Liu Qing and Ye Ying both accompanied him to the teleportation formation, and after Han Li vanished amid a flash of spiritual light, Liu Qing heaved a forlorn sigh. "What a pity."
"What do you mean by that, Aunt Liu?" Ye Ying was rather befuddled to hear this.
"I'm naturally referring to the fact that your mother wasn't able to recruit this man into the Ye Family. He managed to reach the Body Integration Stage at such a young age; if he can survive the imminent devilish tribulation, he'll have an immeasurable future ahead of him."
"Body Integration cultivators stand at the pinnacle of the human race, but my grandmother is already a mid-Body Integration cultivator. If she were to use her Heavenly Phoenix bloodline as well, she would even be able to contend with late-Body Integration Stage beings. Now that you've also joined our Ye Family, it's not all that important whether Senior Han joins us or not. Regardless of whether it's the imminent true spirit ceremony or the devilish tribulation in the future, we should have more than enough power to protect ourselves. Besides, with the conditions offered by our Ye Family, I'm sure we'll be able to recruit other vagrant Body Integration cultivators," Ye Ying replied, seemingly in a nonchalant manner, but it was quite clear that she was still feeling rather indignant about Han Li's indirect rejection.
"Perhaps. Your mother is most likely only holding him in such high regard for his potential. However, this Fellow Daoist Han gives me a very peculiar feeling; it's as if the conditions you offered really weren't all that tempting to him at all. It's a pity that only this puppet clone of mine is here. If my true body were present, I could invite him to a sparring match to test out his abilities," Liu Qing said with a contemplative look in her eyes.
"What's there to test out? He's only recently progressed to the Body Integration Stage, so there's no way he'll be a match for you. On top of that, I heard from my mother that prior to passing away, Heavenly Spirit Sovereign passed on several of his most powerful puppets to you, so your powers are most likely not inferior to the likes of the three sovereigns and seven monarchs, right, Aunt Liu?" Ye Ying said with a wide grin.
Liu Qing's expression changed slightly upon hearing this before she shook her head with a wry smile. "Your Ye Family sure is good at securing obscure information. Not many people know about this; I didn't think that your mother would be one of them. I really must commend your Ye Family on that."
Ye Ying merely chuckled and remained silent...
Meanwhile, Han Li had returned to the fifth floor, and after issuing some instructions to Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi, he immediately entered the secret chamber in the hall before taking a seat with his legs crossed.
He had originally thought that he would be able to take his time in his cultivation now that he had reached the Body Integration Stage, but after hearing about the imminent devilish tribulation, he had naturally changed his mind.
He had to change his plans for the next several centuries in order to make himself more powerful as quickly as possible, thereby minimizing his chances of perishing in this devilish tribulation.
After all, many of the three sovereigns and demon monarchs had perished during the last devilish tribulation, and this one was apparently going to be even more fierce and difficult to endure.
What made Han Li even more concerned was that he had once crossed Sacred Ancestor Yuan Cha of the Elder Devil Realm back when he was in the human world. One of her spiritual sense clones had descended into the human world and had been devoured by Silvermoon.
The Sacred Ancestors of the Elder Devil Realm were the equivalent of Grand Ascension cultivators in the human race, and if Yuan Cha were to descend into the Spirit Realm during the devilish tribulation, there was a good chance that she would hunt down Han Li herself or send out her subordinates to do so.
As such, he had to elevate his cultivation base to the late-Body Integration Stage prior to the arrival of this devilish tribulation. Only then would he be able to ensure his own survival in the devilish tribulation, and with his vast array of powerful abilities and treasures, he would be able to put up a fight even against the Sacred Ancestors of the Elder Devil Race.
However, through the conversations he had with other Body Integration cultivators, he had learned that making progress after reaching the Body Integration Stage was far more difficult even than what he had envisioned.
Normal early-Body Integration cultivators would often spend thousands or even tens of thousand of years just to make a breakthrough, and there were many who never made this breakthrough and simply perished during a major heavenly tribulation.
As for those who were able to progress to the late-Body Integration Stage, those were even more uncommon.
Even the past and present three sovereigns and seven monarchs weren't all at the late-Body Integration Stage. Furthermore, he was on a very tight schedule. Thankfully, he had those spirit medicines that he had sourced from the Vast Glacial Realm, which would allow him to refine a large amount of pills that would enhance his magic power, even at the Body Integration Stage.
This would allow him to cultivate at several times the efficiency of the average cultivator, and it shouldn't be a difficult task for him to accumulate sufficient magic power during the next few centuries. Thus, the only issue that stood in his path was actually breaking through the bottlenecks.
Even after consuming so many spirit medicines that could enhance one's spiritual root, his aptitude was still not much better than that of the average cultivator. Perhaps his only option was to prepare some more things that could forcibly stimulate him to make breakthroughs.
At the very least, he could look forward to that Spiritvoid Pill that he had finessed, as well as the Divine Infernal River Elixir promised to him by Qing Yuanzi.
With that in mind, Han Li's heart was eased slightly, following which a thought suddenly occurred to him. He flipped his hand over to summon a black spirit beast bracelet before injecting his spiritual sense into it, upon which his brows furrowed slightly.
Within the space inside the bracelet was a hibernating little black monkey.
It was none other than the Weeping Soul Beast.
Ever since it had slain that Heavenly Devilish Monarch, it had been hibernating in this spirit beast bracelet. Otherwise, with the incredible powers that it had displayed in the past, it would undoubtedly be a huge asset to Han Li when facing powerful enemies.
Thankfully, he still had some time before the devilish tribulation arrived, and he was sure that it wouldn't hibernate for 1,000 years.
With that in mind, Han Li stowed the spirit beast bracelet away in a flash before producing the shimmering golden Myriad Sword Artwork. He flicked his wrist and tossed it forward, upon which it slowly unfurled before hovering in a stationary manner before him.
The Sword Observation Art hidden within this artwork was an incredible ability. He had only gleaned a small portion of it, and that had been enough to significantly enhance the power of his Azure Coil Sword Formation. If he could master it in its entirety, it would definitely give him an enormous power boost.
He had already come into contact with many Body Integration cultivators at this point, and even though most of them were vagrant cultivators or cultivators who belonged to sects or major families, that was enough.
Some opportunities would have to arise to facilitate meetings with the likes of the three sovereigns and seven monarchs. In particular, even though Han Li had never seen Wolf Monarch Tian Kui, he still couldn't help but feel rather frustrated and displeased at the thought of Silvermoon.
He didn't know how Silvermoon was now that she had returned to the Spirit Realm for so many years and reverted back to her identity as Demonic Concubine Ling Long.
As a concubine of Wolf Monarch Tian Kui, perhaps she would appear during the Myriad Treasure Convention, in which case he may be able to meet her.
However, Han Li was then struck by a sense of melancholy as he recalled back to the complex gaze she had cast toward him prior to their separation.<
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He was no longer an ignorant little boy at the time, so he could naturally see the emotions that her eyes had held.
He and Silvermoon had been companions for so many years, surviving life and death ordeals together, and it was naturally impossible for him to say that he had no feelings whatsoever toward her. However, at the time, he was only a Nascent Soul cultivator, so he couldn't change anything.
He had since arrived in the Spirit Realm and reached the Body Integration Stage, but so many years had passed; was Silvermoon still the same Silvermoon?
Han Li didn't know the answer to that, and he didn't want to think too much about it in case it affected his mental state.
It took him a long while to return to a state of inner equilibrium, and only then did he cast his gaze toward the Myriad Sword Artwork with blue light flashing in his eyes. Moments later, he was completely immersed in the artwork before him.
Chapter 1802: Recessive Spiritual Root
Han Li stayed in the secret chamber for over 10 days without leaving once, and the Myriad Treasure Convention finally officially commenced.
On this day, Han Li was seated on his futon, and he suddenly seemed to have sensed something as he swept a sleeve through the air to stow away the Myriad Sword Artwork before him.
He then rose to his feet before emerging from the secret chamber to find that Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi were waiting respectfully for him in the hall.
The two of them immediately extended salutes toward him as he emerged, following which Young Master Hai pulled a shimmering golden slip out of his sleeve before handing it over to Han Li with both hands.
"Senior Han, this is an invitation slip sent to you by the Myriad Treasure Convention. As long as you hold this invitation slip, you can access all of the auctions and venues in the event. On top of that, due to the fact that this is the first day of the Myriad Treasure Convention, there's going to be a large auction held on the Flying Immortal Peak. According to past conventions, this will be the Myriad Treasure Convention's most important auction, and it also heralds the commencement of the convention. All of the most important treasures of the convention will appear on the auction," Qi Lingzi explained in a respectful manner.
"Oh? You two seem to have gathered a lot of information about this; looks like all the walking around you did these past few days wasn't just a waste of time," Han Li said with a smile as he accepted the golden invitation slip before taking a glance at it.
On the surface of the slip were the words "Myriad Treasure" inscribed in ancient text, and on the other side was a shimmering silver diagram of a prized treasure.
“Have the seven demon monarchs all arrived during my time in seclusion?” Han Li asked as he stowed the golden slip away.
"All of them have arrived aside from Wolf Monarch Tian Kui and the Heavenly Fox Monarch," Young Master Hai replied in a respectful manner.
"Those two haven't arrived? That's interesting. Generally speaking, the seven demon monarchs regard this Myriad Treasure Convention as an extremely important event and wouldn't miss it for no good reason," Han Li mused as his brows furrowed slightly.
"I heard that Wolf Monarch Tian Kui is in seclusion, cultivating a powerful ability, so he won't be able to attend the convention. As for the Heavenly Fox Monarch, he doesn't seem to be in the territory of the Heavenly Fox Race. He only sent someone to announce that he had some important matters to attend to, and that's all the news we have about him," Qi Lingzi replied in a truthful manner.
"I see. In that case, let's set off as well. There will be many events held during the Myriad Treasure Convention, but I'll only actually be interested in a few of them, and I definitely can't miss the first auction. You two can come with me. Not everyone will be granted access to the auction, but with this golden slip, I should be able to bring along a couple disciples," Han Li suddenly said with a smile.
The two of them faltered slightly upon hearing this before an excited look appeared on Young Master Hai's face. "Disciples? Does that mean you're willing to take us as your disciples, Senior Han?"
Han Li shook his head and put on a serious expression as he replied, "You two are too weak to become my disciples, but I can take you as my in-name disciples if you'd like. You can become official disciples of mine whenever you reach the Deity Transformation Stage. I hope you won't disappoint me."
"We'd love to be your in-name disciples! We pay our respects to our master!" Qi Lingzi knelt down and kowtowed thrice in succession without any hesitation.
Young Master Hai was also extremely excited and emulated Qi Lingzi.
Han Li could see that the two of them were being sincere, so he accepted these formalities before waving a sleeve through the air, unleashing a burst of force that helped the two of them to their feet.
After that, he continued, "Now that the two of you are my in-name disciples, you should know some things about me. Prior to meeting the two of you, I also accepted two disciples in a lower realm. Hence, you won't be my only two disciples; you have a senior martial brother and a senior martial sister above you. I'm a man of solitude, so I don't take disciples lightly as doing so could hinder my own cultivation. Hence, there are reasons behind why I accepted you two and your senior martial brother and senior martial sister as my disciples. I have to explain these reasons to you in case a misunderstanding arises, and you decide to plot against me."
A cold tone crept into Han Li's voice at the end, and the temperature in the entire hall abruptly plummeted. Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi both shuddered in response to the sudden temperature drop and hurriedly proclaimed that they wouldn't dare to do anything to Han Li's detriment.
"Hehe, well, it's not a matter of whether you dare to plot against me or not; if I had been accepted as a disciple by a Body Integration cultivator as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, I would also be quite suspicious toward the motives involved," Han Li chuckled in a nonchalant manner.
Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi exchanged an awkward glance upon hearing this, and both of them remained silent.
"Truth be told, if you two really were an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator and an ordinary body refinement warrior, there's no way that I would take you as my in-name disciples, so you can say that fate is what brought us together. I'm very satisfied with your senses of justice and moral compass, but most importantly, one of you possesses a legendary recessive spiritual root, while the other possesses an inherited treasure," Han Li explained.
"Recessive spiritual root?"
"Inherited treasure?"
Both Young Master Hai and Qi Lingzi were quite puzzled to hear this. At their levels, there was no way that they could be knowledgeable about such things.
"Qi Lingzi, the inherited treasure you possess is quite easy to explain. It's most likely a treasure that contains the cultivation arts and secret techniques of the Mistsea Daoist Temple. The treasure has been sealed within your body, and once you reach a certain cultivation base, the seal will be undone of its own accord, thereby bestowing upon you the appropriate cultivation arts for you to use. Of course, this is quite a rare type of treasure, and it'll definitely be quite a powerful one if you can use it along with its corresponding cultivation art," Han Li explained.
"I see. I knew that there was something weird inside my body, and I have these strange dreams from time to time; it must be because of this thing!" Qi Lingzi murmured to himself in a stunned manner.
Han Li smiled upon hearing this before continuing, "You're very fortunate. This Mistsea Daoist Temple may be an insignificant little sect, but according to my observations, its ability and secret techniques are quite powerful and are also very suitable for you to cultivate. Hence, I won't need to give you any further instructions on your main cultivation art. All I'll do is pass on some secret techniques to you once you become powerful enough to cultivate them. Thus, you'll still need to continue to keep the inheritance of the Mistsea Daoist Temple alive. When you become powerful enough, you can become the Mistsea Daoist
Temple Master again and take the temple to greater heights. I definitely won't stop you from pursuing this endeavor.
“Hence, I decided to accept you as my disciple as you already have your own inheritance and require minimal instruction in your cultivation. Otherwise, I wouldn't burden myself like this no matter how brilliant your aptitude was. Of course, now that you're my disciple, I certainly won't be stingy and withhold any resources that you may require to further your cultivation. However, if you don't wish to conform to me and think that you can do better on your own with the inheritance you've received, you can revoke your pledge to become my disciple," Han Li said in a calm manner.
Qi Lingzi's expression changed drastically upon hearing this, and he fell to his knees again as he hurriedly said, "I wouldn't dare, Master. Being able to become your in-name disciple is a vastly fortunate outcome for me. As for what kind of cultivation arts I should use, that will naturally be up to you, and I'll accept whatever arrangement without any complaints."
Han Li nodded in a pleased manner before turning to Young Master Hai. "In that case, there are no issues between us. As for Young Master Hai..."
"Please call me Hai Yuetian, Master. Young Master Hai is just a nickname my friends gave me as a joke; I wouldn't dare to impose the title upon you, Master," Young Master Hai hurriedly said.
"So Hai Yuetian is your name. In that case, I'll call you Yuetian from now on," Han Li said with a smile.
"Yes, Master!" Hai Yuetian naturally accepted this arrangement in a respectful manner.
"Your situation is completely different from that of Qi Lingzi. During these past few days, I've conducted thorough examinations of your spiritual root and also made some inquiries to other Body Integration Stage fellow Daoists. Through this, I can now confirm that not only do you possess the rare Molten Body, that strange lightning spiritual root in your body is most likely the legendary recessive spiritual root. Therefore, to put it more accurately, it should be referred to as the recessive lightning spiritual root."
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 1039