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

by Translator: Johnchen

  After half a day, only those at or above the Nascent Soul Stage still remained.

  Due to the fact that the devilish beings and devilish beasts had fled in all directions, the ant tide was forced to split up into several tens of portions and gradually expanded along with their prey.

  Millions of kilometers away from Blood Crow City, there were six devilish beings flying through a large cloud of devilish ants. They consisted of five men and a woman, and one of the devilish men was releasing scorching flames, while another was emanating wisps of white glacial Qi.

  All of the devilish ants that approached them were either incinerated into dust or frozen into chunks of ice.

  As for the devilish woman, she had an inky-black antiquated mirror hovering over her head, and balls of azure light were erupting out of the mirror, then exploded to force back the approaching devilish ants.

  These three devilish beings were none other than the members of the Hai Family who had intercepted Han Li several days ago.

  As for the other three devilish men, they appeared to be in their forties and bore a resemblance to one another, clearly indicating that they were related by blood.

  These three devilish men weren't using any devilish treasures, but the inky-black Qi they were conjuring up was sweeping through countless surrounding devilish ants.

  All six of these devilish beings were at the Spatial Tempering Stage, and they forced their way through the sea of ants for several hundred kilometers in the blink of an eye.

  The number of ants began to gradually decrease up ahead, and it seemed that they had reached the edge.

  The six devilish beings were naturally ecstatic to see this, but right at this moment, change suddenly struck.

  One side of the sea of devilish ants suddenly parted, and over 100 massive ants rushed out, each of which was around 10 feet in size.

  These ants were entirely green in color with translucent wings on their backs, they were extremely menacing to behold.

  As soon as they appeared, they immediately pounced toward the three related devilish men.

  "Look out, fellow daoists; those mutated devilish ants are far more powerful than normal Devouring Devilish Ant!" the devilish woman yelled as her expression changed drastically.

  The three devilish men's hearts jolted upon hearing this, and they immediately combined their powers, unleashing a burst of devilish Qi that transformed into a black wyrm before flying toward the giant ants.

  In retaliation, the giant ants opened their mouths to expel balls of purple liquid, all of which struck the black wyrm with unerring accuracy.

  A dull rumbling boom rang out, and plumes of yellow smoke billowed out from the sections of the black wyrm's body that had been struck.

  It was instantly shrunk down by close to half its original size, but the giant ants continued to expel more purple liquid, most of which were aimed at the three devilish men on this occasion.

  The three devilish men's expressions changed slightly upon seeing this, and one of them opened his mouth to expel a miniature shield that was several inches in size, then immediately injected his magic power into it.

  The shield instantly swelled to become a giant white shield that was several tens of feet tall. The surface of the shield was very bumpy and unsmooth, and it had been refined using countless white bones.

  Following the injection of magic power, black devilish patterns appeared over the surface of the shield, forming a black light barrier in front of the three devilish men.

  The balls of purple liquid struck the black barrier like rain, and white smoke rose up in a frenzy.

  The black light barrier immediately began to tremor violently, and it was rapidly shrinking at a rate that was discernible to the naked eye.

  "Lend me your assistance; I can't stop them on my own!" the man who had summoned the shield yelled in a horrified manner.

  The two other devilish men immediately rushed over to him before each laying a hand on one of his shoulders.

  Bursts of black Qi immediately surged along their arms into the man's body as if the devilish Qi possessed a life of its own.

  The trembling light barrier was instantly bolstered, but the three men were expending magic power at an alarming rate and unable to put up any retaliation.

  "Fellow Daoist Hai, please lend us your assistance!" one of the devilish men hurriedly implored.

  "Rest assured, fellow daoists; I'll get rid of these mutated devilish ants right away!" the devilish woman replied before pointing a finger at the antiquated mirror up above.

  The mirror rotated on the spot before turning its surface toward the giant devilish ants, as if it were about to unleash some type of attack.

  Right at this moment, the devilish ants in another direction parted, and 500 to 600 additional azure ants rushed out from that opening.

  The devilish woman's expression changed drastically upon seeing this, and she immediately switched to a different hand seal, upon which the antiquated mirror transformed into a ball of azure light that swept up her body before flying away as a streak of spiritual light.

  Not only was she abandoning the three trapped devilish men, she was even leaving her own two subordinates behind.

  The two men from the Hai Family were also quite alarmed to see this, and they fled into the distance as streaks of light as well, leaving the three desperate devilish men behind to curse their treacherous companions.

  Similar scenes were unfolding in many other places as well, and the emergence of these high-grade mutated devilish ants quickly spelled the downfall of many of the remaining devilish beings.

  All of the high-grade devilish beings that had been able to survive thus far either had special abilities or treasures that they could use to protect themselves or had fantastic luck.

  As for Han Li's group and the small handful of devilish-lord-level devilish beings and devilish beasts, they were able to carve out a path through the ant tide for themselves through their individual powers.

  Even so, the Devouring Devilish Ants had no intention of allowing the remaining people to escape.

  If even the slightest hint of complacency were to set in, the remaining survivors would immediately be swept up by the ant tide and be forced to fight for their lives again.

  Thus, one day passed by after another, and only after half a year did the Devouring Devilish Ant Tide gradually begin to disperse.

  Seven or eight of the cities on the outskirts of the grassland had been destroyed, and hundreds of millions of devilish beings had been devoured by the devilish ants.

  This was a harrowing chapter in history for all devilish beings in the area, and the notorious reputation of Devouring Devilish Ants was bolstered even further.

  A year later, a streak of azure light was flying over a black forest that was filled with massive trees.

  Close to 10 kilometers behind the streak of azure light was a flock of crimson-fathered birds that were giving chase in hot pursuit.

  The azure light paused momentarily, and several tens of streaks of sword Qi shot forth from within it, slicing the dozen or so crimson birds at the forefront in half.

  Immediately thereafter, the streak of azure light continued onward, and the rest of the crimson birds let loose a few harsh squawks of fury, but didn't dare to pursue the streak of azure light any further.

  Only after flying for close to 10,000 kilometers did the streak of azure light slow down slightly, and within the azure light, Han Li was appraising a head-sized crimson crystal with a smile as he murmured to himself, "This is quite a large chunk of Windflame Crystal; I'm sure it'll be of great use to me in the future."

  During the past years, he had been constantly traveling, and only after entering the plains did he truly manage to shake off the Devouring Devilish Ant.

  After that, he traveled directly toward the Illusion Howl Desert as was the plan that everyone had decided on.

  These plains were an extremely perilous place for normal devilish beings, but Han Li naturally
wasn't concerned, and along the way, he had discovered many materials and spirit medicines that were extremely rare in the Spirit Realm, which was naturally very pleasing for him.

  Chapter 2047: The Four Holy Bricks

  After picking up this huge piece of Windflame Crystal from deep within a valley, he was immediately discovered by that flock of crimson devilish birds, and he only managed to scare them away after being pursued for half a day.

  Spiritual light flashed from Han Li's hand as he stowed the Windflame Crystal away and continued on his journey.

  Half a day later, he arrived at the edge of the forest, and a boundless ocean appeared in the distance.

  Han Li's brows furrowed slightly upon seeing this, but his expression then eased slightly upon arriving at the realization that this was most likely an inland sea as opposed to an actual sea, so there wouldn't be anywhere near as many sea soul beasts in it.

  Azure light flashed, and Han Li flew directly onto the ocean, covering a distance of over 10,000 feet after just a few flashes.

  All of a sudden, countless blue streaks of light erupted out of the water, hurtling directly toward Han Li.

  Han Li's expression remained unchanged as he swept a sleeve downward, releasing a burst of grey light that transformed into countless thin azure grey threads, which punctured all of the oncoming streaks of blue light.

  Thumb-sized blue fish began to rain down from the heavens. These fish had no scales, and their heads were remarkably long and were as sharp as blades, giving them a very peculiar appearance.

  Han Li slew hundreds of these fish with just a single attack, but even more of them were shooting up out of the seawater.

  Han Li raised an eyebrow as he released more grey threads out of his sleeves, killing all of the oncoming flying fish.

  In the blink of an eye, tens of thousands of these blue fish had been slain, and his brutality seemed to have struck fear into the hearts of this school of fish as no more streaks of blue light came leaping out at him.

  Han Li calmly flicked his wrist, and the thin grey threads reverted back into a burst of light that returned up his sleeve.

  At the same time, he sped up slightly as he traveled deeper into the sea, and several hours later, the devilish sun had set and day had transitioned into night.

  Deep under the sea, a series of powerful auras began to emerge, and Han Li could occasionally see the limbs of some astonishingly massive sea beasts appearing on the surface of the ocean.

  His brows furrowed slightly, and he decided that it wouldn't be wise to continue traveling through the night.

  With his current powers, he didn't have to fear the powerful nocturnal sea beasts, but it was naturally best to avoid trouble as much as possible.

  On top of that, he had already traveled for over 10 days without any proper rest, so this was a good opportunity to rest and recuperate.

  With that in mind, he immediately released his spiritual sense to scan through an area with a radius of close to 1,000 kilometers.

  Shortly thereafter, he suddenly changed directions, and a black spot soon appeared on the surface of the ocean in the distance.

  Upon approaching the black spot, Han Li was able to identify it as an island that was several tens of kilometers in size. There were several mountains on the island that were over 10,000 feet tall, and the entire island was enshrouded within a layer of mist.

  Han Li's eyes narrowed slightly as he quickly swept his spiritual sense over the entire island, then immediately descended toward it.

  Moments later, the azure light receded, and Han Li appeared halfway up one of the mountains, where the entrance to a huge cave laid.

  Han Li glanced at the cave before sweeping a sleeve through the air, and a small azure sword shot forth into the cave in a flash.

  Moments later, a rumbling beastly roar rang out from within the cave before abruptly falling silent after a sharp screech.

  The cave was extremely long, and only after traveling for around 500 to 600 feet did Han Li arrive in a more spacious area. There was a type of unknown hay spread over the floor of the cave, atop which sat two halves of a pangolin-like devilish beast carcass.

  Han Li flicked a spark toward the beastly carcass, and a flame was instantly ignited, incinerating the carcass and the hay into ashes.

  Thus, the entire cave became extremely clean.

  Only then did Han Li make his way to the center of the cave before taking a seat, and after a brief moment of contemplation, he released four translucent bricks out of his storage bracelet amid a flash of white light.

  These were none other than the holy bricks that he had obtained from the Blood Crow City Lord a year ago.

  This wasn't the first time that Han Li had examined them, and he raised a hand in a well-rehearsed manner, releasing four arcs of golden lightning out of his hand, which vanished into the four bricks in a flash.

  The four bricks instantly swelled to over 10 times their original size, forming four huge translucent walls with purplish-black text inscribed upon them.

  Blue light flashed through Han Li's eyes, and he began to carefully examine this text.

  Only after an hour did Han Li withdraw his gaze, and he fell into a contemplative silence.

  As expected of a Sacred Ancestor who was vastly renowned in the Elder Devil Realm, the cultivation arts left behind by Qi Ling were truly formidable. It was a pity that he had already progressed so far in his Provenance True Devil Arts. Otherwise, he would've been tempted to switch to a different main cultivation art. Even so, the cultivation arts and secret techniques recorded on the four holy bricks were very intriguing to him, and there were even two or three that he could cultivate right away.

  All of a sudden, Han Li made a few grabbing motions, and the four holy bricks immediately arranged themselves into a row in front of him, following which each of the bricks began to release a vibrant pillar of light.

  The four pillars of light overlapped, and a map that was several tens of feet in size was projected onto a stone face of the cave.

  The map was very clearly annotated, and the center of the map was a peculiar symbol depicting a black dragon with a single horn on its head.

  Han Li appraised the map with a contemplative expression, and after a long while, he swept a sleeve forward to release a burst of azure light that stowed the four holy bricks back into his storage bracelet.

  As a result, the map on the wall naturally also disappeared, and Han Li heaved a faint sigh as he fell into silent contemplation again.

  As soon as he had escaped from the Devouring Devilish Ant, he had begun studying these four holy bricks.

  It only took him several days to decipher how they worked and to piece together the map of Qi Ling's secret treasures. Unfortunately, the map appeared to be extremely detailed, but didn't provide any context for the location that it depicted.

  For an outsider like Han Li, the Elder Devil Realm was an extremely foreign place, so he had no idea exactly what area the secret treasures were hidden in.

  Han Li had bought some maps from Blood Crow City, but most of them were only general maps of the entire Elder Devil Realm with barely any maps of specific regions to be found.

  As such, the only thing he could do was try to purchase more maps from the cities that he passed through to see if he could find more leads.

  With his current level of power, it wasn't like he absolutely had to find Qi Ling's secret treasures, but as long as it didn't hamper his main objective, he certainly wouldn't be opposed to tracking down the treasures.

  After a brief moment of contemplation, Han Li set this matter aside for now and made a hand seal, upon which a layer of golden scales appeared over his skin, and the Provenance True Devil projection emerged behind him.

  The projection opened its six eyes, then made a peculiar hand seal with each of its six hands.

  Meanwhile, Han Li flipped a hand over to produce a stack of formation plates of different colors, and he flicked his wrist to send them flying
through the air as several tens of balls of spiritual light, all of which immediately vanished into the nearby surrounding space.

  In the next instant, five-colored light flashed beneath him, and a formation that was several tens of feet in size emerged with him right at its very center.

  Light flashed within the formation, and there were extremely profound golden runes inscribed upon the formation.

  Han Li flicked his fingers toward the formation expressionlessly, and seven or eight top-grade spirit stones landed in it in a flash.

  He then made a hand seal before letting loose a thunderous low cry, and the entire formation emitted a buzzing sound, then formed a five-colored light barrier that completely inundated his body.

  The faint devilish Qi in the air was instantly forced out of the formation, and at the same time, bursts of pure spiritual Qi emerged within the light barrier.

  Han Li took a deep breath as a pleased look appeared on his face, and he made a peculiar hand seal as an inky-black vertical eye appeared on his glabella.

  Bursts of indistinguishable chanting rang out within the formation, and three faces of the true devil projection adopted the expressions of glee, rage, and sorrow, while its body began to flash erratically.

  At this moment, pea-sized silver runes began to surge out of Han Li's body, and in the beginning, there were only several tens of these runes. However, as time passed, more and more silver runes began to emerge before swelling to the size of human fists as they swirled within the light barrier.

  At the same time, Han Li's body gradually began to turn as translucent as jade, and the scales over his skin vanished into his body as a series of golden runes.

  A low roar rang out as the silver runes within the light barrier transformed into countless shimmering silver threads, which shot forth toward Han Li like a torrential downpour.

  Chapter 2048: The Bai Family of Illusion Night City

  Han Li's body shuddered as all of the silver threads vanished into his skin in a flash, and the surface of his body began to bulge in different areas, as if they were egg-sized lumps roaming beneath his skin.