"Heh, destroy my own cultivation? If it were that simple to break free, the Immortal World would never have classified the God Refinement Technique as a forbidden art all this time. It seems you don't realize that once you begin cultivating this secret technique, there is no turning back — you can only press forward. At your current level in the second layer, if you fail to reach the third layer of the God Refinement Technique within ten thousand years, your spiritual sea will inevitably be unable to contain such an immense surge of spiritual sense power, and you will self-detonate and perish. Under those circumstances, even if you had seized a new body in advance to start over, you would not have the slightest chance of survival." The man let out a cold laugh and delivered yet another piece of news that made Han Li's heart sink.
"Ten thousand years! That's still a grace period — at least I have some time to devise a countermeasure. But the third layer… doesn't the God Refinement Technique only have three layers in total?" Han Li's eyes flickered several times before he let out a long breath and posed the question.
Naturally, he could not take the man's word at face value, but he could still detect certain points of confusion.
"Three layers? Who told you the God Refinement Technique only has three layers? Oh — I understand now. You only obtained the cultivation method for the first half of the technique, not the complete manual. The full God Refinement Technique encompasses seven layers. You've only cultivated the first two, and if you want to stay alive, fellow Daoist, your cultivation journey is far from over." The man was briefly stunned, but then a look of realization crossed his face.
"I appreciate the pointed guidance, but I wonder — does the distinguished guest happen to know the cultivation methods for the later layers?" Han Li sighed, then suddenly asked this.
"The God Refinement Technique may not be considered particularly rare in the Immortal World, but it's certainly no common technique either. Moreover, the Immortal World has always forbidden its transmission and trade. And since I happen to be a Patrol Envoy myself, I'm sorry to say I do not know the cultivation methods for the latter half. However, there's no need for you to panic too much. As long as you can cultivate the God Refinement Technique to the third layer, the next time your spiritual sense faces a crisis will be delayed by at least another thirty to forty thousand years. With that much time, with your aptitude, you should have a chance to ascend to the Immortal World and then seek another solution." The man's reply carried deep meaning.
"Ascending to the Immortal World — if only it were that easy. If it truly were, then we cultivators of the Lower Plane stuck at the Mahayana stage would not be so few in number." Han Li couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh upon hearing this.
"Haha, that was before you encountered me. Don't forget — right in front of you stands a bona fide True Immortal. If I were willing to lend a word of guidance, your chances of successfully ascending to the Immortal World would increase by at least twenty to thirty percent compared to before." The man's voice carried a low chuckle.
"With your seniority as a True Immortal, if you were truly willing to offer some pointers, this junior would indeed have a slim but real chance of ascending to the Immortal World. However, I imagine you didn't summon me here simply out of the goodness of your heart." Han Li fell silent for a moment before suddenly sighing and speaking.
"You're a perceptive one! If you were of no use to me, I would certainly still help you slay that Moth Mother, but I would never have gone through the trouble of teleporting you here. The reason I did so is that I wish to borrow your strength to accomplish something. In return for your assistance, I will provide certain methods to cultivate the third layer of the God Refinement Technique as quickly as possible, as well as ways to survive the Tribulation of Ascension to the Immortal World. What do you say?" The man made no effort to conceal his intentions, stating them plainly and directly.
"If the senior is looking for help, Fellow Daoist Bao — as the Holy Ancestor of this realm — would surely be more suitable. Why must you seek out this junior in particular?" Han Li was not surprised, but his question was delivered with perfect composure.
"Heh. If any ordinary Lower Plane Mahayana cultivator could help me, why would I have been languishing here all these years? I would have sought out those local Mahayana cultivators who came to inspect the seal long ago." The man's tone was flat and indifferent.
"What the senior means is…" Han Li's heart tensed, and his expression grew solemn.
"Since we've come this far, I have no intention of hiding anything further. The reason I sought you out, Fellow Daoist Han, is precisely because I see that you cultivate the God Refinement Technique — such a heaven-defying ability. Any other Lower Plane Mahayana cultivator, no matter how many times more powerful than you in raw strength, would be equally unable to help me in the slightest." The man spoke slowly, revealing something that once again left Han Li stunned.
"What? The senior sought me out precisely because I cultivate the God Refinement Technique?" Han Li was genuinely bewildered.
"That's right. Although I haven't yet mentioned the details of my current predicament, I imagine you can already guess a thing or two." The man gave a bitter laugh.
"Since the senior has brought it up, this junior does have some questions about what happened back then, and I humbly request your instruction. The Moth Mother we are now trying to slay — has the Primordial Spirit within its body already been replaced by something other than the original ferocious insect? Of course, if the senior would rather not discuss it, then never mind." After a moment's hesitation, Han Li asked cautiously.
"What happened back then is painful to recall, but telling you a bit about it shouldn't cause any harm. When the Moth Mother was wreaking havoc in the Lower Plane, she was detected by an Inspector Immortal from above, who dispatched me and another Patrol Envoy to descend and eliminate the creature. Of course, it was extremely difficult for us Immortals to reach the Lower Plane, but through certain special means it was still possible…" After a brief silence within the alms bowl, the man's voice slowly began to narrate.
To hear an actual participant in a legend from the ancient era personally recount what had happened was an experience that not every Mahayona cultivator could ever have. Han Li naturally focused his full attention and listened with the utmost concentration.
"Neither of us expected that just as we were on the verge of completely destroying the Moth Mother, a cataclysmic stellar upheaval erupted at the most inopportune moment, directly affecting the boundaries between various planes. The next thing we knew, we were struck by the full force of the interplanar suppression that we had previously kept in check through magical treasures and secret arts. The tables turned in an instant — our Magical Power was suppressed, and we were nearly devoured by the Moth Mother. With no other choice, we were forced to employ a mutual destruction strategy: we simultaneously self-detonated our physical bodies and executed a certain immortal secret art, which managed to severely wound the Moth Mother. By that point, however, we no longer had the means to break the Moth Mother's Indestructible Body. All we could do was possess two high-ranking demon cultivators, construct this massive seal, and leave behind a set of instructions. By then, we had already discovered that after the stellar upheaval, we had lost all contact with the Immortal World, and there was no way to return using our original methods. So, leveraging our identities as Mahayana cultivators within the demon race, we secretly investigated several renowned planes of the Lower Plane. We found that the upheaval had affected all planes, causing interplanar force to surge by more than tenfold compared to before, and indeed we could find no way to actively return to the Immortal World. With no alternatives left, the two of us returned to this sealed location, set up this small formation, and allowed our Primordial Spirits to retreat inside it and enter a long slumber. At that time, we could only place our hope in the belief that some close friends back in the Immortal World would still remember us and devise a way to break through the interplanar barrier to rescue us. Over that impossibly long span of time, we would briefly awaken once every thousand or so years, but each time ended in bitter disappointment. And as the ages wore on, my companion grew desperate, and disagreements finally began to surface between us. After several arguments, one time upon awakening, she suddenly seized me without warning and sealed my Primordial Spirit inside this very vessel."
The man's voice echoed across the altar, and a subtle tremor of emotion finally crept into his words.
"She took the Yuqing Lamp Oil — the substance originally used to preserve the formation's function of keeping our souls from dissipating — and went to find the sealed Moth Mother. As for her fate, you can probably guess a thing or two from having encountered that creature yourself. As for me, if I hadn't had the foresight to set aside a small amount of the Yuqing Lamp Oil in advance, my soul would likely have dissipated untold ages ago. As for why she would do such a thing — my guess is she probably intended to use the Moth Mother's body to cultivate a Transcendent True Body, and then attempt to forcibly break through the interplanar force to return to the Immortal World. Of course, there may have been other considerations as well. But those are something I cannot know." The man had finally finished narrating the events of that fateful time.
"So that's what happened back then — no wonder your seniority has been trapped here all this time. The favor you want of me — is it to help you regain your freedom from this artifact?" Having listened to the full account, Han Li's thoughts raced, but his voice remained composed.
"Heh. Although I was originally sealed within this Black Sand Alms Bowl, I've managed to recover most of my freedom through years of self-dissolution. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to help you all not long ago. What I need you to do is actually quite simple: I want you to use the amplified spiritual sense power gained from cultivating the God Refinement Technique to help me activate a treasure talisman I have in hand. Once this talisman is activated, it can send a message directly to a close friend of mine in the Immortal World, bypassing the interplanar force entirely. I believe that given our friendship from years past, the moment he learns of my current predicament, he will do everything in his power to find a way to rescue me and bring me back to the Immortal World." Somewhat to Han Li's surprise, the man spoke in a grave and serious tone.
"The senior possesses a talisman that can reach the Immortal World directly?" Han Li's face was filled with undisguised astonishment.
"There's no need to be so shocked. An ordinary talisman could certainly not accomplish such a thing. This treasure talisman in my hand was crafted by a renowned Immortal Lord of the Immortal World — very few have ever made it to the outside world. Moreover, under normal circumstances, a low-ranking immortal would lack sufficient spiritual sense power to activate such a talisman. That is precisely why I sought you out, Fellow Daoist Han." The man sounded somewhat helpless as he spoke.
"The senior is saying that with the spiritual sense power boosted by my current level of the God Refinement Technique, I can activate this talisman?" Han Li furrowed his brow as he asked.
"Your spiritual sense power is indeed formidable at this point — far surpassing others of the same level by several fold — but it still falls slightly short of my peak condition. What I mean is that only after you cultivate the third layer of the God Refinement Technique will you have even a chance of accomplishing this." The man gave a soft chuckle in reply.
(End of Chapter)