"Though I can't say for certain, I can guess a good seventy or eighty percent of it. Apart from that handful of people, who else possesses both such vast influence and such extraordinary powers? Besides, the inner pages of the Golden Palace Jade Book aren't something an ordinary person could obtain." The white-robed young man let out a cold laugh of his own.
The burly man with the bushy beard heard these words, and his expression shifted between dark and light for a moment. After a long pause, he gave a snort and said:
"As long as you yourself know, that's enough. Why concern yourself with my specific identity? All you need to know is that I am the only one who can help you cultivate the Reverse Spirit Grand Art to completion. All I ask is that once you've perfected it, you help me endure the heavenly tribulation that is fast approaching."
"This arrangement benefits us both. Once I achieve the True Spirit body, I will naturally protect your life as well. However, I have already reached the absolute peak of the late Spatial Tempering stage. After I absorb the Yin energy within this Mysterious Yin Crystal Wall, I must find a place to begin breaking through the bottleneck of the Body Integration stage. If this Reverse Spirit Grand Art truly lives up to its reputation, advancing to Body Integration should not be a problem. At that point, I will enter the Wildlands alone, specifically to hunt cold-attribute ancient beasts and devour their demon cores, as well as seek out regions of extreme cold to absorb the most Yin of energies. In this way, within a thousand years, my cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds, potentially reaching the late Body Integration stage in a single surge. Only then can I begin preparing to forge the True Spirit body." The white-robed young man's voice was low and measured as he gave his reply.
"Good — as long as you understand! If not for the demonic calamity's descent, which forces me to remain among my clan to make preparations, I would actually prefer to accompany Fellow Daoist into the Wildlands myself. But once Fellow Daoist Liuyi advances to Body Integration, combined with the heaven-defying powers of the Reverse Spirit Grand Art, you should be more than capable of roaming the Wildlands freely — so long as you don't provoke the great powers of other races." The burly man's expression softened as well.
"The Fengyuan Continent is vast beyond measure. Cold-attribute ancient beasts should be more than plentiful. I have already taken human form and awakened my spiritual intelligence — I'm hardly foolish enough to go provoking those powerful outsiders." The white-robed young man spoke with an air of indifference, and no further words came from him.
The burly man gave a satisfied nod upon hearing this, and made no further attempt at conversation either, though his eyes flickered with what seemed to be deep contemplation.
A gust of yellow wind rolled in from the distance, and in the span of a few breaths, it swallowed everything within its path…
Two months later.
Elder Xiao sat right beside her on the other side, his posture clearly deferential, as though taking her lead in all things.
Behind the three of them stood rows upon rows of Gu family disciples — cultivators at the Deity Transformation and Nascent Soul stages — each wearing a faint look of excitement on their faces.
Directly before the Gu family contingent stretched a colossal stone platform roughly a li across. It was circular, paved with enormous slabs of blue-grey stone that had taken on a darkened tinge over what was clearly a very long stretch of time.
Along the platform's edge stood tall formation flags of various colors, each radiating layer upon layer of luminous radiance that together formed a massive barrier of light over a hundred zhang tall, enveloping the entire arena.
On all sides stood clusters of people much like the Gu family's group — some numbering two or three hundred, others as few as a dozen or so.
There were thirty or forty such clusters in total.
Among these groups, the Gu family cultivators were of middling numbers, but they — along with four other groups — occupied a broad ring at the very front of the platform. All other clusters of cultivators had to arrange themselves in positions further back.
And beyond these groups, in the far distance, one could faintly make out cliff-like stone walls and the shadows of tall buildings constructed against them.
This place turned out to be a massive valley surrounded on all sides by mountains.
The reason Han Li found himself here — at the great stone platform in the heart of this valley — was simple. This was the Myriad Spirit Platform, where all the True Spirit noble families across the Three
As the fifth-ranked family from the previous cycle, the Gu family stood among the five great True Spirit noble families and naturally had the right to occupy the position closest to the Myriad Spirit Platform — a privilege that drew no small amount of envious and jealous glances from the smaller and medium-sized True Spirit clans behind them.
After all, ranking among the top five True Spirit noble families represented far more than mere status and prestige — it meant access to immense and tangible benefits.
Naturally, some of the medium-ranking family cultivators shot looks toward the Gu family that were tinged with gloom and something more besides.
With so many people gathered around the stone platform, an eerie silence had fallen over the crowd, as though everyone were waiting for something to begin.
Though Han Li sat in his chair without raising his head to look around, he could clearly sense that at least a dozen gazes were continuously sweeping over him. Several of those gazes even carried threads of spiritual sense within them, brazen and entirely unapologetic about it.
It was hardly surprising.
The Gu family's Grand Elder — Fairy Tianli — who should have appeared at this momentous True Spirit assembly was conspicuously absent. In her place, it was Han Li, an apparent temporary guest elder whose role was little more than that of a hired fist, who had shown up instead.
This had naturally drawn the attention of several other families.
At first, Han Li had paid these scrutinizing gazes no mind. But as the scrutiny persisted without any sign of restraint, it had clearly taken on an overtly provocative edge.
Fairy Xiaofeng, seated beside him, had noticed it too, and her expression had gradually grown unpleasant.
Han Li let out a silent sigh. His face suddenly darkened. The golden wine cup in his hand gave a slight tremor and, without the slightest warning, disintegrated into a fine golden powder that trickled through his fingers and vanished.
At the same time, a layer of silver flame flickered into existence across the surface of his body. The moment those probing threads of ill-intent spiritual sense touched the silver fire, they recoiled as though encountering a venomous serpent, retreating and vanishing in the blink of an eye.