Chapter 394: A Temporary Farewell

Upon hearing Hu Yan's words, Han Li felt a sudden realization.

He hadn't expected that this Painting of the Cold Nether Mountains and Rivers had such a background; no wonder at the auction back then, that mysterious female cultivator in a red robe had spared no expense to bid on it. He just wondered who that woman really was.

"Senior just mentioned that the Candle Dragon Sect also had this fragment... Could it be..." Han Li asked after a moment of thought.

"That's right. The Candle Dragon Sect no longer has the Painting of the Cold Nether Mountains and Rivers. It was always kept by Sect Master Baili. Now that Sect Master Baili and I have left the sect, naturally we brought it out," Hu Yan said with a chuckle.

"Speaking of this, I recall how prosperous our Candle Dragon Sect was back then, standing alongside the Cangliu Palace and the Fuling Sect as three dominant powers. We had thirteen Golden Immortal sect masters, a thousand True Immortals gathered, countless smaller vassal forces, and could even rival the North Cold Immortal Palace. If Sect Master Ouyang and the others hadn't colluded with the Immortal Palace from within, what could the North Cold Immortal Palace have done to us?" Han Li shook his head and sighed softly.

Hu Yan and Yun Ni's expressions darkened, clearly still harboring resentment over the matter.

"What you saw was mostly just the surface. The sect had long ceased to be what it once was. Among the thirteen Golden Immortal sect masters, there had long been divisions due to disputes over fundamental principles, with countless open and covert struggles. Without Sect Master Baili holding things together, we would have been left far behind by the Cangliu Palace and the Fuling Sect... Let's not dwell on this; the important matter is at hand." Hu Yan sneered a few times and said no more.

After a pause, he moved his lips, chanting silently, and his ten fingers changed like spinning wheels. Beams of blue light shot from his hands, coalescing into the phantom of a circular altar-shaped formation, radiating dazzling blue light.

Hu Yan waved his hand, and the Painting of the Cold Nether Mountains and Rivers turned into a streak of blue light that shot out and landed in the center of the formation with a flash.

Hum!

On the blue scroll, a brilliant blue glow immediately arose, thread-like, like clouds and mist. An intense cold aura burst forth from it, causing the surrounding air temperature to plummet.

In an instant, within a radius of several dozen li, the sea surface froze completely. Patches of snowflakes appeared in midair, drifting down with the wind, as if the entire world had suddenly plunged into extreme cold.

Han Li gave a slight shudder but quickly recovered.

Although this cold aura was formidable, it was not enough to harm him.

The Painting of the Cold Nether Mountains and Rivers hovered in the center of the formation, and the blue formation also blazed with light, humming as it activated.

The two resonated with each other, their emitted blue light intertwining in midair, flickering on and off as if sensing something.

Seeing this, Han Li's eyes showed a hint of curiosity, but since Hu Yan looked serious, he did not disturb him.

As for Yun Ni, he was not familiar with her, so naturally he did not ask her either.

After a moment, Hu Yan stopped his hand seals. Then he waved his sleeve, and with a whoosh, the entire phantom of the blue formation dispersed, turning into specks of blue crystal light that faded away with the wind.

The glow from the Painting of the Cold Nether Mountains and Rivers also dimmed, and it fell into his hand.

Almost at the same time, the intense cold aura that filled the surroundings also dissipated completely, though the frozen sea surface remained unchanged.

"How is it?" Yun Ni asked.

"From the current signs, it will emerge in about three or four years," Hu Yan said after a brief deliberation.

Hearing this, Han Li's gaze fell on the blue scroll in his hand. This painting seemed to be more than just a key to the entrance.

"And the exact location? Have you detected it?" Yun Ni asked again.

"I can't sense the exact location here; it seems too far away. Fortunately, there's still time. Let's determine a few spots based on the map and try again," Hu Yan shook his head.

"We'll have to do that," Yun Ni nodded.

"Fellow Daoist Li, there's still some time. What are your plans? Will you come with us, or make your own preparations?" Hu Yan turned to Han Li and asked.

"My cultivation is inferior to yours, seniors. Since I'm to enter the immortal mansion with you, it's better for me to go back and prepare. I won't accompany you to locate the site," Han Li said after some thought.

"Very well. The immortal mansion is fraught with danger. Your cultivation is somewhat weaker, so you indeed need to prepare more," Hu Yan nodded.

He took out a palm-sized dark red formation plate and handed it to Han Li, saying, "First find a safe place. If anything happens, use this Beacon Fire Plate to contact us."

Han Li took the formation plate, saw a flame pattern engraved on it, nodded, and put it away.

Hu Yan then gave a few more instructions, telling Han Li to be careful not to be discovered by the Immortal Palace, and soon left with Yun Ni.

Han Li stood on the sea surface for a moment, then with a flash of green light, he turned and shot off in a direction.

Half a month later.

Near Wumeng Island, a green light flickered in the void, and a figure emerged—it was Han Li.

He glanced at Wumeng Island; the island was covered with the glow of restrictive spells, still in seclusion with its gates closed.

Han Li nodded, withdrew his gaze, and flew off into the distance.

On the sea surface not far from Wumeng Island, a huge vortex rumbled and turned, emitting a thunderous roar. Water vapor from the vast sea within tens of thousands of li surged in, all absorbed by the vortex.

Seeing this, Han Li's form flickered and he flew directly into the sea, soon landing on the seabed.

Within the blue restrictions, the Earthly Incarnation sat cross-legged with eyes closed, a blue crystal thread above its head slowly rotating in the direction of the vortex.

The surrounding seawater churned violently, constantly converging, all being driven by the technique to rapidly transform into drops of heavy water.

At this moment, between the incarnation's hands, a mass of black heavy water the size of a human head was spinning.

At first glance, this mass of black heavy water seemed unremarkable, but Han Li could clearly sense its difference and uniqueness.

This was second-layer heavy water, with a degree of condensation far surpassing first-layer heavy water!

With a fluctuation of green light, Han Li turned into a green shadow and flew into the blue restrictions, sitting down cross-legged.

With only three or four years left, he couldn't be bothered to find another place to seclude himself, so he simply returned to Wumeng Island.

He waved his hand, and the mass of second-layer heavy water in the incarnation's hand flew out and landed before him.

The weight of this second-layer heavy water far exceeded that of first-layer heavy water; this small mass was almost equivalent to a mountain peak several hundred zhang high.

Han Li closed his eyes and released his divine sense to scan. He felt dense water spiritual power radiating from the second-layer heavy water in a vast and mighty manner, giving him the illusion that he was facing a great lake.

He opened his eyes, a hint of satisfaction in them. The second-layer heavy water was indeed marvelous.

Han Li squinted, and a thought arose in his mind: to condense all the first-layer heavy water into second-layer heavy water.

But then he shook his head.

Time was not abundant now; he would condense as much as he could. After the matter of the immortal mansion was settled, he would consider other things.

Han Li waved his hand, sending the heavy water back to the Earthly Incarnation, and stopped paying attention to that side. A contemplative look appeared in his eyes.

With only about three years until the immortal mansion opened, cultivating any technique would be rushed. To quickly improve his strength and enhance his ability to protect himself, he would probably have to put more effort into spiritual treasures and immortal artifacts.

Immortal artifacts like the Seven Luminaries Ring, which he had seized, were not personally refined by him, so re-refining them would not be easy. Apart from that, there seemed to be only the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords and the Heavy Water True Wheel.

With this thought, Han Li raised a hand, and streaks of green light flew from his sleeve. With a flash of green light, they transformed into seventy-two small green swords, with thin golden arcs of lightning缠绕 around their blades.

All the flying swords circled around his body, dancing—these were the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords.

A vast and sharp aura emanated from the seventy-two flying swords, causing the surrounding seawater to ripple and tremble.

This set of flying swords had suffered some damage during the battle with that yin demon monster, but fortunately, after absorbing hundreds of sword essences through Xiong Shan's Thousand Edge Sword Formation, they were far from what they used to be. After several days of constant warming and nourishment within his body, they had basically recovered.

He moved his hand again, and a black circular wheel flew out from his body, hovering beside him with a flicker.

Rings of dazzling black water light spread from it—this was the Heavy Water True Wheel.

Han Li's gaze shifted back and forth between the two treasures, but after a moment, he settled on the Heavy Water True Wheel and waved his hand to put away the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords.

Although the Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords were his natal treasures, increasing their power under the current circumstances was not easy. Blindly attempting to do so might bring more loss than gain.

As for the Heavy Water True Wheel, it was different. This item was originally a pseudo-immortal artifact he had condensed through his technique, with plenty of room for improvement. Even if he failed, the loss would be within his acceptable range.

After making up his mind, Han Li took a deep breath, formed hand seals, and pointed.

"Whoosh!"

The Heavy Water True Wheel spun rapidly, its water dao patterns blazing with light, emitting rings of blue ripples.

Han Li's eyes flickered, and a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Over the years, as his cultivation improved and through his use of the Heavy Water True Wheel in battle, he had gained a deeper understanding. Enhancing its power was not very difficult, and he had even considered several times re-refining it.

He took out a jade slip, which contained the method for refining the pseudo-true wheel.

He pressed the jade slip to his forehead and sat quietly with eyes closed.

After a full three days, he opened his eyes, stood up, took out some materials, and began carving on the ground.

After a day and a night, an extremely complex formation appeared on the ground.

This formation contained eight circular patterns, emitting waves of blue light.

Han Li sat down in the center of the formation, and the Earthly Incarnation, which had stopped condensing heavy water, sat opposite him.

Han Li formed hand seals and simultaneously spat out a ball of green infant fire from his mouth.

At almost the same time, the Earthly Incarnation also spat out a ball of blue flame, which merged with the green infant fire.

Sizzle!

The two flames merged into a fireball several feet in size, interwoven with green and blue, enveloping the Heavy Water True Wheel and fiercely burning it.

All the runic restrictions on the Heavy Water True Wheel lit up, emitting a series of trembling sounds.