This flying sword radiating astonishing demonic energy was, naturally, a trophy Han Li had claimed from slaying one of the many Demon Lords he had encountered in the Spirit Realm.
It was of no use to him, so he was perfectly happy to offer it generously in exchange for the mineral in his hand.
"Many thanks for Senior's generous gift! This piece of Extraordinary Demonic Gold was something I recently traded from a fellow clansman, and before that it seems to have changed hands many times. Its original source is hard to trace." The stout demon took the flying sword, sent a thread of spiritual sense sweeping over it, and his face was filled with an expression of mingled surprise and elation as he thanked Han Li over and over.
He had told the Black Hoof tribesman earlier that he wanted to trade for a top-grade demonic weapon—that had been something of a wild overreach on his part. Now that he had actually obtained one, his delight could be imagined.
A top-grade treasure was something exceedingly rare for an existence at the Deity Transformation stage to possess.
"In that case, forget it. This piece of Demonic Gold should be enough for my needs." Han Li furrowed his brow briefly, but smoothed it out almost immediately.
After saying this, he lingered no longer, turning to leave on his own.
The stout demon had originally wanted to seize the chance to build closer rapport, but seeing this, he didn't dare say anything more, only adopting a respectful send-off posture.
With his gains secured, Han Li's original intention to leave right away was naturally pushed to the back of his mind.
Over the next two hours, he meticulously examined everything on the remaining stalls along the entire street and actually managed to find two spirit herbs that didn't exist in the Spirit Realm, allowing him to assemble the ingredients needed to refine a pill useful to Body Integration stage cultivators—a Mind-Focusing Spirit-Stabilizing Pill.
This type of pill, when consumed during the cultivation of techniques and abilities, could slightly improve the efficiency of comprehension and training. Over the long term, its usefulness was considerable.
Han Li had long possessed the recipe for this pill, but these two spirit herbs had long since gone extinct in the Spirit Realm, which was why he had been unable to refine it all this time.
Having obtained what he wanted, Han Li left the street and then enthusiastically visited some of the larger shops nearby.
Unfortunately, the goods sold in these shops were almost exclusively targeted at high-ranking demons, and he found nothing else of value to him.
By now, the sky had gradually darkened, and pedestrians on the street quickly thinned. Shop after shop closed its doors and shutters, seemingly preparing for a curfew.
Han Li found a random establishment that offered lodging, rented a private chamber, and settled in temporarily.
After laying down several layers of restrictions inside the chamber, he finally took out the piece of Extraordinary Demonic Gold he had acquired during the day and held it before his eyes, examining it in silence.
It gleamed with luster, yet its surface was exceedingly uneven, riddled with pits and bumps.
Strangely, this material not only emitted thick demonic energy but also contained wisps of pure spiritual power intermingled within.
This was actually a rare material capable of harboring both spiritual and demonic energy simultaneously.
However, Han Li hadn't purchased this mineral for that reason alone.
After pondering for a moment, he suddenly tossed the mineral into the air before him, where it hovered suspended. He drew a finger through empty space.
A soft pop!
A streak of azure light flashed and vanished in an instant. The black-and-white mineral silently split in two down the middle, and a bean-sized object dropped out.
His hand shot out with blinding speed. An invisible force swept forth, and the revealed object was drawn straight into his palm.
Han Li focused his gaze and saw that it was unmistakably a hazy, gray crystalline bead.
"As I expected—my spiritual eye didn't deceive me. There really was something hidden inside. The question is whether it's of any use to me. I still need to verify that."
He rolled the bead between his fingers, murmuring with a hint of a smile, then sent his spiritual sense probing into it.
But the very next moment, his expression changed drastically, and he flung the crystal bead from his hand.
With a thunderous boom, the hurled bead suddenly emitted a deep, rumbling roar. A wave of terrifying aura radiated outward, and a gray-white beam of light erupted from the bead—nearly as thick as the mouth of a bowl. In a flash it struck the restrictions laid upon the ceiling.
Layer after layer of protective barriers were shredded like paper by the beam of light, which then slammed savagely into the final barrier.
Only then did the beam come to a slight halt, momentarily blocked.
But in that brief respite, Han Li's expression darkened. His figure flickered, and he appeared directly above the beam of light, one palm pressing downward through empty space.
A massive golden hand materialized, radiating countless beams of radiant light, and successfully held the beam of light at bay.
But Han Li's expression showed no relaxation. His five fingers trembled slightly as blinding golden light erupted from them. His arm was forced back inch by inch by the gray-white beam—he couldn't fully block it.
A flicker of surprise crossed Han Li's face, but it quickly hardened. He gave a cold snort, and with a flash of golden light his arm thickened considerably. His sleeve robes burst apart inch by inch, revealing row upon row of gleaming golden scales.
The golden giant hand slowly clenched its five fingers.
Booming sounds echoed in succession!