Chapter 541: Treasure Hunting

Not long after the jade flying carriage took off, spiritual patterns flickered on its body, and clusters of white mist emerged, quickly forming a white cloud that enveloped the carriage.

These white clouds were not ordinary clouds; after enveloping the carriage, they completely屏蔽 the spiritual power fluctuations emitted by the carriage.

From the outside, the carriage looked like an ordinary white cloud, swiftly穿梭 through the primeval forest, silent and without any leakage of spiritual power.

Han Li saw this and nodded with a hint of satisfaction.

This jade flying carriage was indeed worthy of being an item of Gongshu Jiu, a Taiyi Jade Immortal; it had endless marvelous uses. He had been studying it for some time but still hadn't fully comprehended it.

In the following time, he操控 the carriage forward while spreading his divine sense to探查 the surroundings, hoping to quickly确认 his location.

After flying for half a day, Han Li's face lit up with joy, and he操控 the carriage toward the left front.

Moments later, a vast marsh emerged.

The ground in the marsh was eerily black, and the vegetation and water plants were also entirely black, emitting a strange rotting smell.

This marsh should be the Black Mud Marsh recorded on the map, still far from the route given by Jiao San.

But that didn't matter; since he had found the correct location, he could just fly straight there.

Thinking this, Han Li waved his hand and cast a spell. The jade flying carriage shone brightly and sped forward rapidly.

"Uncle, this marsh looks very special; there should be many good things in it. Aren't you going to take a look?" Jin Tong suddenly asked.

"The Black Mud Marsh is already marked on the map. I'm afraid many treasure-hunting cultivators have been here. There's no need to waste time here. There will be plenty of places worth exploring later," Han Li shook his head and said.

"That makes sense. Then let's hurry up and go!" Jin Tong nodded and said, rubbing his hands together eagerly.

"Pixiu, since you claim to be good at finding heavenly materials and earthly treasures, show your skills in this wilderness. You'll get thirty percent of the treasures found," Han Li said, looking at the Pixiu, which had been lying down.

"Really?" The Pixiu's body trembled, and it suddenly stood up, saying.

"Of course," Han Li said with a smile.

"Good, it's a deal." The Pixiu bared its teeth, its eyes sparkling with excitement.

"No way, Uncle, I want a share too!" Jin Tong called out discontentedly.

"You'll also get a share of the treasures found, but you can't be lazy; you have to help find them too," Han Li laughed.

Only then did Jin Tong beam with joy.

Five days later, an endless mountain range appeared before Han Li and the others.

The mountains here were not particularly high or remarkable, but the peaks were filled with thick white mist, like an endless sea of fog, making it hard to see the true form of the mountains, full of mystery.

"Finally here." Han Li looked at the misty mountain range below and let out a light sigh.

This mountain range was exactly one of the locations on the route given by Jiao San.

Although the route Jiao San gave him might not be truly safe, he had no other choice but to follow it.

...

"Master, this mountain range is rich in water spiritual energy. I've already sensed many spiritual materials. Shall we start treasure hunting?" The Pixiu sniffed vigorously and said.

"Alright, let's start here." Han Li nodded, pinched a spell, and waved his hand.

The white clouds around the jade flying carriage rolled slightly, and it flew into the mountain range.

Relying on the cloud禁制 around the carriage, they had not been attacked by the local beasts during the past few days of travel. They had now flown quite deep into the wilderness.

At first, Han Li occasionally encountered one or two treasure-hunting cultivators, but in the last two days, as they delved deeper into the wilderness, they saw no one.

Now that they were here, there was no need to rush.

The jade flying carriage flew into the mountains, merging into the endless sea of mist, becoming even more concealed.

"About three thousand miles directly ahead, there is a spiritual herb, probably over a hundred thousand years old." The Pixiu stared downward, sniffing constantly, and said.

Han Li pinched a spell to urge the carriage forward, flying toward the direction the Pixiu indicated, and soon landed in a depression within a mountain stream.

In a hidden spot in the depression grew a dark red spiritual herb, carved like red jade, with a peculiar shape resembling a deer antler.

Pure and intense spiritual energy emanated from the green herb. Jin Tong sniffed, and golden light gleamed in his eyes.

"Deer Antler Grass." Han Li raised an eyebrow.

This herb had miraculous healing effects and could be used to refine healing pills for True Immortals and above, so demand was high, and a hundred-thousand-year-old one was naturally even more precious.

"Roar!"

A low growl rang out from a nearby mountain stream. A gust of foul wind arose, and a massive green python dozens of zhang long shot out, its eyes flashing with a fierce light as it lunged straight at Han Li.

The python's aura was immense, unmistakably that of a True Immortal-level凶物.

Han Li did not move. With a wave of his hand, a green flying sword shot out like lightning, slicing across the python's body.

With a "puchi" sound, the python's head and body separated, each crashing heavily to the ground. The severed torso thrashed violently, and blood gushed like a waterfall from the stump.

Paying no further heed to the python, Han Li carefully uprooted the deer antler grass, roots and all, stored it away, and continued on his way.

The Pixiu sensed spiritual objects in the vicinity. After a little over half an hour, it spoke again: "Two thousand five hundred li directly ahead, there is the aura of a precious spiritual material underground."

Han Li quickly arrived at the location the Pixiu had indicated and cast a spell to burrow underground.

Before long, he emerged from the ground, holding a fist-sized blue ore in his hand. Blue light flickered within it, and the faint sound of surging waves could be heard, as if a great river were contained inside the ore.

A hint of joy flashed in Han Li's eyes. This object was called Thousand-Layer Mystic Water Crystal, a top-grade material for refining water-attribute immortal artifacts, and was quite valuable.

…

In the blink of an eye, Han Li and his group had been in this mountain range for over half a month.

The Pixiu's treasure-seeking ability had not been exaggerated in the slightest. During this time, they had made bountiful gains, finding nearly a hundred various spiritual materials and herbs.

The mountain range was vast, and because they had to search for treasures, their progress was greatly slowed. They had only just reached the middle of the range.

"Master, there is the aura of spiritual herbs three thousand five hundred li ahead... Eh, there are quite a few, it seems like twenty or thirty!" On the flying carriage, the Pixiu straightened up slightly and said with some surprise.

Hearing this, Han Li's eyes lit up, and he urged the flying carriage forward with increased speed.

A few breaths later, he landed in a mountain basin.

In the center of the basin was a flat expanse of pale purple soil. Twenty or thirty purple spiritual herbs grew there, each radiating dense spiritual energy. They bore deep purple flowers, emitting a rich fragrance.

"Purple Nether Grass!" Han Li was both surprised and delighted at the sight of these purple herbs.

This Purple Nether Grass was another main ingredient in the Tianhua Pill formula. He had never expected to encounter it here, and in such abundance—twenty or thirty plants.

He waved his hand, sending out a green light to collect the Purple Nether Grass.

At that moment, a dense burst of sharp whistling sounded. Countless thin blue beams shot out from around the basin, raining down on Han Li.

These blue beams were terrifyingly powerful, causing the void to tremble as they passed, comparable to the means of an ordinary Golden Immortal.

Han Li was startled. When he had landed, he had scanned the surroundings with his divine sense and detected no one hiding there.

Though surprised, he did not hesitate. He was about to cast a spell to defend himself.

"Uncle, let me!" It was the Golden Boy on the flying carriage. He shot forward and waved his slender fingers.

Countless golden crystalline beams shot out, intertwining to form a huge golden lotus that spun rapidly, blocking the path of the blue beams.

The blue beams struck the golden lotus, producing crackling explosions.

The golden lotus was extremely resilient. It merely trembled lightly and easily blocked all the blue beams.

Han Li glanced at it, then withdrew his gaze and changed his hand seals.

The green light from his hand transformed into a giant green palm that enveloped the purple herbs. With a gentle scoop, he dug them up along with the purple soil beneath and stored them away.

He urged the flying carriage to move beside the Golden Boy and looked ahead, letting out a soft exclamation.

His attackers had now revealed themselves. They were four or five strange, ape-like creatures, each seven or eight zhang tall, covered in long blue fur.

These creatures shimmered with blue light, exuding a powerful aura equivalent to that of True Immortals. The tallest among them, covered in blue fur, actually possessed the strength of a Golden Immortal.

The creatures made gurgling sounds, as if chanting incantations. Blue light flickered on their bodies, forming a blue light mass before them, from which thin blue beams shot out.

Seeing Han Li collect the Purple Nether Grass, the blue-furred creatures showed great anger. The blue light mass before them brightened sharply, and the thin blue beams they emitted doubled in number.

At the same time, the leading creature opened its mouth wide and spat out a dazzling blue light, which transformed into a hundred-zhang-long giant blue blade that slashed down at Han Li and the Golden Boy.

The Golden Boy snorted and changed his hand seals.

The golden lotus spun rapidly. With a "shishi" sharp whistle, countless golden crystalline beams shot out from the stamen, like countless golden needles, colliding with the thin blue beams formed from fur, producing countless light clusters of various sizes in midair.

The golden crystalline beams were extremely dense and sharp, easily holding back the countless thin blue beams and pressing forward rapidly.

The golden crystalline beams also collided with the giant blue blade. The blue blade trembled violently, was pierced with countless small holes, and then shattered with a bang.

Countless golden crystalline beams instantly counterattacked, enveloping the blue-furred creatures in an instant.

The blue-furred creatures let out miserable screams, and then the blue light on their bodies flared up sharply.

With several loud bangs, the creatures' bodies exploded, transforming into several streams of flowing blue light that, with a flicker, all burrowed into the ground.

Once underground, the creatures' auras instantly merged with the water veins beneath, becoming almost completely undetectable, impossible to sense at all.