Chapter 272: Reversal of the True Wheel

Twenty-five clusters of Dao patterns?

A flicker of surprise passed through Han Li's eyes. With blue light shimmering in his gaze, he carefully counted the translucent patterns on the wheel again, finding that the Time Dao patterns on the wheel had indeed become twenty-five clusters.

Could it be that the Truth Eye also had the ability to absorb Time Power?

He did not know whether the added Dao patterns were temporary or permanent. If the latter, it would be utterly astonishing.

At this thought, Han Li's heart could not help but pound.

"What a pity. I only have this one crystal grain on hand. To try again, I'll have to wait until next month... As for the Earthly Immortal avatar, I'll suspend it for a while." Han Li sighed, suppressing his excitement, and with a single gesture, he withdrew the True Word Wheel back into his body.

Then, he reached into his robe and took out the small dark green bottle hanging from his neck.

Speaking of which, this object, which had accompanied him since the beginning of his cultivation, was the one that contained the strongest Time Power and was also the treasure he most wanted to understand from beginning to end.

He brought the bottle close to his eyes, staring at the leaf-shaped patterns on its surface, a solemn expression appearing in his gaze.

This Vial of Time was unlike other things. It was his greatest secret and his most important treasure. Although the earlier incident with the crystal grain had not caused any adverse effects, it still made him somewhat worried. If something unexpected were to happen to the Vial of Time, the loss would outweigh the gain.

After much deliberation, he decided to give it a try. For one, he was very eager to uncover the origins of the Vial of Time, and for another, he did not believe that such a high-level treasure could be easily damaged.

Having made up his mind, Han Li placed the small bottle on the ground in front of him, activated the Truth Eye, and moved his gaze toward the bottle's surface.

The pale golden light projected by the golden vertical eye fell upon the dark green bottle. The bottle immediately trembled slightly, floated up gracefully, and hovered in midair, rotating slowly.

Han Li's body tensed, his face full of tension, as he stared motionlessly at the bottle through the Truth Eye.

Just then, a white light the size of a grain of rice seemed to ignite inside the bottle, illuminating it completely from the inside out, making the leaf patterns on its surface appear vividly green, as if they were real.

Just as Han Li expected a phantom image to appear, the light on the bottle suddenly turned dark green, like a deep vortex, directly swallowing the light projected by the golden vertical eye.

Startled, he was about to close the vertical eye, but found that the bottle only reacted this much and had no further changes.

After waiting for a while and seeing that nothing particularly unusual happened, Han Li breathed a sigh of relief. After a moment's deliberation, he once again urged his immortal spiritual power, activating the cluster of Dao patterns that had just appeared.

The twenty-five clusters of Dao patterns lit up simultaneously, and the light of the golden vertical eye flourished once more, once again shining on the Vial of Time.

This time, however, something unexpected occurred.

The surface of the dark green bottle flashed brightly. After first swallowing the golden light, it then reflected a green beam from within the bottle, which shot straight toward the golden vertical eye.

Han Li was alarmed. Although this green beam did not seem fast, he inexplicably felt unable to stop it.

The green beam silently landed on the golden vertical eye, dyeing it emerald green, causing the entire True Word Wheel to tremble violently. The golden light it emitted began to twist and blur, becoming unstable.

It seemed as if the entire wheel might collapse at any moment.

Seeing this, Han Li hurriedly tried to stop the wheel, but as he cast his spell, his expression changed. A devouring force had emerged from within the wheel, frantically draining his immortal spiritual power without pause, and he felt unable to stop it.

He groaned inwardly but dared not cease.

As his immortal spiritual power continued to pour in, the frequency of the wheel's vibrations gradually slowed, which eased his mind slightly.

After a full incense stick's worth of time, until two-thirds of Han Li's immortal spiritual power had been absorbed, the wheel finally stopped trembling and became calm. The green light on its surface also dissipated.

At that moment, the Truth Eye was forcibly closed as well.

Han Li breathed a sigh of relief. After confirming that the wheel and the Truth Eye were not seriously damaged, he somewhat fearfully withdrew the True Word Wheel into his body. Then he quickly grabbed the bottle and carefully examined it several times. Only after confirming that it had no damage did he fully relax.

"It seems I have always underestimated you. You are fine, but I have suffered a hidden loss. However, once the Truth Eye improves in the future, I can try again more boldly." Han Li stroked the bottle in his hand, smiled wryly, and murmured to himself.

After a long moment, he put away the small bottle, sat cross-legged again, and closed his eyes. In his mind, the image of the stone tablet from the secret realm reappeared, with the three-tiered mantra of the True Word Wheel Transformation Sutra recorded on it in order.

The first-tier mantra went without saying—Han Li had long since mastered it and committed it to memory. He carefully examined the second and third tiers of the功法, trying to find answers within them, to see if the later tiers recorded anything more related to the True Eye.

He sat there for a full seven days and seven nights.

During this time, he meticulously reviewed both the second and third tiers of the功法.

In the end, he found nothing. Aside from the content recorded in the True Eye secret art, no other part of the功法 mentioned anything more about the True Eye.

Han Li slowly opened his eyes, stretched, and stood up from the ground.

Although he hadn't found the answer he sought, he showed no sign of disappointment; instead, there was a hint of delight deep in his eyes.

Because during his study of the功法, he had summoned the True Word Wheel several times for comparison and reference. He found that the twenty-fifth time pattern on it still existed, showing no sign of fading, and like the other twenty-four, it flickered as the wheel turned.

Moreover, he could sense a slight increase in the flow rate of time within the range of the golden ripples emitted by the wheel—small, but real.

In other words, this time pattern born from the True Eye absorbing the crystal grains condensed by the Gourd Vase was likely permanent. Of course, to fully confirm this, he would need to observe it over a longer period.

But regardless, this discovery thrilled him.

Beyond that, he had not come away empty-handed. While examining the third-tier功法, he also found an unexpected bonus.

The third-tier mantra included a divine ability called "Reverse True Wheel." Once mastered, it could produce an effect completely opposite to the original function of the True Word Wheel, turning deceleration into acceleration.

However, when this divine ability was activated, it did not act on the enemy but on the caster himself. According to the功法, one needed to draw the True Word Wheel into the body and make it reverse, thereby instantly accelerating the flow of time around oneself, thus enhancing one's own speed.

To use this divine ability, there was also a prerequisite: the True Word Wheel must have condensed at least eighteen time patterns. The level of功法 cultivation seemed less relevant.

According to the original True Word Wheel Sutra, only by mastering the third-tier功法 could one possibly reach eighteen time patterns, meaning it was naturally impossible to perform in the second tier.

But he had already condensed a full twenty-five time patterns, so in theory, he could attempt to cultivate and perform the Reverse True Wheel.

Thus, his original plan to begin secluded cultivation of the second-tier功法 was now set aside; he decided to first master this divine ability.

After all, if this method succeeded, his strength would immediately increase significantly!

With this thought, Han Li sat cross-legged again on the spot and closed his eyes.

After adjusting for several days to bring himself to peak condition, Han Li began his secluded cultivation once more.

The Reverse True Wheel—this divine ability was easy to describe but extremely difficult to practice.

Because it operated in a direction completely opposite to the original运转 of the True Word Wheel Sutra, the insights accumulated during previous cultivation were not only useless but also became a constraint holding him back.

Inside the secret chamber, Han Li sat cross-legged, his hands forming hand seals. Behind him, the True Word Wheel spun slowly, emitting a faint golden light. Eighteen time patterns lit up simultaneously, emanating strange ripples that enveloped the entire chamber.

At that moment, he brought his hands together, fingertips touching, then folded two fingers down and turned his hands downward, forming a strange hand seal. A chanting sound rose from his mouth.

The True Word Wheel behind him trembled slightly, its humming gradually diminishing, and its rotation slowed, as if about to hover in midair.

Then, Han Li changed his hand seals again and softly uttered the word "Go."

The wheel, which had nearly stopped, immediately began to spin rapidly again, but in the opposite direction.

Han Li felt a surge of joy and was about to try drawing the wheel into his body when suddenly a tightness struck his chest, and a mouthful of blood rushed to his throat.

He released his hand seals, and the True Word Wheel behind him shook violently, then reverted to its original state and returned to his body on its own.

"As expected, it's not easy. Just reversing the flow of immortal spiritual power is hard to master. It seems it will take hundreds of attempts and gradual adjustments before I can succeed," Han Li said with a wry smile, sitting up slightly and wiping the trace of blood from the corner of his mouth.

Just now, the immortal spiritual power flowing unevenly in his body had clashed. If he hadn't stopped the功法 in time, he might have suffered internal injuries.

After resting briefly and adjusting the flow of immortal spiritual power in his body, Han Li summoned the True Word Wheel again.