After the great wave subsided, the entire pond split cleanly down the middle, the pale silver water forcibly cleaved in two, exposing the pale white bottom beneath.
The power of that single finger Han Li had just unleashed was truly unfathomable!
The next instant, a thunderous roar echoed out.
Both halves of the water surged back toward the center, once again concealing the pool's bottom.
"Not bad. My Magical Power has increased considerably as well. But most importantly, my spiritual sense and Nascent Soul have both grown by at least a third compared to before. As for the other benefits, I'll have to experience them gradually over time." After sweeping his spiritual sense through his own body, Han Li murmured to himself with a smile. Then he let out a long whistle.
In the blink of an eye, fluctuations rippled through the surrounding restrictions, and a golden shadow and a mass of green light shot toward him from two different directions. After a single flicker, they stood steadily before him.
It was the Leopard Qilin Beast and the Lingzhi Immortal Body!
"I've completed the marrow-washing and meridian-refining process. You two should go down and soak in the pool as well," Han Li instructed without hesitation.
The Leopard Qilin Beast was naturally overjoyed at these words. After crying out in human speech to express its gratitude, it and the immortal body controlled by the Second Devil Infant each darted into the Spirit Cleansing Pool.
Next, Han Li released Qu'er, the avatar manifested from the Nine-Bend Spirit Ginseng, as well as over a dozen Gold Devouring Beetle Kings, and had them enter the pool as well.
Only then did he raise a single hand and release the spirit beast ring filled with mature Gold Devouring Beetles.
After activating it with a series of incantation gestures, tens of thousands of spirit insects surged out in a frenzy. But at Han Li's low command, instead of flying into the Spirit Cleansing Pool, they transformed into over a dozen clouds of insects that plunged toward the giant trees and vegetation beyond the restrictions.
Wherever the insect clouds passed, vast swathes of spirit herbs and spirit trees were devoured clean. Even some spirit stones and spirit ore deposits hidden shallowly beneath the surface vanished one after another, revealing fresh soil beneath with a faint earthy smell—as if the very ground had been scraped away by a layer.
The once lush and verdant surroundings had turned barren in the blink of an eye, and this desolate transformation was visibly spreading outward at a rapid pace.
Han Li smiled faintly at the sight.
He had already swept the space with his spiritual sense earlier and found no rare medicinal herbs within it. Either this space had never contained such spirit medicines in the first place, or they had been harvested clean by the powerful alien beings who had visited before.
Even so, given the extraordinary density of spiritual energy in this space, even ordinary plants and trees—their age, their value—far surpassed the rarest spirit herbs found in the outside world. He possessed the mysterious small bottle and had little use for these things, but abandoning so many objects rich in pure spiritual energy would truly be a waste. It was far better to let the Gold Devouring Beetles devour them all and boost their power somewhat.
With his current level of spiritual sense, he could normally command the entire swarm for a period of time without worrying too much about the drain.
Besides, this space was only a little over a hundred li across. With the devouring ability of the mature Gold Devouring Beetles, it would not take long for them to consume everything clean.
During this time, Han Li had no intention of sitting idle. With a solemn expression, he turned his palm over, and a small purple-gold bottle sealed with restriction talismans appeared in his hand.
He held the bottle aloft and blew a soft breath toward it. The talisman silently peeled away.
With a flick of his wrist, the bottle inverted itself, its mouth opening wide. A clear cry rang out from within.
A flash of golden light!
A fist-sized golden firebird shot out from the bottle, circled once, and then soared upward into the sky.
Han Li had clearly been prepared. He spread the five fingers of his hand and grasped at the empty air. An invisible force surged outward, enveloping the golden firebird entirely.
Despite the firebird's desperate flapping, after the tremendous force bore down upon it, the light contracted and condensed into a thumb-sized, golden pill that hovered quietly in the air.
This golden pill was covered on its surface with dense, intricate pill patterns—it was precisely that "Void Spirit Pill."
Upon seeing it, Han Li curled his fingers inward without a moment's hesitation.
With a whoosh, the Void Spirit Pill shot toward him as a streak of golden light and settled squarely into his palm.
Han Li gazed at the pill, a contemplative look crossing his face.
The jade slip he had obtained from Bao had not mentioned when to take the Void Spirit Pill after completing the marrow-washing process.
However, by common reasoning, a medicinal pill that served as a sort of antidote would naturally have the most pronounced effect the sooner it was taken.
Doing so might mean he couldn't fully refine this high-grade pill in the short term, but the benefits of taking it early still outweighed the drawbacks.
With this thought, Han Li no longer hesitated. He tossed the pill in his hand into his mouth and swallowed it directly.
The medicinal power dispersed almost instantly, and a warm current flowed gently through the meridians in all four limbs.
Though this medicinal force was far less violent than the Spirit Cleansing Lotus petal, once the warm current spread throughout his body, it gave Han Li an extraordinarily comfortable sensation from head to toe.
His heart lifted. He knew the Void Spirit Pill was indeed greatly beneficial for his current condition. Without delay, he sat cross-legged by the edge of the pond and began slowly refining the pill's power, bit by bit.
After an unknown amount of time, the over a dozen clouds of Gold Devouring Beetles finally returned with a buzzing hum and reconverged into a single golden cloud above the pond.
Han Li's eyelids flickered. He opened his eyes and swept his gaze around the area, the corners of his mouth curling upward slightly.
The once vast space had now been completely transformed into a desolate wasteland. As far as the eye could see, nothing but earthy yellow stretched in every direction, like a desert.