Chapter 445: Endless Sand Sea

Han Li wanted to see just how tough this gray cloth was, so he increased his strength again, but even after exerting his full power, he still couldn't tear it.

He turned the cloth over in his hands, his eyes full of curiosity.

After a moment's thought, he flicked his finger, and a ball of crimson flame shot out, enveloping the gray cloth.

The flame blazed fiercely, radiating scorching heat, but the gray cloth remained completely unchanged.

Han Li waved his hand to disperse the flame, then sent out a stream of watery light that enveloped the cloth.

Threads of blue light emerged from the water, wrapping around the gray cloth.

Still, the gray cloth showed no change.

Han Li frowned slightly, spread his five fingers, and five golden lightning bolts appeared, covering the gray cloth...

Half an hour later, Han Li looked at the gray cloth in his hand with a helpless expression.

During this time, he had tried almost every method he could think of; even a stone would have yielded oil.

But the gray cloth was impervious to everything, showing no reaction at all.

"If Xiong Shan was unwilling to trade it even at the cost of his entire fortune, there must be something special about it. Forget it, I'll study it slowly when I have the chance." Han Li smiled wryly and put the gray cloth away.

Just then, the green light sphere around Lu Yuqing flickered a few times, then disintegrated into clusters of bright green light that merged into her body.

The woman opened her eyes, her complexion mostly restored.

"Brother Han, sorry to keep you waiting." She stood up and said to Han Li.

"No matter. Take a look and see if you can determine the approximate location of this area." Han Li waved his hand, glanced at the black stones all around, then looked up at the dark yellow sky and said.

"As far as I know, the terrain within the Nethercold Domain is complex and varied, and there is more than one such Gobi region. Based solely on what we see now, I cannot determine where this is." Lu Yuqing shook her head and said.

"Then let's look around first. Although this place is desolate, we shouldn't underestimate it." Han Li said, then waved his hand to summon the Green Kylin Flying Boat and stepped into it.

Lu Yuqing naturally had no objection and leaped into the flying boat.

Han Li cast a spell with one hand, and the surface of the flying boat glowed with green light as it shot off in a certain direction.

Like the Blizzard Icefield they had passed earlier, this area also had an invisible force that limited the spread of divine sense. Even with Han Li's powerful divine sense, he could only extend it a few hundred li, so the flying boat's speed was not very fast.

After a moment, Han Li raised an eyebrow slightly, looking in a certain direction ahead, and the Green Kylin Flying Boat under his feet paused slightly.

"Brother Han, have you found something?" Lu Yuqing asked.

"I did find something, but nothing very valuable. Forget it, let's go take a look." Han Li nodded, and the flying boat deviated slightly from its course, heading left and forward. Soon it flew over three hundred li and stopped.

The two floated down from the flying boat and landed on the ground.

On the ground below grew a large patch of purple-black mushrooms, each about a zhang tall, covered with deep purple circular patterns, and the edges were bright red, looking extremely gorgeous.

This mushroom patch covered a large area, about a mu in size, like a sea of colorful flowers growing in this desolate Gobi, very striking.

"These are Cloud Mushrooms!" Lu Yuqing's eyes lit up.

"Can you determine our location from these Poisonous Cloud Mushrooms?" Han Li's gaze flickered as he asked.

He had also read records about Cloud Mushrooms. They contained potent poison and could be used to refine certain poisons or poison-attributed treasures, but their toxicity was limited, effective only against cultivators below the True Immortal realm. After True Immortals reshaped their immortal bodies, these mushrooms were basically ineffective.

"Yes." Lu Yuqing said excitedly.

As she spoke, she flipped her hand and took out a green jade slip, then waved her hand to send a beam of green light into it.

Strands of green light emanated from the jade slip, condensing into a green light wall.

On the light wall was a map, pieced together from more than a dozen parts of different colors. It didn't look complete, seeming to be only about half of the full map.

"Is this the map of the Nethercold Domain that your Black Wind Island collected?" Han Li studied the map for a moment and asked.

"That's right. According to the intelligence gathered by Black Wind Island, the Nethercold Domain consists of nearly a hundred regions with different climates and environments. Unfortunately, I only obtained maps of about a dozen of these regions." Lu Yuqing nodded and said.

Han Li nodded thoughtfully, his eyes scanning the light wall back and forth.

This map was very detailed, with the environments of various regions vividly depicted, allowing one to roughly judge the specific conditions of those places just from the map.

However, there were no maps of the Blizzard Icefield, the Pitch-Black Mountain Range, or the Black Sea they had just passed through.

"I don't know the locations of the three regions we passed through earlier; otherwise, we wouldn't have been so passive before." Lu Yuqing seemed to read Han Li's doubt and said.

"So where are we now?" Han Li asked again.

Only now did he have a rough impression of the Nethercold Domain.

"Here. This black Gobi region is called the Blackrock Gobi. According to the information we gathered, although there are three or four Gobi regions in the Nethercold Domain, only this Blackrock Gobi has many Cloud Mushrooms growing. We should be here." Lu Yuqing pointed again, indicating a black area near the top.

"It's good to know our location. Wandering aimlessly in this Nethercold Immortal Palace is too dangerous." Han Li nodded.

"Speaking of which, the Blackrock Gobi is one of the safer regions among these dozen or so. There are neither the cold beasts we encountered earlier nor large-scale dangers like storm cold currents." Lu Yuqing said.

"Then we're lucky not to have been teleported directly into a dangerous area." Han Li said noncommittally.

"Brother Han is right; our luck is indeed very good." Lu Yuqing said with a meaningful giggle.

"Oh? What does Miss Lu mean by that?" Han Li raised an eyebrow and asked.

"Brother Han, do you see this place?" Lu Yuqing pointed again to the area above the black Gobi region, a large yellow area at the edge of the map.

"Is there something special about this place?" Han Li glanced at it and asked.

"That is a desert region; we call it the Endless Sand Sea. It is said to be the northernmost limit of the Nethercold Domain." Lu Yuqing said.

"So what? Does the Endless Sand Sea contain some great treasure?" Han Li asked curiously.

"I'm not sure if there are treasures there, but Brother Han, you already know that besides the Nethercold Domain, the Nethercold Immortal Mansion contains other unexplored domains. And the passage from the Nethercold Domain to those other domains is said to be in the Endless Sand Sea." Lu Yuqing shook her head and spoke eloquently.

"Is that true?" Han Li's heart stirred upon hearing this.

"Of course it's true. In fact, the various regions of the Nethercold Domain have been largely explored by cultivators who entered the Immortal Mansion over the years. I originally intended to visit other domains, but I couldn't find the location of the Endless Sand Sea. Unexpectedly, our teleportation went awry and brought us near here. Isn't our luck good?" Lu Yuqing said excitedly.

"Indeed, it is. Then let's not delay; let's set off now." Han Li's eyes flickered as he turned and flew back into the Green Kylin Flying Boat.

Having already obtained so many treasures in the thoroughly scoured Nethercold Domain, he wondered how many treasures and opportunities lay in other unexplored domains.

Lu Yuqing also put away the green jade slip and flew back into the Green Kylin Flying Boat.

Han Li sent out a beam of green light, and the Green Kylin Flying Boat shone brightly. Two rows of green spiritual feathers appeared on its sides, and it flew forward.

Three days later.

A vast yellow sand sea appeared before Han Li and the others.

The sand grains in the sea were pale yellow, crystal clear, refracting the sunlight from the sky, giving a dazzling sensation.

At the same time, waves of heat rushed toward them, making their mouths and tongues dry. This sand sea was like a furnace.

"Is this the place?" Han Li looked around and asked.

"Yes, this is the Endless Sand Sea." Lu Yuqing looked at the sand sea ahead, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"The Endless Sand Sea doesn't seem like a friendly place. Miss Lu, do you know what dangers lie within?" Han Li did not rashly enter; instead, he studied the sand sea ahead and asked.

"Brother Han has sharp eyes. There are indeed many dangers here. This desert is filled with fire poison. Once you step inside, you will gradually be poisoned, and even Golden Immortal cultivators cannot escape it." Lu Yuqing smiled slightly and said.

"Fire poison? I assume it's not ordinary fire poison." Han Li frowned slightly.

"Indeed. Ordinary pills cannot neutralize it. Only by finding a water spirit land within the desert and using its special water spirit energy can one gradually counteract the fire poison. If you cannot find a water spirit land in time and the fire poison becomes too deep, even Golden Immortal cultivators may fall." Lu Yuqing said gravely.

"What else is there?" Han Li asked again.

"Besides the fire poison, it is said that mirage illusions occasionally occur in the desert, extremely powerful, causing people to lose their way and be unable to leave. Because of these two great dangers—fire poison and illusions—this Endless Sand Sea has a fearsome reputation. Few cultivators who entered the Nethercold Immortal Mansion in the past dared to set foot here." Lu Yuqing continued.

"So this is indeed a deadly perilous place. Is the passage to other domains somewhere in this Endless Sand Sea?" Han Li nodded, then asked.

"The passage is deep within the Endless Sand Sea. But Brother Han, don't worry. I have a map of the Endless Sand Sea. As long as we are careful and follow the map, finding the passage won't be difficult." Lu Yuqing took out a jade slip and handed it over.