The moment Silver Moon caught sight of Han Li, she looked him over from head to toe before a faint smile crept across her face. She cupped her hands and offered her congratulations: "Congratulations, Brother Han, on your successful advancement to the Mahayana stage. From now on, you are the third Mahayana Patriarch of both the human and demon races. I suppose from here on, little sister will have to address you with the deference due a senior."
"Silver Moon, are you making fun of me? With the bond between us, even if I have advanced to Mahayana, we will naturally continue to deal with each other as equals." Han Li smiled faintly and replied without the slightest hesitation.
Hearing these words, Silver Moon's heart was naturally overjoyed.
"Patriarch Han — it's you, isn't it? You've really advanced to the Mahayona stage?" Xu Qianyu, standing behind Silver Moon, eyed Han Li cautiously for a long while before finally venturing to ask, her voice tinged with uncertainty.
Han Li was momentarily taken aback by her words, then swept a glance over the newly arrived group. He immediately recognized a familiar face among them, and the corners of his mouth curved upward into a somewhat inscrutable expression.
As for the black-robed woman and the burly bearded man, they were gazing at this newly ascended Mahayana cultivator with looks of shock and disbelief, their hearts equally stunned.
However, compared to the Cave Heaven Rat King, the woman transformed from the Black Phoenix King was several times more horrified.
Having once met Han Li briefly in the past, she had recognized him at a glance — the same Han Li who had been merely at the early stage of Body Integration back then. The shock she felt could well be imagined.
"I didn't expect that on the very day I advance to Mahayona, I would run into old acquaintances. This is truly a joyous occasion. Fellow Daoist Xu, how is Blood Soul — Patriarch Ice Soul's blood soul avatar — faring these days?" Han Li finally spoke up, addressing Xu Qianyu directly in a calm tone.
"It really is Patriarch Han! Reporting to this Senior — our ancestor's Blood Soul left the Xu family many years ago, and her whereabouts have been unknown ever since." After hearing Han Li's words, Xu Qianyu forcibly suppressed the disbelief still roiling within her, hurriedly lowered her head, and answered respectfully.
"Gone missing again? That is somewhat unexpected. But even though she is only a blood soul avatar, with her Body Integration stage experience and knowledge, I imagine she should be fine." Han Li sounded mildly surprised, but spoke slowly and deliberately.
"Thank you for this Senior's kind words — I hope she truly is well. Our ancestor's Blood Soul is the Xu family's only hope of recovering Patriarch Ice Soul's true body. If something were really to happen to her, I'm afraid Patriarch Ice Soul might never be able to return to the family." Xu Qianyu replied with a bitter smile.
Han Li nodded without saying anything more. His gaze shifted and fell upon the black-robed woman, and he smiled faintly as he asked: "I didn't expect that Fellow Daoist Xiao would also appear here. After so many years apart, your appearance remains unchanged, without the slightest sign of age."
"Fellow Daoist Black Phoenix, you know this Patriarch?" The burly bearded man beside her couldn't contain himself any longer. His gaze turned peculiar as he glanced at the black-robed woman and asked in a low voice.
"Fellow Daoist Han... no, this should be Patriarch Han now. I never imagined that after we parted ways last time, we would meet again only to find that you had already become a Mahayona cultivator. This is truly a great fortune for both our races! Fellow Daoist Dongtian, this is the Patriarch you have long heard of — that prodigious human cultivator who advanced faster than anyone in recorded history." The black-robed woman let out a long breath, stepped forward, and bowed deeply to Han Li. Then she turned to the bearded man beside her and spoke with pointed significance.
"What? He's that Han Li of the human race? No — that legendary Patriarch Han — Patriarch Han?!" The burly bearded man's face drained of color, his features filled with disbelief, and he even began to stammer.
"Dongtian? Could you be the Cave Heaven Rat King?"
A thought stirred in Han Li's mind. He swept a glance over the man and found that although his cultivation was a full stage below the Black Phoenix King's, the aura emanating from his body was dark and unfathomable — clearly the product of some extremely formidable cultivation technique. He was not to be underestimated. Han Li's eyes narrowed involuntarily.
"This Senior's insight is truly sharp. This junior does indeed oversee the Jade Rat lineage. To witness Patriarch Han's advancement to Mahayona with my own eyes today is a blessing of three lifetimes." The Cave Heaven Rat King's expression shifted remarkably fast; after several changes in countenance, his face broke into a broad, warm smile.
Hearing the burly bearded man's utterly respectful words, and after studying this Rat King for a long moment, Han Li suddenly uttered a sentence that sent another jolt of alarm through the man's heart.
"Have I not met Fellow Daoist Dongtian somewhere before? You give me a feeling of familiarity — very much like the aura of an old acquaintance of mine from long ago."
"Patriarch Han must be joking. This is the first time this junior has ever met you. Perhaps during the Myriad Treasures Fair all those years ago, this junior happened to come into contact with one of your avatars. That avatar of mine was exceptionally skilled in the art of transformation. It's possible that I inadvertently encountered you, Senior, but you did not particularly remember it." The bearded man's face turned somewhat pale, but he hurried to explain.
"Perhaps so. But the two of you — as demon kings — what brings you here alone? Don't tell me you somehow knew in advance that I would be attempting to break through the Mahayona bottleneck at this location and came specifically to observe." Han Li chuckled lightly, chose not to press the matter further, and abruptly shifted the topic with a smile that vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"Fellow Daoist Dongtian and I came here on a matter of considerable importance. The truth is..."
"Never mind. I have little interest in your affairs, nor do I wish to know more. However, I have only just advanced to Mahayona, and as a precaution, I still need to remain here for some time to stabilize my realm. During this period, I would rather not have too many people learn of my advancement. You two will stay as guests in my cave abode for the time being. When the time comes, you may leave of your own accord." Before the black-robed woman could say more, Han Li seemed to recall something, waved his hand to cut off her words, and spoke in a tone that brooked no argument.
"Since this Senior has so instructed, this junior naturally has no reason to refuse." The Black Phoenix King was secretly cursing her luck, but not the slightest change in her expression showed. She agreed readily and without hesitation.
The burly bearded man's face flickered with a hint of hesitation, but he quickly recovered and nodded repeatedly in submission.