Chapter 599: The Fifth Decline

Somewhere in the True Immortal Realm.

Within a certain golden space, a silver-white palace hung in midair. On a high platform inside the hall, four or five figures sat in a circle, conversing with one another.

These figures were all enveloped in various colored spiritual lights, obscuring most of their true appearances.

“Fellow Daoist Xiong, you’ve been in our Immortal Prison for some time now. Are you adapting well?” a person shrouded in white light asked the one beside him.

The one being questioned was covered in a layer of golden light, his features blurred, but one could vaguely make out a young man.

“Everything is fine,” the golden-light figure said with a smile.

“Our two families have been friends for generations. You just broke through to the late Golden Immortal stage a few days ago. If you need time to consolidate your cultivation and it’s inconvenient to carry out missions, feel free to speak up. I can report to the higher-ups and adjust your schedule,” the white-light figure said, patting his chest.

“Thank you, Fellow Daoist Xuan. My realm is already stable; no special arrangements are needed,” the golden-light figure replied.

“Fellow Daoist Xiong truly lives up to his reputation as a genius sword cultivator. When you first entered the Immortal Prison, you single-handedly slew a轮回殿 Golden Immortal mid-stage rebel with your early Golden Immortal strength. Now your cultivation advances rapidly, and it’s only a matter of time before you achieve great merit again,” another figure enveloped in red light remarked.

“Fellow Daoist Di flatters me. That was merely a stroke of luck. By the way, we rarely gather like this today. Why is Fellow Daoist Gongshu not here?” the golden-light figure said modestly, as if unwilling to continue discussing himself, and changed the subject.

“Gongshu Tian’s clan brother fell in the Northern Cold Immortal Domain a few years ago. He has always wanted to track down the murderer, but the higher-ups have never permitted it. He has been nursing his grievance. A few days ago, the Celestial Mirror sensed someone who had achieved the fourth level of the Divine Refinement Art in the desolate border region between the Northern Cold Immortal Domain and the Black Soil Immortal Domain. Gongshu Tian volunteered to investigate,” the red-light figure said slowly.

“When did this happen? I haven’t heard a thing. The first three levels of the Divine Refinement Art are one thing, but to master the fourth level—it seems the Reincarnation Hall never rests,” the white-light figure said gravely.

“It was just recently. You were all out on missions, and I was the only one here. The Reincarnation Hall, heh, when have they ever rested?” the red-light figure chuckled.

“The situation in the desolate border region is complex. Those desolate tribes are extremely hostile to us cultivators, especially those from the Heavenly Court, whom they regard as mortal enemies. Entering to investigate will likely be difficult,” the golden-light figure said, his eyes flickering as he spoke slowly.

“Who says otherwise? Gongshu Tian’s trip will probably be in vain,” the red-light figure shook his head, looking dismissive.

The golden-light figure’s eyes flickered, as if pondering something.

…

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, over half a year had gone by.

Above a desolate stretch of wilderness, a streak of green light shot across the sky, vanishing in an instant, leaving only a faint green trail behind.

Within the green light was a green flying carriage.

Han Li sat cross-legged on the carriage, surrounded by flickering golden light, quietly cultivating. In front of him was a mass of white clouds.

After an unknown period, the golden light around him slowly dissipated, revealing his form. He slowly opened his eyes, his gaze flickering a few times.

After over half a year of arduous cultivation, his injuries had fully healed, and the divine sense power in his sea of consciousness had completely recovered.

He looked toward the white cloud mass ahead. Within the cloud, the golden sphere flickered with light, but Gold Devouring still showed no signs of emerging.

Han Li frowned slightly, then relaxed his brow.

This time, Gold Devouring had devoured that late-Taiyi Devouring Immortal, so its slumber would likely be much longer than before. With the map provided by that Great Luo from the Celestial Fox Clan, the journey had been relatively safe so far, so there was no need to rush.

He shifted his gaze to the side, looking at Mo Guang and the Pixiu.

The Pixiu lay curled up in a corner of the carriage, its body flickering with white light, as if dozing.

Mo Guang was sitting cross-legged, faint black light emanating from his body, holding the black spirit beast pouch in his arms.

Streams of black baleful qi continuously surged out of the pouch and into his body.

“Eh!” Han Li let out a soft exclamation as he looked at the black light.

Although Mo Guang was currently cultivating by absorbing baleful qi, the baleful qi fluctuations emanating from his body were very weak, even weaker than Han Li’s own.

Having now possessed the shell of a high-level Gray Immortal, he was, in a sense, almost indistinguishable from an ordinary Gray Immortal. In terms of baleful qi density, he should far surpass Han Li.

“Fellow Daoist Han, what’s wrong?” Mo Guang seemed to sense Han Li’s gaze, stopped cultivating, and opened his eyes.

“Why are the baleful qi fluctuations on your body so weak? Have you used some secret technique to conceal your aura?” Han Li glanced at Mo Guang’s eyes and noticed that they were not gray like those of a Gray Immortal, but rather a black color close to that of an ordinary human. If one didn’t look carefully, they would likely not notice.

He had originally been thinking about how to conceal Mo Guang’s dense baleful qi so as to bring him into the Black Mountain Immortal Domain. Now it seemed he didn’t need to worry about that issue.

“Fellow Daoist Han, you are mistaken. I was only cultivating normally and did not use any aura-concealing secret technique…” Mo Guang was slightly startled and said so.

As soon as he finished speaking, he too noticed the weak baleful qi on his body and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"How could this be?" Moguang murmured, seeming equally bewildered.

"If you haven't done anything, then how do you appear no different from an ordinary person?" Han Li asked.

"Strange, now that I am in this immortal realm, I feel no discomfort at all, though when I first left that abyss of baleful qi, it was not pleasant. It all seems to stem from a strange vortex in my dantian, born from the elixir you gave me earlier." Moguang closed his eyes and said with some surprise after a moment.

"Are you referring to the Void Yuan Pill? Does it have the effect of restraining baleful qi?" Han Li's eyes flickered as he pressed further.

"Indeed, this vortex can suppress the baleful qi. Come to think of it, I took this pill some time ago, but I hadn't noticed this effect before," Moguang said.

"The Void Yuan Pill..." Han Li's gaze shifted, thoughts churning in his mind.

"This pill is quite special. However, I can sense that the vortex formed by the pill's power is not permanent; it is dissipating bit by bit, and will likely last only a few years... at most a dozen or so," Moguang said, sensing his internal condition again.

Han Li's expression shifted slightly as he slowly nodded.

He had previously thought the Void Yuan Pill's purpose was to awaken the Gray Immortal's soul, but now, perceiving Moguang's condition, the true effect of this pill was likely to allow Gray Immortals to adapt to the spiritual energy of the True Immortal Realm and suppress the baleful qi within them, thereby achieving revival.

If he were to enter other immortal domains with Moguang, this pill seemed indispensable.

Fortunately, he had obtained a large amount of the main ingredient, Black Marrow Crystal, from the storage artifact of that Gray Immortal's corpse. Although he lacked other materials, those were not too precious and could be purchased in the Reincarnation Hall.

Han Li flipped his hand and took out the Reincarnation Hall mask, opened the trading interface, and posted a bounty for the other materials.

After doing this, he took out a piece of Black Marrow Crystal and examined it closely.

Within the Black Marrow Crystal, wisps of black qi swirled—baleful qi refined to the utmost purity.

The quality of these Black Marrow Crystals was much better than those Jiao San had given him before. To refine pills while maintaining balance, he would need to adjust some steps if using this material to concoct the Void Yuan Pill.

As Han Li was pondering these matters, at that moment, the baleful qi in his immortal apertures suddenly stirred, rolling violently beyond control.

His body trembled, and streams of black qi as thick as ink shot out from him, spreading rapidly in all directions, filling the area for dozens of zhang in an instant and engulfing the others on the flying carriage.

These black qi emitted a towering baleful aura. Han Li's eyes glowed with streaks of blood-red light, and he seemed to transform instantly into a fearsome baleful god.

"Fellow Daoist Han, you..." Moguang's expression changed at the sight, and he cried out in shock.

Both the Pixiu and the Crab Daoist also noticed Han Li's situation and were startled.

The green flying chariot flashed with light and came to an abrupt halt in midair.

“Wait here, don’t follow me,” Han Li suddenly stood up, said to the others, then shot out of the chariot and descended downward.

Below lay a continuous mountain range, lush with greenery and rich in spiritual qi.

Between two peaks was a massive canyon, with a river flowing slowly along its bottom.

Many demon beasts dwelled in the mountains, but sensing the terrifying aura emanating from Han Li, they immediately scattered and fled, vanishing in an instant.

Han Li flew straight into the canyon and, without a word, swung his fist in a punch.

With a thunderous roar, a cave was blasted into the mountain wall ahead.

He flew inside, hastily set up a barrier around himself, and sat down cross-legged.

His entire body blazed with golden light, enveloping his form, but the black baleful qi continued to surge out of him unceasingly, growing denser.

On the flying chariot.

“What’s wrong with Master?” the Pixiu asked in astonishment.

“Judging by this, it’s the last of the five declines of heavenly beings—the decline of baleful qi has descended,” Moguang said slowly.

The Crab Daoist glanced at Moguang and waved his hand, casting a spell seal.

The flying chariot descended toward the mountain range and stopped in the canyon at a considerable distance from Han Li.

“Master only just reached the peak of Golden Immortal—how could the decline of baleful qi come so soon!” the Pixiu said with a grim expression.

“Fellow Daoist Han used baleful qi to break through his immortal apertures; the baleful qi within him was already extremely dense, so it’s only natural that it triggered the decline so quickly,” Moguang said, a faint gray light flickering in his eyes.

“The decline of baleful qi is extremely severe—it’s the most difficult step before achieving Taiyi Jade Immortal. While following Gongsun Yu, I saw countless people prepare for years yet still fail, eventually being devoured by baleful qi, driven mad, and dying. Master has only just reached the peak of Golden Immortal; he probably hasn’t made any preparations at all. This tribulation…” the Pixiu sighed.

Moguang’s eyes glittered with sharp light as he pondered something unknown.

The Crab Daoist silently watched the distant cave, his expression as wooden as ever.