"So you're Fellow Daoist Han Li who advanced a few years ago — how remiss of me! It's a pity you turned down the Holy City's invitation back then. Otherwise, I could have shared a few cups of wine with you much sooner." Holy Sovereign Tianyuan looked Han Li up and down with a smile and spoke.
"The Holy Sovereign speaks truly. I hear that Fellow Daoist Han advanced from a Deity Transformation cultivator to his current realm in only a few hundred years. Such a terrifying pace may not be entirely without precedent, but it's more than enough to make the rest of us feel deeply ashamed." The plump, fair-skinned monk also flashed Han Li a grin, clearly just as intrigued.
"You flatter me, Master. My aptitude is quite ordinary. Without several lucky opportunities in the barbarian world, I could never have advanced so quickly." Han Li was exceptionally modest.
"Master Tianchan, whatever you have to say, let us first offer Fellow Daoist Han a cup of spiritual wine. I have no other indulgences — I'm simply fond of what fills this cup. If this title of Holy Sovereign weren't inherited through generations, I would have much rather claimed the title of 'Wine Emperor.' Tsk tsk — the Emperor among wines, now that would suit me far better." The white-robed scholar chuckled softly, reached toward the jade table with one hand, and drew up a jade cup thick with lustrous green and a crimson wine flask resembling coral, which flew through the air into his grasp.
Then Holy Sovereign Tianyuan flicked his wrist and poured a cup of extraordinarily thick spiritual wine from the flask — translucent, with a faint amber-yellow hue, like liquid amber — and personally handed it to Han Li.
Han Li dared not be remiss. He offered his thanks and accepted the cup. In an instant he swept his spiritual sense over it, finding nothing amiss. On the contrary, this wine — brewed from some unknown ingredients — exuded an intoxicating fragrance and contained astonishing spiritual energy, far surpassing any ordinary pill or elixir for advancing one's cultivation.
Han Li raised his arm and slowly drained the cup in a single draft.
"Truly excellent wine. Among all the spiritual wines I know, this would easily rank in the top three." After finishing, Han Li's face flickered briefly with a layer of yellow spiritual light, and he spoke with genuine admiration.
"Top three? You mean to tell me, Fellow Daoist, you know of spiritual wines even better than this Tiger Soul Spirit Wine?!" Holy Sovereign Tianyuan started in surprise, then asked with undisguised delight.
Han Li smiled faintly and was about to reply when the elder named Huang Dang chuckled and said:
"Holy Sovereign, let us sit down and enjoy our wine while we talk properly. It's rather impolite to keep Brother Han standing here."
"You're right. I was simply too excited upon meeting Fellow Daoist Han. Our human race hasn't produced an Integration cultivator in nearly a thousand years." Holy Sovereign Tianyuan slapped his own forehead, hastily gestured for Han Li to take a seat, and returned to his place of honor.
So far, Holy Sovereign Tianyuan had made a genuinely favorable impression on Han Li.
Despite bearing the title of Holy Sovereign, he seemed forthright and generous, without the slightest hint of the stiffness and pedantry of a Confucian scholar.
But cultivators at their level naturally could not judge one another based on a mere first impression.
Han Li politely deflected the compliment and sat down across from Holy Sovereign Tianyuan.
"Fellow Daoist Han, now you can tell me — which spiritual wines do you know that surpass my Tiger Soul Wine? Have you tasted them all yourself?" Holy Sovereign Tianyuan seemed truly obsessed with wine. The moment Han Li sat down, he pressed on impatiently.
"The Holy Sovereign's Tiger Soul Spirit Wine is already an exceedingly rare spiritual wine in the Spirit Realm. However, I once had the good fortune to taste a wine called 'Nine Fragrance Spirit Wine' from an alien tribe in the barbarian world. In terms of both fragrance and wondrous effects, it was in no way inferior to the Tiger Soul Spirit Wine." Han Li thought for a moment and answered carefully.
"An alien tribe's spiritual wine? Nine Fragrance Spirit Wine! Did you happen to bring a flask or two back with you?" Holy Sovereign Tianyuan asked with a glimmer of hopeful anticipation.
Monk Tianchan and Huang Dang also turned eager gazes toward Han Li.
"That Nine Fragrance Spirit Wine is also a secret brew, crafted by an Integration-stage existence among the alien races. At the time I hadn't yet advanced to my current realm — I was hardly in a position to ask for any. Being lucky enough to drink a single cup already made me fortunate." Han Li gave a wry smile.
"That's understandable. My Tiger Soul Spirit Wine is something I normally treasure and rarely bring out for guests." Holy Sovereign Tianyuan made no effort to conceal his disappointment and let out a heavy sigh.
"Heh, the Holy Sovereign needn't be too disappointed. Though I don't have any Nine Fragrance Spirit Wine on hand, in a little while I may come into possession of another kind of wine. When that happens, I'll certainly invite the Holy Sovereign to sample it." A mysterious smile appeared on Han Li's face.
"Oh? What spiritual wine? Could it surpass even the Holy Sovereign's Tiger Soul Wine and the Nine Fragrance Spirit Wine?" Before Holy Sovereign Tianyuan could answer, the gaunt old man couldn't help but ask.
Clearly, this one was also a great lover of what filled the cup.
This was hardly surprising. Cultivators spent years upon years in seated meditation, paying little heed to ordinary worldly pleasures. Male cultivators, apart from spiritual tea, generally indulged in nothing but spiritual wine.