Chapter 1249: The Closest Person

A figure flickered in the void. Immortal Venerable Miaofa hurried in pursuit, but Han Li and the others were already gone, leaving only a faint scorched smell lingering in the air.

Her expression shifted slightly, a shadow passing through her eyes. She flickered and chased forward.

Over a hundred li away, above an octagonal pavilion deep in a dense forest, a sudden flash of lightning appeared. A silver lightning array materialized out of thin air, and four figures fell from it—none other than Han Li and his group.

They quickly steadied themselves and landed at the edge of the pavilion.

After stabilizing, Han Li immediately scanned the surroundings. The forest was deep, with only a quiet path leading here, and no signs of others ahead or behind.

"Jin Tong, can you tell where this is?" Han Li asked.

"How would I know? I was just passing through under escort back then, not sightseeing. Now who knows where we've been teleported?" Jin Tong puffed out her cheeks, somewhat sulkily.

"Maybe we've been teleported out of the Nine Yuan Palace," Xiao Bai speculated wishfully.

"Xiao Bai, are you daydreaming again? Look up, what's that?" Jin Tong slapped Xiao Bai on the head and pointed at the sky.

Xiao Bai followed her finger and saw that the sky above the forest was still covered by a golden barrier. Clearly, they were still within the Nine Yuan Palace grounds.

"The barrier above the Nine Yuan Palace is extraordinary, almost isolating this area into a small world. My lightning array technique can't penetrate it, and even the teleportation distance is greatly compressed," Han Li said thoughtfully.

"See? You should have listened to me, the celestial maiden. If we'd just killed her, none of this would have happened," Jin Tong spread her hands, indignant.

"The ancestral hall of the Nine Yuan Temple is inside the Nine Yuan Palace. From what we've learned, Pure Jun True Person is likely stationed there. If we cause a commotion and attract him, things will turn very bad," Han Li frowned.

"This..." Jin Tong deflated a bit, hesitating.

"Alright, arguing about this now is useless. Let's find our bearings and continue trying to escape. Once the chaos caused by the Reincarnation Palace is suppressed, escaping will be even more impossible," Han Li sighed.

"Fellow Daoist Han is right. We should find a way out quickly," Lan Yan added hastily.

Having committed such a grave offense, she could no longer stay in the Nine Yuan Temple. She had to take Lan Yuanzi and flee the sect, trying to escape to some remote lower realm.

"We don't even know where we are now. How can we find a way?" Jin Tong scratched her head.

"No matter. When I set up the lightning array, I deliberately controlled it to teleport us westward. If we head east, we'll return to places we've been before, and then it'll be easier to find the way," Han Li said.

"The master thinks far ahead," Xiao Bai sighed in admiration.

"I feel like since I last saw you, your skill at brown-nosing has become more refined," Jin Tong remarked with a strange expression.

"Hehe, isn't that thanks to your excellent teaching, boss..." Xiao Bai forced a smile as she leaned toward him.

With that, they continued through the dense forest, heading east.

After about half an incense stick's time, Han Li, walking at the front, suddenly frowned and raised a fist, signaling Jin Tong and the others to stop.

Then he held his breath, pricking up his ears to listen ahead.

"Fellow Daoist Han, what's wrong?" Lan Yan's heart tightened as she asked.

Han Li didn't answer immediately but listened carefully for a moment before turning back to them:

"Far ahead in the forest, people are fighting. From the sounds, there are quite a few. It seems members of the Reincarnation Palace have been discovered and are being surrounded. We can't go straight through; we need to take a detour," Han Li said.

"Strange, why can't I hear anything?" Jin Tong asked, puzzled.

At Jin Tong's words, Lan Yan and Xiao Bai also said they heard nothing.

A flicker of doubt crossed Han Li's mind, but then his brow lifted as he understood: it must be due to the strange condition his body had developed after the incident with the evil avatar.

"Regardless, let's avoid that area and detour southeast," Han Li said.

Lan Yan nodded first, and Jin Tong and Xiao Bai had no objections, so they turned southeast.

However, after taking the detour for a while, several beams of light suddenly shot up from deep in the forest, speeding away in the opposite direction, followed closely by over a dozen figures in pursuit.

Han Li and the others suppressed their auras completely and cautiously peered at the fleeing lights.

The pursuers all wore the robes of core elders and disciples of the Nine Yuan Temple, while those in front were clearly from the Reincarnation Palace.

Seeing this, Han Li's brow twitched in surprise.

Among the fleeing group, the two at the front wore black dragon-head and ape-head masks, and their aura fluctuations were very familiar—they were none other than Jiao San and Wu Yang.

Close behind them were a man with disheveled hair and a rabbit-head mask, and a woman in a black robe with a veiled bamboo hat. At first glance, both seemed somewhat familiar.

But both figures flashed past in a fleeting glimpse, giving Han Li no chance to examine them closely.

The person at the very rear of the group, without any concealment at all, showed his true face, wearing a gentle smile as he occasionally struck at the pursuers behind, acting as a rearguard.

He was none other than Lu Chuanfeng, the Lord of the Immortal Palace of the Great Golden Source Immortal Domain.

"They have already infiltrated the Nine Yuan Palace..." Lan Yan's expression was complex, her heart shaken with shock.

The moment Han Li and his companions crossed paths with them lasted only a few breaths. Soon, those people vanished from their sight, with only intermittent rumbling sounds coming from ahead.

"It seems the chaos in the Nine Yuan Palace won't end anytime soon. For us, that's good news. Let's go." Han Li called out, preparing to lead the group onward.

Just then, a strange fluctuation stirred in the void ahead, carrying a mixed aura within the gusting wind.

The instant Han Li detected that trace of aura, he froze in place.

With the arrival of that aura, the figure of the woman in the veiled bamboo hat flashed into his mind once more.

Han Li frowned deeply, continuously recalling the woman's figure, and his heartbeat involuntarily quickened.

"Is it her? Could it really be her..."

He abruptly turned his head, gazing in the direction those people had flown, the question repeating in his mind.

"Fellow Daoist Han, time is pressing. What's wrong with you?" Lan Yan, seeing his strange expression, couldn't help asking.

Jin Tong was also extremely astonished; rarely had she seen such a complex expression on Han Li's face—excitement, doubt, reminiscence...

"Master..." Xiao Bai couldn't help calling out.

"I have something I need to confirm. I don't plan to leave immediately." Han Li's face turned serious as he spoke.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you... why is that?" Lan Yan exclaimed in shock.

"It's a personal matter, I can't explain it in detail. If you're unwilling to stay, we'll part ways here." Han Li said directly without further explanation.

"Fellow Daoist Han has given me and my brother a new lease on life. I had hoped to repay you somewhat, but now, staying by your side, I'm probably just a burden. I won't hold you back any longer." Lan Yan, after a moment's thought, said.

"Lan Yuanzi's soul is essentially fine now. As for what to do next, once you enter the Flower Branch Cave Heaven, ask Ti Hun." With that, Han Li raised his hand and waved, and a silver light door appeared before her.

Lan Yan bowed to Han Li and walked into the light door.

"Master, why have we suddenly stopped?" Jin Tong asked as the silver light door closed.

"Among those people from the Reincarnation Palace just now, I sensed a trace of an old acquaintance's aura... Although it's very different from back then, the feeling it gives me can touch the deepest imprint in my sea of consciousness. Even if it's not her, it must be related to her in some way." Han Li said after a moment's deliberation.

"Her? What old acquaintance is worth such a risk?" Xiao Bai couldn't help asking.

"She is the person closest to me." A hint of a smile appeared in Han Li's eyes as he said.

Jin Tong's eyes slowly widened, her heart even more astonished. If his previous expression was something she had rarely seen, then the look in Han Li's eyes at this moment was something she had never witnessed before.

"Since she is so important to you, let's go after them and see." Jin Tong's eyes flickered as she spoke.

As they were speaking, two more streaks of light flew overhead.

Han Li's heart tightened, and he quickly examined them cautiously.

The two figures were not unfamiliar to him: one was Huo Yuan, the Mountain Lord of the Hundred Creations Mountain, and the other was Chi Meng.

However, the attention of those two seemed to be focused on tracking Jiao San's group, and they did not notice Han Li and his companions hidden in the dense forest below.

"How did they get in?" Xiao Bai breathed a sigh of relief after they flew far away, then asked.

"It seems they followed Jiao San's group. But instead of helping the Nine Yuan Temple, they are sneaking around like this, probably with some ulterior motive." Han Li said.

With that, Han Li's mind stirred, and he waved his hand to reopen the silver light door.

Lan Yan walked out slowly, her expression still somewhat uneasy.

"All settled?" Han Li asked.

"Fellow Daoist Ti Hun has given me all the instructions. Thank you, Fellow Daoist Han." Lan Yan bowed again.

"Good. From here, continue along our original direction, and you should reach the border area of the Nine Yuan Palace." Han Li said.

Lan Yan turned her hand and produced a jade slip, handing it to Han Li, saying:

"This contains a map of the parts of the Nine Yuan Temple that I know. Drawn in haste, it's not very detailed. I hope it can be of some help when you leave the Nine Yuan Palace."

"Thank you. Fellow Daoist Lan, may our immortal paths be long, and fate bring us together again." Han Li took the jade slip and said sincerely.