Chapter 346: Bounty Hunt

Just as Ouyang Kuishan and the others were sighing with regret, Xiao Jinhan, who was in the main hall of the Candlestick Dao Sect, also had an unusually grim expression.

He had long since risen from his seat and was pacing back and forth with furrowed brows.

After a moment, a white light suddenly rose from his body, floated before him, and transformed into a white light screen.

A white human figure appeared on it, emitting a dazzling white light that made his figure appear somewhat blurry, allowing only a vague judgment that he was a middle-aged man.

Elder Tao.” Xiao Jinhan paused in his steps, forcing a smile as he spoke.

Xiao Jinhan, several months have passed. Have you identified the murderer who killed my son?” the white figure said in a deep voice.

Reporting to the Elder, the one who killed your son was an outer sect elder of the Candlestick Dao Sect named Li Feiyu, who had already defected from the sect at that time. I have sent people everywhere to search for and capture him.” Xiao Jinhan immediately said.

Outer sect elder? An outer sect elder could kill my Yu’er?” the white figure sneered.

This person is no ordinary elder. Investigation shows that he joined the Candlestick Dao Sect less than a thousand years ago, and at the time of entry, he was still at the early True Immortal stage. However, now it is speculated that his cultivation has reached the late True Immortal stage, and he cultivates the Candlestick Dao Sect’s *True Word Wheel Sutra*. Moreover… this person also seems to have connections with Bai Linyan. I suspect that he is inextricably linked to the Reincarnation Palace.” Xiao Jinhan said hastily.

I don’t care who he is. Since I entrusted my son to you, and now he has been killed, Xiao Jinhan, you had better give me a proper explanation for this matter, or else…” the white figure said angrily, his tone becoming very harsh by the end.

Please rest assured, Elder Tao, I will certainly give you a satisfactory answer.” Xiao Jinhan’s face stiffened, and he took a deep breath, slightly lowering his head as he spoke.

The white figure snorted again, then vanished in a flash of light.

Xiao Jinhan raised his head, his face faintly livid.

Guards!” he suddenly shouted.

A figure flew in from outside and landed in the hall, revealing a golden-robed youth.

Greetings, Palace Master.

…

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, two years had gone by.

Outside Thunderclap City, a giant boat slowly docked. After a moment, figures flew out from the boat one after another, landing on a huge pier.

Han Li, disguised as a dark-faced burly man, mingled with the crowd and disembarked. Looking at Thunderclap City before him, a trace of reminiscence flashed deep in his eyes.

At this moment, his aura was completely restrained, emitting only the level of an early Mahayana stage cultivator, making him inconspicuous among the many cultivators.

Han Li’s gaze swept left and right without leaving a trace. Seeing no unusual situation on the pier, he relaxed slightly and quickly headed into the city.

Thunderclap City had not changed much from when he had visited before. The sky-covering Thunderclap Tree above, the streets crowded with cultivators—it was as lively as ever.

Han Li pondered for a moment, then walked in a certain direction.

Before long, he arrived in front of a golden building, which was none other than the Thunderclap City Immortal Inn.

Han Li took a light breath and stepped inside.

The Thunderclap City Immortal Inn was as bustling as before, with many cultivators coming and going. Various tasks appeared in turn on the task wall in the hall, attracting most of the people inside to crowd around it.

Mingling with the crowd, Han Li also approached the task wall and looked up.

With just a glance, his heart sank.

In a very prominent position on the task board, there was a row of conspicuous golden characters:

“Wanted: Capture of Candlestick Dao Sect defector elder Li Feiyu. The capturer will receive a joint reward of 20,000 immortal jade stones from the Immortal Palace and the Candlestick Dao Sect. Providing accurate information will also earn a reward of 2,000 immortal jade stones!”

Behind the task was an image of Han Li.

“It seems things are indeed troublesome. The Immortal Inn is spread across all major continents. Since this bounty order appears here, it is likely the same on other continents.” Crab Taoist’s voice sounded in Han Li’s mind.

“Twenty thousand immortal jade stones! The Immortal Palace really thinks highly of me.” Han Li’s expression remained unchanged, but inwardly he sneered.

“Li Feiyu? Who is this person, to be wanted by the Immortal Palace for twenty thousand immortal jade stones?”

“Don’t you know? A few years ago, there was a rebellion in the Candlestick Dao Sect. It is said that the First Dao Master colluded with an evil organization, attempting to harm the entire Immortal Domain. Thanks to the timely discovery by the Immortal Palace’s Palace Master Xiao, the plot was foiled. This Li Feiyu is probably also an accomplice of the Candlestick Dao Sect’s First Dao Master.”

“I see. Such accomplices aiding the wicked are truly detestable.”

“Indeed! Such a large amount of immortal jade stones—this person must be of great importance, likely having committed some major crime!”

A discussion arose among the nearby crowd.

Han Li watched for a while, then wandered around the Immortal Inn for a bit before unhurriedly turning and walking out.

Although he believed that the Immortal Palace could not find him, with his wanted posters everywhere, he could not afford to be careless. He did not think he had the strength to confront the entire North Cold Immortal Palace.

After leaving the Immortal Inn, Han Li made a round of various material shops in Thunderclap City.

Thunderclap City was an important city connecting the Wasteland Continent and the Ancient Cloud Continent, with a wide variety of materials, even richer than some major cities in the Ancient Cloud Continent.

He planned to return to the Black Wind Sea, and it would be inconvenient to purchase things there; he couldn’t always rely on the Wuchang Alliance. So he decided to buy a batch here to prepare for future needs.

After doing this, he left Thunderclap City.

At this moment, he was no longer the dark-faced burly man but had transformed into a scholarly white-faced scholar, with his cultivation level reduced to the Body Integration stage.

After a brief pause outside the city, he turned into an inconspicuous green light and flew unhurriedly into the distance.

“Doesn’t Thunderclap City have a teleportation array? Why don’t you use it to leave? That would be much more convenient.” Crab Taoist’s voice sounded in Han Li’s mind.

“Thunderclap City is a famous city on the Wasteland Continent. If the Immortal Palace is looking for me, this place will likely be under their close watch. There might be prohibitions or spiritual treasures that can detect one’s true appearance. To be safe, it’s better to be cautious.” Han Li said slowly.

He had already made up his mind not only about Thunderclap City but also to avoid using teleportation arrays as much as possible in the future.

With his current flying speed, crossing the Wasteland Continent would only take a few years.

“You are quite cautious. Even when buying things in the city, you changed your appearance several times.”

“It’s better to be cautious; there’s no harm in it.”

As the two talked, Han Li had already flown far enough. After confirming that no one was following, he immediately increased his speed, turning into a green rainbow that shot rapidly into the distance.

What Han Li did not know was that his cautious actions had indeed saved him from a risk of exposure.

The North Cold Immortal Palace had expended great effort to find him. Besides searching extensively for Han Li everywhere, they had also added special sensing prohibitions in the teleportation halls of major cities.

These prohibitions were designed by experts using residual aura collected from Han Li’s battle that day, capable of resonating with Han Li’s aura.

Although there was no absolute certainty—since cultivators at the True Immortal level all have means to alter their auras—this was the best the Immortal Palace could do.

To set up these sensing prohibitions, not only did the North Cold Immortal Palace spend a large amount of immortal jade stones, but Xiao Jinhan even used his personal savings.

As for placing these prohibitions in the teleportation halls rather than elsewhere, Xiao Jinhan had his considerations. When a person is teleported, they instinctively circulate their energy to protect themselves. That instant is the best opportunity for the sensing prohibitions to detect them.

The area around Thunderclap City was densely populated, so Han Li did not fly at full speed. He only increased his speed to that of an ordinary True Immortal and tried to travel through sparsely populated wilderness regions.

Only after gradually leaving the densely populated areas did he slowly increase his speed.

Although the Wasteland Continent was very dangerous, with Han Li’s current strength, he naturally did not need to worry much.

After traveling in this manner for about three years, he finally arrived at Seaside City.

Han Li did not enter the city. Instead, he hovered in midair, looking down at the small city below.

After a moment, he turned and looked in a certain direction, where the teleportation array leading to the Black Wind Sea was located.

“Finally back.” Han Li let out a long breath and muttered to himself.

The next moment, his figure flickered, turning into a blurry green shadow that flew toward that location.

Although many years had passed, he naturally had not forgotten where the teleportation array was. In a short while, he flew nearby.

“Eh!”

When he landed and revealed himself, he frowned slightly.

The seaside cave from back then had vanished, replaced by a city by the sea.

This city was not large, only about a dozen li in size. Its walls were built with white giant bricks, about twenty to thirty zhang high. The entire city was covered by a thick, white, hazy light screen, emitting a soft white glow.

Through the light screen, one could see tall buildings inside, all shops. In the center of the city stood a white tower, even taller than the city walls, looking quite majestic.

The city had only one gate, above which were written three large characters: “Guanlan City.”

Han Li swept his divine sense over it, then flew down and landed outside the city gate.

At this moment, a long queue was lined up at the city gate, with many cultivators waiting to enter.

Han Li had transformed into a yellow-faced young man, displaying a cultivation level of the Body Integration stage, making him inconspicuous. He took his place at the end of the queue.

“This fellow daoist, you look unfamiliar. Is this your first time in Guanlan City?” The person in front, a slightly plump young man with a round face and dark skin, turned around and spoke cheerfully, acting as if they were old friends.

“Indeed.” Han Li nodded and replied indifferently.

“Oh, where are you from, fellow daoist? Are you also here to go out to sea and hunt demon beasts?” The round-faced young man seemed unfazed by Han Li’s coldness, his smile undiminished.

Han Li did not answer. He glanced at the man and noticed that he was at the late Body Integration stage.

The round-faced young man stiffened slightly under Han Li’s gaze, then chuckled dryly: “Haha, I was too forward. My name is Qin Zhong, and I have some reputation in Guanlan City. If you ever want to form a team to hunt demon beasts here, feel free to look me up.”