasn't much worse that could happen to her. On top of that, the elderly woman was relentlessly urging her to comply with Han Li's request with her eyes, so she could only grit her teeth, and replied, "In that case, I'll lead to you see Guo'er right away, Senior Han."
Thus, she led Han Li and the others toward the rear hall of the cave abode.
After passing through a side door and a simple corridor, they arrived in a bedroom. There was a faint red wooden bed in the room, and Bai Guo'er was lying on the bed in an unconscious state.
Her delicate face was slightly scrunched up with pain, and there was a layer of azure light over her body. Her lips also appeared a little purple.
As Han Li approached the wooden bed, he was struck by a burst of scorching heat, which came as a slight surprise to him. However, he then briefly inspected the wooden bed and immediately understood the situation, upon which he shook his head, and remarked, "Using Flame Wood to craft a bed can repress the glacial energy within her body to a certain extent, but her frost poison has already fused into her meridians, so this won't really do much."
"I'm aware of that, but I'm hoping against hope that this bed will slightly alleviate Guo'er's pain when she's beset by her frost poison," Fairy Yue Hua said with a sympathetic and doting look as her gaze fell upon the little girl on the bed.
Han Li nodded initially upon hearing this, but then shook his head as he strode over to the red wooden bed. He gently grabbed onto one of Bai Guo'er's wrists, and blue light flashed incessantly through his eyes.
Everyone else looked on with bated breath and didn't dare to make a single sound. Bai Huaji and Fairy Yue Hua were both staring at Han Li with hope in their eyes.
Around 10 minutes later, Han Li's eyes suddenly flashed, and a layer of five-colored glacial light instantly appeared around Bai Guo'er's wrist.
As the glacial light swirled, the layer of azure light over Bai Guo'er's body converged directly toward the part of her arm that was in contact with Han Li's hand. Moments later, an egg-sized ball of faint azure light had taken shape within her wrist.
Han Li immediately flipped over his other hand upon seeing this to reveal a shimmering silver needle between two of his fingers, and he stabbed the needle toward Bai Guo'er's wrist in a flash.
"Argh!"
Bai Huaji and Fairy Yue Hua's expressions changed drastically upon seeing this, and they had to hold themselves back from instinctively rushing forward.
Silver light flashed, and a small hole was punctured into Bai Guo'er wrist, following which a drop of blood essence was expelled from the hole at Han Li's behest.
The silver needle then vanished from between Han Li's fingers, only to be replaced by a palm-sized white jade plate that was extremely intricate and flawless.
Han Li placed the jade plate under Bai Guo'er's wrist, and the drop of blood essence instantly fell, freezing solid mid-fall and clattering onto the plate with a pleasant chime.
Everyone's expressions changed upon seeing this, but Han Li seemed to have been enlightened by this experiment.
He stowed the jade plate and the drop of blood essence away, and the five-colored glacial light emanating from his palm increased in brightness.
The ball of azure Qi flashed within the glacial light before quickly fading away into nothingness.
Immediately thereafter, Bai Guo'er gave a delicate moan and opened her eyes in a slightly disoriented manner.
Fairy Yue Hua and Bai Huaji were ecstatic to see this, and hurriedly expressed their gratitude toward Han Li once again.
Han Li smiled as the five-colored glacial light radiating from his hand faded, and he released Bai Guo'er's wrist. He then extended a finger and tapped it against her forehead, upon which a white incantation seal vanished into her head in a flash.
Bai Guo'er's body shuddered slightly in response, and she fell unconscious once again, which was slightly alarming to the others in the room.
"No need to worry; the frost poison in her body has just been eradicated, but she's still quite frail and needs more rest. I've already examined her condition; let's go back to the front hall to discuss the other matters," Han Li said before striding out of the room.
Everyone else was quite confused, but they naturally didn't dare to disobey him and hurriedly followed him out o
f the room.
Not long after that, Han Li was seated in the hall again, sipping a cup of spirit tea. His eyes were flashing with contemplation, seemingly suggesting that he was grappling with some kind of difficult decision.
Everyone else naturally didn't dare to disrupt him, and they were all waiting respectfully in silence for Han Li to speak to them.
After a long while, Han Li raised an eyebrow and placed the teacup in his hand down onto the table beside him, seemingly having made a decision.
"Fellow Daoist Bai, how much do you know about the frost poison your daughter has been afflicted with?" Han Li asked.
Bai Huaji's heart jolted upon receiving this sudden question, and he hurriedly replied, "I've invited some other powerful cultivators to diagnose Guo'er's condition in the past, and they told me that Guo'er has been afflicted by a special type of frost poison that's vastly different from the ordinary frost poisons in the world. Aside from getting a Body Integration cultivator to forcibly expel this poison, the only other option open to us is to find a few legendary spirit medicines of extreme Yang attribute to neutralize this poison."
"Hehe, it's no wonder that they would say that," Han Li chuckled in an ambiguous manner.
"Senior Han, is there something else that's amiss about Guo'er's frost poison?" Fairy Yue Hua asked in a concerned manner.
"Do the two of you know when she first became afflicted by this glacial poison?" Han Li asked as opposed to answering Fairy Yue Hua's question.
"It was when she was nine. She suddenly fell unconscious while cultivating, and only then did we discover the presence of this frost poison within her body. In the beginning, it was only an inconspicuous tiny wisp, so we didn't think much of it and used some normal methods to eradicate the poison. However, that only sped up the deterioration of her condition, to the extent that she's in her current state. Back when she was first born, my mother-in-law and I both conducted thorough inspections of her body, but we didn't discover anything amiss. We figured that one of our enemies must've planted this poison in Guo'er's body without us noticing. It's a pity that I haven't been able to find who's responsible for this. Otherwise, even if I have to give up my life, I'd..." Bai Huaji's pained expression was gradually replaced by one of vengeful fury as he spoke.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 1032