Chapter 379: House Arrest

"Although I am confident I can refine this pill, there is one prerequisite that must be stated in advance." Han Li shifted the topic and said to Jiao San.

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Long Wu, feel free to speak. If you have any other conditions, you may also raise them, and I will do my best to satisfy them." Jiao San said solemnly upon hearing this.

"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Jiao San, I do not intend to make any excessive demands. However, refining a completely unfamiliar pill requires a large amount of materials for practice, even for the most skilled alchemist. I believe you understand this." Han Li said slowly.

"Do not worry about the materials; I have already considered this. Here are thirty sets of materials. Just focus on your exploration and attempts." Jiao San's expression relaxed as he took out a storage ring and handed it over.

"It seems I was overthinking." Han Li smiled slightly, took the ring, and put it away without even looking at it.

Since divine sense could not leave the body here, it was inconvenient to inspect, but he assumed there would be no problem.

Moreover, he gained a new appreciation for the wealth of the Reincarnation Palace. Although the materials for refining this pill might not be as rare as those for the Dao Pill, they were still extraordinary. Thirty sets would be an astronomical sum if converted to immortal spirit stones.

"As the saying goes, spiritual materials are easy to obtain, but alchemists are hard to find. You only need to consider how to succeed within ten years. Don't worry about the materials; if these are insufficient, I will find a way to gather more for you." Jiao San smiled, then asked with a serious expression.

"Ten years... To be frank, ten years is too short. I am not entirely confident." Han Li's expression changed slightly as he said with some difficulty.

"Fifteen years at most. This matter is of great importance; please do your best. Afterward, the Reincarnation Palace will not treat you unfairly." Jiao San waved his hand and said solemnly.

"Since you put it that way, I will do my utmost. But as they say, man proposes, heaven disposes. I have only recently become a Dao Alchemist, so you should also make other preparations." Han Li said after a moment's hesitation.

Jiao San just looked at Han Li without speaking.

"Time is pressing, so I won't delay here. I'll take my leave." Han Li clasped his hands and said.

"You wish to leave?" Jiao San suddenly spoke.

"Yes. I will immediately return to my cave to study the pill formula. If I need anything, I will contact you." Han Li nodded.

"There's no need for such trouble. This place has a complete alchemy room and furnace. You can refine pills here in peace. If you need anything, it will be convenient to deliver it to you." Jiao San waved his hand.

"That might not be appropriate. I am more accustomed to refining pills in my own cave." Han Li frowned.

"To be honest, the Black Wind Sea is not very safe now. If a pill tribulation occurs when the pill is completed, you may not be able to escape unscathed as before." Jiao San coughed dryly and said with deep meaning.

"But..." Han Li seemed hesitant.

But before he could finish, Jiao San waved his hand and said coldly:

"If you have no other questions, I will take you to the alchemy room. I believe you will be satisfied."

Han Li had no choice but to nod helplessly.

"Good! Please follow me." Jiao San said, turning and walking outside.

Han Li looked at Jiao San's back, smiled bitterly in his heart, and then followed.

The two soon left the cave. Jiao San directly sacrificed a flying chariot, carrying the two of them toward the edge of the mountain peak. After a moment, they landed halfway up a cloud-piercing peak.

The open space was quite large, surrounded by lush ancient trees. Not far away, a waterfall cascaded down, the sound of splashing water echoing. The environment was quite serene.

A cave entrance was carved into the mountain wall ahead, its door tightly shut. A layer of water-like green light covered the door, with faint runes flowing and flickering continuously, adding a touch of mystery.

Without further ado, Jiao San stepped forward, took out a green token, and shook it slightly. A beam of green light shot out and disappeared into the stone door.

The green light outside the door quickly faded, and the door slowly opened.

"Fellow Daoist Long Wu, you can refine pills here in peace during this time. No one will disturb you." Jiao San turned and said to Han Li.

"Thank you for your trouble." Han Li nodded and stepped into the cave.

The next moment, his brows slightly raised. The restriction that limited divine sense in the outside space had vanished, and his divine sense could now spread freely.

But it was only within the cave; it could not extend outside at all.

Looking around, the entire cave was not large, but it had a complete alchemy room, secret chamber, and herb garden, all very clean and spotless.

"This cave is nice." Han Li withdrew his gaze and said to Jiao San.

"I'm glad you're satisfied. If you need anything, feel free to contact me. I entrust this matter to you." Jiao San finished speaking and turned to leave the cave.

As soon as he stepped out, the door closed directly.

Han Li scanned the door several times, then sighed softly.

It seemed he had been placed under house arrest.

In the following time, he walked around the cave, moving his fingers continuously.

Beams of various colors shot out—rows of formation flags and plates—falling precisely in different parts of the cave, and layers of light screens of various colors flashed briefly.

After about half an hour, Han Li arrived at a secret chamber in the cave and sat down cross-legged.

He first removed the green mask from his face, then took out the red lion-head mask, put it on, and activated a spell.

The mask's surface flashed with red light, then emitted a gentle wave that quickly spread throughout his body.

Han Li's mind stirred.

At that moment, he felt that his entire aura had been perfectly concealed. Compared to the previous green mask, the restriction on this red mask was more exquisite.

Most importantly, the special divine sense fluctuations produced by his cultivation of the Spirit Refining Art were also concealed by this wave.

"It seems Jiao San wasn't lying; the Reincarnation Palace does have some depth." Han Li relaxed and muttered to himself.

Since arriving in the Immortal Realm, every time he had close contact with others, especially those with higher cultivation, he had been on edge, controlling his divine sense fluctuations as much as possible to avoid being discovered cultivating the Spirit Refining Art. Fortunately, so far, he had not encountered anyone like an inspection envoy.

Now with this red mask, even if he encountered an inspection envoy with special monitoring techniques, he should be able to deceive them. He just didn't know if it could fool a higher-level supervisory immortal envoy.

Han Li's eyes flickered a few times, then he slowly shook his head. He formed a hand seal, and a layer of red light emerged on the red mask, condensing into a red task interface phantom before him.

He continuously formed hand seals and issued several tasks, all for finding other materials needed for the Golden Soul Pill.

After doing this, he waved his hand to disperse the red light and took out the gray jade slip containing the fourth layer of the Spirit Refining Art.

Although the alchemy task had a fifteen-year limit, he did not intend to start immediately.

Fifteen years was indeed tight for other Heavenly Alchemists, which was why he had acted as reluctant as possible before Jiao San. For him, however, it was not a big problem.

Due to the crystal wall incident, the time patterns on the True Word Wheel had only recovered a few clusters. But as long as he could restore more than ten more clusters, reaching eighteen, he could meet the requirements for precise control during the critical alchemy process.

Moreover, the refining materials for this pill, similar to the Dao Pill, were simpler than the previous Time Dao Pill. With the True Word Wheel as a trump card and sufficient materials for practice, he could rest easy.

So for now, the priority was to cultivate the Spirit Refining Art and resolve the divine sense隐患.

With this thought, Han Li released his divine sense into the jade slip, carefully examined the fourth layer of the Spirit Refining Art again, then sat cross-legged and slowly began to cultivate according to the fourth-layer formula.

At that moment, Jiao San was walking slowly through a black passage many miles away from Han Li's location, his eyes flickering as if lost in thought.

The passage was not very long, and soon he reached the end, where a three-zhang-tall black stone door appeared before him.

Jiao San waved his hand and cast a spell. The black stone door slowly opened, revealing a spacious hall.

In the center of the hall stood a figure draped in a black cloak, facing away.

On the cloak's cuff was embroidered a cross pattern, emitting faint black light.

Hearing footsteps, the cloaked figure turned around. It was a middle-aged man with an ordinary face, but a very long and deep scar ran from his left temple across his forehead, through his right eye, and down his cheek, making him look somewhat ferocious.

"What are you doing here?" Jiao San asked coldly.

"I came because I have something to discuss with you. Don't worry, no one can detect my whereabouts." The scar-faced man waved his hand and said.

"Any progress on the matter?" Jiao San's expression shifted as he asked.

"As you expected, it is indeed beneath Red Moon Island. However, due to Black Wind Island, our people cannot approach for the time being." The scar-faced man said slowly.

"Black Wind Island? Can they stop us with their people?" Jiao San's voice deepened.

"What if there are Golden Immortal cultivators among the people on Black Wind Island?" The scar-faced man chuckled.

"Could it be..." Jiao San's eyes sharpened.

"Based on what I've learned so far, it should be as you think." The scar-faced man nodded.

"I don't care what methods you use; you must find out all about Red Moon Island before the Void Yuan Pill is refined." Jiao San's gaze hardened as he said firmly.

"Even if you didn't say it, I would do so. I came mainly to confirm one thing: I heard you plan to entrust the task of refining the Void Yuan Pill to a newcomer who just joined the Reincarnation Palace?" The scar-faced man suddenly changed the subject and asked expressionlessly.