Otherwise, regardless of what extensive preparations were made, there was no way that the humans and other races would be able to contend with the entire Elder Devil Realm. Having said that, most of the Sacred Ancestors of the Elder Devil Realm had sent clones into the Spirit Realm, which was quite a strange occurrence.
Han Li was rather perplexed by this matter, but displayed no outward befuddlement as he called out to the woman from the Ye Family before flying back onto the flying boat.
Moments later, the flying boat continued onward as a ball of black light.
Meanwhile, the Long Family patriarch and Elder Hui were situated in the air above a green lake, looking on as two bursts of black Qi were speeding away into the distance.
"The Beast Lord Palace, eh? That's rather troublesome," the Long Family patriarch murmured to himself with a dark expression.
"There's no need to dwell on this on this, Brother Long; they already know that we're not to be messed with, so I'm sure they wouldn't bother us any longer. Let's continue on our journey. Once we get to the Devilish Origin Sea, the Beast Lord Palace won't be able to do anything to us; it's not like that Sacred Ancestor Wan Shou will hunt us down in person," Elder Hui said with a cold smile.
"Of course Sacred Ancestor Wan Shou won't come after us in person, but it's very possible that he could send a clone or two after us," the Long Family patriarch said with a grim expression.
Elder Hui's expression changed drastically upon hearing this. "Surely not! Our origins are indeed rather suspicious, but it can't be that easy to attract attention from a Sacred Ancestor."
"I certainly hope so. Let's get out of here right away; don't worry about conserving magic power anymore," the Long Family patriarch instructed in a cold voice.
Elder Hui hurriedly nodded in response.
Elsewhere, Holy Maiden Thousand Autumns and Zhi Shui were hovering expressionlessly in mid-air. Standing not far away from them was a pair of devilish elderly men, both of whom had very pale faces and were staring at Zhi Shui with horror in their eyes.
......
Han Li and the woman from the Ye Family continued to spur on the black flying boat with all their might, and after flying for half a month, they finally reached a small devilish city, where they stayed for several days.
During this time, Han Li and the woman had split up and gathered a lot of information.
They discovered that during the past few decades, several major battles had taken place between the devilish beings and the races of the Spirit Realm. On top of that, some Sacred Ancestors had finally descended upon the Spirit Realm, but they were met by resistance from the Grand Ascension Stage beings of the opposing races, and no outcome had arisen. This piece of information came as quite a relief to Han Li and the woman.
Even though the information they had gathered was rather murky and even incomplete in some cases, this was the overall verdict they had arrived at.
Thus after staying for two more days in the city, they continued on their way, and their next destination would be the Iron Sand Ridge.
On this occasion, they enjoyed a smooth journey for over three months before finally catching sight of a vast black mountain range up ahead.
All of the trees and rocks on the mountain range were of a blackish-green color, striking one with a rather unsettling sensation, as if there were countless devilish creatures concealed within the mountain range.
Chapter 2082: Incense Village
“So this is Iron Sand Ridge. The devilish Qi here is far more abundant than in other places; there must be a lot of devilish beasts here,” Han Li murmured to himself in a contemplative manner as he stood at the front of the flying boat.
"The Azure Wing Race is adept in beast-taming techniques, so the virtually endless supply of devilish beasts here makes it an ideal place for them to settle. Otherwise, with their meager population, there's no way they'd be able to control such a large area," the woman from Ye Family replied.
"Beast-taming techniques, eh? The fact that these Azure Wing beings are relying on devilish beasts suggests that their powers are most likely somewhat lackluster," Han Li replied with a smile.
"That may be the case for normal Azure Wing beings, but I doubt the core Azure Wing beings that we're targeting will have the same weakness. After all, the Azure Luan bloodline is nothing to be scoffed at," the woman from the Ye Family replied as a slightly solemn look appeared in his eyes.
"We're already prepared to face a Sacred Ancestor clone, so those core Azure Wing beings won't be a cause for concern. Having said that, I can see that these Azure Wing beings are living in clusters of villages; it's most likely going to be rather troublesome to find a suitable target among them," Han Li said.
"Indeed. The issue is that we can't linger here for more than a month. Otherwise, we'll be late for the agreed date to meet up with the others," the woman from the Ye Family said in a slightly concerned manner.
"As long as our luck doesn't turn out to be too horrible, a month should be enough. Besides, don't you have a special treasure that can sense our targets within a radius of five kilometers?" Han Li asked.
"That is indeed true, but the core Azure Wing beings are definitely heavily guarded at all times, so it won't be easy to approach them. Perhaps we'll have to take a risk and infiltrate some of the larger villages," the woman from the Ye Family replied with a wry smile.
"As long as we're not unfortunate enough to infiltrate the village that Sacred Ancestor Ling Yuan is situated in, there shouldn't be any issues," Han Li said.
"I certainly hope so. It's a pity we don't know exactly where that Sacred Ancestor Ling Yuan is residing. Otherwise, we'll be able to significantly minimize the risk involved," the woman from the Ye Family sighed in a forlorn manner.
"I also hope that we won't alert that Sacred Ancestor clone, but it'll be down to luck in the end. Seeing as we're going after such a tantalizing reward, it's only fair that we assume some risk; nothing comes for free, after all," Han Li replied with a smile.
"Hehe, if I were on my own, then I would be feeling very uneasy, but with you here to assist me, there should be no problems. Let's enter the Iron Sand Ridge now; we'll have to get out of this flying treasure and proceed on foot now," the woman from the Ye Family said as she pointed toward the mountain range in the distance.
Han Li naturally had no objections to this, and he nodded before flying out of the black boat.
The woman from the Ye Family made a hand seal, and the flying boat quickly shrank down to a miniature palm-sized boat amid a flash of black light.
After that, the two conversed for a while longer before flying toward the mountain range in the distance as two streaks of light.
Shortly thereafter, both of them vanished into the mountain range without a trace.
Five days later, Han Li was traversing through a valley between a pair of sheer cliff faces at a rapid speed, covering a distance of several hundred feet with each flash.
He was traveling alone as he and the woman from the Ye Family had decided to split up after entering the mountain range.
Not long after that, Han Li had reached the exit of the valley, and he was just about to fly out into the open when a string of unpleasant squawks suddenly rang out from several caves on the cliff faces on either side of him.
Immediately thereafter, a dozen or so giant green devilish birds flew out of the caves before swooping toward Han Li in a ferocious manner.
The wingspans of these devilish birds were around 50 to 60 feet, and they resembled giant vultures with vicious yellow eyes.
Han Li's expression remained completely unchanged as he raised a hand and flicked his five fingers through the air in succession.
Five azure threads shot forth from his fingertips, then vanished into the bodies of these devilish birds in a flash.
The devilish birds immediately let loose a squawk of anguish as their dismembered bodies plummeted down from above.
As for Han Li, he had already passed throug
h this area, so not even a single drop of blood had stained his robes.
Meanwhile, in an obscure valley nearby, the woman from the Ye Family was hidden behind a large tree and staring at the entrance to the valley.
The entrance of the valley was filled with dense shrubs that were almost twice as tall as an adult, and it was extremely bleak and barren.
However, the woman stared at the entrance to the valley for two whole hours in an unblinking manner, as if she were appraising something that was extremely interesting.
All of a sudden, a burst of spatial fluctuations erupted in the air above the valley, and two winged devilish beings in leather robes appeared.
The two devilish beings inspected their surroundings to ensure that there was nothing amiss, then immediately flew away, quickly vanishing into the distance.
An excited smile appeared on the woman's face upon seeing this, and she immediately made a hand seal, upon which she also disappeared on the spot.
A short while later, the woman from the Ye Family was situated in an obscure cave that was thousands of kilometers away from the valley. She had a palm pressed against the head of a winged devilish being, and there was a layer of five-colored light swirling over her face, indicating that she was using some type of soul search technique.
There was another devilish being lying facedown on the nearby ground, and it was unclear whether he was dead or alive.
A few moments later, the five-colored light vanished from the woman's face, and she released the winged devilish being's head, upon which the latter immediately slumped down onto the ground.
"So this is only a village on the outskirts of the Azure Wing Race. Looks like I'll have to go to some of the larger villages if I want to find some core Azure Wing beings. Before that, I'll inform Fellow Daoist Han of this," the woman murmured to herself with a contemplative look in her eyes.
Immediately thereafter, she made a grabbing motion with one hand, and a white formation plate appeared in her grasp. She quickly swiped a finger over the formation plate, then gently laid a palm over it.
A dull thump rang out as the formation plate exploded into a ball of white light, within which was a line of silver text that disappeared in a flash.
After that, the woman cast her gaze toward the two devilish beings on the ground, and a cold light flashed through her eyes.
......
Han Li was flying through the air when his expression suddenly changed slightly, and he flipped a hand over to produce an identical formation plate with the same silver text inscribed on its surface.
Han Li quickly glanced at the line of text before immediately changing directions in his flight.
Half a month later, Han Li and the woman from the Ye Family were standing on a branch of a massive tree situated at the edge of a small basin, which was surrounded by three mountains in a triangular formation. They were currently peering into a cloud of white mist between the mountains, which was releasing an indescribable fragrance.
"Are you sure that this is one of the four major villages of the Azure Wing Race, Fairy Ye?" Han Li suddenly asked.
"There's no mistaking it; this is definitely Incense Village. I used a soul search technique on two Azure Wing beings to secure the exact location of this village. Unfortunately, neither of them were all that powerful, so they didn't know much about this Incense Village. However, I'm sure there are core Azure Wing beings in a village of this scale. The problem is that some powerful restrictions have clearly been set up here, so it won't be easy to infiltrate the village," the woman from the Ye Family replied in a grim manner.
"This should be the right place judging from the fragrant aroma coming from the mist. As for a way to infiltrate the village, I have something up my sleeve, but we'll have to wait for the right opportunity to arise, so let's wait here for now," Han Li said with a confident smile.
The woman from the Ye Family was ecstatic to hear this. "That's great to hear, Brother Han. In that case, I'll be following your lead."
Han Li merely nodded and offered no response, but he suddenly cast his gaze toward a certain direction.
After a while, a giant flying snake that was over 100 feet in length appeared in the distant sky, and it was rapidly flying toward the mountain.
On the back of the flying snake were seven or eight Azure Wing beings, all of whom wore elated expressions.
This was a group of young men and women with the exception of the leader, who was an elderly man that was giving off a powerful aura.
"Alright, the opportunity has arrived," Han Li said in an unhurried manner as he rose to his feet while appraising the group of Azure Wing beings.
The woman from the Ye Family also stood up and turned to Han Li with a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
Instead of explaining anything, Han Li raised a hand to send an item flying toward the woman.
The woman from the Ye Family faltered slightly before reflexively catching the item to discover that it was a purple talisman.
Han Li then said in a calm voice, "Activate this talisman, and you should be able to sneak into the valley by following those Azure Wing beings. As long as there are no particularly special restrictions set up in this Incense Village, you'll be able to sneak in without any issues. However, take care not to unleash any abilities or the talisman will fail."
As soon as his voice trailed off, he flipped a hand over to produce an identical talisman before immediately adhering it to his own body.
A burst of purple light erupted forth right before the woman's astonished eyes, and countless silver runes surged forth in a frenzy, transforming into a cloud of silver mist that inundated Han Li's entire body.
Chapter 2083: Entering by Force
After the mist dispersed, Han Li was nowhere to be seen.
The woman from the Ye Family hurriedly swept her spiritual sense through the surrounding area, but was shocked to discover that she could no longer sense Han Li.
All of a sudden, Han Li's calm voice rang out in her ears. "There's no need to be alarmed, Fellow Daoist. Those Azure Wing beings are about to get here, so we have to make haste." Her heart stirred upon hearing this, and she immediately replicated what Han Li had just done.
Purple light flashed, a cloud of silver mist dispersed to conceal her entire body.
The High Zenith Invisibility Talisman naturally had completely different levels of efficacy when used by different people.
As a Body Integration cultivator using this talisman, she wouldn't be discovered unless a devilish lord of the same cultivation base in the Azure Wing Race were to carefully search for her using their spiritual sense.
As for Han Li, after using the High Zenith Invisibility Talisman, only the top devilish lords who were half a step away from becoming Sacred Ancestors would have a chance of discovering him.
At this point, the giant flying snake was already slowly descending toward the mist down below, and it stopped briefly in mid-air as the elderly man inspected the surrounding area, then made a hand seal to release a streak of green light that vanished into the mist in a flash.
Moments later, the aroma being released by the mist became several times more pronounced, and the mist parted to open up a path that was around 10 feet wide.
At the other end of the path, one could just barely make out a series of indistinct buildings, and the elderly devilish man immediately stomped a foot down onto the flying snake without any hesitation upon seeing this.
The flying snake hissed as its body rapidly shrank down amid a flash of azure light, following which it was stowed up the elderly man's sleeve.
The elderly man then turned to the younger devilish beings behind him and said something with a smile, then drifted into the opening in the mist.
The young devilish beings also followed along behind him with wide smiles on their faces.
The mist then surged as the path was slowly sealed.
Unbeknownst to the devilish beings guarding the restriction, two completely undetectable figu
res had tailed these young devilish beings into the opening in the mist.
Around two hours later, Han Li was hovering in the air above a black wooden pagoda that was over 1,000 feet tall. He was still concealed by his High Zenith Invisibility Talisman, and he was inspecting the massive village down below.
This village had an area of over 10,000 acres, and massive trees were growing between the three mountains, forming a natural barricade around the entire village.
These giant trees were all purple in color, and they were the source of the fragrant aroma stemming from this place.
Within the village were a series of wooden buildings of different sizes that could house over 100,000 devilish beings.
Considering the meager population of the Azure Wing Race, this was a very large settlement.
There were also some giant trees planted between the buildings in the village, concealing many of the smaller buildings, thereby creating a sense of privacy.
Blue light flashed within Han Li's eyes as he swept his gaze over the entire village, then settled his attention on a cluster of buildings that were releasing restriction fluctuations.
Some Azure Wing Race guards were patrolling the streets near these buildings, and none of the ordinary Azure Wing beings dared to approach them.
The blue light in Han Li's eyes faded as he drifted down from the wooden pagoda, then landed in an alley that was completely devoid of people.
After that, an Azure Wing being that had a set of facial features that were identical to Han Li's emerged in a soundless manner.
This type of disguise secret technique couldn't even begin to compare with the concealment effect of his High Zenith Invisibility Talisman, but it was enough to fool the average devilish being.
Han Li smiled as he strode out of the alley, then made his way toward the heavily-guarded cluster of buildings.
At the same time, the woman from the Ye Family had already revealed herself as a young female devilish being elsewhere in the city before making her way toward a secluded corner.
She was holding a crimson triangular metal badge in her hand, and there were faint energy fluctuations emanating from it.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 1199