A streak of dark green sword light swept out, and a thunderous boom erupted from deep within the canyon below. Violent fluctuations flickered into existence as a hazy white spatial rift forcibly surfaced.
"Let's go."
Han Li let out a low shout. With one hand forming a quick incantation seal, the massive black ship behind him buzzed and shrank down into a sphere before flashing and vanishing into his body.
Escape light ignited.
A cyan rainbow and a silver arc immediately shot downward at tremendous speed, piercing through the rift in the blink of an eye.
The spatial rift slowly closed behind them, and the canyon below returned to its original state.
A short while later, in the void above where the black ship had originally hovered, a different kind of faint fluctuation stirred. A massive pale golden lotus, roughly ten feet across, materialized out of thin air. Standing inside it were a man and a woman.
The man was clad entirely in golden robes, his features blurred and indistinct. The woman wore a white robe, was bare-headed and barefoot — it was none other than Bao.
"He actually left just like that. It seems he truly came here only to retrieve that spiritually resonant treasure Yuan Yan spoke of. However, the spatial rift he just tore open doesn't seem to lead back to the Spirit World — that side should be the Mo Ke World. That realm is far more powerful even than our Holy Realm. I wonder what business he has there." The golden-robed man looked toward the spot where the spatial rift had vanished and spoke first, clearing his throat lightly. His voice was somewhat hoarse, as though he were gravely ill.
"Why bother thinking so much about it, Fellow Daoist Nirvana? Regardless of what he's doing in other realms, as long as he doesn't linger in our Holy Realm for an extended period, that's all that matters. Otherwise, with a powerhouse of unfathomable strength like him around, neither you nor I would be able to close our doors and cultivate in peace." Bao replied in a calm, indifferent tone.
This golden-robed man was none other than Nirvana — the most mysterious of the three great Demon Ancestors — who had always rarely shown himself before others.
"That's true enough. Otherwise, the two of us wouldn't have quietly followed after him the moment we received Yuan Yan's message. But is the news from the Human World really accurate? This boy only recently advanced to the Mahayana stage, yet he was able to slay a True Immortal. Even if that immortal was suppressed by the realm's power, it's still an incredible feat." Nirvana gave a sinister laugh, then asked with a trace of doubt.
"Such an important piece of news — they shouldn't have gotten it wrong over there. I hear that this person only managed to get the job done after the True Immortal had already been injured by attacks from numerous other powerful cultivators of the Spirit World." Bao replied slowly.
"Even so, it shows that this boy is extraordinary. You and I both know that the more powerful a being is, the more methods they have for preserving their lives. A True Immortal in particular would have countless trump cards hidden away, yet he still ended up falling into this boy's hands. His strength must truly be unfathomable. I hear he even obtained the True Soul Pill — tsk tsk, that grade of treasure... If it weren't for the fact that both of us are of the Sacred Race and the pill is useless to us, we might have gone to extraordinary lengths to keep him in the Holy Realm." Nirvana chuckled, then clicked his tongue twice.
"That goes without saying. If it were the True Demon Pill, do you think we would have watched him leave the Holy Realm so easily? Speaking of which, Fellow Daoist Nirvana, your Tribulation of Ascension should be approaching soon, shouldn't it? I wonder how confident you feel about ascending to the upper realm." Bao nodded, then posed another question.
"If not for the devastating injuries I suffered at the hands of the Mother of Moths, with my Nirvana Sacred Body perfected, I might have had a ten to twenty percent chance. But now, though my wounds have healed, my true essence has been depleted far too greatly. All I can do is fight desperately for that sliver of hope that lies in the realm of fate." Nirvana sighed, his voice tinged with somberness.
"There's no need for such pessimism, Brother Nirvana! Your Nirvana Sacred Body is ranked among the top three body-tempering techniques across all realms. It very well may allow you to successfully endure the Heavenly Tribulation. Oh, and speaking of this — it seems that Han Li, that boy, has also cultivated the Nirvana Sacred Body. There are minor differences in the details compared to yours, but it's unmistakably the same technique. I wonder how he managed to cultivate it." Bao offered a few words of comfort to the golden-robed man, then suddenly recalled something.
"What's so strange about that? The Nirvana Sacred Body was originally deduced by me from the most basic set of demonic arts of the Sacred Race, and our clan's techniques have spread across many realms. It's only natural that others might independently derive the Nirvana Sacred Body as well. What truly astonishes me is that cultivating this Sacred Body is so arduous as to be nearly impossible. I was only able to succeed back then because numerous fortuitous opportunities came together at once. If I had to cultivate it all over again from the beginning, I wouldn't be confident of reaching the level I'm at today. And yet this mere outsider has cultivated it to such a degree — it truly makes one reflect." Nirvana replied with a bitter smile.
"When I first saw this boy deploy the Sacred Body, I was every bit as shocked as you are now. It really does go to show he's a man of extraordinary destiny. Alright, enough about this human boy. After this matter is settled, I also plan to return and close myself off in secluded cultivation, striving to reach the realm of ascension to the True Demon Realm as soon as possible." Bao smiled, then adopted a solemn expression.
"Mm, leave all the affairs of the outside world to Yuan Yan to handle. Hehe, between the two of you, I've always had the most confidence in you. Though you too once experienced a great tribulation, your Magical Power has only grown stronger than before. On top of that, you've comprehended a supreme divine ability of the upper realm like the Spirit Domain. It's highly likely that you'll succeed in ascending in the future." Nirvana nodded, his tone carrying a faint hint of envy.
"Hehe, let's hope so. I won't linger here any longer — I'll take my leave first." Bao laughed lightly a few times, then gently pressed her jade foot down upon the golden lotus beneath her feet.