Chapter 1015: Extermination of the Clan

At this moment, Ye Susu instead grew calmer. She let Dongfang Bai stare at her without any fear, meeting his gaze openly.

In her mind, she recalled the words Han Li had spoken when they parted that day, and she couldn't help but feel great admiration. It seemed that all of today's events had been anticipated by that man, and she only needed to follow his instructions.

Just then, accompanied by the sound of tearing air, a streak of light shot down from the high sky, falling into the courtyard.

As the light converged, a thin old man with a long nose and gray hair appeared.

“Elder Lü, how is it?” Dongfang Bai shifted his gaze to the old man and asked in a calm tone.

“Reporting to the Palace Master, on a mountain peak several thousand li north of here, some residual traces were found. That Han Li seemed to have paused there briefly and switched to a spirit boat or flying chariot type of immortal artifact. Then, going north for another tens of thousands of li, near the edge of the Jinyuan Mountain Range, some more residual traces were found sporadically, but they were very faint. He must have taken some measures to deliberately conceal his tracks. I was anxious to return and report, so I only marked the spots and did not continue the pursuit,” the gray-haired old man stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

“You did well.” Dongfang Bai nodded and said.

“So it seems they weren’t lying… This man is truly cunning!” Tao Ji pondered for a moment, then muttered hatefully.

“Let’s go.” Dongfang Bai glanced back at Ye Susu once more, said expressionlessly, and then his figure vanished from the spot instantly.

Tao Ji and the others, seeing this, quickly flickered and flew away.

In the small courtyard, only the members of the Green Fox Clan remained, looking at each other in bewilderment, none speaking.

Ye Susu’s palms were already drenched with sweat. She glanced at her mother beside her, then looked up at the densely packed warships in the sky, feeling even more puzzled. What kind of person was this Senior Han, that he could provoke such a grand response from the Immortal Palace?

On the deck of a high-altitude warship, Tao Ji and the others flickered into place and saw Dongfang Bai standing by the side railing, leaning down to look at the Green Fox City below.

When the few of them approached, he suddenly spoke:

“Exterminate the clan.”

“What? They…” Tao Ji’s expression changed upon hearing this, and he hurriedly said.

He had intended to say that the Green Fox Clan had not harbored Han Li, but he stopped mid-sentence, wisely shutting his mouth.

Whether the Green Fox Clan had harbored Han Li or not was unimportant to Dongfang Bai. What mattered was that Han Li’s whereabouts must never be leaked. Otherwise, if others took notice, how could he monopolize the credit for recovering the Vial of Time?

“As you command!” Black Blade said without hesitation, cupping his fist.

“Do it cleanly, leave no traces. Otherwise, if the Immortal Prison investigates, it will be troublesome,” Dongfang Bai added.

“Understood.” Black Blade acknowledged and turned to leave.

“Elder Tao, Elder Lü, moving with the army is too slow and the target too large. You two will accompany me in the pursuit.” After a moment’s thought, Dongfang Bai instructed.

“Yes.” Lü Yun did not say much either, only responding respectfully.

Tao Ji hesitated briefly, seeming to want to say something, but ultimately said, “Yes.”

He had firsthand experience of Han Li’s terrifying strength. If possible, he would have preferred to bring more people. Of course, with Dongfang Bai personally taking action, he probably wouldn’t have much to do. Even if he couldn’t kill his enemy himself, witnessing it would be satisfying.

Dongfang Bai waved his hand casually, and a burst of white light surged before him. A ten-zhang-long white flying shuttle emerged, densely covered with runes and shimmering with spiritual light. It was clearly a graded immortal artifact, and of no low grade.

He took the lead, flying up and landing lightly on the shuttle. Tao Ji and the other did not dare to be negligent and followed closely.

After Lü Yun pointed out the direction, the shuttle suddenly burst into a dazzling white light, shooting out as a beam of white radiance, disappearing into the high sky.

Meanwhile, the golden warships hovering above Green Fox City began to stir with great spiritual light. The layers of runes inscribed on them lit up one after another, slowly pressing down toward the city below.

All the attack formations on the hulls were fully activated, and a world-destroying aura enveloped the heavens and earth.

According to later reports, on that day, Green Fox City was struck by a natural disaster and burned down in a great fire.

……

In the blink of an eye, more than half a year had passed.

In the northern part of the Jinyuan Immortal Domain, there was a river system with abundant waterways, where the Longjiang River, the Yuanjiang River, and the Shuiyang River converged, forming the Sanjiang Lake at the foot of Comb Brush Mountain, which spanned several thousand li in area.

Legend had it that the area where Sanjiang Lake now lay was originally home to hundreds of overlapping peaks, which, together with Comb Brush Mountain by the lake, belonged to a branch extending northward from the Jinyuan Mountain Range. On these peaks, a sizable immortal sect had once been established.

However, countless tens of thousands of years ago, a great battle broke out here. The immortal sect originally built on this site was completely annihilated, and most of the peaks in the area were destroyed in the conflict, causing the entire landmass to sink underground.

Over the long years that followed, the courses of the three rivers, including the Longjiang River, gradually shifted and converged here, burying the remaining broken ridges and ruined peaks entirely underwater.

Although the sect was long gone, many remnants of its buildings still remained on Comb Brush Mountain. Most of these had been taken over by the “Comb Flow Sect,” which had been established for no more than a few hundred thousand years. After renovations and repairs, the site now had a somewhat new and distinct atmosphere.

Yet, after the erosion of countless tens of thousands of years, what the Comb Flow Sect obtained were merely ruins and broken walls. As for any leftover immortal treasures, they were but remnants sifted from the sands of time.

It was said that beneath Sanjiang Lake, there were still some fragmented immortal mansions left behind. Some of them were still protected by formation arrays, and within them, there might be immortal treasures yet undiscovered.

After establishing its sect here, the Comb Flow Sect naturally incorporated Sanjiang Lake into its sphere of influence. However, due to its limited strength, it dared not seal off the lake and monopolize it. Instead, after development, it repaired some of the remaining immortal mansions under the lake, turning them into Dragon Palace Water Mansions for cultivators to cultivate in, and rented them out.

High-level cultivators with great power naturally looked down on the meager spiritual energy remaining in these water mansions. However, many True Immortal cultivators, especially those who practiced water-attributed techniques or cultivated the laws of water, enjoyed living there for extended periods.

Relying on the steady, though modest, rental income, the Comb Flow Sect managed to live quite comfortably.

One day, at the Zhifeng Hall on Comb Brush Mountain, which received guests, a tall young cultivator with an ordinary appearance arrived. As soon as he entered, he asked to see the Elder Steward, saying he wanted to rent a water mansion for cultivation.

This young man was none other than Han Li.

The Elder Steward was a slightly plump, round-faced old man with a kind and benevolent appearance. Seeing that the visitor had an unremarkable face, plain clothes, and not particularly strong aura, although he did not act dismissively, he secretly held him in low regard.

“Honored guest, you wish to rent a water mansion? You’ve come at just the right time. There are only three vacant water mansions left in Sanjiang Lake. I’ll fetch the map for you to choose from,” the old man said, smiling as he approached.

“No rush. I’ve heard that there are still over a dozen unopened water mansions in Sanjiang Lake. I’d like to choose one from among them,” Han Li said, raising a hand to stop the old man, and smiled.

In truth, there were indeed many water mansions beneath Sanjiang Lake, but after tens of thousands of years of development and organization, most had already been opened. Only a few remained sealed by powerful immortal prohibitions, which the Comb Flow Sect was currently unable to break.

However, the Comb Flow Sect did not spend a large sum to hire experts from outside to break the formations. Instead, they announced to the public that anyone willing to pay the same rent as for other water mansions could qualify to stay in those unopened ones.

Whether one could actually move in depended on the renter’s own ability.

As for any items found within the water mansion, as long as they did not affect the mansion’s continued existence, they could all be kept by the renter.

For a considerable period after this policy was introduced, cultivators often came to rent these unopened water mansions. However, the vast majority failed in their attempts. Among the few who managed to enter, many died inside, unable to get out.

Only a very small number of lucky individuals in history had managed to open a water mansion and return laden with treasures. Yet several of them, after news leaked out, were surrounded and killed by wild cultivators who rushed to the scene, leaving not even their bones behind.

As long as such incidents occurred outside the Comb Flow Sect’s territory, the sect would not interfere, for they had made it clear beforehand that those who wished to enter the unopened water mansions did so at their own risk.

Of course, even if one failed to move in, the rent would not be refunded in the slightest. As a result, the rental income the Comb Flow Sect initially earned from these unopened water mansions was actually much higher than that from the opened ones.

After all, in the world of immortal cultivation, there was never a shortage of people willing to take risks, betting small to win big in search of opportunities and fortunes!

However, such times did not last long.

Over time, most cultivators gradually came to terms with reality and lost interest in taking such risks. The Elder Steward, who was quite experienced, had not seen anyone like Han Li for a long time—someone who, upon arrival, immediately asked to rent an unopened water mansion.

“Hehe, of course, of course! Honored guest, please take a seat here for a moment. Even if you want to rent an unopened water mansion, you still need to look at the map and make a selection, right? Let me go fetch it,” the round-faced old man said, leading Han Li to a side hall to sit down before turning to get the map.

As he turned, he suddenly asked, “Oh, by the way, may I ask your esteemed name, honored guest?”

“Han Li,” Han Li replied casually without looking up.

“So it’s Fellow Daoist Han. A pleasure to meet you, a pleasure,” the old man nodded casually and then turned to leave.

After a moment, the round-faced old man returned to the hall and spread an underwater map of Sanjiang Lake on the table. He briefly explained to Han Li the distribution of the various water mansions and their current rental status.

As Han Li listened to the old man’s words, his eyes roamed back and forth across the map.