"What Brother Feng says makes sense. But since this Du Dong has the Cold Moon Wheel, it's not surprising he made it to the final round. What about this Han Li fellow? Does he also have a high-grade magical tool?" the middle-aged man with the thin mustache asked again.
"Not exactly. While I don't know whether this Junior Nephew Han has a high-grade magical tool, this junior nephew sure is generous with his spending." The man at the late stage of Foundation Establishment said with a wry smile.
"What do you mean? What does the competition have to do with being generous?" This time it was the sallow-faced elder who asked with a hint of interest.
"In his very first match, this Junior Nephew Han threw out over thirty Fire Bullet Talismans at once, shattering his opponent's protective barrier before the opponent even had time to deploy a magical tool. In the subsequent matches, he employed mundane martial arts techniques and a clever flame-manipulation method, supplemented by talismans, to barely eke out victories against his opponents." The man explained.
"Martial arts and techniques aside — nothing strange about that. Many people join the sect with prior skills. But using so many talismans at once really does cost a considerable number of spirit stones. For us, naturally, it's nothing, but for a Qi Condensation stage disciple, that's rather extravagant. Have you looked into this disciple's background?" The white-bearded elder's expression turned slightly grave.
"We have. According to several lower-ranked disciples who've interacted with him, although he's an independent cultivator, he apparently has a strong command of talisman crafting and considerable personal wealth. That's why he can afford to burn through low-grade talismans so freely." The young man replied respectfully.
"Oh, that explains it. It seems neither of them has any issues. However, since this fellow knows some talisman crafting, he might be better suited for Fire Cloud Peak." The white-bearded elder's expression relaxed as he murmured.
"Brother Feng, that won't do. Our Heavenly Spring Peak has disciples skilled in talisman crafting too — we can certainly support this person. Brother Duan, you're not actually trying to poach him, are you?" The cultivator surnamed Xin said with a faint smile.
"Haha! Fire Cloud Peak can take or leave one more talisman crafter. We won't be stealing Brother Xin's disciple!" The red-robed cultivator waved his hand and said magnanimously.
The middle-aged man surnamed Xin smiled but said nothing further.
In the time that followed, these Core Formation cultivators discussed a few more matters concerning the sect before taking their leave one by one.
...
Han Li had already returned to his cave dwelling on the small stone mountain. With an unusually grave expression, he stood outside the spirit beast room, peering intently into the stone chamber within, his eyes flickering.
Just a short while ago, he had finished his final round of matches and was chatting with several Heavenly Spring Peak disciples who had come to congratulate him on his victory, when the Resonating Soul Bead inside his body suddenly began to scald with heat. This startled Han Li, but he immediately realized — the Screaming Soul Beast in his cave dwelling had finally reached the last stage of its evolution and was calling out to him.
Thrilled though he was, Han Li naturally cut short his conversation with those Heavenly Spring Peak disciples. After a hasty farewell, he rushed back to his cave dwelling.
The moment he stood outside the spirit beast room, the scene inside the stone chamber gave him a fright.
The chamber had somehow become pitch dark and ghastly. Swirling masses of black ghostly qi filled the air in every direction, and a faint chill — countless frigid yin energies — leaked out from the room.
The Screaming Soul Beast was nowhere to be seen. Instead, in one corner of the chamber sat an oval, cocoon-shaped object roughly ten feet long. Its surface was glossy black, with faint needle-like rays of black light flickering across it, as though something was gestating within.
Han Li didn't need to think twice to guess that the Screaming Soul Beast was inside this black cocoon.
A measure of excitement stirred in his heart, but so did an added degree of caution.
Han Li did not rashly enter the stone chamber. After a moment's thought, he sat cross-legged outside the spirit beast room.
According to the texts he had read before, when a spirit beast undergoes evolution, the best course of action for the master cultivator is to remain nearby and not leave, but also not to interfere with the evolution process. One should only intervene to save the beast if its evolution fails and its life hangs in the balance.
He intended to follow this advice.
With a heart full of unease, time slowly trickled by.
By Han Li's original estimation, he had thought the Screaming Soul Beast would need at least several days to complete its evolution and break free of its cocoon. But to his surprise, after sitting outside the stone chamber through the night, by the next morning the black cocoon had already undergone a transformation.
Han Li, who had been sitting on the ground with his eyes closed in meditation, suddenly heard a clear, crisp cracking sound. Though it was faint, his heart leaped with joy and his eyes snapped open.
The frigid ghostly qi inside the stone chamber was being drawn away by some tremendous force, shooting toward one corner of the room — precisely where the black cocoon sat.
Then the black light inside the chamber blazed into blinding brilliance. Han Li instinctively squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again, a familiar yet somehow foreign aura had suddenly appeared within the chamber.
Han Li's eyebrows shot upward. Without a moment's hesitation, he rose to his feet, pressed both hands lightly against the stone door, and the entrance to the spirit beast room swung open.