Chapter 365: Undercurrents

For a moment, gray light and golden light interwove and clashed in midair, and a loud humming sound filled the void, accompanied by bursts of violent primal world energy.

The two seemed evenly matched, temporarily locked in a stalemate.

But as time passed, both the gray light released by the Yuanhe Five Extremes Mountain and the golden light pillar continuously weakened.

Seeing this, Han Li's expression turned somewhat grim.

The immortal spiritual power within him was now nearly depleted, and even replenishing it with immortal origin stones could not sustain him for long.

Moreover, what was more troublesome was that although the Yuanhe Five Extremes Mountain could resist the golden light, the law power contained within it was being gradually consumed as the golden light pillar weakened, and had now been nearly drained by more than half. It probably wouldn't hold out much longer and would need to be nurtured again for a period to slowly recover.

Han Li took a deep breath, holding an immortal origin stone in one hand to continuously replenish his immortal power, while the other hand kept forming hand seals, injecting immortal power into the gray mountain peak in midair.

Before long, the gray mountain peak in midair suddenly trembled with a flicker of light, and the gray light it emitted rapidly dimmed.

Clearly, the law power within the Yuanhe Five Extremes Mountain had finally been exhausted and could no longer hold out. In just a few breaths, the gray light on the mountain's surface vanished without a trace.

Fortunately, by then only a remnant of the golden light pillar remained.

The moment the gray light disappeared, the golden light pillar instantly struck the Dao Pillar.

Boom!

The Dao Pillar immediately trembled violently again, and the two golden Dao patterns flickered wildly.

At this point, Han Li's immortal spiritual power was also nearly depleted. His pupils sharply contracted, and the True Word Wheel behind him once again blazed with light. A dazzling golden light surged out, instantly transforming into dozens of golden threads that swiftly wrapped around the Dao Pillar, layer upon layer, forming a golden sphere the size of a fist.

His face was deathly pale, his immortal power completely exhausted, and he could do nothing more.

Rumble!

The golden sphere trembled repeatedly, its emitted light flickering wildly, emitting a muffled sound like thunder, as if it might burst at any moment.

Although Han Li was anxious, he was now powerless.

At that moment, a figure flashed behind him, and the Crab Immortal appeared.

The Crab Immortal waved both hands, and a brilliant golden-yellow light burst forth. Two beams of light shot from his palms and plunged into Han Li's body.

A surge of pure immortal spiritual power instantly flooded into Han Li's empty dantian.

Han Li rejoiced inwardly and quickly began forming hand seals.

The trembling of the golden sphere gradually ceased, and the wildly flickering golden light on its surface slowly dimmed.

Seeing this, Han Li finally let out a long breath and urged inwardly.

The True Word Wheel behind him flashed and disappeared, and the golden threads wrapping the Dao Pillar also vanished, revealing the Dao Pillar within.

After undergoing two tribulations, the golden Dao Pillar appeared even brighter than before, and the fluctuations of time power it emitted were also stronger.

But Han Li didn't have time to examine it closely, for although the tribulation seemed brief, it had caused such a commotion that it had likely attracted the attention of nearby cultivators.

He quickly took a pill and swallowed it, then flipped his hand to produce a jade box, carefully storing the Dao Pillar inside. He then nodded gratefully at the Crab Immortal behind him.

"Let's leave quickly. I sense someone heading this way," said the Crab Immortal, his form turning into a golden light that merged into Han Li's body.

Han Li said nothing more and immediately waved his hand, releasing a green light that gathered all the treasures on the ground, including the silver furnace.

Then he swept his divine sense once more over every part of the cave dwelling, ensuring nothing that could reveal his identity remained. His form shot out and appeared outside the cave in a flash.

By now, the golden clouds in the sky had completely vanished, and the sky had cleared again, though the nearby sea was still churning somewhat.

Han Li waved his hand, and all the array flags and plates near the cave dwelling flew back, turning into streaks of light that vanished into his sleeve.

He formed hand seals, and golden lightning flickered around him, about to activate the Lightning Array to leave.

At that moment, the void not far away rippled, and several green cyclones materialized out of thin air, emitting a wailing howl.

The green cyclones connected with each other, quickly forming a green array, with spatial power surging within it.

Seeing this, Han Li frowned.

This green array was very similar to his Lightning Array, but this person used a combination of wind-attribute power and spatial power, and it was quite impressive.

Activating the Lightning Array would take some time, and teleporting now was too late. Even if he could escape, the other party would detect him.

His mind raced, and he immediately stopped his departure, instead turning and flying back toward the cave dwelling.

At the same time, green light flashed on his face, and the Wuchang Alliance mask appeared, instantly changing his appearance to that of a middle-aged burly man.

Just as Han Li finished these preparations, a figure flickered within the green array not far away, and a black-clad man emerged. He was tall and thin, with sword-like brows slanting into his temples and narrow, elongated eyes that gave an exceptionally sharp impression.

This man exuded a formidable aura, clearly a late-stage True Immortal cultivator.

Han Li stopped and looked at the man with a surprised expression.

The tall, thin man also looked at Han Li, then quickly scanned him up and down, frowning slightly.

"This fellow daoist looks quite unfamiliar. I am Miaoyan, cultivating in the nearby sea area. I saw the unusual phenomenon here and came to check. May I ask your esteemed name?" Han Li said with a smile, cupping his hands in a familiar manner.

Though his face was full of smiles, he was quite surprised inwardly.

He had never seen this person in the Black Wind Sea before. Where had another late-stage True Immortal appeared from?

As far as he knew, among the native cultivators of the Black Wind Sea, only the island masters of Black Wind Island and Qingyu Island might be at the late True Immortal stage.

However, these two major forces were shrouded in shadows, far more complex than they appeared on the surface.

While these thoughts flashed through Han Li's mind, the tall, thin man glanced around briefly, then fixed his gaze back on Han Li and said somewhat stiffly:

"Ge Yu."

"So it's Fellow Daoist Ge. Did you also come to investigate the unusual phenomenon here?" Han Li asked with an unchanged smile.

Ge Yu nodded, then looked deeply at Han Li and said, "I sensed the situation here and immediately used a teleportation array to rush over. I thought I was quite fast, but it seems I was still a step behind Fellow Daoist Miaoyan."

"Hehe, my cave dwelling is nearby. As soon as I felt the disturbance, I came immediately, so naturally I was faster," Han Li said, his smile unchanged.

"Oh, is that so..." Ge Yu said slowly, then moved and flew down toward the cave dwelling below.

A strange glint flashed in Han Li's eyes, and he followed closely, landing and pretending to inspect the cave dwelling.

He had already erased all traces here, so there was no need to worry about anything being discovered.

The two quickly searched the cave dwelling but naturally found nothing.

"It seems we were too late. The person here has already left. I wonder what they did to cause such a grand phenomenon? Could it be that a rare treasure appeared here? But it doesn't seem quite like it," Han Li said with a puzzled expression.

Hearing this, Ge Yu glanced at him but said nothing.

Just then, several streaks of light appeared on the distant horizon. After flickering a few times, they flew closer, revealing several cultivators.

These people were all True Immortals, but all at the early stage. Sensing the cultivation levels of Ge Yu and Han Li, their expressions changed, and they stood at a distance, not daring to approach.

Before long, lights flickered from other directions as well, and one after another, cultivators flew over.

Seeing this, Han Li's expression remained unchanged, but his mind stirred.

Most of these cultivators were not Earth Immortals, clearly from outside. It seemed the situation in the Black Wind Sea was far more complex than he had imagined. During the years he had been away, many True Immortals must have entered this originally isolated place.

Could it all be for the so-called hunting, or perhaps the emergence of some relic?

But based on what he had seen and heard upon first arriving in the Immortal Realm, although the Black Wind Sea was better than the Spirit Realm, its resources were still extremely scarce throughout the entire North Cold Immortal Domain, even inferior to the Huanglan Continent.

"It seems there's nothing here. I don't want to see too many people, so I'll take my leave now," Han Li said with a slight frown, then cupped his hands briefly to Ge Yu and transformed into a rainbow that shot into the distance, disappearing over the horizon in an instant.

Ge Yu watched Han Li leave, stood still for a moment, then green light flashed on his body, forming a green cyclone.

The cyclone spun, wrapping his body and turning into a green phantom that vanished from the spot without a trace.

The other cultivators nearby, seeing the two leave, finally flew toward the island.

...

On the sea surface countless miles away from the island, thick black mist drifted everywhere, extremely dense, and the sky was also gloomy.

The void above the sea rippled, and several golden lightning bolts materialized, coalescing into a lightning array, within which Han Li's figure appeared.

He released his divine sense and relaxed.

After leaving the island, he had quickly teleported away using the Lightning Array, then made several more teleportations through the Black Wind Sea before arriving here.

Even if someone had been secretly tracking him, they should now be completely shaken off.

He looked around, then suddenly turned and flew into the sea below, quickly diving to the seabed, where he sat cross-legged.

A tingling pain spread throughout his body, a consequence of borrowing the Crab Immortal's immortal power.

He waved his hand to set up two barriers, took out a pill and swallowed it, then closed his eyes to begin his cultivation.

Three days and three nights later.

Han Li opened his eyes, stood up, and let out a long breath.

The discomfort in his body had completely disappeared. Moreover, having experienced this tribulation, he had gained some additional insights into time power, which would greatly aid him in comprehending the Time Law after taking the Dao Pillar.

With this thought, he couldn't help but touch his storage pouch again, a hint of excitement flashing in his eyes.